Tuesday, June 18, 2024

Tuesday Tidbits - Open Detritus Edition

With 24 hours to process, any further thoughts?  No, well then it's fortunate that I've got a handful....

The Summer of Rory's Discontent - A gut punch for sure, but this was as predictable as day following night:

After enduring a searing loss at the U.S. Open on Sunday, Rory McIlroy declined to speak to the media, zipping out of the parking lot in his courtesy car and heading straight home to Florida.

He remained in this week’s Travelers Championship field, the eighth and final PGA Tour Signature Event of the season, and was even listed on the interview schedule for Wednesday afternoon, after the pro-am.

But on Monday, McIlroy issued a lengthy statement on social media, outlining his plans for the next several weeks — which do not include tournament golf.

I know it's uncharitable to kick a guy when he's down, but it's almost as if scheduling the PGA Tour's most important money grabs the week after the U.S. Open isn't optimal.  Remind who was on the Players Advisory Council when this was agreed to?

Like most, I'm not put off by his skipping out on a presser, though perhaps he should have found a moment to congratulate the winner:

“Yesterday was a tough day, probably the toughest I’ve had in my 17 years as a professional golfer,” McIlroy wrote. “Firstly, I’d like to congratulate Bryson. He is a worthy champion and exactly what professional golf needs right now. I think we can all agree on that. As I reflect on my week, I’ll rue a few things over the course of the tournament, mostly the putts on 16 and 18 on the final day. But, as I always try to do, I’ll look at the positives of the week that far outweigh the negatives.

Excessive parsing is what we do here, but I find the bolded words just a touch odd.  Bryson had a great week with the crowd and I myself have been reevaluating the man, but is he a Hero of France?  Seems a bit of a stretch and an odd concession in the midst of those heated negotiations.

As for the last bit, it ain't just a river in Egypt.

“As I said at the start of the tournament, I feel closer to winning my next major championship than I ever have,” McIlroy continued. “The one word that I would describe my career as is resilient. I’ve shown my resilience over and over again in the last 17 years and I will again. I’m going to take a few weeks away from the game to process everything and build myself back up for my defense of the Genesis Scottish Open and The Open at Royal Troon. See you in Scotland.”

Resilient?  Fragile?  Whatev.....

But what interests me most is how Rory's  existential crisis intersects with the world he helped create.  As I understand things, he will not be replaced in the Hartford field.  So, imagine you're the guy that would have been next in.. Rory has carved out a slot in the small-field money grab for himself and then can't even be bothered using it.... But all that means is that Patrick Cantlay has to fight off one less guy to grab his super-sized check.  It all sort of works out for them, doesn't it?

Folks are spinning out their Winners and Losers posts, and this from ESPN seems about right:

Losers

Rory McIlroy

There's no way to sugarcoat it: McIlroy had his best chance to end his nearly 10-year drought without a major championship, taking a 2-stroke lead with five holes to play, only to endure one of the worst final-round collapses by a leader in history.

While McIlroy has suffered plenty of heartache during that stretch, including an epic collapse at the 2011 Masters and a near-miss at last year's U.S. Open, this one is going to sting for a long time.

McIlroy carded bogeys on three of the last four holes, inexplicably missing a 2½-footer for par on the 16th and a putt of 3 feet, 9 inches for par on the 18th. He hit his putt on the 16th too hard, his attempt on the 18th wasn't hard enough.

Since winning the 2014 PGA Championship at Valhalla, McIlroy has posted 20 top-10 finishes in majors, including nine top 5s. He just hasn't won his fifth major.

"At the end of the day, we are all human," Pavon said. "Rory has been chasing another major [for] many years. He is one of the best players in the world, a true champion. It shows you how tough it is. The more you want it, the tougher it gets, and the highest expectation you have for yourself, the tougher it gets, the more pressure you get into.

"Maybe this is a little bit of pressure that got him today for sure, but Rory is just a massive champion. I'm sure he will fight back really soon."

Golf is a game of mistakes, and all the greats have let majors get away.  They say that Jack never missed a putt that he needed, but they lie.  Look no further than the 17th green at Turnberry for a short one he missed.  But I can't help feeling this is different.  Just in the last two years Rory has had three instances where they were about to etch his name on a trophy that he squandered needlessly.

Inexplicably, Shack has Rory as his second winner:

Champions

Rory McIlroy. Given his gracious 99% of the time, I’m in the minority in not caring about the

runner-up’s decision to flee town immediately after Sunday’s loss. Yes, he did miss an opportunity to congratulate DeChambeau which was a shame since Bryson seemed genuinely appreciative to compete against McIlroy down the stretch. Not that it would have made the flight home easier. For those flustered at his getaway: post-loss press chats in a locker room corner are so last century. Now the sessions are televised with transcripts and the occasional performative question looking to elicit tears. It’s no secret McIlroy has had stuff going on with his marriage. On the course, he has a lot to reconcile after hitting 46 of 56 fairways (82%) while making the key birdie putts on Sunday that eluded him last year at LACC and at St Andrews in 2022. McIlroy took to Twitter Monday in a note that could not have been fun to pen. But he did congratulate DeChambeau in perfect style. As for the short missed putts down the stretch? The hard-breaking left-to-righter on 18 has been unfairly compared to cringey misses by Doug Sanders and Scott Hoch. The putt on 16? It’s the one he’ll rue since it was his first miss of 496 inside three feet this year. But playing the closing five holes +5 over the last three days ultimately cost McIlroy the win. Still, he delivered stellar play on a golf course that might have annoyed him a decade ago. McIlroy once again reaffirmed an immense drive and all-round skill very deep into a career that appears to have more years of great golf ahead.

Geoff does make a good point or two, but that guy skipping out on the post-tourney presser doesn't feel much like a champion....

The best point that Geoff makes is that this is a golf course we shouldn't expect Rory to like, far too firm for his tastes.  The fact that he got himself in position to win is notable for that reason, although of course he racked up his birdies on Thursday when the course was softest.

But what Geoff ignores is that it wasn't just the two short misses.  he also blew the greens at Nos. 15 and 17, and that's a recurring feature of Rory's game.  I completely agree that the putt on No. 18 was testy, and reject the comparison's to Sanders and Hoch as in ____.  But, of course, the putt on No. 16 was easier than than either of those two examples, so where does that leave us?  And it's not like he put a confident stroke on that 18th hole putt...

Dylan Dethier has an interesting take on that effort:

ONE SWING THOUGHT

From Rory McIlroy.

I’m happy to defend Rory McIlroy‘s final miss at No. 18; that was just a four-footer but it was a slippery four-footer that would have terrified me.

Still, when I saw a replay from a side angle it triggered a memory of something McIlroy had said ahead of the Masters:

“Sometimes I can let the putter rise up a little bit too much on the way through, and then I can catch the ball sort of more on the equator, rather than like more of a level,” he said. “Like, when I strike a good putt, it almost feels like the ball comes out of the top of the face instead of the middle of the face. So, yeah, focused a little bit on strike, a little bit on just that sort of transition.”

Watch the putt again and you’ll see the putter strike the equator. It looks low on the face. Did that make the difference? Sigh. We (and he) can only wonder.

