Get Used to This

It was a real see saw battle to the finish at the Innisbrook resort's Copperhead course this week. On the third playoff hole, Jordan Spieth holed a thirty footer to edge past a determined Patrick Reed and, a fairly seasoned, and just happy to be back in the hunt, veteran, in Sean O'Hair.

After their Ryder Cup performances and now, this tournament, Spieth and Reed are proving that they are quickly becoming the future of American golf. Both fought balky drivers, but showed real grit and determination in getting it up and down from everywhere to make the playoff. They are true competitors. Neither of them fit, what seems to be, the current PGA tour mould in terms of having mechanically perfect swings. Neither of them appear to be gym rats, or reliant on swing coaches or sports psychologists. They just have determination and desire to win in spades.

Spieth had the edge this week, but we had best get used to seeing both Spieth and Reed vying for championships. They are winners. They are confident and determined. Their greatest asset is not their physical abilities, it's their mind. You just can't teach that stuff. They are going to be around a long time, barring injury or unforeseen occurrence. And, they are only going to get better. So, we might better get used to it.

Lord Byron

My wife has managed to turn me into a second time around fanatic. I can hardly resist stopping in and browsing any thrift stores I encounter in my travels. Almost all of my clothes, golf clubs, and books are "previously enjoyed." I just draw the line at socks and underwear.

Recently, while browsing a thrift shop in the Destin area, I found Byron Nelson's autobiography, entitled How I Played the Game. For those of you that don't already know it, Byron came from the same caddy yard as Ben Hogan, and often got the better of him as a professional. He won fifty four official PGA tournaments, along with seven more unofficial professional events, before retiring early to enjoy life on his Texas ranch.

He was a consummate ball striker. He also established a record that will surely never be equalled in 1945. In that year he won eighteen tournaments, including eleven in a row. He also finished second seven times. It took a kid named Tiger Woods to finally have a marginally lower scoring average than the 68.33 Byron had in 1945. 

However, a round I didn't know about, and one that Byron spoke fondly of was the sixty six he posted in the opening round of the 1937 Masters on his way to his first Masters win. In that round, Byron hit every green in regulation, including all the par five greens in two. He took thirty four putts for a sixty six. It remained the lowest opening round in the Masters for thirty nine years until Raymond Floyd, with a hot putter, bettered it. If there was ever a better round, from a ball striking perspective, I'm not aware of it.

We are inclined to marvel at these modern pros and how they can strike the ball. But, I'm here to tell you that there's nobody out there who strikes it any better, or more consistently, than Byron did. I guess that's why they call the machine, Iron Byron. These new kids are good, but me thinks Byron would have taught them a thing or two. In fact, Byron helped Tom Watson and Ken Venturi on their way to becoming great ball strikers and champions. 

These guys are good, but don't forget, when discussing the great ones, to give Byron his due. I only wish I could have seen him play.

Man on a Mission?

Dustin Johnson is back. He has a WGC championship and has been regularly in the hunt since his return to competition after a six month hiatus. It certainly appears that he is back with a clear head, and a game and attitude that appears ready to take him to the next level.

DJ has always had all the tools to be one of the top players in the game. Long, lean, and strong like bull, he is probably the most gifted, or natural athlete in the game, which now boasts many gifted athletes. He has always had the length to bring the longest courses to their knees. But a new and improved attitude may be the difference. He displayed a resolute calmness on his way to the victory this week. Despite a balky putter for the first three days, he kept his cool and stayed in touch with the leader until his putter began to cooperate.

You need self belief to be the top man in this game. Perhaps, with this victory, we may be witnessing the coming of age of a great champion. In Wayne Gretzky, his father in law, DJ perhaps has the means to gain the insight into just what it takes to be the best of the bunch. While Wayne was never the greatest athlete in his game, he was the smartest. If DJ, with his immense physical gifts, can find a way to tap in to that Gretzky mind, watch out folks, he'll be  tough to beat.

