PGA Tour: Up the (Tobacco) Road to Greensboro: Notes from the Ballwasher

1).PGA Championship.
Rory McIlroy.
Simply Magnificent.

2).PGA Championship.
David Lynn.
Second?
In your first ever event in the United States?
You've got to be sh1tting me.
Invite to the 2013 Masters.
Invite to the 2013 PGA Championship.
Very good chances of earning automatic exemption to the "Opens".

3).PGA Championship.
Seven of the Top Ten are Europeans, and they'll all be back, exempt, next year.
The Top 4 and ties will be invited to the 2013 Masters. Carl Pettersson (edit: already exempt!) joins David Lynn of those not otherwise exempt who'll be receiving that envelope from Billy Payne.

4).PGA Championship.
And the Top 15 and ties will be invited to the 2013 PGA Championship at Oak Hill. Those not already exempt include Lynn, Poulter, Pettersson, Adams, Donaldson, Hanson, Stricker, Curtis, Clark, Ogilvy and Scott.

5).Kiawah Island's Ocean Course.
The course received mixed receptions from players (mostly positive) and media (a lot of it negative). Most of the negatives focussed on transportation logistics and the supposed absurdity of playing a windswept oceanside course with raised greens and fairways, but few run-up options. Exhibit A; Friday.
Was it significant that only seven of the leading 17 golfers were American?
Does it speak to a lack of creativity that many have long criticised the PGA Tour players for??
However well the course stood up to a variety of conditions and wind directions, I'd be surprised to see the PGA return their Championship here anytime soon.

6).And who's this Blake Adams fellow who finished 7th?
Adams has played The Players, US Open and PGA Championship this year and contended to some extent in all three. Almost 37 and only on Tour for three years, Adams is another of the multi-sport athletes, basketball and baseball in his case, who's focussed on golf and graduated through the mini-tours to PGA Tour success. He's another of the Tour's walking wounded but has become a Tour "iron man"; no wins but a runner up to Jason Day (remember him?) at the 2010 Byron Nelson, when he screwed up the final hole worse than Day did.
Well worth bearing in mind next time the Tour stops at a course that rewards strategic play and pars.

7).Carl Pettersson has returned to his self-described "ten beers and a pint of ice cream" diet after losing a ton of weight and his golf swing a few years ago. Most significantly this week is his work as a Board Member of the Tour's Greensboro tournament, helping to ensure that one of the oldest stops on Tour has not only maintained its place on the calendar, arguably strengthened its position.
A new sponsor, Wyndham Hotels and Resorts, and a new (old) course, Sedgefield Country Club, a Donald Ross original, have combined to elevate the event which now holds an interesting position with many of the field striving for FedEx participation or position.

8).Sam Snead won "Greensboro" EIGHT times, but last year's winner was a young American who'd been showing tons of promise, had been desperately unlucky not to win in New Orleans, and was a local lad to boot. Guy called Webb Simpson. He's back with an interesting field and some "interesting" tee times:
Simpson, Love, Pettersson. Local heroes.
Haas, Dufner, Snedeker. Ryder Cup player and two wannabe Captain's picks.
Appleby, Villegas, Glover. All outside the Fed Ex Play-Off places.
Schwartzel, Garcia, Watney. Disappointing seasons all.

9).European representation includes Christian, Davis, Jamie Donaldson, Knox and Greg Owen (good e.w. chance again this week?); Blixt, Chopra, Karlsson, Pettersson and Stenson; Colsaerts and Garcia (unlucky loser in a 2009 play-off here to Ryan Moore). Significant week for many of them:
Knox, Chopra, Karlsson all need big finishes to assist them in quest to retain Tour cards.
Blixt (back from a long injury absence), Christian, Garcia and Stenson will all qualify for The Barclays, but need good finishes this next fortnight to progress to the Deutsche Bank.
Colsaerts and Garcia are vying for Ryder Cup qualification.

10).In a sign of the times, Bud Cauley has just overtaken Arnold Palmer in the career earnings list;
Marc Leishman has recently passed Jack Nicklaus;
And Rory McIlroy's next top three finish will push him past Tom Watson!

Carl Pettersson already had a Masters Invite, via his win in Hilton Head.

Its FEDEX Bubble time this week.

