#picking out things that have been from past fixings vs. final fixing vs. phil just being phil

[found-wings]

I hope with code phil being forced to socialize here (wish that happened in canon) cellbit is going to very quickly get used to walls and I mean Walls of signs of phil explaining his funky theories and investigation album since he has literally nothing better to do 😭😭 we will be seeing dark green signs all around the order and only half will be legible to the general population (cellbit and fit are the translators for the signs while tubbo and foolish can understand them- but no one understands wtf they're trying to say when explaining phils signs vs cellbit and fit who actually get to the point) (bonus is cellbit learning more about how these federation-inforced fixings have really changed phil as he's been more disconnected then someone such as fit or etoiles to this) - 💿

Code Phil being much more talkative in his egg arc than usually JAJAJ ( pretty much forced. but still silly WHEEZE )

Also ngl Cellbit gives me the vibes that he like. would actually enjoy and entirely vibe with Phil placing walls of signs everywhere?? Yes it‘s a little bit of a mess to clean up but it makes talking about theories, exchanging information, etc. much more enjoyable most of the time because it‘s far more interactive than if he gave Phil a book to write everything in.

Also being able to physically walk between signs, point out information and put them together, ask in the middle of talking & writing instead of having to wait and then point stuff out seems like a vibe

And also love the fact that Cellbit & Fit would be the only ones able to properly put everything together and explain it to others as well. Tubbo & Foolish understand what Phil is saying and do their best at explaining it to the others but fail terribly at it - Phil just watching in the background as he nibbles on whatever food he got from the quests that day, amused by the twos attempts ( he appreciates it but also finds it very silly )

[shervonfakhimi]

The Merciful End of the Lakers’ Coaching Search

Thank the heavens the Lakers’ coaching search finally ended. It ended on Saturday, settling on former Indiana Pacer and Orlando Magic head coach Frank Vogel, but not until after one candidate took the Phoenix Suns job (Monty Williams), another candidate said thanks but no thanks (Tyronn Lue) and a hilarious protest broke out in front of Staples Center. And this laughable search has not even arguably been the most incompetent of the Lakers’ offseason, with Magic Johnson dropping a bomb before anybody in the organization knew that he was resigning. Can Frank Vogel fix this?

Let’s start basketball wise before we get to the dysfunction around him. Frank Vogel has a stout defensive reputation, with his Indiana Pacers ranking 10th, 1st, 1st, 8th and 3rd in the top 10 in defensive efficiency during his time in Indianapolis, per NBA.com. Offensively, on the other hand, was a little more hard to find, as his Pacer teams in the bottom third of the league for the majority of his tenure as well. Things didn’t go as well in his Orlando tenure either. Granted, Vogel dealt with numerous games missed due to injuries from his primary players, but they ranked 24th and 25th in offensive efficiency during his Orlando stint. Most notably, however, Orlando finished 24th and 20th in defensive efficiency during his tenure there. With the way the 3 point shot turned former Pacer all star big man Roy Hibbert extinct and Vogel’s inability to adjust in Orlando, that renders questions as to whether or not Vogel’s scheme can mesh in today’s changed NBA climate. Certainly with time off, he can look inward and find his weaknesses and adjust. But when Indiana assistant/defensive coordinator Dan Burke could not follow Vogel to Orlando, where Vogel’s defense slipped while Indiana’s defense still remained near the top of the league, questions arise whether he can maintain that type of stellar defense elsewhere. Especially when Orlando’s defensive efficiency rose to the top 10 of the league (8th) under new coach Steve Clifford and Vogel will not be able to pick his own staff….

Which gets us right to the incompetence and clown show the Lakers front office has become. They have hired Jason Kidd to be a top assistant to Vogel on his staff. This looks to be a gross oversight when you consider how staunchly Milwaukee has improved this season as opposed to during Kidd’s tenure as the Bucks head coach, how Kidd’s previous two stints as a head coach ended with on the losing end of a power struggle trying to strangle more power under his control, the LeBron James dynamic and how much the organization seems to have wanted him. The Lakers tried to force Jason Kidd onto Tyronn Lue’s staff when those negotiations were going, which was reported that Lue wouldn’t mind having Kidd on his staff. But it does seem odd that the Lakers basically handpicked Kidd as the man for *a* job…. but not *the* job. Surely he will help in regards to developing the Lakers’ young players (an area where plenty of current Milwaukee Bucks credit him) and being the one to hold LeBron James accountable and garner the trust of him and the other players (something former Magic players felt Vogel could improve upon). That sounds great and all, but, when you consider Kidd’s past and the past regarding LeBron-led teams with coaches that don’t have the buy-in from both him and the front office (Erik Spoelstra vs David Blatt and Luke Walton), it is very hard to look at this dynamic and not think that Jason Kidd won’t somehow find a path to usurping Vogel as the lead voice in the locker room. So if that happens, then why exactly was Vogel hired to be the head coach in the first place?

Which then leads us to the front office. Jeanie Buss, Rob Pelinka, the Rambii and everyone else involved in the organization have botched the coaching search from the jump. Monty Williams was in the running among those who initially got interviewed, along with Tyronn Lue, Juwan Howard and Jason Kidd (who initially got interviewed as a favor for his agent, who just so happens to represent current Laker Brandon Ingram). Except it was reported Monty Williams never got an offer and knew that it was more likely the Lakers would pursue Lue, so he took the 5 years in Phoenix. So that led the Lakers to Lue, right? There was no way they could mess that up, right? (*this is where the narrator interjects with a soft but firm ‘wrong!’) The Lakers thought they had the leverage over Lue, seeing that Lue had no other offers, therefore trying to force Lue to accept their head coaching job on their terms. Their terms indicating that he only coach for 3 years around six million dollars per year, nowhere near that of a championship coach. But where they thought they had leverage on Lue, Tyronn Lue had leverage over them. He is still being paid by the Cleveland for two more years. He didn’t have to accept a job he didn’t want to take, and the terms and conditions the Lakers offered him. Optically, it didn’t look very favorable either that not only did they make him look to be ‘the guy that can coach LeBron,’ but also that they waited until Monty Williams took the Phoenix Job, making it seem like they ‘settled’ on Lue with no other options rather than actively seek Lue out and allow him to dictate his own terms. So he turned it down, and good for him.

This adds even more layers of questions to the Lakers front office. Why take on Frank Vogel? In part because he got the seal of approval of Kurt Rambis and Phil Jackson, who nearly hired Vogel during his tenure running the New York Knicks (because that went extremely well!). The same self-inflicted issues gnawing at the Lakers for years are continuing to rear its ugly head; their insistence on running to the past to seek counsel for the future has left the present in clear danger. Instead of seeking out the best at setting a culture and running a franchise (Bob Myers, Masai Ujiri, Daryl Morey, Sean Marks, R.C. Buford, etc.) or looking to those with front office experience but haven’t had their shot to run their show (Trajan Langdon, Michael Winger, Troy Weaver, newly minted Minnesota Timberwolves President of Basketball Operations Gerssan Rosas, etc.), the Lakers have settled on the idea of a former habitual line stepping agent who has run afoul of players, agents and front office personnel (the exact kind of people he needs to build sustainable relationships with!) and former Lakers who either have exactly zero experience in NBA front offices or minimal and unspectacular stints doing so. Part of why Vogel couldn’t find his footing in Orlando was the jumbled personnel his front office gave him. After the Lakers failed so spectacularly this summer and seemingly everybody still in tact outside of Magic Johnson so he can tweet gems like this again (though who am I to talk about tweeting), if Vogel couldn’t handle that, then how the heck can he handle this Laker job, especially if the Lakers don’t trade for Anthony Davis or acquire any type of secondary star to go to battle with LeBron James? The Lakers print money essentially, yet refuse to invest in it up top. They have every advantage imaginable over small market teams (location, a free agent destination, sustainable revenue), but penny pinch in the exact margin small market teams excel in.

This lack of direction in the present clouds the future as well. Throwing a laughable three year deal at Lue and then giving the same length of deal at Vogel indicates a lack of future plan. Sure, LeBron is under contract for only three more seasons (actually two plus a player option), but that doesn’t mean his impact can’t last farther than that. Instead of using LeBron as a bridge between winning now and building a sustainable culture that can last for far much longer, instead the Lakers looked for a coach seemingly just to ‘get through’ the LeBron years, as if he were a plague rather than arguably the greatest player in the world (which I still hold that he is, as awesome as Kevin Durant, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kawhi Leonard, Steph Curry, etc. are). Building a lasting culture is hard, that’s why so few have done it. But the Lakers had an opportunity to hire a top notch coach and give them the leeway to build that culture with LeBron and then build onto it after he is gone with the young core of Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball, Kyle Kuzma, Josh Hart, Moritz Wagner, Isaac Bonga and their 4th overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft. Perhaps Frank Vogel really is the man for the job. Maybe they don’t even plan to do that at all. Maybe to max out LeBron’s last window means to trade the young core, whether it is Anthony Davis or not, an idea I absolutely shutter at given the incompetent moves this front office has made the last two years. Because at every step of the turn, it looks the Lakers have no idea what they’re doing.

