PGA Tour: Time to Take a Break: Notes from the Ballwasher

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1).Just a few more rounds beside the seaside on Georgia's Golden Isles this week and the pros can take a seven-week break, eight if they're not Tournament Champions, even longer for those who don't fancy various West Coast events. Most will rest, practice, review the year just gone by with their "team" and plan for the year ahead.
Some will be so exhausted from the exertions of the past season that they'll be globe-trotting for recuperative guaranteed appearance and/or prize money at exotic locations around the world.

2).I really enjoy watching the Mayakoba action, the course seems to improve every year and the field ain't bad either. Patton Kizzire has a southerner's good ole boy, laconic air about him, but no-one really put pressure on him last weekend and he was a deserving winner.
Like his in-form southern compadre, Chesson Hadley, Kizzire could use getting a move on though. No anti-American sentiment here, but both have bizarre names and tortoise-like pace of play, more Henrik or Bernhard, Ken or Nick, than Rickie Fowler, for instance, who looked beyond irritated as he was grouped in the final threesome and seemed to have to wait on every shot.

3).A landmark stat from last week as Alex Cejka followed up his play-off defeat in Las Vegas with a T9 in Mexico and so earned consecutive top ten finishes for the first time in 359 career Tour starts. And, so doing, launches himself to the top of the all-important reshuffle ranking.

4).Mildly promising performances at Mayakoba for Knox and McDowell, each playing a course where they've had success before. Knox earned just his second Top Ten finish all year, while McDowell looked much more confident to my untrained eye, despite a T34 result. Both play again this week, where each has played well in the past. Luke Donald also makes an appearance, just down the coast from his happy hunting ground of Hilton Head Island.

5).Congratulations to Shotrock and his fellow members @ Aronimink in Philadelphia on securing the 2020 LPGA Championship and 2027 PGA Championship. Justin Rose has won twice in Philly but imagine he'll be relaxing his way towards Grayson Murray's irrelevant age by 2027. Mixed thoughts about this Aronimink announcement though, good for them in securing more major championships, but you'd imagine it rather shuts out the Philadelphia market from further PGA Tour events.

6).Presumably the 2027 PGA will be contested in May; the story seemed to be that one reason the PGA was moving to May was to bring the Championship to more southern courses - not so far, although it WILL be at Kiawah in 2020.

7).The finale of the Champions Tour season was rather anticlimactic, with the tournament, and Charles Schwab Cup winner being Kevin Sutherland. Somewhat of a curiosity is that this is the first official stroke-play win of Sutherland's career, though he did lose three PGA Tour play-offs. His solitary Tour win was at the WGC-MatchPlay in 2002 - he shot the first 59 on the Champions Tour, in 2014, on course for a 58 but bogeyed his final hole at Enjoie.
Bernhard Langer will merely have to be content with his seven wins, and $3M in prizemoney, bringing his Champions Tour career earnings to $24.6M - somewhat better than my pension plan and he's still going strong at the age of 60.

8).princedrac noted that this week's RSM Classic only offers 30 owgr points to the winner. Sea Island, Georgia, looks one of the most beautiful areas the PGA Tour visits; there'll be birdies galore but no doubt even more stunning TV images of the area's wildlife.
Those who live in the area have a good record on the 2 x courses (Seaside & Plantation) on Sea Island, including Bill Haas, Webb Simpson, Horschel, Kirk and Kisner among the locals who have won or runnered up and imagine we'll see more of the same this week. Snedeker is back from a 4+ month absence, and Kuchar is also in a field that looks stronger than its official rating. Scott Brown and Charlie Howell are others in form and hopefully Brown can break my dreadful recent trot of form in the crucially important one-and-done game I have fun with.

We'll follow web.com and Champions Tour Q-Schools (Peter Baker, Jamie Kingston & M-A Martin competing in first stage), but this ballwasher has pretty much dried up for the year.
Happy Thanksgiving for next week for all those celebrating in Missouri, Houston, Philadelphia, Cape Cod, Pennsylvania, etc, etc. Stuff the turkey.

I've never understood the reasoning for the big Europeans missing the ToC. Sergio might be playing cards this year but he's missed the last 3 he could've played. Rose and Stenson have played it once apiece from a possible combined 10. Rory's never played. As a 30-odd player limited field with guaranteed money, OWGR and FedEx points surely it's a no brainer. I realise they have the Desert swing in Jan on the ET but it doesn't normally clash directly, they could play ToC and have a week off, play both Hawaiis and arrive for the last desert tournament, or even fly across and play everything, it's no more travel than the East Asian events they turn up for.

Completely agree - always thought that was Lowry's first bad mistake the first year he took his PGA Tour card. Seems most of 'em would rather play for Asian/Bahamian appearance money in late November/December and then take a break instead of playing competitive tournaments that might actually complement their seasons.
Always thought New Year's in Kapalua would be rather nice!

Much as I joke about Lowry and his repulsive body, to be truthful for a moment it looks as if he has managed his career absolutely terribly.

