The Card – Volume XLIII

by Gary Williams | Jun 17, 2024 | The Card

18 observations, thoughts and predictions for the week in golf…

 

1. Bryson DeChambeau provided a performance over the course of the week at Pinehurst that eclipsed his week at the PGA at Valhalla and it’s not just because he won.  Valhalla lacked nuance and was reduced to a pin cushion from persistent rain in Louisville.  His performance there fit the convenient profile associated with his style.  Pinehurst was fast, fiery and full of quirky funk.  He didn’t drive his ball to victory, instead he executed nuanced recovery shots like his par on 8 on Sunday, the short pitch for an up-and-down on 10 and the exclamation point with his 55-yard bunker shot on the final hole and the par putt to secure his second U.S. Open.  All along the way engaging fans and emoting in the most uncommon way among this generation of players.  Bryson has appeared in the past to be trying to satisfy everyone while rarely satisfying anyone.  It doesn’t mean some of the patronizing of fans may not appear orchestrated but, guess what, fans don’t care.  Connection is not felt between most of the world’s sporting stars and the masses today.  They are handled and the socio-economic divide is just one of the gulfs that exists between stars and the people who pay the freight to watch and attend sporting events.  Bryson has performed one of the greatest re-writes we have witnessed in sports.  He’s also a far more complete and grittier player than he was ever portrayed as previously. 

2. Rory McIlroy stood on the 14th tee with a two-shot lead.  Bryson DeChambeau birdied the 13th hole before Rory made par on the 14th hole, so his lead was one with four holes to go.  The combination of failed execution and poor decision-making which generally are never mutually exclusive was historic.  I walked with Rory every day and his play on a golf course that would not be on the short list of venues most people would think Rory could win on was extraordinarily good.  He displayed an arsenal of shots on Thursday that set the tone for the week.  His iron play was faulty on Sunday as he hit only 10 greens in regulation while driving very well.  He missed four greens hitting his shots from the fairway but his tidiness on 4-7-8-14 allowed him to save par by making putts all five feet or shorter.  The choice of club on 15 tee is a fair question but it will be the 30-inch putt that to me set the wheels in overdrive for what ultimately led to him losing the U.S. Open.  DeChambeau three putted the 15th right behind him and allowed Rory to keep the lead.  The short miss was an unsettling warning sign of immense pressure building and despite the up-and-down par save on 17, Rory was teetering, and the tee shot on 18 could be questioned knowing 3-wood would have left him no more than 140 into the green.  The par putt was sinister in length and movement, but to me, having seen a ton of his short par putts over the week was different.  It appeared ‘wishy’ and not with resolve.  It was a painful and unforeseen, by me, hour of golf.  Rory was making his magical moment with birdie putts and a chippy and steely determination until he let it all slip away. 

3. The jolt that Rory’s failings created launched an immediate collective declaration that his finish was the worst and most gut-wrenching major championship finish.  Greg Norman alone has a catalog and the Mize chip in was different because Mize pulled off a miracle, but Greg had many others.  Sam Snead in the 1947 U.S. Open, Hubert Green at the 1978 Masters, Doug Sanders at the Open Championship in 1970, Davis Love III at the 1996 U.S. Open, John Cook’s three putt on the 17th hole at the 1992 Open Championship, Ed Sneed’s three straight bogeys at the 1979 Masters, Adam Scott’s four straight bogeys at the 2012 Open Championship, Dustin Johnson’s three putt at the 2015 U.S. Open, Mito Pereira’s double bogey on the 18th at Southern Hills at the 2022 PGA Championship, Phil Mickelson at Winged Foot in 2006, Colin Montgomerie at Winged Foot in 2006, Thomas Bjorn at the Open Championship blowing a three shot lead with four to play in 2003, and of course Jean van de Velde with the magnum opus of meltdowns.  I believe this is a deeper cut than the U.S. Open last year by a wide margin and it supplants the final round of the Open Championship at St. Andrews, but to declare it the unkindest cut historically is failing to remember just how many there have been in this beautiful and unforgiving game. 

4. Rory leaving without speaking to the media and the optics of him speeding out of the parking lot were not good.  Historically, players have mostly faced the music after experiencing a gutting, most notably Greg Norman.  There’s irony in that Rory is being associated with Greg for being on the harsh end of several major losses but Greg stood and answered the questions more than once.  Phil did the same after Winged Foot in 2006.  It’s part of the job.  Undeniably Rory was immediately in a very challenging emotional place, and I empathize a great deal but the courtesy of congratulating the winner should be the least and most modest responsibility one should feel. 

5. Bryson landed 6th on the Olympic list for the United States because of the absence of points outside the majors.  All the LIV players should have had eyes wide open at the outset of their pivot professionally but today the omission of Bryson with the impending agreement with PIF and the Tour looks ludicrous.  He’s the second-best player from the United States and he will not be in Paris, and he also would be a massive draw for the golf competition and the potential for Rory, Scottie and Bryson one more time together beyond the Open Championship.  Just simply a monstrous loss for a sport trying to gain traction with inclusion in the Olympic platform. 

6. Patrick Cantlay tied his best finish in a major in his career but it was by far his best performance in a major.  His distant third at the 2019 PGA Championship is a footnote.  Cantlay started the final round closer to the lead than he had ever been in a major and hung close enough all day.  He’s the prototypical Open style player in an era where the prototype is not as easily amplified.  His conversation with Rory Sunday consisted of “Play well before it started and thanks when it was over”.  They are not friends. 

7. Maybe Scottie Scheffler was due a flat spot and maybe he had misgivings about the native areas but being with the group featuring 1-2-3 in the world rankings from their first swings on Thursday he was way off.  Drove it horribly right away on the second hole of the championship, missed the fairway with an iron on the 3rd hole and he never found any comfort.  Tied for 59th in fairways hit and was 70th in strokes gained putting for the week.  It was the inverse of what I saw when Rory and Scheffler were paired to start the Masters with the re-engagement this week at the U.S. Open.  Rory was locked in and dealt with much less stress and labor while Scottie was under the gun to make par on way too many holes.   

8. Brooks Koepka’s major season is now down to trying to salvage it at the Open Championship.  His results this year are a T45 at Augusta and back-to-back T26’s at the PGA and U.S. Open.  He was actually the leader of the U.S. Open early on Thursday when he got it to 3-under but he squandered three shots coming in to finish with a 70 and his Friday 75 took him out of the event and he was first off on Saturday morning.  A very quiet week all the way down to the only media he conducted was a text exchange/interview after day 1 with Golfweek and Golf Channel’s Eamon Lynch. 

9. Xander Schauffele had a quick turnaround from his PGA Championship victory and his T7 was actually pretty damn admirable.  Not easy to climb to the summit for the first time and go back to base camp only to try to ascend again four weeks later.  He drove it all over the property and battled his ass off.  He tied for 59th in fairways hit and yet he finished in the top 10.  He has become more weaponized with his driving distance but it’s his demeanor that I love.  He locks in and never deviates.  He even said pre-championship that Tiger is the only one who ever made celebrating look cool.  He just stays level and he’s a top three favorite for me at Troon. 

10. Matthieu Pavon was a wonderful story this past week.  A sporting background of professional soccer players has produced a man, at 31, that is finding joy in playing in the United States.  He has backed up his T12 at the Masters with a solo 5th at the U.S. Open and coupled with his win in San Diego he is emerging a viable candidate for Luke Donald’s Ryder Cup team next year.  Its forever from now but not too early to add him to the larger long term target list. 

11. Tony Finau had not contended in a major in over three years and on the hardest course we’ve seen in major championship golf in that same time frame he rebounded from a challenging Saturday playing alongside Rory McIlroy with a fantastic final round of 67.  Finau is a great choice when it’s a forgiving set up but his performance this week speaks to real progress. 

