This and That

Sorry for the delayed blogging today, but Herself invited me to join her morning game, and you wouldn't have me pass up that would you?

Oddball Stuff - Just a few odds and ends to work up some momentum for this post.  First, I go up to the range yesterday afternoon and I'm hitting next to Richard Kind.  That's not quite as unexpected as it might seem, as Amazon is filming a new series at Willow Ridge called Red Oaks, the setting for which is a country club.  The series stars Jennifer Gray, Paul Reiser and, yes, Richard Kind.

He's best known for recurring roles on Mad About You and Spin City, but he's the kind of character actor that you recognize but can't come up with a name.  I happen to know his name because a few years ago at work I was asked to interview an analyst candicate that was his double.  I couldn't do justice to the interviewee because I spent the whole time trying to come up with the actors name....  Small world.

Next, see if you can guess why this is an issue:

Talks aimed at resolving the CalMac ferry dispute have been described as "bitterly disappointing" by a union. 

The RMT said progress had been slow on the issue of jobs and working conditions during "difficult" discussions held last week. 

And it warned that fresh industrial action cannot be ruled out as a further two days of negotiations get under way.

The entire staff of Unplayable Lies is headed to Askernish in August, on the Island of South Uist in the Outer Hebrides.  CalMac is the ferry service involved in getting there, and I am reliably informed by good friend and fellow traveler John Coupland that there is no Plan B.

Lastly, the above-referenced Herself has been playing beautifully this summer, noticeably longer through the bag and with no shortage of short-game props.  However, this morning on our front nine was the first time she's ever beaten me on a nine....gross.  She shot 41 (par is 34) and...well, I didn't.  But this isn't about me, except for being about how I'm going to get my clock cleaned in Scotland....

Open Detritus - More afterthoughts on a great week...first, Martin Kauffman takes ESPN to the woodshed:

Given that, Monday’s weather-delayed final round of the Open should have been one of

ESPN’s finest days producing golf. It had all of the elements – Jordan Spieth, a stacked leaderboard, the surprising amateurs – of a great final round. Just fire up the cameras and show us the pictures, guys. 

But that’s not what ESPN does. My continuing criticism of ESPN’s Open coverage in recent years is that the weekend rounds sometimes look like studio shows, particularly during the first few hours. It actually seemed marginally better on that count this year – a full hour of coverage must have passed before I screamed at the TV – but there was way too much chatter and way too few golf shots shown. Van Pelt, who perhaps had too much Earl Grey before going on air, was particularly voluble. On Twitter he referred to the early coverage as “setting (the) table,” as if viewers tuning in on Monday morning to watch history play out needed tutoring. It’s an unnecessary exercise.

I had been complimentary of them earlier in the week, but also found them quite intrusive on Monday.  Though unlike Marty (I can call you Marty, can't I?), the one I'd single out is Curtis Strange.   I needed a legal pad to write down all the inanities that came out of his trap....

Though credit is due for this:

ESPN showed 358 shots during this period which worked out to 1.23 strokes per minute - a sizable increase over the ESPN shot rate of 1.01 from the 2014 Open Championship.

This was also a higher shot rate than I tracked for CBS from the 2015 Masters and Fox 

from the 2015 US Open, but trailed the rate that NBC showed during the 2015 Players. The Masters post contains links to the shot charts I did for the 2014 majors.

One shot a minute seems kind of chintzy to me, but I'm just a humble blogger...

And on the subject of announcers, Peter Alliss  is coming in for some criticism from the SJW's.  This from an unbylined Telegraph report:

Alliss, 84, had already sent social media alight on Sunday night with his comment about young Irish amateur Paul Dunne being hugged by his mother as he came off the course with a share of the third-round lead. 

"Ah, that must be mum," said Alliss. "Perhaps he likes older women. I don't know but I hope I got the right one." 

And this when Zach Johnson's wife Kim was shown congratulating her husband.

As the camera focused on her, Alliss mused about how the couple would spend the prize money: "She is probably thinking - 'if this goes in I get a new kitchen'," commented Alliss.

Being a little cheeky there, Peter....but c'mon all you oh-so-serious types, do things like this really matter to you?  I cringe every time my 94-year old father calls a waitress Honey, but that's just how gents of that generation grew up speaking.  I rather doubt that Kim Johnson was offended, and who knows, maybe she does need a new kitchen...

Next, Joel Beall takes on the issue of whether the Old Course is still up to snuff:

Depending on your definitions of "venerable" and "archaic," the golf world is not

honoring its elder.

St. Andrews is an institution, a breathing beacon of the sport. Unfortunately, the way the players and press are discussing the consecrated grounds, you would think the Old Course was a muny pitch-n-putt. Or worse, Chambers Bay. 

Every five years, St. Andrews takes center stage on the rota of Open courses. And every five years, you can count on the blasphemous premise to be raised: has the Old Course become an antiquated venue?

I'm gonna go with no, but Joel ignores the obvious issue that arose this week, namely green speeds.  Scoring has been remarkably consistent at the Old Course (Faldo won in 1990 at -19), and will always be dependent upon the weather.  But that has been accomplished with ever firmer and faster greens, and we're now at a point where we can't play in the wind, which is the essence of an Open Championship.

Paul Dunne went the way of most surprise contenders, and his chunked wedge on the first hole was painful to watch.  But that which does not kill us makes us stronger, so he would seem to have a bright future, over which some luminaries are quibbling per Brian Keough:

Graeme McDowell sees few reasons why Paul Dunne shouldn't give the Walker Cup a miss and take the leap into the professional ranks as soon as possible. But Pádraig Harrington believes he should remain amateur and play at Royal Lytham and St Annes in September, if he’s selected. 

Asked his advice, Harrington said: “You know, he can be a pro all his life. The Walker Cup only comes around not very often. I think golf in the Walker Cup and turn pro then.”

