PGA Tour: The start of Oceanside "Swing": Notes from the Ballwasher

1).Oceanside? Well, the "Farmers Insurance Open" at San Diego's Torrey Pines, Pebble Beach and Los Angeles often throw up some of the same contenders, Tiger & Phil (absent this week) of course, but Snedeker (four wins), Charlie Howell (1 win at LA, three runners up at San Diego), Jason Day (2 x San Diego wins, plus a 2nd - and another at Pebble). Dustin Johnson and Bubba are awol but also have strong records in California.  

2).San Diego's Torrey Pines (the South Course anyway; the lads will also play 18 holes at the re-done/lengthened North Course) is the first true Championship-type test of the season.
With recent course changes, the event has morphed, Sneds an exception that doesn't prove the rule, from favouring no particular style of golf, to a bomber's paradise, the Top 11 last year comprising:
Day, Noren, Ryan Palmer, Holmes, Bradley, Finau, Howell, Leishman, Rose, English, Garrigus all finished in the Top 80 in the season's driving distance stat. Presumably just as the Tour likes it.

3).Last week saw a win from Adam Long, about whom I know nothing beyond his pgatour.com profile, as Adam Hadwin and Phil Mickelson missed a succession of shortish back-nine putts that they'd've expected to make in their sleep. Good finish though, and it'll be interesting to see if Long goes on to better things or disappears again. Looked to be more than a flash in the pan.

4).Meanwhile, Shane Lowry didn't arithmetically clinch a place at The Masters with his wonderful win in Abu Dhabi, but he'll have to play pretty badly over the coming month or two to miss out. He'll certainly be in all the WGC's so that helps.

5).Tiger Woods is back this week and Rors makes his course debut. Not sure Torrey Pines will be up Rory's street somehow.
Justin Rose is back after top tens the past two years, Jason Day defends, 2017 winner Jon Rahm returns, and local lads Schauffele and Fowler will be lurking.
Other Europeans include Knox, Laird, Noren, and Willett.
Plus: The Tour suggests it might still have a sense of humour by grouping Brian Davis with Jason Kokrak - there'll probably be 100 yards between their respective drives.

6).The Tour welcomes Morgan Hoffmann back as he contends with Muscular Dystrophy, but Troy Merritt, a winner last year, had a rib removed last week so he'll be out for a few months.

7).Just a reminder that the US Open will be back at Torrey Pines (South) in 2021, after Pebble Beach this year and Winged Foot next.
Which reminds me that the R&A have still to nominate, publicly anyway, a venue for 2022 - are they scared of presidential retribution if Turnberry doesn't get it?

8).Form horse Howell hasn't missed a San Diego cut in 16 trips, but I fancy Mark Leishman this week, in form, long enough to win anywhere, a good putter and twice second here.

Jason Day, ha ha. I'd forgotten all about him.
Is he one of the players who's just become content to make a decent living instead of pushing on to be a great? Seems like he's a wasted talent to me.

Not sure about Day, super; he's had to deal with health issues, his and his family's but when he's good, he can still be very, very good - and San Diego seems to suit him perfectly.

But his Presidents Cup record is abysmal, as if he's missing the leadership gene, a bit like a certain T.Woods when the RC comes around.

Should be great weather for the "Farmers", the only wrinkle being the phenomenon known as fog in the rest of the world, "marine layer" here. You know the drill - when temp & dew point converge, that's when fog is prevalent, but no sign of that this morning, not yet anyway.

Will Troy Merritt change his first name to Adam?

kwinigolfer wrote:Not sure about Day, super; he's had to deal with health issues, his and his family's but when he's good, he can still be very, very good - and San Diego seems to suit him perfectly.

But his Presidents Cup record is abysmal, as if he's missing the leadership gene, a bit like a certain T.Woods when the RC comes around.

Should be great weather for the "Farmers", the only wrinkle being the phenomenon known as fog in the rest of the world, "marine layer" here. You know the drill - when temp & dew point converge, that's when fog is prevalent, but no sign of that this morning, not yet anyway.

Marine Layer could actually be the name of a player in America.

Jon Rahm off to a flier, -7 over his first nine, but Justin Rose is trying hard to keep up, just a couple of shots adrift.

Interesting that he described the challenge this week "proper golf" after last week's action in the desert. Good to read Mark Fulcher seems to be progressing normally after his surgery; meanwhile, it's rumoured that stand-in Gareth Lord will score more than $3,000 should Rosey win.

Jason Day among a couple of dozen others making a strong start.

Russell Knocks eight under par for his last eight holes - this'll be the curse that stops the run but now he's tied for first!

EDIT: Yup, stopped him dead in his tracks, but he signed for a 67 which is a good start.
Still five strokes behind Rahm and four behind Rustin Jose.

Unless Gareth Lord lives in (or near) San Diego, he probably has a lot of travel expenses to San Diego. Travel, Hotel, Ground Transportation.

