Weekend Wrap

Do we have things to discuss....Hope you don't have much planned this morning....

Blame Canada - A bit of a bizarre week up north, as evidenced by this strange query to the Tour Confidential panel:

4. Bigger RBC Canadian Open story: Johnny Vegas shooting a seven-under 65 and winning a playoff for his second consecutive Canadian Open title; Ian Poulter posting a final-round eight-under 64 to finish one back; or Brent McLaughlin, the event's tattooed tournament director, being suspended halfway through the tourney?

Missed it by THAT much, guys, as the biggest story from the RBC was the relief Charley Hoffman was granted in a bunker on the 12th hole.  We'll get back to that in a sec...First, the requisite game story:

WINNER: Jhonattan Vegas probably wishes every event was the RBC Canadian Open. The Venezuelan entered the tournament having missed five straight cuts but no matter. He still managed to copy what he did last year at Glen Abbey. Vegas successfully

defended the Canadian Open on Sunday, opening in 5-under 30 in the final round on his way to a closing 7-under 65. That jumped Vegas from three behind to a tie at 21 under. 

Vegas actually had the outright lead when he made it to the clubhouse, but Charley Hoffman (the 54-hole leader by one) birdied Nos. 16 and 18 to force a playoff. Hoffman actually had a 23-footer for eagle to win it at 18, but the putt went over the right edge. He finished with birdie for 4-under 68. In the ensuing first playoff hole at No. 18, Vegas hit an incredible second shot on the par 5 from a fairway bunker. The ball nicked the lip on the way out but somehow not only cleared the water but ended up OVER the green. Vegas chipped back to a foot and tapped in for birdie. Hoffman laid up and airmailed the green with his third. He nearly holed his ensuing bunker shot for birdie to extend the playoff, but it just missed left. 

At that point Vegas was the champion. This is the 32-year-old’s third PGA Tour win.

Vegas is an appealing character, having escaped the madness of his home country....  The to-die for name is just a bonus.

The saga of the tourney director starts with this fawning N.Y. Times profile from earlier in the week:

OAKVILLE, Ontario — Brent McLaughlin is a tattooed, leather-clad, Harley Davidson-

driving, guitar-picking former roadie. 

He can also “golf it up” in collared shirts and khakis when he is serving as the serious, but not too serious, tournament director for Canada’s PGA and L.P.G.A. Tour events.

Those alter egos make McLaughlin, 46, one of golf’s most colorful tournament directors, if not the most unlikely. 

“He’s probably not what you would picture in personality and background,” said Dan Pino, the director of corporate communications for Golf Canada. “But he’s not wacky. He just has enthusiasm across different areas.”

I's cut the Times some slack, as the world has harshed their mellow in recent months....  Nah, let's pile on like they themselves would.  Do we think that on Eighth Avenue they're familiar with the concept of a trunk-slammer?

In a surprising, mid-tournament move, RBC Canadian Open tournament director Brent McLaughlin has been temporarily removed from his position. Golf Canada CEO Laurence Applebaum confirmed the move but would not provide any details on the situation. 

“It’s a confidential employee matter,” he stated. “Brent will not be here for the weekend.” 

Applebaum did say that McLaughlin has not been terminated but did not give any indication as to the next steps. In addition to running the RBC Canadian Open, McLaughlin also heads up the CP Women’s Open slated for late August in Ottawa.

A/K/A an "Allenby."  No word yet on his crime against humanity.

Now to our Charley....  And I'm exposing myself to personal retribution, as He's among the favorites of Employee No. 2.  Here's Shack's take on how it all went down:

Here's the situation: final round, 2017 RBC Canadian Open, Charley Hoffman hits into a greenside bunker at the 12th and has a badly buried lie:

Credit Hoffman and caddie for recognizing the renovated Glen Abbey bunkers for having newly installed bunker floor lining that prevented him from digging enough to take a stance on his bunker shot. (You can see a demo at the 1:30 mark of how it is sprayed in). And even cred it them for asking to get a ruling even after Hoffman can be heard saying multiple times he did not believe there was any kind of artificial lining causing an issue (his caddie wasn't so sure and convinced him to get a second opinion). CBS's Peter Kostis said exactly the opposite: Hoffman was calling for a ruling because he could feel the liner. Maybe he had a producer yelling in his ear during the conversation, but it was still misleading.

