Some Consolation

Winner Geoff Ogilvy talked about the pace of play during Sunday's WGC final:

Q: Did the pace bother you, the fact that you guys waited quite a bit?

Geoff Ogilvy: It was quite slow; we waited for most of it, yeah.

Q: What did you say to Mark walking up 10 fairway?

Geoff Ogilvy: I just asked him why they weren't like 15 minutes in front of us in the tee time and not five or ten minutes, just to have a bit of a separation. I know all the TV and all the volunteers and everything want to be on one spot on the golf course, which makes sense. But they could have made it a hole in between us. Me and Davis play quite fast; we probably would have caught them anyway. No big deal. I've never been one of four people on a golf course and waiting (laughter).

Q: What did he say?

Geoff Ogilvy: Who?

Q: Mark Russell.

Geoff Ogilvy: It was because of all the infrastructure and everything needs to be all in one spot. It's a bit of a mess if it's all spread out. And it makes sense.

It was just we played quite fast. We obviously played just a hair faster. It wasn't relentless waiting, but it was enough to be waiting. We were obviously playing each hole faster than the other two guys and we were catching them every hole.

Q: They could have put them off 25 minutes early and it wouldn't make any difference.

Geoff Ogilvy: I would think so. But we may have caught them anyway after four holes. If we have a couple of good holes we might catch them anyway, and you've got volunteers and cameras spread out over three holes, and that may not be what they wanted.

Q: Did you want to play through?

Geoff Ogilvy: We asked the question.

Q: Did you ask?

Geoff Ogilvy: We asked the question on the 8th. Because I was messing around and Zach had done something in the water, I don't know what he did, it looked like he was playing a left handed shot and it went and there was all sorts of they stood around for five minutes, and actually Davis asked the question, hey, Mark, can we go, can we just go in front of them? Because we shouldn't be waiting.

It was fine. We still probably played 16 holes in three and a half hours, so it wasn't bad.

Boring Course=Boring Match?

Geoff OgilvySunday's Geoff Ogilvy-Davis Love match was not exactly a heart stopping thrill-ride to culminate the WGC's run at La Costa.

The ABC announce team implied that the play was lackluster at times, but that seems unfair to Ogilvy and Love.

The real fault for another less-than-exciting match play goes to La Costa's insipid design.

Since I'm apparently the only one that thinks the stymie would have livened up today's match (and maybe more replays of Tom Lehman getting into a sword fight with his bag), consider how the architecture failed to offer chances for daring play.

Other than the short par-4 6th (which technology helped turn into risk-reward short par-4), the design offered few tough decisions that might create dramatic turning points. There are were even fewer "scary" shots that might put the player in an uncomfortable position (and leading to more tough decision-making scenarios or hope for the player who was down in the match).

In fact, the inconsistent rough provided the only real "danger," and we know how interesting rough is as a hazard. 

In general, the design rewards a conservative style of play, and Ogilvy handled it beautifully. Watching him play last week at Riviera, the combination of his steady ball striking, solid putting and easy-going demeanor made him an ideal uh, match for La Costa.

Last year I had suggested in this Golfobserver.com column why La Costa is a dud for match play and why PGA West-Stadium would be far more compelling.

But as we learned today to end golf's worst kept secret, the WGC Match Play moves to Tucson's The Gallery at Dove Mountain, home to a 725-yard par-5. Excited?

Fans of match play can only hope for the sake of the format that the Fought-Lehman design will elicit a few more decisions and uncomfortable shots that can make match play so fun to watch. 

$ilverRock Woes

The City of La Quinta's SilverRock project is 50% over budget, causing the city to wonder if spending another $68,000 to please the PGA Tour is worth it. At $15 million, with half a million on "dust control," what's another $68k?!

Sahallee Blues

Blayne Newnham, writing about Sahallee deserving another major in the Seattle Times:

There is concern the PGA Championships have outgrown Sahalee and Seattle, that the 27 holes isn't big enough to do the corporate tent thing, that there isn't room for enough spectators, that Seattle has shown less than robust corporate support.

Concern, too, that the course isn't big enough to handle 350-yard drives.

After the PGA in 1998, Kerry Haigh, the director of tournaments, was asked about the tightness of Sahalee's fairways limiting the use of the driver among players.

"It was their choice and it made for long iron shots to the greens," he said. "Some players hit more drivers than others, and none of them, as far as I know, complained."

The PGA of America wanted to expand its horizons, it wanted to bring the tournament to the Northwest.

It found a different and spectacular course, one that could quiet technology with nature.

Or, someone could quiet technology by actually regulating it? Nah, that makes too much sense!

Tim, Tom, Tucson

Breaking news from the Tucson Citizen:

 A news conference has been called at 11 a.m. Tucson time Sunday by PGA Tour commissioner Tom Finchem "regarding the future of golf in Tucson."