I don't think El Toucan had any airfare or hotel expenses.

[quote="GPB"]Unless Gareth Lord lives in (or near) San Diego, he probably has a lot of travel expenses to San Diego.  Travel, Hotel, Ground Transportation.

I don't think El Toucan had any airfare or hotel expenses.[/quo


You sound more like Wilbur Ross every day . . . . . . . . .

do you not think it is a relevant point?

GPB wrote:do you not think it is a relevant point?

Not in the slightest.

It doesn't cost over $100K to fly GL to California, give him a rental car, make sure he's fed and watered, and put him up for a couple of weeks.
You Techies stick together, that's OK . . . . . . . . .

Nice to see Rory kick off Round 2 with an eagle. Long may it continue.

kwinigolfer wrote:

GPB wrote:do you not think it is a relevant point?

Not in the slightest.

It doesn't cost over $100K to fly GL to California, give him a rental car, make sure he's fed and watered, and put him up for a couple of weeks.
You Techies stick together, that's OK . . . . . . . . .

Sometimes a caddie would like to take the bird in the hand rather than the two in the bush.

I am suggesting (I don't know for sure) that El Toucan took the 3 to 5k sure thing, rather than 2% chance he earns 100K.

Expected value of the DEAL OR NO DEAL scenario I layed out was approx $3800.

The way Kuch had been playing, I wouldn't expected him to win. Barely cracked an egg over the summer. He was not in very good form.

Dear Taylormade
"How you like me nooooowww?"
Yours sincerely
Justin

Tiger on 18 as the leaders get to the 4th. Thank goodness for that. I know why the broadcasters focus on him, but I don’t like it. Focus on leaders whoever they are.

Damn. Tiger started on the 10th.

For those that have watched this week how would you assess where Tiger is at? From just looking at the leader boards and the odd tweet it doesn't seem to have been all that impressive from him.

Rose however.

OK so apparently his back nine was quite good.

Rose winning with new equipment is a bit surprising. Maybe his interim caddie made the difference? Must be worth at least 3000 $.

How many tournaments have been won with interim caddies in the past 3-4 months? I can think of Rose, Westwood, Kuchar, but I'm sure there are a few more.

super_realist wrote:Jason Day, ha ha. I'd forgotten all about him.
Is he one of the players who's just become content to make a decent living instead of pushing on to be a great? Seems like he's a wasted talent to me.

He's had major personal issues - no surprise at all he has struggled for form. Still managed 2 wins last year.

Day's putting is very solid, I reckon the best on tour. If he improves his GIR he will win big again.

What personal issues did he have?

McLaren wrote:What personal issues did he have?

Where to start mac...

Rory doesn't like paying taxes

“Hopefully I’ll make this a pretty permanent stop on the schedule,” he said. “I loved it here. If the taxes weren’t so high, I’d contemplate living here.”




https://www.golfchannel.com/news/rory-mcilroy-t-5-loved-torrey-debut-would-maybe-move-if-not-taxes

Maybe he could negotiate a tax deal with the Irish government?

Seems like Rory's dissed Norn Iron, now Florida, wonder where in the world would suit him best?

Ironic that Erica has places in New York which is one of the most heavily taxed states. And there's nothing wrong with that.
Unless, apparently, you're a gazillionaire.

This is a genuine question, and I am a Rory fan, but is it possible he is a bit of a bell end?

Has childhood fame ruined him?

A bit bizarre to have (I guess) a few extra % in tax decide where you live.

Kwini, US posters, what are we talking about, Florida vs California?

Hi peds,
Not really sure. Some States have no personal income tax - which is levied after Federal tax which everyone is liable for. They include:
Alaska, Florida, Nevada, South Dakota, Texas, Washington, Wyoming, whilst New Hampshire & Tennessee pay tax just on dividends and investment income.

Personally, I'd say you get what you pay for; lots of retirees migrate to Florida, for instance, when in their 50's or 60's, but then find infrastructural services/welfare lacking in later years and return to States like New York with a more robust safety net.

When talking about residency and relative quality of life, I reckon taxation is the last thing you should be concerned about.

Kwin does a great job of detailing which states have no personal income tax. Obviously, the more you earn, the more that typically matters. (Rory would give up a lot, but I'm guessing his lifestyle would not change one iota with that $ gone.)

Quality of life, of course, means different things to different people ... but some people REALLY care about which state they live in (and define themselves through that); others not so much. Personally, I like the change of seasons and would not like to spend 12 months of the year in an area with the same (or near same) weather.

McLaren wrote:This is a genuine question, and I am a Rory fan, but is it possible he is a bit of a bell end?

Has childhood fame ruined him?

Why is he a bell end Mac? For wanting to pay less tax? Is Hamilton a bell end for living in tax friendly Monaco?

super_realist wrote:

McLaren wrote:This is a genuine question, and I am a Rory fan, but is it possible he is a bit of a bell end?

Has childhood fame ruined him?

