PGA Tour: Pilgrims' Play-Off Progress: Notes from the Ballwasher

First topic message reminder :

1).All sorts of superlatives describing Rory McIlroy's win at the Deutsche Bank, the most telling being the observations that Rors didn't exactly have his "A Game", echoing the young Eldrick's frequently voiced lament in victory. Only 23 and, following last week's note, just Garcia, Faldo, Ballesteros and Olazabal among Europeans have more wins in America than Rory's five.

2).Just a two-day gap between tournaments this week, which makes little or no sense when players travel to a course, Pete Dye's Crooked Stick outside Indianapolis, that none of them have played in professional competition. One could be excused for thinking Dye is the official architect of the PGA Tour given the number of Dye lay-outs on this year's calendar (only a month removed from Kiawah after all, and three in five weeks earlier in the year).

3).This is the site of John Daly's grip-it-and-rip-it win at the 1991 PGA Championship but only Billy Mayfair and Davis Love of this year's FedEx Play-Off contestants teed it up that week, and their challenge ended two weeks ago at Bethpage. Jeff Overton and Bo Van Pelt are the only Indiana Boys looking to be groovin' on Indiana nights (and days) this week and your guess is as good as mine as to who might be successful.

4).So let's have a quick review of the Europeans in this year's Play-Offs. Cejka, Chopra, Karlsson and Knox didn't make it and are preparing to fight for their Tour lives in the Fall Series.

5).Gary Christian, Jacobson and Stenson fell at the first (Bethpage) hurdle and Owen, Brian Davis and the desperately unlucky Jonas Blixt fell at Boston. Owen double-bogeyed his 36th hole last week to miss the cut reinforcing the feeling that he's been puching above his weight for much of the (successful for him) year, while Davis has missed 6 of his last 7 cuts and just can't break the image of "all ATM, no win" touring pro.
So then there were ten:

6).Harrington, Laird, Poulter and McDowell are struggling as the field tee off at Crooked Stick, all lying fortieth or worse and needing a big finish to reach the Top Thirty and East Lake's Tour Championship. Harrington, Laird and Poulter likely need a top five or six finish, McDowell probably a top ten. Poulter has been increasingly scornful of the courses so far, the ridiculous Saturday set-up at Bethpage and his "love affair" with TPC Boston. He seems ambivalent about this week's outcome, "Sh1t or bust next week. Go at every pin or it's 2 weeks off, Don't mind either." While McDowell has complained about increasing tiredness: "I've just been fatigued the last few weeks, I think I'm tired."
Hardly a ringing endorsement for the form of any of them and I'd be surprised if they advanced.

7).McIlroy (1st), Pettersson (11th), Garcia (15th) and Donald (17th) are assured of reaching East Lake while Justin Rose (22nd) and Westwood (23rd) have to play especially poorly not to progress. Which would be no surprise for Rose who's been in terrible form since Kiawah. Westwood continues to lead the Tour in greens in regulation, but languishes 185th in "scrambling" and 165th in "strokes gained putting". Hopefully Tony Johnstone's in town.

8).Coming in to this year's Play-Offs there was the sentiment that they'd suit the bombers and that's been largely true so far, whether by accident or design. Crooked Stick (par 72) can be stretched to 7,500 yards and length obviously played its part in Daly's win in 1991. But the US Senior Open was staged here in 2009 and Fred Funk (one of any Tour's shortest hitters) won by six shots with a 20-under performance. So who knows? Strategy or length?
Interestingly, Tiger Woods has only won on one Pete Dye design but if the "Stick" is set up to reward length and not accuracy (seemingly a Play-Off trend) then he can't be ruled out.

9).The "BMW Championship" goes to Chicago's Conway Farms next year, another new course for most of the pros (not Luke Donald though, he's a member there) and wouldn't it be nice if they had a week off to prepare? I'd say the Tour's got this year's schedule all wrong, demanding the top pros play five out of six weeks and Garcia and Dufner taking weeks off (not that the likes of Justin Rose and Bubba Watson looked too interested in Boston) suggests some of them agree. Still not sure whether Schwartzel will play Thursday or rehab his injury.

