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Phil McGleno Bashes Woods

Phil McGleno aka Phillip McClelland O’Grady aka Mac O’Grady bashed Tiger Woods stating that on a scale of ten. He went on to say that for Mr. Woods to challenge Mr. Nicklaus’s record in the majors is cheating. Like being on steroids. The steroids aren’t in the players, they’re in the equipment. Ridiculous say I.

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17 years ago

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Oh my, Phil McGleno aka Phillip McClelland O’Grady aka Mac O’Grady is making news headlines for the first time in a while.  "When Nicklaus and Palmer played, when (Ben) Hogan played and Sam Snead played, on a scale of zero to 10, they were a nine-plus," he said. "Tiger Woods is not even a one-plus."

"The reason why (Woods) can hit it on the green is because he has square grooves," he said.

"He doesn’t have that, he’s dead. He cannot do it — it’s impossible. For him to go after Nicklaus’ records is cheating. This is like steroids."

Single word response; WOW!  How do you like that for brash off the wall nonsense? Mr. McGleno/O’Grady/ O’Grady has obviously has one too many name changes leading him to believe anyone would take him seriously.  To call Tiger Woods a complete hack exemplifies chutzpah enough to make my grandmother respond "Oy vey".  What is this guy thinking?  Oh right, he’s not.  My bad.  These three quotes are without doubt the most ridiculous things a non politician has said since my Uncle Norton volunteered to go first in a game of Russian Roulette played with a single shot weapon.

I should just leave this end here but for the sake of argument and a little filler let’s examine these statements a bit closer.  To say that Mr. Woods is not even a one plus on a scale of ten without todays equipment is equivalent to saying no golfer can compare to Tom Morris, Old and Young, because that was real golf.  The equiment allowed Nicklaus, Palmer, Player and the rest to play as well as they did; why they even used machines instead of sheep to mow the grass. That’s not golf as it was meant to be played.  Mr. McGleno/O’Grady/O’Grady is apparently of the belief that it was only his generation that could play the game properly.  My guess is he’s a closet Luddite.

Next is the statement that Mr. Woods can only hit the green because of square grooves.  Hello.  Earth to McGleno/O’Grady/O’Grady, you can’t really mean if I gave Mr. Woods a V grooved wedge he’d be unable to hit the green can you?  If this isn’t one of the most bitter statements I’ve never seen a case of "wedge envy" before.  The Eagles wrote a song about this whole thing; Get Over It.

To compare the use of modern equipment in golf to the use of steroids in other sports mimics whistling past the graveyard on a dark and stormy night, it’ll make you feel better a little bit about your own mortality.   How much have scores improved?  Are there a raft of players scoring the equivalent of hitting 70 home runs.  Is it easier to get the ball in the hole?  Did you watch the US Open by any chance and take note of the winning score? 

There’s more but you get the idea.  I’ve not read a more childish set of statements uttered in earnest.  My initial reaction was to offer Mr. McGleno/O’Grady/O’Grady some cheese and crackers to enjoy with his whine.  That was followed by my wondering what’s the motivation for these assertions? Does he hope to get his name in the papers?  Well that worked.  It also got him all over the internet because there are a lot of folks like myself .  Maybe I should throw away my 460cc headed driver, cavity back irons,  square grooved wedges, and three piece urethane covered ball because I’m overwelmed with guilt at the prospect of being a cheat and the equivalent of a drug user.  Oh the anguish.  Consternation grips my thoughts; I’m torn by the ethical dilemma the words of Mr. McGleno/O’Grady/O’Grady have created inside my tiny little brain. What to do! What to do!  HA!  The game is too much fun these days,  not easy, but fun so I do believe I shall continue on and leave the whiner to cry in the desert on his own.  I don’t believe my soul is in danger, nor do I believe the soul of the game is in any dire need of repair.  

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18 Comments

18 Comments

  1. Chantel McGleno

    Jun 5, 2008 at 10:08 pm

    WOW! I guess I’m in a lot of shock right now… Not only the bashing of Tiger Woods but I was told from some family Members that Mac O Grady is my uncle.

    Reply Report comment

  2. Brian Kaplan

    Apr 11, 2008 at 1:11 am

    I would of loved to see Phil vs tiger back in the day.I was around 16 years old at a local public golf course called rancho park in los angeles, when phil as i know him as, decided to take me under his wing and teach me,without even asking for one thing back. His kindness was a 10,his physical shape would match up to tiger pound per pound easily, I know he was so healthy in regards to what he ate that even tiger could not have matched it.So yes I do believe in what phil has to say as if you did not know him and see his work ethics you have know reason to be so negative.The reason he does not have a published number, there would be to many calls.

