PGA Tour From Congressional Country Club

I like the final pairing today on the PGA Tour at the Quicken Loans National,  Ernie Els and Billy Hurley the III. Also great to see V.J. playing like his old self. Too hot for anything outside here today so good TV golf and with some Rockies Baseball later. Guess I will take it easy.

At my age, I can't do much to hit it farther, but I can keep working on my chipping and putting

Enjoy the day and get out on the course soon.

Dustin Johnson and the Open

Not sure the PGA of America wants Dustin Johnson to win. Remember the PGA tournament a few years ago? Put that along Joe Buck constantly talking about the ball moving and the free drop because of the tower and this tournament is getting annoying to watch. 

Attention PGA, sometimes grass bent from being walked on straightens and could cause the ball to move, even if it was walked on by a group or two ahead. 

Amazing how particular they are one week, and the next week players may be picking up, cleaning, then placing their ball for each shot. 

The official made a ruling, then they wait for more than an hour and tell Mr. Johnson that he might be given a penalty, after the round. Nice way to take his attention away from the task at hand.

And here I thought it was pathetic that Baseball started using replay. 

Think I will head out to the garden and pull weeds. 

Thoughts on Harry Ted Potter Jr., John Daly and Q-School

So another new winner on tour—Ted Potter Jr. wins at Greenbrier. Missed five straight cuts then wins, shows just how fickle this game can be. Looked like he was heading back to Q-school (the last one) and instead he has two guaranteed years on tour and a ticket to the Master’s.

And what is going on with John Daly? He is looking like the Daly of old. If he can come up with enough sponsors’s exemptions I think he will win his card back. Fans love him and he is proving he still has game. He needs four years to reach 50 and the seniors tour, I expect he will be welcomed there with open arms, he flat out brings in fans and $$$. Hard to keep a player with a 70.1 scoring average out of tournaments but some of these good-old-boy tourneys remember too many of Daly’s bad moments. Hope they open up and let him play. He is playing this weekend so I will set my DVR as we will be on the road to a family reunion (please feel sorry for me, it won’t help but I need it).

The Web.com Tour instead of Q-school and everyone needs to earn a card through a year on this tour, good-old-boys at work again. This concept is as bad as the BCS and the Hockey (let everyone in) playoffs and the NFL Pro Bowl. Golf never has reached the viewing numbers it would like and this will not help. Will we see the good young players on other tours (Europe, Australia) come to America for a year in the minors so they can play the PGA tour? NOPE!

Sorry Padraig --We Caught Ya

For the second time this year a professional golfer has been disqualified for signing an incorrect scorecard. After a viewer emailed in a rules violation by Padraig Harrington he became this years number two. Seems his ball may have moved a full dimple, or even a dimple and a half. This was determined after careful slow motion study of Padraig bumping his ball as he picked up his marker.

He said all the right things about the rules and the disqualification later, but I bet he was steamed. All of the sudden viewers think this is the home shopping network and they are supposed to call in.

I love golf but do not believe we should have turned the game over to television snitches. By the way if I could just move my ball a dimple and a half closer once in a while, I believe I could go to the tour – from my double digit handicap now.

Golf and Snow

We have snow and cold here but the PGA is off and running in Hawaii. Love watching golf this time of year. Can’t play golf in the snow, so watching on TV is the next best thing-

“I never did see the sense in keeping my head down. The only reason I play golf is to see where the ball goes.”
Charles Price Golfer-at-Large (1982)

Bridgestone, Davis Love III, and Me

I see Davis Love is switching to Bridgestone balls. I believe he has been a Titlist guy for his entire career. Bridgestone has done a great marketing job moving from tires to golf and being accepted in both areas. We all know that players get big bucks to play certain balls and clubs and even to wear their shirts. But not a single pro would use anything that would make their game worse.
I have played Bridgestone balls for two years—I like them. I play the RX –i.e., the old guy ball. I have found it to be soft and long, at least for me.