Let's break the pattern, and begin with this Course Raters Confidential discussing the merits of this week's venue:
What do you make of Harding Park as a major venue? Good? Bad? Somewhere in between?
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| The 2nd Hole. |
There's nothing wrong with the question, I just usually start with how I feel about a venue as a golf course, and only secondarily do I consider the unique requirements of the big boys. But let's see what the experts think:
Josh Sens (panelist since 2013; has played 68 of the World Top 100): I don’t think of Harding as catnip for architecture nerds. It would not be an inspired choice for a U.S. Open. But it fits the mold for the kind of course — brawny, tree-lined, relatively flat — that the PGA Championship has so often been held on, and in that sense, I think it’s well-suited for its role this year. Throw in the location (San Francisco!) and the surrounding infrastructure, and Harding makes good sense as a host of this particular major, though of course in these unusual times, all of those trappings are less relevant than they would be ordinarily.
OK, given that the PGA these days is utilizing mostly hand-me-down U.S. Open sites, Josh's distinction doesn't resonate with me. I had been reliably informed that the difference was largely in the set-up of the venues...
Thomas Brown (panelist since 2015; has played 95 of the World Top 100): Good, maybe even exceptional, if we measure it by the past list of champions at Harding Park: Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, Ken Venturi, Gary Player, Byron Nelson. Match play events, including the Presidents Cup, have been a success. The design and the conditions playing soft in the fairway make it more suitable to discuss championship history rather than golf architecture. In the last few weeks, the Bryson DeChambeau reaction has had the likes of Ernie Els and Webb Simpson opining that championship tests should focus professional golf on higher rough and more doglegs. Harding’s setup for the PGA Championship is led by Kerry Haigh. Over the past 20 years, Haigh has an admirable record of keeping his name out of championship proceedings for the PGA. He has a sensible approach to hole locations and adjusts accordingly to changing weather. Slopes on the greens at Harding are relatively flat, allowing for fast greens if there is no wind in the forecast.
And if we don't? Because that list of winners is either very old or is from a match play event, so relevance isn't immediately obvious.
I don't know this guy, though my first impression is favorable:
Noel Freeman (panelist since 2010; has played 81 of the World Top 100): I am really ambivalent about endorsing Harding Park as a major venue. I understand the politics and history of this as well as the longing to want to return to the West Coast and at a public venue, but other than the 18th hole there is little memorable about Harding Park. The original course done in the 1920s would have been very interesting to play and the recent renovation smacks a similar ethos to what occurred at Bethpage. What we have now is a long and strong course, which is still wall-to-wall grass, tree-lined and relatively flat with minimal internal hazards. Perhaps with more bunkering like San Francisco GC a few miles away it would be a more interesting design, but it already is a tough slog for players and bunkering would slow it down even more. For the pros, last I saw (I drove past the course two weeks ago) it was green and the rough was thick. Still it does not require them to move their ball around (like Olympic) and with the equipment today they will eat this up unless the wind blows in the morning. This is a solid golf course but I’d rather have seen a return to Chambers Bay if that were possible (U.S. Open rota may impede).
Admittedly that last bit will have heads exploding, but his take on the track matches my own. There's little here of interest, though that doesn't mean it won't provide a meaningful test for these bombers. It's just that said test, which we'll get to in a minute, is mostly unrelated to the course itself.
What’s the best hole at TPC Harding Park, and why?
Logically there has to be one, right?
Sens: I’ve always been partial to the short par-4 16th, which is pretty much straight away as the crow flies but plays as a slight dogleg because of a cluster of giant cypress trees on the right. Some 30 years ago, when I first started playing Harding, there was a forest of those suckers, and if your drive drifted into them, there was a good chance the ball would simply nest in the branches and never drop. And if it did drop, you’d almost certainly have no shot at the green. They’ve since removed a number of those trees, so the hole has lost some of its aesthetic appeal and its strategic demands. Now you can stray right and you still might have a play into the green. But the hole retains the risk-reward charms of a good short par-4, with your target off the tee getting narrower and narrower the more aggressively you play, and the possibility (for a big hitter) to drive the green. It requires some thinking. And it should provide some good drama during the PGA.
Freeman: I, too, am partial to the short par-4 16th because of the subtleties of the tee shot and where to place it. It looks like a easy 4 for the scorecard and can easily be a double bogey if you get out of position. Of course Bryson may drive this hole.