12. Neal Shipley won low amateurs honors at his second major of the year.  He adds low am at Pinehurst to his low am at the Masters tournament.  He becomes the fourth player since 1990 to be the low amateur at the Masters and U.S. Open joining Phil Mickelson, Matt Kuchar and Viktor Hovland. 

13. The conditions could not have been more optimal for Tiger Woods this past week.  I’m talking about level ground for the most part and very warm temperatures.  The set-up of the golf course was not ideal for someone who rarely plays anymore.  The most exacting major venue and potential punishment for not playing from the fairway.  Tiger missed the cut by a couple shots and his major record since he won the Masters in 2019 is now 14 starts and one top 25 at the 2019 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach.  He was asked Friday evening if this might be his last U.S. Open and by not definitively saying no it opens the door to the possibility that it could be.  This was not his last U.S. Open.  He has one event left in his year at Troon.  His acceptance of the Bob Jones award was warm and endearing. 

14. The report that the tour will add a lifetime exemption category for Tiger to play any Signature series event going forward is neither surprising nor out of bounds.  They are running a business.  He helped make the business and his presence at an event or two in the years ahead makes complete sense. 

15. Expect news this week that the tour and PIF have the foundation for working together.  There appears to be a ton of work ahead to know exactly what the relationship will look like, but it will include investment from PIF into PGA Tour enterprises.  How quickly all the players share events is the most important thing to fans and I don’t expect it for another year. 

16. Phil Mickelson came and went this week without much of a whimper.  He got off to a horrendous start and had no chance of making the cut by mid-morning on Friday.  He is a former champion golfer of the year, and he was sensational at Troon but he returns there with the feeling that ten lifetimes have gone by since 2016. 

17. Jim “Bones” Mackay was front and center for the up-and-down by Payne Stewart 25 years ago as the youthful looking caddy for Phil Mickelson.  He was front and center again on Sunday as the walking on course reporter for NBC.  He helped call the incredible up and down bunker shot of Bryson DeChambeau.  Golf journeys are wild, my God, he’s seen a lot. 

18. Pinehurst is the de facto home of the USGA and they have made a massive commitment to the resort for many championships with the U..S Open being the ultimate showcase.  Pinehurst won the week.  The footprint, infrastructure, practice set up, main entry, the golf course, the village, the hospitality, the state law enforcement and shuttle system, all of it was a home run.  The golf course was provocative and exceedingly interesting.  Pinehurst and the U.S. Open is a match. 

The Card – Volume XLII

by Gary Williams | Jun 10, 2024 | The Card

18 observations, thoughts and predictions for the week in golf…

 

1. It’s an understandable inclination for the PGA Tour to share any positive news regarding the discussions with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia.  The continuing agitation and frustration expressed by fans has likely made the tour anxious to share any positive movement.  However, the ambiguity of press releases is likely to make most fans just say, “Enough with the labor pains, just show me the baby.”  Here’s hoping U.S. Open is light on questions and comments because any question is going to be met with a detail free response.  We will all be here when there is real information to share.

2. The WD of Jon Rahm from the LIV golf event in the second round with a left foot infection is ominous.  While it may be precautionary, the lack of competitive rounds since his missed cut at the PGA would appear to make the 3-round event in Houston an important precursor to the U.S. Open, an event Rahm won in 2021.  With a T45 at the Masters and the aforementioned MC at the PGA casts the U.S. Open in an even more amplified light for Rahm since his departure from the PGA Tour to LIV.  Injuries are inevitable but it would be a shame if Pinehurst is without one of the game’s best players.  Rahm is scheduled to meet the media Tuesday at the U.S. Open.

3. The Scandinavian Mixed event is good optics and it’s a worthwhile competition pitting the men against the women.  For the second time in three years Linn Grant won the event.  Grant punctuated a final round 65 with a chip in on the final hole and watched as Sebastian Soderberg, who is having a wonderful season, made a double bogey to finish and post 77.  Grant was 11 shots behind Soderberg to start the day.  Extra special for Grant is that the event was conducted in her hometown of Helsingborg, Sweden.

4. The 11-shot comeback reminds me of a weird and hard to believe footnote about the man returning to Pinehurst this week as the last winner there in 2014, Martin Kaymer.  Kaymer also won the Players in 2014 and he began 2015 in the middle east where he had so much success and appeared poised to win in Abu Dhabi in January for the 4^th time at age 30.  Kaymer blew a 10-shot lead to little known Gary Stal and not only did he not win that week, but he has also not won anywhere in the world since.  He was the 12^th ranked player in the world at the time and it appeared as a weird blip.  He returns to Pinehurst this week, now a member of LIV golf.  Monday the 2024 Hall of Fame class will be enshrined and eventually Kaymer will be a member of that body.  Two majors, a Players Championship, former world #1 and a winning putt in a Ryder Cup is a wonderful body of work but it will be a circuitous route to the Hall nonetheless.

5. Jack Nicklaus is 84 and yet this past week his contributions on the broadcast for both Golf Channel and CBS may have you believe he is 44 and he’s doing what he did for ABC back in the 80’s while still competing in majors.  Jack would jump into the main tower with Dave Marr and Jim McKay and offer up the most insightful analysis of the golf course he had just played and what the players face coming down the stretch of the U.S. Open, PGA and Open Championship.  Nicklaus being a contributor for ABC was one of the genius moves by a network and his thoughts this past week only amplify what I’ve always thought about him with a microphone.  He’s the most righteous and interesting dude talking golf we’ve ever had. Makes you wonder if Tiger will ever dip his toes in the water for two or three events a year?

6. It appears we can add Ludvig Aberg to the list of players playing through injury, like Jordan Spieth.  Aberg was evasive when pressed about the severity of his knee injury by not confirming it nor refuting it either.  Aberg’s chances at Pinehurst appear exponentially better than Spieth’s who comes to Pinehurst in a true funk.  All of it exacerbated by the torn tendon sheath in his left wrist but his tie for 10^th on April 7 in San Antonio is his lone top 10 in four months.  Pinehurst favors his strengths, but his compromised physical state makes his chances at contending in the major he won in 2015 to be remote at best.

7. The defending and reigning U.S. Open champion Wyndham Clark comes to Pinehurst dealing with increased expectations especially off the early results of the year coupled with missed cuts at the first two majors.  Clark’s iron play has dipped this season over last and his efficiency around the greens is not nearly as sharp.  Not a good combination on a second shot golf course in No. 2 and the requirement to be tidy around the devilish greens all the players will have to navigate.  He has gone from a Masters favorite at the first major to a mild question mark returning to the championship he won a year ago in Los Angeles.

8. Played Old Town Club this past weekend after experiencing it the first three times during the dormant winter months.  I already knew the Perry Maxwell routing was truly among the best in the country but a walk around on a warm early summer day has me smitten with the Winston Salem, North Carolina course.  Coore/Crenshaw have applied their TLC over the past decade and a recent greens conversion has made Old Town one of the sneaky great courses in America.  The roll and tilt of the land coupled with the bunkering and green settings are so good.

9. Tiger Woods will receive the Bob Jones award this week from the United States Golf Association, the highest honor they bestow upon an individual.  Tiger comes to Pinehurst 25 years after he finished third in the first U.S. Open played at course No. 2.  Tiger would win the U.S. Open the following year which marked his 7^th USGA championship.  He added two additional U.S. Open titles to his USGA resume and he is among a handful of players to win three different USGA championships.  His playing career is in twilight, which doesn’t mean he will not wake up the echoes somewhere of the next five years, but the first special exemption into the U.S. Open made the timing to receive the Jones award practical.  Tiger’s approach to his acceptance speech will be particularly interesting because his relationship with the governing body of golf in America goes back to his early teens and the U.S. junior.  Expect real reflection and recall of things few have ever likely heard about his journey with an organization that conducted championships that Tiger won on nine different occasions.

