The Week That Was

Confidential sources have advised me that the Sports Illustrated writers are now using my criticisms as part of their Wednesday night film sessions.  Good on them for their diligence, and let's not disappoint the lads:

1. Tiger Woods returns to the PGA Tour next week for his own event at Congressional. What are your expectations for him? Is he your pick to win the British Open?

Gary Van Sickle: I expect Tiger to have flashes of brilliance and flashes of rust. Unless he wins next week,

Will we see him in red on Sunday?

he is not my pick to win the British.

Josh Sens: The only thing I can guarantee we'll get from Tiger is a volley of press conference platitudes. Last we saw him, Tiger had swing issues as well as back issues.  Henrik Stenson is my pick in the Open this year.

Michael Bamberger: One of Tiger's things used to be ‘Only play in a tournament thinking you can win,’ but here I think here he's primarily looking to play four rounds of golf on a good golf course. To pick him to win just seems…sentimental.

Jessica Marksbury: I am totally surprised that Tiger is already returning to competitive golf only three months removed from back surgery. Does anyone else think that could spell disaster?

Joe Passov: My expectations are that he'll make the cut, and move the TV ratings needle well to the right.  He's not my pick at the British Open, but after next week, he sure could be.

Jeff Ritter: Tiger's return is surprising, since we only recently learned that he's hitting full shots. This week I expect him to play 36-72 holes without wincing from back pain -- anything more than that feels like a bonus. He's not in my top 5 for Hoylake yet, but I reserve the right to revisit that once we get a look at him at Congressional.

Eamon Lynch: It's the start that matters, not his finish. His return ignites a season that has thus far been a snooze. No matter how he plays at Congressional, he's always a threat to win the Open, especially on a course where he doesn't need to hit driver.

My Take: Quite the dis to the ladies that this is the lead query, as it seems they had a reasonably important event last week.  I thought he'd get more of a nod in the Open Championship than he did, but he wasn't playing well before the back went South and hasn't won a major since the Carter Administration.  

It's a sad commentary that we're more focused on the risk of re-injury than on his game.

2. U.S. Women's Open champion Michelle Wie has gone from child star to fading star to superstar. With her first major victory under her belt, is Wie the new face of women's golf?

MARKSBURY: No question that the answer is yes. Wie has always been the face of women's golf. We've been scrutinizing her every move for over a decade.  Must be incredible to finally have the major monkey off her back.

LYNCH: Every sports update I heard on my car radio today covered Wie's quest for a major, which is hardly standard practice for a Women's Open. She never really stopped being the face of women's golf, even as she struggled throughout her career.

BAMBERGER: Michelle Wie has not won enough to be regarded a superstar.  In terms of stature in the game, she's way ahead of Rickie Fowler, but miles behind, say, Inbee Park.

VAN SICKLE: Wie has been the biggest name in women's golf for quite some time, she just hasn't had the wins to go with it.

PASSOV: The only woman that truly moves the needle is Wie, and her win is great for women's golf -- and great for golf, period. She's never NOT been the face of women's golf for the past 10 years, but it hasn't been a happy face. 

RITTER: Wie's been the face of women's golf, for better or for worse, for about eight years -- ever since she burst onto the scene at a teenage prodigy. And at last, she's delivering on the hype, which is extremely cool to see. Stories of redemption are sweet, and in this case it's obviously fantastic for women's golf. Is the LPGA having a great season or what?

SENS: You mean, it isn't Paulina Gretzky?

My Take:  Props to Travelin' Joe, as he pithily nails this one.  From her prepubescent entry onto the world stage, she's been an oddly compelling, if tragic, figure.  Because of her prodigious physical talents we can't avert our gaze, and the odd career choices just fanned the flames.

Both the men's and women's games are littered with the corpses of can't-miss prodigies... have they melted down Bobby Clampett's Hall of Fame bust yet?  But we love redemption stories, and this is a darned good one, especially with all the heat she's taken over the putting stance.

3. 11-year-old Lucy Li was the story of the U.S. Women's Open for the first two rounds, but even as she charmed the media and played respectably with 78-78, her appearance renewed discussion of an age limit at the U.S. Open. Should there be an age limit? If so, what should it be?

VAN SICKLE: Any age limit would be discriminatory. If you can shoot the scores to qualify, you should be allowed to play. 

