Instagram Monday Course Edition: Rory's Excited For Ballyliffin, C&C To Remodel Sheep Ranch, Chicago Golf Club Teaser

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Links season is upon us, with the Dubai Duty Free Irish Open kicking off at Ballyliffin. Paul McGinley is hosting next year at Lahinch and has nice things to say about this year's venue where Rory McIlroy hosts one more time. Rory posted this photo:

Matt Ginella says developer Mike Keiser has tapped Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw to remodel Tom Doak's mysterious Sheep Ranch course at Bandon, Oregon. It's a project previously suggested as a possible Gil Hanse redesign by Keiser.

Andy Johnson took his drone out to Chicago Golf Club, host of the U.S. Senior Women's Open next week and gave us a sneak preview of the magnificent course getting a huge spotlight. Expect more at friedegg.co

The 2018 Ryder Cup Course Is Showing A Bias You Won't Believe (At Least If You're Of A Certain Vintage)

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If you're of a certain vintage, you'll remember it wasn't long ago U.S. Ryder Cup captains wanted narrower fairways and thick rough to reward their more accurate-driving group while penalizing the swashbuckling Euros. 

Those who recall that line of course setup-thinking will get a nice chuckle reading Alistair Tait's look at what the Europeans have previewed at Le Golf National last week in advance of this fall's Ryder Cup. 

“The old theory is tight and scruffy,” said Graeme McDowell, one of Bjorn’s five vice captains and a two-time French Open winner. “I paced off the width of the seventh fairway at 270 yards off the tee, and it was only 18 yards wide.

“They (the U.S.) set their courses up wide with semi-rough and middle-of-the-green pins for a birdie fest. We always like to set it up a little tighter and a little tougher and maybe not having the greens quite as fast. Does it (Le Golf National) favor our guys more than theirs? We think it does.”

Tiger Bullish On His Game Heading To Carnoustie

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Dan Kilbridge at Golfweek with Tiger's comments following a T4 at the steamy Quicken Loans National and an eye on Carnoustie. 

“Just trying to get efficient hitting the golf ball both ways and then getting comfortable hitting the ball down,” Woods said. “It’s a lot of different angles, so a lot of different crosswinds. I have to be able to maneuver the golf ball both ways there efficiently. You just have to hit the golf ball well there.”

And this from caddie Joe LaCava:

“He’s always played well at the British Open,” LaCava said. “As solid as he’s playing right now, and seems like he’s got his iron game pretty dialed in, I’m excited to go over there.”

Bob Harig at ESPN.com noted Woods was last in the field at TPC Potomac from inside 10 feet (making 60 of 73) yet was 7th in strokes gained putting. But also he reminded us of Tiger's solid (and long) history at Carnoustie:

To get there, Woods will need a good week at Carnoustie, one of the toughest Open venues and where he tied for seventh in 1999 and tied for 12th in 2007.

It also is where Woods, as a 19-year-old amateur, got his first taste of links golf in 1995 when he played the Scottish Open.

 

Weekend Instagram Wrap: Elway At The U.S. Senior Open, Spieth's At The Special Olympics, Crispy Carnoustie, Sand Greens Are Back!

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John Elway served as U.S. Senior Open honorary chairman and made his presence felt at The Broadmoor.

The Spieth family is supporting their youngest Elie at the Special Olympics, with Christine Spieth posting several images of the family attending the big event this week in Seattle.

There won't be any questions of rough-fertilizing this time around at Carnoustie. Nice and crispy is the turf forecast just two weeks out from The Open!

Sand greens are back! 

Trophy Roundup: Molinari Cruises In The National, Park Takes The LPGA, U.S. Senior Open Goes To Toms, Noren Wins The French Open

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What an impressive win by Francesco Molinari to take the Quicken Loans National by eight over Ryan Armour. He was joined by tournament host Tiger Woods to hoist one of the best trophies in golf, and possibly the last one to be given out. Dan Kilbridge on the 35-year-old's win and the first on the PGA Tour by an Italian born player since Tony Penna. 

Someone at the LPGA Tour must be low on Titleist's, with a double mention to our friends in Fairhaven upon Sung Hyun Park winning the KPMG LPGA Championship in a playoff over Soyeon Ryu.

Beth Ann Nichols with the Golfweek game story on changes the 24-year-old made this week to help improve her putting and win a major. 

David Toms held off a strong contingent of pursuers to win his first U.S. Senior Open, as this AP game story explains.

Alex Noren will have plenty of good vibes for the this fall's Ryder Cup after winning the HNA French Open at Le Golf Nationale where the matches will be played.

Alistair Tait explains how the Swede came from seven back to win his 10th European Tour title.

The happiest man in France 🏆😁🤳🏼 #HNAOpenDeFrance #RolexSeries

A post shared by European Tour (@europeantour) on

The Broadmoor Hosts 134,000 Fans...Better Than Some Recent Majors!

