Geoff Ogilvy began the day 6 shots ahead and promptly went into reverse. With a double bogey on the first hole and a bogey on the third his lead was halved by Anthony Kim. “Not angry, just frustrated,” Ogilvy said. “Is there a difference between angry and frustrated?” Is how he described his feelings at the time. Yes, there is a difference; frustrated is what you feel after that beginning, birdie two holes, then bogey holes seven and eight before getting it back together with an eagle on the 9th. Follow that eagle with birdies on five of the next six holes to restore a 6 shot lead and frustration is a fleeting sensation. Play the back 9 like you played the front and anger is what takes over.
“It’s not a very nice feeling to feel you’re frittering away your lead with weak shots and bad shots,” he said. “There was something I was not doing on the first eight holes as I had been all week for some reason. I wouldn’t say it was panic. It’s just not a nice feeling. No panic or ‘What am I doing?’ just ‘Can I go somewhere else for a while?’ Because it’s just uncomfortable.” Sounds like a Southwest Airline commercial eh? The iron shots Mr. Ogilvy hit on the back 9 were precise and accurate. The results led to a restoration of his 6 shot lead and his fifth Tour victory, a very very large check, a new Mercedes, and the really large trophy.
I have to wonder if he was trying to out belt buckle Mr. Kim? Which led me to wonder why it is skinny guys all wear huge buckles while those of us who lost our girlish figures long ago wind up with less garish belt fasteners? Probably because the big buckle would knock the wind out of us when we bent over to see if our shoes were still tied.
Mr. Kim and Davis Love III finished second, representing the young bucks and the old guys successfully to begin the year. “Something made him mad, I guess, somewhere coming up on the ninth fairway,” Love said. “And then I guess he made eagle and went nuts.” describing Mr. Ogilvy’s back nine. The second place finish moved him up the world ranking to number 55, closer to the top 50 and an exemption into the Masters. What I see as especially encouraging is his continued consistent good play carried over from the "Fall Series" last year into the beginning of this year.
Mr. Kim opened Sunday with a 32 on the front, and got as close a single shot. “I knew he was just teasing me for a little while there, and he was going to make some birdies,” Kim said. “Unfortunately, I couldn’t.” Which sums up the back 9 quite well.
So the 2009 season is under way on the PGA Tour. It’s always difficult for me to watch golf in January, not only because of the NFL playoffs, but because I can’t get out and play. With a fresh 13 inches of snow on the ground and 2-4 more on the way, followed by sub zero temperatures, I get frustrated by my inability to get out and play. But then, I do live in Wisconsin and this happens every year. Still, a few hours on the range followed by 18 holes would be a nice distraction.
This tournament, despite being limited to the winners of the previous years tour events, did not have the top 4 players in the world ranking. With the sponsor’s contract up in 2010 I wonder how readily the Mercedes Benz folks will part with $20 million or more for another four years. Hawaii is a long trip for the European players, so some say. When the tournament was in southern Californian weather was an issue. Rumors are flying that Mercedes wants to host at a different location, yet where else is weather not going to be a major factor? Commissioner Tim Finchem thinks that just because Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson don’t play doesn’t justify changing venues. He’s right, but convincing the title sponsor, in this economy, will cost the negotiator more than one nights sleep. I noticed a lack of spectators on Sunday. I’m not familiar enough with that course to know if it’s not conducive to watching play from hole to hole, although I did see the players getting into SUV’s to go from tee to green, which would indicate that one could not easily follow a specific group all 18 holes. That may be an issue as well. If economic recovery is not forthcoming, the day of million dollar winners checks may be a thing of the past.
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