Connect with us

News

Morning 9: Feinstein: Why Tiger shouldn’t pick Tiger | JT the game’s best closer? | Praising Fall golf

Published

5 years ago

on
By Ben Alberstadt
Email me at [email protected] and find me at @benalberstadt on Instagram and golfwrxEIC on Twitter.

October 23, 2019

Good Wednesday morning, golf fans. Friendliest of PSAs here to tell you we’re looking for advertisers for 2020. Drop me a line if you’d like to talk about getting your message in front of the 30,000+ daily M9 readers.
 
Also, it’s still astonishes me that 3 people, let alone 30,000 choose to read my roundup every day. Sincere thanks! (and 99% of the credit goes to the writers whose work I feature daily)

 
1. Feinstein: Why Tiger shouldn’t pick Tiger
On the subject of Tiger Woods picking Tiger Woods for the Presidents Cup team, John Feinstein would rather he didn’t.
  • “There’s no doubt the tour would love to see Woods play, and so would the TV networks that will televise the matches in the middle of the night because of the 16-hour time difference between Melbourne and the East Coast of the United States.”
  • “But there are a myriad of reasons Woods shouldn’t name himself. Let’s start with his health-which is always an issue. The week before the matches, Woods is going to play four rounds in the exhibition he and his foundation run in the Bahamas. Then he has to fly across the world to Australia and, if he’s playing, will need to play practice rounds and tee it up as early as Thursday, if he puts himself in the lineup on the first day.”
  • “…There’s also this: If Woods picks Woods, he will have to jump himself over someone who finished ahead of him in the Presidents Cup points standings. Tony Finau, Gary Woodland, Rickie Fowler and Patrick Reed finished ninth through 12th. Woods was 13th.”

Full piece.

2. Is Justin Thomas golf’s best closer? 
A bold claim, indeed, but what does the data say?
  • Golf Digest’s Brian Wacker…”Leading by three helps of course. Justin Thomas had no such advantage at the CJ Cup @ Nine Bridges in South Korea after making a mess of the par-5 18th hole at Nine Bridges Golf Club on Saturday. He entered the final round tied with Danny Lee but shot a five-under 67 to win by two.”
  • “The victory was the 11th of the 26-year-old’s career on the PGA Tour and it put him in rare company. Only Tiger and Jack Nicklaus have compiled more Ws by age 27, with 34 (!) and 20, respectively. Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth are next, also with 11.”
  • “…Not lost in Thomas’ latest triumph: He’s now eight for 11 when leading or tied for the lead after 54 holes, which brings to mind a question: Is Thomas the best closer in golf?”

Full piece.

3. LPGA $ up (PGA still 6x richer)
A look at the dollars and cents of it all…
  • AAP report…”Every week brings a sobering reminder of how much more money the men play for on the PGA Tour than the women do on the LPGA Tour….With four tournaments left in the LPGA Tour season, Danielle Kang became the 11th player to break the US$1 million (AU$1.46m) mark.”
  • “The PGA Tour had 112 players earn at least US$1m last season…Already nine players have made at least US$1m through six PGA Tour events this season.”
  • Speaketh the commish…“Not sure if we have closed the gap, even though we are playing for dramatically more money,” Whan said…”When I started, we were playing for just over US$40m (AU$58.4m) and now we’re playing for over US$70m (AU$102.1m).

Full piece.

4. Hideki key?
The International side has been as bad as the Europeans have been good in the other biennial competition. Can Hideki Matsuyama change that?
PGATour.com’s Ben Everill poses an interesting question…”How can you create the best team effort with a partner who you cannot fully understand?”
  • “I don’t know how I would do that. I’ve never thought of that before and would think that is very, very difficult, especially on a tough day,” U.S. team member Justin Thomas said. “On a good day it’s easy because you just stay out of each other’s way and keep making birdies, but when stuff’s going tough, I would have to imagine that’s very difficult.
  • “It would be a lot harder because for me in particular, I kind of feed off of being able to boost my partner up and especially when things aren’t going well, kind of say things to try to motivate him or kind of get together and try to motivate us or get the good momentum going.”
  • “That begs the question: Should one of Ernie Els’ four captains picks be specifically geared towards Matsuyama? Would looking at a Japanese-speaking partner help ensure much-needed points in Foursomes and Four-ball?”
5. Berger battling for Prez Cup spot
A resurgent Daniel Berger has his eyes on catching the eye of the (captain) Tiger.
  • Golfweek’s Forecaddie…”The Man Out Front remembers Berger’s most recent Tour victory at the 2017 FedEx St. Jude Invitational. He had won in each of his first two years on the PGA Tour before his injury. Berger has set his sights on making the U.S. team for the Presidents Cup as a captain’s pick. He played on the victorious 2017 U.S. squad and is convinced (as is TMOF) he can still make a good impression with captain Tiger Woods.”
  • “I’m going to do everything I can,” he said. “I’m playing well. It’s hard to perform when you’re thinking about trying to retain your status. My first few years out here I just didn’t care. I just went and played. Next thing you know, shoot 12 under and you have a chance to win.”
  • “But every week for the last eight months I was going into it thinking, ‘Oh man, if I don’t play well I’m not going to keep my card.'” added Berger. “It’s a terrible place to be in. I feel like a million-pound weight has been lifted off my shoulders.”

