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
A Huggan, Clayton, Morri and yours truly reunion to discuss the 2012 majors in a joint Talkin' Golf/State Of The Game podcast today. As always, you can listen below, subscribe free to the show or listen to Episode 12 through iTunes.
SportsMediaWatch.com has a few more PGA Championship ratings for CBS. The 3.9 overnight was down 9% from '11 and 22% from '10 and was the lowest since '08, but it did outdraw the Open Championship slightly and Saturday was not horrible.
On Saturday, third round action drew a 2.7 overnight (excludes rainout coverage) — actually up a tick from last year (2.6), but down 13% from 2010 (3.1).
Though Bobby Wyatt leads (Ron Balicki's recap here) after the first round of stroke play qualifying in the U.S. Amateur, the real story of day one was delivered by David Shefter, writing of Jack Nicklaus' cameo to watch reinstated amateur Gary Nicklaus en route to an opening 71 (scores here).
Cherry Hills played to a 76.013 scoring average in round one.
It used to be folks would send you a photo of the Arnold Palmer first tee plaque at the wonderful Cherry Hills Country Club, but now it's absurd yardages for par-3s that have become the affection of cell phone cameras.
Even worse, with the altitude and all the Pilates work the field has been doing, there will be plenty of irons hit there.
From a reader at the U.S. Amateur host site, where play began today (Sean Martin previews):
I know, it's hard to believe with a presentation as enticing to watch as Sunday's latest commercial and promo-laden PGA Championship telecast, that ratings would be down. But that's what Thomas Bonk says on his blog, reporting a drop from 4.3 last year to 3.9 this year. In the PGA's defense, it was up against Olympic coverage on NBC. However, it did feature a more star-studded leaderboard this year compared to last.
Besides Jeff Sluman, the former Presidents Cup assistant captain to Jack Nicklaus, Davis Love has tabbed a rookie to be behind the wheel of those snazzy two-row EZ-GO's Club Cars: Scott Verplank.
The Captain's picks that matter will be on September 4.
First, the game stories after a stunning weekend performance by Rory McIlroy in winning the 2012 PGA Championship.
LEDES
Rory McIlroy dressed the part as golf's next star and played like it, too.
Steve DiMeglio for USA Today, working in a little love for the logistics:
Much like the daily slog to and from this barrier island, Rory McIlroy's road back to major championship glory was chock-full of congestion.
This was Rory McIlroy’s own closing ceremony, a procession lit up with fireworks and sheer brilliance.
Derek Lawrenson for the Daily Mail:
Turn up in a shirt of Tiger red on the final day of a major, and you better be able to walk the walk. Fortunately, Rory McIlroy was more than up to the task on Sunday, marching proudly to his second major victory with a flawless performance at the USPGA Championship.
There can be few things in sport more delightful than emulating the performance of your boyhood idol. Rory McIlroy, throughout his youth, was in awe of Tiger Woods. Here the Northern Irishman claimed the 94th US PGA Championship, the second major of his career, with the kind of Sunday front-running which was once the forte of Woods.
Paul Mahoney gets right to the point for The Independent:
Rory McIlroy wore red yesterday and channelled Tiger Woods circa 2000 to win the 94th US PGA Championship by eight shots with a score of 13 under par.
Bill Pennington takes us back to Augusta for his New York Times lede:
The birth of a champion, and maybe golf’s next dominant player, was dispiriting, humiliating defeat. Put Rory McIlroy back in the woods of the 10th hole at the 2011 Masters as he whacked his ball from tree to tree, a boy lost in the forest on his way to a mortifying fall from the summit of the leader board.
Rory McIlroy brushed aside any lingering doubts over his ability to be a dominant force in golf by storming to a second major title with a stunning eight-shot victory at the PGA Championship on Sunday.
Golf Channel's highlight package.
The Champion's post round interview transcript.
The final scores and purse disbursal.
All of the final round player interview transcripts at PGA.com.
SI/golf.com's post round Confidential.
RORY ANALYSIS
Dave Kindred says Rory announced his greatness with his drives.
A rocket. Rising toward the clouds. A draw to a fairway turning left. In the air forever, then running out down a slope. It was as if God Herself had said, "Let there be Rory and let him move men, women, and children to stand in awe of his work." Let's say the shot covered 340 yards. What happened next was nice -- up and down from a wasteland for birdie -- but it was that divinely beautiful drive that reminded us all we had been witness to McIlroy's arrival at greatness.
Gene Wojciechowski on the win and also the whole red shirt thing.
He wore a red shirt, just like Woods does on Sundays. He embraced his father, just like Woods used to do with his dad Earl. He had a flair for the dramatic, sinking a 20-foot birdie putt on his final hole, just the sort of thing Woods would do when winning a major.
Full disclosure: McIlroy said he wouldn't have worn the Tiger Red had he been paired with Woods.
"Might have to do it from now on," McIlroy said. "No wonder he wins so much."
Jason Sobel says comparisons to Tiger are unfair for reasons he mentions. He also quotes some of Rory's peers.
Even the way McIlroy’s peers discussed the performance in wide-eyed awe and effusive praise was reminiscent of how Woods’ fellow competitors have often discussed his achievements after a major win.
Ian Poulter: “Everybody should take note. The guy's pretty good.”
Carl Pettersson: “He was just better than everybody -- and it was clear to everybody, I think.”
