Reality Show: Wilson's Driver Ruled Non-Conforming

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Martin Kaufmann, who recently detailed the issues involving getting the Wilson Triton on the USGA's conforming club list, now reports non-conformity status for all but one the tour player model of the winning-reality show products.

From his Golfweek.com report:

The company said in a media release mid-day Monday that the company is working with the USGA to address the design elements that led to the club being rejected from the conforming list. Wilson said the USGA will review fixes to those elements this week. Wilson also said in the statement that it hopes a modified product could be ruled conforming as early as Dec. 19.

The USGA would not specify the reason the club was ruled nonconforming. In its release, Wilson said there were two problems: an aesthetic issue involving the size of the sole plate, and the springiness of the face when the adjustable weights are used in a specific configuration.

Kaufmann notes that most retailers had already pulled the club until conforming status had been bequeathed on the club, and that Wilson hopes to have USGA-approved adjustments made as early as December 19th.

Q&A With Jim Moriarty, Author Of Playing Through

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Longtime golf writer and photographer Jim Moriarty has penned Playing Through (University of Nebraska Press), his look at the incredible thirty-or-so-year window that has seen massive change and the Tiger Woods influence.

Best known for his revealing Golf World feature stories, Moriarty has used those pieces to weave together a nice overview of the game as it saw major changes. Other writers have put together anthologies, but Moriarty's style makes this one a little sexier than the usual anthology.

If you want a signed copy and to support a great Pinehurst institution, you can buy the book here at the Old Sport Gallery page.

Or, if you just need a good golf read or a smart gift, Amazon also has you covered with hardcover and Kindle editions.

Jim kindly answered a few questions about the book and what he's seeing with Tiger, the state of golf media and the next generation of stars.

GS: This is not an anthology, but a combination of new thoughts and essays on key players over the last thirty years. What made you go this route with the book instead of an anthology of previous Golf World and Digest features?

JM: The concept was pretty simple, which is good because complex thinking isn’t in my wheelhouse. Two of Herb Wind’s books, The Story of American Golf and Following Through (the latter a compilation of his New Yorker stories) taken together do an admirable job of telling the story of golf in America from the Apple Tree Gang to right around Nicklaus/Watson at Pebble Beach. While I certainly don’t — in any way — put myself in Herb’s category, the idea was to more or less pick up where he left off. There are lots of terrific books about a player or a tournament but nothing that sort of covered the field sideline-to-sideline. Then the question was, do I take on the last 30 years chronologically or in essay form, and I chose the latter.

GS: Tiger naturally gets a big chapter, what did you make of his most recent comeback?

JM: Honestly, I'm thrilled. One of the essays in the book is called "Last Acts." The great champions all seem to get a curtain call, discounting Jones and Nelson, who just walked away. I’d love to see Tiger get his. It’s completely unclear whether the body will hold up. The truth is golfers are athletes like any other. A football player blows his knee out. A baseball pitcher loses his arm. Either you can go or you can’t. It’s very cruel.

GS: You continually note the game changing at the hands of technology but insist the essence of elite golf has not been negatively altered. But do you think Tiger and perhaps Phil Mickelson have had their skill advantage dulled by the way equipment is more forgiving?

JM: I think the USGA and the R&A have been guilty of malpractice when it comes to equipment regulation. Do you see them moving the fences back at Wrigley Field? Having said that, what makes Tiger Tiger or Phil Phil is that whatever-the-hell-it-is that allows one to hole a putt bouncing like a Ping Pong ball down the 18th green at Torrey Pines or the other to attack the 13th green at Augusta National out of the trees and off the pine straw. Rocco knew Tiger was going to make that putt because, well, that’s just what Tiger does. In a different time or place someone could have, would have, said the same thing about Jones or Hagen, Hogan or Nelson or Snead, Nicklaus or Watson. In that respect, I don’t think the game has changed one little bit. The message is in the bottle — British version — always has been, always will be. It’s the stuff TrackMan can’t measure that ultimately matters the most and they don’t pass it out in equal amounts.

GS: Where do you see the current young generation of stars in a few years? Do you see shorter careers due to the money, increased visibility and stress compared to previous generations?

JM: I don’t think great players give a damn about anything except beating other great players. And we’ve got some great young players. I hope I live long enough to see them kick the hell out of each other a lot.

GS: Over the last thirty years, when was the game at its (A) best and (B) worst/lowest?

