Midweek Musings

Alas, an abbreviated version thereof due to a morning golf game.  Not that there's all that much going on in the golf firmament...

Reed My Lips, A Continuing Series - The story that will not die.... Alas, poor Cap'. Furyk explains in greater detail that Reed-Tiger pairing:

“That was more of a decision that was made when Tiger Woods went from being a vice captain to a player, to a captain’s pick,” Furyk said. “All the while, kind of keeping an eye on Tiger, he played so well at the British Open, had a chance to win there, he kind of

willed himself to a second-place finish at the PGA. It became very apparent that the guys on that team who had qualified wanted Tiger Woods on that team as a player.” 

Woods’ ascension to captain’s pick created what Furyk described as an opportunity, with Spieth and Thomas being an obvious pairing and Woods and Reed emerging as a compelling option. 

“When I started looking at who [Woods] would pair well with, I kept coming back to Patrick Reed. They had such a great relationship with Tiger as a vice captain and Patrick as a player [on previous teams],” Furyk said. “Tiger has been something of a mentor to him in so many ways. They get along very well, so I thought it would be good for Patrick to have Tiger as a partner, but I also thought Patrick would provide a lot for Tiger as well.” 

Furyk said the conversation that ultimately led to the Spieth-Reed split had nothing to do with Spieth, and everything to do with finding a partner that fit well with Woods, who has struggled to find a viable partner throughout his career in the Ryder Cup.

I guess the Captain read all those features ranking Tiger's previous twelve partners...  There are a number of valid criticisms of Furyk, many of which I've made here, but this to me is not one of them.  But am I the only one that thinks these guys are way over-thinking things?  Take this, for example:

Dealing with divergent personalities is a crucial element of leadership, and it’s clear now that Reed created a particularly unique challenge for Furyk; but the U.S. captain explained a consensus-driven process with no shortage of accountability, for player or captain. 

Furyk outlined, for example, why he sent Reed out in the day’s 10th match on Sunday. 

“I told Patrick, going out on Sunday, he was in that 10 spot because, statistically speaking, when teams have gotten off on a good roll coming from behind on Sunday, it really seems to fall on that 9-10 spot, statistically,” Furyk said. “Putting Patrick in that position was done for a reason, because I felt like he was the guy we wanted handling that pressure.”

Now, let's remember that the lineup was set on Saturday afternoon, shortly after Patrick had gone out and shot something in the mid-80's in his fourball pairing with Tiger.  Obviously Patrick should have been happy to have any tee time on Sunday, but I'm hoping this is just BS to salve a wounded ego....  

With the deficit to overcome, conventional wisdom dictates that the best players go out early and one can only hope that the later matches matter....  But Furyk obsessing over that tenth spot in the lineup, after sending out Phil and Bubba in foursomes, would be quite the irony....Yanno, forest and trees and all.

As for Hoggard's conclusions, well....

Perhaps, but then when you’re a part of a team, there’s also something to be said for doing what’s best for the group. Given Spieth and Thomas’ record, it’s hard to find fault with that pairing. 

The next few months will undoubtedly be difficult for Furyk. Still, he doesn't have any interest in sidestepping blame. It is what’s expected from a leader. 

Furyk's is a lesson in leadership and how to behave within a team atmosphere. With any luck, that will be Furyk’s final message to Reed, who appears poised to be a mainstay in future U.S. team rooms. What role he assumes, either as victor or villain, is up to him.

Oh, he's chosen his role....  I don't really see how he walks this one back.  As to whether he will be a mainstay in future U.S. team rooms, that to me is the more interesting question.  One could think of him as our version of Poulter, and the games have many similarities.  Most notably they're both shortish hitters, though the Brit is way more accurate off the tee.  The obvious difference is that Poults' peers want him on team, Reed's not so much.....

Furyk also had some additional thoughts on those Bash Brothers:

And while Furyk reiterated the close relationship between the two friends, he also

seemed to imply that some sort of incident, however minor, did occur. 

"Whatever altercation started, or what happened, it was very brief. It was very short. Neither one of them really took anything out of it," Furyk said. "They're like brothers. Brothers may argue, brothers get into it. But they're as close as they've ever been, and it really had no effect on either one of them."

But this settles that matter in my book:

Whatever altercation started what happened was very brief and was very short. Neither one of them really took anything out of it. In fact they both hopped in a cab not long after that and went out together for a little while, woke up in the morning like nothing happened. So in their minds it was a non-issue and really like they are like brothers. So brothers may argue, get into it, but they are close as they’ve ever been.

I don't we'll find Reed and Spieth sharing a cab anytime soon, so shall w emove on?

Over-promising and Under-delivering -  Compare and contrast this header:

Here are 11 mind-blowing stats from the 2017-18 PGA Tour season

With this excerpt:

9. While Rory held the edge in tee-box power, Johnson led in strokes gained from tee-to-green, which tends to set up well for other categories (See No. 7 again). 

10. Chris Kirk made 12 straight cuts during the season to lead the Tour. 

11. Beau Hossler and Steve Wheatcroft led in most consecutive birdies made. Each rang up eight straight at different times last year.

And yet my mind remains stubbornly unblown.  Living Under Par™ isn't what it used to be....

Never Too Old To Learn - This Josh Sens item isn't much better:

Don’t let these happen to you: the 13 most demoralizing shots in golf

Here's Josh's lede:

At one time or another, every golfer becomes what Bobby Jones described as “a dogged victim of inexorable fate.” But certain moments leave us more victimized than others. In that uplifting spirit, we give you this list. It’s our ranking of the 13 most demoralizing shots in the game.

Like your humble blogger, you might link that mellifluous phrasing as the title to this Dan Jenkins book.  But Bobby Jones?  It turns out that Josh knows what of he speaks:

“On the golf course, a man may be the dogged victim of inexorable fate, be struck down by an appalling stroke of tragedy, become the hero of unbelievable melodrama, or the clown in a side-splitting comedy.”

— Bobby Jones

Yesterday at Fresh Meadows was mostly of the side-splitting variety....

As for Josh's actual point, there was this:

8. The Egregious Mis-Club

Look at you posing after flushing your approach shot, hands high, tummy pointing toward the target, your eyes tracking the ball in its majestic flight as it beelines for the flagstick, only to land beyond it. In a pond behind the green.

Oh, we just call that The Rory.

Jack, Unplugged - Max Adler compiles quotes from Jack, which are of course worth your time.  This one is quite topical:

I believe the Ryder Cup is an exhibition by some of the best golfers in the world, great entertainment and an exercise in sportsmanship, camaraderie and goodwill. The individual performances, good or bad, don't determine who the best players in the world are. Nor does the side that happens to win determine on what side of the Atlantic the best golf is played. Too many people believe otherwise, and that helps make the matches too contentious among the teams and their fans.

Max was remiss in not dating the quotes, as Jack's description seems hopelessly dated....   It certainly was when he played in it, though at least that contentiousness has passed, except in the U.S. team room.

When I putt, I hold my breath just before initiating the stroke to keep my head and body still.

Me too, though for completely different reasons...

I always like to have a couple of short 4s on my courses. They create variety and make the golfer think.

Yeah, but most likely he's thinking about how he hates that every holes demands a fade.... 

I never hit a shot, even in practice, without having a very sharp, in-focus picture of it in my head. It's like a color movie.

Curious given that Jack is famously color blind.

Catch you tomorrow?