Flotsam and Jetsam™ - Digging Out Edition

It's a relatively quiet day in the world of golf, but there's always someone to offend.  We'll start on the left bank and see where we go from there:

• The Tenth at Riviera - I was curious to see Shackelford in the Morning Drive studio in Orlando early Wednesday morning, but relieved that he made it back to L.A. to take up his usual spot behind the tenth green at Riviera with AP writer Doug ferguson.  He's penned this item for GD's LK blog, the gist of which is that he's concluded that the players have no choice but to lay up:

Wonky architecture buffs -- guilty as charged -- will not want to hear that the options don't really matter. After all, there should be many ways to the hole, so the democratic view says. Sometimes that is the case with Riviera's 10th. By and large, however, this George Thomas-Billy Bell masterwork is averaging over par again because too many players are not laying up in with the best angle of attack. Or worse, they are trying to drive the green.

Shackelford's photo of the stands behind the 10th green at Riviera.

Funniest bit was this:

Padraig Harrington, knowing full well the carnage that had already taken place early into the round, spotted AP writer Doug Ferguson in his traditional perch behind the green. "If you were a lawyer you'd be chasing ambulances."

At his own blog, Geoff first reminds us that Charlie Beljan suggested a windmill for the green after losing a playoff on the hole to John Merrick last year, then adds:

Speaking of the windmill hole, here’s how the 10th played in round 1 through the play suspension: 4.077 scoring average, 30 birdies, 81 pars, 23 bogeys, 9 double bogey. It sure looked like more players layed up this year and I think the scatter chart backs me up.

And usefully provides this ShotLink scatter chart for us:

It's just the damnedest thing.  The best players in the world know they have to keep the ball left of the green, but look how many end up on a line directly at the pin.  It's not an easy second shot from the correct position ont he left, but a good short will be rewarded.  Nine double bogeys on a 315 yard Par 4.  What a game!

• I've finally had the chance to get through this week's SIG+D.  Seriously, that's their own shorthand for the publication, and it certainly flows mellifluously off the tongue.  It's not their best issue by any stretch, but there's always items of interest.  

Their Scorecard feature is titled Deep Thoughts with Sergio Garcia, so I know you'll understand that I bypassed that one.  I've suffered enough, I'm sure you'll agree.  But later in the issue, specifically in The Range feature, they ask a panel of Top 100 golf instructors whether Sergio will ever win a major, to which 69% answered in the affirmative.  Think I'll take the under, as I'm in agreement with one Brady Riggs, who responded "When elephants fly."

Some great photos to Tee Off, as usual:

Cheyenne Woods is doused to celebrate her win at the Australian Ladies Masters, a European Tour event.  I have a feeling that some among you might want to see the later exposures.  C'mon guys, she's all of 23.

I should note at this point that I can establish no correlation between the higher volume of golf cheescake served up and increased pageviews.  But why take chances with something so important?

Ben Hogan on the first tee at Riviera in 1950.  Hogan won three L.A. Opens there in the 1940's, plus the 1948 U.S. Open.  Most miraculous of all, he lost to Sam Snead in a playoff in this event, his first tournament a mere 11 months after his devastating automobile accident.

One feature I like is The Shop, which each week provides the longest drive at the preceeding PGA Tour event, including the driver (God help us if it's not a driver) specs utilized.  At Pebble, the longest drive was by Robert Garrigus, 358 yards on the 14th hole in the second round.  Joke's on him, as he might have still laid up.  Longest drive of the season is 397 yards by Webb Simpson at, wait for it, Kapalua.  That one just might hold up...

• I received my monthly e-mail from the nice folks at Tin Cup, whom we discussed here.  They are pleased to let me know that their Incognito model is their all-time best seller.  We, of course, know it as the Heisenberg:

Tin Cup's best selling homage to Walter White.  Conclusion:  Golfers like blue crystal meth as much as anyone else.

• Early in our blog journey I posted about storm damage at a couple of the great Irish links, specifically County Sligo (Rosses Point and Lahinch.  We also know that Doonbeg, recently purchased by a certain comb-over, has experienced substantial damage.  Now we learn from the Irish Golf Desk that

County Sigo Golf Club has been put back to square one in its efforts to repair the storm damage caused to boundary of the course at Rosses Point beach in January.

A large chunk was taken out of the stretch of unprotected dunes along the 16th and 17th. But while Sligo County Council workers and volunteers were out in force with machinery earlier this week to try and repair the damage, their efforts were quickly undone by mother mature as Storm Darwin hit Ireland.

 

The beach near the 16th and 17th hole of Rosses Point.  It's a different type of revetted bunker, I'll grant you.

• The PGA of America has posted a fun slideshow of Presidents playing golf, at least it's fun as long as they stick to the old photos.  Herewith, a couple of favorites:

William Howard Taft was, counter intuitively, one of the most athletic presidents and an avid golfer.  Are you allowed to call POTUS "Lumpy"?

Ike putting on the rain gear.  Good to know he played through the elements, but the best part of the photo is that it's Sam Snead holding the brolly.  Rank has its privileges.

• John Strege at Golf Digest's Local Knowledge blog just cost me hours of my life, announcing the March publication date for Every Shot Counts, by Columbia professor Mark Broadie.  

We met Broadie in my long Moneyball post here, and he's best known for developing the Strokes Gained statistic.  The book is being published by Gotham Books, whose recently retired President William Shinker, has been a great advocate of golf books, including all of Dave Peltz's titles.  Shinker estimates that he has published 150-200 golf books in his career.  Per Strege:

Few have resonated with him (Shinker) to the degree that his most recent offering, "Every Shot Counts," by Mark Broadie (on sale March 6), a book Shinker calls "one of the most important golf books that I have published in my 40-year career."

"What Mark has done with golf in analyzing golf using data, this sort of scientific method and statistical analysis, as far as I'm concerned is totally unique," Shinker said. "He's able to explain it to people in a way that guys like you and I can understand.

Well, I stepped in it now.  Guess I know what I'll be reading in March.

• Elsie, the Scottish Housewife, writes to commiserate regarding our weather, but adds this little golf joke:

Ye Cannae Fool A Scottish Caddy..

During a recent golf outing, I had been slicing off the tee on every hole. 

I asked my Scottish-born caddy if he noticed any obvious reasons for my poor tee shots, to which the caddy replied:

"Aye, there's a piece of shyt on the end of yer driver !!” 

I picked up my driver and cleaned the club face, at which point, the caddy said,

"No, the other end !!"

Mutual friend Glenn adds that he thinks this guy looped for him at Carnoustie, though I might have guessed more often.