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Morning 9: Bryson’s no-win situation | U.S. Am: Reeves ahead play suspended | Olympic ratings

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By Ben Alberstadt
For comments—or if you’re looking for a fourth—email me at [email protected].
August 11, 2021
Good Wednesday morning, golf fans.
1. Bryson’s no-win situation
Golf Channel’s Ryan Lavner…”For the past year he’s been riding a tidal wave of controversy, and he has weathered those storms – the vaccine misinformation, the “fore!” calls, the equipment gripe, the caddie split, the rules disputes, the image protection – with varying degrees of success. At least they’ve all passed. But there is one topic that’s unabating, and unfortunately for him it’s the one largely out of his control: the Koepka Kerfuffle.”
  • “When the “Brooksy!” calls first began, at the PGA Championship and then the Memorial, DeChambeau laughed them off. Called them “flattering,” actually.”
  • “…In hindsight, what other recourse did he have?”
  • “If he admitted publicly that it bothered him, fans would sense that weakness and exploit it.”
  • “It was a no-win situation.”
2. U.S. Am: Reeves ahead play suspended
Golf Channel’s Brentley Romine…”Nearly four hours of weather delay ensured that stroke play would continue into Wednesday at the 121st U.S. Amateur.”
  • “Half of the 312-player field will have to return to Oakmont Country Club and Longue Vue Club to complete their rounds and solidify the 64-player match-play bracket. Brad Reeves, however, will be able to sit back and watch.”
  • “The Arizona grad, playing in his first USGA championship, backed up a 5-under 65 Monday at Longue Vue with a wild even-par 70 Tuesday at Oakmont. Reeves carded six birdies and six bogeys, and he made just two pars on the back nine, to get into the clubhouse at 5 under, best of anyone finished.”
3. Mack the APGA king
Via ESPN…”Willie Mack III ran off three early birdies to pull away and closed with an 8-under 64 on Tuesday for a 6-shot victory in the Mastercard APGA Tour Championship.”
  • “The victory was worth $27,500 to Mack. He earned $10,000 for the victory at the TPC Sugarloaf, along with $17,500 for winning the Lexus Cup Points title and player of the year.”
  • “It capped a memorable seven months for Mack, who received sponsor exemptions to two PGA Tour events on the West Coast swing, and then made the cut in his past two PGA Tour starts at the Rocket Mortgage Classic and John Deere Classic.”
Surprised to see a quarterly print publication advertised in a daily email newsletter? Don’t be.
The idea behind the Morning 9 is a roundup of the day’s most significant storylines presented in an easy-to-digest format. The Golfer’s Journal occupies the other end of the spectrum: long-form, photo rich essays from some of the best writers in golf discussing all elements of this beautiful, maddening game.
More a collection of essays than a magazine. More a coffee table book of first-rate photos than a glossy, ad-filled monthly — GJ is a must-have for true lovers of golf.
GolfWRX may earn a commission of “GolfWRX Recommends” products.
4. Bling
Golf Channel’s Brentley Romine…“I know a lot of tough golf courses scare a lot of people,” Bling said, “and to me, I see it as a challenge and accept it.”
  • “Bling stepped into the ring Tuesday morning at Oakmont after a 1-under 69 Monday at Longue Vue Club, which yielded a 63 to first-round leader Jacob Bridgeman. With the match-play cut likely to land within a shot or two of 3 over, Bling had a cushion, but not much; Oakmont played an average of more than seven shots over par on the first day of stroke-playing qualifying.”
  • “In other words, Bling had to be on his toes.”
  • “Oakmont landed the first strike, a bogey on the opening hole, but Bling quickly settled in. He birdied Nos. 3 and 4, and later turned in a tidy even-par 35. No damage done. After trading shots with a birdie at No. 12 and bogey at No. 14, Bling delivered the first uppercut.”
5. Reed WDs
Golf Channel report…”After competing in Minnesota, Japan and Tennessee in the last three weeks, Patrick Reed has decided to take a break ahead of the FedExCup playoffs.”
  • “Reed withdrew on Tuesday from this week’s Wyndham Championship, the PGA Tour’s final regular-season event. The three-tournament playoffs begin next week, with The Northern Trust at Liberty National. No official reason was given for Reed’s withdrawal.”
6. Olympic golf ratings
Via Geoff Shackelford…Ratings were up big! But the men’s Olympic golf was down about 8 million American viewers compared to 2016’s final round picked up by NBC. So there’s that.
  • “From Golf Channel PR: Coverage of the down-to-the-wire final round of men’s golf on Saturday, July 31 delivered the best late night viewership in GOLF Channel history (878,000 viewers, Midnight-3:30 am ET), and ranked second among all networks in that time period (behind only NBC’s “Prime Plus” Olympics show).”
  • “Where, incidentally, the golf was not deemed good enough to show on NBC Prime Plus.”
7. Webb
Our Andy Lack…”Ahead of this week’s Wyndham Championship, Webb Simpson joined Michael Breed on a “New Breed of Golf” on Sirius XM PGA Tour radio to discuss the recent heckling drama surrounding Bryson DeChambeau.”
  • “Referring to unruly fans, Simpson condemned the recent behavior of fans at events, saying: “We don’t like it. They yell this stuff. You will never see players or caddies laughing. We get annoyed by it because we’re out there trying to work. We’re not coming into an office meeting in their office and yelling at them.”
Seriously — check out the spread above. Subscribe to the Golfer’s Journal (or give it as a gift to the golf aficionados in your life!).
8. On Harry Higgs
Excellent stuff from Ben Everill on the lovable Mr. Higgs…”Popularity has its pros and cons. Higgs is constantly being asked by fans to put on a show. But he’s not a trained seal. All his highlights have been natural emotions in the moment.”
  • “I never thought I would have to manage just being myself, but with more attention and more eyeballs comes maybe more expectation,” Higgs says. “And the silly things people yell at you can obviously distract from the reason you’re really there.”
  • “When form starts to dip, like it has again this season, it becomes even harder to always be smiling. Higgs enters this week’s Wyndham Championship at 88th in the FedExCup.”
  • “The early runner-up and the T4 in his major debut at Kiawah Island have already helped secure passage to another season but in the six starts since the PGA, Higgs has five missed cuts and finished 68th at the Memorial Tournament.”
9. $1 million for what? 
Via the Golf Channel Digital Team…”The winner of the Wyndham Championship isn’t the only player who will take home a $1 million prize.”
  • “Also being decided this week is the winner of the AON Risk Reward Challenge, a season-long competition that determines which player averages the best score on a designed hole (one that usually requires a strategic decision). A player’s two best scores on that hole each week count toward the season-long total.”
  • “Matthew Wolff leads the competition heading into the final regular-season event of the season, averaging more than a stroke under par (-1.105) on the designated holes. Wolff needs to play the first two rounds of the Wyndham to reach the 40-round minimum.”
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Morning 9: Wyndham Clark on back injury | DiMarco’s bold Champions Tour take | Houston Open photos