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  3. aaron

    Jul 10, 2007 at 7:33 pm

    I will only agree with O’Grady in one respect. Tiger couldn’t play with the old old timers equipment. Byron Nelson said (Golf Digest interview) that if Tiger played in his time with the hickory shafts, he’d snap every one of them.

    Reply Report comment

  4. steve

    Jul 10, 2007 at 5:48 pm

    mac o grady or whatever his name is a complete idiot—you know something really bothers me about mac or phil or whatever they call him–if you you check on the top golf instructors in golf magazine or golf digest im not sure which one off-hand–they put mac o grady is ranked as one of the top instructors–with no contact info—how do you contact him for a lesson—what a complete scam—who ranks these teachers— themselves???—-as far as this enigma of “ballstriking” goes—tiger hits the ball very solid maybe hes not hogan pure but hits it solid enough—and tigers putting when hes on–awesome—and tigers iron play–awesome–wedge play–awesome—chipping–awesome–creativity and imigination–awesome—bunker play–awesome—-get the idea

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  5. DB

    Jul 10, 2007 at 5:20 pm

    When it comes to the question of great champions, equipment and other factors can be thrown out the window. It is simply a matter of what makes a champion like Tiger: Mental tenacity, competitive strength, personal accountability and leadership in every aspect of life, etc. The only measuring stick we have is how Tiger compares to and competes against his peers today. Barry Bonds took steroids, but is he a champion? No. World series rings: 0. If you could manufacture the intangibles that Tiger posesses and he took them in pill or cream form, McGleno may have an argument and Nike would rule the world. But until then, go ahead and give all the other players steroids and make their grooves octagonal for all I care. I guarantee in the long run Tiger will come out on top until a better competitor comes along.

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  6. Andrew

    Jul 10, 2007 at 10:50 am

    Over time, all sports evolve. Tennis- wooden rackets, sweater-vests, long pants and long skirts have become what it is today. Look at a pair of Basketball sneakers from 20-30 years ago and it’s amazing that the players could even jump.

    The point is, as long as everyone has access to the same gear, what’s the argument? Tiger Woods is TODAY’s best player, if you want to compare him historically that’s fine too but don’t knock him because he has access to technology that everyone else has.

    Conditioning also plays a huge role. Do you think Jack and Arnie were at the gym bench pressing what Tiger presses now? Look around the tour, especially the younger players and you can see how far the sport has come in terms of physical strength and physical attributes. THE SPORT HAS EVOLVED, and for the better.

    Tiger is the best player of our generation, hands down. And he has transcended the game of golf like NO OTHER. That cannot be disputed. Someone also mentioned the quality of the players throughout the field, also a great point. For the top 50-75 maybe even 100 PGA pros, the skill level is so tight, it’s so much of a mental game and how you approach each shot…Tiger just handles pressure in a way that is also un-matched. He expects to win every tournament he enters, and it’s that approach that gives him that extra something that other players seem to buckle when they encounter.

    Reply Report comment

  7. Michael

    Jul 9, 2007 at 8:12 am

    Mac who?

    My mama always told me, “Consider the source” before wasting time and energy on them.

    Reply Report comment

  8. john james

    Jul 9, 2007 at 1:40 am

    Normally, I don’t respond to trivial fluff like this, but Mac’s comments and these last mind-numbing observations by Justin demand it. First, O’Grady had a fabulous physical game, but mentally when the pressure was on to hit that long iron to the sloped green or sink the putt, his mind shanked. He had documented melt-downs. He was, and is, a loser. Every player today will tell you that the hardest thing to beat about Tiger is his mind-set.
    Equipment and the game evolves. Tiger’s ability has changed the courses, his physical conditioning has changed the physical shape of golfers from pot-bellied softies(go look at Jack in the ’60s) to buffed athletes. All the players during Jack and Arnie’s era played with the same equipment, just like players today have the same gear as Tiger. What you do with that equipment determines how great a player you are.
    It’s too bad Mac has fallen still lower in the golfing ranks by having to try and get some publicity by these idiotic comments.

    Reply Report comment

  9. Justin

    Jul 8, 2007 at 9:53 pm

    You all need to get off the tiger band wagon. The equipment today is so much better it is almost is like cheating. Also tiger is not even close to the best ball striker whoever thinks that does not Know golf. Mac is even a better ball striker then tiger. Tiger just has an incredible short game that saves him all the time from his bad shots. Whoever wrote that article probably knows as much about golf as my sister. You probably are a weekend hacker like the rest of you out there with a 15 handicap or something.

