Wacky Weekend Wrap

How do you keep the interest level up, when the worlds' eyes involuntarily wander towards next week?  You just throw up some wild and wacky finishes of course... Oh, and some multi-hole playoffs just to mess with their precious television windows.

Dateline Houston - As we found out last year at the LPGA season-ender, long difficult Par-4's make for long boring playoffs... as we watch the best players in the world post pars.

It didn't get too terribly out of hand thanks to a Johnson Wagner miss, but it seemed on that path:

HOUSTON (AP) J.B. Holmes used a strong start Sunday for a Houston Open victory in

a three-way playoff against Jordan Spieth and Johnson Wagner. 

The 32-year-old Holmes birdied the first five holes and nine of the first 12 after starting the day six shots back of Jordan Spieth.

I was disappointed to see Monday-qualifier Austin Cook fall off the pace with a late-round trip on the bogey train, but he made his presence known.  As he faded his place was taken in my affections by Johnson Wagner, playing on a sponsor's exemption and damn near punching a ticket to Magnolia Lane.  That was quite the birdie he made on No. 18, only the third of the day, but it wasn't meant to be...

J.B. seems to be one of those players that gets itchy-scratchy with a lead, but isn't afraid of low numbers and can be very dangerous a few groups ahead of the leaders.  As for Mr. Spieth, color me confused...  no doubt a great talent with profound short-game skills and a sense of the moment.  But he seems to hit more loose shots than the average bear, and they can be really loose as in his second into No. 18 in regulation.  Quite the up-and-in no doubt, but still leaves me a tad troubled...

Dateline Rancho Mirage - OK, I didn't see THAT coming, because who could have:

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. (AP) -- Brittany Lincicome ended up in Poppie's Pond for the second time in her career early Sunday night in the ANA Inspiration. 

Lincicome eagled the par-5 18th in regulation to pull even with Stacy Lewis and outlasted her U.S. Solheim Cup teammate with a two-putt birdie in fading light on the fourth extra hole. 

Lewis had three chances to win on the 18th. She missed birdie putts from 13 feet in regulation, 15 feet on the first extra hole and 12 feet on the second.

The funny thing was that she stopped going for the green in the playoff, for reasons never made clear.  But it worked out for her because Stacy couldn't buy a putt, but still curious.  As for newcomer Sei Young Kim, that was quite the roller coaster on the back nine, as she and Stacy played three straight holes with two-shot swings...

But she's the real deal and hits the ball plenty long, so we'll be seeing more of her...

And even I don't know what to do with this story:

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. – Danielle Kang called the police Saturday night and said

two men at Midori Sushi on Bob Hope Drive threatened to kill Kang, her mother and a friend. 

Kang, who was having dinner less than two miles from Mission Hills Country Club on April 4 after a third-round 77 at the ANA Inspiration, tweeted about the incident as it unfolded, writing “Police escorting since they shouted “you played like sh--. I’ll f---ing kill you. Stupid b----.” 

Kang’s mother, Grace Lee, tweeted that one of the men had a “conviction to harm and kill look.” 

“Next time Danielle shoots bad,” Lee wrote, “we are doing room service. Guess people take it personal.”

And you thought that I take women's golf too seriously?  But I do love her mother's reaction...

Dateline Augusta - The Drive, Chip and Putt is officially a Masters institution, and Year 2 is getting rave reviews, as per this take from Shack:

As I wrote in my piece, there was a lot more fun in the air in year two. Kids, fans, members and officials were just a bit more at ease, likely a natural vibe after an inaugural event when no one has a clue how it will play it (it played out beautifully). Either way, a couple of key changes in the width of the long drive landing area and the sequencing of the putting competition allowed the kids to excel a bit more. Or so it seemed. 

And about the kids. It's hard to share all of the little sights, sounds and reactions that you see as the day unfolds. (Speaking of reactions, Golf Channel's telecast opening featuredsome stellar juxtapositions between last year's reactions and all time great Masters moments.) But needless to say, the "DCP" reminded again that kids who play golf are awfully impressive, and downright cool.

The TV coverage is still overly cloying I would argue, but the kids are just amazing...At The Loop Geoff posts some of the driving distance numbers that are simply scary:

Also, keep in mind the Augusta National Tournament Practice Area plays uphill with

little roll and no helping breeze just 136 feet above sea level. Chew on these distances:

Boys 14-15 winner Matt Camel, 14, hit his first drive outside the boundaries, then pumped a 281.5 yarder to win his division. Runner up Grant Herrenbruck, 14, also missed his first but finished with a 280.7 yard effort to barely miss catching Camel.

14-15 Girls contestant Emily Lauterbach, 14, hit her second drive 243.5 yards to win the driving discipline. Runner-up Jessica Ponce (14) drove her second ball 240.7 yards.

Connery Meyer, 13, of Marietta, Georgia won the boys 12-13 with a 262.9 yard effort.

12-13 Girls winner Morgan Goldstein, 13, of Las Vegas drove her second ball 243 yards. Goldstein went on to win the Chip and Putt portions after only attending last year as a spectator to watch her brother. Oh, and Morgan is also playing in the inaugural USGA Four-Ball this May.

Satchel Pierce took the Boys 10-11 division with a 233.6 yarder. Oh to be 11 again.

The Girls 10-11 winner, Julia Misemar of Overland Park, Kansas, won with a 227.5 yarder to win her flight by a whopping 24 yards.

Gripping the club cross-handed, 9 year-old Logan Metcalf won the Boys 7-9 with a 186.9 yard drive after his first effort went 161. Don't try that at home.

Maybe most amazing of all, Victoria Matthews of Great Falls, Virginia hit her first drive 191.8 yards, easily double her weight.

Matt Camel is from Apawamis, our next -door neighbor in Rye, but fortunately none of these kids play at Willow Ridge.  I'm surprised Geoff didn't attribute these distances to all the time the kids spend in the gym...

It's a great event with one stroke of genius, that being the date.  Having so many current and former champions in site makes it really special, and no doubt it will only grow as more and more kids want a shot at glory in front of Bubba/Ben/Gary and/or Condoleeza.  Well played, ANGC.

 Dateline Harrison, NY - A television rant follows, so avert your eyes if you must.  I was watching coverage of the ladies on Saturday, which came on the air at 5:00 EDT.  At a few minutes to six it was announced that coverage of the ladies event would be interrupted to show the last group finishing at the men's event in Houston, because it wasn't clear at that point whether Phil would post a 74 or a 75...

Earlier in the season while in Utah I missed the finish of an event when coverage switched from CBS to Golf Channel at 6:00.  Now maybe I'm a crotchety olf curmudgeon, but it seems to me that when my TV program says that CBS is covering The XYZ PGA Tour Event, that they are obligated to, you know, cover the event.  

The problem is greatly exacerbated by the Tour scheduling tee times so that the finish is predictably at 5:58 p.m., whereas golf is played in the great outdoors that doesn't lend itself to predictability.  I'm open to a wide range of solutions, but switching channels is just pissing away your audience, Commish.

I'd love to know how the TV contracts are structured in this regard, but it can't be good for the Tour.  And it was quite the dis to the ladies to have their event interrupted to watch a meaningless group finish on Saturday.