2023: Walker Cup Headed To The Old Course

/
Screen Shot 2018-02-26 at 8.51.28 AM.png

The R&A finally got the hint after the USGA awarded future Walker Cups to Seminole and Cypress Point!

Announcing a return to the Old Course for the biennial matches was long overdue and most welcomed. It's a good time to be a 13 year old budding star!

For Immediate Release:

THE 49TH WALKER CUP TO BE PLAYED AT ST ANDREWS IN 2023
26 February 2018, St Andrews, Scotland: A historic milestone in the rich heritage of the Walker Cup will be reached at the Home of Golf in 2023 when the international match between Great Britain and Ireland and the United States is played at St Andrews.
The occasion will mark exactly 101 years since the biennial encounter was first contested at the National Golf Links of America in 1922 and will be the ninth time that the Walker Cup has been played at St Andrews; more than any other venue in its history.
The Walker Cup was last played over the world renowned Old Course in 1975 when the United States team, which included future major champions Jerry Pate, Craig Stadler and Curtis Strange, defeated GB&I 15½ -8½. GB&I won the Walker Cup matches played in 1938 and 1971 at St Andrews.
Duncan Weir, Executive Director – Golf Development at The R&A, said, “The Walker Cup is the pinnacle of men’s amateur golf in Great Britain and Ireland and the United States with many of the game’s greatest players including Bobby Jones and Sir Michael Bonallack having featured in memorable matches played over the Old Course at St Andrews.
“We are excited to be bringing the Walker Cup back to the Home of Golf for the first time in nearly 50 years and look forward to watching some of the world’s most talented amateur golfers contest the match over the famous Old Course in 2023.”
Euan Loudon, Chief Executive of St Andrews Links Trust, said, “We are delighted to see the Walker Cup return to our calendar of prestigious events at the Old Course. After a near 50-year absence we hope it will produce a memorable contest and reinforce the stature of amateur golf in Great Britain and Ireland.
“I am sure many talented golfers on both sides of the Atlantic, some of whom may just be at the beginning of their golfing journeys, will be inspired by the prospect of competing in amateur golf’s premier match at the Home of Golf.”
The match in 2023 will be the 49th playing of the Walker Cup and, of the 46 matches played to date, the United States has won 36 matches, GB&I nine matches, with one match tied.
The 2019 Walker Cup will be played on Saturday 7 and Sunday 8 September at Royal Liverpool, the venue for the first ever match between teams from Great Britain and Ireland and the United States in 1921 which would become the Walker Cup one year later. 
Seminole Golf Club in Florida will host the Walker Cup for the first time in its history in May 2021 while the 50th Walker Cup will be contested at Cypress Point in California in 2025.

Coming Soon To A Theater Near You: Governing Bodies Engaging With The Golf World On The Distance Issue

/

The distance chatter around Riviera has included a great deal of shock over R&A Chief Martin Slumbers conceding that the line has been crossed, with nearly everyone I talked to then saying something to the effect of: "but a year ago they said everything was fine."

And I would note, that stance was taken with no shortage of hubris in some parts of the world.

I suspect the position reversal will be the first stumbling block faced by golf's governing bodies when they begin to discuss what to do about the distance explosion. And those discussions will be a big part of 2018, at least according to a Slumbers comment from Alistair Tait's Golfweek story:

Slumbers wouldn’t say what the governing bodies are planning, but they’re intent on reducing distance.

“There are a lot of options. There’s a lot of work still to be done with a lot of people, and engaging with not just the game but the equipment manufacturers and all sorts of things, but that work we now feel needs to be done."

I sensed after hearing different views at the PGA Tour level today that the R&A and USGA may not realize how few friends they've made over the years. Former R&A Chief Inspector Peter Dawson and his condescending, inconsistent positions were referenced more than once.

Those with opinions on both sides of the aisle will expect an explanation of the status quo position. Otherwise I don't expect the conversations to last very long.

Perhaps the upcoming distance report will address why there is a change in position when it was apparent long ago that there were issues on multiple fronts. If not, the discussions Slumbers referenced above will not go smoothly.  Or very far.

The Open Returns To The Old Course In 2021

/

As The Forecaddie notes, golf's worst-kept secret was made official with the awarding of the 2021 Open Championship to the Old Course at St. Andrews. As I noted when the news broke during Morning Drive today, this is bucket list stuff. So start saving your money!

The R&A's announcement includes some wonderful footage and images:

R&A Chief Slumbers On Distance: "We have probably crossed that line in the sand"

/

John Huggan of Golf World talks to R&A Chief Martin Slumbers about The Open going to St. Andrews in 2021 as well as Turnberry's prospects (2023 now at the earliest), but the real eye-opening comments came on the topic of distance.

