by Gary Williams | Aug 7, 2023 | The Card
- 125 should have never been the number for the FedEx Cup playoffs. 125 was always associated with employment and 70 felt like it had edge. 70 is too small for Signature events but the right number for the tour’s “postseason”.
- The Tour and FedEx need to change the name. Playoffs is clumsy and is not a golf term. Make it the FedEx Cup Final Series.
- Lucas Glover was 185th in the FedEx Cup after a MC at Memorial and subsequently missed a two-footer in a U.S. Open sectional qualifier playoff days later. Three top 6 finishes and then a win at Wyndham later is ballsy.
- 58 is 58. DeChambeau shooting 119 on the weekend at the Greenbrier is absurd but he’s not getting on the Ryder Cup team. It’s not about whether he should be considered it’s that he won’t be.
- Last week I thought Justin Thomas was not on the team in Zach’s mind, this week I think he is. He’s picking his team not celebrating the 12 best individual seasons.
- Celine Boutier backed a major win in her home country with a win in Scotland. That is massively impressive follow up to the best week of her career.
- The playoff rota needs a major overhaul and that’s with me being a fan of Olympia Fields.
- Korn Ferry experimented with Barstool Sports doing the broadcast last week. More is coming in the near future.
- I returned to Chambers Bay this week for an Underrated Golf Tour event. The U.S. Open is not coming back here and that’s okay but the USGA will keep returning. It’s not a spectator friendly site and the west coast is now covered.
- I saw way too many pictures of friends playing golf in Ireland and Scotland in the last week. Thrilled for them and now determined to get to Royal Dornoch for the first time in fall of ‘24.
- The last two spots on the U.S. Ryder Cup team could be filled by players getting little mention right now. Any playoff win will thrust someone to the front of the line who is outside the top 15 in standings.
- Luke Donald is likely feeling better and better about his team.
- Interviewed Andy Johnson of the Fried Egg last week and I’m thoroughly impressed with what they do and how much they do of it.
- The PGA Tour doesn’t need another corporate leader who invests his or her company’s money in the tour to fill the vacated board seat, they need someone who is in the sports industry who knows the global sports landscape.
- Jon Rahm will win the POY award unless Scottie Scheffler wins the FedEx Cup.
- I have a feeling Tiger will do a lengthy interview before the end of the year on state of the tour.
- Rory will win his 4th FedEx Cup title over the next three weeks.
- The U.S. Women’s Am at Bel Air CC is the best site for an event next to the Walker Cup at the Old Course in 2023.
by Gary Williams | Jul 31, 2023 | The Card
- Celine Boutier joins Nick Taylor with the best home wins of the year.
- Biblical conditions at any “Open” like they got on Sunday at Royal Porthcawl make golf on television a tragic comedy.
- Justin Thomas is finally off the Ryder Cup team in my mind as I try to read Zach Johnson’s mind.
- Tony Finau is a multi-time winner this season and he’s as malleable a piece for Zach Johnson as he could have. He’s never not been on the team.
- Greensboro is a modest market with immense PGA Tour history and Sedgefield has hosted Hogan, Palmer, Nicklaus and Woods so it’s right that it has the spot it has on the schedule.
- 7 under was the cutline on the Korn Ferry Tour this week. They are coming from everywhere with zero fear at a time that fields may be shrinking for the best events on the PGA Tour.
- Rose Zhang has a win and three top 10’s in majors since turning pro 10 minutes ago. She’s on the Solheim Cup team.
- Minnesota golf fans reflect the joy, passion and enthusiasm of a group who know ice station zebra and frozen lakes will be here in no time.
- Lee Hodges’ golf swing is ridiculously good.
- Bryan Kim won the U.S. Junior on a golf course that was set up a notch above 7,350 yards. Expand your view of the distance issues beyond the PGA Tour. What will the U.S. Junior need in 25 years?
- Jay Monahan took the positions he needed to with his players in his memo to the membership but anyone thinking the tour is driven by what’s best for the “game” is beyond naïve.
- Cashmere Keith Mitchell has taken the mantle with best swag/mojo on tour but if he really wants to go full “That 70’s show” he will take off the visor and let the lettuce flow.
- Colin Montgomerie shot Michael Irvin on Sunday. If you have a better athlete associated with #88 I’m here for the debate.
- The last time Zac Blair played on Sunday before yesterday was at the Travelers when he shot 62 and jumped to T2. 64 on Sunday at the 3M cashed him another good check which means he’s got money to play with when his fantastic new Tree Farm opens this fall.
- My old Morning Drive teammate Lauren Thompson celebrated a birthday this past weekend. LT is the greatest teammate ALL of us have ever had.
