Tiger and Rory: strolling and conversing, often simultaneously.
There was little to commend the 'Duel at Lake Jinsha' to Western audiences, on paper at least. Tiger and Rory are, they're often at pains to emphasise, on really good terms.
Absent the frisson of discord that had made Tiger's late-Nineties' exhibitions in the company of Sergio Garcia and David Duval so compelling, events in China promised the spectacle of two lethargic multi-millionaires ambling their way to additional millions. Hur-rah!
But then, something rather interesting happened'
As the result of either a breakdown in communication between the competitors and event organisors or plain, run-of-the-mill forgetfulness (induced, one assumes, by the magnitude of the occasion' *yawn*), McIlroy and Woods began conversing (almost) like real people, apparently unaware their every word was being broadcast live.
The Golf Channel's Ryan Lavner collected a few choice soundbites (I've uncensored the best bits. You're welcome.):
'They talked swing changes. On the 10th hole, Woods admitted to 'struggling with Sean (Foley),' his swing coach, saying, 'I've been hitting my short irons so fucking far.' He went on to explain how he rarely took a divot with his short clubs under former coach Hank Haney, but now, though, 'all of a sudden, I'm taking divots.''
'They talked English Premier League soccer and Kiawah Island and Ryo Ishikawa, who two years ago shot 58 the same week Rory fired 62. 'Smoked your ass,' Woods quipped.'
Shackelford's linked to a little bit of video (preceded, unfortunately, by an ad, equal parts offensive and baffling, for this promotion at Royal Links GC in Vegas), though it's marred somewhat by bleep-outs and commentator Shane O'Donoghue's commitment to taking evasive action.
Hi! My name is Stephanie Wei. I grew up in Seattle. I live in Manhattan, NYC. I played competitive golf for ten years in the junior and college ranks. I went to Yale, where I played on the women's golf team and graduated in '05 with a B.A. in History.
I still enjoy pegging it, but don't ask me my handicap because I stopped keeping one when I left for college. More important, I'm feisty and I like to smile a lot. I also love sports, spandex and surprises.
I'm a freelance writer and reporter. Since December 2010 I've been a Sports Illustrated Golf+ contributor, and I covered the majors for Wall Street Journal in 2010 and 2011.
Graeme McDowell is, by whatever metric you care to apply, a bright and articulate individual. Self-aware in a way few athletes are, he makes for a shrewd and canny interviewee. Measured, non-confrontational: he usually excels at tip-toeing through minefields.
Consider it indicative, then, of the extent to which the question of Northern identity remains one with no easy answers that mere mention of the 2016 Olympics can reduce a speaker of McDowell's abundant ability to the crudest buck-passing.
Speaking on the eve of the BMW Masters in Shanghai, the 2010 US Open champion suggested the International Olympic Committee (IOC) should intervene somehow to quell the simmering controversy surrounding his and Rory McIlroy's competitive allegiance.
'We're kind of in a unique scenario in Northern Ireland in that we have one foot on each team. I think it's going to be a lot easier if someone makes the decision for us.
'The Olympic committee should step in and say that `You guys are either playing for Ireland or you're playing for Great Britain.''
The idea that the IOC should mediate or impose a nationality on McDowell and McIlroy is, frankly, ridiculous. The decision is a matter of personal conscience and, technically speaking, not remotely unique when viewed in the broader context of international sport.
They're also entirely free to decide; no legal or legislative sanctions await them.
It's public opinion that remains the only barrier to progress on the issue, with a significant majority of the Irish population, both North and South, retaining a narrow-minded determination to read personal decisions in light of an increasingly irrelevant political dialectic.
An athlete's unwillingness to court controversy, however serious it appears in prospect (sample the comments thread on this article), is hardly grounds for some form of international intervention.
There's an opportunity here, I think, for both players' to embrace the uncomfortable role in which they've been cast and use the unique leverage afforded them ' each straddles the fault-line separating the North's rival communities ' to popularise and legitimate a more current, post-political vision of Northern identity.
Irish people: visibly uncomfortable in direct sunlight and temperatures above 60 degrees.
A four-under-par 67 from overnight leader Padraig Harrington proved enough to see off the challenge of Webb Simpson and clinch the PGA Grand Slam of Golf in Bermuda yesterday evening.
The result brings to an end the Irishman's two-year wait for a tournament victory (yes, it's definitely asterisk-worthy).
Harrington, a late addition to the elite field, began the day with a two-shot lead on an aggregate total of five-under-par, but soon saw that advantage dwindle to a single shot under the combined weight of early challenges from Bubba Watson and Webb Simpson.
A dogged performance over the back nine, however, saw the Dubliner respond in earnest with a hat-trick of consecutive birdies. By the time the foursome arrived on the 14th tee, Harrington possessed a nearly unassailable four-shot lead.
Simpson gave chase, closing with a brace of birdies for a six-under-par round of 65 and aggregate total of eight-under-par, but his closing rally amounted less to a serious challenge than inconvenience for the three-time major winner, who could afford to close with a bogey and retain a one-shot margin of victory.
Watson (71), who endured a torrid back nine, and Keegan Bradley (68) finished the day in a distant tie for third place (-3).
The $600,000 first prize is Harrington's largest in a little over three years' competition.
One wonders quite how far down the list of potential invitees organisers of the PGA Grand Slam of Golf, panicked by Ernie Els' sudden withdrawal, had to travel before happening upon the name of Padraig Harrington.
Major-less since his victory at the 2008 PGA Championship, the 41-year-old was a late and perplexing addition to the four-man field in Bermuda this week, but exhibitied few insecurities en route to carding a six-under-par 66 to lead the event after Tuesday's opening round.
Harrington currently enjoys a two- and three-shot buffer over reigning major champions Bubba Watson (68) and Webb Simpson (69), respectively, while Keegan Bradley, winner of the 2011 PGA Championship, sits in a relatively distant fourth place after carding a level-par 72.
Though easily dismissed as an inconsequential post-season exhibition, the Grand Slam nonetheless affords its current leader the opportunity to end not one, but two unflattering streaks.
Indeed, the Irishman is bidding to both claim his first tournament victory since the 2010 Iskandar-Johor Open and, in doing so, bank his largest paycheque since a second-place finish at the 2009 Bridgestone Invitational.
He was in understandably jovial mood following the round:
'Every day I play, I make an effort to talk to my playing partners and today everyone was up for a chat, so it was better than ever' I play better when the whole group enjoys it so, if the guys have any sense, they shouldn't talk to me in the second round.'
And who knows, a strong showing tomorrow might just prompt the Dubliner to reconsider the sale of his $2million jet.
Gods of victory: this bromance could be worth millions.
In China for this week's BMW Masters, Rory McIlroy has responded to mounting speculation he is on the verge of confirming an enormous sponsorship contract with sportswear manufacturer Nike.
According to the Guardian's Ewan Murray, the proposed endorsement will likely see the 23-year-old exchange his current deals with Titleist, Oakley, Santander and Audemars Piguet for an exclusive 10-year contract valued at somewhere in the region of $250 million.
A cloud in the corporate stratosphere beckons, it seems, but the Northerner is at least making a good fist of feigning indifference:
'I leave it up to Conor (Ridge, McIlroy's manager) to sort out as it leaves me to concentrate on my golf. That's all I can do and besides I have enough to think about trying to get the ball in the hole. Also I've got a very important end to my season coming up and I need to concentrate myself fully on that goal.' (AFP)
It'd be nice to see a major athlete moot Nike's alleged exploitation and harassment of workforces in the developing world, or denounce the rank cynicism and hypocrisy with which the company jettisoned Lance Armstrong only last week*, but'
Gotta get paid, I guess.
Conor Nagle
*I'm not implying Lance was somehow mistreated, by the way; quite the opposite. He was so obviously guilty for so long that Nike's ethical judgement deserves to be called into question. Anyway, I digress.
Furyk and Love both trying to right the ship in Sea Island
Could we have hoped for a better pairing in the final group on Sunday at the McGladrey Classic? Nope. Of course I'm talking about Ryder Cup captain and tournament host Davis Love III and Jim Furyk, who was one of Love's four wildcard picks for the U.S. squad. Love and Furyk obviously have had to deal with the disappointing loss to Europe, and Furyk also faced unfortunate upsets at the U.S. Open and then at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational.
Well, they're tied for the 54-hole lead at 13-under. A win for either would probably feel like a bit of redemption, not to mention a sweet way to end the year and look forward to next season. Love and Furyk just teed off, so I've gotta head out to follow them, or another group, but please treat this as an open thread and share your comments below.
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Here are Furyk's and Love's post-round transcripts after the third round, which are both worth a read (especially Furyk who is always a thoughtful interview).
Q. We welcome our co'leader, Jim Furyk, with a 4'under 66, 13'under after Round 3 of The McGladrey Classic. Just some comments on the round. Obviously going to be a great pairing tomorrow with Davis Love who you're quite good friends with. Some comments on that and then we'll take some questions. JIM FURYK: Happy with the round. To shoot 4'under, feel good about it. It was a quick start today birdieing three of the first six, I believe, and I was able to birdie 10, and then I won't say the round stalled, but it didn't go in the hole as easy as it did early on. I hit some good putts at 14 that lipped out, hit a pretty good putt at 15 I misread a little bit. You know, played well. I just didn't see the ball go in the hole as easily on the way in and made eight pars, and I had a bunch of guys in the field catch up. So it'll be exciting tomorrow. I'm happy to be out there and paired with Davis again. It was a fun day. Because of the large number of people in the field at 88, it was a slow round today. We talked a lot. Arjun as well. And it was nice to be out there with friends and friendly people. I think it kept all of us kind of loose throughout the day because it was a slow, plodding round where you could lose your concentration pretty good. But Davis has always been a close friend. I admire him for tackling the job, being the host here at this event. He's represented this island well around the world, and now he's got a wonderful sponsor, McGladrey and this island showcased for a nice event, and for him I'm sure it's a thrill to be out here after three rounds and tied for the lead, a lot of support, a lot of people pulling for him, as well they should. So be exciting day tomorrow to play with a friend and try to play a good round of golf. JOHN BUSH: With that we'll take some questions.
Q. I know you've been close so many times. You've played well so much this season. How would you compare this season to two years ago when you won the FedExCup or the season you won the major? JIM FURYK: There's a lot of similarities in that I've played consistent pretty much throughout the year. I don't know how many cuts I missed this year. It was three or four. I know they were all by one shot. So even when I didn't play that well in an event, I was right there with a chance on the last hole to make or miss the cut. I put myself in contention to win quite a bit, almost the same amount of times I did in 2010. The glaring difference '' I think someone even '' Doug, you might have told me my scoring average this year was actually better than it was in 2010. I did a lot of good things this year, and after coming off 2011 where I played poorly, I was really upset with myself, and it was my worse season to date. And I really dedicated myself in a lot of different areas to try to get better and had a really good plan in the off season about how I wanted to improve. And it worked. So I was happy about that. You know, the differences are pretty glaring well, in 2010 I had three really good opportunities to win tournaments and I closed every event out and won each one. Sometimes in a little more dramatic fashion than others. But you know, I had a tight one with K.J. in Tampa. I won a playoff at Hilton Head against Brian Davis; and I had a close one, Luke Donald kind of came storming down the stretch at the TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP and was able to get the ball in the last hole. This year was the exact opposite. I found ways, quite frankly, to lose tournaments. I think I played well down the stretch in Tampa again and really had some good opportunities. You know, that 16, 17, 18 is a tough stretch, and I had a pretty good look at birdie on 16 and 17 and played well there. But obviously losing the U. S. Open and really playing poorly on the last hole and playing great for '' basically I led Bridgestone for 71 holes and made double on the last hole and lost by one. So you know, I had my opportunities to have a great year this year, just like I did in the past, and there's two ways to look at it. You know, I'm one of those people, I'm tougher on myself, I promise, than anyone else is. So I've kicked myself a hundred times already. And I've gotten over it. That's one thing I've always been able to do really well is I can kind of '' I can get by it. I can forget it. I can put it behind me and move on. And you know, it's in the past now. There's nothing I can do to change it. And nothing I do in the future is going to change it. It is what it is. It's done with. And instead of kind of looking to the past, and I realize we're at the end of the season, and I've done a lot of interviews this week talking about so close, and you know, talking about this season, I'm kind of actually '' you know, I'm excited for this season to be over only for the fact that I can turn the page and we can start talking about the future. I say that, but I spent the first four months of this year talking about how bad 2011 was, and it wasn't until I started playing really well we started talking about that, so I'm sure in 2013 we'll talk about how 2012 was so close and a near miss, but I'm looking to turn the page and really look more towards the future. And I'm comfortable with where my game's at. I'm in good health right now. You know, I have a lot of confidence in what I'm doing, and I also have about three months of time coming up where I'm taking some time off and getting away from golf, and I think I need that a little bit to get my head clear and get excited about golf again. And when February rolls around I'll be ready to go.
