Weekend Wrap

My readership skews towards the Cialis set, so I'm guessing that everyone has a smile on their face this morning at the old guy coming through.... as my FOG (effing old guys) ski group says, Fear the Fogeys.

Phoenix Tanking - We can be honest with each other, right?  I didn't actually see it and am far to lazy to go watch it now....Like everyone else, I had an appointment at Peyton Place at 4:30 local time.  I was watching the final round of the Wasted and had about four holes to go when that appointed hour arrived.

After CBS signed off I went back and watched Rickie birdie the 15th and put his tee shot safely on the green at the local zoo masquerading as the 16th hole... so, what could go wrong?

A showman for whom this kind of stage was tailored put on a show commensurate to the

occasion but with an unexpected twist in the end. Rickie Fowler lost. 

It didn’t seem possible when an hour earlier he was looking at a two-hole victory lap at the Waste Management Phoenix Open and further confirmation of his standing in the highest echelon of golf. 

Ordinarily unflappable whatever the pressure, Fowler squandered a two-stroke lead by hitting his tee shot into a water hazard on the 17th hole at the TPC Scottsdale, then lost to Hideki Matsuyama by hitting another tee shot into the same hazard on the fourth playoff hole.

You might well ask what the heck he was doing hitting driver, though it was a three-wood that he hooked into the water later.  The Tour Confidential gang, who had the advantage of actually seeing the shot, had some fun with the question:

Alan Shipnuck, senior writer, Sports Illustrated: He was thinking, ‘Crikey, even if I win this the guys at Tour Confidential will say it's not a Big Four until I win a major, so what's the point?' It was ennui, not poor course management, that cost him the tournament. 

Morfit: Pretty sure the ennui was ours. If you've got a two-shot lead with two to play and the other guy doesn't finish birdie-birdie and you don't win, geez, I don't know how that's not a brain cramp.

Ennui?  Why didn't I think of that?  And for one Travelin' Joe makes some sense:

Joe Passov, senior editor, Golf Magazine: I'm with Josh ... and Gary on this one. He hit it pure, and got a bad break. But like Greg Norman in the 1989 British Open, why hit a club that brings any of that into play? Rickie's been so sharp with his wedges, why not just lay up, wedge close and either make birdie or par?

The problem may be that Mr. Weiskopf didn't leave a place for a fellow to set down his golf ball amidst all the blindingly-white, visible from Earth orbit sand traps.  Not to mention the the green, about the width of Taylor Swift's waistline, is a brutally difficult wedge.

If you have any interest, Peter Bukowski's feature on the development of the tourney is well worth your time.  But let me throw a caution flag at this piece from the Desert Sun:

“I think the PGA Tour in general needs to embrace that type of fun atmosphere because

golf is not popular across generations. The millennials are not demonstrating a great interest in it. So we need to do things to change the game, and I think the Waste Management Phoenix Open can be an agent of change.” 

For example: Before the 2015 tournament, the PGA Tour banned the popular caddie races at the 16th hole. On Sunday, Holliman said one group of players skirted the rule.The caddies gave their bibs to the standard bearers, the young kids that carry the group scoreboards. The kids then raced to the green while the players carried the signs. 

Holliman looked the other way. The place went nuts.

Phoenix has found gold in them thar hills, but while I agree that other events can learn from this one, we don't need them copying this event.  But start with the unique organizational efforts of the Thunderbirds and identify that which is unique about your own event.... As I frequently note, the problem with the Tour is the dreary sameness of the events from week to week.... This one works because it's so unique.  Please, no pale imitations required...

To close, David Own files a friend's post from the event, focusing on the inhuman cvonditions under which they attended:

Apparently with the skybox tix u have a 10 drink limit but if u tip the girl enough she doesn't keep count. So my 10 drinks only counted as 2 in her book.

A 10-drink limit?  You mean for the year?  But David, are these your buddies?

Their day ended as badly as Cam Newtone's.

The Girls - The ladies did their best to find a soft spot in the television schedule, but were undone by weather issues:

Jang, known on tour for her powerful fist pumps and electric smile, triumphed at the Coates Golf Championship after finishing runner-up four times in her rookie year. She held at least a share of the lead all four rounds, closing with a 72 to win by two strokes over Brooke Henderson. 

