Best Foul Weather Golfers

[Jack_Marr]

Looking out my window watching the snowflakes drop I started to think of the finest foul weather players. Tom Watson comes to mind immediately. Who else could play when the going got tough?

Best I ever saw was Christy O'Conner Snr. Himself.

Bob

I believe Jack Nicllaus says the O'Connor Snr was the best he'd ever seen too.

[Richard Pennell]

Wasn't there an Open (not the one he won) where Sandy Lyle hit 71 or something in high winds and rain while the field hung around 80 or higher?

[Philippe Binette]

Patience and great short game is key on tough conditions.

Leonard played an amazing first round at Troon when he won the Open. Shot even par on the back nine where the par 4 average lenght was 440 yards into a strong wind. Nicklaus said that if somebody broke par on the back nine, he would have cheated.

Mike Weir is pretty good in bad weather

Ray Floyd did some crazy stuff at Shinnecock in the wind and rain

My vote goes for Tom Watson... the more layers he puts, the better he swings.

[KBanks]

Hagen was reputed to handle poor conditions well. Four Open championships in eight years speaks for itself.

He won the '29 Open at Muirfield in a high wind and rain the last day by switching to a deep faced driver, and was said to hit no drive over twenty feet high throughout the day.

Ken

[Bart Bradley]

The best is obviously Watson...but how about Kite's win at Pebble in the strong winds...Isn't that when Jack thought Montgomery posting at even early would win?

Doesn't being a great foul weather golfer come down to absolute purity of contact?  I read somewhere once that Watson felt he went several years on tour without missing the center of the clubface.  Amazing.

Bart

[Mike Hendren]

Francis Ouimet.

[Lester George]

Christy O'Connor and believe it or not Robert Wrenn.  

I saw Wrenn play at Carnoustie the week before the Open the year Lawrie won it in a gale, 35-40 mph winds, rain coming down sideways, bleachers were up as was the rough.  He shot 77 from the tournament tees.  The previous day he shot 67 at Troon.  One of the best rounds of golf I have ever seen.  Robert had a way of getting around in bad weather.  I wish he were still playing, maybe the Senior Tour?

Lester

[Andy Doyle]

I don't know if this puts him in the "best" category, but what about Davis Love III?

PGA win in the rain and TPC win in rain and high winds.  I forget how much better his final round at Sawgrass was than the field, but it was pretty big.

AD

[TEPaul]

Whoever the best foul weather players are something tells me most of the best of them aren't Americans, although Tom Watson is definitely a great candidate. They say he used to just love to go out and practice in about the worst weather he could find.

I used to have a better ball partner who actually much preferred playing in completely awful weather to playing on a nice sunny day---the worse it was the better he liked it.

As for me, I just hated that stuff---rain and all. My hands were always too cold, it made me grip it too tight and I got way too quick and I could never keep my cigarettes dry which was the worst part of all of it.

[Mark Bourgeois]

How bout Nicklaus that year at St. Andrews?  

[George Pazin]

Always funny to see how much people base their opinion of Tiger's weather related skills on one round. It doesn't matter how he finished in many other events, he shot an 81 in a snowstorm so he sucks in bad weather.

It's also interesting to me to read Aames' comment about the wind f'ing up his swing. That's not the first time I've read a modern player voicing that thought. I'd be lying if I said I understood the logic.

At any rate, I'd love to hear some Christy O'Connor stories, please share.

I'd also like to hear anyone's stories about their own weather related experiences.

[Tim Pitner]

Always funny to see how much people base their opinion of Tiger's weather related skills on one round. It doesn't matter how he finished in many other events, he shot an 81 in a snowstorm so he sucks in bad weather.

George,

Can you think of a round where Tiger really excelled in bad weather?  As I recall, his 3 Open Championship wins, especially the last 2 at St. Andrews and Hoylake, were marked by warm temperatures and mild winds.  Also, to be fair, I don't think people were saying that Tiger "sucks" in bad weather, just that he might not be among the best ever in poor conditions--quite a difference, IMO.  

[Mark Smolens]

Mike Hughes, my buddy from Mulligan's Island in Cranston, RI.  In '91 we were across the pond, and our last day was at Southerness.  We couldn't go off until 10:30 because they had a tournament scheduled for the morning, but when we arrived around 9, there were only 4 or 5 cars in the lot.   In the pro shop, there were five guys drinking coffee, and the pro asked if we were really going to go out there (our third stayed back at the B&B drinking tea).  We told him we didn't fly across the pond to lay up, I bought a rain hat, and off we went.

Driving rain, 40+ mph winds, cups filled with water for at least the first 13 holes.  Rain whipping so hard it hurt.  Mike shot 82, lost his umbrella and hat in the wind, and I was on the wrong side of 100.  Only two people on the course.

[PThomas]

Isnt it a case that players dont necessarily play better in bad weather , its just that they dont let it affect them as much as others ?

Last July , standing behind the 3rd tee at Carnoustie , Stephen Ames and Sean O'Hair are waiting to tee off .

Suddenly there is a gust of wind and you can feel its starting to pick up .

