The Straits is EASY!!

[Tony_Chapman]

Gamez is off and running to a 3 under start after three holes. I think -20 will win this major!!  

[Scott_Burroughs]

I seem to remember taking some of his money, too.    but that was ON the golf course....


Tony,

FYI,

Straits, not Straights.  

[John Foley]

Now Choi & Clarke are -4 after 4!!!

Only 14 of 66 are over par!

Didn't know they we're playing this in palm Springs

Did they get more rain over night and are the pro's throwing darts?

[JakaB]

It is not the rain...it is the knee jerk reaction following the US Open..

[Matt Kardash]

Tiger just doubled 11, i wonder if he found the "sand box"?. And he made a bogey on 12. +2 after 3.

[Brian_Gracely]

KJ Choi....la, la, la, la....birdie, birdie, birdie, birdie, birdie

[Brock Peyer]

Isn't this place supposed to be hard?

Choi is now 6 under through 5!!!!  I guess those first 5 holes are pretty easy.

[Greg Holland]

Lots of birdies, but lots of doubles as well.  Look at Tiger, Andrade, Lowery, etc.  All started with birdies, but are now over par.  

[Dan Kelly]

You guys are so funny.  this happens every fricking time they play a new course.  Actually, it happens every week out on Tour.  They come in and say the course is a beast and very very difficult.  On the regular tour, they praise every course they play as one of their favorites on tour and they really love the city of _____.  Then they go light up the course they just said was a bitch, to make themselves look sooooo good, which of course increases fan interest and attendance, which of course increases their paychecks!

Why anyone would listen to a single word any of these guys say about how hard XYZ Links is is beyond me.  They have a vested interest in telling you that XYZ is really, really hard.  

Amen, brother. Amen.

[RJ_Daley]

Oh boy today is going to be fun watching the running commentary on GCA.com.  It is just like the old wire service days until the actual telecast comes on.

Make note to myself:  This Dave fellow is a pretty smart cookie, keep his law office phone on speed dial.

I reckon they will put the tee on 1 back to the 492 marker tomorrow after all, instead of their last minute putting it at 408.

Ol man Kohler is probably going to turn off all the showers in the clubhouse.

Pete Dye must be in the tool shed sharpening an axe.

Is there anyway to get that hurry a cane to blow on up the missisip and take a Haven split...

Well, I'm off to play in men's club day.  I'll guarantee I won't be anything under after 5 because we really have a hard course...

[Doug_Feeney]

Brock,

Choi is 5 under through 6.  Take a look at the scoring averages for the holes on the Back 9.  Starting at #8 the course becomes much more difficult.

[Dan Kelly]

Well, I'm off to play in men's club day.  I'll guarantee I won't be anything under after 5 because we really have a hard course...

Yes, but on the flip side: You really *do* love Brown County.

Don't you?

[Brock Peyer]

I think pgatour.com was showing Choi's score in error but yes, I don't hear any fat ladies yet.

[Mike_Golden]

I read comments like the one from JakaB above and wonder if someone like him every has played a competitive sport and understands how pressure impacts performance.

So, for JakB's sake, let me explain why scores are usually lower in the first round than in the 4th round-THEY ARE UNDER MUCH BIGGER PRESSURE IN THE LAST ROUND!!!!!

So, you can complain about course setup, conditions, watering, etc, etc, etc, etc....But, at the end of the day, these guys ARE good, and if you put them in the worst of conditions for a $25 Nassau they will still be way under par-put them out there for a Major when they are in contention, however, and it can be a totally different outcome.

[Matt Kardash]

Apparenlty the course is only playing 7300 yards with almost no wind (that's 300 yards less than originally planned). I guess the PGA chickened out.

[Greg Holland]

Daly just posted a snowman on 18.

[Brian_Gracely]

Darren Clarke has made 8 birdies in 12 holes.  I like Darren's personality alot and wouldn't mind seeing him win, I just hope he doesn't celebrate with 15 or 20 Guinness tonight and come back a mess tomorrow ;-)

[Michael Dugger]

ah, snowy, a guy I am quite good friends with.

[JakaB]

Every single one of you who complained about the set up at the US Open is responsible for this mess....now either fess up or look to even bigger problems in the future for your precious classic courses.   This modern gem could have been a worthy venue if only set up like a modern championship should be....please, please give Tom Meeks the respect he deserves and hike up your skirts before it is too late.   Difficulty is not about length anymore...it is about firmness and speed of greens like we saw at Shinnecock....it was perfect and now look what you got.....proud of yourselves..

[George Pazin]

It's always a little dangerous to do so, but I'm inclined to agree with Jax on this one - after the outrage from the players, the media and the all knowing golf pundits, the PGA probably decided to error on the side of too soft (and thus too boring to me).

Clarke's on pace for -42!

[Brian_Gracely]

The 2004 US Open wasn't setup hard enough.....Goosen finished -4 and Phil was -2.  That doesn't sounds like defending par to me.  And so what if a few guys 4-putted #7....not everyone did, so obviously there was a right and wrong way to play the hole.  

Shinnecock was obvious setup differently than other tournaments, but it was for the Championship of the United States of America.  Unless some people forgot, that's a pretty huge accomplishment and you'll notice that rarely does the US Open have fluke winners (Steve Jones aside).  They identify the best golfer.

...oh yeah, and the wind wasn't really blowing

[John_Conley]

Steve Jones a fluke winner?  I guess I don't know the definition.  He won a good deal of events in his career - some before the injury and two or three after he won the Open in Michigan.

[John_Conley]

Steve Jones was born in 1958.  Emerged with a breakout year in 1988 when he won Pebble Beach in a playoff.  Followed that up with a fast start to 1989 when he won the ToC and Hope early, went on to win 1989 Canadian.  Fourth win came at age 30.

Injured Nov. 1991 at age 32.

Won 1996 U.S. Open at age 37.  Seemed out of the blue to some because he had not been a factor on Tour since 1989 or 1990, but was quickly validated with three more victories.

1997 Phoenix - won despite hitting only about half the greens.  Shot about 27 under and needed only 90-something putts.  One of the most amazing tournaments by a winner in the last decade.  (Dan King can probably dig up some stories to validate my memory.)

1997 Canadian - won on Royal Montreal in conditions as hard as we ever see in a normal Tour stop.

1998 Quad Cities.

Eight career wins, one Major championship.  All this despite being robbed of his peak earning years with a fluke injury - ages 33, 34, 35, and 36.

Now 45, Steve is enduring more health problems.

While he never played on a Ryder Cup team, his history won't look much different from guys like Lehman, Elkington, or Woosnam.

[Mike_Golden]

I suppose the apocalypse is now upon us, at least according to our resident 'expert regarding such matters', Mr. JakaB-35 players out of 135 on th e course under par, and 16 of them at -1-I'm guessing little or no wind so far.  Wasn't Gil Morgan -10 in the 3rd round at the Open at Pebble that Tom Kite won at +1?

I haven't played WS (I cancelled out of a trip 2 years ago to Kohler) but a bunch of golf buddies played it and enjoyed the experience although some of them preferred one of the other courses there.  Isn't that much more important than what number wins a tournament?

[JakaB]

Mike,

I have modified this post because somebody complained...maybe if the wind blows today I will come up with something original or challenging....now isn't this better...I'm as happy as PGA pro playing from the member tees to soft greens and easy pins.....keep the sheep warm Herb cause some real people might want to return someday..

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