Brown: The 18th hole. The closing hole is a scenic tee shot over a Lake Merced inlet. It has a great sense of place. At 463 yards, it sounds like a long par-4 for you and me, but most of the field will be playing an 8-iron or less into the green.
Not only do I find it impossible to remember one hole from another, but the Tour has magnified that issue in changing the routing for those match play events. Which I still find strange... Their logic is to avoid having matches end without reaching their best holes (those late holes above), which merely ensures that the good matches are decided on their lesser holes.... Well played, lads.
For the most part, this week's challenge for the guys will be found from the grass up... First this:
And more fully described here:
Why the distance-sapping fog will be a big factor at this PGA Championship
OK, it might rob Bryson of his super powers, though it sure is purty:
I always say these courses are more beautiful in the fog than the sunshine. https://t.co/y4LdTJF9WB
— Alan Shipnuck (@AlanShipnuck) August 4, 2020
Back to the matter at hand:
I grew up 100 miles down the coast from Harding Park and have a keen appreciation for the fog. In these parts, it has pet nicknames: May Haze, June Gloom. To my eyes, the courses of Northern California are even more glorious in the gloaming than under blue skies. “It’s a cool look, for sure,” says Shaun Micheel, the 2003 PGA champion. “You don’t really see it like this anywhere else.” That sense of place is all the more important for the first major championship to be played without a single paying spectator.
Plenty of observers have been confused as to why players are wearing sweaters and turtlenecks during their practice rounds whilst in the Golden State in August. The thermometer may say 62 degrees, but any NorCal native can tell you the damp breeze knocks at least 10 degrees off of that, and sometimes more. As my junior high science teacher explained it, the scorching temperatures in the interior of the state pulls the cooler coastal air ashore, and this commingling creates the fog.
Seems very much the same as that North Sea Haar we amused you with from Kingsbarns last summer, but you'd naturally assume it's a simple adjustment for these guys.
It affects the pros, too, and at this PGA Championship, the pea-soup is more than just a cool visual — it will be a defining part of the competition. Says Micheel, “Last week in Reno” — played in hot weather at an altitude of 4,500 feet — “I was hitting an 8-iron 190 yards. Yesterday, from 175 yards I hit 5-iron … [dramatic pause] … and came up 20 yards short. It kind of makes your brain hurt.”It is increasingly common to see caddies and swing coaches daintily carrying portable launch monitors during practice rounds, like expensive man-purses, but for their players, it has become an obsession during the run-up to this PGA to calculate how the cold, heavy, wet air is affecting the way the ball flies. “Talking to some of the guys yesterday, they were laughing at their TrackMan numbers already,” Tiger Woods said. “They don’t have the swing speed or ball speed they did last week. It’s just the way it is.”
That's the most surprising part, that the guys actually swing more slowly in the colder weather... I mean, I know I do, but I had been relaibly informed that these are world class athletes:
Dialing in the right yardages, then, becomes a mix of art, science, meteorology and psychology. “I do it by feel,” Scott said. “From the time you tee off until you finish, the conditions are very likely to change. You need to learn to read the differences. It’s one thing to figure it all out on TrackMan, or however you want to do it, but it’s another thing to stand there at 180 yards during an important moment and know it’s a 5-iron when you are used to hitting it 215. You have to trust it.”
And so this PGA Championship offers a unique challenge, in both the tiny particles of mist clouding the sky and the fog of war they may induce as players battle for one of the game’s grandest trophies.
The tourney will likely hinge on who best adjusts to these conditions... Oh, and who makes putts.
I've got good news for you all, not least of which is for your humble blogger. I had actually been concerned about the absence of an Ask Alan columns in recent weeks, a critical building block for our programming here at Unplayable Lies. We all need our breaks, and Alan's mailbag allows me to blog without messing my hair or breaking a sweat....
Of course he's got a PGA-centric mailbag, so off we go:
If Jordan, Phil or Rory complete career Grand Slam this fall with no fans present, will it be considered legitimate or will there be an asterisk? -@MuirFalls
Totally legitimate! This has been one of the most challenging and unusual golf seasons ever. Any player who finds a way to peak at the right time and conquer one of these proud courses should be applauded, not denigrated.
Different for sure, but I don't understand the logic of assuming it's easier.... Unless, of course, Patrick were to win.
