"Disturbing trend continues as Naomi Osaka deals with verbal harassment"

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While it seems like golf has been fortunate on the player heckling front of late, it’s worth noting what happened to Naomi Osaka in Indian Wells as a reminder that tennis and golf are different.

Helene Elliott of the LA Times looks at the incident, the history of trouble at this tournament, Osaka’s desire to address the crowd mid-match, and the decision not to eject the heckler.

I found it odd the heckler was not ejected when the timing of the noise impacted the flow of the match. Get ‘em outta there!

Anyway, Elliott writes:

Retired tennis great Martina Navratilova called it “heartbreaking” that someone would insult Osaka and also that Osaka had been affected so deeply. Navratilova also said Osaka would have to “toughen it out somehow” in the future and said Black players Althea Gibson, Chanda Rubin and Zina Garrison had endured tougher experiences in the sport than Osaka has had. It’s tricky telling people how to feel when we’re all shaped by different cultural factors and have different emotional trigger points.

Former men’s tour player Paul Annacone, now a coach and commentator, urged Osaka to prioritize her well-being. “Make sure that’s under control and in an area that she can manage,” he said on a Tennis Channel panel discussion.

“We’ve also all been to sporting events, and we all know that at sporting events you hear stuff and people shout stuff that they probably shouldn’t. … It’s very sad. I hope Naomi and her team can talk about it. I want her to be happy. I want her to play. We want to see her play. We want to see her healthy and feeling really good about things. Don’t let that get through you.”

Crowd outbursts stand out in tennis and in golf, which demand quiet before and during play. At NFL games, one heckler’s voice gets lost among 60,000 others. The same is true on a smaller scale at baseball and hockey games, where conversations, music and in-game promotions make noise a constant and customary background. The NBA invites player-fan interaction because fans are closer to the players than in any other sport. That leads to the sports equivalent of road rage, where fans take out their hostility on the nearest target.

Mercifully, even in the Live Under Par era desperate to see golf get younger and louder, the sport seems more united in having a zero tolerance view of similar outcome-influencing antics. Let’s hope it continues that way.

Quadrilateral: What We Learned From The 2022 Players

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17th At TPC Sawgrass Giveth And Taketh: Shane Lowry's Joyous Ace; Kizzire's Hozel Shot

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Shane Lowry failed in a recent attempt to make an ace as DP World Tour cameras rolled.

Not so much Sunday at The Players.

Brian Keogh with more on Lowry’s history and a moment that will be played for years.

It’s the 10th ace on that hole in tournament history and first since 2019. This was the second of Lowry’s career following one in the 2016 Masters (No. 16).

The hole wasn’t so kind to Patton Kizzire Sunday:

Reports: Saudis Preparing Mega-Purse Event, Execute 81 In Record Day Of Beheadings

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After a flattering Atlantic profile of Mohammed bin Salman, that wasn’t enough to keep Golf Saudi’s sugar daddy and backer of the fluttering LIV Golf Investments to what he does best: screw with oil prices, complain about bad PR over Kashoggi and cut heads off.

It also seems he has yet to give up his sportwashing effort to lure pros away from the PGA Tour for a new golf league. Golfweek’s Eamon Lynch says the Crown Prince’s people have reconvened after the Phil Mickelson meltdown and demise of their league concept to try a new approach.

The latest conjecture has the Crown Prince’s coat holders planning to stage a tournament with an enormous purse that could dwarf the $20 million offered at the PGA Tour’s flagship stop in soggy Florida. The goal would be to engineer litigation by inviting Tour members to compete while hoping commissioner Jay Monahan denies the permission required to do so, thereby presenting an opportunity to challenge his control over where members play, or to at least jeopardize the Tour’s tax-exempt status as a 501c organization.

One tournament probably won’t do it. But then again, news of a record beheading day suggests MSM still has his touch.

From the AP’s Jon Gambrell on Saturday’s record hall of 81 executions, a new record mass execution for the Kingdom.