    Reply Report comment

  10. GR1NDER

    Jul 7, 2007 at 8:49 pm

    Sounds like someone needs a mental coach…. or perhaps just a psychologist!

    Reply Report comment

  11. joerookie

    Jul 6, 2007 at 8:30 pm

    Arnie, Jack, Slammin Sammy, Hogan and all the others played the field using the same equiptment of the day. Tiger is doing the same, playing against the field with the equiptment of the day. Even the grass is different today compared to when Arnie, Jack and Hogan played and won their Majors. Unless you are taking drugs you can easily see that Tiger Woods is a 9+ of 10 easily. I watched O’Grady play at the Buick Open a few times, and he’s a talented individual, but he must be on crack to make comments like these.

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  12. nynick99

    Jul 4, 2007 at 6:19 pm

    I’m in my 60’s and have seen every great player from the 50’s to the present. I can say without question that Tiger is the best ball striker I have ever seen. Jack is the greatest champion with 18 majors, but Tiger is the best golfer.

    In addition, when Nicklaus, Arnie, Player and Trevino went into a major, they only had to beat, at most, 15 players. The competition is so much better today that it isn’t even close.

    To show how much impact Tiger has on the tour, they never had to ‘Nicklaus-proof’ the courses as they do today. Also, when Tiger joined the tour the total prize money was about $70MM. now it is almost $300MM. Nicklaus, Arnie, etc, never had that kind if impact. Don’t get me wrong, Jack Arnie, Player and all the rest were great golfers and grew the game, but Tiger took it ito the stratosphere.

    O’Grady is just jealous of the players of today, especially Tiger.

    Reply Report comment

  13. Nick

    Jul 4, 2007 at 2:52 pm

    To compare todays golfers to golfers 4 decades ago is simply not fair to either. The equipment is completely different, the main advantage being todays balls. The courses are completely different. The game in general is nowhere near the same. While I do feel that the players 30 and 40 years were overall better players and there was more competition, to say that Tiger would not have won is ridiculous. Just imagine Nickluas, Palmer, and Tiger battling for the trophy.

    Reply Report comment

  14. Johnny2Putt

    Jul 3, 2007 at 10:06 pm

    Mr. McGleno/o’Grady/O’Grady,

    You might understand the golf swing, but you don’t understand golf.

    Reply Report comment

  15. Champ

    Jul 3, 2007 at 11:45 am

    Does Tiger even have square grooves on his Nike blades?

    Reply Report comment

  16. EnglishBob

    Jun 30, 2007 at 1:12 pm

    “O’Grady attempted to qualify for the PGA Tour through Q School 17 times before receiving his tour card, during this time he legally changed his name from Phil McGleno to Phillip McClelland O’Grady, and then to Mac O’Grady. His best finish in a major is a T-9”

    I assume Mac plays in Green.

    Reply Report comment

  17. A.J.

    Jun 30, 2007 at 12:27 am

    Wait, so let me get this straight, Tiger has these grooves so he is cheating, let’s just completely disregard the fact that every other player on tour has the same exact type of stuff. In the hands of Tiger they are like steroids, in the hands of everyone else they aren’t? What a joke, Tiger is the best and probably would have been the best had he played back then.

    Reply Report comment

  18. Justyn

    Jun 29, 2007 at 2:03 pm

    Interesting. The courses were shorter in the days and are now longer due to the equipment improvement. I have a feeling if Tiger were to play back in the days of Nicklaus, Hogan, etc… he would actually have more wins.

    Reply Report comment

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Masters 2024: Reduced-scale clubhouse trophy and green jacket to Scottie Scheffler

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21 hours ago

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Apr 15, 2024

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In the world of golf, there is Scotty and there is Scottie. Scotty Cameron gave the world of golf a nickname for a prestigious putter line, and Scottie Scheffler has now given the golf world a blueprint for how to negotiate one of the toughest tournaments to win. Sunday, Scheffler won the Masters tournament for the second time in three years. He separated from the field around the turn, making a trio of birdies at holes eight through 10. On the long walk home, he added three more birdie at 13, 14, and 16, to secure a four-shot win over Masters and major-championship rookie Ludvig Åberg.

As the final group moved along the ninth hole, a quadrilateral stood at 7 under par, tied for the lead. Scheffler, playing partner Collin Morikawa, and penultimate pairing Max Homa and Åberg advanced equally toward Amen Corner, with the resolution of the competition well in doubt. Morikawa flinched first, getting too greedy (his words) at nine and 11. Double bogey at each dropped him farther back than he wished, and he ultimately made a 10-foot putt for bogey at the last, to tie for third position.