10. NBC’s decision to put Dan Hicks and Mike Tirico together in the 18^th tower for the U.S. Open will work.  Superior technical broadcasters who have low egos will allow them to mesh the co-analysts’ thoughts of Brad Faxon and Brandel Chamblee through the telecast effortlessly.  Beyond that, the four men are friends and chemistry is the most essential ingredient when you share as much time on air as they will.  Faxon is a cerebral golf nerd, in the best way, and Chamblee is a lethal weapon of eloquence and historical context, but Brad is not a wall flower and I’m certain this arrangement will work.

11. Some names to consider on your U.S. Open wagering card for potential top 5’s, top 10’s and top 20’s.  David Puig, Thomas Detry, and Aaron Rai.  Puig is going to be known very soon as he begins to emerge on LIV and starts to get major starts.  Detry is having a very good year, played very well at Valhalla and is currently among a handful of players I consider the best who have yet to win on the PGA Tour.  Rai is very good through his bag which is generally rewarded in U.S. Opens and he fits the profile of a player to pop up in an Open and not go away.  Add a Tom Hoge, he is a fantastic ball striker, a new age Jeff Maggert.

12. For those attending the U.S. Open in Pinehurst and may be looking for the flavor of the village let me recommend a few spots for varying interests.  For the ones looking for a true local watering hole the Drum and Quill is the spot.  I highly recommend everyone walking through the Given Memorial Library which also is the home of the Tufts archives.  The most golf-centric library you’ll ever see.  For the ones looking for memorabilia and keepsakes walk into the Old Sport & Gallery.  The owner Tom Stewart is a golf professional who was the head pro at the Adios Club in Florida.  His shop is chock full of books and photos and the conversation with the owner is worth the trip in alone.  Finally, if you need to find something to wear, the Gentleman’s Corner is a great American men’s clothing store owned by the golfy Chris Dalrymple who is a haberdasher right out of central casting.

13. Collin Morikawa is plowing along, and he is a solid putting week away from winning.  His T3 at the Masters and T4 at the PGA are a very good precursor for what to expect at Pinehurst.  Add his results at Colonial and Muirfield Village and he is a short list guy.  It’s very realistic that he could go to the Masters next April looking to complete the career grand slam.  Collin feels slighted and winning solves attention issues, but his putter must be just warm not hot for him to win his third different major.  

14. Rory McIlroy and Pinehurst No. 2 does not appear to be an ideal fit.  In 2014, before he won the Open Championship and the PGA, he finished T23 in the U.S. Open.  Rory, however, is on a nice run of results in the U.S. Open with five straight top 10’s and he’s improved his result each year, including the 2^nd place last year at Los Angeles Country Club.  There is appreciable width to No. 2 and there are six par fours at least 480 yards long, with three par fours over 500 yards so his length CAN be a huge advantage on the brawny par 70 with 8 and 18 converted to par 4’s.  Will he feel freedom to hit driver with liberty?  Can his putter behave, and will his wedge play be tightened up?  Rory has been very good inside 50 yards this year including the short shots he hit around the turn on Sunday at Quail Hollow to flip it on Xander Schauffele.  He’s too good to not be hanging around and he says he’s embracing firm and fast now and should expect No. 2 to be very spicy starting Thursday if the forecast holds.

15. LIV golf is a work in progress and it’s not going anywhere so questioning the schedule seems reasonable and appropriate as they try to gain more traction.  Not having an event from May 5^th which was the final round in Singapore until June 7^th, the first round in Houston doesn’t seem right at all.  As the entire United States is waking up to a new golf season in full you are dark for the month of May.  The PGA doesn’t count, it’s not yours.  Off Bryson DeChambeau’s electric performance in Louisville you had to wait three weeks to see him play again.  Gaps of four weeks in the heart of the golf season is simply not how you build momentum.

16. When I was a young assistant professional at the Governors Club in Chapel Hill, NC in 1991/92 Payne Stewart made several trips there to spend time with his sports psychologist, Dr. Richard Coop.  One late November day, Payne, dressed in blue jeans, a ballcap and a beard gave me a chipping lesson.  He was a star and in 1999 he would add his 3^rd major to his resume at Pinehurst’s first U.S. Open.  Less than four months later he was gone.  42 and so much life appearing in front of him.  Here are the certainties about what was ahead for Payne in the 25 years since his win at Pinehurst.  The captaincy of the Ryder Cup team, most certainly in Ireland in 2006 where he was beloved.  A lead analyst position of the TV network of your choice.  When Payne died, Golf Channel was four years old, and it was down the street from his home in Orlando.  He had the gift of gab, the ease to give his opinion and the charisma to remain very relevant to this very day.  25 years, it moves so fast yet so much transpires and at the end the most irrefutable truth is that it’s all so damn precious.  This week will be a lot about Payne, rightfully so.

17. Congratulations to the hall of fame class of 2024.  A wonderful return for the hall of fame to Pinehurst, where it never should have left.  As we look ahead to 2026, I will refrain from getting into the weeds on potential player candidates, I will just re-state what I’ve said for several years now.  There is absolutely no reason to abstain from enshrining people who are contributors who are still making massive contributions to the game.  Mike Keiser is a trailblazer and MUST be put in for his vision to create havens for thousands and thousands of golfers to find joy in the game.  Butch Harmon is the greatest instructor to the elite player, the sport has ever known, his enshrinement is a priority in 2026.  Finally, he will have been gone 100 years the next time the hall of fame inducts a class and Seth Raynor absolutely needs to be a member of it.  There are others who deserve the honor, but I’ll start there.

18. The premise of Tiger or the field was a real thing and not a crazy thing for a period of years.  The idea of Scottie or the field is a little impractical and maybe premature since he’s only won one of the four majors so far in his career but Scottie or the field is not residing in a galaxy far, far away.  With that, give me Scheffler to win the 124^th U.S. Open. 

The Card – Volume XLI

by Gary Williams | Jun 4, 2024 | The Card

18 observations, thoughts and predictions for the week in golf…

 

1. Yuka Saso’s win at the U.S. Women’s Open makes her first two wins in the championship historic in several ways.  First, she joins the following list of players from outside the United States to win multiple U.S. Opens, Annika Sorenstam, Karrie Webb, and Inbee Park.  Secondly, Saso is now the youngest two-time winner in the U.S. Women’s Open history.  Finally, she is the third player all-time to make both of her first two career LPGA wins majors, joining Se Ri Pak and In Gee Chun. It’s an amazing badge to conquer the toughest test more than once.  

2. The 2024 U.S. Women’s Open is the first professional major championship in either women’s or men’s golf history where players representing Japan finished 1-2.

3. Lancaster Country Club is a neat and special place.  It also was set up to push the best players to the limits physically and mentally.  The USGA has shown a willingness to walk that line recently with the Walker Cup at Seminole, the last couple U.S. Amateurs and the biggest and most important question is how edgy will Pinehurst #2 be for the men’s U.S. Open?  The men carry a loud voice and have pounced on the USGA for the last decade, sometimes with merit.  I’ll say what I say every year about the second oldest major in the game.  Be who we expect you to be and be accountable as well.  If you achieve both whether it matters to the organization or not the public will be on your side.  Be the U.S. Open of Joe Dey and P.J. Boatwright.  To paraphrase John Houseman, set up the U.S. Open the old-fashioned way, make them earn it.

4. I was trying to conjure up a comparison for the circumstance surrounding Nelly Korda recording a 10 on her 3^rd hole of the U.S. Women’s Open and I kept coming back to two situations for highly anticipated events and the individuals involved although both were gone from the event when they were both injured as soon as the events began.  Zion Williamson in his lone game for Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium against North Carolina in February of 2019 and Aaron Rodgers in his debut for the Jets last season in the first series of the game rupturing his Achilles.  Nelly trudged on but her chances of contending in the next major after her torrid first five months of the season including winning the first major of the year were shot.  It was deflating and disorienting for everyone on the ground at Lancaster CC and the event went on to a dramatic conclusion not unlike those two games.  Nelly created the buzz, and the event effectively overcame her absence on the weekend with the course starring as you hope it will in a USGA Championship.

