Breaking 100 at Torrey???

[JLahrman]

Let's bump this back up now that we've got the scores in:

Romo (2.2 index) - 84
Timberlake (6.0) - 98
Lauer (6.2) - 100
Atkinson (8.1) - 114

[Pete Lavallee]

Let's bump this back up now that we've got the scores in:

Romo (2.2 index) - 84
Timberlake (6.0) - 98
Lauer (6.2) - 100
Atkinson (8.1) - 114

Th effect the South course has appears to be logarithmic!

[Kalen Braley]

Romo shot an 84...

I guess 85 as an over/under was pretty dcent.  Kudos to Romo for shooting that.  Pretty darn good score on a tough layout.

I guess Tiger was right, a 10 would have pretty much no chance to break 100 on a US open layout.

[Mike Hendren]

The answer is no, no, and again no at any U. S. Open course.   
Mike

It's good to be Bogey.

Mike

[TEPaul]

Who in the hell is Romo??

There's a difference here I doubt has been mentioned. Since I don't know who Romo is I couldn't comment on whether he's capable of breaking 80 on Torrey with a US Open set up. But I would pretty much guarantee if you put Romo in the ACTUAL US OPEN at Torrey he wouldn't have a chance in hell of breaking 80 or probably any other US Open site. Forget the setup, if anyone thinks playing in an actual US Open wouldn't add shots to a guy like Romo's round, they're nuts!   

[Jim Nugent]

Let's bump this back up now that we've got the scores in:

Romo (2.2 index) - 84
Timberlake (6.0) - 98
Lauer (6.2) - 100
Atkinson (8.1) - 114

Th effect the South course has appears to be logarithmic!

Pete -- I believe that in fact is true on real tough courses.

[Ken Moum]

Let's bump this back up now that we've got the scores in:

Romo (2.2 index) - 84
Timberlake (6.0) - 98
Lauer (6.2) - 100
Atkinson (8.1) - 114

Th effect the South course has appears to be logarithmic!

Pete -- I believe that in fact is true on real tough courses.

I agree, which is why I think the slope system needs to have a steeper grade.

Ken

[Jordan Wall]

Who in the hell is Romo??

There's a difference here I doubt has been mentioned. Since I don't know who Romo is I couldn't comment on whether he's capable of breaking 80 on Torrey with a US Open set up. But I would pretty much guarantee if you put Romo in the ACTUAL US OPEN at Torrey he wouldn't have a chance in hell of breaking 80 or probably any other US Open site. Forget the setup, if anyone thinks playing in an actual US Open wouldn't add shots to a guy like Romo's round, they're nuts!   

Tom,

I disagree.  I dont think there would be added pressure and the course would not play any harder then what he played it as.  If anything, I think that playing with better players would elevate his game and provide him with a better chance to break 80.  Playing with better players makes you better.

Cheers,
Jordan

[Dean Stokes]

Who in the hell is Romo??

There's a difference here I doubt has been mentioned. Since I don't know who Romo is I couldn't comment on whether he's capable of breaking 80 on Torrey with a US Open set up. But I would pretty much guarantee if you put Romo in the ACTUAL US OPEN at Torrey he wouldn't have a chance in hell of breaking 80 or probably any other US Open site. Forget the setup, if anyone thinks playing in an actual US Open wouldn't add shots to a guy like Romo's round, they're nuts!   

Tom,

I disagree.  I dont think there would be added pressure and the course would not play any harder then what he played it as.  If anything, I think that playing with better players would elevate his game and provide him with a better chance to break 80.  Playing with better players makes you better.

Cheers,
Jordan

Jordan, just playing in a tournament will often add 3-4 shots to your scorecard. Next make it the US Open, add another 3-4, then put 3000 people around every hole, add another 3-4. Oh and the greens will be twicw as hard and 4 stimps faster, add another 3-4. He shoots high 90's.

[Glenn Spencer]

Who in the hell is Romo??