As with the USGA last week, Slumbers is hinting that the governing bodies saw huge distance spikes last year and will be revealing so soon.

“There’s no doubt in my mind that the technology has made this difficult game just a little bit easier,” Slumbers said. “At a time when we want more people to play the game, I think that’s a good thing. But we do also think that golf is a game of skill and should be reflective of skill. If you look at the data, there has been a significant move up across all tours. We’re looking at the longest on-record average driving distance. Both of those have caused us and our colleagues at the USGA serious concern."

That sure sounds like a bifurcation case, but as we know the B word is forbidden in the rulemaking world!

Here are the strongest words out of R&A headquarters in a long, long time:

“For a number of years there has been a slow creep upwards, but this is a little bit more than slow creep. It’s actually quite a big jump. Our 2002 joint statement of principles put a line in the sand. But when you look at this data we have probably crossed that line in the sand. A serious discussion is now needed on where we go.”

Strap in, this is about to get interesting!

Rules Simplification: Be Careful What You Wish For, Pros

/

As we near the USGA and R&A rolling out their extensive, exciting and bold simplification of the 2019 Rules of Golf, Ryan Herrington at Golf World makes a shrewd point worth checking out: be careful what you wish for elite players.

After all, simpler rules mean you better know them!

With so many sections and subsections and sub-subsections, if you broke a Rule because you didn’t know it was a Rule to begin with, you often were forgiven for making an honest mistake. With a modernized Rules book, that defense becomes far more flimsy.

Indeed, if the Rules are going to be easier to understand, then golfers are going to be expected to genuinely understand them. In particular, golfers who make a living playing the game.

In that respect, the modernized Rules may well present a new set of challenges when they finally go online on New Year’s Day 2019.

Will Golf Be Worse Off By Rules Taking Onus Off The Player?

/

That's the pointed question Michael Bamberger poses for Golf.com after the USGA and R&A announced the end to viewer call-ins, penalties for scorecard signing issues caused by retroactive penalties and the creation of dedicated replay watchers.

Bamberger sees the change as "soft" and his view was echoed by some rules experts I heard from in response to the rule:

How about the responsibility to know the rules and to play by them? How about doing it correctly the first time? The whole ball-dropping issue with Tiger Woods at 15 in the Saturday round of the 2013 Masters was that he dropped incorrectly. The whole ball-marking issue with Thompson at the ANA Inspiration was that she marked incorrectly. Neither player ever stood up and said, "I take responsibility for this whole mess."

Golf, by tradition, is severe, austere, Calvinistic. Every aspect of it. That's why the spectators are quiet. That's why one player does nothing to interfere with another. That's why Joe Dey, the first PGA Tour commissioner, late of the USGA, carried a bible in one pocket and a rule book in the other when he officiated.  

I certainly agree that there is a softening effect worth considering, particularly if the softening actually leads to something worse than mere player ignorance of the rules. If there is an opening created here, as Bamberger contends, does it lead to players bending the rules out of ignorance or entitlement? A case could be made that we already see that with backstopping or the current ball mark fixing of non-ball marks on greens.

“I can see where some “softening” is acceptable. ”

However, from the player perspective the rules have become cumbersome and with an audience looking to catch you doing something wrong and needing HD to do it, I can see where some "softening" is acceptable. Crossing the line into rule bending or breaking is where things get scary for the game's integrity.

Why Could Replay Reviews Still Occur After A Card Is Signed?

/

This remains the one question I have from Monday's announcement of an end to viewer call-in tips and penalties for signing cards that were thought to have been signed correctly at the time.

As explained by theUSGA's Thomas Pagel and R&A's David Rickman, a review could still take place on, say, Friday, after something occurred on Thursday. Only now, the player will not be penalized for signing an incorrect card should a penalty be assessed by the review.

As we noted onMorning Drive, this leaves open the question of how such a delayed review would take place if the tour's had an official watching the live telecasts. Any review over a few minutes past the round's conclusion would only occur because the official missed it the first time. In this case, the official would only be working off of some sort of outside tip to review a possible infraction.

Ron Sirak, appearing a few minutes before me on Morning Drive, raised the suggestion of reviews no longer happening once the card is signed.I would agree.

I'm sure the tours and governing bodies have considered scenarios and have their reasons. Then again, we thought going from DQ to penalty strokes would solve things and as Ryan Herrington notes at Golf World, that wasn't so.

