2018 PGA Championship

[Shankster]

I really need Eddie Pepperell to go get smashed tonight so he can play good golf tomorrow. Someone get that guy a drink!!

[Shankster]

Also... who the heck picked “TNT” to have the coverage... seems “cheap” to me, adding to the stack of reasons why I dislike this tournament. They and I can't get TNT with my HULU subscription.

[justnred]

Sling has tnt...

[Shankster]

Interesting leaderboard after Rd 1.

[Mr. 82]

Several things stand out after Round 1.

 

First off, except for Zach Johnson and Gary Woodland, none of the pros visited this course prior to Monday.  And some didn't even see all 18 holes before teeing off on Thursday.  A lot of the post round interviews contained some semblance of the pro interviewed saying, "this course is easy if you hit it in the fairway."

 

Is it because the WGC Bridgestone was last week and the top players all had that on their mind as the free money grab, so they didn't have the time to visit Bellerive ahead of time at least to scout it out?  I mean, I've read or seen countless reports about pros visiting the site of US Opens months and even a year in advance to get an idea for how to play that course, or to just familiarize themselves with the layout.  But here we have a course where the last time any of these players might have played it was 2008, and all but two players showed up on Monday and took their chances; most having only played maybe 1 practice round?

 

The second observation, after watching the featured group of Patrick Reed, Brooks Koepka and Francesco Molinari is that both Reed and Koepka were pulling driver every chance they got and often times ended up in bad lies, or in bunkers in the fairway, rather than laying back a bit and putting it in the fairway.  There was one par 5 in particular where both Reed and Koepka ripped driver, and then pulled 3 wood in trying to reach the green in two, only to find themselves in really challenging 3rd shots around the green.  Where only by chance did Molinari land his 2nd shot about 60 yards back of the green in the fairway, and then threw a wedge to within 5 feet and walked away with the birdie.  Neither Reed nor Koepka could get close enough on their 3rd shots to get up and down for birdie.

 

Either it's the lack of knowledge of this course, by not doing any homework on it by Koepka and Reed, or this was their strategy, considering the course only has two par 5's and they felt they needed to go for it no matter what and take their chances around the green.  Frankly, if I had to guess, they were just playing this blind and letting it rip, and then today they'll adjust their strategy to account for bad course management on Thursday.

[Mr. 82]

Also... who the heck picked “TNT” to have the coverage... seems “cheap” to me, adding to the stack of reasons why I dislike this tournament. They and I can't get TNT with my HULU subscription.

TNT has been doing the broadcast for the PGA Championship for as long as I can remember.

[Mr. 82]

I really need Eddie Pepperell to go get smashed tonight so he can play good golf tomorrow. Someone get that guy a drink!!

If that strategy actually worked Fuzzy Zoeller would have won 25 majors.

[bardle]

Several things stand out after Round 1.

 

First off, except for Zach Johnson and Gary Woodland, none of the pros visited this course prior to Monday. And some didn't even see all 18 holes before teeing off on Thursday. A lot of the post round interviews contained some semblance of the pro interviewed saying, "this course is easy if you hit it in the fairway."

 

Is it because the WGC Bridgestone was last week and the top players all had that on their mind as the free money grab, so they didn't have the time to visit Bellerive ahead of time at least to scout it out? I mean, I've read or seen countless reports about pros visiting the site of US Opens months and even a year in advance to get an idea for how to play that course, or to just familiarize themselves with the layout. But here we have a course where the last time any of these players might have played it was 2008, and all but two players showed up on Monday and took their chances; most having only played maybe 1 practice round?

 

The second observation, after watching the featured group of Patrick Reed, Brooks Koepka and Francesco Molinari is that both Reed and Koepka were pulling driver every chance they got and often times ended up in bad lies, or in bunkers in the fairway, rather than laying back a bit and putting it in the fairway. There was one par 5 in particular where both Reed and Koepka ripped driver, and then pulled 3 wood in trying to reach the green in two, only to find themselves in really challenging 3rd shots around the green. Where only by chance did Molinari land his 2nd shot about 60 yards back of the green in the fairway, and then threw a wedge to within 5 feet and walked away with the birdie. Neither Reed nor Koepka could get close enough on their 3rd shots to get up and down for birdie.

 

Either it's the lack of knowledge of this course, by not doing any homework on it by Koepka and Reed, or this was their strategy, considering the course only has two par 5's and they felt they needed to go for it no matter what and take their chances around the green. Frankly, if I had to guess, they were just playing this blind and letting it rip, and then today they'll adjust their strategy to account for bad course management on Thursday.

Nice notes. My favorite part about this course Id watching guys hit out of the rough and then being completely baffled as to why the shot went 3/4 the distance they expected.

 

This course is not easy but I think the strategy is less complex than other courses. I think it was JT in his presser who was basically like, hit fairway, avoid bunkers, get on the green. Easier said than done but multiple players were basically saying the layout and strategy is right in front of you it's just a matter of executing. Hence most players resting up instead of doing practice rounds.

 

Rose didn't even hit a shot until yesterday...

 

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[Shankster]

TNT has been doing the broadcast for the PGA Championship for as long as I can remember.

Explains everything then.

[Shankster]

If that strategy actually worked Fuzzy Zoeller would have won 25 majors.

You must not have read about him at the Open.

[Mr. 82]

You must not have read about him at the Open.

or John Daly, or countless other pros that short circuited their careers through the bottle.

