PGA Tour: The Mini-Major Season: Notes from the Ballwasher

1).This is a fun time of year for Golf fans, what with The Players being followed at a week's distance by the BMW PGA, and now the Memorial Tournament, at Jack's House, Muirfield Village in Columbus.
Or: The self-styled "Fifth Major", followed by Europe's best at majestic Wentworth and, this week, arguably the best tournament of the PGA Tour on an unarguably great course, always in impeccable condition.
 
2).Just look at the Memorial Champs over the past twenty years, a catalogue of the World's best:
Norman, Watson, Woods, Singh, Couples, Woods, Furyk, Perry, Woods, Els, Choi, Woods, Perry, Rose, Woods, Stricker and Kuchar! No more of this "plus ca change", however, as there's obviously a notable absentee this week, still on the "disabled list", with no news as to when he'll be fit.
(Good week for Kenny Perry as he received a sentimental invite to this year's PGA Championship.)
 
3).Terrific finishes last week, both at Wentworth and Colonial - and, ultimately, worthy winners from either side of the marital ledger.
But will the respective wins of McIlroy and Scott be a harbinger of things to come in this year's Majors (or even in this week's Mini-Major)? Perhaps at the Memorial where both have had their moments, but not so sure about Pinehurst; could quite easily make a case for Adam at Hoylake and Rors at Valhalla though.
 
4).After a dearth of Australian winners on the PGA Tour, Adam Scott's play-off win over Dufner was the FIFTH! by an Aussie on Tour this year following Day, Senden, Bowditch and Matt Jones. Time for Allenby and Appleby, Badds and Ogilvy to wake their ideas up.
 
5).Now it's time to remember that, after having a South African winner every year but one of the last 20+ through Els at Lytham, there hasn't been a Saffer win in almost two years and, Tim Clark's occasional flourishes apart, not much sign of one.
 
6).There are only a dozen tournaments remaining before the FedEx Play-Offs begin and, just as important from a career standpoint for Tour members, the Top 125 cut-off. Currently outside the Top 125 and apparently destined for web.com Finals duty unless they pull their socks up are some notables:
#127: Casey
130: Rob Castro
131: Gonzo
134: Byrd
141: Hanson
145: O'Hair
148: Ben Crane
149: Yang
150: Jhonny Vegas
155: Curtis
157: Kyle Stanley
159: Two Gloves Gainey
162: Rollins
166: Lucas Glover
172: Cabrera
Plus other Europeans really struggling including Lynn, Colsaerts, Olesen and the inevitable Greg Owen and Chopra.
Ogilvy, Harrington and Watney have been excluded from this tale of woe due to each having at least one get-out-of-jail-free card in the form of a career earnings exemption.
 
7).Muirfield Village is the only course to stage a Ryder Cup, Solheim Cup and Presidents Cup. It's a Jack Nicklaus design, naturally, and widely acclaimed as his masterpiece.
Two quibbles about the course from moi:
~16th, a Par-3 stretching to 215 yds - the Pros are still finding it very difficult to hold the green with their mid-iron tee-shot, played over water. Perhaps the green is just maturing, or perhaps Nicklaus has other changes in mind, but pros having to play so defensively on any 16th hole Par-3 doesn't seem right.
~13th, a Par-4 of 455 yds. Rivals the 13th at Pebble Beach for the dreariest hole in U.S. Championship Golf; just a boring hole with nothing especially demanding or scenic about it, an uninteresting walk linking the great Par-3 12th hole, and the very great short Par-4 14th.
 
8).The top Europeans seems to be divided in their preparations for Pinehurst, what with Bjorn joining Stenson and his compadres in Sweden this week and Luke Donald, McIlroy and Rose at the Memorial.
McDowell, Poulter and Westwood are committed to Memphis next week. Sergio's resting his knee and not sure of Kaymer's plans. Well deserved rest hopefully.
 
9).No clear idea who might fill Woods's shoes this week. Considering the Nicklaus design characteristic of each hole becoming tougher/more interesting as you move from tee to green, perhaps it's time for Dustin Johnson or Rory to stitch four good rounds together? Ryan Moore has played well here while, for each-way value, last year's runner-up Kevin Chappell fired a 63 last week and will undoubtedly break through soon.
Furyk proclaims this to be his favourite tournament, but he played poorly at his "favourite course on Tour" last week at Colonial. I'm most interested in Justin Rose who has collected plenty of Top Tens this year without really challenging for a title. Time he did?!?!
 