Interestingly, the two-stroke penalty only went into effect in 2016 when USGA and R&A implemented the most recent changes to the Rules of Golf. Prior to that, players would be disqualified if they had signed their scorecards and were later found to have committed a penalty that they had not accounted. In changing the rule to be more lenient, officials acknowledged a DQ was a punishment that didn’t fit the crime.

Lexi Thompson, the cause for this emergency local rule, praised the organizations.

Golfweek's roundup of player reactions is here. Lexi's post:

I was informed of the two rule changes this morning from my management team at Blue Giraffe Sports. I applaud the USGA and the R & A for their willingness to revise the Rules of Golf to to address certain unfortunate situations that have arisen several times in the game of golf. In my case, I am thankful that no one else will have to deal with an outcome such as mine in the future. I just finished an amazing week at the QBE Shark Shooutout in Naples, and I am excited to begin my offseason. I will have no further comment on these changes as I look forward to now spending time with my family and friends. I hope everyone has an awesome Holiday season, and I wish everyone a healthy and happy 2018! 🎁

A post shared by Lexi Thompson (@lexi) on Dec 11, 2017 at 5:32am PST

Five Families To Rules Geeks: Stop Calling, We've Got This

/

It took emergency meetings atThe Masters, all sorts of embarrassment and even more meetings, but apparently the Five Families have agreed to no longer take rules infraction calls. Whether this means a replay center will be created or merely a lot of golf watching will take place between a rotating set of officials, the USGA, PGA Tour, PGA of America and R&A say stop calling them!

Martin Kaufmann,writing for Golfweek.com with the details:

The governing bodies – in conjunction with the PGA Tour, LPGA, PGA European Tour, Ladies European Tour and PGA of America – agreed to assign at least one rules official to monitor all tournament telecasts and resolve any rules issues.

“The message is, have confidence in those conducting the event that if you’ve seen it, they’ve seen it, and there’s no need for anyone to call in what they think they have seen,” said Thomas Pagel, the USGA’s senior director of the Rules of Golf and amateur status.

From what I'm hearing on Morning Drive appearance by the USGA's Thomas Pagel and the R&A's David Rickman, the video reviews will largely be off of the telecast and will vary week to week depending on the tour's in question.

They also stated replay inquiries can occur within the tournament for any round, meaning they might come back the next day and review something with a player. However, this would seem to mean the video replay official missed something, prompting a review. That's not going to be pretty since most will assume a review a day or two after a round was prompted by social media or a viewer tip.

Not accepting fan video is the right move, but what if a Golf Channel crew shooting for highlights shows captures an HD view and angle that exonerates a player?

Also unclear: is The Masters on board?

Beth Ann Nicholsconsiders what this means forLexi Thompson and the redemption for her with this change, plus her reaction when informed yesterday.

The full press release:

Video Review Protocols Introduced for

Broadcasted Golf Events

USGA and The R&A to adopt Local Rule to eliminate scorecard penalty

FAR HILLS, N.J. USA and ST ANDREWS, SCOTLAND (December 11, 2017) -  A working group led by the USGA and The R&A has unanimously agreed to adopt a new set of protocols for video review when applying the Rules of Golf.

The group, consisting of the PGA TOUR, LPGA, PGA European Tour, Ladies European Tour and The PGA of America, as well as the governing bodies, will implement the following measures from January 1, 2018:

  • Assign one or more officials to monitor the video broadcast of a competition to help identify and resolve Rules issues as they arise
  • Discontinue any steps to facilitate or consider viewer call-ins as part of the Rules decision process

In addition, the USGA and The R&A have approved the adoption of a Local Rule, available from January 1, to eliminate the additional two-stroke penalty for failing to include a penalty on the score card when the player was unaware of the penalty. All of the organizations represented on the working group will introduce the Local Rule for 2018, and this score card penalty will be permanently removed when the modernized Rules of Golf take effect on January 1, 2019.

The USGA and The R&A established the video review working group in April to initiate a collaborative discussion on the role video footage can play when applying the Rules, including the challenges and benefits of its use and also the issues that arise from viewer call-ins. 

“The level of collaboration with our partners has been both vital and gratifying as we look to the future,” said Thomas Pagel, USGA senior director of the Rules of Golf and Amateur Status. “As technology has continued to evolve, it has allowed us to evolve how we operate, as well.” [To watch an interview on usga.org with Pagel on Video Review, plus a copy of the protocols and full Local Rule, click here]

David Rickman, Executive Director – Governance at The R&A, said, “This has clearly become an important issue in the sport that we felt we should address at this stage ahead of the implementation of the updated Rules of Golf in 2019.

