News

Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus hit out at today’s golf ball and green reading books

Published

5 years ago

Apr 12, 2019

As is tradition, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player opened up the 2019 Masters alongside Tom Waston on Thursday morning as the honorary starters of the event. Afterwards while in the press center, both Nicklaus and Player spoke together, and the two men had some harsh words to say regarding the harm that they feel modern technology is doing to the game of golf.

Nicklaus has long been outspoken about the dangers that modern technology could cause the game, and on Thursday, the 18-time major champion railed against the modern day golf balls, believing the extra distance they now provide players with has gotten out of hand.

“The golf ball has gotten ridiculous. I have so many things on that. The golf ball from 1930 to about ’95 gained about six yards. From 1995 to 2005, about 15 yards, and that’s a big difference. Probably the organizations won’t tell you that, but that’s exactly about what happened.”

Like Nicklaus, Player believes the current technological innovations are damaging to the sport, and the three-time Masters champion fired a stark warning on Thursday concerning the possible consequences of a lack of action on the issue from the game’s organizations.

“We’d better start thinking. They are going to hit wedges to all the par-5s, and golf courses like St. Andrews, this marvelous golf course, is completely obsolete. They can drive probably six greens. So I don’t know where we’re going.

And our leaders of such have got to get together now and form a ball for professionals that’s different to the amateurs. Let the amateurs have anything they’d like. … But we have got to stop this, otherwise it’s going to be a joke, in my opinion.”

The South African also hit out at the use of green reading books, which are banned from Augusta National but allowed at several stops on the PGA Tour, describing the process of using the books as an aid on the greens as “artificial.”

“Bobby Locke was the best putter that ever lived, and Tiger Woods was the best putter and so on. I never saw him take out a book to read the damn green. To read the green, you’ve got to look at a book. Well if you can’t read a green, you should be selling beans. It’s part of the game. Where are we going? Everything is so artificial.”

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64 Comments

Pingback: PGA Tour announces restrictions on green reading books – GolfWRX
Joro

Apr 14, 2019 at 6:44 pm

It is simple, make the courses tougher to stop the 300 + yd. Drives that make long holes short and is ridiculous. I am sure the ball has a lot to do with it but the main thing is length, fast fairways , and no real trouble for being super long and straight. Face it a Drive and Wedge on 13 at the Masters is just plain BS. Put something out there so the players cannot hit it that long without a huge risk. In fact narrow fairways, real rough, and other obstacles will keep things down.

I know the manufactures are producing the length for all that it is worth, like the Car companies are using fast as a sales point although 90% of the buyers have any business going fast and the Death rate shows it. If in fact they don’t cut it back where will it end? Five Hundred yard Drives and having to chip back to the Green. Of course not, it only affects the Pros and long hitters and when Joe the Hack sees Tiger hit it over 300, or Rory 350 he has to have one,,,, as if he can get it off the ground.

It has gone too far and time to get back to skill and keep everyone in the Ballgame, not just the Gorilla.

Reply Report comment
daniel

Apr 13, 2019 at 6:46 pm

Since it’s the masters. Why don’t we do what Bobby Jones did when the Niblick/SW became a thing bunker plays were no longer a challenge for the pro, so he decided too add water and a lot of it. Hence recreating golf courses isn’t a new thing, just a change of the times.

Reply Report comment
Bobby

Apr 13, 2019 at 8:44 am

And to add a solution to my previous comment…. move tee boxes back ten yards theres plenty of room and grow out the fairway alittle to stop the ridiculous run out of 30-40 yards we see at every pga tour event…you say the amateurs can use any ball we want but ill tell ya my ball dont roll out more than ten yards on most amateur courses i play and iam a 3 handicap who gets plenty of distance….. easy fix

Reply Report comment
Bobby

Apr 13, 2019 at 8:37 am

So they are saying its a major problem that the ball gained 15 yards and now they hit wedges to greens? So if they back it up the 15 yards what are they gonna use 9 iron? Stop it….. Yes equipment is getting too good i somewhat agree but the other issue is the amount of money they can win has brought in real athletes….. Say what you want but the older guys never looked no where near what Koepka and Rory look like today. All the young kids are big athletic guys too…. Tiger was the first of the real
Athletes and look how he did against the others of his time…..