5. Lexi Thompson’s retirement announcement, while surprising is not altogether stunning.  Since she became a public figure at age 12, turned pro at 15, won on the LPGA when she was 16 and won her lone major championship at 19, her retiring at 29 may seem early biologically but her breath of time competing and the role she was cast into, didn’t ask for contributed to why now is the right time for her.  The job itself is challenging in many ways, and the layer of being the unofficial face of women’s golf in the United States never felt like an easy fit.  It’s not supposed to be and while commercial appeal is lucrative, the ancillary responsibilities of being a big star appeared to be burdensome. Her lone major win at the old Kraft Nabisco in 2014 appeared to usher in her era especially the way she overpowered the golf course compared to her closest pursuer, Michelle Wei.  Lexi’s seconds in three of the other women’s majors were excruciating and the 2022 U.S. Women’s Open will be celebrated for Yuka Saso’s breakthrough at Olympic Club but the five shot lead enjoyed by Lexi with just over nine holes to go was a historic gutting. Lexi is a huge star and her appeal to cherry pick events going forward seems like the likely course.  Being the public face, playing with flair, and winning 11 times on the LPGA with a major is a fantastic career.

6. I thought smoking cigarettes was the most unattractive thing anyone could do in 2024 and then Charley Hull flipped the script.  Hull has always been captivating beginning with her drubbing of Paula Creamer in Solheim Cup singles 5 and 4 in 2013 and then subsequently asking Creamer for an autograph.  She has pizazz and plays with bravado but when she turned up this past week feverishly puffing on a heater while giving autographs something very weird happened.  Instead of being reviled by the act, which many Americans are, she became a viral social media phenomenon.  Including an overzealous and likely too confident fan throwing her his phone number mid round suggesting dinner was in the offing.  Hull explained that the cigarette kick is in attempt to curb another habit, vaping.  Whatever the reason, Hull is now likely more well known outside the nerdy golf bubble for of all things, dragging on a dart.

7. Robert MacIntyre has always appeared to be a delightful guy and his Scottish roots makes him even more appealing in the golf community because we associate the true origins of the game to the magical kingdom of Scotland.  His recent comments about the inherent challenges of being away from his homeland competing primarily on the PGA Tour in America revealed an additional layer to not only MacIntyre, but the vocation in general.  Add the layer this past week of putting his dad on the bag and you had a script you could sell.  Winning the RBC Canadian Open was icing until you heard his interview with Amanda Balionis of CBS.  The father and son grappling for words while fending off the tears was the kicker.  Being real is endearing and Robert MacIntyre has zero veneer, and a Scottish accent just needs to be heard more at the top levels of the game.

8. Rory McIlroy came off the drama of returning to Valhalla for the first time since his last major win in 2014 and fresh on the heels of the disclosure of him filing for divorce to finish in a tie for 4^th at the Canadian Open.  Rory doesn’t play any “road” games, but Canada and the Canadian fans have carved out a unique relationship with Rory.  The event rotates courses, but McIlroy has been loyal to the event since winning it for the first time in 2019 and the fans treat him like he scored a Cup-winning goal for the Maple Leafs.  Oddly, Rory doesn’t have a pristine record at Muirfield Village where he plays every year and will lead into next week’s U.S. Open.  Rory finished T23 at Pinehurst in 2014 where he followed that finish by winning the next two majors which were his last two major victories.  The width of #2 will play well into Rory’s desire to lean on his driver but his improvement around the greens will factor in his ability to contend for his 5^th major in the sand hills of North Carolina.

9. Mackenzie Hughes touched the lead on Sunday in his home country of Canada and he received a consolation prize for his tie for 7^th with one of the qualifying spots in the forthcoming Open Championship at Troon in July.  Hughes needs the major starts to audition as much as possible for International team captain Mike Weir for the Presidents Cup back in Canada in September.  Ben Griffin and Maverick McNealy also secured their spots as well in the Open Championship with their 2^nd and T7th finishes respectively.

10. Kaito Onishi won the Korn Ferry tour event in North Carolina.  Ryan French from the Monday Q Info twitter handle provided context about how perilous Kaito’s position on the Korn Ferry Tour was at the end of last year.  His final round 68 in the last event of the season moved him from 107^th to 100^th in points.  Just having some conditional status got him into a few events and with solid results he became fully exempt after the reshuffle.  Now with a win he has a solid shot at a PGA Tour card.  One stroke, in the last round of the last event changed many things for the immediate future of Kaito Onishi.  The slimmest of margins can separate so many from so much. 

11. This week is a Signature event on the PGA Tour but long before that distinction was created by the tour, the Memorial has truly been the signature event on the PGA Tour.  Natural amphitheaters created on the land at Muirfield village included around the closing hole, the finest conditioned golf course and player services decades ahead of the competition made Memorial the platinum standard for all events to strive to be, and then there’s Jack.  Jack’s presence is palpable, his inclusion on the network TV broadcast in his 80’s and his positioning near the 18^th green for the closing groups is precious stuff.  I’ve never taken Jack’s handshake with the winner for granted, like Arnold Palmer’s at Bay Hill and Byron Nelson’s as well.  Jack’s ability to express his views on the issues and challenges in the game with the media, pre-tournament, remains a must watch.  It’s Jack’s week, a special week.

12. LIV golf hasn’t conducted an event in a month.  The league returns this week in Houston and while Bryson DeChambeau was a star at the PGA Championship, the elongated period without events challenges the ability to build momentum.  The winner this week on Sunday will in some measure be swallowed up by U.S. Open week which begins the following day.  The luxury of weeks off at a time was appealing to many players but being dark for a month when golf is top of mind is simply counter intuitive.

13. Steph Curry is on the cover this month of Golf Digest and a large portion of the profile centers on his vision to expand opportunities for minorities in junior golf through his Underrated Tour.  I’ve shared formerly that I have been lucky to be involved with the tour on the administrative and tournament staff side from the outset two years ago.  Season three kicked off with the tour’s first event in Europe at Walton Heath in England.  The field was made up of kids from Europe with the exception of six kids from the U.S. who were brought over based on their performance last year.  Not surprisingly the kids from Europe had an experience of a lifetime competing at a storied venue and having their parents with them without incurring the burden of any costs associated with travel, hotel, food and swag.  Steph is jet fuel for a tour garnering elite corporate sponsorship and with the presence of global soccer star Gareth Bale for both tournament days on the first tee and being a part of the trophy celebration amplified the experience to another level.  The boy and girl winner earned a trip to the Curry Cup in September at historic Ridgewood Country Club and the fact that neither one of them has ever been to the United States is another example of how the game and the Underrated Tour can change the trajectory of young lives.

14. A week in England was good for the soul in part because of the cultural acceptance of dogs everywhere.  They are fortifying and to see dogs across the landscapes of several of the great golf clubs in England just reinforced what I’ve always thought we were missing in the States.  Dogs.  From Bandon to Bethpage and every Chicago Golf Club and Prairie Dunes in between can you imagine how wonderful it would be to see every breed at your club?  Dogs, they make everything better.

15. I played the Old Course at Sunningdale this past Saturday and it stood up to its reputation.  It’s an enchanted forest of superior golf holes and the clubhouse is as stately and warm as any I’ve had the pleasure of inhabiting.  The paint on the walls is endless and the fact that Harry Colt was the club’s first captain is perfect.  It is undoubtedly one of the finest 36-hole facilities in the world.  It was nice additive to have three-time Open Champion from England Sir Nick Faldo in the group in front of us with his wife and son.  As proper a weekend round of golf as you could have in the Commonwealth.  

16. Auburn claimed their first national title for the men this past week by defeating Florida State 3-2 in match play.  The Tigers enjoyed a remarkable 10-win season, and they have a superstar in Jackson Koivun.  Koivun went 3-0 in match play and polished off a historic freshman year.  A head beyond his years, Jackson is poised to enjoy very good income through NIL and it will interesting to see how many years of college golf he has in front of him.  