Regular readers of the blog know that for many years I have over-interpreted one factoid as a reflection on Rory's commitment, to wit, that he would rather be comfortable than great.  Interestingly, this popped up in my Twitter feed:


Two missed putts combining for just over seven feet in length cost McIlroy at Pinehurst No.2 as he failed to convert a late two-shot lead on Sunday.

But two-time DP World Tour winner Eddie Pepperell has insisted that the Northern Irishman would have walked away with a fifth major title if he had a ‘stronger’ caddie.

Speaking on The Chipping Forecast podcast, Pepperell claimed one key club decision was ‘inexplicable’ before calling for McIlroy to hire a new caddie.

“Sometimes, to win a golf tournament, you need to limp over the line, and I’m adamant that it is your caddie on occasions like that can really be the difference,” the Englishman said.

“My immediate takeaway is that with a stronger caddie, he would not have made the bogey he made on the 15th.

The childhood best friend on the bag has always struck me as profoundly unserious.

Not only does he pull the wrong club more than the other guys, but he's always seemed to me an especially poor green-reader.  Seems he could use a stronger hand on the whip, but it's hard to fire that kid you grew up with.

The is actually pretty funny:

“He looked so comfortable and in control and he just needed to hit it to the front part of that green on 15. And I really think he would have walked away with that trophy.

“That was an inexplicable club decision on 15 and possibly the last too.”

McIlroy teamed up with childhood friend Harry Diamond in 2017 after parting company with his long-standing caddie JP Fitzgerald.

“I wouldn’t have said this If he had won but I think he needs a new caddie. I hate saying that about Harry because I’m sure he’s a lovely guy. And I’m sure he’s a good caddie.

Don't forget No. 17 as well...

But you've just cited disastrous club pulls in the final stages of an Open, so why are you so sure Harry is a good caddie?   Seems to me the data says something entirely contrary.

One last indignity for the Ulsterman.  Earlier this year Rory passed a certain Aussie in Tour wins and gloated that fact.  Rory doesn't seem to get that in even noting such a thing he's punching down, but this header is uniquely positioned to ruin his day:

Rory McIlroy's U.S. Open collapse calls to mind the legacy of one Great White Shark

Everyone Is A Winner - The venue seems to have garnered mostly raves:

Pinehurst No. 2. The course made a magnificent return after 2014’s U.S. Open(s) left folks
wondering if the “anchor site” commitment was such a grand idea. Good weather coming in this time and an overall maturation of the turf and natives served as a reminder that it was still just too new a decade ago after Coore and Crenshaw’s overhaul. Investment by the Dedman family and hard work by many to dial in the sandy scrub seemed to draw unanimous praise this time. Several greens at 14 on the Stimpmeter are over the top and need to get back to Donald Ross’ elevations and tie-ins (to be discussed in the Missers edition) if those speeds are the new normal. Still, everyone seems excited about the return in 2029, a refrain not always heard after a U.S. Open.

Hopefully that follow up will not be paywalled, but any track will be stressed when the greens are running at 14 feet.  While I'm not a fan of locking down major venues decades in advance, it being folly to think we can anticipate the game's arc, but it's hard to envision No. 2 not being an Anchor Site in perpetuity.  Especially as the sandhills provide firm and fast conditions in the heart of summer.

I completely agree with this as well.  I wish they could have shown more of his play, although I understand that the three top dogs were going to grab the available oxygen:

Matthieu Pavon. An incredible 2024 season continued with a fifth-place finish. He hit 43 of 56 fairways, gained seven strokes on the greens, but hit only 43 of 72 greens. With slightly improved
iron play he should be one of the favorites at Troon and in the Paris Olympics. A fast player with a great attitude and a well-rounded game makes him one of the year’s best breakthrough stories. He also handled the difficulty of playing in a pro-DeChambeau crowd. “That was just a super nice experience,” Pavon said. “I enjoyed every moment on the golf course. The crowd was nice, very fair to me, pushing for the home guy. It was nice to feel that sort of energy. To drop some birdies on my back nine to finish fifth was really nice.”

Good player and seemingly a good guy.  I'm sure we'll see him at Bethpage as well.

One thing I most certainly missed was that dramatic finish of the two amateurs:

Neal Shipley. A big body and a big personality to go with the historic accomplishment of grabbing Low Amateur at the Masters and U.S. Open. He did this with a one-stroke penalty on his card. It’s always fun to see a later-blooming, up-and-comer who was not raised in an AJGA puppy mill. No wonder he has something more than a nice game: passion and drive without gobs of entitlement. He acknowledged his ball moving and called over an official. (Something the World No. 1 did not do at the Masters on Sunday.) Even Shipley’s Arby’s sponcon headcover won over in a charming amateurism-is-dead kind-of-way. The in-car video reading off a stilted script? Be yourself next time Neal. You got this.

At least until that heart-breaking miss by Luke Clanton.  I was rooting for the two kids to share it, but Shipley is having quite the summer. 

The "L" Word - Shack hasn't posted his losers yet, but ESPN did and that's where the fun is to be found.   This guy sure had an odd week:


Everything about Pinehurst No. 2 screamed Scheffler. The fact that he had come into this week following yet another PGA Tour victory seemed to indicate that he was in peak form, ready to add a third major, and his second of the year, to his résumé.

And yet, as Scheffler pointed out after his second round, he was fatigued, he had not prepared as well as he could have and -- perhaps most importantly -- he had not embraced the unpredictability surrounding some of the course's native areas and greens.

Scheffler will likely still be the favorite at the Open Championship next month and will probably add another win to his total before then. He's just been that good. But for at least one week at the U.S. Open, Scheffler showed us he's human too.

A pretty dreadful week on the greens for Scottie.  There's something about these greens, as I remember Tiger having a similarly inexplicable putting week there in 2005.  

This guy had about as bad a week as anyone:


Just when we thought Thomas had made a breakthrough as he finished T-8 at the PGA Championship earlier this year, he regressed at Pinehurst by missing the cut and shooting 11 over through the first two rounds.

Thomas has now missed five cuts in the past seven major appearances and looks miles away from contention. What was more worrisome this week is that, though Thomas' putting has been his Achilles' heel, he instead struggled to hit his irons well, which is usually his strength.

It's unclear where Thomas goes from here, but as more majors and more time passes by, the possibility of Thomas reemerging as one of the top players in the game and one of the contenders at the sport's biggest events is starting to feel more and more like a far-fetched reality. 

We'll see how things look after Troon, but I've been anticipating a Prez Cup without JT and Jordan for some time now.

That's it for toady, kiddies.  Golf tomorrow, but I'll try to get back with more Open thoughts on Thursday. 

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Monday, June 17, 2024

Weekend Wrap - ABC Edition

Hope everyone had a good weekend and isn't too disappointed at yesterday's outcome.  The Cantlay dead-enders will be disconsolate, the good news being that there aren't any of those.

Bryson In Full - Your humble blogger longs for the halcyon days of the Brooks-Bryson cage match, when the absence of any moral ambiguity made it easy to hate them both.  Yet, and this seems really odd, those two are about the only LIVsters that have maintained their competitive relevance after cashing the big checks.  