Q. (Indiscernible)? JIM FURYK: Yeah. But you can't put the cart before the horse. How about we worry about that if and when the time comes. I've been very relaxed this week. You know, I didn't have real high expectations coming in here in that I didn't really do too much the last two weeks, to be honest with you. I played three rounds of golf. I played a one'day member'member with my dad Friday after the Ryder Cup. And then last week on Thursday and Friday four of my friends and I have a golf tournament in Jacksonville with 20 of us, and actually they end up drinking a lot of beer and trying to play golf, and I end up having to do the scores and organizing a little bit on the days, but we had a little two'day tournament out of Jax Country Club, and I had fun and I actually played really well in that. But I didn't do a ton of practice. Actually had a cold, didn't do much Saturday, went out and practiced a little bit Sunday and Monday before coming up. So my expectations weren't overly high, but my game was in good shape, and every day I've improved a little bit and gained a little more confidence. And I think I'm going to go in with the same attitude tomorrow, just try to play a good round of golf, and I've been surprisingly, even on a Saturday, you know, in the last group, I just was pretty loose and care free today and let it go, and I'd like to do the same thing tomorrow.
Q. Jim, if you play the best you can play tomorrow, regardless of what happens, will you be satisfied? JIM FURYK: Yeah. Absolutely. You can't control what anyone else does. I think '' you know, I'm going to be satisfied no matter what, to be honest with you. As far as will I be satisfied with the way I play or the outcome or the score, possibly not. But I'll go out there and give it 100percent and play the best I can, and yeah, if I go out there and shoot a good score and someone beats me, so be it, there's nothing you can do about that.
Q. This season for whatever reason there have been a lot of comebacks. Do you like playing with the lead going into a final round? JIM FURYK: I always have. You know, there's going to be a winning score tomorrow, and if I'm leading today, that means it doesn't have to be as low as everyone else tomorrow, if that makes sense. Whatever it is, Davis and I don't have to shoot as low a number as everyone else to get to that final score. So I've always been more comfortable with the lead. I've won both ways, holding the lead going into the last day and coming from behind. But I think my game, I get the ball in play pretty well and keep it in front of me, and I just try to hit fairways and greens and knock some putts in and try to put the pressure on everyone else. That's the way I've always looked at it.
Q. You've played a lot with Davis, you said, and this is really the first time he's used a longer putter. What have you noticed in his putting playing with the longer putter? JIM FURYK: Looks good. I think one of the things I noticed is that his speed '' I think it's very difficult to get the right speed here. This golf course has a lot of grain. I think that because of the nature of the greens, they're bold; they're high in the center and they get low on the edges and they run off. And if the pin's on the right side of the green and you happen to hit it in the center of the left side of the green, seems like you're always hitting it up a slope and down a slope you're hitting uphill into the grain, downhill down grain, and it's very difficult to get the speed of putts here. And what I noticed about Davis today, on his makeable putts we'll say from 25feet and in, the ball was always getting to the hole and kind of dying out a foot or two past. It seemed like he really had good control of the speed of his putts which is difficult here. I've struggled at times, and some of the guys I've played with this week, I think it's difficult here.
Q. I asked Davis the same question, given the emotions, and you touched on this about him playing for two weeks and hosting this after the Ryder Cup, and given the emotions of the Ryder Cup, are you at all surprised to see both of you at the top of the leaderboard? JIM FURYK: I mean I don't think either one of us is going to say we're surprised to see that. We're competitors, and I'm guessing that he had a lot of time off and poured a lot of heart and soul and a lot of effort into the Ryder Cup and wasn't playing and he probably missed playing, one, and he probably wanted to have his game in good shape coming to this event. He's played the last '' he played Vegas, he played at Frys, and I'm not exactly sure how well he played. I know he was in good shape after a couple of rounds at Vegas. I checked in just to see how he was doing. But I'm sure he had kind of this event targeted, trying to get his game in shape and being ready. And the fact he's got probably a billion things on his mind when it comes to this golf tournament. So golf might be almost an escape for him to get out there on the golf course and concentrate on golf rather than how things are going in the event. But you know, it's difficult, and I give a lot of credit for '' I've run little charity events, and I had a skins game up in Philly where I was the host where I was worrying about a billion other things, and when I stepped on the first tee, it was like, oh, yeah, I have to play golf today. It's tough to actually flip the mode. And he's been able to obviously do that very well, and I'm sure he has a lot of support with Mark and Robin and everyone behind the scenes helping out. But still, it's his event. He's the host. It's his foundation. His name's on it. So it's very difficult to be able to do both and he's done a great job.
Q. When you've had a year like this and part of you is kind of looking to as you say kind of turn the page on the year? JIM FURYK: I'm always looking to turn the page by October, to be honest with you.
Q. Is this a pleasantly surprising another chance to succeed or is it another chance of having to grind out where you could be looked at as winning and losing? JIM FURYK: Oh, I don't care how.
Q. Did that make any sense at all? I could try it again. JIM FURYK: It does. It makes sense. It makes sense. It's somewhat '' I honestly think I'm somewhat pessimistic and somewhat of a negative person at times, but I don't get that negative. How's that? And I'll be the first to admit, my wife is always optimistic and tells me I'm pessimistic, that I look at things the other way. And she's got a point, but if I was worried '' tomorrow's an opportunity. If you're standing over a five'foot putt and you're worried about if you're trying not to miss it, your chances of making it are so slim. We've all been in that position. But if you're standing over that five'footer and the only thing on your mind is how many I going to get this ball in the hole and trying to make it, you have such a better opportunity to do it. If I looked at tomorrow as another chance to be judged in case I failed, it would just be '' you know, it's been a tough year, but I could never look at it that way. It's an opportunity for me to go out and win a golf tournament, and I'm not trying to make up for the rest of the year. We talked about that earlier in the year. You said what if you had an opportunity to win, would it make up for anything. I said I just wouldn't look at it that way. What happened happened. It's over with. I can't change it. I'm never going to feel good about what happened, but it's done with. I'm looking ahead, I'm looking to the future. If I came here'' I never would show up at this event '' there's a bunch of reasons why I came. First and foremost, I came last year because it's Davis's event. He's a friend and I wanted to support the event. I really haven't spent a lot of time on Sea Island. Now that I have, I think the area is beautiful. I think the sponsor, McGladrey, they put on a hell of a tournament. In three years'' last year they had a field stronger than like seven or eight FedExCup tournaments. They've got a pretty good golf course. It's fun to play. Sea Island is beautiful and everyone respects the host. And they've done a good job of promoting the event. But if I came here really worried about, oh, shit, it could happen again, well, that's just the wrong way to look at it. Whatever shakes down tomorrow, whatever happens, you know, it's '' I guess Davis says it the best. He said after the Ryder Cup, it's a little white ball and it's a game, and you know, it's an honor to be in the position '' to play it for a living. But everything's positive. It's an opportunity tomorrow to win a golf tournament. That's the way I'm going to look at it.
Q. (Indiscernible)? JIM FURYK: That's what I think I meant earlier when I talked about I'm going to go out there tomorrow and try to play loose and just enjoy the golf tournament like I have all week. If I now said, okay, I'm tied for the lead and there's only one round to go and I try to flip my mindset, I'm going to get tight and it's going to be harder to score. I came in here saying you know what, I'm probably not as prepared for this event as I have been for others. I wasn't '' I had played a lot of golf; I was tired, so I was trying to get away and felt that was the best thing I could do at the time, so I came in here just not really expecting that much. I know I'm playing well, I know my game's in good shape, so let's see what happens. And I'm going to do the same thing tomorrow. If I tried to switch that mindset, it wouldn't be good for my round and wouldn't be good for my game. So I'm going to try to be loose and play that way tomorrow again.
Q. (Indiscernible)? JIM FURYK: You know, I think you're taught that, and I was asked that earlier this week, too. You know, I think it has a lot to do with first and foremost, this game is humbling enough as it is, and I said if I had a 20 to 25'year career, if anyone had a 20 to 25'year career and they could win once a year, just one time a year for 20 to 25years, that's a Hall of Fame career, lifetime exempt member of the PGA TOUR. But in that case, I play about 25 events a year. I bet I lose 24 times. You get your tail kicked in this game a lot, and I think it makes the good times and the wins, it makes them that much sweeter, if that makes sense. You're taught a lot of humility in this game and I think a lot about life. If you want to be successful, you're going to have to bounce back. You're going to have to learn to accept defeat in this game. Doesn't mean you have to like it, but you're going to have to learn to accept it and you're going to have to learn how to be tough about it and come back better the next time. I think that has a lot to do with the way I was raised. Came from two tough families, both grandparents worked in the mill. Mom and dad were tough, hard workers, and you know, I'm just not a person that ever really felt sorry for myself, nor would I expect anyone else to. I'm very fortunate and very privileged at what I get to do. If this year would have happened when I was 26 or 27, I probably would have been less prepared and probably wouldn't have had it in perspective as much, but being a 42'year'old and a father and having my children at two of those events that didn't go so well was also a learning experience for me. And I think when you take the whole big picture, as Davis says, it's a little white ball and it's a game and you put things in perspective. But like he says, doesn't mean you have to be happy about it, but I'll learn from it and get tougher and stronger. I'm not one of those people that after those events, I never sat back and didn't work. It made me work harder, if that makes sense. And I'll continue to do that.
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JOHN BUSH: We'll get started. We'd like to welcome our co leader and tournament host, Davis Love into the interview room after 4'under par 66. Davis, nice playing out there today. Got yourself right where you want to be going into tomorrow. DAVIS LOVE, III: Yeah. It's nice to make that putt at the last, and I kept thinking that we were keeping our group together, but I guess we're going to go twosomes tomorrow, not threesomes, but it was fun to play with Arjun and Jim. We all played pretty well and had some chances and we hung in there when the wind started blowing. I think that was the big thing. Seemed like a lot of guys were starting well, but didn't finish well because the wind got going, but Jim helped me a lot on that last putt. His putt dove at the hole and I played a little more break. As the day goes on I think they get grainier. They obviously get slower, but they get a little bit grainier, so we were all kind of slow playing it there on the last four or five holes to try to figure out which way the grain was going, but it was nice to make that last one. JOHN BUSH: All right. We'll go into questions.
Q. Davis, you said you weren't surprised you were playing well this week. Were you surprised at all it's coming down to you and Jim? DAVIS LOVE, III: Well, no. When Jim Furyk's in the field you're going to expect him to play well. This is a perfect golf course. And David Toms, I don't know where he finished, 8 or 9? Perfect course or David Toms, drive it in the fairway and good greens. But you know, long hitters also, obviously on any course, it helps. I hit a lot of 3'woods off the tee and makes it a little bit easier, until today. I hit more drivers today than the last two days. But no, Jim's played well, and I keep saying he was real close to an All Star hero year, and he showed that today, just came out firing. He looked like he was going to birdie every hole there starting off. And when I bogeyed 4, I said, I'm going the wrong way and he's going the right way. This is going to be tough. And Arjun was the same way. He kept missing greens starting off and I kept not making putts and then I finally made one at 5 and it got me going. But I'm not surprised he's playing well. No, he's been playing great all year.
Q. The birdie on 5, what was the value of that coming off the bogey and it wasn't exactly a tap'in, in terms of going forward? DAVIS LOVE, III: No. I didn't hit a great wedge in there. You know, the thing I think everybody's figuring out is that you have to play the right spin. You have to get it on the correct side of the hole because if you're putting downhill sliders with this grain, they're tough to make because they get really fast. So I knew I needed to get past the hole and try to bring it back up the hill and all that, and I was a little too careful on a lot of wedge shots into the green today. But that was a big putt, to make one. I actually hit a pretty good putt the hole before. But you know, that's kind of a stalled start, if you're 1'over through four even though 4 and 5 are playing a little harder than they normally do. We like it down right'to'left at 4 and 5; those holes play kind of easy. But straight in was tough at 4, and that was a tough pin. They've had some '' I mean I've actually heard there's been some comments to the officials the pins have been pretty tough. But you know, 13'under is leading after three days, so it's not that hard. But there were some tricky ones today, and that was a good putt. I really needed that.