Maybe he's the next great American player. He's taken some time, but he's still in his prime. Good luck to him. For this week at least, he was the best of the best. He might be a guy to put a wager on to donn a green jacket and break Rory's heart.

Interesting Week in Golf

It's been an interesting week in golf. Lydia Ko won her tenth professional tournament at the tender age of seventeen. Padraig won again, despite the number of toys cluttering up his proverbial attic, and a ball in the water coming down the stretch. Amy Yang finally gets another win, and a journeyman pro gets his five minutes of fame, or infamy, by making disturbing allegations about Tiger before quickly recanting.

This Lydia gal is simply incredible. She has ten wins as a pro, a full seven years before Jack, Tiger, or Rory could accomplish the same feat. I realize women tend to peak faster in golf, so perhaps the comparison to the men may not be warranted, but she is nevertheless doing something on the golf course, the likes of which we have never quite seen before, and she is doing it in such a low key fashion it appears to be the most natural thing in the world for Lydia Ko. 

She isn't flashy. She isn't especially long. She just hits fairways and greens, and holes putts when she needs to. She makes it look easy. She swings the club effortlessly and never seems to get rattled. It remains to be seen whether Lydia will start adding majors to the list or simply go off the boil as some other world beaters have done. In this game, both are possibilities, so only time will tell. It will probably be a question of how much Lydia wants to be the most prolific winner of all time, and whether she can stay healthy, motivated, and manage to avoid the inevitable array of teachers who will surely come along offering to try to help her change her swing to make her better, or longer, or whatever.

Lydia Ko in some respects reminds me of Matteo Manaserro, whom I wrote about a month or so ago. Matteo was, like Lydia, without much fanfare doing things as a teenager that had never been done before. He wasn't long, he wasn't particularly flashy, but he became the youngest player to win on the European tour after being the youngest player to accomplish several impressive feats as an amateur. He is still just a kid, but he has made what I definitely fear will turn out to have been a mistake, changing his swing in an effort to get longer. Whether he ever gets his game back, only time will tell. But for now, he finds himself in the doldrums, fast descending the ladder of the world rankings. He apparently didn't learn from the experience of his hero, Seve, who ruined his game by making swing changes and being influenced by swing gurus who couldn't hold a candle to him as a player.

American fans were likely somewhat disappointed to see Stacy Lewis fail to get it done after looking like the winner for three days. American fans might have been similarly disappointed to see Patrick Reed falter down the stretch, allowing the compulsive tinkerer, Paddy Harrington, to hang tough despite a ball in the water on seventeen. It was great to see Padraig seal the deal with a picture perfect three quarter five iron on seventeen in the playoff, despite having watched the same shot fizzle in regulation play. This Berger kid looks to be yet another new American to watch. He'll have his chances, but, for now, Paddy is back on top.

If there is a desire to see Americans once more at the top of the world rankings, it appears unlikely to be realized any time soon. Golf can no longer be said to be dominated by Americans, especially with the cooling off of Tiger and Phil and the emergence of Rory and Lydia as the game's top players. While many Americans may lament the end of American domination, perhaps best epitomized by their dismal Ryder Cup record, the change in the landscape, in terms of the players at the top, must surely be good for the growth of the global game.

As for the latest in the Tiger saga, the character making the allegations has recanted and many believe that this should be the end of the story, which included allegations of illegal or banned drug use, a suspension, and use of a non-conforming golf ball by Tiger since 1999. I suppose these allegations are not even deemed to be allegations anymore, since the man making them has recanted. Unfortunately, once something is said, it's out there until it can be established to be pure fiction. A cynic could suggest he recanted because of pressure, not because he fabricated the story. It may not be fair to Tiger or the PGA tour, but I think it behooves one or both of them to do more than simply deny these allegations. They need to make an example of this fellow if he lied. 