17. Among the many introspective and thoughtful reflections I heard from players regarding the death of Grayson Murray it was Shane Lowry who got to the heart of so many things.  Shane has never strayed far from where he’s from and in explaining that he has experienced the deaths of several lifelong friends to suicide he captured the essence of all of it.  It’s precious, never lose sight of that. 

18. Lastly, I’m humbled beyond appropriate words regarding the thoughts I expressed on Grayson’s death.  I am particularly grateful to those in the recovery community who reached out to share their own journeys.  I promise those truths and those shared experiences help me every day in my own journey of recovery.  It doesn’t matter whether you live with addiction, anxiety and depression, we all have our stuff.  Lean on each other, listen to each other, and be kind to yourself.  

The Card – Volume XL

by Gary Williams | May 20, 2024 | The Card

18 observations, thoughts and predictions for the week in golf…

 

1. The tragic event that occurred early Friday morning outside Valhalla Golf Club that claimed the life of 69-year-old John Mills will forever be associated with the 2024 PGA Championship.  The retired Louisville native was working in a security capacity when he was struck by a shuttle bus at 5 AM crossing the street near the club and was pronounced dead on the scene.  The ensuing events involving Scottie Scheffler immediately overshadowed Mills death, which was the reason for the initial delay of play on Friday, but his passing is the most significant and saddest chapter in and around the 106^th PGA Championship.

2. The Scottie Scheffler arrest was extraordinary on many levels.  The fact that of all the players in the field who may have been navigating entry into the club under the tense circumstances of the morning the #1 player in the world being hastily detained and subsequently booked with four charges two-plus hours later was a bizarre narrative to follow.  ESPN’s Jeff Darlington, on site as a reporter, provided all the video evidence of the handcuffing of Scheffler in addition to his eyewitness account of the aftermath of the detaining.  According to Kevin Van Valkenburg of “No Laying Up” the charges will soon be dropped which, based on my conversations with lawyers since Friday was the likely outcome.  Additionally, the police report initially indicated that video footage was captured only for that to be changed with the disclosure from the Louisville mayor that the arresting officer’s bodycam was not activated.  As bizarre an episode as we have ever seen at a major championship outside of the ropes involving a player.

3. As for the reaction of the golf world, sports world and beyond in real time and throughout Friday to the video images of Scheffler and the gratuitous mugshot, all the way down to the orange jumpsuit, what did anyone expect was going to happen on social media, despite the subtext of the fatality earlier in the morning?  To act surprised or appalled by the memes, GIF’s, and parodies immediately populating Twitter/X would suggest you haven’t been paying attention for the last decade.  A landscape of snark, pettiness, ugliness, humor, and comedy is not taking a pass on a top golfer being arrested regardless of the awful circumstance that preceded it.  Civility, reflection, and deference are endangered sentiments on social media platforms so to project outrage simultaneously suggest naivete.  Not being a party to it doesn’t also mean one had to act surprised that the people who cover the sport would be different from those covering the bizarre circumstances surrounding an incident in any other sport.  

4. This always appeared to be Valhalla’s goodbye for now to major championship golf.  The PGA of America was incentivized to use Valhalla beginning with the 1996 PGA because of their financial position with the club.  That position no longer exists and their commitment to PGA Frisco for this championship beginning in 2027 and the other championships, KPMG Women’s PGA, Senior PGA, and PGA professional championship likely signals Valhalla’s exit from the major stage.  I expect the PGA to return to Chicago, specifically Medinah if the President Cup is deemed a success after the redo to course #3 by Geoff Ogilvy’s design firm.  I can also see a desire to identify a site in Florida possibly in the next ten years as well.  Virtually every area of the country is now in play with the May date and while Valhalla had big moments and great support from a fantastic fanbase the future of the PGA championship is not expected to include them in the rota.

5. Jon Rahm’s missed cut at the PGA was a surprise to him and it followed a similar vibe to his defense of the Masters in April.  Posturing in a defensive way in his pre-tournament press conference when pressed on the LIV prep and his place on the LIV golf tour was followed with sharp criticism from on-site analysts and TV gasbags.  Rahm is inclined to digest the opinions of others and being there to watch his body language and tone indicated a guy not in the greatest headspace.  It’s two majors and Wyndham Clark also missed the cut following a missed cut at the Masters, but Clark is not the generational talent that Rahm is and therefore the measurement is not equal.  Jon is a past U.S. Open champion, but it may serve him to pass on the pre-U.S. Open presser at Pinehurst and just focus on the task at hand.  Rahm in the mix at majors makes it bigger and better and here’s hoping he gets in the mix next month in North Carolina.

6. Tiger Woods had a short week punctuated by a very poor short game and a mini implosion to begin his second round which sent him immediately well outside the cut line and resigned to battling with pride like he’s inclined to do.  I never thought he would win again after the accident, and it wasn’t a “hot take” it was simply assessing the realities of age, inactivity and severe injury.  We have entered the long goodbye phase of his life on the stage.  It doesn’t mean that he won’t shoot a score and give us moments in majors over the next ten years if he continues to train and prepare as best he can but he’s not winning again.  It’s ok to say and it’s not an insult or a shot at the greatest player I’ve ever seen.  Reaching for comparisons to Jack at the Masters in 1998 at 58 or Tom Watson at 59 in 2009 are excluding the greatest element that separates these men and that is careers uninterrupted by significant injury.  I hope Tiger plays in many more majors and garners plenty of invites to the U.S. Open and his results will never diminish the extraordinary moments and historic feats he achieved.

7. ESPN personnel does one event a year in full and it’s the PGA Championship.  Its challenging to convene a large group of voices spread out over a golf course and have cohesion and chemistry and ESPN pulls it off in large measure because their host is a generational technical broadcaster but an even better conversationalist.  Scott Van Pelt can handle chaos, calm, and calamity with ease, and he has deep roots in the game from the early years at Golf Channel.  He’s an ideal host for a long flowing broadcast that welcomes the casual viewer.  SVP is ESPN’s MVP.

8. Michael Block couldn’t possibly have maxed out his performance in the 2023 PGA Championship any more than he has over the last year.  Tournament invites, sponsorship opportunities, commercials, voiceover work, celebrity outings and culminating with the honor of striking the opening tee shot in the championship this year.  We are a society determined to choke the charm out of most everything and his memorable week last year was no exception.  He went from loved to being loathed before he left Rochester.  It’s a fascinating study in navigating instant fame while taking advantage of opportunities one never dreamed about.  Michael is a fine player and I expect him back in the field next year at Quail Hollow.  The Block party may have gotten quieter but it’s not shutdown altogether.

9. Phil Mickelson has kept a very low pre-major championship profile over the last two years since embarking on his journey with LIV golf.  He was once the man under the big top regaling the media with pre-tournament thoughts and observations but that is not the case anymore.  Off his missed cut in the PGA, which he won in 2021, he heads to Pinehurst 25 years after his first close call in the U.S. Open.  His relationship through the years with the USGA has been contentious and you wonder if he would be a willing participant on any retrospective of that memorable first U.S. Open at Pinehurst and the tragic death of Payne Stewart three months later.  Phil will always be a huge part of that chapter of the U.S. Open at Pinehurst, and I can only hope efforts have been made by the USGA and its broadcast partner NBC to get his reflections.  

10. When Rory McIlroy left Valhalla ten years ago he had four majors and two of them were PGA Championships.  He leaves Valhalla this week with four majors and his best result in the PGA, the one built best for him, with his best result since 2014 being a tie for 7^th last year.  Be presumptuous about the game of golf at your own risk.