Gotta admit, this one is pretty good:
Is Harding Park the best U.S. Open parking lot to ever host a major? -@StephenGJewell
Indeed, Harding was the car park for the 1998 national championship at Olympic, played justaround the corner. But plenty of terrific tracks have been sacrificed for tournament infrastructure, including sister courses at Winged Foot, Oakland Hills and Bethpage. During my undergraduate days at UCLA, we played our home football games at the Rose Bowl and parking was on the fairways of poor Brookside Golf Course. I used to eye the green complexes whilst tailgating–it looks like a fun course and the desire to play it has never left me.
Look, I'm critical of the PGA for their reliance on former U.S. Open courses for this event. They in response tell me to hold their beer, as we're now using a former U.S. Open car park.... Indeed, these guys are good.
Here's another inevitable PGA query:
Should club pros be celebrated at this event for all they do to grow the game or should their slots be eliminated to make this a real competitive major? Don’t believe this happens in any other individual professional sport. -@LabLoverDE
Yeah, you’re not going to find a minor league hitting coach suddenly playing centerfield for the Yankees in the World Series. I’ve gone back and forth on this question. It’s true that in the modern game the club pros never factor in the outcome of the tournament, which argues for their spots to be given to full-time touring pros who could conceivably contend. Maybe I’m getting soft in middle-age but I like the human element of the club pros and their longshot stories to make it into the field. The bottom line is that there are many ways for a Tour player to qualify for the PGA Championship and if they fail to do so it’s their fault, nobody else’s. The PGA still has the strongest field of the four majors, so what’s the harm in letting a few dreamers be part of the show?
The real underlying issue goes back to the Tour's Exodus from the PGA of America, and the ill-fated (at least to the Tour) decision to leave this event and the Ryder Cup with the club pros. But the bigger issue is whether that actually worked out well for the club pros themselves. Yes, we all understand the allure of qualifying into the PGA Championship. But the bigger issues revolve around an organization that doesn't even pretend to serve its members any longer....Probably not an issue for this moment.
Rank the five courses that are within 15 minutes of this week’s PGA Championship: Harding Park, Olympic, SF Golf Club, Lake Merced, Cal Club. -@DMar
- SFGC
- Cal Club
- Olympic
- Lake Merced
- Harding
Harding seems ranked too high, no?
And this semi-related bit:
What would be your ideal 10 course rota for the PGA? -@BradleySmith328
Clearly the PGA has never carved out its own identity. The Masters is history and tradition; the U.S. Open is carnage on grand old courses; the Open Championship is the linksland. The PGA is…lower scoring because the greens had to be watered in the summer heat? Instead of picking off U.S. Open venues I think the PGA should strive to be entirely different, visiting exciting new courses and quirky old ones and visiting parts of the country the Open has largely ignored. So, this is my rota: Pacific Dunes, Sand Hills, Sleepy Hollow, Crystal Downs, Friar’s Head, Prairie Dunes, Pasatiempo, Chicago GC, Ballyneal, Pine Valley.
I like the concept of Alan's answer much more than the reality of it... Pacific Dunes is 6,633 yards from the tips, so good luck with that, and many of those names are so remote as to be non-starters, including Pine Valley. I'd love a more thoughtful list a legitimate places the PGA could go, as opposed to that dreadful list we had a few days ago.
Another related question, though Alan steps in it on this one:
How has the PGA Championship managed to avoid playing on the West Coast since 1998? -@mvf510
It’s befuddling, if not enraging. West Coast majors allow golf to be played in prime time on the East Coast– that’s a ratings bonanza! And the moderate temperatures are not only more pleasant but they also allow for better playing conditions; all those PGAs in August in the steamy South and scorching Midwest required the greens to be drenched to keep them alive. I can’t remember the last time it rained here in Northern California so there is no excuse for Harding’s greens not to be brick hard, which is really the ultimate test. Per your question, the bigger issue is that the obvious venues–Pebble, Olympic, Torrey, now LACC–are aligned with the U.S. Open.
Alan, psst.
Speaking of inevitable questions:
Should the PGA be a major? -@GolfFoodAddict
C’mon, man. The PGA has been a big deal for a full century; by 1927 Walter Hagen had won it five times and Gene Sarazen twice. From 1940-51, Sam Snead won it three times while Byron Nelson and Ben Hogan took two apiece. The only major Nicklaus has won often than the PGA is the Masters. Tiger has four PGAs and his gritty win in 2000 is an iconic performance. Phil, Vijay, Rory, Nick Price, Padraig, Brooks, JT–so many of the great players of the last 30 years have triumphed at the PGA. Need I go on?
It's a major, but it shouldn't get cocky....