Reply Report comment
Glenn D.

Apr 13, 2019 at 8:37 am

And they wonder why rounds are taking so long to play. They’ve needed to add yards to every hole to accommodate the “new” length golf balls go. Like playing an extra hole. An extra 1/2 hour or longer?

Reply Report comment
Simms

Apr 13, 2019 at 1:01 am

That PXG on Gary’s hat makes anything he has to say about equipment BS. Sorry boys it is like all sports the more education we get the better the players and equipment get. I would not worry to much about golf because Pro golf is big dollar entertainment and the Country Clubs they play and high end public courses are all that will be left in years to come…Public golf is on its last legs with courses being worth more closed then open and the ones open are fighting a loosing battle trying to match green fees with operating costs, public golfers are not going to pay over $45 dollars to play more then once a month and tee sheets even on the least expensive courses are still not full.

Reply Report comment
the koob

Apr 12, 2019 at 7:33 pm

Bifurcation seems logical. But don’t take my ball away from me. I want my MTV.

Reply Report comment
- D
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 11:16 pm
  
  They already do bifurcate.
  The Pros get to use metal spikes
  
  Reply Report comment
- PG
  
  Apr 13, 2019 at 8:28 am
  
  The tee boxes already “bifurcate”.
  
  Reply Report comment
Brendan Welch

Apr 12, 2019 at 6:35 pm

Why don’t they just make everyone play blades or all play the same lofts?

Reply Report comment
Acemkr9

Apr 12, 2019 at 6:20 pm

I love the comments on here! Most of the people railing against Jack and Gary have never hit a persimmon or a balata! They grew up being indoctrinated on length. Golf is going the way of baseball the uneducated baseball fan wants 7 home runs a game not a pitchers dual, The uneducated golfer wants to see 350 yard drives and 27 under it’s simply the times and unfortunately TV is the culprit they always want more people and more people, you then pull in the uneducated sports fan who doesn’t understand the art of the sport or the tactical parts of the sport. They simply want to view something, yell at the players and ruin the next sport!

Reply Report comment
- Alan
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 9:39 pm
  
  I didn’t notice Jack and Gary dropping back to Hickory and Haskell balls from their modern technology advantages.
  
  Reply Report comment
- Aztec
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 10:01 pm
  
  You mention ‘uneducated’ 3 times but your grammar is terrible. Kind of funny, eh?
  
  Reply Report comment
Kim

Apr 12, 2019 at 5:33 pm

JN has been whining about this for ages, as previous posts have mentioned, perhaps jealously. If you want to eliminate the “bombers” set the course up like they did at the Ryder Cup. There is virtually no rough at Augusta. Punish the wayward shot more severely. The changes on 5 seem to have had the desired affect. Narrow the fairways. These guys are better athletes, yes, technology is better, embrace it. Going backwards is not the answer.

Reply Report comment
- acemkr9
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 6:23 pm
  
  Actually if you had any historical knowledge instead of just an opinion Jack in his prime was the longest hitter on tour, Courses actually starting adding bunkers because he flew the original ones!
  Alistair McKenzie in his book ‘the Spirit of ST Andrews warned of the ball going to far! You should read it!
  
  Reply Report comment
Harry Adam

Apr 12, 2019 at 5:21 pm

Whatever is decided, it would be a great mistake to differentiate equipment rules between amateurs and professionals.

Reply Report comment
- J Zilla
  
  Apr 13, 2019 at 2:28 am
  
  Why would it be a mistake?
  
  Reply Report comment
Tom54

Apr 12, 2019 at 4:28 pm

I guess it’s only fitting that two of the names greatest champions are now fussing about how far the modern ball and equipment are making the game unfair. I guess it comes with the territory once you have become honorary starters for the Masters. Pretty sure they wish today’s ball and clubs were out in their heyday. If we have maxed out the ball and the clubs,then it must be the player. Courses can handle 325 yd drives but if they start averaging 350+ then maybe there is a problem. Until then sit back and marvel what talent it takes to propel a golf ball around a course like they do.

