Welcome to Week 2 PT (post Tiger). Thus far, Timmy Finchem et all who ride roughshod over the PGA Tour have been firing smokescreens about the fact that the Tour will have to survive without Woods for nine months.
This means that their Fed Ex Cup tournament run for millions in cash will have TV ratings analogous to a softball tournament on ESPN. Attendance will be down at each Tour stop until he returns. Sponsors will be apoplectic and will threaten to withdraw their sponsorship even if they have to break a contract.
I have one question about all of this, WHY?
Look at Woods’ playing schedule when he’s healthy. He never plays 20 times in this country, so the chances of him being on the field at a tournament are negligible at best. If you’re not in San Diego, Augusta, Georgia, Ponte Vedra, Florida, Miami, Akron, Ohio, the site du jour of the U.S. Open and PGA Championship, Washington, D.C. for the tournament he stole from Colorado, you’re not going to see him anyway. Just by his attitude, you can tell he really doesn’t care a whole lot about the PGA Tour. It’s time he’s treated in like kind.
Oh yeah, the Ryder Cup, I almost forgot about that. Right, it’s like they don’t already have enough guys with losing records like his to take his place. Sorry for the lack of tears.
It’s time people realize that the PGA Tour isn’t a one man band. Tiger may win a heavy percentage of the tournaments he enters, but he doesn’t win them all. In fact, he doesn’t win half of them, but he gets all the credit.
This year heroes were made of Paul Goydos and Rocco Mediate and they lost. Honest folks, there are a lot of guys out there just as worthy of your attention. Anthony Kim should blossom into a great player. Boo Weekley, the Tour’s version of Larry the Cable Guy is a great story and he plays almost every week. You can actually follow him and not wait around until he shows up. Camilo Villegas is about to bloom as a wonderful player. I guess if you don’t like a bit of a swagger and a lot of charisma, he may not be for you.
Then, there’s the rest of the Top 20. Phil Mickelson, Jim Furyk and company are great players in their own right. I think it high time we all realize there’s more than one player on the Tour and Timmie and the boys would be well served to address that fact.
XXXXXXXX
There’s one thing for sure, very few people if any are on the fence when they think about NBC golf analyst Johnny Miller. I’ve almost always been in the former camp, although a recent apology he issued has caused some misgivings.
During the US Open coverage, Miller referred to Rocco Mediate as “Tiger’s pool boy” and that “guys named Rocco don’t get their names on the trophy.” It seems that a couple of Italian anti-defamation groups thought those remarks were aimed at Mediate’s heritage.
I don’t know about you, but I have never heard of any stigma attached to being a “pool boy.” Come to think of it, I used to play golf with a guy that owned a pool maintenance business. He wasn’t Italian, but I would have loved to swap paychecks with him. Also, for the record, no one named Rocco has ever won the U.S. Open, ergo the name Rocco isn’t on the trophy. He didn’t win the playoff so there still isn’t.
What is the big deal here? Even Rocco said he wasn’t the slightest bit offended by what Miller said. The thing that bothers me is that he had to apologize and sadly he apologized on the day the world learned of the death of George Carlin, a brilliant comedian who personified free speech. The irony is just dreadful.
Bartender, just a draught beer please. Make it a Miller Lite, because that’s what Johnny’s words are when the network makes him apologize for them.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
Friday, June 27, 2008
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Was Tiger's bid for another Major too costly?
Was it ego, stupidity or heroism? Regardless of the answer (and it’s most likely a combination of all three), Tiger Woods put his historic career on the line for the sake of one championship.
IMG, his management company issued a statement that Tiger has shut it down for the rest of the year and will have reconstructive surgery on his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and will spend the rest of the year rehabilitating his left leg. Oh, they also added that he played on a double stress fracture of his left tibia. The latter was discovered during the week of the Memorial Tournament.
During the week, Tiger alluded to the fact that he went against doctor’s advice when he teed it up at Torrey Pines. Let’s see, do I jeopardize my billion dollar career for one Major? Do I risk permanent damage for one more try for the brass ring? Evidently, he thought it was and played. He overcame the pain and persevered for not 72, but 91 holes. This speaks volumes for his tolerance of pain, but not a whole lot for his common sense. At the age of 32, he has a lot of Major championship appearances left and the odds of him winning six more to become the all time leader aren’t significantly less than winning five.
One thing that will certainly happen is that Tiger’s swing guru, Hank Haney, will be charged with developing a less violent swing that will reduce the torque on the knee. Perhaps this will call for a strategy that relies less on overpowering a golf course and more on shot making and use of his tremendous short game. He certainly has the talent to dominate using those attributes.
I think we can look for a change in Tiger’s future schedules. It might look like the four Majors, three WGC events, a couple with Buick in the title, his tournament in Washington, D.C. and two or three FedEx final events. He’ll probably add a couple overseas like Dubai where he’s designing a course and another where he picks up a design job. He can spend the rest of the year pursuing other trivial challenges like bringing peace to the Middle East and stopping global warming.
Hopefully, Tiger will realize that he’s not bulletproof and that he’s susceptible to the frailties of the human body. With any luck, over the next six or seven months, Tiger’s body will totally heal and that his thought process will include tomorrow and not just today. If it does, he may come back better than ever.
PITCH SHOTS
While trying to recover from the sheer excitement of the U.S. Open, some random thoughts crept into my cranium. Now they’ve worked themselves down my arms and are pouring out of my fingers. Here we go.
