I realize that my mind should be at Bethpage Black and I should be telling you who is going to win this week’s U.S. Open and why. Sorry, but I can’t get there. My mind is divided right now and one place it isn’t is Bethpage Black.
You see my mind is in a hospital room in Jackson, Miss., and a home in San Diego and my heart is split between the two.
You’ve probably read, or heard about the tragic car accident that befell golfer Ken Green. His RV plunged off the side of a highway in Mississippi following a front tire blowout and plunged 20-something feet before crashing into a tree. The crash killed Green’s brother and his girlfriend as well as Ken’s German shepherd, Nip. It also left Green with a right leg so mangled that it had to be amputated. His right orbital bone is so smashed that extensive surgery is required to reconstruct it and there’s a deep gash on the side of his head that is described as “troublesome.”
His medical charts alone are enough to sicken you. It’s what is not written that is the real tragedy.
You see, Ken Green isn’t your typical 50-year old professional golfer who glided with seamless effort from the PGA Tour to the Champions Tour. Ken Green’s trip to the Champions Tour was through a mine field where demons grabbed for a piece of his very being every step of the way. He was in the abyss of living hell.
After a painful divorce which left him almost penniless, Green had his first bout with the demon that threatened at times to end his life, clinical depression. When you type it or say it, the phrase seems harmless enough. In truth, it’s a cover up for a demon telling you that “I’m going to make you hate yourself so much that you’ll take your own life.”
There was a day when that demon would usually win. Even with all the tremendous steps that have been made in treating this disease, it’s not a case where if you take a pill it will clear up in a day, or two. Quite often it’s two steps ahead and one step or even more back. It takes determination and it takes love from others.
For years, Green lingered in the morass. He lost his golf game that had earned him five PGA Tour victories. He lost his money and he lost friends. Most of all, he lost his mind. Only through sheer guts and determination coupled from love and assistance from his family and friends like his buddy Mark Calcavecchia did he get through.
His game started to come back as did control of his life. Through a lot of help from Calcavecchia, he was able to gain sponsors exemptions into Champions Tour events. When his RV left the road in Mississippi he had won $123,906 in limited action. He had more sponsor exemptions in his pocket and he was on his way to gaining some playing status for the 2010 season. Some think it was more money than he’d made in the entire last decade. Life was getting better and now this.
He’s said through a spokesperson that he’s going to fight back and play again on the Champions Tour with help of a prosthesis. This is a good sign. He’s going to need that spirit to face what lies ahead for him. He’d better walk the straight white line when he’s back on his feet. The demons have his scent and they’ll be after him. I pray they lose again.
Ironically, back in the mid-80s when Green was at his peak, he was asked what would be a mark of success that would tell him that he’d made it?
“If when I die, at the end of the national news broadcast, they flashed my picture and said, ‘Pro golfer Ken Green died today.’ I think that would be great,” he answered.
You’ve made a lot of national broadcasts, Kenny, and you’re still alive. Let’s keep it that way.
Meanwhile, on the west coast sits, by all accounts, just a great lady. If she wasn’t so humble and down to earth, she might be the target of every catty remark made around golf. She has it all. She’s bright, beautiful, wealthy, has great healthy children and a husband who truly loves her. Yes, one would think, she has everything.
A few weeks ago she received news that she has even more. Amy Mickelson has breast cancer. I don’t know where the shock came from. Unfortunately, I know people and families who have been devastated by this despicable disease, but it wasn’t supposed to happen to her.
To his credit, Phil immediately cut short his playing schedule, taking an “indefinite leave of absence” from the PGA Tour. This came as no surprise because in the 1999 U.S. Open at Pinehurst, he left his cell phone on during play because Amy was due to have a baby at anytime. Phil swore he’d walk off the course immediately if the call came that Amy was in labor. Looking out for her man, Amy didn’t go into labor until the following day, so Phil finished second in a battle with Payne Stewart at Pinehurst.
Phil returned to the Tour last week at Amy’s insistence and he’s in the field at Bethpage some 3,000 miles away. He says the four to five hours he spends between the ropes gives him an opportunity to think about something other than his wife’s disease.
I’m sure that playing is cathartic for Phil, but I wonder what it will be like for him starting Thursday on his first tee. Back in 2002 at Bethpage, the vaunted, tough New York fans adopted him as their hero. It was a different time back then. New York was still recovering from the shock of 9/11. They needed their own hero. Tiger belonged to the world. Phil belonged to New York.
I hope Phil understands that all the pink shirts, hats, visors and pants being worn in what is predicted to be a huge gallery following him isn’t just New York having a bad clothes day. It will be a transference of energy through him to Amy telling them both that New York and the world for that matter is praying for her and to a lesser degree him as well to help see them through what could be difficult days to come.
Some have offered in print that it would be great if Phil could win this week. I have to believe that Phil would gladly give up all wins past and future if Amy could win her battle with cancer.
Bartender, take the rest of the day off. I’m just not in the mood if you know what I mean.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
Showing posts with label PGA Tour. Show all posts
Showing posts with label PGA Tour. Show all posts
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Friday, April 24, 2009
McIlroy says No Thanks to PGA Tour
When a 19-year old young man with a world of game decides he’s going to turn professional, he’s confronted with a myriad of choices. The decisions he’s forced to make could quite possibly be responsible for the success or failure thereof that will follow. Is this a fair burden for a teenager to bear? Probably not. Hey kid, welcome to the real world of professional golf.
In the past week, the PGA Tour offered a special membership to Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy. To the surprise of many, he respectfully declined the offer. In this corner, the belief is that he showed wisdom and maturity beyond his years. Of course, it didn’t hurt that he had the counsel of Tubby Chandler, golf’s super agent in the European theater.
Even though a player such as Mark O’Meara, a close friend of Tiger Woods, has said that McIlroy’s development is ahead of Woods at that age, Rory is staying home. At this stage of his career, it’s a wise move. He should get used to the professional routine on more familiar turf. There is a lot to learn. He has to learn how to travel and what is an effective practice routine as opposed to what is a realistic one. He’s much better off doing this near his support group than trying to get along alone some 4-5,000 miles away from home.
A decade ago, a 19-year old was faced with similar decisions and he choice was to be a world player. On the surface, it appears that Sergio Garcia made the right decision. He’s won seven times on the PGA Tour and eight times on the European Tour with his resume filled in with four more wins on other tours. He’s amassed a fortune in excess of $30 million. Yet, there are those and at times Sergio is among them that feel he has underachieved in some areas.
Garcia’s biggest win was the 2008 Players Championship in a playoff with Paul Goydos. The first thing he said in his acceptance speech was to thank Woods for not being there. Following a much less than stellar Masters this year, Sergio proceeded to blame the course and the setup for his lackluster play. Someone in his entourage wrote an apology that Sergio delivered and if you think this apology to Augusta was heartfelt, then when was the last time you heard Garcia use the word “iconic” when describing a golf course—or an icon for that matter?
I know it’s unfair, but in this day a professional golfer’s resume is judged by the number of majors won and not the body of work.
There is a school of thought that Garcia’s problems stem from the fact that he tried to do too much too early. This led him away from the progression of experience that includes building a mental toughness that deals effectively with adversity. His physical game has developed tremendously. His mental game…maybe not so much. Unfortunately, it’s the latter that can be the difference between winning and losing a major. Just ask Kenny Perry.
This brings us back to the shaggy, curly-haired Irish kid. McIlroy will play in the WGC events and maybe a selected few events around the three majors held in the U.S., but he will be a European Tour member first and foremost until his physical and mental development reaches the point where he can handle it comfortably. Rest assured that he’ll be here and that he’ll be a great performer when he does. It just won’t be right now.
Bartender, I’d love to buy a pint for Mr. McIlroy, but I don’t want to go to jail either, so please pour him a rock shandy (an Irish concoction of lemonade and orange soda). Also, the usual for Senor Garcia, a small wheel of Spanish cheese and a bottle of Spanish red whine.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
In the past week, the PGA Tour offered a special membership to Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy. To the surprise of many, he respectfully declined the offer. In this corner, the belief is that he showed wisdom and maturity beyond his years. Of course, it didn’t hurt that he had the counsel of Tubby Chandler, golf’s super agent in the European theater.
Even though a player such as Mark O’Meara, a close friend of Tiger Woods, has said that McIlroy’s development is ahead of Woods at that age, Rory is staying home. At this stage of his career, it’s a wise move. He should get used to the professional routine on more familiar turf. There is a lot to learn. He has to learn how to travel and what is an effective practice routine as opposed to what is a realistic one. He’s much better off doing this near his support group than trying to get along alone some 4-5,000 miles away from home.
A decade ago, a 19-year old was faced with similar decisions and he choice was to be a world player. On the surface, it appears that Sergio Garcia made the right decision. He’s won seven times on the PGA Tour and eight times on the European Tour with his resume filled in with four more wins on other tours. He’s amassed a fortune in excess of $30 million. Yet, there are those and at times Sergio is among them that feel he has underachieved in some areas.
Garcia’s biggest win was the 2008 Players Championship in a playoff with Paul Goydos. The first thing he said in his acceptance speech was to thank Woods for not being there. Following a much less than stellar Masters this year, Sergio proceeded to blame the course and the setup for his lackluster play. Someone in his entourage wrote an apology that Sergio delivered and if you think this apology to Augusta was heartfelt, then when was the last time you heard Garcia use the word “iconic” when describing a golf course—or an icon for that matter?