Gotta go with Paddy here, as the Walker Cup is a great event and will establish friendships on both sides of the pond that will last a lifetime.  I always hate to see the youngsters rush things and miss out on seminal experiences.  I don't take professional success as a given, and I'd like to see him savor his success before moving up several weight classes.

How's this for a great call?   

Peter Sanders has worked with Johnson since 2012 -- as well as a handful of other PGA

Tour pros -- by analyzing his numbers on the course. But in that time, he's never done what he did before Johnson arrived at the Old Course. Let's just say Sanders was feeling pretty good about his client's chances. 

"I usually send a weekly 'report card' to each of my players, and their team with a snapshot of what they did well and not so well," said Sanders, who is the creator of Shot By Shot, a program that helps track and analyze any golfer's stats. "After the John Deere, I sent a note to Zach's team saying, 'NO report needed. Zach should go to St. Andrews with the supreme confidence that all parts of his game are at their best.'"

When I sat at a table with stats guru Mark Broadie at the Met. Golf Writers' dinner, one of the questions I asked was which Tour players have most embraced statistical analysis, Zach's was one of the names he noted.

How did you all react to the Road Hole this week?  I'm not sure how I felt, and engaged in a back-and-forth with good friend Glenn on the subject, he having the advantage of having been there.  No doubt it played brutally difficult, as Sean Zak captures:

Our on-site correspondent

Often called the “toughest hole in golf,” 17 played .655 strokes over par throughout the event, nearly half a stroke tougher than the next toughest hole. 

The Road Hole surrendered just nine birdies and produced 203 pars, 217 bogeys and 43 double bogeys or worse after being played 472 times over four rounds.

More bogeys than pars: check.  More double bogeys than birdies: check.  At one point it had a higher stroke average than the fifth, which is an actual Par-5... and this from the winner is quite true:

Johnson had a clever way of summing it up on Thursday afternoon. According to Golf Channel's Rex Hoggard, when Johnson was told there had been no birdies on 17 that day, he responded: "That's not right, the group in front of us all made 4s."

But what was missing was play from the road and against the stone wall...  They kept the rough left of the fairway under control this year, which the consensus favors, the logic being that if you allow these great players to reach the green from a lie in the rough, a certain percentage of them will only get themselves into deeper trouble.

What I saw was an endless succession of players playing short of the green, a good many of them because they couldn't reach it.  This was undoubtedly true during Mondays play (not in playoff though) when the hard left-to-right wind had them aiming for the second fairway.  From there many simply couldn't reach, and an equal number didn't even try... but that left us watching the entire field attempting to two-putt up that slope, which became a tad tedious...

Now the hole seemed to play into the fan all week, though I believe that is the prevailing wind (I'd be happy to have Mark W. correct me if I'm in error).  So, as an exit question, have they made the Road Hole so long that it's lost it's character, if not its bite?

And if you didn't catch it on the broadcast, do give this ESPN feature on The Old Course Hotel a look.  Lots of new information, including that the hotel's administrative offices are housed in the old railway shed.  Can you say "Incoming"?  I thought you could...

Golf in Black and White - Gary Player has long lost any filter he might have, but see what you think of this comment:

"We need Tiger Woods. Why? He’s a man of color. We need a black champion. Go to

Africa, where we’ve got all these young black kids used to seeing a white guy as the champion. Now they’re getting inspired; they’re sitting in front of their TV sets. It inspires them; it gets them interested in golf. Asia wants to see a man of color. So there are many reasons besides being so charismatic. I don’t know if anybody in the world today can play like Tiger Woods did."

I don't know, I found Michael Jordan and Lebron James pretty inspiring... But the truth is that since Tiger burst on the scene in 1997, there's really scant evidence that he created any new golfers.  There's little doubt that he put some eyeballs in front of TV screens, but that's a different thing...

 No, Next Question - Here's the header to a John Strege item I've no need to read:

Canadian Open at Glen Abbey and one of Tiger's greatest shots: Could he hit it today?

For those of a nostalgic bent, he's referring to this shot:

 And even if he could hit thst shot on a Sunday these days, it would be at 8:30 a.m.

Open Monday

Did anyone see that coming?  I got the Spieth part right, but little else....

Zach Attack - Here's Alan Shipnuck's amusing lede from his game story:

St. Andrews, SCOTLAND—The Slam is dead. Long live Zach Johnson, once the most

underrated player in golf and now the game’s greatest overachiever. 

After Johnson dusted the pre-scandal Tiger Woods at the 2007 Masters, Rick Reilly opined, “I think Zach Johnson in ten years has a real chance to be your server at Olive Garden.” Eight years later, Johnson is most of the way to the Hall of Fame, with 12 PGA Tour victories. More impressively, Johnson is only the sixth man to win both a Masters and an Open at the Old Course, joining all-time greats Sam Snead, Jack Nicklaus, Seve Ballesteros, Nick Faldo, and Woods.

Well, if one offers strong opinions some of them will be embarrassing in hindsight, such as my pretty much all of mine.  But Zach is the ultimate over-schiever given the limitations of his game, most notably the lack of length.

Zach's caddie Damon Green ir being appreciated for his impromptu chicken dance on the 18th green when Zach's unlikely birdie putt dropped, but he had these words about his man:

"I'd like to say he has something other than heart," says Johnson's caddie Damon Green, who did a memorable chicken dance after his boss’s birdie on the 72nd hole. "He's got the biggest pair out here. He's not afraid of being in the lead, he thrives on it. A lot of guys don't like being in the lead, they can't stomach it. But he's got a cast-iron stomach. Man, he's solid."

He certainly looked the most confident over his key short putts down the stretch, and that's as good a measure of testicular volume as any...

Sal Johnson has some interesting numbers from Zach's win, including this one:

20-under

Johnson absolutely owned the first ten holes of the Old Course, posting 14 birdies in regulation plus two more in the four-hole playoff. He also topped off each round with a birdie on 18 -- including a clutch 25-footer on the 72nd hole to earn a spot in the playoff -- for a cumulative score of 20-under par on those 11 holes. Over the same stretch, runners-up Marc Leishman and Louis Oosthuizen were both 13-under, while Grand-Slam-also-ran Jordan Spieth posted 16-under.