11. Jordan Spieth told me a month after he won the Open Championship in 2017 and right after Justin Thomas’ first PGA title, that winning the PGA would be the hardest one for him to win not because it would mean the career grand but because the set ups were not necessarily suited to his strengths.  His results since have produced one top 10 and that was a distant tie 3^rd at Bethpage in 2019.  At the beginning of the year, I believed Pinehurst offered a good shot for him to contend again at the U.S. Open.  Since winning it in 2015 his best finish is a tie for 19^th in 2021.  His improved driving with the width of #2 and his depth short game are a match, but lingering wrist issues have me hedging four weeks out.

12. Brooks Koepka went in reverse on Saturday at the PGA with a round of 74 and a bounce back on Sunday kept him outside the top 20 for the week.  He expressed continued frustration with the results in the first two majors and he heads to Pinehurst with distant fond memories of his first top 4 in a major in 2014.  He knows best that the opportunities are precious, and he has built his brand about being one of the true few who can thrive in the major heat.  Two weak results down, two left in 2024.

13. Two more rounds of 62 in a major within a year of the two last June at the U.S. Open take the total now to five rounds of 62 and now in three of the four major championships.  Only Augusta National has been spared the distinction with it being a par of 72.  61 was threatened by Shane Lowry on Saturday at Valhalla and the cat calls for an asterisk were ringing out on social media if his birdie putt fell.  Don’t imagine the cries for an * will be as pronounced if that number is in the crosshairs on the next trip to the Open Championship at the Old Course.

14. Nelly Korda begins a new streak with her win at the Mizuho LPGA at Liberty National.  That’s six wins in her last seven starts and her march to a monster and historic year rolls on to the U.S. Women’s Open at Lancaster Country Club.  Her next stage will only get bigger and it’s the most monumental major in the women’s game.

15. Viktor Hovland was so lost heading into the PGA Championship he admitted to Jason Sobel on SiriusXM after his third round that he contemplated not playing at Valhalla.  After a resuscitating performance that coincided with him reuniting with his swing coach Joe Mayo, Hovland re-emerges heading to his defense at Memorial and then onto the U.S. Open.  He was the dude coming into 2024 and just like that Viktor is that guy again.  Give talent time, it’ll return, and Joe Mayo just bumped his retainer. 

16. Xander Schauffele has been a plow mule of production since he found his footing on the PGA Tour in 2018.  He has consistently gotten himself into the deep and of the pool in majors with two 2nds and two 3rds coming into this week.  His absence from the winner’s circle since the summer of 2022 seems inexplicable.  After getting lapped by Rory McIlroy last week, he might have been jolted.  Instead, he went wire to wire on a golf course giving up preposterous scoring and outlasted an outstanding leaderboard.  It’s dangerous to use the word “inevitable” but with Xander it certainly seemed likely.  Pursuing speed is not always a cautionary tale and his work with Chris Como has paid off with a major.  Bravo.

17. Bryson DeChambeau is great TV.  I’m not imploring anyone to change their viewpoint on him, that’s what viewpoints are, they are to each his own.  However, I think it’s undeniable that he’s unique, provocative, captivating and just plain different, and on that landscape, different stands out.  His major performances are positively trending.

18. Pinehurst is next and introduces itself as an official U.S. Open anchor site for the first time in June.  Interesting list of players to identify as the best without a major since Xander is now off the board.  Take a pick, I’ll take Viktor, once again.

The Card – Volume XXXIX

by Gary Williams | May 13, 2024 | The Card

18 observations, thoughts and predictions for the week in golf…

 

1. Wells Fargo put a bow on their sponsorship of one of the best events on the PGA Tour.  Born in 2003 as the Wachovia Championship I’ve covered every one of them except for the win by Max Homa in Potomac, Maryland.  They got Tiger in their second year and immediately became one of the premier events in professional golf.  The PGA Tour is headed to a new sponsor, reports are it is Truist, another financial institution, and they are likely to manage the event themselves with their new championship management arm.  They have a HUGE act to follow.  They are fortunate to have the Harris family and a great venue in Quail Hollow, who will host the PGA next year, and will likely head to Philadelphia in 2025 before returning to Charlotte in 2026.

2. A delightful joy this past Sunday morning at 7 AM was going into Poppy’s bagels in Charlotte and seeing a gaggle of Dads with bedhead ushering around their sons with even better bedhead.  Sleepy Sunday morning rituals with fathers and sons doing a rudimentary chore for the rest of the house.  And surprisingly, as a Jersey guy, Poppy’s has legit good bagels.

3. The greeting card section of your local grocery store is quite the scene on Mother’s Day at 8 AM. Desperate husbands rummaging through what’s left of the Mother’s Day cards.  Settling for cards from aunts and uncles as a pitiful display of trying to salvage the day before it begins.  Men are all goalies just looking for one more kick save and a beauty.  I wasn’t observing by accident.

4. Nelly Korda’s streak of wins in a row ends at five but not before she turned heads at the Met Gala in New York City.  The LPGA remains in Jersey as they head to Liberty National, but they also run into the second men’s major this week.  The interest in Nelly has been amplified and any win keeps the momentum going in the right direction.

5. Rose Zhang is a potential superstar and in the absence of Nelly winning her sixth event in a row, Rose winning, especially with her returning this week to the site of her first win, is a tremendous consolation prize for the LPGA.  Zhang is totally equipped to handle attention since she’s been receiving it for years and jumping on a zoom with “No Laying Up” after the win was smart on her part and the tour’s.  Zhang’s battle with Madelene Sagstrom was excellent entertainment and Sagstrom’s post round interviews were endearing and graceful.

6. Blades Brown kept the teen trend rolling this week.  Brown, 16 years old from Nashville, TN not only made the cut at the Myrtle Beach Classic he finished in a tie for 26^th at 10 under par.  Following the made cut performances of Miles Russell, 15 years old, on the Korn Ferry Tour and Kris Kim, 16 years old, at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson last week you can expect the kids to receive additional sponsor exemptions before the summer is over and they must go back for their next year of high school.  There is an abundance of talent all over the world but to see three teenagers display the refined skill of scoring in events that demanded low scores to simply make the cut is widely impressive.

7. The disclosure from Rory McIlroy this past Wednesday that he will not be re-joining the PGA Tour policy board was shared freely by McIlroy.  The defense from the tour that they were simply adhering to their own governance appears duplicitous considering Tiger Woods received a board seat out of thin air.  Subsequently, the next day we learned that Rory is now part of a subcommittee that will advise and participate in the discussions with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia.  Finally, Rory and commissioner Jay Monahan met on Saturday after Rory’s bogey free third round of the Wells Fargo Championship and the nature of that conversation was likely not Rory’s gameplan for the final round.  What might have been perceived as potential distractions for McIlroy in a tournament week clearly were not and it also should clear the way for Rory to avoid being bombarded about all those items this week at Valhalla with a massive international media presence.

8. The fourth Wells Fargo victory for McIlroy will do two things at minimum.  First, it furthers Rory’s place in Charlotte golf history and specifically Quail Hollow as the greatest professional champion in its history going back to the Kemper Open.  Like Ben Hogan at Colonial, Tiger Woods at Bay Hill, Torrey Pines and Firestone, Rory is building a library of memories at Quail Hollow.  It was always destined to be his happiest haunt with the freedom to hit driver everywhere and to take lines off the tee others simply cannot and the partisan crowds has made Charlotte Rory’s town.

9. Being able to walk with McIlroy during his pro-am round on Wednesday and then follow him each day allowed me to gain real context as to the state of his game.  His fairways hit percentages may have been modest, but his misses were miniscule.  He missed the 16^th fairway three of the four days but that was a result of flying the right fairway bunker that is now 330 yards from the tee and each day he hit a wedge into the par 4 that now measures north of 520 yards.  His iron play was very solid and his second shots into 9 on Saturday and Sunday were outstanding.  Additionally, his tee shots on the par 3 13^th in the 3^rd and final rounds were also the weight and shape he was calling on which are great indicators for the PGA.  Finally, seeing the number of fine short shots he executed which include his 4^th on 15 on Saturday, the 2^nd on 8 on Sunday and his holed bunker shot for eagle on Sunday are strong indicators that his efficiency around the green is buttoned for a major test this week.

