Your Unplanned Friday Frisson

OK, that didn't turn out as planned.  Our trip was cancelled at the last minute, though this time to accommodate happy news.  I'll keep that news under wraps for a few more days, until it actually happens, but it does allow for some unexpected blogging...

Strick's Picks and Other Ryder Cup Thoughts - You've heard and absorbed the news:

Collin Morikawa, Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Justin Thomas and Patrick Cantlay already earned spots on the team via the points standings that were finalized after

the BMW Championship on Aug. 29. That left one more event — last week’s Tour Championship — for any of the potential picks still alive in the FedEx Cup Playoffs to audition. Now, three days later, we have our names.

Joining the aforementioned six, Tony Finau, Xander Schauffele, Jordan Spieth, Harris English, Daniel Berger and Scottie Scheffler were all added to the team on Wednesday.

Those first four were pretty much mortal locks by Decision Wednesday, though I find it significantly harder to include Harris English in that category than the other three.  That left two difficult choices for Captain Stricker, and he seems to have very much split the baby.  By which I mean he chose two players with diametrically-opposed skill sets.  More on that below...

Because life increasingly reminds of high school, Zephyr Melton is here to hand out participation ribbons:

Ryder Cup snubs: 8 bubble players left off the U.S. Ryder Cup team

Yeah, given that he was effectively deciding about only those last two slots, that's quite the enormous bubble....But you'll have guessed where he started, with the Artist Formerly Known as Captain America:

Patrick Reed

Patrick Reed has been a staple of Team USA since making his first appearance in 2014, but that experience was not enough to get a nod from Stricker. While Captain America brings plenty of spark in team events, he also brings plenty of controversy. His criticism of Jim Furyk after the 2018 Ryder Cup likely didn’t help his chances, and his recent form has not been the best either. Reed has not registered a top-10 finish since early June, and he had a scary bout with double pneumonia just two weeks ago. “It wasn’t an easy one,” Stricker said, “but I think it was just the uncertainty of his health, and really the lack of play that led to our decision down the stretch.”

Zephyr had to pick his spots, for sure, but Reed's criticism of Captain Furyk seems to this observer at best the bronze medalist for his antisocial behavior in Paris.  Add to that the fact that his behavior in Paris might have paled in comparison to his effect on that 2019 Prez Cup Team, and I'm left to wonder how he was even close enough to be considered a Bubble Boy.  OK, I'll admit that his rent-free tenancy in Rory's head is a mitigating factor...

Notwithstanding any high-minded objectives, the raison d'être of Unplayable Lies quickly evolved into covering Golfers Behaving Badly, in which category PReed is the gift that keeps on giving.  But Reed's antics have put his teammates and captains in some awfully awkward predicaments, most notably forcing them to rationalize his sand excavation work the week prior to that Prez Cup in Australia.  

Reed's behavior in Paris could fill a notebook, perhaps two if you include Justine.  But there's one aspect to it that I've long wondered about, since it involved the notoriously prickly Eldrick Woods.  As you'll recall, Reed was paired with Tiger, whose Sunday sartorial choices he's long copied, in two fourball matches.  You'd think a man might be honored to be paired with his hero, but our Patrick marches to his own drummer.  Not only did he whine about the pairing, but they got crushed both days:

Even Tiger Woods does not come out of this unscathed. Reed, upset about the Spieth breakup, stated that Tiger was his second choice. Sincere apologies due to him because he had to settle for

the greatest player of all time as a partner.

Reed and Tiger were bad. Both of them stunk in the two-man games. Reed was particularly awful and appeared on track to post a number in the 80s on Saturday morning had they been keeping score. There were several balls in the water and one tee shot hammered out of bounds into the line-drive section of nearby chalets.

Reed was arguably the worst American player not named Phil Mickelson in the first two days of matches.

They drew Moliwood both days, and Friday's 3&1 loss was followed by a Saturday 4&3 beatdown.  But here's the bit that I though should have inflamed Tiger, but somehow got overlooked:

Reed and Woods lost their first match against Fleetwood and Molinari, after which, Reed said, Woods apologized for letting him down. He said he told him, “We win together as a team and we lose together as a team.”

The linked piece was the first I found via Google, written by the usually sensible Brendan Porath, who uncritically accepted Patrick's nonsense at face value:

Props to Reed, who again was not good himself, for taking the high road with an acceptance of Tiger’s apology via hackneyed sports cliche.

Really, Brendan?  Because if you're that credulous, I've got some swampland you might have an interest in...

This to me is Patrick blaming the loss on Tiger when they played equally badly.  More importantly, we only have Patrick's word on both sides of the conversation, but attributing grace to PReed would seem foolish in the absence of corroboration.  I have long wondered how Tiger felt about that, the only hint being this bit:

Tiger was asked on Thursday how he felt about everything with Reed, and he gave a verbal Heisman pose.

"Yeah, we spoke after the Ryder Cup for a long period of time and, you know, we talked amongst us and it will stay between us," Woods said. "Some of the things that, as I've said, it's between us and we'll be handling it between us."

The reason I recount this specific incident is that I turned to Golf Channel late yesterday afternoon and, for the first time, heard this specific issue addressed.  Shane Bacon cited Patrick blaming his partner for those losses as a specific reason that he might have been snubbed, which is exactly how I took the comments at the time.  

We may never know whether Reed would have been taken absent his recent health issues, but it's a welcome step just in the interests of public hygiene.  I'll just leave you with this gem from the man:

It is seemingly the story that won't die, mostly because its protagonist won't let it. His quotes about Jordan Spieth and the U.S. team ended as perfectly as you might have expected them to. Reed was asked if his Captain America moniker has vanished after going 0-2-1 in Paris.

"No," he said. "I'm still 3-0 in singles.''

What a guy!

Zephyr includes guys like Billy Horschel and Will Zalatoris on his list, which is profoundly silly.  But if bubble boys are to be missed, it'll bee because the Euros make more putts than the Americans, which will make folks wonder whether these two guys might have helped:

Kevin Na

 Kevin Na wasn’t on anyone’s Ryder Cup radar for most of the summer, but a recent hot streak thrust him into the conversation. Starting in early July, Na registered four top-eight finishes in six starts, and he carded the low 72-hole score at the Tour Championship, which gave his Ryder Cup candidacy a late lift. However, ranking 170th in driving distance likely didn’t help his cause. It was a case of too little, too late for the veteran.

Kevin Kisner

Kevin Kisner has proven himself to be a tough out in match play competitions during his career, but his form in 2021 never gave him much of a chance at making this team. Outside of ranking 32nd in SG: Putting, Kisner did not have another strokes-gained category where he ranked inside the top 80. He did earn a win just a few weeks ago at the Wyndham Championship, but his ball-striking deficiencies over the last 18 months sunk his chances.

Neither of these guys did near enough to be consensus picks, plus Daniel Berger fills the void as well.  But if the matches turn on the greens these were the guys left behind that provide that skill.