Reply Report comment
- acemkr9
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 6:25 pm
  
  “Until then sit back and marvel what talent it takes to propel a golf ball around a course like they do.”
  
  bwahaahhahahaahahaahaahahaahahahaaah Jack Nicklaus has 18 majors and you think he doesn’t know what it takes! I marvel at peoples comments!
  
  Reply Report comment
Jow

Apr 12, 2019 at 4:22 pm

Nicklaus is clearly right. If you value the historic courses around the world, the technology cannot get longer perpetually. These courses will not change in kind.

If you’re ok with Augusta, St Andrews, Bethpage etc becoming easier and easier as time marches on the I suppose it’s not an issue for you.

It would be great if we could make clubs easier to hit without always adding length.

Reply Report comment
Bob Jones

Apr 12, 2019 at 4:13 pm

In the 1960s, Bobby Jones described how Augusta plays in the Masters. You can read it in his book, Golf Is My Game. For example, hole No. 16, 190 yards, he described as a 2, 3, or 4-iron. Now it’s a 7, 8, or 9-iron. Don’t tell me these guys don’t have a point about distance. As for the Masters not allowing green reading books, hear hear!

Reply Report comment
Darrin Lygrisse

Apr 12, 2019 at 4:02 pm

I will disagree with Jack on one thing…it’s more the driver than the ball, or a combo of the two. The modern driver with a spring face COR launches the harder ball when you have a high swing speed. The long get longer, the short hitters have gained very little. It takes speed to make that face flex, the rich got richer, the short got shorter in a relative sense.

Reply Report comment
Tom

Apr 12, 2019 at 4:01 pm

The older folks probably said the same thing when they switched from hickory. You can’t fault advancements in technology.

Reply Report comment
LLL

Apr 12, 2019 at 3:50 pm

Lets go back to lumber

Reply Report comment
Bryan

Apr 12, 2019 at 3:04 pm

Hmmm…the modern golf ball did not seem to make Merion obsolete in 2013, did it?

Reply Report comment
- Caddy
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 4:28 pm
  
  Only because other features were harder. Greens were never much more than about 8 on the stimp until the early 1980’s. Now 12-13 is normal on tour. Bobby Jones would have thought that was ridiculous. Augustas greens were made for slow speeds.
  
  Reply Report comment
Rae Ashley

Apr 12, 2019 at 3:03 pm

I totally agree with Mr. Nicklaus and Mr. Player!!! Why shouldn’t Golf have a standard ball like all other sports? Plus, I just love to hear these duffers and hackers criticize two of the greats. Total disrespect and actually very ignorant!!

Reply Report comment
- Anton kruger
  
  Apr 13, 2019 at 2:29 pm
  
  It’s not being ignorant or disrespectful it’s fact that technology has improved the game and athletes are better than these two old timers who have nothing better to do or say and use the masters as a platform to create controversy to get press coverage . They had there time . Respect the new generation and their better abilities
  
  Reply Report comment
Stump

Apr 12, 2019 at 3:00 pm

Did Jack and Gary play hickory and gutta percha balls or did they play steel shafts and a balata ball? I’ll bet Jack could hit his steel and balata 21 yards further than the older guys hit their hickory and GP.
Jack was complaining about the ball back in the 80s. Ironic that Gary was complaining of technology while wearing the hat of one of the most advanced and expensive equipment companies.
Maybe we should all watch the Masters on our black and white 13″ TVs…for only the last 9 holes on Sunday instead of streaming it.

Reply Report comment
David

Apr 12, 2019 at 1:46 pm

Old men complaining… A tradition unlike any other.

Reply Report comment
- Sven Olsen
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 3:07 pm
  
  Those old men hit golf balls and won tournaments, while you were still suckling!
  How many pro tournaments have YOU won?
  
  Reply Report comment
- Boyo
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 5:35 pm
  
  DITM.
  