The professional golf season is now half over and the two most endearing characters from this unfolding tale are two guys who lost in playoffs, Paul Goydos in The Players Championship and Rocco Mediate in the U.S. Open. They were the ultimate underdogs and wore their emotions on their sleeves. America always has a soft spot for the underdog and if that underdog has a bit of personality (in the case of professional golfers, this means the ability to say a simple hello), they become instant heroes. The fact that in the end both came up short didn’t tarnish their luster.
Having the U.S. Open in prime time certainly gave golf a much needed shot in the arm. The ratings were the highest since the 2000 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach when Tiger won by double figures. Even the playoff numbers were through the roof for a Monday afternoon and this didn’t count all those who watched it on their computers while at work. One would hope the USGA would consider returning to the left coast more frequently. Who knows maybe the industry will get off their collective butts and seize the opportunity to use these occasions to grow the game? Probably not. They haven’t done before, why change now?
When people think of Callaway, they usually think of drivers. Having said that, they must have been apoplectic during the Open when their premiere poster boy, Phil Mickelson, made a big deal about taking his driver out of the bag because he wanted to hit more fairways. He then took down Callaway’s fairway wood program when he couldn’t find the fairway with his 3-wood. He also didn’t shed a positive light on the company’s wedge program when it took four tries to get his ball on the green from 40-yards in the middle of the fairway on the 13th hole on Saturday effectively knocking him out of contention. Callaway gets all this for a paltry $8 to $12 million a year. They recouped some of their reputation on Monday every time Rocco’s bag flashed on the screen, but the Mickelson travesty had to be embarrassing particularly in their own back yard. The least he could have done is carry the driver and not use it.
Being a cynical curmudgeon, I have a couple of questions. If the USGA is so puritanical and steadfast about an 18-hole playoff, why did the Open end in sudden death? For the first time in history, sudden death didn’t start on the first hole. Instead they created a three hole loop with hole 7, 8 and 18. Couldn’t they have used this loop on Sunday as a playoff site? Better yet, instead of sudden death, they could have had the players play the three holes with low aggregate score winning the title. In a championship of this magnitude, sudden death in any form sucks.
In closing, a final reflection on the Open—the right guy won. I get the feeling that if Rocco made an extra good shot, Tiger would have made an extra great one. If Rocco made one more putt, Tiger would have made two. Rocco was a worthy competitor. Tiger was and is destined.
Bartender, please break out a bottle of 2003 Altesino Brunello di Montalcino Cru Montosoli and pour a glass for my paisans Rocco and Paul and leave the bottle. We’re going to toast battles hard fought and victories found in the ashes of defeat.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
IMG, his management company issued a statement that Tiger has shut it down for the rest of the year and will have reconstructive surgery on his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and will spend the rest of the year rehabilitating his left leg. Oh, they also added that he played on a double stress fracture of his left tibia. The latter was discovered during the week of the Memorial Tournament.
During the week, Tiger alluded to the fact that he went against doctor’s advice when he teed it up at Torrey Pines. Let’s see, do I jeopardize my billion dollar career for one Major? Do I risk permanent damage for one more try for the brass ring? Evidently, he thought it was and played. He overcame the pain and persevered for not 72, but 91 holes. This speaks volumes for his tolerance of pain, but not a whole lot for his common sense. At the age of 32, he has a lot of Major championship appearances left and the odds of him winning six more to become the all time leader aren’t significantly less than winning five.
One thing that will certainly happen is that Tiger’s swing guru, Hank Haney, will be charged with developing a less violent swing that will reduce the torque on the knee. Perhaps this will call for a strategy that relies less on overpowering a golf course and more on shot making and use of his tremendous short game. He certainly has the talent to dominate using those attributes.
I think we can look for a change in Tiger’s future schedules. It might look like the four Majors, three WGC events, a couple with Buick in the title, his tournament in Washington, D.C. and two or three FedEx final events. He’ll probably add a couple overseas like Dubai where he’s designing a course and another where he picks up a design job. He can spend the rest of the year pursuing other trivial challenges like bringing peace to the Middle East and stopping global warming.
Hopefully, Tiger will realize that he’s not bulletproof and that he’s susceptible to the frailties of the human body. With any luck, over the next six or seven months, Tiger’s body will totally heal and that his thought process will include tomorrow and not just today. If it does, he may come back better than ever.
PITCH SHOTS
While trying to recover from the sheer excitement of the U.S. Open, some random thoughts crept into my cranium. Now they’ve worked themselves down my arms and are pouring out of my fingers. Here we go.
The professional golf season is now half over and the two most endearing characters from this unfolding tale are two guys who lost in playoffs, Paul Goydos in The Players Championship and Rocco Mediate in the U.S. Open. They were the ultimate underdogs and wore their emotions on their sleeves. America always has a soft spot for the underdog and if that underdog has a bit of personality (in the case of professional golfers, this means the ability to say a simple hello), they become instant heroes. The fact that in the end both came up short didn’t tarnish their luster.
Having the U.S. Open in prime time certainly gave golf a much needed shot in the arm. The ratings were the highest since the 2000 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach when Tiger won by double figures. Even the playoff numbers were through the roof for a Monday afternoon and this didn’t count all those who watched it on their computers while at work. One would hope the USGA would consider returning to the left coast more frequently. Who knows maybe the industry will get off their collective butts and seize the opportunity to use these occasions to grow the game? Probably not. They haven’t done before, why change now?
