Ryder Cup: Fixing What Is Not Broken?

John Hopkins reports that some tweaking is being considered for the 2010-and-beyond Ryder Cups.

When the Ryder Cup is staged in 2010 at Celtic Manor, near Newport in South Wales, it will be the first time that the event is held on this side of the Atlantic after the US tour beefs up its August and September schedule in 2007. Increasing the importance of events in those two months and offering a huge boost in prize-money means that the United States players, and any from Europe who are involved, will not be disposed to rush back to Europe to compete in a Ryder Cup at the traditional time of the third week in September.

The obvious solution is to move the event to October, but this brings the question of shortening daylight into question, so officials of the European Tour and the PGA in Britain, and the PGA of America, are considering starting on a Thursday instead of a Friday and increasing the numbers of players competing in the foursomes and four-ball matches from eight to ten. Two series of five foursomes matches would be held on Friday, with one series of five four-ball matches on Thursday and one on Saturday. The 12 singles matches would be played on Sunday.

Ah, so it can be more like the President's Cup.

“It is a situation we are looking at,” Sandy Jones, the chief executive of the PGA, said. “No decision has yet been taken and won’t be for some time, certainly not until later this year at the earliest.

“Let’s get this year’s Ryder Cup in Ireland out of the way first. The next Ryder Cup meeting is scheduled for May during the BMW (Championship at Wentworth). It will not be discussed then.

“There are all sorts of issues to consider. There is the health and safety issue of bringing people in and taking them home in the dark, for example. The positives are that there would be more opportunities to sell tickets and more merchandise, though we are pretty well sold out for Thursday this year."

Ahh, because they aren't making enough now!

“The proper thing to consider is the playing of the matches. Some people say the three days is so intense they do not want a fourth day. Others say that adding an extra day would reduce the intensity. It might suit the players in that they are used to arriving late on a Tuesday evening or a Wednesday for an event that starts on a Thursday and ends on a Sunday.”

Winged Foot and Alternate Tees

The story to coming out of Monday's U.S. Open media day: the use of some different tees to mix things up. Yet another sign that the Meeks era is over, the USGA's Mike Davis has plans to entice players to attack the par-5 12th at least two days, while playing one round from No. 3's 243-yard tee, possibly bring a lay-up option into play that served Billy Casper well in 1959.

Sam Weinman has the story. 

USGA Mythbuster

Ryan Ballengee takes on the USGA's Distance Myths in a lengthy column that also looks at the Masters' identity crisis, caused in part by technology. Particularly interesting are his stats comparing the top 3 in 1995 v. 2005.

Meanwhile, the Cape Cod Something Or Other dutifully reprinted the myths as fact, so now there have been three willing takers. 

USGA Distance Myths, Vol. 5

USGA Distance Myth #4:

The longest hitters on the PGA Tour finish higher on the money list.

False.  While some long-driving professionals have been very successful, on average, the top 10 driving distance players have actually been falling down on the money list in recent years.  From 1980-85 the average rank was 64.2; in 2000-2005 it was 77.1. The second worst single year average rank on the money list of the longest 10 drivers was in 2004 with an average rank of 103.3.

Apparently myth #4 was designed to shoot down the theory that power has an extreme advantage in the game today. As with many of the other USGA myths, they seem to be creating the myths themselves to mask--surprise, surprise--reality.

And as with the previous USGA myths, does anyone believe this was a prevailing thought? That Scott Hend and Tad Ridings were finishing higher on the money list than the Todd Barranger's and Kelly Gibson's of the past?

The "myth" that nearly every PGA Tour player subscribes to is that power is more important than accuracy today. And that the top players are thriving because of their ability to hit the ball a long way.

That myth appears true when looking at this breakdown of 2005's money list, where distance superceded accuracy:

Top 30 Average:  70th in Distance, 105th in Accuracy

Top 10 Average:  69th in Distance,  111th in Accuracy

Reader Pete the Luddite also provided us with an interesting graph on this same subject, looking at distance, accuracy and the money list.