There's a difference here I doubt has been mentioned. Since I don't know who Romo is I couldn't comment on whether he's capable of breaking 80 on Torrey with a US Open set up. But I would pretty much guarantee if you put Romo in the ACTUAL US OPEN at Torrey he wouldn't have a chance in hell of breaking 80 or probably any other US Open site. Forget the setup, if anyone thinks playing in an actual US Open wouldn't add shots to a guy like Romo's round, they're nuts!   

Tom,

I disagree.  I dont think there would be added pressure and the course would not play any harder then what he played it as.  If anything, I think that playing with better players would elevate his game and provide him with a better chance to break 80.  Playing with better players makes you better.

Cheers,
Jordan

JW,

I am not sure that I totally agree with all of that, but you make a REAL solid point. It can't be easy to have to watch those others guys just completely HACK the place to pieces.

Clubhouse,

I guess, serve me my plate of crow. I really thought he would break 80.  We all know that anything can happen in a round of golf though. Romo must be struggling with his game, his cap has gone up 3 shots!!! I was wrong, but slightly mislead cap-wise.

Dean,

Just playing in a tournament only often adds strokes to hacks, not players. Romo would not shoot in the high 90's in the US Open, that is absurd.

[Glenn Spencer]

I take it back. Romo doubled 18 and didn't make another double. It doesn't sound like the course got him, just didn't play well. Who do I owe dollars to anyway??

[Dean Stokes]

Who in the hell is Romo??

There's a difference here I doubt has been mentioned. Since I don't know who Romo is I couldn't comment on whether he's capable of breaking 80 on Torrey with a US Open set up. But I would pretty much guarantee if you put Romo in the ACTUAL US OPEN at Torrey he wouldn't have a chance in hell of breaking 80 or probably any other US Open site. Forget the setup, if anyone thinks playing in an actual US Open wouldn't add shots to a guy like Romo's round, they're nuts!   

Tom,

I disagree.  I dont think there would be added pressure and the course would not play any harder then what he played it as.  If anything, I think that playing with better players would elevate his game and provide him with a better chance to break 80.  Playing with better players makes you better.

Cheers,
Jordan

JW,

I am not sure that I totally agree with all of that, but you make a REAL solid point. It can't be easy to have to watch those others guys just completely HACK the place to pieces.

Clubhouse,

I guess, serve me my plate of crow. I really thought he would break 80.  We all know that anything can happen in a round of golf though. Romo must be struggling with his game, his cap has gone up 3 shots!!! I was wrong, but slightly mislead cap-wise.

Dean,

Just playing in a tournament only often adds strokes to hacks, not players. Romo would not shoot in the high 90's in the US Open, that is absurd.

Glen, I would never question how much tournament golf you have played so i will go off my own experience. Having played many top amateur events and several years on the mini tours i can definitely speak from my own experiences. In practise rounds and friendly Saturday games I regularly see mini tour players ( myself included) shoot 66 , 67, 68. They then tee it up a day later at the same course and shoot 73,74 ,75 and miss cuts. I have caddied for several Tour players at private clubs on their days off - many of them shoot mid to low 60's with ease and don't do that in tour events. Given, they play tougher courses in tournaments. But are you really trying to say there is no difference in scoring patterns between friendly rounds of golf and when you have a card in your hand playing for a living? A tournament round will definitely add shots to most peoples round if only because it actually 'matters'.

[Glenn Spencer]

Who in the hell is Romo??

There's a difference here I doubt has been mentioned. Since I don't know who Romo is I couldn't comment on whether he's capable of breaking 80 on Torrey with a US Open set up. But I would pretty much guarantee if you put Romo in the ACTUAL US OPEN at Torrey he wouldn't have a chance in hell of breaking 80 or probably any other US Open site. Forget the setup, if anyone thinks playing in an actual US Open wouldn't add shots to a guy like Romo's round, they're nuts!   

Tom,

I disagree.  I dont think there would be added pressure and the course would not play any harder then what he played it as.  If anything, I think that playing with better players would elevate his game and provide him with a better chance to break 80.  Playing with better players makes you better.

