U.S. Women's Open: "Davis' absence a big miss for women's golf"

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USGA Executive Directors have long taken a back seat at the U.S. Women's Open for reasons both reasonable and odd, but as Randall Mell writes for GolfChannel.com, the Tuesday U.S. Women's Open absense of both USGA Executive Director Mike Davis and President Diana Murphy at Trump Bedminster was hard to miss. Especially with USGA headquarters literally down the street and players facing non-golf questions.

Mell writes:

Yes, Davis doesn’t always make an appearance at this annual women’s news conference, which is troubling enough in itself, but his absence Tuesday was especially glaring.

Davis’ last appearance at the U.S. Women’s Open annual USGA news conference was 2014, but this one demanded his square jaw, even if he was only going to deflect, block or dodge, like all the players he left to answer the hard questions.

Funny thing, though. While Davis didn’t have to dodge any hardballs Tuesday, he’s the one who got the black eye.

“It's probably been several years since he has been here,” USGA public services director Beth Major said of the news conference’s makeup. “I know this is the team assembled last year. We are being consistent with the same team.”

Chubby And Westwood In "Shock" Split

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Players and agents split all the time and no one blinks an eye. But the shock of finding out Lee Westwood is in a legal dispute with longtime ten-percenter Chubby Chandler ends a loyalty era. As the younger generations is increasingly steered in ominous directions by agents hostile to everyone not writing them a check, Chandler is a former player turned businessman who has always had a good sense for his clients. In this case, he a loyal horse in Westwood and it's sad to see them split.

But as James Corrigan reports on the duo's long term partnership for The Telegraph, and says Westwood is off to IMG.

Westwood was believed to be shareholder in ISM and his departure is clearly a blow for the Manchester-based company, which remains one of the biggest players in the market, despite losing players of the calibre of Rory McIlroy, Charl Schwartzel and Matt Fitzpatrick. Westwood was clearly one ISM’s marquee names, boasting on-course earnings of approximately£50 million and off-course income estimated to be more than £5 million per year.

Europe’s second is an almost certainty  to be a future Ryder Cup captain, with 2020 his stated year of choice. His main handler at IMG is likely to be the much respected, Guy Kinnings, who is global co-managing director of the golf division.

Getting In The Mood For Birkdale: Thomson Wins '54 Open

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To kick off the countdown to Birkdale '17, this Open footage from the past shows us 24-year-old Peter Thomson posing for the Claret Jug, one of five victories.

This Sky Sports piece is a nice wrap-up of Thomson's win.

A few things to note about the course: exposed sand in the dunes, the galleries going where they please (apparently), and how stark the difference between fairway and green cuts.

There's also a brief glimpse of putting master Bobby Locke. Enjoy!

Poll: Does a lead analyst need to have a major on the résumé?

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With Johnny Miller back for another year, as he revealed to us in Golfweek, the game has another year of its version of McEnroe or Barkley.

It does not appear that there is yet a Johnny-like successor in the wings, with only Fox's Paul Azinger matching Johnny's level of frank, often critical commentary. Nick Faldo, lead man at CBS, also has his moments too but Johnny is clearly a special talent who still works at the job. And even better, works at not getting too close to players so that he can analyze bluntly.

As a two-time major winner, Miller does have a perceived advantage that someone like Brandel Chamblee does not enjoy as merely someone who played the PGA Tour.

But as a viewer, does the major championship winning gravitas matter compared to the quality of commentary?

The poll:

Does a lead analyst need to have a major on the résumé?
 
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Poll Results: Keep The Anchoring Ban, Small Majority Says

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There are still a few counties who haven't sent in their votes, but over 800 of you have spoken and as of this hour my efforts to rescind the anchoring ban were shot down.

A slim majority of you say keep the ban. If I'd been a betting man, given the displeasure I hear about the ban on anchoring, I would have bet on a 60% majority saying abandon the ban in the 2019 rules re-write.

But I dare say the people have spoken, and I must say that given the difficulty of enforcing the ban (as evidenced by Bernhard Langer's current technique), this seemed an easy way out. So I find it fascinating that so many of you did not agree with taking the easy way out. Point taken!

Scottish Open: Dundonald Links Flyover 1 to 18

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I won't lie: Dundonald has not been the most exciting Scottish Open venue in recent years. Granted, Gullane, Royal Aberdeen and Castle Stuart are very special places on name alone.

But after watching this Dundonald Links flyover from the first to the last, I'm much more excited about seeing this week's Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Open. As we discussed on Morning Drive today, no tournament has made a faster rise over the last few years than this one thanks to a combination of sponsor, quality venues and younger players getting over their links antipathy (and a few older ones like Phil and Henrik showing this can be a great pre-Open prep).

I arrive Thursday to take in the action and as you know by now, this is a Golf Channel and NBC combo platter, with GC coverage starting at 5:30 am ET Thursday. Weekend coverage by NBC starts at 12:30 PM ET.

The flyovers:

 

Roundup: The President Will Be At The U.S. Women's Open!

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There are many ways to look at this and I've long been of the mindset that Donald Trump as President would overshadow the women's best golfers as they tackle Trump Bedminster.

But unless he drives his cart on a green during play as he did a few weeks ago at Bedminster, I'm increasingly of the view that he will show up, get too much attention, but ultimately bring some new eyeballs to women's golf. Maybe it's a fantasy, but hey, stranger things have happened in this crazy game

AP’s Tom Canavan sets up the women's U.S. Women's Open at Trump Bedminster and the various ramifications for all involved.

"When we came here, this was all about coming to a great golf course and playing the greatest championship in women's golf," USGA executive director and chief executive Mike Davis said at a media day in May. "The USGA, since its founding in 1894, has never been involved with politics. Our focus is solely on the game of golf."

Whether that decision draws protest remains to be seen.

Ron Sirak discussed on Morning Drive that players wish the President would stay away and even one who is a confidant of the President told him to stay away.

Christine Brennan reports for USA Today that after comments two years ago about Mexicans, followed by a statement from golf organizations, then-candidate Trump threatened to sue the USGA if they moved this U.S. Women's Open. Mike Davis had the fun task of informing the Executive Committee.

Davis informed the USGA executive committee about Trump’s threat on a conference call about two years ago, just as Trump was beginning his successful campaign for president, according to the person, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the USGA has not publicly discussed the matter.

Davis, who told the group he and other USGA officials had met with Trump, told the executive committee, “We can’t get out of this. He’s going to sue us,” according to the person.

Davis declined comment but later supplied this statement that will no doubt be looked at by the PGA of America, (increasingly concerned?) hosts of the 2022 PGA at Trump Bedminster.

Davis added later in a statement to USA TODAY Sports: “As a matter of policy, the terms of our contracts with championship host sites are confidential and accordingly the USGA will not comment. We are excited that our U.S. Women’s Open Championship week has begun and are focused on providing the ultimate test of golf for the best female players in the world.”

The Palm Beach Post's Kristina Webb confirms that flight plans have been made to ensure safe airspace travels for the President.

The president will head to Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster on Friday and return to Washington, D.C., on Sunday, according to a new notice to pilots posted Monday morning by the Federal Aviation Administration.

Coverage begins Thursday on FS1, with big Fox taking on weekend duties. Strap in!

Considering The Chances Of Another Major At Chambers Bay

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For anyone hosting a major or thinking of doing so, Tony Dear's Links piece is worth a read given the high-profile Chambers Bay experiment.

As the story notes, it succeeded on the financial and ratings front, but agronomically left a scar that is now being rectified by a creative conversion to poa greens.

Since June 2015, Johnson has increased cultural inputs (mowing, rolling, fertilizer, pesticide, water) to favor annual bluegrass establishment, and is seeding the greens with the only commercially available annual bluegrass turf—Poa reptans Two-Putt. “The good news,” he says, “is that it establishes pretty well. The bad news is that its prolific seedhead production in the first year or so gives the greens that blotchy appearance.”

Johnson has also begun saving and analyzing clipping yields from the greens in an effort to monitor growth and make better decisions on when to cut, seed, fertilize, and irrigate. “Every-day play is our focus as a public course,” he says. “I want smooth greens as well as consistent speed and firmness.”

On the financial side, Chambers continued the trend of public-access venues raking in more money for the USGA (we won't know how Erin Hills fared for a while):

According to its Annual Report, USGA revenue from its Open championships (U.S. Open, U.S. Senior Open, U.S. Women’s Open) in 2016, when the U.S. Open was played at Oakmont, was $53.3m. In 2015, it was $64.3m. 

The irony in all of this is that Chambers would make a great PGA Championship venue...in August. May? Not so much. Though still certainly doable and capable of bringing big energy and bigger West Coast ratings.

Glad Cliff Wasn't Around To See This One, Files: WSJ Edition

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Clifford Roberts did not suffer fools gladly, or mistakes, or anything involving imperfection.