Official Gary Young arrived and seemed very reluctant to give Hoffman relief, but the player soon could smell an opening, ultimately convincing Young that he could not take his stance because of the concrete lining.

These newfangled bunker linings  are new to me:

"That's so generous!" barked out playing partner Kevin Chappell, somewhat sarcastically. Young replied that it was consistent with other rulings related to the new age bunker liners designed to keep sand on faces and from being contaminated. Chappell then lightly pointed out Hoffman's smile upon getting relief:

OK... It seems to me that the bigger problem is typically too much sand in the face and what does it mean for sand to be contaminated?  At some point I'll watch that video, but too much ground to cover this morning.

We saw a similar incident at Wentworth with Branden Grace, and I'm guessing we can all agree that this is not a good look for our game.  To make matters worse, the PGA Tour is up to its old tricks:

The situation seems worse than it might appear given that the PGA Tour, which has signaled a desire to be in the news delivery business via the web and television, scrubbed videos of the drop after briefly posting them to official Facebook and Twitter accounts. 

Here is the PGA Tour Facebook post of the ruling, deleted (thanks reader Jeremy S).

Also not a good look, though it's the first I've seen this behavior in the Monahan era....

Social media was not kind to Charley, as per this example:

Point taken.

Porthcawl On My Mind -  In other news, the sun rose in the East this morning:

BRIDGEND, Wales (AP) -- Bernhard Langer won the Senior British Open on Sunday in

rain and wind at Royal Porthcawl for his record-extending 10th senior major title and fifth in the last 10. 

The 59-year-old German star closed with an even-par 72 to finish at 4-under 280 and beat American Corey Pavin by three strokes. Langer joined Jack Nicklaus as the only players to win three senior majors in a season, and won the event for the third time to match the tournament record.

He's just way better than all the other guys, so it's just as well that nobody's watching.  But, about that putting, the TC panel had this:

3. Bernhard Langer won his 10th senior major title (and third major of the season) at the Senior Open Championship on Sunday. Langer is the first player since Jack Nicklaus to ring up three senior majors in a year, but is his accomplishment in any way tainted by his continued use of a long putter that — depending on your view — is either anchored or very close to anchored?

Ritter: I have mixed emotions. What Langer is doing is remarkable, and his stroke has been green-lit by the Tour, so, nothing to see then, right? I still find myself wishing he could find a stroke that pushes him away from the knife's edge he's currently riding.

Wood: It is a remarkable feat without a doubt. I just don't know how a rule can be written like it is. Even if he is using a completely legal method, the rule is poorly written. There is a get out of jail free card with the "intent" wording that I don't agree with. Apply it to other rules: "I didn't intend to use that wedge with square grooves, it just found its way into my bag." Doesn't matter, you get penalized. "I didn't intend to ground my club in the hazard." Doesn't matter, you get penalized. "I didn't intend to be five minutes late to the tee." Doesn't matter, you get penalized. The rule is horribly written and the word "intent" should be eliminated.

What he said, meaning John Wood.  As I've done previously, I'll just quote Yoda.  There's no intent, there's only doing or not doing....

I thought Porthcawl looked spectacular, and can't wait to see it in the Flesch.  But how about an odd note that no one else will have...

Billy Mayfair got a bunch of air time through the week...  He's a Titleist guy, with all the expected swag.  He had his wife, I believe her name is Tammy, on his bag, and I always think that's a great look for the Seniors.... But Tammy was in a Ping cap....  In this world of equipment deals, how is that possible?  Was she being paid by the Karstens, or did she just wear that cap because Wally Uhlein wouldn't ass her to the payroll?

Hey, we only deal with the most important issues here....

Girl Talk - Didja catch the Girls' Junior?  Another reason to bemoan the rules of our game... or not?

The issue at hand took place in the semi-finals:

This isn’t how any match is supposed to end, much less one to secure a spot in the final of the U.S. Girls’ Junior. Erica Shepherd, the winner, said she felt like she wanted to cry when it was over.