The 23-year-old gained worldwide attention last week when she became the first player in LPGA history to ace a par 4. She knocked in a 3-wood from 218 yards on the par-4 eighth hole at the Pure Silk Bahamas LPGA Classic. Jang, who has a flair for the dramatic, bowed down and kissed the green, “Korean-style.” 

The second Coates Golf Championship turned into a golf marathon after thunderstorms suspended play on Thursday. Jang played 56 holes the last two days. What was supposed to be a pleasant day on Saturday turned miserable enough to turn away even the most ardent golf fans.

She played very well under difficult conditions, but the event may well be best remembered for Lydia's inexplicable mid-round meltdown.  The best part was that after missing a putt she gave a look to her caddie, which announcer Jerry Foltz described as being for the implacable Lydia like a club toss....

The ladies now go offshore for three weeks, so we won't hear much of them....

Venue Updates - Lots of interesting news on the venue front, starting with the most widely published one (h/t Mark W.):

Old Course, St Andrews, to host the Senior Open Championship Presented by
Rolex for the first time. 

Three-time winner, Tom Watson, hails historic move to The Home of Golf.
The Old Course at St Andrews, which has been a regular host to the world’s
oldest and most international Major Championship for more than 140 years,
will achieve another historic milestone from July 26-29, 2018, by hosting the
Senior Open Championship Presented by Rolex for the first time. 

Today’s momentous announcement, which was made jointly by The R&A and the
European Tour at The Home of Golf, completes the full set of Major
Championships to be held over the Old Course.

That's great because it allows all sorts of old-timers another bow on golf's greatest stage.  Just hard to imagine that the ladies got there twice before golf's FOGs.

Next up is this:

The Olympic Club Selected as Host of 2021 U.S. Women’s Open Championship

Five-time U.S. Open site to host its first USGA women’s championship,
 joins CordeValle as upcoming U.S. Women’s Open venue in Northern California
FAR HILLS, N.J. (Feb. 6, 2016) – The United States Golf Association (USGA) has selected The Olympic Club, in San Francisco, Calif., as the host site of the 76th U.S. Women’s Open in 2021. The championship, considered the world’s premier women’s golf event, will be held June 3-6.

That's a fine venue, and will likely allow prime time television coverage.   But this is the one giving me goose bumps.... you might have heard that the USGA has creayed a new championship, a Senior Women's Open.  I know, an opportunity to see old ladies kicking the ball around doesn't immediately thrill, but how about this for a venue for the inaugural event?

USGA Announces 2018, 2019 U.S. Senior Women’s Open Sites 

Chicago Golf Club to host inaugural U.S. Senior Women’s Open in 2018,
Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club to host 2019 championship 

FAR HILLS, N.J. (Feb. 6, 2016) – The United States Golf Association (USGA) today announced Chicago Golf Club, in Wheaton, Ill., and Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club, in Southern Pines, N.C., as the host sites of the inaugural 2018 U.S. Senior Women’s Open Championship and 2019 U.S. Senior Women’s Open Championship, respectively.

Wow!  You can't get more historic than that, the original C.B. Macdonald classic, the first 19-hole golf course in the New World.  Here's some of that history from the USGA press release:

The first U.S. Senior Women’s Open will be contested July 12-15, 2018 at Chicago Golf Club, one of the five founding clubs of the USGA and the oldest golf club in the U.S. in continuous use at the same location. The club was founded in 1893 by Charles Blair Macdonald, who won the inaugural U.S. Amateur in 1895. The original 18-hole course was renovated in 1923 by Seth Raynor and remains largely unchanged today.

This will be Chicago Golf Club’s 12th USGA championship. The club hosted its first two USGA championships in 1897 – the U.S. Open, won by Joe Lloyd, and the U.S. Amateur, won by H.J. Whigham. It also hosted the 1900 U.S. Open, won by Harry Vardon, a six-time winner of the Open Championship, conducted by The R&A, and the 1911 U.S. Open, won by 19-year-old John J. McDermott, who survived a three-man playoff to become the championship’s first American winner. Additional USGA championships contested at the club include: the U.S. Amateur (1905, 1909 and 1912), U.S. Women’s Amateur (1903), U.S. Senior Amateur (1979), and two Walker Cup Matches, both won by the USA Team (1928 and 2005).

I know it will be Fox, but please tell me there will be TV coverage....Please!