As expected, Friday’s birthday celebrations delayed any reporting on the second round; and Saturday’s brutal heat and humidity, combined with a late tee time, delayed reporting on the second round. So here are some tidbits from the final three rounds of the Players Championship:
* It’s not every day that you see someone shoot a 65. It’s also not every day that you seem someone shoot an 80. What are the odds that the two happen in the same group? That happened Friday: Graeme McDowell shot 65, playing partner Matthew Goggin shot 80. Goggin’s disastrous round was largely set in motion when he took a 9 on the par-4 4th hole: 2nd shot over the green, 3rd back over the green and into the water, 5th a flop shot that didn’t find land, and two putts. Ouch.
* Speaking of #4... #17 at Sawgrass gets a lot of publicity, but I think #4 is at least as cruel, perhaps more so this year (as 17 seems to be playing relatively easy this year). Players in groups that I’ve followed each of the first three days have found the water. Dry land for both players on Sunday.
* Speaking of water, it pays to know the caddies. During Saturday’s and Sunday’s rounds, one of the caddies in the group that I followed kept me well-supplied with ice-cold (and free) water from the tee-box coolers. Of course, this also led me to be the recipient of some very strange looks from my fellow spectators, who were wondering just who this girl is who’s getting free water from the caddie and isn’t wearing any kind of wife/girlfriend/family/guest credentials. I’m always very nice to the caddies of the players that I follow on a regular basis, greeting them by name each day and asking how they’re doing. I’ve seen plenty of spectators talking to players, but have never seen another one talking to a caddie.
* There hasn’t been much of a slow-play issue this week. There have been a few short waits on the tee box on par-3's, but no hitting-in issues from groups behind, and no lengthy waits for groups ahead.
* Those last three holes (16-18) are great watching if you’re a seated spectator. They are not fun to navigate if you’re trying to follow a group, especially late in the day, when most of the spectators are “overserved”.
* I didn’t see the guy get tased on Friday. I’ve seen some people that I would like to see meet the same fate, however.
* After walking 18 with a group on Sunday, I watched the last two hours of the tournament at a local restaurant/bar with some friends–four from Ireland, one from England, and myself the lone American (though after a week in largely Irish company, I have quite an accent myself now).We were cheering for Westwood and pretty well-shocked at his back-nine implosion.
* We were even more shocked at Tim Clark’s 67. Sunday wasn’t a day for low scores, by and large. All the more kudos to Tim.
* Henrik Stenson’s jacket–what can be said about that?
* I got the news about Tiger’s withdrawal while walking up #5 fairway. Let’s just say that not all the players were heartbroken about it.
* Keep an eye on Robert Allenby. I think his game is going to take a dramatic turn in the second half of the season, though in which direction I don’t know.
* And once again, congratulations to 2010 Players Champion Tim Clark. What a way to make that first win a big one! Let’s see what the rest of the year holds for him.
I’ll next be “live” on the course for the final two rounds of the St. Jude Classic in Memphis in June. Until next time...
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Thursday at Sawgrass
It was a sunny, very warm, and very humid Thursday at TPC Sawgrass. I followed an early group today and was still dripping sweat by the #3! Paul Goydos, J.P. Hayes, and Charl Schwartzel showcased some very different games, but it was fun watching. Some observations:
* In the year since my last trip to Sawgrass, I’d forgotten just how beautiful the course is. I’d also forgotten just how tough it is to walk. For those who haven’t been there, it’s even more beautiful than it looks on TV. It’s also the toughest course I’ve ever walked, with lots of high-grade elevation changes.
* I’m still not sure what to make of Schwartzel. I’d never been terribly impressed with his game (yes, he has wins, but largely in weaker-field events) until Doral. I didn’t see any real flashes of greatness today, though he’s a solid player overall. One thing he does have is a big drive; true, his playing partners aren’t long hitters, but he “outdrove” them with his 3-wood on at least one occasion.