Full piece.

6. LPGA Q-Series
Golf Channel’s Randall Mell…”Stanford senior Andrea Lee, No. 1 in Golfweek’s Women’s Collegiate Rankings, is in the field with fellow senior and teammate Albane Valenzuela, who is No. 4. They are among four of the top nine in the collegiate rankings who will be in Pinehurst, N.C., vying for LPGA tour cards over the next two weeks.”
  • “USC junior Jennifer Chang (No. 3) and University of Florida senior Sierra Brooks (No. 9) are also among the 98 players in the field. So is Florida State sophomore Frida Kinhult (No. 35).”
  • “A minimum of the top 45 and ties will earn LPGA status, with everyone else at Pinehurst Resort earning Symetra Tour status.”
  • “The 144-hole event begins Wednesday at Pinehurst No. 6 and continues next week (Oct. 30-Nov. 2) at Pinehurst No. 9 with $150,000 in total prize money at stake.”

Full piece.

7. The King on a stamp
Arnold Palmer will soon be coming to your mail. 
  • Golf Digest’s Brian Wacker...”Given the electronic world we live in, trips to the post office have become less frequent in recent years. But the United States Postal Service is giving us a good reason to make a visit: Arnold Palmer.”
  • “On Tuesday, the USPS announced that it will honor Palmer with a commemorative stamp in 2020…The Forever stamp will feature James Drake’s action photo of Palmer from the 1964 U.S. Open at Congressional Country Club.”

Full piece.

8. Trash talk, please? 
Two takes from Golf Channel’s Ryan Lavner on the Japan Skins…
  • “Japan Skins (+3%): Back from a decade-long absence, the skins-game format definitely can be improved – we’ll get to that in a minute – but the fourball was more watchable than last year’s dreadful Tiger-Phil duel. To this observer, at least, there’s still an appetite for these starry, made-for-TV exhibitions, especially on a Monday-Wednesday night during a sleepy part of the season.”
  • “Needling” (-3%): Ah, yes, it’s the most coveted aspect of these exhibitions – the precious moments when buttoned-up pros can start jawing at their opponents, like other jocks. But until these mic’d-up events include Phil Mickelson (he deserves more opportunities), Kevin Kisner, Pat Perez or other famed trash talkers – guys who don’t necessarily have a brand to protect – they’ll continue to be filled with corny one-liners that leave us rolling our eyes.”

Full piece.

9. In praise of autumn golf
To close, our Ryan Barath on the joys of fall golf…
  • “The sun’s orbit, paired with Mother Nature, allows you to stay in your warm bed just that little extra, since you can’t play golf when it’s still dark at 6:30 a.m. The warm, but not too warm, temperatures allow you to pull out your favorite classic cotton golf shirts without fear of the uncomfortable sweaty pits. We can’t forget that it’s also the season for every golfer’s favorite piece of apparel: the quarter zip  (#1/4zipSZN).”
  • “Courses in the fall are often in the best shape (or at least they should be), since player traffic and corporate tournaments are done for the season. As long as warm afternoons are still the norm, firm and fast conditions can be expected.”
  • “Last but not least, the colors-reds, oranges, and yellows-frame the green fairways and dark sand to make them pop in the landscape. Fall is the final chance to get in those last few rounds and create happy thoughts and mental images before the clubs go away for the inevitably cold, dark days of winter.”
Your Reaction?
  • 2
  • LEGIT1
  • WOW0
  • LOL2
  • IDHT0
  • FLOP0
  • OB0
  • SHANK0

Related Topics:

GolfWRX Editor-in-Chief

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

News

Five Things We Learned: Thursday at the PGA Championship

Published

6 hours ago

on

May 16, 2024

By

It was a year ago that we the north, found ourselves with toes and fingers crossed. The Oak Hill PGA Championship of 2023 finished on schedule, despite the iffiness of weather in upstate New York. It’s 75 degrees today across the Niagara Frontier, which makes it two out of three (2022 was the same way) for sultry, unseasonal weather.

Louisville is, let’s be honest, a much better bet for a May PGA Championship, and Valhalla is an exciting venue for the year’s second major championship on the men’s circuit. Brooks Koepka came in as the defending champion, and Rory McIlroy arrived as the last golfer to win a major at the Nicklaus-designed course. That was a decade ago, and lord, have things changed in the world and golf.

Day one at Valhalla offered walk-in eagles, buckets of birdies, and potential for a record-low, winner’s score. We’ll get right to the meat of the matter, with five things that we learned. After all, if you can make par from the muck, anything’s possible in the land of the horses.

1. X marks this spot

Xander Schauffele went head to head last Sunday with Rory McIlroy, at least on the practice green. By the end of the round, Rors had won for a fourth time at Charlotte, while the X Man sat scratching his head, wondering what went wrong. Fortunately for us, Xander didn’t sulk.

The San Diego State alumnus absolutely torched Jack’s track with 62. Four birdies on the front nine, were followed by five more on the inward side. Schauffele never looked as if bogey was a consideration, and he might have gone even lower. Despite winning the Covid-delayed Gold medal at the Japan Olympics (I consider it a major, btdubs) Schauffele continues to chase an initial men’s major, and the validation that it brings. If 62 doesn’t get you over the hump, who knows what will.

2. Scottie starts strong? Aye.

Last month, Mr. Scheffler won a second green jacket at Augusta National. Last year in Rochester, Mr. Scheffler tied for second in this event. Mr. Scheffler began play today with a walk-in eagle, a one-hop affair that never looked as if it might go anywhere but to its home. Scheffler had a few rough holes, but that’s to be expected from a new dad. Each time he made bogey, he bounced back with birdie, so he has that short memory that winners crave. Surprisingly, Scheffler failed to manage one last birdie at the reachable 18th. Perhaps that miss will motivate him in round two.

3. LIV Check-In

It’s good to check in on the departed from time to time, to ensure that the fellows formerly known as PGA Tour members are doing well. It’s safe to say that some of them can still play. Defending champion Brooks Koepka posted 67 on the day, He had an eagle and three birdies on the day, with only a stumble at the 17th. He’s tied for 7th. Bryson DeChambeau made an eagle of his own, but also had a bogey, at the 12th hole. He cohabits eleventh position with Cameron Smith, who ALSO had a bogey on his card. They are one shot behind Koepka, and a fistful more behind the leader.

4. Sahith and Tony at Schauffele’s heels

Both Finau and Theegala represent a special sort of athletic golfer. Their power and their charisma blend to draw golf fans to their groups. Let’s be honest, too, and say that they don’t look like the traditional professional golfer. As much as Tiger Woods did in the 1990s, they have the power to bring greater diversity to the sport.

In terms of their play today, well, only Xander was better. Finau had a clean card, with six birdies and twelve pars. Theegala had seven birdies, ten pars, and one bogey. Each combined power and finesse to insert themselves squarely in contention, ahead of round two. How will they, and Xander as well, manage the afternoon putting surface on Friday? That’s the great unknown!

5. All those other guys are here!

Rory, Tom Kim, Collin, and Viktor are all at minus-three or lower. Valhalla may not be a traditional golf course, but it is the type of course that the world’s best play well. McIlroy currently sits at minus-five, tied with Robert MacIntyre, Kim, and three others in fourth position.  Maverick McNealy finished fast to reach the same figure, as did Tom Hoge. Morikawa closed with birdie to join the sextet at five below. Both Scheffler and Morikawa finished their rounds late on Thursday, meaning they should see smoother greens on Friday morning. If someone is a betting sould, wiser wagers could not be placed on better names than those two, two-time, major champions. Rory will tee off in Friday’s afternoon wave but, hey, he’s Rory, and he won going away last week at Quail Hollow, a course not unlike Valhalla.

Your Reaction?
  • 0
  • LEGIT0
  • WOW0
  • LOL0
  • IDHT0
  • FLOP0
  • OB0
  • SHANK0

Continue Reading

News

Morning 9: Tiger 2025 Ryder Cup talks continue | Rory: Tour in a worse place with Dunne’s resignation

Published

17 hours ago

on

May 16, 2024

By
By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: [email protected]

Good Thursday morning, golf fans, as day one of the PGA Championship gets underway from iconic Valhalla.

1. Waugh: 2025 Ryder Cup talks continue with Tiger

Golf Channel’s Ryan Lavner…”PGA of America CEO Seth Waugh said Wednesday that the organization continues to have conversations with Tiger Woods about captaining the U.S. Ryder Cup team in 2025 and there remains no firm deadline to get their pick in place for Bethpage Black.”

  • “A day earlier, Woods told reporters here at the PGA Championship that he is undecided about taking on the role next year…”
  • “He doesn’t do anything that he’s not fully committed to,” Waugh said, “and we totally respect that.”
  • “Still, the PGA’s decision to hold off on naming an American captain for the September 2025 matches is a significant departure – at least three months late – from the past five captains.”
Full piece.

2. Rory: Tour in a worse place with Dunne’s resignation

Golf Channel’s Rex Hoggard…”McIlroy, who has become an outspoken proponent of a deal with PIF, was denied a spot on the board last week but was named to the “transaction subcommittee,” which will spearhead the day-to-day negotiations. But the loss of Dunne will be a blow to those talks, the world No. 2 said.”

  • “Honestly I think it’s a huge loss for the PGA Tour if they are trying to get this deal done with the PIF and trying to unify the game,” McIlroy said. “Jimmy was basically the relationship, the sort of conduit between the PGA Tour and PIF.
  • “It’s been really unfortunate that he has not been involved for the last few months, and I think part of the reason that everything is stalling at the minute is because of that.”
Full piece.

3. Brandel on AK’s criticism: I thought it was a LIV bot

Our Matt Vincenzi…”On Tuesday during an interview with GolfWRX, Chamblee addressed the feud between Kim and himself.”

  • “At first, I thought it was a bot. But it’s not, it was just somebody who’s been bought.
  • “I thought it was juvenile. Social media is a perfect place for juveniles to go behave like children, like the ball pit at McDonalds without adult supervision. I’m sure Anthony Kim scrolls and gets positive comments and says ‘yeah, these people get me! I’m doing the right thing’. And it’s just juvenile and sad is what it is. I feel sorry for him.”
Full piece.

4. Aberg (knee) ready for PGA

Cameron Morfit for PGATour.com…”Ludvig Åberg said lingering knee soreness that kept him out of the Wells Fargo Championship last week will not be an issue at this week’s PGA Championship.”

  • “The world No. 6 Åberg, who finished second at the Masters Tournament in his very first major start last month, allowed that he is wearing a brace as a precautionary measure.”
  • “Knee’s good,” said Åberg, 24. “It was more of a safety concern last week that I didn’t play. I’m consulting with my doctors, and I trust them with everything that I have, so it’s not bothering me at all this week, and I look forward to playing. I’m wearing a brace just for safety reasons, but it’s nothing that’s bothering me. I’m focusing on the golf.”
Full piece.

5. Masters employee pleads guilty to stealing millions in memorabilia

Sean Leahy for Yahoo Sports…”A former employee of Augusta National Golf Club in Georgia pleaded guilty on Wednesday to transporting millions of dollars worth of stolen Masters memorabilia and historic items, including a green jacket belonging to Arnold Palmer.”

  • “According to federal prosecutors, 39-year-old Richard Globensky made around $5 million over the course of a decade from selling items stolen from the Augusta National warehouse, which were then transported to another party in Florida.”
  • “Globensky pleaded guilty to one count of transporting stolen goods across state lines. As part of his plea, he must hand the government a $1.5 million check this week.”
Full piece.

6. Chamblee on why Rory hasn’t won a major

Our Matt Vincenzi…”While speaking with GolfWRX, Golf Channel’s Brandel Chamblee gave his opinion as to why McIlroy has come up empty.”

  • “I just think he can’t find a place mentally where he plays his best golf.”
  • “If you go back and look at what he did from 2011-2014, in that stretch, he led roughly 20% of the rounds he played in major championships. His game has not fallen off, not one bit.
  • “He’s, on paper, pretty much the same player he was. He’s not quite the ball striker he was 2011-2014, not quite, but he’s made up for it with his short game around the greens and on the greens. He’s almost the same player.”
  • “Yet, he’s led just two rounds beginning with the 2015 Masters to the 2024 Masters. I just think that tells you he can’t find the proper way to prepare, the proper way to ease into a round. When he’s needed to play his best, he’s played his worst. When he’s played his worst, he’s then followed it up with his best golf. That’ll tell you that he’s just not in the right place mentally.”
Full piece.

7. Why Scottie’s caddie will have a fill-in Saturday

Paul Hodowanic for PGATour.com…”Scottie Scheffler will have a fill-in caddie on the bag for Saturday’s third round of the PGA Championship.”

  • “Ted Scott, Scheffler’s full-time caddie, will miss Saturday’s round at Valhalla Golf Club to attend his daughter’s high school graduation. Scott will leave Friday night after caddying the first two rounds and return late Saturday to loop the final round.”
  • “That’s something we talked about from the beginning of our relationship was family always comes first,” Scheffler said during his pre-tournament press conference on Tuesday. “It’s the same thing for me as it is for my caddie. It was a pretty easy decision. He told me at the beginning of this year that that was the date.”
Full piece.

8. Chamblee: LIV format makes it impossible to judge player talent

Our Matt Vincenzi…”While speaking with GolfWRX, Golf Channel’s Brandel Chamblee explained why he believes the LIV format makes it impossible to determine if a LIV player is playing well.”

  • “Describing the format as “stupid”, Chamblee stated
  • “The format for LIV is just stupid. There’s no other word for it. 54 holes, 54 players start. Willy nilly here and there.
  • “Nobody winning a golf tournament should finish on the third hole on some par three while his closest competitors finish on the 17th hole or the 18th hole.”
  • “When we asked Brandel if LIV players should be in majors, Chamblee indicated that it would be tough to do with no way to truly measure their performance.
  • “It’s just a laughable concept. There’s no way to judge the talents of these players out there. You look at their data, and again, their data is laughable. It’s very hard to hit 75% of your greens and it looks like everybody on their tour is hitting 75% of greens. Who’s keeping their stats? Who’s doing their data? They haven’t gotten their act together.”
Full piece.

9. Photos from the 2024 PGA Championship

  • Check out all of our galleries from the year’s second major!
Full piece.
Your Reaction?
  • 1
  • LEGIT0
  • WOW0
  • LOL0
  • IDHT0
  • FLOP0
  • OB0
  • SHANK0

Continue Reading

Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2024 PGA Championship

Published

3 days ago

on

May 14, 2024

By

GolfWRX is on site this week at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky, for the PGA Championship.

While we see fewer equipment changes and new gear seeding at major championships, we get a look at custom gear and looks into the bags of players we rarely see, which is just as exciting. In the case of the PGA Championship, this means a look at the gear some of the PGA Professionals who qualified for the tournament will be gaming, and LIV players, such as Jon Rahm and Patrick Reed.

Check out links to all our albums from Valhalla below and check back throughout the week as we continue to update.

General Albums

WITB Albums

Pullout Albums

Your Reaction?
  • 10
  • LEGIT1
  • WOW0
  • LOL0
  • IDHT0
  • FLOP0
  • OB0
  • SHANK0

Continue Reading

WITB

Whats in the Bag13 hours ago

Patrick Reed WITB 2024 (May)

Patrick Reed what’s in the bag accurate as of the PGA Championship. More photos from the event here.  Driver: Ping...
Whats in the Bag16 hours ago

Club Junkie WITB, league night week 5: Another L.A.B. putter arises

We will be one quarter of the way through Thursday night men’s league season after this week. BK played much...
Whats in the Bag18 hours ago

Jon Rahm WITB 2024 (May)

Jon Rahm what’s in the bag accurate as of the PGA Championship. 15 clubs pictured. More photos from the event...
Whats in the Bag2 days ago

John Daly WITB 2024 (May)

John Daly WITB accurate as of the PGA Championship. More photos from the event here.  Driver: Ping G430 LST (9...

Facebook

Trending