#127 Retief Goosen decided to take the week off and has no chance to play the extravaganza. He has only played 12 PGAT events, so I guess he will be busy this fall. Stewark Cink at #135 is also skipping Wyndham.

John Daly actually has a bona fide chance to make Barclays. Top 10 finish should do it for Big John no matter how anyone else does.

11th hour for Euro RC wannabes. Sergio needs at least a T3 finish to move past Poults and Kaymer and Colsaerts needs at least a T2 finish.

Two US RC Wannabe players probably not near the top of the short list have a chance to impress Captain DLIII this week. Sneds and Haas are both playing (and paired together in Rounds 1,2 with Dufner). I am surprised the PGAT didn't pair them with Captain Love who is playing Big Carl and Webb Simpson.

Last year at this time Nick Watney was the regular season FE leader. Now he is 51st and playing like a mutt.

about Petterson.

Think Cink is putting family ahead of golf, son enrolling at Clemson.

I took it that they grouped Webbo with the two guys most instrumental in boosting "Greensboro".

Jamie Donaldson has been saying that it's his goal to play the PGA Tour next year, either via Q-School or by earning enough as a non-Member to qualify.
So he's playing Greensboro hoping to add $360K to the $245K already coined as a non-Member to reach the necessary total.

Apparently he's been seeking advice from Justin Rose and Ian Poulter - lots of fantastics in Poultie's advocacy reportedly: lifestyle, golf, the Tour, the "place".

Wonder if Colsaerts has the same route in mind?: and Nicky is $87K closer than Donaldson.

For those that were arguing that the new Q-school is shutting out Int'l players, Colsaerts and Donaldson would be now be eligible to play in the 3 event series.

GPB wrote:For those that were arguing that the new Q-school is shutting out Int'l players, Colsaerts and Donaldson would be now be eligible to play in the 3 event series.

It still isn't the point GPB... through good play all season a couple of players have earned a chance, which they may or may not want; as opposed to the current system where there's a clear route for all overseas players every year. Good play decides how many stages you skip along the way but everyone has the chance.

And then there's Frenchman, by birth anyway, Vaita Guillaume who has qualified for the week's action. Not sure if he's resident in the US now, having attended Campbell University in North Carolina.

And the PGA Tour has reminded us that, for The Barclays, tee-times for Rounds 1 and 2 will be via the FedEx points totals. Which means McIlroy and Woods are certain to be in the same threesome next Thursday and Friday. Golf Channel will be beside themselves as they anticipate that, almost makes one wonder whether they might cover their morning "wave" session as well as their afternoon gig.

NedB-H wrote:

GPB wrote:For those that were arguing that the new Q-school is shutting out Int'l players, Colsaerts and Donaldson would be now be eligible to play in the 3 event series.

It still isn't the point GPB... through good play all season a couple of players have earned a chance, which they may or may not want; as opposed to the current system where there's a clear route for all overseas players every year. Good play decides how many stages you skip along the way but everyone has the chance.

And if they are determined to be a tour player in 2014, they will have an opportunity. It may not be the same opportunity, but there is an opportunity. They got to hustle, ask TD's for sponsors invites, and when they get one take advantage. Four-spotters are also an option. You got to take a risk.

They are not completely shut out.

GPB,
Why should players do that? From 3,000 miles away?? Or 6,000 miles away?

You're right, there "is an opportunity", but only a very slim one for 95% of European players, perhaps more for golfers whose home Tours have shorter seasons.

Personally, I think the situation for "international" players is the Tour's loss, but sure the US players won't see it that way.

Not a dissimilar situation to the Champions Tour . . . . . .

I apologise as this is probably a similar post to one I have made before but the title of the thread reminded me of a course which I would really like to play; Mike Strantz’s Tobacco Road.

It looks totally wild but somewhere that golf would be fun, a little like a north Berwick of North Carolina. Just need an excuse to holiday in the area and I will be set.

http://www.tobaccoroadgolf.com/

I wonder if any of the tour players will head over for a warm up round this week?

Mike Strantz's work is very highly regarded, Mac. Think Shotrock's played a course or two of his.
Gone before his time, sadly, why can't that happen to Dick Cheney who has clearly outlived his welcome?