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By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: [email protected]

Good Thursday morning, golf fans, as day one of the Houston Open gets underway.

1. Wyndham Clark hurts back…still hopes to play

ESPN’s Mark Schlabach…”Reigning U.S. Open winner Wyndham Clark injured his back while working out at home Monday, but he hopes to play in this week’s Texas Children’s Houston Open, which starts Thursday at Memorial Park Golf Course.”

  • “Clark, the fourth-ranked golfer in the world, said he was lifting weights and “got caught in an awkward spot doing a lift and [his] back went.”
  • “It’s not something that happens regularly, but it happened and you live and you learn,” Clark said. “I’m trending in the right direction. I’m hitting it or feeling stronger and more mobile every day. I’m going to give it my best effort tomorrow and hopefully I can play and compete. If not, I’ve got to get ready for tournaments to come after this.”
Full piece.

2. DiMarco’s bold Champions Tour take

Our Matt Vincenzi…”While speaking on the Subpar podcast, former PGA Tour winner and current PGA Tour Champions player Chris DiMarco said he hopes LIV buys the Champions Tour.”

  • “We’re kind of hoping that LIV buys the Champions Tour,” he said.
  • “Let’s play for a little real money out here. I mean this is kind of a joke when we’re getting $2 million. There were like seven guys last week from TPC (Sawgrass, at the $25 million PLAYERS Championship) that made more money than our purses.”
Full piece.

3. Charley Hull’s course management problem?

Our Matt Vincenzi…”Charley Hull came just short of her third LPGA Tour victory over the weekend at the Fir Hills Seri Pak Championship when she played her last two holes at 3 over to slip all the way to 10th on the leaderboard.”