Shepherd’s putt for par on the 19th hole had already been conceded by opponent Elizabeth Moon. Shepherd, a Duke commit who had come from 2 down with four to play to force a playoff, stood off to the side and closed her eyes as Moon putted for birdie from 3 1/2 feet away. When she didn’t hear the putt drop, Shepherd said she opened her eyes to see Moon raking back her par putt. She’d missed it by a few inches.

Shepherd said her caddie, University of Indianapolis coach Brent Nicoson, asked if she had conceded the putt.

“I didn’t say that was good,” Shepherd told Moon.

Juli Inkster, who was working for Fox Sports, stopped mid-sentence while making the call: “Just a little quick and Erica Shepherd lives …”

You can hear her on the video saying that she hadn't conceded the putt, but then later she indicates that, had she the time, she would have....

Here's Shack's take:

The episode is a good reminder that players who don't normally play match play need to remember some of the fundamentals, such as assuming no putt is good until conceded.

Hopefully, however, Shepherd and match play are not unfairly targeted for a simple innocent mistake.

Shack links to this hysterically ignorant take on the matter, which is the best part of a sad story:

Again, she had a tap-in for her par which she just assumed Shephard would automatically give her seeing as how it was a THREE-INCH PUTT but as soon as Moon dragged her putt back, Shephard decided to turn into a non-classy competitor and saying “I didn’t say that was good.” Shephard won the match in horrid fashion. 

For all of those that are going to come out and say ‘oh, well technically those are the rules’ no, you people suck. And the ruling the official gives that ‘you can’t concede after the fact’ is bogus. It’s called courtesy, sportsmanship, common knowledge; you know, the game of golf, but the USGA doesn’t care and never will. Shepherd clearly didn’t want to extend the match so she advanced to the final of one of the biggest amateur tournaments on the planet on this dumbass ruling. 

You simply don’t do this.

I find that "You people suck" is an effective debating tool, and I'm chastened by my suckage...

Two young women under incredible stress made instinctive errors in judgement, so naturally we want to rake them over the coals...  The nice part is that the girls both handled it better than this idiot.

But, back to the first linked item, this is also off the mark:

The scene was reminiscent of the 2015 Solheim Cup when Suzann Pettersen said Alison Lee picked up a putt that had not been conceded.

Only in the sense that that it relates to a short putt....  We'll hear much about this with the Solheim Cup upcoming, but the Europeans, Pettersen and Hull, were guilty of a breach of sportsmanship, though to this day they may not understand the underlying issue.

Erica Shephard is not to blame for Elizabeth Moon's impulsive raking of her ball...  It's a really unfortunate way for the great match to conclude, but that doesn't make Shephard a war criminal.

Interestingly, the TC panel linked above led with TWO questions on this subject.  Worth a read if you're so inclined....  I'm not sure how I feel about this:

Bamberger: If the match is serious, not casual, anything over eight inches should not be conceded, in my opinion. I'm not sure conceded putts improve the game at all.

Wow, an interesting subject for a later time.  We had this a while back, but this USGA item on the history of concessions may surprise a few folks.

Kooch In Full - Tim Rosaforte gives Matt Kuchar the credit he deserves for his work in Southport:

Rather than sulk about his near miss, Kuchar did what he always does. He moved on,

honoring his commitment to play in this week’s tour stop at Glen Abbey (he is sponsored by RBC). He shot an opening-round 71 on Thursday, though afterward, he said he felt dizzy during the day, even seeking medical help during the round. Unclear what caused the faintness, Kuchar was optimistic it was just temporary. He could have easily withdrawn from the tournament given the circumstances, but instead he followed it with a Friday 68, an impressive round in which he played the last six holes in five under, with an eagle and three closing birdies to make the cut. 

There will be more big events in the coming weeks, the PGA Championship on the horizon and the FedEx Cup playoffs again looming. Friends and family have reminded Kuchar there are plenty of positives to take from Birkdale. So it is that he is trying to look at it the way Superman would, the way a bronze medalist would. 

“There are such great lessons that come from golf,” he conceded. “You know, this was one of them.”

I just don't find this particularly necessary, as Kooch is one of the nicest and best-liked guys out there.   The questions I have are more along the lines of why he doesn't win more and how hungry he is....especially since he's an "assassin" at the ping-pong table.....

