Fitzpatrick's Short Game Carries Him To Final Match With Goss

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Ryan Herrington with a nice account of Saturday's U.S. Amateur semi-final matches won by Matthew Fitzpatrick and Oliver Goss.

The good news for Goss, a 19-year-old who'll start his sophomore season at Tennessee this fall? It would seem hard for Fitzpatrick to repeat his stellar performance around on the greens for a second straight day. On the 12 holes Fitzpatrick failed to hit in regulation, he still made eight pars in addition to chipping in for a birdie that helped swing the momentum in his favor.

"I think my short game was probably the best of my life I think," said the young man who claimed low amateur honors at last month's British Open. "Sort of every chip and putt I looked at was close."

The two finalists, headed to the U.S. Open and most likely a Masters invite for both, later convened at Fenway Park to throw out the ceremonial first pitch before the Red Sox-Yankees game according to this Golf Channel gallery.

Solheim Madness! 25 Minutes To Take An Incorrect Drop!

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Julie Williams with a nice wrap of Friday's day one Solheim Cup brouhaha over an incorrect drop taken by Carlota Ciganda.

Ciganda hit her fourth shot onto the fringe and made the par putt to secure an unexpected halve with Lewis and Thompson.

“Obviously I’m not happy about it,” Mallon said. “The thing I’m most unhappy about is that it took ... about 25 minutes for this to happen. And from our perspective, the momentum, which was coming in our favor at that point in time, obviously had stopped.”

Questions were posed at the time of the drop, Mallon said, but perhaps not the right ones. Play proceeded, and Pettersen birdied the next hole to take the Europeans 1 up. They won by that margin at the 18th, when Pettersen made a clutch two-putt par.

Golf Central has the video and also the Captains talking about what ended up being an incorrect drop.

"The USGA’s slow play on both venues has prompted the PGA of America to be a bit more proactive."

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Rex Hoggard as a solid wrap-up of the week's various stories--Bethpage, PGA Tour taking over the European Tour and of course, the big one, the elimination of caddie races.

I'll let you take in his analysis of the others, but there was this note on the "baffling" decision by the USGA to abandon Bethpage and Torrey Pines.

The 2008 Open at Torrey Pines may arguably be this generation’s best major, and Bethpage, although soaked for both Opens it hosted, is a perfect combination of qualify golf and prime location.

The USGA’s slow play on both venues has prompted the PGA of America to be a bit more proactive. Golfweek magazine reported this week that the PGA plans to name Bethpage the venue for the 2024 Ryder Cup and 2019 PGA Championship; and sources have told Cut Line that the association is vying to bring the year’s fourth major to Torrey Pines.

While the PGA deserves credit for outside-the-box thinking, may we suggest they hold off on any official announcement until, say ... next year’s U.S. Open. You know, for maximum coverage and all.

My sources say the USGA is interested in Torrey again and that the San Diego people have demanded a Ryder Cup with any PGA they take, something that is hard to see happening because Europeans would have to watch afternoon matches in the middle of the night.

Or maybe any move to Torrey is stalled because of the San Diego mayoral situation.

After watching the morning coverage of the Solheim Cup, I'm wondering when the PGA of America jumps on Colorado Golf Club for a PGA. Wow does it look great this time of year and the crowds seem huge.

“My father’s life changed when he met Francis"

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Marvin Pave profiles Cynthia Wilcox, the only surviving child of Francis Ouimet looper Eddie Lowery, who is on every serious golfer's mind this week with the 100th anniversary of the historic U.S. Open at The Country Club.

A hundred years later, their win at TCC remains the seminal moment in American golf history and Pave reminds us it was all a bit of an accident.

In his 1963 memoir, Lowery said it was “pure accident’’ that he caddied for Ouimet at the Open.

“My older brother Jack had caddied at Woodland Golf Club [in Newton] which was near our home and where Francis was then playing and Jack knew Francis,’’ he recalled. “We read in the paper about the two Englishmen — Vardon and Ray — who were going to play at Brookline.’’

The brothers arrived at The Country Club, and Ouimet asked Jack Lowery to be his caddie because the person he originally had engaged had hooked up with French professional Louis Tellier.

“So Jack caddied for Francis in the qualifying round and I went out to watch Vardon and Ray,’’ wrote Lowery, who along with his brother was caught by the truant officer and then given a stern lecture by their mother.

When Jack balked at caddying the next day, Eddie ran to the railroad station, hooked school, caught the last train to Brookline and subbed for his brother.

“I said to Francis, whatever you decide to do, you keep your head down and I will watch the ball. I have never lost a ball yet,’’ wrote Lowery, who went on to become caddie master at Woodland, a sportswriter for a Boston newspaper, and an advertising executive before moving to California.

Ouch: Flyers' Giroux Shatters Club, Splinters Finger

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The unbylined AP story says it's unknown what caused Philadelphia Flyers Captain Claude Giroux's golf club to shatter and splinter his finger, but considering he just signed an 8-year extension for $64 million, I'm sure someone will get sued even if Giroux was doing his best Tommy Bolt imitation.

Speaking of that, it's been too long since we studied the portfolio of that modern club tosser master Garcia here, and here.

Looking Good: The Country Club Is Back!

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Watching the Round of 32 U.S. Amateur coverage on Golf Channel I'm impressed how much better The Country Club is looking since we last saw at the Ryder Cup. Credit architect Gil Hanse and superintendent Bill Spence for bringing the New England back into the course.

Ran Morrissett has updated his profile for The Country Club with photos taken just a few weeks ago.

Coverage continues Friday on GC with tape delayed coverage from 9-11 pm ET, followed by NBC Saturday and Sunday at 4 pm ET.

And there should be a super-fun awkward tension when USGA President Glen "I like that the Fox Sports guys don't know anything about golf" Nager visits the booth for the annual contractually obligated visit.