When people think of Callaway, they usually think of drivers. Having said that, they must have been apoplectic during the Open when their premiere poster boy, Phil Mickelson, made a big deal about taking his driver out of the bag because he wanted to hit more fairways. He then took down Callaway’s fairway wood program when he couldn’t find the fairway with his 3-wood. He also didn’t shed a positive light on the company’s wedge program when it took four tries to get his ball on the green from 40-yards in the middle of the fairway on the 13th hole on Saturday effectively knocking him out of contention. Callaway gets all this for a paltry $8 to $12 million a year. They recouped some of their reputation on Monday every time Rocco’s bag flashed on the screen, but the Mickelson travesty had to be embarrassing particularly in their own back yard. The least he could have done is carry the driver and not use it.
Being a cynical curmudgeon, I have a couple of questions. If the USGA is so puritanical and steadfast about an 18-hole playoff, why did the Open end in sudden death? For the first time in history, sudden death didn’t start on the first hole. Instead they created a three hole loop with hole 7, 8 and 18. Couldn’t they have used this loop on Sunday as a playoff site? Better yet, instead of sudden death, they could have had the players play the three holes with low aggregate score winning the title. In a championship of this magnitude, sudden death in any form sucks.
In closing, a final reflection on the Open—the right guy won. I get the feeling that if Rocco made an extra good shot, Tiger would have made an extra great one. If Rocco made one more putt, Tiger would have made two. Rocco was a worthy competitor. Tiger was and is destined.
Bartender, please break out a bottle of 2003 Altesino Brunello di Montalcino Cru Montosoli and pour a glass for my paisans Rocco and Paul and leave the bottle. We’re going to toast battles hard fought and victories found in the ashes of defeat.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
What is with the pairings for the U.S. Open?
It looks like the boys at the USGA may have gotten a little too deep into their tonics and gin just before they made the pairings for this week’s U.S. Open at Torrey Pines in San Diego.
On the surface, the pairing of the top three ranked players in the world, Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and Adam Scott for the first two rounds seems inspired. A little deeper look into it and you have to wonder what they were thinking about.
First, these guys are as serious competitors as you can find. In addition, there’s also the personal rub between Phil and Tiger that just won’t go away. Over 36 holes they just might be so focused on beating the other that the Championship becomes secondary. Given Scott’s ineptitude in Majors, he’ll be little more than an observer and the residual effect won’t be as harsh.
However the fall out on the group ahead, Mark Calcavecchia, Oliver Nelson and Joe Ogilvie and the group behind of Lee Janzen, Steve Flesch and Rich Beem could be catastrophic, given that 80 percent of the people on the course will be crowding into watch the group between them. You can bet the overflow will be uncontrollable. Count those six out of the tournament.
Back in the days when Frank Hennigan was the executive director and P.J. Boatwright and Tom Meeks were his henchmen. Great care was given to the pairings at the U.S. Open. Nicklaus, Palmer, Player and Watson had to earn the right to be paired with each other and it was on the weekend when the title was on the line.
This wasn’t to say that they didn’t have some fun doing the pairings. If Lee Chill a journeyman tour player at the time qualified for the US Open, you could count on him being paired with South African David Frost. Hennigan also had a “Mystery Pairing” every year. He would find some obscure commonality two or three players had and paired them together. Then he would challenge the media to find the commonality. Sometimes, even the players weren’t aware of it.
This year, the pairings are as subtle as a brick wall. Miguel Ángel Jiménez is paired with Boo Weekley and Shingo Katayama. I figure that Boo doesn’t speak a lot of Spanish or Japanese and they might not be versed in Red Neck. Boo will probably have a few stories to tell about the conversations during lulls in the action.
The pairing of Trevor Immelman, Zach Johnson and Mike Weir contains the last three Masters champions not named Tiger or Phil. The Craig Parry, Tim Clark, Robert Karlsson trio contains the tallest player in the field, Karlsson with the two shortest.
The scoring might not be great, but the fireworks generated by Bubba Watson, JB Holmes and Brett Wetterich, three of the longest hitters in professional golf should be interesting even if their best ball score each day is 76.
Mild mannered Frenchman Thomas Levet could be headed for a nervous breakdown should playing partners Woody Austin and Pat Perez go into meltdown. The same could be said for David Toms. If he keeps the peace between Rory Sabbatini and Colin Montgomerie, there’s a Nobel Peace Prize nomination in his future.
Of course the all-England grouping of Ian Poulter, Paul Casey and Luke Donald could back up the course should they stop at four o’clock for a spot of tea. This also is possible if Swedes Carl Peterson and Daniel Chopra along with Dane Soren Hansen representing Scandinavia break for a sauna.
In closing, I can honestly say I don’t have the foggiest idea who will win the U.S. Open. But I can say it won’t be Tiger, Phil or Adam. They’ll punch themselves out before Saturday morning. Of course, I could be wrong. I know that’s hard to believe, but they are the three best players in the world and well…. All I know is, I wish I was at this pairing party. I wondered if they had a giggle the next morning when the hangover cleared.
Bartender, set me up a Harvey Wallbanger, a Rob Roy and a Tom Collins and you have to tell me what those three have in common.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
On the surface, the pairing of the top three ranked players in the world, Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and Adam Scott for the first two rounds seems inspired. A little deeper look into it and you have to wonder what they were thinking about.
First, these guys are as serious competitors as you can find. In addition, there’s also the personal rub between Phil and Tiger that just won’t go away. Over 36 holes they just might be so focused on beating the other that the Championship becomes secondary. Given Scott’s ineptitude in Majors, he’ll be little more than an observer and the residual effect won’t be as harsh.