Shack, on the other hand, seems a tad over-the-top with this:

As the 146th Open moves to our rear view mirror, I'm still thinking about the incredible play of Matt Kuchar. Having watched him more than any player during the week, I was struck by his consistency, touch and shrewd handling of Royal Birkdale. He deserved to win. And nothing against his signature wins at The Players and Memorial or his Olympic medal in Rio, but this was the tournament of his life.

Incredible?  You see my point?  But why don't we see Kooch on more major leaderboards?

 We Get Results - Though apparently lead time is required:

Rory McIlroy has fired J.P. Fitzgerald, the caddie who has been on his bag for all four of his major titles, according to a Reuters report that cites a source familiar with the matter.

The source says McIlroy will have a new caddie on the bag for this week's WGC-Bridgestone Invitational. The McIlroy camp has yet to comment. 

Fitzgerald had been with McIlroy since shortly after the player first turned professional in 2008. As recently as last week's Open Championship, in which McIlroy rallied from nearly missing the cut to finish T-4, the player credited Fitzgerald for helping him turn his week around. When McIlroy was struggling on Friday, Fitzgerald resorted to blunt talk to help kick him into gear.

The timing is curious, I'll concede, but this is long overdue.  Perhaps later I'll try to find that old piece of an undercover pro talking about watching Rory pull a club that the outside knew would fly the green, then watching the "How did that happen"" interchange between Rors and J.P. 

And I've long thought that, in addition to a firm hand, he needs a caddie that can help him read greens.

Why Now? - Jaime Diaz wit this curiously-timed piece:

What Now, Tiger? 

Six questions for a player who once had all the answers.

Really?  You guys know that I think the world of Jaime, but Tiger only ever answered with his clubs.  When his lips were moving, it wasn't a pretty picture...

OK, so what does Jaime think Tiger can tell us?

1. Is Tiger's back surgery cause for optimism, or is it another setback? 

As bad as the term anterior lumbar interbody fusion sounds, and as wince-inducing as imagining vertebrae being screwed and glued together can be, the fact is that the procedure often eliminates what is most debilitating for a golfer: nerve pain. 

Three major-championship winners who had similar procedures—Lanny Wadkins, Lee Trevino and Retief Goosen—all considered the surgeries last resorts, but all emerged immediately free of nerve pain and came back to the game with a new eagerness.

I have no problem with the question except that there's no answer....yet.  But he also doesn't make clear whether the answer is in the context of playing golf at the highest level, or just having a normal life....

2. If he was pain-free, why was he taking pain medication?

Woods maintained he incorrectly mixed prescription drugs, in this case Vicodin and Xanax—although only the toxicology report can definitively confirm what drugs were in his system. It recalled Thanksgiving 2009, when his then-wife, Elin, told police that Woods had active prescriptions for Vicodin and Ambien.

He also said he was pain-free.

Not only is this a silly question, given that we can assume he WAS in pain....  But I'm also at a point where I don't assume that which Tiger tells us to be true.  Sorry, too much water under that bridge....

Admittedly, this last one is an intriguing query:

6. Does he have a real support system among other players?

Much has been made in the past year of a new Tiger, more engaged socially. In his role as assistant captain at the Ryder Cup, he was praised for his generosity with knowledge. He is also on social media. But in more private conversations with several of his peers, some of whom Woods has called friends, what emerges is the isolated figure who is rarely seen—whether at Medalist Golf Club or his restaurant, The Woods Jupiter—and who shares little and trusts less. A particular Woods quirk is to text a player who is in contention to offer encouragement and good luck, followed by a few exchanges. And then ... nothing. 

Older players who have known him for years and feel a golf kinship confess that they have rarely if ever socialized with Woods off the course. Young players—some of whom say he was their inspiration growing up—and who relish the rare opportunities to still play with him, don't feel close to him like they do an older player like Phil Mickelson, who has been a much more gregarious mentor. What's left to other players is now a mostly sad glimpse of an icon who, beyond impersonal jock banter, prefers distance.

The only thing they know for sure about Tiger is that he added a zero to their net worth....  But that buys a lot of good will out there....

More tomorrow...