* Goydos proved that a big drive wasn’t a necessity to score well at Sawgrass; his irons were spot-on, putting him closer to the pin than his playing partners on many holes.
* Hayes could have been at least three strokes better today if his putting had cooperated.
* I was admittedly a bit disappointed that none of the three hit the water on 17. The fans around 17 were, too. Perhaps not surprisingly, spectators do have wagers on players as they approach the tee, on whether they’ll find land or not.
* The crowds weren’t as big as I was expecting today. Perhaps that had to do with the position of the group I was following: Phil Mickelson was several groups ahead, and Tiger was in the afternoon wave.
* I was pleased that pace of play wasn’t as much of an issue today as in many recent rounds. There was no waiting until the back nine, and not much after that. While pace did slow toward the end of the round, it seemed to be due more to the increasing heat and humidity than to player backlog.
* The course didn’t seem to have as many “teeth” today, and the low scores bore that out. It will be interesting to see if the scores stay low, or if they go higher as the week goes on.
Tomorrow is not only the second round, it’s also my 35th birthday; plans for festivities are still taking shape, so there may or may not be a “round 2" column tomorrow. So until either tomorrow or Saturday...
* In the year since my last trip to Sawgrass, I’d forgotten just how beautiful the course is. I’d also forgotten just how tough it is to walk. For those who haven’t been there, it’s even more beautiful than it looks on TV. It’s also the toughest course I’ve ever walked, with lots of high-grade elevation changes.
* I’m still not sure what to make of Schwartzel. I’d never been terribly impressed with his game (yes, he has wins, but largely in weaker-field events) until Doral. I didn’t see any real flashes of greatness today, though he’s a solid player overall. One thing he does have is a big drive; true, his playing partners aren’t long hitters, but he “outdrove” them with his 3-wood on at least one occasion.
* Goydos proved that a big drive wasn’t a necessity to score well at Sawgrass; his irons were spot-on, putting him closer to the pin than his playing partners on many holes.
* Hayes could have been at least three strokes better today if his putting had cooperated.
* I was admittedly a bit disappointed that none of the three hit the water on 17. The fans around 17 were, too. Perhaps not surprisingly, spectators do have wagers on players as they approach the tee, on whether they’ll find land or not.
* The crowds weren’t as big as I was expecting today. Perhaps that had to do with the position of the group I was following: Phil Mickelson was several groups ahead, and Tiger was in the afternoon wave.
* I was pleased that pace of play wasn’t as much of an issue today as in many recent rounds. There was no waiting until the back nine, and not much after that. While pace did slow toward the end of the round, it seemed to be due more to the increasing heat and humidity than to player backlog.
* The course didn’t seem to have as many “teeth” today, and the low scores bore that out. It will be interesting to see if the scores stay low, or if they go higher as the week goes on.
Tomorrow is not only the second round, it’s also my 35th birthday; plans for festivities are still taking shape, so there may or may not be a “round 2" column tomorrow. So until either tomorrow or Saturday...
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Predictions: Players Championship
Sunny Florida is anything but this Wednesday afternoon, at least on I-10 heading east toward Jacksonville and Ponte Vedra. But indoors now and just a few miles from TPC Sawgrass, I'm ready to make my picks for the Players Championship.
My three "spotlight players" this week are Stephen Ames, Jim Furyk, and Ben Crane. All three have turned in some good performances here in Ponte Vedra; Ames is the 2nd-leading money winner at TPC, and Furyk and Crane both had top 10's last year.
My Yahoo Fantasy Golf team for this week:
"Front 4": Stephen Ames, Jim Furyk, Henrik Stenson, Ben Crane
"Bench team": Phil Mickelson, Kevin Na, Brian Davis, Ian Poulter
Last week's picks weren't great. Stuart Appleby was my only "spotlight player" to make the cut, and he finished in 69th. Hopefully, this week will be better. My Yahoo Fantasy Golf standings: 2521 points, 82nd percentile.
