[Sean_A]

Sean- i'm mostly just trying to get a sense from those who know better whether/to what extent links golf in general and a hard-and-dry-running St A in particular might and hard and dry have impacted play (including the 'mistakes') and influenced results

Pietro

I get the sense that Rory's driving wasn't enough to get the job done. Smith's skills around and on the greens were better than Rory's and in the case of TOC, that is probably a significant advantage. Although, Rory's lag putting was very good. There were a lot of three putts going on in the field because of the double greens. It would be interesting to know if the long putts were on average more difficult for the field than chipping and putting from the same distance on other courses. 

Ciao

[Tom_Doak]

Caddie value is exposed when or if a macro strategic choice results in failure.

John:


I'm certainly not here to blame Rory's caddie, and maybe there is another caddie out there who would have shook him up when necessary, although I can't imagine who.


I think Rory's failure was a failure to regroup.


He started out the day figuring what he had to do was be patient, take the "easy birdies" on the reachable holes, make sure he beat Hovland, and watch out for anybody making a run in front of him.  This is EXACTLY how Tiger Woods said he would approach the final round if he were in the same shoes.


So, he handled points 1-3 quite well, except for missing that birdie putt on #3.  But then he failed to downshift and become any more aggressive when Smith started making birdies on the early part of the back nine.  Also, the wind changed and started blowing back into their faces as they turned for home, and the "easy birdie holes" were no more.  You couldn't reach 12 or 14 or 18 so easily and had to hit great shots to get up and down to those hole locations from a few yards in front . . . and that's Cam Smith's game, not Rory's.


I think Rory was in a bit of a cocoon most of the way around, trying not to let the gravity of the situation affect him, and didn't realize until too late the urgency of his situation.  If he'd felt it on 12 or 13 he might have had time to change gears, but he didn't realize until he was standing in front of the green on 14, and then he felt all the pressure all at once.  He tugged his approaches to 15 and 16, where he needed to get one close.  Hit a great approach to 17, but by then it was too late to change his fate on the greens.  If Smith had made his move on the front nine, I think Rory would have had more time to process it, and he might have fared better.


Can you really blame his caddie for not waking him up earlier?  I don't think so, because neither one of them was seeing what was going on up ahead.  If Smith had lost by one, you would just as easily have blamed HIS caddie for letting him try to hit that crazy shot on 13 on Saturday . . . I thought for sure that had cost him the tournament, as he'd gotten so frustrated with making two-putt pars.  Just like Rory on Sunday.


P.S.  My biggest smile on Sunday was Rory deciding to putt from 80 yards on #6 on Sunday.  I've tried that, with much less at stake.

[Tom_Doak]

 It would be interesting to know if the long putts were on average more difficult for the field than chipping and putting from the same distance on other courses. 

That would be a very interesting study to see:  comparison of scoring average from 50, 60, 70, 100 feet away, regardless of whether you're on the green or in a bunker.  But some of the greenside bunkers at The Old Course might throw it out of whack.

[David_Tepper]

 "It would be interesting to know if the long putts were on average more difficult for the field than chipping and putting from the same distance on other courses."

Yes, that would be interest to see. These guys are SO good chipping and pitching with their wedges. It would not surprise me if their distance control with their wedges from 80-100 feet was better than their lag putting from the same distances.   

[Niall C]

For what it is worth, I saw some shockingly bad putting and not just from distance. What was needed was Dickie Bird to signal a few wides.


Niall

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