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As the KPMG LPGA Championship was played before below-average-sized crowds (ok there was practically no one all week at steamy Kemper Lakes), the U.S. Senior Open drew 134,000 fans for the week, reports the USGA's Jeff Alstadter. 

The welcome site of big crowds for a close final round battle came in sharp contrast to club-championship-sized galleries watching the PGA Tour and LPGA Tour's final groups Sunday, though in the case of the Quicken Loans National, there were very healthy galleries on site. Just elsewhere following a certain golfer.

The Broadmoor crowds were a welcome sight just a few weeks after the U.S. Open failed to sell-out at Shinnecock Hills despite a ticket limit of 30,000 a day. Does my math dare suggest the U.S. Senior Open week gave the U.S. Open a run for total bodies to walk through the gates?

Either way, the famed resort and Colorado Springs were rewarded with a 9th USGA championship, the 2025 U.S. Senior Open.

Saturday News Dump: PGA Of America Locks In Baltusrol For '23 KPMG LPGA, '29 PGA

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I'm fairly certainly a Saturday in the summertime is the only opportunity more likely to get something less notice than a Friday evening in summertime. 

As Kevin Casey notes for Golfweek, this is the second joint KPMG LPGA and PGA Championship site announcement and great news for the women, who will return to a former U.S. Women's Open site and scene of many fine championships.

For Immediate Release:

PGA OF AMERICA TO HOST KPMG WOMEN’S PGA CHAMPIONSHIP AND

PGA CHAMPIONSHIP AT BALTUSROL GOLF CLUB

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. (June 30, 2018) – The PGA of America announced today that Baltusrol Golf Club in Springfield, New Jersey will host two of its pillar championships: the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in 2023 and the PGA Championship in 2029.

Founded in 1895, Baltusrol has played a prominent role on the national golf stage for nearly 125 years. Both Championships will be staged on Baltusrol’s famed Lower Course, which is an A.W. Tillinghast design. Since opening in 1922, the Lower Course has hosted 10 major golf events, including seven professional major championships.

The 2023 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship will be the second women’s major championship played on the Lower Course. In a duel of World Golf Hall-of-Famers, Mickey Wright topped Betsy Rawls by six shots to win the 1961 U.S. Women’s Open.  

This will be Baltusrol’s third PGA Championship: Phil Mickelson and Jimmy Walker notched memorable one-shot victories on the Lower Course in 2005 and 2016, respectively.  

“The PGA of America is delighted to continue our wonderful relationship with Baltusrol well into the future,” said PGA of America CEO Pete Bevacqua. “We’re excited to watch the best men and women in the game measure themselves against one of the most historic and challenging golf courses in the world, Baltusrol’s Lower Course.”

The KPMG Women’s Championship is a collaboration of the PGA of America, LPGA and KPMG, and focuses on the development, advancement and empowerment of women.

“KPMG’s commitment to elevating women on and off the golf course is exemplified by the selection of Baltusrol Golf Club as the host of the 2023 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship,” said Lynne Doughtie, KPMG U.S. Chairman and CEO. “To help more women in business advance to the C-suite, the KPMG Women’s Leadership Summit will be held at Baltusrol and bring together top leaders across multiple industries with women nominated by their CEOs to attend.”

“The KPMG Women’s PGA Championship has quickly become synonymous with greatness, and what better venue to solidify that than Baltusrol,” said LPGA Commissioner Mike Whan. “Even casual fans equate Baltusrol with ‘major’ moments in golf, and we’re thrilled that the best female golfers in the world will get to test their games at such an iconic venue in 2023.”

In 2014, Baltusrol Golf Club was designated a National Historic Landmark by the National Park Service, one of only four golf properties to earn this distinction.

“Since 1901 the best players in the world have competed against each other on our golf courses," said Rick Shea, Baltusrol President. "We look forward to working with the PGA of America to showcase the best women and men in these two Major Championships.”

Is Rocco Mediate Angling For A USGA Executive Committee Seat?

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Because I’m not sure how else to make sense of his rant about player suggestions that Shinnecock Hills was out of control when it got…out of control. And included an on-air USGA apology regarding several hole locations, prompted by Paul Azinger's question and a discussion on national television Rocco evidently missed.

Kevin Casey with Rocco’s post-round U.S. Senior Open rant.

Apparently Mediate wanted to throw up and still managed a 2-under par opening round at The Broadmoor that has him in second place. 

Let me ask you this question, too. Remember the one about the golf course changed from the morning – have you ever played one that didn’t? Of course it’s going to change. That’s what it’s supposed to do.

Sometimes it can get softer in the afternoon. Sometimes it gets firmer.

What I heard that week made me want to throw up, basically. Just shut up, play. 

Instagram Wrap: Land Of Lincoln Weather, Range Picker Up In Flames, St. George's CC From Above, Augusta National Is Final Jeopardy

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The Web.com Tour's Lincoln Land Championship play was suspended during Thursday's first round due to...

The range picker at Greenville Country Club has seen better days...

