Shaping up to be a great afternoon of golf in Norton, with birdies everywhere. Spieth starts off birdie, eagle, birdie to jump into a tie for first.
The nerves got up in him deep.The Leishman collapse has been impressive.
A full 180 degree turn. That was looking juicy and now it's extraordinarily ho hum. But JT has been phenomenal to watch. Spieth's closing ability the past two tourneys has been suspect.This certainly took a big turn toward the anti-climactic
If this happened to me, I would definitely not use a driver/3 wood to putt. My method would be the lob wedge with the blade on the equator of the ball, as that is already a shot I hit reasonably well from rough around the green.In Norton, Sergio slammed his putter and broke it on the 4th hole. Putting the rest of the round with his 3 wood and driver.
I've had to do this for a round before when I lost/forgot my putter - and probably putted better with my wedge than I do with my putter.If this happened to me, I would definitely not use a driver/3 wood to putt. My method would be the lob wedge with the blade on the equator of the ball, as that is already a shot I hit reasonably well from rough around the green.
There was a lot of bitching about that hole from the players. The pot bunker in the fairway forces them left or right. Right of the bunker is much more narrow section of the fairway. It's a risk trying to hit it there, but no reward as the 2nd shot requires carrying the front right greenside bunker. The further left you went, the better the angle in and no bunker to carry. JT figured it out. Longer shot, but much better angle and more room to miss. Curious to see if they make changes again next year.If this happened to me, I would definitely not use a driver/3 wood to putt. My method would be the lob wedge with the blade on the equator of the ball, as that is already a shot I hit reasonably well from rough around the green.
By the way, Friday at the Dell was a lot of fun. I went with my brother and dad and spent most of the day there. Our clubhouse passes did almost nothing (access to the lobby only, which essentially meant a nice bathroom if you were nearby), but I am so glad I finally made the time to get there on Labor Day weekend, and it made watching the rest of the tournament on tv so much more enjoyable to actually know the terrain.
We were out at the landing area for the JT/Spieth/DJ group on 12 and thought JT must have really hit a terrible hook to end up on the 13th fairway, then got over there and realized it was a smart play for those who can carry the trees. Thomas ended up playing it that way all four rounds. DJ, meanwhile, seemed not to have the proper gameplan/knowledge of the new holes, as he hit his drive through the first half of the fairway and ended up in the rocky outcropping between stretches of fairway. He had to take a ridiculous stance to get his club on the ball and still managed to get it up on the green and make his par - such an athlete.
The other issue the players had was that it's a 500 yard hole. The designers were seemingly trying to force the players to lay up short of the bunker in the fairway (unless they still went with driver and had to land it in a part of the fairway that was like a postage stamp wide), but the players are not used to playing 200+ yard second shots into a par 4. These guys are basically playing every par 4 nowadays with driver and 8 iron or less, no matter how long the hole is.There was a lot of bitching about that hole from the players. The pot bunker in the fairway forces them left or right. Right of the bunker is much more narrow section of the fairway. It's a risk trying to hit it there, but no reward as the 2nd shot requires carrying the front right greenside bunker. The further left you went, the better the angle in and no bunker to carry. JT figured it out. Longer shot, but much better angle and more room to miss. Curious to see if they make changes again next year.
They definitely do need to adjust something. These teams aren't remotely equal and while the International could somehow pull off an upset, the US team is stacked in a major way.They really need to do something with this competition, though, because the Americans are going to wipe the floor with the internationals again. I don't even think it's going to be close the entire weekend.
I thought that at first, and then after re-reading the quote, I think they're clearly still on speaking terms. Here's the quote:Well, he mentioned in the linked article that he and Swatton are not on speaking terms, which makes it impossible for them to work as player and caddie.
I agree with you - at first glance I took his quote to mean that they were not speaking currently, and looking at it again I think he means that he does not want their relationship to get to the point.I thought that at first, and then after re-reading the quote, I think they're clearly still on speaking terms. Here's the quote:
"I'm blaming him for nothing,'' Day said of Swatton. "The last couple of weeks were tough. I never wanted it to turn into a toxic relationship, where he's taken me from where I was as a 12-year-old kid to where I am today and I'm not talking to him anymore.''
I think he's saying he didn't want it to get to the point where they are no longer speaking. I mean, the guy is staying on as his swing coach. Swatton basically stepped into the role of Jason's father after his real father died when he was 12, and I think most pro athletes (especially golfers) go through this with their father's at some point, where they have to finally "move on" from their father-as-coach relationship and become their own man/woman. I think it just happened a bit later on for Day than it has for many others. At least, I really hope that's the case here, and they aren't deep sixing what has been a really important and special relationship for both of them.
I've always said how much I love him.Day just aced 17 at the BMW. Guess the caddie change worked, he'a got a 3-shot lead.