We'll lede with Bryson, who does seem to have found more than just his game:

U.S. Open 2024: Bryson DeChambeau is golf's most exciting man and new people's champ

Note to Readers:  Blogger, the Google blogging template that hosts this blog, is quite the hot mess.  The current manifestation can be seen in the header above, which normally would function as the link to the excerpted piece.  Or at least has for fourteen years.  But for the last week when I attempt to use that text as a link, it merely inserts the word "null" in blue after the text selected.  I'll throw the links in as best I can, but just wanted readers to know why some items might be excerpted without the obligatory link.

They were yelling his name as Bryson DeChambeau inspected the 55 yards of sand and green and brown and fate between him and redemption. All day, all week, DeChambeau had turned to
the direction of the shout to nod or tip his cap, embracing and reciprocating the attention he has forever craved, but this was no time for stagecraft. What he would do over these 55 yards, needing to get his ball from a greenside bunker to a back pin in two shots or less, would be the theater. The man who has been the greatest show in golf delivered a finale befitting his reputation, his shot from the soil soaring out of the Carolina sandscape, plopping onto the green and skidding toward the pin, stopping three feet from the flag featuring his childhood idol, Payne Stewart. There was no revolution wrought like his triumph at Winged Foot. This championship was not made to bow before his prodigious length, as the driver consistently put him in spots Donald Ross didn’t know were on the map. For the better part of five hours it wasn’t smooth and it was far from easy. It was simply the performance of stubborn will and conviction that comes from the countless hours of work and dreams and disappointment, a cost that can never be measured and a price only he knows he paid.

That’s why, when the cloud of sand produced by his swing billowed and dissipated, DeChambeau emerged with both arms pumping toward the ground, and when his ball disappeared for the final time moments later those arms fiercely pierced the sky as he unleashed a primal scream. DeChambeau signaled to anyone that had a pulse that while Pinehurst did its best to knock him down he had refused to yield, capping a resurgence whose improbability is bested by the fact that the game’s former divisive figure has become one of its most beloved.

One commentator noted that he's grabbed the John Daly demographic, though there's no need to depress me, is there?

Some good bits in here, not least the LIV slam:

They were yelling his name as Bryson DeChambeau inspected the 55 yards of sand and green and brown and fate between him and redemption. All day, all week, DeChambeau had turned to
the direction of the shout to nod or tip his cap, embracing and reciprocating the attention he has forever craved, but this was no time for stagecraft. What he would do over these 55 yards, needing to get his ball from a greenside bunker to a back pin in two shots or less, would be the theater. The man who has been the greatest show in golf delivered a finale befitting his reputation, his shot from the soil soaring out of the Carolina sandscape, plopping onto the green and skidding toward the pin, stopping three feet from the flag featuring his childhood idol, Payne Stewart. There was no revolution wrought like his triumph at Winged Foot. This championship was not made to bow before his prodigious length, as the driver consistently put him in spots Donald Ross didn’t know were on the map. For the better part of five hours it wasn’t smooth and it was far from easy. It was simply the performance of stubborn will and conviction that comes from the countless hours of work and dreams and disappointment, a cost that can never be measured and a price only he knows he paid.

That’s why, when the cloud of sand produced by his swing billowed and dissipated, DeChambeau emerged with both arms pumping toward the ground, and when his ball disappeared for the final time moments later those arms fiercely pierced the sky as he unleashed a primal scream. DeChambeau signaled to anyone that had a pulse that while Pinehurst did its best to knock him down he had refused to yield, capping a resurgence whose improbability is bested by the fact that the game’s former divisive figure has become one of its most beloved.

Everyone seems to want to take a shot at deconstructing his celebration, Geoff here:

Bryson DeChambeau only got one thing wrong after working around a Magnolia tree root and blasting out of Pinehurst’s 18th-hole bunker to win the 2024 United States Open: the self-proclaimed scientist/artist/YouTuber/game-grower somehow forgot to re-create the iconic Payne Stewart pose after making the winning putt.

Otherwise?

No one has ever finished off or celebrated a major win like Bryson did at Pinehurst. Then again, the sport has never seen anyone like the 30-year-old absurdist whose antics have morphed over the years from weird to disappointing, to unsustainable to charmingly zany since he’s returned to a sane weight, lost his his father, stuffed his bank account with LIV money, and endured the same ego hits that come with a career in pro golf.

And while sport has always had natural entertainers, DeChambeau took things to an entirely different level in Sunday’s duel against another fan favorite in McIlroy.

I actually find his fist pumps and other reactions to be curiously robotic, though that's said with affection as I think it reflects his natural awkwardness.  Not necessarily a bad thing....

And Geoff covers that epic long bunker shot on No. 18:

Let’s start with a 55-yard bunker shot most mortals and a few immortals would be worried about skulling into Pinehurst’s modest one-story clubhouse.

“That bunker shot was the shot of my life,” DeChambeau said. “I'll forever be thankful that I've got longer wedges so I can hit it farther.”

Isn't that interesting, as we haven't discussed his single-length irons in a million years.  But I don't know why Geoff cites immortals, when this mortal had to issues with it:

And the shot off the root might have been even better....

But that scene on No. 18 was horribly wrong, to which Geoff alludes:

With the huge grandstands surrounding Pinehurst’s 18th still rocking after the winning putt, DeChambeau went full Leonard Bernstein to his orchestra of admirers, conducting them to remain quiet so playing partner Matthieu Pavon could finish out his sensational week.

Why Pavon didn't finish first is beyond me.  His mark was just inside Bryson's and it was too much to just swipe it in, but Bryson was going to make his and then the world would explode.  To me, Bryson could be criticized for his celebration that froze Pavon, though he did eventually realize they weren't quite ready to head to the scorer's tent.

 I'm obviously deferring the Rory stuff, but let's get into it via the Tour Confidential panel:

1. In one of the most thrilling major finishes we’ve seen in years, Bryson DeChambeau held off Rory McIlroy to win the 2024 U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2 and claim the second major
title of his career. But it wasn’t easy. McIlroy, who trailed by three to start the day, briefly led by two with five holes to play but bogeyed three of his last four to lose by one. Two of those bogeys (including the final one on the 72nd hole) were short par misses. So, did DeChambeau (71) win it? Or did McIlroy (69) lose it?

Jack Hirsh: I’ll take the easy road here and say a little bit of both, but it was more McIlroy losing it, so I guess I fall into that camp. Don’t get me wrong, DeChambeau’s up and down to clinch it was the stuff of legend. People will be hitting that shot out of that bunker as soon as No. 2 reopens to public play. But he never should have had the chance to win with par. McIlroy’s putt on 18 was not from a great spot, above the hole and sliding hard, but he never looked like he finished his backstroke. What was truly inexcusable was the putt on 16. Two-feet-six-inches. Complete loss of focus.

Jessica Marksbury: As the three-shot leader heading into the final round, I think DeChambeau won it. It was a battle, and given the pressure from McIlroy, DeChambeau could have caved. But he ultimately came up clutch when it mattered most. I think his par on 8 was enormously pivotal. After hitting two shots into no-man’s-land, DeChambeau managed a huge up-and-down to keep his momentum. Then of course, there was his 18th hole and the root obstruction, followed by an up-and-down that will live forever. McIlroy unfortunately squandered his chances, and DeChambeau won because he didn’t let any of his misses destroy his.