Jon Cavalier has been posting some Long Island beauties shot recently in peak season form, including the incredible Devereux Emmet-designed St. George’s:

And what an oddly benign Final Jeopardy question posed this week:

The Time Peter Thomson's Son Took The Claret Jug To School For Show And Tell...

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The Sydney Morning-Herald's Martin Blake reports on the well-attended memorial for Peter Thomson and the surprise presence of the Claret Jug, brought to Australia by the R&A's Martin Slumbers for the service.

Maybe the best anecdote belonged to Thomson's son Andrew, who brought the Claret Jug to school soon after one of his father's five Open wins. He came home crying from show-and-tell.

"What’s wrong?" Thomson said.

"They rubbished me at school," his son replied. "One boy said his father’s got a dozen of those!"

The moment, Andrew said, tickled his father, who kept touch with his roots as a public course player at Royal Park. "Because as much as professional golf, he loved club golf. He said club golf was the plasma of the game, people trying their luck and coming home with a trophy, just like him."

State Of The Game 79: Ramifications Of The 2018 U.S. Open, Other Stuff Too

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Rod Morri, Mike Clayton and yours truly reconvened to consider the residual issues from this year's U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills as well as a little backstopping talk, some Ryder Cup and more on the late Peter Thomson.

As always, check your preferred podcast subscription outlet or the iTunes store.

Maybe No One Needs To Scout The Ryder Cup Venue Because There Isn't That Much To Study?

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With Le Golf National hosting and only Justin Thomas playing the French Open to scout out the course, this naturally opened the doors to pre-Ryder Cup chit-chat. 

There's also the calendar, which suggests we only have a little over eight weeks to figure out who will be teeing it up. 

I'm most struck, however, by the shock and sadness that only Thomas made the voyage to search for deep, hidden mystery on the grounds. As if this were the French's best Old Course impersonator. 

Thomas, as respectfully as possible, explained how Ryder Cup week scouting will be enough for most players. From Alistair Tait's Golfweek item on Thomas playing this week:

“It’s a great test of golf,” Thomas said. “It’s all right in front of you. It’s not like there’s any hidden tricks or anything like that.”

And as Captain Thomas Bjorn noted in this item by Tait, he doesn't plan to get carried away with trying to create some sort of European advantage. 

“It’s not particularly much narrower than it’s ever been,” Bjorn said. “It’s pretty much where it’s always been. Once you have great golf courses like this one, you’ve got to be careful you don’t overthink it and overdo it too much in the sense of that’s the golf course that’s there, that’s the course they’ve got to go out and play.

I've never seen the course but over the years it has never exuded a sense of rewarding great local knowledge or experience. 

Now if the Europeans really wanted a home course advantage, the Old Course sure would make for a fun Ryder Cup venue!

The French Really Know How To Get Us Excited For The Ryder Cup!

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Michael Lorenzo-Vera

Michael Lorenzo-Vera

As the European Tour visits this Le Golf National this week and site of the Ryder Cup this fall, the New York Times' John Clarke interviews 33-year-old Michael Lorenzo-Vera about the state of French golf.

His honesty is refreshing, but it also suggests a hoped-for boost to French golf has not yet materialized as hoped.

If you say to people in France that you play golf, they will say: “No, but really. What’s your real job?” Golf is not a good thing here. It’s for rich people and spoiled kids. That’s the image we have. Actually, we are trying to work on that. People like Alex Lévy are trying to make the game look more fun. But it’s a lot of work. I am just trying to be really nice to everyone.

Nice is good, nice is good.

What do the French think about hosting the Ryder Cup at Le Golf National?

People don’t care about the Ryder Cup. Honestly, nobody knows there’s going to be a Ryder Cup in France. Only the golfers know. That’s it. There won’t be many French there. There will be so many more from England or Spain. Golf is a very private thing for people in France. Private courses for only rich families or rich people — that’s it.


Well, but the food will be amazing!

Video: Living Brand On Fox & Friends To Talk World Economy, ESPN's Body Issue

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It's always enlightening to get Greg Norman's finger-on-the-pulse take, especially when he's out front promoting his nude photo spread for ESPN's Body Issue. Since I know you're all anxiously awaiting the issue's arrival on your doorsteps, maybe this three minutes will make the wait less agonizing (embed code not working.)

The President of the United States was also quite pleased with the appearance and the Living Brand's physical appearance:

Smoltz Tees Off In U.S. Senior Open: "It's probably the No. 1 thing that I've ever accomplished,”

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The former Cy Young Award-winning and Hall of Fame Atlanta Braves ace tees off in the U.S. Senior Open at 7:21 am MT with Jim McGovern and Bob Ford.

Now Fox's lead baseball analyst with Joe Buck, Smoltz will be playing in a USGA.org exclusive window and in Fox Sports 1's Friday broadcast time.

Either way, he's still more proud 

“It's probably the No. 1 thing that I've ever accomplished,” said Smoltz on Tuesday. “I'm proud of all my accomplishments from a team aspect, but as an individual, I haven't had anything anywhere close to this.”

He played his Wednesday practice round with Fred Couples: