Sunday Stuff

Sorry about ducking out on you Friday, but there was golf to be played.  It may all be behind us now, but at least we closed strong.

Dispatches From Down Under - Under cover of darkness the Aussie Open concluded last night, with a surprise winner:

This was where it began for Jordan Spieth, Sydney, Australia, liftoff for his rapid ascent to the pinnacle of golf, an ideal platform from which to issue a timely reminder that he

doesn’t intend to surrender the stage. 

Two years ago, Spieth, 16 months removed from his maiden victory in professional golf, went to Sydney and won the Australian Open. What followed was one of the great seasons in golf history. 

This time, six months removed from his last win, now fifth in the World Ranking, he returned to Sydney and won the Australian Open for a second time with the kind of clutch performance on which his reputation was built.

Hmmmm....Spieth?  That name seems vaguely familiar....

Sorry to hear that Geoff Ogilvy stumbled down the stretch, as it's a better game when he's around.  Mike Clayton, who happens to be Ogilvy's design partner, explains the pressure under which he's playing:

This season he takes his one ‘get out of jail free card’ in America by using his career

money list exemption allowing him to play the last part of this year and all of next season. If he were to miss the top 125 again the only resort is to plead for sponsors invitations and no one wants to be at the mercy of tournament directors for a start each week. 

A few weeks ago he was 4th in Las Vegas and he made a big pile of money, probably a quarter of what he needs to in order to keep his card.

For anyone who watched him play this third day at Royal Sydney the pessimism seems silly. He was around in 64, made by beginning with two birdies and then saving pars after marginally errant shots at the next two holes. From there it was a ball-striking clinic with the final two birdies, coming after a run of pars from the turn, with a two putt at the par 5 16th and a wedge to a foot at the last.

Now I take no pride in that which I'm about to do, but Mike Clayton also struggles at this game.... and it's a cold, nasty Sunday morning and you need a good laugh.  Mike, I'm sorry, but you need to take on for the team:

Be kind, it could have happened to any of us.

You Go, Ko - The ladies looked like they were going to finish on a high note, before things got ugly the last few holes:

The stakes could not be higher for Lydia Ko and Jutanugarn, the world’s top two players. World No. 1 Ko must win the season-ender to overtake Jutanugarn in the Rolex Player of

the Year race. A victory on Sunday for either player would secure the $1 million bonus in the CME Race to the Globe. (The Kiwi has won the last two.) Ko also aims to fend off In Gee Chun for the Vare Trophy, given to the player with the lowest scoring average. 

They’re tied for the week at 11 under, and only 0.021 separates them for the season. 

Ko and Jutanugarn enter the final round in a share of fourth place, but after wildly different Saturdays. One day after Ko fired a sizzling 10-under 62, she stumbled in with a watery 73. Ko pulled a 7-iron into the hazard from 158 yards on the final hole, an unforced error that dropped her two shots back of Charley Hull.

Pity that, but golf happens.  The ladies are blessed with an abundance of young talent these days, but they're similarly blessed with the ability to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, so stay tuned.

Before we leave the ladies, there were a few recent stories that I failed to blog.  They've recently strengthened their schedule in a couple of obvious ways:

Mike Whan donned a faux kilt (actually it was a towel) for the announcement that the Aberdeen Asset Management Ladies Scottish Open now will be a co-sanctioned LPGA

event, giving the world’s best back-to-back weeks in Scotland in 2017. 

The tour won’t be announcing its 2017 schedule for another week or so as several details still need to be ironed out. But expect another packed summer, featuring 34 or 35 events, and an increase in overall money. The U.S. Women’s Open purse, for example, will increase by $500,000 to $5 million, Whan said. 

“There’s internal competition to keep up,” Whan said of the financial rise. When the 2011 schedule featured 23 official events, top players were guaranteed to show up. Now, they must be enticed. 

The Scottish Open marks the second new international event the LPGA has announced this week. On Wednesday, Lydia Ko passed out chocolate to the media to celebrate the new McKayson New Zealand Women’s Open.

Strike while the iron is hot, Mike.... 

Also predictable is this thumb-sucker on the state of the women's game here in the U.S.:

Talented female golfers in other parts of the world frequently are immersed in golf at younger ages through organized channels of a national scope -- federations or

associations charged with developing and supporting young talent. No existing American entity has that responsibility. 

"It really is a missing link here," says Hall of Famer and 31-time LPGA winner Juli Inkster. "Places are trying to grow the game but not really grow individuals. We don't have a federation to push our young athletic girls into golf, and we've come to a point where we need a federation to really grow top-level golfers. I'm not saying our girls aren't good, because they are. But they've grown up in a different type of golf atmosphere."

I assumed that's what he meant by Make America Great Again.

Seminole, Restored -  Famed Seminole is on my short bucket list of courses largely because I'm curious as to how one builds an interesting golf course in South Florida.  The course is undergoing a dramatic restoration by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw, that latter of whom narrates this wonderful video explaining their work.  

Why are you still here?  It's got wonderful drone footage and one of the premiere architects explaining their work, it doesn't get much better than that.

Rory, Unplugged - Everyone has posted this delightful video of Rory submitting to a grueling interview.  It's up there with Frost/Nixon, as no subject was off-limits:

Good fun.

The Obligatory Trump Item - The last couple of weeks have been simply schadenfreudalicious (take that, SpellCheck), as all the right heads have been exploding.  And their certainty of victory ensures that there's an abundant supply of hypocrisy on parade..... Wow, who knew the filibuster was the only thing saving us from the savages....  Because I'm old enough to remember, about three weeks ago, when it was perfectly fine to nuke the filibuster to get Hillary's nominee confirmed.

I know, I'm enjoying it more than I should, but bear with me.  Shack links to this WSJ editorial advocating that Trump must divest.  Everything must go!  

Mr. Trump could put the cash proceeds in a true blind trust. The Trump children can keep the assets in their name, and he can transfer more to them as long as he pays a hefty gift

tax. Finally, Mr. Trump should stipulate that he and his children will have no communication about family business matters.

The alternatives are fraught, perhaps even for the Trump Organization’s bottom line: Thanks to a Clinton Administration precedent, Presidents can face litigation in private matters—so the company will become a supermagnet for lawsuits. Rudy Giuliani lamented on television that divestment would put the Trump children “out of work,” but reorganizing the company may be better for business than unending scrutiny from the press. Progressive groups will soon be out of power and they are already shouting that the Trump family wants to profit from the Presidency. 

The political damage to a new Administration could be extensive. If Mr. Trump doesn’t liquidate, he will be accused of a pecuniary motive any time he takes a policy position. For example, the House and Senate are eager to consider tax reform—and one sticking point will be the treatment of real estate, which will be of great interest to the Trump family business. Ditto for repealing the Dodd-Frank financial law, interest rates and so much more.

Now the Clinton precedent is just laugh-out-loud funny, because wasn't that a time?  But in all candor I think this is a non-trivial issue, with a big BUT attached.

The people that are going to be lecturing us (the WSJ Editorial Board aside) had no discernible issue with a certain candidate selling the State Department for personal gain....  including our uranium supply to the Ruskis....

So, is it possible that both sides could be held to the same standards?  Nah, what was I thinking?

The funnier item was this limited time offer, also via Shack:

Join us at this unique world class event and play all 12 Trump National and International Championship Courses in the United States. Endorsed by the US President-elect himself you will play golf in California, Florida, North Carolina, Washington D.C., New Jersey and New York. You will stay at Trump's most prestigious properties along the way. You will also enjoy the final round of the US PGA Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass and visit the World Golf Hall of Fame. US President Donald Trump will welcome you personally during the "Trump Presidential Challenge". 

• 1 round at Trump International Golf Club, Palos, Verde (California)

• 1 round at Trump National Doral Blue Monster Course (Florida)

• 1 round at Trump International Golf Club, West Palm Beach (Florida)

• 1 round at Trump National Jupiter Golf Club, West Palm Beach (Florida)

• 1 round at Trump National Charlotte Golf Club (North Carolina)

• 1 round at Trump National Golf Club (Washington D.C.)

• 1 round at Trump Golf Links at Ferry Point (New York)

• 1 round at Trump National Philadelphia Golf Club (New Jersey)

• 1 round at Trump National Hudson Valley (New York)

• 1 round at Trump Bedminister International Golf Club (New Jersey)

• 1 round at Trump National Colts Neck Golf Club (New Jersey)

• 1 round at Trump National Westchester Golf Club (New York)

• Ticket for the final round of the Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass

• Visit to the World Golf Hall of Fame

• All rounds in carts

• Use of all practice facilities including range balls

• Lunch at all golf days 

Other Inclusions: 

• 20 nights 4 and 5-star Accommodation

• Daily Breakfast

• Welcome Cocktail at the Portofino Yacht Club Hotel, Palos Verde (California)

• Welcome Dinner at the Portofino Club Hotel, Palos Verde (California)

• Tour of The White House (Washington D.C.)

• Drinks with US President Donald Trump

No word on whether this is real....

But my question is how much without that last item?  More I'm guessing.....

He's Not Called "Cartilage" - Our man Bones was in the shop for his 100,000 mile check-up: 

It turns out that it wasn't just one surgery that Team Mickelson underwent last month. It

was two ... or three, depending on how you choose to count it. 

"It's a good question. I don't know if you say I had one or two operations," said Jim "Bones" Mackay, the longtime caddie for Phil Mickelson, who had both knees replaced on Oct. 19, the same day his boss was having sports hernia surgery. 

Though the two have worked together for 25 years, the scheduling of their respective procedures was coincidental. "We didn't even talk about it. We were both in a hurry to get it done, and it just happened to be the same day," Mackay said. "The next day we were texting back and forth. 'So, how are YOU doing?'"

 I have something to share with Mrs. Bones... as I've discovered from Employee No. 2's hip replacements, once you go metal you'll never settle.

Go Aussie!

It's Australia Day here at Unplayable Lies.... Don your Speedo and let's have at it...

The Open - A while back the Tour Confidential panel was asked which worldwide events deserved consideration to become a major, and the Aussie Open generated a fair amount of respect.  The evnt is played at strong venues (Royals Melbourne and Sydney come to mind) and equally strong fields, Nicklaus used to make the trek and Spieth is there this week to defend, despite his announced intention to renounce his frequent flier miles.

Shack had a good preview the other day, including linking to this John Huggan piece.  This little grab highlights the best of the pairings:

"You can always learn a lot, the way Jordan gets around a course,” says Ogilvy, who, along with US Amateur champion Curtis Luck, will partner Spieth in the opening two rounds here. “More than anyone, he seems to always sign for one or two (shots) less than you think he maybe should have. Every day. That's always the sign of a great player. Tiger was like that; he always seemed to sign for five less than he should have. Jordan's one of those guys who gets the best out of his round almost every time you play with him. That's something we can all observe and get something out of.”

Here's the video of Jordan's typically thoughtful presser:

Shack's got the video of the object of my mancrush, Geoff Ogilvy, but also enjoy the drone shots from this interview with course superintendent Steve Marsden:

This event, along with the entire Aussie swing, has been hurt by the senseless expansion of the U.S. Tour's schedule.  Jack came here annually for a reason, but Commissioner Ratched's attempt to bestride the planet will result in fewer modern players doing so, a shame to this observer.

The Norman Conquests - Fresh off his successful attempt to "redirect" his business by removing his prized nickname, Greg Norman is back with a plaintiff cry for relevance.  The man just can't get any attention...

And what could be more relevant that Newsweek Magazine, with it's Norman Rockwell images of rural Americans waiting for their weekly magazine to be delivered by the U.S. Postal Service to inform them of that which they need to know of the world beyond their horizon.  And Newsweek is just perfect, because....well, this was their assessment of the state of play around this time in 2008:

How's that all working out?  And the Blackberry President, which I hadn't even noticed at the time, is just comedy gold....

So Newsweek gave The Shark some subprime real estate, and hilarity ensured.  Care to go for an old-fashioned Fisking?