More On Ogilvy

Mike Clayton filed this overview of Geoff Ogilvy's career before he had top-6 finishes in the final two majors of 2005.

Huggan On Rankings

John Huggan slices and dices the silly new women's world golf ranking.

Unlimited, Perpetual, Nonexclusive...

Frank Bridgewater in the Honolulu Star Bulletin elaborates on the LPGA's photo policy and shares details not previously reported. Hard to see how there was a misunderstanding here:

"ALL PHOTOGRAPHS TAKEN AT LPGA EVENTS ARE TO BE USED SOLELY BY THE SPECIFIC NEWS MEDIA OUTLET FOR WHICH THE CREDENTIAL HAS BEEN ISSUED AND FOR NO PURPOSE OTHER THAN THE NEWS COVERAGE FOR THE PARTICULAR LPGA EVENT AT WHICH THE PHOTOGRAPHS ARE TAKEN."

 And...

"the LPGA shall have an unlimited, perpetual, nonexclusive right to use ... photographs taken at LPGA events for the noncommercial promotion of the LPGA and LPGA events, at no additional expense, in any form worldwide."

And several thousand dollars of legal fees later, the corrected language:

"Notwithstanding any other provisions of the LPGA Photographer and Journalist Media Credential Regulations, media outlets may make unrestricted editorial use of any images or articles they create pursuant to their access to any LPGA event."

Firing Up The Match Play

Writers are already moaning about the weekend match-ups at La Costa. Earlier in the week, John Hawkins suggested ways in his new Golf Digest blog to fire up the match play.

Since no one except me and Bobby Jones like the idea of the stymie making a cameo, and with the event moving to a course over 20 miles outside of Tucson next year, the prospects of renewed energy coming to the WGC Match Play appear dim at best.

So I'm wondering if anyone is aware of a round robin format similar to something we see with Olympic team sport competitions where the individual brackets would play amongst themselves (maybe even 9 hole matches?), with the player having the best record in each bracket moving on to the semi-final matchs?

The idea would be to create a series of short matches that would have big names playing every day through Friday (or even Saturday), perhaps with sem-finals Sunday. And as Mike Tirico has suggested on the air, maybe a Monday late afternoon, prime-time-in-the-east finish?

Thoughts?

Weeks In Review: Feb. 12-25: Nissan Week

With L.A. Open in progress I was unable to do a week in review, so here's just some of what has been posted the last two weeks.

We learned that pro-technology Acushnet is seeking a patent for a reduced flight ball, prompting reader Jonathan Cummings to ask "why in the world is this so hard? Developing a shorter ball is child's play from a technical standpoint."

Frank Hannigan analyzed the Jim Vernon speech that made many manufacturer lawyers salivate.

I obtained another exclusive transcript of those wacky PGA Tour Policy Board meetings.

David Fay's recent comments questioning the importance of governing the game for elite players elicited this from reader JPB: "The answer is the USGA governs for all players. Golf has gotten to this point because there have been rules on equipment, rules on amateur status, and a sense of etiquette and sportsmanship. Pro golf has profited because of these things, and so has the USGA. The answer is not to abandon the rules and tradition, but to celebrate them and strengthen them. Pro golf can thrive, as can amateur and recreational play."

Speaking of the USGA, they debuted a super cool new search engine this week, though reader MacDuff reminded us that it's not quite so cool for those using dial-up.

News of The Country Club's interest in the 2013 U.S. Open prompted Ned Ludd to say the USGA shoudl forget the Composite Course and "combine the Clyde and Squirrel in their entireties into one 14000 yard course. Will make for some really weird doglegs, but we are assured it will identify the best flogger...er...I mean golfer. Gas up the jet, Walter, we're goin' to Beantown!"

The Nissan Open at Riviera was kicked off with a look at the most recent course meddling, name at the 3rd, 9th and 12th holes.

I offered up daily reports from Riviera. Here they are should you want to relive this great moment in blogging history. Vol 1, Vol 2 (which included the J.B. Holmes press conference where he talked about how he doesn't work out), Vol 3, Vol 4, Vol 5, Vol 6, Vol 7 and the wrap up.

We learned about Ernie Els' bizarre trip to Hawaii in between the match play and Nissan, prompting some interesting remarks from you all.

At the Nissan, Rory Sabbatini nearly created the early frontrunner for wacky story of the year by deciding to change irons before the final round.

My Nissan Notes column for Golfobserver.com looked at the effort by Mrs. Sabbatini, the 10th hole and other assorted bits from the event. I also looked at the 12th hole courtesy of ShotLink.

Steve Elling looked at the USGA's rough plans for Winged Foot.

And I followed up with some photos of two holes that will not feature the new "tiered" rough.

