2012 Northern Trust Open, Round 2 This And That

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DJ tees off on No. 9 (click to enlarge)Another gorgeous day brought out the best weekday crowd in years, including a noticeably younger set than in recent years.

Still a ways to go to catch up to the tournament's heyday in the 90s, but the spike is a tribute to the organizer's increased local golf course outreach, several ticket offers including one for UCLA folks, improved social media efforts and I have to think, the tour's new cell phone policy.

If you heard the roar after Phil's hole-out on No. 8, it was a vivid reminder of just how energetic golf viewing can be, especially at an intimate tournament course like Riviera.

As for Friday's second round...

Luke Donald approaches the 12th Friday (click to enlarge)--With all due respect to my colleagues who think fans only come out to watch players hit the ball 300+ yards, I eavesdropped on two different conversations where the fans were seeking out the chance to see the "No. 1 golfer in the world." So yes, Luke Donald is as much or more of a draw for some fans than the bombers. And I'm still not convinced that more than 5% of the crowd could tell the difference between a 285-yard tee shot and a 320-yard drive.

--Phil is the story and it's hard to see that changing the way he's playing, especially considering his recent record at Riviera. But as Mark Lamport-Stokes notes, it'd be terrific to see Jarrod Lyle (-4) continue his good play and contend in a tour event. Here's a little on his background if you don't know his story.

--The absurdly fun-to-watch short par-4 10th featured a back-left hole location and too many wild moments to list, but Doug Ferguson captured the best:

Even with the hole location toward the back right of the green, players tried to drive the green. Rocco Mediate thought his shot was perfect, but it hopped into the front bunker and left him little hope. His next shot flew out of the sand, over the green and banged off a television tower, back into another bunker. He saved par.

"This is the coolest hole," Mediate said. "My favorite place."

10th hole ShotLink scatter chart thru 2 rounds (click to enlarge)--Watching the Rhodes Scholars of the PGA Tour struggle with the 10th over the first two days (4.078 scoring average...only 315 yards!!!) has me convinced that 80% of the field might not break 80 on a course with 18 genuinely strategic holes offering tempting options! Now, at least more guys layed-up short-left today and most of them made par or birdie. Though it was stunning to see the World No. 1 lay-up way too far right. It was not stunning to seem him to make par.

Second round highlights:

Latest Golf Digest Podcast: West Coast, Tiger, Phil

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Sam Weinman talks to me about a Golf World column this week on the dangers of the tour's proposed "fiscal year" calendar, the state of the West Coast Swing, Tiger and Phil, all set to the background noise of the Northern Trust Open media center. Give it a listen below, or subscribe to Golf Digest's podcasts on iTunes.

Listen to the podcast

Lehman In Long Putter Lash-Out: "What I do know is that the USGA and their testing with the ball...fell asleep at the wheel"

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Asked at the Ace Classic by Adam Schupak about the long putter and anchoring...nothing like a good rant!

TOM LEHMAN: My thought is they've picked the wrong thing to fight against and they've done it about 15 years too late. To make an issue about this when they should have made an issue about the balls or clubs 15, 20 years ago is ridiculous. That's my opinion. I think it's just fine.

If there were this method of putting where it was foolproof and you couldn't miss and it just turned this whole game into a joke because it was so simple and so foolproof, I would say, you know what, that's probably worth looking at. The long putter, the belly putter have helped guys who have struggled to keep their careers intact or bring them back from the depths, but it's not a foolproof way.

Q. Did you ever think you would see so many guys on the PGA TOUR, young guys, using it, the belly?

TOM LEHMAN: I hadn't really thought much about it. To me it's a nonissue. It really is. I don't think it's an issue at all. If I were the head of the USGA, I wouldn't even give it a second thought. I wouldn't. That's how strongly I feel about it.

But there are people who feel strongly the other way. I respect that. It's not traditional. Whether or not anchoring a club to your body in some way is breaking a rule, I don't think it is or else it would have been outlawed a long time ago. It's a matter of opinion. What I do know is that the USGA and their testing with the ball and that stuff a long time just completely fell asleep at the wheel and let it get out of control. There you have it.

Q. When you first started using a longer putter, what type of reaction did you get out here?

TOM LEHMAN: No reaction. You know, there was no big deal. I don't mean -- look, I don't know because I don't read the magazines, but I don't believe there's a whole bunch of players out there going crazy and hooting and hollering because some guy's using a belly putter. I don't think. I think it's more made up with maybe the press and the USGA or whoever, but I don't see a lot of players out there picketing, I'm not going to play if the belly putter's allowed this week. I don't see it. Maybe it's there, I just don't know. Maybe you can tell me. Are there a lot of players upset about it? Maybe there are. There aren't, are there?

Q. No, the guys who used the belly putter or long putter on the TOUR last year who won, the best (inaudible) was like 55th.

TOM LEHMAN: That's my whole point right there. This is such a nonissue in my opinion that it's almost comical to be debating.