The number of death penalty cases being carried out in Saudi Arabia dropped during the COVID-19 pandemic, though the kingdom continued to behead convicts under King Salman and his son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

The state-run Saudi Press Agency announced Saturday’s executions, saying those killed had been “convicted of various crimes, including the murdering of innocent men, women and children.”

The kingdom said some of those executed were members of Al Qaeda or Islamic State or backers of Yemen’s Houthi rebels.

A Saudi-led coalition has been battling the Iran-backed Houthis since 2015 in neighboring Yemen in an effort to restore the internationally recognized government to power.

Those executed included 73 Saudis, seven Yemenis and one Syrian. The report did not say where the executions took place.

For Some Reason, NBC Makes Tiger Watch Gold Man Hit His "Better Than Most" Putt

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The so-bad-you-can’t-take-your-eyes-off-it “mixed reality” has earned less-than-glowing reviews after Sunday saw NBC asked Tiger to watch this grand idea. Tiger pretty much ignored seeing some strange combo of C3PO, Oscar and a 24 handicapper in his place. He was a good sport but focused more on the NBC call at the time.

Something tells me this would not have gone over as well with Jack Nicklaus. He might not have gone all Tom Brady on the tablet, but I’m not seeing him grasping the point of the exercise. And in that sense, he’s not alone.

After the rough cut version Tiger was subjected to, The Gold Man was plugged into today’s setting, providing this kind of glorious crowd apathy:

Here is the full chat with Mike Tirico aired in its entirety thanks to the awful Players week weather.

Nelly Korda Diagnosed With Blood Clot, Next Start Uncertain

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As the first women’s major of 2022 nears, Nelly Korda announced a significant setback but it sounds like things could have been worse if not for great medical care.

According to Golfweek’s Beth Ann Nichols, Korda was next scheduled to play the JTBC Classic in Carlsbad March 24-27.

Island Green Madness: When Unlucky Gets Confused With Unfair

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Shotlink’s 17th hole through Saturday’s play in the 2022 Players

An intense Saturday of rain-delayed play saw high winds after a front moved through Ponte Vedra. Temperatures dropped and the TPC Sawgrass’ 17th saw one of those days of trouble, with 19 water balls spread between first and second round play.

While that’s nothing compared to the all-time worst of 50, Kevin Kisner said the conditions produced “pure luck” and impugned The Players Championship’s “integrity.” Other players seemed to take things in better stride if you read Adam Schupak’s Golfweek wrap of the antics. Credit to players like Collin Morikawa who said he just missed his shot and while difficult, the task was doable.

And if you take a look at PGA Tour’s compilation of all 19 water balls—drop area shots included—it’s staggering how many shots were dead just a few yards off the club face. Or how many purely awful strikes were made trying to play the ball down. I estimated 9 of the 19 just were unlucky due to a gust or just missing the 3,912 green. The rest never had a chance.

On Golf Channel’s Live From, it was nice to have some sparring back on set that’s been lost since Frank Nobilo and David Duval left.

Paul McGinley held firm in believing the conditions were tough and nothing more than a “freak day”.

Brandel Chamblee insisted the day was unfair. Most surprising were Chamblee’s claims that a tournament he calls a major also has “far too capricious of an element to have at the end of a major championship.”

There goes the major status!

The element he’s referring to: the par-3 17th, playing 136 yards for second round play.

Chamblee insisted that all efforts are made to have a sameness throughout the course in the name of fairness—a topic to debate for another day—and that “sport begins to break down if it’s seen as unfair.”

McGinley pushed back that “you can’t standardize golf” as an “outdoor sport.”

Chamblee countered that the 17th green was far too penal and “tilts the tournament more toward chance” before citing the shots of talented iron players like Morikawa and Scottie Scheffler.

I was surprised he went to those. Both hit shots that looked like trouble right after impact.

Anyway, Rich Lerner countered with some of the chance on 12 at Augusta National by Chamblee argued there is a difference Alister MacKenzie’s diagonal green backed by bunkers and TPC Sawgrass’s 17 with water all the way around (and suggested that would be a good fix for Pete Dye’s infamous hole).

