PGA Tour: Malaysia / S.Korea: Notes from the Ballwasher

by kwinigolfer Wed 10 Oct 2018, 5:38 pm

First topic message reminder :

1).Well done Kevin Tway; as they say, it's been coming.
And the Tways join duos Heafner, Boros, Geiberger, Haas & Stadler as winning father/son PGA Tour champs in the past 50 years.
And there are at least half a dozen young guns playing in First Stage Q-School hoping to emulate Dad as a Tour winner - but they have to get there first.

2).Tway Junior is in Kuala Lumpur for the CIMB Classic this week with plenty of other middle-of-the-road Tour players who have qualified for limited field, money-for-nothing events in Asia. But Justin Thomas is here, and so is Paul Casey.
You can't blame Paul who is also among the early commitments for next week's CJ Cup and is qualified for the WGC-HSBC Champions. He may not be the only one, but what a way to fulfil his 15-event obligation?
He can add the Tournament of Champions, WGC-Mexico, WGC-MatchPlay and probably WGC-FedEx to his schedule, all limited field events with guaranteed money and FedEx Points.
A successful season would see him add two more such who-said-the-PGA-Tour-doesn't-pay-appearance-fees? tournaments at the BMW and Tour Championship.
Nice work if you can earn it.

3).So, the schedule this autumn looks like this:
Last week: Safeway
This week: CIMB
Next week: CJ Cup
Oct 25th: WGC-HSBC Champions and Sanderson Farms
Nov 1st: Las Vegas
Nov 8th: Mayakoba
Nov 15th: RSM

4).Hurricane Michael permitting, this week also sees the final "regular season" tournament on the Champions Tour, in soggy North Carolina. Following Sunday's play, the season's Top 72 will play a 3-tournament championship series, with next week's field of 72 being whittled down to 54 in week 2 and 36 in week 3. These are good tournaments, much easier to follow for US-based viewers than "Big Tour" events halfway across the world.
Langer has finished 1st or 2nd the past six years; Montgomerie runnered up three of those years whilst Jimenez, Broadhurst and Parnevik will be among Europeans joining Bernie & Col this year.
Darren Clarke hasn't done anything in his young Senior career to suggest he'll be anything other than a ceremonial entry every week; as far as I can tell he has a two-year exemption but he'll need to sharpen up if he's to continue his exemption after that.

5).And First Stage of web.com Q-School wraps up this week, Stage 2 goes at the end of the month and Final Stage in early December. Haven't seen any notable European Tour golfers among those competing, which is hardly surprising.

6).Hoping Cameron Smith wins this week but hope even more that I'll be fast asleep if/when he does.

by super_realist Mon 15 Oct 2018, 8:00 am

kwinigolfer wrote:Just watched Langer back to his best on the Champo Tour - up to $26.5M in career earnings on the Champions Tour alone.
Miguel-Angel up close to $6M already.

Wow, that place is a licence to print money. Langer's church must be delighted.

by **navyblueshorts** Mon 15 Oct 2018, 2:03 pm

Umm. Nicklaus says "...caught his first pass as a Dolphin..." (my emphasis).

by pedro Mon 15 Oct 2018, 7:04 pm

According to the comments below Jack was at a Kid Rock concert the night before. Wow what’s next? A sports car? Bit late for mid life crisis.

by kwinigolfer Mon 15 Oct 2018, 7:38 pm

Hadn't seen that Stenson underwent elbow surgery the other day.
High time that boy got fit (so that he can play all five RC matches next time #3-0).

by kwinigolfer Mon 15 Oct 2018, 8:44 pm

Azinger replacing Miller at NBC. Phew!

Miller has been out of it the past year or so, not calling as many tournaments, out of touch when he does turn up.
Wouldn't be surprised to learn that something health-wise is going on. Or perhaps he just didn't fancy Portrush?

by **navyblueshorts** Tue 16 Oct 2018, 3:27 pm

pedro wrote:According to the comments below Jack was at a Kid Rock concert the night before. Wow what’s next? A sports car? Bit late for mid life crisis.

Fit's nicely with the Republican vibe...

by GPB Tue 16 Oct 2018, 6:12 pm

Statement from Steve Bowditch:

by kwinigolfer Tue 16 Oct 2018, 7:23 pm

I can't see Bowditch coming back, at least not on the PGA Tour - he may only be 35 but imagine he's about the oldest 35 anywhere close to professional sport. One thing after another.
But good luck to him.

by super_realist Wed 17 Oct 2018, 7:59 am

kwinigolfer wrote:I can't see Bowditch coming back, at least not on the PGA Tour - he may only be 35 but imagine he's about the oldest 35 anywhere close to professional sport. One thing after another.
But good luck to him.

Being a dipso probably doesn't help.

by beninho Wed 17 Oct 2018, 8:36 am

super_realist wrote:
kwinigolfer wrote:I can't see Bowditch coming back, at least not on the PGA Tour - he may only be 35 but imagine he's about the oldest 35 anywhere close to professional sport. One thing after another.
But good luck to him.

Being a dipso probably doesn't help.

Is he?

by Roller_Coaster Wed 17 Oct 2018, 8:46 am

Surely he'll be back next year and will win the Tour Championship.

That is what happens after fusion surgery, right?

by pedro Wed 17 Oct 2018, 9:47 am

beninho wrote:
super_realist wrote:
kwinigolfer wrote:I can't see Bowditch coming back, at least not on the PGA Tour - he may only be 35 but imagine he's about the oldest 35 anywhere close to professional sport. One thing after another.
But good luck to him.

Being a dipso probably doesn't help.

Is he?

He’s Aussie.

by Roller_Coaster Wed 17 Oct 2018, 11:20 am

pedro wrote:
beninho wrote:
super_realist wrote:
kwinigolfer wrote:I can't see Bowditch coming back, at least not on the PGA Tour - he may only be 35 but imagine he's about the oldest 35 anywhere close to professional sport. One thing after another.
But good luck to him.

Being a dipso probably doesn't help.

Is he?
He’s Aussie.

So he's not from Dipsomalia like Super thought?

by raycastleunited Wed 17 Oct 2018, 11:28 am

brilliant

by GPB Wed 17 Oct 2018, 7:37 pm

Looks like the PGATour could be expanding into Japan for the 2019-20 season

http://read.nxtbook.com/global_golf_post/global_golf_post/20181015/pga_notes.html

by kwinigolfer Wed 17 Oct 2018, 8:40 pm

GPB wrote:Looks like the PGATour could be expanding into Japan for the 2019-20 season

http://read.nxtbook.com/global_golf_post/global_golf_post/20181015/pga_notes.html

That's pretty much what robo's been saying for a while. Just a question of when.
Presumably yet another no-cut event #appearancefeesbyanothername

Another tournament I won't be watching.

PS: I see T.Woods has owned up to "fatigue" at the RC. Why didn't he just drop out? Kuchar & Zach were right there and could hardly have done worse. Helluva team player, some example as a VC.

by pedro Thu 18 Oct 2018, 12:10 am

Zach is the only player from “the older generation” with a positive RC record. Plus he was in decent form and the course would’ve suited him well. So no wonder they left him out... clap

by kwinigolfer Thu 18 Oct 2018, 12:54 am

pedro wrote:Zach is the only player from “the older generation” with a positive RC record. Plus he was in decent form and the course would’ve suited him well. So no wonder they left him out...

by GPB Thu 18 Oct 2018, 12:54 am

pedro wrote:Zach is the only player from “the older generation” with a positive RC record. Plus he was in decent form and the course would’ve suited him well. So no wonder they left him out...

In decent form? on what planet was he in decent form?

http://www.owgr.com/Ranking/PlayerProfile.aspx?playerID=6986

No top 10's since April. T40-MC-T33 in the FEX playoffs

by kwinigolfer Thu 18 Oct 2018, 2:16 am

What would you prefer?
A proven competitor who'd do anything for the team?
Or:
A self-obsessed genius, brilliant on his day, who's scarcely trying, nothing in it for him?

by GPB Thu 18 Oct 2018, 3:20 am

kwinigolfer wrote:What would you prefer?
A proven competitor who'd do anything for the team?
Or:
A self-obsessed genius, brilliant on his day, who's scarcely trying, nothing in it for him?

Strawman argument. My comment was in response to "decent form". I don't see any evidence of decent form, do you?

by NedB-H Thu 18 Oct 2018, 6:39 am

Hindsight is a wonderful thing. I’m no Tiger fan, but there’s no golfer in the world that would voluntarily WD from the Ryder Cup for “fatigue” having won the week before. And there’s no captain in the world (except maybe super) who’d be brave enough not to pick Woods after the summer he’s had.

by beninho Thu 18 Oct 2018, 8:02 am

Danny willett, starting to get the odd decent round in. Lets hope its tge beginning of a return to form.

by super_realist Thu 18 Oct 2018, 8:13 am

NedB-H wrote:Hindsight is a wonderful thing. I’m no Tiger fan, but there’s no golfer in the world that would voluntarily WD from the Ryder Cup for “fatigue” having won the week before. And there’s no captain in the world (except maybe super) who’d be brave enough not to pick Woods after the summer he’s had.

I would and I would have been vilified. American Ryder Cup captains are like previous England Football Managers, picking on name and reputation with no consideration as to where they fit into the team. America never seem to realise this.
It should have been obvious to Furyk that he needed players who are reliable off the tee, and perhaps it was, but American media probably put pressure on him to pick America's two worst Ryder Cup players of all time. Hope they keep on with their amateur captaincies.

by super_realist Thu 18 Oct 2018, 8:21 am

GPB wrote:
pedro wrote:Zach is the only player from “the older generation” with a positive RC record. Plus he was in decent form and the course would’ve suited him well. So no wonder they left him out...

In decent form? on what planet was he in decent form?

http://www.owgr.com/Ranking/PlayerProfile.aspx?playerID=6986

No top 10's since April. T40-MC-T33 in the FEX playoffs

How many more times? What has STROKEPLAY FORM got to do with anything in relation to Matchplay?

How much form did Garcia, Stenson, Casey and Poulter have going in to the Ryder Cup? hardly any, yet they were superb.

This is why America fail consistently in this event. Square pegs in round holes and too much emphasis on WHO the player is, not WHAT they can bring to the team. This is a TEAM event for 4/5th's of it. There's no point in bringing players who routinely stink the place out again and again.

Woods (and Mickelson) have come into the Ryder Cup virtually every time they have played in rude form (something you seem to consistently ignore), yet how much good has it ever done them. DeChambeau was picked on form too. How well did that work out?

When will America realise that they need MORE INFORMATION than picking on form and name? Europe make their Captains picks on who fits in to the team and very much on their record in the event, more than their current form, and guess what? It works. You couldn't have found a player on worse form than Garcia going into the event, yet he was a standout player.

The obvious and well reported issue of LGN was that the rough was thick and accuracy was vital. Furyk appeared to give this no consideration given his picks notoriety for being wayward from the tee. Why pick someone like Mickelson or Woods who are terrible off the tee, when Johnson hits more fairways than he's been to church.

Hilarious that Woods and Mickelson are having a matchplay shootout. Wouldn't one of them be better off taking on a Molinari, Garcia or Poulter? Surely that would be more interesting than Woods v Mickelson, and adds a bit of edge than two matchplay hasbeens.

by pedro Thu 18 Oct 2018, 8:42 am

GPB wrote:
pedro wrote:Zach is the only player from “the older generation” with a positive RC record. Plus he was in decent form and the course would’ve suited him well. So no wonder they left him out...

In decent form? on what planet was he in decent form?

http://www.owgr.com/Ranking/PlayerProfile.aspx?playerID=6986

No top 10's since April. T40-MC-T33 in the FEX playoffs

He had 6 top 20’s (of 7 or 8 played) leading up to when the picks were announced. So it would have been perfectly justifiable to pick Zach - also given his RC record and ability to hit fairways.

In any case his form was more ‘decent’ than Phils.
http://www.owgr.com/en/Ranking/PlayerProfile.aspx?playerID=1547

by Roller_Coaster Thu 18 Oct 2018, 8:55 am

super_realist wrote:
GPB wrote:
pedro wrote:Zach is the only player from “the older generation” with a positive RC record. Plus he was in decent form and the course would’ve suited him well. So no wonder they left him out...

In decent form? on what planet was he in decent form?

http://www.owgr.com/Ranking/PlayerProfile.aspx?playerID=6986

No top 10's since April. T40-MC-T33 in the FEX playoffs

How many more times? What has STROKEPLAY FORM got to do with anything in relation to Matchplay?

How much form did Garcia, Stenson, Casey and Poulter have going in to the Ryder Cup? hardly any, yet they were superb.

This is why America fail consistently in this event. Square pegs in round holes and too much emphasis on WHO the player is, not WHAT they can bring to the team. This is a TEAM event for 4/5th's of it. There's no point in bringing players who routinely stink the place out again and again.

Woods (and Mickelson) have come into the Ryder Cup virtually every time they have played in rude form (something you seem to consistently ignore), yet how much good has it ever done them. DeChambeau was picked on form too. How well did that work out?

When will America realise that they need MORE INFORMATION than picking on form and name? Europe make their Captains picks on who fits in to the team and very much on their record in the event, more than their current form, and guess what? It works. You couldn't have found a player on worse form than Garcia going into the event, yet he was a standout player.

The obvious and well reported issue of LGN was that the rough was thick and accuracy was vital. Furyk appeared to give this no consideration given his picks notoriety for being wayward from the tee. Why pick someone like Mickelson or Woods who are terrible off the tee, when Johnson hits more fairways than he's been to church.

Hilarious that Woods and Mickelson are having a matchplay shootout. Wouldn't one of them be better off taking on a Molinari, Garcia or Poulter? Surely that would be more interesting than Woods v Mickelson, and adds a bit of edge than two matchplay hasbeens.

Referee/Announcer on the way round

"Mickelson wins the hole in 8, Woods now 2 up."
"Hole halved in 6, Woods remains 2 up."

etc etc

by NedB-H Thu 18 Oct 2018, 10:55 am

We talk like these things would have made a difference. It’s not like it was a narrow loss for the US. Even if Zach had come in for Tiger or Phil they’d still have got hammered. And the opprobrium heaped on Furyk would be ten times worse, rightly or wrongly, if they’d got hammered and he hadn’t picked an in form Tiger.

by kwinigolfer Thu 18 Oct 2018, 11:43 am

NedB-H wrote:Hindsight is a wonderful thing. I’m no Tiger fan, but there’s no golfer in the world that would voluntarily WD from the Ryder Cup for “fatigue” having won the week before. And there’s no captain in the world (except maybe super) who’d be brave enough not to pick Woods after the summer he’s had.

But Woods must have known he was out of gas before the matches started; even if it's fanciful to think he'd stand down before the whistle blew, there's no excuse, with a (ex) VC's responsibility to his Captain and the team, to put his hand up to play four matches. It was never going to "be alright on the night". (And that's a good thing.)
Of course, now it's all about him wanting to be a Playing Captain for the Presidents Cup. And he probably will, then demand the same for Whistling Straits or Italy.

by raycastleunited Thu 18 Oct 2018, 1:04 pm

This whole notion of Woods withdrawing from the RC is absurd. Am sure he was desperate to play and cares very deeply about the event. Also sure he tries his hardest to win every match.

Also the notion of Furyk leaving out Woods is nuts. He's demonstrably one of the greatest match play golfers in history, and was clearly in form as shown by his TC win.

I would have had Zach in the team. Locked in pick based on his record.

I also wouldn't have played Tiger so much in the doubles matches, but that's a bit speculative as I wasn't in the team room. Maybe the others were looking more shaky and Furyk felt Tiger was his only choice.

by GPB Thu 18 Oct 2018, 4:13 pm

super_realist wrote:
GPB wrote:
pedro wrote:Zach is the only player from “the older generation” with a positive RC record. Plus he was in decent form and the course would’ve suited him well. So no wonder they left him out...

In decent form? on what planet was he in decent form?

http://www.owgr.com/Ranking/PlayerProfile.aspx?playerID=6986

No top 10's since April. T40-MC-T33 in the FEX playoffs

How many more times? What has STROKEPLAY FORM got to do with anything in relation to Matchplay?

How much form did Garcia, Stenson, Casey and Poulter have going in to the Ryder Cup? hardly any, yet they were superb.

This is why America fail consistently in this event. Square pegs in round holes and too much emphasis on WHO the player is, not WHAT they can bring to the team. This is a TEAM event for 4/5th's of it. There's no point in bringing players who routinely stink the place out again and again.

Woods (and Mickelson) have come into the Ryder Cup virtually every time they have played in rude form (something you seem to consistently ignore), yet how much good has it ever done them. DeChambeau was picked on form too. How well did that work out?

When will America realise that they need MORE INFORMATION than picking on form and name? Europe make their Captains picks on who fits in to the team and very much on their record in the event, more than their current form, and guess what? It works. You couldn't have found a player on worse form than Garcia going into the event, yet he was a standout player.

The obvious and well reported issue of LGN was that the rough was thick and accuracy was vital. Furyk appeared to give this no consideration given his picks notoriety for being wayward from the tee. Why pick someone like Mickelson or Woods who are terrible off the tee, when Johnson hits more fairways than he's been to church.

Hilarious that Woods and Mickelson are having a matchplay shootout. Wouldn't one of them be better off taking on a Molinari, Garcia or Poulter? Surely that would be more interesting than Woods v Mickelson, and adds a bit of edge than two matchplay hasbeens.

Again, READ MY LIPS

My response was ONLY in response to Pedro's allegation that Zach Johnson was in "DECENT FORM".

Call the asylum, but no top 10's since April is not DECENT FORM?

What is it about that you do not understand?

=============

You people think it is a ground breaking epiphany that Americans have cr@ppy individual records in the Ryder Cup. Duh, do think there might be a correlation between Americans having lost 7 out of the last nine Ryder Cups and crappy individual records. YA THINK? Its not like Zach has a Great Ryder Cup record. 8-7-2. Big Whooping Deal! Why not pick Keegan Bradley at 4-3-1? or Jason Dufner at 3-1? For all we know, Zach told Furyk to not consider him because he was out of form.

Incredible how much Zach Johnson gets flamed on these boards, and now suddenly for the Ryder Cup, he is the greatest asset that the US team has.

But there is NO WAY Furyk was not going pick Tiger and Phil. If they were not on the team, and the US team lost (and it probably would have), Furyk would have been absolutely CRUCIFIED and VILIFIED by the American fans and Press. Do you people not understand that as well.

by kwinigolfer Thu 18 Oct 2018, 4:32 pm

"you people"?

by super_realist Fri 19 Oct 2018, 8:08 am

NedB-H wrote:We talk like these things would have made a difference. It’s not like it was a narrow loss for the US. Even if Zach had come in for Tiger or Phil they’d still have got hammered. And the opprobrium heaped on Furyk would be ten times worse, rightly or wrongly, if they’d got hammered and he hadn’t picked an in form Tiger.

Not necessarily. Imagine if Zach with his accuracy had pulled off 4 wins (not saying he would have, but it's more likely than Woods or Mickelson doing it, even if he'd only won a point on day one, that would mean 4-4 rather than 5-3 and less momentum for Europe to build on.), instead of 9C's hilarious 0-4 capitulation? All of a sudden it's a lot more tight. Replace the other wayward driver with someone a bit straighter and if there's only a point or two going into the singles then it's anyone's to win.

The point is that as much as I actually quite like Furyk, how on earth could he be so stupid as not to realise that the course was set up to favour supreme accuracy and course management, especially when that is the basis of his entire career.

Therefore, picking two of the worst drivers on tour as his picks, as well as someone as flaky as DeChambeau, Mickelson was actually ranked 2nd last for accuracy on the entire PGA tour instead of picking players on the basis of being able to hit a narrow fairway meant that Europe were already on the way to winning before the competition had even tee'd off.

Europe must have looked at those picks and laughed their heads off. It must have been like when Iceland played England and they realised all they were playing were players picked on reputation and hype, but with terrible tournament records.

No matter how America set up the course next time, you couldn't contemplate Europe making the same lack of preparation and pick mistakes that America continue to do every time they travel abroad. It wasn't that long ago they brought no waterproof waterproofs to effing Wales for goodness sake. That's amateur in the extreme.

The only reason I can think of for picking Woods and Mickelson was that Furyk was under pressure from the powers that be in the media and advertising to do so. Can't imagine Europe would ever stoop so low.

by super_realist Fri 19 Oct 2018, 8:21 am

GPB wrote:
super_realist wrote:
GPB wrote:
pedro wrote:Zach is the only player from “the older generation” with a positive RC record. Plus he was in decent form and the course would’ve suited him well. So no wonder they left him out...

In decent form? on what planet was he in decent form?

http://www.owgr.com/Ranking/PlayerProfile.aspx?playerID=6986

No top 10's since April. T40-MC-T33 in the FEX playoffs

How many more times? What has STROKEPLAY FORM got to do with anything in relation to Matchplay?

How much form did Garcia, Stenson, Casey and Poulter have going in to the Ryder Cup? hardly any, yet they were superb.

This is why America fail consistently in this event. Square pegs in round holes and too much emphasis on WHO the player is, not WHAT they can bring to the team. This is a TEAM event for 4/5th's of it. There's no point in bringing players who routinely stink the place out again and again.

Woods (and Mickelson) have come into the Ryder Cup virtually every time they have played in rude form (something you seem to consistently ignore), yet how much good has it ever done them. DeChambeau was picked on form too. How well did that work out?

When will America realise that they need MORE INFORMATION than picking on form and name? Europe make their Captains picks on who fits in to the team and very much on their record in the event, more than their current form, and guess what? It works. You couldn't have found a player on worse form than Garcia going into the event, yet he was a standout player.

The obvious and well reported issue of LGN was that the rough was thick and accuracy was vital. Furyk appeared to give this no consideration given his picks notoriety for being wayward from the tee. Why pick someone like Mickelson or Woods who are terrible off the tee, when Johnson hits more fairways than he's been to church.

Hilarious that Woods and Mickelson are having a matchplay shootout. Wouldn't one of them be better off taking on a Molinari, Garcia or Poulter? Surely that would be more interesting than Woods v Mickelson, and adds a bit of edge than two matchplay hasbeens.

Again, READ MY LIPS

My response was ONLY in response to Pedro's allegation that Zach Johnson was in "DECENT FORM".

Call the asylum, but no top 10's since April is not DECENT FORM?

What is it about that you do not understand?

=============

You people think it is a ground breaking epiphany that Americans have cr@ppy individual records in the Ryder Cup. Duh, do think there might be a correlation between Americans having lost 7 out of the last nine Ryder Cups and crappy individual records. YA THINK? Its not like Zach has a Great Ryder Cup record. 8-7-2. Big Whooping Deal! Why not pick Keegan Bradley at 4-3-1? or Jason Dufner at 3-1? For all we know, Zach told Furyk to not consider him because he was out of form.

Incredible how much Zach Johnson gets flamed on these boards, and now suddenly for the Ryder Cup, he is the greatest asset that the US team has.

But there is NO WAY Furyk was not going pick Tiger and Phil. If they were not on the team, and the US team lost (and it probably would have), Furyk would have been absolutely CRUCIFIED and VILIFIED by the American fans and Press. Do you people not understand that as well.

And why do you think America have such crappy Ryder Cup records? It's because America routinely pick players NOT SUITABLE for this format of the game and with games that DO NOT suit the course they play over, whether that's in terms of the attributes they have for the course they are playing or that they don't care about the event. They always pick on name and reputation, so they lose far more often than not.

Furyk HAS been crucified and vilified by losing WITH them in the team, so what difference does it make whether he actually picked players who might have actually given him a better chance of winning? Furyk should have had the balls to stand up to the press and media and been able to explain why you SHOULD leave out Woods and Mickelson for the event, Woods was already pencilled in as a VC anyway. The demands of the media in America are also part of your problem, or can't you see that?

The media were already out for Bjorn in the speculation that he would pick Garcia instead of Fitzpatrick or Wallace, but he picked him anyway because he fitted in with the strategy, and that's the difference between Europe and America, being able to make a controversial decision based on what is best (or perceived) to be best for the team. America never do anything controversial in their picks, they're predictable and boring, so it's no wonder they lose so often.

You're right, Johnson does get flack, but not for his golf game. We've told you exactly why he'd be a better player than Woods/Mickelson at Paris, and that is ACCURACY, something Phil and Woods simply don't have consistently. Lack of form didn't do Garcia or Stenson any harm, but they have attributes ideally suited for a tight course and it shone through against players that the media would clearly pick as being "in better form".

You need to focus less on strokeplay form, and instead on how to pick a team that is better suited to make a challenge in regards to the four captains picks. Was it Einstein who said that doing the same thing again and again and expecting a different outcome was the definition of madness? Never has it been more apt than with the American team.

by GPB Fri 19 Oct 2018, 4:16 pm

"This format of the Game"

You are posting like the difference between match play and stroke play is the difference between Golf and Tennis.

ITS STILL GOLF. Its not brain surgery, rocket science or even rocket surgery. The object is the get the ball in fewest amount of strokes.

As much as I dislike Woods, he knows how to play match play. 3 US Amateurs, 3 US Jr Amateurs, 3 WGC Match Play title, and great record in the Prez Cup.

Ah yes, THE PRESIDENTS CUP. YES WE KNOW you don't give a F*** about the Prez Cup. That is your jingoistic and xenophobic opinion, but it is a respected competition by people that do not pledge their allegiance to "Ode to Joy". We get it, you don't like or respect it. You might be the stereo typical European Golf Fan (I hope not), but you do not represent the opinions of EVERY GOLF FAN The Presidents is a competition that International Players want to win and American Player do not want to lose. Golf is played all over the World, and not just in Europe and USA.

I can tell you that Gary Player, Nick Price, Peter Thomson, Greg Norman, Ernie Els and a whole bunch of other World Golf Hall of Famers don't give a RATS BEHIND about the Ryder Cup. They never played in it.

And I can tell you what the Americans have never done since they have started to routinely lose. Unlike UK/Europe They haven't lobbied to change the matches

1. Add Ireland and then the Rest of the Continent
2. Change the # Matches played

IMO, USA would have performed better (and won more RCs) in the last 25 years if there 5 matches in the first 4 sessions instead of 4.

I would also like to see a 4th day of matches (on Thursday with an additional day of 12 singles matches). More Golf, whats not to like about that?

Seems like every tweak to the event has been at Europe's request, and not USA.

by **navyblueshorts** Fri 19 Oct 2018, 5:02 pm

GPB wrote:"This format of the Game"

You are posting like the difference between match play and stroke play is the difference between Golf and Tennis.

ITS STILL GOLF. Its not brain surgery, rocket science or even rocket surgery. The object is the get the ball in fewest amount of strokes.

As much as I dislike Woods, he knows how to play match play. 3 US Amateurs, 3 US Jr Amateurs, 3 WGC Match Play title, and great record in the Prez Cup.

Ah yes, THE PRESIDENTS CUP. YES WE KNOW you don't give a F*** about the Prez Cup. That is your jingoistic and xenophobic opinion, but it is a respected competition by people that do not pledge their allegiance to "Ode to Joy". We get it, you don't like or respect it. You might be the stereo typical European Golf Fan (I hope not), but you do not represent the opinions of EVERY GOLF FAN The Presidents is a competition that International Players want to win and American Player do not want to lose. Golf is played all over the World, and not just in Europe and USA.

I can tell you that Gary Player, Nick Price, Peter Thomson, Greg Norman, Ernie Els and a whole bunch of other World Golf Hall of Famers don't give a RATS BEHIND about the Ryder Cup. They never played in it.

And I can tell you what the Americans have never done since they have started to routinely lose. Unlike UK/Europe They haven't lobbied to change the matches

1. Add Ireland and then the Rest of the Continent
2. Change the # Matches played

IMO, USA would have performed better (and won more RCs) in the last 25 years if there 5 matches in the first 4 sessions instead of 4.

I would also like to see a 4th day of matches (on Thursday with an additional day of 12 singles matches). More Golf, whats not to like about that?

Seems like every tweak to the event has been at Europe's request, and not USA.

You started well, but then fell off the high ground.

It is laughable, if correct, that the US players don't care, now that they can be branded as serial(?) losers. Bless. Pity though, as I thought that traditionally that made them fight harder. Guess not. Maybe the problem is, they don't get paid for their efforts in representing Uncle Sam? FWIW, I think they do care - you don't get that piece of merde, Mickleson, throwing Watson under the bus, or Woods' reaction post-event this time around if they don't care.
Are you surprised that GB&I became Europe? ~60mil vs ~300mil? Of course it was overdue the addition of Europe. Not sure the balance is out of whack that much now.

by pedro Fri 19 Oct 2018, 5:57 pm

Ironic?

https://www.golfchannel.com/article/golf-central-blog/pga-tour-latinoamerica-moving-season-finale-doral/

Here’s a pic of the players entering for a practise round:

PGA Tour: Malaysia / S.Korea: Notes from the Ballwasher - Page 2 985d6810

by super_realist Fri 19 Oct 2018, 7:27 pm

GPB, you should actually know that it was AMERICA who suggested that the Ryder Cup became USA v EUROPE, and not the other way around.

by GPB Sat 20 Oct 2018, 12:34 am

super_realist wrote:GPB, you should actually know that it was AMERICA who suggested that the Ryder Cup became USA v EUROPE, and not the other way around.

Yep after one GBI win in the previous 40 years (yes, hyperbolic, I exaggerated because I didn't want to look it up, I will leave it up to the pedants to set the record correct.)

and yes, I am aware of the Population disparity between GBI and USA. I am also aware of the population disparity between the RotW and the USA. that doesn't seem to matter.

by super_realist Sat 20 Oct 2018, 9:04 am

GPB, you need to look more at the respective populations of the ROTW (and Europe to that extent) of the countries that actually play golf.

There's many countries in the ROTW and Europe who simply don't play golf but who account for a massive amount of the population of the ROTW or Europe and you're letting that skew your view on this matter.

Europe has only ever been represented by GB, Ireland, France, Spain, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Italy and Belgium. 9 countries out of how many? That's a collective population of 350 million to America's 325 million. Pretty well matched don't you think?

(looking forward to your breakdown of which states have represented the US now Rolling Eyes

)

Sure you could say the same for the Presidents Cup, hardly any countries are actually represented in that, and as such it's probably a pretty fair battle in regards to population. I think the ROTW have only ever had about 10 or 11 different countries represent them, but then, you'd know that if you're such a Presidents Cup buff wouldn't you and took as much notice of it as you claim Europeans do of the Ryder Cup? Laugh

by pedro Sat 20 Oct 2018, 9:07 am

The US have always had the highest OWGR average when entering the RC so no need to whine.

by Diggers Sat 20 Oct 2018, 2:08 pm

It’s fine to say that the US has a bigger population than GB. But that’s true for every sport, you don’t balance up population in football matches when countries compete.
There are a few continental events, athletics does one. But no one gives a toss because by and large, there is no existing motivation to support competitors from other countries. Your neighbors are usually your biggest rivals.
That’s why the RC doesn’t work for me as an event having an outcome that I care about.

by kwinigolfer Sun 21 Oct 2018, 1:04 am

Big chance Sunday for Poults (T2 after 54 holes) and Rafa C-B (T4) to contend for the CJ Cup, beaucoup $$$$$$$$$ and Fed Ex points, Casey and Noren not that far behind.
Only about one million+ pounds between the prize in this Asian appearance fee extravaganza and Sergio's work in Andalucia.
Sad, but true.

by GPB Sun 21 Oct 2018, 2:10 am

pedro wrote:The US have always had the highest OWGR average when entering the RC so no need to whine.

Not true: At least twice in recent history, the World ranks of the European team was better than the US team

Cumulative OWGR Ranks

2008:

USA 297
Europe 266

2006:

USA 353
Europe 273

by GPB Sun 21 Oct 2018, 2:53 am

super_realist wrote:GPB, you need to look more at the respective populations of the ROTW (and Europe to that extent) of the countries that actually play golf.

In Soccer, Team England would typically beat Team USA.

Womens Golf: Team South Korea could probably be competitive against a RotW team.

Too many exceptions to the rule to give much credence to the Population argument.

by super_realist Sun 21 Oct 2018, 7:46 am

GPB wrote:
super_realist wrote:GPB, you need to look more at the respective populations of the ROTW (and Europe to that extent) of the countries that actually play golf.

In Soccer, Team England would typically beat Team USA.

Womens Golf: Team South Korea could probably be competitive against a RotW team.

Too many exceptions to the rule to give much credence to the Population argument.

You were the one that first raised populations or did you forget that? That's why I mentioned it because you were talking as if the inferred huge population of Europe was an advantage to Europe.

America's problem is that they consistently choose the equivalent of an in form 400m runner to run against a proven 100m runner in a 100m race. It's why they consistently lose because like you, they don't see that it's a different discipline of the same "sport" and they don't pick a player based on their attributes or what they can bring to a particular course, they pick on name and form in a different format and wildly different type of course. Imagine you did that in business? You'd fail.

Clearly it was incredibly stupid to pick awful drivers like Mickelson and Woods on such a tight course (their previous form has hardly ever led to good Ryder Cup results anyway so the claim that you can't ignore the form of Woods especially is a non starter), yet so many Americans claim it would be madness to leave Woods out on his form, why exactly? Form as a selection parameter simply isn't that important for a Captains pick, as shown by Europe consistently.

It's a bit like horse racing, form means nothing if the going (ground conditions) doesn't suit the horse, but America seem to think that form transfers to all types of courses, where in reality, clearly it doesn't.

I'm sure you'll bring out your tautology of "if they lose then they'll have bad records" But you have to ask why players like this and this good keep losing? The answer is they aren't suited to the format/pressure/courses etc. Picking on form is a laughable criteria when used to the exclusion of fitting a team to the conditions.

America will keep on losing with this short sighted non strategy.

Even the England football team managed to change this amateurish mentality, and previously I would have thought that harder than turning round an oil tanker. If a tired old fart organisation like the FA can do this, why not an American Ryder Cup team?

by beninho Sun 21 Oct 2018, 9:02 am

I get the feeling that we will have a period of home wins in the ryder cup going forward. Need to also remember the usa won the previous cup, so its not all doom and gloom for america. Europe were poor at tle previous one, america were poor at this one.

by pedro Sun 21 Oct 2018, 10:23 am

Koepka new world #1. Didn’t see that one coming 6 months ago.

So we’ve had 4 different #1’s this year.

by I'm never wrong Sun 21 Oct 2018, 10:26 am

...and Poulter didn't capitalise. Only (!) 1 under for the day. From 2nd to 10th.

by beninho Sun 21 Oct 2018, 10:42 am

Koepka is probably a deserved number 1, what with winning 2/3rds of his entered majors this year. I did read sonething about his suspiciously 3 month absence earlier this year, and whether it was doping ban based but kept quiet. I'm not saying I believe it, but I also wouldn't be surprised.

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