I personally had a sense of this and told Donald, when President Barack Obama was campaigning for Hillary Clinton 10 days before the election, that he was going to win. Obama’smessaging was wrong and just reinforced that those wanting change would get it with Clinton. In other words, the problem was not the problem—the attitude to the problem was the problem.

Let's see if I have this straight....  The problem is or wasn't the problem, it's the attitude to the problem that's....what's the word, problematic?  Do go on....

Then finally on the night of the election, around 10:30 p.m. when I returned from dinner in Mexico, I could see the momentum building for Trump. I turned the lights out knowing he would be the president-elect the following morning.

Got that?  The purpose of this 'graph seems to be to share the venue for his dinner, as well as that vague, connect-the-dots hint that he ain't flying commercial.  Kinda reminds of Sky Masterson whisking Sarah Brown off to dinner in Havana, though that had the benefit of being, you know, fiction....

I have spoken to Donald on numerous occasions since the election and I think he will surprise many with what he will do with the presidency, but not himself. He has a clear vision. I believe he will fill a cabinet with quality, experienced, doers that are like-minded yet strong enough to redirect him if they so believe. I also believe Vice President-elect Mike Pence will be a tremendous asset. Together, with Speaker Paul Ryan, the House and the Senate, all will ensure that he does what he says and “be a leader for all Americans.” 

A Trump presidency obviously not only affects the United States, but the rest of the world. Foreign policy will be a tricky one for Trump. I can only imagine that there are so many grandfathered agreements in place from previous administrations in the U.S. and abroad. Until he gets in there to understand those, from NATO to NAFTA to TPT to Middle East agreements to the Asia Pacific rim and many others, it is difficult to speculate.

As long as he's not filling binders, because we know now that's wrong.   And that use of "Numerous"?  And the firm grasp of acronyms and geographic regions is quite the demonstration of knowledge..... perhaps knowledge of the functionality of Google, but still....

OK, so that's just a boatload of nonsense... I know when I need insight into the prevailing mood in the U.S. heartland, an Australian expat living in Florida is my go-to guy.  But then, in this Daily Telegraph piece he brags about providing The Donald's telephone number to Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.  Yeah, how does the planet turn on its axis without Greg calibrating it every morning?

Prayers answered, as the Aussie PM was asked about this, and...well, I have it on good authority that Greg Norman is a great Australian:

JOURNALIST:

Prime Minister, there was a story in the Daily Telegraph this morning that Greg Norman, the golfer actually gave you the personal number for Donald Trump. Is this true? 

PRIME MINISTER:

Greg Norman is a great Australian. He is a great advocate for strengthening the Australian-American alliance. One of our greatest assets, you know, is the more than million Australians who live overseas and Greg is one of them and he has been a great help. He is an example of what I've often said about the relationship between Australia and the United States. It depends, sure it depends on good relations between leaders and ministers and so forth but above all it is based on millions of people-to-people links, millions of people who are committed to strong ties. Greg is one of those and he's a great Australian and very committed to a very strong relationship. He wants Australia to succeed, America to succeed and, if we both succeed, that'll be good for the world too. 

JOURNALIST:

Prime Minister, why didn't your office have Mr Trump's number before the election? 

PRIME MINISTER:

I'm not going to - in diplomacy and politics, you use lots of networks. All I can say is we have great networks, great connections and Greg Norman is a great Australian.

JOURNALIST:

Was it because you thought Hillary Clinton was going to win?

We all did....  that's why it's so much fun.   

You know what's also fun about this story?  Our President Elect seems to have a fondness for bare-chested men:

Not that there's anything wrong with that....

Ch-Ch-Changes - Jason Sobel had a cute lede in his item on players embracing changes in the golf world:

It would be a little too clichéd to open a column about changing times by quoting Bob Dylan, but hey, those words helped win him a Nobel Peace in literature, which I believe is like a FedEx Cup trophy to the rest of the non-golf world.

Not so much, Jason, as the Nobel Prize in Literature still means something, at leats to everyone except Mr. Dylan.  But go on:

"Is it needed? I don't have any idea. I would probably say no," Zach Johnson explained. "But can it be a positive in the long run? Absolutely. To add something to a product that's already tremendous and make it better -- whether it's lights, dates, formats -- I'm all for it. If it can help the game, if it helps fans of the game and makes us players hungrier to play more, sure. I see no issues with it. 

"It's a trial and error process," added Jim Furyk. "If it's good and the fans like it and the sponsor likes it and the players like it, heck yeah, let's go. Let's keep doing it. If it doesn't work, we'll come up with some new ideas. There's nothing wrong with trying."

Zach is of course wrong, but at least he's open to the concept of making it better.  But I'm guessing that the guys will have fun playing with a partner, and that fun will be contagious.

Prayers Answered, Part II - Star of stage, screen and open bar, Diana Murphy has been elected to another term as USGA Prez:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

DIANA MURPHY NOMINATED FOR SECOND TERM AS USGA PRESIDENT 

FAR HILLS, N.J. (Nov. 16, 2016) – Diana Murphy has been nominated to serve a second one-year term as the 64th president of the United States Golf Association by the USGA Nominating Committee, as the organization prepares for its 123rd year of service to the game of golf.

So, if slurring your way through an awards ceremony and being unable to think of anything to say about Jack Nicklaus doesn't get one fired, what would? 

Bethany Lang was unavailable for comment.

I've got more, but it will have to keep until tomorrow.

Midweek Musings

The entire staff is in place at Unplayable Lies World HQ, and there's no shortage of news to cover, so why are we wasting time with this?

We Get Results, Cont'd. - When last we spoke, our cry in the wilderness had been heard, by Zurich Insurance no less, and we had our first chink in the armor of week-to-week conformity.  It didn't take long for the boys to start pairing up, as per Shack:

The Zurich Classic's move to a 2-man team event in 2017 was announced on Morning Drive by the PGA Tour's Andy Pazder, who confirmed all of the exciting details. Here is Pazder's longer interview on Fairways of Life with Matt Adams. 