The Lakers had an opportunity (again) to hit the reset button after Magic Johnson resigned. There was the chance to use their plentiful resources to hire the best of the best to run the basketball organization. There was the chance to hire the best of the best to coach the team after Luke Walton got thrown under the bus. They did neither (because who needs competence!). It may not matter; sign a star free agent or trade for Anthony Davis (or Bradley Beal!) and there’s no disputing the Lakers will be right up the top of the NBA’s contending bunch yet again. Who knows, it still is possible. James and Davis didn’t wreck their teams’ seasons because they *didn’t* want to play with each other. It may be hard to play with LeBron James (just look at Rodney Hood and George Hill flourishing in new environments after having their fair share of struggles in Cleveland), but he still is a draw. Unfortunately for them, even if that were to occur (which seems unlikely, as of now), even more questions will arise about this coaching decision/dynamic can handle that spotlight or if the front office can give the right support around them. Again, maybe Frank Vogel is the man to piece this all together. In a vacuum, he is an perhaps an unspectacular, but solid hire. Maybe Rob Pelinka is the one to supply LeBron with all the right pieces. Maybe Jason Kidd really can develop the young core. Maybe Jeanie Buss does know what she in fact is doing. Maybe all of this will work out and be maintained for the future. Frank Vogel deserves a fair and honest shot to prove he is the man to dispel all the incompetence around him, and I’m willing to give him the chance to prove it. I am very skeptical, however, that will be the case and that this scenario doesn’t blow up in everyone’s faces. Hopefully I am wrong. Because hope is all I got.

[hailridge]

The 10 Greatest Things That Could Happen in Golf in 2019

The end of the year is a time to look back and evaluate all that transpired in the previous 12 months, and though the internet is littered with “best of” lists, let’s be honest: a decent share of our assessments are based in regret—things that could have happened, that nearly happened, but in the end did not. Or, worse, terrible things that completely go against our greatest hopes. A year gone by is a graveyard. But the year ahead? That’s a sown field! Anything could happen, anything could grow, and it is far more fun to look forward with optimism than to look back in judgment.

So now that the calendar has flipped, let’s put an end to our sad reconciliations with 2018, and let our imaginations run wild. What follows are the 10 greatest things that could happen in golf in the coming year. Will they all transpire? Will any of them? The answer is, you can’t prove that they won’t.

1. There will be at least one incredible final round duel at a major Like it or not, golf is the most anticlimactic spectator sport, and the major finishes we got in 2018 were typical. Rory McIlroy blowing up at Augusta and brief salvos from Jordan Spieth and Rickie Fowler fizzing out; Brooks Koepka snuffing out the field at the U.S. Open; Spieth laying a Sunday egg and nobody rising to Francesco Molinari’s challenge at the Open; Koepka snuffing out the field at the PGA. Real drama, good drama, is a rare commodity. The last really good two-man duel we had was probably Henrik Stenson vs. Phil Mickelson, but this year, let’s hope for even more. Let’s hope for something Arnie and Jack never quite gave us, and ditto for Tiger and Phil. Let’s hope the two best players in the world, whoever they are, face off in a Sunday showdown that lives up to and exceeds the hype.

2. Bryson DeChambeau will win a major championship It’s time to face reality: Aside from Tiger Woods—who holds the title in perpetuity—Bryson DeChambeau is the most exciting person in golf right now. With Rory smack in the middle of his “pick-your-favorite-polite-synonym-for-choking” phase, and Spieth still mired in his technical woes, DeChambeau is the man who could rescue us from the Koepka doldrums. What sets him apart is that he has the game and the personality—he’s part brilliant scientist, part egotist, part snake-oil salesman, and all showman. He loves the stage, and judging by the polarizing reactions he provokes, the stage loves him back. It would be terrific for golf if he broke through at a major in 2019.

3. Tiger Woods will win a major championship Well, yeah.

4. One of the new “Big Four” will win another major A lot of major talk, I know! But majors really tend to overshadow everything else, especially in a non-Ryder Cup year, so you’ll have to deal with it. Earlier this year, I calculated that there are four young(ish) players with a faint-yet-not-entirely-unrealistic hope of reaching the vaunted 10 major mark: Koepka, Spieth, McIlroy and Justin Thomas. If you believe as I do that golf is better when familiar faces are winning majors, and better yet when at least one or two is chasing some kind of historical mark, than you should want one of these guys to take home another trophy.

5. The USGA will somehow top themselves in the “infuriate everyone” department Watching professional golfers rage against the USGA for the most petty grievances imaginable is one of my favorite annual pastimes, and Phil Mickelson’s performance-art piece on the 13th green on Saturday last June at Shinnecock Hills (Title: “The Funniest Way For a Rich Guy to Pout”) was a highlight not just of that year, but any year. It will be incredibly disappointing if the USGA doesn’t up the ante. And frankly, driving a handful of whiners to say “they’ve lost the course” in their most solemn tones isn’t good enough. I want disappearing holes, or six-foot greens, or birds that are trained to pick up errant balls and fly them back to the tee. I want Mike Davis in a jester’s cap, dancing a jig on a raised platform every time a four-foot putt runs 15 feet past. Embrace your identity, USGA!

6. The International Team will win the Presidents Cup The obvious reasoning behind this is that the Presidents Cup is a bore, it’s not going to be fun until the U.S. stops dominating. Unfortunately, that seems surpassingly unlikely since language barriers on the International side make a mockery of any “team” concept for the “rest of the world”. But I have another selfish reason I’d like to see the Americans stumble: the U.S. needs to hit rock bottom before it can start winning Ryder Cups, and in hindsight, after the Paris debacle, Gleneagles 2014 looks more and more like a false rock bottom. Everything that happened since has been band-aids on a massive festering wound, and until the wound itself is addressed (hint: it’s going to involve a ton of soul-searching and revolves around how we, as a country, conceive of team events in golf), history is just going to repeat itself. Which makes me an accelerationist, I guess, but my motive is genuine: let’s make the reality of team play unbearable until somebody has to fix the problem.

7. The U.S. will not suffer another Ryder Cup defeat I need at least one thing on this list to come true, OK. This is not cheating, this is preparing for success.

8. The new PGA Tour schedule is going to work out amazingly for everyone Seriously, I really think it will! The only real problem for the majors was that the PGA Championship lacked a bit of prestige, and from decent slogans like “glory’s last shot” to achingly desperate ones like “this is major!”, nothing really caught on. However, the PGA’s move to May is genius—nobody’s burned out on golf, you can ride those sweet Masters tailwinds, and your stock inevitably goes up … right? No other big tournament suffers for it, either, and in fact the Players benefits from getting to go first. At a time when professional sports leagues seem to be in a constant state of foot-in-mouth, it’s weirdly thrilling to see PGA Tour absolutely nail it, and I hope it’s as good in reality as it looks in conception.

9. Someone extremely cool will emerge Maybe it’s Cam Champ? I don’t know, but I’m longing for a dynamic figure to throw down the gauntlet this year. Some combination of Tiger and Miguel Angel Jimenez, but young. Someone like we momentarily thought Brooks Koepka might be, until he turned out be either boring or resentful, depending on the day. Someone like Sergio, but without the debilitating neuroses. Someone like Phil, but with an ounce of impulse control. You get the point.

10. The “ball goes too far” brigade will be slightly less tiresome Look, I’m not saying they don’t have a point. But it’s a little like complaining about how the Internet has destroyed society in 2019—you’re absolutely right, but you’re also years and years too late. Nothing’s changing now, amigos! You’re the proverbial old man yells at cloud meme! Enjoy the bombs!

Source: golfdigest.com

The post The 10 Greatest Things That Could Happen in Golf in 2019 appeared first on Hail Ridge Golf Course.

[noblesvilleparks]

The 10 Greatest Things That Could Happen in Golf in 2019

The end of the year is a time to look back and evaluate all that transpired in the previous 12 months, and though the internet is littered with “best of” lists, let’s be honest: a decent share of our assessments are based in regret—things that could have happened, that nearly happened, but in the end did not. Or, worse, terrible things that completely go against our greatest hopes. A year gone by is a graveyard. But the year ahead? That’s a sown field! Anything could happen, anything could grow, and it is far more fun to look forward with optimism than to look back in judgment.

So now that the calendar has flipped, let’s put an end to our sad reconciliations with 2018, and let our imaginations run wild. What follows are the 10 greatest things that could happen in golf in the coming year. Will they all transpire? Will any of them? The answer is, you can’t prove that they won’t.

1. There will be at least one incredible final round duel at a major Like it or not, golf is the most anticlimactic spectator sport, and the major finishes we got in 2018 were typical. Rory McIlroy blowing up at Augusta and brief salvos from Jordan Spieth and Rickie Fowler fizzing out; Brooks Koepka snuffing out the field at the U.S. Open; Spieth laying a Sunday egg and nobody rising to Francesco Molinari’s challenge at the Open; Koepka snuffing out the field at the PGA. Real drama, good drama, is a rare commodity. The last really good two-man duel we had was probably Henrik Stenson vs. Phil Mickelson, but this year, let’s hope for even more. Let’s hope for something Arnie and Jack never quite gave us, and ditto for Tiger and Phil. Let’s hope the two best players in the world, whoever they are, face off in a Sunday showdown that lives up to and exceeds the hype.