Zephyr Melton: Everyone will remember Rory’s two short misses, but that doesn’t take away from the stellar play Bryson had over the first three days. He was the only guy to shoot in the 60s over the first three days, and it built up a nice cushion heading into Sunday. That cushion allowed him to win Sunday without his A game, aided by Rory’s misfortune.

Josh Sens: I’m not sure how I feel about this one, but I’m pretty confident I know how DeChambeau and McIlroy feel about it. Bryson thinks he won it. Rory thinks he lost it, which only thickens the plot moving forward.

Dylan Dethier: I feel energized for Bryson. But man, I still feel ill for Rory. Sick to my stomach. That charge — and THAT finish? Rory put himself in position to lose the tournament, and that’s what he did. But Bryson went and seized it, too.

The technical answer is that it took both to create this result.  But how do we think Rory might answer the question?   Can't imagine that dinner tasted very good, but I do hope he was with his daughter last night.

2. What does it say about DeChambeau’s game that he was able to win on this type of setup, which was very different from his first U.S. Open win at Winged Foot? What most impressed you about his play this week?

Hirsh: His par putting was absurd. He actually lost strokes on the greens Sunday and had 31 putts on the round, but it seemed like every chance he had to drop a stroke, with the exception of the short miss on 15, he poured them in. He coulda pulled away had he gotten his eagle putt on 13 or birdie putt on 17 to the hole, but it was his par savers that truly won him this Open.

Marksbury: You could argue that DeChambeau got lots of lucky breaks when he hit shots into bad places, but his recoveries were superb. Add to that a very tidy short game — and a great week of putting — and you have an ideal arsenal to take on Pinehurst.

Melton: His scrambling ability impressed me — especially on Sunday. He obviously wasn’t hitting the ball his best during the final round, but he leaned on his scrambling to keep him in it. Everyone will remember the save in 18, but his up-and-down on No. 8 was arguably more impressive. That was right around the time Rory started his charge, and Bryson saved par from an impossible spot. Without that, the entire dynamic of the back nine is different and we’re likely talking about Rory’s return to the winner’s circle.

Sens: Agreed with all of the above. Part of that is clutch gene, which DeChambeau clearly has. That up-and-down on the 8th was about as tough as they come, and at what felt like a pivotal moment, as McIlroy was starting to reel off what would be four birdies in five holes. And then of course that bunker shot on 18. Whatever you think of Bryson, you can’t deny that was pure under pressure.

Dethier: His attitude. He hung in there. He’s older, wiser, happier, more mature. His caddie Greg Bodine deserves some credit for that, too. Together they were a tough out.

It's a very funny thing, but he seems to have found this peace by going into the Cone of Silence.  To be fair, his interactions with the galleries began before he went to LIV.  At the time of his cage match against Brooks it was remarked by many that, notwithstanding Koepka's greater popularity, that Bryson was actually the more approachable and engaging personality.

It was really quite the dilemma for your humble blogger, a three-man race featuring no player that I actually wanted to win.  Simpson's Hierarchy of Hoped-For Failure was ranked as follows:

  1. Patrick Cantlay
  2. Rory
  3. Bryson
Regular readers of the blog will know why I've soured on Rory recently, relating to both his actual game, as well as his advocacy of small field money-grabs while simultaneously insisting that it couldn't possibly be about the money.... But, trumping all was my desire that Patrick Cantlay not win, that ABC in the header standing for Anyone But Cantlay.  Whew, dodged that bullet!

3. Even before DeChambeau won on Sunday, he seemed to win over the fans all week long, which hadn’t always been the case for them or him. What changed for fans? And for Bryson?

Hirsh: He’s either getting really good advice on how to build his brand, or he is just genuinely a really good person and is letting it show. He’s interacting with fans during competition in ways we’ve never seen any pro do in this era of guarded access. It’s truly a throwback. People talk about giving the fans what they want, while Bryson is actually doing it with his mid-round autographs and huge fist-pumps.

Melton: Bryson is one of the few golfers who seems to have come into their own after going to LIV. He’s largely out of the mainstream spotlight playing on the PGA Tour’s rival tour, and that relative anonymity has allowed him to avoid scrutiny from the mainstream press. Only being in the brightest spotlight four times a year seems to have done wonders for his brand.

Marksbury: Agree with you, Z! Something has definitely changed in Bryson over the last couple of years. He seems comfortable, content, secure. It appears that LIV’s team environment has been a good thing for him. I love the fact that he’s leaning in to being an entertainer, and the fans clearly do too. Plus, he’s really, really good it.

Sens: I suspect his stint in long drive helped bring out a change in him as well, as he started to embrace the performance aspect of his job. It is, after all, entertainment. It helps to be a great talent. It also helps to be smart enough to recognize a pretty simple truth: the culture of athlete worship among fans — and among large numbers of the media covering those same sports — is so powerful that it really doesn’t take a lot to have the public eating out your hands. Sure, there are plenty of haters out there. But most fans and reporters are dying to love an athlete who gives them a few minutes of time and flashes some basic elements of humanity.

Dethier: Bryson has seized control of his image; he presents the version of himself that he wants the world to see. In that way escaping the PGA Tour and spending spare time on YouTube has helped him in the public eye. But there’s something simpler here, too: Winning takes care of everything. It makes you happier, more endearing, more heroic. It’s easy to be drawn to a winner.

Funny to me, because his single most oft-putting moment was when he chewed out that Golf Channel cameraman for not protecting his brand.  I would argue that it's less the YouTube stuff than it is the general interaction with the galleries.  He's at his best when he's not controlling his image but just reacting...

Are we ready for our "Wither Rory" moment?  Yeah, that was hard to watch, but are we all that surprised?  Let's start with this silly header:

For Rory McIlroy, the 2024 U.S. Open is the 2011 Masters all over again

Oh, don't be daft, this is so much worse than that one.....  Back then Rory had his whole career in front of him.  He's now at the juncture of facing the "Will I ever win another Major" question, but can't make two-footers when he has one hand on the trophy.  

Back to the TC gang:

4. McIlroy, whose long major drought (37 starts) is well-known, let yet another one slip away and exited the property without speaking to the media. Was this his most heartbreaking close-call of all?

Hirsh: At St. Andrews in 2022, he got lapped by Cam Smith. Yes, he could have simply made a few putts on Sunday, but Cam Smith went out and took that one. This time? All he had to do was make a couple of putts inside four feet and we’re talking about a completely different story tonight.

Marksbury: McIlroy’s closing holes were excruciating to watch from home — I can’t imagine how it felt for him. When the tournament is in your hands, and you miss a short putt to let it slip away not once but twice, that has to be golf’s most agonizing punishment.

Melton: Gotta be this one. Standing on the 15th tee he was in the solo lead at eight under. Three bogeys over the final four holes — including two misses inside five feet — and he didn’t even force a playoff at six under. Brutal.

Sens: If you’re going strictly by the numbers, I’d say the 2011 Masters, where he lost a four shot lead on Sunday. But numbers alone don’t tell the full story. You need context. And this one — given how many close calls he has had leading into it, and how painfully he let this slip—has to be the most agonizing.

