1. Zurich Classic winner Seung-Yul Noh wowed golf fans with his beautiful swing this week in New Orleans. Who has your favorite swing among under-age-30 players right now?
Mike Walker: McIlroy’s swing is my favorite because it’s so expressive. Nobody else could swing like him.
Jeff Ritter: I'll go with the only swing in that age group that holds multiple majors: Rory McIlroy's.
Joe Passov: How old is Adam Scott? OK, if we're talking young folks, I'll still take Rory McIlroy -- effortless power, like Sam Snead's. Two years ago, I thought Korea's Sang-Moon Bae was the next big thing, with a similarly graceful, yet thunderous move, but he's not there yet.
MY TAKE: It's hard to believe, but Joe's man-crush on Adam Scott might be more embarrassing than my inappropriate feelings towards Lydia Ko. This is our first unanimous verdict since we've been doing this Q&A thing, and the amazing thing is they're all wrong. Pretty swings are overrated... what matters is if they repeat and hold up under pressure. And except for McIlroy, where the evidence is mixed, the other young guns are essentially untested.
2. With Keegan Bradley and oft-injured Paul Casey in the hunt at Zurich last week, it brings to mind the question, who is the biggest underachiever on Tour?
BAMBEGER: Is Fred still considered on Tour? Couples certainly had the talent to win 25 or more times. Why he didn't I don't know, but he didn't.
GARY VAN SICKLE: I wouldn't call him an underachiever, perhaps, but I sure thought Ian Poulter would have piled up a lot more wins by now and maybe a major or two. He still may.
RITTER: I'd probably look at the tried-and-true "Best Without a Major" list for the guys who haven't delivered on their potential. Westwood and Donald are former No 1s, so they're off the board as underachievers. I'd probably take Sergio, who had (and still has) top-10 talent but never really arrived as an elite player.
PASSOV: After the star power Keegan Bradley showed in '11 and '12, I'm pretty shocked how his results have plummeted. Great emotions, great for the game -- not sure what's happened. I could say Bubba Watson. Only six wins with that talent? That said, I'm not going there with Bubba. Two Masters is two Masters. My pick? Dustin Johnson. I know he's won his share, but he brings so much game, he ought to be a favorite every time he tees it up.
WALKER: Hard to call a major champion an underachiever, but Louis Oosthuizen’s talent has not translated into as many wins as you would think by now.
MY TAKE: Joe Passov is the Donald Trump of this feature, the gift that keeps on giving. Bubba? Two weeks after he wins his second Masters in three years and he's underachieved? Even before reading his answer my first thought was the very object of his bromance, Adam Scott. Only one major with that swing?
3. Tiger Woods plans to return to the Tour sometime this summer, according to his agent Mark Steinberg, which will leave him little time to accumulate Ryder Cup qualifying points. Is a healthy Tiger Woods an automatic captain's pick for the 2014 Ryder Cup team, regardless of qualifying points? Should he be?
WALKER: Of course he will and should get the nod for Gleneagles. The Ryder Cup is an exhibition -- a spirited one -- but it’s an exhibition.
BAMBERGER: If Woods is healthy, he should be an automatic pick if TV ratings are your highest priority. If you are interested in winning, which I assume Watson is, I would consider Woods right alongside other players who are winning this year, playing well when they are not and making a high percentage of short putts in pressure situations. In other words, there are potentially players who can help you more than Tiger Woods.
VAN SICKLE: There are a million variables, but it would hardly be fair to Tiger to throw him into the Ryder Cup if he's healthy and has played in only, say, one or two events. Unless, of course, he were to win those events. I'd tell Tiger it's his call -- if he feels ready, he's on the team. If not, that's OK, too.
PASSOV: Unless he's on crutches, Tiger should be a Ryder Cup pick, period.
MY TAKE: This is indeed the proverbial sticky wicket for Tom Watson, but there's really not much any of us can add to this right now. Even with his poor track record in the event, you'd obviously take him over No. 13 on the list in a heartbeat, assuming he's healthy and reasonably on form. But those last two assumptions are the crux of the matter... What's interesting to me is that Watson has called out Woods on his deportment, and they are not terribly fond of each other as a result. One thing I know for sure, you don't want Tiger if Tiger doesn't want to be there. On the other hand, if the U.S. somehow pulled it out without him for the second time, that would undoubtedly piss Tiger off royally.