  • “After the round, Hull was blasted by Sky Sports commentator and former LPGA Tour player Trish Johnson for her lack of golf course management.”
  • “While speaking on the Sky Sports Golf podcast, Johnson spoke harshly of Hull.”
  • “I’m probably her harshest critic, because I know how good she is. She doesn’t win anywhere near enough for her talent, and she doesn’t get involved enough, in all honestly.
  • “The thing with Charley is that you’re never going to change her. I read something the other day that said how much she loves the game and it’s her love of the game [that costs her]. She’s never going to change and she’s just going to go for every pin.
  • “In theory that’s great, but it won’t win you golf tournaments, it just won’t because she’s not that much better than anybody else.
Full piece.

4. Sahith’s interesting idea

Golf Channel’s Brentley Romine…”Which brings Theegala to his big idea: “There’s got to be something, like a fan challenge or – I think it would be awesome to see a scratch handicap go out and play like the Monday after a tournament, keep the same conditions and see what they would shoot just to put it into perspective how hard a PGA Tour golf course is.”

  • “Theegala loves the thought so much that he’d even come out and watch.”
  • “Shoot, I’d commentate on it,” Theegala added before continuing, “I have a pet peeve, sometimes when I watch golf on TV, a great example is hole 8 at Valspar last week. It’s a 230-yard par 3, the green’s 12 yards wide and someone will hit the middle of the green and, you know, they’ll be like, ‘Oh, really smart shot there.’ I’m like, ‘Well, no, he’s absolutely laced this 4-iron in the middle of the green, that’s right where he’s looking and to hit a 4-iron that straight is really, really hard.’ … Even like chipping, a lot of the stuff just looks flat on TV, but then when you get over the chip, like, oh, great, I have to land it over a mound on a downslope down grain?”
Full piece.

5. Top am Rachel Heck not going pro

Golf Channel’s Brentley Romine…”As Rachel Heck nears the end of her college golf career, she has decided that the LPGA isn’t for her.’

  • “Heck, the 22-year-old Stanford senior who won an NCAA individual title as a freshman and has climbed as high as second in the world amateur rankings, penned a first-person essay for No Laying Up in which she explained her reasoning for remaining amateur after graduation this summer and starting an internship not in professional golf but rather private equity. Heck, a political science major, also will be pinned as a lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force.”

Read her piece on No Laying Up: https://nolayingup.com/blog/why-im-remaining-an-amateur

Full piece.

6. DJ’s new LIV signing

Golf Monthly’s Elliott Heath…”Dustin Johnson‘s LIV Golf team 4Aces GC has announced former TravisMathew CEO Chris Rosaasen as the side’s new General Manager.”

  • “Rosaasen, who is a long-time friend of Johnson, is also the founder of the team’s apparel sponsor Extracurricular and has been CEO of the Omniverse Group for the past four years.
  • “He joins with more than 20 years of “brand-building, marketing, and business leadership” according to LIV Golf, which says his “record of innovation in the golf industry will strengthen and accelerate the growth of the 4Aces GC brand.”
Full piece.

7. Photos from the Houston Open

  • Check out all of our photos from this week’s event!
Full piece.
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Four books for a springtime review

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One thing that never changes over time: snowy evenings give purpose to reading (is it the other way around?) It has been a snowy 2024 in western New York, and I’ve had ample time to tuck into an easy chair with a blanket, coffee, and a book. You’re in luck, because despite the title of this piece, I’ll share five books and their worth with you.

There is great breadth of subject matter from one to five. Golf is as complicated as life, which means that the cover of the book isn’t worth judging. The contents begin the tale, but there is so much more to each topic presented within. If you’re like me, your library grows each year. Despite the value of the virtual, the paper-printed word connects us to the past of golf and humanity. Here’s hoping that you’ll add one or more of these titles to your collection.

        

Rainmaker

Hughes Norton interviewed with Mark McCormack for 20 minutes (30 if you count the missed exit at Logan International) while driving the founder of IMG from Harvard to the airport. The lesson of taking advantage of each moment, of every dollar, because you might not get another opportunity, is the most valuable one that life offers. I say to you, be certain to read this book, because another opportunity to bend the ear of Hughes Norton may not come our way.