Dethier: This was the worst. The absolute worst. He’ll move on. He’ll contend at the Open next month. I know that in my head. But what was so brutal about watching today in real time was knowing that this will be part of McIlroy’s major story forever.

He could fool himself after St. Andrews and LACC, but this one evokes Doug Sanders.  Asked about that putt later in his life, Sanders "joked" that he sometimes went as long as ten minutes without thinking of his ill-fated putt in 1970.  Think Rory will have that putt on No. 16 on an endless loop in his mind going forward?

5. What do you think happened late with McIlroy? Nerves? Bad reads? Pinehurst’s diabolical greens? Where did he go wrong?

Hirsh: Unfortunately, we won’t know what he was thinking in the moment, for at least some time because he didn’t speak to the media. But he had to start thinking about breaking his drought. Peter Kostis explained during his U.S. Open preview show on Kostis and McCord: Off their Rockers, that the first sign of nerves is bad decision making, and the second is poor execution. McIlroy made poor decisions by playing too much club on the 15th and 17th holes, hitting it over the green each time. Then he had poor execution on the putts on 16 and 18.

Marksbury: That’s some astute rationale there, Jack, and sounds legit to me. I think it had to be nerves. Prior to missing that three-footer, golf stats guru Justin Ray tweeted that Rory was 496/496 on three-footers this season. What was the difference with this particular three-footer? The U.S. Open was on the line.

Melton: Who the hell knows. Rory made a few long putts (that he seemingly never makes on Sunday afternoons) early on, and over the last few holes the hot streak ended. Perhaps just a regression to the mean? All I know is it was painful to watch.

Sens: There’s no such thing as a gimme at Pinehurst No. 2, so the greens are relevant. But McIlroy had been putting it beautifully. He looked genuinely shocked by the first one, almost like he was jolted from a brief spell of complacency. The second stroke looked quite nervy, like he was a victim of the moment.

Dethier: That putt at No. 18 was legitimately scary — it was a slippery four-footer from above the hole. The putt at 16 is the one that’s tougher to get past. That was the difference. (And finding the fairway at 18 wouldn’t have hurt, either.)

Good stuff there, as Hirsh captures the ubiquity of Rory flying greens, which he routinely does with wedges.  I do agree that the putt on No. 18 was of the scary variety, though we all saw the tentative stroke.  Those greens are diabolical, I still remember what they did to Tiger in 2005, but Rory's finish speaks for itself.  

Was it Paul McGinley that made the point about Rory only winning majors from way in front?  Asa he or someone put it, Rory isn't made for knife fights.... 

Alan Bastable does a deep dive into this:

Reminding us most notably of hos promising the start to the day was:

THE DAY HAD STARTED WITH McIlroy and the 36-hole leader by three, DeChambeau, smashing balls together on the range. As DeChambeau fidgeted with driver heads and wrenches and a launch monitor, McIlroy looked in total control of his long game, ripping one tightly drawn 3-wood after the next down the yellowish-green expanse, followed by a series of smashed drivers. When his range session concluded, McIlroy walked up to the practice green that abuts the first tee. Sunday’s first of many “ROR-EE” chants came from a pack of giddy kids in the autograph pen just beyond the range.

McIlroy’s start could not have been better. He spilt the 1st fairway with an iron, knocked his approach to 20 feet, pin-high left, and drained the birdie putt to move to five under. After his second round, McIlroy had spoken of the importance of accurate approach shots on this course. Take the calculating way by which he had played the 8th hole on Friday: “I had 151 adjusted to the hole. I’m trying to land it 146. I can’t land it 144 because it’s not going to get up there. I can’t land it 148 because it’s going to go over the back of the green. You just need to have a lot of precision. I feel like for the most part I’ve done that well this week.”

Ironic, in that the lack of that necessary precision on Nos. 15 and 17 was so critical later in the day.

Geoff captures this gut-wrenching scene:

McIlroy, a year removed from a heartbreaking U.S. Open loss in Los Angeles and two years since
another painful defeat at the Old Course, watched DeChambeau’s finish from U.S. Open scoring. When the winning putt went down, McIlroy turned, packed up quickly, and drove off in his courtesy car. Despite his recent marital woes that included news of salvaging things this week, McIlroy became the first player in U.S. Open history to finish solo second by a stroke in back-to-back years. He was roasted online and in the media for not hanging around to face questions and congratulate DeChambeau.

Which he did at St. Andrews, so one can only assume this one stung that much more.  Leading to this scene, although it doesn't appear that any trunks were actually slammed:

They should be required to speak to the media, part of the job and all that....  But, on the other hand, what's the guy gonna say?  And, even worse, he has to go to Hartford and pretend to care about that event... Thanks, Jay, although some reported should ask Rory how he likes this world he's helped create.

You'll know that my favorite thing about Sunday at the Open was that deliciously awkward penultimate pairing, in which those Ryder Cup protagonists were paired for the first time simnc one called the other a d**k.   There was this take on it:

UU.S. Open 2024: Rory McIlroy and Patrick Cantlay are frosty, but not cold in their pursuit of major glory

The next thing I find that's "Frosty but not cold" will also be the first....

When Rory McIlroy and Patrick Cantlay greeted each other with a quick fist bump and the very briefest of pleasantries on the first tee Sunday as they began their final rounds of the 2024 U.S.
Open, I had the thought that they might not exchange another word until the very end of the final round. I was wrong: On the third hole, Cantlay pulled his tee shot left, and before walking up the fairway, McIlroy had to take a moment to clarify with him whether it had in fact gone out of bounds, and whether had to retee.

Other than that? Nothing, at least through the first eight holes. This is no surprise. It's hard to say how often one golfer calls another a "d***," but it’s safe to say it rarely happens on the record. It did in this case, with McIlroy conferring the honorary title on Cantlay in an interview with the Irish press. We don't need to retread their entire history, but briefly, their first notable public conflict came at last September’s Ryder Cup, when Cantlay was taunted all day about not wearing a hat by the European fans, and it culminated in a match-winning putt on 18 … after which, Cantlay's caddie Joe LaCava stood so long waving his hat around to taunt the fans that it messed with Rory reading his own putt. That led to words, which led to a parking lot tantrum between McIlroy and a wrong place/wrong time innocent bystander, Jim “Bones” Mackay, of all people. Since then, Cantlay and McIlroy have been silent enemies on the LIV merger battle, with McIlroy on the side of a merger and the Cantlay faction wanting to move more slowly. In short, these guys are not friends.

But McIlroy shook hands with LaCava on the first tee, fist bumped Cantlay, winked at one or both of them, and then no more words were exchanged beyond the OB confusion on three, including when they were standing two feet apart on the tees. Somehow, though, the silence didn't feel very dramatic or all that icy. The final round at the U.S. Open, when you're in contention, isn't a particularly chatty atmosphere in the first place, and it's not like anybody expected these guys to be exchanging addresses for Christmas cards. Plus, unlike the Ryder Cup, this isn't a team event; even though we're in the U.S., Rory was the recipient of more fan support because he's one of the world's most popular players.