The long overdue arrival of a radically different format kicked off in grand style with Rickie Fowler announcing that he will be partnering with Jason Day, while another Zurich "ambassador" Justin Rose, will team with Ryder Cup partner Henrik Stenson to create a powerful Gold-Silver medal duo. 

Eighty two-man teams will play foursomes Thursday and Saturday and fourballs Friday and Sunday with a Friday night cut to 35 teams. Pazder confirmed that the "conversation" started on Tuesday of this year's Zurich Classic, but was definitely initiated by the tour.

Obviously Rickie ("depends what she's cooking") and Rose had a heads-up, but it's easy to see how this generates ongoing interest right up until the morning of the event.  Even the Tour Confidential gang got into the act:

5. The Zurich Classic of New Orleans will reportedly become a two-man team event in 2017. (According to Golf Channel, the top 80 qualifiers will be permitted to pick their own teammates, and both members of the winning team will receive most of the ranking points and other perks that come with a Tour win, with the notable exception of a Masters invite. The format will include one round of foursomes and one round of four-balls before the field is cut to the low 35 teams.) The consensus in this forum over the years has been that the Tour would benefit from more variety in tournament formats. Does this event check all the boxes? Also, which two players would you most like to see play together in New Orleans?

I don't think any one event should be expected to check all the boxes, but still... 

Bamberger: I think two-man events, which have had a great past, would be fantastic. Tiger and Daly? Spieth and Reed? Johnson and Johnson? It's all good.

He can't possibly mean that Daly on the Senior Tour could he?  That would require a sponsor's exemption, and we've had that discussion....

I don't even know who this guy is, but his answer is so wrong in so many ways that it's priceless:

Solomon: It's a solid start. The Euro Tour has been green lighting half baked ideas at an

astounding rate, to the point where I'm ready to offer consultancy services to them for what seems to be my dream job. It's nice to see the tour at least partially following suit. As much as I want to get excited about this team idea, I'm immediately reminded that I don't think I've ever tuned into a shot of the Shark Shootout, or other somewhat similar team events. I'm more excited about the friendships that are gonna get tested as the players buddy up. What if Bubba can't find a partner? Do they pair him with Allenby? I'd give PGA Tour Live my paypal password and tell them to just do whatever they want with it if they live stream that.

OK, our Bubba got left off the Ryder Cup team....I think we can agree that the man has suffered enough.  He's worried about there being too much drama associated with a Tour event?   Ummm, who's gonna remind him that sporting events are, you know, supposed to be dramatic.... As for the Allenby jibe, I can only hope that was intentional...

And of course Bubba will have no problem finding his soul mate, as they'll be lining up for the opportunity to play Bubba's tee ball for two days.

What's The Buggy-Whip Store Gonna Cost? - Apparently the vinyl record business pays well, because these guys sure cashed out big-time:

Augusta National Golf Club's area land grab continued recently with the purchase of a local music store. And it came with a hefty price tag. 

According to the Augusta Chronicle, Jay's Music Center will be relocating to another part of Washington Road in early 2017. The business had been in its current location at the intersection of Washington and Berckmans -- neighboring Augusta National -- for 25 years. 

"We have to move fairly quickly," Jay's Music owner Doug Frohman told The Chronicle. "It's not the most ideal situation, but thank goodness we’ll have a roof over our heads."

They got $5.35 million large, so that'll get you the aforesaid roof....  There's details on the long-term process by which Augusta National has spent a king's ransom to secure their perimeter... And there's plenty more cash where that came from.

Trump, The Morning After - I trust you've enjoyed your Happy Fun Victory Week....  No doubt what comes later will be...err, I'm gonna go with messy, but it's equally true that the last week has been schadenfreudelicious.  All the right heads exploding and all...

I didn't blog this post from Shack in the immediate aftermath of the election, because his ultimate conclusion was that there's nothing to see here...  He had some interesting links, most notably to this Jaime Diaz offering, which kind of stumbles out of the gate:

First, a caveat. Right now, according to Larry Glick, who manages the development of Trump’s 18 (and counting) golf properties, golf is not on the radar. The operation of the courses will go into a blind trust run by his three children, with Eric Trump most involved. “If he’s played two rounds in the last six months, I’d be surprised,” said Glick of the president-elect. “And he’s been so busy, we haven’t talked anything about golf for months. He’s rolling up his sleeves to take on the challenge of this job.”

Get that?  If I ever go blind, I hope it's only in the Larry Glick definition of blind...

But this obviously the nut 'graph:

On the negative side, Trump is polarizing. He has deeply offended many with his comments (even in golf, in land use conflicts while building Trump Aberdeen), and probably will again. Also, he sees the game as “aspirational” (to some a dog whistle word that means keep the riff-raff out), reflected in an average green fee of about $250 on his public courses. Some who have played with Trump have claimed he cheats. In short, he can be seen as an easy caricature of the entitled, vulgar American golfer, a version of Judge Smails from “Caddyshack.”

This isn't the time or place to sort through that, but I'll note that half the country sees that as a feature, not a bug.

But Jaime's conclusion is worth excerpting, as the lamestream media should be taking notes:

Before rendering an opinion, a bit of disclosure. I’m a lifelong Democrat who voted for Hillary Clinton and feels a deep sadness at the outcome of the election. Secondly, I’ve played with the president-elect twice, before he had decided to run for office. I found him enjoyable and entertaining to be around as a fellow golfer. True or not, I got the sense that Trump is at his best on a golf course. 

Considering all of the above, do I think Trump as POTUS will be good for golf? I offer a cautious yes.

Jaime, we knew.... but we appreciate the candor.  If only those guys at the NY Times and WaPo would do the same.

The fun comes from Will Buckley in The Guardian, floating this unlikely premise:

Was golf Trump’s secret weapon?

It's a snarkeliciously fun piece, full of typically Trumpian bluster, so give it a read.  And the piece is perfectly bloggable, as this one short 'graph captures both his premise and concludes by teeing up my witty bon mot:

There have been 18 contests since the second world war and the only exceptions to this rule are Harry S Truman (not a golfer) beating Thomas Dewey (Augusta member who

gave his green jacket to Jack Nicklaus) and Jimmy Carter (not a golfer) defeating Gerald Ford (who, contrary to rumour, could play golf and chew gum at the same time). Aside from these two anomalies it is all golf. For some deep buried reason, the US electorate trust a man who can handle a four iron even more than one with whom they can have a beer.