Is that a Trekkie salute?

SENS: She played respectably and seemed roughly as mature as Bubba Watson. Setting an age limit strikes me as arbitrary and unnecessary.

RITTER: Nothing about last week makes me think there should be an age limit on open qualifying. Li was awesome. Age should only matter when buying a beer in the clubhouse.

MARKSBURY: I count myself as a reformed skeptic. The idea of an 11-year-old competing against adults was initially very troubling to me, but Lucy Li showed incredible poise. Plus, she earned her place in the field as the medalist of her qualifier in California.

PASSOV: I seem to be in the minority on this one, but there should be an age limit at the U.S. Open. Lucy Li was utterly charming. Her swing was gorgeous, her results admirable, her personality mature and adorable at the same time. Yet, she's not even old enough to be eligible to play in American Junior Golf Association sanctioned events.

LYNCH: Had the USGA had randomly handed her a questionable exemption then the age question has merit. But it didn't. She qualified, playing her way in.

BAMBERGER: There should an age limit to join the LPGA, as there is. But for U.S. Open –open -- qualifying, I don't think there should be. It is really, really hard to say if it makes sense for an 11-year-old to be competing in the U.S. Open. It depends on the kid, and on the parents.

My Take:  Boy do people confuse issues on this one.  As Bamberger hints at, there is no common ground between the discussion of LPGA membership and playing in an Open, though people continue to blur the distinctions (there was more in the writers' comments that I excised).  An LPGA membership would require a youngster to live on the road, clearly a different kettle of fish than playing in one event, no matter how serious.

In these kinds of issues, you just need to trust the parents.  Like any fallible human beings they might not get it right, but to think that we ink-stained wretches have a clue is simply naive.

4. Were the back-to-back National Opens at Pinehurst a successful experiment?

LYNCH: These two weeks arguably identified the two best players in the men's and women's games right now, so yes, it was hugely successful. But so much could have gone wrong -- weather playing havoc with the schedule, rules controversies in the waste areas, the women's leader landing in a divot left by the men -- that I think the USGA will be breathe a sigh of relief that it's consigned to the record books. I'm not sure we'll see another double bill like this anytime soon, but here's hoping the setup and course conditioning are regular features going forward.

BAMBERGER: It was great, having the two events back-to-back. I don't believe the unique conditions of Pinehurst was the thing that made it possible, either. The USGA says rough can't be cut quickly enough to go from a men's event to a women's event.

SENS: Yes. Great fun to watch the women and men take on the same track back to back, and a good way to shine a brighter light on the women's game.

VAN SICKLE: The Pinehurst Opens were successful in re-establishing Pinehurst as a golfing destination and a desirable must-play site for avid golfers. The overly severe greens, the shots to ten feet that rolled off greens, didn't inspire me to think Pinehurst should host more Opens, however.

MARKSBURY: Absolutely. All the naysayers were proven wrong. The golf course held up incredibly well, the greens were perfect for two weeks straight.

PASSOV: Totally successful, except for the Kaymer runaway. The women received more attention than ever, and proved they could play a slightly softer version of Pinehurst No. 2 on par with the men. 

My Take:  I thought it was great, with the primary beneficiaries being, as intended, the ladies.  I particularly enjoyed some of the small moments, the ladies in the galleries on Fathers Day, the guys and gals hitting next to each other on the range, as well as the Fluff and yardage book stories.

I also think we need to applaud the USGA for taking the risk and recognizing the need to increase the visibility of the women.  It happened to occur in a year in which the LPGA is producing a bumper-crop of attractive winners, but there was no way of knowing this when it was planned.

I do think Bams is incorrect, though, in his agronomic comments.  You could cut Bermuda rough as needed to hold the back-to-backs, but I believe you'd destroy bent grass in doing the same.  And you could only consider this in a location with exceptional drainage, for which the sand hills of North Carolina are renown.

5. Kevin Streelman birdied seven straight on the back nine to at TPC River Highlands to win the Travelers Championship. What's the best back-nine performance you've ever seen?

SENS: Tiger's Sunday on a broken leg at Torrey ranks high up there, as does Phil's close last year at

Muirfield.

VAN SICKLE: There are plenty of nominees, but an obvious one was Jack Nicklaus shooting 30 on the back nine at Augusta in 1986.