Mac/Kwin - I've played Tobacco Road and Tot Hill Farm, both Stranz courses. Some very quirky holes, but lots of fun. I would go back to both in a minute and highly recommend them.

Suggest you make the trip!

Mac won't go due to the slavery connotations of South Carolina and tobacco farming. He wouldn't want to offend anyone.

kwinigolfer wrote:GPB,
Why should players do that? From 3,000 miles away?? Or 6,000 miles away?

You're right, there "is an opportunity", but only a very slim one for 95% of European players, perhaps more for golfers whose home Tours have shorter seasons.

Personally, I think the situation for "international" players is the Tour's loss, but sure the US players won't see it that way.

Not a dissimilar situation to the Champions Tour . . . . . .

If you want something bad enough, you make sacrifices to do it. You go all-in. Or you can play it safe.

And it is not like a journeyman player on an European Tour, Japanese Tour, or Assorted Asian Tours would be taking a huge pay cut to play the Web.com tour for a year. And all he has to do is make enough to get into the top 75 and he is in the three event series.

IMO, this is much ado about nothing. If they want it bad enough, and they are good enough, there is way to the tour. Just look what Ben Kohles did.

Funny that, your title also reminded me of something straight away, but nothing to do with golf...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJtcYZSl10Y

On a different note, I'll be very curious to see if this 'vacuum' left on the European Tour this week with the Czech Open falling by the wayside, will be filled by O'Grady&Co. with something new next season or, on the contrary, will we get one or two new cracks opening in the European Tour's calendar... Somehow I fear the latter may be the case, but I'll be very happy to be proven wrong... I would probably rule out another co-sanctioning of Asian or other tour events, as it wouldn't fit at all very well with the other events that take place in this period, although looking at what guys like Wood, Finch, Howell, McGinley and Horsey did last week in Thailand, who knows.......

Funny that, hadn't the faintest idea what Tobacco Road was when I saw these guys on the undercard of a Chuck Berry bill at the Southampton Gaumont; Animals did a pre-release of House Of The Rising Sun on the same gig!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4wBr2wdE9U&feature=related

Funny that, apart from the musical resemblance between the two clips, it's hard to miss the resemblance between Edgar Winter and ... Jimmy Savile!

Amazing Edgar Winter's still alive. Unlike his sometime buddy Ronnie Montrose.


Daniel Summerhays & Tommy Gainey decent each way chances this week?

Each way?! Ok then, I'll go for Mallinger and Horschel...

Horschel's a great talent I think, physically if not yet mentally. He needs good finishes as I'm not sure he'll get in to that many Fall Series tournaments.
Will have a breakout year one day!

(Always liked Mallinger as he played the good guy to Na's bad guy with volunteers/spectators once when I was watching them!)

Is this the begining of a new trend, I wonder, in this new bi-polar world of golf superstars we are moving into? Rory and Tiger milking it as it's still hot... A head-to-head 1-day show match set up in Zhengzhou, China, on the Monday after CIMB/Tiger and Shanghai/Rory week at the end of October...

Good luck to them, and good riddance.
Personally surprised that Rory would want to get involved in this sort of multi-million dollar nonsense - hardly as if he needs the money and, if I were him, I'd only be interested in playing against Tiger when there was something at stake - a trophy, a Major, not just meaningless money.
No good can come of it.
And that's usually the time of year when Rors complains of being over-golfed - at least he did last year and 2009.

I bet they're both gonna wear red that day (to the delight of the Chinese politburo)...

In the Champions Tour "Dick's Sporting Goods Open", at Enjoie Golf Club in Endicott, NY, Ken Green takes his one leg once again to the first tee.
Easy to criticise the Champions Tour closed shop but very good to see tournaments, and most players, welcoming Ken Green to the occasional event.

Roger Chapman, Langer and Lyle are the European flag-carriers and it's refreshing to see this one-time PGA Tour site (BC Open) in a small Upstate New York community continuing to thrive after the main show departed. Good stuff and rewarded with a fine field led by Watson, Price and Lehman.

Kwin -

The "area" is really behind this tournament, not unlike how the Utica area gets behind the Boilermaker. Great to see and I hope they have good weather.

