A passionate man
Very sad to hear the news of Gord Stollery’s death yesterday. While details are still a bit vague, apparently he died accidentally while vacationing in the British Virgin Islands. He was 64.
As most Fairways readers will know, Gordon was the owner of Angus Glen Golf Club in Markham. He had other successful business ventures in oil and gas, real estate and horse racing but it was golf that defined much of his life and certainly his passion. He was the driving force behind Angus Glen hosting the 2002 and 2007 Canadian Opens, as well as a CN Canadian Women’s Open and the Telus Skins Game.
Although I often saw Gordon at Angus Glen, particularly during the big events, we really only spoke at length on two occasions. Both times I was amazed at his knowledge and deep passion for golf and particularly his own courses.
The first time we spoke was at a press conference leading up to the 2007 Canadian Open, to be played on the North Course at Angus Glen. Davis Love III had been invited up for the presser to explain the changes he had made to Doug Carrick’s original design. As you may recall, in 2001 the pros had played the Skins Game on the North Course and absolutely shredded it. Gordon didn’t want a repeat performance during the Canadian Open so had asked Davis Love to make the course somewhat defensible.
When it came time for me to ask a question, I asked Love how you can change what is essentially a corporate tournament course into a demanding track for PGA Tour pros. I can’t recall all of the details of my question but it certainly referenced generous fairways and large inviting greens. I’ve always liked the North course and certainly think it’s a wonderful venue for a corporate or charity event but in my opinion it was not a tough enough test for a national championship and the world’s best players.
Before Love could answer my question, Gordon angrily jumped into the conversation and said it’s not a corporate course. He vehemently defended all of the course’s attributes and declared it fit for a Canadian Open. I tried to suggest that perhaps there were aspects of the course that might not be all that challenging but Gordon was having none of it. We went back and forth on this theme and even continued the discussion after the press conference. While we didn’t agree on much that day, I came to understand one of the reasons for his success in business. To this day however I can’t recall if Davis Love ever did answer my question.
I didn’t see or speak to Gordon again until this past summer when Fairways columnist Jim Deeks arranged for us to play golf with Gordon at Goodwood, his ultra private course north-east of the city. Jim and Gordon had known each other since both were juniors at Rosedale and had been trying to play together for some time. Our foursome was rounded out by Lorne Rubenstein.
Obviously not a lot of people have played Goodwood, even though it’s been open for four years. However, anyone who has had the good fortune to tour the course, comes away bubbling with excitement. I have to admit I fell in love with the place by about the third hole and it just got better with every shot.
Gordon exhibited the same passion and pride in Goodwood that he had shown in defending Angus Glen North several years before. It was evident that Goodwood wasn’t just a case of another rich guy turning a piece of property into a golf course because he thought it would be a good investment. There was way more of Gordon invested in this project than his money.
From the start Gordon talked about the routing, the obstacles, how shots needed to be shaped and why certain design elements were utilized on this hole but not that one. He spoke about the land, which might be one of the best natural pieces of property for a golf course I have ever seen. Some of the holes designed themselves while others had to be discovered but there isn’t a feeling that a lot of earth was moved to do it.
I asked Gordon about working with Donald Steel, the esteemed British architect who designed Goodwood and also Redtail Golf Club near London, and he referred to the process as a collaboration. While he didn’t go so far as to take credit for anything, he had lots of input and spent many hours walking the property to understand the flow and how it would impact play.
The obituaries will note that Gordon Stollery was an accomplished golfer, particularly in his younger days but that may not be enough to indicate the depth of his passion for golf. During our round together he explained that business and a nagging knee injury didn’t allow him to play as often as he’d like but as we got more into the holes at Goodwood, it wasn’t difficult to see how much fun he was having and how competitive he could be too.
Hole after hole he described each shot and explained why – not like an analyst but more like a proud father. At times he was as awestruck as we were, even though he presumably had seen everything many times before. Goodwood is like that and I told him it would easily be one of my top five courses.
After the round I told Gord that I’d like to feature Goodwood in the Spring issue of Fairways Magazine. He was delighted at the prospect and invited me to give him a call over the winter to talk about the story and review the images they had. Sadly, we’re not going to have that chat now and I’ll have to rely on the notes I took last September.