However the fall out on the group ahead, Mark Calcavecchia, Oliver Nelson and Joe Ogilvie and the group behind of Lee Janzen, Steve Flesch and Rich Beem could be catastrophic, given that 80 percent of the people on the course will be crowding into watch the group between them. You can bet the overflow will be uncontrollable. Count those six out of the tournament.
Back in the days when Frank Hennigan was the executive director and P.J. Boatwright and Tom Meeks were his henchmen. Great care was given to the pairings at the U.S. Open. Nicklaus, Palmer, Player and Watson had to earn the right to be paired with each other and it was on the weekend when the title was on the line.
This wasn’t to say that they didn’t have some fun doing the pairings. If Lee Chill a journeyman tour player at the time qualified for the US Open, you could count on him being paired with South African David Frost. Hennigan also had a “Mystery Pairing” every year. He would find some obscure commonality two or three players had and paired them together. Then he would challenge the media to find the commonality. Sometimes, even the players weren’t aware of it.
This year, the pairings are as subtle as a brick wall. Miguel Ángel Jiménez is paired with Boo Weekley and Shingo Katayama. I figure that Boo doesn’t speak a lot of Spanish or Japanese and they might not be versed in Red Neck. Boo will probably have a few stories to tell about the conversations during lulls in the action.
The pairing of Trevor Immelman, Zach Johnson and Mike Weir contains the last three Masters champions not named Tiger or Phil. The Craig Parry, Tim Clark, Robert Karlsson trio contains the tallest player in the field, Karlsson with the two shortest.
The scoring might not be great, but the fireworks generated by Bubba Watson, JB Holmes and Brett Wetterich, three of the longest hitters in professional golf should be interesting even if their best ball score each day is 76.
Mild mannered Frenchman Thomas Levet could be headed for a nervous breakdown should playing partners Woody Austin and Pat Perez go into meltdown. The same could be said for David Toms. If he keeps the peace between Rory Sabbatini and Colin Montgomerie, there’s a Nobel Peace Prize nomination in his future.
Of course the all-England grouping of Ian Poulter, Paul Casey and Luke Donald could back up the course should they stop at four o’clock for a spot of tea. This also is possible if Swedes Carl Peterson and Daniel Chopra along with Dane Soren Hansen representing Scandinavia break for a sauna.
In closing, I can honestly say I don’t have the foggiest idea who will win the U.S. Open. But I can say it won’t be Tiger, Phil or Adam. They’ll punch themselves out before Saturday morning. Of course, I could be wrong. I know that’s hard to believe, but they are the three best players in the world and well…. All I know is, I wish I was at this pairing party. I wondered if they had a giggle the next morning when the hangover cleared.
Bartender, set me up a Harvey Wallbanger, a Rob Roy and a Tom Collins and you have to tell me what those three have in common.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Seve snorts about Ryder Cup competition .. or lack there of
He comes around every two years and makes his bi-annual attempt to draw attention to himself. Even in retirement Seve Ballesteros just can’t avoid putting his two Euro cents in when it comes to the Ryder Cup. It seems Seve finds the competition (or lack of same) boring.
“They need to win badly,” Seve said of the American team. “I hope the Americans win this year in all seriousness.”
I think Seve has been into the sangria a little too much lately. Here’s the guy who traded cheating accusations with this year’s U.S. captain Paul Azinger wanting the U.S. to win. Huh?
“I see the Ryder Cup getting very boring because we are beating them so badly,” said Seve. “Everybody is losing interest. I think it will be good if they win the next one. It would give the Ryder Cup a lift.”
The irony of this kills me. The same things were being said 25 years ago … in the other direction. Those were the days when this competition was between the U.S. and Great Britain & Ireland. Then a pain-in-the-butt Spaniard whined and whined about he being one of the greatest players in the world and he couldn’t play. He couldn’t get it through his skull or massive ego, or both that he was neither a Brit nor a Harp. Finally, to shut him up more than appease him, the rules were changed to all the GB & I boys to recruit throughout all of Europe. Today, he’s complaining about something that was his fault. Way to go Seve!
In all fairness, he has made some valid points. Since 1985, the U.S. has shown up once and won the Ryder Cup. The last three have been record setting defeats. The golf fans seem to be more interested than the players. I guess the old “it’s not important until we get beat” theory is out the window.
To his credit, Azinger pushed for some changes in the team selection process and received them. The principal change is the U.S. captain now has four picks instead of two. This has to help unless he drafts his team worse than the Miami Dolphins of the past few years.
I think it’s incumbent upon us to suggest more changes that might put the U.S. over the top, or at least rekindle some interest.
1. Give the Americans strokes. The amount will be negotiated on the first tee by the players. I will offer up the services of Doc O’Keefe an old golf buddy to teach the Americans the fine art of first tee gamesmanship. He’s the best I’ve ever seen at negotiating a match only he could win.
2. Two-down automatic presses. This gives the Americans a chance to add points, or save some during the match. It may throw the point totals out of whack, but it will retain interest as the “magic number” has been eliminated.
3. The U.S. team plays from the front markers, the Euros from the tips. The edge is obvious—particularly is Azinger has any say in the course set up crossing hazards? No problem. Front markers are placed on the other side while the tips are 150-yards behind.
4. Make one day medal match play. The Americans beat these guys like a drum in individual stroke play events. What’s home course advantage if you can’t make your own rules.
5. Enlist some help. Make it Europe against North America. I know, you don’t think Stephen Ames and Mike Weir will add much to the American effort—but think about Lorena Ochoa!
Bartender pour Seve a cup of your strongest espresso, I think he really needs to sober up.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
“They need to win badly,” Seve said of the American team. “I hope the Americans win this year in all seriousness.”
