PGA Tour: Tiger's Comeback? Or Publicity Stunt??: Notes from the Ballwasher

1).Given the way Tiger Woods is dampening expectations for this week's return to Tour action, one wonders:
"If it wasn't the Foundation and our impact we can have with kids, I probably would not play", said Tiger yesterday following his microdickectomy.
On the other hand, he's been famous for his oft-declared mantra of not turning up if he didn't think he could win.

2).Regardless, Tiger's return is certain to help revive one of the few ailing tournaments on the PGA Tour, the "Quicken Loans National". Sports editors all over America can't wait, CBS might condescend to send their "A" commentating team (tho' I thought last week's "B" Team were at least as good), and, to hear Woods say he's been following the World Cup more closely than the PGA Tour, perhaps PGA Tour brass are relieved too?
This is USAToday's take:
"The surprising addition of Tiger to the field has added excitement to a PGA Tour stop that badly needed it."
Both the tournament and the PGA Tour if recent TV ratings are anything to go by.
Sad commentary that Martin Kaymer's excellence pales in to commercial insignificance here to the promise of Woods.

3).And if this week goes well, expect the buzz for Hoylake to grow and bring early attention to Tiger's quest for Major #15, stimulating a four-week summer spell where the European Tournaments are on a par with, or stronger than, the PGA Tour's.

4).I spent 12 hours walking TPC River Highlands last Friday - always try to watch a mix of established stars that I've not seen much of previously, lots of Sergio and Patrick Reed last week for instance, plus young up-and-comers, especially Morgan Hoffmann and Jamie Lovemark.

5).Reed doesn't look back to his Doral form yet, making amateur mistakes in course management; but perhaps The Travelers doesn't motivate him.
It surely motivates Lovemark; he hit all 18 greens the round we followed him and hit the longest drive on #13 I've seen in six years of following golf at Hartford. But he didn't maintain that form at the weekend and one wonders when, or whether, all his youthful promise might mature.

6).Lovemark was playing with a newly-minted Pro, Bobby Wyatt, fresh out of the Uni of Alabama - he holed putts from all over Connecticut until the one that really counted, a ten-footer on #18 to make the cut.
But the most striking thing about this youngster was his gallery, including what appeared to be his father who would duck inside the ropes, marshalls seemingly oblivious, to check his son's lie and prospects.
Don't know about young "Bobby", but his Dad needs to grow up or roll his "Tide" back to Alabama.

7).Also saw some of Bud Cauley and Russell Knox, both proof positive that you don't need to be 6 foot 4inches with Greg Norman shoulders to hit the ball a mile and play top-level golf. And plenty of Aaron Baddeley who must rival Adam Scott as the most appealing golfer to follow on Tour (tho' not as appealing as Sergio's young lady).

8).Didn't see Kevin Streelman's record-breaking seven consecutive birdies to close out his win, but KJ Choi's runner-up finish reminded one that there's a strong chance next year's Presidents Cup Vice-Captain could make the International Team as a player. After a year in the doldrums, he's back playing close to his best and wouldn't be surprised to see him contend again at Congressional; hope he does, seems a great bloke.
Right now, and obviously early days, the International Team would look like this:
Scott, Day, Matsuyama, Schwartzel, DeLaet, Thongchai, Oosthuizen, Matt Jones, Senden, Els are the Top Ten, followed by Sterne, Leishman, Coetzee and KJ.

9).Would imagine Jason Day might fancy his chances at Congressional following his distant runner-up finish behind Rory in the 2011 US Open where Kevin Chappell was 4th. But the big winner will likely be Tiger's Foundation.

10).Apart from Martin Kaymer, Europeans can't seem to win on this year's PGA Tour but a young Dane from Odense, Sebastian Cappelen, Monday qualified and won his first web.com Tour start last week. That gives him a head's start towards gaining PGA Tour "privileges" for 2014/2015.

At the other end of the age spectrum, the Seniors are playing yet another Champions Tour "Major", the "Constellation Senior Players" on a very attractive Seth Raynor course, Fox Chapel, in the Pittsburgh area.
Kenny Perry won last year but the most recent Senior Major, the Senior PGA, was won by Colin Montgomerie and it wouldn't be at all surprising if four-round tournaments suited him much better than the customary three-round "sprints".
I'm sure Monty will place his "first major" up there on a pedestal with all the Ryder Cups he's won.

I'm liking the candour of Woods press conferences. Admitting he's a different player now and won't dominate again, or at least is going to have to try and be a different player. I'd expect and even more trimmed back appearance roster if that's possible, clearly no interest in being number 1, I think its all about winning tour events and majors if possible for Tiger from now on.

Digs,
I think he'll have to tread a fine line between rationing tournament appearances, and having a competitive edge.
Even as it has been for the past few years, he plays fewer events per year than most (all except Stricker?) players. He'll also want to contest the FedEx Play-Offs and hope to prove he's worthy of a spot on Team events, however ffrustrating he'll feel his Ryder Cup performances have been.

He was the best player in the U.S. last year; no reason to think he can't resume that role I would think.

Woods apparently struggled in his pro-am. At least one ball (probably two) in the water. One ball out of bounds and another hole where it was Ball in Pocket.

Its doubtful that he would have broken 80.

I guess we will find out if he was sandbagging.

I reckon competitive pride will have something to say about how Woods plays.
Meanwhile, not the greatest of years for Sean Foley's proteges what with Tiger's disappointments, Rose's misfiring and Hunner can't score a Top 25.

Should be a blazing hot day at Congressional for Round 1: Wall-to-wall sunshine forecast with temps in the low 90's.
Good for Mad Dogs, but only Englishmen there are Davis and Rose, and Davis at least opens the batting and should be done in time to avoid the midday sun.
Fingers crossed, it should be fine weather right thru the weekend.

Peter Hanson is in Davis's threesome and he finished 7th at Congressional's 2011 US Open; does this represent Hanson's last best chance of saving his PGA Tour card?

Great write up as ever Kwini.

Hanson is one that surprises me - he always seemed steady and I assumed he'd never peak too high, but on the flip side, never slip too low. His dip in form has been pretty bad and lasted longer than is good for him. I hope he gets it back for this tournament.


As for Woods.. I'm interested to see if and how he contends purely from the perspective that it's not that long from his surgery.

Thanks Bob,
I think Hanson has made the mistake so many golfers blunder in to, and that is trying to play through injury. Don't even know how fit he is now, but he woke up this morning with the likelihood of only six more starts ahead of him - he's not in The Open and not qualified for Bridgestone so he needs some good results pdq.
 
Woods just whacked his first drive 300+ yards down the fairway - a confidence-boosting start I should think.
Edit; Bogey, Bogey for his first two holes won't humour him though.

9C +2 thru 2    

So he's 11C now?

Roller_Coaster wrote:So he's 11C now?

  

Circle jerk central in the "featured" (hate that contrivance) group at Congressional: Jason Day, Spieth and Woods all tied for last at +4.
As if Day and Spieth are so in awe of the bloke with the Foundation they don't want to show him up.

kwinigolfer wrote:Circle jerk central in the "featured" (hate that contrivance) group at Congressional: Jason Day, Spieth and Woods all tied for last at +4.
As if Day and Spieth are so in awe of the bloke with the Foundation they don't want to show him up.

Or he's dragging them down to his level

EDIT: Jason Day trying to break away Tiger's gravitational pull.

Strange stats from Woods as he slides to +6 after 12 holes.
He's driving 332 yards and hitting 23 of his fairways. But only five/12 greens and strokes gained putting is minus 2.9.
So it looks like his full swing is fine, but the chipping and putting which he said he's been working on for ages is letting him down.
Curious. And last.

Tiger looking plenty rusty!

Not +6 now Kwin ... getting some sea legs. Nice to see those 3 birdies.

Yup, Damage limitation - you'd think he'd be not too disappointed with his final score given seven bogeys.

American footballers similar to the English in that they don't know their own national anthem.

American soccer players, however, very different in that they are through Kwin - Sweet Sixteen! Enjoy it now USA fans, didn't think they would get this far, but am pretty certain they won't get much further.

That loss felt like a victory; much like the draw before that felt like a loss.

What's happening to American golfers?
First Notah Begay suffers a heart attack - happily back at work now.
And Robert Gamez has just undergone a quadruple by-pass. At 45.
 
Good health to both of them.

PS: Yes Sr, Nice going! The Group of Death turned out to have a pair of wimps, happens every year. I quite like some of the US Team, mentioned earlier that MLS could well have more players in the last 16 than the Prem.
Would think if Klinsman and Hodgson swapped jobs England would also have got through. Pragmatism over promise and potential.

Soccer fans in my office were pretty excited. The boss ordered sandwiches for all, we were allowed to dress down provided we wore team colours, and we watched the game in the executive boardroom on the big screen. Beats working !

Hope you had your England shirt on Plunky . . . . . . .
I've worn my Portsmouth FC or assorted England World Cup winning shirts for every game! Hasn't done any good.

Did you see the letter Klinmann wrote to the American public, urging all bosses to give their employees a day off to watch the game?

We have just over 50 people working in our firm, and we brought in lunch turned on all the big TVs and watched what we could between meetings. Lots of interest -- at least this week.

Not a pretty game or a dominating advance by the US. But, as they say, it's a scorecard, not a postcard.

Might get a bet on Baldy 9 Chins to miss the cut at The Open.

super_realist wrote:Might get a bet on Baldy 9 Chins to miss the cut at The Open.

Go for him and Coco as a double

Davie wrote:

super_realist wrote:Might get a bet on Baldy 9 Chins to miss the cut at The Open.

Go for him and Coco as a double

That would be a good shout  Are either of them playing the Scottish at Royal Aberdeen the week before? Given a decent "breeze" it would be an even more likely double there.

EDIT: Looks like McIlroy is but Woods isn't...yet

kwinigolfer wrote:Hope you had your England shirt on Plunky . . . . . . .
I've worn my Portsmouth FC or assorted England World Cup winning shirts for every game! Hasn't done any good.

Must confess I've never been a football fan -- I just went for the sandwiches.

JAS wrote:

Davie wrote:

super_realist wrote:Might get a bet on Baldy 9 Chins to miss the cut at The Open.

Go for him and Coco as a double

That would be a good shout  Are either of them playing the Scottish at Royal Aberdeen the week before? Given a decent "breeze" it would be an even more likely double there.

EDIT: Looks like McIlroy is but Woods isn't...yet

Nine Chins always flounces off to the "Emerald Isle" to play some of the Links courses there.

Doubt you'd catch him in Aberdeen, as the women here are munters.

I'm guessing he'd be more scared of exposing himself to RA's rough (under the glare of the TV cameras) than the granite city's women!!

When he's in Ireland we don't get to find out how many balls he loses in the bundai of the high dunes :-)

Brings us back to that old question of what's best preparation for the open? An easy or tough links test or a rest or practice in private. Mickelson proved an easyish links test worked last year. This year RA will provide a stiffer test, looks like a much stronger field than last year too.

Be interesting to see how he does if the wind blows. He's never done especially well at The Open when the weather has been less than perfect.

Faldo mentioned yesterday that Hoylake's rough is pretty high - any eye-witness reports on that?

Hope it is, The Open is a borefest without rough.

Another lovely summer's day for the "Quicken Loans" golfers in Washington (or as folks in these parts prefer to call it "our nation's capital" as if Washington is somehow a dirty word).

Cut-line currently at +2 and one would imagine it might reach +3. Keegan Bradley and Dufner among those struggling early on. Plus Team Scotland who I see have entered the Scottish Open.

Kwin - For a guy that has lived in these part this long you are misinformed. Washington, the district, often referred to as "DC" or "our nation's capital" so as to not be confused with Washington, the state.

Tiger to make the cut? I would not bet on it!

Its incredible to me that a player can play to near perfection at a major and then play pathetically a couple of weeks later.

I didn't expect Kaymer to win this week, but I sure didn't expect to be well back of the cutline.

I don't think Kwini confused it SR, more the incredulity that people feel the need to make a distinction. I don't think even American's are stupid enough to confuse a City and State at either end of the country.

Super -  A casual viewer turns on the TV (one of about 400 channels in these parts, but never confuse quantity with quality). The announcer says the "Quicken Loans event live from Washington". That casual viewer -- regardless of one's intellect -- might assume Washington, the state. Big state Washington, chock full of some fine golf courses.

This has nothing to do with stupid Americans and map reading (of which there are plenty) -- but I do expect an anti-American swipe in response!

Don't let me down ...

NOt so sure about that SR, Next month they won't be saying Live From Merseyside, they'll be saying Live from Hoylake.  Whoever talks about the state, region, country, etc. It's all about the city/nearest city.