I know it’s unfair, but in this day a professional golfer’s resume is judged by the number of majors won and not the body of work.
There is a school of thought that Garcia’s problems stem from the fact that he tried to do too much too early. This led him away from the progression of experience that includes building a mental toughness that deals effectively with adversity. His physical game has developed tremendously. His mental game…maybe not so much. Unfortunately, it’s the latter that can be the difference between winning and losing a major. Just ask Kenny Perry.
This brings us back to the shaggy, curly-haired Irish kid. McIlroy will play in the WGC events and maybe a selected few events around the three majors held in the U.S., but he will be a European Tour member first and foremost until his physical and mental development reaches the point where he can handle it comfortably. Rest assured that he’ll be here and that he’ll be a great performer when he does. It just won’t be right now.
Bartender, I’d love to buy a pint for Mr. McIlroy, but I don’t want to go to jail either, so please pour him a rock shandy (an Irish concoction of lemonade and orange soda). Also, the usual for Senor Garcia, a small wheel of Spanish cheese and a bottle of Spanish red whine.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
Friday, February 27, 2009
The second coming
I freely admit that I’ve started my back nine on this planet, but I’m not old enough to have seen the first coming of the Messiah. However, if you listen to broadcast and read written reports, the second coming has occurred this week.
In case you missed it and I doubt that, Tiger Woods is back.
On Wednesday, The Golf Channel’s Kelly Tilghman yet again displaying her lack of knowledge of golf and golf history proclaimed that Woods’ return was the biggest “in the history of golf.” If she had an iota of an idea of what she was talking about, she may have recalled that in 1953 Ben Hogan returned to tournament golf following a 1952 near-fatal car accident to win the U.S. Open. Woods, on the other hand, is returning from a knee surgery that is performed on athletes every week of the year.
I would call for some perspective here, but that would suggest that the person I was calling to would have a clue about the subject she was speaking. I won’t waste my time.
Perhaps you could say that it’s unfair to pick on Ms. Tilghman because it appears the entire media, broadcast and print, swallowed the Kool-Aid on this one. However, I’ve never been one to avoid taking the easiest shot and in this case as so often happens, she’s a very slow moving target.
The fact is, with few exceptions, the media and moreover the PGA Tour has missed the point. Believe it or not, golf was played since the U.S. Open last year and played at a very high and entertaining level. However, the Tour and the media all but ignored it.
Case in point number one. Padraig Harrington won both the British Open (a successful defense) and the PGA Championship. He heads into the Masters with a chance to win three in a row and be the first to do it since … let’s see … Oh yeah, Tiger Woods. Should Harrington be successful in Augusta, what are his chances of getting the acclaim Woods did? Slim and none and Slim just left town. Trust me on this, any Harrington stories will be balanced by “What happened to Tiger” epics.
Case in point number two. Camillo Villegas wins the last two tournaments of the Fed Ex Cup series. On a Tour often bereft of charisma and star power (except Tiger of course) this Columbian is dropped into the Tour’s lap. With the growing Spanish-speaking population in this country, Villegas could bring a whole new segment of the population to the game and the viewing audience. Does the Tour do anything with this? Not yet. At the Bob Hope event Villegas stuck his hand into a cactus bush and came out with a handful of needles. A comely young lass in the gallery offered her tweezers to Villegas to remove the needles. She wasn’t the only one either. It reminded one of a day when a gallery removed a boulder from you-know-who’s line of fire.
Case in point number three. Remember the Ryder Cup? I thought you might. It was best golf theater in years. It had everything and everyone except whom? That’s right, TW himself. What it had were the players who will mold the future of the PGA Tour. Players like Hunter Mahan, Anthony Kim (who isn’t lacking game or star power either), JB Holmes and Ben Curtis will be on radar screens for a long time to come. Yet, during Woods absence, it seems they never appeared on the Tours’.
Here is something the Tour and the media has to understand—Tiger Woods isn’t going to play forever.
Even at tender age of 32, the phenom has suffered more injuries than most golfers his age. This was his third knee surgery. He started having recurring wrist problems when he was a teenager. There will come a day when enough will become enough and he’ll limp away.
Another thing to consider is who’s to say he’s going to play another 10 years? Sure he’s perhaps the fiercest competitor in all of sports—now. What happens when there are no more mountains to climb, no more records to set? What will light his fire? It just may be hanging out with Elin, Sam and Charlie and who knows how many more children there will be.
I’ve got to believe that golf is only stage one of his career and it’s not forever. What then?
It’s time the Tour and, yes, the media get their collective heads out of their butts and take advantage of the resources that surround them before the Woods ride ends and they’re left looking at each other asking, “now what?”
Bartender, fix me an Alka Seltzer if you will. The sycophantic aura emanating from PGA Tour headquarters and press rooms everywhere has made me nauseous.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
In case you missed it and I doubt that, Tiger Woods is back.
On Wednesday, The Golf Channel’s Kelly Tilghman yet again displaying her lack of knowledge of golf and golf history proclaimed that Woods’ return was the biggest “in the history of golf.” If she had an iota of an idea of what she was talking about, she may have recalled that in 1953 Ben Hogan returned to tournament golf following a 1952 near-fatal car accident to win the U.S. Open. Woods, on the other hand, is returning from a knee surgery that is performed on athletes every week of the year.
I would call for some perspective here, but that would suggest that the person I was calling to would have a clue about the subject she was speaking. I won’t waste my time.
Perhaps you could say that it’s unfair to pick on Ms. Tilghman because it appears the entire media, broadcast and print, swallowed the Kool-Aid on this one. However, I’ve never been one to avoid taking the easiest shot and in this case as so often happens, she’s a very slow moving target.
The fact is, with few exceptions, the media and moreover the PGA Tour has missed the point. Believe it or not, golf was played since the U.S. Open last year and played at a very high and entertaining level. However, the Tour and the media all but ignored it.
Case in point number one. Padraig Harrington won both the British Open (a successful defense) and the PGA Championship. He heads into the Masters with a chance to win three in a row and be the first to do it since … let’s see … Oh yeah, Tiger Woods. Should Harrington be successful in Augusta, what are his chances of getting the acclaim Woods did? Slim and none and Slim just left town. Trust me on this, any Harrington stories will be balanced by “What happened to Tiger” epics.
Case in point number two. Camillo Villegas wins the last two tournaments of the Fed Ex Cup series. On a Tour often bereft of charisma and star power (except Tiger of course) this Columbian is dropped into the Tour’s lap. With the growing Spanish-speaking population in this country, Villegas could bring a whole new segment of the population to the game and the viewing audience. Does the Tour do anything with this? Not yet. At the Bob Hope event Villegas stuck his hand into a cactus bush and came out with a handful of needles. A comely young lass in the gallery offered her tweezers to Villegas to remove the needles. She wasn’t the only one either. It reminded one of a day when a gallery removed a boulder from you-know-who’s line of fire.
Case in point number three. Remember the Ryder Cup? I thought you might. It was best golf theater in years. It had everything and everyone except whom? That’s right, TW himself. What it had were the players who will mold the future of the PGA Tour. Players like Hunter Mahan, Anthony Kim (who isn’t lacking game or star power either), JB Holmes and Ben Curtis will be on radar screens for a long time to come. Yet, during Woods absence, it seems they never appeared on the Tours’.
Here is something the Tour and the media has to understand—Tiger Woods isn’t going to play forever.
Even at tender age of 32, the phenom has suffered more injuries than most golfers his age. This was his third knee surgery. He started having recurring wrist problems when he was a teenager. There will come a day when enough will become enough and he’ll limp away.
Another thing to consider is who’s to say he’s going to play another 10 years? Sure he’s perhaps the fiercest competitor in all of sports—now. What happens when there are no more mountains to climb, no more records to set? What will light his fire? It just may be hanging out with Elin, Sam and Charlie and who knows how many more children there will be.
I’ve got to believe that golf is only stage one of his career and it’s not forever. What then?
It’s time the Tour and, yes, the media get their collective heads out of their butts and take advantage of the resources that surround them before the Woods ride ends and they’re left looking at each other asking, “now what?”
Bartender, fix me an Alka Seltzer if you will. The sycophantic aura emanating from PGA Tour headquarters and press rooms everywhere has made me nauseous.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
Monday, January 12, 2009
Starting off the 2009 season...
I’m starting to like the off season as much as the season itself. As for action, with the money being offered, the Silly Season isn’t silly anymore. If you don’t believe it, ask the IRS. This is the real deal. With the race to Dubai, the European Tour has a 53-tournament schedule. Play close attention to how many of our guys fork over the $3,500 membership fee to the Euros. It will be interesting.
Always a favorite in this corner is John Daly. PC’d after being over served at a Hooters in North Carolina, he was vilified everywhere. Okay, he was drunk and belligerent, but he was never arrested. Most bartenders who I know (and I know a few…look at the name of this blog) would recognize the condition of the person on the outside of the bar. They’d stop serving him long before he was awarded the orange wardrobe the local constabulary gave him.
Now, PGA Tour commish Timmy Finchem has suspended JD for six months. Granted, the suspension is probably not solely for this event, but rather for the compilation of his misdeeds. In effect, this might be a good turn of events for Daly. He can play on the European Tour and if he’s serious about finding his enormous game again, will be able to do it under the radar. This has to be a good thing for the PGA Tour’s version of a rock star (Fred Couples aside).
