Ayrshire 'appenings - It wasn't long ago that Royal Troon's membership included not a single cervix, so there welcome to the ladies this week is progress indeed. Shack has some early week postcards from the girls, invariably involving their most famous three-par:
That's Morgan Pressel and this of the interior of the stately clubhouse is from Christie Kerr:
Here's a better look at the iconic Postage Stamp, what Shack calls 126 yards of wee terror:
He also characterized the advertising placement as aggressive....
I noted a difficult weather forecast, and they're expecting the worst:
Storm Ellen is set to deliver strong winds in the south-west of Scotland over the next couple of days, blowing at a steady 20mph, according to R&A chief executive Martin Slumbers, but gusting up to 45mph at times.With disruption of play almost inevitable in the first two rounds, Slumbers has already taken the unusual step of sending a note to all the players in a 144-strong field. In a nutshell, he says the “fundamental aim” remains to have an event played over 72 holes but extending it to a Monday finish is not a possibility due to Covid-19 safety protocols.In the event of a “significant amount of playing time” being lost on the first two days, the number of players making the cut could be reduced from the intended top 65 and ties, something that would be beneficial if the target was to play two rounds on Sunday.“I don’t think it’s going to be easy for the next two days,” predicted Slumbers, both in terms of the challenge facing the players and the R&A’s team of rules officials. “We are easing the golf course as much as we can to make it as playable because we want a spectacle. But we have not taken the full teeth out of the golf course.”
As I watch while typing, the winds seem nothing like what was forecast. Flags are moving, just nothing out of the expected...
For anyone unfamiliar with this hole, here's the overview from the club's website:
Hole OverviewOriginally called “Ailsa” because there is a perfect view of the rocky islet of that name, from the tee. The smallness of the putting surface accounted for the current name when William Park writing in “Golf Illustrated” said, ” A pitching surface skimmed down to the size of a Postage Stamp”.
Much has been written about the famous eighth hole at Royal Troon, aptly named the “Postage Stamp”. The tee is on high ground and a dropping shot is played over a gully to a long but extremely narrow green set into the side of a large sandhill. Two bunkers protect the left side of the green while a large crater bunker shields the approach. Any mistake on the right will find one of the two deep bunkers with near vertical faces. There is no safe way to play this hole, the ball must find the green with the tee-shot. Many top players have come to grief at this the shortest hole in Open Championship golf.
I've previously waxed poetic about this class of short holes, which are difficult because of, not despite, their lack of length. Troon is far from the most exciting of Open venues, but this is indeed a very good hole.
Beth Ann Nichols captures the ladies' thoughts on the hole, including this:
Danielle Kang
“You just can’t miss the green. I looked down on the right side, the left, and it’s a small – it’s a small green and beautiful hole, and it’s short. The yardage is very short, but can’t underestimate that wedge shot and you can’t. … I feel like you can’t get too greedy and you just have to hit the green.”
Yes, you just have to hit a green that's notable for being impossible to hit. And the allure of these shorties is that the greens are invariably so small that hitting them on the second shot isn't to be take for granted.
If you'll recall last week's focus on pace of play, I'm pleased to report that the first group will play at an appropriate speed. How can I be so sure?
In her 40th appearance in the event, Laura Davies has been handed the honour of hitting the opening shot. “The condition of the course is about as good as I reckon you could have a links golf course,” she reported. “I said to a couple of girls I was practicing with this weeek that they are the best links greens I’ve ever putted on. They really are unbelievable.”As well as admitting it was an “honour”, she admitted that being out first had other benefits. “More importantly, you get a clear golf course, and I’m looking forward to not waiting on people,” added Davies of not having to worry about slow play, something that raised its ugly head as rounds took more than five hours on the final day in last week’s warm up, so to speak, at The Renaissance Club.
I've been reliably informed that there's nothing like a Dame, and in this case I can't help but agree.
Ewan Murray seems the sort to worry about offending anyone, az rare trait in the sycophantic sporting press. Here he raises that most awkward of questions, to wit, if we're able to hold the Ladies' Open, why exactly aren't the men playing?
“Those were pretty dark times, weren’t they, in late March, early April,” said Martin Slumbers,the R&A’s chief executive. “There were bigger issues for the world to worry about and still are bigger issues to worry about. I think at that time we were struggling to see how any golf was going to take place, certainly at the top level. Right through it we wanted to take as much time as we possibly could on the women’s event. We wanted to see where everything developed, and all along, I have felt this sort of deep responsibility to stage this.
“I have been committed about women’s and girls’ golf since I arrived in St Andrews. Taking control of this event made me more determined to wait as long as we possibly could and see how the world evolved. When I sit here today on the eve of it teeing off, albeit with some pretty dreadful weather forecast for the next couple of days, it was a great decision. I think there’s a wonderful sense of excitement.”
Well played, Sir. No Open Championship because of your commitment to women's golf...got it. Though, how exactly does that work?
Her Mr. Slumbers meanders dangerously close to the truth:
Slumbers admitted the rescheduled men’s Royal St George’s Open, now set for next summer, might not be feasible with galleries. “I have absolutely no regrets over the decision we made to cancel the Open this year,” he said. “It was not possible for us to do it. One hopes that the world is going to be in a better place come next season, but if it’s not, we will absolutely assess a behind-closed-doors Open Championship as one of the options come July 2021.”
Heh, that's a good one. I get that it wasn't possible, but methinks though doth protest too much. What was not possible was cashing the insurance check AND hosting the Open, and understand your priorities....
I have little use for said R&A these days, but at least there's some good news from them as regards future venues for this event. Those are as follows:
2021 – Carnoustie2022 – Muirfield2023 – Walton Heath2024 – St Andrews2025 – Royal Porthcawl
That 2022 venue will garner reactions, as they were the last holdouts on the issue of women members.
There's little doubt that links golf is the purist form of the genre, though inevitably no everyone will embrace it eagerly. I've frequently made light of Rory McIlroys inability to play in wind and on firm tracks, illogical given the passport he carries. Here's another entry on that list:
The prospect of Charley Hull ending her wait for a major title this weekend at Royal Troon has diminished after the 24-year-old admitted her indifference towards links golf. Hull riskedoffending those immersed in the ancient form of the sport by admitting she will visualise holes at the famous Ayrshire venue lined with trees during the Women’s Open when it begins on Thursday.
“I’m not the biggest fan of links golf,” said Hull. “I like playing with my friends and stuff as a bit of fun but I find it hard to score around sometimes. I like parkland golf courses and American-style.”
Pressed on why this feeling has developed, Hull explained: “I feel like you can hit good shots and get bad bounces and bad luck. I don’t really feel like you have to be the best ball-striker, you just need to go down the fairway and green and give yourself a putt – then you’re sound – and keep out of the bunkers.
“I just try to picture the fairways being tree-lined because I like really, really tight golf courses. I like to feel like tunnel vision, where this is kind of open and flat and it’s hard to pick your lines because it’s hard to pick out the fairways sometimes. So you’ve just got to be really focused.”
UK passports have been revoked for less, no? But who wants to warn her about the extensive tree-removal programs in the U.S.?
Should be a fun week, though I'm unclear as to how much opportunity I'll have to watch.
Boston Beginnings - When it comes to FedEx Cup fever, I'm at best symptomatic. At worst? Well, you know how I feel about this hot mess.
Joel Beall wants to "Prime" us, and I'm inclined to see if he can trigger any enthusiasm. Take your best shot, Joel:
Player of the Year raceIt’s essentially a four-player showdown. Justin Thomas enters as the favorite, with Collin Morikawa trailing just behind and Bryson DeChambeau and Webb Simpson a distant third and fourth. There’s no doubt Thomas has been the tour’s consistently best player this season: Nine top 10s in 15 starts (highlighted by three wins, a runner-up and third-place finish), first in FedEx Cup points, second in strokes gained. The only real knock would be all three wins—the CJ Cup, Sentry Tournament of Champions and WGC-FedEx St. Jude—were limited-field events (to be fair, that only really applies to the 34-player TOC). Conversely, one could argue by winning the season’s only major, as well as defeating Thomas in a playoff at the Memorial, Morikawa has the conch heading into the postseason. A FedEx Cup/Tour Championship win (remember, they are one in the same now) would seal POY for either two.
Sorry, I nodded off there for a sec... Really, you think we should care about POY in year with maybe one significant tournament? Good luck with that...
But Joel digs deep:
Spieth WatchBy storyline conceit bylaw—season previews, major rundowns—we are required to mention Jordan Spieth and his pursuit of revival. We are not selling our beach house on Spieth Island yet ... but we’re seeing plenty of neighbors put their properties up for sale.
In one sense, Spieth isn’t floundering; he’s made the cut in 14 of 16 events, and was in contention at Colonial heading into the final round. In that same breath, he’s 175th in strokes gained/off-the-tee, 116th in approach and 106th in SG/putting, with the weekends proving particularly troublesome (174th in Saturding scoring, 159th on Sunday). Most believe Spieth’s resurgence remains a matter of when, not if, and Spieth has continued to preach patience, insisting he’s seeing positives and it's all part of the process. But 100th in the FedEx Cup standings, the Texan will need a strong week at TPC Boston for the process to make it to Chicago.
Yes, there are still Spieth dead-enders, but they're far thinner on the ground than they used to be.