One thing it won’t be difficult to recall is the rampant enthusiasm Gordon exhibited that day at Goodwood. He was a congenial host and took great delight in our enjoyment of the course. It was a memorable golf experience made more so by his presence.
The ultimate Friday
Outside of the majors and a few other tournaments, I don’t have much interest in the outcome. In fact, I often find Friday a more compelling day to watch a PGA Tour event than Sunday. Friday is “cut” day when those playing well move on and the rest go home.
This past week was the ultimate Friday. With the finals of qualifying school happening for both the PGA Tour and the LPGA Tour, everything was on the line for about 300 men and women. As someone on the Golf Channel said, “this is as real as it gets. These guys are playing for jobs, not jets.”
For Canadians it was a mixed bag. Two women, Maude Aimee Leblanc and Rebecca Lee-Bentham, earned full exempt status on the LPGA Tour while Stephanie Sherlock lost out in a playoff and will get partial status. None of the nine men playing final stage qualified for the PGA Tour. Ryan Yip of Calgary missed by a single shot while Stuart Anderson and Brad Fritsch were just a couple of strokes off the magic number. All three will get full playing status on the Nationwide Tour which is a huge step up for each of them. Fritsch was there once before so it’s a return engagement for him but no doubt a welcome one as he had fallen off the radar recently.
The other six Canadians who made it to final stage will get into some Nationwide Tour events in 2012 but their schedule is uncertain and they’ll all be looking for Monday qualifying spots and perhaps Canadian Tour starts.
Final Qualifying Week never fails to deliver a full measure of heartwarming stories along with the heartbreaking ones. There’s always a guy who was pumping gas two years ago just trying to keep his game going long enough to land his dream job on the PGA Tour. Last year that guy was Matt McQuillan of Kingston who virtually gave up competitive golf for two years to tend bar but decided to give it one more shot, laboured through all three stages of q-school and made it to the PGA Tour.
This year that guy was Tommy Biershank who used to make $500 a week on a farm in North Carolina before finding enough game to make it to q-school. Biershank is 38 and has never played on the PGA Tour. He’s made it to some stage of q-school every year since 1997 but never got a card – until now.
Former PGA Tour player Jeff Maggert is going back to the big show. Major winners David Duval, Lee Janzen, Shaun Micheel and Rich Beem are not.
Bob May, who almost beat Tiger Woods in the PGA Championship 11 years ago, has battled back problems for many years but was finally healthy in 2011. He was in contention for four rounds but lost it on Sunday and Monday and now heads back to the Nationwide Tour. Likewise Canadian Adam Hadwin. Sitting pretty after three rounds, Hadwin just needed to shoot 1-under over his final three rounds to hit the number. Instead he blew up and didn’t even make the full Nationwide number.
Pedigrees, education, experience, even genes don’t seem to matter. Ty Tryon made it to the PGA Tour as a 17 year old and ten years later hasn’t had another sniff, despite two successive years at final stage. This year he finished second last. Arnold Palmer’s grandson Sam Saunders may have the best genes in the field but it doesn’t matter if you can’t sink putts. He’ll have to make do with another year on the junior circuit.
For every player there’s a story. Some of them have happy endings. Those will be the guys you see crying on TV. Others are not so happy. Most of them appear to be in shock. The consolation for all the players who make it to the finals of q-school is they will all have some status on a tour next year. Even for those with partial playing privileges on the Nationwide Tour, they can still earn a living and hone their game while they wait for another chance next year.
For really compelling TV, maybe they ought to televise the last day of second stage. That’s where they’re really playing for a job. Make it through and at least you have a spot on the Nationwide Tour. Fail to move on and you’re working in the back shop for minimum wage and playing for your own money on the mini tours.
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The PGA Tour has it pretty much figured out when it comes to qualifying school. Not so with the LPGA Tour. Unlike the Top 25 and ties scenario for the PGA Tour, the LPGA Tour still thinks it needs a playoff to decide who gets into their top 20 if there’s a tie – even after two stages of q-school and 162 holes. This year 9 girls tied for 20th spot and one of them was Stephanie Sherlock of Barrie. She didn’t win the playoff so will start the year with something less than a full schedule.