To me, the pick that surprised most was Scottie Scheffler, though this previously unknown Golfweek writer is all-in on it:

Scottie Scheffler may just be the most important captain's pick on this year's U.S. Ryder Cup team

 That seems a stretch....

In 2021, Scheffler did not finish outside the top 20 in a major championship – that record

includes three top 10s. At the Dell Technologies Match Play at Austin Country Club back in March, he made it all the way to the championship match.

After beating Schauffele in a playoff, Scheffler advanced to the round of 16. He would go on to beat Ian Poulter, a European Ryder Cup monster, 5 and 4, Jon Rahm, the number one golfer in the world, 3 and 1, and Matt Kuchar, past match play champion and Ryder Cup vet, 1 up, before losing in the finals.

What does this all mean? Scheffler shows up when the lights are the brightest. He’s not afraid to stare down the best players in the world and compete until the bell rings.

Geez, I hope not, because Austin in March won't have much relevance for Wisconsin in late September.  To me the pick of Scottie means that Stricker felt the need for him in foursomes.  he's a ball-striking machine that can go cold on the greens.  Anyone can play his own ball, but foursomes requires ball-strikers, and on should expect Morikawa, Finau and Scheffler yo play both shoe sessions.  Obviously DJ, JT, Cantlay, X-Man and perhaps Harris English can play in any format, but there's no point to putting Scottie on the team if you're not going to use him where ball-striking is at a premium.

Golf Digest's Christopher Powers presents pairing he'd like to see, but it's a curious mix that begins with this seeming certainty:

Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele

This pairing is less of a "we want to see it" and more of a "we're going to see it," which, by the

way, is a very good thing. Cantlay and Schauffele went 2-2-0 together in their U.S. team appearance at the 2019 Presidents Cup at Royal Melbourne, then they both won their singles matches in a tightly contested 16-14 American team win. They both do literally everything well, and they both exude a low-key, stoic demeanor that plays perfectly off each other, and plays perfectly in a match-play setting. Their similar personalities are likely why they are such good buddies, too. This week, following Cantlay's FedEx Cup victory, he and Schauffele are headed to Napa Valley for vacation with their significant others. Can you say partner bonding?

We've seen these two paired in a Prez Cup and we know they will play together at this Ryder Cup, so who exactly is arguing otherwise?

Dustin Johnson and Tony Finau

There's a more-than-legitimate argument to be made that Stricker would be pairing the two most talented golfers in the Ryder Cup together should he put together Finau and Johnson. These two are effortlessly long, extremely solid with their irons and they can each run hot with the putter from time to time. There aren't two other players on the planet who could step on the tee and feel good about their chances against the opposing duo of Big Tone and Deej. And remember, Finau was one of the lone bright spots on the 2018 losing U.S. team, going 2-1-0 overall. Johnson, paired alongside the shorter-hitting Rickie Fowler three times and Brooks Koepka once, went 1-4-0 overall. If paired with Finau on a course he loves, Bunker-Gate aside, there is simply no way he couldn't improve upon that record in 2021.

The only problem I see here is the simple fact that DJ hasn't been DJ in some time.  I'm not exactly sure what you do about that, but do we want him playing foursomes?  I know that contradicts my point above, but it's the hardest format and the man is looking for his game.

But any sense that Powers is worth our time comes to a screeching halt with this:

Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka

First off, Brooks Koepka needs to actually play in the event. And secondly ... ahh, never mind. This is never—we repeat, NEVER—going to happen. But we can certainly dream.

Really?  That's the kind of stuff you dream about?  You might want to see someone about that....

So, shall we ruin my day?  

Ryder Cup 2021: What happens if Brooks Koepka can't play at Whistling Straits?

Wait for it...

If Koepka is unable to go, Stricker would make another pick. Although he didn't say who that 13th pick would be, he did admit he "lost sleep" leaving Patrick Reed and his career 7-3-2 record in the biennial event off the team.

Just when we thought we had dodged that bullet....  I think Stricker has decided to move on from Reed, but this is absolutely the wild card.

One last hoped-for pairing that posing a conundrum:

Bryson DeChambeau and Collin Morikawa

If we were doing one of those "build your perfect golfer" things, you'd start with Bryson DeChambeau's driving and Collin Morikawa's approach play. Why not pair those two elite areas together, specifically in alternate shot foursomes? If Bryson finds the fairway enough on his driving holes (a rather-large if), Morikawa can feast with his irons, getting DeChambeau close enough to roll in some birdie putts. On the holes Morikawa drives, he will find the fairway (10th on tour in driving accuracy), and even at a long course like Whistling Straits, DeChambeau will have short irons into the greens. Also, the last key factor here, a big one, is that outside of Harris English, we're not sure there's a more perfect guy on this team to deal with the circus act that is DeChambeau right now than calm, cool, collected Collin.

The question that's been on my mind is whether you play Bryson in foursomes?  Morikawa is an interesting fit there and Powers makes some good points, but Collin obviously needs to be up for it, and we've no indication of how he feels about the guy.

We have lots more time to mulls all of these things over, and Sunday we'll have Captain Padraig's picks.  Just a couple more bits, first this on the first tee:

The first tee build out at @rydercup 😮 pic.twitter.com/LjjB6IsFnp

— The Fried Egg (@the_fried_egg) September 9, 2021

And this amusing bit riffing on Alan Shipnuck's famous prediction of an era of U.S. domiannce:

Great news Padraig! Renowned for the inaccuracy of his Ryder Cup predictions, Shipnuck fancies America’s chances 😃👍 https://t.co/JWtqUmtXZf

— John Huggan (@johnhuggan) September 8, 2021

Alan was a popular guy in that Euro team room in 2018.

This took a bit longer than I expected, so I'll leave you at this point.  I have some follow-up pieces on the Solheim Cup that I promise to get to in the next few days, perhaps even over the weekend.  Check back early and often, and have a great weekend.

Weekend Wrap

I'll need to warn you of scheduling issues for the next week or so, though first I suppose I should explain the recent past.  Not only did our basement flood due to IDA, but we lost Internet (and TV) for three days in the aftermath.  Hence, the radio silence at Unplayable Lies....Good thing nothing much was happening in the golf world.

Looking forward, Employee No. 2 and I are off on a shortish jaunt to visit her family in The People's Republic of Portland.  It's not quite Kabul, for sure, but it is quite high on that list of last places you'd ever expect your humble blogger to visit, yanno, ever.  But family is family, and in this case includes the two cutest young girls you'll ever see, which we figure is the cure for this annus horribilis.  Combined with a couple of commitments upon our return, you'll likely next see me late next week, either the 16th or 17th.

There won't be much golf of significance in that stretch, though there will be some Ryder Cup picks that we'll have to circle back on upon my return.

So, shall we have at it?  Even today must be somewhat abbreviated, but we'll crank it out for as long as time permits.

