When you come to think of it that is the secret of most of the great holes all over the world. They all have some kind of a twist. C.B. MACDONALD
Because I'm under doctor's orders to only watch 15 minutes from every hour of televised golf at courses with bunkers surrounded by rough and/or back-and-forth tree-lined routings featuring indecipherable holes, my exposure to this weekend's No. 1 world ranking talk was limited. However, I noticed quite a bit of tweeting about Phil Mickelson "choking" at the chance to pass Tiger Woods in the world rankings.
I'd sum up my feelings on this vital chase for No. 1 in the world, but reader Mr. BoJangles did the heavy typing for me:
a little off topic, but does #1 really mean anything in golf? Seriously. Why is it even discussed? It doesn't help you win majors. The only thing I can think of is the Match Play pairings, you get a one-seed. Being Ranked #1 is meaningless in every sport except college football. What was Shrek ranked? Or Graham?
Someone told me Greg Norman was ranked No. 1 for a lot weeks back in his prime. And I was like, who cares? He won 2 majors.
If Phil takes No. 1 over Tiger, what does that mean, really? Tiger's won 14 majors, Phil's won [four]. Who's going to have the better golf career when they're both retired? Anyway, that's just my rant on the golf rankings and every other ranking for that matter. I think rankings are retarded and while I'm at it, college football needs a playoff system. That will never happen.
That's what Rusty Miller reports. By the looks of that Getty Image I'd have guessed they were watching one of Tiger's tee shots. Or something else your devious caption minds will suggest.
Tough love from Bob Harig after Phil Mickelson finished right before play was suspended.
Lefty's disposition did not become much better when he was talking to reporters after his round Friday and heard the announcement that play had been suspended due to high winds -- meaning those on the course were getting a break from the bad weather, or so it seemed.
"I'm happy for those guys," Mickelson said in full sarcasm mode. "That's great."
Weather is almost never a factor in suspending play at the Open due to the excellent drainage capabilities of sand-based links courses and a lack of thunderstorms.
But if golf balls cannot stay still on a green, there is no choice but to halt play
Jason Sobel makes a strong case against the PGA Tour's proposed "designated tournament" option to improve fields at events not drawing stars. Sobel's point? This is all really about Tiger and Phil and therefore, is a waste of time.
While this scenario could cause consternation for many players, it will be the choices of a chosen few which are dissected and analyzed, celebrated and criticized.
It is because of this that should such a law be enacted, it could hardly cause a ripple on the PGA Tour, save for one or two more events being played by one or two more superstar competitors.
"Everybody seems to refer to this as a Tiger and Phil issue; it's really not," said PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem, who intimated that details of the plan wouldn't be ironed out for a few months. "It's really about having a representative number of top players week in and week out."
That's some solid commish-speak, but the simple fact is, not many other guys can move the needle. Let's face it: Nobody is buying tickets to watch Scott Verplank. No one is clamoring for more Tim Clark. No offense to either player -- each of whom is ranked in the top 50 on both the OWGR and the FedEx points list -- but if this rule is being built to showcase the big names at more venues, it might as well be referred to as the Tiger-Phil Formula.
The Onion with a Sunday morning exclusive on Phil Mickelson, currently seven back of leader Dustin Johnson.
Steve Elling on a fun post-round scene today at TPC Sawgrass.
As ever, Phil Mickelson was signing autographs outside the scoring center at The Players Championship, having torn up the course with a 6-under 66 on Saturday to move into contention, and fans clamored three and four deep to get his signature.
Nothing new there. Then Tiger Woods walked past, having just completed another lackluster round.
A boy waiting in line for Mickelson to sign a souvenir, perhaps 7 or 8 years old, yelled out a biting comment to the reigning world numero uno.
"Say goodbye to No. 1, Tiger," the kid said. "Kiss it goodbye."
Double ouch. Not only has Mickelson unseated Woods as the game's most popular player, he's seemingly on the verge of dethroning him as the top dog in the world rankings.
Mickelson gave the kid a tsk-tsk. A less-classy player might have slipped the kid $100.
"Be polite," Mickelson said to the boy.
This is fun on so many levels.
First you have Phil Mickelson, who bypassed this week's mandatory players meeting in which the commissioner pleaded for no controversial comments from players, choosing to criticize a tour venue's design rather strongly.
Second, the course in question was modified by Tom Fazio's designer at the time, Beau Welling, now Tiger Woods' in-house designer.
And third, the course desperately wants to host a major and this probably isn't going to help.
Steve Elling reports:
"For as beautifully designed as this golf course is from tee to green, the greens are some of the worst designed greens that we have on tour, and 18 is one of them," he said of the final green. "I would say 18 is the worst on tour, except it's not the worst on this golf course, 12 is, and we have some ridiculous putts here that you just can't keep on."