The LPGA Tour denotes player status in terms of priority list categories. Category 11 players have full status, Category 16 are something less than full status and Category 20 are even further down the pecking order. Nobody knows for sure what any of the categories mean and how many events players will get into. They should rename them Hazy, Fuzzy and Really Bleak.
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One final thought on the events of the past week. While q-school participants were grinding it our for a chance to play on any Tour, eighteen of the richest golfers on the planet were playing a giggler over at Sherwood Country Club for several million bucks and a mitt full of world ranking points. Hardly seems fair. By the way, who won?
Finally a gizmo that really works
As most of you know, each January at the PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando, dozens of inventors, teachers and rocket scientists exhibit their latest and greatest gizmos and gadgets, all designed to make you a better golfer. Many of these gadgets are so complex that no-one but the truly self obsessed would have the time and patience to learn how to use them. Most of them just don’t work. One year, putting was all the craze and I counted a dozen teaching aids that used string to help you become a better putter. None were exhibited the following year.
As a result of my annual observation I have become a real skeptic when it comes to teaching aids. Each year I’m sent a handful of the latest and greatest. A couple of gizmos, the Medicus and the Inside Approach, I believe have truly helped me over the years and I use them from time to time. The rest get tested and usually passed along to more obsessive golfing fanatics who will use and try anything.
Recently, you may have heard some buzz about another new product called PowerChute. It got some traction on the internet with a video showing Jack Nicklaus trying it. That got my attention because I know Nicklaus is extremely discriminating when it comes to endorsing anything new. I was unable to attend a media demonstration of PowerChute at Piper’s Heath in September but a few weeks later I got together with Jason Fairfield of Oncor Solutions in their office at Glen Abbey.
Jason has what most of us want in our office – an inflatable hitting net just a few feet from his desk. After a brief explanation of how PowerChute works, I was hammering balls into the net while Jason used a launch monitor to measure my swing speed, launch angle, distance etc. Once I was sufficiently warmed up, I was getting swing speeds in the 93-95 mph range and distances of 235-240 yards. Not ready for prime time but OK for a senior bunter.
Then came PowerChute. Jason attached the deceptively simple device to my driver and instructed me to take half a dozen swings as normally as possible. The first couple were awkward as the Chute really slows you down and throws off your timing. However, once you get the hang of it, you’re able to make a reasonably decent pass and maintain proper balance.
After maybe a dozen swings with the PowerChute attached, off it came and I made one without it. WOW! It seemed unbelievably fast but the really astonishing thing was I maintained my balance all the way through to a decent finish. Back on the monitor, I hit a few more balls and noted an increase of 2-3 mph in swing speed and a couple of hits that exceeded 260 yards. Still not ready for the Tour but longer than usual.
My shot shape had changed too. From a slightly wimpy fade, I was now routinely hitting a draw, something I hadn’t done with any regularity for a few years. I was hooked! (No pun intended!)
PowerChute works by properly sequencing your swing to introduce lag which increases speed and therefore distance. I’m not going to go into all the technical jargon but you can watch experts explain it on the PowerChute website.
As a follow-up to my session with Jason, I took a PowerChute with me on a recent trip to the Robert Trent Jones Trail in Alabama. I used it for about 10 minutes a day on the range before I played and while I didn’t have a launch monitor to gauge the results, I could tell that my drives were longer than usual. The shape was a fairly consistent draw and I hit more fairways than I had all summer.
One of the oddities of PowerChute is the way it is sold. You can’t but it at retail. Jason explained that the product had been on the shelf at golf stores in the US but is just sat there because nobody could figure out what it did. However, once someone has tried it themselves, the WOW factor kicks in immediately and the product pretty much sells itself. Consequently, Jason recommends working with an instructor who can demonstrate the technology, measure your swing and sell you the product. Or you can buy it online where you can at least see the video results.
PowerChute has some other applications too. While they don’t pertain to golf, the company is working on models for batting and hockey. Intriguing! Maybe I can once again strike fear into goalies as I sweep down the left wing and let go a …. ah, never mind.
