Catching up on lots of golf thoughts!! Still getting all my Ryder Cup thoughts down in the Blog Section. Just Sunday to go, and it was an amazing day!! Arnold Palmer has also been on my mind - the loss has hit everyone in the golf world and after watching the memorial service I felt inspiration through the tears. And then there's Tiger Woods - he's going to be back on the golf course next week! Initial reports are saying he's looking good in practice so we'll see where it goes. It was interesting to see him during the Ryder Cup as Asst. Captain and I wonder how all that has impacted him as a player and a person. I'll be looking forward to seeing how it all transpires. I think we have new PGA Tour players who are coming from the Web.com Tour!! Honestly, I haven't had the time to read, but I'm going to! This of course reminds me how much I miss Q-school. I see below that Steve Stricker was on my mind - he often is!! It was awesome to see him at the Ryder Cup and now he's going to be the Captain of the USA President's Cup team - wow!! How soon will it be until he's the Ryder Cup Captain?
More to come!
(Wow, hadn't realized I didn't have any posts since the beginning of the month...rest assured, golf is often on my mind!)
Steve Stricker on my mind. If you know me, you know that I've been a Steve Stricker fan for a long time!! I was heartbroken when he decided to start a limited schedule a few years ago and then with some injuries, it wasn't looking like I'd be seeing much of him until possibly the time he can start on the Champions Tour. I've found some new players to root for, but there was a little empty place in my heart saved for rooting on Steve. Then, this year, I started seeing his name in the field...and honestly, I thought it may have been a mistake! Is he back, playing again? Why YES, yes he is! He's been struggling a little, but right now, as I type this, he's T13 at the Northern Trust and -1 for the day. THIS makes me happy!! My dream of course is that he dons a Green Jacket, and while I had no expectations earlier this year, my heart is starting to wonder if this might be the year!! Okay, okay, I know that might be asking a little much, but a girl can dream. Thanks, Steve, for being back on Tour! Posted 2/22/16
Don't most average golfers make their own rules? I've been reading about how we need to change some of the rules of golf to make golf more appealing, and more importantly, to speed up play (the chronic topic of conversation as of late). What I find to be true, at least with many of the friends I play golf with is that we modify the rules all the time! Mullies, gimmies, more than friendly drops, etc...we play our own "games" and we make our own rules. Besides playing in tournaments, or maybe leagues, I'm not sure rules are much of a consideration. I've read some interesting suggestions on how to speed up the game, and some are pretty good, but the idea that we need to change the rules of golf doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me because we're changing the rules all the time. Posted 2/22/16
It had to happen sometime...Spieth misses the Cut at the Northern Trust Open If you're a Fantasy Golf player, I'm guessing you spend a little time reading the different "expert" picks and analysis as you're contemplating your team selections. For the past year it's been hard not to wan to Jordan Spieth every single week (of course most can't due to limits) - there have been nothing but high hopes for the 2016 season, although some have said it's not realistic to expect the same as 2016. Winning the Hyundai TOC was a great start and then some global golf showed me that he was going to make the most of this season. Some warned that he would need some time to rest up after globetrotting and I think those folks were right (a la Rickie Fowler). But to miss a cut, at Riviera, was surprising to me....and at +8 no less? The reality that he's going to miss a cut now and then makes sense, but it's also fun to live vicariously through all of his successes...all the while just being a great guy, too. We'll see what he brings next. Posted 2/22/16
It's Waste Management Open Week! Ah, the memories for me!! I had the opportunity to attend the WMO a few years ago...on one of Arizona's coldest weeks! I flew out of MSP with the temp being 32 degrees and landed in PHX and it was 33 degrees! The Pro Am was cancelled and each day had a frost delay. But I was able to get a ticket for Friday and I spent most of my day at the 16th hole...and it was as fun as people said it would be! I'm sure the weather helped make it possible for me to find a spot to watch. I'm still sad they ended the Caddy Races but the fans find plenty of things to bet on! I'm going to need to do some studying to see who to pick this week. And I'm putting a return trip on my Things to Do list! Posted 2/1/16
