OT: The Open. Historic venue. Back in Ireland.
- Thread starter WhiteBus
- Start date
Last post before the first group tees off. And a very unique first group too. Normally the very first groups in majors are mostly qualifiers or nobodies not expected to make to make the cut. But months ago Darren Clarke was approached as a former Open winner and a Irishman was asked if he would be interested in being the first to tee off. Clarke loved the idea. And later the decision was made.
He will tee off with Irish amateur James Surgue and Charlie Hoffman. Enjoy the next four days ladies and gentlemen. The stories are abundant for the last major.
He will tee off with Irish amateur James Surgue and Charlie Hoffman. Enjoy the next four days ladies and gentlemen. The stories are abundant for the last major.
The only time I was on a winning scramble team we shot -2. Fortunately the competition was even worse than we were. They had me tee off every hole with an iron to make sure we had a ball in the fairway. It sucked. I did finally get to use a driver on the short (235-240?) 17th. Ball bounced twice, hit the lip of the front trap and ended on the fringe. That'll teach 'em I thought. We got the Birdie which gave us a 2 stroke lead heading into 18 where they had me hit an iron again (jerks) although we didn't know it at the time. At -2 we figured we were out of the running.
Oh yeah, Matt Kuchar finishes what he couldn't last year and takes home the Jug.
Matt is a fine choice but wasnt his best chance 2017. He fits a lot of the check points of Open winners. Over 35 and some recent top 10s. Shot maker.
Yeah. Realized when I was reading this that I forgot Molinari won in '18 and the Jordan-Matt battle was 2 years ago.
Got to see Clarke tee off. Nice drive around the right side fairway bunker. Knocked it to 15 feet. Sank the putt! Awesome.
He actually looked nervous waiting on #1 Tee. Not as nervous as the Am he was playing with but nervous anyway,
yeah, he was in pain on that first tee shot. Next 2 shots he seemed ok. 3 out of the 4 Majors in cold weather this year working against him. PGA moving from August to May will hurt him a bit, since he seems like a different golfer in cooler, wet weather. At this point he could be considered 'semi-retired'.
Heck of a save on the first after those first 2 crap shots.
Rory plus 5 I think, 3 putted one hole from about 5 feet, yikes.
edit- Rory +8 !
Phil at +5, despite the changes and weight loss - he did say his game wasn't sharp the other day, so I guess he was right. Wonder if we've seen the last of him being competitive in majors, as he turns 50 next year. Hope not, as I love watching him play.
Thank you my good man. Steak and eggs for breakfast with a couple of Old Fashioneds.
He did look a bit anxious. He took the opportunity to hit first as a great honor. Lots of internal pressure. Surgue ended even par!
In case anyone is interested. Duval lost two balls and then played a ball that wasn't his. I don't know that I've ever heard of such a thing in professional golf.
https://www.espn.com/golf/story/_/id/27215975/duval-shoots-91-very-unique-awful-situation
Have to say Tiger looked like an old man playing a young mans game today. His PC afterwards sounded almost like he knows the gig is up. He could always compete any week by catching lightning in a bottle. Maybe in a warm weather event...but he looked and sounded defeated today.
Enjoying a Paulaner Hefe, cheers @WhiteBus.
Enjoying a Paulaner Hefe, cheers @WhiteBus.
Ha!! We just got their Hefe cans for the first time in our store. Of course sales guy gives me a four pack for my tasting pleasure. Anyway sitting here at Neshaminy Creek Brewing and brought a can to do a side by against NCBC's hefe on tap which is one of the best I've ever had. Love the style. Cheers.
Anyway back to golf. Great day. That course is awesome.
And Tiger didn't look into at all. Early on Tirico said looks like Tiger has jet lag. Later talked about him not being able to play when it's cool by his own admission.
Rahm ruined a great round with his temper. Nobody saw a great round out of J.B. Weather changed 12 times today. Koepka is crazy good in majors and I couldn't stop smiling seeing Clarke teeing off the 1st hole anxiously and than making birdie. And we have 3 rounds to go!
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Well he did have a major this year. He will never will be the 2000 Tiger but he isn't a bum either.
Yeah but that was a somewhat miraculous win. On the weekend he drove into the woods on just about every hole. Other than one hole, he always had a way out. Plus he knows that course better than anyone. Hit the ball that way at almost any other major and you get what we saw today.
There are 3 major winners. He is one of them. There is one left this weekend. He won't win it but he has one. And ever see Palmer, Seve win easy?? I've saw Jack go years without success and he still the best golfer on the planet. Jack missed many cuts before the 86 win. And he was 46 years old. And that was a miraculous win. Every major victory is. The lowest score wins. Period. Doesn't matter how you get there.
Augusta seems to be all about the greens. Where as today there seemed to be a lot of places you could not recover at all.
The best of the best play the majors..no?? Are you saying Augusta is easy to win?? If you are going to downgrade Augusta for Tiger than are Jack's 6 wins meaningless? Palmer's??
I've been very vocal that Jack is the best that ever played but I do not ignore Tiger's accomplishments.
Like Jack, Tiger has won everywhere. And in 2019 he is one of the 4 major winners. There is no discounting that.
No, I am talking about the current Tiger, not his career. I think the Masters is a unique challenge and that is why someone like Spieth who has been in a VERY serious slump is still very competitive there. Also, it has by far the weakest field of any major and that is not even a questionable fact. What did the field have this year 88 players which included some ams and washed up former champs.
This quote illustrates my point:
"Five years ago, the Wall Street Journal ran more than 10,000 tournament simulations, factoring the field size, winning score and other variables. The publication determined the Masters came in a distant fifth in difficulty among the game's biggest events, the three other majors and the Players Championship."
Finally the Masters is a place the Couples can be competitive almost every year even at his age and yet not as much in Senior majors the last few years.
"Couples has resided in the top 10 after 36 holes six times since turning 50 in 2010, and no player of any age has done it more often during that time. That it has happened so often for Couples can’t be passed off as a coincidence or just an early week feel-good story. There’s a reason for it. Experience matters at Augusta National. It matters a lot."
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And how many Masters did Freddie win? It isn't as easy as you make it out to be. Norman won none. He probably wins 5 or 6 in the simulations. Only the best of the best won multiples. There have been one hit wonders in all majors but winning again and again is done by few. Tiger's victory this year was just shy of Jack's in 86. You don't win multiple majors by being lucky. You and @Caliknight obviously hate Tiger. Enjoy greatness. You don't have to be a fan but give kudos for the best. I hate the Patriots but I admit they are the best ever.
Had the most fun during a round in years this morning with this guy who walked on to join me. Guy was a blast and in great shape for 73. I might be the only he ever told his age too. LOL
http://www.ikfkickboxing.com/PaulVizzio.htm
http://www.ikfkickboxing.com/PaulVizzio.htm
Same here. I think he can hold his head high today. Great try. An exciting back nine.
If you have a good group, you’ll have fun regardless what you shoot. I also played yesterday and the heat was brutal after 11:30. Two transfusions kicked my ass. Had to switch to light beer for the back 9.
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