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Is Shane Ryan alone in rooting for Tiger Woods to fail?

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Shane Ryan, author of the insightful, singular, and controversial Slaying the Tiger, is regarded as a polemicist by some and an opinionated, original thinker by others. Regardless of whether you’re a detractor of admirer of Ryan’s “break the mold” style of golf writing, I think we can all admit he’s an excellent writer.

So it is with Ryan’s latest work of contrarianism for Golf Digest: “Tiger Fatigue Syndrome, or why I want the comeback to fail”. Is the essay a mere assumption of an oppositional or extreme position in favor of #clicks and self promotion? Is this Ryan’s well-reasoned opinion arrived at after much deliberation and thoughtfully presented? Is it some combination of both?

In the piece, Ryan writes things like this

“What I didn’t realize then, and hadn’t realized in 2014, was that I suffered from a rare disorder called Tiger Fatigue Syndrome. It comes in stages—bafflement, anger, exhaustion. It only afflicts those odd ducks, like me, who are completely at peace with a golf landscape that doesn’t include Tiger in a starring role. We are beset with psychic pain each time a Tiger comeback stops the presses, and we suffer spiritual ache each time its failure renews the “done or not done?!” debate cycle. We feel rooted in history, stuck in the past, like the sons of a rich tyrant whose name we can never escape. It’s at its most acute on weeks like this—Tiger is playing his first official PGA Tour event in a year at this week’s Farmers Insurance Open, and the eyes of the sport can’t look away.”

“To sufferers of TFS, the preponderance of Tiger-mad journalists and fans are the crazy ones. The evidence feels overwhelming: Tiger was the greatest golfer of his time—and the greatest to ever live, in my opinion—but now his watch has ended. The ongoing fixation with a man who is clearly past his prime strikes us as bizarre and a little delusional. And the more time that passes, and the more quixotic his path to glory, the worse it gets.”

Bold words. And while its sacrilege in all facets of the golf industry to cop to “TFS,” it’s doubtful Ryan is alone in suffering from the malady. You’ll want to read his full essay for context.

Not surprisingly, GolfWRX members have plenty to say about the piece, starting with Jarlaxle, who authored the thread.

“I could go on and on about how terrible this article is but will leave that to the rest of you. But I would ask Mr. Ryan to ponder one thing (and I do hope he reads this). If he were to poll all those young, up and coming stars that he feels are being undermined by the never-ending Tiger Mania, what do you think they would say? Do THEY want Tiger to fail? I’d say based upon recent comments by two of the youngest and most “fascinating” young players, Justin Thomas and John Rahm, that nothing could be further from the truth.”

Usually, the practice is to excerpt additional standout replies to give you a feel for the thread and entice you to click through. That is a difficult practice with this piece, however, as all the replies are darn good and many are hundreds of words long.

Instead, I’ll just say, get your popcorn ready and check out this excellent thread.

 

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19th Hole

Charlie Woods attempting to qualify for spot at 2024 U.S. Open

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As first reported by Bob Harig of Sports Illustrated, Charlie Woods will be attempting to qualify for this year’s U.S. Open at Pinehurst no. 2.

The first stage of qualifying for this year’s tournament will be an 18-hole local event on Thursday, April 25th, in Port St. Lucie, Florida.

There will be 84 players in the field, five of which will reach the 36-hole qualifier that will take place in June.

Earlier this season, Charlie attempted to qualify for the Cognizant Classic, and struggled, shooting an 86.

If the younger Woods is able to qualify, he will tee it up in the same field as his father in a few months at one of the more historic U.S. Open venues.

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19th Hole

Why Ludvig Aberg is my new favorite player – GolfWRXers discuss

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In our forums, our members have been discussing one of the new sensations in the world of golf – Ludvig Aberg. The 24-year-old finished solo second at the Masters a couple of weeks ago, and gained many plaudits, including from several WRXers.

One member, RoyalMustang, took to the forums to explain why Aberg is now their favorite player, saying:

“I loved the way the Ludvig was out there, having a great time, not taking himself or the situation too seriously. Even after the double at 11, he was like “well, that’s golf!” Loose and relaxed: that’s the way to play. It’s obvious he loves what he’s doing, he loves the big moments, and he loves being a part of it all.

Arnold Palmer was viewed that way. Just like Brooks Robinson was forever viewed as not just a great baseball player, but a great human being and friend to Baltimore.”

And our members have been reacting and sharing their positive takes on the young Swede.

Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.

  • redfirebird08: “Ludvig has a great attitude, a great smile, and a great golf swing.”
  • otto6457: “I’m very lucky to have talked with Ludde several times at the Rawls Course at Texas Tech.  He’s a truly nice guy and very friendly.  Always said hello when we passed each other in the club house and was always smiling. Watching him hit balls on the range was a joy.  He has “that sound” and trajectory to die for.  There were many times he was out on the range in 30+ mph winds just hitting the most beautiful shots that just seemed to ignore the wind.  World class ball striker. And yes……..I am a fan boy.”
  • konklifer: “I like him. In an era of endless waggles and laboring, his swing and pace of play are a joy to watch.

Entire Thread: “Why Ludvig Aberg is my new favorite player – GolfWRXers discuss”

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19th Hole

‘Absolutely crazy’ – Major champ lays into Patrick Cantlay over his decision on final hole of RBC Heritage

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Over the past year or so, PGA Tour star Patrick Cantlay has taken a great deal of criticism for his pace of play.

Now, Cantlay is once again under fire for a questionable decision he made on Sunday at the RBC Heritage.

After the horn sounded to suspend play due to darkness, Cantlay, whose ball was in the fairway on the 18th hole, had a decision to make. With over 200 yards into the green and extreme winds working against the shot, conventional wisdom would be to wait until Monday morning to hit the shot.

On the other hand, if he could finish the hole, he may just want to get the event over with so he could get out of Hilton Head.

Curiously, Cantlay chose neither of those options. After hitting 3-wood into the green, and still coming up short, the former FedEx Cup champion chose to mark his ball and return to chip and putt on Monday morning.

Ian Woosnam, who was watching from home, took to X to give his thoughts on Cantlay’s decision-making.

Cantlay would end up getting up and down for par when play resumed at 8:00 Monday morning.

Following his round, Cantlay explained his decision to wait to hit his third shot the next morning:

“I really did want to finish last night, so I felt like if I could get the ball up there maybe in an easier spot, maybe I would have finished, but as I got the ball up near the green, I realized it would be easier to finish this morning. That’s what I decided to do.”

GolfWRX has reached out to Patrick Cantlay’s management team for a response to Woosnam’s comments.

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