MARKSBURY: That's pretty much as good as it gets. The only way to top that is to move the achievement into the final round at a major championship!

BAMBERGER: Does my 38 on the back nine of the Old Course count? No question: Big Jack, Sunday at the '86 Masters, when he shot 30. But nicely done, Kevin Streelman.

PASSOV: Jack Nicklaus, final round, 1986 Masters. Shot 30 with a bogey at 12 for a 65, which turned out to be good enough to win. I only saw it on TV, but it remains the most electric, emotional nine holes I've experienced.

LYNCH: I once played the hilly Straits course at Whistling Straits with Travelin' Joe Passov on an 85-degree day with not a breath of wind. That Joe made it to the 18th green under his own power -- albeit about 20 minutes after me -- was perhaps the most determined back nine rally I've ever witnessed. After that, Jack at Augusta in '86.

My Take:  Jack in '86 would win in a landslide, but I'll add two to the mix.  Phil and Ernie lit it up on the back side in 2004, resulting in Phil's first major.  Phil gets additional kudos because he had made a complete mess of the front side.

I'd also add the back nine from 1975, when you had the three biggest names in the sport (Jack, Johnny and Tom) showing us their best stuff.

6. Royal Portrush formally returned to the Open rota this week. What other terrific links course would you like to see host an Open? What course would you like to see bounced from the lineup?

SENS: As long as we're up in that direction, how about Royal County Down? While we're at it, we could put the screws to Royal St. George's and say no Open until women are admitted.

VAN SICKLE: Kingsbarns outside St. Andrews would be interesting. Few players would be sorry to Royal St. George's go.

LYNCH: Let's pretend length isn't an option, in which case I pick Royal Dornoch, one of the most beautiful and intriguing links courses I've ever seen. For pure entertainment, it would be North Berwick, which stands alone as the most wildly fun course in the world. For a world-class course that can handle the modern game, I nominate Kingsbarns. Of the 10 courses now on the Open rota, I've played all but Royal St. George's, which is often derided as the worst. Based on my experience, I'd retire Hoylake. It's a nice club but a bland layout lacking in variety, and where the regular internal O.B. hazards are too prevalent to be chalked up as a charming links quirk.

BAMBERGER: Ballybunion, Dornoch, Gullane No. 2, Western Gailes. Prestwick! Royal Lytham does not make the heart race, but it is sound and has a great history. I couldn't bounce any of them.

PASSOV: Royal County Down, the world's sixth-ranked course and Portrush's leading rival for Northern Ireland golf supremacy, would be a thrilling venue. Scotland's Royal Dornoch is pretty remote, but playing the Open at Donald' Ross' old stomping grounds would be the links equivalent of Pinehurst No. 2. I'd also be very curious to see how the big boys fare with Trump International Golf Links in Aberdeen. If the wind blew over its 7,400 yards and fescue-cloaked sand dunes, I wonder if it would be tougher than Carnoustie. I'm a history geek, so I'd keep all the courses on the rota intact. Save us, though, from the knuckleheads who want St. Andrews to be the permanent host.

My Take:  This one's right up my alley, and it'd be easy to add an all-of-the above to the scribe's responses.  Alas, reality intrudes, and and mention of Dornoch and North Berwick in conjunction with an Open Championship is like mentioning Maggot and Kate Upton in the same sentence.  It's a nice dream, but can't survive contact with reality...  As just one example, there are exactly two hotels in the town of Dornoch, and I'd be surprised if they have more than 100 beds combined.  See the problem?

In fact, my work-mate Mark W. and I once discussed where they could take a Scottish Open (excluding Open Championship venues), and that list is alarmingly short.  There are simply precious few links with the requisite challenge and logistical capabilities to handle the demands of a modern Open.  

And not to be a complete downer, but the venue most likely to be dropped from the rota is, as I've discussed previously, Turnberry.  It comes with major logistical issues and the R&A takes a financial hit every time they go there.... and they need the revenue particularly badly right now as they need to add facilities for the ladies to their clubhouse.  It would be an interesting wager as to where Trump gets his first Open, Turnberry or Aberdeenshire, though with construction of the hotel on hold that's probably off the table.

County Down is an intriguing option, though we'll need to see how well they manage their forthcoming Irish Open.