He did pretty well in holding on coming home, but those outbound holes played far easier all week, and allowed any player to flip wedges into all but the fourth green.  If the lads are wedging it, you have to like Zach's chances.

The Tour Confidential blokes were asked whether this makes Zach Hall of Fame worthy, and Gary Van Sickle nailed it with this:

The way they're running the Hall now, Zach would've gotten in with one major. He played great, no doubt, and was fortunate someone else didn't clip him. But there aren't many two-time major-winners. He is now a cut above the one-timers. And he's on par with, oh, Andy North and Greg Norman.

Well, except for that last bit, as Andy North and Greg Norman have likely never been previously mentioned in the same sentence.  But on the larger point I've noted here previously that while I would have set the bar higher, Zach's accomplishments would get him into the Hall.  This fortunately gets me to a point where I do think he's worthy of it.

Jordan Drools - That was gut-wrenching for us, though no doubt not as much for the young man

himself.  Before we get to the specifics, kudos to Spieth for a great run at it, for his hand-clap and thumbs-up on the 18th green after holing out, as well as for this post-round tweet:

Wow.. Almost. Nothing quite like @TheOpen at St Andrews. We fought hard. Very proud of a role model and friend of mine @ZachJohnsonPGA 

Ryan Lavner goes with the ironic angle:

The greatest irony? His magical short game – his greatest strength – was the part that let him down the most in his quest for a third major in a row. 

Ranked first on Tour in three-putt avoidance, Spieth’s speed control was off all week, leading to a career-worst 37 putts in Round 2, including five three-putts, and a four-putt on the eighth green Monday.

Tim Dahlberg agrees, though without the "I" word:

The Road Hole was playing so long into the rain and wind that Spieth couldn’t reach the

green in two. No matter, because he plopped his pitch just eight feet from the hole. 

“If I stood on 17th tee box and you told me I had that putt for par on the hole,” Spieth said later, “I would have certainly taken it.” 

Almost shockingly, he missed it right. The best putter in the game didn’t make the one that mattered the most.

Ultimately, six three-jacks and the shocking four-putt Monday on the eighth were just too deep a hole, and here' the lad on the latter:

Q. Take us through 8. You said you made a mental mistake there.

JORDAN SPIETH: Yeah, I believe we played 8 and 17 as hard as anybody -- as hard as any group today, were those two holes. It was the hardest rain and the hardest wind at the same time of the day. We stepped on that tee box, and you'd like to maybe have a downwind hole where it doesn't really make that much of a difference, but when you look up from the ball and you're getting pelted in the face, it's a hard shot, and I just tried to sling one in there and I left it 40 yards from the pin on the green there, and it's just a no-brainer. If you make bogey, you're still in it. If you make double bogey, it's a very difficult climb, and there's absolutely no reason to hit that putt off the green. I can leave it short, I can leave if eight feet short and have a dead straight eight-footer up the hill where I'll make that the majority of the time. My speed control was really what cost me this week, the five three-putts the second round, and then just my speed control in general wasn't great. On that hole I had left so many of them short throughout the week, I said, I'm not leaving this one short, I'm going to get this one up there, and instead hit it off the other side of the green where it was really dead there, so that was a mental mistake on my part. Instead of being patient and just accepting eight feet from 40 yards like I do on a 40-yard wedge shot, I instead was a little too aggressive with it when it wasn't necessary.

I'm assuming that he means that he caught the worst of the conditions, but how shocking was that first putt?  

Brandel Chamblee looks elsewhere for that elusive lost stroke"

“People will nitpick this and talk about Jordan Spieth’s putting, and probably that’s why

he didn’t win,” Chamblee said Monday evening from St. Andrews. “He did have five three-putts and a four-putt, but Louis Oosthuizen had six three-putts. Zach Johnson had four three-putts. 

“He started this championship in grand fashion with a 31, but he did drive it in a pot bunker on the 13th hole and he found a pot bunker on the 17th hole on the back nine on Thursday. And he found a pot bunker on the fifth hole on Friday.”

He bogeyed those holes in each case. 

“Ultimately he played the par fives in two-under par. Zach Johnson was four-under par, Louis Oosthuuizen was four-under par [on the par 5s]. He did everything this week except avoid the pot bunkers, which is a no-no here. He lost by the thinnest of margins.”

On Friday I note that those mistakes could have been the result of a lack of clarity on the lines off the tee and into the green on No. 17.  As for his first graph, those guys are good putters, our Jordan is supposed to be the best putter on the planet.

 The kid is an obvious talent and has a flare for the dramatic, as per his 40-foot putt on No. 16.  He also staged quite the comeback after the double-bogey on No. 8, which we've seen him do more than most.  And he missed by the slimmest of margins with all that...

I feel vindicated in my pre-tournament criticism of his schedule, and I really wish it were otherwise.  I take his point that there's no clear path and future is unknown to us, but my primary logic was to prepare for this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity in a manner that would leave no room for regrets.  Do I think an extra week to ten days on site (and perhaps at Gullane) would have helped him maintain a feel for the green speeds?  I don't know and of course I can't know, but I think it's an entirely reasonable question, and one I was hoping he and I would not have to entertain.

R&A Recriminations - The Confidentilistas were asked about the curious handling of Saturday morning, with the expected results:

RITTER: They botched the green speeds for Saturday's winds and paid the price. We'll remember this event for the playoff and Spieth's run at history, but a lot of players -- including Spieth and Oosthuizen -- lost some shots during the 32 minutes they were forced to play in unfair conditions Saturday morning. That stings.

True that, though those groups had enjoyed a significant advantage in Thursday's play, so my sense is that the two waves got different but ultimately relatively equal treatment from the weather Gods.

LYNCH: The wind was howling, sure, but it would have been something less of an issue if the greens were at a reasonable speed. Links courses have enough width to be played in strong winds, and the Old Course is no exception. But when you shave the greens, the wind makes play untenable.