Ludvig Åberg made the next mistake. Whether he knew the Ben Hogan story about the approach into 11 or not, he bit off way more than he should have. His approach was never hopeful, and ended short and right in White Dogwood’s pond. Åberg finished the hole in six shots. To his credit, he played the remaining seven holes in two-under figures. Finally, Max Homa was the victim of the finicky winds over Golden Bell, the short, par-3 12th hole. His disbelief was evident, as his tee shot flew everything and landed in azaleas behind the putting surface. After two pitch shots and two putts, Homa also had a double bogey, losing shots that he could not surrender.

Why? At the ninth hole, Scottie Scheffler hit one of the finest approach shots of all time, into the final green of the first nine. Scheffler had six inches for birdie and he converted. At the 10th, he lasered another approach shot into a tricky hole location, then made another fine putt for birdie. Within the space of 30 minutes, Scheffler had seized complete control of the tournament, but Amen Corner still lurked.

At the 11th, Scheffler played safely right with his approach. His chip shot was a wee bit too brave and left him a seven-foot comeback putt for par. He missed on the right side and gave one shot back to the course and field. His tee ball on 12 was safely aboard, and he took two putts for par. On 13, the 2022 champion drove slightly through the fairway, then reached the green, with his first two shots. His seventy-foot-plus putt for eagle eased up, four feet past the hole. His second putt went down, and he was back in the birdie zone. As on nine, his approach to 14 green finished brilliantly within six inches. His final birdie came at the 16th, where he negotiated a nine-foot putt for a deuce.

Scheffler reached 11 under par and stood four shots clear of Ludvig Åberg when he reached the 18th tee. His drive found the lower fairway bunker on the left, and his approach settled in a vale, short and right of the green. With dexterous hands, Scheffler pitched to three feet and made the putt for par. With a big smile, he embraced caddie Ted Scott, who won for the fourth time at Augusta National, and the second with Scheffler. Ludvig Åberg finished alone in second spot, four back of the winner. Not a bad performance for the first-time major championship participant Åberg, and not a bad finish for the world No. 1 and second-time Masters champion, Scottie Scheffler.

 

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5 Things We Learned: Saturday at the Masters

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2 days ago

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Apr 13, 2024

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Just as the honorary starters broke our hearts with the reality of ageing, so too, did Saturday, with the revelation that third-round Tiger Woods is not yet (if ever) what he once was. The great champion struggled mightily to an 82, tied with three others for high round of the day. Among the top ten, the worst score posted was DeChambeau’s 75, but the large Californian remains in the hunt. Day four will see 2022 champion Scottie Scheffler pair with Collin Morikawa in the final game. In front of them will be Max Homa and Ludwig Åberg. The antipenultimate pairing will feature DeChambeau and Xander Schauffele.

If you look at the one-off major winners, most took advantage of their only chance at grand slam glory. For golfers like Homa, Schauffele, and others, Sunday the 14th might represent their best and only chance at claiming a major title. For Scheffler, Morikawa, and DeChambeau, the ability to join the two-time and three-time, major winners club holds great appeal. Finally, a young’un like Åberg seeks to jump-start a more-than-tour-winner career with a major title. Many of the greats won them early, and the Swede from Texas Tech would love nothing more than a chance to join that company.

Sunday at Augusta, as always, will be riveting. It will provide hope throughout the first nine holes, then gut many a competitor’s heart coming home, rewarding just one with a new item for the wardrobe. Plan your menu and choose your outfit. Masters 2024 is about to conclude. Until then, let’s reveal five things that we learned on day three of the year’s first men’s major.

1. The three most critical holes on the first nine are …

numbers four through six. You might make some birdies at the first and last trios of holes, but the middle triumvirate of fairways and greens determines your day. Play them even par or better, and you’ll lose zero shots to the field. Get on a downward spiral of slightly-wayward shots, and recovery will be nigh impossible. Anyone who makes three at the fifth, as Tiger Woods did on Saturday, will get giddy.

2. The three most important holes on the second nine are …

ten through twelve. We realize that we commit heresy by omitting one of Herbert Warren Wind’s Amen Corner traces, but par or better is critical at 10. Dry landings at 11 and 12 set the competitor up for two par fives in three holes, sandwiched around a straightforward, par-four hole. Remember when Ben Crenshaw began his march to glory in 1995? It all started with birdie at the 10th.

3. The most interesting and efficient round of day three came from …

Collin Morikawa. Birdies at the first three holes, followed by bogey-birdie at six and eight, then ten consecutive pars to finish off the second-low round of the day. Morikawa has improved each day, from 71 to 70 to 69. He has won majors in England and California. He has the temperment for this sort of day, but will certainly be in the hottest of all cauldrons around 3 pm on Sunday.

