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Showtime In Georgia – The Masters
Face it, no matter how highly regarded any PGA Tour event prior to The Masters is, it is simply a preamble to one of the greatest weeks in golf. That is even more significant this year with the return of Tiger Woods to the game.
It really is hard to believe that Tiger will be making his 16th appearance at Augusta National and despite his recent off course owes his four wins since 1997 cannot be disregarded when all comes into account this week.
I waited to publish The Masters tournament preview this week, not to allow the initial Tiger Woods press conference to come and go, but simply to have a little greater assessment of where his game stands. Flagstick Golf Magazine Instruction Editor Kevin Haime, the 2000 Canadian PGA Teacher of Year, followed the Tiger and Fred Couples during their practice round on Monday at Augusta National and says he gives the ball striking edge to Couples. Even Couples said that Tiger was not as sharp as usual.
Of course, by the time Thursday rolls around Tiger will have played approximately eight practice rounds over the venerable ANGC layout but is that enough to have him ready to compete in a major championship after a 20 week layoff? It is hard to say but with his track record at this major it is hard to leave him out of the picture. Since his win in 2005 he has only been out of the top five once…a tie for 6th last year. When he is at Augusta National you better make room for his name on the upper half of the leaderboard. He still has to be favored to at least be in the mix when the final holes play out on Sunday. He will start at 1:42 on Thursday with Matt Kuchar and K.J. Choi, a congenial match-up that should favor Woods.
As always at Augusta you have to have a close look at the past champions and their ability to don another Green Jacket. After all, nobody but them has the knowledge of what it truly takes to win the coveted prize.
The slashing style of Angel Cabrera resulted in a win last year but I have hard time imagining him defending the title. Although he has made the cut in all his seven PGA Tour starts in 2010, he has but one top ten finish. A t-73rd at last week’s Shell Houston Open would not exactly measure up as a confidence boost for this week.
Mickelson has not lived up to the hype this year but wins of ’04 and ’06 are valuable memories he can draw on for inspiration.
Playing with Cabrera on Thursday will be Jim Furyk, not a past winner here, but a player who looks renewed and focussed for this season. Because of that, and his fine record of play at Augusta he is my dark horse pick – if that is possible in an elite field of 97 players, the largest field on 44 years. Without the ability to hit the ball exceptionally long, look for Furyk to surgically dissect the course much like Zach Johnson did during his 2007 victory. Furyk tied for 10th in 2009.
2003 winner Mike Weir might also be an unexpected factor this week. Like Woods, Weir will have to fight the physical stresses of allergies with the pollen count in Augusta at extreme levels.
Speaking with Weir last Tuesday he said his game is not as sharp as he would like, particularly with his driving. “My season, so far has been a bit of a mixed bag – there has been some good play in their just not the consistency I’m looking for. At the same time I feel confident with my game; I feel good. I am looking forward to Augusta.”
Weir says he will stick to the Scotty Cameron Napa blade putter he first put into play at the Accenture Match Play where he birdied 9 of his first 10 holes played with it. He expects to lean on that putter and his typically fine iron play this week, especially if his driving does not come into form.
Hard to be ignored in this mix is Ernie Els. The only 2-time winner on the PGA Tour this year, Els is not only hitting the ball exceptionally well, he is putting with renewed confidence thanks to a flat stick recently shortened by one and a half inches. That bravado, especially on the short putts, will be an effective tool at Augusta National if he can stay in form.
Other Hot Pairings
Group 7 / 8:56 – (International Flare) The early lead could come from this group on Thursday. Martin Kaymer, Luke Donald, and Geoff Ogilvy are strong prospects and don’t be surprised if they can post a strong number for others to chase.
Group 10 / 9:29 – (Power Play) I’m betting this trio will generate a few roars. Bombers Dustin Johnson and Alvaro Quiros will give Oliver Wilson a show he will have to try and stay out of. Hopefully DJ and AQ don’t get caught up in seeing who can reach the most par fives in two and remember there is a major championship taking place.
Group 13 /10:13 – (Hot Commodities) Ernie Els, Anthony Kim, and Ryo Ishikawa. Need I say more? Confidence and momentum are not lacking with the exception of Ishikawa who has yet to carry his Japanese success over to the United States. But certainly has the potential to do so.
Group 25 /12:36 (Two Studs & a Chaperone) – Will Kenny Perry shows Camilo Villegas and Rory McIlroy how to tackle AGNC with veteran poise or will the youngsters teach Perry what it is like to play golf without nerves again?
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Morning 9: Scheffler repeats at Players | Monday PIF meeting | McIlroy takes another shot at Norman
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Tour Rundown: Matching luggage for Scheffler
For those of us from another generation, the disruption of the golf world that we knew well is both exciting and unsettling. The two most potent disruptors are rival golf leagues, not unlike the turmoil seen in the NCAA, and the Anchorman-style gangs of golf reporters. Reconciled to a past era are the dominance of the U.S. PGA Tour and the monthly golf magazines. One element that will not change, at any time in the foreseeable future, however, is the sanctity of the grand slam and golf’s four male major championships. While the LPGA and the PGA Tour Champions have seen a light and added fifth and sixth power titles, the men’s game remains staunchly in the 20th century.
This last topic surges in pertinence each March, just before the playing of The Players Championship. Two camps stake tents and run banners up the poll. One cries out for elevation of the PC to major status, while the other digs a trench around its impregnable quadrilateral. My personal take is this: Every four years since 2016, golf is played at the Olympics. Is Olympic Gold the equivalent of a major title? Yes, it is. It comes around every 1,500 days and brings elite golfers together in competition at the most important athletic event and venue. In my mind, Justin Rose and Xander Schauffele earned major titles in Brazil and Japan, as did Inbee Park and Nelly Korda. As for the Players Championship, why not? The field is stronger by ranking than any major event, and the golf course demands every shot that golfers can create.
The Players Championship is so important to the U.S. PGA Tour that all other tours under its umbrella take the week off. No Korn Ferry, no Tour Champions. The LPGA and the DP World Tour follow suit, which shrinks the amount of watchable golf to two events. On that sour note, let’s run down this week’s play, beginning with the Players Championship and ending with the Asian Tour in Macau.
PGA Tour @ Players Championship: matching luggage for Scheffler
Scottie Scheffler is making a bid to be the player of his generation. From the previous one, a fair number have taken leave from traditional competition. The Johnsons, Koepkas, and Reeds from the 1980s no longer play the events that stand the test of time. The born-in-the-90s generation had its first great champion in Jordan Spieth until he took leave of the senses that brought him to golf’s pinnacle. Spieth’s descent ran opposite Scheffler’s rise.
Scottie Scheffler had won nothing on the PGA Tour until February 13th of 2022. He won on that day in Phoenix, then won three more times by the middle of April. One of those wins was the API at Bay Hill. Last week, Scheffler won for a second time at the Orlando course. Last March, Scheffler won his first Players Championship, by five shots over Tyrrell Hatton. On Sunday, Scheffler dived headfirst into a cauldron of fierce competition. Facing challenges from Olympic champion Schauffele, Open champion Brian Harmon, and U.S. Open champion Wyndham Clark, Scheffler breathed. As the only man to reach 20 under par, he earned a second consecutive title at Sawgrass and reminded us that it has been two years since he won the Masters and that he is on a tear.
It all began at the fourth on Sunday for Scheffler. After pars at the opening three holes, Scheffler’s driving wedge from 92 yards landed 20 feet shy of the hole, took one large bounce, then spun left, trickling into the hole for eagle. He followed that incantation with another birdie, then two pars. The stretch from 8 to 12 was where the champion made a statement. His quartet of birdies over that run, brought him to 19-under par and let the pursuing pack know that even lower than the winning 17 under in 2023 would be necessary.
And the trio was game. Harman and Clark both dipped below 70, to reach 19 under at the final pole. Schauffele could not find a similar gear and closed with 70 — 69 would have earned him a playoff with Scheffler. It was the extra gear, the ability to go low when all things mattered, that eleveated the now two-time champion to the top of the podium. In five of his eight tour wins, Scheffler has posted a sub-70 round on day four, and four of those have been 67 or lower.
With elegant precision, Scheffler applied the final thrust at the par-5 16th. He played safely away from Pete’s Pond on the right, into the left greenside bunker at the back of the putting surface. His bunker shot was thing of exquisite accuracy, trickling to a planned stop about 20 inches from the hole. The birdie concluded matters and rang the sort of bell that Dye courses tend to display.
The greenside bunker is not a problem for the defending champ.
Scottie Scheffler’s birdie at 16 moves him back into a share of the lead @THEPLAYERS. pic.twitter.com/aEi7onLZPE
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 17, 2024
Asian Tour @ International Series Macau: Catlin earns playoff victory
There are two sorts of golfers that compete on the Asian Tour, which makes no secret of its alliance with the LIV. The first are the AT stalwarts, the ones who play as golfers have always played, with little guarantee and much pride. The others are the ones who compete on the LIV, eschewing both risk and pride for the guaranteed payday. Their deal costs them world ranking points, so they play in AT events, hoping to qualify for golf’s major events.
This week in Macau, one of those LIV golfers shot 60 on Sunday and did not win the tournament. Hard to believe, you say? Aye, but when another golfer shoots 59 in the third round, follows it up with a 65 on day four, then makes overtime birdie twice at the par-five closer, the razor’s edge of great golf is sharpened. Thus did it happen with American John Catlin and Spaniard David Puig.
It was Catlin who signed for 59, and it took a twisting, eagle putt at the last to enshrine the first-ever, sub-60 on the Asian Tour. It was Puig who closed the gap on Sunday with a 60 of his own, which featured a bogey at the lengthy fifth hole, but was followed by seven birdies and an eagle over the next 13 holes. Catlin had a six-feet putt for the regulation win, but missed. In extra time, Puig nearly holed for eagle at 18, then tapped in for birdie. Catlin’s second danced along the OOB perimeter, before ending on an access road. His drop and pitch left him another six feet to remain alive, and this time, he converted.
At the second go-round of the par-5 finisher, Puig found the green in two, but took three putts from nearly 50 feet. Catlin confronted another challenging pitch for his third, and once again, his wedge game won the day. He tapped in for birdie and the win.
5??9?? ? @JohnCatlin59 eagles the 18th to shoot the first 59 on the Asian Tour ?? #whereitsAT #ThisISEverything #InternationalSeries @intseriesgolf pic.twitter.com/RV9gYy1SIp
— Asian Tour (@asiantourgolf) March 16, 2024
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Morning 9: Rory, Xander, Clark share Players lead | Rory on controversial drop | AK misses Macau cut
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