What do you call it when the 124th ranked player in the FedEx Cup rankings, only the top 125 get into the first event, beats the number one and two ranked players to capture the first playoff event?  There are several choices, believe it or not, first being  congratulate the heck out of the winner, Heath Slocum, all 5′7" 150 lbs of him for playing some inspired golf.  Secondly would be to wonder how this could happen, even in a fickle sport like golf .

 Is this more ammunition for those whose think playoff golf is silly?  (what’s really silly is that trophy, does it not resemble an ice cream sunday dish for the days of the drugstore soda fountain?) Next is where does this rate with the 2007 Michigan-Appalacian State football upset.  At this point reality sinks in, so the golf playoffs are truly contrived, these guys are good, and the difference between numbers 1,2 and 124 are not as great as the linear distance between those numbers.  The trophy, however, still resembles a really oversized ice cream sunday dish. 

Mr. Slocum rolled in a 20 foot putt for par on the 18th hole, finishing his final round 67,  moments after Tiger Woods missed a 7 foot birdie putt to tie the lead, and moments before Steve Stricker missed a 10 foot par putt to stay tied for the lead.  Stick those three players out there as many times as you like in the sames circumstances, the result will be different almost every time.  I felt I had been struck physically when Mr. Woods missed that putt.  I don’t think I’ve ever seen that, he makes so many of those when it matters.  But this is not a typical year for Mr. Woods.  His work on the greens has betrayed him time and again.  For most of the day he once again appeared unable to comprehend the language of the greens, a language he’s spoken better than anyone for the last dozen years.  “It happens,” said Woods, who shot a 67. “Not too many golf courses that you misread putts that badly. This golf course is one.” 

Mr. Stricker’s putt on the 18th hole caught the left edge, but stayed out for a bogey and a tie for second with Mr. Woods, Ernie Els, and Padraig Harrington.  Very heady company for a man whose only two victories came in opposite field events.  “It was an incredible day, incredible experience,” Slocum said. “I was just kind of lucky to come out on top. A lot of good players. At the end of the day, that putt on the last was magical. I’ll remember that for the rest of my life.”  Magical indeed, now all he needs is a couple of gallons of ice cream and some hot fudge.

So it’s on to Boston and the Deutsche Bank Championship for the top one hundred in the points race.  Mr Woods and Mr Stricker stay numbers one and two, while Mr. Slocum moves into third place.