Spanning the Globe

It's only Sunday morning, so any "Agony of defeat" stories will have to wait a bit... But with some time to kill before our traditional Sunday afternoon mixed event across the street, let's see what folks are kicking around:

Ageless - No doubt you've seen that the timeless Tom Watson made the cut at the Greenbrier Classic, quite the feat for an alter cocker who should be debating color choices for his rocking chair.  Jason Sobel had me spiraling into wistfulness with this:

At 64 years and 10 months exactly, Watson is still more than two years younger than Snead

when he set the record for oldest player to make the cut at a PGA tour event. Snead was 67 years, 2 months and 21 days when he played all four rounds at the 1979 Manufacturers Hanover Westchester Classic.

That's nostalgic on multiple levels, for the Slammer, of course, but also for the days when the Tour came to Westchester Country Club.  You know, back in those more innocent times before Commissioner Ratched chose venues based on the preferences of one player. Westchester is one of those prototypical Northeastern tracks, tight with small greens, that provide a stiff test without being, you know, 7,800 yards.  And I'm even slightly nostalgic for Manufacturers Hanover, a storied New York banking institution that since then has been swallowed up in multiple mergers.

Watson shot a very credible 2-under 68, and finds himself T43 as he warms up this morning.  So, if he threw a 65 or 66 up there and snuck into the top ten.... that would be a record, per Helen Ross:

If he does, Watson, who is playing in his fourth Greenbrier Classic, could eclipse Snead as the oldest player to finish in the top-10 on TOUR. The Virginian, known as "Slammin' Sammy," tied for eighth at the 1975 B.C. Open at the age of 63 years, three months and four days.

If you're ever on Jeopardy and there's a question of who was the oldest golfer to do anything, the answer is Snead.

Merseyside Musings -  Think we'll hear any Gerry and the Pacemakers in a couple of weeks?  With that soundtrack haunting you, we all heard Sir Nick tell us that the deep stuff at Royal Liverpool (get used to hearing it called Hoylake) is either knee or waist-deep.  Where Faldo is concerned, I've learned to act as a New Yorker fact checker... and per Shackelford, he's not exactly wrong, though perhaps a tad melodramatic:

Anyone who remembers the 2006 Open Championship at Royal Liverpool or who saw the

recent Golf Channel replay knows it was an almost blonde shade (apple cider was how Bill Fields put it in this week's Golf World). We've heard it's lush this year from rains, and the fairways even looked pretty lush in this video showing off the grandstand setup, but basedon the photo Tweeted by Rory McIlroy playing an advance round at the Open Championship site, it's not overly green. A little sun and not too much rain could have it dried out enough to be interesting. Maybe not 2006's shade, but at least dry enough for great links golf.

Shack also linked to this video of the 18th hole:

There's been much silly talk about Tiger and the 2014 major venues, none sillier than as relates to Hoylake.  The conditions were quite extreme in 2006, and simply unlikely to recur.

Since we're on the Open Championship, one has to love this story (h/t John Strege):

A Wirral factory worker secured a place in The British Open golf championship after he won a

qualifier with clubs that he borrowed from his mate. 

John Singleton, from Moreton booked his place at the world-renowned tournament after a dramatic play-off win using two wedges that his mate lent to him. 

Moreton-born Singleton, who works five days a week in a resin factory in Birkenhead, was absolutely delighted to have made it through to the 143rd Open at Hoylake.

That's the great part of both Opens, though admittedly it does weaken the fields...though I do love the borrowed wedges.  "What's in the bag" features have become all the rage, so here's his details:

“I have Mizuno Irons. I had to borrow two wedges to play at Hillside. I was given them by a friend of mine. That’s crazy in itself to borrow two wedges to qualify for The Open. I have a Taylor Made putter – that’s one of the things that I do own.

By the way, Hillside is a great club next door to Royal Birkdale.  If you survive that second nine that winds through the wild dunes, you can play.

And what of our prodigal son Tiger?  Curtis Strange had this to say:

C'mon Curtis, his lines look great here.

Tiger Woods is kidding himself if he turns up at this month's Open Championhip with a repeat of his 2006 Hoylake win on his mind, according to former U.S. Ryder Cup skipper Curtis Strange.

'Even before his surgery, and his form was obviously hampered by his physical condition, he wasn't playing well so when you have an operation and you've been out for three months, you're not going to be a better player after doing that.

While I also think he's probably got too much rust to play through to compete at Hoylak, has Curtis considered that he might have been playing poorly because of the excruciating pain?  He did, after all, win five times as recently as last year, but yeah, it's hard to think he's ready for this one with only two competitive rounds.

Ayr, We Hardly Knew Ye - John Huggan. longtime golf writer for The Scotsman, channels his inner Scott (Simpson, that is) and comes to the same conclusion as your humble blogger:

Yet this cozy little arrangement may be undergoing something of a shake-up. With the R&A's recent extension of an invitation to Northern Ireland's Royal Portrush to host the Open, and the strong likelihood that the club will accept, allowing the event to be played outside Great Britain for only the second time come 2019, at least one nose is liable to be put out of joint. And the proboscis in question -- according to at least one well-informed source -- belongs to Donald Trump, the equally recent purchaser of the now grandly-titled "Trump Turnberry."