Q. (Indiscernible)? DAVIS LOVE, III: I don't know. It's nice to win, no matter what. Yeah, I know to be able to cap off would make the year feel a lot better to him. Plus he's trying, like the rest of us, to keep getting more wins at a late stage in your career. I know he's working towards 20. He will get there. I hope I'm not impeding that. But I'd love to keep him from it. But you know, you see it in both of us. We're both very competitive. We stay competitive, you know, all year long, and no matter what the situation is, and that's why I picked him for the Ryder Cup team. He competes hard every time he goes out there and he gives you everything he's got. He was a great influence on the young players. I think it would mean a lot to both of us. It would be a pretty close tie.
Q. Is it more important given it's been a while since you've won and you're 48 or it's so close after having devoted basically two years of split duties? DAVIS LOVE, III: You know, I can separate a lot of things, separate the Ryder Cup with its own experience. It didn't have anything to do with '' it shouldn't have had to do a whole lot with me. It was about them playing and winning, giving them a great experience. It's nice to now be back to 100percent focus on my golf. I learned a lot watching them, certainly. I was motivated from watching them, you know. I saw things in every one of those players, especially Jason Dufner, how cool a customer he was. I was thinking that out there the other day, I'm just going to act like it's no big deal like Jason Dufner, you know. And I was inspired I think is a better word, to go back and play, by being that close to guys that were playing that well and watching them. I get to watch them some at Wales, but it was different. I got to stand right beside them or walk right up to them or get close, get involved in their decisions before and after play. So it was exciting. So it certainly motivated me. But people were surprised I played the two '' or now three weeks after, but I'd had some time off. I was ready to play. This has been a weird year for me. I was out a lot in the spring with an injury, and I missed the Humana tournament at the beginning of the year, tweaked my neck a little bit. So I haven't played enough tournaments, so it's nice to be back in the swing of things.
Q. Apologize for bringing up the Ryder Cup. You talked about on Thursday I believe you and Zach actually were talking about coming up nine when you finished up your round. Did you and Jim have any conversations at all today? DAVIS LOVE, III: No, not much. We might not have even talked about it at all. I don't think we did. We had a lot of conversations, but I don't think we got to that.
Q. How many players a year ago in any tournament would have been out in the middle of the fairway and said I want to be like Jason Dufner? DAVIS LOVE, III: Not many. Maybe Zach Johnson because he got to spend a lot of time with him. I always try to be '' we always wanted to be cool like Freddie, so now we can be cool like Jason Dufner.
Q. What I wanted to ask you is can you make any comparisons at all to a situation or your feelings going forward with this event? DAVIS LOVE, III: Yeah, it's nice to be in the mix, and I played well there. I would have should have could have won like a lot of guys. Drew Love and I decided there was eight guys leaving there that should have won that tournament, and Dustin is the one that made the couple putts coming in. But I played well there. I had a couple other weeks where I felt like I had a chance, so obviously a little more comfortable here and it's a good spot for me. Now I feel like I've played my way into this one ready to play, so I'm feeling pretty good about it.
Q. John's going to kill me, but is it as simple as the putter? I know you've talked a lot about it. And you're hitting it well over the last three weeks. Is that a difference? DAVIS LOVE, III: Yeah, making some putts helps a lot. I missed a few today. I hit a few that I didn't like, but yeah, I got some to go in. And I had that a couple days at Vegas and a couple days at Frys, but this week I've felt like this was my best Saturday putting in a while, and hopefully I can build on that.
Tommy Gainey started the final round of the McGladrey Classic trailing 54-hole leaders Jim Furyk and tournament host Davis Love III by seven strokes. In the spirit of 2012, the winner of the event didn't come from the last pairing on Sunday. Gainey became the fourth player of the season to overcome a deficit of at least seven.
The 37-year-old journeyman, who is known as 'Two Gloves' for wearing two black gloves from tee to green (yes, he even putts with them), fired a course record 10-under 60 at the Seaside Course at Sea Island Golf Club in St. Simons Island, Ga. He had a 15-footer on no. 18 to post The Magical Number (59). Strangely enough, Gainey, who usually gives his putts a good run, left this one short of the cup.
'Of all the people who have a putt for 59, you're the last person I'd think to leave it short,' quipped Gainey's caddie Marvin King as he recalled his conversation with Tommy in the scoring tent.
It would have been nice to make that putt, but turned out it was enough to hold off David Toms, who shot 63 to finish solo second, Furyk, who grinded until the bitter end and made several clutch putts coming down the stretch, and Love, who three-putted no. 14, almost holed out from the greenside bunker on the left for eagle (which Two Gloves did nearly three hours earlier from the one on the right), then rinsed his drive in the hazard on No. 16.
Interesting enough, Love's last win was his 20th PGA Tour victory at the Disney in 2008. That time, it was Love who edged out Gainey. When the Ryder Cup captain and Sea Island resident congratulated Two Gloves, Love said, 'Seems kind of odd, doesn't it?'
Gainey shared the story in his upbeat press conference: '2008 everybody knows that was (Love's) 20th win. And I was, you know, playing really well at that time because I think I ended up shooting like 63 or 64 that final round.
'And you know, he hit a tee shot like 16 today, when he rope hooked it in the water. 17 at Disney, he rope hooked it and it stayed up in that rough instead of going in the water, and he chipped out and made a 15-footer for par, and he got it up and down on 18 out of a bunker for par to beat me by one. And that's the first thing he said to me when I seen him and he congratulated me.
''It seems kind of odd, doesn't it?' Because I know he was talking about that time in 2008 when he won.'
Gainey has a victory on the Nationwide Tour in 2010, but prior to that, he was perhaps better known for winning Golf Channel's Big Break VII show (and of course, for being Tommy Two Gloves).
When Furyk saw Gainey in the scoring area, he greeted him with a big hug and the two shared some words. I thought I heard Gainey say something like, 'Thanks for the talk'' I asked him if Furyk had given him advice at some point. Turned out last year at the PGA Championship, Furyk requested to play a practice round with Gainey, who was floored that Jim Furyk wanted to play with him.
'He just told me, he said, Tommy, you know, when you were on the mini tours, you were kicking their tail and now you get out here and you struggle a little bit. He said, man, don't change your game. Just keep going at it. He said, you got the game to be out here and to win. Just keep your head up and just keep trying, and sooner or later it's going to happen.
'And you know, who knows what would have happen if we didn't play nine holes together, or even had a talk. So I mean I appreciate all the help I can get because, you know, I know I'm 37, considered a veteran maybe, but you know, I'm still young when it comes to out here.'
Furyk, of course, is known for his unconventional swing, which he manages to repeat consistently. If you haven't seen Tommy swing, it's'well, interesting, and makes Furyk's swing look smooth. But I thought that also was very telling and nice of Furyk ' he often takes younger guys under his wing, but he does it very quietly.
What was perhaps most telling to me about Two Gloves happened during the trophy presentation, where he was endearingly tongue-tied during his speech. At the end when he was posing for more pictures with the trophy, he said to his caddie, 'It's your trophy, too.' He told Marvin to grab the other side of the handle and raised it together.
It was the first time I'd seen a player make a gesture like that.
Tommy's victory was also a win for the guys grinding it out on the mini tours and Web.com Tour, especially for the 30-something players who sometimes need a little boost or hope. It's a reminder that the improbable is possible; that the different or unorthodox isn't wrong; that the ability to embrace your own individuality is powerful; and that self-belief and determination pay off.
Tommy Two Gloves, ladies and gentlemen, is now a PGA Tour winner ' don't ever underestimate the underdog.
Monty was there? It's all beginning to makes sense...
A feature-length documentary detailing the extraordinary tactics employed by Donald Trump during the planning and construction of his course design project in Aberdeenshire, Scotland survived a late challenge by the billionaire's legal team to air last night on BBC 2, one of the network's flagship television stations.
Titled 'You've Been Trumped', the film drew an audience of 1.1m (40% above the Sunday night average) and succeeded in provoking a wave of anti-Trump sentiment on social media.
Coverage in this morning's broadsheets wasn't much kinder. The Guardian carried a scathing (and gleefully vulgar) dismissal of the tycoon, while the Telegraph's Neil Midgeley ' the lone voice of dissent, it seems ' incurred the wrath of readers on suggesting something perversely admirable could be found in Trump's determination to steamroll protest (more literally than you would expect).
Filmed without the cooperation of either Trump or his Scottish delegates, director Anthony Baxter opted to tell the story from the perspective of Balmedie residents, whose campaign to overturn parliamentary approval of the billion-pound Trump International Golf Links (against, it's worth noting, the recommendations of the Scottish Environmental Agency, Scottish Natural Heritage and the World Wildlife Fund) lasted several tumultuous years.
The reaction of writer and former Times television critic, Caitlin Moran.
In addition to raising serious questions about the integrity of Scotland's legislative process, the documentary suggests a number of local protestors fell victim to a concerted campaign of 'egotistical intimidation,' one pointedly ignored by both the police and local elected representatives.
Some spoke of huge mounds of soil massed outside their houses ' so high as to block sunlight ' others the disconnection of their property from the local water supply. The film also contains footage of Trump disparaging opponents, even going so far as to brand one farmer's property 'slum-like'.
Though Trump has completed the first of two planned courses at Balmedie, the construction of a second and the massive residential complex included in the initial plans has stalled, either as a result of the reality TV star's declining enthusiasm or, as he claims, the Scottish parliament's relatively trivial decision to forge ahead with the construction of an offshore wind farm.
Beyond dispute, however, is the fact that few of 6,000 jobs promised to the local economy have materialised.
Dignified statesman that he is, Trump reached out to Baxter in advance of last night's screening' to deliver a final, utterly gratuitous knee to the groin.
Classy.
*UPDATE*
Sarah Malone, executive vice-president of Trump International Golf Links, has this morning released a statement threatening the BBC with legal action over its decision to broadcast the documentary:
'We are appalled at the BBC's decision to broadcast the highly biased and manipulative so-called documentary 'You've Been Trumped'. We totally denounce the BBC for further abandoning its own editorial integrity by blatantly refusing us a right of reply at the end of the broadcast last night.
'It just goes to show that recent criticism of the BBC's lack of sound editorial judgement to be correct. It is not a documentary ' it is a piece of propaganda that is wildly inaccurate, defamatory and deliberately misleading'
'We have taken legal advice, and are determined not to let this matter end here.'
U.S. Ryder Cup captain Davis Love III has publicly handled the stunning loss of his team to the Europeans at Medinah with grace and candor. He's admitted to second-guessing his decisions, like benching the dynamic duo of Keegan Bradley and Phil Mickelson on Saturday afternoon, his four captain's picks, and the pin placements for Sunday singles.
Love, the tournament host at this week's McGladrey Classic, knows his leadership has been criticized by the press and the public, but perhaps he's beating himself up over the loss more than anyone else. He's able to look at the positives of the week, but he's still not sleeping well. Three weeks later, the ghost of the historic Ryder Cup continues to follow him around.
'At the Pro'Am draw party last night 50% of the people wanted to talk about ''the Ryder Cup,' said Love at his press conference Wednesday night. 'It was so much fun. And you sit there and go if I'd have just put the pin left on 17 on Sunday rather than right, would that have made a difference, you know. And the order of play and the pairings and all that, you can go over and over and over.
'Well, they wanted me to play Keegan and Phil on Saturday afternoon, but they didn't want me to put them out first on Sunday. Well, wait a minute. They were playing really good. So you want me to play them Saturday, but you don't want me to play them first on Sunday. Well, that doesn't make sense. So you keep going back and forth on all the arguments.
'And what I've come down to is we really may have dropped the ball on pin placements on the last few holes because we waited '' we watched all week. We wanted pins on the left, and in the middle of the green because a lot of our guys were drawing it in there. And then the most two important holes in the singles came down to 17 and 18 and we had pins where if you hit it long and left, it was tough to get close to the pins because they were on the right. Should we have thought of that? Maybe.
'But I looked at it Saturday, this is what I've been doing for two weeks. I'm going on and on and on. But Saturday they all birdied it because it was on the left. Both teams were stiffing it. The Euros birdied it and I'm standing on 17 tee and they go, where is the pin tomorrow. I said well, it's been here. This must be the wide right one, and I didn't think to myself, well, maybe I ought to just leave it over there because we keep birdieing it, you know.'