“We have concluded that whilst players should continue to be penalized for all breaches of the Rules during a competition, including any that come to light after the score card is returned, an additional penalty for the score card error is not required.”

The new protocols also recognize the importance of limiting video review to material obtained from the committee’s broadcast partner. Other video, such as from an individual’s smartphone or camera, will not be used under these protocols.

The new protocols and Local Rule are the latest measures announced by the USGA and The R&A to address concerns related to video evidence. In April, Decision 34-3/10 was issued to limit the use of video through the introduction of a “reasonable judgement” standard and a “naked eye” standard.

Update

on 2017-12-11 21:01 by Geoff

**Our conversation on Morning Drivecentered around the scorecard and statute of limitations on a review, which is still an issue.

USGA's Davis: Distance Explosion Impact Has Been "Horrible"

/

In what's increasingly smelling, sounding and feeling like a buildup to a serious product-driven discussion about how to deal with the distance chase, the Wall Street Journal's Brian Costa talks to several about where we are headed.

The Saturday WSJ piece (thanks reader JB) is titled "Golf Weighs Big Shift To Reduced-Distance Golf Balls" and says golf's governing bodies are discussing "different balls for different levels of the game."

This is similar to something the USGA's Mike Davis floated in March and now Costa reports:

“I don’t care how far Tiger Woods hits it,” Davis said. “The reality is this is affecting all golfers and affecting them in a bad way. All it’s doing is increasing the cost of the game.”

For those of you more recent readers, you may not know it, but these may be the strongest comments yet from a governing body figure related to the distance explosion's impact.

The concept Davis is floating would leave it to other groups, from the PGA Tour all the way down to private clubs, to decide which category of balls is permitted on any given course. It could also create new options on the lower end of the sport.

“What if we said to get more little kids into the game, we’re going to come up with a conforming golf ball that’s the size of a tennis ball, to help them hit it up in the air?” Davis said. “We are really trying to think outside the box.”

One question to be answered is which groups would mandate the use of reduced-distance balls. PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan declined to comment. Until someone requires golfers to use something other than the best-performing balls they can find, manufacturers will have little reason to bring reduced-distance balls to market.

Unless of course their favorite pros are playing them to play courses as they were meant to be played.

But as Davis notes, there are potential options to that also help kids, beginners or seniors potentially enjoy the game more as part of this solution.

“You can’t say you don’t care about distance, because guess what? These courses are expanding and are predicted to continue to expand,” Davis said. “The impact it has had has been horrible.”

Every party involved has some incentive not to force the issue. If the governing bodies tried to mandate a more restrictive ball for all golfers, they would face a massive fight from equipment companies. Those companies thrive by making a hard game easier, not harder. The PGA Tour relies on eye-popping distance numbers to highlight the skill and athleticism of its stars, which isn’t always apparent to the naked eye.

Brian Mahoney, head of the New York-based Metropolitan Golf Association, said elite amateur events like the ones his group organizes would be receptive to a reduced-distance ball. But for the idea to be more than an option presented by the governing bodies, some influential club would need to be the first to adopt it.

Costa floats the concept of a Masters ball and Fred Ridley's recent statement that they would prefer not to go that route. Which is why the mandate to play such a ball will come from a classic that is dealing with safety issues and other questions about its integrity brought on by the distance chase.

As to the timing of this, the comments of Davis follow March's first mention of variable distance balls, Martin Slumbers bringing up the distance "movements" at The Open, Tiger's pointed comments to Coach Geno and Bridgestone's CEO endorsing a tournament ball.

Happy Birthday: The Open Turns 157

/

The day consisted of 36 holes, three trips around the 12-hole Prestwick designed by Old Tom Morris. The Earl of Eglinton sponsored the event featuring eight professional golfers, including Willie Park Sr., Andrew Strath, Robert Andrew, George Brown, Charlie Hunter, Alexander Smith, William Steel and of course, Old Tom. Some competitors seen in identical lumberjack shirts given to some to mask what might have been deemed inappropriate attire. Apparently lumberjack was the new tweed.

Josh Morris summarizes the event for Golf History Today and Kevin Cook's Tommy's Honour re-created the events quite nicely. But in a nutshell, Park Sr. edged Old Tom by two strokes in a nail biter and professional tournament golf was born!

Sheila Walker on Old Tom kicking off the proceedings...

And while there is no film, we do at least have this final Open at Prestwick in 1925 to sense what Prestwick means to the game and what a golf tournament looked like long ago--warning, people walk in lines and the sacred through lines!

The anniversary is a nice reminder that tournament golf owes much to the efforts of those first eight who teed it up sixty-five years prior to this:

The plaque commemorating the old first hole...