10).Mixed feelings for Hunter Mahan this week as he's joined a rogue's gallery of US golfers missing Ryder Cup qualification by one place, Estes, Tim Simpson, Flesch, Rollins and Tommy Tolles among them!
Even if qualification had been extended to the Deutsche Bank, Mahan would have finished 11th. Earlier in the season he was top and his MatchPlay defeat of Rory must surely stand for something. But Johnson and Sneds missed large chunks of the season with injuries so perhaps that factor, combined with recent results, contributed to Love's selections.
Alternatively, this would have been Mahan's fourth "Captain's Choice" in six years.
Whatever, not surprising he feels "empty" right now.

And after this coming Sunday's action, the glass will be half empty for forty golfers as the field of 70 is shrunk to 30. Though it sounds as if the respective glasses of Poulter and McDowell will be half full whatever happens.


Edit: Meant to add some interesting final positions from the 1991 PGA:
1st: Daly
5th: Steven Richardson
7th: Feherty
T16: Faldo, Lyle
23th: Ballesteros
48th: Woosnam

On the 9th (his last hole) he pushed his second into a bunker and the ball rolled, ending up with a leaf behind it. On his back swing he grazed the leaf and called a penalty on himself for moving a loose impediment.

Scoring has been ridiculously good this FedEx - I know most people like to see birdies but there should me some variety imo, as opposed to every event being target golf. Hopefully at least East Lake will provide some resistance.

The leaderboard has been of as high quality as i have ever seen it during this years play offs.

So even though scoring may be low- it shouldnt be snubbed at. Because the craem is rising.

Westy up to 9 under par!! nice

Bob, Thanks
McDowell's had problems with penalties this year - going well today still.

All GB&I golfers are in the Top Forty, Luke Donald the only one not prospering so far today. But I'm sure Shotrock will be on shortly to prepare us for Luke's weekend flourish!

Nothing about the golf from Poulter's twitter account - wonder if he's been gagged? Certainly playing well.

Kwin - Anything can happen ... even Tiger went in the 60's last weekend!

Look for Lukey to go low, however. I wonder if Lukey will be sending a twitter directly to Pete Dye (who BTW is know for his snowmobiling in the ADK park in the winter)?

But the bigger news is this ... I hear Newport GC on the market! (Maybe you already knew.)

LastDamnation wrote:Scoring has been ridiculously good this FedEx - I know most people like to see birdies but there should me some variety imo, as opposed to every event being target golf. Hopefully at least East Lake will provide some resistance.

I would have to agree. I find it very hard to take an event seriously as a really big deal when the average scoring is this low. I know it's due to the soft conditions but give me the US Open every single time. That's comparing two extremes but I would far prefer the latter.

cant disagree more. the best tests of golf are when we have the best players competiting, scoring is immaterial. Its about fair golf thats all. US open golf can be abit of a lottery. This however is an ideal event for the best players in the world. The top 20 almost cover the top 20!!!(slight exageration)

Did anyone see the Webb Simpson shank?

made you feel good did it?

How good was that. Tiger hits a great drive and then Rory mathces him, almost landing right next to tigers ball. Rory then hits a wedge to about 6 feet, then tiger steps up and puts it a little closer.

I am not to fussed if the scores are low it is just great to see the best players hit those sort of shots.


PS. they both holed for birdie. Does anyone know if they get to play with vijay tomorrow?

agreed there

Last flight: Singh + Moore
before that: Rory + Tiger

It really shows how good Mcilroy is and also how far tiger has come along.(playing together and shooting low)

The real best 2 players in the world have proved they can bring there own games and not get to involved with each other . As much as I love my English lads, sadly gotta admit who is the best..

But it really does look like westy is on it. And he does have the A game for this type of set up. So if the putts keep dropping he could be well in the mix.

Come ON LEE!!

Woods is gay

i would say he has probally dabbled

And Harrington eagles his final hole!

All GB&I in the top Thirty. But that's nowhere near good enough for Harrington, Laird, McDowell or Poulter to advance to Atlanta.

Brewer was Gay.

Threesomes on Saturday, McIlroy with Moore and Singh; Woods with Westwood and Van Pelt.

Threesomes are fun... but not in golf on a saturday with otherwise a Woods - McIlroy pairing

how rubbish that is- 3 somes!!!!

Why Kwini?- is the weather predicted gonna be bad?