John deals mostly with the issues related to the second "T" in the resort's new name:

It is safe to say "TT" has never been the R&A's favorite place to go. An Open venue only three times since it was first taken there in 1977, the last in 2009, the Scottish resort is located in an out-of-the-way spot just off the almost exclusively single-track A77 road that winds its way circuitously through Ayrshire. As such, it traditionally attracts the smallest crowds of any Open venue. By extension, it also generates the least amount of income for golf's ruling body outside the United States and Mexico. 

Although surrounded by some of the most aesthetically-pleasing vistas on the Open rota, the Ailsa course has long been in need of re-working. Specifically, the three-hole run beginning on the iconic ninth tee (above) that juts picturesquely out into the Firth of Clyde.

But Huggan has a solution:

Even if he is eventually snubbed by the R&A, Trump does have an obvious and attractive alternative. Offering to host the Scottish Open on a permanent basis in the week before the Open would bring with it a stellar field, annual worldwide publicity (instead of once every decade or so) and, no doubt, fill more than a few hotel rooms. 

Just a thought.

That's a good thought, though I'm not sure that the Scottish Open is looking for a permanent home and, given that its title sponsor is Aberdeen Asset Management, you'd think it would want to at least occasionally revisit Royal Aberdeen.  But a min-rota of those two and Castle Stuart might make good sense.

Maggot-Approved Content - I occasionally need to throw Mags a bone to keep him refreshing the website, and today I've actually got a twofer for him.  He's usually more of a Kate Upton kind of gent, but The Duf is active on social media and I'm guessing Mags will like this photo of Amanada Dufner:

A nice take-away, no doubt, but is that beer being used as an alignment aid?

And just in case you think humorless activists is an exclusively American phenomenon, there's this:

A British activist has launched a petition on change.org against Dunlop Sport, demanding that

For some reason I feel like objectifying women this morning.

the UK-based sporting goods company stop selling novelty golf tee packs featuring tees shaped like a "decapitated naked woman's body." 

Joanna Sharpen, who works for the AVA Project (Against Violence & Abuse), a service working to stop violence against women, calls the product "misogynistic," and accuses Dunlop of "helping to perpetuate violence against women and girls." 

"Products like this sexualise and objectify women and create a conducive context for abuse where it is seen as normal and acceptable," Sharpen wrote in an email to Golf.com. "The simple act of hitting the ball (symbolising a head) from this 'novelty' tee is a betrayal to every woman who has experienced abuse and those who did not survive."

What's even scarier is that some 4,000 people have reportedly signed her petition.  If your biggest issue relate to novelty golf tees, then you can probably move on to your next cause.  But I think the only appropriate reaction to such nonsense is to relate an ancient golf joke that will cause Miss Sharpen (just guessing there) spitting blood:

Police are called to an apartment and find a man holding a bloody 5-iron standing over a lifeless woman. The detective asks, "Sir, is that your wife?"

"Yes" says the man.

"Did you hit him with that golf club?"

"Yes, yes, I did." The man begins to sob, drops the club, and puts his hands on his face.

 "How many times did you hit her?"

"I don't know, five, six, maybe seven times..... just put me down for a five."

Just remember, if you make naked girlie tees illegal, then only criminals will have them.

Triumph of Hope Over Experience - We all applauded the PGA of America's selection of Tom Watson as captain for this year's match.  And while it's been easy over the years to make fun of captains such as Hal Sutton (when pairing Tiger and Phil is only your second stupidest move, that's a problem) and Corey Pavin (how about those perforated rain suits), do we really think the captain is the issue?

So I read this Jason Sobel piece with my usual mix of amusement and wry detachment:

“Some of these players, the European players, have played that golf course in competition, played it four, five, six times, maybe 12 times,” Watson surmised. “That's just the way the Europeans pick their Ryder Cup sites. It's usually a site where they've held the European Tourtournament, so their players are more familiar with the golf course for the Ryder Cup.” 

Watson knows he can’t replicate playing the course in tournament conditions, but he’s put together a little fact-finding mission next weekend. He invited “about 20” potential team members to join him there next weekend in an effort to acclimate them to the site. 

So far, “about four or five” have accepted the invitation.

No doubt those four or five are "on-the-bubble" types angling for a Captain's pick.  But it's gonna be different this time...

Scenes From the Class Struggle - We haven't caught up with our old friend Vijay in a bit, so you might be wondering what's new on that front.  Veej's mouthpiece pipes up to let us know that Vijay is only doing this for his fellow players:

Singh, who is suing the PGA Tour over allegations of “disparate treatment” after admitting to

using deer antler spray that contained a banned substance in 2013, does not have the support of his fellow golfers according to a recent Sports Illustrated anonymous poll of PGA Tour players. The poll showed that 64 percent of players believe Singh should have been suspended, but Singh's lawyer Peter Ginsberg believes those players will support Singh once they learn more about the case. 

"If that's an accurate assessment of how the players feel, I think it's a reflection of the PGA Tour's media and PR machine," Ginsberg said. "If the players come to realize that Vijay is not only fighting for himself but for the players as a whole, and the players become more educated about the machinations of the Tour, I'm quite certain that many more players will rally behind Vijay."

Veej is just a selfless soul taking one for the team...got it.  I've devoted quite a few pixels to this case, though not out of any sympathy for the palintiff.  I think when you use deer antler spray you've pretty much assumed the risk, and I further think you should be plenty embarrassed.  But, and for me it's a big but, there is no reason that the Tour's disciplinary actions should be kept secret and I'm willing to get on the Vijay team bus to further that aim.