There was a point when he looked like being one of the very top European players, he was getting some good results on the PGA, coming close in the odd major but then he seems to have disappeared of the face of the earth. He doesn't seem to know where and when he's playing and he appears to have no structure to put a run of tournaments together which will give him the stability to get his career back on track. Like his gluttony has been to his talent, he seems to have done everything to ruin his career with some truly laughable management.

Sometime last summer (IIRC) Rory said that if he had won a tournament on the PGATour, he was going to play Kapalua.

Rose finished 2nd to J.T. in the 2017 Sony Open, so he is not adverse to playing in Hawaii.

It was horrible decision for Lowry when he didn't play Kapalua. It was discussed a lot in these forums.

Last year was the first time Rose was ineligible for the ToC since 2010 I believe. And he chose to fly to Hawaii and back for a single tournament he hadn't played since 2011. This year he can play both, having been runner-up at Waialae, and isn't returning. Completely counter-intuitive to me, but I guess his recent form can justify whatever he likes.

Rose is an unusual player it seems to me; his form builds up a big head of steam, then he disappears for months at a time. Strange though that he chooses Indonesia, essentially, instead of Hawaii.

As for Lowry, who the hell knows - still bizarre scheduling a couple of years ago however many times it's discussed and you could argue he's still paying for it. Hope he gets his act together as I'd say he still has the game to be a top player.

Rose seems to be very much in control of his swing now, it seems very smooth and very repeatable from where it was a few years ago.

Would like to see him win the Masters as he's a classy guy.

Confirmation that Sergio is now playing Callaway equipment.
Clothing endorsement too? Dunno, always felt he was pretty loyal towards adidas.

I think he's sticking with Adidas isn't he Kwini?
I thought it was only his TM contract that was torn up when they split from Adidas.

Need More Reps and McIlroy stuck with the ghastly 1990's Nike clothing when they went to TM so I'd expect Adidas to retain Garcia.

Not like the Adidas outfits are much hipper if you ask me.

I'd expect Sergio to stick with Adidas "apparel". He has always favoured a more athletic look. Callaway clothing generally for fat people.

Not sure how Super can state Nike clothing is 90's style. I think their clothing was more "2017" than any other golf brand, some of it too trendy for most of the people on this forum, me included.

raycastleunited wrote:I'd expect Sergio to stick with Adidas "apparel". He has always favoured a more athletic look. Callaway clothing generally for fat people.

Not sure how Super can state Nike clothing is 90's style. I think their clothing was more "2017" than any other golf brand, some of it too trendy for most of the people on this forum, me included.

Confirmed that Sergio continues his adidas contract. Fashion may be in the eye of the beholder, but I've always liked Ashworth shirts. Not sure what their status is now, even whether they still exist.

raycastleunited wrote:I'd expect Sergio to stick with Adidas "apparel". He has always favoured a more athletic look. Callaway clothing generally for fat people.

Not sure how Super can state Nike clothing is 90's style. I think their clothing was more "2017" than any other golf brand, some of it too trendy for most of the people on this forum, me included.

True that much of the Adidas range is ghastly, but nothing like as dated as the "pastel pastiche" that seems to be the flavour of the Nike palatte these days.
There's some much more sober and elegant clothing out there (not that golf is EVER especially stylish) but Nike have never been a benchmark of sartorial taste. Especially now as they seem to be the sort of clothing for jerks who wear caps with a flat peak.

I know the Nike golf shoes has gone very 90’s, with high tops, air Jordan, air max 90 etc. But I think players like olesen and Jason day look pretty cool. But it’s a look you can only get away with in your twenties.

I presume it's not a market aimed at a relatively old git like me, but those flat peaked caps make an already stupid piece of headgear look even more absurd.

Those "no collar" shirts that Mcilroy and Day wear also look stupid in my opinion, especially when mimicked by fat club golfers.

Fatprick Reed has signed with Nike. What do you make of that Super?

You mean Reed is going to be sponsored by Nike rather than "Tax Slayer"?
Sounds about right.

I've just done a quick google image search for mcilroy, oleson, day and koepka. All the images of them in nike gear look fine, a bit tight, but if you have the physique theres nothing wrong with that. Mcilroy is pictured in a bright yellow top which may not be to some tastes. The same for sergio and dustin in adidas, nothing noticibly ghastly.

I think one of the most ghastly thing about the Nike stuff is how they are sneaking up the size of their logo, on some items of clothing it is now massive.

I hope Fatprick Reed wears the tight gear that would be funny, who's next? Shane Lowry?

Nike to me don't belong in golf, a low end, generic product who don't really care about golf, but are just in it to cash in. It's like when they've tried their hand in snowsports (and failed). It just doesn't seem their place.

I think its hard to say they don't belong in golf or care for it, they started making golf shoes in 1984,and signed apparel sponsorship deals in 1985, curtis strange won while nike branded in 1988/89.

30+ years involvement is probably enough to say its not a short term thing and they are pretty established in the golf game.

I just don't think they really fit in, they're the unimaginative choice if you know what I mean.
Generic and nothing special.