JM: Every time I go to Pebble Beach, the first two things I do are 1) go to the spot where I was kneeling beside the 17th when Watson chipped in and 2) walk around Stillwater Cove to the spot above the 7th where I had probably my longest conversation with Herb Wind. Moments stick out. The ’86 Masters was pretty good. And Tiger at Torrey wasn’t half bad. Same with Payne at Pinehurst. Our’s is a game that sooner or later can’t help but rise to a level above our expectations. This is personal but, to me, the lowest point was the disgraceful way everyone behaved toward Casey Martin. For a long time the sport was looking for the Next Nicklaus. I'll bet we  find the next Woods before we find the next Casey Martin.

GS: Star you most enjoyed covering and star you least enjoyed covering?

JM: They’re both Tiger.

GS: You were a longtime photographer who transitioned to writing. Player profiles were a big part of your career, but now we are down to really only Sports Illustrated still doing deep dives into stars. Do you see this and the overall decline of golf media having any impact on how we enjoy the sport?

JM: Actually, I was a longtime writer who got suckered into photography when I joined Golf World in ’79 as the associate editor. Taking pictures was part of the gig for the last guy on the masthead. As time went on my photographer friends thought I was a writer and my writer friends thought I was a photographer. So, I fooled everyone. And, yes, I’m absolutely gutted that there aren’t more places where writers get the time and space to do what what they do best. Geoff, you and I were both friends of the late, great Frank Hannigan. Remember the piece Frank wrote on A.W. Tillinghast for the old Golf Journal? It was staggeringly good. Where does that story go to be told today?

Great White Shark Promises To Break Governing Body "Cast Iron" Fist In "Middle Second Quarter Of Next Year"

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Hot off hosting another life-changing Shark Franklin Templeton Shootout, Greg Norman is fully engaged in his brand remake.

Saving the game from the governing bodies appears to be superhero Shark's latest mission. In association with Verizon. Mid-second quarter '17.

I realize that most of you have already signed up the Shirtless Shark for the funny farm after seeing him return to chainsaw work after nearly severing a limb chain-sawing brush.

But it's hard not to get excited about the looming brilliance that will be Shark's attempt to save the game (in a way that makes him more money).

Young writes:

By his own admission the Shark is planning to rock golf’s paradigm. He will do so, he says, in partnership with Verizon, the communications giant with whom he recently signed an eight-year deal. Verizon, incidentally, has never been associated with the golf industry on any level. That is until its hook up with Norman through 2024.

Young was at the launch of his newest design, the Greg Norman Signature Course at Vidanta Neuvo Vallarta, Mexico. During a fireside chat the Shirtless One started asking rhetorical questions about the state of the game.

“In the middle second quarter of next year, I’ll invite you guys down to my office,” he said. “We will tell you exactly how we’re going to break this cast iron that’s been wrapped around golf for so long. We’re going to shatter it. The institutions (USGA, R&A, PGA of America, PGA Tour) will eventually buy into it because they will have to buy into it. They won’t have a choice.”

Someone's been watching The Godfather too much! Horse owners among the governing bodies, check your barn locks.

But in case you didn't know how selfless the Shark can be, just think of the work he's doing to extend his brand into the next 200 years.

“If I died tomorrow what would happen to a lot of my businesses. Eventually they would die off,” he explained. “I never want that to happen because I want my brand to go on to perpetuity. So I started to think about a game plan about three years ago, in 2013, revolving around a 12-year game plan AND a 200-year game plan. You have to build a company for today but also for the future. Re-branding and repositioning is a big part of that.”

So are lots of vitamins! The awkward Fox Sports visit booth a year after being canned:


Young then writes:

Something head scratching? Norman gets little to no credit for his course design abilities. Rare, if ever, is his name mentioned with modern architects like Bill Coore/Ben Crenshaw, Gil Hanse, or Tom Doak. Design based on a least disturbance approach? Norman was engaged in this philosophy long before it became en vogue.

“I think I got slammed in the early part of my career for designing golf courses that were too hard,” he said.

Having at least one close due to difficulty before anyone even got to play it...will do that! Shame too, as the Bob Harrison years were impressive.

“But in my own defense, that was quite often the owner or developer that wanted that type of golf course. On at least a half-dozen occasions I’ve gone up to owners or developers, walked off the site and told them, ‘You build the golf course.’ Nobody every writes that of course. They just say Greg Norman builds too hard of golf courses.”

Well at least it's not bothering him.

“Opinions are like assholes: everyone’s got one. And I respect people’s opinions if they respect mine. What I despise are people, bloggers especially, who write articles about me who don’t even know me, never picked up a phone or even asked me a single question about my design philosophy. That blows me away,” he added.

