Loose Threads

A couple of memes out there on which I've waited for critical mass to accumulate... or just haven't gotten to.

Whither Bubba - Cue the theme song from The Good, The Bad and The Ugly for this one...The Tour Confidentialistas had this exchange:

1. Bubba Watson finished eagle-birdie to claim the WGC-HSBC Champions in Shanghai and seemed

genuinely thrilled at winning the event. Given his Masters and Riviera wins, as well as his PR-shredding tantrums and 0-3 Ryder Cup record, how do you assess Bubba's season and what are his prospects moving forward? 

Gary Van Sickle, senior writer, Sports Illustrated: Bubba is the best American player...when he's on. He's not on all the time, for reasons unknown. All we can do is take him for what he is, a remarkable talent who wins on occasion. He's not a guy you can predict. We know he likes Augusta and Riviera. After that, it's a coin toss. He has the ability to win five or six times a year, but I don't think we're going to see him do it.

Michael Bamberger, senior writer, Sports Illustrated: On paper, it's an outstanding year. In real life, he comes off as…odd, and fighting himself.

Joe Passov, senior editor, Golf Magazine: I really want to like Bubba -- I really do. He could be so good for growing the game. He's a genius at hitting the ball, boasts all kinds of distinctive traits, from his swing to his pink driver, and he's now won multiple majors. Unfortunately, he shoots himself in the foot with a .357 Magnum over and over again. With what I've seen and heard from him, he's very hard to root for. To win a second Masters and a couple of other coveted titles -- that's a great year by anyone's standards, save Tiger circa 1997-2008. I see more championships ahead, but he has tidying up to do to be worthy of admiration.

Jeff Ritter, senior editor, Sports Illustrated Golf Group: Three wins including a Masters makes this the best year of Bubba's career. Don't look now, but he's the top-ranked American in golf. The PR blunders and Ryder Cup letdown are clear areas for future growth. If he can harness his itchy, twitchy demeanor -- a big if -- Watson has a chance to become the face of American golf as Tiger and Phil fade and he enters the prime of a could-be-Hall of Fame career.

Eamon Lynch, managing editor, Golf.com: He had 1.4 million reasons to look genuinely thrilled. Any season with a major trophy is a success, and his year has been outstanding in its highs and comically petty in its lows. Sometimes he just can't get out of his own way, but it is always entertaining to watch. That will probably be the case for many years to come.

Mike Walker, assistant managing editor, Golf.com: Eccentric Bubba Watson is a classic late-bloomer. He’s been getting better, more mature and more consistent every year. He’s the most exciting American player in golf, and he’ll challenge Rory McIlroy for Player of the Year in 2015. Watson gets a bad rap on the public relations side too. I’ve always found him to be gracious and helpful anytime I needed to talk to him for a story. He’s admitted that he needs to work on his on-course demeanor, and I think he’s sincere about it.

Josh Sens, contributing writer, Golf Magazine: It's kind of like a first-grader's progress report: precocious if unpredictable talent with some impressive accomplishments. Does not play well with others.

First, setting aside Commissioner Ratched's Bizarro World calendar, what a year.  A Masters, Riviera by shooting 64-64 on the weekend and that Shanghai Surprise.  Is there anyone who thought Bubba could win at Riviera?  

The hard part with Bubba is that the bad is so ugly, witness the PGA Long Drive contests and other instances where his demons get the better of him.  We have no idea what goes on in that mind of his, but hard as it is to admit, the Bubbameister is the best American golfer.

What do I expect from him in 2015?  I'll go way out on a limb and predict intermittent brilliance, interrupted by pouting, petulance and many golf courses that fail to suit his eye.  I know, it's a gift....

This Week in Denim - Willow Ridge has allowed "tasteful" jeans for as long as I've belonged there, so forgive me for not realizing that Denimaphobia was still a thing.  I believe Shack got the ball rolling by picking up this item from Motown:

Venerable Detroit Golf Club was founded 1899, and so there has been no small amount of tradition established over the years.  One tradition – no denim – is getting disqualified.

Detroit Golf Club Board of Directors notified club members in an email that denim – "defined as a coarse, twilled sturdy cotton cloth used for jeans" – can now be worn on club grounds. 

With limitations, of course.  Jeans "cannot be ripped or torn," the email states, and "any denim worn must be tasteful and appropriate for a club environment."  Denim is not allowed on any of the golf facilities, and it also is banned in the ballroom and other banquet/meeting facilities. 

Finally, DGC members and guests may not enter the clubhouse through the front entrance in jeans: "The Professional Shop or side entries may be used."

I find that last "side entrance" bit to be unfortunate, as it harkens back to some unpleasant memories from golf and the wider society.  Now, as this meme has been picked up in the blogosphere, people seem to be confusing allowing jeans on the grounds with playing golf in said denim, which I'm hoping exactly no one is advocating.  As per this mostly regrettable mission statement from Golf Digest (you remember, pimping out golf carts and toking up on the golf course as grow the game initiatives):

While 29 percent of golfers older than 55 said they wore jeans or denim on the course, only 13 percent of golfers 18 to 34 did the same. The younger golfers were also more likely to be against wearing cargo shorts on the course. Dressing up is part golf’s appeal, millennials said.

Exactly.   Last word goes to Mike Walker from the above-linked Tour Confidential who channels his inner Scot:

If there’s nae khaki, there’s nae golf.

Yeah, That's The Ticket -  Ryan Herrington has the skinny on a prototype device that may help address pace-of-play issues:

As part of the two-day gathering -- pro/amateur golf being the focus of discussion

Wednesday, everyday golf up Thursday -- Pringle will unveil a prototype tool the USGA has been developing that attaches to a flagstick (see photo) and can be used to track the time between groups on a course. The device is triggered when the flagstick is placed into the cup (which has sensors in it along with the bottom of the flag stick) by a group walking off a green after players have putted out. It then tracks the time until the flagstick is removed from the cup by golfers approaching in the next group. These "cycle times," measured throughout a course, can then be monitored collectively to address issues in real time to try and get groups moving.

In the alternative, we could take the two slowest players at each club out and summarily execute them.  Trust me, word would get back...

Golf in the (Middle) Kingdom -  Golf in China is its own subject of substantial fascination, though that's not our focus here.  Doug Ferguson files this dispatch on the progress of Chinese golfers, including this short stroll down memory lane:

Four years ago, Tiger Woods was introduced to a 12-year-old on the same hole at Sheshan International. Woods was amazed at the poise the boy showed in hitting over the gorge and onto the green with the largest gallery on the golf course watching. 

His name was Guan Tianlang, and two years later he became the youngest player to make the cut in the Masters.

Doug does find space for a discouraging note, about which we've previously informed:

The one setback on PGA Tour China was the other Chinese winner — Zhang Xin-Ju, whom the CGA banned for six months after he was disqualified for the second time for turning in an incorrect scorecard. He is leading the money list on the PGA Tour China, though the ban means Zhang cannot play on any tour until the middle of March. The PGA Tour will not comment on whether it plans its own sanction.

But surely Commissioner Ratched attended this significant over seas event, no?  How do we think he'd deal with this sensitive issue with his local counterparts?

The one setback on PGA Tour China was the other Chinese winner — Zhang Xin-Ju, whom the CGA banned for six months after he was disqualified for the second time for turning in an incorrect scorecard. He is leading the money list on the PGA Tour China, though the ban means Zhang cannot play on any tour until the middle of March. The PGA Tour will not comment on whether it plans its own sanction.

PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem described it as an "individual thing" and said the topic did not come up in two days of meetings with Chinese golf officials.

So, surprise, surprise, he swept it under the Oriental.   But don't you love that "individual thing?"  Yanno, like choosing between boxers and briefs...  As many have noted, the Chinese Commies are being far more transparent than our thoroughly American Commish.... Just sayin'

The Euro Beat - A few of those threads to pull at here, including a most interesting James Corrigan column.  James occasionally forgets his meds, though today is not such an example.  Shack found this of greatest interest:

The number of European Tour chairmen who should be embarrassed with his official response on the resignation of long-time chief executive, George O’Grady last week. David Williams’s statement basically consisted of thanking the Ulsterman and saying “George has played a key part in building global relationships and developing the Tour”. It was left to Tim Finchem, the PGA Tour commissioner, to afford a fitting send-off, declaring: “George’s true measure as a leader is reflected in the fact that he leaves The European Tour in a vastly better position than when he began his tenure.” Yes, he does. And even those who ousted him should be humble enough to recognise it.

Corrigan seems to think it more of a coup than resignation, about which I have nothing further to add.  I think the Euro Tour is in a precarious state, though given the state of the European economy that might, in fact, speak favorably about O'Grady's ability to insert fingers in many holes in the dike.  

 I actually found a different section of the piece of interest, and the header is all you really need to read:

Golf risks looking foolish if Rory McIlroy is not crowned European No 1 for the sake of late-season 'excitement'

Do they read the Telegraph in Ponte Vedra Beach?  Though I'm not completely in his camp and the Euro Tour has an added complication, in that Rory, as an example, doesn't actually play that tour much.

As I've noted ad nauseum, there's nothing wrong with either late season excitement (perish the thought, eh?) or a season-long test of skill.  It's when one tries to have it both ways that we court incoherence (see Cup, FedEx).

We also have some good fun going on with the next Euro Ryder Cup captain, as that template seems to be a bit leaky (I know, mixed metaphor alert) these days.  First, Sergio must be heard about his countryman:

In a surprise twist Spain’s Sergio Garcia believes compatriot Miguel Angel Jimenez’s lack of English will rule him out of captaincy contention. 

Unlike the mess the USA Team finds itself, the vote for the 2016 European Team captaincy at Hazeltine now seems a clear cut choice between Darren Clarke and Jimenez, the Tour’s oldest champion. 

However Garcia, and a veteran of seven Ryder Cups along with being a vice-captain in 2010, believes the five-man committee to choose a successor to Paul McGinley may rule out Jimenez given his poor grasp of English.

Pot, kettle.  Doesn't Sergio want to be a captain someday?  He might find these markers a little inconvenient...

But since we have a longstanding reputation for even-handedness,  let's see what folks, and by folks I mean Brian Keough, have to say about the other leading contender:

Few golfers have shown as many personas to the world as Clarke - genial and fun-loving 

one moment, laughing and smiling with cigar in hand as the people’s favourite, only to be transformed into a walking volcano for the waiting press, a brooding presence whose mood varied depending on his score. 

So who’s he real Darren Clarke? The bleach blonde amateur in the two-tone golf shoes? The cigar-chomping, beer drinking lad with the gut, beloved of the lads down at the pub? The widower, the hard-worker or the hothead? Or the thin, white-haired Duke of our TV screens during the recent Ryder Cup?

Keough most interestingly gets into the Clarke-McGinley dustup, and the Man in Black's response isn't terribly convincing.  But I do think it's important to remind folks that the Euros have their own backbiting and jockeying for position, though they do a better job of falling line ultimately than perhaps our coddled warriors.

Lastly, I've always been a fan of signs, golf as well as otherwise, and always use the subject as an opportunity to link back to this Ballyliffen blog post on the subject.  In the above-linked Corrigan piece he includes this wonderful Austrian example of the genre: