Tag: Golf

So, 64 is Normal?

Tiger’s last five rounds are 65, 63, 64, 63, and 64. It doesn’t even look like work on the part 70 courses on which the BMW Championship and the Tour Championship are played. The rain helps, I suppose. These guys can just toss the ball up in the air and have it stick where it lands next to the cup. But that’s assuming a lot. First, that they are hitting it in the fairway. Second, that they’re hitting it close to the pin, which isn’t supposed to look as easy as it has these last few weeks. I mean, did you see Stricker and Woods staking ever single approach shot at the BMW? And this week at the Tour Championship, the 18th hole played 223 yards for the final round and most of the tee-shots landed within ten feet. That’s ridiculous.

Anyway, how often does a player shoot five sub-65 rounds in a row? Tiger may have to post another sub-65 round if Calcavecchia keeps his gut out of the way for another day and can stake some more zippers close enough to tap them in on those shaggy greens at East Lake.

Oh, and let’s not forget that the reigning Masters champion, Zach Johnson shot a 60 today.

FedEx Cup Cheat Sheet

The final event of the PGA Tour’s 2007 season starts Thursday at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, Georgia. It’s also the final even in the FedEx Cup playoff series, the winner of which will be awarded the largest prize in sports – a $10 million dollar annuity.

There are 30 players remaining in the playoffs, but only the top six have a chance to win the FedEx Cup. And, realistically, only the top three have a real chance.

FedEx Cup Rankings:

1. Tiger Woods (112,733)
2. Steve Stricker (109,600)
3. Phil Mickelson (108,613)
4. Rory Sabbatini (103,588)
5. K.J. Choi (103,100)
6. Aaron Baddeley (102,800)

Here’s a link to the PGA Tour’s digest of who could win the FedEx Cup depending on who winds the Tour Championship.

East Lake Greens a Mess

It was just announced that the greens at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, Georgia where the Tour Championship is to be held next week are so severely damaged that the pro-am tournament scheduled for Wednesday was canceled and the players are not allowed to practice on the greens prior to the start of play on Thursday.

That sounds absurd. It reminds me of high school golf when we were lucky to have time to hit range balls in the morning before our tournaments. Many of the players who will make it to the Tour Championship will have been there before, and will be somewhat familiar with the course. Still, a practice round is always helpful to get acclimated to a course.

High Output for Woods

One of the most impressive statistics in golf is that Tiger Woods has led the PGA Tour World Money List seven of the last ten years by playing fewer events than the runner up in every year except 1999. In other words, he’s winning more money than any other professional golfer while playing in fewer tournaments. In some years, he’s playing in as many as nine fewer tournaments. And this year, while not yet over, Woods leads the money list having played in just fifteen tournaments and will likely finish at the top having played in 17 tournaments to the runner-ups 22 events.

As a side note, this year Woods total of 17 events will be the fewest number of tournaments he has played during a full season since joining the PGA Tour in 1996.

The point where this graph jumps above $6 Million is 1999, the year the World Golf Championship events were introduced. Big money. Greg Norman campaigned for world events similar to the WGC for years. I’m not sure it would have ever happened if Woods had not joined the tour. It’s not a coincidence that the leading money winner now earns in excess of five times what they earned ten years ago.

(Woods was the money leader in the years the points coincide.)

Here, we see that no one has won the money list by playing in fewer tournaments than Woods.

(Woods was the money leader in the years the points coincide.)

Range Notes: Practicing in the Wind

The range I use only has one end, which means sometimes I have to hit into a headwind. This is undesirable because it exaggerates the spin on the ball and it can upset your swing tempo.

If I was practicing on a range that was two ended, I would simply go to the far end so that I was hitting downwind. That wasn’t an option today, so I chose to dedicate most of my range time to hitting controlled half-swing draw shots, a.k.a. punch shots.

I had two goals in mind while practicing:

1. Keep a smooth tempo, which will preserve my full swing for a calm day.
2. Take half swings to keep the ball low and in control.

There is a tendency to swing hard when the wind blows. This only exaggerates the effect of the wind on the ball. Swinging hard translates into more spin, which leads to more ball movement. What would be a slight fade or draw on a calm day turns into a slice or hook on a windy day if you swing hard. You also risk up-shooting into the wind and coming up well short of your target.

Instead, practice making half-swings to control your ball flight. A draw will penetrate the wind best and offer the most control. If you are able to take easy half-swings I think you’ll be surprised at how much distance you attain with minimal effort.

(Even on calm days this half-swing can be a valuable tool to have to escape from the tree trouble or to run the ball to a back hole location.)

PGA Tour Pension Plan

Tiger Woods could have a pension in excess of $1 Billion waiting for him when he turns 60 if he keeps winning at his current pace. The PGA Tour pension plan is performance-based and with the recent addition of the FedEx Cup playoff and the $10 Million annuity that comes with it, the power of compound interest is on the players’ side. Especially for Woods. (Link via Kottke.org)