PASSOV: He's guilty of being a deep thinker -- too deep. He worked his butt off, reached the summit and said, "Is that all there is?" A few injuries, body changes (workout regime) and attitude took their toll. Happens in every sport. Some guys come back stronger than ever, some never get it back.
BAMBERGER: He was playing golf with a body-type that was not his natural physique. That can't last for too long. He had some unusual fundamentals. But more than anything, being the best in the world didn't seem to do anything for him. It didn't seem to make him a happier or more satisfied person. And if that's correct, what would be the motivation in continuing to work so hard when Nike is paying you millions?
WALKER: Tiger Woods happened. Duval had to deal with injuries, and he was never able to get his game back mentally to challenge Woods at the height of his powers. That was a tall order even for Ernie Els and Vijay Singh.
VAN SICKLE: I think a back injury happened to Duval. His swing and his game, and therefore his interest level, was never the same. Also, life happened to him. He's got a family, kids -- he's had a very good last decade.
MORFIT: He won a major, the 2001 British Open, and realized it wasn't the end all, be all of human existence, like he'd been led to believe. He lost too much weight too quickly. He blew out his back. He got diagnosed with vertigo. He grooved a two-way miss with the driver. He got married and realized he actually kind of enjoyed having a life. Other than that, nothing much.
MY TAKE: Joe, you're just slaying me here. Duval a deep thinker? That's rich... One of the things that makes our game so interesting, but maddening, is that the line between greatness and mediocrity is so blurred. I always found Duval's grip excessively strong and his ball flight a tad low for the modern game, so I'm not completely shocked. But the freefall from best in the world to has-been is always shocking.
MORFIT: I might not have said this a month ago, but Rickie Fowler might sneak in there and have a big impact. He's showed me something with this new Butch Harmon swing of his, contending at the Masters before finishing T5. And Fowler is doing a lot to make golf look cool by doing all this extreme stuff with the Red Bull people. Just watching him in that aerial acrobatics plane almost made me sick.
BAMBERGER: Some kid in China whose name we don't know yet.
WALKER: I don’t know if he’ll have the most influence, but I think President Obama will be an effective ambassador for the game after he leaves office. Sounds like a great bipartisan project for him and George W. Bush.
PASSOV: It won't be Lydia Ko, though congrats to her for this honor. Big crop of candidates out there, but unless he's on crutches for the next 10 years, the most influential person in golf will still be Tiger Woods.
VAN SICKLE: Yeah, Lydia Ko belongs with the Pope and Hillary on a list of most influential people. Are you kidding me?
MY TAKE: This is your Lydia question? Geez, I agree with Van Sickle that the Time Magazine thing was so ridiculous as to be insulting, like they were trying to check boxes. But it's not her fault, and I'm guessing she's as puzzled by it as we are... Obviously women's golf struggles for attention against the men's game (as well as other sports), but the girl is barely 17 and is simply amazing. Doesn't her win deserve one question that lets the writers fawn over her?
6. Zurich draws an OK field on an OK golf course, but the host city, New Orleans, is one fun spot. What is the best destination on Tour for restaurants, nightlife and other distractions?
VAN SICKLE: Scottsdale. You don't have to leave the tournament to party -- you can go to the 16th hole or to the after-party there at the Bird's Nests. If you do leave, Scottsdale has plenty of lively hot spots. And there's always the Tilted Kilt right by the TPC Scottsdale.
PASSOV: Phoenix/Scottsdale is the best Tour destination for the fun off-course stuff, but since I live there, maybe I'm biased. Let's go with Las Vegas, New York and N'awlins, in that order.
MORFIT: My sleeper pick here is the McGladrey. Southern Soul BBQ is one of the absolute can't-miss restaurants on Tour, and there's a pretty mellow vibe at St. Simons Island, plus great beaches.
RITTER: Depends on what you look for in your "distractions." My favorites are found in Kapalua.
WALKER: Riviera is my favorite tournament to attend. Incredible course in a very cool area of Los Angeles.
BAMBERGER: I think the players have very little interest in restaurants, nightlife and distractions, but I would put New Orleans high on the list. Also Honolulu, Chicago and Los Angeles, with Ponte Vedra bringing up the rear.
MY TAKE: I don't have any contribution to make here, but will second Mike's assessment of Ponte Vedra.
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