Why is he a bell end Mac? For wanting to pay less tax? Is Hamilton a bell end for living in tax friendly Monaco?

If you put money over improved quality of life - when you don’t have too - you’re a bell end.

Re. Hamilton/Monaco: I doubt if sportspeople actually live in Monaco or just have address there. For sure when you have a familiy/kids you don’t live in Monaco, regardless of where your address is.

pedro wrote:

super_realist wrote:

McLaren wrote:This is a genuine question, and I am a Rory fan, but is it possible he is a bit of a bell end?

Has childhood fame ruined him?

Why is he a bell end Mac? For wanting to pay less tax? Is Hamilton a bell end for living in tax friendly Monaco?

If you put money over improved quality of life - when you don’t have too - you’re a bell end.

Re. Hamilton/Monaco: I doubt if sportspeople actually live in Monaco or just have address there. For sure when you have a familiy/kids you don’t live in Monaco, regardless of where your address is.

How would you know that? Do you really think there are no families in Monaco? It's not Hamlyn.

As for putting money over improved quality of life. Do you seriously think that someone like McIlroy struggles for quality of life wherever he chooses to live? I doubt it. Not like he has to go and live in Alabama to take advantage of favourable tax laws.

I haven’t got the Monaco stats but that’s my general impression, also when you look at the sports people who lives there.

It’s all relative. If he likes it better in California it would be an improvement of his quality of life if he moved there.

pedro wrote:I haven’t got the Monaco stats but that’s my general impression, also when you look at the sports people who lives there.

It’s all relative. If he likes it better in California it would be an improvement of his quality of life if he moved there.

How would it be an improvement in the quality of life? You have no idea what his preferences are. Quality of life is relative to your preferences.

I think nico rosberg actually went to school in Monaco.

super_realist wrote:

McLaren wrote:This is a genuine question, and I am a Rory fan, but is it possible he is a bit of a bell end?

Has childhood fame ruined him?

Why is he a bell end Mac? For wanting to pay less tax? Is Hamilton a bell end for living in tax friendly Monaco?

Exacty Super... California has a 12.3% state income tax on earnings of over roughly $1 million. Rory as a reported $35-40 million per year man, that could be up to an extra $4-5 million in taxes. Even with tremendous tax planning/avoidance, probably at least $2-3 million. Then take the same mansion he lives in in Florida costing probably triple in California... And you start to get the gist. Cali is experiencing a significant net outflow of wealthy individuals because of their taxes, how can you expect a wealthy earner to want to move there?

And this is no slight on San Diego area. Wow it's beautiful, it would be an awesome place to live. But Palm Beach Florida don't exactly suck either.

Of course, there could be an argument that we pay taxes for the greater good.
If all one is interested in is oneself at this point of time, then Rory has a point. But then someone in his extended family pays for their digs in the ADK's and they would be (relatively speaking) highly taxed.
I would have thought a more convenient (from a Tour standpoint) location would be more important . . . . . . he can afford the taxes but imagine his time is at more of a premium.

Of course we can make an argument we pay taxes for the greater good. But the problem with Cali is they've chosen to take on the expense of much more socialistic ideals than most of the rest of the states. This isn't a political statement saying that's good or bad, just that such decisions have consequences. And in Cali's case those consequences has been a net outflow of high earners, retirees (especially wealthy ones), and industry... Chasing away the golden gooses so to speak, because those gooses have other options

Not exactly "socialistic"(!) but we won't go there!

Anyway, as mentioned on this week's thread, our Goose is turning 50 on Sunday; big year for him with WGHOF induction to come.

robopz wrote:Of course we can make an argument we pay taxes for the greater good. But the problem with Cali is they've chosen to take on the expense of  much more socialistic ideals than most of the rest of the states.  This isn't a political statement saying that's good or bad, just that such decisions have consequences. And in Cali's case those consequences has been a net outflow of high earners, retirees (especially wealthy ones), and industry... Chasing away the golden gooses so to speak, because those gooses have other options

Happens everywhere Robo doesn't it? Where the taxes are put up. High earners simply move elsewhere and it certainly doesn't mean they are dropping their standard of living or reducing their quality of life. For example, moving from the US to Bermuda, Monaco, Switzerland where taxes might be more favourable (or non existent). I'd certainly rather live in Switzerland than Texas for example.

If you've got money of a pro golfer, you can always move somewhere else without it affecting your standard of living/quality of life.

Even on a much smaller scale it happens. With Scottish taxes being higher than the rest of the UK, I wouldn't be surprised if higher tax payers flounced off elsewhere.

Super... Agree entirely. That was the point. In the case of California, I'm 100% in favor of States deciding for themselves what their own priorities/policies are and what they choose to spend their money on... And how they're going to fund same.

But as you point out as well, those decisions have consequences. For someone in Rory's income bracket, relocating from Florida to California could have a price tag of $20+ million over 10 years in additional taxes. I don't care who you are, you really really got to like a place to take that on.