(Translation for all -- the "Boilermaker" is a 15k road race that's very well attended and supported by the Utica, NY community. Runs from Utica Boilers to the West End Brewing Company. Boilermaker also a shot and a glass of beer -- but I'm guessing most reading this already knew that!)

GPB wrote:

kwinigolfer wrote:GPB,
Why should players do that? From 3,000 miles away?? Or 6,000 miles away?

You're right, there "is an opportunity", but only a very slim one for 95% of European players, perhaps more for golfers whose home Tours have shorter seasons.

Personally, I think the situation for "international" players is the Tour's loss, but sure the US players won't see it that way.

Not a dissimilar situation to the Champions Tour . . . . . .

If you want something bad enough, you make sacrifices to do it. You go all-in. Or you can play it safe.

And it is not like a journeyman player on an European Tour, Japanese Tour, or Assorted Asian Tours would be taking a huge pay cut to play the Web.com tour for a year. And all he has to do is make enough to get into the top 75 and he is in the three event series.

IMO, this is much ado about nothing. If they want it bad enough, and they are good enough, there is way to the tour. Just look what Ben Kohles did.

Thinking about it, what this boils down to is the different perceptions of the Web.com tour; for US based fans, for whom it's local and easier to follow than any overseas tour, and so understandably it's their second-most important tour. Whereas for overseas fans, their own local tour will naturally be of more importance, with the additional issue that the Web.com will lose credibility for being "second-tier". Ultimately it's probably going to be hard to get a system which finds middle ground between those two views... more likely is that the golf world will end up favouring one over the other, and I have to say that pd's reports from the Czech Republic add weight to the impression it'll be the US-view that wins out.

Bjorn, Clarke and McGinley chosen as VC's for Medinah; why the wait for #4?

Wonder if M-A J turned him down, or if he's just waiting to see what develops with Garcia?

Do the VC's actually contribute anything to the final result?

I think he's waiting for Sergio. Which must mean he has doubts about picking him as a player. If he qualifies, great. If not, it's a repeat of the 4 VCs from 2010.

Mac,
The Captains think the VC's are important!


Looks like a lovely day in prospect in Greensboro, warm, sunny, not to much wind, par should get a battering.
Becoming more humid with just a chance of storms the next few days.

Let's see what Sergio's got today!

SmithersJones wrote:I think he's waiting for Sergio. Which must mean he has doubts about picking him as a player. If he qualifies, great. If not, it's a repeat of the 4 VCs from 2010.

Why does it definately have to be Sergio? For all anyone knows it could be Harrington for VC if he doesnt get picked. Does seem a built weird that hes only named 3 right enough.

I think the VC are important as allows one with every match and the afternoon pairings has to be decided during the morning session and obviously Olly cant watch every match...

Yes, it seems logical to me that he wants to know who has qualified before selecting picks, which might then impact choice of VC #4.

Wonder how clued in to the thinking the possibles might be.

Also wonder if he has or is contemplating an "act of God" contingency plan for a fifth candidate (in case of Noah's Ark-type flooding, random buggy or bar fighting accidents etc).

Sand wrote:

SmithersJones wrote:I think he's waiting for Sergio. Which must mean he has doubts about picking him as a player. If he qualifies, great. If not, it's a repeat of the 4 VCs from 2010.

Why does it definately have to be Sergio? For all anyone knows it could be Harrington for VC if he doesnt get picked. Does seem a built weird that hes only named 3 right enough.

I think the VC are important as allows one with every match and the afternoon pairings has to be decided during the morning session and obviously Olly cant watch every match...

Really, with the Harrington thing again? Olly has already said that Harrington would pretty much have to find a cure for cancer before he'll even think about picking him, and in the same breath said of Sergio; "He's a great team player. His spirit is always really good and in that regard, I think he is a great asset to the team. If you are looking at the players to be on your team, Sergio would certainly be one of those for sure."

If he was going to pick him as a player, though, there'd be no need to wait and see on the 4th VC. I therefore think the only reasonable explanation for waiting is to see if Sergio qualifies, as he's on the borderline. If he wanted Paddy as a VC, he could safely have announced it with the others as there's no way Harrington will earn a place on the team now, and he's already said he won't pick him to play (albeit in not so many words.)

Unlikely to pick 3 Irish VC's!

Heard about the irish runway? It's really wide but not very long.