I have heard it suggested that silence is golden and Tiger needn't dignify these allegations with a response. While that may be true, a simple denial, with no action taken against this guy by Tiger or the tour, could leave the impression, at least to the confirmed cynics amongst us, that they are simply pleading the Fifth and hoping that this will all just go away. As another person commented recently, we have seen the fall of Lance Armstrong, not to mention all the banned substance use in baseball, so nothing should be considered to be impossible when it comes to sports and big money. Where there is smoke, there is often fire. I for one hope and trust these allegations aren't true, but one wonders, without more being known, how this fellow could have had the audacity to make these allegations if they are totally without substance. Who is he? Is he crazy?

I don't think we've heard the last of this story. 

Watchesaw Plantation East

I played Wachesaw Plantation East, in Murrells Inlet, SC. on the heels of a major rainfall. Having just arrived from Canada, I was determined to play, even if it was cool, windy, soggy, and cartpath only.

As it turned out, I was the only player on the course in the afternoon, so I promised Larry, the cart guy, that I would endeavour to play in two hours so he wouldn't have to wait too long. My long-suffering wife joined me, albeit rather grudgingly, to help with managing the cart, and so I would have some pictures to share.

Wachesaw was the 2007 Myrtle Beach course of the year, has hosted an LPGA tournament and was one of the top fifty courses in the US in 1998. It's a really good track which was once completed by Meg Mallon in sixty two shots. Believe me, it's not a pushover, so Meg definitely golfed her ball that day.

I played from the blues, which I'm told is probably where Meg played from. It's 6618 yards with a course rating of 72.4 and a slope of 136. Well, Meg Mallon I was not, but I did keep my promise to Larry and finished in two hours. My only bright spot was a holed bunker shot on nine, after I had hit an approach shot right over the flag into the back bunker and flubbed my first bunker shot. I marked four on the card and noticed with some chagrin that Kathryn was taking pictures of birds as I holed the bunker shot, so she had to take my word for it.

After a respectable thirty eight on the front, I developed a case of the lefts, made a sixty footer for par on ten, which was, in retrospect, another bright spot, and then got on the bogey train. I righted the ship coming in, missing a three footer for par on the last that would have been a very muddy and hard fought seventy eight.  If Meg had given me a stroke a hole, I would have nipped her by one. It's funny how little facts like that put things in perspective for you.

Oh well, at least I'm finally back at it after my three month layoff. Tomorrow, it's off to Charleston and a round at Charleston National.

It's All About Having Fun

Golf is one of those games that can really get a grip on you. It can literally drive you crazy. It is one of those games that, the harder you try, often the worse it gets. Golf is great therapy for someone who is a perfectionist, because you can never be perfect at this game. You can always play better, and you can always play worse, but you will never get it perfect.

Quite often, lately, you hear professional golfers, who are playing for their livelihood, being interviewed and talking about trying to have fun when they play. Recently, I heard Hunter Mahan, when asked about his goals for this year, talk about just trying to have fun and appreciate how lucky he was to be playing this game for a living. Is this because Hunter doesn't care about winning? I don't think so. I suspect Hunter is a player who wants to win as much as, or more, than anyone else out there. I think he just realizes that the only way he's going to do it, is if he has fun.

Golf at any level is meant to be fun. Yes, you should try to play your best, because you won't be happy with yourself if you don't give it your best, and anything worth doing, is worth doing to the best of your ability; but you should do nothing in golf at the expense of having fun. Ben Hogan worked at the game harder than anyone, but he, as serious as he was about the game, had fun. He loved to work at his game, it wasn't drudgery for him, it was pure joy. He couldn't wait for the next day to dawn so he could get back at it. And, despite his cold, calculating demeanour when he was in the zone, Hogan was reputed to actually be a character who liked to have fun on the golf course. He and Jimmy DeMaret were great pals and often played together, and Jimmy DeMaret was the king of having a good time. 

If you watch Rory McIlroy and Rickie Fowler out there, they are having fun. Sure, they are focussing and playing hard, but on the first day of the tournament at Abu Dhabi, the announcers were commenting about how they were "nattering to each other like a couple of old women," not a very politically correct comment, but the point was that they were doing battle, but they were enjoying each other's company and having a good time. They both shot sixty seven. Having fun doesn't impede your game.

I was thinking about the last time I played a competitive round. It was an Ontario Golf Association match play event which matched our club against three other clubs. The format involved me playing an eighteen hole match against three other players at the same time, a rather unusual format. Because I tend to be a nervous type anyway, and because I wanted to play well, just like my fellow competitors, I was a little keyed up when we started, so much so that I double bogied the first hole, then gagged my way to being four over par after three holes. I was starting to seriously wonder whether I was going to be able to break ninety. 

On the fourth hole I hit a good drive and was the last to hit to the green. My fellow competitors had been kind enough to congratulate me on the drive, even though they were probably secretly wondering to themselves what the hell I was doing playing in this event. As I stood over my approach shot, I suddenly decided that I was going to just relax and enjoy the day. I stepped away from the ball, turned to the other guys and said, "I know you probably don't believe it, but I'm actually pretty fricken good."

They laughed. I laughed, and then I proceeded to start making birdies. By the sixteenth hole, I had to stop playing because I had won all my matches. I was one under par. I am not a great player, so any time I beat Old Man Par, I'm a happy camper. Pars are good in my book. But it really wasn't the score that mattered to me, when looking back, it was once again appreciating that the simple act of relaxing, and deciding to have fun, turned my game around.

Golf is one of those games where you can definitely try too hard. Bob Rotella speaks about that. There is an optimum effort level, beyond which we actually get in our own way and actually play worse. And, when I look back on my golf, I am constantly reminded that I play my best when I just relax and let it go. But, being something of a perfectionist, and having played a number of other competitive sports, having fun at golf is not something that comes naturally. I tend to want to put on my game face and do battle with myself and the course. I have to remind myself that, regardless of how I play, I will still get my supper, and hopefully my wife will still love me. It really isn't supposed to be a life and death struggle out there.

So, all I can suggest, to those who might find themselves struggling and working hard at this game, is that you ask yourself whether or not you are having fun. If the answer is no, you shouldn't try harder. You should either quit, which I sometimes think might not be such a bad idea, or you should remind yourself, just like Hunter Mahan, how lucky you are to be out there playing this great game. I bet, just like me, if you make it your goal to have fun, instead of to play your absolute best, the results will come. And, if they don't, at least you'll be having fun; and isn't that what golf is all about?

What's Happened to Matteo?

The Italian whiz kid, Matteo Manaserro, looked very average and very unhappy today, playing alongside Rory McIlroy and Rickie Fowler in Abu Dhabi. He hit it short, crooked, and often. It was yet another poor start in what has been a steady descent down the world rankings after reaching the number eleven spot in 2013 when he won the BMW PGA championship at Wentworth for his fourth European Tour win. 

Manaserro has quite the resume. He was the youngest player to win the British Amateur, the youngest player to be the top amateur at the Masters at 16 years 11 months, he won the silver medal as the top amateur at the Open, and very quickly, after turning pro became the youngest to win a European Tour event. He has won four times and he is still only twenty one years old. However, since his great win at Wentworth, he has managed only two top tens in 2014. He has fallen off the radar.

The word is that he has been making swing changes in order to get longer. Once again, we see a top player, in this case a kid with an unbelievable resume, a kid who was surely destined for greatness, who has somehow been convinced, or convinced himself, that he has to make swing changes in order to get more distance. And now, he has, at least temporarily, lost his game. It's a damned shame.

The frightening thing about making swing changes is that, if they make you worse, you sometimes, maybe even often, can't go back. It's happened to some great players in the past, even Manaserro's boyhood idol, Seve Ballasteros. I just hope it hasn't happened to Matteo. I hope he can find his swing. Whether it is a new, improved swing, or the one that brought him such phenomenal success so soon.

I hope he knows what he's doing, but I fear the worst. In golf, as in life, it's better to dance with the one you brung. If it ain't broke, don't try to fix it, and always remember, the woods are full of long drivers.