An interesting weekend of golf to recap, though your humble blogger saw not a minute of action from East Lake.  Rather than do the typical sequential thing, Mike Bamberger compares and contrasts for us:

For golf fans, Tour Championship and Solheim Cup offer wildly different vibes

Do tell, Mike.

On Golf Channel, there were 24 female pros — 12 Americans, 12 Europeans — playing (or cheerleading) on a classic Donald Ross course, Inverness, in golf’s most primitive form, match play, for nothing more valuable than the right to hoist a crystal cup.

And the other?

On NBC, there were two male pros — one American, one European — in Atlanta, on a classic Donald Ross course, East Lake, playing a convoluted stroke-play system with so many millions at stake the money seemed practically meaningless by suppertime.

Yes, you went back and forth. Of course you did. But where did you log more time? Which event meant more to you?

But wait, I had been informed that there wouldn't be any math:

Jon Rahm, the bull-like Spaniard, played four days at East Lake in 266 shots. Nobody played better. Patrick Cantlay, a low-key Californian, traversed those same 72 holes in 269 shots. But he started on Thursday, per contest rules, with a two-shot lead on his nearest chaser (and a four-shot lead on Rahm). So he’s your FedEx Cup champion. Which means he’s now $15 million richer. Rahm, as runner-up, earned $5 million.

Whatever.

Can you say "Soulless money grab?"  I thought you could...

But here's the part they should be memorizing in Ponte Vedra Beach:

You can’t have professional golf without prize money. Golf without prize money is amateur golf. But the neatest moments in golf are when you’re not thinking about money at all, and for both fan and player the world becomes ball, hole, club in hand.

That’s why, in no particular order, the four men’s Grand Slam events are so enduring, as are the four women’s majors (sorry, Evian), the three senior majors for men, plus the Ryder Cup and Solheim Cup and (some years more than others) the Presidents Cup. In Toledo on Sunday, the earth was shaking when Jennifer Kupcho do her thing and then Mel Reid did hers. As pure sport-as-theater, it was hard — you could say impossible — not to be more drawn to that.

Shockingly, I have precious little to say about the Tour Championship/FedEx Cup, so let's grab the Tour Confidential Panel's observations and hope some kind of spark is ignited, though I'm not optimistic:

3. Patrick Cantlay continued his hot play and won the Tour Championship — and $15 million bonus — on Sunday at East Lake. His FedEx Cup finale capped a three-week stretch that also featured a T11 and win at the BMW Championship. Few golfers have

surged over the last month like Cantlay. If you are drafting players for next season, where are you picking Cantlay?

Sens: In my top five with Rahm, Morikawa, Spieth and Thomas,

Melton: He’s definitely in the top five. His consistency is incredible.

Dethier: All the unbeatable golfers are looking beatable, so at risk of being prisoner of the moment I’d take Cantlay just behind Rahm and Xander Schauffele as the Tour stalwarts of the 2022 season. But ask me again in two months and I’m sure I’ll have a different answer.

Bamberger: Very, very, very hard to repeat. Very hard to keep a thing going. Not in my top five. But Jordan Spieth is.

Spieth over Cantlay, Mike?  I might need a slice of that action... But at least Dylan Dethier acknowledges the recency bias.  While I'm not going to dwell here, this from Dylan Dethier's Monday Finish is worth a long excerpt:

Now that Patrick Cantlay owns a couple shiny new trophies and roughly one zillion dollars it’s easy for him to laugh about hurdles that, at the time, must have seemed insurmountable.

So after hoisting the trophy on Sunday night, Cantlay spoke to the assembled media and opened up about the back injury that sidelined the beginning of his professional career. He told the story with a smile. After all, his golf story now officially has a happy ending.

Cantlay was asked if there had ever been a moment when he’d doubted his golf future. And while he said he’s never questioned his golf ability (“Not really,” he said first) he thought back to the period of his career where he’d been sidelined with back pain.

“I had gone to a spine doctor,” Cantlay recalled. “And the spine doctor said, ‘What hurts your back?’

“And I said — it’s the 15th time I’ve seen him — I said, ‘You know, Doc, golf hurts my back.’

“And he goes, ‘What makes it feel better?’

“I’m like, ‘If I don’t play golf, I’m pretty okay. I could do a desk job.’

“And the doc says, ‘I don’t think you should play any golf for a while.”

“I had already been out 18 months or two years, and I said, ‘How long?’ He said, ‘Maybe a year.’ And he was dead serious.

He put his concerns about proprioception aside and took the year off, inconceivable for a world-class athlete, and has now recovered to the point where he's delivering on his potential.  Cantlay doesn't exude personality, though his comments last week on Bryson and the like revealed a thoughtful man, but that some testament to his determination and patience.  Easy to root for him just because of the level of pain he's endured.

Which inevitably leads us to Steve Stricker's big day tomorrow.  This from that TC panel:

4. The six automatic qualifiers for the U.S. Ryder Cup team are now set with Collin Morikawa, Dustin Johnson, Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Justin Thomas and Cantlay. Assuming players 7-9 in the standings make the team — Tony Finau, Xander Schauffele and Jordan Spieth — that leaves three more options for captain Steve Stricker to pick on Wednesday. Who would you select? [Editor’s note: Koepka WD’d from the Tour Championship with a wrist injury, and for this exercise we will assume he is healthy enough to play at Whistling Straits.]

Sens: Kevin Na, Sam Burns and Daniel Berger. Different styles, but all share that bulldog trait that makes me think they’d be great teammates and thrive in the atmosphere.

It seems possible to me that Josh goes 0 for 3.... 

Melton: Harris English, Will Zalatoris, Scottie Scheffler. English is a fringe top-10 player in the world at the moment (11th) and for the other two, I’d like to see some new blood in the mix. Plus I’m a sucker for my fellow Texans.

The fact that they're Texans does seem the strongest argument for their inclusion.... I get the Zalatoris boomlet back when he was posting high finishes in majors, but at the present moment aren't we more likely to see him on a milk carton?

Dethier: Harris English, Daniel Berger and Kevin Na. English for the steady ball-striking. Berger because he’s a gamer. Na because he seems like a pain in the ass to play against, regardless of golf course or setting.

Bamberger: Na, English, Scheffler. And in that order. Not that order matters.

I must say, the Scheffler thing puzzles me.  The only real argument I see for him, given his unreliable putter, would be if Stricker felt he needed another ball-striking machine for foursomes.  Otherwise, he leaves me cold.

Nick Piastowski makes the case for this good 'ole boy, strikingly similar to the case I made in 2018.  Actually, he allows the gent to make his own case:

So while we’ll eventually argue that Kisner is a match play monster, that he could be the

clubhouse guy for a team in need of one, that he has every chance to be the Americans’ Ian Poulter, we need to settle this distance debate. And we know a guy who can make the case.

What say you, Kis?