Woulda, coulda, shoulda. Pondering all those things can drive a person mad. We can pick it apart and talk in circles for hours, and we'll still return to the same result. It's tough to let go, though. We get it.
Love went over the numerous different scenarios and he came back to the same conclusion, which was still unclear in his lengthy soliloquy(s).
'If I could do something over again, it would be more getting guys thinking about how to play singles and where the pins '' maybe the pins needed to be easier or harder,' he said. 'What happened on Sunday, I don't really know, but they were playing great. And they didn't play great on Sunday. So something obviously changed. And is that playing because we were too confident, because we were too far ahead. I don't know.
'Maybe I should have had Bob Rotella there like Kyle Perry had him sitting there. He wasn't calling Rotella and asking him for advice; he had him in the locker room. Maybe I needed him in the locker room, okay; we're four ahead. What do I do now?
'So yeah, we've been playing that game like everybody else. Unless you were there. I've gotten ten times the quote from Teddy Roosevelt the man in the arena; unless you were there sitting in the locker room with Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson and Keegan Bradley and them wanting to go where they wanted to go and seeing it happen, it all sounded great the whole week.
'We just didn't win. And I don't think those '' those guys haven't called to second'guess. They've called to say I had so much fun. I wish we would have won, but it was still a great week. It was the greatest week of my life is what I keep hearing.'
Indeed.
For me, it was the most thrilling tournament I've ever covered. The way I see it, the Europeans staged an absolutely miraculous and inspiring comeback that will go down as the greatest comeback on Sunday in Ryder Cup history (to date). It was such an incredible adrenaline rush running back-and-forth and watching the action on Nos. 17 and 18 as quite a few key matches came down to those final two holes.
Meanwhile, back to the third event of the four Fall Series events' Love will try to balance being tournament host and playing his best golf to move up the PGA Tour money list. In 18 starts he's earned $808,374 and he's currently 104th, so he's likely locked up his 2013 card.
*********
More from Davis in his press conference here in Sea Island, Georgia:
Q. Are you surprised about the critical level of analysis that has followed? DAVIS LOVE III: No, because I went through it with Kite, and I went through it with Lanny. I went through it with hal. As I said 100 times, Hal had a great plan. Davis and Chad and Tiger and Phi were supposed to go kick butt Friday morning and win two matches and get us off to a good start. Well, Davis and Chad and Tiger and Phil played like crap. It's a great theory. If the first wave that hits the beach kicks everybody's butt, you know, you win the war. But if the first wave fails, you get behind. And we screwed that up. It was a great theory. Nobody said, Hal, this is stupid; don't try it and he said no, no, go do it. We're all like, all right, we're ready. We're going to get 'em, and we didn't win. And we got behind. So our plan this year was to do something a little different and get ahead after two days and then in singles we would do our usual and play really well and it didn't work. But I am surprised at the back'and'forth of well, you should have done this, should have done that. Well, we put the guys that were hot that wanted to play first out against the guys they wanted to play against. I didn't tell somebody they had to do something different than what they wanted to do. They all went out confident and ready to go. I think it's unfortunate that it didn't work. We thought Kite was one of the best captains we'd ever played for and he just got hammered for the way he did everything. And Seve, now that he's gone, his team was fighting amongst themselves and they beat us, you know. We were all happy and playing together as a team and we played bad. Tiger and Justin and I played bad, didn't get any points. So it was all Tom's fault. So I understand that. I signed up for that. Team would win, it would all be, you know, bad planning if we didn't win from the captain.
Q. Have you heard anything or read anything that blamed you? DAVIS LOVE III: Yeah.
Q. Seriously? DAVIS LOVE III: Well, it's the order was wrong or you should have played Keegan and Phil on Saturday. Why not do this, why not do that. I don't read them. You know, I don't read a whole lot of it, but you know, something should have been done different. We didn't win. So I accept that. And you know, whoever's next, David Toms, I'm going to say here's what we did. Like Paul told me, here's how it all happened. See what you can do, you know.
Q. Did you just confirm David Toms is the next captain? DAVIS LOVE III: I'm assuming you got Toms, Furyk, Mickelson, Woods, Leonard. Somebody in there. I would bet Toms.
Q. Would you do it again? DAVIS LOVE III: I don't know. Immediately after, you know, you get the same thing like Freddie got when he won or Jack Nicklaus, we want you to do it again. I wouldn't change anything about the whole week except for a point and a half. So I don't know. I don't think we could have '' like Mickelson told me on 10 fairway on Saturday morning, we're putting everything we got into this. We can't give you any more. Sit us out. I don't think we could put any more into it than we did, other than a couple putts lipping out for them and a couple putts lipping in for us and we'd have won. I loved everything about my team, and I'd hate to say I want to do it again because that team didn't win, you know. I'd do it again because I loved it. I wouldn't do it again just to get a win or just to change the outcome. I've told them this since that day, I'd be assistant captain or Chris Noss's job of doing all the behind'the'scenes work, I'd do that every time just to be on the team because it's fun. It was as much fun for me to assistant to captain as it was to play, and that's saying a lot. So it's a lot of fun to play. I'd love to be in there. If David Toms is next, I'd be the first guy in line to say I'll do whatever you want me to do to help you. I think that would be a smart way to go is have either future or past captains currently, you know, like Paul Azinger or myself or David Toms or Justin Leonard, guys that just did it, like Tom Lehman and myself for Corey, I think that was great for all of us. You know, current guys that are attached to it a little bit more is a good way to do it.
Q. Is this the hardest part of being the Ryder Cup captain, the afterwards? DAVIS LOVE III: I would say the picks. I realized about mid week of the Ryder Cup that win or lose I needed to go to Vegas, I needed to get back into the swing of golf so I could talk to people and explain what happened either way and see my friends. You know, Bill Jones from Sea Island, we were talking about it a couple of times this week, and you know, his situation of being the CEO and now in a different role and my situation, you'll never cease to be the Ryder Cup captain, you know. We'll talk about this forever. We'll have always lost. It'll always have been a great week. It'll always be a huge event in Chicago. It'll always have some special feelings and some sad feelings about it. That'll never go away, so yeah, the hard part is really that the team that we put together that played, we missed that. We've been missing that for two or threeweeks, you know, getting texts and phone calls and seeing Jim at the board meeting, you know, it's like, God, I miss that week. So the hard part is that it's over, and the nice part is you'll always be the Ryder Cup captain. That team will always be that team, but the hard part is that it's over. And if we'd have won, we'd have still wanted to talk about it and we'd still be excited. So either way, yeah, it'll live on.
*********
I had more tidbits, but I'll save them for later in the week when I have time to unload the notebook. I have to say, I was a little rusty after my two-week hiatus. I was just trying to get 'back in the groove' on Wednesday afternoon talking with players on the range and putting green.
That awkward moment when...you aren't sure if he is trying to hold hands
No, I'm not talking about the Bob Hope Classic the Humana Challenge in Palm Springs, California.
Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods, the top-two players in the world, both committed to kicking off their 2013 season on the other side of the world at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship in the Middle East January 17-20, according to the tournament's official website (and numerous other media outlets).
'Confirming Rory and Tiger, the world's top two players and a duo with well-documented respect and admiration for each other's talents, represents a significant coup and demonstrates how far the Championship has come in its relatively short history,' said Faisal Al Sheikh, Event Manager, Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi), the Championship organiser.
'Rory and Tiger are true giants of the game and represent only our opening salvo ' we are actively working to bring another world-class field to Abu Dhabi and further player announcements will be made in coming weeks.'
Rory and Tiger both started their seasons at this event earlier in 2012, where they finished second and third, respectively.
'I've come close a few times in Abu Dhabi now ' hopefully it's my turn,' McIlroy said. 'This will be the first time I've headed to Abu Dhabi as world number one and I'm determined to keep the wins coming and cement my ranking.
'The strength of the field means there will be a ton of world ranking points on offer so Abu Dhabi will be a really significant tournament that sets the tone for the year. I had a great tussle with Tiger nine months ago and I'm sure he'll be in contention again. We've spent a lot of time playing together this year and it's always fun challenging the best. I've made no secret of the fact he's a hero of mine and there's nothing better than tussling with your heroes.'
The world No. 1 and 2 fell victim to Robert Rock this past January.
Tiger and Rory will also both receive the standard seven-figure appearance fee for playing in Abu Dhabi.
This year's event was held the same week as the Farmers Insurance Open, where Tiger had traditionally kicked off his season ' which means he can fly back in time to play at Torrey Pines to make his PGA Tour debut. No word yet on his commitments past Abu Dhabi.
Commissioner Tim Finchem announced on Thursday that the PGA Tour is assuming 'operational control' of the Canadian Tour, which will become re-branded as PGA Tour Canada. The conversion process will begin on November 1st and PGA Tour Canada will be up and running for the 2013 season.
The takeover didn't come as a surprise since the PGA Tour bailed out the floundering Canadian Professional Golf Tour in 2012, lending its strategic and financial support to the dwindling mini-tour circuit.
The kicker of the deal: Similar to the partnership made last year with Tour de las Américas to form PGA Tour Latinoamérica, PGA Tour Canada will serve as a pathway to the Web.com Tour. The top-five finishers on the money list will earn playing privileges to the PGA Tour's developmental circuit (the no. 1 player would have full exempt status and the other four would have conditional status, but 'reasonable access'), and the next five will be exempt to the finals of Web.com Q-school.
Basically, it's MLB system ' the Web.com Tour is like Triple-A baseball, and PGA Tour Canada and Latinoamérica are the Double-A leagues. I guess that would make the other domestic tours Single-A ' i.e. the eGolf Tour, the NGA Hooters Tour.
It's all coming together now, isn't it? The Tour launched a massive overhaul of the its traditional qualifying system that dates back to 1965, fondly known as Q-school with the grueling three (and four if you count the pre-qualifier) stages of Q-school, which culminates in the top-25 finishers of the six-round final event earning a spot on the PGA Tour. The 2012 Q-school finals in December will be the last one before the revamped plan ' the Web.com Tour Finals ' takes over.
Details on the PGA Tour Canada's schedule have yet to be finalized, but it will debut with a minimum of eight tournaments in 2013 offering a minimum purse of $150,000. The goal is eventually to increase it to 12 or 13 events. All will be held in Canada during the summer months.
The PGA Tour Latinoamérica has debuted this fall with 11 events in seven countries. The grand plan the powers-that-be envision is to have a split spring-fall schedule in Latin America, and then summer in Canada ' that way players qualifying for both Tours will have the opportunity to play some form a year-long schedule. However, both Tours will conduct their own qualifying tournaments for membership. In other words, it's not going to be exactly easy for the 'double-A' or 'single-A' players, especially financially ' entry fee for q-schools and most of all, travel expenses, particularly to Latin America.
But wait, why is the Tour bailing out Canada? Just a charitable act for our northern neighbors? Perhaps to grow the game? Maybe to sign lucrative network deals and secure more of a stronghold on the pro golf circuit? Or more simply: cash money.
'I think that we felt the events themselves were managed well but I think fundamentally here we're looking at the need to continue a couple of things,' said Finchem in a teleconference. 'One, elite player development in Canada. But also we recognize that the Canadian golf fan is a great supporter of our telecast in Canada. So we have a lot of reach in Canada. We have a number of sponsors in Canada. So we have an ongoing relationship with the Royal Canadian Golf Association.
'So we have an awful lot of activity there now. We see this Tour as important to maintain the thread of being able to say to new players, here's an avenue that's available to you. And the combination of being able to strengthen these events and add to that, the goal of moving to the Web.com Tour, which now starting next year will be the pathway, the pathway to the PGA Tour, which is a fundamental difference in the way our qualifying is hopefully we'll have the impact of stimulating interest to young players to take advantage of that route.
'It's important to be done regionally, and it makes all the sense in the world to be operating in an area where we have such very strong interest the game of golf.'
Look out for similar deals with Australia and Asia to be announced soon! Speaking of which, it's been noted that the new qualifying system for the PGA Tour will be the most disadvantageous for players from those parts of the world.
'Now there is a way you can go to the Web.com Tour in South America,' said Finchem. 'Now there is a way can you go in Canada. That will attract players from Australia. Because these two Tours now will come up in stature in terms of the kind of competition they are and because largely because of the nature of the players. Behind that, would be the structure of the Tour. Then from then on, it's how well a player plays.'
'I do think that in both cases making the early stage of qualifying very available on a cost standpoint to more players by playing the early qualifying there in South America, not waiting for players to come to the United States, same thing in Canada, we hope has the impact of creating a growing number of elite players in both areas. With the focus on golf going into the Olympics in 2016, there is a lot of interest in these countries for that happening.