 

Yeah, I know Fuzzy won the Masters and the US Open once each, but he could have achieved so much more if he wasn't constantly hung over for morning rounds.

 

Eh, what do I know.  There are two guys I work with that are both low single digit cappers, and we've played scrambles before where they suck the first three or four holes.  Then they find the beer cart girl and down a few beers, and all of a sudden they are shooting lights out.  I turn to them and say, "where was that 3 or 4 holes ago?"  To which they both respond, "we needed our swing lube."  

 

To each his own I guess.

[Shankster]

There was a little sarcasm in my original post about Pepperell.

[Mr. 82]

There was a little sarcasm in my original post about Pepperell.

Sorry, I should've figured.  But my sarcasm meter is currently in for repairs this morning.  Feel free to kick me in the arse to fix it when needed.      

[Berg Ryman]

I am here for the continuing narrative of Kevin Kisner, early round dominator of major championships. Dude's gonna get one of these eventually.

[Shankster]

I am here for the continuing narrative of Kevin Kisner, early round dominator of major championships. Dude's gonna get one of these eventually.

Yeah. He is looking pretty darn good.

[Mr. 82]

They have Bubba Watson, Dustin Johnson and Adam Scott in a featured group.  Maybe I've never noticed it before, or maybe Bubba has already checked out, but it appears to me like Bubba doesn't want to be there.  I mean, DJ will hit a shot and then Bubba is already over his ball and hitting before DJ's ball even lands on the ground.  Just a wild guess on my part, but I think maybe Bubba doesn't like the course, and has an obligation to play, but he isn't going to make the cut at this point, so he's just mailing it in, and the sooner he can finish, the better.

 

But man, I thought I played fast.  Bubba is flying through this as fast as he can.

[MaxEntropy]

They have Bubba Watson, Dustin Johnson and Adam Scott in a featured group.  Maybe I've never noticed it before, or maybe Bubba has already checked out, but it appears to me like Bubba doesn't want to be there.  I mean, DJ will hit a shot and then Bubba is already over his ball and hitting before DJ's ball even lands on the ground.  Just a wild guess on my part, but I think maybe Bubba doesn't like the course, and has an obligation to play, but he isn't going to make the cut at this point, so he's just mailing it in, and the sooner he can finish, the better.

 

But man, I thought I played fast.  Bubba is flying through this as fast as he can.

 

They were talking about Bubba on Golf Channel earlier this week and his level of engagement. Specifically, they said that if Bubba finds the course engaging and can remain so, he is a threat to win. I agree - his body language clearly says disengaged.

[MaxEntropy]

It seems like every time I happen to turn on the stream, the first thing I see is DJ missing a par putt. Maybe I need to stop watching.

[NiftyNiblick]

I would love to see the best players in the world gather to contest a major on a beautifully maintained, 6000 yard hotel resort course.

 

Let's see what they can really do compared to most of us.

 

We'll never know watching them contest the majors on the courses at which majors are contested.

[StrokerAce]

I would love to see the best players in the world gather to contest a major on a beautifully maintained, 6000 yard hotel resort course.

 

Let's see what they can really do compared to most of us.

 

We'll never know watching them contest the majors on the courses at which majors are contested.

 

....Isn't this what happens on the "Champions" tour every week ??

[StrokerAce]

someone call a fire truck cause Kisner is burning this place to the ground.... 29 on his first 9 with 13 putts !?!?!?  

 

My. Goodness.

[GB13]

I am here for the continuing narrative of Kevin Kisner, early round dominator of major championships. Dude's gonna get one of these eventually.

PGA is notorious for first time major winners. Rickie or Kisner??

[Shankster]

I'm jumping on the Gary Woodland bandwagon... now he will shoot 86 tomorrow.

[NiftyNiblick]

....Isn't this what happens on the "Champions" tour every week ??

But as great as they are, they're not the best players in the world anymore.

[Shankster]

The Hero World Open is pretty much what your looking for Nifty. Top 50 on a resort course in the Bahamas with some really low scores.

 

Is it even top 50?

[bardle]

I am here for the continuing narrative of Kevin Kisner, early round dominator of major championships. Dude's gonna get one of these eventually.

I have nothing against him. I just wish he wasn't so boring to watch. He has the same reaction to a tap in par as he does to a 15 ft birdie. Just no emotion from what I've seen.

 

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[Mr. 82]

I love how they call a 425 yard par 4 a "short par 4".  That's a driver, long iron for me man.  That's a beast of a hole in my world.

[Mr. 82]

I have nothing against him. I just wish he wasn't so boring to watch. He has the same reaction to a tap in par as he does to a 15 ft birdie. Just no emotion from what I've seen.

 

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Dude ain't boring, I can promise you that...

 

[bardle]

Dude ain't boring, I can promise you that...

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J2hJBg0QxTw

Lol. This is what I need. Keep em coming. I want to like the guy.

 

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[Kor.A.Door]

Spoke to a good friend of mine today who caddies for a top 50 player. He told me he expects DJ of Rory to win and possibly run away with it.

 

It's playing so soft I thought it would open it to a large amount of guys. Inckudomg very good iron players who could be sticking darts.

 

He said nope. As the added length will make it so much tougher for the all but long hitters.

 

We shall see. But I don't doubt him if he says so.

 

 

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Don't say that to ZJ.