And as Elling suggests, Mickelson made sure to make his point by risking a penalty on 18:
Theatrically, Mickelson tried to make his point clear on the 18th green when he hit his approach shot over the flagstick and had a sloping, 60-footer for birdie that he could not get anywhere near the flag. At least. not without using a pitching wedge and hitting the flagstick with the lob shot.
He ordered caddie Jim Mackay to leave the flagstick in the hole as he putted away from the hole. It was shocking to see, to be sure, and nobody could recall ever witnessing it before in a tour event. If he'd made the putt, which he insisted was an impossibility, he would have been assessed a two-shot penalty.
Tod Leonard reminds us that Jim Mackay deserves plenty of credit for his work as Phil Mickelson's caddy, something we'd appreciate more if a certain announcer wasn't talking all over the Mackay-Mickelson conversations Sunday.
I guess I can see Steve Elling's point in praising Billy Payne's unexpected Tiger smackdown, even though I don't think he was the one to deliver the message.
One New York writer said Payne was a hypocrite, but he missed the bigger point. Unlike PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem, who has said nary a word condemning the destructive actions of his top breadwinner, Payne felt strongly enough about Woods' tabloid-filling actions to make a strong stand, knowing full well that ANGC's policies and history would again be called into question. For that, I give the club even more credit.
Mark Cannizzaro offers yet another example that the criticism of Tiger is growing more pointed by the day:
Mickelson's stock is decidedly up; Woods' stock is down.
Mickelson has everything right now; Woods has nothing but his money.
Mickelson is the most embraced figure in the sport; Woods has become toxic.
Mickelson has won two Masters since 2006; Woods has not won one since 2005.
Mickelson is revered; Woods is ridiculed.
Mickelson is wanted as a guest on all the late-night talk shows; Woods is the most popular butt of the jokes being told on the late-night talk shows.
Mickelson comes off as a real human being who cares as he looks people in the eyes, signs autographs and interacts with them; Woods comes off as unapproachable and enigmatic with a constant force-field of handlers surrounding him and keeping everyone at bay.
Mickelson is a big tipper, appreciative and generous with the millions of dollars he makes; Woods, the first billionaire in sports, is notoriously cheap.
So it seems cruel that Mickelson, who seemingly has everything in life, has been forced to struggle with cancer in his family.
Woods, on the other hand, would appear to have everything yet right now he seems to have nothing.
Elling also offered this in his all-Masters Up and Down column that also includes a funny Urban Meyer story:
In case you missed it, there was a telling incident -- actually, two of them -- on the same hole during the crucial moments of the final round that underscored all anybody needs to know about the mental wiring of the game's two greatest active players. Standing on the right side the 11th hole, a fan was hit hard in the left shoulder by Woods' sliced tee shot, leaving a large red mark. Woods wandered into the trees, never asked what had happened, and scraped out a par. Not 10 minutes later, Mickelson's tee shot hit a fan standing right next to the man Woods had plunked. Mickelson asked if anybody was hurt, and when he found the fan he had nicked, signed a golf glove and gave it to his unwitting victim. When asked if the fan said anything, Mickelson cracked, "Ouch?" Small wonder that the majority of the populace seemed to be rooting harder for Lefty on Sunday.
And Ron Kroichick joins the ever-expanding Tiger &^%$ list:
-- Quick conclusion based on Woods' first tournament in five months: He hasn't changed at all. He's still hot-tempered on the course and still a picture of narcissism off it.
One example: Saturday, after his third-round 70, he was asked if he could appreciate how cool a Masters this was becoming, given Watson and Couples and Mickelson's back-to-back eagles. The question was prefaced with, "I know you're preoccupied with your game, but ..."
Woods stared stoically ahead and replied, "There's a lot going on. I'm four back."
It's all about Tiger, all the time.
Preston Sparks follows up with the owner of the banner-flying business cited by the FAA at Augusta, who reveals he also got a call from the club.
Besides the FAA inspection, Miller said, "I had the Masters calling me personally begging what it would take to make the airplane to go away."
A club spokesman confirmed Tuesday that a call was made to Miller, requesting he not fly over anymore because the banners weren't in good taste.
Seems they got the plane back up and flying around Augusta yesterday with new banners.
Bill Simmons, who yesterday had visions of Billy Payne and Jim Nantz making out, interviews Nantz on his podcast and Nantz tells some great 1986 Masters stories. He also brings up the way Butler Cabin turns Nantz to "JELLO."
Nice to see the scribblers focusing their day after reflections on the players, the historical context of Phil's win, Lee Westwood's sportsmanship and Tiger's performance.
One last lede, from the hometown paper's David Westin in the Augusta Chronicle:
Geoff Shackelford is a Senior Writer for Golfweek magazine, a weekly contributor to Golf Channel's Morning
Copyright © 2022, Geoff Shackelford. All rights reserved.