It’s a lively discussion worth watching. But McGinley ultimately won the match by pointing out how players who “flighted” their shots below the wind reduced the element of chance. And his case was backed up by ShotLink data in a graphic.

Golf Channel “Live From” graphic using ShotLink data of tee shot apex, 17th hole 2022 Players

The full Live From discussion:

On The Mark Podcast Talking Golf Course Design and Better Course Management

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Game improvement talk is very difficult to do on a podcast but Mark Immelman does a superb job with his show, On the Mark. The instructor, broadcaster and overall keen observer of the game had me on to talk golf course design and things golfers can do to read a course.

Plus we discussed the best holes on the PGA Tour and what I love about one in play this week at TPC Sawgrass, the 16th.

The Google podcasts link along with the Apple and Spotify options:

"Woods closes out one chapter, will he write another?"

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Strong stuff here from AP’s Jim Litke on Tiger Woods going into the World Golf Hall of Fame.

The best ones have the hardest time letting go. Woods wouldn’t be the first G.O.A.T. (Greatest of All-Time) to push the envelope.

“One day you might look up and see me playing the game at 50,” is how Michael Jordan ended his Hall of Fame induction speech. Knowing laughs erupted on every side of him.

“Oh don’t laugh,” he said. “Never say never.”

Woods can’t walk a golf course at the moment, so he eschewed empty boasts or self-deprecating jokes, and it’s hard to imagine he would show up at the first tee just for the sake of playing. But Jordan and Jack Nicklaus and even Muhammad Ali said almost the same thing and all of them came back in search of one more transcendent run, one more moment when they felt like the king of the world.

“I was never going to be denied,” Woods said around mid-speech Wednesday night, recalling the moment he’d inherited his father’s passion for the game. “I loved it. I had this burning desire to be able to express myself in this game of golf.”

A plaque isn’t going to change that.

PGA Tour Becomes The First And (Hopefully) Last Organization To Incorporate Mixed Reality Into A Broadcast

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Execs from NBC working out of PGA Tour headquarters are making stellar use of the synergy by working with a creative agency to come up with their next expensive abomination.

The big unveiling came during rain-delayed round one coverage of the 2022 Players. With, warning, more to come in the coming days.

One of the most trusted voices and best broadcasters in sports history was relegated to introducing the “mixed reality” intrusion…

What will these creatives think of next?

PGATour.com’s Jeff Eisenband was tasked with explaining this campaign which announces to the world, we intend to take Coveted Demo Desperation Syndrome to the lamest possible places.

THE PLAYERS’ Tiffany & Co. trophy – a three-dimensional depiction of the tournament’s gold swinging man logo -- will hop off his stand and come to life on the broadcast this week. The PGA TOUR, working closely with NBC and creative agency The Famous Group, will become the first golf organization to incorporate mixed reality into its broadcast, as the trophy will digitally appear on the 17th hole.

And judging by the 28 handicapper swing—I say that with full respect for all 28’s—this will not age well.

Mixed reality is the merging of real and virtual worlds, making physical and digital objects co-exist in real time. For THE PLAYERS, the technology will be used to show the trophy taking aim at TPC Sawgrass’ famed Island Green. His shots will be illustrated with a golden trail.

Whew, gave me a scare with golden trail.

And it’s about to get worse:

Honoring the 40th anniversary of the first PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass, the trophy’s swing is an amalgamation of the action from past PLAYERS champions. Two interstitial moments will be used as part of the transition process between shots on the 17th hole.

They had the execs at interstitial!

On Saturday, the trophy will reimagine Tiger Woods’ “Better than most” putt from his 2001 title (complete with Tiger’s fist pump).

Worst than most!

On Sunday, the trophy will reenact Rickie Fowler’s 2015 tee shot from his playoff win.

R.I.P. Ten Year Exemptions For Players Champions.

“ I think as we head into The PLAYERS every year, we're always looking for the new way we can push technology. It's usually a point in our schedule where we try to stretch the limits,” says Anne Detlefsen, Senior Director, Digital Content, PGA TOUR. “We thought about a way we could not just do it for the sake of throwing mixed reality into our broadcast, but really add some extra layers of storytelling to it.”