  Reply Report comment
frank cichon

Apr 12, 2019 at 1:24 pm

It is not Rocket Science or Brain Surgery…..the rules are there, just enforce them. I have volunteered several times at the PGA Tour stop in Vancouver BC and could not at two Canadian Opens that we had here several years ago (both times more people volunteered than were needed) Have 2 timers per group with a stop watch and time each player ….first slow time a warning, second slow time a 1 stroke penalty , second slow time 2 strokes.We would see twosomes play inside of 4 hours overnight.

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dat

Apr 12, 2019 at 1:12 pm

Has a lot to do with the physical fitness of the best players of today. That gains more yards, period. Equipment is not out of control, except the ball – so it is likely a combo of both the ball and the gym work ethic these guys have today.

If Nicklaus or Player were playing today, and in their former “prime” shape – they’d get destroyed. If they were around today, and worked at the same level as today’s best – they’d probably still be great, but not win like they did back then.

Reply Report comment
- Funkaholic
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 2:52 pm
  
  You obviously have no idea what you are talking about.
  
  Reply Report comment
  - Jim regan
    
    Apr 12, 2019 at 3:19 pm
    
    Agree! Hey watching the Masters today these guys were hitting drivers that CARRIED 280-290!! This is ridiculous. jack and Gary know what they’re talking about.
    
    Reply Report comment
- Boyo
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 5:37 pm
  
  You’re out of your Vulcan mind.
  
  Reply Report comment
Jose

Apr 12, 2019 at 12:50 pm

I get so tired of little short man syndromes. I saw a picture of Phil standing next to jack about 25 yrs ago and Phil made him look like the midget he is. What Jack never mentions is the pure Geometry of the game. If you hit a drive 280 yards and it’s on the right side of the fairway, then Dustin hits next on the exact line, he’s 30+ yards into the trees. Jack just needs to go away, his ego is bigger than his fat old gut he has hanging out. Fans go to watch pros to see them hut shots they can’t, which is why the LPGA doesn’t draw the numbers the guys do. They want to see things that amaze them, 240 yard drives aren’t amazing. You think golf is losing ground now, take amazing out of it and watch what happens.

Reply Report comment
- Funkaholic
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 2:56 pm
  
  Nicklaus hit the old ball with the old clubs 341 yards in 1963, you have no idea what you are talking about. If you don’t respect legends like him, you have no business on the course.
  
  Reply Report comment
- Joseph R Dreitler
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 3:02 pm
  
  Because you never saw Jack when he was 22 years old. He was 6′” tall and is now about 5’8″. It happens when you get old. Like most old men, he’s lost height, a lot of it. The training argument is bogus. YouTube the 1971 All Star game when 170 pound, steroid-less Reggie Jackson took a Doc Ellis fastball and it was still climbing when it hit the light tower on top of the upper deck. Point is that there are not just 3 or 5 or 10 big/super guys hitting it this far, most of them on the Tour are. Is making golf courses obsolete.
  
  Reply Report comment
- Boyo
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 5:38 pm
  
  Another moron speaks.
  
  Reply Report comment
Mike Cleland

Apr 12, 2019 at 11:21 am

It is a shame to see what has happened to Golf. No one walks, everyone rides around in their little golf carts loaded with beer & pretzels. My son, who is 5’7” tall & never works out, regularly hits 325 yard drives & 160 yard pitching wedges in between smokes. We have $500 drivers & $300 putters, $250 green fees & $10,000/year dues on mediocre country clubs. It takes 5+ hours to play 18 holes. The USGA & R&A are clearly in the pocket of the equipment companies. Kids are not taking up golf because it costs too much & parents that can’t afford to play golf. Gee, why is golf not growing?

Reply Report comment
Chris

Apr 12, 2019 at 11:00 am

No disrespect to Jack or Gary, but they are playing a caricature of the two old muppets in the balcony. I understand their argument and concerns, but 1) these guys aren’t the same burger-eating, smoking, “everymen” of days of old. They are athletes. They hit a long ball partially because of the ball/equipment, but mostly because they have worked their arse off to be strong enough to unload a club like that. 2) These guys all have to putt and play a short game. The ball doesn’t help putting pressure. 3) Long balls go long into the woods too. It’s risk/reward – if you’re straight, great. If not, you’re no better off than a short knock. 4) Pick your battles – with the rules bumbling in the USGA and the US Open setup issues, introducing a new complication / controversy into the mix is just dumb and myopic.