There is a potential downside for Daly however. Previously saddled with three or four of the wackiest wives in the world (Like he’s been the sanest of husbands), the word is his latest girl friend has the potential to rock the world of wacky. Oy vay, JD when is your life going to stop being a soap opera?
*********
Michelle Wie actually did something on her own. She qualified for the LPGA Tour. Now, we might be able to get a true sense of what her real talent is. Hopefully, her parents will stop insisting that she play against the boys on the PGA Tour. In fact, hopefully now that Michelle has turned 18, they will leave her alone altogether. Unfortunately, the Korean culture may keep her subservient to her parents forever.
I never thought I’d say this, but her talent might have been maximized had she had a father more in the mode of Earl Woods. Think of this, her talent level has waned since she almost made the cut as a 13-year-old at the Sony in her native state of Hawaii. The closest she has come to legitimate accomplishment since then was one miss-signed scorecard last year that could have secured her playing privileges for 2009. Now she’ll be on the LPGA Tour on her own merit with something she’s never had before—respect from the other card carrying members.
Hopefully for Michelle this current event will catapult her career to what had been predicted for her years ago. All she has to do is take control of her career and ignore the incessant caterwauling of her overbearing parents.
Bartender, please bring a case of Miller Delight for John Daly. I think he’s going to need it. Another night in jail might provide him some relief. Also a glass of red (make that Stanford Cardinal red) wine for Michelle. Yeah, like she’s never had a glass of wine before. Me? I’m just going to sit back and watch this car wreck.
See you on the first tee.
Jack
Always a favorite in this corner is John Daly. PC’d after being over served at a Hooters in North Carolina, he was vilified everywhere. Okay, he was drunk and belligerent, but he was never arrested. Most bartenders who I know (and I know a few…look at the name of this blog) would recognize the condition of the person on the outside of the bar. They’d stop serving him long before he was awarded the orange wardrobe the local constabulary gave him.
Now, PGA Tour commish Timmy Finchem has suspended JD for six months. Granted, the suspension is probably not solely for this event, but rather for the compilation of his misdeeds. In effect, this might be a good turn of events for Daly. He can play on the European Tour and if he’s serious about finding his enormous game again, will be able to do it under the radar. This has to be a good thing for the PGA Tour’s version of a rock star (Fred Couples aside).
There is a potential downside for Daly however. Previously saddled with three or four of the wackiest wives in the world (Like he’s been the sanest of husbands), the word is his latest girl friend has the potential to rock the world of wacky. Oy vay, JD when is your life going to stop being a soap opera?
*********
Michelle Wie actually did something on her own. She qualified for the LPGA Tour. Now, we might be able to get a true sense of what her real talent is. Hopefully, her parents will stop insisting that she play against the boys on the PGA Tour. In fact, hopefully now that Michelle has turned 18, they will leave her alone altogether. Unfortunately, the Korean culture may keep her subservient to her parents forever.
I never thought I’d say this, but her talent might have been maximized had she had a father more in the mode of Earl Woods. Think of this, her talent level has waned since she almost made the cut as a 13-year-old at the Sony in her native state of Hawaii. The closest she has come to legitimate accomplishment since then was one miss-signed scorecard last year that could have secured her playing privileges for 2009. Now she’ll be on the LPGA Tour on her own merit with something she’s never had before—respect from the other card carrying members.
Hopefully for Michelle this current event will catapult her career to what had been predicted for her years ago. All she has to do is take control of her career and ignore the incessant caterwauling of her overbearing parents.
Bartender, please bring a case of Miller Delight for John Daly. I think he’s going to need it. Another night in jail might provide him some relief. Also a glass of red (make that Stanford Cardinal red) wine for Michelle. Yeah, like she’s never had a glass of wine before. Me? I’m just going to sit back and watch this car wreck.
See you on the first tee.
Jack
Friday, December 12, 2008
The golf off season ... no so fast!
I know this is the off season for golf, but this one has had a more activity than most in the recent past. There’s a new Ryder Cup captain, someone shot 59 in Q-School and Michelle Wie actually accomplished something.
First things first and that’s the announcement of new Ryder Cup captain Corey Pavin. Huh? Let’s see. The players who were victorious in the Ryder Cup this year were vociferous in their support for the return of Paul Azinger as captain evidently had their pleas fall on deaf ears. Why mess with success? Azinger came up with a brilliant game plan, executed it and won. He would have gladly returned and wasn’t asked. Now we have Corey Pavin.
The worst thing about following a winner is you can’t win. There will be comparisons made and in the often unfair court of public opinion, Pavin is doomed to be found wanting.
As a player, Pavin has won 27 times worldwide including 15 times on the PGA Tour as well as the 1995 US Open at Shinnecock. He accomplished these admirable numbers while being arguably the shortest hitter on Tour and that includes you Fred Funk. In his prime, his short game was impeccable. His competitiveness was unmatched. Hell, for years I thought his name was Corey Pavin, the Gritty Bruin because that was what the TV guys always called him referring to his UCLA collegiate career.
That being said, he still shouldn’t be the Ryder Cup captain in 2010. In 2012? Sure, but not now. We know the players buy into Azinger’s pod system and will follow him through brick walls. Why put Pavin in a situation to fail? It doesn’t make any sense.
******
Harrison Frasar shot 59 at Q-School. Next you’ll be telling me elephants can fly. Maybe I missed something, but isn’t Q-School supposed to be golf’s ultimate throw up on your shoes event? It’s the tournament you don’t try to win. It’s the tournament you try not to lose. Finish in the top 25 (and ties) and you get your Tour card. Win and you get $50K. That’s tip money to these guys.
It used to be devastating if a player didn’t get playing status. Now they’re just playing for a working address. If a player doesn’t earn his PGA Tour card, he has a fall back position on the Nationwide Tour. Sure, it’s not going to allow him a million dollar year, but he’ll have a pretty good living sitting in front of him for the taking.
Congratulations to the 28 players who earned their playing privileges. Under today’s rules there are more players who finished in the top 150 on the money list last year who will get into 15-20 tournaments due to that status. Add up to seven sponsor exemptions and that’s a pretty full schedule. Sorry, I just can’t feel sorry anymore for the guys who don’t make the grade at Q-School.
*****
After years of unfulfilled promise, Michelle Wie is about to pursue a professional golf career in earnest as she earned her playing privileges by surviving LPGA Q-School. Good for her. Providing that her parents stay out of the way, she’ll be a mega-star. Trust me the LPGA Tour doesn’t deserve this. First, they lose Annika Sorenstam and a month later they pick up a player who will keep the Tour in the news for years.
Wie already has a rivalry waiting with Morgan Pressel. Pressel has been outspoken about how Wie has had U.S Open invitations as well as other exemptions handed to her in the past. This rivalry has nasty potential and should be interesting for years. Pressel will be more frustrated when she realizes that Wie will have considerably more star power regardless of their playing records.
*****
Just a couple of notes from the Del Webb Father/Son (in some cases daughter and grand son) Challenge. I ran into Lee Trevino outside the clubhouse at Champions Gate in Davenport, Fla. He was hobbling along and I asked if he had either hip or knee problems. “No,” he said, “I’m just practicing for when I do.”
I then asked how he was playing? “I’m hitting it so short, I can hear it land.”
I’ve known the man for 30-plus years. I’ve got to believe he stays awake at night dreaming up these lines.
Bartender pour a glass of champagne for Harry Frasar and Michele Wie and their other Q-School graduates. Add one for Corey Pavin. He’ll need it. There was a day when a scotch would be poured for Lee, but he said the morning he woke up and there was still ice in the glass, he decided to stop until his career is over. Put it on ice for a long time. He’ll never stop playing…and we’re better for it.
See you on the first tee.
Jack
First things first and that’s the announcement of new Ryder Cup captain Corey Pavin. Huh? Let’s see. The players who were victorious in the Ryder Cup this year were vociferous in their support for the return of Paul Azinger as captain evidently had their pleas fall on deaf ears. Why mess with success? Azinger came up with a brilliant game plan, executed it and won. He would have gladly returned and wasn’t asked. Now we have Corey Pavin.
The worst thing about following a winner is you can’t win. There will be comparisons made and in the often unfair court of public opinion, Pavin is doomed to be found wanting.
As a player, Pavin has won 27 times worldwide including 15 times on the PGA Tour as well as the 1995 US Open at Shinnecock. He accomplished these admirable numbers while being arguably the shortest hitter on Tour and that includes you Fred Funk. In his prime, his short game was impeccable. His competitiveness was unmatched. Hell, for years I thought his name was Corey Pavin, the Gritty Bruin because that was what the TV guys always called him referring to his UCLA collegiate career.
That being said, he still shouldn’t be the Ryder Cup captain in 2010. In 2012? Sure, but not now. We know the players buy into Azinger’s pod system and will follow him through brick walls. Why put Pavin in a situation to fail? It doesn’t make any sense.
******
Harrison Frasar shot 59 at Q-School. Next you’ll be telling me elephants can fly. Maybe I missed something, but isn’t Q-School supposed to be golf’s ultimate throw up on your shoes event? It’s the tournament you don’t try to win. It’s the tournament you try not to lose. Finish in the top 25 (and ties) and you get your Tour card. Win and you get $50K. That’s tip money to these guys.
It used to be devastating if a player didn’t get playing status. Now they’re just playing for a working address. If a player doesn’t earn his PGA Tour card, he has a fall back position on the Nationwide Tour. Sure, it’s not going to allow him a million dollar year, but he’ll have a pretty good living sitting in front of him for the taking.