I think Seve has been into the sangria a little too much lately. Here’s the guy who traded cheating accusations with this year’s U.S. captain Paul Azinger wanting the U.S. to win. Huh?
“I see the Ryder Cup getting very boring because we are beating them so badly,” said Seve. “Everybody is losing interest. I think it will be good if they win the next one. It would give the Ryder Cup a lift.”
The irony of this kills me. The same things were being said 25 years ago … in the other direction. Those were the days when this competition was between the U.S. and Great Britain & Ireland. Then a pain-in-the-butt Spaniard whined and whined about he being one of the greatest players in the world and he couldn’t play. He couldn’t get it through his skull or massive ego, or both that he was neither a Brit nor a Harp. Finally, to shut him up more than appease him, the rules were changed to all the GB & I boys to recruit throughout all of Europe. Today, he’s complaining about something that was his fault. Way to go Seve!
In all fairness, he has made some valid points. Since 1985, the U.S. has shown up once and won the Ryder Cup. The last three have been record setting defeats. The golf fans seem to be more interested than the players. I guess the old “it’s not important until we get beat” theory is out the window.
To his credit, Azinger pushed for some changes in the team selection process and received them. The principal change is the U.S. captain now has four picks instead of two. This has to help unless he drafts his team worse than the Miami Dolphins of the past few years.
I think it’s incumbent upon us to suggest more changes that might put the U.S. over the top, or at least rekindle some interest.
1. Give the Americans strokes. The amount will be negotiated on the first tee by the players. I will offer up the services of Doc O’Keefe an old golf buddy to teach the Americans the fine art of first tee gamesmanship. He’s the best I’ve ever seen at negotiating a match only he could win.
2. Two-down automatic presses. This gives the Americans a chance to add points, or save some during the match. It may throw the point totals out of whack, but it will retain interest as the “magic number” has been eliminated.
3. The U.S. team plays from the front markers, the Euros from the tips. The edge is obvious—particularly is Azinger has any say in the course set up crossing hazards? No problem. Front markers are placed on the other side while the tips are 150-yards behind.
4. Make one day medal match play. The Americans beat these guys like a drum in individual stroke play events. What’s home course advantage if you can’t make your own rules.
5. Enlist some help. Make it Europe against North America. I know, you don’t think Stephen Ames and Mike Weir will add much to the American effort—but think about Lorena Ochoa!
Bartender pour Seve a cup of your strongest espresso, I think he really needs to sober up.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
Thursday, May 15, 2008
One Man’s Opinion -- Will big win spur Sergio to Major win?
For years, PGA Tour Commissioner Timmie Finchem has looked at NASCAR as a marketing model for his band of gypsies.
Last week, his annual clambake at the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass, The Players Championship, had more wrecks than 10 NASCAR races combined. Once a golf ball was airborne, it no longer belonged to the golfer who launched it. It belonged to the wind and the ground where bounces described as peculiar at best broke the hearts of many.
This combination of pain and chaos produced a champion who has caused all of the above for his fans and detractors alike during his 10-year career, Señor Sergio Garcia. He arose from the ashes to defeat the overwhelming fan favorite, unheralded and previously unknown to the casual observer, Paul Goydos. The record would have it that Serge defeated Goydos on the first hole the sudden death playoff with a par following Goydos dunking his tee shot just short of the 17th hole’s island green.
There are many who would suggest (and I being one of them obviously) that Serge won in spite of himself. He won because he gave himself the most chances to win—not because he seized it. That’s just not his style. History tells us that not only will he not seize the moment, he will find a way to lose and will be jackrabbit quick to tell you it wasn’t his fault. He has more excuses than Halliburton has lawyers.
The clinic Garcia gave for four days was as impressive as any you’ll ever see. No one, absolutely no one came close to striking the ball as well as Serge. He was first in driving accuracy (on Saturday, he hit the fairway on all driving holes in steady 25 mile an hour wind). He was first in Greens in Regulation by a mile. It seemed that everytime you looked in, Serge was standing over a makeable birdie—and then tapping them in for par a stroke later.
With ball striking statistics such as these coupled with the weather conditions, he should have blown away the field by double figures and he finished in a playoff? The reason is, he finished T39 in Putts per Green in Regulation and T69 in Total Putts Per Round. This is becoming known as the Garcia Gap where hands turn to cast iron when feet reach the shortest grass.
Now, this is the most amazing thing. Time after time when asked about his putting, Serge was quick to say that he putted well, but didn’t make anything. At least he was half right.
I think he’s living in the world of denial and has renewed the lease a few times. Think back to last year when he had a six-foot putt to win the British Open and missed. Not only did he miss, but the putt broke the opposite way than he thought. Come to think about it, there was quite a bit of that at The Players Championship as well. Serge, just a thought here, Helen Keller had Anne Sullivan to teach her to read. Can’t you find someone to teach you?
To his credit, on the final nine, Serge did make some crucial putts. The biggest, of course was the 12-15 footer on 18 to get into the playoff. With the guys I was watching with, you couldn’t get a bet that he’d make it. Of course, we all had to laugh on the playoff hole. With absolutely no pressure on him, he couldn’t hit the hole from four feet for what would have been a classy birdie.
One might think this could propel him to vacate the top of the List of the Best Golfers to Not Have Won a Major. In a fashion, I hope so. Then the golf world won’t have to listen to him whine about how unfairly he’s treated and that he leads a “Me against the world” existence. However, I don’t think it will.