Course Changes Verdict Watch, Vol. 9

Peter Kostis, yes that's right, Peter Kostis chimes in with a lukewarm review of the new-look Augusta. Now we know why he never joined in during David Feherty "living, breathing organism" speech:

Bobby Jones and Alister MacKenzie designed Augusta National in the early 1930s, inspired by the Old Course at St. Andrews, which is exceptionally open and encourages a lot of creativity. Like Augusta, it’s no accident that the Old Course has always been a bombers' paradise. But with the changes, Augusta now dictates more forcefully what shots the pros must to play. Because of recently added trees and rough, you can’t drive the ball to some places that would give the best angle of attack. I don’t particularly like those strategic qualities being taken away, and because they couldn’t get the proper angle to attack certain hole locations, a lot of players in the 2006 Masters had to bail out and leave themselves long approach putts—or even intentionally aim for bunkers or chipping areas instead of trying to get the ball close. Consequently, the pros in this year’s tournament saw putts no one has had to make in years. And on Augusta’s greens, if you are on the wrong part of the green, you might as well be in a hazard, because the penalty will be at least one extra stoke with the putter.

Will there be more changes to Augusta National? If the tournament committee feels that they need to adjust the course to keep up with technology and maintain the shot values they feel Jones and MacKenzie had in mind, we may not have seen the last of the tweaks to some of the most hallowed ground in golf.

MacDuff's Post Heritage FedEx Cup Points

Reader MacDuff has kindly updated his mythical FedEx Cup points watch, post Hilton Head.  Here is his point breakdown for those wondering.