2. Bryson DeChambeau will win a major championship It’s time to face reality: Aside from Tiger Woods—who holds the title in perpetuity—Bryson DeChambeau is the most exciting person in golf right now. With Rory smack in the middle of his “pick-your-favorite-polite-synonym-for-choking” phase, and Spieth still mired in his technical woes, DeChambeau is the man who could rescue us from the Koepka doldrums. What sets him apart is that he has the game and the personality—he’s part brilliant scientist, part egotist, part snake-oil salesman, and all showman. He loves the stage, and judging by the polarizing reactions he provokes, the stage loves him back. It would be terrific for golf if he broke through at a major in 2019.

3. Tiger Woods will win a major championship Well, yeah.

4. One of the new “Big Four” will win another major A lot of major talk, I know! But majors really tend to overshadow everything else, especially in a non-Ryder Cup year, so you’ll have to deal with it. Earlier this year, I calculated that there are four young(ish) players with a faint-yet-not-entirely-unrealistic hope of reaching the vaunted 10 major mark: Koepka, Spieth, McIlroy and Justin Thomas. If you believe as I do that golf is better when familiar faces are winning majors, and better yet when at least one or two is chasing some kind of historical mark, than you should want one of these guys to take home another trophy.

5. The USGA will somehow top themselves in the “infuriate everyone” department Watching professional golfers rage against the USGA for the most petty grievances imaginable is one of my favorite annual pastimes, and Phil Mickelson’s performance-art piece on the 13th green on Saturday last June at Shinnecock Hills (Title: “The Funniest Way For a Rich Guy to Pout”) was a highlight not just of that year, but any year. It will be incredibly disappointing if the USGA doesn’t up the ante. And frankly, driving a handful of whiners to say “they’ve lost the course” in their most solemn tones isn’t good enough. I want disappearing holes, or six-foot greens, or birds that are trained to pick up errant balls and fly them back to the tee. I want Mike Davis in a jester’s cap, dancing a jig on a raised platform every time a four-foot putt runs 15 feet past. Embrace your identity, USGA!

6. The International Team will win the Presidents Cup The obvious reasoning behind this is that the Presidents Cup is a bore, it’s not going to be fun until the U.S. stops dominating. Unfortunately, that seems surpassingly unlikely since language barriers on the International side make a mockery of any “team” concept for the “rest of the world”. But I have another selfish reason I’d like to see the Americans stumble: the U.S. needs to hit rock bottom before it can start winning Ryder Cups, and in hindsight, after the Paris debacle, Gleneagles 2014 looks more and more like a false rock bottom. Everything that happened since has been band-aids on a massive festering wound, and until the wound itself is addressed (hint: it’s going to involve a ton of soul-searching and revolves around how we, as a country, conceive of team events in golf), history is just going to repeat itself. Which makes me an accelerationist, I guess, but my motive is genuine: let’s make the reality of team play unbearable until somebody has to fix the problem.

7. The U.S. will not suffer another Ryder Cup defeat I need at least one thing on this list to come true, OK. This is not cheating, this is preparing for success.

8. The new PGA Tour schedule is going to work out amazingly for everyone Seriously, I really think it will! The only real problem for the majors was that the PGA Championship lacked a bit of prestige, and from decent slogans like “glory’s last shot” to achingly desperate ones like “this is major!”, nothing really caught on. However, the PGA’s move to May is genius—nobody’s burned out on golf, you can ride those sweet Masters tailwinds, and your stock inevitably goes up … right? No other big tournament suffers for it, either, and in fact the Players benefits from getting to go first. At a time when professional sports leagues seem to be in a constant state of foot-in-mouth, it’s weirdly thrilling to see PGA Tour absolutely nail it, and I hope it’s as good in reality as it looks in conception.

9. Someone extremely cool will emerge Maybe it’s Cam Champ? I don’t know, but I’m longing for a dynamic figure to throw down the gauntlet this year. Some combination of Tiger and Miguel Angel Jimenez, but young. Someone like we momentarily thought Brooks Koepka might be, until he turned out be either boring or resentful, depending on the day. Someone like Sergio, but without the debilitating neuroses. Someone like Phil, but with an ounce of impulse control. You get the point.

10. The “ball goes too far” brigade will be slightly less tiresome Look, I’m not saying they don’t have a point. But it’s a little like complaining about how the Internet has destroyed society in 2019—you’re absolutely right, but you’re also years and years too late. Nothing’s changing now, amigos! You’re the proverbial old man yells at cloud meme! Enjoy the bombs!

Source: golfdigest.com

The post The 10 Greatest Things That Could Happen in Golf in 2019 appeared first on Fox Prairie Golf Course & Forest Park Golf Course.

[culbertsonhillsgr]

The 10 Greatest Things That Could Happen in Golf in 2019

The end of the year is a time to look back and evaluate all that transpired in the previous 12 months, and though the internet is littered with “best of” lists, let’s be honest: a decent share of our assessments are based in regret—things that could have happened, that nearly happened, but in the end did not. Or, worse, terrible things that completely go against our greatest hopes. A year gone by is a graveyard. But the year ahead? That’s a sown field! Anything could happen, anything could grow, and it is far more fun to look forward with optimism than to look back in judgment.

So now that the calendar has flipped, let’s put an end to our sad reconciliations with 2018, and let our imaginations run wild. What follows are the 10 greatest things that could happen in golf in the coming year. Will they all transpire? Will any of them? The answer is, you can’t prove that they won’t.

1. There will be at least one incredible final round duel at a major Like it or not, golf is the most anticlimactic spectator sport, and the major finishes we got in 2018 were typical. Rory McIlroy blowing up at Augusta and brief salvos from Jordan Spieth and Rickie Fowler fizzing out; Brooks Koepka snuffing out the field at the U.S. Open; Spieth laying a Sunday egg and nobody rising to Francesco Molinari’s challenge at the Open; Koepka snuffing out the field at the PGA. Real drama, good drama, is a rare commodity. The last really good two-man duel we had was probably Henrik Stenson vs. Phil Mickelson, but this year, let’s hope for even more. Let’s hope for something Arnie and Jack never quite gave us, and ditto for Tiger and Phil. Let’s hope the two best players in the world, whoever they are, face off in a Sunday showdown that lives up to and exceeds the hype.

2. Bryson DeChambeau will win a major championship It’s time to face reality: Aside from Tiger Woods—who holds the title in perpetuity—Bryson DeChambeau is the most exciting person in golf right now. With Rory smack in the middle of his “pick-your-favorite-polite-synonym-for-choking” phase, and Spieth still mired in his technical woes, DeChambeau is the man who could rescue us from the Koepka doldrums. What sets him apart is that he has the game and the personality—he’s part brilliant scientist, part egotist, part snake-oil salesman, and all showman. He loves the stage, and judging by the polarizing reactions he provokes, the stage loves him back. It would be terrific for golf if he broke through at a major in 2019.

3. Tiger Woods will win a major championship Well, yeah.

4. One of the new “Big Four” will win another major A lot of major talk, I know! But majors really tend to overshadow everything else, especially in a non-Ryder Cup year, so you’ll have to deal with it. Earlier this year, I calculated that there are four young(ish) players with a faint-yet-not-entirely-unrealistic hope of reaching the vaunted 10 major mark: Koepka, Spieth, McIlroy and Justin Thomas. If you believe as I do that golf is better when familiar faces are winning majors, and better yet when at least one or two is chasing some kind of historical mark, than you should want one of these guys to take home another trophy.

5. The USGA will somehow top themselves in the “infuriate everyone” department Watching professional golfers rage against the USGA for the most petty grievances imaginable is one of my favorite annual pastimes, and Phil Mickelson’s performance-art piece on the 13th green on Saturday last June at Shinnecock Hills (Title: “The Funniest Way For a Rich Guy to Pout”) was a highlight not just of that year, but any year. It will be incredibly disappointing if the USGA doesn’t up the ante. And frankly, driving a handful of whiners to say “they’ve lost the course” in their most solemn tones isn’t good enough. I want disappearing holes, or six-foot greens, or birds that are trained to pick up errant balls and fly them back to the tee. I want Mike Davis in a jester’s cap, dancing a jig on a raised platform every time a four-foot putt runs 15 feet past. Embrace your identity, USGA!

6. The International Team will win the Presidents Cup The obvious reasoning behind this is that the Presidents Cup is a bore, it’s not going to be fun until the U.S. stops dominating. Unfortunately, that seems surpassingly unlikely since language barriers on the International side make a mockery of any “team” concept for the “rest of the world”. But I have another selfish reason I’d like to see the Americans stumble: the U.S. needs to hit rock bottom before it can start winning Ryder Cups, and in hindsight, after the Paris debacle, Gleneagles 2014 looks more and more like a false rock bottom. Everything that happened since has been band-aids on a massive festering wound, and until the wound itself is addressed (hint: it’s going to involve a ton of soul-searching and revolves around how we, as a country, conceive of team events in golf), history is just going to repeat itself. Which makes me an accelerationist, I guess, but my motive is genuine: let’s make the reality of team play unbearable until somebody has to fix the problem.

7. The U.S. will not suffer another Ryder Cup defeat I need at least one thing on this list to come true, OK. This is not cheating, this is preparing for success.

8. The new PGA Tour schedule is going to work out amazingly for everyone Seriously, I really think it will! The only real problem for the majors was that the PGA Championship lacked a bit of prestige, and from decent slogans like “glory’s last shot” to achingly desperate ones like “this is major!”, nothing really caught on. However, the PGA’s move to May is genius—nobody’s burned out on golf, you can ride those sweet Masters tailwinds, and your stock inevitably goes up … right? No other big tournament suffers for it, either, and in fact the Players benefits from getting to go first. At a time when professional sports leagues seem to be in a constant state of foot-in-mouth, it’s weirdly thrilling to see PGA Tour absolutely nail it, and I hope it’s as good in reality as it looks in conception.

9. Someone extremely cool will emerge Maybe it’s Cam Champ? I don’t know, but I’m longing for a dynamic figure to throw down the gauntlet this year. Some combination of Tiger and Miguel Angel Jimenez, but young. Someone like we momentarily thought Brooks Koepka might be, until he turned out be either boring or resentful, depending on the day. Someone like Sergio, but without the debilitating neuroses. Someone like Phil, but with an ounce of impulse control. You get the point.

10. The “ball goes too far” brigade will be slightly less tiresome Look, I’m not saying they don’t have a point. But it’s a little like complaining about how the Internet has destroyed society in 2019—you’re absolutely right, but you’re also years and years too late. Nothing’s changing now, amigos! You’re the proverbial old man yells at cloud meme! Enjoy the bombs!

Source: golfdigest.com

The post The 10 Greatest Things That Could Happen in Golf in 2019 appeared first on Culbertson Hills.

[sherwoodforestgolf]

The 10 Greatest Things That Could Happen in Golf in 2019

The end of the year is a time to look back and evaluate all that transpired in the previous 12 months, and though the internet is littered with “best of” lists, let’s be honest: a decent share of our assessments are based in regret—things that could have happened, that nearly happened, but in the end did not. Or, worse, terrible things that completely go against our greatest hopes. A year gone by is a graveyard. But the year ahead? That’s a sown field! Anything could happen, anything could grow, and it is far more fun to look forward with optimism than to look back in judgment.

So now that the calendar has flipped, let’s put an end to our sad reconciliations with 2018, and let our imaginations run wild. What follows are the 10 greatest things that could happen in golf in the coming year. Will they all transpire? Will any of them? The answer is, you can’t prove that they won’t.

1. There will be at least one incredible final round duel at a major Like it or not, golf is the most anticlimactic spectator sport, and the major finishes we got in 2018 were typical. Rory McIlroy blowing up at Augusta and brief salvos from Jordan Spieth and Rickie Fowler fizzing out; Brooks Koepka snuffing out the field at the U.S. Open; Spieth laying a Sunday egg and nobody rising to Francesco Molinari’s challenge at the Open; Koepka snuffing out the field at the PGA. Real drama, good drama, is a rare commodity. The last really good two-man duel we had was probably Henrik Stenson vs. Phil Mickelson, but this year, let’s hope for even more. Let’s hope for something Arnie and Jack never quite gave us, and ditto for Tiger and Phil. Let’s hope the two best players in the world, whoever they are, face off in a Sunday showdown that lives up to and exceeds the hype.

2. Bryson DeChambeau will win a major championship It’s time to face reality: Aside from Tiger Woods—who holds the title in perpetuity—Bryson DeChambeau is the most exciting person in golf right now. With Rory smack in the middle of his “pick-your-favorite-polite-synonym-for-choking” phase, and Spieth still mired in his technical woes, DeChambeau is the man who could rescue us from the Koepka doldrums. What sets him apart is that he has the game and the personality—he’s part brilliant scientist, part egotist, part snake-oil salesman, and all showman. He loves the stage, and judging by the polarizing reactions he provokes, the stage loves him back. It would be terrific for golf if he broke through at a major in 2019.

3. Tiger Woods will win a major championship Well, yeah.

4. One of the new “Big Four” will win another major A lot of major talk, I know! But majors really tend to overshadow everything else, especially in a non-Ryder Cup year, so you’ll have to deal with it. Earlier this year, I calculated that there are four young(ish) players with a faint-yet-not-entirely-unrealistic hope of reaching the vaunted 10 major mark: Koepka, Spieth, McIlroy and Justin Thomas. If you believe as I do that golf is better when familiar faces are winning majors, and better yet when at least one or two is chasing some kind of historical mark, than you should want one of these guys to take home another trophy.

5. The USGA will somehow top themselves in the “infuriate everyone” department Watching professional golfers rage against the USGA for the most petty grievances imaginable is one of my favorite annual pastimes, and Phil Mickelson’s performance-art piece on the 13th green on Saturday last June at Shinnecock Hills (Title: “The Funniest Way For a Rich Guy to Pout”) was a highlight not just of that year, but any year. It will be incredibly disappointing if the USGA doesn’t up the ante. And frankly, driving a handful of whiners to say “they’ve lost the course” in their most solemn tones isn’t good enough. I want disappearing holes, or six-foot greens, or birds that are trained to pick up errant balls and fly them back to the tee. I want Mike Davis in a jester’s cap, dancing a jig on a raised platform every time a four-foot putt runs 15 feet past. Embrace your identity, USGA!

6. The International Team will win the Presidents Cup The obvious reasoning behind this is that the Presidents Cup is a bore, it’s not going to be fun until the U.S. stops dominating. Unfortunately, that seems surpassingly unlikely since language barriers on the International side make a mockery of any “team” concept for the “rest of the world”. But I have another selfish reason I’d like to see the Americans stumble: the U.S. needs to hit rock bottom before it can start winning Ryder Cups, and in hindsight, after the Paris debacle, Gleneagles 2014 looks more and more like a false rock bottom. Everything that happened since has been band-aids on a massive festering wound, and until the wound itself is addressed (hint: it’s going to involve a ton of soul-searching and revolves around how we, as a country, conceive of team events in golf), history is just going to repeat itself. Which makes me an accelerationist, I guess, but my motive is genuine: let’s make the reality of team play unbearable until somebody has to fix the problem.

7. The U.S. will not suffer another Ryder Cup defeat I need at least one thing on this list to come true, OK. This is not cheating, this is preparing for success.

8. The new PGA Tour schedule is going to work out amazingly for everyone Seriously, I really think it will! The only real problem for the majors was that the PGA Championship lacked a bit of prestige, and from decent slogans like “glory’s last shot” to achingly desperate ones like “this is major!”, nothing really caught on. However, the PGA’s move to May is genius—nobody’s burned out on golf, you can ride those sweet Masters tailwinds, and your stock inevitably goes up … right? No other big tournament suffers for it, either, and in fact the Players benefits from getting to go first. At a time when professional sports leagues seem to be in a constant state of foot-in-mouth, it’s weirdly thrilling to see PGA Tour absolutely nail it, and I hope it’s as good in reality as it looks in conception.

9. Someone extremely cool will emerge Maybe it’s Cam Champ? I don’t know, but I’m longing for a dynamic figure to throw down the gauntlet this year. Some combination of Tiger and Miguel Angel Jimenez, but young. Someone like we momentarily thought Brooks Koepka might be, until he turned out be either boring or resentful, depending on the day. Someone like Sergio, but without the debilitating neuroses. Someone like Phil, but with an ounce of impulse control. You get the point.

10. The “ball goes too far” brigade will be slightly less tiresome Look, I’m not saying they don’t have a point. But it’s a little like complaining about how the Internet has destroyed society in 2019—you’re absolutely right, but you’re also years and years too late. Nothing’s changing now, amigos! You’re the proverbial old man yells at cloud meme! Enjoy the bombs!

Source: golfdigest.com

The post The 10 Greatest Things That Could Happen in Golf in 2019 appeared first on Sherwood Forest.

[melodyhillcc]

The 10 Greatest Things That Could Happen in Golf in 2019

The end of the year is a time to look back and evaluate all that transpired in the previous 12 months, and though the internet is littered with “best of” lists, let’s be honest: a decent share of our assessments are based in regret—things that could have happened, that nearly happened, but in the end did not. Or, worse, terrible things that completely go against our greatest hopes. A year gone by is a graveyard. But the year ahead? That’s a sown field! Anything could happen, anything could grow, and it is far more fun to look forward with optimism than to look back in judgment.

So now that the calendar has flipped, let’s put an end to our sad reconciliations with 2018, and let our imaginations run wild. What follows are the 10 greatest things that could happen in golf in the coming year. Will they all transpire? Will any of them? The answer is, you can’t prove that they won’t.

1. There will be at least one incredible final round duel at a major Like it or not, golf is the most anticlimactic spectator sport, and the major finishes we got in 2018 were typical. Rory McIlroy blowing up at Augusta and brief salvos from Jordan Spieth and Rickie Fowler fizzing out; Brooks Koepka snuffing out the field at the U.S. Open; Spieth laying a Sunday egg and nobody rising to Francesco Molinari’s challenge at the Open; Koepka snuffing out the field at the PGA. Real drama, good drama, is a rare commodity. The last really good two-man duel we had was probably Henrik Stenson vs. Phil Mickelson, but this year, let’s hope for even more. Let’s hope for something Arnie and Jack never quite gave us, and ditto for Tiger and Phil. Let’s hope the two best players in the world, whoever they are, face off in a Sunday showdown that lives up to and exceeds the hype.

2. Bryson DeChambeau will win a major championship It’s time to face reality: Aside from Tiger Woods—who holds the title in perpetuity—Bryson DeChambeau is the most exciting person in golf right now. With Rory smack in the middle of his “pick-your-favorite-polite-synonym-for-choking” phase, and Spieth still mired in his technical woes, DeChambeau is the man who could rescue us from the Koepka doldrums. What sets him apart is that he has the game and the personality—he’s part brilliant scientist, part egotist, part snake-oil salesman, and all showman. He loves the stage, and judging by the polarizing reactions he provokes, the stage loves him back. It would be terrific for golf if he broke through at a major in 2019.

3. Tiger Woods will win a major championship Well, yeah.

4. One of the new “Big Four” will win another major A lot of major talk, I know! But majors really tend to overshadow everything else, especially in a non-Ryder Cup year, so you’ll have to deal with it. Earlier this year, I calculated that there are four young(ish) players with a faint-yet-not-entirely-unrealistic hope of reaching the vaunted 10 major mark: Koepka, Spieth, McIlroy and Justin Thomas. If you believe as I do that golf is better when familiar faces are winning majors, and better yet when at least one or two is chasing some kind of historical mark, than you should want one of these guys to take home another trophy.

5. The USGA will somehow top themselves in the “infuriate everyone” department Watching professional golfers rage against the USGA for the most petty grievances imaginable is one of my favorite annual pastimes, and Phil Mickelson’s performance-art piece on the 13th green on Saturday last June at Shinnecock Hills (Title: “The Funniest Way For a Rich Guy to Pout”) was a highlight not just of that year, but any year. It will be incredibly disappointing if the USGA doesn’t up the ante. And frankly, driving a handful of whiners to say “they’ve lost the course” in their most solemn tones isn’t good enough. I want disappearing holes, or six-foot greens, or birds that are trained to pick up errant balls and fly them back to the tee. I want Mike Davis in a jester’s cap, dancing a jig on a raised platform every time a four-foot putt runs 15 feet past. Embrace your identity, USGA!

6. The International Team will win the Presidents Cup The obvious reasoning behind this is that the Presidents Cup is a bore, it’s not going to be fun until the U.S. stops dominating. Unfortunately, that seems surpassingly unlikely since language barriers on the International side make a mockery of any “team” concept for the “rest of the world”. But I have another selfish reason I’d like to see the Americans stumble: the U.S. needs to hit rock bottom before it can start winning Ryder Cups, and in hindsight, after the Paris debacle, Gleneagles 2014 looks more and more like a false rock bottom. Everything that happened since has been band-aids on a massive festering wound, and until the wound itself is addressed (hint: it’s going to involve a ton of soul-searching and revolves around how we, as a country, conceive of team events in golf), history is just going to repeat itself. Which makes me an accelerationist, I guess, but my motive is genuine: let’s make the reality of team play unbearable until somebody has to fix the problem.

7. The U.S. will not suffer another Ryder Cup defeat I need at least one thing on this list to come true, OK. This is not cheating, this is preparing for success.

8. The new PGA Tour schedule is going to work out amazingly for everyone Seriously, I really think it will! The only real problem for the majors was that the PGA Championship lacked a bit of prestige, and from decent slogans like “glory’s last shot” to achingly desperate ones like “this is major!”, nothing really caught on. However, the PGA’s move to May is genius—nobody’s burned out on golf, you can ride those sweet Masters tailwinds, and your stock inevitably goes up … right? No other big tournament suffers for it, either, and in fact the Players benefits from getting to go first. At a time when professional sports leagues seem to be in a constant state of foot-in-mouth, it’s weirdly thrilling to see PGA Tour absolutely nail it, and I hope it’s as good in reality as it looks in conception.

9. Someone extremely cool will emerge Maybe it’s Cam Champ? I don’t know, but I’m longing for a dynamic figure to throw down the gauntlet this year. Some combination of Tiger and Miguel Angel Jimenez, but young. Someone like we momentarily thought Brooks Koepka might be, until he turned out be either boring or resentful, depending on the day. Someone like Sergio, but without the debilitating neuroses. Someone like Phil, but with an ounce of impulse control. You get the point.

10. The “ball goes too far” brigade will be slightly less tiresome Look, I’m not saying they don’t have a point. But it’s a little like complaining about how the Internet has destroyed society in 2019—you’re absolutely right, but you’re also years and years too late. Nothing’s changing now, amigos! You’re the proverbial old man yells at cloud meme! Enjoy the bombs!

Source: golfdigest.com

The post The 10 Greatest Things That Could Happen in Golf in 2019 appeared first on Melody Hill.

[dudleyhillgc]

The 10 Greatest Things That Could Happen in Golf in 2019

The end of the year is a time to look back and evaluate all that transpired in the previous 12 months, and though the internet is littered with “best of” lists, let’s be honest: a decent share of our assessments are based in regret—things that could have happened, that nearly happened, but in the end did not. Or, worse, terrible things that completely go against our greatest hopes. A year gone by is a graveyard. But the year ahead? That’s a sown field! Anything could happen, anything could grow, and it is far more fun to look forward with optimism than to look back in judgment.

So now that the calendar has flipped, let’s put an end to our sad reconciliations with 2018, and let our imaginations run wild. What follows are the 10 greatest things that could happen in golf in the coming year. Will they all transpire? Will any of them? The answer is, you can’t prove that they won’t.

1. There will be at least one incredible final round duel at a major Like it or not, golf is the most anticlimactic spectator sport, and the major finishes we got in 2018 were typical. Rory McIlroy blowing up at Augusta and brief salvos from Jordan Spieth and Rickie Fowler fizzing out; Brooks Koepka snuffing out the field at the U.S. Open; Spieth laying a Sunday egg and nobody rising to Francesco Molinari’s challenge at the Open; Koepka snuffing out the field at the PGA. Real drama, good drama, is a rare commodity. The last really good two-man duel we had was probably Henrik Stenson vs. Phil Mickelson, but this year, let’s hope for even more. Let’s hope for something Arnie and Jack never quite gave us, and ditto for Tiger and Phil. Let’s hope the two best players in the world, whoever they are, face off in a Sunday showdown that lives up to and exceeds the hype.

2. Bryson DeChambeau will win a major championship It’s time to face reality: Aside from Tiger Woods—who holds the title in perpetuity—Bryson DeChambeau is the most exciting person in golf right now. With Rory smack in the middle of his “pick-your-favorite-polite-synonym-for-choking” phase, and Spieth still mired in his technical woes, DeChambeau is the man who could rescue us from the Koepka doldrums. What sets him apart is that he has the game and the personality—he’s part brilliant scientist, part egotist, part snake-oil salesman, and all showman. He loves the stage, and judging by the polarizing reactions he provokes, the stage loves him back. It would be terrific for golf if he broke through at a major in 2019.

3. Tiger Woods will win a major championship Well, yeah.

4. One of the new “Big Four” will win another major A lot of major talk, I know! But majors really tend to overshadow everything else, especially in a non-Ryder Cup year, so you’ll have to deal with it. Earlier this year, I calculated that there are four young(ish) players with a faint-yet-not-entirely-unrealistic hope of reaching the vaunted 10 major mark: Koepka, Spieth, McIlroy and Justin Thomas. If you believe as I do that golf is better when familiar faces are winning majors, and better yet when at least one or two is chasing some kind of historical mark, than you should want one of these guys to take home another trophy.

5. The USGA will somehow top themselves in the “infuriate everyone” department Watching professional golfers rage against the USGA for the most petty grievances imaginable is one of my favorite annual pastimes, and Phil Mickelson’s performance-art piece on the 13th green on Saturday last June at Shinnecock Hills (Title: “The Funniest Way For a Rich Guy to Pout”) was a highlight not just of that year, but any year. It will be incredibly disappointing if the USGA doesn’t up the ante. And frankly, driving a handful of whiners to say “they’ve lost the course” in their most solemn tones isn’t good enough. I want disappearing holes, or six-foot greens, or birds that are trained to pick up errant balls and fly them back to the tee. I want Mike Davis in a jester’s cap, dancing a jig on a raised platform every time a four-foot putt runs 15 feet past. Embrace your identity, USGA!

6. The International Team will win the Presidents Cup The obvious reasoning behind this is that the Presidents Cup is a bore, it’s not going to be fun until the U.S. stops dominating. Unfortunately, that seems surpassingly unlikely since language barriers on the International side make a mockery of any “team” concept for the “rest of the world”. But I have another selfish reason I’d like to see the Americans stumble: the U.S. needs to hit rock bottom before it can start winning Ryder Cups, and in hindsight, after the Paris debacle, Gleneagles 2014 looks more and more like a false rock bottom. Everything that happened since has been band-aids on a massive festering wound, and until the wound itself is addressed (hint: it’s going to involve a ton of soul-searching and revolves around how we, as a country, conceive of team events in golf), history is just going to repeat itself. Which makes me an accelerationist, I guess, but my motive is genuine: let’s make the reality of team play unbearable until somebody has to fix the problem.

7. The U.S. will not suffer another Ryder Cup defeat I need at least one thing on this list to come true, OK. This is not cheating, this is preparing for success.

8. The new PGA Tour schedule is going to work out amazingly for everyone Seriously, I really think it will! The only real problem for the majors was that the PGA Championship lacked a bit of prestige, and from decent slogans like “glory’s last shot” to achingly desperate ones like “this is major!”, nothing really caught on. However, the PGA’s move to May is genius—nobody’s burned out on golf, you can ride those sweet Masters tailwinds, and your stock inevitably goes up … right? No other big tournament suffers for it, either, and in fact the Players benefits from getting to go first. At a time when professional sports leagues seem to be in a constant state of foot-in-mouth, it’s weirdly thrilling to see PGA Tour absolutely nail it, and I hope it’s as good in reality as it looks in conception.

9. Someone extremely cool will emerge Maybe it’s Cam Champ? I don’t know, but I’m longing for a dynamic figure to throw down the gauntlet this year. Some combination of Tiger and Miguel Angel Jimenez, but young. Someone like we momentarily thought Brooks Koepka might be, until he turned out be either boring or resentful, depending on the day. Someone like Sergio, but without the debilitating neuroses. Someone like Phil, but with an ounce of impulse control. You get the point.

10. The “ball goes too far” brigade will be slightly less tiresome Look, I’m not saying they don’t have a point. But it’s a little like complaining about how the Internet has destroyed society in 2019—you’re absolutely right, but you’re also years and years too late. Nothing’s changing now, amigos! You’re the proverbial old man yells at cloud meme! Enjoy the bombs!

Source: golfdigest.com

The post The 10 Greatest Things That Could Happen in Golf in 2019 appeared first on Dudley Hill.

[turnberrycountryclub]

The 10 Greatest Things That Could Happen in Golf in 2019

The end of the year is a time to look back and evaluate all that transpired in the previous 12 months, and though the internet is littered with “best of” lists, let’s be honest: a decent share of our assessments are based in regret—things that could have happened, that nearly happened, but in the end did not. Or, worse, terrible things that completely go against our greatest hopes. A year gone by is a graveyard. But the year ahead? That’s a sown field! Anything could happen, anything could grow, and it is far more fun to look forward with optimism than to look back in judgment.

So now that the calendar has flipped, let’s put an end to our sad reconciliations with 2018, and let our imaginations run wild. What follows are the 10 greatest things that could happen in golf in the coming year. Will they all transpire? Will any of them? The answer is, you can’t prove that they won’t.

1. There will be at least one incredible final round duel at a major Like it or not, golf is the most anticlimactic spectator sport, and the major finishes we got in 2018 were typical. Rory McIlroy blowing up at Augusta and brief salvos from Jordan Spieth and Rickie Fowler fizzing out; Brooks Koepka snuffing out the field at the U.S. Open; Spieth laying a Sunday egg and nobody rising to Francesco Molinari’s challenge at the Open; Koepka snuffing out the field at the PGA. Real drama, good drama, is a rare commodity. The last really good two-man duel we had was probably Henrik Stenson vs. Phil Mickelson, but this year, let’s hope for even more. Let’s hope for something Arnie and Jack never quite gave us, and ditto for Tiger and Phil. Let’s hope the two best players in the world, whoever they are, face off in a Sunday showdown that lives up to and exceeds the hype.

2. Bryson DeChambeau will win a major championship It’s time to face reality: Aside from Tiger Woods—who holds the title in perpetuity—Bryson DeChambeau is the most exciting person in golf right now. With Rory smack in the middle of his “pick-your-favorite-polite-synonym-for-choking” phase, and Spieth still mired in his technical woes, DeChambeau is the man who could rescue us from the Koepka doldrums. What sets him apart is that he has the game and the personality—he’s part brilliant scientist, part egotist, part snake-oil salesman, and all showman. He loves the stage, and judging by the polarizing reactions he provokes, the stage loves him back. It would be terrific for golf if he broke through at a major in 2019.

3. Tiger Woods will win a major championship Well, yeah.

4. One of the new “Big Four” will win another major A lot of major talk, I know! But majors really tend to overshadow everything else, especially in a non-Ryder Cup year, so you’ll have to deal with it. Earlier this year, I calculated that there are four young(ish) players with a faint-yet-not-entirely-unrealistic hope of reaching the vaunted 10 major mark: Koepka, Spieth, McIlroy and Justin Thomas. If you believe as I do that golf is better when familiar faces are winning majors, and better yet when at least one or two is chasing some kind of historical mark, than you should want one of these guys to take home another trophy.

5. The USGA will somehow top themselves in the “infuriate everyone” department Watching professional golfers rage against the USGA for the most petty grievances imaginable is one of my favorite annual pastimes, and Phil Mickelson’s performance-art piece on the 13th green on Saturday last June at Shinnecock Hills (Title: “The Funniest Way For a Rich Guy to Pout”) was a highlight not just of that year, but any year. It will be incredibly disappointing if the USGA doesn’t up the ante. And frankly, driving a handful of whiners to say “they’ve lost the course” in their most solemn tones isn’t good enough. I want disappearing holes, or six-foot greens, or birds that are trained to pick up errant balls and fly them back to the tee. I want Mike Davis in a jester’s cap, dancing a jig on a raised platform every time a four-foot putt runs 15 feet past. Embrace your identity, USGA!

6. The International Team will win the Presidents Cup The obvious reasoning behind this is that the Presidents Cup is a bore, it’s not going to be fun until the U.S. stops dominating. Unfortunately, that seems surpassingly unlikely since language barriers on the International side make a mockery of any “team” concept for the “rest of the world”. But I have another selfish reason I’d like to see the Americans stumble: the U.S. needs to hit rock bottom before it can start winning Ryder Cups, and in hindsight, after the Paris debacle, Gleneagles 2014 looks more and more like a false rock bottom. Everything that happened since has been band-aids on a massive festering wound, and until the wound itself is addressed (hint: it’s going to involve a ton of soul-searching and revolves around how we, as a country, conceive of team events in golf), history is just going to repeat itself. Which makes me an accelerationist, I guess, but my motive is genuine: let’s make the reality of team play unbearable until somebody has to fix the problem.

7. The U.S. will not suffer another Ryder Cup defeat I need at least one thing on this list to come true, OK. This is not cheating, this is preparing for success.

8. The new PGA Tour schedule is going to work out amazingly for everyone Seriously, I really think it will! The only real problem for the majors was that the PGA Championship lacked a bit of prestige, and from decent slogans like “glory’s last shot” to achingly desperate ones like “this is major!”, nothing really caught on. However, the PGA’s move to May is genius—nobody’s burned out on golf, you can ride those sweet Masters tailwinds, and your stock inevitably goes up … right? No other big tournament suffers for it, either, and in fact the Players benefits from getting to go first. At a time when professional sports leagues seem to be in a constant state of foot-in-mouth, it’s weirdly thrilling to see PGA Tour absolutely nail it, and I hope it’s as good in reality as it looks in conception.

9. Someone extremely cool will emerge Maybe it’s Cam Champ? I don’t know, but I’m longing for a dynamic figure to throw down the gauntlet this year. Some combination of Tiger and Miguel Angel Jimenez, but young. Someone like we momentarily thought Brooks Koepka might be, until he turned out be either boring or resentful, depending on the day. Someone like Sergio, but without the debilitating neuroses. Someone like Phil, but with an ounce of impulse control. You get the point.

10. The “ball goes too far” brigade will be slightly less tiresome Look, I’m not saying they don’t have a point. But it’s a little like complaining about how the Internet has destroyed society in 2019—you’re absolutely right, but you’re also years and years too late. Nothing’s changing now, amigos! You’re the proverbial old man yells at cloud meme! Enjoy the bombs!

Source: golfdigest.com

The post The 10 Greatest Things That Could Happen in Golf in 2019 appeared first on Turnberry Country Club.

[junker-town]

PGA Championship 2017 picks and predictions: Rory McIlroy is the one to block Jordan Spieth's slam pursuit

The 99th PGA Championship at Quail Hollow is loaded with hype and the potential for history. Here are some picks and predictions for the weekend in Charlotte.

The final men's major championship of the year is here, and it's the most hyped in a long time. The PGA Championship got a huge boost when Jordan Spieth won the Claret Jug less than three weeks ago, setting the stage for potential history at Quail Hollow. Spieth can become the youngest ever to complete the career slam. But we're at a course where maybe his contemporary rival and challenger for the next two decades, Rory McIlroy, has feasted and is the favorite.

It has all set up an incredible dynamic that is just a part of the 99th PGA. Here are some picks, predictions, and points to watch for this week in Charlotte.

Jordan Spieth stopped the streak of first-time major winners. But there's still a loaded crop waiting to breakthrough. Who are some of the top candidates to get their first major this week?

Emily: Rickie Fowler and Hideki Matsuyama are the obvious candidates, with a bit of Matt Kuchar sprinkled into the mix. Sadly for them, they’ll all walk away from Quail Hollow with the “best golfers without a major” label still intact.

Brendan: We've gotten caught up a bit in the Spieth vs. Rory hype over the last two weeks and neglected some of the potential first-timers that fit this course perfectly. Rickie doesn't have quite the track record of Rory, but as Kyle pointed out yesterday in his power rankings, it's pretty dang good. And the same goes for Hideki, who just burned Firestone to the ground with a Sunday 61 and ran away from one of the deepest fields of the year. That kind of tee-to-green game that sets up for Firestone will play well here too (it plays well everywhere, of course, the advantage just might be greater at a setup like this). These two have as good a chance to win this week as Rory and Spieth.

Kyle: I think we’re all in agreement that Rickie & Hideki are the low-hanging fruit here, so let’s reach a bit higher on the tree -- but not much. I want to toss Thomas Pieters name in here. He’s got all the game in the world and perfect here, but I think he’s still a bit green on the big stage. We’ve seen some nervy play at the Olympics, Masters, and last week at Firestone when contending in big events on the weekend. Sometimes you have to walk before you run, and sometimes you have to win a WGC or a Rolex event before we talk major championship.

I really, really like Justin Thomas in theory here at Quail. He’s the quintessential American player for the American game — big drives, hits it miles in the air — and I think we’re set to favor those type of players this week. It’s gonna be wet, it’s gonna be long. Perfect conditions to boom it & stick it. JT seems built to win a PGA, and perhaps it’s this one.

Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images

Is this finally the week Rickie gets one?

Who is your darkhorse pick to win, or just contend (ideally odds 60/1 or higher)?

Brendan: The PGA, in theory, is the hardest major to win. You have the full top 100 in the world rankings on hand. The Masters field isn't even 100 players total, with a swath being past champions and amateurs. The two Opens also have large chunks of their field reserved for qualifiers and other longshots or unexpected entrants. The PGA ensures everyone that's at the top of the game is in the field, so there's so many "darkhorse" picks with great value down the board. Tony Finau at 100/1 is good value, given his strokes gained off-the-tee advantage. Kevin Chappell, at 80/1, is a trendy pick this week given his season-long form and ability to boom it.

There's just a lot to like with longer odds but I'll give you just those two for fear of becoming one of those guys that rattles off an enormous list of names so they can say "they had that one" after the fact. That's a scourge these days.

Kyle: Yeah, there’s a ton to like on down the board here. There’s a reason I think this is golf’s best major championship. It’s a deep field as Brendan said, and it’s often on the best setup. If you parse through all the sanctimony of the other three majors and just want to see a really quality championship, here’s often the best place to look. (I’ll admit that wasn’t the case last year)

I’ll like bold picks, so I’ll give you two young names both with triple-digit odds to win: Xander Schauffele (100/1) and Patrick Rodgers (200/1). I’m all in on X after strong finishes at the last two majors, he bombs it, and should be your PGA Tour Rookie of the Year. As for Rodgers, we’re probably overdue to have him contend in a major. His professional career hasn’t yet materialized like his record-setting collegiate days at Stanford, but a T-2 here in 2015 behind Rory should give you some optimism if you’re looking waaaaay down the board for good value. I don’t know if either win, but I think both are solid bets to contend here.

Emily: Ian Poulter (80/1) has had a resurgent last few months after Brian Gay helped him keep his PGA Tour card for the season. He won’t win this week and will have to rid himself of memories of his T61 finish at the 2016 Wells Fargo Championship at Quail Hollow, but he did have a T5 on the Charlotte track in 2009 so he could contend this week. Or not.

Which big name, or names, are the best candidates to disappoint and exit before the weekend?

Rob Schumacher-USA TODAY Sports

Life is grand for the newly-married Sergio, and he’s been absurdly consistent over the past couple seasons in majors. Is it too much to ask for him to contend coming off wedding season?

Emily: Bubba Watson — The two-time Masters champ is having a down season and teeing it up at Quail Hollow — where he posted his third of three missed cuts the last time around the Charlotte track in 2013 — won’t fix what ails him. But, hey, in a season of caddie musical chairs, he and Ted Scott are still a team so he has that going for him.

Brendan: I don't have any great candidates here for this particular major, which I suppose is a good thing. Bubba is always a fit for this spot and you've covered him already, Emily. I have lower expectations for Jason Day, but I still find it hard to believe he'll miss the cut. Perhaps Phil Mickelson misses his second straight major cut in what has become quite a lost year for the lefty.

Kyle: I have a confession: I’m a little concerned about Sergio this week. Okay, maybe not concerned. Kenny G just played his wedding and he’s clearly living his best life post-Masters win. But, we’re kinda overdue for Sergio to miss a cut. If there’s a time you’d be excused to no-show in a major, it’s coming off your danged wedding.

The upshot? Sergio doesn’t miss cuts anymore! Like ever! It’s been over a full calendar year since El Nino last missed a cut, since last year’s PGA in July. He’s made 20 straight worldwide, and missed exactly two in the last two years. That’s damn impressive. Tiger damaged our senses for appreciating consistency.

What do you expect from Quail Hollow, a PGA Tour venue during the regular season, as a major championship setup?

Brendan: I think Quail Hollow will work out fine as a major championship test, although we've heard some slight grumbling already about some of the Tom Fazio redesigned holes on the front nine. For the most part, the players seem diplomatic about the changes. And it's a course they have loved as a regular stop on the PGA Tour schedule. What may be dissatisfying to the TV viewer or the architecture nerd is not necessarily the view on the ground among those playing these courses at the highest levels.

The PGA has provided some of the best major championship drama of the past five years. Is the PGA still the fourth major? If last, why? Will a schedule change do anything for the PGA's identity or prestige?

Kyle: No. God no. Absolutely not. The schedule change is a horrible move that robs the PGA of any identity it had in the first place. Consider where the PGA’s been played, historically: the Midwest and Northeast.

The championship’s iconic venues that have provided excellent championships are all in cold-weather locales. Hazeltine in Minnesota. Medinah in Chicago. Baltusrol in New Jersey. Whistling Straights in Wisconsin. Oak Hill in upstate New York. Valhalla in Louisville. Oakland Hills in Detroit. Sure, sure -- weather is decent in May in many of those places, but it’s the months leading up that create the concern. You can’t prep a course for a major in March and April in cold temperatures, and it’s a strong possibility those great tracks are all axed from the rota.

What does that mean? More pro golf in areas that are already over-saturated with Tour stops: the Southeast, Calfornia, and perhaps Texas. No thanks!

Emily: Scheduling the event in May rather than August could give the event some momentum and may change the perception that the PGA is the little brother of the three other majors. This year, coming just three weeks after the British Open and seven days after the Women’s British Open, the PGA is most definitely the fourth major and reeks of majors-overload.

Brendan: I've heard several persuasive arguments for why this schedule reshuffling is good for golf and different golf organizations. I've yet to hear a really compelling one for why it's good for the PGA, which is, you know, the one event making the biggest move. I think the PGA Tour is a huge winner here, getting The Players back to March and now having all of August to get their FedExCup Playoffs done before football owns the sports landscape. I thought the PGA was an underrated and great major and perfectly suited for August, when there's little competition. It may not have the identity of the other three, but it's been a great championship in recent years (save for the Baltusrol bore of 2016).

Expectations for:

Phil Mickelson

Brendan: Phil has a strong track record here and has professed adoration for the course, but the 2017 languishing continues. I know it's facile to point at the very obvious change and cite that as a cause for concern, but I do think he's trying to find his way in the immediate events following the Bones separation.

Kyle: I’ll ask the uncomfortable question: Are we past the point where we seriously consider Phil a viable contender at 47? It’s starting to feel like last year’s duel at Troon with Henrik was kinda, like, it. He always plays well at Quail, but if not now, when?

Emily: Lefty misses Bones but not the cut this week at Quail Hollow, where he has nine top-10 finishes in 13 starts.

Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images

Rory and his new caddie, best friend Harry Diamond.

Rory McIlroy

Kyle: This might be a golf litmus test for Rory this week. Let me explain.

I’m a believer in horses-for-courses, and there’s no horse more suited to a course than Rory McIlroy to Quail Hollow. He’s the favorite, and I’d be inclined to say he’s an overwhelming favorite. We’ve had this penciled in as a Rory major win since Quail was announced as a venue, and it’s his tournament to lose. That’s a ton of pressure to put on the back of a player in a fickle sport, but we know how much he loves this golf course.

Now, if he doesn’t show up at all and ejects early? It’s probably due time to raise a round of valid questions about Rory moving forward.

Emily: If Jordan Spieth says Rors is the “guy to beat,” who am I to disagree? With his game rounding into form, his confidence sky high, the event one of his favorites (he has two Wanamaker Trophies to prove it), and this week’s tourney at one of the courses he enjoys most, McIlroy’s a good bet to hoist the hardware for his fifth major. But he’ll have to battle Dustin Johnson for the honor and this is just not Rory’s year.

Jordan Spieth

Brendan: While Spieth does keep exceeding expectations and hitting milestones that put him in territory with Jack and Tiger, I don't expect him to make history and become the youngest ever to win the career slam. He's got 25 more years of trying at the PGA and I think he's still coming down off the high of that Open finish. He also said on Sunday that he needs to get his putting right. Spieth's been too good this summer to just flop out, so I think he'll be inside the top 15 come Sunday, but I don't expect him to go back-to-back. It's just too hard.

Kyle: Yeah, winning back-to-back is just really hard to do. Upshot? JS has already done it once. I don’t think Quail in wet conditions is suited for what Jordan does well. I’d be shocked to see him miss the cut, but I’d also be shocked to see anyone other than a big hitter win here this week.

Emily: It’s wait ‘til next year for the next Tiger Woods’ chance to complete the career grand slam.

Dustin Johnson

Brendan: This is where the No. 1 player in the world re-joins the battle. He's been mostly absent since his tumble down the stairs at the Masters, a point in the season where it seemed he was unstoppable. He's not been the same since. Given the first quarter of the year, it seemed safe to think he'd get a second career major in 2017 on some courses built for his strengths. Quail Hollow favors the big hitters more than almost any major championship track ever, and DJ does that as well as anyone. I think DJ is back contending for a major this week, but comes up just shy with a T2 finish.