No, it seems like you just threw in mixed reality for the sake of it.

And if you want to blame this year’s awful weather, I say pin it on the mixed reality:

Part of what makes mixed reality so impressive is the ability to animate while not changing weather conditions. Whether TPC Sawgrass is sunny and warm or if it is cold and rainy, the trophy will take his swing in the present setting.

Good, stick him out there during one of the weather delays.

While the animation is prerecorded, its merging with the outside world is not.

That seems almost profound. Go on…

The PLAYERS Championship TV broadcast will use two cameras to capture multiple angles of this sequence in real-time. Details down to the reflection of the trophy’s gold exterior matching the existing position of the sun will be evident as this mixed reality comes to life.

Can we be there when it’s put to death? On the 17th hole. By two alligators. That’s some mixed reality we can all embrace.

Quadrilateral: Major(s) News And Notes, March 10th, 2022

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This week’s free Thursday edition features a Golf Hall Of Fame wrap and links. Tiger and Susie Maxwell Berning stole the show with their speeches, while Judy Rankin and Sam Woods delivered fantastic intros.

Plus, is Augusta getting widened? The 150th ticket exchange goes live, Peacock will make money despite a high churn rate that will likely be mimicked by golf fans this summer and a neat bit of Brookline history. Oh and some links to good reading as well.

You can read more about The Quadrilateral here.

You can subscribe here.

Video: Tiger Woods' World Golf Hall Of Fame Induction Speech

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An emotional speech from the get-go focused on his early past far more than his adult years. Undoubtedly proud beyond words after daughter Sam’s lovely introduction, Woods paid tribute to his parents and the people who helped him early in his career. He even thanks all the great caddies. There’s hope Stevie!

What I loved most? That it was a bit disjointed and all over the place, but the memories and anecdotes shared were from the heart.

USGA Names Nathan Smith, Mike McCoy Next Two Walker Cup Captains

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Congrats to these two longtime competitors and keep them in your prayers as they captain at the Old Course and Cypress Point.

Mike McCoy in 2023 at St Andrews and Nathan Smith in 2025 at Cypress Point.

The full release:

LIBERTY CORNER, N.J. (March 9, 2022) – The USGA announced on Wednesday that Mike McCoy, of Des Moines, Iowa, will captain the USA Team for the 2023 Walker Cup Match on the Old Course at St. Andrews in Scotland and Nathan Smith, of Pittsburgh, Pa., will captain the USA Team for the 2025 Walker Cup Match at Cypress Point Club in Pebble Beach, Calif.

“Both Mike and Nathan have long, exceptional histories with the USGA and outstanding amateur golf resumes,” said Stu Francis, USGA president. “Given the historic nature of the next two matches being staged at St. Andrews and Cypress Point, we wanted to give both of them the time to enjoy this leadership opportunity and plan their next few years accordingly. We congratulate each of them on an honor well deserved and look forward to watching them lead two talented USA Teams.”

McCoy, 59, won the 2013 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship, becoming the second-oldest champion in the event’s history at age 50. He has competed in 65 USGA championships, including 20 U.S. Amateurs, and was a member of the 2015 USA Walker Cup Team at Royal Lytham & St Annes Golf Club in England.

“I am humbled to be chosen captain of the next USA Walker Cup Team,” said McCoy. “It will again be a privilege to be a part of the Walker Cup competition that I was so fortunate to be a part of in 2015. My experiences with the USGA, and the Walker Cup Match, have provided some of the most unforgettable weeks of my life, and I’m thrilled to build new memories with members of next year’s team. I look forward to the diligent preparation that will be required for the challenge of the Old Course.”

McCoy, who had twice reached the semifinals of the U.S. Mid-Am before coming through for victory in 2013 in his first USGA final, registered the third-highest margin of victory since the Mid-Amateur went to a 36-hole final in 2001. His 8-and-6 victory over Bill Williamson on the Country Club of Birmingham’s West Course earned him a spot in the 2014 Masters Tournament, where McCoy became the second-oldest player to make his debut in event history.