Gary McCord & Raked By The Wind I'll be honest, I didn't watch the final round of the Career Builder Challenge (or what was played on Sunday), but I did see on Twitter that once again there was a "controversy" regarding what Stephanie Wei "thought" she heard Gary McCord say...and you know Twitter...things can get out of hand fast. Now, let me first day that I am a McCord fan...I've always liked him and am still sad he's not on the Masters telecasts. But that said, if he had said something inappropriate I would have been disappointed...but truth is, he didn't say anything bad at all...but now he's getting raked though the coals. Not cool. Posted 2/1/16
Hanging On & Winning Congratulations to Brandt Snedeker for winning the Career Builder Challenge! I certainly wasn't expecting that win after wondering if he would be knocking me out of the Make The Cut Challenge this past week...once again one of my guys makes it right on the cut number! Then Mother Nature stepped in and it was hanging on for dear life. Wind (big wind) and rain came in and caused a Monday finish and over 23 players shot 80 or worse in their final round. Only Snedeker was under par on the Final Round-crazy!! And he won by 1 shot over KJ Choi. I love the nature part of golf, but it's days like these that remind me some days it's all about adapting to the conditions. Posted 2/1/16
Make the Cut Challenge - Oh the Pressure! Over at Buzz Fantasy Leagues they have a little game called Make the Cut - all you have to do is pick a player who will make the cut each week (one and done format) - on the surface, it seems so easy, but let me tell you, the stress level I feel each week is nuts! My first week, the Sony Open, I picked Matt Kuchar & Jimmy Walker (I have 2 teams) - and they BOTH made it on the number! Talk about stress! I'm nervously watching the leader board and trying to figure my chances. Walker knocked me out the first time I did this a few years ago so it took courage for me to pick him...I'm almost relieved he's off my checklist early! This week I have Patrick Reed (who was the HANDS DOWN favorite to win this week from everyone) and Charles Howell III (great record here) - so I HOPE I will stay alive for one more week. Keep your fingers crossed for me! Posted 1/22/16
Golf Shopping I've been browsing the internet lately for golf stuff...okay, maybe golf shoes...and now seems to be a great time to be looking for golf clearance items. Since I need a new pair of golf shoes like a need a hole in the head, I can hold out for a round or two more of discounts, but if you have either small feet or big feet there are some really low prices out there now! Ebay wasn't as lucrative as I had hoped, many of the shoes were from the same web sites I had already visited, but the one thing you can be sure is there are usually new listings each day. I'm not in the market for clubs, but I wouldn't shy away from a new driver if it was a steal. Happy shopping! Posted 1/22/16
TaylorMade Sold, Not Sold This past week I saw posts on both Twitter and Facebook that TaylorMade had been sold. I thought to myself, I need to read that later. Then not much later there was another post that said there was a statement from the TaylorMade CEO that they were not in fact sold. (as reported by Golf News Net). It made me pause to realize how instantaneous our culture has become and how much we choose to rely on random bloggers and accounts for our "news". I can't tell you how many times I've fallen for a link that seemed legit, only to see that it's either a spoof web site or even satirical. I really do appreciate all of the writers, bloggers, golf companies, and golfers themselves who willingly share their information via the internet...and I will be sure to take the time to check sources of sources before jumping on the bandwagon. I Love a great golf story!! Posted 1/22/16
Greg Norman Out at FOX Sports Golf Digest posted that Greg Norman was shocked and surprised by being removed as a golf announcer at FOX Sports. Last year was the first year FOX broadcasted the USGA events, and almost out of the gate there were some pretty harsh criticisms of the broadcast personalities. If you know me, you know that I have been a Greg Norman fan since the 80's - I cried when he lost the Masters! I didn't watch much of the coverage but I didn't think it was all bad. My Minnesota Vikings friends loathe the idea that Joe Buck would be announcing the game and I'm just not sure he was the right mix. I think it's hard when there have been some longstanding announcing teams to compare against, and it wasn't like the FOX staff was doing this week in and week out. I don't know if there is any truth to the anonymous source who said Norman didn't prepare for the events, but I'd imagine that there is a lot to learn about the players and course to keep us viewers entertained. I'm sorry to see him go, but it will be interesting to see who they come up with next. Posted 1/22/16