Stephen Ames announces ""Well if they think I am f***ing staying out here battling with this f***ing s**t , f***ing up my swing for the rest of the f***ing week............F**k it , I am going in ![/i]

Missed Cut !

O'Hair should have take his cue from the movie Planes , Trains and Automobiles and said to Ames, like the clerk did to Steve Martin after he used the f-bomb several times, "You're f#*&ed"!

[Jeff_Brauer]

I was staying at a friend's house in Chicago the week that Scott Verplank won the Western Open as an amateur.  Scott was staying at my friend's as well, for the same reason -- free housing!  

When he was ahead on Saturday evening and the forecast was for rain on Sunday, all he said was "I've had a lot of my best success in the rain."  And he went out and won it.  He'd also won the U.S. Amateur on a rainy final day.  So my vote goes for him.

I remember where I was when Verplank won that one - in the Las Vegas Golf Club clubhouse. If I recall, I delayed my flight home because of a Delta crash at DFW the day before.

BTW, would it be a thread tangent or thread jack to ask who is the best foul MOUTHED golfer?

[Tim Pitner]

BTW, would it be a thread tangent or thread jack to ask who is the best foul MOUTHED golfer?

That would be Tiger.  

[Bob_Huntley]

BTW, would it be a thread tangent or thread jack to ask who is the best foul MOUTHED golfer?

That would be Tiger.  

Tim,

You have to be kidding....he is a choirboy compared to some.

Bob

[George Pazin]

George,

Can you think of a round where Tiger really excelled in bad weather?  As I recall, his 3 Open Championship wins, especially the last 2 at St. Andrews and Hoylake, were marked by warm temperatures and mild winds.  Also, to be fair, I don't think people were saying that Tiger "sucks" in bad weather, just that he might not be among the best ever in poor conditions--quite a difference, IMO.  

Just off the top of my head:

- Won his 2nd Am in the rain against Buddy Marucci;

- Won at least 1 Bay Hill in the rain;

- 3rd in 98 Open at Birkdale, 1 stroke back, with very difficult weather on Thursday and Friday, can't remember the weekend specifically; for that matter, he was T7 at Carnoustie the next year, mentioned when someone suggested Lawrie;

- Won at Bethpage, rain & cold all tourney (I know, Sergio thinks Tiger got only good weather - well, consider the source)

I'm sure there are others, I just don't have the energy to track them down.

You are correct, I followed the time-honored golfclubatlas tradition of exaggerating when I said others said he sucks, but I'd say by only focusing on Muirfield round, the implication is definitely that he can't handle bad weather. It was one round; no one has a perfect weather in bad weather, I'm sure even Watson and Christy O'Connor posted a bad round every now and then.

He hasn't proven to be a Watson - yet. Give him time, all records will fall.

[JESII]

I would suggest that rain alone does not make "foul weather"...at least not for those guys.

A minimum of two out of the three evils...RAIN - WIND - COLD...are required for a round to be considered FOUL WEATHER...in my opinion...

Philadelphia's GAP Suburban League Matches have some unbelievable stories with weather...April in Philadelphia! It's doubtful a southern california guy would even tee it up...

[JSlonis]

I was staying at a friend's house in Chicago the week that Scott Verplank won the Western Open as an amateur.  Scott was staying at my friend's as well, for the same reason -- free housing!  

When he was ahead on Saturday evening and the forecast was for rain on Sunday, all he said was "I've had a lot of my best success in the rain."  And he went out and won it.  He'd also won the U.S. Amateur on a rainy final day.  So my vote goes for him.

BTW, would it be a thread tangent or thread jack to ask who is the best foul MOUTHED golfer?

The best I've ever heard in person was Steve Pate.  In 1988 I was able to attend the Master's for the first time from Fri-Sun.  I believe it was late in the day during the 2nd round...I thankfully witnessed an absolutely brilliant, expletive laced tirade on the 18th tee of Augusta.  I still chuckle about it today whenever I think about it.

[Lester George]

I agree with Steve Pate.  I witnessed the most incredible tirade from him at Baltusrol in 93 during the practice round on the 17th hole.  Still on of the funniest things I have ever seen.  Hurts my ribs to this day.  I was caddying for one of the other players in the group.  By the time we reached 18 tee, he was completely transformed and back to business.  Best recovery I ever saw as well.

Lester

[George Pazin]

A minimum of two out of the three evils...RAIN - WIND - COLD...are required for a round to be considered FOUL WEATHER...in my opinion...

Fair enough, in which case I'd argue 0 for 1 does not constitute a proper sample.

[Tim Pitner]

BTW, would it be a thread tangent or thread jack to ask who is the best foul MOUTHED golfer?

That would be Tiger.  

Tim,

You have to be kidding....he is a choirboy compared to some.

Not kidding, Bob.  My logic went like this:  he is the best golfer and he has been known to be foul-mouthed; therefore, he is the best foul-mouthed golfer (not to be confused with the most foul-mouthed golfer).  

[J_ Crisham]

Curtis Strange in his prime could let go a few verbal bombs. Not always the Southern gentleman!

[Gerry B]

ask Jeff Goldman