News

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.

Published

17 years ago

Jun 29, 2007

Eric Schuster

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

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.

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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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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.

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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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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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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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GR1NDER

Jul 7, 2007 at 8:49 pm

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

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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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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.

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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.

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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.

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Champ

Jul 3, 2007 at 11:45 am

Does Tiger even have square grooves on his Nike blades?

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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.

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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.

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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.

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News

Tour Rundown: Rose blooms, Rory rolls

Published

6 hours ago

May 13, 2024

Ronald Montesano

This week last year, I found myself praying to the weather goddesses and gods that Rochester would be spared their wrath over the next seven days. The 2023 Oak Hill PGA Championship (that was slated for August when the contract was signed) was on the horizon, and I wanted my region to show well. Things turned out fine, with all four seasons making an appearance, a PGA Professional (Blockie!) stealing hearts, and a proven champion in Koepka (although I was pulling for Viktor.)

This year, no concerns. Louisville will shine this week at Valhalla, but we’ve matters to consider before we look to four days of coverage this week. Nelly did not win on the LPGA this week, so who did? The PGA Tour held two events in the Carolinas, and Tour Champions celebrated a major event in Alabama. Four noteworthy events to run down, so let’s head to RunDownTown and take care of business.

LPGA @ Founders Cup: Rose blooms

There was a sense that Rose Zhang might have a role in the 2020s version of the LPGA. After winning everything there was in amateur golf, she came out and won her first tournament as a professional. That was last May and, let’s be honest, who among us thought it would take 12 months for Zhang to win again? Rhymes with hero, I know.

This week in New Jersey, eyes were on Nelly Korda, as she made a run at a sixth consecutive win on the LPGA circuit. Korda ran out of gas on Saturday, and that was just fine. Madelene Sagstrom and Zhang had turned the soiree at Upper Montclair into a battle of birdies. Gabriela Ruffels came third at nine-under par. No one else reached double digits under par but Sagstrom and Zhang. They didn’t just reach -10…they more than doubled it.

Sagstrom had the look of a winner with five holes left to play. She was three shots clear of Zhang, at 23-under par. The Swede played her closing quintet in plus-one, finishing at 22-deep, 13 shots ahead of Ruffels. That performance we’d anticipated from Zhang? It happened on Sunday. She closed with four birdies in five holes to snatch victory number two, by two shots. Spring is a lovely time for a Rose in bloom.

Take a look back at hole No. 1… @rosezhang is living life on the edge ? pic.twitter.com/o6z6SK7TRA

— LPGA (@LPGA) May 12, 2024

PGA Tour @ Wells Fargo: Rory the Fourth is crowned in Charlotte

Xander Schauffele is a likable lad. He has an Olympic gold medal on his shelf, and a few PGA Tour titles to his credit. Even X knows that even par won’t get much done in a final round unless conditions are brutal. They weren’t brutal at Quail Hollow on Sunday. X posted even par on day four. It kept him ahead of third-place finisher Byeong Hun An but gave him zero chance of challenging for the title.

Paired with Xander in round four was the King of Quail, Rory McIlroy. The Northern Irishman had previously won thrice at the North Carolina track, and he was champing at the bit to gain some momentum on the road to Louisville. While Xander scored increasingly worse along the week (64-67-70-71) McIlroy saved his best round for the final round. Thanks to five birdies and two eagles, McIlroy ran away with the event, winning his fourth Wells Fargo by five over Schauffele.

HOLE-OUT EAGLE FOR RORY!!!

He now leads by SIX! pic.twitter.com/UE49lwfwNC

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) May 12, 2024

PGA Tour @ Myrtle Beach Classic: a little CG won the inaugural week

It always seemed odd that the PGA Tour had zero stops along the Grand Strand each season. This week’s event seemed odd in that the golfers played the same course each day, and there were zero handicaps involved. Most events at Myrtle Beach involve hundreds of amateurs at dozens of courses, with all sorts of handicaps.

The Dunes Club is a Robert Trent Jones Sr. course, down toward Pawley’s Island. It claims what used to be considered an unreachable, par-five hole, the watery 13th. Nothing is unreachable any longer, including a 22-under par total for a six-shot win. Chris Gotterup, a former Rutgers and Oklahoma golfer, played sizzling golf all week and won by a sextet of shots. Gotterup opened with 66, then improved to 64 on Friday. His Saturday 65 sounded a beacon of “come get me,” and his closing 67 ensured that second place was the only thing up for grabs.

Chasing the podium’s second level were a bunch of young Americans. In the end, Alastair Docherty and Davis Thompson reached 16-deep, thanks to rounds of 64 and 68 on Sunday. They held off six golfers at 15-under par. The victory was Gotterup’s first on tour and should be enough to get him a Wikipedia page, among other plaudits.

