Thanks for understanding yesterday's absence, as I was able to take care of a necessary task. Things should get back to normal, though of course it's an unusual holiday week with no shortage of morning golf.
We'll cover that which we missed, then I'm planning to celebrate the inception of Links Season with a valentine to Lahinch.
Nate's Journey - I didn't see so much as minute of it, but I was still rooting hard for this survivor:
Everybody in golf has a story. Lashley’s is as incredible as it is gut-wrenching. When he was a 21-year-old junior at the University of Arizona, his parents, Charlene and Rod,along with his girlfriend, Leslie Hofmeister, were killed when the single-engine Cessna that Rod was piloting crashed near Wyoming’s tallest mountain. The three were flying in bad weather, returning home to Nebraska after watching Nate play in the NCAA West Regional at Crosswater Club in Sunriver, Ore. Earlier on May 23, 2004, in 30-mph winds, Nate had gone two under on his final nine holes, punctuated by a long birdie on the last, to help the Wildcats advance to nationals. When neither his parents nor his girlfriend called that night, or the following morning, Lashley became concerned. One of his coaches phoned the FAA and some local airports. Three days later, rescue crews found the plane. Everyone had perished.
That tragic event had been mentioned often in Lashley’s up-and-down career. He’d met questions with mostly stoic, matter-of-fact responses. Perhaps it was out of necessity; how does one endure and move on from such horror? Survival of the fittest, or mentally toughest, anyway.
“It took me a long time to get over my parents’ death,” Lashley said on Sunday. “Mentally, it was holding me back for a long time.”
Everyone may have a story, but very few have one quite like this.... And did you catch the irony of Patrick Reed's appearance on the same leaderboard? Patrick still has his parents, he just can't find a spot in his busy life for them. That must seem awfully curious to Mr. Lashley, no?
John Feinstein pens an appreciation of such winners under this header:
Rejoice in 'out-of-nowhere' winners like Nate Lashley, but appreciate they've prepped for such moments their entire lives
It's true enough, though many of them can't get to the finish line, so let's rejoice that this ever so deserving young man did....
The Tour Confidential panel again beclowned itself by leading with a silly Tiger question, but did ultimately get this rather obvious query:
2. Nate Lashley, an alternate and the last man in the Rocket Mortgage Classic field, overcame a tragic past and on-course struggles to notch his first PGA Tour win Sunday. He also became the first alternate to win on tour since Vaughn Taylor at the 2016 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Where does Lashley’s week rank among the most improbable wins in recent memory?
Dethier: This was an incredible, life-changing week for a guy who has more than paid his dues — not to mention endured true tragedy. It definitely felt out of nowhere for the World No. 353 to take home a Tour event, but then again Lashley has actually put together a solid season, quietly making 10 of 14 cuts since getting status on Tour. Still, his only top 10 came in Puerto Rico, so it’s not like a six-shot win was imminent. But let’s not forget Adam Long went MC-MC-MC-Win-MC-MC-MC-MC-MC earlier this year. Golf is weird.
Bamberger: I’ll see your incredible and raise you astonishing.
Wall: We’ve seen alternates come out of nowhere and make the most of their opportunity. John Daly comes to mind. It’s a special win for Nate, but not because he was No. 353 in the world. Anytime you can overcome the personal tragedy he endured and continue to chase the dream of becoming a PGA Tour winner, it makes a career-altering week that much sweeter.
In a golf sense, you have to go with Daly because of the shocking power display and that it was a major. But in a life sense, it's Lashley in a walkover...
But it wasn't even the only life-affirming win of the week:
Ritter: Lashley is an awesome story and a goosebump moment for the debut in Detroit. Loved it. Funny enough, there was another shocking win in pro golf on Sunday — a South African named Christiaan Bezuidenhout won by six, and his story, while different from Lashley, is also heartbreaking and inspiring, and I think our readers should check it out.
As a wise man once said, golf is weird.
There was also this follow-up, as apparently there was much red ink in evidence:
3. Scoring came easy at the new-to-the-schedule Rocket Mortgage Classic, played on a leafy Donald Ross design at Detroit Golf Club. Lashley finished at 25 under and 41 other players finished at 10 under or better. Was the course too gettable? And overall, how would you grade the event on its debut?