4. The guy who lost the most ground on day three was …

Nikolai Hojgaard. The dude failed to make par from the seventh green to the 16th. After three consecutive birdies around the turn (8 through 10), the Great Dane tumbled to earth with five consecutive bogeys. 11 and 12, we understand, but 13 and 15 are par-five holes, for goodness sake! No matter where he finds himself on day four’s back nine, it will be hard to put that stretch of golf out of his mind.

5. Our pick for the green jacket is …

impossible to nail. We suspect that certain players should and could perform on Sunday. We remember when Retief Goosen, a great US Open winner until round four of 2005, lost his mojo. We recall days when Rich Beam and Y.E. Yang pulled major titles away from Tiger Woods. Things go wrong on Sunday, and they go wrong super-quick at Augusta.

We’ve decided to ascend Mount Olympus for our Sunday selection. Who better than the 2021 Olympic champion to add a long-awaited, first major title. It’s Professor X for us: Xander Schauffele.

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5 Things We Learned: Friday at the Masters

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3 days ago

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Apr 13, 2024

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You don’t see leaves on the ground at Augusta National. The grounds crew and superintendent’s staff take care of those sorts of things, so that both course appearance and consistency of play are preserved at the top tier. We saw leaves on the ground today and, given the force and perseverance of the wind, we’re lucky that we didn’t see tree trunks along the fairways. We did see higher scores than secured in round one, and some of the three- and four-hole stretches were downright inconceivable. The cut after 36 holes came at six over par, and five dozen golfers reached the weekend of play. Numbers always define the story of a tournament, and we’ll let them define the five things we learned on day two of the 2024 Masters tournament.

One: 60 + 10

Sixty golfers posted scores of 148 or better through 36 holes, to reach weekend play. Ten more golfers posted 149 and missed the cut by a single stroke. The ones who missed the cut by a stroke included former champions Mike Weir, Zach Johnson, and Sergio Garcia. Also among the brood were current US Open champion Wyndham Clark, and Nick Dunlap, who won on the PGA Tour as an amateur in January, and subsequently turned professional. Of the ones who survived by the slimmest of margins, surviving to the weekend were former champions Jose Maria Olazabal, Hideki Matsuyama, and Adam Scott, along with Rickie Fowler and Tom Kim. Golf’s cut is a cruel and unconcerned blade, and each Masters tournament reminds us of this fact.

Two: One

The number of amateurs to make the cut in the 2024 Masters is solitary. His name is Neil Shipley, and most folks love him. He wears his hair to the shoulder, and appears to have the proper balance of intensity and chill. Shipley opened with 71, then held on for 76 on day two. He made the cut by three shots, and will collect his share of hardware on Sunday. It’s safe to say that Shipley will turn his attention to learning the course, as well as his own self under pressure.

Three: 23

For most sorts fans, 23 recalls the greatest NBA player of all time, Michael Jordan. For Justin Thomas, it’s a number that will haunt him for a long time. Thomas reached tee number fifteen on Friday at even par. The two-time PGA Champion played the subsequent, four-hole stretch in 23 shots, missing the cut by a shot. On fifteen, he went for the green in two, in some sort of halfhearted manner. He got wet with shot number two, went long with his pitch, and three-putted from the fringe. On sixteen, he played away from safety and found elevated sand. His blast went down the hill, and he missed his approach putt in the wrong place. On seventeen, he missed his drive right and his approach long, and lost another shot to par. The coup de grace took place on the home hole: drive so horribly left that he had to pitch out to the fairway and hit three metal into the green. His third double bogey in four holes dropped him all the way to 151 and plus seven. Among the many questions, the foremost one was why he dropped his longtime caddy on the eve of a major championship. Surely Bones would have saved him one of those shots, and perhaps more.

Four: Forty-Nine divided by five or six

Tiger Woods cannot possibly win title number six at Augusta in his 49th year, can he? Not on this broken body, and not from seven strokes behind, right? Not with so few competitive rounds over the most recent months, and not one year removed from a third-round withdrawal from this very tournament. Well, if he cannnot possibly win, allow us to dream and hope a bit, and hold on to a fantasy.

Five: 3 that we like

We like Scottie Scheffler, of course. He seems to have a sense of Augusta National, and he was able to hold on in 2023 for the championship. We like Nikolai Hojgaard, because he might have just the proper combination of naivete and experience for a first-time winner. Finally, we like Collin Morikawa, a winner of two separate major titles. Winning at Augusta National requires a certain amount of length, unless you putt lights out. Morikawa might be embedded in one of those putting weeks.

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