Count me as a believer in PowerChute. When you can see and feel the evidence, it makes all the difference.
To find out more about PowerChute and to view videos of how it works, visit the company’s website at http://www.powerchutegolf.com
Labour Day Observations
There’s still something fundamentally flawed about the FedEx Cup playoffs. It’s this perpetual blending of the regular season and the post season. With the possible exception of NASCAR, of which I’m totally ignorant, no other sport I can think of continues to reward regular season play into the various playoff rounds. Sure it makes sense to establish seedings based on what happens during the year but once the playoffs start, it should be perform or be eliminated. This past weekend is a perfect example. A number of players missed the cut at the Deutsche Bank Championship but are still exempt into the next round based on accumulated points. The silliness climaxes at the Tour Championship where one player can win the final event while another can win the FedEx Cup playoffs.
Commissioner Finchem says the FedEx Cup playoffs are working just fine after a few tweaks during preceeding years. That likely means the sponsor isn’t getting as many irate phone calls from golf fans who can’t figure the whole shebang. And while I’m on this mini rant, what’s with the Fall Series? It’s like the season starts up again and makes some of those players who qualified for the playoffs vulnerable to losing their card because a bunch of players who didn’t make the playoffs suddenly get hot and bump out the other guys. Confused yet?
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Had to say I was intrigued when Webb teed it up against Chez in the Deutsche Bank playoff. At the start of the day Bo, Hunter and Bubba were also in the mix.
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While there were only three tournaments to report in this week’s Bulletin, it’s the first time I can recall not having any Canadians make the cut. None of them played the Deutsche Bank Championship or the Omega European Masters but at The Nationwide event there were four Canadian players in the field and none made it to weekend play. It’s not looking too good for any of them to make it to the PGA Tour next year based on a Top 25 finish. By my count Jon Mills has missed the cut in his last eight starts and continues to slip down the money list.
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What a bounce back for Alena Sharp at the PGA Women’s Championship held at Bayview last week. After missing the cut at the CN Canadian Women’s Open the week before, Sharp put it together to dominate the field, except for 16-year-old Anna Kim of Toronto. Sharp needed an extra day and eight extra holes to eliminate the teenager in a playoff but the win may be the confidence boost she needs to see some better finishes on the LPGA Tour.
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Finally, a sad note to close. Last week, the Canadian golf industry lost a friend and contributer when Norm Woods died after a relatively short battle with cancer. Norm was 67 and had started GolfScene magazine a dozen years ago, at an age when many are contemplating retirement. Always a consummate salesman, Norm was a likeable guy with a sharp wit and a kind word. He and I first crossed paths shortly after I started Fairways Magazine and although he’d only been a publisher for a year longer, he always had helpful hints and good advice. Sometimes we competed but more often it was a friendly collaboration. Over the years we travelled together on media trips or attended the same functions where we had the chance to play golf and dine together or just relax with a drink. It was always low key but very enjoyable. For those who knew Norm, you didn’t always know when he was in the room, until one of his zingers made you abundantly aware of his presence. There was a pretty good turnout from the Canadian golf media at the Celebration of Norm’s Life last Thursday at Whistle Bear. Some funny stories and a few pops turned out to be a great way to say goodbye to a friend and colleague who will be missed.
Canadian Open thoughts
Many years ago, former PGA Tour player and Canadian Golf Hall of Fame member Dan Halldorson was asked how it felt to be the low Canadian in the Canadian Open.
“Isn’t that like being the tallest midget?” he replied.
In those days, the Canadian Open was regarded almost as the fifth major and drew a very strong field of top Tour players. Halldorson, Dave Barr, Jim Nelford and Dick Zokol made up the home grown talent and making the cut was recognized as an accomplishment by fans and the media. However, from a player’s perspective, when your singular focus is on winning the golf tournament, perhaps it’s considered a small consolation to achieve some lesser tribute.
Adam Hadwin has the distinction of being low Canadian in the RBC Canadian Open for the past two years. Last year at St. George’s he finished in a tie for 37th, a commendable showing for the young pro in just his first PGA Tour event. This year, at the ripe old age of 23, Hadwin was in contention for the lead through 71 holes. His 4th place tie is a great finish but perhaps the story is more about the way he battled back after a horrendous start to the final round; or how he held his composure throughout the four days; or how he relished the pressure of being in contention for his national championship.
There should be no “tallest midget’ references after that performance.
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If anybody tuned into the Canadian Open looking for excitement, they were sorely disappointed. The combination of narrow fairways and long thick rough made the course extremely difficult and stifled any hope of low scoring. Creativity was all but forgotten as players were forced to chop the ball back to the fairway when they found the deep hay.
I don’t understand the set-up at all. When confronted with an old style course like Shaughnessy with tree-lined fairways, a lack of rough would make for greater excitement as poor shots would have nothing to prevent them from going into the trees. Then you could see players throttle back if they weren’t confident of keeping it between the tree lines. Or you might see some real creativity as players tried to hit recovery shots over, under, around or through trees.
When all you can do from deep rough is hack it out, that looks too much like what we see every Saturday morning on the local muni.
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The set-up at Shaughnessy must have been particularly shocking to those players who experienced Royal St. George’s the week before.
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Someone should check John Daly’s medical records. When they performed the operation to reduce his stomach size so he could lose all that weight I think they accidentally removed his fun gland. Did you ever see a guy look more miserable than Big John did at Shaughnessy? Even a top 10 finish barely elicited a smile. Skinny, sober and in a stable relationship is obviously a recipe for longer life but he was sure a lot more fun when he was fat, drunk and battling ex-wives.
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By the way, congratulations to Sean O’Hair for winning. By ditching Canadian swing coach Sean Foley and Canadian caddie Brennan Little, he won our national championship. Go figger!
PowerPlay Golf
If you tuned into the Golf Channel this week to watch their special on PowerPlay Golf, you may have come away wondering what’s all the fuss about and how in the world could this possibly increase rounds or attract new players.
First a couple of comments about the telecast. It was atrocious! Not only did the anouncers fumble the whole concept of PowerPlay Golf, they bounced all over the map when it came to showcasing the actual play. There was never really a flow to the game which made it really hard to understand how PowerPlay works. Maybe it was their over-the-top excitement every time they thought there might be a PowerPlay, like it was a decisive penalty kick in extra minutes. Ironically, PowerPlay Golf is intended to be a faster method of playing, yet the telecast dragged on for nearly three hours for a nine hole match.
The telecast aside, PowerPlay Golf is supposed to be a faster version of the full game without losing any of the fun and excitement. It borrows from Cricket Twenty 20, which shortened matches into a manageable time so players could actually complete a game in hours instead of days. PowerPlay Golf is a 9-hole game so certainly can be played faster than a full round but it also introduces new concepts to the game in an effort to make it more exciting.
PowerPlay uses two flags per green and lets players decide whether to go for the easy one (normal) or the harder one (a PowerPlay). It also uses Stableford points for scoring, a format which is better known in the UK than in North America. That alone may be enough to kill the idea on this side of the pond.
I tried PowerPlay Golf a couple of years ago at Copetown Woods when GM Barry Forth put on a media event. Forth owns the rights to PowerPlay here in Canada and has been promoting it and trying to get other courses interested. Several have tried but as far as I know, only Copetown offers it on a regular basis and only at certain times.
I found the game intriguing. Part of that was the curiosity of a new and different format. Like most games that lend themselves to betting, it has some possibilities. However, for me, it wasn’t the “grabber” that the inventors and promoters hoped it would be. Perhaps a little too gimmicky for a traditionalist.
There’s another PowerPlay Golf launch coming soon for North America, complete with another made-for-TV match. If the promoters hope to gain any traction over here, one hopes they’ll make some adjustments to the presentation. Otherwise, PowePlay Golf may be D.O.A.
And now a word about the weather
If there’s another topic that Canadians talk about more than the weather, I don’t know what it is. It’s certainly not hockey, which you might think would be top of mind these days. It’s not the economy, politics or the strong Canadian dollar. High gas prices merit some consideration, especially if you just took out another mortgage to fill your tank.
But most conversations start off with some variation of the following, “Hey, how ya doin? Can you believe this weather?”