Dethier: They made it clear at the beginning of the week that they wanted some birdies to be made. I’ve got no problem with 25 under winning if it were an outlier, but the traditionalist in me doesn’t think the cut line should be five under. I know that par is an arbitrary benchmark, but it’s still the way we keep score, so it’s fun to see these guys fight against it a little more. But golf back in Detroit? Hell yeah! I hope it continues.
Wall: I think the PGA Tour whiffed with the setup. I get fans like to see birdies, but this was beyond excessive. I was really hoping to see Detroit Country Club played under normal conditions. Instead, we were given an ultra-soft layout that was ripped to shreds. Not to mention, the grandstands were literally feet behind the green. I wish we were talking more about the fans who sold out the event on the weekend and reaffirmed the Midwest’s place as a golf hotbed. Instead, the discussion centers around some ridiculously easy conditions that could’ve been avoided with some semblance of rough and moderately firm greens. Not every Tour setup needs to be the equivalent of playing a video game on the easy setting.
These two grizzled vets make the obvious point:
Shipnuck: What’s to feel out? This was entirely predictable, just the latest example that quaint old golf courses stand no chance against the modern athletes on Tour, with their optimized equipment, diets, training regimens and sabermetrics. They reduced the course to nothing and the birdies were too cheaply bought. The rote driver-wedge game was boring to watch, as is increasingly the case on Tour.
Bamberger: Quaint old courses have no chance if you still think 280 is meaningful. This was at best a par-68 course for the pros, not the par-72 as it was listed. Viewed that way, second place was not 19 under but three under. The par-5 is dead. It had a nice run.
Interestingly, no one discusses the impact of weather on conditions.... Was it soft by design, or did Mother Nature play a role?
Strick's Time - Steve Stricker has always seemed the epitome of Wisconsin Nice, though his career was a bit of a disappointment to some. An by some, I certainly mean your humble blogger.... Though he had a pretty good week:
Early Sunday evening at Warren Golf Course, Stricker put the finishing touches on oneof the most dominant wire-to-wire performances in recent tour history. Stricker, with wife Nicki once again handling caddie chores, entered the final day with a six-shot lead and removed all suspense with a final-round 69 to win the 40th Senior Open by six strokes over Jerry Kelly and defending champion David Toms.
“Obviously it stung but I think he still had his sights set here as well,” said Nicki Stricker, who had taken a long hiatus from caddying after the birth of the couple’s two daughters. “If he does go ahead and win there, does he come here with the same (outlook)? I think it stung enough that he was on a mission this week more so than he would have been.”
How dominant was he? Shack covers it well in this header:
U.S. Senior Open: Stricker Grabs 18, 36, 54 And 72-Hole Scoring Records In One Week; Watson Betters His Age Three Of Four Rounds
Yanno, it's good stuff, and I especially like seeing his wife Nikki on the bag. But what has this guy been smoking?
Named in February as U.S. captain for the 2020 Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits in his beloved Wisconsin, Stricker is still bouncing back and forth between tours as he and Nicki prepare for the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. There hasn’t been a playing captain for the U.S. at the Ryder Cup since Arnold Palmer in 1963, but Stricker’s showing this week – and in a six-shot blowout at the Regions Tradition major last month outside Birmingham, Ala. – at least raises the possibility.
No it doesn't.
But this was my favorite moment from the event:
Darren Clarke’s U.S. Senior Open debut came with some controversy.
Clarke shot 3-over 73 Thursday at Notre Dame’s Warren Golf Course, but that round included a two-shot penalty after Clarke’s caddie tried to remove a bird feeder that was in Clarke’s line of play.
According to Rule 15.2, free relief is allowed from movable obstructions but not from immovable obstructions, which is what bird feeders are considered at the Warren Golf Course. Also, Rule 16.1 allows free relief from immovable obstructions and other abnormal course conditions but only if it interferes with lie, stance or a ball on the putting surface.When Clarke pulled his drive left on the par-4 10th hole and found his line of play affected by the feeder, he wasn’t entitled to free relief, despite his pleas to a rules official.