McCoy was low amateur in both the 2014 and 2015 U.S. Senior Opens, tying the record for lowest 72-hole score by an amateur (282) at Del Paso Country Club in 2015. Later that year, he won the prestigious Crane Cup and Coleman Invitational before becoming the third-oldest Walker Cup competitor in history at 52 years old.

An 11-time Iowa Player of the Year, McCoy was a collegiate golfer at Wichita State University and currently serves as president of the Trans-Mississippi Golf Association, one of the country’s oldest golf associations. McCoy works in the insurance industry and has four children with his wife, Tana: Nate, Megan, Danny and Erin, in addition to two stepsons, Cade and Corbin Nichol. Nate, who played collegiately at Iowa State, competed alongside Mike in the 2019 U.S. Amateur at Pinehurst, only the fifth known instance of a father-son combination playing in the same U.S. Amateur.

Smith, 43, has won four U.S. Mid-Amateur Championships (2003, 2009, 2010, 2012) as well as the inaugural 2015 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship, with partner Todd White. He has competed in 48 USGA championships and played on three consecutive Walker Cup Teams (2009, 2011, 2013), earning the clinching point in the 2013 USA victory at the National Golf Links of America in Southampton, N.Y.

“Historically, I understand that there is no greater honor than being named captain of the USA Walker Cup Team,” said Smith. “I am ecstatic at the opportunity to lead this team at such a historic and storied venue. Providing the winning point for the USA during the 2013 Match is a memory I will never forget, and that accomplished feeling is something I'm focused on providing for the team in 2025.”

In the USA’s 2009 Walker Cup victory at Merion Golf Club, Smith won two foursomes matches with partner Peter Uihlein. His singles victory over GB&I’s Nathan Kimsey provided the winning point in the USA’s 17-9 triumph in 2013. Smith amassed a 3-4-1 record in his three Walker Cup Matches.

Smith was a Division III All-America player at Allegheny College and is one of the most decorated mid-amateurs in the country. His four U.S. Mid-Amateur victories are a championship record – one more than Jay Sigel, a fellow Pennsylvanian who competed in a USA-record nine Walker Cups. Smith first won in 2003, at Wilmington (Del.) Country Club, to become the youngest-ever champion at age 25. Smith won consecutive Mid-Amateurs, in 2009 at The Kiawah Island (S.C.) Club, and in 2010 at Atlantic Golf Club in Bridgehampton, N.Y., before making history with his fourth win in 2012, at Conway Farms Golf Club in Lake Forest, Ill., becoming only the 15th person to win the same USGA championship at least four times.

The Pittsburgh, Pa., native teamed up with 2013 Walker Cup teammate Todd White, of Spartanburg, S.C., for a victory in the 2015 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball, capturing the inaugural title with a 7-and-5 victory over Greg Earnhardt and Sherrill Britt on The Olympic Club’s Lake Course in San Francisco, Calif.

The Walker Cup Match is a 10-man amateur team competition between the USA and Great Britain and Ireland. The 49th Match will be contested Sept. 2-3, 2023, at St. Andrews. The birthplace of golf has hosted eight previous Walker Cups, more than any other venue, most recently in 1975, when the USA defeated GB&I, 15½-8½, led by future U.S. Open champions Jerry Pate and Curtis Strange.

The 50th Match will be contested Sept. 6-7, 2025, at Cypress Point Club, which has hosted only one USGA competition, the 1981 Walker Cup, won by the USA, 15-9. The USA leads the all-time series, 38-9-1.

Mike Tirico's Sitdown Interview With Jay Monahan

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This aired on Live From The Players initially and may get another showing if the forecasters are accurate. But it’s a compelling one-on-one between NBC’s Mike Tirico and PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan.

While it’s refreshing to see Monahan take a blunt, transparent stand, I’m still of the view he should have done this sooner. Nonetheless, it’s worth a watch