Congratulations to the 28 players who earned their playing privileges. Under today’s rules there are more players who finished in the top 150 on the money list last year who will get into 15-20 tournaments due to that status. Add up to seven sponsor exemptions and that’s a pretty full schedule. Sorry, I just can’t feel sorry anymore for the guys who don’t make the grade at Q-School.
*****
After years of unfulfilled promise, Michelle Wie is about to pursue a professional golf career in earnest as she earned her playing privileges by surviving LPGA Q-School. Good for her. Providing that her parents stay out of the way, she’ll be a mega-star. Trust me the LPGA Tour doesn’t deserve this. First, they lose Annika Sorenstam and a month later they pick up a player who will keep the Tour in the news for years.
Wie already has a rivalry waiting with Morgan Pressel. Pressel has been outspoken about how Wie has had U.S Open invitations as well as other exemptions handed to her in the past. This rivalry has nasty potential and should be interesting for years. Pressel will be more frustrated when she realizes that Wie will have considerably more star power regardless of their playing records.
*****
Just a couple of notes from the Del Webb Father/Son (in some cases daughter and grand son) Challenge. I ran into Lee Trevino outside the clubhouse at Champions Gate in Davenport, Fla. He was hobbling along and I asked if he had either hip or knee problems. “No,” he said, “I’m just practicing for when I do.”
I then asked how he was playing? “I’m hitting it so short, I can hear it land.”
I’ve known the man for 30-plus years. I’ve got to believe he stays awake at night dreaming up these lines.
Bartender pour a glass of champagne for Harry Frasar and Michele Wie and their other Q-School graduates. Add one for Corey Pavin. He’ll need it. There was a day when a scotch would be poured for Lee, but he said the morning he woke up and there was still ice in the glass, he decided to stop until his career is over. Put it on ice for a long time. He’ll never stop playing…and we’re better for it.
See you on the first tee.
Jack
Friday, November 14, 2008
Golf as an Olympic sport? Daly abroad
This past week the International Golf Federation made a formal proposal to the International Olympic Committee to reinstitute golf into the Olympic Games in 2016. Why?
Correct me if I’m wrong. We already have the Ryder Cup and the Presidents Cup. Throw in the annual World Cup and I think we have our bases covered. According to the IGF the game is played in approximately 120 countries. The game is expanded to the limit. Grow the game? I don’t foresee anyone in Rwanda dreaming of Olympic gold via the golf route. I do, however, see that same person in Rwanda dreaming of solid gold via the golf route.
Golf is now truly a global game, but is it an Olympic event? Think of it. How many Olympic events are called “games?” I play golf...okay not well, but do I consider myself to be participating in an athletic endeavor? Are you kidding? It’s purely recreational and that’s where it belongs. Golf is a recreational activity and not to be placed in the same category as a decathlon. Alright, I’ll give you synchronized swimming. By the same token, if you screw up there, you could drown. That isn’t going to happen in golf...Woody Austin aside.
It’s not like golf hasn’t been part of the Olympics before. In 1904 there were 77 competitors and only 73 of them were Americans. The rest were Canadians. One of them, George Lyon took the gold medal and earned a spot in the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame.
Let’s face it; the Olympic golf is played every week. The best players from every country square off on professional tours around the world. Golf as an Olympic event would just be another tournament. The last thing we need is just another tournament.
*****
Next week in Hong Kong, John Daly is making his season debut on the European Tour. As a former British Open champion he’s an automatic member. Seeing as how he’s pretty much worn out his welcome over here, Europe may be a viable option.
For the most part, it’s pretty difficult to get kicked out of Hooters and even more so when they’re supposed to be your sponsor. Yet, JD did just that and got locked up for the night. To date Hooters hasn’t ended his contract, but you can imagine they’d like him to go away. What better place to go than Europe?
Daly has proved that he can’t compete in the U.S. As big a draw as he still is on the PGA Tour, he’s proving to be more and more of a liability.
Maybe and it is a big maybe, he’ll find his game over there. However, that’s going to take a lot of hard work and dedication. Unfortunately, those are two things he’s seemed to have avoided over the last five years. It might do the big guy well to stencil two words on his golf bag and to look at them often. Those words are LAST CHANCE, because that’s what it is. I have a terrible feeling that the next words we read about Daly are going to deal with a tragedy.
Bartender, on that happy note please pour me a tall, cold glass of Diet Coke. That’s the other fluid JD is addicted to.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
Correct me if I’m wrong. We already have the Ryder Cup and the Presidents Cup. Throw in the annual World Cup and I think we have our bases covered. According to the IGF the game is played in approximately 120 countries. The game is expanded to the limit. Grow the game? I don’t foresee anyone in Rwanda dreaming of Olympic gold via the golf route. I do, however, see that same person in Rwanda dreaming of solid gold via the golf route.
Golf is now truly a global game, but is it an Olympic event? Think of it. How many Olympic events are called “games?” I play golf...okay not well, but do I consider myself to be participating in an athletic endeavor? Are you kidding? It’s purely recreational and that’s where it belongs. Golf is a recreational activity and not to be placed in the same category as a decathlon. Alright, I’ll give you synchronized swimming. By the same token, if you screw up there, you could drown. That isn’t going to happen in golf...Woody Austin aside.
It’s not like golf hasn’t been part of the Olympics before. In 1904 there were 77 competitors and only 73 of them were Americans. The rest were Canadians. One of them, George Lyon took the gold medal and earned a spot in the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame.
Let’s face it; the Olympic golf is played every week. The best players from every country square off on professional tours around the world. Golf as an Olympic event would just be another tournament. The last thing we need is just another tournament.
*****
Next week in Hong Kong, John Daly is making his season debut on the European Tour. As a former British Open champion he’s an automatic member. Seeing as how he’s pretty much worn out his welcome over here, Europe may be a viable option.
For the most part, it’s pretty difficult to get kicked out of Hooters and even more so when they’re supposed to be your sponsor. Yet, JD did just that and got locked up for the night. To date Hooters hasn’t ended his contract, but you can imagine they’d like him to go away. What better place to go than Europe?
Daly has proved that he can’t compete in the U.S. As big a draw as he still is on the PGA Tour, he’s proving to be more and more of a liability.
Maybe and it is a big maybe, he’ll find his game over there. However, that’s going to take a lot of hard work and dedication. Unfortunately, those are two things he’s seemed to have avoided over the last five years. It might do the big guy well to stencil two words on his golf bag and to look at them often. Those words are LAST CHANCE, because that’s what it is. I have a terrible feeling that the next words we read about Daly are going to deal with a tragedy.
Bartender, on that happy note please pour me a tall, cold glass of Diet Coke. That’s the other fluid JD is addicted to.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
Friday, November 7, 2008
Miracles in the Children's Miracle Network Classic
It was appropriate that the field of the Children’s Miracle Network Classic, the final event on the PGA Tour schedule would include Erik Compton. No one personifies what kind of miracles can happen better than he.
As a teenager Compton required a heart transplant. He made it through and became one of the top junior golfers in the country. After a full and successful collegiate golf career, he followed his dream of becoming a professional golfer.
Like most pros, Compton started on the mini-tour circuit playing where and when he could. He was learning his trade and eventually made it to the Nationwide Tour. During a week off this past summer, he felt something wrong in his chest. Fortunately, he lives a short drive from his hospital in Miami. He drove himself to the hospital.
By the time he arrived, he knew something was really wrong and he was right. He was suffering a heart attack. It was quickly surmised that he needed another heart transplant. There was no choice. He successfully survived the procedure yet again. It happens, but usually the recipient walks on egg shells for the rest of his/her life. Erik Compton is hardly usual.
Six months later, he was healthy enough to accept a sponsor’s exemption into the classic. It was a different Compton this time around. When he was a kid, he was reluctant to speak about having had a heart transplant. He wanted to just be thought of as another golfer. He didn’t realize that he’d never be “just another golfer.”
Today, he’s a proud spokesman for organ donations and transplants. Thanks in part to the steadfastness of Casey Martin years ago when he took the PGA Tour to court for the right to ride a golf cart in tournament play, Compton just might yet realize his dream of playing golf at the highest level.
I think the only person who cares if he realizes his dream is Compton himself. Sometimes the glory is in the journey and not the destination. His effort and persistence is inspiring.
++++++
The PGA Tour has come up with yet another format for the FedEx Cup playoffs. The new plan calls for the season-long points will be reset and the top 125 point earners will play in the first event. That number is down from 144. The next week the top 90 players will be in the field—down from 120.
The third event will feature the remaining to 60 points down from 70. In the Tour Championship finale, the field will be cut to 30 again, but the points will be reset so everyone will have a chance to win. So, in other words, the first three weeks of the playoffs the strategy will be to play to not be eliminated. This could cause some very boring, close to the vest golf.
Even if it does, this seems to make more sense than anything else they’ve tried.
++++++
If Erik Compton hadn’t been in the field of the Children’s Miracle Network Classic, the story would have been the play of Jeff Overton. Less than a month ago, Overton underwent an emergency appendectomy and a week and a half later was back on Tour. Such is the life of a PGA Tour player who is on the top 125 money list bubble.
Granted the surgical procedure is a lot less invasive that it once was, but a week and a half? Also, there was one other issue. Because of drug testing, most pain killers are on the banned list, so Overton had to go cold turkey. Finally, he applied with the Tour for a waiver so he could take Percocet. Two days later the Tour granted the waiver. Little did they know that Overton had rolled the dice and took a chance that this wasn’t his week to be tested. As it turned out, he was right.