The concept of having a beer with Hillary is inducing nausea in your humble correspondent...  I'd sooner have said beer with Robert Allenby.

Obviously the premise is quite mad.... sample size and all, but he no doubt had a dealine to meet.

Under The Knife - Josh Sens posted this item on the changes at iconic TPC Saqwgrass:

For players and fans, though, the most significant changes are to the course itself. All 18 greens have been resurfaced with TifEagle Bermudagrass as a replacement for mini verde. The par-4 6th and par-4 7th have undergone a notable facelift to ramp up their drama and improve spectator viewing. Those changes include the removal of mounding between the holes and the addition of a new body of water.

Sawgrass needs another body of water like I need more snark.... They've shortened the 12th hole to make it driveable, as we've previously covered, but what they really need to do is take a page from the Pinehurst playbook and return to their original look:

I'd be OK if they also nuked that clubhouse.

Coming Soon To A Discount Bin At Dick's - Gearhead Mike Stachura has the skinny on this high-end line coming soon to a pro shop nearby:

XXIO, the brother brand of Srixon under Dunlop Sports Co. Ltd. of Japan, has the

reputation for designing popular clubs in Asia (nearly two decades as Japan's top-seller). Its XXIO Prime line also has the reputation for offering clubs at big ticket prices, like $800 drivers and $2,000 sets of irons. 

But after watching the brand develop a foothold in the U.S. over the last few years, one thing is clear: XXIO designs clubs with extreme and unique technologies aimed at making average-golfer swings more efficient and more productive. The latest XXIO Prime collection of woods and irons is just so singularly focused, including the lightest driver head and shaft of any current brand in the U.S. market.

I'm sorry, how do you pronounce that? Mike has lots of technical details on the technology, which seems to be aimed at the Super Duper Game Improvement end of the market.... think thin faces for fat wallets:

The XXIO Prime clubs will launch Dec. 17 (driver: $850; fairway wood: $580; hybrid: $380; irons, 5-iron through AW: $1,820). The XXIO Forged irons will be in stores Dec. 10 (5-iron through AW, $1,190).

The Euro Beat -  The European Tour has always been the scrappy underdog, and in recent times has seemed like the players have more fun.  New honcho Keith Pelley has pulled no punches about his desire to compete against the PGA Tour, and this is his latest salvo:

The European Tour announced on Tuesday that it will group at least seven of its marquee events together as the Rolex Series and will be scrapping the Final Series format

beginning with the 2017 season. 

The BMW PGA Championship, the Irish Open, the Scottish Open and the Italian Open will join the three Final Series events - the Turkish Airlines Open, the Nedbank Golf Challenge and the season-ending DP World Tour Championship - as part of the new schedule. 

The Race to Dubai, formerly known as the Order of Merit, will be retained. Each of the seven events will have a prize purse of at least $7 million.

If it sounds as dreadful as the FedEx Cup, you might be understating it....  Not only are the tourneys spread throughout the calendar, but they've created something called The Access List:

The Access List will run concurrently with the Race to Dubai but will exclude money earned at the most lucrative tournaments of the European Tour season – the seven Rolex Series events, the Masters and US PGA Championship and the four World Golf Championships. Money earned at The Open and US Open Championships will be included as all members have an equal opportunity to pre-qualify for those tournaments.

You lost me at "concurrently."  Prize money is good, and we understand that their financial support comes with the need for them to flog their garish watches, but still...

But back to the fun on their Tour, as per their take on the mannequin challenge.

Cheap Shots - 

I'll Notify The Child Welfare Authorities - John Daly to play in PNC Father/Son Challenge for the first time

You're Gonna Need A Bigger List - The 8 Stupidest Rules in Golf

First, Learn to Putt - Billy Horschel Wants to Be Like Ben Crenshaw

Breaking News From 2009 - Tiger Woods is "getting after it"

Weekend Wrap

A few quick items for you, then I'll let you get on with your day.  Tomorrow is a travel day for Employee No. 2 and I, so expect to next see me Wednesday morning.

The Wrappage - The big tour was in Mexico playing a small event:

The once-volatile Pat Perez returns with a new attitude, wins the OHL Classic at Mayakoba

I'm guessing he's still volatile, but he's always been talented. There's no reason to care about the results, but we do love our golf oddities:

Pulling a "Reverse Wise" sounds like a skateboard trick or euphemism that could get you sent to the principal's office. For Marc Leishman, however, we use this term in the best of contexts. 

Leishman, playing in this week's OHL Classic at Mayakoba, made an eagle 3 at El Camaleon Golf Club's par-5 seventh hole on Friday morning. The 33-year-old Australian followed up with another eagle, albeit of a slightly rarer variety: an ace.

Here's the colorful scorecard:

And an explanation of that first bit:

This comes a day after reigning NCAA champion Aaron Wise accomplished the same feat, only with Wise making his hole-in-one before his par-5 eagle. We doubt Leishman minds following in the rookie's footsteps.

Oh, and I saw a header that Bernhard Langer won the Charles Schwab Cup, but that story is at least three years old....

Mea Culpa -  Mike Davis went into the lion's den and kinda, sorta apologized:

In the spring of 2013 the battle lines were clearly drawn in the impending debate over the USGA and R&A’s push to ban anchored putting. 

The PGA Tour and PGA of America opposed the new rule, but the USGA and R&A went on to ban the anchored stroke, creating a rift, albeit temporary, between the USGA and PGA. On Friday at the PGA’s annual meeting, USGA executive director Mike Davis offered the PGA’s membership a mea culpa. 

“I will say going back three, four years ago it was a moment in time where our two organizations got sideways with one another. When I looked back, I think both sides have learned a lot of things,” Davis said.