Cheers,
Jordan

JW,

I am not sure that I totally agree with all of that, but you make a REAL solid point. It can't be easy to have to watch those others guys just completely HACK the place to pieces.

Clubhouse,

I guess, serve me my plate of crow. I really thought he would break 80.  We all know that anything can happen in a round of golf though. Romo must be struggling with his game, his cap has gone up 3 shots!!! I was wrong, but slightly mislead cap-wise.

Dean,

Just playing in a tournament only often adds strokes to hacks, not players. Romo would not shoot in the high 90's in the US Open, that is absurd.

Glen, I would never question how much tournament golf you have played so i will go off my own experience. Having played many top amateur events and several years on the mini tours i can definitely speak from my own experiences. In practise rounds and friendly Saturday games I regularly see mini tour players ( myself included) shoot 66 , 67, 68. They then tee it up a day later at the same course and shoot 73,74 ,75 and miss cuts. I have caddied for several Tour players at private clubs on their days off - many of them shoot mid to low 60's with ease and don't do that in tour events. Given, they play tougher courses in tournaments. But are you really trying to say there is no difference in scoring patterns between friendly rounds of golf and when you have a card in your hand playing for a living? A tournament round will definitely add shots to most peoples round if only because it actually 'matters'.

 Here are my thoughts and I am not saying you don't have points, just that you can really only automatically add to the hacks. When I said players, I was thinking top amateurs, not professionals, my fault. Average Professional golf brings a lot of different elements. Those guys have a hard living and a lot on their mind. The class professionals are different and so are the class amateurs. Romo seems to be a class amateur considering his day job. To go a little further, I have to invoke Trevino's story, Palmer playing for his engagement ring at Pine Valley or whatever he used the money for. Isn't the record at Oakmont still 63? Does Love shoot 64 at The Players if it was for fun? Does Tiger make that putt at Pumpkin Ridge with his buddies? How about the guy at Open Qualifying this year? He shoots 76 the first round and qualifies with a second round 66 by a shot. The other low score was 71 shot by just two different guys. It goes both ways, but I just think the blanket statement only applies to the hacks. Interestingly enough, Timberlake was headed well North of 100 and he then said he went into "Tiger" mode, 2 pars and 2 bogeys to finish at 98. Concentration was high, some guys do that when the flag goes up on the first hole. On the lighter side, I play a few games a year with a guy that swings it like a 30, putts like a +6 and I am almost convinced that I would take him straight up against Tiger on the 9th and 18th holes. It is uncanny what he pulls off with the bets in the air. I promise you he doesn't miss a putt on those greens that doesn't at least hit the hole.

[Jim Nugent]

I think Dean is right that scores often go up in tournaments, especially for amateurs.  But the round at Torrey was not just a casual round for fun.  The eyes of the world were on those players, and they knew it.  They knew they would get world-wide press coverage.  They knew they would appear on national (global) tv.  So I think there was more pressure than normal on them. 

Does anyone know for sure how hard the course setup was, compared to how Torrey will play in the Open?  Tees, rough, speed of greens, pins, weather?   

[Bob_Huntley]

I remember coming into the Big Room at St. Andrews after a particularly satisfying practice round on TOC. Sipping a gin and tonic next to on of the oldest Members, I mentioned the score and added some narrative. He looked over and said, "Laddie, don't get too excited, it'll be completely different when ye get the pencil in your hand."

How right he was.

All due kudos to Romo, I doubt he would break 90 in the real thing.

Does anyone know the last professional, i.e., Doctor, Dentist, Professor, Scientist etc., to qualify for the US Open? Exclude Gil Morgan.

Bob

[JLahrman]

Tiger Woods double bogeyed the first hole.  This put him one shot behind the pace John Atkinson set during his 114.

This could get interesting.

[Kalen Braley]

Tiger Woods double bogeyed the first hole.  This put him one shot behind the pace John Atkinson set during his 114.

This could get interesting.

Funny stuff JAL..

He's now 1 under thru 11.   