'From the standpoint of the U.S., the future of the U.S. Tour and global golf generally, clearly the more elite players that come from these players is a positive thing as well. The more diversity internationally, the more global feel of the sport, the stronger it is as a global property, regardless of how these various tours, us and Canada and Asia map out. So 30 years from now we'll look back and see these steps have caused an impact.'
What say you, Aussies and Asians? Are you more likely to grind it out in Latin America and Canada than your home tours? I'm not seeing the appeal if I'm Seung-yul Noh (ranked no. 91 in the OWGR and 47th on the money list this year) or Sang Moon Bae (ranked no. 50 and 77th in money) ' both of whom earned their cards on the PGA Tour last December at Q-school.
Finchem claims he hasn't thought about acquiring any other tours to add to the Canada and Latin America models yet.
'The game of golf is a global game,' said Finchem when asked if he envisioned adding to the Tour's current portfolio of pathways to 'graduate' to the bigs. 'The competition at this level and the organization of it is going to continue to move down the path of being organized on a global basis. Maybe in some people's minds, a snail's pace, but I think it will continue to move in that direction. Now where that leads well after my watch, I don't know. But I think there are all kinds of permutations that are out there that could be harnessed in years to come.'
Doesn't sound like it will happen any time in the near future.
There was some discontent voiced on Twitter over the Tour expanding beyond its borders and not helping the struggling mini tours in the U.S.
2011 PGA champ and 2012 Ryder Cup team member Keegan Bradley tweeted:
Hey @pgatour how bout the @thengatour!!!!At least half the tour has played there. #usa
' @Keegan_Bradley October 18, 2012
Sounds like the NGA Tour, just one of many of the single-A leagues in the U.S., has approached the PGA Tour about forming a partnership on various occasions but to no avail.
So why hasn't the PGA Tour pursued a deal? Money (TV, sponsors, etc.). They already have a monopoly on the U.S. market share, so it's probably not worth pursuing.
Hi! My name is Stephanie Wei. I grew up in Seattle. I live in Manhattan, NYC. I played competitive golf for ten years in the junior and college ranks. I went to Yale, where I played on the women's golf team and graduated in '05 with a B.A. in History.
I still enjoy pegging it, but don't ask me my handicap because I stopped keeping one when I left for college. More important, I'm feisty and I like to smile a lot. I also love sports, spandex and surprises.
I'm a freelance writer and reporter. Since December 2010 I've been a Sports Illustrated Golf+ contributor, and I covered the majors for Wall Street Journal in 2010 and 2011.
'I talked to Doug's wife, Stephanie, and she told me that Doug passed very peacefully, and with his family close-by. I'm no expert on how to grieve, but this one has hit pretty hard. There are no words that can either ease the pain of losing a member of our family or help to fully explain or understand his passing.
'What I do know for certain is that Doug loved being a part of the LPGA family, and he told me ' on numerous occasions ' that he felt blessed to have a job that he loved so much.
'Personally, there was a distinctive peacefulness that always seemed to accompany Doug. No doubt, he is in a place of peace now and he will always be remembered for his kind heart and many gifts.'
Besides Jonas Blixt's can't-miss-red shoes, what stood out on Sunday at the Frys.com Open was that he closed a tournament with conviction.
I took a gamble and tuned in to the Golf Channel yesterday afternoon to see if anything worth watching was happening in the second event of the last-ever 'Fall Series' ' due to the change in schedule from the calendar year to a fall start ' and I saw a cluttered leaderboard with a handful of relative unknowns in the hunt, along with journeyman Tim Petrovic, who started the round seven shots behind 54-hole leader John Mallinger.
Given the numerous and incredible examples of gagging in the final rounds on the PGA Tour and the equally remarkable come-from-behind performances by individuals (and by teams most recently at the Ryder Cup) this season ' in 42 events, only 15 winners held the 54-hole lead ' I figured chances were Blixt, Jason Kokrak and Vijay Singh, among others, would wither away under pressure. After all, Blixt and Koktrak are both rookies and '11 graduates from the Tour formerly known as the Nationwide, and Vijay is nearly 50.
In this scenario, Petrovic would win the tournament while watching from the locker room, naturally.
Thrilling! ' But I kept watching because it was still up for grabs and everyone likes to see a train wreck. Wake me when someone loses.
Happily, I was wrong. Instead, I saw a gutsy performance and clutch putting from the 28 year-old rookie from Sweden, who is straightforward and cheery with a good sense of humor. But I mean, how about that short game! He's first in strokes-gained putting (moved up from 3rd and dethroned Brandt Snedeker in this stat), first in eagles and first in sand save percentage.
Kokrak deserves an honorable mention, too 'on the risk-reward driveable par-4 17th, he knocked it to about 15 feet and made the putt. The eagle wasn't enough to hold off Blixt, who was playing in the last group, just behind Kokrak. Blixt didn't let the roars thwart him and kept the momentum he gained from draining a big putt for birdie on the par-5 15th.
Blixt, who played college golf at Florida State University, tried to drive the green on the 17th and his ball actually went over the green. It looked like a really, really tough shot with the green sloping away from him in the long rough. Blixt hit about the best chip he could have and left himself with around 6-8 feet for birdie. He doesn't miss those putts.
When his approach into 18 hit the downslope and went from being a perfect shot with a good look for birdie to a 50-footer from across the green, I had no doubt he'd two-putt (it was in the three-putt range given the circumstances). His lag was less than perfect and left him with a longer, more yippable putt than he would have probably preferred ' five-feet ' but he doesn't miss those. He had the safety net of missing and falling back to 15-under with Petrovic and Kokrak for a three-way playoff.
Caroline Blixt (sister) is gorgeous
This was the second week in a row where Blixt played in the final tee time on Sunday. He shared a tie of the 54-hole lead with eventual champ Ryan Moore and Brendon de Jonge at the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children (did I get that, right?) event in Vegas.
'You learn something every time, said Blixt in his post-win press conference. 'Last week I didn't play very well in the final round. I got a little too cute with some shots and wasn't aggressive enough. I told myself in the end of the day, just stay as aggressive as you can and put pressure on them. Feels pretty good when I get on the green and am competing with someone else. I'm pretty confident with my putter.'
What's more, Jonas, who lives in Jacksonville, Florida, didn't practice after a competitive round in his last two starts because he has been hanging out with his family visiting him from Sweden.
'My family is here so it's been really relaxed,' he said. 'I've barely touched a golf club after a round, which is really weird for me. A lot of people would say that's really weird.'
Yeah, but whatever works. These guys all practice so much and it's the end of the year, so a little break is cathartic.
Oh yeah, he used to play hockey competitively in Sweden through high school ' because everyone plays hockey in Sweden ' but turned to focus on golf when he realized he wasn't big enough to make the big leagues in skates.
'If you're a guy, you want to play hockey,' said Jonas. 'The tough guys play hockey, you know, the guys with no teeth.'
Well, he's got some cojones.
(Getty Images/Robert Laberge; AP Photo/The Contra Costa Times, D. Ross Cameron) )
Well, this is awkward: Ahmet Agaoglu (c) shares the stage with Keith Waters of the European Tour and Chubby Chandler.
After splurging millions of dollars in an audacious bid to put Turkey on the golfing map, the sponsors of this week's World Golf Final in Belek, Antalya, could be forgiven for questioning their promotional strategy.
They may have succeeded in attracting a tired and ragged-looking handful of the game's most talented exponents to an otherwise anonymous golf club, but the success or failure of a given tournament hinges on more than the presence of a few disinterested PGA Tour millionaires.
It helps, for example, if the chosen format is conducive to competitive excitement (which this one decidedly is not); it helps if torrential rains don't devastate the venue (as happened this morning); but perhaps most of all, it helps if a tournament official doesn't assault a photographer in full view of the press corps.
On Tuesday morning, as representatives of the media crowded Antalya Golf Club's first tee in anticipation of Tiger Woods' arrival, Ahmet Agaoglu, president of the Turkish Golf Federation, took exception to the behaviour of several photographers.
A verbal disagreement resulted, during which either a shove or 'headbutt,' depending on whose account you believe, injured local journalist Cihat Unal.
Agaoglu, accompanied by veteran spinmeisters Chubby Chandler and Keith Waters, returned to the press centre this morning to partially plead his innocence and douse the flames of controversy.
The Guardian's Ewan Murray was there to collect valuable quotage:
'I was there explaining this is not like other sports ' while Messi is going to take a penalty you cannot go into the six-yard area to take a picture ' and while saying this there was a reaction saying: 'You cannot push us back, you cannot shout at us.'
'I was being pushed by one of them and so pushed them back as well ' and the poor guy [Cihat Unal] was in the wrong place in the wrong time.
'While organising such tournaments I shouldn't have to be there, but I am trying to make everything so perfect. It was unlucky it happened and I will given a written apology because one way or another it was not nice. He stumbled back and I was almost going to fall over him.'
The grumbling of Ryder Cup darlings Luke Donald and Rory McIlroy appears to have paid off: the European Tour is preparing a change to its membership criteria that would allow appearances at team events like the Ryder Cup, Seve Trophy and President's Cup (shrewd, that one) to count towards its established 13-tournament minimum.
The plan has even piqued the interest of Tiger Woods.
Donald and McIlroy, both of whom will be based in the United States next season, voiced their disapproval of the current system in the days following Europe's Ryder Cup victory at Medinah last month.
The argument in favour of an administrative change ' not unreasonable, given the circumstances ' was best summarised by the Englishman, a long-term resident of the Chicago area:
'It's one of the busiest weeks we play all year, hence we'd like to get the European Tour to count it as a counting event' We actually do quite a lot of work that week.
'We all know what a big revenue maker it is for the European Tour. It's a privilege to play Ryder Cup, but it's still a week's worth of sacrifice. I think at the very least it should count as an event.
'I don't see why it should on one tour and not the other. I'll raise the question. Hopefully they'll change it. We'll see. I definitely have the backing of some of the other guys that play out here.'
While logic and professional etiquette militate in favour of the change, I can't help but lament its broader implications for the European Tour.
Once appearances at the majors and World Golf Championships ' eight events in total ' are factored into the equation, prospective members are only obliged to compete in a handful of sanctioned events, of which the ultra-lucrative Middle Eastern swing accumulates the majority of RSVPs.
For Europe's most celebrated talents, appearing en masse at continental events could well become a thing of the past.
Fragile though the current incentive structure is (or was), it preserved at least a veneer of historical continuity, guaranteeing the presence of Messrs. Westwood & Co. at a number of events throughout the season.
The loss of another week, however, only further the notion of the European Tour as a two-tier league, irrevocably split between globe-trotting 'haves' and an underclass of 'have-nots' (those reduced to touring a ghetto-ised circuit of minor events in the hope of one day graduating to the aristocracy).
There's a Mephistophelean quality to all of this, I fear:
True, the European Tour has appeased a couple of its biggest stars, and even secured the occasional, revenue-generating presence of Tiger Woods; but at what cost to its institutional integrity and fairness?
Nice Effing Pants celebrates the wackiest, ugliest and coolest pants ' or skorts and now shorts ' in golf ' from the pros to the weekend hacker.
Charl Shorts-zel
What's that smell in the air? Money grabs! Yep, it's silly season, which might be the best part of the year for some players ' it's laid-back, unofficial and lots of money for just showing up. (I wish the same rule applied for the press, even though I'm not in Turkey this week!)
Eight of the best players in the world ' Rory McIlroy, Tiger Woods, Luke Donald, Lee Westwood, Webb Simpson, Hunter Mahan, Justin Rose and Charl Schwartzel ' have gathered in Antalya, Turkey, for the Turkish Airlines World Golf Finals, $5.2-million exhibition.
Besides collecting a guaranteed check, with last place receiving $300,000, there are other perks, such as wearing shorts. (Yes, shorts!) The pros, who must wear pants at nearly every other event (except the U.S. Open qualifier), were given the option of showing off their dangerously-pasty legs this week.
Not all of the guys took advantage of this rare occasion on Tuesday ' maybe some of them didn't get to hit the tanning beds before? ' but three of them did indeed sport shorts. Now before we get to results of from the first day of matches, we must address the more important issues. You know, like, who wore them best??
First, I present to you another shot (and from a different angle) of 2011 Masters champ Charl Schwartzel:
I thought he'd have worse chicken legs, but they actually look rather muscular!
