I though it was a particularly great day of golf yesterday, though as you'll shortly see my attention did wane as the day went on...
Set-Up - The surprise yesterday was how soft the course played, as the greens were far more receptive than during the Monday-Wednesday practice rounds. The course absorbed 2/3 inch of rain overnight, so it might actually play softer today, at least in the morning.
Mike Davis appeared on the Golf Channel post-round coverage, and made it clear that this was by design. There was no discernible scoring differential between the morning and afternoon waves, and Davis made clear that he wanted the course soft and moist enough to be fair to Friday's afternoon wave. He also acknowledged the practical reality that on Thursday and Friday they have to get 156 guys around the track, but on the weekend they can be more aggressive with the course.
I'm not sure how that will work out, since the overnight rain precluded the mowing of the green surrounds this morning. Longer grass in the collection areas should logically take the putter out of the lads' hands, so the better chippers might benefit.
Where Did He Come From - I was planning a discussion of the amazingly compressed leaderboard, and I
look up at the TV and Martin Kaymer is putting for 65. I know I was zoning in and out, but isn't that something I should have noticed?
But ignoring Kaymer's round for a second, with the course (or at least the greens) very soft, the wider fairways and very playable waste areas, it was still a great test of golf. I might tune in again today, how about you?
I considered Kaymer as a tourney pick, was put off by his sub-par scrambling and putting stats (he's 178th in scrambling and 111th in strokes gained-putting). So let's watch to see if that means anything...
Of course, by the time I'll get this posted he's already 2 under for the day, and just made a great ten-footer for par on the difficult No. 14 (started on No. 10).
Whither Phil - The conventional wisdom is that Phil did what he had to do yesterday, putting himself in position to contend. That's true as far a sit goes, and yet there's a nagging doubt that it should have been better... He had it to two under on his first nine (the back), which is the slightly more difficult of the sides. I'm a glass half-empty kind of guy by nature, but I'll just posit that those couple of strokes he left out there might be awfully important by Sunday.
Missing the Lede - I was so distraught earlier in the week that the USGA has forsaken the a*******e pairing, that I missed their little sophomoric humor. So I catch Brendon de Jonge in the coverage yesterday, and notice Kevin Stadler lurking at the corner of the frame. Hmmm...I say to my own self, the suits at the USGA wouldn't be that juvenile, would they? I made a memo to self to check the third member of that group, but Jason Sobel saved me the trouble:
Imagine this: You’re a professional golfer. Not one of the bigger stars of the game, but certainly one of the bigger players. Physically, that is.
But so what? Golf is a game for all shapes and sizes. Not everyone has washboard abs likeCamilo Villegas or linebacker shoulders like Gary Woodland or Popeye-ish forearms like Paul Casey. Success isn’t determined by physical appearance.
You'll by now know where this is going:
In the 1:14 p.m. grouping off the 10th tee on Thursday will be the trio of Brendon de
Memo to photogs: Pack a wide-angle lens. Jonge,Shane Lowry and Kevin Stadler.
Or as Stadler’s caddie, Shannon Wallis, calls ‘em: “The Heavyweights.”
Officially, they are listed respectively at 230, 225 and 250 pounds – more than one-third of a ton of golfers.
I also got a small chuckle out of Harris English being paired with Luke Donald and Paul Casey who are, well you know...
Television Coverage - I was lucky to have zoned out during much of the Boomer's time behind the mic, but surely ESPN12 could better utilize him on their monster truck coverage, no? His dogged insistence that Brandt Snedeker's 31 on the front nine was 5-under would ahve been charming in a 5-year old, but doesn't ESPN employ any actual adults?
Though Mark W. writes that he was more annoyed by the cloying Tom Rinaldi... your mileage may vary.
And while I get the fact that NBC wants to show up for a couple of hours, how ridiculous was it that they threw the coverage onto ESPN2 for all of an hour? For those of us that Tivo the proceedings, that's four separate programs to record. I get the World Cup, but didn't the USGA's contract with ESPN require it to be broadcast on the flagship channel?
There was some good stuff to note, though. I particularly liked the graphic of the ninth green (I think this was on the NBC coverage) that show the areas in yellow that are "pinnable." It was a great visual of how small the effective greens really are, though I can't find the graphic on the web.
I also loved the video of Keegan Bradley sneaking up on his golf ball in a bunker. He may be the weirdest guy I've ever seen on tour, with more itchy-scratchy mannerisms than Martin Short as Nathan Thurm.
The sad part is that next year at this time I'll be waxing nostalgic for Chris Berman... wanna know what's in store for us? Here's the Joe Buck-Greg Norman preview:
How painful will that theme music become? And Greg, who is this Bill Coors you speak of?
And here' their review of Day 1, with far too much time spent on Adam Scott.
Sorry Boomer, I take it all back...
The Mighty Quinn - The feel-good story of Thursday, this one is better than most. We'll no doubt see Fran on the Champions Tour next year, but for now just enjoy his success for as long a sit lasts. I just wish they had paired him with Will Grimmer...
Backfill Department - Finally found a pic of Rickie's homage:
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| A nice gesture, but now he needs to play like his hero. |
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