_{1    Mickelson    15346.87        9
2    Singh    13234.37        9
3    C.Campbell    12837.5        11
4    Furyk    12712.5        9
5    Gf. Ogilvy    12237.5        8
6    Toms    11871.87        7
7    Sabbatini    11741.66        8
8    Pettersson    11333.33        11
9    Glover    11279.16        8
10    Olazabal    10875        7
11    Verplank    10725        8
12    T.Woods    10659.37        6
13    Pernice    10625        8
14    Mayfair    10479.16        9
15    Donald    10289.37        7
16    Weir    9809.37        7
17    Oberholser    9550        8
18    T.Clark    9547.5        9
19    Van Pelt    9277.5        10
20    Goosen    9162.5        6
21    Cink    8633.83        8
22    Gay    8500        9
23    Z.Johnson    8475        8
24    Lehman    8350        7
25    Villegas    8025        7
26    Ames    7975        6
27    Parnevik    7967.5        9
T28    Appleby    7925        7
T28    Els    7925        7
30    Pampling    7867.5        7
31    Bohn    7770.83        8
32    Love III    7762.5        8
33    Rollins    7675        7
34    D.Wilson    7425        8
35    Chopra    7424.5        8
36    JB Holmes    7420.83        7
37    Funk    7337.5        8
38    Vn Taylor    7237.5        6
39    Garcia    7175        6
40    Warren    7112.5        7
41    Jerry Kelly    7100        5
42    G. Owen    7062.5        7
43    Couples    6825        7
44    Franco    6800        7
45    Imada    6717.5        8
46    Barlow    6657.5        7
47    Bertsch    6550        7
48    Baird    6517.5        7
49    Fischer    6425        9
50    Choi    6400        6
51    Langer    6354.16        7
52    Jobe    6330        6
53    D. Howell    6262.5        5
54    Pat Perez    6262.5        7
55    Leonard    6220.83        7
56    Allenby    6187.5        6
57    Palmer    6166.66        6
58    F.Jacobson    6050        5
59    Bryant    6050        6
60    Rose    5991.66        6
61    Purdy    5975        6
62    JJ Henry    5875        5
63    M.Wilson    5852.5        5
64    A.Scott    5850        5
65    J.Ogilvie    5845        6
66    Crane    5770        5
67    N.Green    5662.5        7
68    Bjornstad    5655        6
69    Atwal    5625        5
70    Harrington    5537.5        5
71    J.Byrd    5500        4
72    DiMarco    5384.37        5
73    Curtis    5375        7
74    Hoffman    5332.5        5
75    Beem    5318.75        7
76    Waldorf    5225        6
77    Calc    5200        8
78    Westwood    5187.5        5
79    Slocum    5150        7
80    Hart    5137.5        6
81    Olin Browne    5137.5        7
82    Cabrera    5100        5
83    Bub Watson    5075        5
84    Branshaw    4937.5        5
85    Maggert    4937.5        7
86    D.Clarke    4900        4
87    RS Johnson    4875        4
88    Flesch    4805        7
89    Triplett    4750        4
90    Watney    4737.5        6
91    Senden    4625        4
92    Baddeley    4600        5
93    Matteson    4600        6
94    Barron    4581.25        5
95    B. Quigley    4525        4
96    J.Smith    4512.5        5
97    Herron    4507.5        5
98    Br.Davis    4437.5        7
99    Gore    4387.5        4
100    Gove    4387.5        5
101    Azinger    4300        5
102    Howell III    4300        8
103    Sluman    4287.5        8
104    Lickliter II    4225        4
105    Micheel    4225        5
106    Frazar    4187.5        6
107    Cook    4000        4
108    Dickerson    3975        7
T109    Veazey    3962.5        4
T109    Kenny Perry    3962.5        4
111    Lonard    3937.5        6
112    S.Jones    3912.5        5
113    Estes    3825        4
114    Faxon    3812.5        6
115    Pavin    3787.5        4
116    Immelman    3650        4
117    Lowery    3612.5        6
118    Leaney    3550        3
119    Kaye    3550        4
120    Kent Jones    3537.5        4
121    Petrovic    3512.5        5
122    Sindelar    3512.5        6
123    Gronberg    3462.5        4
124    Poulter    3425        5
125    Jimenez    3387.5        3
126    Geiberger    3312.5        5
127    Stankowski    3290.5        6
128    Sean O'Hair    3287.5        6
129    Kevin Na    3275        4
130    Katayama    3171.87        4
131    Gamez    3037.5        5
132    JL Lewis    3025        6
133    H.Stenson    3012.5        3
134    S. Maruyama    3000        5
135    Ridings    2912.5        4
136    B. Haas    2912.5        5
137    Garrigus    2880        4
138    Durant    2875        7
139    Daly    2850        4
140    WMacKenzie    2837.5        3}

Course Changes Verdict Watch Vol. 8

Because I admire his work and know that he's respected down in Augusta, I was dreading Jaime Diaz's Golf World story after reading the headline and subtitle: "On Second Thought, Masters officials knew precisely what they were doing when they executed the most recent changes to Augusta National."

But as with other headlines that celebrate Hootie Johnson as the architectural second coming of Tillinghast, the stories themselves paint a much different picture.

After Diaz lays out all of the worst case scenarios that didn't pan out (you know, because Tim Clark finished second), he then raises plenty of questions about the renovation and the way Augusta now plays.

Ben Crenshaw, in one of the apparently complimentary quotes, is really not very kind if you read between the lines:

"It's a hard golf course now," said Crenshaw, whose two Masters victories (1984 and 1995) came on a shorter, more wide-open track that allowed a kind of swashbuckling style that would be too low-percentage to fit the more stolid demands of the current 7,445-yard beast. "Every part of the game gets examined, and it used not to be like that," explained Crenshaw, who also happens to be a first-rate course architect. "You had times in the past where you had a green light, and it was so exciting to just let it go. Now, every hole is difficult. It's hard for a guy to really get on a run. You're trying to avoid danger. You've got to really watch it."

Sure, some will see hard and test in there and get excited (because it takes such genius to create a difficult golf course).