Next, we have Lee Westwood, who has worked quite hard on getting in shape in the past year:
Finally, the lone American to parade his legs, Hunter Mahan:
Hm, tough call. They're all such 'errr' nice shorts. Can I call it a draw?
Meanwhile, how did they play? Well, the format is medal match play, meaning the guys compete against another individual in stroke play. The players are divided in groups, where everyone plays against three others in the first stage. The top two in both groups advance to the semifinals on Thursday. Each match is worth a point and a half-point is given for ties.
Tiger, who triple-bogeyed the ninth hole, almost completed an epic come-from-behind victory over Schwartzel, but he bogeyed the 18th to shoot 70 lose to the South African by one stroke. World No. 1 Rory McIlroy also came up short, posting a 76 that included two double-bogeys and a triple-bogey, and lost to Matt Kuchar, who shot 70.
Unfortunately, this means Rory and Tiger will probably not advance to the semifinals, but the two will face each other in the last of the three group matches on Wednesday afternoon.
In the other group, Rose carded 71 to defeat Mahan, who posted 75, and Lee Westwood beat Webb Simpson by a stroke.
Yes, that's right'three of the four victorious players were wearing shorts. Coincidence? I think not!
The winner (winner, chicken dinner!) receives $1.5 million. Only?
Before the Ryder Cup matches started, Tiger Woods accepted responsibility for the American team's shortcomings against Europe in the last few decades. After the U.S. blew a 10-6 lead heading into Sunday singles where the Europeans staged an epic comeback to win, he also expressed regret.
Woods apologized to Keegan Bradley, Jason Dufner, Brandt Snedeker and Webb Simpson, the four rookies on the U.S. squad, for failing to secure a full point in the 13 1/2 ' 14 1/2 loss, according to Golf Channel's Tim Rosaforte:
Appearing on 'Morning Drive,' Rosaforte revealed, 'Brandt shared with me (at his fundraiser in Memphis) that Tiger got all the rookies in a room, closed the door and personally apologized to everyone for not doing more, for not getting the points he needed to get to get a U.S. victory. For people who don't think Woods really cares, whenever that turn or that pivot occurred in his career, it has fully turned.'
Speaking to reporters in Atalaya, Turkey, at the Turkish Airlines World Golf Final, an eight-player money grab, Woods also apologized for his 0-3-1 record at this year's matches at Medinah:
'I had an opportunity to earn three points in team sessions and didn't do that,' Woods said. 'My point (in the singles) didn't matter when all was said and done. Steve Stricker and I were sent out to win points and we didn't do it. That was frustrating.
'It has been difficult, there is no doubt. We held a great lead and couldn't manage to win from a perfect position going into Sunday. That was tough. Some guys were pretty bummed out by what happened. We had guys out early on Sunday to get points and that didn't happen. It was then left to us at the back, but it came down to the situation where my point didn't matter. It was a tough situation, no doubt.'
Tiger added that the disappointing loss wasn't a result of lack of caring ' which the Americans have been criticized for to explain their crappy showings at the Ryder Cup. (For what it's worth, I don't think that's the case. From what I saw at Medinah (my first Ryder Cup so basing the following on what I've heard and read from my elders), this team seemed more passionate and 'together' than they have been in the past.
'That's because you weren't in the team room, you weren't on the team,' said Woods, who is ranked No. 2 in the world. 'It has been the same since I first played in 1997. That hasn't changed. We have always been a great team unit. No loss feels good, whether that is in a Presidents Cup or Ryder Cup.'
As for the possibility of captaining the U.S. squad someday? A politically-correct 'Sure.'
'It would be a huge honor for me to be captain of a Ryder Cup team,' he said. 'Hopefully it will not happen in the near future because I would like to play on more teams, but certainly one day when my career is slowing down or over, it would be huge to be part of a Ryder Cup from the captaincy side of things.'
Also, I'm not sure this has been mentioned, but Tiger, along with other Ryder Cup veterans Steve Stricker, Jim Furyk and Zach Johnson, were among the U.S. players who acted with respect at the post-loss press conference.
I know everyone deals with disappointment differently, and if you were there when the Americans were stunned and speechless as Europe began their celebration on the 18th green, then it was clear they were devastated. And I'm only saying this because there was criticism for the European players who were clearly drunk at their presser ' but there were several Americans who could have showed more humility (and common sense).
*Ed. note: Sorry for the long hiatus in posts. I wasn't feeling well last week and spent most of it in bed at the hotel. Alas, I wasn't able to share more of my thoughts and memories on the Ryder Cup. It's a bit dated now, but just wanted to do a quick poll on whether you'd like me to still do that. Thanks. Have a great day. -SW
Wow, it doesn't get much ' actually, any better than the singles matches at the Ryder Cup and Team Europe's unbelievable comeback. Well done. Kudos to the Europeans.
I'm sure you're all itching to chime in on the epic loss and win. First, I'll share the way Sunday unfolded from my viewpoint, and then I've posted the full transcripts of both teams press conferences. You may have heard about the legendary drunkenness of the European team. (Can anyone say best presser ever?!)
********
Again, in case you missed the press conferences, I'm posting the full transcripts. As you can imagine, the American team's was like a funeral, while the European's was like a keg party (which was amazing and entertaining ' but sounds like it didn't translate on TV in the same manner for everyone, so you gotta trust me on this one, it was great in person).
TEAM USA
KELLY ELBIN: Captain Davis Love III and the United States Team are joining us after the Americans fell to Europe today 14½ to 13½ in the 39th Ryder Cup at Medinah Country Club. Opening comments, please, on what must have been a very difficult loss today on home soil.
DAVIS LOVE III: Well, it was certainly a difficult loss. I think any Ryder Cup loss is difficult. There are some guys on this team that have lost and it's never fun any way it happens. Today was certainly not what we expected. I'd have to say that I'm very proud of this team, though. They played very well. We had a lot of guys today that played well and just got beat. They got beat by some holed putts, chipins, some incredible shots, and some matches got flipped at the end on long putts and great saves by the other team. I have to congratulate them on the way they played. They played great. But I can't be more proud of this team. They conducted themselves with class all week. They inspired the fans to get behind them. But they showed the fans what golf is all about and how to act. I think this is I said this is one of the most powerful teams ever put together. But it's also one of the classiest teams put together. We had a great time in the team room. We had a great time on the golf course. They did everything we asked them to do, and I can honestly say that I've been a part of a lot of teams and I've never seen a team of golfers like this, and I'm proud of them.
KELLY ELBIN: Thank you, Captain. Let's open up for questions for Captain Love and the United States Team.
Q. Tiger, why did you concede Molinari's threefoot putt on the last? Had he missed it, it would have been a tied match, 1414 which is a lot better from a U.S. perspective than a onepoint defeat.
TIGER WOODS: It was already over. We came here as a team. This is a team event. And the Cup was already been retained by Europe, so it was already over.
Q. Could you walk us through the last two holes, just give us the details of 17 and 18 from your perspective?
JIM FURYK: In exactly what way?
Q. I'm just hoping that you can walk us through the shots and how difficult was that bunker shot at 17 and then where you were on 18; there seemed to be a lot of shots that went long today on 18. Wondering what was going on there.
JIM FURYK: I think the wind was a little confusing to the players. 17 I was a little bit inbetween clubs. Did not want to go long there, and you know, tried to give I took the lesser of the two, tried to give it a little bit more, and in doing so, you know, hit the ball a little hard, came over it. It rode the wind, got in that back left bunker, which had I hit it short of that and on the green, it would have been a much better spot. I hit a great bunker shot but it caught the collar and shot to the right and left myself, what, about a 12footer straight uphill that I misread. Then I heard that most players missed that putt out to the right today. 18, I hung my drive a touch to the right. I was actually surprised it was in the bunker. I hit a very good second shot. I actually had the identical yardage I had yesterday playing in the foursome matches. Hit the same club, and I just feel like the wind was probably a little bit more righttoleft than it was into and righttoleft; and was a little surprised to see it went as long as it was. I hit my first putt exactly how I wanted; I thought I hit it within three or four feet, but it just kept trickling out; and hit my second putt pretty much exactly where I wanted to, and it never took the break. I hit it what I thought was right edge or outside, and it stayed there the whole time and caught a piece of the hole.
Q. Can I ask you in hindsight, is there anything differently you would have done as a captain? And I'm thinking specifically about leaving Keegan and Phil out from one session when they were obviously playing so well together.
DAVIS LOVE III: Well, in hindsight, we would have done a lot of things differently, I guess. No, these guys asked to do certain things during the week, and there are some guys that didn't want to sit out; but guys that felt like they needed to rest, we let them rest. I I'm going to secondguess myself for a long time. Could have done a lot of things differently, but I'm proud of
PHIL MICKELSON: Hold on, Davis. Hold on one sec, Davis. As far as playing Keegan and I, you need to hear something. Keegan and I knew going in that we were not playing in the afternoon, and we said on the first tee, we are going to put everything we have into this one match, because we are not playing the afternoon. And when we got to 10, I went to Davis and I said, listen, you're seeing our best; you cannot put us in the afternoon, because we emotionally and mentally are not prepared for it. And I know you're going to get pressure, because we're playing so good. But we have other guys that are dying to get out there, and we have mentally put everything into this match; we won't have anything later, and so you need to stay to our plan. So you cannot put that on him; if anything, it was me, because I went to him 10 and said that to him.
DAVIS LOVE III: I'll add to that. Michael Bamberger has been asking me every night and some mornings, what's my most special moment of the day was, and one of my most special moments this week was some of the guys back in the team room and the guys on my radio were calling for Keegan and Phil. So I rode out to 10 and popped under the ropes and Phil came running over and started yelling at me, we are putting the most effort into this, we are giving you our all and we are going to win this match and do not play me in the afternoon. And I thought that was the funniest thing I had ever heard. He was really adamant that he did not think that they should play in the afternoon; that some of the other guys would have a lot more energy and would play well. It was a tough call. We had a lot of tough calls. You know, Tiger not playing was a tough call. Tiger had, I think we figured out if it was a strokeplay event the first two days, Tiger might have been leading, and it's hard to sit a guy out that's making seven birdies a round. We felt like alternateshot, that that would be a good spot for him to rest. You know, would I have liked to have had everybody on our team play four matches the first two days? Yeah, because they were all playing really, really well.
Q. We were all incredibly impressed as ever with your sportsmanship against Justin Rose. Could you just talk me through how pivotal those last two holes were for the European momentum right at the top of the order?
PHIL MICKELSON: Where are you, Handsome? I don't see you. (Laughter.) As far as the last couple of holes, I don't know what else to say. I mean, we played some really good golf, didn't make any mistakes throughout the entire day, won every hole with birdies. Got to 16, and after I made a 12footer for par, he knocked a 10footer in right on top of me. 17, I thought I won the match, I thought chipped in. I can't believe the ball didn't break that last inch in there. And after that ball didn't go in, he made that long putt. That was a huge momentum boost. What a big turnaround, because it looked like I was going to be dormie, if not close him out. On 18, when it looked like I might be able to stop some of momentum on the board, they were able to get another point, and I thought that match, as early as it was, was a very pivotal one.
Q. Could you tell me were there points of the day that stick in your mind as when you really started to believe that this could be going against you, because you were obviously very confident at the start. And was there a point when you felt that the pressure was starting to tell on your players?
DAVIS LOVE III: We felt like we had the back end right where we wanted it with Tiger and Strick and Duf and those guys, Furyk at the end. Phil just described the whole Ryder Cup right there. We played well. We had a couple matches get flipped by guys that made incredible putts. I mean, I was behind 16 green, I came to watch Phil play 16, 17 and 18, and when Phil made that putt at 16, I thought he had just done something spectacular for The Ryder Cup. And then right on top of him, two putts, boom, boom, boom; three putts, boom, boom, boom, and all of a sudden he got beat. I don't think he lost, he just got beat by a guy that finished well. Poulter's last five birdies, just to get to a win on 18, was incredible. Things like that kept happening to us. You know, Phil played great. As I said, Tiger played great. A lot of guys played great and just got beat by a guy that played a little bit better.
Q. Obviously just a phenomenal first two days for you, and as a rookie, can you talk about the difference in the emotions in today and not winning and how you are feeling?
KEEGAN BRADLEY: It was a difficult day for most of us. It was really neat coming back into the team room and having everybody kind of come together and let each other know that we all had each other's backs. And it just made you feel really, really good. I've never really felt more on a team in my life. I mean, we are all very close, and it was just such an unbelievable week to share with these guys and the captains and one that I'll never forget. And I'm going to be disappointed that we are not going to get together tomorrow to all get ready to play.