What this points out is the silliness of drug testing parameters. It wasn’t as if Overton was faking a problem. He had the surgery and I would imagine he was in pain. It should have been an automatic waiver from day one. Kudos for granting the waiver citing that they put a player’s health needs first. Just wondering why it was an issue in the first place.
++++++
Rumors that the Sergio Garcia, Morgan – Leigh Norman romance had landed in Splitsville were premature. She accompanied the Spaniard to China for the HSBC Championship. You don’t think she’s giving him putting lessons, do you? His turnaround with the flat stick has been amazing. I wonder that if this relationship continues to develop, Morgan – Leigh’s Dad Greg will insist the Sergio start playing MacGregor equipment?
Bartender, a magnum of your finest champagne, please, Let us raise a glass to Erik and Jeff for two very gutsy performances.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
As a teenager Compton required a heart transplant. He made it through and became one of the top junior golfers in the country. After a full and successful collegiate golf career, he followed his dream of becoming a professional golfer.
Like most pros, Compton started on the mini-tour circuit playing where and when he could. He was learning his trade and eventually made it to the Nationwide Tour. During a week off this past summer, he felt something wrong in his chest. Fortunately, he lives a short drive from his hospital in Miami. He drove himself to the hospital.
By the time he arrived, he knew something was really wrong and he was right. He was suffering a heart attack. It was quickly surmised that he needed another heart transplant. There was no choice. He successfully survived the procedure yet again. It happens, but usually the recipient walks on egg shells for the rest of his/her life. Erik Compton is hardly usual.
Six months later, he was healthy enough to accept a sponsor’s exemption into the classic. It was a different Compton this time around. When he was a kid, he was reluctant to speak about having had a heart transplant. He wanted to just be thought of as another golfer. He didn’t realize that he’d never be “just another golfer.”
Today, he’s a proud spokesman for organ donations and transplants. Thanks in part to the steadfastness of Casey Martin years ago when he took the PGA Tour to court for the right to ride a golf cart in tournament play, Compton just might yet realize his dream of playing golf at the highest level.
I think the only person who cares if he realizes his dream is Compton himself. Sometimes the glory is in the journey and not the destination. His effort and persistence is inspiring.
++++++
The PGA Tour has come up with yet another format for the FedEx Cup playoffs. The new plan calls for the season-long points will be reset and the top 125 point earners will play in the first event. That number is down from 144. The next week the top 90 players will be in the field—down from 120.
The third event will feature the remaining to 60 points down from 70. In the Tour Championship finale, the field will be cut to 30 again, but the points will be reset so everyone will have a chance to win. So, in other words, the first three weeks of the playoffs the strategy will be to play to not be eliminated. This could cause some very boring, close to the vest golf.
Even if it does, this seems to make more sense than anything else they’ve tried.
++++++
If Erik Compton hadn’t been in the field of the Children’s Miracle Network Classic, the story would have been the play of Jeff Overton. Less than a month ago, Overton underwent an emergency appendectomy and a week and a half later was back on Tour. Such is the life of a PGA Tour player who is on the top 125 money list bubble.
Granted the surgical procedure is a lot less invasive that it once was, but a week and a half? Also, there was one other issue. Because of drug testing, most pain killers are on the banned list, so Overton had to go cold turkey. Finally, he applied with the Tour for a waiver so he could take Percocet. Two days later the Tour granted the waiver. Little did they know that Overton had rolled the dice and took a chance that this wasn’t his week to be tested. As it turned out, he was right.
What this points out is the silliness of drug testing parameters. It wasn’t as if Overton was faking a problem. He had the surgery and I would imagine he was in pain. It should have been an automatic waiver from day one. Kudos for granting the waiver citing that they put a player’s health needs first. Just wondering why it was an issue in the first place.
++++++
Rumors that the Sergio Garcia, Morgan – Leigh Norman romance had landed in Splitsville were premature. She accompanied the Spaniard to China for the HSBC Championship. You don’t think she’s giving him putting lessons, do you? His turnaround with the flat stick has been amazing. I wonder that if this relationship continues to develop, Morgan – Leigh’s Dad Greg will insist the Sergio start playing MacGregor equipment?
Bartender, a magnum of your finest champagne, please, Let us raise a glass to Erik and Jeff for two very gutsy performances.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
Thursday, October 23, 2008
A trip around the golf world ...
Just some thoughts while contemplating the changes in the FedEx Cup qualifying system for the 2009 PGA Tour season.
The first thought I have about the FedEx points system is that it might be a moot point. The European PGA Tour has stolen some of the PGA Tour’s thunder with their Race to Dubai. The Euros (with help from the Dubai sheiks) have doubled up on the FedEx Cup by posting a $20 million bonus at the end. By the way, instead of the intricate points system trying to be employed on these shores, the Euros are relying on their Order of Merit (that’s money list). Gee, what a novel idea, but isn’t it too simple?
There’s an unwritten rule in professional golf. If you put $20 million on the table, they will come. The first player of note who said he’d adjust his schedule to attempt to qualify for Dubai was Phil Mickelson. Of course he said something about enhancing his career by becoming more of an international player. Right, and if someone would put up $30 million for a series on the moon, he’d play to enhance his career by becoming more of an intergalactic player.
The problem with being the first to admit he’s succumbed to the golden glow is you take the first hit. There will be others and you can count on it. The system works in favor of the players. The four WGC events count to the 12 event minimum as do the four majors. That leaves four appearances. Since the 2009 season begins in less than a month, look for some PGA Tour players to get a head start in the early part of the European schedule. Many of the Americans travel to Scotland to play the Scottish Open at Loch Lomond the week prior to the British Open, so in effect the PGA Tour members who could challenge in Dubai won’t have to alter their schedule that much. It should be interesting.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
This week in the first two rounds of PGA Tour Q-School First Stage competition, Miami’s Erik Compton opened with a disappointing 76 and a 75. Maybe the scores aren’t great, but the effort is out of this world.
Five months ago, Compton underwent heart transplant surgery—his second. He has the spirit of a champion, maybe now he has the heart, or at least one that will last. Hopefully, Compton will be able to recharge his professional career which included a stint on the Nationwide Tour following a successful campaign on the Canadian Tour. Compton turned professional following a successful collegiate career at Georgia.
Will Compton finally realize his dream of making it to the PGA Tour? The odds say no, but I don’t think he reads the morning line. He’s a 28-year old golfer with his third heart. He’s been defying the odds since his first transplant at age 12. How can you tell him no.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
This past year was supposedly going to be Annika Sorenstam’s “Retirement Tour.” Now, one of the greatest woman players of all time is hedging her bet. Sorenstam, who will marry in January, had planned to put her clubs into mothballs following a tournament in China. Now, she says she might just go into hiatus.
Her plans as far as marrying and starting a family remain in tact, but now she says that depending how she feels and her situations work out, she may consider a return. Normally, this corner would have untoward remarks about waffling like this. However, given the class and dignity she has brought to the game, we can only wish her the best.
Bartender, a glass of European red wine, perhaps an Italian vintage if you will. It appears I might be spending some time on the continent over the next year.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
The first thought I have about the FedEx points system is that it might be a moot point. The European PGA Tour has stolen some of the PGA Tour’s thunder with their Race to Dubai. The Euros (with help from the Dubai sheiks) have doubled up on the FedEx Cup by posting a $20 million bonus at the end. By the way, instead of the intricate points system trying to be employed on these shores, the Euros are relying on their Order of Merit (that’s money list). Gee, what a novel idea, but isn’t it too simple?
There’s an unwritten rule in professional golf. If you put $20 million on the table, they will come. The first player of note who said he’d adjust his schedule to attempt to qualify for Dubai was Phil Mickelson. Of course he said something about enhancing his career by becoming more of an international player. Right, and if someone would put up $30 million for a series on the moon, he’d play to enhance his career by becoming more of an intergalactic player.
The problem with being the first to admit he’s succumbed to the golden glow is you take the first hit. There will be others and you can count on it. The system works in favor of the players. The four WGC events count to the 12 event minimum as do the four majors. That leaves four appearances. Since the 2009 season begins in less than a month, look for some PGA Tour players to get a head start in the early part of the European schedule. Many of the Americans travel to Scotland to play the Scottish Open at Loch Lomond the week prior to the British Open, so in effect the PGA Tour members who could challenge in Dubai won’t have to alter their schedule that much. It should be interesting.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
This week in the first two rounds of PGA Tour Q-School First Stage competition, Miami’s Erik Compton opened with a disappointing 76 and a 75. Maybe the scores aren’t great, but the effort is out of this world.
Five months ago, Compton underwent heart transplant surgery—his second. He has the spirit of a champion, maybe now he has the heart, or at least one that will last. Hopefully, Compton will be able to recharge his professional career which included a stint on the Nationwide Tour following a successful campaign on the Canadian Tour. Compton turned professional following a successful collegiate career at Georgia.
Will Compton finally realize his dream of making it to the PGA Tour? The odds say no, but I don’t think he reads the morning line. He’s a 28-year old golfer with his third heart. He’s been defying the odds since his first transplant at age 12. How can you tell him no.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
This past year was supposedly going to be Annika Sorenstam’s “Retirement Tour.” Now, one of the greatest woman players of all time is hedging her bet. Sorenstam, who will marry in January, had planned to put her clubs into mothballs following a tournament in China. Now, she says she might just go into hiatus.
