They were all playing, though I doubt too many were watching...so here's what you missed.
Salvaged? - John Strege covers that which he characterizes as a salvage operation:
It was a day to remember in a year to forget for Rory McIlroy, who in 2015 made morenews kicking a ball than hitting one.
McIlroy won twice on Sunday, his victory in the European Tour’s DP World Tour Championship also giving him a victory in the tour’s Race to Dubai.
Now he won’t have to limp off toward a new year, and instead can prance toward it, having replenished his storehouse of confidence in what now is officially a quest to reclaim from Jordan Spieth the No. 1 spot in the World Ranking.
I caught the last five holes before going out to play, and the only energy was supplied by Andy Sullivan, a 3-time winner on the Euro Tour this year who gave Rory all he could handle. But the outcome of the Race to Dubai was never in doubt after their Commish broke reinterpreted the rules to allow Rory to participate. My biggest pleasure was hearing the crowd's rendition of Stand Up for the Ulstermen, the hypnotic fighting song we last heard when attending a rugby match in Belfast.
Iain (Vanna, I'd like to buy a consonant) Murray informs us that Rory has given mid-season kickabouts the boot:
"I had a big lead in the world rankings and you see Jordan and Jason play the way they did. Fields are so deep, you can't let up at all.
"Tagging along with that, you know, this is my time to capitalise on my career. The next 10, 15 years is my time.
"I really can't be doing silly things like playing football in the middle of the season to jeopardise even six months of my career. It's a big chunk where I could make some hay and win a major or two.
"I won't be making those mistakes again next year."
OK, but clarify based upon his prior comments, this does not apply to their traditional Boxing Day kickabout, because, you know, that's their FA Cup finals.
And for those keeping their own scorecards, that is Erica Stoll on the far right of the photo, yanno the helpful PGA staffer that got Rory to his tee time at Medinah, so she's showing more staying power than Kerensky (anyone get that last reference?).
But, for the Euro Tour, the Good Lord giveth and taketh as well:
Paul Casey will not feature in next year’s Ryder Cup, with one of the sports longest-running sagas resulting in a surprise decision by the Englishman not to rejoin the European Tour. Casey has cited family commitments for a move that will inevitably raise eyebrows
Casey, who has set up home in the United States, has rejuvenated his career on the PGA Tour to the point where he would already have a strong claim to feature for the European team at Hazeltine in September. Each member of that party, though, must belong to the European Tour.
He would have to play five of their events, excluding majors and WGC's, and there's not a lot of off-weeks on the calendar. Scheduling and the resulting fallout will be a recurring issue looking forward...
We'll Call Them Ko-Champs - Strange doings at Tiburon yesterday, where three of the gals made news:
The tears belonged to Lydia Ko, the 18-year-old phenom whose tie for seventh was just good enough for her to snare one prize that will help her bank account (a $1 million bonus for winning the season-long Race to the CME Globe, her second straight) and one that will be part of the already growing history she is writing (Rolex Player of the Year, an encore to her 2014 Louise Suggs Rookie of the Year honor).
The champagne was the 18th-green victory fountain from fellow players for Cristie Kerr, the 38-year-old American who pulled away with an eagle on the par-5 17th hole to finish at 17-under 271 and defeat Gerina Piller and Ha Na Jang by one stroke for her second victory of the season and 18th in her career.
Inbee Park was dry-eyed and dry-shirted after finishing sixth, but it was much more than another routine top-10 for the 27-year-old, along with Ko a five-time winner in 2015. By having a season scoring average of 69.41, fractionally better than Ko's 69.44, Park won her second Vare Trophy for low scoring average. The honor is worth one point in consideration for the LPGA Hall of Fame, and gives Park the 27 points necessary for selection after the ninth-year player has the minimum 10 seasons on tour.
Ummmm...that last 'graph veers dangerously close to a wet T-shirt reference, and we don't want to go there... But the Race to the CME Globe, and doesn't that slight mellifluously from the tongue, is designed to award season-long performance, and will therefore result in two champioms being crowned as often as not.
Here's the history angle, if you're interested:
She is only the fourth LPGA golfer to be top player the year after being top rookie, joining Nancy Lopez (1978-79), Beth Daniel (1979-80) and Annika Sorenstam (1994-95.) Lopez stands alone in winning both awards in the same year, 1978. On the PGA Tour, which has given a rookie award since 1990, Tiger Woods (1996-97) is the only person to pull off the back-to-back achievement.
Fair enough, but we really didn't need to be told that she's amazing, did we? Or that Inbee is a HOF golfer either...
Our Lydia also shares a Dr. Evil impression here, impressive given that she was 1-week old when Austin Powers was released.
Early, Not Wrong - The HSBC WGC event a few eeks ago seemed to this observer to be Kevin Kisner's week to break through with his first "W", but Russel Know was in transit and didn't get the memo. So, this shouldn't surprise anyone:
Kevin Kisner ended a year marked by second-place finishes with his first PGA Tourvictory Sunday at Sea Island.
Staked to a three-shot lead going into the final round of the final tournament of the year, Kisner ran with it. He doubled the size of his lead at the turn by going out in 30, and he breezed home with a 6-under 64 to win by six shots over Kevin Chappell.
Can't wait to see the ratings for this yawnfest, as it would have qualified as a homeopathic insomnia cure...
In fact, the only noteworthy aspect was Graeme' McDowell's rather unusual gamesmanship as he was futilely chasing Kisner, as twweted by the Tour:
Pettersen’s crime was following the letter of the law in a tight four-ball match at the Solheim Cup in September in Germany. Pettersen, 34, was paired with Charley Hull against the American duo of Alison Lee and Brittany Lincicome in a contest that was all square through 16 holes. At the 17th, Lee missed a birdie putt to win the hole and picked up her ball, thinking the 18-inch par putt would be conceded to halve the hole.
To be a female athlete is to be ever mindful that appearances matter. Prettiness is next to godliness, which is why many of the players wear makeup during tournaments and treat their competitiveness as an imperfection that needs to be covered up with hugs and smiles. The same icy stare that identifies Tiger Woods as a fierce competitor is off-putting when it freezes Pettersen’s opponents.
“Absolutely, there is a double standard,” said Pettersen’s swing instructor, Butch Harmon, whose past clients include Mickelson and Woods. “It’s not right. One of the things I love about Suzann is what a great competitor she is. She prepares, and she plays, to win.”
Speaking by telephone, Harmon added: “If you look at Serena Williams, she gets put in the same category. People say Serena Williams is overaggressive. No, what she is is very, very good and very, very competitive.”
Peter Senior has shown that age is no barrier winning the UNIQLO Masters atHuntingdale Golf Club today.
24 years after he first won the Gold Jacket and 20 years after he last slipped on the iconic blazer, Peter Senior has once again emerged victorious winning by two shots with a tournament total 8-under 276.
"It's just amazing. I'm still blown over winning this tournament. The guys played pretty well.".
Hey, he's so good that they named a tour after him. Now it was supposed to be Adam Scott's week, but his short putter went walkabout on Saturday.
I'll Let You Go Now - The Euro Tour posted this warm tribute to Ivor Robson:
Shack envisions him with a tall glass of water, but I'd think something that goes through one's system quicker, say coffee, is the ticket.
As the man says, I'll let you go now.
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