Golfers Thread

[Mark Connolly]

7 minutes ago, GordonS said:

I don't know anything about golf, but is one over on Sunday at Augusta really bottling it? 

The average final round score for the winner is 69.7. His 73 is the highest final round score by the champion, and the first over par, since 2008 when Immelman shot 75

[Guest]

2 minutes ago, peasy23 said:

The Butler Cabin is one of the biggest cringefests in sport.

Didn't realise it was now a huge building until Butch pointed it out. Yet another "tradition" that we're meant to love

[GordonS]

8 minutes ago, Mark Connolly said:

The average final round score for the winner is 69.7. His 73 is the highest final round score by the champion, and the first over par, since 2008 when Immelman shot 75

Ooh, stats showing I'm being too kind to him. Ta.

[peasy23]

Pretty sure something like the Top 75 in the OWGR get into the PGA as well?

It's the PGA money list that counts for that, not the OWGR, but normally anyone in the top 100 of the OWGR who hasn't already qualified by other means gets an invite, so he should be in that too as it's only 5 or 6 weeks away.

[peasy23]

Bob made more birdies than anyone else in the field. A wee eagle here or there and less dropped shots and he will romp it next year.

[doulikefish]

Bob

 

[Tartan Dave]

Good week to take matsuyama out the fantasy lineup

[HalfCutNinja]

9 hours ago, peasy23 said:

The Butler Cabin is one of the biggest cringefests in sport.

The whole Masters is one of the biggest cringefests in sport.

As for bottling it I hate when you read fandans go on about that. Its human nature and happens to almost everyone. The pressure is incredible.

Its no coincidence Matsuyama, Schauffle and Zalatoris all performed in a way characterised several times on here and by fandan fans all over the world as 'bottling' it. As did Garcia on his way to his win, and countless others.

Probably more of the players who've won such things and been in contention for such things do similar than those that don't.

Its almost as if the pressure is astonishing and winning these things incredibly hard and laughable for a 15 handicapper who'd shit himself at the thought of breaking 80 on a pitch and putt to label the best players on earth bottlers. Very tiresome, you get it with football too all the time.

 

As for the Masters I'm not a big fan. The Americans have a great word for golf 'goofy'. Its a goofy course set up is stupid and its stuffy, elitist, racist and artificial. Don't really like it and don't think it should be a major.

They should just have it as a high profile invitational (it is an invitational) like TPC and have a global major that tours the best courses in the world like Royal Melbourne and Valderrama etc. 

[D Angelo Barksdale]

33 minutes ago, HalfCutNinja said:

As for the Masters I'm not a big fan. The Americans have a great word for golf 'goofy'. Its a goofy course set up is stupid 

You make some good points in your post, but this is just nonsense.

As a tournament venue, and from a strategic and architectural point of view, it's easily one of the top courses in the world.

[peasy23]

f**k Corey Connors btw, he birdied the last which gave him a share of 8th and halved my ew returns on Reed.

[HalfCutNinja]

11 minutes ago, Henderson to deliver ..... said:

You make some good points in your post, but this is just nonsense.

As a tournament venue, and from a strategic and architectural point of view, it's easily one of the top courses in the world.

Tee to green yeah its well designed, but after that its a farce.

See when you see Rose one of the best players in the world putting from just off the green and not even getting it onto the green cause he's so scared your course is set up ridiculously.

When the best players on earth are going through the back of 15 and chipping into the water at the front, your course is set up ridiculously.

When Rose hits a fairly decent putt 6 or 7 out of ten, and it finishes thirty yards from the flag, your course is a farce.

DJ hits a putt from about 15 feet, slightly too bold he's probably hit it 12-18 inches too far, and it finishes 35 yards away, your course is utter nonsense.

Its a goofy course, its stupid and unfair and ridiculous. I don't like it at all. #

Jack Nicklaus famously described Sawgrass as 'like trying to land a 5 iron on the hood of a car' well Augusta is like that. Its so easy tee to green they have to make the greens so stupid it becomes unplayable almost. And the slopes around the greens aren't designed for the greens to be that hard and fast.

Its a goofy course and a stuffy, elitist place built on racism. Not what I see golf as, not a fan and don't think it should be a major. 

[HalfCutNinja]

Here is Garcia's thoughts on it before he won it

 

And remember was it the year before on 13 or 15 he hit what five pitches from about fifty yards that all went in the water. These are the best players on earth, and every one of them was fairly decent. All went in the water. Ridiculous, its just stupid. 
 

I think 30 or 40 years ago Augusta was probably class as tee to green its designed very well and could be played as intended to be played. But its so short and so open that the modern day players would destroy it, so they have to make the greens rock hard and lightning fast which just turns it into a farce. 

Last November when they were quite soft they destroyed it, so that's why they have to do that. It suffers from the same problem St Andrews does as its been overtaken by the modern game. St Andrews is so easy for the pros now when they have the Open they have to put the pins on the side of slopes etc and it turns it into a farce. 

Both courses have a problem now as they can't move the tees much further back so have to trick up the greens to such an extent it makes it ridiculous. 

Plus I really don't like the stuffy, elitist atmosphere with undertones of racism. Its not a tournament I particularly like and is the antithesis of what golf should be to me. You can't even buy a ticket to watch it you have to be vetted cause they don't want the riff-raff there. Get it to f**k.

Edited to add- 

All the forced traditions too its so false and artificial and empty, 'patrons' can't run etc. Launch it into the sea.

Edited April 12, 2021 by HalfCutNinja

[SandyCromarty]

Well done to Oban Bob, what a magnificent debut and I'm sure he'll build on that and be back at Augusta many times.

And hopefully we will get our badges back next year, nothing last year and no Europeans got badges this year, all understandable.

The 16th claimed another scalp,  I've stood behind that tee and what you see is a generous green that the average Golfer would not miss, but add in closing pressure and the crowds and even a top golfers arse collapses.

There's normally a stand at the 16th to the left of the tee and from some areas you cannot see the tee, so the advice from the stand steward is once you hear the drive click count to seven and of you don't hear a splash, he's on the green.

Edited April 12, 2021 by SandyCromarty

[HalfCutNinja]

Good article summing up a lot of why I don't like Augusta, except for the actual course part as its not really about that.

 

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/06/24/inside-the-cultish-dreamworld-of-augusta-national

[D Angelo Barksdale]

40 minutes ago, HalfCutNinja said:

See when you see Rose one of the best players in the world putting from just off the green and not even getting it onto the green cause he's so scared your course is set up ridiculously.

When the best players on earth are going through the back of 15 and chipping into the water at the front, your course is set up ridiculously.

When Rose hits a fairly decent putt 6 or 7 out of ten, and it finishes thirty yards from the flag, your course is a farce.

DJ hits a putt from about 15 feet, slightly too bold he's probably hit it 12-18 inches too far, and it finishes 35 yards away, your course is utter nonsense.

Its a goofy course, its stupid and unfair and ridiculous. I don't like it at all. #

Jack Nicklaus famously described Sawgrass as 'like trying to land a 5 iron on the hood of a car' well Augusta is like that. Its so easy tee to green they have to make the greens so stupid it becomes unplayable almost. And the slopes around the greens aren't designed for the greens to be that hard and fast.

Disagree with all of this. The course is set up to reward good shots, punish bad shots and give average shots a chance to recover a par. It doesn't strongly favour a particular type of golfer. The list of winners includes left handers, short hitters like Zach Johnson and for a course that has 'unplayable greens', average at best putters like Garcia, Scott and Matsuyama The penalty for being above the hole, or on the wrong tier here is severe, the players know this and can play accordingly,  leaving themselves a 20 ft putt for birdie, or risk it with the knowledge that there's a possibility of a big number.

The short par 5 15th is a prime example of this and a great strategic hole. If it was an easy up and down for birdie from the back, then the water at the front becomes irrelevant as the pro's would just know that going long carries no penalty. You would as well be making it a long par 4.

This course is far from unplayable, it's just very difficult and punishing if you're out of position on your approach or on the green, the number of birdies made and the historical winning scores, on only 6 occasions in the last 35 years has the winner shot less than -8, is testament to this.

[HalfCutNinja]

7 minutes ago, Henderson to deliver ..... said:

Disagree with all of this. The course is set up to reward good shots, punish bad shots and give average shots a chance to recover a par. It doesn't strongly favour a particular type of golfer. The list of winners includes left handers, short hitters like Zach Johnson and for a course that has 'unplayable greens', average at best putters like Garcia, Scott and Matsuyama The penalty for being above the hole, or on the wrong tier here is severe, the players know this and can play accordingly,  leaving themselves a 20 ft putt for birdie, or risk it with the knowledge that there's a possibility of a big number.

The short par 5 15th is a prime example of this and a great strategic hole. If it was an easy up and down for birdie from the back, then the water at the front becomes irrelevant as the pro's would just know that going long carries no penalty. You would as well be making it a long par 4.

This course is far from unplayable, it's just very difficult and punishing if you're out of position on your approach or on the green, the number of birdies made and the historical winning scores, on only 6 occasions in the last 35 years has the winner shot less than -8, is testament to this.

You disagree that its farcical to watch one of the best golfers on earth hit five pretty decent pitches from 50 yards that all end up in the water?  Not one of them was a bad shot. Okay then.

I've given my opinion, its a clown course and a farce and shouldn't be a major. Virtually every golf fan I've said this to gets outraged but I stand by it. Glad you enjoy it though.

[peasy23]

Matsuyama up from 25th to 14th on the OWGR.

Surprised that Robert MacIntyre only moves up 1 spot to 44th, thought he would have moved up a couple more places than that.

Rory down to 13th, his lowest ranking since after the Hong Kong Open in 2009.

[lichtie23]

I don’t agree that it’s a “clown course” at all. It’s a wonderful course. What I do agree with that their “traditions” are stuck in the stone ages and need to be forgotten about. The lack of tv coverage even with it being during a pandemic was appalling. That apparently all comes from the big wigs at Augusta. 

[Honest_Man#1]

4 minutes ago, lichtie23 said:

I don’t agree that it’s a “clown course” at all. It’s a wonderful course. What I do agree with that their “traditions” are stuck in the stone ages and need to be forgotten about. The lack of tv coverage even with it being during a pandemic was appalling. That apparently all comes from the big wigs at Augusta. 

Yeah there are plenty of sticks to beat it with, but the quality of the course isn’t one of them.

[D Angelo Barksdale]

34 minutes ago, HalfCutNinja said:

You disagree that its farcical to watch one of the best golfers on earth hit five pretty decent pitches from 50 yards that all end up in the water?  Not one of them was a bad shot. Okay then.

I've given my opinion, its a clown course and a farce and shouldn't be a major. Virtually every golf fan I've said this to gets outraged but I stand by it. Glad you enjoy it though.

They weren't 5 pretty decent pitches though were they ? The first was a terrible shot landing on the downslope well short of the hole, the 2nd and 3rd were barely hole high with an enormous amount of backspin taking them down the slope. It was only then he changed his angle of approach on the 4th attempt, which was a bit unlucky. Finally, he played the correct shot from a suitable angle and the spin left him a straight 12ft putt.

The 15th hole still played the easiest on the course that year, despite Garcia's heads gone, Tin Cup nonsense.