No doubt we're all saddened to see this news:
Brooks Koepka has withdrawn from the Northern Trust, putting an end to his 2019-’20 season.Koepka cited lingering knee and hip issues as the reason for pulling out at TPC Boston. The 30-year-old has dealt with health problems going back to last fall, when he underwent a knee procedure the day after the 2019 Tour Championship. He continued to be plagued with pain, withdrawing from multiple Asian Swing events and passing on the Presidents Cup.
Koepka has publicly teetered on the status of his health. At times he stated his body felt fine, but there were also admissions in February and July that his knee continued to be problematic, and he underwent an MRI on Monday of Memorial week.
Shutting it down for the remainder of the year seems wise, though the year in question isn't what one might assume:
Koepka’s next likely appearance will be at the U.S. Open, which begins on Sept. 17 at Winged Foot. Koepka won the event in 2017 and 2018, and finished runner-up at the championship last summer.
This guy seems able to discern that which actually matters:
Justin Thomas 'not trying to peak' at Northern Trust
Though I'm guessing that header resulted in a phone call from a PVB suit and a donation to charity.
This guy perhaps not so much:
Tiger Woods has committed to next week’s BMW Championship at Olympia Fields outside Chicago, the second of three FedEx Cup playoff events, setting up the possibility of playing back-to-back-to-back weeks for the first time since September 2018.Woods made the announcement on Wednesday, a day before he’ll tee it up in the Northern Trust at TPC Boston, where he's had success in the past. Woods won the 2006 Deutsche Bank Championship at TPC Boston and finished second there in 2004 and 2007.
He'll push himself in back-to-back weeks for the FedEx Cup, but not to be prepared for the PGA? What's wrong with this picture?
Mike Bamberger has an invaluable contribution to make, his version of how great these three weeks could be:
This cutthroat format would put the ‘playoff’ in the FedEx Cup Playoffs
East there, cowboy. You're venturing dangerously close to something that might actually be interesting, and we can't have that...
The column is in the form of a letter from Jay Monahan to the plebes, and it does include this legally-required slam:
Gentlemen:
Congratulations on qualifying for this year’s FedExCup, which will conclude our wraparound 2019-’20 season, as best I know. Although we do have two major events still to be played this
year, the U.S. Open and the Masters. So I’m not sure exactly how this calendar accounting works.
It’s been a trying year but together we have persevered. #lifeinthebubble.
Some of you have posed challenging questions to me and other PGA Tour officials about how FedExCup points are awarded and its payout system as well. The question I get most is, “How does it work?” I do not regard it as a positive that some of our own people, here at HQ, feel compelled to call Steve Sands for various clarifications.
It's not Sands' fault, but I think this will be his lasting image among golf fans.
I'll just give you a taste of what Mike has in mind:
III. The traditional 36-hole cut is not in place for any of the three playoff events. Each of the first 10 rounds will bring both excitement and heartbreak via a new system proposed here. The medalist (or joint medalist) from each of the first 10 rounds is guaranteed to play all 216 holes. That’s the exciting part.
As for the heartbreak, after each of the first 10 rounds, players shooting the worst eight scores, plus ties, will be eliminated from the playoffs. However, if you are an Untouchable, or a Daily Winner, even if you are among the bottom eight, your home for each round is secure.
It’s a playoff, people.
He envisions a high-stakes shootout, which would be glorious... Great minds truly think alike.
Chances of this ever happening? Asymptotically approaching nil...
We had a note recently about the guys still playing for the full purses, and John Hawkins sends a warning shot across the Tour's bow:
Money, money, money. A veteran industry insider recently wondered aloud how the Tour could continue dabbling in such massive numbers at a time when the coronavirus has threatened to cripple the world’s economy. The Tour itself laid off 50 or so employees last week, many of them longtime staffers. Eleven of the 49 events on the 2019-20 schedule have been canceled due to COVID-19, costing the operation tens of millions in title-sponsor revenue and perhaps as much from ticket sales and onsite corporate support.
It’s enough to leave you wondering how the Tour could have the gall even to stage its little playoff series this year. This deadly pandemic has forced everyone to wear masks at the grocery store. So many people have died, so many others have lost their jobs, and we’re gonna spend the next three weeks slicing up a $60 million pie?
The answer to it all is unbearably simple: business is business. Short of World War III, there’s no way the Tour will reduce purses or compromise relationships with its most valuable partners, notably FedEx. Such backpedaling would be conceived as a sign of weakness. Public perception is important, but it doesn’t pay the bills and it sure as hell doesn’t cover the $1.35 million awarded to Daniel Berger for his victory at Colonial.
I have no clue how this is perceived in the world at large, though I've been surprised that the Tour hasn't felt compelled to boost the charitable side of this...
Of course my larger issue that it's such a dreadfully soulless event, with no actual sporting interest. I'm numbed to the money after all these years and, as we all understand, girls just wanna have fun.
I shall leave you here and we'll pick things up tomorrow.
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