There is a design philosophy beyond making money? Breaking news alert!

But back to that mid-second quarter, or third quarter at the latest...

“I can tell you this: by the third quarter of next year we’re going to market with a new product. You guys are going to say ‘Wow, nobody has ever thought about this,’” said Norman with a grin. “The partnership with Verizon goes beyond golf. They have never been involved with the game before and now they’re my partner going forward for the next eight years. It’s related to golf to some degree but totally related to some other places. These are the opportunities I have always seen within the company but I never had the right personnel or opportunity to do it.”

Can't wait.

One Of Palmer's Masters Trophies Goes For $444K

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Darren Rovell at ESPN.com provides a few details about the anonymous purchase via auction, as well as the backstory of how the Masters trophy initially ended up in private hands.

It's the second-highest price paid to Green Jacket Auctions for a piece of golf memorabilia and maybe to anyone, going for about $240,000 less than Horton Smith's 1936 Masters jacket. And who says the golf collectables market is dead? Though I'm not sure this will have the impact on attracting new collectors that some hope...

"Arnie did it again," said Ryan Carey, co-owner of Green Jacket Auctions. "We knew that this was a special piece, but even we were impressed by the level of interest from Arnold Palmer fans. Simply put, people love Arnold Palmer. There's a strong case to be made that Arnold Palmer is destined to become the face of the modern golf collecting hobby."

Chambers Bay Turns White Again...For A Few Hours

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Isn't this about how it looked during the 2015 U.S. Open?


Looking at this and thinking about what looms this coming June, we'll be longing to return there for another major...

Tiger Moves Bridgestone's Needle, Will It Continue?

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David Dusek looks at the attention Tiger Woods brought to the clubs he played in the Bahamas last week and in a strange twist, he might have brought more quality attention to those brands because he's not being paid by them. Will it continue when/if he signs with a company? After all, Nike probably couldn't sell a putter if they tried after Woods made clear he couldn't wait to put his old Scotty Cameron back in the bag.

From Dusek's Golfweek.com story, quoting Bridgestone's Corey Consuega:

Consuegra said that having staff Tour players such as Brandt Snedeker and Matt Kuchar is extremely valuable, but Woods’s use of a Bridgestone ball created an immediate impact. In fact, Consuegra said Bridgestone’s website received about the same amount of traffic last Monday through Friday that it did in the entire third quarter of this year (July-September), and most of those visitors were going to the Tour B330S page.

“It changes the way we can tell the consumers and the public how good we are in the golf ball category,” Consuegra said. “We get outspent by our biggest competitors, but (Woods is) one of the best players to ever play the game, period, and he could have selected any golf ball on the market today he wanted, and he chose to go with the B330S.”

Where DJ Went After The 2015 U.S. Open

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That 18th hole three-putt ultimately changed Dustin Johnson's career for the better, leading him to vindication at Oakmont in 2016 and earning him Golf's player of the year and an Alan Shipnuck profile.

There is a lot to take in--if you can pop some dramamine to deal with the jittery webpage--including where Johnson disappeared to instead of attending the trophy ceremony. He had to pack the family car for Gozzer!

That night, the family retreated to a rental home to gather their belongings; they'd be flying to Gozzer for a previously scheduled trip. Johnson insisted on carrying out all of their suitcases and loading them into SUVs. When Wayne expressed concern about Johnson's back, the golfer shot back, "After the way I played today, this is what I deserve."

The next morning, at 7 a.m., Wayne teed off at Gozzer with his cronies, a sprawling group that includes Mike Mattivi, a 16-handicapper who is also a part of the regular games at Sherwood. Johnson said he would join them on the first tee, but no one was surprised when he didn't show. They were in the second fairway when a ball whistled over their heads. "We all knew it was Dustin," Mattivi says. "He comes roaring up and says, "I told y'all to wait for me!" After what he had just been through at Chambers Bay, I was shocked. Most guys would spend a week in bed, hugging their pillow, but this kid loves the game so much he didn't want to miss out on the fun."

The second hole at Gozzer Ranch is a 589-yard par 5; Johnson smashed an 8-iron to four feet for an eagle try. "He's standing there waiting for us to give it to him," Mattivi says. "And one of our buddies goes, "Dustin, that would normally be good, but since you missed one about that length 12 hours ago, you're gonna have to putt it." Dustin laughed so damn hard. He knows we love him no matter how many 4-footers he might miss."

Bryson's New Stroke Day One: It's Hypnotic...