That's going to be an issue going forward.  While there can be little doubt that the R&A botched Saturday morning (and Thursday morning in even sillier fashion, though it didn't affect the marque groups), I do want to commend them for one decision.

It would have been logical to try to play 36 holes to complete the evnt on Sunday, making the network and sponsors far happier.   But the R&A accepted the hand they were dealt and protected the integrity of the event by planning on the Monday finish.  Playing 36-holes and leaving time for a four-hole playoff requires major compromises, including going to split tees and not repairing.  Not only is the Old Course a difficult course on which to physically get players to the tenth tee, but the leaderboard was so compressed that it would have been eminently possible to have the winning putt holed on the ninth green at the furthest end of the property.

There's more to discuss, but all in good time...

Weekend Wrap

Did anybody enjoy yesterday's golf?

Unfortunately I have a family obligation this morning of unknown duration.  That means that not only do I have limited time for blogging, but that even watching the tape of today's final round is problematic....but let's get to it, shall we?

Moving Day, Indeed - Nae wind, nae rain at the Old, nae par.... Marc Leishman led the charge with a 64 that really should have been a 62, and the lads killed every damn fish in the barrel...It was a day that demanded a mid-sixties score to remain relevant, and they were plentiful.

Lots to read this morning about the newcomer tied for the lead, Irishman Paul Dunne:

Paul Dunne strode along the 18th fairway Sunday afternoon, soaking in the cheers,

waving to the crowd, acting like the Old Course was his own personal playground. 

And for a day, at least, it was. 

His 66 tied him atop The Open leaderboard, in some heady company, with a different kind of history within his grasp. No amateur has won The Open since Bobby Jones in 1930. No amateur has led The Open through 54 holes since Jones in 1927.

When the last guy to do something is Bobby Jones, you know it's just an oddball quirk....and yet pretty cool.  But does Paul Dunne even know who Bobby Jones was?  Brian Keough has a nice feature on Dunne and Padraig Harrington as well.

On the range before yesterday's round, I suggested a wee pool to guess how DJ would drop-kick this major away.  My guess was that he would come to the 72nd hole one-shot behind needing eagle to win and blow his drive into Hamilton Hall.  OK, the Mendoza line remains safe, and yet I'll take credit for getting the big picture correct.  

My record preceeds me, but though the leaderboard resembles a rugby scrum, I'm gonna go with either King Louis or Jason Day, and if you limited me to one I'd go with the latter.  It's calm in the Auld Grey Toon as the early groups tee off, but they do expect some weather later.  I'm guessing that Jordan comes up agonizingly short and is left with the realization that he could have, you know, been a bit better prepared for the event.  And while we all know that Paul Dunne will not hoist the Claret Jug, I do hope he acquits himself well stays in it....

Local Color - We've been all over the Ginger Beer angle at this Open, and Shack informs that the R&A has gotten into the spirit of things:

The R&A is paying homage to the drink and man that inspired the 4th hole's branding as Ginger Beer. 

The "Gunner" comes in a bottle decorated by a label featuring an image of Auld Da Anderson selling his Ginger Beer and food items (historian David Hamilton theorizes that the round objects are poached eggs wrapped in sausage and deep fried). I came across it at the British Golf Museum's new cafe with sensational views of the courses here. 

Anderson was a caddie, ballmaker and clubmaker, and keeper of the green at St. Andrews before transitioning to his role selling beverages and food on the course. Many believe he served at the 9th hole, but the most consistent location of his Ginger Beer Cart was most likely the 4th.

Shack's got more in that linked post, including a display in the spectator village of items from Emory University's Bobby Jones collection that relate to St. Andrews.

Earlier in the week, Geoff did his typical merchandise tent thing here.

Fox, Forgotten - Despite being put in the uncomfortable position of being a two-year lame duck, ESPN is doing quite the good job I think.  Almost makes a fellow wish they weren't distracted by those other silly games....

They earn extra credit from this viewer for adding a broadcast window to capture the completion of the second round early Saturday morning, no doubt bumping essential infomercials.  And they pulled few punches in covering windgate, with Dottie Pepper in particular distinguishing herself...

The announcing team is mostly pleasant and competent.  Mike Tirico has taken his hits over the years as not being a real golf guy but, after experiencing Joe Buck, I think we've been a bit unfair,  Their weakest link is Tom Rinaldi's syrupy interviews, but those are always a bit awkward...

And they've come up with some new bells and whistles used well in the service of the broadcast.  First, superimposing landing area graphics over hole photos:

And this to show green contours:

And they've really upped the Protracer game, first with this quite amazing vantage point on the 17th hole landing area:

And did you notice them using Protracer on approach shots?  This is from a company press release:

“We employ multiple Protracer systems which allows us to track shots throughout the golf course and from varying camera angles, including rail mounted robotic cameras, mobile units and camera towers. It all works very well and integrates smoothly into the production.” says Berntsen.

All the more amazing given that after Troon 2016 they'll be out of the golf business....

State of the Game -  Events this week highlight the perilous state of our game... I have to admit that I didn't see it coming in this context.  We all well remember the seventh green at Shinnecock and the unnatural acts committed to host a U.S. Open at Merion in the 21st century, but who knew the weakest link would be....errr...the links.

First, since it all happened while we here were sleeping, let's briefly review the fisco of Saturday morning.  Here's a long excerpt from Jim McCabe on how it played out:

When at 7 a.m. R&A officials deemed the conditions playable to resume the second

round, which had spilled over from Friday because of havoc created by a 3-hour, 14-minute rain delay, they didn’t appear to have a substantial understanding of the issues at the 11th green. There, Brooks Koepka insisted the ferocity of the wind made it unplayable, and at first he refused to resume play. 

“I argued for five minutes. (But) I was told I needed to play on, and you’ve got to do what they tell you to do or you’re disqualified,” Koepka said. 