Yeah, I thought (like Paul McGinley as cited in the piece) that this pairing was more likely to be better for the d**k than for the Ulsterman.  But Cantlay never got out of neutral and Rory clearly had the better of it, at least until he didn't.

Everyone focuses on the Ryder Cup dust-up, but I still believe the enmity between the4se two is likely more related to their involvement with the Tour's Player Advisory Council and the LIV negotiations, especially since Patrick no doubt prevented Rory returning to the Board.

A few last bits, including this on the venue:

6. This was the first time the U.S. Open returned to Pinehurst No. 2 since it was named a USGA anchor site and will continue to host several U.S. Opens in the future. DeChambeau finished six under, and eight players total were under par. What did you think of Pinehurst No. 2 as a U.S. Open test?

Hirsh: Outstanding. Six under is the butter zone for winning U.S. Opens these days and while I don’t think the golf course was shown too well on TV, with the exception of the effective green-size graphics, I think it played phenomenally and provided an extremely demanding, yet fair test to the game’s best players. It’s always great to see the pros asked to be extraordinarily precise shots as opposed to attacking holes through the air and not having to worry about where a ball bounces.

Marksbury: Spot on. U.S. Opens are fun when birdies and disasters are equally possible, and Pinehurst No. 2 gave us plenty of that. This Open was really fun to watch down the stretch.

Melton: It freaking rules. A proper test that produced a great leaderboard and a deserving champion. Can’t wait until they bring the men and the women here in 2029 for a back-to-back.

Sens: Loved it. There should be no letup in a U.S. Open. This course doesn’t allow for any. And there’s nothing goofy about it. Maybe I missed it, but did anyone call it unfair?

Dethier: I could have used just a touch more carnage. Not a single score in the 80s on Sunday?! But in all seriousness the USGA did exactly what they wanted: presented a tough test without becoming the story. Mission accomplished.

I thought it looked and played great, although there will be no shortage of caterwauling about the funky bounces.... But the most exciting thing in golf is what a golf ball does after it hits the turf.

We'll see lots of Pinehurst in the future, and to me that's a very good thing.

What were your thoughts about the TV coverage?  I found it a weird week,  beginning with this:

Did you see Rory McIlroy’s birdie on the final hole of the first round of the U.S. Open on Thursday?

If the answer is yes, and you saw the putt live rather than in a highlight package, then you are one of the golf fans who have Peacock, NBC’s subscription-based streaming service. If you didn’t see it live, you were probably cursing under your breath that the powers that run television and sports have found another way to milk a few dollars out of viewers.

The social media world exploded when the U.S. Open switched from USA Network, a standard network commonly found on most platforms including cable, to Peacock on Thursday afternoon. Those chants grew a little louder on Friday when USA Network wasn’t part of the Open broadcast, but Peacock was the television platform for the morning and late afternoon sessions. NBC carried the Open midday.

The Peacock thing is quite the annoyance, but the Thursday-Friday coverage windows were bizarre.  On Thursday, USA gave us BBC-like all-day coverage, almost like the event was important.  Then on Friday?  No USA, with NBC only coming on air for the afternoon wave.  We all get that they're trying to force us onto their paid platform, but how does that help the USGA?

Also not helping:

NBC’s third-round coverage of the U.S. Open struggled with technical difficulties, frustrating fans who have questioned the network’s commitment to the sport.

Sometime around 4 p.m. ET, the broadcast lost graphics, including the leaderboard, as well as audio. Even beyond that outage, fans complained about overall poor audio quality during the round.

Golf Twitter was not amused:

While I've been relatively sanguine about the auditions for lead analyst, the dueling odd-even hole 18th green tower arrangement seemed unruly and needlessly complicated.  Perhaps more on that in the coming days.

A great show at an iconic venue.... what's not to love?

Alas that leaves us with only one more of these... on to the Postage Stamp.

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Thursday, June 13, 2024

Thursday Themes - Open Thursday Edition

If we believe the prognosticators, this week could feature an old-timey 1980's-ish U.S. Open.  Perhaps, but my experience is that pre-tourney predictions of difficulty et buried under a sea of red numbers.

It might be more of an old-timey Open Championship, at least in terms of TV coverage.  Reminiscent of the all-day BBC coverage, USA is on as of 6:30 today, and will go all day.  Tiger tees off in an hour, so should be a fun day of golf

Number Two - They don't get more classic than Pinehurst, although you'll note that the USGA didn't get there until 1999.  Of course, given the pre-restoration dreariness of the place, modern Opens at Pinehurst begin with those 2014 back-to-backers.

So, how tough a test will this be?

This will be an Open of survival. Of finding a way, regardless of convention. Of swallowing pride to ensure no worse than a bogey. An Open at Pinehurst is frequently less about great shots and more
about minimizing the impact of bad swings and poor decisions, even more so since a 2011 restoration by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw took No. 2 back to its raw, sandy, bouncy roots.

In an era of big swings dominating golf, Pinehurst No. 2 puts a premium on small-ball sensibilities. Of knowing when to pitch out sideways, when to play to the front of a green, when to leave the 60-degree wedge in the bag. Martin Kaymer proved as much in winning the 2014 U.S. Open by eight shots, deftly relying on his putter from off the greens.

The resort caddies at No. 2 don’t talk much about greens hit in regulation. Instead, they laugh about “greens visited in regulation,” so common it is for balls to scatter away from the crowned putting surfaces. Great shots will find favor, as they always should. Mediocre and even seemingly good shots, however, are subject to No. 2’s audacious greenside roll-offs.

My caddie spoke of "Pitch marks in regulation," of which there were quite a few.

Any discussion of this joint begins with the greens:

The term of art is as follows:

U.S. Open 2024: 'Effective green size' is a big buzzword at Pinehurst—here's what it means

 I've been reliably informed that size matters....

On paper, the USGA reports that the average green size here at Pinehurst this week is about 6,500 sq. feet, which is actually pretty big. It's about the same size as an average, low-scoring PGA Tour green.

But as always, the devil is in the details.

The reality is that the "effective size" of the greens—a phrase you'll hear a lot this week—is smaller. A lot smaller.

How much smaller? Scott Fawcett, a mathematician and founder of DECADE Golf, ran the numbers on a few of the greens.

Here's the second green, for instance, as measured by StrackaLine.

Everywhere that appears red, orange or pink denotes a slope of more than four percent.

 

 

The most interesting thing to watch will be how they will play from those surrounds.  In 2014 they used putters almost exclusively, but it seems that these areas are a bit shaggier than in '14.  

So, about that effective size:

“Your ball won’t stay on those slopes,” says Ralph Bauer, a PGA Tour putting coach. “The Masters or USGA may put a pin on a four percent slope, but that’s as much as you can go when the greens get this fast.”

When Fawcett imposed the remaining green-or-blue area on the green, he found players are left with a target just 14 yards wide. The total area is about 2,700 sq. feet—a space that’s almost 1,000 sq. feet smaller than the average green size at the smallest greens on tour at Pebble Beach.

Just watched Matteo Manassero and Rico Hoey putting from around No. 10 green.  Both were putting for par on the Par-5, and the former had his first putt come back to his feet, then naturally blew the next one way by.  

Pete Cowan, who knows a few things, expects some pros to look like ams this week:

Pete Cowen hates lob wedges. Well, hate is a bit strong. He’s just not a fan.