Seriously, with a 70 man field is there any need to be playing 3 balls AND playing off the 1st & 10th tees????

It diminishes the event.................

The Indianapolis area got drenched with three inches of rain last evening and overnight. If that fell on an already saturated Crooked Stick there's likely to be some damage.
I imagine the late starting times and format are designed to get the round in today, somehow.

Wouldn't be at all surprised if there are further changes to the schedule - pgatour.com was a very unreliable source of info Friday, so fingers crossed we'll have some action and normal pgatour.com service will be resumed.

As things stand right now, it's action off the 1st and 10th tees, in threesomes, commencing 11.00 a.m. "local".

By the time the TV schedule starts they will all be done with their rounds

Alci,
Think it might be the other way round. Our Live TV schedule begins at noon Eastern Time and concludes 6.00 p.m., (or presumably when the final threesome drags their rear ends up #18). Imagine you'll get some of that as the first part, at least, is the original schedule.

Noon start now . . . . .

Cheers for the info kwini.

Come on lee..

Great efforts from Harrington & McDowell to make East lake............plenty more birdies required though in the next 27 holes.............

Anyone have any theories on what is up with tiger in round 3 this season?

Some decent odds to get Rory, Padraig and McDowell in the same group tomorrow... are they still going with threesomes tomorrow?

Mac - No clue on why Tiger goes AWOL on 3rd rounds this year ... trying to get it back together some, but hard to figure out.

Amost certain they'll be in twosomes Sunday.

Tiger's demise greatly exaggerated . . . . . . . .

Nice comeback sofar from Tiger

This is how Tiger's 2012 round averages compare with the zenith & nadir of his carreer...

Spoiler:

Kwini

I am not suggesting tiger is suffering any great demise, but he does not seem to be able to put in a dominating round come round 3 in the big events. He has recovered well today but without the slow start he would have been able to pressure vijay a little more.


Am I the only one impressed with how well r-mac is grinding out some tough pars today?

Prince

Nice graphic, but it has really only been the majors, wgc's and play offs where tiger has appeared to feel some pressure. I would be interested to see that graph just for the majors.

There you are...

Spoiler:

At least today he hasn't played himself out of this tournament today. Could have been way worse with how he started today.

Thanks prince. I guess it comes as no surprise that the tiger slam era tiger was really good in round 3. What is surprising is that he is even worse in round 4 of majors this year.

Wonderful golf tournament to watch! Someone on the golf channel suggest Lee Westwood will win this thing. As good a chance as anyone.

Rory is an incredible talent ... really something to watch.

Davis Love's best friend Hunter Mahan leads off Round 4 on Sunday, Dustin playing with Tiger (and Joe LaCava), Rory and Lee, Veej and Phil closing things out at 1.45 p.m.

Wish Phil was going head to head with Rory, would love to see that.

Hope Westwood wins by eight!

Leader stat summary through round 3

https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B28-0Wqx5A38VVhXa1VVcVdkSm8

I looked at Westwood's statistics earlier - you'd think he should be winning by eight already!

No reason at all why I should, but I feel rather sorry for Mahan.

So it's classic westy then. The putts still not dropping I take it..

mysti,
He's 6th, 5th and 3rd in the three putting stat's, must be just about top in total driving, and 10th in greens hit.

Can only imagine those stat's hide a scrambling brain fart or two somewhere, perhaps a penalty shot here or there.

Important thing now is, can he maintain it. Playing with Rory so hopefully they can both play their own games and fight it out for the title.

wow... decent stuff. yes the scrambling must be the issue..

Gonna be a great final round. Lee hasnt done to well recently when paired with rors. I hope that doesnt affect him

Lift, clean and place again today.
Bombers benefit! Top eight:
Mickelson
Singh
Westwood
McIlroy
Garrigus
Scott
Dustin
Tiger

65 minimum required bt Padraig for East Lake..............67 minimum required by GMac...........

Some very strong drivers of the ball in that top 8 to say the least!!

Terrible start from GB&I, Laird, Donald and Poulter collectively +6 already.

Good job Harrington, Rory, Rose, McDowell and Westwood are going to make up for that!

Add Harri & McDowell & Rose to the poor starts..............in the 1st 2's case another bogey and start thinking about a couple of weeks off...........