10. Scottie Scheffler, Brooks Koepka and Rory arrive in Louisville off wins.  For Rory it’s his last two starts which include a team win with Shane Lowery.  For Koepka it was his fourth career win on LIV and it was a 54 hole win in Singapore a week ago.  Scheffler as we know has won his last two starts but he’s now three weeks removed from competitive golf with the birth of he and his wife Meredith’s first child.  Scheffler mas won several events off more than a week of rest and his absence has not altered his position as the betting favorite and rightfully so.  Fans have bemoaned the absence of stars from the winner’s circle in 2024 but Scottie’s streak since March and Rory’s sudden streak coupled with a Koepka win give the PGA some juice heading into the week.

11. The captain of the International Presidents Cup team, Mike Weir, had to be pleased with the final leaderboard at Quail Hollow.  Ben An, Sung Jae Im, Jason Day, Mackenzie Hughes, Taylor Pendrith and Corey Connors all finished in the top 13.  I firmly believe we could see a Canadian Power pod of players in Montreal with up to five players representing the host nation with Korea also possibly having their own pod.  

12. Chris Gotterup won the Myrtle Beach Classic for his first PGA Tour win.  He propelled himself to 67^th in the Fedex Cup Standings and validated what many believed about him when he turned pro after a stellar career at Oklahoma.  Gotterup has a Brooks Koepka vibe to him, self-assured, brawny and the mind of an athlete.  Add the mustache and the bling and you have a dude with a distinctive look.  I’m going to root for any guy with Jersey roots, but Gotterup has the goods.  Jim McGovern, Bill Britton and Morgan Hoffman should be proud.

13. The PGA should provide a ton of runway for Golf Channel to unleash Johnson Wagner at Valhalla throughout the week re-creating and re-visiting important and dubious moments from each day’s play.  Wags has become a favorite of the content creating outfits in the game and golf’s own version of WWJD is now the rage.  His re-enactment/explanation of the Xander Schauffele drop in round 1 of the Wells Fargo was a virtuoso performance.  Johnson will also serve as the lead analyst on SiriusXM for the PGA with the radio legend Brian Katrik serving in a role he has mastered as play-by-play host of the radio broadcast alongside a fabulous on-air team and production team.

14. Jordan Spieth was inside the top 5 of the Wells Fargo Championship with four holes to go in the 2^nd round and then a series of poor iron shots saw him double bogey the 17^th hole and bogey 18.  He stumbled to a round of 76 in the 3^rd round and finished the week in a tie for 29^th.  Following for portions of his final round, Jordan was doing an inordinate amount of muttering and audibly appealing to his caddie Michael Greller.  The continued issues with his left wrist make his quest for the PGA and the career grand slam to be a true longshot in 2024.

15. Speaking of longshots, Tiger Woods returns to the scene of one of his most iconic major moments and scintillating major victories, the 2000 PGA win in the playoff with Bob May.  The walk in/finger point in the playoff is a top 5 Tiger image and his first two rounds with Jack Nicklaus was a true torch pass in the game.  He arrived early in Louisville, and he will do what he does, battle on every shot.  I’m going to lean that he misses this cut.  The walk MIGHT be more arduous than Augusta National and while there would be zero surprise if he plays the weekend, I think Pinehurst is his best shot for a good week.

16. This is the likely swansong for Valhalla and the PGA and major championships.  I could see a tour event including a FedEx Cup playoff event being held at Valhalla but the PGA of America has built their own anchor site in Frisco, Texas and the landscape is littered with willing venues especially with the May date.  The golf course has too many forgettable holes, but it has delivered big moments on the big Kentucky ballpark.  Here’s hoping David Novak and his ownership team has a wonderful week.

17. Let’s also hope the PGA of America was able to convince far more past champions to attend their champions dinner on Tuesday night.  The optics of the last couple dinners was weak.  These are elusive, historic and special clubs to be members of and I hope every effort is being made by the host organization and the past champions to be in attendance.

18. I’m not overthinking the winner.  Its Scheffler.

The Card – Volume XXXVIII

by Gary Williams | May 5, 2024 | The Card

18 observations, thoughts and predictions for the week in golf…

 

1. Brooks Koepka winning the LIV golf event in Singapore can represent whatever level of accomplishment you choose to make it, but it likely signifies a more competitive Koepka at the PGA Championship.  Brooks spoke of his own disappointment at his performance at the Masters which is a self-motivating strategy that has always proved effective for Koepka.  A win at Valhalla would be bold type in the historical record.  Back-to-Back PGA’s for the second time would equal the accomplishment of Tiger Woods who won in 1999 and 2000 and again in 2006 and 2007.  It would also signify his fourth Wannamaker trophy tying him with Tiger Woods and putting him one behind the all-time leaders of Jack Nicklaus and Walter Hagan with five PGA Championship victories.  Finally, if he were to win in Louisville it would be major championship number six, equaling the likes of Mickelson, Faldo, and Trevino in the grand pantheon.  Koepka is a significant storyline at Valhalla.

2. The absence of Scottie Scheffler from the Wells Fargo Championship is not surprising and not alarming as it relates to his chances to win the PGA Championship.  In his 10 tour wins, including both major wins, Scheffler took at least one week off before those victories and in the case of both wins at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, he had taken a couple weeks off after the west coast swing.  The break for the birth of the first child for Scottie and his wife Meredith may prove to be exactly what he needed beyond the enrichment of their lives headed into the major sprint.

3. Tiger Woods received the least surprising thing this week, a special exemption into the U.S. Open at Pinehurst.  In the wasteland of social media there were suggestions and opinions that Woods should have to go through sectional qualifying.  Those opinions are from those who are either uniformed or are trolling.  Neither way is the best way to go through life.  Jack Nicklaus received eight exemptions into the U.S. Open culminating with his last start at Pebble Beach in 2000.  Arnold Palmer received five exemptions into the U.S. Open with the last coming at Oakmont, poignantly in 1994.  Icons get the invite to the championship they helped make in their prime.  Additionally, Scott Verplank, David Ishee, Jay Sigel, and Aaron Baddeley received special exemptions into America’s oldest major and people are questioning Tiger Woods getting his first exemption?  Get used to it because, like Nicklaus, the passes will continue likely until his final one in 2032 at Pebble Beach where his first U.S. Open win occurred by 15 shots in 2000. 

4. The Cognizant Founders Cup on the LPGA has some real juice this week as Nelly Korda pursues her sixth straight win.  Upper Montclair Golf Club is a charming spot in Clifton, NJ.  The Sopranos shot scenes there through the years and the place has tournament history with Gene Littler winning the first ThunderBird Classic in 1962.  Lee Trevino, Nancy Lopez, Lorena Ochoa, Pat Bradley and Arnold Palmer have also won at Upper Montclair.  First pitches at Yankee Stadium from a couple players this past weekend kicked off the promotional blitz and Nelly changes the game on the assignment desk at the New York papers.  Her streak gives buzz and the New York media, while covered up with Rangers playoff hockey and Knicks playoff basketball, will give an increased amount of column space to Korda and the field.  There is nothing like winning in North Jersey!

5. Anthony Kim is now five events into his return to professional golf and he’s yet to have a week that signifies quantitative progress.  He’s finished 50^th or worse in every event including this past week in Singapore where he finished 53^rd out of 54 players.  His stats are at the absolute bottom of every important category including fairways hit, less than 40% and greens hit in regulation, less than 50%.  I said from the beginning that the whole season would give an indicator if he can ascend legitimately to a lofty place again and the results so far should surprise no one including Anthony himself.  A generation of players has come and gone since he last competed and the end then was not good.  He appears happy and grateful but his insistence on engaging people on social media who are carving him up is the definition of wasted energy.  Enjoy sobriety, your family, this opportunity to play again and leave the agita behind.