Then there was this from Geoff Ogilvy:

"I don't know if it's my place to say," said the 28-year-old Australian, who finished T-16 in his first Masters, "but I've been dreaming about playing here for 20 years, and I think what they've done is borderline tragic, to be honest with you. I don't have a problem with the lengthening, because it is ridiculous where we hit it. But the answer isn't to narrow the fairways, because that just takes away the freedom of expression that always made Augusta special. They should keep the length, but take out the new trees and cut the rough. Then they'd be back to having the best golf course in the world."

And Scott Verplank:

"Sure, they lost a little of the character of the golf course," said Verplank. "But the game has changed so much. If somebody would fix the equipment issue, Augusta wouldn't have to do this."

Another, anti-golf ball technology, Hollywood elite, media member. Oh wait, he's a player. Oops!

Also with the Diaz story is a sidebar on Johnny Miller's triumphant return to Augusta to kiss up to Peter Dawson as part of NBC's bid to get the British Open after a 12 year hiatus, he proves just how stunningly how out of touch he is by not only revealing he was unaware that major winners could play in the Wednesday par-3 contest, and then offered up this brilliance:

Though he considers Augusta National's latest course revisions to make good sense, Miller said he is not in favor of a rollback in the modern golf ball or other substantial equipment reform. "The professional game is in good shape," he insisted. "A good way to cut some distance would be to cut the fairway grass a little longer, the same length we played on in the 1970s. It would stop drives from rolling 50 yards."

Oh what a great idea. You know, because it's really all in how much the ball is rolling Johnny. 

Note to Dick Ebersol: hire Faldo, and hire him fast.  

NY Post Exclusive: Tiered Rough at Winged Foot

Yes, George Willis in the New York Post actually tries to pass off as "news" this report on the USGA's tiered rough concept.

Even though the USGA's Mike Davis has talked about the concept since taking over for Tom Meeks, and even though this written explanation has been up on USGA.org for two weeks.

Patron Problem

Gary Van Sickle follows up on the Augusta National changes, only this time he explores the impact on the patrons. Not only does he pull out some quotes from the old spectator guides, Van Sickle also looks at the other problems created by growing gallery size (not waistlines...just read it).

Don't Drink And Drive...A Cart!?

Here's a strange story about a man charged with DUI after flipping a cart that included his three youngsters. Thankfully, everyone is okay.

PGA Tour Driving Distance Watch, Week 15

The PGA Tour Driving Distance average dipped from 288.3 after the Masters to 287.6 following the Heritage.

I knew those overhanging trees were good for something!  By the way, how do they grow grass there!?

There was 1 350-or-longer drive, with the season total at 845.

Offended By Big Hitters?

I received a complaint from someone who said my recent Golfobserver.com column on Hootie was unfair. Why? Because this well-meaning soul said that Hootie shares the same feeling about the distance issue as folks like myself.

But actually there is a big difference. Well, several. First, most of us who like classic golf courses wouldn't hire Tom Fazio to mow them, much less alter them based on his track record.

But the primary point relates to something Olin Browne touched on in Rex Hoggard's Golfweek.com column:

"The powers that be have become offended by the big hitters."

This view came through loud and clear in Hootie's press conference ("If Hogan were hitting a damn pitching wedge.."). His anger over the situation is directed at the players, almost as if this were baseball and he was having to deal with juiced players.

But as comedian Robert Wuhl pointed out a few weeks ago, in golf the equipment is juiced, not the players.

Hootie and those trying to offset eye-opening driving distances need to direct their frustration toward the governing bodies, not the players or even course designers.

The "big hitters" and manufacturers are simply doing what they are allowed under the rules.

The rulemakers--many of them members at Augusta National--are the ones who have let the game down.

Consumer Reports Test Golf Balls...

And some of the results may surprise you. Others may be crying media bias!

Hoggard On Masters Ball, Other Stuff

Golfweek's Rex Hoggard ties up a few loose Masters ends. First, there is this quote from Joe Ogilvie, reminiscent of Tom Weiskopf's cadaver line from a April, 2000.

"It's like if you have a really good looking woman, but after her 20th or 30th 'plastic surgery,' she really doesn't look as good," Joe Ogilvie said.