Her plans as far as marrying and starting a family remain in tact, but now she says that depending how she feels and her situations work out, she may consider a return. Normally, this corner would have untoward remarks about waffling like this. However, given the class and dignity she has brought to the game, we can only wish her the best.
Bartender, a glass of European red wine, perhaps an Italian vintage if you will. It appears I might be spending some time on the continent over the next year.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Seve
It’s Wednesday Oct. 15, 2008. In a Madrid hospital, Seve Ballesteros is recovering from brain surgery to remove a tumor. You can count on two things on following a surgical procedure. The doctor never says anything other than surgery was successful and he/she never issues a specific time line for recovery.
Realizing this, we can only hope for a complete and speedy recovery for one of the most charismatic golfers of all time. Personally, I fondly remember the day Ballesteros was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame. Praise for how he won his first British Open championship by hitting a tournament-saving shot from a parking lot, how he almost singlehandedly raised the European Tour from the ashes, how he resurrected the Ryder Cup flowed like fine Spanish wine. I remember that day, but moreover I remember a day, or moreover a week in 1983.
It was March of ’83 and the place was the Sea Turtle Inn in Jacksonville Beach, Fla. It was Tuesday morning and I’d arrived at the hotel the previous evening after driving from 18 miles north of Boston over the weekend. Being that this was the first Tournament Players Championship that I covered, I was placed in the media hotel as far away from the course as possible.
That explained why I was there. I never found out why Seve was staying there. Regardless, as I entered the lobby that morning, the first person I recognized was Seve. He was pacing the lobby waiting for a courtesy car to pick him up and take him to the course. (This was before the players were issued cars to transport themselves). Since I was headed to the course, I introduced myself to the Spaniard and offered him a lift. With a perceptible sigh of relief, he accepted.
Due to traffic, it was a solid 30-minute ride to the TPC Sawgrass. During the ride, I found Seve to be humorous, charming and apparently a great guy. Then something happened. As I turned the corner to head up the road to the clubhouse, it felt as if the temperature in the car had dropped 20-degrees. I pulled up to the front of the clubhouse and as soon as I stopped, Seve bolted from the car. There wasn’t a “thanks for the ride” or even an acknowledgment that I was alive. He just got out and almost ran into the clubhouse. Okay, my ego didn’t demand any acknowledgment, but I thought it strange.
The next morning brought a close duplicate. I saw him in the lobby, offered a ride, was entertained on the ride and then it happened again. The guy who’d been in my car disappeared and was replaced by an iceberg. This time I asked what was up.
“I’m in my office now,” he said. “I wouldn’t come in the press room while you’re writing and bother you. I expect the same.”
I’d dealt with many professional athletes prior to that day and some of them more famous than Seve, but I’d never seen that level of intensity that could be turned on as quickly before or since. Since then, I’ve seen the jovial Seve and I’ve seen the other as well. To be honest, I prefer the former. I can say this. I’ve never seen an athlete who brings more to the table as far as determination to win.
Having said that should he bring that level of determination to his recovery program, he’ll be up and around in no time.
Bartender, a couple of tall, cool glasses of sangria for Seve and myself as I toast his health. Salud mi amigo, salud!
See you on the first tee,
Jack
Realizing this, we can only hope for a complete and speedy recovery for one of the most charismatic golfers of all time. Personally, I fondly remember the day Ballesteros was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame. Praise for how he won his first British Open championship by hitting a tournament-saving shot from a parking lot, how he almost singlehandedly raised the European Tour from the ashes, how he resurrected the Ryder Cup flowed like fine Spanish wine. I remember that day, but moreover I remember a day, or moreover a week in 1983.
It was March of ’83 and the place was the Sea Turtle Inn in Jacksonville Beach, Fla. It was Tuesday morning and I’d arrived at the hotel the previous evening after driving from 18 miles north of Boston over the weekend. Being that this was the first Tournament Players Championship that I covered, I was placed in the media hotel as far away from the course as possible.
That explained why I was there. I never found out why Seve was staying there. Regardless, as I entered the lobby that morning, the first person I recognized was Seve. He was pacing the lobby waiting for a courtesy car to pick him up and take him to the course. (This was before the players were issued cars to transport themselves). Since I was headed to the course, I introduced myself to the Spaniard and offered him a lift. With a perceptible sigh of relief, he accepted.
Due to traffic, it was a solid 30-minute ride to the TPC Sawgrass. During the ride, I found Seve to be humorous, charming and apparently a great guy. Then something happened. As I turned the corner to head up the road to the clubhouse, it felt as if the temperature in the car had dropped 20-degrees. I pulled up to the front of the clubhouse and as soon as I stopped, Seve bolted from the car. There wasn’t a “thanks for the ride” or even an acknowledgment that I was alive. He just got out and almost ran into the clubhouse. Okay, my ego didn’t demand any acknowledgment, but I thought it strange.
The next morning brought a close duplicate. I saw him in the lobby, offered a ride, was entertained on the ride and then it happened again. The guy who’d been in my car disappeared and was replaced by an iceberg. This time I asked what was up.
“I’m in my office now,” he said. “I wouldn’t come in the press room while you’re writing and bother you. I expect the same.”
I’d dealt with many professional athletes prior to that day and some of them more famous than Seve, but I’d never seen that level of intensity that could be turned on as quickly before or since. Since then, I’ve seen the jovial Seve and I’ve seen the other as well. To be honest, I prefer the former. I can say this. I’ve never seen an athlete who brings more to the table as far as determination to win.
Having said that should he bring that level of determination to his recovery program, he’ll be up and around in no time.
Bartender, a couple of tall, cool glasses of sangria for Seve and myself as I toast his health. Salud mi amigo, salud!
See you on the first tee,
Jack
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
The value if The President's Cup
If you’ve ever wondered just how important assistant captains are in international matches, or how high the esteem is that the players on the PGA Tour hold for the Presidents Cup, Fred Couples has given you the answer to both questions.
All you ever have to know is that he named Michael Jordan as one of his assistant captains in next year’s President Cup joining Jay Haas. Michael Jordan? What happened? Was Brett Favre booked for that weekend? Did Manny Ramirez throw you over?
This is just the type of leadership that the US team doesn’t need and it’s the type of buzz that the Presidents Cup (better known as Ryder Cup Lite in this corner) certainly doesn’t need. The tremendous show that was the 2008 Ryder Cup did little to enhance interest in the second rate competition. Let’s face it, it’s tough enough to get the players to show up at the Ryder Cup and then to ask them to come back a year later for an event with less history and tradition is courting disaster.
Okay, there was a Presidents Cup in 2007. Who won? Where was it played? What do you remember most about the 2007 Presidents Cup?
The US won because they always win the Presidents Cup because any foreign devil that is eligible for the Ryder Cup can’t play in the Presidents Cup. That leaves a hand full of Aussies, a South African or two and maybe a Central or South American or three. Be sure to invite Mike Weir or Steve Ames from north of the border and round it off with the best Japan has to offer and you have a Presidents Cup team.
The 2007 Presidents Cup was played at the Royal Montreal Golf Club in Canada. As for what was the most memorable moment, there were only two to pick from. There was Woody Austin falling into the water while trying to hit a shot and there was Mike Weir pleasing the home crowd by beating Tiger Woods in a singles match. Trust me on this. Weir doesn’t beat Woods in a Ryder Cup match and no one would have even chuckled at Austin if he fell overboard at Valhalla last month.
The Presidents Cup is what it is, a nice little exhibition. Until it stands the test of time it will be little more than a way for the PGA Tour to throw a bone to their non-European members and make even more money for their coffers. Having said that, why do they have to stunt the growth by making a retired superstar who totes a single-digit handicap feel like one of the boys?
****
From the file of improbable stats come these beauties. This past season Tiger Woods won $5,775,000 in just six events. During his entire career, Jack Nicklaus won a TOTAL of $5,734,031. What does Anthony Kim, Brandt Jobe and Paul Goydos have in common. They all have won more money in their careers than Nicklaus. Finally, what do Tom Pernice, Jr., Kirk Triplett and Billy Andrade have in common? They’ve all won more than twice the money the Golden Bear won.
All you ever have to know is that he named Michael Jordan as one of his assistant captains in next year’s President Cup joining Jay Haas. Michael Jordan? What happened? Was Brett Favre booked for that weekend? Did Manny Ramirez throw you over?
This is just the type of leadership that the US team doesn’t need and it’s the type of buzz that the Presidents Cup (better known as Ryder Cup Lite in this corner) certainly doesn’t need. The tremendous show that was the 2008 Ryder Cup did little to enhance interest in the second rate competition. Let’s face it, it’s tough enough to get the players to show up at the Ryder Cup and then to ask them to come back a year later for an event with less history and tradition is courting disaster.
Okay, there was a Presidents Cup in 2007. Who won? Where was it played? What do you remember most about the 2007 Presidents Cup?
The US won because they always win the Presidents Cup because any foreign devil that is eligible for the Ryder Cup can’t play in the Presidents Cup. That leaves a hand full of Aussies, a South African or two and maybe a Central or South American or three. Be sure to invite Mike Weir or Steve Ames from north of the border and round it off with the best Japan has to offer and you have a Presidents Cup team.
