Saturday Stuff

Apologies for yesterday's unexpected absence, caused by a frustrating Internet outage.  The outage actually occurred on Thursday evening, but my service and several other homes didn't come back up when service resumed.  The irony is that I had taken a day off from skiing on Wednesday to upgrade to their new fiber optic service for my landlord....  Anyway, what did we miss?

Dateline Scottsdale - The frat party known as The Wasted is at the halfway pole, and the golf itself has actually been pretty interesting:

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) -- James Hahn has settled down a lot since his wild days -

and nights - at the University of California led to the end of his college career. He still

Hmmmm...guess those expensive Parsons clubs work.

knows how to have a good time.

That was on display again Friday at the golf party known as the Waste Management Phoenix Open, where Hahn took the lead with a bogey-free 6-under 65 in breezy conditions.

"I'm having fun out there," Hahn said. 

He wasn't alone at TPC Scottsdale. 

An estimated 160,415 fans, not counting a large bobcat that sauntered between the first and second holes in the afternoon, packed the grounds. The crowd broke the Friday record of 123,674 set in 2014 and was the 10th-largest figure for any day in tournament history.

Hahn is of course a local hero ever since his Gangham Style dance in 2013.....

In other news, Bubba has unfortunately felt compelled to apologize for, you know, being Bubba.... Notwithstanding that he's never shot a round over par at the joint, these were his words on Wednesday:

"I don't like it," Watson said Wednesday. "I'm not going to PC it. I don't like it at all. ... Obviously, I'm here because of my sponsors and everything. ... I've got three beautiful sponsors that love it here."

If you're keeping score at home, it's now PC 1, Bubba 0, as this was his retraction:

Bubba Watson repeated that he doesn't like TPC Scottsdale's Stadium Course. He also said he loves everything else about the Waste Management Phoenix Open.

“I will have to say, I have to apologize," Watson said Friday, two days after criticizing the renovated course and saying he was only playing the tournament out of loyalty to his sponsors.

"I used the wrong words. I have nothing against the fans and the tournament. The fans have been great. I love coming here. I've lived here every winter for eight years. This is a beautiful place. And the reason why I'm here is because of the excitement around this golf tournament. The fans have been great. 

"I used words that I shouldn't have used. I didn't explain myself well. My wife says that, too, when I go home. I don't communicate very well. ... It was about the golf course. I'm not a fan of the golf course."

Maybe clarification would be more accurate.... but before anyone gets bent out of shape, let's remember that there's only one golf course in the world that Bubba likes.  And since we don't go there until mid-April, he has to play somewhere.

And while I strongly disagree with this lede from the local press, I enjoy a good line as much as the next guy:

Bubba Watson wears an $825,000 wristwatch. Apparently, it won’t tell him when it’s time to shut up.

Gee, the guy thinks a desert golf course with replicas of the church pew and coffin bunkers is tricked up?  Where could he have ever gotten that idea?  And don't get me started on the blindingly white sand, so indigenous to the area....

Perhaps I should move on?  Bubba has the rep of playing with something less than a full deck....  Yet this guy doesn't?

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Keegan Bradley has been working hard to rediscover the game

that led him to the 2011 PGA Championship and spots on Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup teams as one of the elite American golfers. Though he has slipped to 83rd on the Official World Golf Ranking, being far closer to the top and rising quickly doesn’t seem that long ago. 

So on Thursday, when he tapped in for par on his opening hole at TPC Scottsdale and made his way to the second tee at the Waste Management Phoenix Open, he peered down at his bag, saw the headcover on his hybrid, and instantly had a sick, sinking feeling. He knew he and his caddie, Steve “Pepsi” Hale, were toting 15 clubs, one over the allowed maximum. 

By noticing before he teed off on the second hole, at least he was able to limit the damage to two shots. (Rule 4-4 stipulates a player can carry a maximum of 14 clubs, with a two-stroke penalty assessed for each hole the rule is breeched; the maximum penalty is four shots.)

Just think of Keegs as a mental Ian Woosnam....Get it?  Sometimes I amuse the heck out of myself....

The 16th hole is living up to its reputation, with my personal favorite being the aforementioned James Hahn dropping for a set of push-ups after hitting a poor tee shot....video is here.

Harold Varner III was a crowd fave on Thursday, but deliberately incurred their wrath with this yesterday:

Yanno, it takes folks a while to get past 49-15....And did you catch the Pro-Am?  No, really... Get this:

"LDRIC the Robot," to be exact, is the name of the machine created by Gene Parente. Owner of Golf Laboratories Inc., Gene's robot is the go-to device for equipment and ball-testing in the golf industry. Not only is its swing sound and fluid, but it can replicate hooks, slices and other flaws inherent to the average golfer. 