New Year, New Sponsorship Deals I'm hardly a brand loyalist for all things golf, but I do have my favorite brands so it was interesting to see some golfers moving to new companies. The new brand PXG (more on this soon) - announced Zach Johnson (former Titleist), Billy Horshel, Chris Kirk, James Hahn, and Charles Howell III would join their PGA Tour players which already included Ryan Moore. Callaway Golf added Marc Leishman (and Tom Watson from the Champions Tour). The player roster at Nike now includes Brooks Koepka and Tony Finau. I think the biggest surprise for me was Zach Johnson who has been a Titleist loyalist since the beginning and just won a Major (the British) in 2015. I'm going to some more reading on these new changes for 2016. Posted 1/11/16
Jordan Spieth - Nice Guys DO Finish First! It was no surprise to see Spieth at the top of the leader board on Sunday, but with an 8-stroke victory over a field of all winners, Spieth reminded us all of his talent and abilities. But for me, one of the things I love most is that Jordan is just a nice guy and golf is just a part of who he is as a person. Posted 1/11/16
High Tops and Joggers The pictures came out and all of a sudden we have a new fashion statement on Tour. Rickie Fowler asked Puma to make him some high top golf shoes and they made their debut at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions. I'm sorry, I'm just not feeling it on the golf course. As one Tweet said, it looks like he was wearing a house arrest tracking ankle bracelet. I also had to look up what exactly "joggers" meant...was it sweatpants? Well, not exactly, but basically the same idea. According to one article I read online, the jogger trend is already over, so I'm hoping it might be short-lived on the golf course, too. I've always been a fan of classic golf apparel but I'll try to keep an open mind. Posted 1/11/16
Taking Applications for New Favorite Golfers If you know me, you know Steve Stricker has had a special place in my heart for a long time. A few years ago, when he announced it would be playing a limited schedule I had my concerns...but since then he's played even less and I'm starting to come to the realization that he's not going to be in many fields where I can root for him. Matt Kuchar will obviously move up, but I know that I'm going to need to find new players to root for and make my "heart picks". 2016 should be an interesting year! I'll keep you posted on my potential prospects! Posted 1/1/16
What Happened to Hack Golf? Similar to Back9Network, when Hack Golf came out I was skeptical. I didn't believe we need to "change" golf. I wrote about it back in 2014, and it appears since it's big splash at the PGA Merchandise Show it has backed 2 concepts and it may look at doing more in 2016. One of those projects was Hack to Jack and that idea came out of Minnesota! (Twin Cities Golf) I'll admit I haven't followed it or watched it, but it's on my things to do list for 2016. So while I wasn't really a fan of the whole Hack Golf idea, I'm sure glad some Minnesota ideas were supported. We'll see if there will be more Hack Golf incubated ideas in 2016. Posted 1/1/16
Back9Network Files for Bankruptcy I remember reading about the hoop-la surrounding this new "golf lifestyle" network that would take the golf world by storm, headquartered in Hartford, Connecticut. In the past few weeks, theHartford Courant and the Wall Street Journalboth reported on the bankruptcy filing, with the Courant explaining that the company will look to continue on with an on-line presence and the continued use of their golf course app. The rise and fall of Back9Network is an interesting one and while some people say it failed because of the "recession" and economic bust of 2008, I feel like once it came out folks realized it wasn't really about golf. It's a shame that all of that investment was so short-lived, but I hope we can take a lesson from this and know that golfers really do like to listen to, read about, and comment on actual golf stories. Posted 1/1/16
Yahoo Golf Back After Cancellation Scare If you are a fantasy golf fan, you probably received texts or emails from fellow league buddies wondering what the heck you were going to do without Yahoo Fantasy Golf in 2016. There was apparently a notice on the Yahoo Fantasy Home page that they would not be running golf this year but then a few days later Fantasy Golf was up and running again. I searched for the original posting but didn't find anything. All I can say is I'm glad it's back and I'm looking forward to trying to remember to post my teams each week! Posted: 1/1/16