Reply Report comment
- dat
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 1:29 pm
  
  100% Agree. These guys are now full blown athletes for the mostpart.
  
  Perhaps courses should focus on making long distance drives a major risk reward, narrow those fairways. Or, get the USGA/R&A to issue a joint ruling on golf ball limitations like they did with COR.
  
  Reply Report comment
- N
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 3:49 pm
  
  No, it’s all equipment lol
  
  Reply Report comment
- acemkr9
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 6:28 pm
  
  So they would hit a balata the same distance as the current balls because of their stature and strength? Obviously you never hit a balata with a persimmon!
  
  Reply Report comment
- Murv
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 9:29 pm
  
  You got it right!
  
  Reply Report comment
R

Apr 12, 2019 at 10:36 am

Get rid of golf carts too, in between holes, and in between front and back 9s on Tour, and really see how long rounds take if they all actually had to walk every corner of the course without help. That should help eliminate more than half the courses on Tour easily that are all too big, too wide open.

Reply Report comment
Brandon

Apr 12, 2019 at 10:03 am

Pretty simple to just narrow the fairways and make the rough unplayable for pro tournaments if they are worried about courses playing too easy.

Reply Report comment
- R
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 10:37 am
  
  Ditto
  
  Reply Report comment
- Jim K
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 10:52 am
  
  It’s not so much a question of courses playing too easy; it’s about courses playing the way they were intended to be played. Narrowing fairways and growing rough won’t do that. It will just take the driver out of the game. It’s like baseball where a lot of people think the home run has become too big a part of the game. You could change that by moving all the fences back 50 feet, but that would also change the basic nature of the game. Restricting the ball in both sports would be the best way to restore the games to what they were intended to be.
  
  Reply Report comment
- Jim Garner
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 10:55 am
  
  But all the folks that holler Bobba Booey and Uda Man would quit attending
  
  Reply Report comment
  - dat
    
    Apr 12, 2019 at 1:27 pm
    
    You act like that’s a bad thing?
    
    Reply Report comment
  - Funkaholic
    
    Apr 12, 2019 at 3:19 pm
    
    Good, I hate those morons.
    
    Reply Report comment
Thomas A

Apr 12, 2019 at 9:45 am

Player railing against modern technology, just signed a club deal with PXG. That’s rich.

Reply Report comment
- R
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 10:38 am
  
  Ditto
  
  Reply Report comment
- Justin Wheeler
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 3:12 pm
  
  This was exactly my thought. Of course, they didn’t blame the equipment like drivers and irons. Watching The Masters now and seeing guys hit driver with 170+ ball speed. I’d be curious what the ball speeds were back in the day. It’s a combination of club, ball, strength and conditioning, efficiency, and agronomic conditions.
  
  Reply Report comment
  - David C
    
    Apr 12, 2019 at 11:22 pm
    
    Nail on the head
    
    Reply Report comment
- D
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 7:34 pm
  
  That is a really good point.
  
  Reply Report comment
CC1718

Apr 12, 2019 at 9:41 am

Jack was one of the first guys to start making his own yardage books back in the day… I guess he can take some credit for the guys taking it one step further with the making green reading books… PGA should just give everyone an ipad and a GPS course app and maybe the pro game pace of play would speed up… Throw in a barometer too for DeChambeau so he can get his air pressure worked into his yardage…

Reply Report comment
- Red Nelson
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 5:18 pm
  
  I love the creative use of ellipsis. Or is this Morse code? dot dot dot dash dash dash dot dot dot.
  “Help! I don’t know what I’m doing.”
  
  Reply Report comment
Gurn Blanstin

Apr 12, 2019 at 9:14 am

What do you have against grocers selling beans?

I miss the rubber bands in the ole balata …

Reply Report comment
- LoPro
  
  Apr 12, 2019 at 8:39 pm
  
  How many yards of rubber bands were in that ball?
  