From 5 feet, Koepka’s putt for par rolled wide, then got swept up by a gust of wind. “It finished at 4 feet, but by the time (it stopped), it’s now 5 feet,” he said. He also stared at the official. “I was trying to show them the course is unplayable.”

The rules official apparently got the gist of the situation. Now, Koepka and his group were told they didn’t have to play. Koepka said playing competitor John Senden “didn’t want to putt, either.” 

While play was halted on the 11th green, it continued around them. Therein lies the philosophical quandary that we’ll let Ian Poulter describe: 

“The difficult situation that arose from this morning was that only two putts were made on the 11th green while 32 minutes of play happened everywhere else. Guys like myself played a hole-and-a-half, and other guys didn’t hit a shot (Game 47’s Stewart Cink, Ben Curtis, and David Duval spent the entire time on the tee waiting for the Kopeka group).

“Is that right or wrong?” Poulter said. "Most people would say that’s wrong.”

When Ian Poulter is the voice of reason, we've got a situation with a capital "S".  And. as an aside, I thought the decision on Thursday to send out the first three groups as the Swilican Burn was escaping its historical contours was perhaps even worse... Dottie also garners credit for noting that this is the third consecutive major (including a Women's Open) at St. Andrews in which play was stopped due to high winds.

As noted above, Dottie Pepper distinguished herself by noting that golf has been played in this specific location under these conditions for hundreds of years.... so what's changed?  There's a simple answer:  Green Speeds.  

Shack has a most excellent Golf World piece here, that is unfortunately in e-mag format.  But put this in your pipe and light it up.  The R&A has been maintain Stimp readings in the 10-10.5 foot range....when Arnold Palmer came over in 1960 to create the modern professional Grand Slam, speeds were half that.  Wow!

Shack also makes the invaluable point that play was not suspended for civilians Saturday at The Castle Course (on an even more exposed piece of land), as well as at placed lie Kingsbarns and Crail.  And Geoff goes into CIS-St. Andrews mode to show us Chief Inspector Dawson's nose growing ever larger.

Earlier in the week we linked to John Huggan's discussion of the changes to the Old Course, the most significan tof which was to the 11th green.  I can't overstate to you all how revered this hole is, the place where Bobby Jones quit in 1921 and the model for the Macdonald/Raynor/Banks Eden holes on so many of their creations.

Here's how Dawson explained the rationale for the change to this green:

“This is the only change we have made in order to get more pin positions. Some might say we could just have slowed the green – you for example – but I am of the philosophy that if the players are enjoying the course we will have a good Open and if they are not, we don’t. This green would have to run at six or seven on the Stimpmeter to make it work as it was before. I think that might have attracted some hostile reaction from players and media. 

“What we have now is a green that will still be puttable in a high wind, which it wasn’t before."

Well, I'm certainly glad that they were proactive so that this green can be kept at a consistent speed to the rest of the course....errr, never mind, as here's Dawson on green speeds:

Q. What is the stimpmetre reading for the Old Course for The Open Championship? 

PETER DAWSON: Well, we've been targeting between 10 and 10-foot-6, and we were achieving that every day, but we have kept the 11th green about six inches slower than those readings, and we've been consistently able to achieve that each morning.

As Shack rants here and here, the failure to control equipment by the governing bodies has painted us into a corner, requiring excessive green speeds to control scoring.  While 10-10.5 might not sound excessive to American readers, the combination of the contours and the prevalence of wind makes those speeds unsustainable.  

In the U.S. we've seen the USGA and the PGA Tour use a combination of obscene length, deep rough and lightning quick greens to control scoring.  On a links such as the Old Course they're about at the limits of how long they can make the course play, with several tee boxes already outside the contours of the golf course.  We've seen the R&A uses excessive rough in previous years, especially 2010, but I give them credit for backing of this year as it's a really bad fit on a links.  Far better to allow the lads to advance the ball, as they'll often get themselves in far worse trouble.

But where does this go?  Here's a final excerpt from Joe Posnanski:

Companies fully understand that there are too many people out there willing to pay for longer golf balls. They will find ways to cut drag, to enhance lift, to defy gravity — or whatever else they can do to get a little bit more golf ball air. 

And it will be up to the R&A and USGA to act and not just talk. Conditions are expected to be pretty mild on Sunday, which could mean it will be a shootout. Dustin Johnson and Jason Day and other long hitters will be hitting little wedges into holes. Guys will be driving par 4s. We could watch player after player overwhelm a defenseless St. Andrews. 

And it comes back to Jack Nicklaus again. He has been warning about this possibility for years. Maybe St. Andrews can hold up now, but what about in five years? What about in 10? Everyone wants to see the Open Championship at St. Andrews. Everyone also wants to hit their drives farther. And, for the people who run golf, a choice will have to be made.

Like a second marriage, expecting the governing bodies to act is the triumph of hope over experience.  But it seems to me that bifurcation is the only possible solution at this point...

We were cheated by the suspension of play on Saturday, was watching the best players in the world control their balls in high winds is the essence of an Open Championship.  And if they can't play on those conditions you might as well take the event to Loch Lomond...

The Old Course and all of the great classic venues of the world are still relevant to the recreational golfer, even the low-handicapper.  But unless we want the Open to move on from the Old Course or winning scores to approach 30-under, we're left with few choices.  The issue is mostly the golf ball, not only the distance they propel it bat also the reduction of spin on the ball, of great import playing in wind.

I'm out of time at this point, so discuss among yourselves...oh, and enjoy the finish.

Scenes From The Auld Grey Toon

We may tee up our ball in front of the Royal and Ancient Clubhouse for one of the least calming tee shots in existence. In front of stretches a vast flat plain, and unless we slice the ball outrageously on to the sea beach, no harm can befall us. At the same time we had much better hit a good shot, because the Swilcan burn guards the green, and we want to carry it and get a four. It is an inglorious little stream enough: we could easily jump over it were were not afraid of looking foolish if we fell in, and yet it catches an amazing number of balls.

