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19th Hole

Hank Haney: ‘This whole hit the fairway thing is a bunch of baloney, and it always has been’; blasts golf media ‘idiots’

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Hank Haney took to his podcast this week to share his strong views on the importance of distance in the game, while also slamming golf media ‘idiots’ who questioned him over Tiger’s accuracy with the driver during their time together.

The 65-year-old claimed that “if you can’t hit the long ball, the game has passed you by”, and on his show cited Henrik Stenson as an example as to why.

Haney explained how the Swede hits many fairways because he often takes 3-wood, and broke down the numbers to illustrate why the concept that accuracy off the tee is important is ‘a bunch of baloney’.

“In 2020, he (Stenson) was 5th in accuracy off the tee, but yet he was 163rd in strokes gained off the tee. The advantage you get from driving comes from distance. This is why Rory is up there at the top, DJ is up there at the top and DeChambeau was number one last year.

This whole hit the fairway thing is a bunch of baloney, and it always has been.”

Haney then went back to his successful period coaching Tiger Woods and took aim at those who at the time criticised Tiger’s driving – with some scathing remarks directed towards those in the media.

“I remember when I was coaching Tiger, from 2004 to 2010, and those absolute idiots that follow golf that are the media. This is like the ‘fake news’.

The golf media idiots who don’t know anything about the game and they used to ask me all the time about Tiger’s driving accuracy, and I’m like ‘it doesn’t matter, it’s a meaningless statistic’. As long as you keep it in play and miss it in the right spot and hit a few key fairways, that’s all you have to do.”

Haney then summed up his thoughts on what the goal should be when driving the ball: “You want distance and you want to be able to find your ball. If you can do that, you’re going to do good.”

Check out the audio from the Hank Haney podcast below.

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Gianni is the Managing Editor at GolfWRX. He can be contacted at [email protected].

19th Hole

“Is it a Titleist?” – Jerry Seinfeld shares never-before-heard details of iconic scene

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On Thursday, legendary comedian Jerry Seinfeld joined the Rich Eisen Show and shared an awesome story from a “Seinfeld” episode titled “The Marine Biologist.”

In the episode, a golf ball goes into the blow hole of a whale. According to Seinfeld, that was never in the episode’s script.

Seinfeld recalls saying the night before the filming of the episode, “What if what puts the whale in distress is Kramer’s golf ball?”

“He’s hitting golf balls at the beach. George is at the beach with a girl, we haven’t connected them!”

“We write that speech the night before at two o’clock in the morning…The sea was angry that day my friend.”

 

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A post shared by Rich Eisen (@richeisen)


Kramer finishes the iconic scene by asking “Is it a Titleist?” Seinfeld told Eisen the show sought Titleist’s permission to mention its name, saying the ball had to be a Titleist. Fortunately for lovers of the iconic show, the company agreed.

If (somehow) you’re unfamiliar with the scene, check it out below.

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19th Hole

Phil Mickelson drops big retirement hint; Says LIV will grow the game ‘on a much more global basis’

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While speaking with Bloomberg, golf legend Phil Mickelson acknowledged that he is inching close towards retirement.

“I’m 53 now,” Phil said, “and my career, you know, it’s — if I’m being truthful, it’s on — it’s — it’s — I’m a — it’s towards its end.”

Mickelson added that one of his focuses now is helping other young players.

“Now, I would like to help others find the same enjoyment and fulfillment that the game has provided me. I’d like them to experience that as well.”

The six-time major champion credited LIV with reaching new markets in golf to help it grow.

“I think that’s exciting for everyone involved in the game because we are going to reach markets that we didn’t reach before. I think it’s going to inspire more golf courses, inspire more manufacturers selling clubs and equipment, but also inspiring young kids to try to play golf professionally. I just see that the game of golf is going to grow on a much more global basis because of the excitement and the presence that LIV Golf has.”

Mickelson is playing at this week’s LIV Singapore and shot a first round 72 (+1).

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19th Hole

Tiger explains why golf has ‘negative connotations’ for daughter Sam

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While Tiger Woods’ son, Charlie, has certainly inherited his father’s love for golf, his daughter, Sam, has not.

On Wednesday, Tiger made an appearance on The Today Show with Carson Daly and explained his daughter’s relationship with golf.

“Golf has negative connotations for her. When she was growing up, golf took daddy away from her. I had to pack, I had to leave, and I was gone for weeks. So, there were negative connotations to it.

“We developed our own relationship and our own rapport outside of golf. We do things that doesn’t involve golf. Meanwhile, my son and I, everything we do is golf related.”

The nine-minute interview touches on plenty of other subjects, such as Tiger’s relationship with his late father, Earl.

It’s arguably the most open we’ve seen the 15-time major champion in an interview and is most definitely worth watching.

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