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Lexi is playing against the guys, tourney host Greg Norman should be making visit to his old Fox Sports team Saturday, and yet Bryson DeChambeau going side-saddle-face-on-Kuchar is simply hypnotic. And slightly uncomfortable to watch, until one goes in.

Sure, it's the Franklin Templeton Shootout at some silly-Greg-Norman-designed-Florida-course-with-huge-streaming-fountains, but come on, this is wild: 

Rory On Tiger: "He looked happy"

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Brian Keogh reports on the remarks of Rory McIlroy speaking at Monday's Excellence in Sport Awards in support of the Irish Youth Foundation in Dublin.

Say what you want about Tiger--and many have--but this comment from McIlroy is the most important big picture observation from last week's Hero World Challenge.

“Anytime we saw him on a golf course in the last couple of years he had the furrowed brow and he has been so concentrated.

“But  he looked happy so obviously that tells you he has been away and he has come back out happy and he is in a better place.”

Keogh's item also explores the prospects of which players might play in the Irish Open two weeks prior to The Open.

Local Rule! Intent! The R&A And USGA Wisely Relent On Accidental Ball Movement

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The governing bodies have long resisted introducing the question of intent to the Rules of Golf. They've also been loathe to introduce Local Rules because players have shown a tendency to not understand read them and not all courses get the message (but they do often lead to progressive Rules shifts).

But with one smart gesture preventing the game from three more years of silliness (until the next Rules of Golf update), they've introduced a local rule that eliminates a penalty for accidental ball movements. While it'll inevitably be dubbed the Dustin Johnson rule, there were many victims along the way.

Josh Sens at Golf.com scored an exclusive (well, embargoed) interview with the USGA's Thomas Pagel who wisely doesn't shy away from the motivation.

"Oakmont certainly did bring the matter to a lot of people's attention, and it did prompt us toward further conversation," Pagel said.

Phil Casey with this account of the change and quotes the R&A David Rickman:

"It was certainly a very difficult case but within the rules environment it was more the repetition of incidents rather than one or two which was of greater concern.

"We had one or two situations at the Open which happened the following month, a couple at the Olympics.

The full press release:

New Local Rule Eliminates Penalty for a Player Who Accidentally Causes a Ball to Move on the Putting Green

FAR HILLS, N.J. (Dec. 8, 2016) – The USGA and The R&A today announced the introduction of a new Local Rule that eliminates the penalty when a ball is accidentally moved on the putting green.

The Local Rule will be available for any committee in charge of a competition to use starting Jan. 1, 2017. It will be adopted by the USGA and The R&A in all of their championships, qualifying competitions and international matches.

“Eliminating this penalty responds to the concerns we have heard from both golfers and committees about the difficulties in applying the current Rules when a player accidentally causes a ball to move on the putting green,” said Thomas Pagel, USGA senior director, Rules of Golf and Amateur Status, said. “This change is a good example of the type of Rules Modernization changes we hope to implement after completing our fundamental review of all of the Rules. We are looking for ways to improve the Rules by making them easier to understand and apply.”

David Rickman, executive director - Governance at The R&A, said, “For the past several years, as part of The R&A and USGA’s Rules Modernization initiative, we have considered the penalty for a ball that is accidentally moved on the putting green. Both Rules Committees agreed that it needed to be changed and decided that in this particular case it was important to act now, through a Local Rule, rather than wait for the next overall set of revisions to the Rules of Golf.”

The Local Rule has been welcomed by all of the major tours worldwide, and the PGA Tour, European Tour, LPGA, PGA of America and the Masters Tournament are among the golf organizations that will implement the Local Rule for all future events, beginning Jan.1, 2017.  

If a committee wishes to introduce this Local Rule, the following wording is recommended:

“Rules 18-2, 18-3 and 20-1 are modified as follows:

When a player’s ball lies on the putting green, there is no penalty if the ball or ball-marker is accidentally moved by the player, his partner, his opponent, or any of their caddies or equipment.

The moved ball or ball-marker must be replaced as provided in Rules 18-2, 18-3 and 20-1.

This Local Rule applies only when the player’s ball or ball-marker lies on the putting green and any movement is accidental.

Note: If it is determined that a player’s ball on the putting green was moved as a result of wind, water or some other natural cause such as the effects of gravity, the ball must be played as it lies from its new location. A ball-marker moved in such circumstances is replaced.”

For more information about the new Local Rule, including explanatory diagrams, videos and a detailed question-and-answer document, please visit www.usga.org/2017localrule.