They say that Tiger Woods owns a condo inside Ernie Els’ head. Tiger must also own a two-bedroom loft in Serge’s. The first thing out of Serge’s mouth at his trophy reception was, “I want to thank Tiger Woods for not being here this week.”
Here’s a guy who just won the biggest tournament of his life and he wants to thank a player for not being there? Huh? In Sergio’s seven PGA Tour wins, Tiger has been in the field three times. Of course Sergio has been there for a lot of Tiger’s wins as well and frankly, that’s been a more common scenario, but every player can say that. Also, in spite of his 2001 win, Tiger hasn’t been a force around the Stadium Course very often. I think that rather than search out putting guru Stan Utley, Serge would be best served looking up Dr. Phil. It appears that Serge lead the field in another statistic last week—neurosis.
This should make the rest of the season very interesting. My advice to you is stock up on a lot of cheese, because you know Serge will be serving copious magnums of whine this summer when he’s not leading the field in ball striking and has to rely on his flat stick.
Bartender, let’s get the party started. Stow Serge’s Michelob Ultra Light beer from his TV commercials and stir up a pitcher of cold, homemade Spanish Sangria. I think I’ll pass on the flamingo dancing this time around though. I’ll leave that to Serge.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
Last week, his annual clambake at the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass, The Players Championship, had more wrecks than 10 NASCAR races combined. Once a golf ball was airborne, it no longer belonged to the golfer who launched it. It belonged to the wind and the ground where bounces described as peculiar at best broke the hearts of many.
This combination of pain and chaos produced a champion who has caused all of the above for his fans and detractors alike during his 10-year career, Señor Sergio Garcia. He arose from the ashes to defeat the overwhelming fan favorite, unheralded and previously unknown to the casual observer, Paul Goydos. The record would have it that Serge defeated Goydos on the first hole the sudden death playoff with a par following Goydos dunking his tee shot just short of the 17th hole’s island green.
There are many who would suggest (and I being one of them obviously) that Serge won in spite of himself. He won because he gave himself the most chances to win—not because he seized it. That’s just not his style. History tells us that not only will he not seize the moment, he will find a way to lose and will be jackrabbit quick to tell you it wasn’t his fault. He has more excuses than Halliburton has lawyers.
The clinic Garcia gave for four days was as impressive as any you’ll ever see. No one, absolutely no one came close to striking the ball as well as Serge. He was first in driving accuracy (on Saturday, he hit the fairway on all driving holes in steady 25 mile an hour wind). He was first in Greens in Regulation by a mile. It seemed that everytime you looked in, Serge was standing over a makeable birdie—and then tapping them in for par a stroke later.
With ball striking statistics such as these coupled with the weather conditions, he should have blown away the field by double figures and he finished in a playoff? The reason is, he finished T39 in Putts per Green in Regulation and T69 in Total Putts Per Round. This is becoming known as the Garcia Gap where hands turn to cast iron when feet reach the shortest grass.
Now, this is the most amazing thing. Time after time when asked about his putting, Serge was quick to say that he putted well, but didn’t make anything. At least he was half right.
I think he’s living in the world of denial and has renewed the lease a few times. Think back to last year when he had a six-foot putt to win the British Open and missed. Not only did he miss, but the putt broke the opposite way than he thought. Come to think about it, there was quite a bit of that at The Players Championship as well. Serge, just a thought here, Helen Keller had Anne Sullivan to teach her to read. Can’t you find someone to teach you?
To his credit, on the final nine, Serge did make some crucial putts. The biggest, of course was the 12-15 footer on 18 to get into the playoff. With the guys I was watching with, you couldn’t get a bet that he’d make it. Of course, we all had to laugh on the playoff hole. With absolutely no pressure on him, he couldn’t hit the hole from four feet for what would have been a classy birdie.
One might think this could propel him to vacate the top of the List of the Best Golfers to Not Have Won a Major. In a fashion, I hope so. Then the golf world won’t have to listen to him whine about how unfairly he’s treated and that he leads a “Me against the world” existence. However, I don’t think it will.
They say that Tiger Woods owns a condo inside Ernie Els’ head. Tiger must also own a two-bedroom loft in Serge’s. The first thing out of Serge’s mouth at his trophy reception was, “I want to thank Tiger Woods for not being here this week.”
Here’s a guy who just won the biggest tournament of his life and he wants to thank a player for not being there? Huh? In Sergio’s seven PGA Tour wins, Tiger has been in the field three times. Of course Sergio has been there for a lot of Tiger’s wins as well and frankly, that’s been a more common scenario, but every player can say that. Also, in spite of his 2001 win, Tiger hasn’t been a force around the Stadium Course very often. I think that rather than search out putting guru Stan Utley, Serge would be best served looking up Dr. Phil. It appears that Serge lead the field in another statistic last week—neurosis.
This should make the rest of the season very interesting. My advice to you is stock up on a lot of cheese, because you know Serge will be serving copious magnums of whine this summer when he’s not leading the field in ball striking and has to rely on his flat stick.
Bartender, let’s get the party started. Stow Serge’s Michelob Ultra Light beer from his TV commercials and stir up a pitcher of cold, homemade Spanish Sangria. I think I’ll pass on the flamingo dancing this time around though. I’ll leave that to Serge.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Players the 5th Major ... Not a chance
It officially started on May 6th, but in truth it’s carried out at least subliminally every day of the year. It’s Timmie Finchem’s campaign to have The Players Championship declared a Major Championship.