But it's more than just a measuring apparatus. Parente's robot is a stone-cold killer on the course, evidenced here by a demonstration on the 16th at TPC Scottsdale:

LDRIC, get it?  You'll have to click through for the video....

Dateline Ocala, FL - The best laid plans.... You know the rest.  The ladies had planned to finish early on Saturday, but then the weather got in the way:

OCALA, Fla. (AP) Lydia Ko putted on one green and played six holes in a span of 11 hours before ending a long Friday in the same place she started - with a share of the lead in the Coates Golf Championship.

Ko three-putted from 15 feet for bogey in frigid morning weather to complete the rain-delayed second round. In the afternoon, she made one birdie to get back to 7-under par through six holes. Ko was tied with Ha Na Jang, who played 24 holes on Friday.

The third round was to resume Saturday morning, with the tournament finishing in the afternoon.

This will play havoc with the TV schedule fro sure....

I don't have much to add here except to follow-up on our prior item about Lexi Thompson putting with her eyes closed.  Per the minimalist LPGA stats page, Lexi ranks 84th out of 107 players in putts per round, the only available putting stat.  Now it covers all of one tournament, last week's opener in the Bahamas.  It's also a highly-flawed stat, especially as she might well lead the tour in two-putt birdies....

But she's had 91 putts in her three rounds this week, and one only needs to watch to see that it ain't happening on the greens for her.  My first recommendation would be to lose the glove....  Seriously, with the exception of Jack, has anyone ever putted well while wearing their glove?

Dateline Dubai - Is there a better-liked man in golf than Ernie?  He's got himself in the hunt in Dubai and folks can't contain themselves:

Even at age 46, Ernie Els isn't afraid to make significant changes to his game. And that

boldness is paying off in Dubai. 

The South African fired a flawless 67 at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic on Friday and moved to within one of the lead in the process. Three birdies and an eagle pushed Els to 9 under, and he sits only behind Rafa Cabrera-Bello, who posted a second consecutive 67 to move one ahead. 

But it's Els' contention that is the more jarring occurrence. The South African may be a four-time major champion, but in recent months, his putting had seemed to take a deep dive for the worst, as Els was caught on camera missing a pair of 18-inch putts during that time.

Those were painful to watch for sure.  Martin Dempster had a longer profile of Ernie in which he confirmed that a left-hand low putting grip has Ernie spouting crazy talk:

“I just love the game,” said Els after being asked what it was that helped him retain his obvious passion and enthusiam to get back into the winner’s circle at a time when the likes of McIlroy, Jordan Spieth, Jason Day and Rickie Fowler – all players around half his age – are at the top of the world rankings. “I think everybody saw that I went through a very tough spell there last year,” he added, “but I’m starting to rekindle my love for putting again and, with the rest of the game having always kind of been there, I feel like I can still do something.” 

Even in the majors? “Yes, I feel I can do that,” he added. “Equipment has kept me very relative in the modern game. Length is not a big issue as I can hit my driver as long as a lot of the young guys.

Age 46?  Stranger things have happened, but it's awfully early to work up too much enthusiasm....  he can still hit the ball for sure, but those Yips have broken way too many hearts...

Danny Willet made one of the luckier birdies you'll ever see, with video here.  There's talk of it having hit a turtle, but I'm gonna go with a lily pad.

But let's talk Rory for a second, as he continues to miss an amazing number of short putts...and miss them badly.  Shouldn't he have figured this out by now?

Dateline Musselburgh - Do we get results, or what?

AN HISTORIC former pub with close links to golf’s 19th century heyday has been saved from demolition.

Architects EMA Architecture and Design Limited have since withdrawn the original demolition plan. A new planning application is being considered by the local authority, which will retain the former pub but see it converted into a private house. 

Mrs Forman’s was held in such high regard by golfers in the mid-19th century that it was mentioned in the first published history of the game, Reminiscences of the Old Bruntsfield Links Golf Club.

OK, first things first, and saving it from the bulldozer was the highest priority.  Given Scotland's great record of preserving it's heritage, we can only hope for further developments along these lines:

“Doubtless you can make more money from top-end housing, but that’s not to say the pub was not viable at a lower cost level,” he said. 

“At the very least the council should have investigated the possibility of a heritage group taking it over. It would pay its way and still contribute to the local economy. The National Trust own two pubs in London and Belfast – The George and The Crown. This pub is just as historic as they are.”

Yes it is.