Just as things were seemingly going well for the LPGA Tour, they decided to pick a fight with the media, a move which Robert Thompson summed up nicely when he said, "I don't have any sense of why the LPGA, at this critical stage in its development, would wade into a copyright issue that it can't win. AP brings coverage of its events to all those papers in small and mid-sized cities through the U.S. and Canada -- why mess with that? I suspect this has something to do with Bivens' background in advertising and the general disdain that many in advertising have for the editorial side of the equation."

We learned that Cog Hill is going to be Rees-tored soon, prompting Smolmania to write: "My only fear about this whole process is the horror stories which have been documented about Torrey Pines. It seems that many (most?) long-time players don't enjoy the renovations to the South Course, and now we've got Mr. Jones in charge of our local gem. I hope that in the search for acceptance by the USGA -and isn't that a scary concept - that Joe Lee and Joe Jemsek's goal of a country club quality public course doesn't go by the wayside."

I made my usual plea for the stymie to appear in a big time match play event and was met with the usual jaded responses. Where's your sense of fun?

And finally, things in golf got back to normal with a  commentary from someone at Titleist about the evil media, prompting Sean Murphy to share an interesting perspective on the golf ball and the transition to a power game that you won't want to miss.

"Top Level Energy For These International Questions"

John Davis writes about the WGC Match Play's move to Tucson and features this quote from PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem:

PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem said recently that he hopes to schedule a WGC event in Asia within the next year. Last month the tour hired former LPGA Tour Commissioner Ty Votaw as executive vice president of international affairs.

That could mean that the WGC events, including the Match Play, will be rotating to other markets.

"I do think it's a transition phase," Finchem said. "That's one reason we brought Ty Votaw aboard, to allow us to get some top-level energy for these international questions." 

Top level energy? Is that coterminous with...ah, forget it. 

LPGA Wises Up...

...but the PR damage was done. You have to figure that Commissioner Bivens will be getting a second look from golf publications in the coming weeks.

Driving Force: The Anti-Tech Agenda At Play

The Arizona Daily Star's Charles Durrenberger reveals his agenda to bring down the ball companies by writing about the emergence of power thanks to technology.

Despite lengthening the Catalina Course by some 500 yards, the big hitters still have a huge advantage — especially on the par 5s — which yielded a record 54 eagles in 2005.

For example, [Bubba] Watson can carry the bunkers on the redesigned par-5 eighth hole, some 305 yards off the tee. Purdy says he has trouble reaching the green in two.

"It's become a big man's sport," added Purdy, who ranked 131st in driving distance last year. "The technology and equipment have allowed players to hit it further than ever."

See, it was the writer's agenda to put those words in Purdy's mouth.

Veteran Nick Price said technology and equipment have had the biggest effect on the game since he turned pro 29 years ago.

"Younger guys know more about the swing than I did at their age," Price said. "And the sweet spot on these drivers is as big as a plum. You can swing a lot harder without losing it."

See, Nick Price was just spellbound by the swaying stopwatch that Durrenberger dangled before him, repeating whatever Durrenberger wants to spread the gospel of anti-technology!

LPGA Fields Open/Ap Follow Up

Ferd Lewis paints a not-so-pretty picture of the unfolding PR debacle in Hawaii.

Where Good Tournaments Go To Die?

Rex Hoggard in Golfweek:

Next year, the Match Play is moving to a new course in Tucson, Ariz., that few have ever heard of, in an out-of-the-way part of town. Never been there, but it sounds like the place good tournaments go to die.

But it won't be Tucson that kills the Match Play. That honor belongs to TV. Television execs fear match play's capricious ways like Ames fears bulletin boards.

Tall Rough Holes at Winged Foot

In analyzing Steve Elling's story on the plans for longer anti-birdie rough at Winged Foot, I promised photos.

No. 6 at Winged Foot (click image to enlarge)I'm not sure what exactly to say when looking at these shots of the wonderful par-4 6th and the equally neat par-4 11th. Both have already been stripped of their original strategic charm due to the super-narrow setup leftover from the U.S. Amateur. And this is before the extra tall rough is harvested this spring.

But here's what I'd ask you to consider when looking at these wonderful Tillinghast holes, two of which will not see the new "tiered" rough, but instead, tall stuff designed to reduce red scoring.

Looking at the photos, think of yourself being able to carry the ball 310-340 off the tee in warm weather. Would you try to lay up within these narrow fairways or simply try to drive it as close as possible to the green? 

Drives of that distance will bring you within flip wedge range of the green, if not on the green or in surrounding bunkers.
No. 11 at Winged Foot (click on image to enlarge)

In the photo of No. 6, note all of the rough leading up to the leftside fairway bunker. I'm not positive, but I suspect this was meant as a handy little lay-up area to access hole locations tucked behind the front right bunker. I know, that strategy stuff...back when people were allowed to use their brains in the game.