Best of luck to all!
My three "spotlight players" this week are Stephen Ames, Jim Furyk, and Ben Crane. All three have turned in some good performances here in Ponte Vedra; Ames is the 2nd-leading money winner at TPC, and Furyk and Crane both had top 10's last year.
My Yahoo Fantasy Golf team for this week:
"Front 4": Stephen Ames, Jim Furyk, Henrik Stenson, Ben Crane
"Bench team": Phil Mickelson, Kevin Na, Brian Davis, Ian Poulter
Last week's picks weren't great. Stuart Appleby was my only "spotlight player" to make the cut, and he finished in 69th. Hopefully, this week will be better. My Yahoo Fantasy Golf standings: 2521 points, 82nd percentile.
Best of luck to all!
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Sunday Evening Takeaway: May 2
Congratulations to this week’s winners: Alvaro Quiros at the Open de Espana, Rory McIlroy at the Quail Hollow Championship, Martin Piller at the Athens Classic, and David Eger at the Mississippi Gulf Coast Classic. Some bits of takeaway from this week:
* Rory McIlroy makes the cut on the number, then goes 66-62 on the weekend to win his first PGA Tour title. This is the Rory most of us expected to see this season. Injury delayed his “arrival” of sorts, but he’s definitely “here” now and making a statement. McIlroy turns 21 on Tuesday; with that milestone combined with his win, I’d dare say that there will be some serious partying going on in Ponte Vedra in a few days!
* I’m not terribly surprised that Tiger Woods missed the cut; most professionals do miss cuts from time to time. What did surprise me is just how badly Woods played, especially on Friday. He seemed to be having shoulder issues at one point, so maybe that had something to do with it. I’m not going to chalk it up to “what he’s been through”; this wasn’t his first round back on the course. Unless he is in fact injured, I expect to see him playing relatively solidly at Ponte Vedra next week.
* Ryo Ishikawa shot a 58 on Sunday in a Japan Tour event. Yes, the course was only 6500 yards, and the field was weak, but no one else has shot 58 in this particular event. It’s impressive.
* It was definitely unexpected to see Billy Mayfair and Paul Goydos at the top of the leaderboard for most of the week in Charlotte. It wasn’t as unexpected to see them both fade on Sunday. Hopefully, there are better final rounds for both of them at some point this season.
* I enjoy watching Ricky Fowler playing and playing well. I do not enjoy the head-to-toe orange ensemble; having seen him play live at Bay Hill, I can testify that it’s even brighter in person.
Speaking of “live”, I’ll be reporting from Ponte Vedra starting on Thursday, with some on-course (and possibly off-course) notes on The Players Championship. Until then...
* Rory McIlroy makes the cut on the number, then goes 66-62 on the weekend to win his first PGA Tour title. This is the Rory most of us expected to see this season. Injury delayed his “arrival” of sorts, but he’s definitely “here” now and making a statement. McIlroy turns 21 on Tuesday; with that milestone combined with his win, I’d dare say that there will be some serious partying going on in Ponte Vedra in a few days!
* I’m not terribly surprised that Tiger Woods missed the cut; most professionals do miss cuts from time to time. What did surprise me is just how badly Woods played, especially on Friday. He seemed to be having shoulder issues at one point, so maybe that had something to do with it. I’m not going to chalk it up to “what he’s been through”; this wasn’t his first round back on the course. Unless he is in fact injured, I expect to see him playing relatively solidly at Ponte Vedra next week.
* Ryo Ishikawa shot a 58 on Sunday in a Japan Tour event. Yes, the course was only 6500 yards, and the field was weak, but no one else has shot 58 in this particular event. It’s impressive.
* It was definitely unexpected to see Billy Mayfair and Paul Goydos at the top of the leaderboard for most of the week in Charlotte. It wasn’t as unexpected to see them both fade on Sunday. Hopefully, there are better final rounds for both of them at some point this season.
* I enjoy watching Ricky Fowler playing and playing well. I do not enjoy the head-to-toe orange ensemble; having seen him play live at Bay Hill, I can testify that it’s even brighter in person.
Speaking of “live”, I’ll be reporting from Ponte Vedra starting on Thursday, with some on-course (and possibly off-course) notes on The Players Championship. Until then...
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Predictions: Quail Hollow
This week, the PGA Tour is off to Charlotte, North Carolina, and the Quail Hollow Championship. With a course that is pegged a future major venue by many, and a field boasting most of the top players on the Tour (the most notable absence being the still-injured Steve Stricker), this week’s tournament is sure to be worth a watch.
My “spotlight players” for this week:
* Tiger Woods. Quail Hollow isn’t the Masters: tickets are available to the general public, so it will be interesting to see if any of the patrons have special greetings for Tiger, and if so, how he reacts. I’m more interested in seeing how his game looks, now that he has one tournament under his belt for 2010.
* Jason Dufner. Dufner helped my fantasy team out tremendously last week, with a 7th-place finish in New Orleans. He was 5th at Quail Hollow last year.
* Stuart Appleby. Are his back-to-back top-10's at Hilton Head and New Orleans a sign that his game really is coming back? We’ll see.
My Yahoo Fantasy Golf team for this week is:
“Front 4": Jason Dufner, Lucas Glover, Camilo Villegas, Stuart Appleby
“Bench team”: Tiger Woods, Sean O’Hair, Lee Westwood, Angel Cabrera
Last week was another mid-range week for picks. David Toms and Charles Howell III showed some promise early on, but finished in a lackluster 28th and 43rd, respectively. Steve Marino’s missed-cut-not-even-close disappointed a lot of prognosticators. My Yahoo Fantasy Golf standings: 2444 points, 82nd percentile.
Best of luck to all!
My “spotlight players” for this week:
* Tiger Woods. Quail Hollow isn’t the Masters: tickets are available to the general public, so it will be interesting to see if any of the patrons have special greetings for Tiger, and if so, how he reacts. I’m more interested in seeing how his game looks, now that he has one tournament under his belt for 2010.
* Jason Dufner. Dufner helped my fantasy team out tremendously last week, with a 7th-place finish in New Orleans. He was 5th at Quail Hollow last year.
* Stuart Appleby. Are his back-to-back top-10's at Hilton Head and New Orleans a sign that his game really is coming back? We’ll see.
My Yahoo Fantasy Golf team for this week is:
“Front 4": Jason Dufner, Lucas Glover, Camilo Villegas, Stuart Appleby
“Bench team”: Tiger Woods, Sean O’Hair, Lee Westwood, Angel Cabrera
Last week was another mid-range week for picks. David Toms and Charles Howell III showed some promise early on, but finished in a lackluster 28th and 43rd, respectively. Steve Marino’s missed-cut-not-even-close disappointed a lot of prognosticators. My Yahoo Fantasy Golf standings: 2444 points, 82nd percentile.
Best of luck to all!
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Sunday Evening Takeaway: April 25
Congratulations to this week’s winners: Marcus Fraser at the Ballantine’s Championship, Jason Bohn at the Zurich Classic, and Ewan Porter at the South Georgia Classic. A few bits of takeaway from this week:
* Mother Nature can be cruel. The Ballantine’s was shortened to a 54-hour event, and the Zurich and South Georgia both had significant weather delays. Such is the peril of an outdoor sport...
* It was a good week for guys to get back in the winner’s circle. Fraser’s last win came in 2003, Bohn’s last win in 2005.
* Jason Bohn celebrated his 37th birthday this week. A trophy, a two-year Tour exemption, and a bit over a million dollars are all very nice birthday presents.