“I know it’s long,” Kisner said a few weeks ago after his victory in a six-man playoff at the Wyndham Championship. “In match play, it’s a total different animal than stroke play, so I’m not having to beat 155 other guys on the golf course. I just have to beat one or two depending on the format. So I can bring value to the team in the ways I can get the ball in the hole.”

“So,” a reporter followed up with, “you feel like the style of match play almost eliminates the concerns of, yeah, like length or whatever? It becomes a whole different game that you’re good at?”

“What if I’m playing with D.J. and I’m hitting all his approach shots?” Kisner said. “The game’s pretty equal from there out.

Whoa, Nellie (no, not that Nellie, we'll get to her in a minute), I thought they tested for wacky tobaccy on Tour?  We might be considering you as a pick, but that's a long way from playing you in foursomes...  The old saw is that in foursomes you need ball-strikers but in fourballs you need putters, and the Kiz falls into that latter category.

I personally like the Kiz-Berger-Na model for the last spot or two, as opposed to the Scheffler-Zalatoris profile.  But, to be fair, I was using that logic to argue against Tony Finau in 2018, and he was one of the few Americans to actually show up.

The further wild card is Koepka's withdrawal from the Tour Championship after hitting a root and reinjuring his wrist.  Don't know what it means nor the timing thereof, but I'm also surprised that we haven't heard talk of a thirteenth team member for Covid and injury protection.  Seems a no-brainer, eh?

I was asked by our head professional over the weekend about picks, and answered in the negative.  To wit, I'm OK with whoever Strick picks, as long as their first names don't start with a "P".

Solheim Scenes - Does team match play rock, or what?  With the exclusion of the Asian players, I've long joked that the Solheim Cup has the athletics integrity of a consolation match.  But that snark only highlights the value of the format and, when mixed with a frisson of hard feelings between the teams, makes for an engaging and dramatic week.

It's actually quite notable how many controversies have erupted in this wee exhibition match over the years, which Beth Ann Nichols helpfully compiles for our reading enjoyment.  I'll assume you remember Gimmegate, featuring Suzann Pettersen, but anyone remember this one?

2000: Annika Sorenstam forced to replay a chip

Perhaps the most well-known controversy in Solheim Cup history occurred in 2000, when Team USA forced Annika Sorenstam to replay a chip shot after she’d holed it, saying that she’d played

out of turn.

Sorenstam, who was partnered with Janice Moodie in the four-ball match at Loch Lomond, was squaring off against Pat Hurst and Kelly Robbins. It was captain Pat Bradley who ultimately made the call to have Sorenstam replay the shot. The steely Swede didn’t convert the second time, and Europe ultimately lost the match. Sorenstam was reduced to tears after the round.

Years later, Bradley told Golfweek that she wouldn’t change a thing.

“I elected to honor the rules of the game,” Bradley said. “That’s all I can say about it. That’s what I fall back on.”

It's a fun stroll down memory lane, with Annika seemingly involved at every turn.  But this was just the latest, from Saturday's action:

2021: Sagstrom picks up overhanging ball in controversial concession

Seconds after world No. 1 Nelly Korda dropped to her knees in disbelief after her lengthy eagle

putt failed to drop on the par-5 13th, Sweden’s Madelene Sagstrom picked up Korda’s ball and tossed it back to her in the afternoon four-ball session at the Inverness Club.

Missy Jones, the LPGA rules official on the scene, quickly informed players that Sagstrom had picked up the ball too early, and that because it was overhanging the edge, she was in violation of Rule 13.3b. According to a statement issued by the LPGA, “the chief referee, match referee, observer and TV observer all deemed that Korda’s third shot on No. 13 was overhanging the hole and was picked up by her opponent before the waiting time had ended. Therefore, her third stroke was treated as holed.”

Korda was entitled to wait 10 seconds after reaching the hole.

Her birdie on the 13th was immediately changed to an eagle, giving Korda and partner Ally Ewing a 1-up lead they never relinquished. The ruling changed the momentum of the afternoon, which had been tipped in Europe’s favor since their morning foursomes thrashing.

An emotional Korda called it “the worst way to win a hole.”

Seems to me that the team that benefits from the controversy, whether or not they caused it, ends up losing in the aftermath, though I've not subjected that impression to scientific testing.  Some theories are too good to fact check.

It was an unusual year for a Cup, in that no one made the trip from Europe:

Not even the gusto of tens of thousands clad in red, white and blue could will Team USA back from the brink. Instead, it was the cheers of just 40 people — outfitted in European blue and yellow — that echoed through Inverness Club Monday evening as Team Europe claimed a 15-13 victory in the Solheim Cup.

The win marks the second in a row for the Europeans and the fourth out of the last six Solheim Cups. In an event once dominated by the Americans, Team Europe has placed a stranglehold on the event over the last decade.

“It’s not really sunk in yet,” European captain Catriona Matthew said. “Closing out on 18 was just dream-come-true stuff.”

What to make of the Euros and their milking of underdog status?  Back to the TC gang:

1. The 17th Solheim Cup finished on Monday at Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio, with Europe beating the U.S. 15-13 to win its second straight meeting and fourth in the last six. The Americans were stronger on paper — several Europeans even said so — yet scored just half a point in the event’s opening session and could never claw back. What went wrong for the U.S.? Or, what went right for Europe? And who was the MVP?

Josh Sens: The European players themselves said that the absence of their own fans created an even greater sense of solidarity for their team. That’s probably true. But it was also about players

peaking at the right time and being unleashed appropriately. Witness Leona Maguire, the MVP, set loose in all five matches. She was ferocious. On a side note: is there a more worrisome sign for a team than being considered stronger on paper? It would not be surprising to see a repeat of this result at Whistling Straits later this month.

Zephyr Melton: While the players deserve their due, Catriona Matthew out-captained Pat Hurst. Matthew rode the hot hand, leaning on Solheim Cup rookie Leona Maguire, and it paid off with 4.5 points. Hurst on the other hand had some head-scratchers, including her decision to play world No. 1 Nelly Korda in two foursomes matches, effectively limiting the number of shots her best player could hit, while sitting her in the all-important Sunday four-ball. This Cup was won on the headsets.

Michael Bamberger: Incisive analysis, Zephyr Melton! This is much less insightful, but Inverness, surprisingly, played firm, some of the bounces were quirky, and it really required shot-making. I saw far more European shot-making than American shot-making. That is, shaping shots, punching shots, using different clubs from around the greens. But there was outstanding play on both sides. The Americans got outplayed. It also sounds like they they got out-lineuped, per Zephyr.

Dylan Dethier: Sixteen of 28 matches came down to the 18th hole, and Team USA simply didn’t win enough of those. Team match play comes down to making the little putts at big times and Europe thrived in that department. As for MVP? Leona Maguire, easily. She punctuated an undefeated week with a 5-and-4 drubbing of would-be rookie rival Jennifer Kupcho.