And the narrow fairway on No. 11 is ironic since some width would expose the wonderful rolls and tilt that would take misfires away from the centerline, and toward areas where approach shots would be blocked out by trees. (Hint USGA, that means likely leading to bogies!)

Where's the Balance?

It's been a while since they posted a unbylined complaint over at Titleist.com, but it's good to know the theme never changes. Yes, that's right, we're back to the golf media's "anti-golf ball technology agenda":

But what is disturbing is when members of the golf media use their position to advance their anti-technology and anti-golf ball technology agenda to golfers without providing their readers the opportunity to learn from an opposing view.

That's right, you cannot pick up a golf magazine without reading that anti-ball technology propaganda. It's stifling, I tell you!

While free speech is a wonderful thing, and the golf media has every right to provide editorial opinions, it is disillusioning to know that the opposing facts are often conveniently overlooked. Where then do the 25 million golfers in the U.S. get exposed to a balanced perspective on the long-standing technology and tradition debate?

I nominate Titleist.com. No agenda there!

And if the PGA Tour is going to measure the perception of the public relative to distance to consider whether additional rule modifications are desirable, and media coverage is imbalanced, then one can hardly expect golfers/fans of the PGA Tour to have an open mind.

It really is all the media's fault. Well, and are they implying that the average golfer is not smart enough to weed through the bias and come to their own conclusions? 

Semantics are another powerful tool used to influence readers' reactions. When referring to the USGA, he uses derogatory terms like "apparently awakened from a Rip Van Winkle-length coma" and a "dawdling organization". He notes that Kenny Perry is feeling "increasingly obsolete" or "something's out of whack when Perry ranked 11th in the world, feels like a Lilliputian." The fact is Kenny Perry will turn 46 this August. In how many professional sports can a 46-year old still remain competitive let alone, be ranked 11th in the world in their chosen sport?

You might want to check out the story that has upset the writer so. Here's what Perry said that Steve Elling characterized as increasingly obsolete: "Skill? That's kind of where the tour has gone. You can hit it 50 yards off-line and hit a wedge out of the rough. They can still fire at the flagstick. That's the way golf has played out the last couple of years."

Those semantics! Not obsolete. He just feels really good about being left behind. 

What is even more alarming is digging behind the scenes to the actual press conference and reading the unequivocally biased "questions" asked of J.B. Holmes:

 Q. John, with the way that you have been piping it out there the last few years, now that you are out here with the big boys, and blowing it past all of them, there has been sort of a negative side to it to, people are saying he hits it too far, they need to rein that in. What's your response to all of that? You can become the poster boy for the USGA making rules changes.

Q. You don't think there has been a lessening of the skill factor because you only have to hit your 3-iron, 4-iron, 5-iron a couple of times per tournament? It's mostly a wedge, 9-iron. These are some of the points that have been raised. You are just overwhelming golf courses.

These aren't questions. They are "leading the witness" statements by a reporter with an agenda.

You know, another S word comes to mind to describe those new Cobra ads where David Feherty, CBS's on-course announcer and member of the Cobra staff, is drooling all over Cobra's J.B. Holmes during the FBR final round and conveniently, his final day raves appear in a new Cobra ad campaign.

Now that's synergy, baby! Of course, you can be the judge by checking the ad out over at Cobra's web site, a company owned by Fortune Brands, the same folks who own Titleist.

After a rant about no one celebrating Arron Oberholser's short driving and great putting en route to victory at Pebble Beach, we get to the heart of the matter:

The game has changed. But that is hardly new as this timeless deep-rooted debate about technological advancement is as old as the game itself. Where is the evidence to support that the game has been harmed?

Uh, how about this: Lousy ratings? Or flat rounds despite equipment that has never made the game easier.

No, I know, the NGF, Nielson, shoot, they're all biased!

The Titleist commentary left out a remark about the enormous financial gains that these anti-technology folks stand to gain from their agendas.

As opposed to the equipment companies, who are in this purely for the love of the game.

The piece also does not explain all these famous golfers like Palmer, Nicklaus, Norman and Woods who are saying something should be done about distance.

I guess they've been bamboozled by the media's anti-technology agenda, too?

A Wie High?

Brian Hewitt looks at the absurdity of Michelle Wie debuting at No. 3 in the new women's world ranking, and the even more ridiculous idea of someone named Yuri Fudoh landing in the No. 4 spot.

Blogging From La Costa

GolfDigest.com debuts a blog from La Costa. John Hawkins weighs in with two promising entries on the state of the event and on his bad choice to win the event.

Verdi: No Cell Phones Please

Bob Verdi says cell phones need to go on the PGA Tour, and he's not talking about spectators. Sadly, he is right to point out the problem. It was embarrassing to see players using their phones last week while spectators were trying to watch them hit balls.