I remember Ted Bishop making an ill-supported plea for a stay of execution, but not much more than that.  Of course no one was any too happy, mostly because they waited far too long to come to a decision.

But this is the key bit:

Davis added that the USGA has a draft of that new code that is “simpler” than the current rules, and that his association will release the draft sometime next year. 

Specifically, Davis addressed the ruling from this year’s U.S. Open that led to eventual champion Dustin Johnson being penalized when his ball moved on the fifth green during the final round. 

“As for the Dustin Johnson ruling, Rule 18-2, that God-forsaken rule, that is going to be getting attention in the near future. We listen and we learn,” he said.

As the reader knows, I like Mike Davis and think he's contributed much to the game, starting with greatly improving U.S. Open set-ups.  But I'm not exactly sure what he's saying here.... Rule 18-2 needs immediate attention because of the increasingly penal green speeds, and prior comments have led me to conclude that it would be addressed in the context of a comprehensive change in the rules.

I can interpret the above excerpt either way, which means he's provided no further clarity.  Not his best effort...

Wither The PGA -  The Championship in this case, not the organization.... First we got word that the event might be moved to May in 2020:

To accommodate golf's return to the Olympics, the PGA of America moved the 2016 

Harding Park, site of the 2020 PGA

PGA Championship from its customary August date to July. The shift created a bit of a scheduling crunch, as the British Open and PGA Championship were conducted within a three-week span. Many players cited this hectic itinerary as reason for withdrawal from the Rio Summer Games. Yet, after a successful competition in Brazil, the sport's figureheads are dedicated to keeping golf in the Olympics. And to promote that well-being, the PGA of America might be willing to make a major change to the PGA Championship. 

Pete Bevacqua, CEO of the PGA of America, told the Golf Channel's Rex Hoggard that a May date for the Wanamaker Trophy is "very much on the table." 

“To truly make it work, to make it succeed and to make sure golf is in the Olympics for the next century, the whole schedule needs to be adjusted,” Bevacqua said.

The problem of course is that in recent years the fifth of four majors has been played in May.  The reader will sense a "But" coming, and it's a bigee:

“We are huge proponents of the Olympics. We are all about the Olympics, but we also have to protect the PGA Championship and we can’t just bounce the PGA Championship around every four years,” Bevacqua said.

Hmmm...sounds like someone's not happy with their August date...  Over to Shack with some informed speculation on how this might happen:

Bevacqua may be testing the waters to see how television and fans feels about the change, but I'd guess he and new PGA Tour Commish Jay Monahan have sketched out a new schedule post-2019 that moves the Players to March, the PGA to May and the "playoffs" to a conclusion before or on Labor Day. 

This would be an enormous boost to the PGA Tour's moribund playoff product where ratings stink, the format does not resonate and players seem uninspired following the PGA Championship. But put the playoffs back a few weeks after The Open, inject just a little life in the format (play-off), and suddenly a few of those issues go away.

That would imply a serious reassessment of the Tour schedule, and would also have to accommodate sponsorship contracts and the renegotiation of the all-important FedEx deal.

But Shack also has some cold water for us:

Furthermore, as difficult as August can be agronomically, May might be even more of a headache for northern venues that experience a long winter. Places like Rochester, Long Island, Whistling Straits and Minneapolis are all very tricky to get peak conditions in May, impossible in a freak year.

But it's nice in Bedminster, NJ!

 I'll catch up with you from New York.

Back In The Saddle

Thanks to readers for continuing to check back during my absence.  Today will be all-you-can-eat at the musings bar, so feel free to take some breaks along the way....

Meet The New Boss... - The econiums continue to roll in for the President-Elect, with nary a Not My President sign to be found on Tour.  Jaime Diaz caught up with Seth Waugh, former CEO of Deutsche Bank and the man who recommended Monahan to Finchie, and see if you can read between the lines:

“Tim did a great job, but the client-service part of it is not something the tour has done well, and I think Jay will change that,” says Seth Waugh, who while CEO of Deutsche

Bank Americas hired Monahan as his tournament director. “Jay makes everybody feel like a partner, because he thinks that way. 

“The world has changed. Before if a CEO liked golf, he could probably have a tournament. The secret sauce of the whole thing is getting 35 companies to spend $10 million-plus a week. And that doesn’t just happen. It should be kind of fun, and sponsors haven’t been feeling that good about the deal. That has to be cultivated.”

I'll confess that I've been surprised at Finchem's ability to keep the gravy train running ("keeping gas in the Mercedes", in the words of Peter Jacobson), given how poorly they can be treated.  Exhibit A would The International, a perfectly fine event at Castle Pines that the players loved, but couldn't get their phone calls returned from Ponte Vedra Beach.

This Doug Ferguson account is also of interest, including anecdotes such as this about Jay's people skills:

One example of that came on the practice range a few years ago during the Bridgestone Invitational. 

Caddies were in the middle of a class-action lawsuit against the tour over their treatment.

Tension and mistrust were running high, especially at the sight of Tim Finchem talking with players on the range that day. Along came Monahan, and one caddie was asked if he knew much about Finchem’s new deputy commissioner. 

The caddie, his eyes narrowing as he looked Monahan’s way, said a player introduced them four or five years ago and while Monahan seemed like a decent guy, he would be just like the other suits at tour headquarters. 

Moments later, Monahan saw a familiar face and stopped to chat. He first introduced himself to the caddie, calling him by his first name. 

“I don’t know if you remember, but we met a few years ago,” Monahan told him. 

The mood lightened. Judgment was reserved.

Those kind of skills are truly underappreciated, and combined with a love of and appreciation for our game have this observer feeling more upbeat.  

There are some other wonderful anecdotes contained in the two linked pieces, but this is the bit that surprised me most:

“I think he’s 10 percent more Irish than I am, but substantially more likable,” Finchem said. “If you talk about public speaking, I have a bit of an advantage over him because I’ve been doing it longer. But he has a huge advantage over me because he really connects with people. 

“He has this ability to say things that draw you in, in a meaningful way,” Finchem added. “If I tell a story, I give the overview. If he tells a story, he takes you there into the minutiae of what happens, and you really live through the moments of the story.”