Timmie, I hate to be the bearer of bad news (not really), but 2008 will be like every year before it. It ain’t gonna happen now and it ain’t gonna happen in the future. Let me put it this way. When baseball changes it’s rules to having five bases and someone hits a bases loaded home run and a grand slam scores five runs; we’ll consider it. Remember Timmie, it was the media who wrote in 1969 that the major focus of Jack Nicklaus’ schedule was the Masters, US and British Opens and the PGA Championship that the word Major was used.
When The Players Championship first appeared on the schedule in 1974, Nicklaus had ample opportunity to anoint it as being worthy of his major focus. Maybe because it was first played on that combination hell hole and wind tunnel, Sawgrass CC that forced he and others to regard it as a survival mission rather than a golf tournament. Then when they moved to the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass, the design was so weird for the day that for awhile few took the tournament seriously.
There were a few other things that tarnished the image as well. For instance, they had a Pro Am—a definite no-no for Major status. The tournament primarily was a vehicle for the Tournament Players Clubs, a network of golf real estate developments owned by the PGA Tour. The success they had with the then Tournament Players Championship successfully branded the network. As a result, the players’ pension fund will make more money for the retired players than they made on the PGA Tour. Name me a current Major that was used to sell house lots. Both of things are history now, but that’s just it. It’s part of The Players Championship’s history.
Don’t get me wrong. The Players Championship is a nice tournament, perhaps a great tournament, but not a major. Justin Leonard put it in perspective. “The Majors are the apples and The Players Championship is an orange—a big orange maybe, but it’s still an orange,” he said.
Having said that and believing it, full disclosure demands that I admit that I am in a pool where you draft in order to pick your team for The Players Championship. Four of eight players have to make the cut and the low four-player team after 72 holes wins. This is the first year The Players Championship has been accorded this status. It now joins the, ahem, four Majors
Hey Timmie, it may only be a local sports bar in Central Florida, but it’s a start. Why don’t you stop by some weekend afternoon? They’ll have your golf tournament on at least one of their hi-def TVs. Buy, a round of dollar draughts and you’ll have a public groundswell on your hands. That my friend is the only chance you have to have an opportunity for The Players Championship considered a Major by anyone.
Bartender, please pour a draught beer for the Commish. It’s an acquired taste and I’m sure he’ll find it different from the fine wines and scotches in his wet bar. Timmie, if you’re going to be a man of the people, this is where we live.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
Timmie, I hate to be the bearer of bad news (not really), but 2008 will be like every year before it. It ain’t gonna happen now and it ain’t gonna happen in the future. Let me put it this way. When baseball changes it’s rules to having five bases and someone hits a bases loaded home run and a grand slam scores five runs; we’ll consider it. Remember Timmie, it was the media who wrote in 1969 that the major focus of Jack Nicklaus’ schedule was the Masters, US and British Opens and the PGA Championship that the word Major was used.
When The Players Championship first appeared on the schedule in 1974, Nicklaus had ample opportunity to anoint it as being worthy of his major focus. Maybe because it was first played on that combination hell hole and wind tunnel, Sawgrass CC that forced he and others to regard it as a survival mission rather than a golf tournament. Then when they moved to the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass, the design was so weird for the day that for awhile few took the tournament seriously.
There were a few other things that tarnished the image as well. For instance, they had a Pro Am—a definite no-no for Major status. The tournament primarily was a vehicle for the Tournament Players Clubs, a network of golf real estate developments owned by the PGA Tour. The success they had with the then Tournament Players Championship successfully branded the network. As a result, the players’ pension fund will make more money for the retired players than they made on the PGA Tour. Name me a current Major that was used to sell house lots. Both of things are history now, but that’s just it. It’s part of The Players Championship’s history.
Don’t get me wrong. The Players Championship is a nice tournament, perhaps a great tournament, but not a major. Justin Leonard put it in perspective. “The Majors are the apples and The Players Championship is an orange—a big orange maybe, but it’s still an orange,” he said.
Having said that and believing it, full disclosure demands that I admit that I am in a pool where you draft in order to pick your team for The Players Championship. Four of eight players have to make the cut and the low four-player team after 72 holes wins. This is the first year The Players Championship has been accorded this status. It now joins the, ahem, four Majors
Hey Timmie, it may only be a local sports bar in Central Florida, but it’s a start. Why don’t you stop by some weekend afternoon? They’ll have your golf tournament on at least one of their hi-def TVs. Buy, a round of dollar draughts and you’ll have a public groundswell on your hands. That my friend is the only chance you have to have an opportunity for The Players Championship considered a Major by anyone.
Bartender, please pour a draught beer for the Commish. It’s an acquired taste and I’m sure he’ll find it different from the fine wines and scotches in his wet bar. Timmie, if you’re going to be a man of the people, this is where we live.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
Monday, May 5, 2008
Another day in the life of John Daly
From the Department of You Can’t Make That Up, comes the incredible linkage of John Daly and Roger Clemens. It seems that Clemens, who is suing his former personal trainer Brian McNamee for defamation of character. In response McNamee’s legal team is trying to show that Clemens has little character to defame.
This brings us to the fact that the once first ballot lock for the Baseball Hall of Fame has been romantically linked with Paulette Dean Daly, number two on the list of Daly’s ex wives.