There's a few more bits from Alan to work in later, but now lets check in on Geoff's preview post, in which he's got some trenchant observations:
—COVID-19 testing has gone perfectly. From the PGA of America’s Kerry Haigh today: “With that, we ended up and are using the same testing entities that have been used for the first ten weeks, Drug Free Sport and Sanford Health, and with only one player remaining to be tested, all players and caddies in the field have cleared our COVID-19 protocol. So I can't tell you how happy I am to hear that, and I'm sure 155 players and 156 caddies are just happy, so thank you to all of them.”
Good to know, but weren't folks worried that the sky was falling just a few weeks ago. And by folks I mean Alan Shipnuck:
Do you still have the opinion you had in late June that the PGA Tour should pull the plug on its season? Thanks. -@changecozbyA lot changed after I typed that column, beginning with the Tour tightening up its procedures and protocols. It was risky to test players and then let them practice and roam the grounds while they awaited their results; after the rash of virus-related W/Ds early in the week of Hartford (when my column ran) that policy was wisely amended. More important, there was a cultural shift on Tour. Coming out of Hilton Head, there was much loose talk about the relaxed atmosphere on the island. It seemed inevitable that in this environment the virus would explode.
But the withdrawals in Hartford, including two of the top five players in the World Ranking, were a wakeup call for the entire Tour. The players realized their season was hanging in the balance and began policing themselves.
All the while, Jay Monahan and his lieutenants continued to fine-tune the operation. The result is an incredible success story, and every PGA Tour stakeholder should be applauded. Branden Grace getting knocked off the leaderboard of the Barracuda last week was deeply unfortunate but as long as the Tour can keep the infection numbers this low, by all means they should play on.There remains one thorny issue: the number of rapid-response tests the Tour (and every other pro sports league) is consuming. I have two friends here in Northern California who were tested in mid-July. One waited 10 days for their result, the other waited 12; such lags render the tests largely meaningless.
Think of how many thousands of tests are being used every day by the PGA Tour, NBA, NHL and MLB. Sports are deeply ingrained in our society, and now more than ever we need entertainment. When it comes to testing, should professional athletes be given priority over regular citizens? I’ve accepted that is a question for philosophers, not sportswriters. In the meantime, I’ll continue enjoying the Tour action, like the rest of you.
Alan gets props for taking the question, but he can't quite bring himself to acknowledge that he let out a primal over a few inconsequential positive tests. Yes, we're all gonna die, Alan, just not right now...
Back to Shack:
—”It’s right in front of you.” Popular press conference phrase this week. Player code for straightforward, boring and not particularly provocative.
Yeah, but boring is a positive to these guys...
—Rory McIlroy praised the setup. This on fairway contours was interesting:
I've always liked how PGA Championship setups have been for me. I think they're fair. It's not as if -- you look down a fairway at a PGA Championship and it's sort of the same width the whole way down to the green. A lot of courses, they try to pinch it in at 320 and try to handcuff the longer hitters, whereas here the courses just let you play, which I like. I think Kerry Haigh and his team do a great job. I think Kerry is one of the best in the business at setting courses up. I've always said that. Like I said, it's a little different than the Match Play five years ago. I think it's a great setup, and everyone is in fora good week.
Not sure anyone will be hitting it 320 this week, so perhaps much ado about nothing...
—Dustin Johnson feels better. Harding Park should suit Johnson and he’s typically a great west coast golfer. So this answer about his win followed by a disastrous missed cut and WD should intrigue his backers:
DUSTIN JOHNSON: I mean, honestly, neither one, Memorial or Minnesota didn't bother me one bit. I was swinging terribly. My back was bothering me just from swinging back. I didn't hurt it doing anything. I hurt it swinging just because I was so swinging so poorly. So that didn't really bother me.I knew, I went home, I rested for four days, got treatment,and then went out and practiced Monday at home and just went back to the basics, worked on the right things and started hitting the ball well again.
Despite winning recently, DJ has put himself very under the radar with his more recent poor form. But elsewhere we find an improbable header:
PGA Championship 2020: Dustin Johnson has become philosophical about trying to win a second major
Shield the children, because this can't be pretty:
“I don’t want to say anybody can win one, but it’s definitely harder to win two than it is one,” Thomas said. “To kind of get into that level, that other level, and to be getting up into the double digits in majors for a career, you need to get going a little bit or you need to start winning some, and when you’re stuck on one, it’s pretty hard to get there because you’ve got to get to two first.”
Gee, and I assumed his thoughts would get all mangled. But who wants to tell him that winning two majors isn't, you know, double digits?