Now we just have to get the word out to all golf courses, though this is really largely an issue where High Definition television and people who don't hit the ball any longer than they did five years ago converge with greens Stimping 14.

First Look At Pinehurst No. 4 Redesign Plans

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Architect Gil Hanse and Pinehurst's Tom Pashley were on Morning Drive today to discuss the exciting overhaul of Pinehurst No. 4. And while someone will surely be sad to see the eradication of Tom Fazio's pot bunker phase, the layout desperately deserves to look more like a Pinehurst course.

The Pinehurst page with today's Morning Drive chat and a few videos of proposed before/afters. Two of the holes here:

The Story Behind Bryson's Side Saddle Move

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Adam Schupak at PGATour.com has all of the thinking and specs behind Bryson DeChambeau's eye-opening putting switch.

Besides clarifying that he doesn't like the name side-saddle or "face-on" DeChambeau is very open about his putting struggles and the motive behind the switch.

DeChambeau practiced with it for at least 7 hours a day for the past two weeks. When he describes the benefits of looking at the hole with both eyes and swinging his right arm in a pendulum motion, he makes it sound simple."It's more bio-mechanically efficient," he said. "I take it back with a certain amount of energy with a certain acceleration profile that lets it go a certain distance."

Bjorn All Over The Map On Ryder Cup Qualifying

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The headlines were kind to new European Ryder Cup captain Thomas Bjorn, who will be tootling around Paris in 2018.

Let's hope he drives his cart in more orderly fashion than this quote, featured in Mark Tallentire's Guardian report:

“There’s a lot of nuances into this and they all need to be looked at,” Bjorn said. “Selection will be reviewed, and it should be, because the world and the game of golf is a moving thing. But we’re in no immediate rush and no panic to do it. We’ll look at it carefully. We might stay where we are but we might also come up with a few tweaks. Almost the biggest task at hand is not to get too panicked about not having the trophy on this side of the Atlantic at the moment. There’s so many aspects but I’m just trying to gather all the information to set out a plan.”

It doesn't sound like much will change in Europe. Given that the European Tour needs the Ryder Cup to ensure players remain members, look for defectors like Paul Casey and Russell Knox to continually be penalized for disloyalty. I get it from a business perspective, but as a fan I want the most competitive teams possible.

David Leadbetter Announces Split With Pupil Lydia Ko

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Teachers and pupils split all the time, though in golf it's a bit unusual to see the coach announce the parting of ways with an extensive statement.

Here is the statement "on behalf of" David Leadbetter regarding the end of his Lydia Ko partnership:

“These things happen in the world of coaching, whether it’s Jurgen Klinsmann with the US National Soccer Team or Novak Djokovic who just separated from his coach Boris Becker this week. This turnover is all part of the coaching business.

We as a team want to thank Lydia for the privilege of helping her develop her game over the past three years. During which time she has amassed close to $7.5 million in prize money, has won 12 LPGA titles including two Majors, twice won the CME Championship, youngest Rookie of the Year in 2014, youngest Rolex Player of the Year in 2015, won the silver medal at this year’s Olympic Games in Rio, and achieved a host of other records. At present Lydia is number one in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings.  Our goal from our very first coaching session with Lydia in November of 2013 was to create a vision and blueprint for this extraordinary talent designed around improving her full swing shot-making abilities, power, and short game performance.  Lydia’s tournament results and statistics in each of the last three seasons clearly demonstrate the effectiveness of our plan.

Lydia is not only an exceptional player, but also an exceptional person. She is a perfect role model for any young golfer to follow on how to conduct oneself on the golf course, interact with the public, and give back to the game. Lydia has been an absolute pleasure to coach and she felt the staff at the Leadbetter Golf Academy Headquarters at Champions Gate has been like an extended family to her.

We, the Leadbetter Golf Academy team, have prided ourselves on working with great talent through the years. Our team, including Sean Hogan, Director of Instruction at The Leadbetter Academies, plus other members of Lydia’s support team who have helped guide her, will walk away knowing that we have helped a great talent reach the highest pinnacle. We are proud of the part we have played in supporting her success. She has created a record that will be incredibly hard to beat! We believe that her success reinforces our position as leaders in the development of champion golfers around the world.

We wish Lydia the very best for the future and know that, going forward, if she is able to withstand the many outside pressures associated with being number one in the world, and if her team keep their expectations realistic, then she can go on to even bigger and better things.”

Ok, we didn't need the hard sell!

Ko is developing quite the track record, having fired her first coach for Leadbetter just one week after signing with IMG. More recently, she fired another caddie and is believed to be leaving Callaway for PXG.