It goes without saying that our Commish is not nearly as effective a public speaker as he thinks... But that aside, this is a level of self-awareness that I never thought we'd see from a man some people compare to Nurse Ratched.

We Get Results -  No sooner do I post  a rant on the mind-numbing boredom of weekly life on Tour, the world is hit with this earthquake measuring 8.5 on the Richter scale:

The Zurich Classic of New Orleans will reportedly switch to a two-man team format in 2017, becoming the PGA Tour's first team event in nearly 40 years. 

According to Golf Channel reporter George Savaricas, the event will feature 80 teams of two. Both members of the winning team will receive the two-year Tour exemption that typically accompanies a victory in an official event, and each winning player will receive 400 FedEx Cuppoints. A regular tournament offers 500 points to the winner and 300 to the runner-up. 

According to Savaricas, both winning team members will earn spots in the Tournament of Champions and PGA Championship, but will not receive Masters invitations for the team win.

To milk my inapt metaphor further, I can't wait to see the after-shocks.  This is really good news, and the interraction between teammates will add another interesting component to the broadcast.  As will, I predict,  the process by which the players pair up:

The top 80 qualifiers will be allowed to choose their own teammate, with the caveat that their partner must have at least some PGA Tour status this season. If not, the selection will require the use of a sponsor invite. 

Savaricas reports that play will include one round of foursomes (alternate shot) and one round of fourballs (best ball) before the 36-hole cut to the low 35 teams.

This is how our little world should work.  The second-tier events should compete for the players' participation, using the full quiver of options available.  In this case, watching players enjoying team competition will spur further innovation in other events....  Or, you know, we could just playe 72 holes of stroke play every friggin' week....

The only thing that would make this story even better would be to find out that that Monahan guy was involved..... 

Ron Sirak, one of the good golf writers and longtime supporter of the LPGA, absorbs the good news with this analogy:

The decision by the sponsors and the PGA Tour to make the Zurich Classic a two-man tournament reminds me of the joke: “What do you call a thousand lawyers chained together at the bottom of the Ocean? A good start.” This is a good start, but it’s only a start. 

While the professional tours are doing very well they need to add some spice to the stew to expand the number of fans who sample the product. The key to this growth is television. That’s where the prize money comes from. Innovation will create more exposure and that might create more growth for a stagnant recreational game.

You can never go wrong in trashing lawyers or politicians, can you?  Ron riffs on some additional opportunities to tweak formats, including this obvious one:

2). MIXED TEAM EVENT: There should also be a best-ball, match-play tournament that counts as official money and world ranking points in which a man and a woman are paired together. The man would play from the PGA Tour tees and the woman would play from the LPGA tees. Again, the teams can be chosen either by computer or humans. My preference is for the latter. Phil Mickelson and Stacy Lewis, for example, have a natural chemistry because of their KPMG connection.

Better yet, we could have Phil caddie for Stacy.... 

The most likely way something close to this could occur would be a Fall Finish/Silly Season kind of event...  But see what you think of this:

4) A WOMEN’S EVENT AT AUGUSTA NATIONAL: This idea would have been unthinkable in the pre-Billy Payne Era. But under Payne, Augusta National Golf Club has taken a real leadership role in the growth of the game. The Asia Pacific Amateur Championship, the Latin American Amateur Championship and the Drive, Chip & Putt Championship are all events in which ANGC has partnered with governing bodies to help grow the game globally and with junior players. A women’s event at ANGC would be a one-off or an occasional event, the way The Old Course at St. Andrews has hosted two Ricoh Women’s British Opens. The three logical candidates for Augusta National are the Solheim Cup, the U.S. Women’s Open and the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. It would bring great exposure to the women’s game.

I'm actually of mixed minds on this....  I totally get his point and it would be some great publicity for the club.  For instance, I anxiously await Paula's cartwheel on the Hogan bridge:

My concern is that I don't think it would dispaly the ladies' game in the best light.  They play an early season event in Ocala with its tribute copycat holes, and watching an endless series of weak wedges into their version of the 13th is cause for skepticism....

Go Short Young Man - Did you buy into the Acushnet IPO?  The company went public at $17/share, and closed Friday at $18.46, so-far, so-good.  But if you're long on the stock, you might want to skip to the next item, because MyGolf Spy has a rave review of a competitive product, including these cnclusions:

VERDICT 

The Kirkland Signature Tour Performance golf ball stood its own against the "#1 Ball in Golf." 

Although tester subjective feedback revealed the Kirkland ball felt "firmer" the data shows it performed better than the Pro V1 in many aspects. 

The largest and most noticeable differences are found within the driver - the Kirkland ball flies almost a full 10 yards further. 

The Tour Performance lives up to the Kirkland name - to perform just as good, if not better than the leading brand. 

10/10 highly recommend

I wouldn't worry...it's not like golfers are concerned with distance....

Trump, The Morning After - We've devotes lots of pixels to the increasingly complex relationship between the various golfing bodies and the candidate, all filtered through the lens of his anticipated loss.  Holy exit polls, Batman, the guy actually won, so what do we do now?

Shack posted Wednesday under this header:

Flashback: When The PGA Tour Left Trump Doral And How It Could Prove To Be An Expensive Mistake

Yeah, it has that feel, but largely because of reasons removed from the man himself.  Geoff reviews the history, including his common-sense suggestion at the time:

Pick up the big tab for a year to avoid upstaging the Memorial, to avoid a spat with a presidential nominee, to stay in Miami a year and to not set up a dangerous relationship with a man who might be the next President of the United States!

And here's his comments in the current moment:

Months later Finchem was moving the tour out of the Miami market and on to uncertainty inMexico City to ensure WGC status and to get away from Trump. Upon hearing that the WGC was headed to Mexico while campaigning, Trump joked about needing kidnapping insurance. 

There is much we won't know about what went on behind the scenes, but given the stakes, the PGA Tour is now on the not-so-good side of the next president. Given that some senators have regularly questioned the tour's non-profit stax status, Tim Finchem's quest to maintain World Golf Champioship status for one week of the year and to rid his tour of Donald Trump, could prove to be a very costly decision.