This woman must have a rather eclectic taste in men. While both Clemens and Daly are golf enthusiasts, that’s about where the comparison stops. Clemens is married. Currently Daly is not. Clemens is known for his rigorous physical training regimen (possibly steroid-enhanced). The most rigorous workout Daly does is a series of one 12 ounce curls. Repeat curls weigh less than the first one because Daly is draining Miller Lite by more than an ounce every curl. Clemens has a history of shattering the English language (his “misremember” to the House Committee investigating major league baseball was tame. When he pitched in Boston, one daily paper ran a feature called The World According to Roger that highlighted his malapropisms following every pitching performance.) Daly has as well, particularly during and following a particularly long workout, but remains comparatively coherent when not working out.
You would have thought the second Mrs. D would have been perfect for JD. She organizes lavish parties for the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic and parties are what Daly is about. Evidently, the hotel wrecking binge in Ponte Vedra Beach in 1997 wasn’t the type of party Paulette favored. She allegedly, however, favors the type where a guest (Clemens) dances the night away with an eight-foot boa constrictor around his neck. What some guys will do to impress a woman.
If the Daly linkage in l’affaire Clemens, is odd, it’s hard to follow Daly’s appearance at the Murder Rock GC a Daly-design under construction in Branson, Mo. A local FOX-TV station sent a crew to the site to talk with John and perhaps play a hole with him.
Always accommodating, Daly did just that—sans shirt and footwear. The things you see when you don’t have a harpoon! If you think Daly looks hefty when covered by a golf shirt, it’s Jabba the Hut time when he takes it off. Shoeless? Okay. Bare-chested? Not in this lifetime.
Later in the past week, it was learned that Daly and his former instructor Butch Harmon spoke by for the first time by phone since Daly learned Harmon had dumped him by reading it in the newspaper. Daly reportedly asked Harmon to go on the Golf Channel and retract the things Harmon had said about him publicly when he dumped Daly.
Even though Harmon has since learned that the reason Daly was in the Hooters tent during Saturday’s third round of the PODS Championship to help a charity by appearing and socializing with the guests, he refused to retract a word. The reason Daly had requested the retraction was the damage Harmon had done to his bank account by lost endorsements. Harmon refused, but offered help for Daly if he attempts to get on the straight and narrow.
Let’s face it, Daly is the type of guy who when he tries to do something right, it invariably turns out wrong.
Maybe a change of venue might help. Proclaiming to be fit following rib surgery and able to swing the club better, Daly, the 595th ranked player in the world will be entertaining European Tour fans the next two weeks with appearances in both Spain and Italy. Let’s hope it’s his golf that makes the news over the next fortnight.
Bartender, please pour a pitcher of Sangria for Mr. Daly and give him a bottle of Chianti to go, so he can practice for his two week European adventure. Maybe he can find some peace and his golf game and return with a future--not just a past.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
This brings us to the fact that the once first ballot lock for the Baseball Hall of Fame has been romantically linked with Paulette Dean Daly, number two on the list of Daly’s ex wives.
This woman must have a rather eclectic taste in men. While both Clemens and Daly are golf enthusiasts, that’s about where the comparison stops. Clemens is married. Currently Daly is not. Clemens is known for his rigorous physical training regimen (possibly steroid-enhanced). The most rigorous workout Daly does is a series of one 12 ounce curls. Repeat curls weigh less than the first one because Daly is draining Miller Lite by more than an ounce every curl. Clemens has a history of shattering the English language (his “misremember” to the House Committee investigating major league baseball was tame. When he pitched in Boston, one daily paper ran a feature called The World According to Roger that highlighted his malapropisms following every pitching performance.) Daly has as well, particularly during and following a particularly long workout, but remains comparatively coherent when not working out.
You would have thought the second Mrs. D would have been perfect for JD. She organizes lavish parties for the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic and parties are what Daly is about. Evidently, the hotel wrecking binge in Ponte Vedra Beach in 1997 wasn’t the type of party Paulette favored. She allegedly, however, favors the type where a guest (Clemens) dances the night away with an eight-foot boa constrictor around his neck. What some guys will do to impress a woman.
If the Daly linkage in l’affaire Clemens, is odd, it’s hard to follow Daly’s appearance at the Murder Rock GC a Daly-design under construction in Branson, Mo. A local FOX-TV station sent a crew to the site to talk with John and perhaps play a hole with him.
Always accommodating, Daly did just that—sans shirt and footwear. The things you see when you don’t have a harpoon! If you think Daly looks hefty when covered by a golf shirt, it’s Jabba the Hut time when he takes it off. Shoeless? Okay. Bare-chested? Not in this lifetime.
Later in the past week, it was learned that Daly and his former instructor Butch Harmon spoke by for the first time by phone since Daly learned Harmon had dumped him by reading it in the newspaper. Daly reportedly asked Harmon to go on the Golf Channel and retract the things Harmon had said about him publicly when he dumped Daly.
Even though Harmon has since learned that the reason Daly was in the Hooters tent during Saturday’s third round of the PODS Championship to help a charity by appearing and socializing with the guests, he refused to retract a word. The reason Daly had requested the retraction was the damage Harmon had done to his bank account by lost endorsements. Harmon refused, but offered help for Daly if he attempts to get on the straight and narrow.
Let’s face it, Daly is the type of guy who when he tries to do something right, it invariably turns out wrong.
Maybe a change of venue might help. Proclaiming to be fit following rib surgery and able to swing the club better, Daly, the 595th ranked player in the world will be entertaining European Tour fans the next two weeks with appearances in both Spain and Italy. Let’s hope it’s his golf that makes the news over the next fortnight.
Bartender, please pour a pitcher of Sangria for Mr. Daly and give him a bottle of Chianti to go, so he can practice for his two week European adventure. Maybe he can find some peace and his golf game and return with a future--not just a past.
See you on the first tee,
Jack
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