  Reply Report comment

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News

Morning 9: Rory: I’m not joining LIV | Masters ratings | Nelly: We just need a stage

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2 days ago

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By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: [email protected]

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1. Rory: I’m not going to LIV

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“I honestly don’t know how these things get started,” McIlroy told Golf Channel while on the practice range at Harbour Town Golf Links in Hilton Head, South Carolina, the site of this week’s RBC Heritage. “I’ve never been offered a number from LIV, and I’ve never contemplated going to LIV. Again, I think I’ve made it clear over the past two years that I don’t think it’s something for me.

“It doesn’t mean that I judge people who have went and played over there. I think one of the things that I have realized over the past two years is that people can make their own decisions for whatever they think is best for themselves, and who are we to judge them for that? But personally, for me, my future is here on the PGA Tour, and it’s never been any different.”

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“Perhaps as a result, Sunday’s final round averaged 9.59 million viewers on CBS, according to Sports Media Watch, a 22.8% decline from last year’s 12.06 million. Scheffler’s win two years ago averaged 10.17 million viewers. Worth noting: Sunday’s final round was down 20 percent against last year’s victory by Jon Rahm, but last year’s final round fell on Easter Sunday, which created a significantly higher out-of-home percentage of viewers — 21 percent in 2023, as opposed to 9 percent this year.”

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“Korda’s feats have yet to transcend the golfing village, and perhaps that suits her as she “tries to stay in my bubble”. But the American Solheim Cup player does recognise that more could be done to tell the increasingly compelling story of women’s golf.”

“I feel like we just need a stage,” she told reporters here at Carlton Woods just north of Houston. “We need to be put on TV.

“I feel like when it’s tape delay, or anything like that, that hurts our game. Women’s sports just needs a stage. If we have a stage we can show up and perform and show people what we’re all about.”

Full piece.

6. Photos from the 2024 RBC Heritage

Check out all of our galleries from this week’s event!

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Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2024 RBC Heritage

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3 days ago

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GolfWRX Staff

GolfWRX is on site this week at Harbour Town Golf Links on Hilton Head Island for the RBC Heritage. Plenty of golfers who competed in the Masters last week will be making the quick turnaround in the Lowcountry of South Carolina as the Heritage is again one of the Tour’s Signature Events.

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Check out links to all our photos, below.

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Morning 9: Aberg: I want to be No. 1 | Rory’s management blasts ‘fake news’ reports

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Apr 16, 2024

Ben Alberstadt

By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: [email protected]

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“The sustained success of the last three years has officially made him the best professional golfer since Tiger Woods, a conclusion supported by analytics, the eye test, and every other metric you could dream up. With fewer majors, he has nevertheless leaped past Spieth, McIlroy, and Koepka in terms of pure ability. He doesn’t have their legacy, yet, but if we’re talking about peak performance, he’s already surpassed them.”

“He’s so much better than everyone else, which is a sentiment that is both commonplace—I saw it on Twitter over and over again—and revelatory. It’s the thing you say because there is nothing else to say. You’re left with the wild truth, which words can describe but never capture.”

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The AFP’s Simon Evans…”The 24-year-old finished second, four strokes behind winner Scottie Scheffler, after carding a final round 69 but he certainly won many admirers among the patrons at Augusta National and beyond.”

“And his performance has filled Aberg with self-belief.”

“Everyone in my position, they are going to want to be major champions. They are going to want to be world number one, and it’s the same for me, that’s nothing different,” he said.

“It has been that way ever since I picked up a golf club, and that hasn’t changed. So I think this week solidifies a lot of those things are there, and we just need to keep doing those things and put ourselves in positions to win tournaments, ” he said.

Full piece.

3. Homa’s honest answer on double bogey

Golf Channel staff report…”But Homa’s tee shot at No. 12 bounded off the putting surface and into a bush. After a healthy search, Homa found his ball and had to take an unplayable lie. He made double bogey, effectively ending his bid at a maiden major title.”

“Homa tied for third, seven shots back of Scheffler. Asked about what happened on the fateful 9-iron, Homa offered two replies.”

“The honest answer is, it didn’t feel fair. I hit a really good golf shot, and it didn’t feel fair. I’ve seen far worse just roll back down the hill,” he said.