For all the pre-tournament cramming trying to solve Donald Ross’ turtleback greens, Cowen projects many players will fall into a familiar trap once play begins. They will miss a green, pull out their usual wedge, and then they’ll chunk a chip by attempting to dig the leading edge into the turf. If the lie is what should dictate most shot choices in a U.S. Open, Cowen suspects players will underestimate the challenge of chipping into the grain out of Pinehurst’s tightly-mown collection areas.

“Anybody that drives the leading edge into the ground is going to struggle,” he said. “You need to know how to use the bounce, but most people don't know how to use the bounce properly.”

As Cowen said, the only way to use a wedge from off a green here is by opening the face and slide the club along the ground to utilize the bounce. You can see Matt Fitzpatrick do so here, albeit with his unconventional cross-handed chipping method.

What does Pete recommend?

The better option, Cowen says, is something with significantly less loft, whether it’s Tiger Woods’ 4-iron bump-and-run, or the 3-wood Webb Simpson was using in his practice round Wednesday.

If there is a bit more grass under the ball, that does make the the flopper easier.   

The other issue is what happens when you miss a fairway.  I love the unkempt look of the post-restoration No. 2, but are you familiar with wire plants?


I was there in the Fall of 2013, and we were given an obscene number of wire plants to be added before the 2014 events, and now we hear that they've added another huge number for this installment.  

Golf Magazine convened its Tour Confidential panel to muse over relative levels of brutality:

The difficulty of Pinehurst No. 2 has been a major talking point at this week’s U.S. Open, but as we ready for the first round, do you think that storyline has been overblown? Or do you think we’ll see scores much higher than expected on Thursday?

Jessica Marksbury: No matter how hard a golf course is supposed to be, it seems like there is always someone who manages to shoot an outlier low score. But that said, I do think Pinehurst will show some teeth this week, and I expect even par will be considered a great round.

Dylan Dethier: I’m very, very concerned by the amount of green-watering that seems to be going on. But if you believe the players, this thing is gonna be brutal — in a good way. Tiger Woods talking about guys playing ping-pong. Wyndham Clark called the greens borderline on Monday. Martin Kaymer, who won here last time, talking about how much tougher it looks this time around. Those of us who love watching the pros tackle a terrifying U.S. Open test are often disappointed to get to tournament time and see the course play easier than advertised, but I don’t think that’ll happen this week. I hope not. Winning score is three under.

Jack Hirsh: I really like the six- to 10-under-par that has been winning U.S. Opens of late. Yes, the greens are challenging and while they are watering the course now, as Dylan reports, it’s going to take a lot more than hosing to soften this course with the high temperatures coming Thursday through Sunday. After the greens, the next defense of this golf course is the length because you can get away with some big misses off the tee. These guys will still have lots of wedges into greens. There will be plenty of birdies to keep the winning score in that sweet spot scoring zone, but also lots of train wrecks to keep most of the field on the other side of par. Sounds like a U.S. Open to me.

Sean Zak: It’s been accurately portrayed. It’s all the players can seem to talk about, a breath of fresh air from Valhalla last month, which one caddie told me today, “Didn’t feel like a major.” That’s because the ball sat exactly where it landed on the ground. There was no thinking, no hard work for caddies. Players are talking about the difficulty of the course because their brains are switched ON. They should be. It’s exhausting. It’s the U.S. Open. I don’t see scores ballooning, necessarily, but there is definitely room for some chaos, which is great. A wicked fun weekend awaits. Six under wins.

Zephyr Melton: I’m sure the test will be stern, but I don’t see scores being as high as they have been in the previous Opens here, with just four players total finishing under par. Since the Saturday massacre at Shinnecock in 2018 (giving us Zach Johnson’s infamous “They’ve lost the golf course” speech) the USGA has been very cautious about pushing things to the edge. The winning U.S. Open scores since then have been 13 under, 10 under, and three times at six under. I’d guess that the winning score this year will be something in that six under range. Carnage isn’t as much in the DNA for the current USGA regime.

Josh Sens: The good news about this week is that the course won’t need to be tricked up to be toughened up. The greens alone at No. 2 are enough of a defense to keep scores from running into deep-red Valhalla numbers, without having to cut pins on goofy nobs or bake the putting surfaces to asphalt consistency. And because they’re now bermuda (a change since the last U.S. Open here in 2014) the course setup peeps should be able to get the putting surfaces super-tight without worrying about burnout. Should be fierce but fair. By the end of the week, I suspect you’ll be able to count the total number of players under par on one hand. Scottie Scheffler will probably be the lowest of them, at seven under.

As Dylan hints at, I expect that the USGA will soften things for Thursday-Friday, not least because they need to get 156 players around each day.  

I'm hoping for some carnage, but these guys are so good I expect we'll see better scoring than expected.

The Summer of His Discontent - What a long, strange trip it's been for this guy: 

It turns out that Jon Rahm’s toe infection is worse than he said during his pre-U.S. Open press
conference on Tuesday. The Spaniard withdrew from the 124th U.S. Open just hours later.

The infected sore is located between the little toe and the next toe on his left foot. Rahm posted on his social media in both English and Spanish that “after consulting with numerous doctors and my team, I have decided it is best for my long term health to withdraw,” he wrote. “To say I’m disappointed is a massive understatement!”

Rahm, the 2021 U.S. Open champion, was scheduled to make his ninth appearance in the U.S. Open. He was replaced in the field by alternate Jackson Suber, 24, of Tampa, Florida.

Rahm withdrew from LIV Golf’s Houston on Saturday due to the infection to his left foot.

Do Saudis appreciate irony?  Rahm was a shot across the bow from Yasir,  but has looked s miserable at LIV that he's likely more of a cautionary tale at this juncture.

There's news in the golf media world.  You might have noticed it's been an eternity since we had an Ask Alan, and it's been pretty clear that the Fire Pit Collective was, cute name aside, failing to generate any heat.  Now Alan pops up with a new mailbag, but the news is that he's now hanging his hat at MyGolfSpy.com, an interesting gear-focused website but a curious landing spot for Alan.

More on that in the future, but he had this on the Spaniard:

Will Jon Rahm ever wake up and smell the roses, or will he persist in his apparent delusion that a) he is still a member in good standing of the PGA Tour, and b) he will one day be welcomed back to his favorite PGA Tour events with open arms? @WillotheGlen

He may yet get to play Torrey Pines and Riviera and the Phoenix Open and a few more of his favorites, but for sure this has been a jarring change in workplaces for Rahm. He has immense pride and a deep desire to become a player for the ages, so it is far too early to give up on him. Rahm has learned a hard lesson that more money hardly guarantees more happiness. He will find his equilibrium eventually but it better be soon, because the sport is quickly moving on without him.

Even before Rahm guys like Brooksie seemed a bit unhappy once he got healthy.  Combined with Rahm's pining for PGA Tour events, it seems quite the flashing red light for others considering such a move.

Say What? - If it's Rahm's summer of discontent, how to explain the ebb and flow of this guy's life?

Rory McIlroy began the PGA Championship last month with news that he had filed for divorce from his wife, Erica Stoll. Now, a couple of days away from the start of the U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2, the World No. 3 golfer says the couple has reversed course.