Kyle: Sorry. Call me a curmudgeon, but I’ve sold my stock in DJ, Inc. February was a long time ago, and DJ’s been a non-factor in the majors this year. Perhaps we’re seeing some regression to the mean. Bob Garrigus has more top-10s this summer than DJ. Not good!

Who wins the Wanamaker Trophy? And what's the winning number?

Emily: Dustin Johnson — After clocking the longest drive on the PGA Tour since 2013 Thursday at Firestone (a skull-imploding 439 yards!), it would appear the big guy’s back, which he injured ahead of the Masters, forcing him to withdraw, is no longer a problem. And after closing the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational with 68-66 over the weekend, DJ told reporters at Quail Hollow that he was “finally coming back into [pre-Augusta] form.” That’s bad news for the rest of the field, especially with the world No. 1 predicting “a very good week” for himself. Save time and just etch his name on the Wanamaker now since the 2016 U.S. Open champ will cruise to a 15-under winning score (says this Golfstradamus who’s 0-for-2017 so far).

Brendan: I have come to make the chalkiest chalkity chalk pick I think I've ever delivered in this space in some five years of doing these. I've been making fun of all the people who drone on about Rory McIlroy having this great track record here and the advantage he's got at Quail Hollow, as if it's breaking news or some key insight. I've looked for other options. But I'm not comfortable with one and it would be a dereliction of duty just to pick a different winner when I truly love the Rory pick. So I'm adding to the chorus, jumping on the bandwagon, whatever terrible cliche you want to use.

His length off the tee is an enormous advantage and like Spieth at Augusta, things just happen for him here. He loves the place so much that the other parts of his game that have been weaknesses — approach shots, putting — actually get better too, creating a deadly combo with that driver. It just clicks and he gets super aggressive. It feels like picking the Warriors to win the NBA title or the Patriots to win the AFC East, which is an absurd comparison to make in a fickle game like golf with 156 players in the field. But the choice is Rory McIlroy (at 12-under).

Kyle: Brendan’s talking about me. That’s me. I’m the idiot droning on and on about how obvious it is that Rory’s going to win this golf tournament. I’ve literally been doing it for years. This is the place he broke out, the place he loves, the place he’s dominated. He’s rounding into form. We’re overdue for a Rory major. Check. Check. Check. This seems too obvious. Anointing any one player as an overwhelming favorite to win any one event fails to understand how golf -- and math -- works. I’m going to do it anyway. Rory will win this golf tournament. It will be fun and awesome.

Keep in mind: I’m almost always violently wrong about everything, so we’re probably due for, like, a Grayson Murray win this week. So help us all.

[aheadfullofdreamsx]

Exactly one hundred seventy days after the Phil Concerts announced that Coldplay is finally coming to PH. Everyone was happy and excited because after so many years of waiting, they are going to our beloved country. I was regretful that time because i didn't know that it's true. Way back april 2016, i've read an article (courtesy: wheninmanila.com) about coldplay and this is what i've read: “I’ve wanted to share this with you all for so long. It’s nothing short of Magic that I’ve been able to keep this a secret. My mom has always said I’ve had a Head Full of Dreams, but I’ve learned that big dreams aren’t a bad thing; and if you pursue them, will take you on an Adventure of a Lifestime, and give you a taste of Paradise. My version is this, Coldplay is FINALLY coming to Manila, proudly sponsored by Globe! There are a few things in life that will Fix You, but a night filled with a Sky Full of Stars with them might just do it for me. Forever and Always, – Your Princess of China”. (End of quote) I don't know what to react. Mixed emotions, happiness and shivering on my mind. I can't help my excitement so i shared it on social media that Coldplay is coming soon. But i was disappointed. After I shared that post, someone discouraged me and i felt bad because he said that im idiot because i believed in the false information and worst im spreading it in the social media. His post wasn't direct to me, but i knew it was me. So i was dumdfounded that time. I didn't expect that from the person who i respected so much. I swore that day that they will regret everything, everything they say about me.And so yeah, my excitement went down. My happiness were gone. (I wish he regret it so far, i wish he felt somehow 'guilty' after calling me an idiot). It was June 2016 so it's study time, time for school, time for acads!! I never knew that the time just flew so fast. Five months passed and 15th of November came and it's official!! Coldplay is coming at the 4th of April 2017!! I was like "OHMYGOD!! IS IT REAL?! IS IT REAL?! FOR REAL?!!! OHMYGOD. I NEED TO GO TO THEIR CONCERT I'M EXCITED!!!!!!!!!!!!" I was crying that time, crying because of happiness that they're finally coming here and crying at the same time because i can't afford the ticket prizes. I was crying for almost a week. Everytime i'll go to school my eyes looked like "i came from crying". It's feels like the end of my world. I'm doomed because i can't buy tickets. November 24, 2016 our fieldtrip. And guess what?! It's the public selling of Coldplay tickets. I was lucky because we don't have classes and i have the luxury of time and privilege to buy ticket! But I was wrong (expectation vs reality) my expectation: i can buy a ticket, i will fall in line to get tix but.. ..but..but nah im in home "nagluluksa" because "nga nga" i dont have money. I'm regretful that time because i didn't saved my money. So yah. Tickets were sold out. As in S O L D. O U T. I was crying again and again and again and again. (Imagine the feeling crying until you fall asleep. That feeling tho!) But sometimes, i forgot about coldplay bcoz i was busy on my school works (grade ten --- junior highschool completer) and then January 04.......February 04.....March 04...the Coldplayers of Manila is counting.. But due to demand, they sold some tickets at the same prizes. I didn't mind that good news because "malabo sa katotohanan" na i can come to hear them live. (Good for those who bought the tix last march 10...bitter that time bleeeh) so yah...the fourth of April came. I was depressed and sad because i thought i will not hear them live :----( but my friend, Sera chatted me if we are going on the concert venue (Moa concert grounds) I was hesitating that time because i dont know how to go at MOA plus Claire was not around Bulacan plus i dont have any money plus the major problem — my mom was not around!!!!!!!! So i was like omg 50-50 but i followed my heart. I took a bath then chatted my friend, Rica to come with me. I left a letter on my mom's tokador saying i'm sorry because i'm a hard-headed child. And then yah i didn't told my grandma that i will go to MOA because i knew that she will not allowed me to go. So i said i'll go only at sm marilao to watch some movie. And then I fetch Rica to their home and the Adventure of a Lifetime begins!! While riding on the jeep i was nervous, I texted Claire that we're on our way. Then we transfer to UV Express Service to go in Manila then muntikan pa kami maligaw because of the driver!!!!!! I was in panic mode na that time (first time eh, i dont memorize the directions) Then buti nalang nadaanan yung Centris Terminal where we're going to meet Claire, the driver dropped me and Rica instantly eventhough it's not allowed so yah we thanked the driver. And then we met Claire. And then we went to the mrt station and i was like (omg first time ko sasakay ng mrt ok? Wala sa bundok nito!!!!) I honestly told them that it was my first time so they must guide me and of course supportive friends they do it well! I enjoyed riding in mrt harharhar so many stations and do many people and so many different kinds of odor HAHAHA! And i texted my mom na nasa jeep na kami, it was 6:30pm and i can feel the presence of Coldplay by seeing the Globe on the front of MOA (the photo above) and i was like THIS IS IT!!!! I was excited that time. And we ate our dinner at the Jollibee. I picked take out because were running out of time because it's already 7pm and then we ate. I do such 'kalokohan' I stole Jollibee's spoon and fork (huhuhuhu sorry Jollibee!! ^_____^) and then we went to the concert venue, we couldn't find our other friend and i kept on texting him "san ka na dito na kami" he didn't answer!!! So we said "bahala na kung makita siya" then we are walking then i saw that guy umaga pa yata nandun! And then Jess Kent's introduction (i was irritated because it was past 8pm then the show was still not starting!! We thought that it will start at nine o'clock, (then there's me: omg anong oras na need na namin umuwi!!!!) And then at exactly nine in the evening, the sky was filled with the full of stars. The moment they sang their opening song A head full of dreams i was shook and excited, i was surprised because when i sang "oh i think i landed in the world i haddn't seen" my pa-fireworks ang lolo mo!!! We're all shook and the night was full of magical experience. I thought it was a dream but NO. The moment when I heard Chris Martin said "Magandang gabi!" The crowd was *woooooohhh!!!* the first song was A Head Full of Dreams, next is Yellow followed by The Scientist, Every teardrop is a waterfall, Birds and the last song of them I heard live was Paradise. And i heard that they sang ink, everglow, hymn for the weekend, adventure of a lifetime, something just like this, a sky full of stars and their finale song Up and Up. It was a fulfilling night for everyone especially to me. It's an extraordinary experience of my life so far. I'm honored that I am part of the 35,000 people who are there to watch and heard my favorite band. It was a magical night and it fixed me temporarily. You're always be my favorite band. I will kept this memory in my mind and i will tell this experience to my future children. Coldplay will always be in my heart. I love you Chris Martin, Will Champ, Guy Berryman, and Jonny Buckland. APRIL O4, 2017. #ColdplayManila #AHFODTour2017