10).TRIVIA:
Montgomerie won at last on the Champions Tour last week in the "Senior PGA Championship". And Stephen Ames made his first Senior start.
BUT: Which one-time Ryder Cup golfer competed in a record (edit) consecutive 65th Senior Major last week?

Good post as usual Kwini. I'm going to go for Bruce Summerhays. Born in 1944 = 50 in 1994. 20 years on the Champions Tour if it was about in 1994. That should have given him a chance at 65.

Cheers! But NO!! Actually Brucey recently took a sabbatical I think to do a Mormon mission-type thing. Not sure he was ever a PGA Tour Member, certainly not a Ryder Cupper.
(Wouldn't be surprised if his nephew Dan made some noise at Memorial . . . . . . )

Hale Irwin?

Not Hale Irwin . . . . .

It was Tom Kites 65th Sr Major....but certainly he has competed on more than 1 Ryder Cup.

Played 7, Captained One other.


Actually it was Tom Kite's 68th Senior Major

Aaaaagh!!!!
I screwed up the question!
Which one-time (i.e. played at one time, could be more) Ryder Cupper played his 65th CONSECUTIVE Senior Major last week.

Sorry I'm Never Wrong, super, GPB. Edit made in the op.

Kwini, I have been up and down the leaderboard last week and I don't see a player that has a long consecutive streak of Senior Majors.......and is age 63 or higher.

5 majors/yr

Tom Kite missed the 2010 Sr Open

GPB,
That kinda eliminates you from the chance of getting the question answered correctly! (I have to take the agencies' word for it, but when I get a moment I'll count them myself . . . . but it makes perfect sense to me.)

Is it someone obvious like Tom Watson?

Mac,
Definitely not Watson; his current streak not in double figures.

It may not be somebody obvious, but certainly not that obscure, multiple wins on both PGA and Champions Tours.
GPB, Remember that there haven't always been five Senior Majors . . . . .

Looks like 9C is out of U.S. Open. Not a surprise I guess...

. . . only to people who don't follow golf.
Six years and counting since #14. Winning #15 will get exponentially harder with every opportunity he misses.

kwinigolfer wrote:
GPB, Remember that there haven't always been five Senior Majors . . . . .

For the last 13 years there has been. And you did say consecutive.

GPB,
The Senior British Open was not recognized as a US Seniors Tour event until 2003.
Not sure if this makes a difference to your calculations. Glad to have you stumped, tho' not for too much longer I'm sure.
Plus: There's nothing to stipulate that the player in question played Senior Majors as soon as he turned 50.

Shrimp Trawlerman out of US Open  

Will Tiger be back for the Open? What do you all think?

Tiger back for The Open?
Doubt it. Can't imagine he'd play Hoylake without a "rep" beforehand. Still reckon it's Bridgestone or after the Ryder Cup.

Edit: It seems Woods is fully committed to play in this Argentina event in October:
http://www.golfchannel.com/news/golf-central-blog/woods-reportedly-not-receiving-appearance-fee-argentina-event/


If he has to miss the PGA I can't see him playing the Ryder Cup unless he tees it up in Europe first - could happen for the right appearance fee!

super_realist wrote:Shrimp Trawlerman out of US Open  

Whereas you're a top kipper salesman with a reputable firm of Aberdeen fishmongers

It looks like a cloudy day in Columbus with a chance of showers, but forecast is for a fine weekend.
Casey opening the batting, off at 7.20 a.m. (12.20 p.m.).

Stephen Gallacher off to a good start in Sweden; he's not far behind in the Ryder Cup qualifying points, and a win this week would have him just inside or just outside, depending upon other results.

incontinentia wrote:

super_realist wrote:Shrimp Trawlerman out of US Open  

Whereas you're a top kipper salesman with a reputable firm of Aberdeen fishmongers

It's smoked Haddock up here Inco, not smoked Herring so no kippers.

kwinigolfer wrote:Aaaaagh!!!!
I screwed up the question!
Which one-time (i.e. played at one time, could be more) Ryder Cupper played his 65th CONSECUTIVE Senior Major last week.