[Glenn Spencer]

I am feeling quite generous as I have the Celtics in the series. I think I will let all of you out of your $1 bets. Every single exempt player broke 80 today. That bet is done.  I think the boys will get it in gear a little more tomorrow. -6 wins it.

[Jim Nugent]

Lets see, Glenn, by how much did Romo break 80? 

We never did get an exact test of Tiger's proposition: that a 10 handicap could not break 100.  Why didn't they choose some actual 10 handicaps? 

I'm also curious how the course played yesterday.  Long, short, windy, calm, easy, hard, etc.

[Glenn Spencer]

Jim,

Why are you being like that? I never bet that Romo would break 80. It was my prediction and I owned up to it. Some people from the first page said that some Tour players can't break 80 at U.S. Open golf courses. Well, they all did today.  Romo did some very strange things, a 4-putt on 3 and doubling 18. He is obviously capable of breaking 80 on the course, he just didn't that day. For the love of God, people on the first page were saying that Romo MIGHT break 100. I just can't imagine insulting a guy who shot 69 in the 3rd round of The Azalea with the number 100. From the sound of things, give him a few more rounds and he is pushing breaking 75.

I didn't expect to enjoy the course and how it played as much as I did. It gave and it took and was very interesting. I certainly didn't feel like it played long in any way. Some tees were up, but it played more "short" than "long." For instance, Els 3-wood off 4. Tiger 7-iron? into 18. Mickelson didn't have a driver. Also, I heard several 9-irons into those "monster" par 4's.

As for the contest, Tiger never said a 10-handicap couldn't break 100 in front of national television cameras with 3 celebrities. He said that a 10-handicap couldn't break 100 on a US Open golf course. Maybe, they felt the cameras added to it and got a few lower caps.

[Jim Nugent]

Glenn, I was teasing you.  So far your prediction on how TP would play has been right. 

I never doubted Romo would break 100.  90 seemed likely to me, but not 80.  Maybe he is capable of doing that.  Did he play well, for him?  I also wonder if the course was set up in actual U.S. conditions.  I thought they firmed it up this past week, and made the greens quicker.  Was the heavy rough a bit thicker too? 

Tiger said a 10 handicap could not break 100 at Oakmont, IIRC.  I thought he was right at the time, and this little experiment at Torrey backs him up.  Though what do 10 handicappers from Oakmont itself shoot there?  If they play the tips, and have a ten handicap, doesn't that mean their best 10 of 20 rounds average 91 or so? 

[Glenn Spencer]

Jim,

Ok, my apologies. Have you ever 4-putted and doubled the last hole and said, yeah, I played pretty good today? I didn't  think so, same probably applies to Romo. I would think that Oakmont 10's break 100 regularly, but course knowledge would really come into play in that scenario. I don't think Tiger was accounting for that. I think Friday before the event is good enough for me as far as conditions. Anything more than that is getting a little picky. Hell, I never saw an account of the wind, could have been brutal for all I know. 84 with a 4-putt and a double on the pushover 18 is pretty damn capable of breaking 80.

[Dean Stokes]

I am feeling quite generous as I have the Celtics in the series. I think I will let all of you out of your $1 bets. Every single exempt player broke 80 today. That bet is done.  I think the boys will get it in gear a little more tomorrow. -6 wins it.

Isn't Hunter Haas exempt? 80. Day 2 Craig Parry, Jerry Kelly, Michael Campbell, Steve Flesch and Niclas Fasth all exempt, all in the 80's.

Two days of toughening up to go! When these guys played last week the greens were no where near what they are now. You think the USGA would risk that a week before their showpiece event?

Romo shot 84 which is very admirable. Could he break 80 though, very doubtful with the tournament conditions. Could he break 75, very very doubtful.

[Ken Moum]

Long, short, windy, calm, easy, hard, etc.

Actually, the amateur that played probably was a 10 handicap on Torrey at the slope rating it would have under the existing setup.

Ken

[Mike_Cirba]

As Bobby Jones said, "there's golf, and then there's tournament golf."

Speaking from personal experience, it's amazing what can happen to a golf swing when it matters.