BERNARD DARWIN

Quite an interesting first day at the Open Championship, and an even more interesting start to Day 2.  The guys at The Loop are quick into action, as Ryan Herrington has already posted pictured of the temporary flooding that suspended play:

Yes, but as of now they're in short-sleeves and I'm seeing shadows, most irregular that last bit....and drainage is seldom an issue on a proper links.

Let me share my favorite read of the last couple of day, this New York Times profile on St. Andrews' younger sister:

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland — Old, old, old. It always seems to be about the old at St.

Andrews, from the university, founded in 1413, to the ruins of the 12th-century cathedral to, above all, the Old Course, the ancestral home of golf and the site this week of another British Open. 

But there is, believe it or not, a New Course, even if it is not in use this week.

It lies adjacent to the Old on the same precious stretch of Scottish seaside property known to local residents simply as the Links. The New has nostone bridge and no Valley of Sin, but it, too, has great views of the town and its steeples, and is even closer to the West Sands, site of that slow-motion beach training run that opens the Oscar-winning film “Chariots of Fire.” 

Yet there is no New Course Hotel, no New Course signature golf cart, not even, it appears, a New Course cap, visor or T-shirt at double the reasonable price (or any price).

Many of the locals and frequent visitors to St. Andrews prefer the New, and friend and loyal UL reader Mark W. has specifically recommended that the bride and I play it in August.  But this doesn't bode well for my prospects there:

“How they play is the complete opposite,” Moir said. “Because the Old Course goes anticlockwise and all the trouble is on the right, while the New goes in the other direction, so all the trouble on the New is on the left. You can slice to your heart’s content around the New and all you do is find another fairway. It’s more like a normal links golf course with the normal-sized greens and undulations.”

The most important thing to keep in mind is that it's the New, that gave the Old its name.... The Old Course was previously known simply as The Links prior to Old Tom Building the New...and while the naming scheme has been frequently copied, this is the oldest New Course in the world.

 Far more discussion about Tiger's dreary 76 than is warranted.  I predicted that he would make the cut, which is about as accurate as my call of Rickie Fowler to win the damn thing.... Joel Beall sums up Tigers day pictorially:

I love the smell of fescue in the morning...

On Golf Channel, Aaron Oberholser offered this:

“I think his best days are long behind him,” Oberholser said on Golf Channel’s “Live from St. Andrews.” Woods shot a 76 to open the British Open on Thursday. “Right now, the best thing that he can do is concern himself with potentially breaking Sam Snead’s record on the PGA Tour of all-time wins. I believe right now that Jack Nicklaus’s record of 18 majors is very, very safe.”

Dave Shedloski had this from an unnamed player:

A fellow competitor, one who has known the ultra-competitive Woods for years, says that Woods "has lost the desire to play. Except for weeks like this, he isn't all that interested." The Tiger that burned so bright has only emotional embers in the furnace, and that is not enough to prepare properly for and compete at the level he is accustomed to - or that he clearly needs.

That bit above got the header, but I found his lede even more interesting:

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland -- Colin Swatton, the longtime instructor and caddie for Jason Day, made a point this week to watch Tiger Woods hit balls on the practice range prior to the Open Championship. He was shaking his head at what he saw. 

Bad, huh? 

"I swear, he never missed a shot," Swatton said. "I watched him for an hour the first time, and he hit it great. He's still a top-10 iron player in the world."

You think you've seen it all, but Tiger Woods, Friggin' TIGER WOODS, can't get it from the range to the golf course.

Paul Azinger, never one to leave an open wound unsalted, adds this:

Here is his latest, in the midst of Woods’ disastrous first round of the British Open at St. Andrews on Thursday: “Golf is simple. It’s just not easy. You have to drive it, wedge it and putt it. Tiger’s doing none of those three well. Nobody needs to tell Tiger what to think. Somebody needs to remind him how to think. I think he’d be better off with a good conversation than another lesson.”

Good luck with that...things are so dire, even AARP was taking shots at our hero.  Now just to let up on the guy for a sec, Tiger can appear to be a joyless sort at times, and I was gratified to read this:

Of St Andrews, Woods added: “Obviously it’s the home of golf, we all know that. But to me it’s brilliant, how you can play it so many different ways. I’ve always wanted to play it backwards, one time before I die. I want to play from 1 to 17, 2 to 16, so forth and so on. I think that would be just a blast because I can see how certain bunkers – why would they put that there? And then if you play it backwards, you see it. It’s very apparent. That’s totally in play. That one day would be a lot of fun to be able to do.”

I know it's his job, but I am happy to see him use that other "F" word in connection to golf.  For those that really have too much time on their hands, Jeremy Glenn posted this discussion of the Bizarro-World Old Course at Golf Club Atlas.

Another interesting read is this ESPN feature on our Phil and his dance along the invisible line:

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland -- There comes a time in the life of every great golfer when he crosses an invisible, but inevitable, line. 

On one side of the line, you are a contender in major championships; an elite athlete and artist with a club in your hands. You're still carving your name, and legacy, in sterling trophies. Your reach, to steal a line from Robert Browning, does not yet exceed your grasp. 

On the line's other side, golf is mostly about sentiment and ceremony. Occasionally, there are flashes of what once was, thrilling reminders of the man you used to be. But the cruel truth is, it does not last, not over four full days. It's almost impossible to cross back, to find yourself on the other side of the line. You can get a day pass that lets you revisit your golfing prime. Maybe even two or three. But it's bound to expire, sometimes in the cruelest manner possible. (See: Tom Watson, 2009 at Turnberry.) Even the rare exceptions -- Jack Nicklaus' 1986 Masters at age 46; Hale Irwin in the 1990 U.S. Open at 45 -- delude us into believing it can still happen, deep into the twilight of a golfing career, when so much of history suggests otherwise.

There's more history  of late-career wins than is implied above, as the career arc only reveals itself in hindsight.  But it's an interesting perspective on our Phil....