Graeme McDowell: “His score speaks for itself. He's a hell of a talented player.”
“Rory is showing that with his A Game, everybody else is going to struggle to compete with him, and Tiger needs his A Game to come up against Rory. He’s not going to beat him unless he has a big weekend.
Keogh on Tiger's admission that Rory's pretty good.
"He’s very good,” he said. “We all know the talent he has. He went through a little spell this year, and I think that was good for him. We all go through those spells in our careers, and you know, he’s got all the talent in the world to do what he’s doing. And this is the way that Rory can play. When he gets it going, it’s pretty impressive to watch.”
Keeping it going is McIlroy’s next task. Like the loyal Nike man he is, Woods revealed how it works.
“You just do it.”
Randall Mell on how Rory credited short game coach Dave Stockton.
Golfweek's Sean Martin with more on the Stockton advice.
His mid-summer slump also had impacted his demeanor, so much so that putting instructor Dave Stockton told McIlroy to play with a smile this week, a tip it seemed McIlroy would never need. There was plenty for him to enjoy about an Ocean Course that so suited his strengths.
Elevated greens forced players to hoist the ball skyward on approach shots, even when the Ocean Course’s strong winds would usually call for a lower trajectory. No one hits it high, especially with the long clubs, better than McIlroy. It’s no coincidence he’s dominated two majors at softer-than-standard layouts. Soft conditions allowed him to be aggressive with every club in his bag.
Gary Van Sickle on what the win means.
McIlroy is now ahead of the major pace of Woods. McIlroy turned 23 three months ago; Woods won his second major, the 1999 PGA at Medinah, when he was 23 years, 7 months old.
Ahead of Tiger's pace, behind Tiger's pace -- it doesn't really matter. Tiger's run, which led to 14 majors, was so remarkable that it's amazing to even be on a similar trajectory. This is the dawn of a great opportunity for McIlroy, and he will fuel our golf conversations until we return to Augusta National next April.
A European Tour story talks to a few writers about where Rory's second major win fits with other great triumphs and legends.
THE RUNNER-UP
An unbylined AP story on runner-up David Lynn.
An unbylined Sky Sports story on Lynn, who is in next year's Masters now.
"It's a little bit surreal right now," said Lynn, whose only win came in the 2004 Dutch Open. "I've never been exempt to play in anything in America, so that's the reason why I've never been over here. This is a good start.
"To come and perform the way I have this week in a major is very special and a great achievement. It has not sunk in properly yet to be honest.
"The Masters is just a dream come true, obviously - amazing. Seeing Augusta as many times as I have, it's like I know the place and I've never even been there.
COURSE
Rex Hoggard says the setup was weak.
Not once during the 94th PGA Championship did officials move to the forward tees on the par-4 12th or 13th holes. Both holes were pegged as potential risk/reward holes but played well over 400 yards every day.
Nor did the PGA of America show much variety at the par-3 17th hole, which played 229, 217, 219 and 233 yards for Rounds 1, 2, 3 and 4, respectively. In fact, the total yardage for the Ocean Course, at 7,668 yards the longest in major championship history, varied just 200 yards throughout the week.
IMAGES
GolfChannel.com's image gallery kicks off with a classic Rickie impersonator.
golf.com's gallery is nice and big and features the work of SI's crew.
TELEVISION
Martin Kaufman sticks to mostly compliments for the hard-working technical team that caught some key sights and sounds in between the commercial breaks.
TWEETS
David Feherty is still on the high that he exuded during the telecast, and is also happy about the end of the Olympics.
Luke Donald is happy to be off Kiawah Island, agent Chubby Chandler wants more restaurants before they host another major (oh the problems!), Luke would just like another road.
Webb Simpson said the Pettersson penalty was another example of a golf rule that doesn't make sense.
And the final word goes to the Ancient Twitterer.
Matthew Rudy on the Carl Pettersson violation Sunday at the PGA which led to a two-shot penalty. Here is the PGA of America's statement.
Pettersson was not pleased after the round:
"I double checked with the official to make sure I could brush the grass as long as I didn't put any weight on the ground with the clubhead, and he said sure," said Pettersson about his shot on the first hole. "I wish he would have mentioned the leaves, too. I was just trying to hit the ball. I didn't even think twice about it."
After getting the notification from Davis, Pettersson was visibly annoyed. "I've got to take it on the chin, obviously. I broke the rule there," said Petterson. "I don't think it effected the outcome of the shot. It's just one of those things. We have a lot of stupid rules in golf."
Rex Hoggard included this from Feherty:
Golf Channel’s David Feherty, who was the walking analyst with the group on Sunday, was more pointed in his assessment of the rule.
“Why don’t professional golfers make rules for professional golfers?” Feherty asked. “We’re the only sport that allows amateurs (to make rules). It’s not working for me if a guy is trying to make a living. A major championship may have hung in the balance.
“That (rule) is designed so an amateur doesn’t drag his club back and make a channel for themselves. What do you think would happen if a pro did that out there? I think we can account for that. How are you supposed to make a backswing? Use the club like a spear?”
Still no video of it on YouTube or PGA.com's PGA Championship site. If anyone sees an online version of the violation, please post a link.
Geoff Shackelford is a Senior Writer for Golfweek magazine, a weekly contributor to Golf Channel's Morning
Copyright © 2022, Geoff Shackelford. All rights reserved.