The Euros dominated that 18th hole in what seemed a flashback to The Belfry and they made far more putts?  Remind anyone of that other cup?

Dylan Dethier seems to have spent long hours at the keyboard, helpfully ranking each of the 24 ladies' performance this weekend.  here's a few that jumped out at me, starting with the American's biggest disappointment:

12. Danielle Kang (1-3-0)

Credit to Kang for wanting the rock — she was first off in the first foursomes match of the week and last off in the final singles match. But this wasn’t her week, and even after Team Europe had retained the Cup she was left as the final match on the course, where she lost a rollercoaster session 1 down despite a bomb birdie putt at No. 18.

Kang is one of the women I used to like to watch the most, but something seems seriously off since that event where she got paired with the Sisters Korda in the final round.  Just hasn't done much since then... 

Speaking of which:

11. Jessica Korda (1-2-0)

It was heartening to see Korda rally back for a victory in Monday singles, but a little disappointing to see one of Team USA’s best players only twice in the team portion. Splitting up Team Korda after just one match felt like a letdown.

We can argue in perpetuity over the relative merits of playing your horses in all five sessions vs. having them rested for singles.  Hurst quite clearly opted for the latter strategy, quite defensible when you have the deeper roster, but Jess just didn't play well at all, even in her winning singles match.

And my fave:

7. Lexi Thompson (1-2-1)

Thompson played a spirited final match against Anna Nordqvist and poured in a number of clutch putts, earning a satisfying tie to finish off an uneven week.

Even when putting well, she didn't exactly deliver the goods.  Nordqvist was obviously a worthy opponent, but on what planet is a tie satisfying when you're behind?

 Here's the best of the bunch:

4. Nelly Korda (2-2-0)

The world No. 1 looked at different points to be energized, deflated, locked in, burdened and the absolute best player on property. That tallied up, fittingly, to a .500 record and a middling week with decidedly bright spots.

3. Yealimi Noh (2-1-0)

One bright spot was more of the world being introduced to Yealimi Noh, a Solheim Cup rookie who made the most of her three matches — even if Mel Reid did bail her out with a three-putt at No. 18 on Monday.

2. Lizette Salas (2-1-1)

Salas seems to absolutely thrive in the spotlight and there’s an alternate reality where she carried Team USA to a miracle victory with a late charge Monday. Instead her final two putts went begging and she ended up on the wrong side of a 1-down defeat to Matilda Castren.

1. Jennifer Kupcho (2-1-1)

Kupcho is a Solheim Cup rookie but was Team USA’s star of the week — and she and Salas played the match of the week against Mel Reid and Leona Maguire on Sunday. But things took a turn when she ran into buzzsaw Maguire on Monday and lost 5 and 4.

Wow, are we grading on a curve, or what? 

The best player in the world goes 2-2?  That's not helping the cause...

But your two best players of the week actually lose their singles matches?  Given that that's Job #1, perhaps they weren't actually your best players?  Especially that one in the top slot who got crushed 5&4....  Just sayin'.

Yealimi Noh was, as Beth Ann notes, about the only bright spot out there.

Compare and contrast with the Euro top dogs:

4. Anna Nordqvist (2-1-1)

Nordqvist and partner Matilda Castren set the tone by earning two victories on Saturday to help Europe jump out to a lead. Then she gritted out a hard-fought tie against Lexi Thompson in singles.

3. Emily Kristine Pedersen (3-1-0)

Pedersen finished off the entire Cup with a birdie and a putter drop to beat Danielle Kang, sending Team Europe officially into celebratory mode.

2. Matilda Castren (3-1-0)

In addition to teaming up with Nordqvist, Castren leapt into Solheim Cup lore with an up-and-down from a fried egg lie on 18 to earn the clinching point for Team Europe.

1. Leona Maguire (4-0-1)

The clear MVP of the Solheim Cup played every session and went undefeated, earning immediate star status. Maguire entered as the first Irishwoman to ever play in the competition. She finished the week with a 5-and-4 trouncing of Jennifer Kupcho to put the finishing touches on a dominant week.

There were some votes last week for Leona Maguire to be the breakout star of the week, so props to those commentators ( I'm far to lazy and harried to go find those names), but Castren is the other big surprise.

But how bizarre was that final match featuring Emily Pedersen and Danielle Kang?  Kang's caddie is Olly Brett, who just happens to be Emily Pedersen's boyfriend.  Just weird...

But if we're ranking things, I think we should include the team uniforms.  Specifically, those mustard yellow togs the Euros sported on Sunday were about the ugliest thing I've seen since Ben Crenshaw puts his squad in shirts featuring old photos for singles in 1999.  Just on the off chance that you might have repressed that memory:

Then again, who knows what Strick has in mind for Whistling Straits?

I'm unfortunately eyeing the exit, leaving an Ask Alan column on the cutting room floor.  Though this bit, while out of order, parallels the thoughts of Mike Bamberger:

How much attention is the Solheim Cup going to get going up against the Tour Championship? @T2Va

Hmmm, let’s see, you have a group of likable young women playing their hearts out for each other and their flag(s) at a spectacular venue versus a soulless corporate cash-grab headlined by a bunch of petty, bitchy, entitled stars on one of golf’s most boring championship courses. Seems like an easy decision for this viewer! Thank goodness the Solheim Cup ends on Labor Day so the women will have the stage to themselves, as it should be.

Your humble blogger's decision was easy, though Cablevision made a hash of it all week, including the fact that my "tape" of the final day was compromised (and this one was not me error).

OK, one more that should have been included while were dismissing the playoffs:

What, if anything, would you change about these “playoffs”? @Alverdonk

Since abolishing them is not listed as an option, I would make them far more Darwinian: three tournaments, starting with 120 players … and after every round, 10 of them are eliminated. The most interesting part of the playoffs are the guys at the bottom of the points list trying to survive and advance, so let’s bake that into every day, which would offer a juicy subplot running parallel to the drama atop the leaderboard. (There would be a playoff just about every day for the last spots.) By the time you get to the final round of the Tour Championship, only 10 players would be left. All scores get erased and they then play in a 10-some in an 18-hole shootout, with the winner taking home $20 million. (Let’s give the other $15 million to Youth On Course.) Second place gets a set of steak knives.

Take your $50 million PIP program and award that cash for season-long performance.  Then turn the playoffs into a high stakes shootout, and we can have ourselves some fun.  Contra the point above, it's OK to play for money, it's just the pretense that it mean something that diminishes the experience.  Not to mention the long year of FedEx Cup standings and promos that sap our will to live.

OK, you caught me, I lied again... How can I ignore this one, with the picks on the horizon?