But it gets worse. While Clarke with talking to the official, Clarke’s caddie can be seen on video trying to uproot the feeder. The move earned Clarke a two-shot penalty, which gave him a triple bogey on the hole.
There's video at that link, but here's a screenshot of the incriminating moment:
Most caddies would wait for the answer from the rules official, but I guess Darren's was too focused on pace-of-play?
Of course the USGA beclowned itself with this ruling as well:
What was particularly odd was, despite a USGA rules official present, Clarke was not informed about the penalty until later, changing his bogey on the hole to a triple. Cameras caught the interaction, and the 50-year-old was clearly livid.
Ya think?
Not sure exactly what that first rules official was doing, but Darren and caddie had only to follow his direction, and couldn't manage that.
Portrush On My Mind - It's going to be epic, my friends.... Shack has a post on all of the coverage, including some inconceivable numbers:
ORLANDO, Fla., (July 1, 2019) – In partnership with The R&A, NBC Sports Group announced its all-encompassing coverage plans for The 148TH Open, taking place July 18-21 at Royal Portrush Golf Club in Northern Ireland. NBC Sports will dedicate 410 total hours surrounding The Open, the most ever, with 200 hours of linear programming coupled with 210 complementary hours of streaming coverage, including featured holes and marquee groups. Spanning from Thursday’s opening tee shot through Sunday’s final putt, the network’s Emmy-nominated tournament coverage will feature nearly 50 live hours, annually the most live coverage hours from any golf event.
Excuse me, how is 200 hours of linear coverage possible? I mean, without breaking the space-time continuum....
Unsurprisingly, it's the eye-candy that might get your attention:
That's Calamity Corner, but hold that thought as we've two weeks to preview this event.
You may feel differently, but I've no inclination to relive this one:
GOLF Films’ Tom at Turnberry: Premiering on Monday, July 8 at 9 p.m. ET on GOLF Channel, Tom at Turnberry will commemorate the 10-year anniversary of Tom Watson’s unthinkable run (at age 59) at winning a sixth Claret Jug. On-site coverage during The Open also will feature a collection of GOLF Films “shorts,” to help tell the stories of The 148TH Open and Royal Portrush.
For the Open Championship, the issue isn't so much whether to watch, but rather how to watch.... Morning broadcasts conflict with the usual pattern of weekend golf, admittedly a first-world problem.
I took a poke at the TC panel above, for this question leading this week's column:
1. Tiger Woods is not playing next week’s 3M Open, and while that’s not necessarily a surprise, it was the last foreseeable option for Woods to sneak in an event before the Open Championship. This means Woods will have no starts between Pebble and Portrush. It’s the second time this season he’s gone without a start between majors (the last was from the Masters to the PGA, where he missed the cut). Woods hinted this would probably happen after the U.S. Open. Like his strategy?
Not in the least, but notice that they don't consider The Irish Open the better option... Anyway, it seems less of a strategy than a necessity,.
Dylan Dethier: Do I like it? Not really. But I’m sure he doesn’t, either. Historically, Woods has played top-tier golf by prepping for majors two weeks beforehand. But it’sclear that the day-to-day grind of getting his body ready for tournament golf is so taxing that he thinks this is his best bet. It’s far from the ideal prep, but it may be the best option available.
Jonathan Wall: I’m not a fan of waiting a month to knock the competitive rust off between starts. I understand the reasoning behind the extended break — he needs to stay fresh — but that doesn’t mean I think the strategy is going to pay off. I really think it would’ve made sense to log at least four rounds of golf before heading to Portrush.
Josh Sens: It’s like a reprise of an old sit-com. Tiger Knows Best. As Dylan says, not ideal but you’ve got to figure Woods feels this is his best option, and the man knows his body and his game better than anyone. Makes you wonder if the rejiggered schedule, with its more compressed timing on the majors, has made Tiger’s pursuit of 18 even tougher than it already was.
But isn't this the bigger point?
Alan Shipnuck: To quote one of our great philosophers, it is what it is. Tiger’s Masters victory is the signature moment of this season/decade. He seems happy to coast on it and he’s definitely earned that.
I'm struck by his seeming lack of urgency... Like he's under-preparing for majors in order to save his strength of the FedEx Cup playoffs.... What am I missing?
Hoarders - OK, we all hang on to too much junk, but John Wood, Matt Kuchar's looper, seems to think it's something to show off:
That's 24 years of yardage books.... But he best be careful, as some of these are likely illegal under the new rules...
Sky, Not Falling - We haven't had a golf is dead in the water story for a bit, and now Mike Stachura finds some marginally optimistic numbers in the background noise:
For the first time in 14 years, the number of golfers in the United States as counted bythe National Golf Foundation showed a measurable increase. While it’s technically within the margin of error for the NGF report’s methodology, the number of people in the U.S. age 6 and older who played at least one round of golf in 2018 increased to 24.2 million, up from 23.8 million in 2017.
The annual NGF Golf Participation Report also showed positive numbers for golf interest beyond the traditional on-course experience. The count of those who hit balls at a traditional driving range or entertainment venue like Topgolf or Drive Shack, or only played golf on an indoor simulator, also grew to 23 million, a jump of 10 percent. Counting on-course and off-course participation, the total golfer pool in the U.S. is 33.5 million people, a 4-percent increase from 2017. This off-course participation group was first highlighted in 2016.
The NGF report also showed the number of beginning golfers at 2.6 million, “a figure near historical highs,” according to the NGF.
I'll make the excruciatingly obvious point yet again, that a person that plays one round of golf per year is not, and never has been, a golfer. One doesn't need to have a PhD in statistics to understand that such "golfers" don't move the needle on total rounds played and other metrics of participation.
Perhaps Shane Ryan has the answer for that which ails us:
It’s time to reject the tyranny of the hole-in-one
Tyrany? I guess poor Shane still awaits his first...
There’s a new American epidemic, and pretty soon you and your entire family will have to be quarantined. Disturbing reports are rolling in across the contiguous 48, from Reno to Hot Springs to … well, just those two, for now, but it’s a fool who can’t recognize the tremors that precede an earth-shattering cataclysm. If you saw one horseman of theapocalypse, would you run a hand across your brow, breathe a sigh of relief, and say, “Well, OK, I can deal with pestilence.” No! You’d know that just over horizon, you’d soon see the dust kicked up by the approaching hooves of war, famine, and death.
This is serious. This is dire. This is dystopia.
On the golf courses of our land, old men are making holes-in-one, and they’re making them in bunches.
It started with Jim Baker, a 75-year-old from Reno who made two aces on back-to-back days earlier this month, at the Somersett Country Club in Reno. “Maybe I should have bought a lottery ticket too!” he said. Maybe you still should, Jim. Maybe you should buy two.
Then, last week, 81-year-old Chuck Miller made two aces in the same day in Hot Springs, Ark. That’s an even older man, with an even more impressive feat, coming 45 years after his only other hole-in-one. His second came on an admittedly “lousy shot,” which just proves the universe is up to some bizarre and sinister tricks.
Shane assures us he's not bitter, then of course uses the remainder of the page to parade his bitterness... Well, of course, he presents it as a demand for justice...err, make that JUSTICE, be we see it for what it is.
Beware The Early Call - The Golfweek staff takes a crack at who's up or down in golf, with mostly predictable results. Nate Lashley is up, which I really didn't need them to tell me. But they also seem to like this guy's trend:
Patrick Reed (33)
Captain America is back, baby! The 2018 Masters champ ripped off a T-5 finish in Detroit for his best result since a solo fourth at last year’s U.S. Open at Shinnecock. Reed has struggled for a while now and hadn’t managed any top-10s in 2019 prior to the Rocket Mortgage Classic. Now he’s trending in a better direction ahead of the year’s final major and has a chance to salvage things with a strong finish at Royal Portrush. Love him or hate him, golf is always more entertaining with Reed in the picture.
If you say so.... Kind of a disappointing Sunday after getting himself into contention, and I for one will need to see more high finishes before concluding that he has his act together.
He's now on the clock to rack up some Prez Cup points. His T5 moved him up two slots to 20th on the points list, perhaps positioning him to grovel for a Captain's pick. And, since you'll ask, Jordan is in 30th place.... But I've been reliably informed that he's so very close.
I'll leave you there for now, and hope to pen my ode to Lahinch later today.
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