Hughes Norton was with Tiger Woods for waaayyy fewer years than you might guess, but they were the critical ones. Be warned: not all of the revelations in this tome are for the faint of heart. Some, in fact, will break your heart. Golf was a sleepy hamlet in the 1990s, until the 16-lane interstate called Eldrick “Tiger” Woods came into town. Everything changed, which meant that everything would change again and again, into eternity. Once the ball starts rolling, it’s impossible to stop.

My favorite aspect of this book is its candor. Hughes Norton is well into his time on Planet Earth. He has no reason to hold back, and he doesn’t. My least favorite aspect is that George Peper got the call to co-author the book (and I didn’t.) Seriously, there is no LFA for me, so this is the best that I could do.

Decision: Buy It!

The Golf Courses of Seth Raynor

Michael Wolf, James Sitar, and Jon Cavalier, in abject partnership, collaborated to produce a handsome volume on the work of gone-too-soon, engineer-turned-golf course architect. Seth Raynor was pulled into the game by Charles Blair MacDonald, the crusty godfather of American golf. Raynor played little golf across the 51 years of his life. His reason? He did not wish to corrupt his designs with the demands and failings of his own game.

Jon Cavalier began his photography career as a contributor to the Golf Club Atlas discussion group. I met him there in a virtual way (we still have yet to shake hands) and have exchanged numerous emails over the years. Despite the demands of his day job, Cavalier has blossomed into the most traveled and prolific course photographer alive today. His photography, both hand-held and drone, makes the pages pop. Michael Wolf invited me and two friends to play his home course, despite having never met any of us in person. His words, melded to those of James Sitar, are the glue that connect Cavalier’s photos.

My favorite aspect of the books is the access it gives to the private-club world of Raynor. Fewer than five of his courses are resort or public access, and knowing people on the inside is not available to all. My suggestion? Write a letter/email and see if a club will let you play. Can’t hurt to try! My one complaint about the book is its horizontal nature. Golf is wide, but I like a little vertical in my photos. It’s not much of a complaint, given the glorious contents within the covers.

Decision: Buy It!!

Big Green Book from The Golfer’s Journal

Beginning with its (over)size, and continuing through the entire contents, there is no descriptor that defines the genre of the Big Green Book. It is photography, essay, layout, poetry, graphics, and stream of consciousness. It harnesses the creative power of a lengthy masthead of today’s finest golf contributors. Quotes from Harvey Penick, verse from Billy Collins, and prose from John Updike partner with images pure and altered, to immerse you in the diverse golf spaces that define this planet.

One of my favorite aspects is the spaces between the words and photos. Have your friends and others write a few notes to you in those blank areas, to personalize your volume even more. One aspect that needs improvement: the lack of female voices. I suspect that will be remedied in future volumes.

Decision: Buy It!!!

Troublemaker and The Unplayable Lie

Books that allege discrimination and mistreatment check two boxes: potentially-salacious reads and debate over whose perspective is accurate. In the end, the presentation of salacious revelation rarely meets the expectation, and the debate over fault is seldom resolved. Lisa Cornwell spent years as a competitive junior and college golfer, before joining The Golf Channel as a reporter and program host.

Despite the dream assignments, there were clouds that covered the sun. Cornwell documents episodes of favoritism and descrimination against her, prior to her departure from The Golf Channel in 2021. Her work echoes the production of the late Marcia Chambers, who wrote for Golf Digest in the 1980s and 1990s. Chambers took issue with many of the potential and real legal issues surrounding golf and its policies of access/no access. Her research culminated in The Unplayable Lie, the first work of its kind to address issues confronted by all genders and ethnicities, and immediately predated the professional debut of Tiger Woods in 1997.

My favorite aspects of the two works, are the courage and conviction that it took to write them, and believe in them. My least favorite aspects are the consistent bias that many groups continue to face. Without awareness, there is no action. Without action, there is no change.

Decision: Buy Them!!!!

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Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open

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GolfWRX is on site in the Lone Star State this week for the Texas Children’s Houston Open.

General galleries from the putting green and range, WITBs — including Thorbjorn Olesen and Zac Blair — and several pull-out albums await.

As always, we’ll continue to update as more photos flow in. Check out links to all our photos from Houston below.

General Albums

WITB Albums

Pullout Albums

See what GolfWRXers are saying in the forums.

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