And so it began...157 years ago today - The Open Championship!

A post shared by Travelling the Fairways (@travellingthefairways) on

Trump Worries Scottish Independence Could End The British Open's Days In Scotland

/

Now giggle all you want, but this actually raises a few key points in the Brexit/Scottish Independence/branding-the-British-Open-as-The-Open world we live in.

The July 25th comments of President Donald Trump to WSJ editor-in-chief Gerard Baker in the Oval Office that were not to be leaked by the WSJ staff, only to be leaked by the WSJ staff to Politico:

WSJ: You tweeted this morning about trade talks with Britain.
TRUMP: Yes.
WSJ: Can you tell us more about what’s going on?
TRUMP: No, but I can say that we’re going to be very involved with the U.K. I mean, you don’t hear the word Britain anymore. It’s very interesting. It’s like, nope.
WSJ: I work with a Brit.
BAKER: I’m English. We always make that point. You’re right, yeah.
TRUMP: Is Scotland going to go for the vote, by the way? You don’t see it. It would be terrible. They just went through hell.
BAKER: (Inaudible) – but they’re going to be –
TRUMP: They just went through hell.
BAKER: Besides, the first minister’s already made it clear she –
TRUMP: What do you think? You don’t think so, right?
BAKER: I don’t.
TRUMP: One little thing, what would they do with the British Open if they ever got out? They’d no longer have the British Open.

Priorities! Or, was the owner of a Scottish venue thinking of Trump Turnberry's spot in the Open rota? Anyway...

BAKER: [naudible.]
TRUMP: Scotland. Keep it in Scotland.
BAKER: We just had a – (inaudible).
TRUMP: By the way, are you a member there?
BAKER: No. I’ve played there, but I –
TRUMP: I thought that course showed well.
WSJ: It’s a gorgeous, gorgeous course.

Attention Royal Birkdale members: you have a blurb from the President who rarely dishes out such compliments to courses he does not own.

The two went on to discuss Jordan Spieth's win.

But this raises a few points both legitimate and humorous.

If Brexit goes forward and leads to Scotland trying again to break free from the rest of the United Kingdom, how would this impact The Open? They're already paying the purse in dollars, perhaps to avoid a Pound v. Euro battle?

And while it is the British Open to folks of a certain vintage, we do know The Open was started in Scotland, is governed by a Scotland-based organization, and could easily survive quite with only Scottish links if need be.

But I'm not going to be the one to tell the President this.

First 2017 Open Championship Question And Poll: Should Royal Birkdale Host More Regularly?

/

As I write here for Golfweek, Royal Birkdale is a course for horses. It regular produces great finishes and stellar champions.

The players love the place.  Several, including hometown hero Tommy Fleetwood,  suggested that once ever 9-10 years is not enough.

 

 

The crowds broke records. They were passionate but respectful and incredibly welcoming.

Having seen Hoylake, Lytham and Birkdale in recent years, I wouldn't mind seeing Birkdale permanently replace Lytham in the Merseyside rota-within-the-rota.

What do you think?

Should Royal Birkdale host The Open more regularly?
 
pollcode.com free polls

BBC To The Rescue! PGA Wants Eyeballs On Its Championship

/

That was quick!

The PGA Championship appears headed to the BBC even after Sky Sports just started a dedicated golf channel. However, with few eyeballs and rights situations about to become golf's big battleground, Ewan Murray reports for The Guardian that this year's PGA will be on the open, free airwaves of BBC.

Sky losing the Masters and PGA surely must make the R&A uncomfortable given its long term deal with Sky. You may recall the debate from a few years ago involving the R&A moving to pay television and away from longtime partner BBC.

**In Wednesday's state of the R&A press conference Chief Executive Martin Slumbers took a swipe at the BBC coverage approach:

I think when we moved last year we took what was frankly a fairly tired and outdated broadcast and turned it into absolutely world class and raised the whole level of the way it was shown. And I think that was a combination and a partnership of those organisations with the R&A that I think has truly improved how people are watching golf.

And a testament to that was that we won, or Sky and ETP, won a BAFTA for sport. And they were up against the BBC's coverage of the Olympics and Paralympics, and also the Six Nations. So I think that was a fantastic testament to what we did last year at Royal Troon, and really shows what you can do with TV. We're building on that this year.

The world of media has changed out of all recognition in the last 20 years. I think the world of TV has changed and is going to change even more, and I don't think anyone knows exactly where it's going. But we're very comfortable working with a partner that really understands the technology, they understand golf, and they understand how they can help us showcase this fantastic championship to the world.

**This Tweet sums up the Slumbers take.