“Over the past weeks, Erica and I have realized that our best future was as a family together. Thankfully, we have resolved our differences and look forward to a new beginning,” McIlroy told the Guardian news outlet.

McIlroy, 35, and his wife have been married for seven years and have a daughter, 3-year-old Poppy. He filed for divorce on May 13 in Florida, the day after winning the Wells Fargo Championship.

The Guardian reported that McIlroy downplayed internet reports about his dating life in the aftermath of the original divorce announcement. “There have been rumors about my personal life recently, which is unfortunate. Responding to each rumor is a fool’s game," he said.

 Amanda Balionis hardest hit?

Life is hard, you just wonder at the inability to keep their difficulties out of the headlines.

Wither Golf - Eamon Lynch sees these Mike Whan comments as a shot across the bow:

Whan’s second broadside was ostensibly about LIV Golf, but was aimed squarely at players
competing on all tours, and at the executives charged with resolving the grubby, divided state of men’s professional golf.

Twelve LIV members are in the 156-man field at Pinehurst No. 2, all of whom earned a berth through final qualifying or long-established exemption criteria. Whan was at pains to point out that every LIV player had an opportunity to be here.

“We had 35 players from LIV that were exempted right into final qualifying. So if they really wanted to be here, they could go play 36 holes and qualify, and some did, to their credit,” he explained. “There is no out-of-bounds stakes on our field criteria … it’s not a closed field. It doesn’t require a committee or an invitation. If you want to play in this field you’ve got an opportunity to play in this field, and we’re proud of that.”

But, Mike, what about that asterisk, because Talor doesn't do 36?

This is the actual warning shot:

But avenues exist directly from other professional tours into the championship, so the USGA’s head admitted that he and chief championships officer John Bodenhamer will discuss a potential pathway for LIV golfers deemed worthy but otherwise ineligible by other established criteria. “We’re going to talk about it this off-season, whether or not there needs to be a path to somebody or somebodies that are performing really well on LIV that can get a chance to play in that way. I think we are serious about that,” he said.

Translated from Whan’s positivity patter, that was a candid warning to the PGA Tour to get its house in order, that the USGA isn’t prepared to see its premier event diminished in the future because relevant golfers are absent. Whan isn’t quite drinking the ‘Gooch hooch’ favored by PGA of America CEO Seth Waugh, whose outfit contorted itself to invite LIV’s Talor Gooch to last month’s PGA Championship, despite his having made no effort to qualify on merit. But Whan is at least suggesting he might pour himself a shot for the 125th U.S. Open if there is no more clarity on the future of the men’s game.

It's not what Jay wants to hear right now, but the PGA of America might have made the more significant concessions.   Especially as it seems a deal is more likely in the current moment...

Shipnuck had a few bits on this subject:

Since many of the LIV contracts allegedly were only three-year deals, is the PGA Tour worried that that LIV will poach more players next winter? @IIIWoodD

Of course! The Jon Rahm signing was the ultimate warning to the Tour: come back to the bargaining table or we will raid your top players. It’s wild that anyone would still question Al-Rumayyan’s resolve. He plays to win, and if the framework agreement falls apart and LIV and the Tour go back to being bitter rivals, Yasir will not be shy about wielding the checkbook.

LIV deals expiring is an interesting side note, but are there many guys still interested in jumping?  Color me skeptical, but who knows?

#AskAlan: I’ve been thinking of the best way to have a tour that’ll satisfy sponsors, top-tier players, rank-and-file players, spectators and fans at home. Now my head hurts. Is this an impossible task that “Hockey Jay” has before him? @david_troyan

I think there is a solution that will satisfy all of these constituents with the possible exception of the rank-and-file, but, frankly, they are the least important folks in all of this. It starts with the PGA Tour and the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) consummating a deal, which has to happen to reunify the game. The Tour should use this inflection point to finally admit that its schedule is far too bloated; a little contraction will help the product. If we eliminate the weakest 10 or so Tour events, that opens up weeks on the calendar that can be filled by the LIV tournaments. Now we build bridges between the tours: two four-man teams at every LIV event will be filled by Tour players, adding some needed frisson (and giving the Tour guys a chance to feed at the trough). And LIV regulars get to accept up to seven non-member sponsor’s exemptions at Tour events, which will greatly increase the box office and give them pathways back; if the LIV players win a tournament, they automatically become full-blown Tour members and can come home without penalty.

Now that the walls are coming down, we can finally build a unified global schedule. The national opens of Ireland, Scotland, Australia, South African, Japan, Korea and Argentina become signature events, drawing the best players and restoring the lost luster of those proud old events. To help make all of this work, the PGA Tour has to reduce the number of exempt players to 100, or maybe 90. But PIF and Strategic Sports Group (SSG) investment means the Korn Ferry can double or triple its purses, so the displaced journeyman can still fly private occasionally. And they can be given preferred opportunities on a better-capitalized European Tour and an Asian Tour flush with LIV investment.

As for the beleaguered fans, a big chunk of the private equity and PIF money has to be used to used to improve the TV and streaming products: drastically fewer ads; ability to watch every shot of every player at every tournament; all the caddies and players wearing mics; various other improvements to win back the many folks who have been disenchanted by the lousy product and endless bitchiness.

Maybe I’m a dreamer, but I think most of this is actually doable. It just takes some imagination and leadership. Alas, that’s been in short supply lately among the game’s stewards.

Maybe you are a dreamer, but you're not the only one...

I just don't think this actually provides much of a roadmap, though we can certainly agree that the one constituency that will get effed is the Tour rank and file.  Alan seems to think that LIV will survive relatively intact, whereas I think Yasir needs an exit strategy from LIV, as there's no obvious path to viability.

And this amusing throwaway:

Alan, is it true you are actually Yasir Al-Rumayyan? You look so much alike. @dokktordogo

About the only thing we have in common is that we both love golf and have beards. Oh, and that Greg Norman is often an irritant to us. It’s not an accident that Al-Rumayyan has chosen golf as a vehicle for further ingratiating himself into the upper echelons of sport and business. He has Western appetites. In the MBS biography Blood and Oil, Yasir is described as having “a taste for fine cigars and after-hours bars in Dubai frequented by long-legged, short-skirted Russian women.” This is definitely a point of departure for us, as I prefer cheap cigars.

 Have the two ever been seen together?

Malbon Follies - has there been a funnier recurring bit in golf lately than Jason Day's outfits?  You no doubt remember that the green jackets asked him to remove an overly-busy jumper, leaving Mike Whan to make the call on this scripting:

But it's the marketing hype that truly amuses:

Day and Malbon Golf previewed the upcoming Golf & Cycle Collection the golfer is going to model this week at the US Open, and it really runs the gamut. Thursday, Saturday and Sunday scripting all seem like reasonable, no-nonsense looks from the brown tee with embroidered chest art to the light blue vest that we’ll (hopefully) see in contention on Sunday. But when it comes to drama, Friday is the easy standout.

And what does golf and cycling have in common?  That would be nothing, but whatev...  Day's outfits are the gift that keeps on giving.

Enjoy the Open and your weekend, and we'll wrap it all on Monday.

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