This daily Tour Confidential asks a good question:
Which player needs a major victory the most?
Interestingly, they writers cycle through the entire field before alighting on the obvious answer.
Michael Bamberger: Which player needs THIS week’s major? Jordan. Jordan Spieth. Then he can relax and be Jordan again. He can be Jordan for the rest of his life. He can hang with Sarazen from here to eternity.
Jordan is in a bad place for sure, though he's already way over-achieved with the three. he needs something good to happen, but to expect here is just too big an ask.
Sean Zak: It’s easy to argue that Bryson needs a major victory — or at least a major top 10. The guy draws plenty of ire for everything he does, and winning will change all that awfully quickly.
Get real, Sean. Bryson has been in his new body for an hour-and-a-half and has already notched a "W", so in no sense does he NEED this.
Alan Shipnuck: Ooooh, both good answers. But I’m going with Rory. It’s impossible to believe that the reigning POY has now gone six full years in the heart of his prime without a major. This is a course where he has already won, with a setup that puts a premium on driving the ball, in weather that evokes Northern Ireland. It’s not now or never, but it’s certainly time for McIlory to get it done.
Alan, Rory NEEDS a Masters, full stop. He's already got two of these.... Now, it would help towrds that end to prove to himself that he can play well in the important events, as Portrush memories linger on...
Josh Sens: I can’t top those answers, only expand on them. Often, the player considered most in need of a major is the golfer seen as the best player without one. At this moment, that would be Jon Rahm.
Again, way too soon for that to be an issue, though he does need to start playing better in these.
Alan Bastable: I *can* top these answers! It’s Jason Day! The former world No. 1 was in the hunt in virtually every major in 2015 and ‘16. Since then? Tough sledding on account of swing woes, personal troubles and endless injuries and illnesses. Three top 10s in his past three starts hint this could be his bounceback week. Seize the Day!
No, apparently you can't... JDay needs to stay healthy for more than a week at a time, but last I looked he's already snagged one of these.
But hold the presses, we have a winner:
James Colgan: He might be the least likely of anyone on this list to win, but it seems we’re past the point of the pressure mounting on Rickie Fowler to snag a major. At 31, he’s hardly out of time, but he’s not exactly a spring chicken anymore, either. Now’s the time for one of golf’s most notable faces to snag a big one, if he’s ever going to.
Yes, thank you. It's that "if he's ever going to..." that tells all. Not that there's any reason to believe that he will.
Here's the rest of the answers, all just a bit outside:
Zephyr Melton: Well, it looks as though all the obvious answers have been taken, so I’ll go off the beaten path a little. Let’s go with Tommy Fleetwood. He’s got three top-five finishes in majors over the past three years, but he never quite gets it done. Plus a win would (finally) get him a win on American soil, which is something he needs to put himself in the ranks of the upper echelon of the game’s stars.
Dylan Dethier: I’ll parse words here and say that Tiger Woods is the one who needs this major the most. Not because he’s got anything to prove to anyone — just because he has always needed majors when every other golfer has just badly wanted them. That’s the trait that has gotten him 15 of ’em.
Nick Piastowski: A victory, period, would be terrific for Tony Finau. No wins since 2016. And 30 – 30! – top 10s over that time. A victory in a major would be quite the way to end that streak. He has the game to do it.
Tony? There's a group of players, think Chucky Three-Sticks, Paul Casey and other, whose careers are defined by their inability to win much. It always amuses me when writers pick them to break through during the biggest weeks of the year. Yeah, it could happen and has heppened (Andy North, call your office), it just seems a big ask.
My eyes are on the exit, but a few things before I leave. First, some Shipnuck leftovers:
Alan, why can’t I stop picking Jordan Spieth in my easy office pools? -@DonnyPython
The polite explanation is that you’re an optimist. Or a romantic. Or maybe a believer in the law of averages–at some point, Spieth has to bust out of his slump. Right? Anyone? Bueller?
I had been reliably informed that Augusta National would fix him. But as you may have noticed, those expounding such theories never answer the question of what happens if it doesn't. To me, when you hit the three-year mark you might have to consider that it's more than just a bad stretch....
Who finishes higher, Tiger or Phil? Do either of them finish top ten? – @DavidAStorm
Tiger, because I don’t think Phil (coming off a rousing performance in Memphis) can put together eight straight good rounds. I think Woods will grind out a solid finish but not quite a top-10.