Q. The ending there after Kaymer made the putt, the idea of a tie is awkward, but yet it still was there, and there was that big celebration and everything, and Tiger and Molinari are in the fairway with that point still at stake. I'm just curious your take on that; did 1414 not matter? I think it left the players maybe a little bit confused as to what they were playing for at that point.
DAVIS LOVE III: It always leaves me confused at The Ryder Cup when we're all standing around knowing the outcome and matches have to be played to their conclusion. I think it's very awkward. I saw some confusion on both sides of, what do we do here; it's over. There was a lot of disappointment, a lot of emotion on our side. You know, I saw Molinari looking around; what do I do here. I just think when it's over, we all shake hands and go. It doesn't really matter the score. They had the Cup, and they knew it. They were celebrating while we were trying to get out of Tiger's way and Molinari's way to hit shots. It was very awkward. I don't think any of us that haven't played Ryder Cups and stood out there on that green know that kind of feeling. I know I've had that with Darren Clarke, and I've had that several times where either we've won or they have won, and you still have to keep playing. So I think it's very awkward.
Q. For the guys that were around in '99, have you ever paused to think about what the Euros felt like at that period, and just kind of what this feeling is like, if you've had time in the last whirlwind hour or so to think it's going to come around to you guys?
DAVIS LOVE III: I thought about it last night when we put our pairings together. I thought about it when I woke up about 6:15 this morning on the morning we were supposed to sleep in. I know what we felt like going into it, and you know, the stunning defeat that they had that day. We knew that they remembered that, as well. Exact same score. So I tried to remind the guys a little bit yesterday, even after the third session, that the tournament was not even halfway over yet pointwise. We had a long way to go. We tried to not focus on results, but we talked about it a little bit last night; that all we could do was just go out, play one match at a time, everybody go out and have fun, try to win their point. You know, and when Hal Sutton sent his two best teams out Friday morning in Detroit, I thought it was a great plan. The first two teams that were supposed to win didn't win. It didn't work. I'm sure there's a lot of great plans in a lot of sporting events that sound really good the night before, before the game starts, and then there's a fumble or a turnover or something happens and it doesn't work. What didn't work today is they played a little bit better than us and got some momentum and made it tough. But, again, should record these conversations that we had last night of why we put people down, why we slid names around on the board, and I thought it was very interesting, some of the things guys came up with. But when you end up with the power and the excitement that we had in those first groups, and we had what we felt like was the steadyEddie guys in the back, we thought it was a great lineup. Again, a few putts they made, a few putts we missed, and it would have been a huge difference. We had a couple matches flip that we didn't expect. At one point I think we had five or six allsquares. That means it can go either direction, and it's whoever makes a putt.
KELLY ELBIN: Phil, Jim or Tiger, care to elaborate on anything Captain Love said?
JIM FURYK: I couldn't hear that.
KELLY ELBIN: Any further comments to the question about how it compared to winning in '99, if any of this has gone through your mind?
JIM FURYK: How this compared to '99? Well, that was fun. This was pretty miserable. So I mean, it was very similar circumstances with the four points. Very similar score today, if not identical score. You know, it was a hell of a lot of fun being on the other end. It wasn't very much fun today.
Q. You had some tough finishes in events this year; can you describe the difference as an individual, versus this kind of maybe letting your teammates down or your captain who picked you to be on the team?
JIM FURYK: Well, first of all, I would gather that you probably haven't been on a team to ask that question. Losing the U.S. Open this year, losing Bridgestone, I'll be honest, it's been a very difficult year. But if you had been on a team or if you had been on this team, I've got 11 guys, I've got a captain, I've got four assistants that I know will pat me on the back; that know how I feel, understand how I feel. You know, we came here as a team. We wanted to win The Ryder Cup as a team, and we didn't do it, but we are going to leave here in the same fashion. And I've got 11 guys here and I have a captain and I have four assistants that have my back. It's been a low year. I've played very well this year but haven't closed the door. I'm pretty sure Sergio would tell you that I outplayed him today but I didn't win and I lost the match. I've had a lot of that happen this year. As far as team versus individual, it's the lowest point of my year.
Q. You know Ian Poulter and you've played against Ian here; what do you see in his sort of psychology, his makeup, that turns him into Superman when The Ryder Cup comes around, and do you think that's peculiar to a European player?
TIGER WOODS: I think Monty was probably the same way. Monty had a fantastic career and an even better Ryder Cup career. I think Poults is about the same. He's say again?
Q. Why, though?
TIGER WOODS: I don't know, you'd have to ask him. I just play against him. I know that he plays well in this event, and he's tough to beat.
Q. Sort of a followup on an earlier question, just curious what was going through your head on 18 as you're standing there in the fairway, and at that point, is there motivation or do you feel it's worth it to actually play for a tie at that point?
TIGER WOODS: Yeah, well, I've been in that situation before. If you guys remember in 2002, I was in that same position against Jesper on 17 when McGinley won the Cup. So you know, you come here as a team, and you win or lose as a team, and it's pointless to even finish. It's a little different than a Presidents Cup, because The Presidents Cup, you can keep playing until there's a tie and basically every match is pretty much done. It's interesting being out there; as I said, I've been out there twice when that's happened, and it's a tough spot to be in, because you know, you've got to finish out the match, even though it's useless because our team didn't get the Cup and they did. So 18 was just hey, just get this over with, and you know, congratulations to the European Team. They played fantastic today, and they deserve the Cup.
Q. When did you know that your match had become increasingly more important, and then maybe could you walk us through the last two holes?
STEVE STRICKER: You know, had a pretty good idea it was going to be important pretty early in the round, really, maybe even at the turn. When I went past the board at No. 10 tee, saw a lot of blue up on the board, started doing the math. Kind of figured that it was going to come down to Tiger or I in the last two groups. Yeah, I just, you know, knew it was going to be important, and we just I didn't get it done. Had a couple opportunities. Just let a couple putts slip by, a couple shots here and there. Yeah, pretty disappointing, but still a great experience again. We really came together I thought as a team this week, and we had so much fun. And to see everybody get together after it was all said and done, and still be a team, be united as a team, I thought was pretty cool to see. Yeah, disappointing, but still, I love all these guys. We all played I thought very well all week and just came out on short end.
DAVIS LOVE III: The only thing I would add is we had the whole staff of The PGA of America, Medinah Golf Club; we had my brother and support staff that we brought with us; we had four assistant captains; we had 12 players; and Ollie summed it up best: Everybody in America can be proud of this team. Thank you.
BUBBA WATSON: Thank you for your questions.
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TEAM EUROPE
KELLY ELBIN: Matching the greatest comeback in Ryder Cup history, the victorious 2012 European Ryder Cup Team and Captain José Maria Olazábal are with us here at the 39th Ryder Cup. Captain, you had momentum coming in today, a guiding force watching over you, incredible play from your team, and congratulations on a stirring victory, the fourth for Europe on U.S. soil.
JOSÉ MARIA OLAZÁBAL: Yeah, it's been an unbelievable day. It's true that yesterday I think we felt that something was going our way in those last two matches. They were crucial for the outcome of this match. And last night, when we got together at the team meeting, all I did was just tell the boys that I still believed that we could turn things around, that all we needed was just to be a little bit more effective on the greens and to make a few more putts, and that would change the tide for us. I think the players believed, and you know, what happened today, I think it will go it will go down in the history books of The Ryder Cup. You know, it was a huge comeback, and I'm really happy for these 12 wonderful men.
Q. Ian, question for you, please. Poults, we know everyone on the top table is passionate about The Ryder Cup, but you seem to put so much fire and energy into it; where does the energy come from, and how long does it take you to come down from a week like this?
SERGIO GARCIA: Two years. (Laughter.
IAN POULTER: I'm officially taking two years off, and I'll see you at the next one. I don't know. It's a passion I have; it's a passion I've seen at The Ryder Cup for years and years as a kid growing up, and it's something that comes from within. I don't know. I just love it. I love the whole fact that I've got 11 great teammates, a fantastic captain and vice captains, and I love the team atmosphere. It's something very, very special to be a part of, and you grow a lot closer to 11, 12, 13, 14 other people, and it's very, very special moments that you get at a Ryder Cup. LEE WESTWOOD: We have got is this on? We have actually revised the qualification for next time. It's nine spots, two picks and Poults.
SERGIO GARCIA: (Laughs.)
LEE WESTWOOD: Poults clause.
Q. Back in 1999, you stood on the 17th green as America celebrated and you waited patiently to get your turn to putt and so forth. Today the 17th hole proved pretty pivotal to your team. Wondering if you can just comment on the symmetry on that, or the irony that you flipped four matches at that hole.
JOSÉ MARIA OLAZÁBAL: Well, that's golf. I think the atmosphere has been fantastic, especially around those last few holes, 16, 17, and 18. I think yesterday afternoon, the players noticed that kind of atmosphere, and you know, I think that's what brings the best in every player when you're playing in front of that crowd, that kind of crowd, so noisy; I think that's what we really dream of, to be in that kind of situations. You put that same hole with not a soul in it, and you wouldn't deliver the same.
Q. Rory can I ask you to go through your rather interesting morning, please?
RORY McILROY: It was a rather long
SERGIO GARCIA: Rory, do you mind if I take this one?
RORY McILROY: Sergio, I'd rather you not.
LEE WESTWOOD: (Making siren noises.)
SERGIO GARCIA: We actually were talking yesterday after dinner, and he said to me, 'You know, when you went through that year without warming up, how did it feel?' I said, 'You know, it's quite interesting. The best thing about it is you always come out to the course with the right attitude, because it doesn't matter how bad your shot is on the first tee; it's the best shot you've hit that day.' So he said, 'You know, I might try that tomorrow.' We knew he was going to make it. We thought it was going to be 15 minutes, not 10 minutes, but, you know, we were fine. RORY McILROY: You know, the last couple days were very long. Captain Olazábal wanted to play me in all four sessions, so I needed just that extra bit of sleep no, to be honest, I looked at the tee times last night, and I must have saw them in eastern time and I thought it was 12:25 instead of 11:25. Walking out my hotel room door this morning at 11:00, and I get a phone call saying, 'You're on the tee in 25 minutes.' I'm like, oh I've never been so worried going to the golf course. Luckily there was a state trooper at the bottom outside the lobby of the hotel that took me here and got me here a lot faster than we would have normally. I had just enough time to put my shoes on, have a couple of putts and go to the first tee.
JOSÉ MARIA OLAZÁBAL: (Shaking head.
RORY McILROY: In a way it wasn't a bad thing because I didn't have time to think about it, and I just went out and played, and I played probably the best I've played all week. I still would have liked to have gotten here sooner, but I delivered my point for the team, and that was the most important thing. I was like, 'Just get me there, get me there.' He was like, 'Do you have motion sickness?' I'm like, 'No, I don't care, just get me to that first tee.'
Q. How fast?
RORY McILROY: Fast enough.
Q. Paul, you've now been on both sides of the greatest lastday comeback in The Ryder Cup; how does it feel to be sitting up there as a winner this time?
PAUL LAWRIE: Obviously a lot better than '99 felt. That was pretty tough. We were 106 ahead in Brookline, and obviously the American Team played fantastic in the singles and deservedly won. But today, you know, especially at my age, to be part of this team and to come back from 106 behind on American soil, doesn't get any better.
Q. Just wondering given the fact that the team jumped out to a quick, you know, won the first five matches today, whether that might have taken the home crowd out of things a little bit, whether that could have had any effect on how things went for you?
LUKE DONALD: Well, I think that was our strategy was to try and get
LEE WESTWOOD: (Having separate conversation with photographer and Justin Rose.)
LUKE DONALD: Do you mind? The strategy was to get out early and get some blue on the board early. That's what happened in Brookline in '99. We missed the first six games
SERGIO GARCIA: You weren't even in Brookline in '99; what the hell do you know?
LUKE DONALD: Hey, you told me.
NICOLAS COLSAERTS: He's got the DVD at home.
Q. Obviously you haven't been on form; what did it mean to you to deliver the winning point and after the way you've been struggling a little bit the last number of months?