On the Masters ball concept, Hoggard seems to think the idea is still floating around:

A winning score south of double digits and an eclectic leaderboard may keep Hootie and the bulldozers at bay for at least a year or two. But it seems Augusta National officials remain interested in the idea of a "Masters" golf ball to combat the distance gains of modern orbs.

"What are they going to call it?" asked Nick Price at the Players Championship. "The dogwood ball? What do you do, turn around and tell the manufacturers we're going to play the dogwood ball this week."

The green jackets may be closer to creating a "dogwood" ball than some would think. Sources said last week officials were measuring not only the length of players' drivers, but which particular brand and model of ball went where.

And on the David Toms rant from earlier this week, Hoggard made this point:

During Toms' tenure on the PGA Tour's four-player Policy Board, it didn't seem as if he spent a lot of time rocking the boat. But since being freed of his elected duties, Toms has been pulling fewer punches than CNN lightning rod Lou Dobbs.

Earlier this week, Toms rifled a few well-aimed – and well thought out – 5-iron shots directly at Augusta National Golf Club.

"It's still a place where the players walk around on eggshells," Toms said. "It's like, the only place all year where the players don't feel like they are the most important thing there."

Although there are no shortage of prima donnas on the PGA Tour, Toms is not one of them, and his observations likely resonate among his Tour card carrying brethren.

Hartford: They Were The First Port 'O Call!

Commissioner Tim Finchem drops a juicy nautical metaphor in this Bruce Berlet story on how Hartford landed back on the 2007 PGA Tour FedEx Cup schedule.

First, you might some want some Dramamine after this song-and-dance routine on the summer vs. fall...

"It was a tough call but we thought, for a lot of reasons, that it could work quite well in Hartford in the fall," Finchem said. "But that was a miscalculation of the attitude of the community, which felt strongly that it could not be as strong in the fall. That led to the shift in interest in the Champions Tour, which obviously isn't as big a deal but what [the Jaycees] thought might work better in the summer than the fall date.

"Hartford had always been a priority for us, but [its date] had moved around a lot and inhibited the tournament from being able to grow from a marketing standpoint. We never felt Hartford was a tournament that didn't deserve to be in the summer, but we just had to make some choices. We made the determination that we were going to lock people into dates as best we could, and we felt Hartford would be good in the fall because of agronomics, weather, being one of the top two or three courses in that time frame and being able to be marketed well."

Amazing what work it is to say "the 84 Lumber people were more willing to meet our price, then they changed their mind."

Now, for those permutations of the port of call...

"But the community felt they would much prefer to be in the summer, so we worked with them on all the permutations. We already knew it could work in the time frame and told St. Paul we weren't in position to do exactly what they wanted to do to trigger their commitment. But when 84 Lumber stepped aside, they were the first port of call and everybody got excited."

 You know I've been thinking, the Commissioner could better tap into the youth market if he would talk more like HBO's Ali G. Using the Ali G translator tranzlata, see how that last statement could better connect with the coveted 18-34 year olds:

"but da community felt dey would much dig to be in da summa, so we worked wiv them on all da permutations. we already knew it could wurk in da time frame and told st. paul we weren't in position to do pacifically wot dey wanted to do to trigga their commitment. but whun 84 lumba stepped aside, dey were da first port of call and me crew got excited." 

"Me crew" is just so much more youthful. Anyway, just a suggestion on skewing younger Commissioner. Yours in branding, Geoff.

Oh, and he also talked to Berlet about the FedEx Cup...

Finchem said the FedEx Cup points system is likely to be finalized at a tour board meeting in June, with major championships having more points but not "throwing the system out of whack." Players will accumulate points from January to mid-August, and those higher in the standings will have an advantage going into a three-event series in suburban New York, Boston and Chicago before playing the Tour Championship.

"Top players have to pay attention to the aggregation of points and that translates into the likelihood of playing a more concentrated schedule," Finchem said.

Ah, maybe he's been looking at MacDuff's FedEx point standings?