- J.T. Poston is climbing tiers on the PGA Tour and a win next week at his home game in Greensboro seems about right.
- Somehow I’m going to get to Royal Dornoch in 2024. I just made that declaration.
- Chris Gotterup is going to be a guy that others have to deal with in the next two years.
by Gary Williams | Jul 24, 2023 | The Card
- Brian Harman did to an Open Championship field what other Americans like Jones, Hagen, Palmer and Woods did before him, win by six or more.
- Scottie Scheffler is having one of the great statistical ball-striking seasons of all time but being shut out in the majors and his last win being in March leaves his season feeling unfilled, to this point.
- The Player of the Year race has fallen flat.
- Royal Liverpool’s new 17th hole didn’t hit the mark. It reduced the whole field to hit a wedge to the middle of the green and have the same length putt.
- Jason Day and Rickie Fowler are having a great ‘Comeback Player of the Year” race, if one actually still existed.
- First tee shot in the air and last putt holed every day is now the standard broadcast model for three majors. With the much smaller field and a superior digital product, The Masters continues to be the standard.
- Nick Faldo’s retirement from broadcasting has allowed him much more free time for broadcasting.
- Sepp Straka will be the most southern member of the European Ryder Cup team of all time.
- The U.S. Ryder Cup team is much less of a favorite in Rome than anyone thought they would be eight months ago.
- The Wyndham Championship is gonna be tremendous.
- A dose of Jaime Diaz on the “Live From” set each night is good for everyone.
- Rory McIlroy goes into his 10th year in pursuit of his 5th major title. The average time it has taken for the other eighteen men who have won 5 majors or more to get major win number 5, less than two and half years.
- Who is the most accomplished player yet to truly contend to win a major? Patrick Cantlay. One top 5 and it was a distant third at the 2019 PGA.
- First seven names on the Open leaderboard were from different nations. In the absence of a dominant one, and more global depth, we are looking at a decade like the 90’s where there were 28 different major champions.
- The Open was the worst performing major by LIV players and it wasn’t even close with only one top 20 finish by Henrik Stenson who finished T13.
- This will be the week that Jay Monahan will begin his in-person relationship rehabilitation with Tour members, if it’s possible.
- Matthew Jordan top 10’ing at his home club after hitting the opening tee shot was Michael Block lite, minus the “Raising Canes” sponsorship.
- Tiger Woods will play in the next major.
by Gary Williams | Jul 17, 2023 | The Card
The Card – Volume I
18 thoughts, observations and predictions:
- Rory’s 2-3 finish with the wind pumping and his two-iron to 18 that set up his winning birdie at the Scottish may portend a historic week upcoming and the beginning of his second major wave.
- Robert MacIntyre just made the European Ryder Cup team.
- Iona Stephen is a star broadcaster. So comfortable, confident and makes short conversations redeemable.
- I wish Nick Faldo’s hole-in-one reaction in his Ryder Cup singles match against Paul Azinger was equal to Steph Curry’s. A homicide as a footnote to a Ryder Cup would trump The Concession.
- I’ve taken more lessons in the last two months than I have in three decades and I am starting to get the chasing distance rabbit hole.
- The hood on Tommy Fleetwood’s Friday hoodie at the Scottish was from the wardrobe of the “Dead Poets Society”.
- Jim McMahon never missing a start in the American Century in the event’s history is pretty ironic.
- More co-sanctioned events are coming and not fast enough. Barbasol was a stew of backgrounds, nations and career paths.
- Linn Grant was the latest legit 59 watch on a major tour this past week at Dana Open. He never broke golf’s sound barrier, but Lanny Wadkins remains the guy, to me, least afraid of shooting nothing.
- Hoylake doesn’t get the affection of others in the rota but it is a canyon of ball striking heroes.
- Tyrrell Hatton is Ryder Cup Europe’s new world class irritant. Americans will loathe him come late September and he’s gonna be a very tough point.
- Steve Stricker won his 3rd senior major this year. Could senior accomplishments nudge a player into the hall of fame? Emphatically NO.
- Jay Monahan returns to work this week and fence mending with his players is far more important right now than public posturing about control of something that is far from complete.
- Cam Smith’s road since St. Andrews is as unorthodox as we’ve seen in generations and he absolutely can repeat.
- The new 17th at Hoylake will get tons of deserved attention as we are seeing a refreshing desire to showcase the teeny 3’s at majors. Nice that Troon’s postage stamp, 12 at Augusta and 7 at Pebble have some new company.
- Crystal Downs really, really got to me. Time capsule stuff. Testament to the value and joy of staying true to what you’ve always been.
- Peter Alliss you are missed, this week just amplifies it for all of us.
- Rory is the pick.
Enjoy the Open Championship.
