Special Olympics Golfer Has His (Plainly Marked) Clubs Stolen

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Good spot by Kevin Casey at Golfweek.com to get your blood boiling, as we learn that Special Olympian athlete Keith Kee had his clubs and Special Olympics-marked bag stolen at a Bartlett, Tennessee golf course. Kee was there to play golf with his coach John Sprott.

“With Special Olympics on the bag, whoever stole them must have known who they belong to. For me, that’s more egregious than just stealing someone’s set of clubs,” Sprott told WMC Action News 5.

The full WBTV report from Chris Luther includes a full description should you live in the area and spot the heathen who committed this act.

R.I.P. Ken Carpenter

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If you've been around golf long enough, you know Ken Carpenter's name and work from the pages of Golfweek and Golfweek.com.

While he had moved on to teach journalism at Valencia College, Golfweek's Jeff Babineau says Carpenter, who died Sunday at age 59 after a battle with cancer, left behind many friends in golf after he and his wife established a legacy of generosity and giving.

Carpenter befriended a caddie at Cruden Bay in 2000 that began a long friendship.

When former Golfweek senior writer Jeff Rude and I visited Scotland years later, it was Chris’ late dad who picked us up. Chris wrote Monday about Ken’s last trip to Cruden Bay, in 2000; he wanted so badly to break 80 that day, and was 3 over with two holes to play. But he’d finish 9-6 and shoot 80, managing to chuckle about it later, as only he would.

This morning, halfway across the world in Scotland, the flag flies at half-staff at Cruden Bay, an honor the venerable club usually reserves only for members. That’s how Ken Carpenter touched people.

Also warming are the many stories flowing in from his former students at Valencia College, where Ken was a journalism professor for 12 years. It was one thing to spend many years at newspapers and magazines pounding in agate, editing copy and writing catchy headlines. But as a professor, he truly was able to impact lives and steer kids toward a passion, his passion, bringing refreshing life to an industry most view as fading to black in a hurry.

Luke Donald As A Ryder Cup Pick Story Gets More Interesting

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Alex Miceli at Golfweek.com with the explanation from William Hill's Joe Crilly as to why they got suspicious and cut off bets on Darren Clarke's three Ryder Cup picks.

Miceli writes of the action on longshot Luke:

The betting came not from its web or mobile sites, but from differing Hill retail locations throughout England, mostly in the northeast of England.

“They were only small bets, the biggest of which was I think 200 pounds,” Crilly said of the Donald bets. “They were only small bets but they were of the frequency on a special market like that that you wouldn’t necessarily see on a special market and thus somebody had an inkling that something was going to happen.”

Both Tim Rosaforte at Golf Channel and James Corrigan at the Telegraph are reporting that Donald will not be a pick. Instead, Lee Westwood, Martin Kaymer and Thomas Pieters will be the 2016 captain's picks. Clarke makes the picks Tuesday at 7:30 am ET.

USGA, R&A Eye Rules Overhaul As Grow-The-Game Initiative!?

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We've known the governing bodies have been meeting for some time to work out simplification of golf's bloated Rules book, but it's a bit disappointing see from the initial rollout that this will be branded as a grow-the-game cause.

I find that disappointing because (A) golf needs another grow-the-game initiative like another 72-hole stroke play even, and (B) the numbers of interested golfers staying away from the sport due the rules are outnumbered by those sitting out due to cost and time.

Brian Costa, writing for the Wall Street Journal, was the first to get to channel the hoped-for USGA message which is not, "we've made the rules a bloated mess and are fixing them." Instead, it's, "the rules can be intimidating to new players and we're here to change that. #growthegame"

“This is just a chance to reset,” said USGA chief executive Mike Davis. “The idea is if we get this right, many more golfers will embrace and understand the rules.”

The USGA is hoping to release a draft of the new rules for feedback from recreational players in 2017, though it could be another few years before they take effect.

John Bodenhamer, the USGA’s head of rules, competitions and equipment standards, likened it to the 1971 publication of the Living Bible, a more accessible version of the King James Bible. “I think it’s fair to say that some golfers, perhaps many, are intimidated in picking up the rule book,” Bodenhamer said. “We want to be able to help golfers with that.”

Again, I just don't think many golfers are sitting on the sidelines because of the density of the Decisions book. There are many golf fans on the fence right now about the governing bodies given the various TV rules situations. But beginners upset at the seven ways your can drop the ball as outlined in Decision 18-2? No.

There also is effort here by the USGA (in particular) to get the conversation away from their handling of situations like Dustin Johnson at Oakmont and onto an everyday game impacted by the rules. However, the USGA perception is no longer one of a body that doesn't care about the average man. Instead. it's viewed as one that is insensitive to all classes of player in the implementation of the rules. Fixing that perception will be beneficial from all of these closed door meetings with the R&A.

To understand their branding/PR issues, consider this quote from Daniel Summerhays, picked up by CBS/Golf Channel mics during Barclays round two play as Rory McIlroy thought his ball moved on the green.

 

 

At least in the minds of tour players, the USGA and R&A tried to fix the issue of balls moving on greens cut to absurdly low heights, and still didn't get it right.

Will Bethpage Finally Get Its Chance To Shine?

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The forecast--minus a possible Friday evening disruption--looks encouraging for The Barclays at Bethpage Black. You may recall that the two U.S. Opens and one Barclays played at the rejuvenated Tillinghast course have been tainted by excessive rains and really terrible course setups.

According to John Mutch, advance man at Bethpage for the PGA Tour, the course is in superb condition and the forecast finally offers hope that we'll get to see four days of golf where the only drama is created by the players. I could do without 3 1/2 inches of rough, but hey, we don't have to play it!

Of course, there is also the FedExCup playing out. In celebrating its 10th anniversary, Brian Wacker reminds us of this momentus anniversary (players who cash in remain the only known passionate supporters). 

I still can't think of a major competition in the sports world that instills less passion or interest. But as long as FedEx wants to pony up $40 million or so a year for a non-playoff that could be oh-so-dramatic if it were an actual playoff, we at least have three fun upcoming courses to watch on TV (Black, TPC Boston, Crooked Stick).

Given the success of the Olympics and the many suggestions for intriguing Olympic formats offered over the last year, coupled with soft PGA Tour ratings of late, this year's playoffs may be in for a rough ratings ride. Perhaps the viewing public making an even stronger statement than normal about an algorithm-based competition will force changes that make this an actual playoff with actual tension.