So something tells me that the longtime Augusta National Chairman would not have been pleased at this Wall Street Journal mistake and correction in a story on Sergio sporting the green jacket at Wimbledon. Thanks to reader John for the item:

Punters: Pre-Open Championship Karma Watch, Poulter Edition

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Nothing against the four players who made it through the Open Qualifying Series at the Greenbrier Classic, and nothing against the series itself, but punters with karma hunches may want to check out this James Corrigan Telegraph story on Ian Poulter making it to Royal Birkdale by playing the Woburn qualifier.

Besides taking the local qualifying angle at a course he knows well--once one of the great features of The Open and now relegated to this last event due to the Open Qualifying Series--Poulter did this in a year he finished second at The Players. And the year The Open returns to the site of a second place finish.

“Obviously going back after what happened will be special. I honestly thought I had that 15-foot putt on the last to maybe win or to get in a play-off and then my Irish friend decided to go bananas on the last five holes.

“But still, it was a great week, my best in a major. After I finished, [his wife] Katie told me she was pregnant with Lily [the third of their four children], so it was happy days. Birkdale is my favourite Open venue.”

Just saying he's worth a look for a nice each way wager at 100-1...

ClubCorp Sells After All: For $1.1 Billion To Apollo Global

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Reuters' Greg Roumeliotis reports that the publicly-traded company owning 206 clubs and serving over 400,000 members, including at Mission Hills and Firestone, has sold to Apollo Global Management.

It's an all-cash, $1.1 billion deal netting shareholders $17.12 a share, a 31% premium over Friday's closing price. 

DallasNews.com's business writer Paul O'Donnell noted this:

Sunday's announcement comes about three months after ClubCorp's board said it would not seek a sale. Longtime CEO Eric Affeldt announced at the same time that he would be retiring. A month later, the company added two new directors at the behest of activist investor FrontFour Capital Group LLC, which had been critical of ClubCorp's management.

Rahm Wins Irish Open, Lexi Rule Surfaces Too

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After a temperamental U.S. Open, Jon Rahm once again showed he can put rough weeks behind him by dominating the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open.

This quote from Alistair Tait's Golfweek account suggests someone is very confident heading into The Open, and his updated odds reflect similar confidence from punters.

“That makes two for two, shooting 65 in the final round,” Rahm said. “Obviously, it’s a very different tournament here for me. I’ve been saying I haven’t played my best golf, and today, for 15 holes, I played the best golf I can ever play on the golf course with the weather that we had. Obviously, the bonus of holing out on four was great, but man, this is a nice feeling.”

The round was highlighted by a hole-out at the fourth.

As for the ball mark issue and changes in the rules, here is Tait's account with this from rules official Andy McFee on why the rules are more forgiving:

“One of the points in the new decision is that the outcome depends a lot on what the player says and his explanation of the events,” McFee said. “Jon said: ‘I knew I marked it to the side and then I was trying to make an effort to put it back to the side.’ He’s definitely made the effort.

“We’re talking about the difference between the ball being lifted at 10 o’clock on the ball marker and put back at 11 o’clock which is not a problem.

“The new decision the R&A and USGA crafted, with the full knowledge from the PGA Tour and ourselves, is all about trying to eliminate these fine margins and get to a position where if a player has made a reasonable judgement then the game will accept it if it’s slightly wrong.

This screen grab shows his ball was closer to the hole and not in the same location:

In other news, the Irish Open will again play at a links next year, heading to the newer of two courses at Ballyliffin. Liam Kelly reports.

Poll: Should The Governing Bodies Drop The Anchoring Ban?

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Bernhard Langer's recent brush with anchoring at the U.S. Senior Open prompted a pre-round visit with rules officials from the USGA. There was also overwhelming outrage on social media and coverage from Fox Sports addressing concerns of a possible rules violation. The issue summed up here by Brandel Chamblee, who coverage this week may have prompted the latest response:


At the very least, Langer is taking things right up to the edge of the anchoring ban. At the worst, he's openly resisting the rule knowing that the genteel world of golf would never actually prosecute a player of his caliber.

This all prompted an unusual Friday news dump with statements from Langer, fellow Champions Tour long putter user Scott McCarron and the USGA. Here is what was said:

The "integrity" language here from the USGA would suggest that actually enforcing the rule is now almost impossible given the introduction of intent.  With this in mind and knowing there are seniors whose golfing lives were made miserable by not being able to anchor, perhaps it's time to drop a rule that will not be enforced?

The SI/Golf.com gang contemplated massaging or changing the rule in this week's discussion that included caddie John Wood.

Given the potential rules changes for 2019, should the governing bodies consider abandoning a rule that started in 2016 after much debate?

The poll and your votes please:

As part of the rules revisions, should the governing bodies drop the anchoring ban?
 
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