Have you seen the rough? I expect Phil to see it repeatedly, and that'll be a hard way to make a living...
Is Phil the first major winner in his 50’s waiting to happen? -@BCRaffertyI always thought it would be Vijay–don’t forget that he finished 9th at the 2012 Open Championship, when he was 49. (Four years earlier he had won at Firestone.) But Phil is clearly still dangerous, and he has made a career out of pulling off the unlikely. You can never say never with that guy, especially around Augusta National. I’m not sure he’s going to win one but it’s inevitable that Phil will be in the hunt late on Sunday afternoon at another major or two.
Maybe at Augusta, but I have trouble imagining him contending elsewhere...
Has there ever been a better shot to win a PGA than the 7-iron by Shaun Micheel on the 18th hole to seal the deal at Oak Hill? -@DizzyG1964
Unless someone jars their approach from 150+ yards, there can never be a better or more clutch shot than Micheel’s to win a major championship. This makes me happy. He never built on that win but Micheel deserves to be remembered for that shining moment.
I actually think that minimizes Micheel's accomplishment, especially in comparison to Ben Curtis' Open win. Micheel played beautifully with the lead all week, which is a very difficult thing to do. It's why I expected more from him, on which he quite obviously failed to deliver.
How will Jon Rahm respond after losing the number 1 ranking after only a week? -@SwingTheClubKen
Let us not forget the brief, glorious reign of Tom Lehman, who was number one for one week in April 1997 and never made it back again. It’s a reminder that nothing is guaranteed in this game. But something tells me Rahm will get another view from the summit. He is already intensely driven and ambitious, but if we have learned anything from the likes of Tiger and Michael Jordan it is that elite athletes find motivation in the smallest of slights and indignities. So I’m sure Rahm is feeling a little extra incentive this week to take back what was briefly his.
Rahm I'm sure knows his brief No. 1 position was accidental, as he simply hasn't won much of anything. These guys use what they can, but among ourselves let's not embrace the silliness...
I do think he says a mouthful here:
Brooks – yes or no? -@LiamCDigan
Nah.
A threepeat is a lot to ask... But it would be fun to have him in the mix on Sunday.
One last bit and then I'm out of here. Shack links to a couple of items related to the venue and the vibrant San Francisco golf scene. First, from Sean Martin:
San Francisco’s golf heritage is underappreciated, often overshadowed by its neighbors to the south, who are the beneficiaries of interminable sunshine. But the City by the Bay can boast of major champions and world-famous courses, as well.
Harding Park, Olympic Club and San Francisco Golf Club are all within five miles of each other. Olympic has hosted five U.S. Opens. SFGC is an A.W. Tillinghast design that annually ranks among the world’s best courses. And Harding Park was one of the country’s first great municipal layouts.Major champions Johnny Miller, Ken Venturi, George Archer and Bob Rosburg got their start by the Bay.
The City has been dominated in recent years not by the working-class folk heroes of the past, but high school and college students. TPC Harding Park’s renovation in 2002 once again made it a TOUR-caliber course after years of neglect. Those two factors have reduced some of The City’s scruffy charm, but it still stays true to its colorful past.
Including another 1956 photo of that amateur duo Harvie Ward and Ken Venturi:
Geoff also links to this profile of Ken Venturi, though it's unfortunately behind a paywall. I'll just share the bit that Geoff excerpted:
The Venturis lived less than three miles from Harding. Ken played his first round there using borrowed clubs with hickory shafts. His father’s only advice was to count every shot, no matter what, including whiffs. Ken claims to have shot a 172 on his first 18-hole round. (He later said he quite possibly held the course record at Harding for both the lowest score, a 59, and the highest score, that 172.)
Ken stuck with it, playing alone. Blissful seclusion. Just him, his thoughts and his swing. He learned by replicating the swings he saw when caddying, then picked up lessons along the way. He’d play two balls at once, hitting only draws with one and fades with the other. He talked to himself as he played, finding and hearing his words. He saw a correlation between the rhythm of the swing and the rhythm of a sentence. The course became a second home as Fred stopped selling twine at the marina and took a full-time job running Harding’s pro shop. Ethel eventually joined him there, working alongside him in the shop, turning the place into their own mom and pop operation.
Venturi notably overcame his stammering to become CBS' lead golf analyst, quite the thing indeed. As Geoff notes, Jim Nantz will likely be all over this in honor of his former broadcast partner.
As I've warned, an early appointment tomorrow precludes blogging. Enjoy the event and your weekend as well.
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