Everyone is affected by it. Some note the abundance of rain as a minor inconvenience. For others, it directly affects their business. People in the golf industry are the ones I talk to most often and you might think they have a corner on misery. But last week I spoke to a butcher who tells me that his sales of steaks, chops and ribs are way down this spring because nobody wants to go outside and barbeque. Those are sales you just can’t make up.
Manufacturers of garden furniture are feeling the pinch, as are golf equipment companies. Farmers rarely get a break when it comes to the weather. But as we all know there’s nothing we can do about it.
For golf course operators, I’ve heard talk they either want to sue Environment Canada or shut them down. Their forecasts are killing tee time bookings. People just won’t reserve a tee time if there’s a hint of rain in the forecast. And what day in the past 60 hasn’t had some POP.
The funny thing about POP (probability of parcipitation) is that most people don’t get it. They see 60% chance of rain and assume it’s going to rain most of the day. According to The Weather Network, a 60% POP in the forecast means ‘that there is a 60% chance that it will rain at some time during the specified period in some place within the specified area’. If you use the Aurora, Ontario satellite area as your focus, that means it could be raining at St. Andrew’s Valley in the north part of town while Beacon Hall in the south is experiencing a sunny day. It may sprinkle at 9 AM but be clear by 11. Or it may not rain anywhere in the region at any time. Remember it’s just a 60% chance, not 100.
I’ve played 11 rounds of golf so far this season. For 9 of them, the forecast was at least 50% POP. Last week at the GAO Media Day at Brampton, it pissed rain until 1 PM but stopped just in time for our 1:15 shotgun. Our Men’s League on Wednesday was a washout as all but one player bailed because it was raining in their part of town. At Redcrest, the two of us brave enough to actually come to the course teed off at 2 PM under threatening skies but we never got a drop. And we had to put on sunscreen by the back nine.
Of those 11 rounds played this year, I have been rained on a total of 1 1/2 holes – and even then it was just a sprinkle.
So here’s a couple of tips for dealing with the forecast. First, don’t be deterred by the POP. It changes as the week goes on. Book a game anyway. You may be pleasantly surprised. While courses don’t like cancellations, they understand if it’s raining. If it turns out to be nice you’ll be thankful you reserved a time.
Second, on the day you’re supposed to play, ALWAYS call the course to see what’s actually happening at their location. It may be different than wherever you’re calling from.
One last point. In my experience, nobody ever melted because of a little rain. So here’s my forecast for the rest of the season: 100% chance of golf. Just go play!
Seve, Tiger and a pair of shoes
I don’t really have any personal connection with Seve Ballesteros – never met the man, saw him play or spoke to him on the phone. Yet for the past thirty years Seve has been part of every golf round I’ve ever played and often in my thoughts as I watched golf telecasts or live tournaments.
In my own games, whenever I hit a bad shot, I mutter to myself, “way to go Seve!” I can’t recall when this started or why. All I know is that it has been part of my post shot routine for a long time. Occasionally a playing partner will overhear me which often leads to recollections of horrendous drives that Seve hit, from which he usually recovered brilliantly. Whether I’m channeling my inner Spaniard or using some form of visualization might be ascertained by a team of clinical psychologists, but I don’t really care. I’m far more concerned with the magical recovery shot that I can imagine Seve making and me duplicating. Such is the state of my game.
Similar thinking occurs as I watch golf on TV. When some Tour chop finds himself in an impossible situation, I usually ask myself what Seve would do. While some of the modern players are pretty adept at getting out of trouble, you know that Seve would come up with some kind of shot that only he could imagine. And he’d pull it off too. Today’s players could watch endless tape of Seve being creative but I don’t think you can teach that stuff. It’s something you’re borne with.
Obviously I’m saddened by Seve’s death. And particularly sad for his family and close friends who were part of his tough battle these past few years. I feel fortunate to have witnessed his genius and kind of empty knowing he’s gone.