“The professional answer is, these things happen.”

Full piece.

4. Harbour Town ahead

RBC Heritage field notes, via Adam Stanley of PGATour.com…”Scottie Scheffler is, for now, set to tee it up at the RBC Heritage. He was clear to say that if his wife, Meredith, would go into labor during the Masters, he would head home to be with her, so it’s safe to assume that same rule will stand at Harbour Town. Scheffler has not shot an over-par round all season and has three victories (and one runner-up). He made his debut at Harbour Town last year and finished T11… Matt Fitzpatrick looks to become the first golfer to go back-to-back at the RBC Heritage since Boo Weekley in 2007-08. Fitzpatrick, a playoff victor last year, has two top-10 finishes this season. He has just one missed cut at Harbour Town over the last six years and he finished fourth in 2021 to go along with two more top-15 results in a three-year span (T14 in 2018 and 2020)…”

“Jordan Spieth is hoping to continue his run of fine play at Harbour Town after a playoff loss last season and a playoff win the season prior. Spieth has five top-25 finishes at the RBC Heritage in seven starts… Justin Thomas earned a spot in the field after remaining in the top 30 (he’s No. 30) in the Official World Golf Ranking despite a missed cut at the Masters. Thomas, who finished T25 last season at Harbour Town, has two top 10s on the season… Ludvig Åberg, who is tops in the Aon Next 10, will head to Hilton Head for the first time. Åberg has had a fabulous 2024 campaign thus far with four top 10s (including two runner-up results) and is knocking on the door for a victory… Hideki Matsuyama was the only eligible player who did not commit to the RBC Heritage, while Viktor Hovland – after a missed cut at the Masters – withdrew from the field on Saturday.”

Full piece.

5. Reed’s caddie’s needle

Our Matt Vincenzi…”After a particularly bad drive during his third round on Saturday, Reed’s caddie, Kessler Karain, also his brother-in-law, made a snide but factual comment to Patrick.”

“Your driving has cost us a lot this week,” Karain remarked.

“Reed didn’t disagree and told reporters after the round that there was nothing good about his round…

“A reporter then asked: “It’s a good thing he’s a family member, right?”

“Yeah, exactly. I’d probably be dragging him up that last hole,” Reed said. “I swear.Just what you want to hear as you’re looking at the ball in the tree, and he goes, ‘You need to drive it better.’ Thanks, Kessler. I appreciate it. Great words of wisdom. Drive it better.”

“This may be the last major for Reed for a while, as the 33-year-old has not been invited nor qualified for next month’s PGA Championship.”

Full piece.

6. LIV wants Hovland next?

Ewan Murray for the Guardian…”Rising speculation that Viktor Hovland will be the next high-profile golfer to be coaxed to the LIV tour will increase the need for Ryder Cup Europe to apply a simple qualification process for golfers on the Saudi Arabian-backed circuit.”

“LIV is forging ahead with plans for 2025, which include new events and the recruitment of more players from the PGA and DP World Tours. The rate of turnover is likely to be increased by the number of golfers who had three-year contracts when joining LIV, which will expire at the end of 2024.”

“Chatter on the range at the LIV event in Miami this month and again at the Masters largely surrounded Hovland, the world No 6 who starred for Europe in the defeat of the United States in Rome last year. Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton, who also played in that team, have subsequently joined LIV. Hovland missed the cut at the Masters and promptly withdrew from the PGA Tour’s $20m stop in Hilton Head this week.”

Full piece.

7. Rory’s management: LIV reports are ‘fake news’

Brian Keogh for the Irish Independent…”A report that Rory McIlroy was on the verge of an $850million move to LIV Golf has been slammed as “fake news” by his management.

“Fake news. Zero truth,” McIlroy’s manager Sean O’Flaherty said in an email.

London financial paper “City AM” reported today that sources have told them that McIlroy “could” join LIV Golf

The paper reported that “two separate sources have told City AM that they believe a deal is close. It is claimed that LIV Golf chiefs have offered world No2 McIlroy an eye-watering $850m to join, plus around two per cent equity in the competition.”

Full piece.