I don't actually think that there's much there there, and I'm not actually sure what the President-Elect could do to affect the Tour, except perhaps some harsh 3:00 a.m. tweets.  The tax exempt status is really a red herring, as the taxes are ultimately paid on all the six-figure salaries involved.

The real issue, as Geoff notes, is the Tour's cutting ties to a vibrant city and a longstanding venue.  seemingly indifferent to its ties to its storied past.  And then, as per the current BMW Championship claiming the legacy of the iconic Western Open, we see the regret.

Venue News - A couple of items that excite nerds such as your humble correspondent.  First, a return to this classic course:

The LPGA made it official Wednesday, formally announcing that Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio, will host the 2021 Solheim Cup. 

Inverness has hosted four U.S. Opens, two PGA Championships, two U.S. Senior Opens

and one U.S. Amateur. 

“We’re thrilled to have Inverness host the 2021 Solheim Cup,” LPGA commissioner Mike Whan said in a news conference at Inverness. “Inverness is one of the premier venues in golf and will serve as a great test for a match-play competition. Additionally, Toledo has been part of the LPGA family for over 30 years and we can’t wait to see the excitement, enthusiasm and hospitality that this great community will undoubtedly bring for the Solheim Cup.”

I much enjoyed (and agree with) Shack's snark towards the Fazios, though how does one discuss Inverness without reference to its most famous landmark.  Smart of the ladies to grab historic venues that distance has rendered obsolete, and Toledo is exactly the kind of community in which the LPGA should be present.

And as long as we're dissing the Fazios, this fits nicely:

After the successful transformation of Pinehurst No. 2 by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw ahead of the 2014 U.S. Open and U.S. Women's Open, Pinehurst No. 4 will get a similar facelift with the resort hiring Gil Hanse to restore the Donald Ross design, in addition to Hanse building a short course at the resort in 2017. 

Pinehurst No. 4, which was ranked No. 59 on Golf Digest's latest ranking of America's 100 Greatest Public Courses, and No. 16 in North Carolina, will close in the fall of 2017, with the goal of re-opening the next fall.

Shack takes his best shots here, but comments such as these are catnip to yours truly:

Just as No. 2 saw a return to hard-pan sand and native wire grass and Donald Ross-

signature domed greens, there's a similar plan to match that natural, minimalistic feel and look at No. 4. 

Pinehurst No. 4 had previously been ranked as one of North Carolina's top-five courses in the 1990s, but it slipped to No. 16 in our last Best in State ranking. The course, which was designed by Donald Ross in 1919, had previously been remodeled by Tom Fazio -- who called the No. 4 restoration one of his proudest remodels to date.

It probably was, so more's the pity....

Paul Goydos, Unplugged - Goydos is a character, and we need more of those in our game, so this SkratchTV interview is worth your time.  I like his perspective on himslef and his place in the game, but this is the best bit:

Paul Goydos admits that he has a bit of a temper. 

The two-time PGA Tour winner told SkratchTV that he has a tendency to speak in four-letter words and admitted that he had been fined four times by the PGA Tour. 

One of them, however, stands out. 

"I got fined by PGA Tour Travel for leaving a message on their answering machine that was less kosher than it should have been," Goydos said. "That’s the temper thing again."

I can relate to the temper thing, especially when he acknowledges it so candidly.  But fined for a voice mail message?  That's just priceless....

And I also like the man because he posts:

Wonder what that 62 did to his trend?

I'd Give It One More Go - OK, I might have jumped the gun with that catnip analogy, because....well, this:

Robert Allenby pondered quitting '1,000 times' in aftermath of Honolulu incident

Unfortunately the actual Daily Mail article is behind their paywall, so we only have this limited dosage of pathos and self-loathing for you:

“Allenby has opened up on his psychological turmoil after a two-year period that saw his golf career sink and controversies plague him. From his claims about being kidnapped

and robbed in ­Hawaii, to his caddie quitting mid-round, a Twitter feud with a fellow player and being arrested for disorderly conduct in the US in August. 

“‘I have had stages where I was going to quit 1000 times,’ Allenby said. ‘I just said: ‘You know what, screw this, you have to forget about everything and push forward. I haven’t killed anyone, I haven’t taken drugs — apart from being drugged. I really haven’t done a lot wrong. We are all humans and humans make mistakes.’”

And do you know who else makes mistakes?  Yup, caddies.....

The Allenby stories have been out there for years, long before anyone had heard of the Amuse Wine Bar.  He's legendary for his mistreatment of loopers as well as others, so there's little appetite for his pleas for sympathy and privacy.

His game, never top drawer, has fallen to a level where we're not likely to see all that much of him looking forward.  And, because it's all about me, I'm facing the bleak prospect of maintaining this here blog without Tim Finchem and Robert Allenby to kick around....

Say It Ain't So, Ko - My girl Lydia has been limping to the finish line and firing her caddie, Allenbyesque behavior setting off alarms.  A possible explanation is to be found on this Kiwi website:

“While Ko's coaching team insist this isn't the case, some astute judges believe Ko has begun changing her swing on the LPGA Tour's Asian jaunt… 

“Ko began changing to David Leadbetter's A swing about two years ago in an effort to find more length off the tee by learning how to draw the ball – moving it from right to left – which has made her less accurate without noticeably increasing her distance.

We've all seen this movie before, and has it ever worked out?  Unfortunately, Luke Donald was unavailable for comment.... Worse yet, it seems to have infected her putting....

Team Ko is blaming it on James Comey....err, well this seems about as credible:

But Ko's coach, Sean Hogan, who works with Leadbetter, said the changes were more about managing her through a long and exhausting year. 

"She's battling fatigue," he said. 

"This has been a very busy season and the last part is especially busy with the trips to Asia. 

"So we're working through that and she's working to get over the finish line."

I can see why she feels the need to get longer, but I fear the consequences..... her problem right now is that her most obvious rival, Ariya Jutanugarn, has her short game skills but absolutely bombs it.   How's a girl gonna compete wit that?