The 2007 Presidents Cup was played at the Royal Montreal Golf Club in Canada. As for what was the most memorable moment, there were only two to pick from. There was Woody Austin falling into the water while trying to hit a shot and there was Mike Weir pleasing the home crowd by beating Tiger Woods in a singles match. Trust me on this. Weir doesn’t beat Woods in a Ryder Cup match and no one would have even chuckled at Austin if he fell overboard at Valhalla last month.
The Presidents Cup is what it is, a nice little exhibition. Until it stands the test of time it will be little more than a way for the PGA Tour to throw a bone to their non-European members and make even more money for their coffers. Having said that, why do they have to stunt the growth by making a retired superstar who totes a single-digit handicap feel like one of the boys?
****
From the file of improbable stats come these beauties. This past season Tiger Woods won $5,775,000 in just six events. During his entire career, Jack Nicklaus won a TOTAL of $5,734,031. What does Anthony Kim, Brandt Jobe and Paul Goydos have in common. They all have won more money in their careers than Nicklaus. Finally, what do Tom Pernice, Jr., Kirk Triplett and Billy Andrade have in common? They’ve all won more than twice the money the Golden Bear won.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Will the economy crisis affect the Tours?
With financial institutions falling by the wayside on a daily basis, the entire country is in an upheaval. I realize this isn’t a political blog and we can all be thankful for that. However, this is a golf blog and mention of failing financial institutions is apropos in this instance.
A quick look at the PGA Tour schedule reveals 10 tournaments that have financial institutions as title sponsors. This number doesn’t include those that are sponsors on a lesser level. In a cliché, “Houston we have a problem.”
This number also doesn’t include the Champions and Nationwide tours who have a couple of title sponsors apiece. In fact, Bank of America that has sponsored a Champions Tour event in Massachusetts and is the longest running tournament (under different titles) on the elder bracket having been on the schedule since year one. They bailed out before this year’s event.
A quick look at the LPGA and the Duramed Futures schedules showed that they also have two financial title sponsors each. While we bet that in the past, they were disappointed that they only had two title sponsors from the financial community; today they must be breathing a sigh of relief.
The truth is title sponsorship carries an awesome fiduciary responsibility that far surpasses the purse. First and foremost, the title sponsor is most often responsible for the TV time. This means they either must fill the commercial time with their own commercials, or make sure the time is sold. In the past, this meant filling the weekend slots. Now, with The Golf Channel and others broadcasting the first two rounds, the financial responsibility has grown exponentially.
While the nuts and bolts of the bailout bill are being hammered out in Congress, you can be sure the midnight oil is being burned in Ponte Vedra and Daytona, Florida. It would be a shock if any of the financial institutions will have the nerve to retain sponsorship of a golf tournament. I think they’ll go the way of Ford, who sponsored the Players Championship on the Champions Tour as well as Doral on the PGA Tour. Not only did they drop those sponsorships, they pulled the plug on a very lucrative deal with Phil Mickelson when they started closing plants and laying off workers.
The cold hard facts are that these financial institutions will have a difficult time justifying these tremendous expenditures. If you couple that with a failing economy it’s obvious that the professional tours have a definite problem. Don’t be surprised if tournament schedules are a bit shorter next year.
The one thing the PGA Tours have going for them in this instance (and I hate to say it) is Commissioner Tim Finchem. If you find yourself in a political turmoil, you need a politician to get you out of it. Enter Timmie. In a past life, Finchem was a lobbyist on Capitol Hill. These skills alone may come in handy in preserving the schedule. However, I seriously wonder if he’ll be able to maintain the purse structure. It should be interesting.
***********
Last weekend was the Tour Championship and the coronation of Vijay Singh as the King of the FedEx Cup and no one except Singh and his accountant and probably his caddie cared. Next year, there will be another version and another system. Maybe they’ll finally get it right if that is at all possible, but I really doubt it. The FedEx Cup was meant to mimic the NASCAR Race to the Chase. Thus far, it’s been nothing short of a monument to greed. It’s tough to justify a $10 million payoff with a faulty product. I would be shocked if FedEx renews the contract.
Unfortunately for the Tour, the FedEx contract expires the same time the current TV contract expires. Those could be dark days for the Tour.
Bartender, make my next one pure H2O straight from the tap. Times being as tough as they are, it’s time to tighten the purse strings you know.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
A quick look at the PGA Tour schedule reveals 10 tournaments that have financial institutions as title sponsors. This number doesn’t include those that are sponsors on a lesser level. In a cliché, “Houston we have a problem.”
This number also doesn’t include the Champions and Nationwide tours who have a couple of title sponsors apiece. In fact, Bank of America that has sponsored a Champions Tour event in Massachusetts and is the longest running tournament (under different titles) on the elder bracket having been on the schedule since year one. They bailed out before this year’s event.
A quick look at the LPGA and the Duramed Futures schedules showed that they also have two financial title sponsors each. While we bet that in the past, they were disappointed that they only had two title sponsors from the financial community; today they must be breathing a sigh of relief.
The truth is title sponsorship carries an awesome fiduciary responsibility that far surpasses the purse. First and foremost, the title sponsor is most often responsible for the TV time. This means they either must fill the commercial time with their own commercials, or make sure the time is sold. In the past, this meant filling the weekend slots. Now, with The Golf Channel and others broadcasting the first two rounds, the financial responsibility has grown exponentially.
While the nuts and bolts of the bailout bill are being hammered out in Congress, you can be sure the midnight oil is being burned in Ponte Vedra and Daytona, Florida. It would be a shock if any of the financial institutions will have the nerve to retain sponsorship of a golf tournament. I think they’ll go the way of Ford, who sponsored the Players Championship on the Champions Tour as well as Doral on the PGA Tour. Not only did they drop those sponsorships, they pulled the plug on a very lucrative deal with Phil Mickelson when they started closing plants and laying off workers.
The cold hard facts are that these financial institutions will have a difficult time justifying these tremendous expenditures. If you couple that with a failing economy it’s obvious that the professional tours have a definite problem. Don’t be surprised if tournament schedules are a bit shorter next year.
The one thing the PGA Tours have going for them in this instance (and I hate to say it) is Commissioner Tim Finchem. If you find yourself in a political turmoil, you need a politician to get you out of it. Enter Timmie. In a past life, Finchem was a lobbyist on Capitol Hill. These skills alone may come in handy in preserving the schedule. However, I seriously wonder if he’ll be able to maintain the purse structure. It should be interesting.
***********
Last weekend was the Tour Championship and the coronation of Vijay Singh as the King of the FedEx Cup and no one except Singh and his accountant and probably his caddie cared. Next year, there will be another version and another system. Maybe they’ll finally get it right if that is at all possible, but I really doubt it. The FedEx Cup was meant to mimic the NASCAR Race to the Chase. Thus far, it’s been nothing short of a monument to greed. It’s tough to justify a $10 million payoff with a faulty product. I would be shocked if FedEx renews the contract.
Unfortunately for the Tour, the FedEx contract expires the same time the current TV contract expires. Those could be dark days for the Tour.
Bartender, make my next one pure H2O straight from the tap. Times being as tough as they are, it’s time to tighten the purse strings you know.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Angry Golfer says *** NO *** asterisks
I’ve got to admit that I’m getting pretty damned tired of hearing all this talk about putting asterisk next to Padraig Harrington’s name when listing his British Open and PGA Championship titles this year because those majors were Tigerless. Please show me the written guarantee that Woods would have won, or that he would have been in the mix in the final round. It was never etched in stone.
Having said that, would you ever imagine putting an asterisk next to Tiger’s name in a Major where Harrington wasn’t in the field? Of course not, both scenarios are ludicrous.
One thing that isn’t ludicrous is wondering how much of a factor Woods will be when he returns. Last reports are that he won’t even consider swinging a club until 2009. He’s planning his return at the 2009 Masters. Will he be a factor then? If anyone could be under those circumstances, it would be Tiger, but common sense today says bet on the Irish kid to be wearin’ of the green…jacket that is next April.
The golf world, most notably TV and the PGA Tour must consider the unthinkable. Tiger Woods may return as a mortal golfer. Knees aren’t constructed to withstand the pressure he puts on BOTH of knees in his current swing. The swing has to change. Sure he’s changed his swing before, but the changes were always to add power, not protect his body.
Tiger will always be a great golfer. He has the credentials already that have already cemented his place in golf history. Hopefully, we won’t look back at the 2008 U.S. Open and wonder what he could have been if it hadn’t have been for that knee.
****
In the past this corner has been somewhat critical of Sergio Garcia and his attitude. He has placed blame for his shortcomings in Majors on everyone but the locker room attendant. Following his runner up finish in the PGA Championship to the aforementioned Harrington, Sergio took full responsibility for his failings.
Normally, we could have counted on him blaming the terrible second shot he hit on the 16th in the final round that crossed the hazard then backed up into the water on any number of things, i.e. poor course setup, a sudden gale in his face, or the ever popular the gallery was against me. Instead, he admitted that he hit a poor shot.
That’s a start. He’s now closer than ever to having a winning attitude needed to succeed in Major championships. Unfortunately, he still can’t putt well enough to win a Major. By the way, I have a long standing rule. If a Major is won by a player using either a long putter or a belly putter, that tournament is no longer considered a Major. Both those style putters are a form of cheating. The only thing that should touch a club is the player’s hands and those hands shouldn’t be anchored by the torso.
***
Pardon me while I legend drop. I happened to bump into Jack Nicklaus at a function earlier this week and an old subject that we were polarized on was recalled. A decade ago, Jack spoke fervently about the need for the golf ball to be rolled back so that it wouldn’t go as far.