MARTIN KAYMER: Well, on one hand, I must say, you know, it was not only me; obviously I made an important point, but on the other hand, you know, what the other 11 players have done the last two or three days, you know, it's a team here, and that is I think Graeme had the same experience as me two years ago, and I didn't know how much pressure he must have felt until I get to 16 today and José Maria told me, 'We need your point. And I don't really care how you do it; just deliver.' But I like those; that's very straightforward. That's the way we Germans are. Fortunately I could handle it, and I made the last putt. But I think it will give me a huge push, a huge confidence for the next few months, and definitely for next year; if you know you can make those important putts in I don't even know if important is the right word, but it's probably more than that; important situations; then pretty much you can do anything. And then just knowing that, and getting the job done, not only for the team, but for me it was very important to get the trophy for José Maria, because I know how much it means to him, and I think we can be very, very proud and very happy to have such a strong man behind the team. I really mean, that because it's been a great journey for us the last few months. And especially this week, he's such a great man for us.
Q. Being the only rookie here on the team, how would you describe the magic of this team, and who will start the party tonight?
NICOLAS COLSAERTS: Undescribable. When I was given a chance to be part of this experience, I have never thought it was going to be this intense. I've had so many dreams about being part of experiences like these, but this has just been mindblowing since practice rounds day one. Hanging out with all these guys, discovering all different personalities, and seeing them deliver on a day of the highest pressure like this in front of the whole world, is, like I said, it's just undescribable.
Q. You said earlier in the week that playing in Wales opened your eyes to The Ryder Cup; as the world's best player, No. 1 player now after having gone through the downs and ups this week, what do you think about this thing?
RORY McILROY: It is the most special and unique golf tournament we have, period. To bring this group of guys together; to all play for the same cause; we win together, we lose together, and luckily the last two Ryder Cups, we have won together. I said this at the start of the week: There's nothing better than celebrating a win with your teammates. We don't get to do it very often, and you know, when we do, it's just so nice to have these guys around and to celebrate it with them.
Q. When you were standing over that putt on 18, did you think about Bernhard Langer and his putt in 1991?
SERGIO GARCIA: I did.
RORY McILROY: Me, too.
SERGIO GARCIA: But I thought, he's going to turn it around.
MARTIN KAYMER: I mean, I don't like the question, but it's true; yes, I did. I did think about him, especially when I walked around the hole and read the putt from the other side. And to be honest, there were well, there was a footprint in my line, but it was not that bad. So I thought, okay, it's not going to be it's not going to happen again, it's not going to happen again. And to be honest with you, I didn't really think about missing. There was only one choice you have; you have to make it.
LEE WESTWOOD: Yeah, boy.
MARTIN KAYMER: I was not that nervous. I was so very controlled, because I know exactly what I had to do. But if you ask me now how that putt went and how it rolled, I have no idea. I can't remember. When it went in, I was just very happy, and that is something that I will remember probably for the rest of my life and hopefully I can talk about when I have some grandchildren one day.
Q. Amazing performance, the reaction to your performance in particular has been phenomenal, and I see your brother sent you a message last night saying how proud he was of you; your kind of relatively humble beginnings of this sport are welldocumented, and you've come from that to in many ways be the emotional leader of Europe's greatestever Ryder Cup victory. I wonder if you have had a moment to reflect on those terms at all
IAN POULTER: I don't think I've really had a lot of time to reflect. I've kind of been enjoying it with all my teammates. It's been a truly inspirational day. It's been history in the making. It's been one that I'd like to obviously I'm taking three weeks off after this to sit down; I'm definitely having a few drinks, and I'll have a very good reflect back on what's been an incredible week. I think I've had huge support from so many people this week, and it's been amazing. You know, from the captain to the vice captains, to everybody in the team room, you know, it's been a long week, and we was being beaten, but yet yesterday, there was something in that team room which ignited everybody, and it was inspirational, just to see everybody's kind of personalities change and the atmosphere change in that room; and I knew there was a glimmer of hope. So I'd like to take a bit of time next week and the week after and the week after to sit down and really enjoy what's been a really memorable day and week.
Q. Question for Justin. LEE WESTWOOD: Here we go.
JUSTIN ROSE: Is that David Facey's voice?
LEE WESTWOOD: Is that David Facey's son?
Q. First of all, it is easier to keep the Chicago crowds quiet or Westwood?
JUSTIN ROSE: Well, Westwood's chirping at me. He seems in good form right now. In terms of keeping the crowds quiet, we knew that that was possible. We felt that last night, really, with Poults and the guys winning their two games down 18 last night. And coming down the stretch this afternoon, there was some amazing periods where you just didn't hear anything on the golf course, and that's really what we were striving for today.
Q. Is there a case to be made that the last two points last night were as big as any points today, and can you speak to the role of momentum in this event?
JUSTIN ROSE: Yeah, absolutely. Go on, Luke, hammer it hard.
LUKE DONALD: Absolutely. I think the whole atmosphere of the team changed last night. Sergio and I hanging onto that point who is it, Sergio? (Sergio Garcia's phone ringing.) Obviously getting that point and the celebrations that went with that, that was just a huge boost to our team and our morale, how we felt about our chances. It gave us a huge lift. You know, I think Poults making that putt on 18 in the dark last night was the difference.
Q. Some of the things that went down this weekend, y'all are complete legends, Luke, the 7iron you hit yesterday on 17, the putts you made Rosey what are some of the thoughts going through your head as you're making these putts? Do you notice what's going around you and how do you get it done?
NICOLAS COLSAERTS: Like I said the first day, man, you go with what's in your pants.
SERGIO GARCIA: Well said, Dude.
LEE WESTWOOD: I like that, dude. I liked it. (Laughter.)
Q. Martin, how did it feel yesterday when you had to sit out the whole day, and also, can you tell a little bit about the words of advice that you received from Bernhard Langer?
MARTIN KAYMER: To be honest it was very difficult yesterday. You want to prove that you can do better than what I showed on Friday, because on Friday, I didn't show good golf, and so I didn't get the possibility yesterday, which was fair enough, it was José Maria's decision, and we have to respect that, but I definitely want to show him that I can win a match here. And I didn't know that it's going to be that important, but it was very important for me to make that experience, as well, yesterday, because it didn't feel good, and I don't want to be in that situation again. And then I took the possibility to talk to Bernhard a little bit yesterday. I texted him on Friday night and asked him if we could sit down on Saturday morning and talk about the Ryder Cup, because my I felt like my attitude and I would say I was not as inspired as I should be, I thought. We talked a little bit about a bunch of stuff, and he has been a fantastic role model for me, and he's always there if I need him. And that is very rare to have someone like him that you can ask whenever you need to. But I got even more inspired to be honest with you by Poulter yesterday. I told Ian after 18 that I thought about him on 16; when I had the par putt on 16, I thought, come on, if he can do it, you can do it, too. So show him that you have that he inspired you for that special event. And so he has been fantastic for the team great pick by Olazábal. Ian should be set in the Ryder Cup forever.
Q. Can I ask the players, when the Americans woke this morning, they were 106 in front, and when you're in that position, you're expected to win and you're meant to win. I just wonder whether that transferred the pressure to them that way and enabled you all to relax and play your natural game without the pressure of expectation.
SERGIO GARCIA: Anyone? Well, I'll try my best. I guess it does in a way. Some of us were in this position in '99, and you know, we knew what happened there. We knew that
GRAEME McDOWELL: Pass the drinks along, Sergio.
PAUL LAWRIE: (Passing drinks down the table to rest of team.)
SERGIO GARCIA: We knew if we got going
PAUL LAWRIE: (Laughing.)
NICOLAS COLSAERTS: We are still missing a few.
SERGIO GARCIA: We knew if we got going early, we needed to put the American Team in a situation where we wanted to see how they felt with a bit more pressure on. Obviously everything was going their way throughout the whole week. You know, they were making the putts, they were getting the good breaks here and there. We were just waiting to change that a little bit and see if we could do the same thing they did to us in '99 and see how they could react against that. Obviously a lot of the matches were won because some of my teammates played amazing and some others, you know, we took the possibility or the opening that they gave us; and you know, I have been in that position; Lee has been in that position; José has been in that position; I don't know who else obviously Paul has been in that position in '99, and we know how it feels, and it's not easy. So we wanted to see how they would react and see if they could hold it; and it was a combination of playing great and maybe then that little bit of pressure getting to them.
Q. Tiger's match ended up not mattering today; how crucial was that that he was effectively shutout?
JOSÉ MARIA OLAZÁBAL: Well, not at all, because actually they were four points ahead coming Sunday, so they must have done something right. This is a team event. Obviously all players have to contribute in order to win. But I don't see that being any in any way special in that regard. There is 12 players, there is four matches played in the morning, four in the afternoon, and you have to try to win as many points as you can. We were four points behind come Sunday, and that was, yeah, in effect, Tiger without winning a single point; yes, that is true. But at the end of the day, we were four points behind.
Q. It's possible that one of your four vice captains will be named as your successor; can you speak a little bit in detail about what each of the four brought to the team and how that might have made the difference perhaps between winning and losing?
JOSÉ MARIA OLAZÁBAL: Well, obviously they bring a lot of knowledge, experience; but at the same time, a lot of diversity. All four guys are completely different. They have their own way of thinking. And I think that combination is very helpful or has been very helpful in this case for me, because I could have the view from a different perspective of how things were going. And that's what they bring. Also, they have the respect of these 12 men here. They have done they have played great golf for many years. They have won Darren has won a major event and Thomas has been fighting for it, and they have been great golfers for many, many years and these guys respect that.
Q. Sergio, please.
SERGIO GARCIA: Yes, sorry.
GRAEME McDOWELL: (Holding rabbit ears over Sergio's head).
Q. Wondering if you can describe the last two holes, and were you aware of him tensing up with the pressure getting to him?
SERGIO GARCIA: I think the 16th hole was well, there were a couple moments, but I think the 16th hole was probably heartbreaking for him, because he hit a great putt. I managed to get a great up-and-down from the front bunker. I hit a great putt to win the hole and go 2up with two to go and he lipped out. Obviously the last couple of holes, 17 is a tough hole with the pressure. He pulled it left and I hit a decent shot to the middle of the green, and he didn't manage to get up-and-down. And then, 18, you could see, as reliable as he usually is, you could see he was feeling a little bit. He didn't hit his best drive. He hit a good second shot, but probably a little bit too much adrenaline and went over the back. And then you know, I hit a bit of a girly putt to try to win the game, but he still had a seven or eight-footer to halve, and he missed that. You know, it was one of those moments that you obviously feel it, and when you are up for a long time and you feel like things are going the wrong way, it's hard sometimes to stop it. And unfortunately for him, he couldn't do it.
Q. Francesco, were you surprised to be given that putt on 18 by Tiger in the last match? I know you probably would have got it, but it changed the match to a European win
SERGIO GARCIA: Not probably. He would have definitely got it.
FRANCESCO MOLINARI: He's an optimistic. No, I mean, I don't know, I was a little bit not surprised; I was getting ready to hit the putt. You know, I thought about giving him the halve on the fairway, but then the Captain was there, the Chairman was the there, they told me, it's not the same, winning or halving, so get focused and do your best, and that's what I did. So I just tried to win the hole, to win the tournament, basically. I was getting ready to hit the putt. I wasn't expecting him to give it to me.
Q. You learned how to win at The Ryder Cup from Seve; you dedicated this Ryder Cup to him; you wore his name and silhouette on your sweater today; what does it mean to you to win in his name, and how emotional did you get thinking about him as you won it?
JOSÉ MARIA OLAZÁBAL: Obviously emotional he's already smiling about it and laughing about it. This has been a very special week. Seve, it's the first time that he's not here with us at The Ryder Cup. He passed away last year. I do have wonderful memories from my matches with him. He was a very special man, and he's very close to my heart. All these guys sitting here on this media room know how much this week has meant to me. And you know, I get emotional about it; but I want to thank them for what they did today. They gave me the best week of my life. And I'm just glad that I had the 12 men on my side ready to give their best during the whole week. The start of the week was a tough one. Nothing went our way, but these guys kept on believing, and I'm sure that not just the silhouette, but the phone call Seve made last time at Celtic Manor in 2010 and all the images of Seve around the clubhouse, the locker room and things like that, kept that spirit alive. So it's not just me. I think these guys did it also for him.
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Alright, there's SO MUCH MORE MATERIAL, but it's late (and I need a drink badly ' and sleep).
It's been one hell of a marathon. Thanks to both teams for the absolutely amazing show. It goes without saying I won't ever forget the first Ryder Cup I had the privilege of experiencing and covering (and I reckon it's the best one so far). Don't forget to check out the latest PGA Tour Confidential over at golf.com.