Does Stricker have to pick Phil so he has someone to pair with Bryson? @wannabgolfer22, @pkeen52, @forearmshivers

It’s starting to look that way! (Shout-out to three readers who all asked very similar questions.) I

was warming to the idea of an anti-hero pairing of DeChambeau and Patrick Reed, which could have produced some crazy alchemy. If you take the former’s long game and the latter’s short game, it’s quite a formidable combination. But I think Reed is out of the mix, given his injury and health woes. For the last decade-plus the U.S. team’s designated babysitters were Matt Kuchar and Webb Simpson. Webb is definitely still in the conversation for a captain’s pick: Going back to the Open Championship, 11 of his last 20 rounds are 67 or better. But he and Phil could wind up as vice captains, clearing the way for the next generation of talent. Maybe Tony Finau gets the call? He’s the most agreeable guy in the world and plays a power game similar to Bryson’s. There aren’t many other candidates. Part of me would love to see a Brooks-Bryson pairing in fourballs. They would both play their hearts out trying to one-up the other guy. It’s not your traditional team spirit, but it could produce some epic golf. It would certainly be the golf spectacle of the year.

Thank God we agreed on the exclusion of given names beginning with "P".  

Kids, I gotta run.  I'll miss you, but we will flood the zone in the countdown to the Ryder Cup, so I will see you all then. 

Being Bryson And Other Thoughts on Tour Governance

An unexpectedly crazy week for your humble blogger, so I will do some rare Wednesday afternoon blogging on a set of related issues that have me increasingly disaffected with the Ponte Vedra Beach cabal.

Whether you like the guy or not, I assume that each of us wants him to be able to play his game and let the chips fall where they may.  We've covered many instances of Bryson behaving in ways that I found unprofessional or unbecoming, not least when he indicated that a Golf Channel cameraman has a responsibility to protect Bryson's brand.  But the Brooks manspat has been unbecoming and tedious, but it's also hit a nerve out there.

As you know, I try to focus on the important stuff, and nothing is more important than the style book.  Can we not find common ground that it's "Brooksie" as opposed to "Brooksy"?  I shudder in disgust when I se it spelled with the "Y", as all right-minded folks should.  OK, glad we were able to clear that up....

First up, Rory had some typically thoughtful and sympathetic comments on the general subject of fan behavior and on that guy specifically:

Q. Do you feel that fan behavior has become less respectful and if so what do you attribute it to?

RORY MCILROY: Yeah, I do, a little bit. I think I sort of know what you're getting at on the back of last week and some things that were said over the past few weeks, I guess. Yeah, a little bit. I think it's different. As golfers, there's a very thin rope that separates us from the fans, and then you hit a shot off line, and you have to go into the fans to hit it. So we get a little closer to them than some other sports.

Yeah, I think some of it crosses the line. I think there's a certain, I think certain other sports culture has fed into our game and fed into the fan base that's definitely affected it, and people will make the argument that, well, it happens in every other sport. But I would say that we're not any other sport and I think golf should hold itself to a higher standard. I mean, the players are certainly held to a higher standard than other sports, so why wouldn't our fan base.

Ironically, last night the bride and I watched this documentary that deals with thuggish behavior on the part of both players and fans in another game.  Clearly both golf players and fans clear that absurdly low bar.

Q. Everybody seems to be on Bryson's case at the moment. Do you feel any sympathy for him or do you think he brought it on himself?

RORY MCILROY: I certainly feel some sympathy for him because I certainly, I don't think that you should be ostracized or criticized for being different, and I think we have all known from the start that Bryson is different and he is not going to conform to the way people want him to be. He is his own person. He thinks his own thoughts and everyone has a right to do that.

There are certainly things that he has done in the past that have brought some of this stuff on himself. I'm not saying that he's completely blameless in this. But at the same time, I think he has been getting a pretty rough go of it of late and it's actually pretty sad to see because he, deep down, I think, is a nice person and all he wants to do is try to be the best golfer he can be. And it just seems like every week something else happens and I would say it's pretty tough to be Bryson DeChambeau right now.

And I don't know if anyone else on TOUR has spoken up for him, but I definitely, I definitely he feel for him a little bit. And I agree, I don't think he's completely blameless in all this, but at the same time, I think he's trying to become better and he's trying to learn from his mistakes and I think everyone should give him a chance to try to do that.

Geoff introduces Rory's comments this incoherent rant:

I’m not sure what to make of Rory McIlroy’s pre-Tour Championship remarks on Bryson DeChambeau and fan behavior, but suggesting professional golfers are held to a higher standard than other athletes suggests he’s a bit out of touch with the present day realities. One where other leagues have testing protocols for COVID-19 and stricter rules for those choosing not to be vaccinated, while pro golfers now have to deal with neither in the face of both COVID and now, bilateral pneumonia.

Are we talking about Covid?  Because I don't think that the subject under discussion, and I can't even venture a guess as to what triggered the mention of Patrick Reed's diagnosis.

Patrick Cantlay, the man in the arena with Bryson last weekend, went way long with his answer, so feel free to speed read:

Q. Rory mentioned that he was talking, I asked a little bit about Bryson and he said he felt sympathy for him. Having been, having played alongside him last week, just wondering what you feel.

PATRICK CANTLAY: I think it's a tough situation. I think, naturally, of course there is some sympathy because you don't want to see anybody have a bunch of people be against you or even be heckled. I think anybody that watches sports and sees someone being heckled, they don't like that inherently because if you imagine yourself as that person, it wouldn't feel good.

I think, unfortunately, it might be a symptom of a larger problem, which is social media driven and which is potentially Player Impact Program derived. I think when you have people that go for attention-seeking maneuvers, you leave yourself potentially open to having the wrong type of attention, and I think maybe that's where we're at it and it may be a symptom of going for too much attention.

But it can be awesome too because if you succeed and you act perfect all the time and you do the perfect things all the time, and then you also go for the right attention-seeking moves, you get like double bonus points because everyone loves you and you're on the perfect side of it. I think it's just a very live by the sword, die by the sword type of deal. And when you leave it to a jury, you don't know what's going to happen. So it's hard to get all 12 people on a jury on your side.

And if you're playing professional golf on the stage that you're playing on and 98 percent of the people are pulling for you and there are 10,000 people on the green, I don't know, what does that leave, 20 people that don't like you, even if 98 percent of the people like you? And if those 20 people have had enough to drink or feel emboldened enough to say something because they want to impress the girl they're standing next to, then, yeah, like, you're in trouble. Like, people are going to say bad things.

Golf, unfortunately, doesn't and probably shouldn't tolerate that. I think there's a respect level in golf and there's intimacy that the fans can get so, so close to you, and you're also all by yourself, and you don't have the armor of putting on Yankee pinstripes, and you don't have the armor of having, knowing that if you're on the Yankees and people hate you and you're playing in Boston, you can tolerate it for three hours in right field. But you only tolerate it because you know next week or on Friday you're going to show up and you're going to be in Yankee Stadium and no matter what you do, even if you fall on your face, you're going to have the pinstripe armor on and people are going to love you.

So golf is different in that respect, that if you only have 2 percent of the people that are very against you because you're polarizing and because you're attention-seeking, then you're kind of dead because those people are going to be loud, and they're going to want to say something to get under your skin.