Perhaps you might want to inform the viewers that the event isn't coming from Washington, Tyne and Wear

Fine place, Washington, the state, by the way. Stayed a few nights there last year. Love Seattle.

Clutching at straws Sr; when people say they're disgusted with Washington they sure as Hell don't think Washington State.
"Our Nation's Capital" the most redundant phrase in the Western Hemisphere!


s_r, That's why Jimmy Carter (I think it was) visited Durham a decade or four ago!

Bizarre from Kaymer, agreed GPB. Is he pounding a shot per hole or something? Good news for Donaldson though, he'd better hope Kaymer goes in to a summer funk or his RC place is in jeopardy.

Russell Knox got out of the gate slowly this morning, but looking good now, -4 for the day and up towards the Top Ten behind joint leaders Snaky Chalmers and Freddie Jac.
Martin Laird still has it all to do.

Kwin -- "Our Nation's Capital" certainly a different place than "Our State Capital", which is drilled into us Native borns, but which can elicit equal levels of disgust, particularly in the red states. We are separated by a common language, but you know that!

More rubbish from some good players, Els going down the drain and Dufner falling to the bottom of the shaft.
Duf said earlier this week that he can't see himself playing Pro Golf for much more than five more years, a la Boo Weekley. But it looks as if Duf has lost interest after less than five days, let alone five years.

Down Under at a Nation's Capital:
It may not last but three Aussies currently in the top three places at Congressional:
Leishman, Ollie Goss (let's hope he's the real thing) and Snaky.

Knox in with a four-under 67 and Rose on course to do the same after poor rounds by both on Thursday.

Looks like business as usual so far for Tiger, the only thing missing presumably the birdies and bicep-bursting fist pumps.
He'll be inside the cut-line shortly unless he starts dropping shots, which most around him are.

Fine performance from Oliver Goss, and his Aussie buddie and US Am Semi-Final victim Brady Watt not far behind.

Super 65 from Justin Rose but his inconsistency this year has been infuriating so who knows about him for the weekend?

kwinigolfer wrote:Looks like business as usual so far for Tiger, the only thing missing presumably the birdies and bicep-bursting fist pumps.
He'll be inside the cut-line shortly unless he starts dropping shots, which most around him are.

Good prescience Kwini.   Rustiness, or back too soon?

Wouldn't you think that result would be a little disappointing for Woods given his insistence he needs more "reps"?

Oosty reckoned he was going through the motions and tough to argue with that assessment.

Unless he plays another tournament in preparation I can't see why he would expect to fare much better at Hoylake, especially if Faldo's report that the rough is "up" is accurate. Imagine he'll be off back to his club and spend the next fortnight practicing his stingers and his short game - otherwise, no point in TWA making the trip.


Better from Peter Hanson though!! Good luck to him for the weekend.

Very weak field for the $6.5M on offer at The Greenbrier, but Stricker's last minute commitment will help a little. Probably just on the precipice of being a "subsidised" event as far as the owgr's are concerned.
Edit: Hadn't realized Jason Day has joined Bubba at Greenbrier, plus Jimmy Walker - better than the early list of commitments suggested then.
 
Otherwise it looks like Finchem's been dialling for dollars to rustle up some support from the Carolina crew.
And Gonzo, DC, Hanson and Olesen have joined Brian Davis and defending champ Jonas Blixt.

Another fine day forecast in their nation's capital.
Webb Simpson out of the traps first, doing a solo tour of Congressional. Wonder if he'll be overtaken by the next twosome?
 
Very low scoring in Cologne, Casey in with a 63 after barely making the cut - would think he'd need another 63 on Sunday to have any chance of winning.

No-one making much of a move in Saturday's early going, Brian Davis at two-under with the best round in progress.
But Webb Simpson is certainly getting a move on, belying his normal slow-play habit - he'll be done in well under 3 hours at this rate, didn't think he was capable of such a thing.

kwinigolfer wrote:But Webb Simpson is certainly getting a move on, belying his normal slow-play habit - he'll be done in well under 3 hours at this rate, didn't think he was capable of such a thing.

That is because once your accused of being slow on V606.2, it is label that is permanently tattooed on your forehead.

Poor Tianlang Guan.


The 3rd pairing is A. Cabrera  and Rory S, both with a fast player reputation, are not keeping up with Davis/Merrick.  They are at least a hole behind them.