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Some day I’m going to have to figure out how the Official World Golf Rankings work. Tiger Woods hasn’t won anything since before the fire hydrant jumped in front of his SUV but he’s still ranked 8th in the world. He’s managed three T4′s in the past two Masters and last year’s US Open but apart from those results he’s been MIA. Some players get into the top 10 without ever winning but at least they’re playing a lot of events and recording top 10 finishes. Tiger’s not playing much at all. And when he is, he’s not placing high enough to warrant his current position in the OWGR.
The rankings reflect results over two years and give heavier weighting to the current year and to majors. That’s likely why Tiger has hung on to his lofty perch as long as he has. Something tells me that he’s about to drop precipitously as older points drop off and aren’t replaced by new ones. This latest injury may see him drop out of the Top 10 altogether. That will certainly generate lots more articles and columns suggesting Woods is done like dinner and Jack’s record is safe. However, anyone who watched him win the US Open at Torrey Pines on one leg knows an injured Tiger is still pretty dangerous. I’m not making any predictions about breaking Jack’s record but I certainly wouldn’t be calling it a career quite yet either.
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I don’t often get too jacked about new equipment. I know what I like and what works for me. I also rarley talk about it. However, last week I tried a pair of the ECCO Golf Street shoes. Without a doubt they were the most comfortable shoes I have ever worn on the golf course in my entire life. I walked 18 holes and felt like I was wearing a pair of comfy slippers. Except, unlike slippers, they provided excellent support from every lie imaginable. They grip well too. These ECCOs come with little orange nubs on the bottom instead of plastic spikes. I suppose the nubs might wear down eventually and since they’re part of the sole, they can’t be replaced. But I also suspect the nubs will last as long as the shoe. I’ll try to stay off the pavement.
PS I tried to upload a picture but technical difficulties prevailed. I’ll keep trying.
Masters hangover
It’s OK. No alcohol was consumed. No children or small animals were harmed. Adrenaline levels had returned to near normal by midnight.
As stated last week, the Masters is my favourite golf tournament of the year and the most recent edition was one of the best. At one point on Sunday there were nine players on the back nine within two shots of the lead!
Unfortunately, one of them wasn’t third round leader Rory McIlroy. The kid had an epic meltdown fueled by a putter that seemingly was controlled by someone else. Rory had another incident like this one after shooting a low score to lead the Open Championship at St. Andrew’s last year. He shot 80 the following day. When he was asked after the Masters yesterday what he needs to do differently in future Majors, he could start by not shooting 80.
The wheels really came off for McIlroy on the 10th hole when he snap hooked his drive so far left he was between two houses. At Augusta they call them cabins. When was the last time you saw a tournament or played a course yourself where the houses were not out of bounds?
One of the TV announcers said that the Leaderboard contained a representative from every continent except Antartica. How refreshing is that? 2 North Americans (Tiger Woods, Bo Van Pelt), 1 South American (Angel Cabrera), 1 African (Charl Schwartzel), 1 European (Luke Donald), 1 Asian (K.J. Choi) and 3 Australians (Adam Scott, Jason Day and Geoff Ogilvy). Not your typical PGA Tour event.
Say Charl Schwartzel 10 times really fast! Even if he is the Masters champion he may have to change that to Carl or Charlie. TV announcers sound like they’re slurring their words. Heck, maybe they are.
Congratulations to Augusta National for figuring out how to put the roars back into the Masters. No more playing defense. I wasn’t there but it must have been amazing to hear all the cheers that went up anytime one of the leaders made eagle or birdie on the back nine yesterday. Not something you heard during the Hootie era.
More congrats to the Committee for two pairings during the first two rounds: Rickie Fowler, Jason Day and Rory McIlroy represent the future of pro golf. A combined 23-under for the first two days. And they looked like they were having fun too! The other pairing makes most of us doubt our manhood: Alvaro Quiros, Jhonattan Vegas and Gary Woodland. Three very scary long hitters, each of them cranking drives in excess of 340 yards. With some degree of regularity. And straight too.
Is there a more self centred athlete in the world than Tiger Woods? Compare the post round interview of Woods (arrogant) with the gracious and self deprecating words of Luke Donald or Geoff Ogilvy. All three finished with the same score but whereas Donald and Ogilvy acknowledged the fine play of the guys in front of them, with Woods it was all about Woods. Definitely not in the Bobby Jones style, that’s for sure. I’m tired of it. I think most of you are tired of it too.