Sorry I'm Never Wrong, super, GPB. Edit made in the op.

Zoeller? Crenshaw? Nelson?

Sorry pedro . . . . .
Next?

bruce lietzke?

Lietzke is pretty much retired Mac, not him. Helluva player though, when he put his mind to it.

What continent (or GB and I)did they play for?

Mac,
I think you can figure that out for yourself!


Welcome eagle for Paul Casey.

It seems not.

Bradley using a conventional putter this week?

I know he was practicing with it Davie; haven't heard whether it's in play.
 
Casey going nicely, Rose struggling.
If you want to make money betting on golf, see my Fantasy Team each week and then bet on your top fanices that I haven't chosen. Think my last week's team (yes, with Casey on it) was just about last.

kwinigolfer wrote:I know he was practicing with it Davie; haven't heard whether it's in play.
 
Casey going nicely, Rose struggling.
If you want to make money betting on golf, see my Fantasy Team each week and then bet on your top fanices that I haven't chosen. Think my last week's team (yes, with Casey on it) was just about last.

Twittersphere is reporting the short stick is in use

Rose level after 11 (one birdie, one bogey) - not exactly a struggle

Bradley looks like he still has the belly putter. There's a still, from video of him two putting for par on one, today on the PGA Tour website. The grip looks very long for a regular putter.

The putter that Keegan used today was one of the counter balance putters.

Justin Rose used a counter balance putter last year at Merion.

Oh well, looks like there'll be a 'Woods' at Pinehurst after all ...

http://www.golfchannel.com/news/golf-central-blog/c-woods-qualifies-us-womens-open/

Does anyone think the new world #1 will be better when he has to abandon the broom stick putter? His ball striking is, of course, outstanding so he just might find the confidence of wearing the yellow jersey (so to speak) inspiring enough to carry him through this transition. Should be interesting.

Despite his win last week, Adam Scott putted just a little better than average.

Going to a different method is not going to hurt him much, and it might even help.

Shotrock wrote:Does anyone think the new world #1 will be better when he has to abandon the broom stick putter? His ball striking is, of course, outstanding so he just might find the confidence of wearing the yellow jersey (so to speak) inspiring enough to carry him through this transition. Should be interesting.

Shotrock ... if memory serves   I think the consensus was that Adam Scott should have dominated the game long before given his superlative long game.  However, it wasn't until he changed to the long putter that his fortunes changed so I'm not terribly confident he'll make a successful transition back to the short putter.  Hope I'm wrong.

I've not seen a single bi of evidence that proves that long putters result in fewer putts.

Long putters don't result in fewer putts over the whole range of competitors - in fact the stats may show they are worse. They do however provide a crutch for those with putting problems.

Didn't like that knee twinge there by Rory.

My trivia question in Note 10 seems to be stumping y'all.
Good!

Davie wrote:Long putters don't result in fewer putts over the whole range of competitors - in fact the stats may show they are worse. They do however provide a crutch for those with putting problems.

Long putters are the god of the atheists.

kwinigolfer wrote:Didn't like that knee twinge there by Rory.

Karma? 

I can't see him finishing this round, let alone the tournament.

kwini ... do you know if he's had knee problems before?

JP told Rich Beem he tweaked it during a workout, not clear whether yesterday or today. Doesn't look good.

kwinigolfer wrote:Didn't like that knee twinge there by Rory.

My trivia question in Note 10 seems to be stumping y'all.
Good!

A golf injury?        

kwinigolfer wrote:
My trivia question in Note 10 seems to be stumping y'all.
Good!

Had to google it. Never heard of him.
Edit: good one kwini!   

kwinigolfer wrote:JP told Rich Beem he tweaked it during a workout, not clear whether yesterday or today. Doesn't look good.

Swinging a golf club with the venom he injects into his swing isn't going to help his knee.  All this gym stuff is asking for trouble.  Just ask Tiger.

Apparently Rory's knees are less sensitive than his teeth.

Beware the injured golfer. Eagle!