And I think golf shouldn't let that happen. I think the Masters is a great example of a place that doesn't let that happen, and it's the greatest place to watch and play professional golf because of the atmosphere they create. I think if you look at the history of the game and you look at the respect that underlies the entirety of the history of the game, we shouldn't tolerate it, and we shouldn't celebrate that. We should celebrate the fan that is respectful and pulls for their side.

So it's a tough situation. It's a tough topic, but that would be my take on it and I'm sure it's not perfect, but after thinking about it a little bit, it's the best I can come up with.

The whole thought process is interesting, but it's that mention of the PIP Program in the first graph that had me intrigued.  We'll get back to that below, so just keep in the back of your mind.

This back and forth was amusing:

Q. I thought you were reading from a script there. You actually made that up off the top of your head?

PATRICK CANTLAY: I'm looking around here. I don't see any prompters.

Kind of a dick question, no?

As a digression, Cantlay seems to speak his mind, which has me seeing him in a new light:

Q. It sounded from the very start of your comments that your focus is on playing good golf and shooting a good score and all that stuff. But I'm curious about something Rahm said a couple weeks ago that when they make the analogy of, Patriots can go 18-0 and still not win the Super Bowl, his answer was, Yeah, but they still finish second. And I'm curious what you still think of that and is there any part of you that is still annoyed about what happened two years ago?

PATRICK CANTLAY: I think, frankly, it's not a good format. I think it's obvious why they went to the format because the previous format was confusing. I think this format is less confusing. But I don't think it's a good format. I dislike the fact that we no longer have a TOUR Champion. So I dislike the fact that no one knows, when they look at the leaderboard, who shot the lowest round this week. I think the fact that Xander didn't get a tournament win for beating the field by two or three shots is absolutely criminal, not just because he's my friend, but I think that if that happened to anybody that would be criminal. And there has to be a better solution. I am not a mastermind on golf formats and there are lots of moving parts, so I'm not saying that I have the answer, there are lots of smart people and I guarantee you there must be an option for a better format out there than the current one we are playing in.

With that said, I am going to do the best possible job I can at winning in this format because that's all I can do. And in no way will that take, impact my ability to perform in this format. I think if you play the best golf this week, you're going to be in a great spot by the end of the week.

He's being charitable here.  It's the Hindenburg of formats.

One last fun bit:

Q. What's your PIP rating by the way? Do you know? Do you guys have access to look at it?

PATRICK CANTLAY: I don't know.

Q. Do they tell you?

PATRICK CANTLAY: I don't know. I got to be honest, I doubt I'm doing very well in that category. If I were to win any portion of the 10, I would let you know that I win in that 10 and I would be compelled to give all that money back to the fans that made it possible, because there's no way a person like me should be able to get into the top 10 of the PIP if not for people out there deciding that they want me to be in the top 10 and to try to get some of that PIP money for themselves. Because I, if I win PIP money, I am going to give it back to the people that made it possible in some way, shape or form. I won't take any of the PIP money. I think it's kind of ridiculous and I think it's, when I said there's a symptom of a larger problem, I think that's exactly what I'm talking about.

Now I'm regretting my early use of the Hindenburg bit....

Now we get to the big guy and his rather blinkered view of reality.  Shack has the entirety of his comments here, which touch on increases in purses and the like, plus a righteous Fisking that's peak Shack.  I'll just cherry pick those bits that are on point for todays' topic, beginning with these thoughts:

Before I open it up, Laura, to questions, I just, I wanted to take a minute to address a topic that's been top of mind lately for our players, fans, and of course, for those of you in the media. I'm talking about fan behavior and the interaction with our athletes, when that behavior crosses the line and what we should all be doing to address it when it does.

It's been a long season, yes, but it's been a fantastic season. 50 events, THE PLAYERS Championship, six majors, the Olympics, these four consecutive playoffs, two to start the FedExCup playoffs and here we are at the TOUR Championship. It's been historic and compelling at every single turn.

That might just be Peak Jay.  Not only can't he raise the subject of fan behavior without a full recitation of the Tour's C.V., but in doing so he completely bolixes the term playoff, tripping over sudden-death playoffs that end events with the, you know, FedEx Cup Playoffs.  If he want to prove Patrick Cantlay's argument about the format, what would he do differently?

All of that on the heels of a lot of pent up demand with people stuck at home separated from their favorite sports and athletes like never before due to COVID and the various and necessary health and safety protocols in place to ensure we can get back to playing. It's been frustrating at times for all of us and then we get the opportunity to finally engage with our favorite sports or teams or players.

Well, I think we can all agree that we have seen issues as of late across the sports landscape where that pent up demand plays out in an ugly way. Golf is not immune from unfortunate and disruptive behavior, although I would say that we do have the very best fans in the world. This is about just a few bad actors. And for the record, this isn't about any one particular player or one particular incident, but in some situations it's apparent that we have gotten away from the very civility and respect that are hallmarks to our great game.

Jay is technically correct because it seems to be about two players....

We began working on an updated fan code of conduct program in 2020, but put it aside last summer when we were playing without spectators and needed our focus to be on implementing the complicated yet necessary health and safety plan.

Once we began returning to normal capacity, we made it the highest of priorities to reinforce an environment at PGA TOUR events that allows for everyone to enjoy in a safe environment, and that is spectators players, volunteers, literally everybody.

We have to be intentional about our expectations for fan behavior and I believe our fan code of conduct does that.

Intentional? Kubla Jay has 150 Vice Presidents but apparently nary a dictionary....

By coming to a PGA TOUR event, you're expected to contribute to a welcoming and safe environment by refraining from and reporting any unsafe, disruptive, or harassing behavior. Comments or gestures that undermine the inclusive and welcoming nature of the game will not be tolerated, nor will any harassment of players, caddies, volunteers, officials, staff, or other spectators.

Fans who breach our code of conduct are subject to expulsion from the tournament and loss of their credential or ticket.

What about cameramen?  Never mind, I'll know better once I do my stint in the reeducation camp.

Now, I would ask our fans, again, the very best fans in the world, to take a moment and think about what it means to be a golf fan and to enjoy a PGA TOUR tournament. We're going to be leaders in this space. We're going to show everyone how easy it is to enjoy yourself at an event while also respecting the athletes in the field of play and the fans around you, many of whom are families with young kids who have a chance to be lifetime fans of the game themselves.

Quite honestly, we should expect nothing less from each other, whether we're at a golf tournament or elsewhere in life.

When you strip away the puffery and the trite safe space nonsense, it's all pretty much reasonable, except... But then come the questions:

Q. If I can just follow up on your last as it applies to the very real world situation with Bryson, would "Brooksie," would that qualify as [harassing] behavior?

JAY MONAHAN: I'm sorry, you broke up there.

Q. Sorry. Would "Brooksie" classify as harassing behavior when it's said to Bryson on a golf course?

JAY MONAHAN: Yes, and the reason I say yes is, you know, the barometer that we are all using is the word "respect," and to me, when you hear "Brooksie" yelled or you hear any expression yelled, the question is, is that respectful or disrespectful? That has been going on for an extended period of time. To me, at this point, it's disrespectful, and that's kind of behavior that we're not going to tolerate going forward.

Hmmm, but "Mashed potatoes" is OK?  You've never had a problem with fans yelling pretty much anything, but Brooksie (and props for the use of the correct spelling) is beyond the pale?  You see the issue, as we're selectively outlawing terms that are not de facto objectionable because we can.

Let me just throw in this one further excerpt:

And, listen, I think that as it relates to general fan behavior and any individual's role in it, I take it, I take that on as an organizational responsibility. We have had challenges in the past. We'll have challenges as we continue to go forward. And so long as we build the right systems, we effectively communicate with every one of our tournaments, we are planning and preplanning effectively, the marketplace knows the expectation when we're on-site, I think that we're going to, you know, we're going to get back to, we're going to get back to a great environment. We have a great environment. We'll continue to improve our environment at our tournaments going forward.

Do you notice a couple of subjects that have been avoided like the plague?  First and foremost, the now seemingly discarded Live Under Par™ program encouraged, nay demanded, this specific kind of behavior.  here's Shack's take:

Given that Monahan ushered in the PGA Tour’s relentless Live Under Par campaign early into his tenure—come out, get drunk, be a young demographic we’re desperate to court, express your inner douchey bro, make yourself part of the event by being loud, and share it all on social—I expected a trace of remorse. Not even a hint of responsibility accepted for deteriorating fan behavior.

But you don’t make $9 million a year taking blame or even acknowledging anything is actually wrong.

Shack is spot on, that this is exactly the behavior the Tour has actively encouraged.  If you go back and look at those silly promos, respect wasn't a big issue.

But the other great initiative of the Monahan era is his passionate embrace of sports betting or, perhaps more accurately, his passionate embrace of the vig he'll collect from legalized sports betting.  And isn't the intersection of Live Under Par™ and betting a scary place?  

Just a very few 'graphs above we had a mini-debate over whether golfers are held to higher standards than other athletes.  Your humble blogger thinks so, though Jay seems to want to correct that misperception.  Before I get to his specific comments, let's remember that Brooks Koepka has actively egged on those heckling Bryson, at one point offering free beer for services rendered.  Do we think Brooksie has been reprimanded for this?  Yeah, that's a good one...

Before we move on, lest you think that the crowd situation is being over-stated:

Double PIP points for a homicide, I assume.

But get a load of this mollycoddling:

Q. What are your concerns about having a player in Bryson, who very well could win this thing and who is one of the biggest stars on TOUR, not, not communicating with the media now, and what are his responsibilities in addressing some of the issues that you've addressed as far as fan conduct or anything else that comes up over the course of a tournament?

JAY MONAHAN: Yeah, listen, I think that as it relates to Bryson, listen, Bryson is a star. He has fascinated golf and sport fans around the world since our return to golf. He's also a young man that's growing and evolving, not just on the golf course, but off the golf course.

And I would just say to you that I look at this as a point in time. I don't think this is the way things are going to be for a long period of time. I'm hopeful that we'll get back to a steady cadence of communication that he'll have with the media.

Steady cadence of communication?  Seriously, the guy is throwing hissy fits, and you have no problem with him failing to fulfill the most basic obligation of a player.  Sheesh, you wion, I completely withdraw my prior comment about golfers being held to a higher standard, or any standard at all.

Amazingly, Jay just rambles on:

Q. Have you ever considered, as they do in tennis, any type of a fine for players not fulfilling media obligations if they are indeed media obligations?

JAY MONAHAN: I would just say to you, in any instance, we're always going to focus on the player, the relationship with the player, understanding the player, trying to work with them to get to the right place and try and understand what's going through their heads.

And so a fine, I'm not sure what that is going to do for us in the long run.

Ultimately we want the player presenting his best self when he's in front of the media, when he's in front of fans, and that's ultimately the goal for any player that's in a situation like that.

Gee, I don't know, Jay, "Don't speak to the media and pay a fine" seems a fairly simple incentive system.  But good to know that it's not just Golf Channel cameramen in charge of Bryson's brand...

Here's where I pay off that PIP marker above, as Jay gets asked about it:

Q. It's my understanding that the player impact program will run through the end of the year, that it won't be a seasonal thing. I'm curious, without giving a specific example of a player, but I'm sure you've seen the list, can you give me an example of maybe content or an engagement that counts as added value when it comes to the metrics that you're using?

JAY MONAHAN: Well, we're using five different criteria, to all of which are equally weighted. And you look at Nielsen, your Saturday and Sunday time on television, to Google Search to Meltwater, to MVP Index, and to, bear with me here, it's at the back of my head, I'll come up with it. But each of these areas lead up to a player's ranking. And the bottom --

Q. Q Rating.

JAY MONAHAN: Sorry?

Q. I believe Q Rating was the one you were thinking of.

JAY MONAHAN: Q Rating, yes.

The bottom line is when you look at any of those metrics, it's all about, for us, it's all about getting our players to engage in our game, help grow our TOUR, and help grow their own respective brands. And if you look at what drives engagement, it's on-course performance, and that's, that is part of the basis for the way the Player Impact Program was developed. You've seen how everybody's performed this year, and I think as we look at it and you think about the way that fans and the major story lines on the way fans have engaged, players have engaged fans through those channels, I think it's fairly intuitive.

The point I would make is that we're up, you know, this year we're up 41 percent when you look at cross-channel consumption. We're up across every metric.

Cross-channel consumption, eh?  Well now I see the complexity of your worldview... 

But see what you think of this:

Q. Could you confirm what Rex said, that the PIP is going to be through the end of the year? I'm not sure you really answered that part when he brought that up. And also, is the quote/unquote winner of this or the people that are in the money, so to speak, is that ever going to be made public?

JAY MONAHAN: It is through the end of the year, and we don't have any intention on publicizing it.

Thud!

Q. Why is that?

JAY MONAHAN: To us, it's a program that we created, was created by our players, with our players, for our players, and that's, that's what we decided that we were going to do when we created it.

Oh, he'll flatter you when he needs you to buy a ticket, but don't be fooled by that.  he holds you in contempt and feels no obligation to be transparent about the Tour's operations.  It's clearly his slush fund to keep any disaffected campers on the reservation.  We, the plebes, have no right to know what behavior is being rewarded and at what levels.  How do you feel now?

Here's one reaction:

Oh, no, Alan, I don't think they've come close to peaking yet.

Two quick reactions:

1. This weekend I will be watching the Solheim Cup in lieu of the soulless cash grab in Atlanta;
2. Tell me more about the Premiere Golf League, I'm all ears.