I was adamant that the longer ball was good for the overall game because the longer ball made the game more fun and would help keep people in the game. Ten years ago, I wasn’t totally wrong. Today, ah, mea culpa greatest golfer of all time.
“I could see where it was going and today we’re almost there,” Nicklaus said. “Yesterday, my son Michael, who doesn’t play very much, but hits it nine miles, told me he played a 537-yard par 4 and hated the fact he had to hit a 7-iron for his second shot. That’s not golf.
“The new ball of today doesn’t help the average golfer,” he continued. “If you have a swing speed of 110 miles an hour, you become a better player than you really are. If you don’t have that swing, the ball hurts your chances.”
He’s right. The super balls are for super swing speeds only. The rest of us are left to live with our shortcomings. The moral of the story is, never argue with the greatest golfer of all time (although it was fun being a little burr under his saddle for a little while even if he really didn’t notice).
Bartender, throw some crow into the blender, puree it and I’ll have it on the rocks with water on the side.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
Having said that, would you ever imagine putting an asterisk next to Tiger’s name in a Major where Harrington wasn’t in the field? Of course not, both scenarios are ludicrous.
One thing that isn’t ludicrous is wondering how much of a factor Woods will be when he returns. Last reports are that he won’t even consider swinging a club until 2009. He’s planning his return at the 2009 Masters. Will he be a factor then? If anyone could be under those circumstances, it would be Tiger, but common sense today says bet on the Irish kid to be wearin’ of the green…jacket that is next April.
The golf world, most notably TV and the PGA Tour must consider the unthinkable. Tiger Woods may return as a mortal golfer. Knees aren’t constructed to withstand the pressure he puts on BOTH of knees in his current swing. The swing has to change. Sure he’s changed his swing before, but the changes were always to add power, not protect his body.
Tiger will always be a great golfer. He has the credentials already that have already cemented his place in golf history. Hopefully, we won’t look back at the 2008 U.S. Open and wonder what he could have been if it hadn’t have been for that knee.
****
In the past this corner has been somewhat critical of Sergio Garcia and his attitude. He has placed blame for his shortcomings in Majors on everyone but the locker room attendant. Following his runner up finish in the PGA Championship to the aforementioned Harrington, Sergio took full responsibility for his failings.
Normally, we could have counted on him blaming the terrible second shot he hit on the 16th in the final round that crossed the hazard then backed up into the water on any number of things, i.e. poor course setup, a sudden gale in his face, or the ever popular the gallery was against me. Instead, he admitted that he hit a poor shot.
That’s a start. He’s now closer than ever to having a winning attitude needed to succeed in Major championships. Unfortunately, he still can’t putt well enough to win a Major. By the way, I have a long standing rule. If a Major is won by a player using either a long putter or a belly putter, that tournament is no longer considered a Major. Both those style putters are a form of cheating. The only thing that should touch a club is the player’s hands and those hands shouldn’t be anchored by the torso.
***
Pardon me while I legend drop. I happened to bump into Jack Nicklaus at a function earlier this week and an old subject that we were polarized on was recalled. A decade ago, Jack spoke fervently about the need for the golf ball to be rolled back so that it wouldn’t go as far.
I was adamant that the longer ball was good for the overall game because the longer ball made the game more fun and would help keep people in the game. Ten years ago, I wasn’t totally wrong. Today, ah, mea culpa greatest golfer of all time.
“I could see where it was going and today we’re almost there,” Nicklaus said. “Yesterday, my son Michael, who doesn’t play very much, but hits it nine miles, told me he played a 537-yard par 4 and hated the fact he had to hit a 7-iron for his second shot. That’s not golf.
“The new ball of today doesn’t help the average golfer,” he continued. “If you have a swing speed of 110 miles an hour, you become a better player than you really are. If you don’t have that swing, the ball hurts your chances.”
He’s right. The super balls are for super swing speeds only. The rest of us are left to live with our shortcomings. The moral of the story is, never argue with the greatest golfer of all time (although it was fun being a little burr under his saddle for a little while even if he really didn’t notice).
Bartender, throw some crow into the blender, puree it and I’ll have it on the rocks with water on the side.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
The wonderful world of drug testing
Welcome to the wonderful world of drug testing. In knee jerk reaction to the misconduct of athletes in other sports, the ruling class of the PGA Tour, the European Tour and the LPGA Tour decided that golf needed to show the world just how clean professional golf is.
What they produced was a bad joke. If any of these guys or ladies walks the aisles of Walgreens and CVS they’re liable to be suspended. It appears that if a professional golfer takes ANYTHING that relieves in any measure an ache or a pain, they’re going to get some time out.
If you’re wondering if the U.S. Open had been played this weekend instead of Father’s Day weekend, would Tiger Woods have been disqualified? If it was his week to be randomly tested, he would. Realistically, they wouldn’t even think of testing him on a week like that—no matter how obvious it was that he was taking something. Remember, there are rules for the rank and file of the PGA Tour and then there are rules for Tiger and they’re not very similar. Before you raise your indignity level, it’s called self preservation.
As we are seeing now, the PGA Tour is paying the price the NBA did when they built the league around Michael Jordan and he retired. The league floundered for a few years and is just now on the road to recovery, but did they learn from their mistake? I give you LeBron James.
Just a couple of weeks of the World Without Tiger and the PGA Tour is churning the PR mill and the world has been presented with 22-year old Anthony Kim as the heir apparent. Don’t get me wrong, Kim is a nice player with a tremendous upside, but he’s just 22. At 22, young adults are still making poor decisions. For instance, I got married at 22 and that was at least 30 years too soon. You still have to file Kim and his two wins this year under “potential.”
There are other players who could carry the load until Tiger returns, but unfortunately, they’re on the shelf as well and as of July 1st that was the Tour’s fault. Wouldn’t you think that Vijay Singh might want to take some anti-inflammatory medicine for his myriad of muscular ailments? Adam Scott might want to take the edge off the discomfort he has in the slight break in his right hand, but he can’t even think about it. There are others who are hobbled and could have helped themselves, but will have to weather the storm cold turkey costing them money and quality golf.
I know that part of golf is focus and stamina, but somewhere common sense has to be acknowledged. The people at the Titleist Performance Institute regarded as the best golf fitness group in the business thinks this policy to be ridiculous citing that there are no steroids or human growth hormones that could help a golfer. In fact, any effect would probably be counterproductive.
This is just a façade for the real purpose of the drug test. By “joining” the other sports in keeping their game clean, Timmie Finchem and the boys can go to the International Olympic Committee with a proposal to put golf into the summer Olympics in four years.
Me? I go along with the European Tour executive who said, “We really only have to test one player, don’t we? If he’s not using anything, what difference will it make with the rest.”
Bartender, please pour me a whiskey and water and hold the whiskey. I don’t want to chance Timmie taking my laptop away for violating any of his foolish tests.
See you on the first tee.
Jack
What they produced was a bad joke. If any of these guys or ladies walks the aisles of Walgreens and CVS they’re liable to be suspended. It appears that if a professional golfer takes ANYTHING that relieves in any measure an ache or a pain, they’re going to get some time out.
If you’re wondering if the U.S. Open had been played this weekend instead of Father’s Day weekend, would Tiger Woods have been disqualified? If it was his week to be randomly tested, he would. Realistically, they wouldn’t even think of testing him on a week like that—no matter how obvious it was that he was taking something. Remember, there are rules for the rank and file of the PGA Tour and then there are rules for Tiger and they’re not very similar. Before you raise your indignity level, it’s called self preservation.
As we are seeing now, the PGA Tour is paying the price the NBA did when they built the league around Michael Jordan and he retired. The league floundered for a few years and is just now on the road to recovery, but did they learn from their mistake? I give you LeBron James.
Just a couple of weeks of the World Without Tiger and the PGA Tour is churning the PR mill and the world has been presented with 22-year old Anthony Kim as the heir apparent. Don’t get me wrong, Kim is a nice player with a tremendous upside, but he’s just 22. At 22, young adults are still making poor decisions. For instance, I got married at 22 and that was at least 30 years too soon. You still have to file Kim and his two wins this year under “potential.”
There are other players who could carry the load until Tiger returns, but unfortunately, they’re on the shelf as well and as of July 1st that was the Tour’s fault. Wouldn’t you think that Vijay Singh might want to take some anti-inflammatory medicine for his myriad of muscular ailments? Adam Scott might want to take the edge off the discomfort he has in the slight break in his right hand, but he can’t even think about it. There are others who are hobbled and could have helped themselves, but will have to weather the storm cold turkey costing them money and quality golf.
I know that part of golf is focus and stamina, but somewhere common sense has to be acknowledged. The people at the Titleist Performance Institute regarded as the best golf fitness group in the business thinks this policy to be ridiculous citing that there are no steroids or human growth hormones that could help a golfer. In fact, any effect would probably be counterproductive.
This is just a façade for the real purpose of the drug test. By “joining” the other sports in keeping their game clean, Timmie Finchem and the boys can go to the International Olympic Committee with a proposal to put golf into the summer Olympics in four years.
Me? I go along with the European Tour executive who said, “We really only have to test one player, don’t we? If he’s not using anything, what difference will it make with the rest.”
Bartender, please pour me a whiskey and water and hold the whiskey. I don’t want to chance Timmie taking my laptop away for violating any of his foolish tests.
See you on the first tee.
Jack
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