6. I was able to see the renovation to the Finley Golf Course at the University of North Carolina this past week.  The Tarheel men’s team is the number 1 seed in the regional being contested there this coming week in the NCAA championships.  Having played the golf course regularly in the early 90’s it’s a great new chapter for the teams, students and residents of Chapel Hill.  A new putting course, “The Heel”, a robust practice area for the teams with short game and multiple tees and the renovation of the golf course by Carolina alum Davis Love III and his brother Mark give Finley all the assets to compete with the best college facilities in the country.  In a sport void of economic impact on the bottom line of an athletic budget, golf is blessed with insane support from the private sector made up of golf loving alums.

7. Miles Russell made a Korn Ferry Tour cut a few weeks ago at age 15 and this week it was 16-year-old Kris Kim from Surrey, England who made the cut on a sponsor exemption at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson.  Kim is the Boys amateur champion and beat Russell in a Junior Ryder Cup singles match 5 and 4.  This coming week, Blades Brown, a 16-year-old from Nashville, TN gets his shot on a sponsor exemption into the new Myrtle Beach tour event that is opposite the Wells Fargo Championship.  Brown has an NIL deal with Transcend Capital Advisors who have harvested NIL deals with other top college and amateur talent.  Brown is a top target for every major college program and look to make it three juniors making professional cuts in the last month.  Totally insane.

8. The news this week that Jack Nicklaus played Augusta National three times after the Masters is sensational.  Michael Jordan is not playing pick up at old Chicago Stadium, and Joe Montana is not throwing seam routes to Jerry Rice at Candlestick Park.  Neither venue even exists anymore which amplifies the point about golf allowing all of us to be romantic about the greats including the greats taking these walks.  In a classic Nicklaus humble brag moment, he shared dismissingly that he posted rounds of 88, 90, and 91.  He’s 84 years old!!  Maybe, yes sir!

9. Phil Mickelson responded this week to a post on Twitter/X about the perceived challenges for LIV players and major championship starts with the following, “maybe some LIV players won’t be missed.  But what if NONE of the LIV players played?  Would they be missed?  What about next year when more great players join?  Or the following year?  At some point they will care and will have to answer to sponsors and television.  FAAFO”.  Here is what won’t happen… Jon Rahm and Brooks Koepka in the prime of their careers with finite major championship starts in the grand scheme are not going to boycott majors so Talor Gooch can get a start.  Rahm and Koepka are not crusading for LIV’s place in golf, they are two dudes who took the cash, would like unification but are not dying on the major vine for other LIV guys.  It’s not to say they won’t show some phony threat to boycott, but they are NOT missing majors for the cause.  Not in this lifetime.

10. Bandon Dunes resort celebrated their 25^th anniversary this past week with the inclusion of golf “influencers” and the men responsible for the design of the five courses and Bandon Preserve and the new “Shorty’s” offering.  Bandon Dunes ushered in the era of retail golf at outposts from the Cabot Properties, Streamsong and Sand Valley to name a few.  Mike Keiser, the visionary for Bandon Dunes NEEDS to be enshrined into the World Golf Hall of Fame.  In addition to creating foundations at Bandon Dunes to turn profit into charity for conservation and community through several of their assets like Bandon Preserve and Shorty’s he’s driven a sector of the industry well into the future.  Job creation for designers, golf professionals, agronomists, service workers and administrative positions.  More importantly, he’s literally helped bring joy through the game to hundreds and hundreds of thousands of golfers.  He’s a true pioneer in the game and his place in the 2026 HOF class is overdue.

11. The Signature Series comes to Charlotte this week and the swan song for the Wells Fargo Championship.  Wells Fargo, according to multiple sources, offered to renew their agreement with the PGA Tour for more than 20 million dollars annually and the Tour declined.  From the inception of the event, then the Wachovia Championship, the tour has been blessed with the consistency of a presenting sponsor and Quail Hollow Club as a venue except in years that conflicted with a PGA Championship and the Presidents Cup.  It’s widely believed that beyond the PGA Championship in 2025 the tour will return to Quail Hollow with a new sponsor, likely to be announced in the coming weeks.  What is certain is that Quail Hollow, its new sponsor clearly paying north of 20 million annually and the relationship between the Harris family and the powers within the PGA Tour will keep the event, which started in 2003, as an elevated/signature/designated event into the 2030’s.  Charlotte likes the big event, Charlotte can’t count on its local teams to win, period, and golf is a big draw in the market.  It has been from day one.

12. Jordan Spieth’s fourth missed cut in his last six starts is beyond disconcerting.  The lingering issues with the partially torn tendon sheath in his left wrist have prompted calls from broadcast analysts for Jordan to shut it down for a while or possibly face surgery.  Spieth sags into May with no form, no record at Quail Hollow other than a good team week in 2022 with Justin Thomas in the Presidents Cup and his prospects of completing the career grand slam at the PGA at Valhalla seeming beyond remote.  Spieth is a sticky player.  He plays well and the audience sticks around.  The tour currently has few of them and his current state of play is a downer for the PGA Tour C-suite.

13. The passing of Peter Oosterhuis the day before his 76^th birthday this past Thursday conjured sadness from all corners.  Peter played globally, broadcast for virtually every media partner of the main tours and created friendships at all levels of the golf community.  I was fortunate to conduct many interviews with Peter in the infancy of “Morning Drive” on Golf Channel at the beginning of the last decade.  Warm, thoughtful, deferential and exceedingly humble was his make-up.  He exuded grace and nobody took a bad view of Peter.  What a dignified journey and truly gone too early as a victim of the hideous destruction of Alzheimer’s disease.  God speed good sir.

14. Adrian Otaegui won the Volvo China Open for his 5^th win on the DP World Tour.  Couple odd notes about Otaegui and the event.  It’s the first time the DP World Tour has been back to China in five years and for Otaegui it gets him into the PGA Championship as he sneaks into the top 3 in the Asian Swing standings on the DP tour which brings with it an invite to Valhalla.  Sebastian Soderberg led the Asian swing standings punctuated by another top 5.  Soderberg will be making his first start in the PGA.  Soderberg won the 2019 European Masters in Switzerland in one of my all-time favorite gangsome playoffs.  The playoff included Soderberg, Kalle Samooja, Andres Romero, Lorenzo Gagli, and RORY MCILROY!!  Yes, Rory off his Tour Championship and FedEx Cup title the previous week in Atlanta jetted to Switzerland to satisfy a sponsor commitment with Omega and couldn’t quite cross the line in what is one of the great golf geek trivia questions of all time.  Name the five players in the European Masters in 2019?  After that name the six guys in the playoff at Riviera in 2001.  

15. Why doesn’t an event in professional golf build or rebuild their brand around the regal optics of the Kentucky Derby.  Golf is in a tremendous and interesting place regarding fashion and style.  More brands are entering the space with influencers and players driving the interest.  Most people like a costume party and this crosses all demographics.  All sporting events generations ago were attended in elegant and dignified garb.  Taking an event and making it an event should be more than just a signature beverage.  How golf doesn’t have one event where it’s about what you wear is a loss.

16. Jake Knapp had another very good week on tour.  Jake is a good watch outside of his too methodical “think box” approach.  His easy speed, absence of violence at impact, soft soling of the club at address and overall appearance is a cool thing.  He will be interesting to watch through the summer to see if he can build a case for Montreal.

17. The news that Sweetens Cove will close at the end of May for the summer is a tough choice for their team.  The harshness of a winter spell did such damage to their turf that they have made the decision to re-grass and re-open at the beginning of September.  One of the true fun factories will be sorely missed amongst its legion of devotees. See ya in September.

18. The 5 Clubs PGA Championship Preview Show Part 1 will be released on Monday on all of our platforms including our YouTube channel.  Access via our website www.5Clubsgolf.com and on all digital audio platforms.