In other stuff we've missed, the AP's Doug Ferguson perfroms a service to mankind in compiling capsule summaries of all 28 previous Opens played on the Old Course.  This is the wildest finish:

1876: In one of the most bizarre endings, Bob Martin and David Strath finished at 169. On the 17th, Strath's third shot hit a player in the group ahead that was putting out, keeping the ball from going on the road. The committee decided there would be a playoff in two days, enough time to review whether Strath should be disqualified for hitting to the hole while players were still on the green. Strath refused to take part in a playoff under such conditions, and Martin was declared the winner.

But for those of us instinctively mortified by Peter Dawson's Treatment of Open venues, this is a timely reminder that he's far from the first:

1905: This might sound familiar: To counteract the new Haskell rubber-core ball, tees were lengthened and more pot bunkers were added to the Old Course. Only a dozen scores under 80 were recorded, and James Braid had a 318, the highest Open score in 10 years, to win by five strokes over J.H. Taylor and Rowland Jones.

OK, I'll take a chill pill...

And speaking of history, this will be famed first tee announcer and the man with the largest bladder in the world Ivor Robson's last Open:

But this week, official starter Ivor Robson will call time on his own iconic career as part

of golf’s oldest Major, having become an Open Championship institution in his own right.

Robson is due to retire as the European Tour’s official starter after the 2015 season-ending DP World Tour Championship, Dubai, in November, two months after he celebrates his 75th birthday, bringing down the curtain on a lifetime in golf that has made him a treasured part of the game’s folklore.

Yet it is his close association with The Open Championship that has entered him into the wider public consciousness. He may never have lifted a Claret Jug, but Robson has, in his own way, become nearly as synonymous with The Open as the famous trophy itself; a rare constant in golf’s ever-changing landscape.

His melodic Scottish accent, immaculate green blazer and tie, and trademark expressions – “I’ll let you go now” and “On the tee” – have been part of The Open’s unique makeup since 1975, the year Tom Watson lifted the Claret Jug at the first attempt.

This video is quite amusing:

With a caveat, however... by far the funniest im[pression of Ivor I've ever heard, in fact, one of the funniest things I've ever heard in general, was Y.E. Yang's impression of Ivor introducing Y.E. Yang at a prior Open Championship. Someone needs to find that clip..

A last couple of observations about the play until now:

• First, the last numbers I saw from Round 1 had the inward nine playing +/- two shots higher than the outbound.  But that doesn't quite explain David Lingmerth going out in a scroching 29, only to come home in 40.  That front nine included seven 3's....
• The leaderboard at the end of Round 1 was extremely compressed, with a gaggle of players at 6 under.  But of those, only Zach Johnson and Danny Willet came from the afternoon wave.  You can't win it on Thursday, but we can declare them Joint Champion Golfers of the Day.
• The Tour Confidential Panel was asked to recount their best St. Andrews memories, and the Champion Raconteur of the Year is Eammon Lynch with this:

Wandering up the 18th fairway at sunset on the Sunday night before the 2005 Open, amid locals walking dogs and kids playing (the Old Course being a public park on non-tournament Sundays). I turned around to see Seve Ballesteros strolling with a friend, speaking animatedly in Spanish. He stood on the green, unnoticed by most everyone, and gave his friend a little mock fist pump, reliving that conquering matador gesture from his win there in '84. Seve had presence, even if his game had long since gone. He was a lion in winter, but a lion nonetheless.

Ah...Seve.   The greatest fist pump in golf history?

• ESPN is a lame duck for two years, before NBC/Golf Channel takes over in 2017 from Birkdale.  They're not perfect, but after experiencing the Foxstrocity I'm liking them much more....Here's their announcing team, and see if you react as I did:

Mike Tirico and analyst Paul Azinger will call the play from the main booth adjacent to the 18th fairway. Hole announcers will be Curtis Strange, Sean McDonough and Scott Van Pelt, with Tom Rinaldi conducting player interviews.

On-course reporters for the morning players will be Andy North (with Jordan Spieth group), Billy Kratzert (with Bubba Watson group) and Dottie Pepper (with Tiger Woods group). For the afternoon session, Kratzert will follow the Phil Mickelson group and Judy Rankin will be with the Justin Rose group. 

Later in the afternoon, Van Pelt and North will move to the booth, with Rinaldi and Dottie Pepper moving to hole announcer positions. Gene Wojciechowski will conduct player interviews. For the afternoon session, Kratzert will follow the Phil Mickelson group and Judy Rankin will be with the Justin Rose group.

The first reaction is of course a sigh of relief at not finding Chris Berman's name listed....No Ground Control to David Toms....Whew!

But Judy Rankin as an on-course reporter?  Look, I understand that chivalry is dead, but are there no vestigial remnants?   Judy is a wonderful presence and blazed the trail for women to cover the men's game, but she's 70 years young and should not be sent out into the Scottish gloaming....Some things are just wrong.

The Open Championship

Sorry about the blogging hiatus, but it's not like there's an important event being played this week.... what?  Oh, well then maybe this would be a good time to inform the reader that I'll be in Scotland during the PGA.

Let's briefly sort through some of the things we missed from earlier in the week:

Shack ventures into the Old Tom Morris shop just off the 18th green, and posts a video worth your time, in which he discusses with Laurie Watson of the Links Trust and Roger McStravick, author of a beautiful new book on Old Tom Morris, efforts to promote the Keeper of the Greens.  Here's Geoff's take on the shop:

And it's irresistible to not at least touch the dinged up wood counter top where Old Tom and his artisans finished clubs over looking the 18th green that he created (a view that had long been mysteriously covered by recent shop lessees). The playground, workspace and house of worship for the first and most important Golf God. (Don't forget all of the storied visitors who walked those floors too, from Bobby Jones to A.W. Tillinghast to C.B. Macdonald, for starters).

It looks very much as it would have back in the day, and while we don't really know where golf was invented, there's little doubt that this is where it took root.