Leader by SIX!
@ChrisGotterup | @MyrtleBeachC pic.twitter.com/TVdA6ZPYc4

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) May 12, 2024

PGA Tour Champions @ Regions Traditions: Vindication for Dougie

Doug Barron, if I recall correctly, was suspended by the Powers That Be, way back in 2009, for testosterone. He was naturally low in the hormone, so he took supplements. This did not sit well with certain admins, so he was put on the shelf for 18 months. Not cool.

In 2019, Barron came out on the Tour Champions. He won in August. The next year, despite the craziness of Covid, he won again. Barron hit a dry spell for a few years. He kept his card, but accrued no additional victories. In late April, Barron showed serious signs of life, with a t2 at Mitsubishi. This week in Birmingham, he jumped out to a lead, lost it, then gained it back on Saturday. With major championship glory on the line, Barron brought the train into the station with 68 on Sunday.

Stephen Alker, the man who could not lose just two years ago, gave serious chase with a closing 63. He moved up 11 slots, into solo 2nd on Sunday. He finished two shots back of the champion. Two shots ain’t much. Cough once and you drop a pair. Third place saw a three-way tie, including last year’s winner (Steve Stricker) and runner-up (Ernie Els.) Despite the intimidating presence of the game’s greats, however, Doug Barron had more than enough of everything this week, and he has a third Tour Champions title to show off.

At the @RegionsTrad, all champions receive a green bike.

Doug Barron decided to take a victory lap ? pic.twitter.com/bEzENMjZwv

— PGA TOUR Champions (@ChampionsTour) May 13, 2024

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Equipment

Did Rory McIlroy inspire Shane Lowry’s putter switch?

Published

3 days ago

May 10, 2024

GolfWRX Staff

Editor’s note: This is an excerpt from a piece our Andrew Tursky originally wrote for PGATour.com’s Equipment Report. Head over there for the full article.

The timing of Lowry’s putter changeup was curious: Was he just using a Spider putter because he was paired with McIlroy, who’s been using a Spider Tour X head throughout 2024? Was Lowry just being festive because it’s the Zurich Classic, and he wanted to match his teammate? Did McIlroy let Lowry try his putter, and he liked it so much he actually switched into it?

Well, as it turns out, McIlroy’s only influence was inspiring Lowry to make more putts.

When asked if McIlroy had an influence on the putter switch, Lowry had this to say: “No, it’s actually a different putter than what he uses. Maybe there was more pressure there because I needed to hole some more putts if we wanted to win,” he said with a laugh.

To Lowry’s point, McIlroy plays the Tour X model, whereas Lowry switched into the Tour Z model, which has a sleeker shape in comparison, and the two sole weights of the club are more towards the face.

Lowry’s Spider Tour Z has a white True Path Alignment channel on the crown of his putter, which is reminiscent of Lowry’s former 2-ball designs, thus helping to provide a comfort factor despite the departure from his norm. Instead of a double-bend hosel, which Lowry used in his 2-ball putters, his new Spider Tour Z is designed with a short slant neck.

“I’ve been struggling on the greens, and I just needed something with a fresh look,” Lowry told GolfWRX.com on Wednesday at the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship. “It has a different neck on it, as well, so it moves a bit differently, but it’s similar. It has a white line on the back of it [like my 2-ball], and it’s a mallet style. So it’s not too drastic of a change.

“I just picked it up on the putting green and I liked the look of it, so I was like, ‘Let’s give it a go.’”

Read the rest of the piece over at PGATour.com.

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Equipment

Spotted: Tommy Fleetwood’s TaylorMade Spider Tour X Prototype putter

Published

4 days ago

May 9, 2024

Brian Knudson

Tommy Fleetwood has been attached to his Odyssey White Hot Pro #3 putter for years now. However, this week at the Wells Fargo Championship, we did spot him testing a new putter that is very different, yet somewhat similar, to his current gamer.

This new putter is a TaylorMade Spider Tour X head but with a brand new neck we haven’t seen on a Spider before. A flow neck is attached to the Spider head and gives the putter about a 1/2 shaft offset. This style neck will usually increase the toe hang of the putter and we can guess it gets the putter close to his White Hot Pro #3.

Another interesting design is that lack of TaylorMade’s True Path alignment on the top of the putter. Instead of the large white center stripe, Tommy’s Spider just has a very short white site line milled into it. As with his Odyssey, Tommy seems to be a fan of soft inserts and this Spider prototype looks to have the TPU Pure Roll insert with 45° grooves for immediate topspin and less hopping and skidding.

The sole is interesting as well in that the rear weights don’t look to be interchangeable and are recessed deep into the ports. This setup could be used to push the CG forward in the putter for a more blade-like feel during the stroke, like TaylorMade did with the Spider X Proto Scottie Scheffler tested out.

Tommy’s putter is finished off with an older Super Stroke Mid Slim 2.0 grip in blue and white. The Mid Slim was designed to fit in between the Ultra Slim 1.0 and the Slim 3.0 that was a popular grip on tour.