I only plucked harringtons name out of thin air. Just love how everyone is second guessing saying oh VC four is Garcia if he doesnt make it. Ollys quote last week means hes more likely to pick him to play. Garcia has already said he enjoyed VC last time but wouldnt do it again? Perhaps the proposed 4th member has a chance of qualifying with a win at gleneagles? Lets be honest the 3 hes named today certainly dont.

Who knows. Monty categorically said he wouldn't be RC captain again, and it's now being reported that he's angling for the position in 2014.

People sometimes change their minds, I suppose. And/or journalists are simply liars.

[On a related matter, one golf journalist (might have been Huggan) was recently saying that the 2014 European RC captain had to be Paul Lawrie. It seemed like a completely serious piece from what I recall...]

Super

"Heard about the irish runway? It's really wide but not very long."

You are probably looking at it from the wrong angle.

Did you hear about the Irish aeroplane that crashed into a cemetery Mac?
Rescuers have found 1550 bodies so far.

Did you hear about the Scottish woodworm?

It was found dead in a brick.

Surely that would be an Irish woodworm?

super_realist wrote:Heard about the irish runway? It's really wide but not very long.

Try the veal.

Despite all that, "Greensboro" next year will represent the cut-off point for players going on to the FedEx Play-Offs or proceeding to the jail known as three-event lottery. Play poorly and you're off to the web.com penitentiary.

And this year will be the final year of using money as eligibility currency, next year it will all be about FedEx points.

As things stand, the top 100 in 2012 earnings have reached $750K which should be sufficient to finish the 2012 season in the Top 125. Notables holding no exemptions with some catching up to do include:
Stenson: Needs about $50K (Edit: Stenson exempt from his Players win in 2009 - needs to get some tournaments in though, to reach his minimum of 15.)
Weekley: about $90K
Gary Christian: about $190K
Daly: about $270K
DiMarco: $300K
Villegas: $400K
Karlsson: $410K
Appleby: $425K
Danny Lee: $480K
Imada: $575K

It's going to be very interesting to see what path the careers of some of these take, Aussies Green, O'Hern, Pampling also in trouble.

Henrik Stenson does not need to get into Top 125. He still has a couple of years of exemptions from his 2009 Players Championship.

Vaita Guillaume might have been born in France, but the PGAT leaderboard is flying a Tahiti flag by his name

Yup, my mistake on Stenson, I'll edit him out - thought he only had a 3-year exemption.

Guillaume will be an interesting case; pgatour.com states he was born en France, but the NCAA web-site reports he was born in Tahiti, went to school there, then graduated early to move to France.

pgatour.com is notoriously unreliable with its flags!

Isn't Tahiti an overseas départment anyway, and therefore just a part of France? The leaderboard has dug up a Tahitian(?) flag from somewhere, but Cevaer is in a similar situation with coming from New Caledonia, and he just plays under the tricolour....

wiki states "indigenous Tahitians are legally authorised to be French citizens"; I think you're right Ned.

Given the pgatour.com site's difficulty in coming up with a Welsh flag in the past, it's amazing they've dug up a Tahitian one - perhaps they made it up.


Before the event began, it was speculated that a recent switch from bent grass greens to a strain of Bermuda would make putting trickier and, as a result, make it less of a putting contest and help the ball-strikers in comparison.
Looks like that might be the case.

Whatever the impact of the change isn't doesn't seem to have dented Pettersson's familiarity, with a putt to go -6 through 14. Really think Europe would benefit from a waiver of the rules, you'd be daft not to want him on a team the way he's playing.
And if we thought his situation was complicated, imagine if we ever needed to work out whether an island in the Pacific counted as "European" or not....

We should probably remind ourselves of the results when the PGA was last at Medinah, in 2006:

Woods first, and in 1999.
Garcia 3rd, 2nd in 1999.

2006:
Donald: 3rd
Stricker: 7th
Poulter: 9th
Mickelson: 16th
Westwood: 29th
Furyk: 29th
McDowell: 37th
Rose: 41st
M-A J: 69th
Cut:
Zach Johnson, Harrington, Gonzo, Pettersson (but I'd still strive to select him!).

Good start from the Swedish contingent, but young Ben Kohles is finding it tough.
C'mon Nicolas! (his initials matching North Carolina... )