Moving the Golf Hall of Fame ceremony to St. Andrews this year seemed a no-brainer, at least until one of the inductees made the cut in the U.S. Women's Open and a delayed flight resulted in an empty chair.  Sexism, they explained, though I'll go with unfortunate in lieu of misogynist...

I've heard raves about Mark O'Meara's acceptance speech, though admittedly I've not had the time to listen to it myself.  But this from our man on the scene is what got my attention:

A dizzying number of Hall of Famer's in town forThe Open could not be bothered to make the grueling trek up North Street from the Old Course Hotel to welcome Laura Davies, David Graham, Mark O'Meara and A.W. Tillinghastinto golf's most exclusive club, even thoughArnold Palmer, Gary Player and Peter Thomson managed to come from long distances at less-than-spry ages to attend. Among the notables who are in the Hall but could not be bothered to slap on a coat and tie for 90 minutes and make the short commute: Tom Watson, Nick Faldo, Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els and Nick Price.(Price was at least enjoying a pint amongst the people at the Dunvegan along another Open Champion, Justin Leonard). Also unable to show some support for old pal "Marko" O'Meara wasTiger Woods. O'Meara's introductory induction toDave Marr III, who handled the job with dignity.

Really, Sir Nick?  Not like he makes is living in our game or anything....

Randall Mell throws a bit of a hissy fit about Laura Davies not being there:

This was about a lot of women seeing that the game is still run by men who aren’t as committed to diversity and inclusivity as they profess to be. That’s what Davies’ empty chair screamed during the induction ceremony. 

Yes, women have made a lot of meaningful progress in the game, but somebody ought to put Davies’ empty seat in a display case in the Hall of Fame because it tells the story about women’s still ongoing struggle to find their place in the sport.

Beth Daniel, Patty Sheehan, Karrie Webb and Meg Mallon were among Hall of Famers offended that the induction took place without Davies.

Hey, Tilly wasn't there either, and I think he's got the bigger beef...not that there's many bigger sides of beef than Dame Laura.

But as Gary Smits explains, it's a far more complicate story than most understand:

I can assure you that World Golf Hall of Fame chief operating officer Jack Peter and other HOF officials most certainly did care, and have for years. They have tried to get Davies to accept membership through the Veterans Category, but Davies resisted, wanting to make it on the LPGA points system. She's two points short but got it through the revised nominating and voting process and finally accepted.

Look, it was really unfortunate, but not intentional or malicious in the slightest.  The opportunity to hold the induction during Open week in historic Younger Hall, was not to be missed.  Given the lead times involved, the Hall officials could not possibly have anticipated Laura Davies qualifying for and then making the cut in Lancaster, and then the mechanical issues that derailed her flight.

Some quick thoughts about the morning's play, just as the morning wave is finishing:

The Artist Formerly Known as Tiger Woods - Tiger posted a 76 that's actually far worse than it appears, given the benign conditions.  Most surprising to me was that Alex Myers had written him off by 6:49 EDT:

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland -- Tiger Woods often says St. Andrews is his favorite golf

course in the world and it certainly has the perfect first hole for him. Wide open and calling for an iron off the tee to layup before the Swilcan Burn, it's a great way to get off to a good start.

Well, usually. 

Woods semi-chunked his iron off the tee. His wedge approach was hit slightly better, but it failed to clear the narrow strip of water drawing gasps from a heavy pro-Tiger crowd. Woods dropped and got up-and-down to save bogey, but the problems were just beginning. 

On the 452nd-yard par-4 second, Woods chose an iron while his playing partners both boomed drivers. Hitting his approach from some 70 yards behind Jason Day, Woods watched as his ball came up a good 30 yards short. After knocking his third to about 15 feet, Woods struck what he thought was a perfect putt. He stepped in for a small fist pump, but the ball horseshoed out of the cup, drawing this pained reaction.

Hey, at least he hit the first fairway....small steps.

Jordan Rules -  Spieth posted a strong 5-under 67, and no doubt I'll be taking some heat for my criticism of the lad's travel schedule.  But I remain defiantly unbowed in my contention that he erred in sticking to his original schedule.

I didn't see  his outbound nine, which was playing far easier than the inbound holes.  He made hat there to his credit, but leaked a little oil coming home.  He caught a fairway bunker with one drive and made a trip to the Road Bunker, both of which led to bogeys.  Now he seems to have an intuitive grasp of the subtleties and speed of the greens (those young eyes) and his birdie on 18 I think was big.  

I can't tell from this side of the Atlantic whether the mistakes above were just physical errors or uncertainty as to lines of play.  Word broke yesterday that they had hired a local expert to accelerate the learning curve, a smart move no doubt.  But with the extreme  weather  forecast for Friday into Saturday, that knowledge will be put to good use.

When I turned on the coerage this morning I was amused to see Michael Greller, Spieth's caddie, in shorts with a ski cap.... you'll see a lot of each out there, just not at the same time typically.

Weather - After today's calm start, things are going to get interesting.  Here's Friday's forecast:

FRIDAY - SECOND ROUND WEATHER FORECAST

A strong storm system passes to the west and north of the British Isles but will spread rain and strong winds, especially Friday afternoon. This will be more of a problem for the golfers going out later in the day. Winds will be out of the west between 15 to 25 mph and gusts could be as highs as 35 to 45 mph. Rain showers will be steady through the day. High 64

Winds from the west means that the outbound holes will feature the more difficult left-to-right wind, which is what derailed Rory in 2010.  Most commentators have intuited that the early-late groups will be the unfortunate souls, and that includes our Jordan.

But the reality is that no one knows at this point how the  day will play out.  Even if that prior assessment proves accurate, there could well be significant disparities based upon where specifically on the course a player is during the worst of the winds and rain.  There's also the possibility that a stoppage of play (remember that they suspended play on Friday in 2010 as the winds were moving balls on the greens) could move all or part of the late group's rounds into Saturday morning.

It's all a cosmic crapshoot....but if they're playing in the kind of weather that's forecast, don't miss it.