Mike Weir missed the cut. By a lot. Plenty of soul searching to be done there. He says he’s going back to basics. We’ll see. Would that be back to his junior golf days? Maybe his stellar amateur career? How about 2003 when he won the Masters?
As much as I loathe the long putter and think it should be BANNED, it sure has rejuvenated a few careers, none more so that Adam Scott’s. I don’t think he missed anything on Sunday. Unfortunately for him, neither did Charl Schwartzel.
That would be Masters Champion Charl Schwartzel. You don’t have to say it ten times quickly but you will be saying it for a whole year.
A tradition unlike any other
This is the start of Masters week, likely the most eagerly anticipated tournament of the year. To golf fans, what would April be without the Masters? Brilliant images of Augusta National, Magnolia Lane and springtime in Georgia. To steal a well worn phrase from ABC Sports, the Masters has seen it all – the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat – and everything in between. It has produced heroes and bums, made careers and broken a few. Perhaps the player who still best exemplifies everything good about the Masters is Jack Nicklaus, 25 years removed from his last thrilling victory in 1986. Anyone who watched that Sunday telecast can still remember every detail of Jack’s back nine charge and the inexplicable mistakes of some of the world’s best players as they faltered under the pressure and delivered a sixth Green Jacket to the Golden Bear.
The Masters is far and away my favourite golf tournament. It’s almost 80 years old although I haven’t watched it quite that long. The second Sunday in April always has a big red X marked on the calendar at my house, as in “Don’t accept any invitations, make any plans or plan any activities that include me cuz I won’t be available. Period. End of story.”
I like to watch the Masters alone. Not because I’m anti-social. Rather because I like to watch it – REALLY watch it. I’ve been to Masters parties in the past where you couldn’t hear yourself think for all the chatter in the room. And if you asked people to keep it down so you could hear the TV, someone would always blurt, “It’s just some silly golf tournament.” That’s why I stay home.
My friend Al likes to PVR the tournament, then watch it later. I tried that one year when you still needed an advance degree to program your VCR. I went to some family function and naturally someone had heard the results on the radio and needed to share it with us. Thanks a lot! To make matters worse I arrived home to find I had three hours of Lassie re-runs or something equally as crapacious.
It’s probably best that I watch the Masters alone. I like to talk to the TV. Sometimes I’m peeved, as in, “OK Nantz, enough with the azaleas!” Or angry, “For crying out loud Nantz, we get it. It is a tradition unlike any other. Just show some golf.”
The strangest part of the Masters telecast is when the current chairman comes on to tell us that “once again the Masters telecast will limit the amount of commercial interruption”. Thanks for telling me and providing the latest interruption. That’s as silly as the moment during the Academy Awards when they used to trot out the two stiffs from the accounting firm of Price Waterhouse who had the results of Oscar voting locked in their briefcase. The various Masters chairmen have been a varied lot over the years. Hord Hardin was my favourite – a real beauty. Could they have found a bigger stiff in all Georgia?
All told, the Masters usually provides more excitement than any other golf tournament. Maybe it’s because we’ve gotten to know the course so well. Every danger is well documented, every opportunity equally well defined. It should be as predictable as rain on Men’s Night. Yet each year the inexplicable happens. How did Freddie’s ball stay out of the water on 12?
After making some changes to toughen the course, the Masters went through a few years when players thought too much about defense. No shooting at pins. No chance to go low. I hear that the excitement will be back at Augusta this year. There are no significant changes to the course – just some tweaking to make sure we don’t have a repeat of the snoozefests that occurred when Zach Johnson and Trevor Immelman won. The back nine charge is supposed to be alive and well. I can’t wait.
Here in the centre of the universe, golf season doesn’t start until after the Masters. That’s as it should be. What if you were faced with the impossible decision of watching the Masters or actually playing golf yourself?
OK Nantz, bring it on!
Peter Mumford is the Editor and Publisher of Fairways Magazine in Toronto. Fairways is intended for avid golfers and this blog site is an extension of that same philosophy - we don't dumb it down for the uninformed!