* Stuart Appleby gets his second top-10 finish in two weeks. Two or three years ago, this wouldn’t be news. Is he back? I’d say it’s too soon to tell, but signs are encouraging.
* Speaking of lost games, Sergio Garcia might want to check out the Unclaimed Baggage Center in Scottsboro, Alabama, to see if his golf game is there. It sure isn’t with him on the course right now. He seems to be heading into the early stages of “Duval Syndrome”; though, if I had to put down money on one of the two right now, I’d go with Duval.
Until next week...
* Mother Nature can be cruel. The Ballantine’s was shortened to a 54-hour event, and the Zurich and South Georgia both had significant weather delays. Such is the peril of an outdoor sport...
* It was a good week for guys to get back in the winner’s circle. Fraser’s last win came in 2003, Bohn’s last win in 2005.
* Jason Bohn celebrated his 37th birthday this week. A trophy, a two-year Tour exemption, and a bit over a million dollars are all very nice birthday presents.
* Stuart Appleby gets his second top-10 finish in two weeks. Two or three years ago, this wouldn’t be news. Is he back? I’d say it’s too soon to tell, but signs are encouraging.
* Speaking of lost games, Sergio Garcia might want to check out the Unclaimed Baggage Center in Scottsboro, Alabama, to see if his golf game is there. It sure isn’t with him on the course right now. He seems to be heading into the early stages of “Duval Syndrome”; though, if I had to put down money on one of the two right now, I’d go with Duval.
Until next week...
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Predictions: Zurich Classic
Laissez les bon temps roulez! Grab your beignets, etouffee, and a favorite beverage, because this week the Tour is in New Orleans for the Zurich Classic. Early-week favorites Steve Stricker and Ian Poulter have both withdrawn with injuries, so the field is set to yield up some surprising names at the top of the leaderboard.
My “spotlight players” for this week:
* Steve Marino. He had a top-5 finish here last year, and two top-5's so far this season. He’s got to win sometime, and it might as well be this week.
* Charles Howell III. He was runner-up here last year, and has three top-10's so far this season. He played well early at Hilton Head last week, before fading over the weekend.
* David Toms. He also finished in the top 5 here last year. He hasn’t made any waves so far this season, due in part to shoulder trouble, but this is a virtual home game for him, and I’d be surprised if he didn’t “show up”.
My Yahoo Fantasy Golf team for this week is:
“Front 4": Steve Marino, Charles Howell III, David Toms, Jerry Kelly
“Bench team”: Jason Dufner, Rory Sabbatini, Briny Baird, Ben Crane
Last week was a decent week for picks. Luke Donald came in 3rd, and my “dark horse” pick of Tim Wilkinson was a respectable 22nd. Defending Heritage champion Brian Gay’s 32nd-place finish was disappointing, however. My Yahoo Fantasy Golf standings: 2298 points, 80th percentile.
Best of luck to all!
My “spotlight players” for this week:
* Steve Marino. He had a top-5 finish here last year, and two top-5's so far this season. He’s got to win sometime, and it might as well be this week.
* Charles Howell III. He was runner-up here last year, and has three top-10's so far this season. He played well early at Hilton Head last week, before fading over the weekend.
* David Toms. He also finished in the top 5 here last year. He hasn’t made any waves so far this season, due in part to shoulder trouble, but this is a virtual home game for him, and I’d be surprised if he didn’t “show up”.
My Yahoo Fantasy Golf team for this week is:
“Front 4": Steve Marino, Charles Howell III, David Toms, Jerry Kelly
“Bench team”: Jason Dufner, Rory Sabbatini, Briny Baird, Ben Crane
Last week was a decent week for picks. Luke Donald came in 3rd, and my “dark horse” pick of Tim Wilkinson was a respectable 22nd. Defending Heritage champion Brian Gay’s 32nd-place finish was disappointing, however. My Yahoo Fantasy Golf standings: 2298 points, 80th percentile.
Best of luck to all!
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