Official Golf Thread...FORE!!!!

[7-Year Ranch]

I wanted to discuss the President's Cup, but couldn't find a golf thread. Aren't there any golfers on this forum?

[TheBigCat]

"Where's the Golf Thread?"

Um..this is it.

What, we are supposed to start everything for you guys?

What I can do is rename the thread. Congratulations 7YR. You are now the threadstarter of the "Official Golf Thread...FORE!!!"

[King of Snake]

About time too. There are a few other sports that I'd like to discuss, such as cricket, but I don't think there will be much demand for that here, on a mainly US orientated board.

I'd did actually start a darts thread a while back, but it didn't get once single reply :(

Back to golf. I'd actually like to hear an Americans take on the Ryder Cup. How come you guys keep getting spanked by us? And how come arguably the greatest golfer of all-time (a certain Eldrich "Tiger" Woods) has never produced in the event?

[Lawboy]

I love the game. Played college level in the US, and still compete in local amateur events. I have two friends on the PGA Tour, good, but not great players by tour standards.

Fact is, the US team loses the Ryder Cup because they get too psyched up and psyched out. They just need to play and stop all the juvenile crap that goes on there. It was meant to be a fun event, but it has turned into something more negative. Also, the top US players, like Woods and Mickelson suck at the event, and that hurts the team. They need to show more pride once they are there and try to dominate. Lastly, the US team is better suited for 4 day medal play events, and the Europe team thrives on the anyone can win on any given day aspect to the event. In a normal tour event, the cream rises over 4 days. But here, every 18 holes is a new start and new event, the Americans just don't capitalize on that.

[scotpgot]

Moving to Hobbies For...oh, wait. ;)

[GrahamK]

"Where's the Golf Thread?"

Um..this is it.

What, we are supposed to start everything for you guys?

What I can do is rename the thread. Congratulations 7YR. You are now the threadstarter of the "Official Golf Thread...FORE!!!"

I remember the old days, when I was the threadstarter of a golf thread (http://www.losttv-forum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=24389&highlight=ryder).

It didn't get much traffic. I hope this one fares better.

[7-Year Ranch]

Did anyone watch the President's Cup. I just want to give props to my boy Mike Weir, best record for the Internationals, and beats Tiger heads up. And people said he shouldn't have made the team. Ha!!

[Tater]

“As great as Jim Brown was, and as great as Michael Jordan was, and as great as anybody you’d want to keep mentioning, I don’t know of anybody who was as great at his sport as this man is now. I mean, he’s totally incredible. He’s phenomenal. Sometimes I hear people say, ‘He’s lucky.’ Well, you can throw that talk out. You can be lucky and good, but he is absolutely good. Even when he’s way ahead, he wants to make every putt and every golf shot as perfect as possible. I don’t know of anybody who has ever played any sport who was able to concentrate as much on perfection at all times as Tiger Woods.” -Hank Aaron



That's pretty high praise from ole Hammerin' Hank.

[TheBigCat]

Wayne Gretzky. Maybe.

Pele. Again, maybe.

Jim Thorpe.

Rocky Marciano.

On thing is for certain. If Tiger isn't unique in the annals of sport, he is at least in some pretty special company.

[King of Snake]

Tiger is the greatest, but as I previously mentioned, can he produce it when it really really matters, i.e. The Ryder Cup?

['Stoon]

lol, the ryder cup doenst matter! well...it doest to most of the world but here in the States it honestly doesn't.

and yes...Tiger is the single greatest, most dominant athlete ever.

[King of Snake]

lol, the ryder cup doenst matter! well...it doest to most of the world but here in the States it honestly doesn't.

and yes...Tiger is the single greatest, most dominant athlete ever.

There's two reasons for that.

1. Americans only really care about sports they invented i.e. Baseball, NFL etc.

2. You keep getting beat

['Stoon]

wasn't aware we invented the british open o.O

nah, i get where you are going with that...

but why wouldn't we care about the things that are our national past times...i never met a brit that knew more than me about american football or baseball...

can't deny we keep getting beat... dunno what the problem is there, i think it has to do with a number of factors... i wonder of woosie would consider becoming an american citizen :D

[The Central Scrutinizer]

Yay! There IS a golf thread!

Masters Week is next week. Expect to see me in this thread a lot in the next couple of weeks! :)

[King of Snake]

Eldrich has got it in the bag

['Stoon]

w00t for the Masters...

tcs - you should go sometime... its freaking awesome

[The Central Scrutinizer]

I would love to go, that course is so immaculate this time of the year. I'm such a couch potato on Masters Weekend.

In the meantime, we can all Putt Amen Corner (http://www.masters.org/en_US/interactive/game/putting.html)!

[Lawboy]

I have a bro-in-law who is supposed to get me on Augusta. His business partner has played it like 3 times(I have seen the photos, too), and a major client of theirs is a member. I am sure it is nothing more than pipe dream.

As for Masters week, hard to pick against Tiger, but this year, I take the field. Just a gut instinct.

['Stoon]

I'll take Tiger Lawboy :D

going out tomorrow morning for the first round of the year... have hit balls 3x already...gotta see how the new driver plays :D ... picked up a ping g10, been using a 975d for like 6 years now... finally got something different

[TheBigCat]

Something I discovered in high school is that BP with golf balls is a lot of fun. Yeah, they are harder to hit, but if you connect squarely they fly a loooooooong way.

['Stoon]

heck yeah...

you can hit them like 200 yards LOL

[TheBigCat]

Heck, I hit one easily 200 yards toss-and-hit. With a wooden bat.

Oh, and if you are pitching, do it from cover.

['Stoon]

played 18 this morning... shot an 83 (45-38)... driver worked pretty well, I could work the ball pretty well from right to left but LOL, i was just trying to keep it in the fairway ...

*waits for the masters*

[The Central Scrutinizer]

Nice round, Stoon! I plan to dust off the clubs soon!

[The Central Scrutinizer]

The Par 3 Tournament at The Masters is underway. Live coverage on www.masters.org (http://www.masters.org) starts at 2:00 ET.

Here (http://www.masters.org/en_US/scores/par3contest.html) is the current leaderboard.

I love Par 3's and I wish some network would cover a couple of hours live from that contest (if the Powers that Be at Augusta will allow it).

['Stoon]

I thought it was covered by a network? espn maybe?

edit: just checked...comes on espn at 2cst

[The Central Scrutinizer]

I thought it was covered by a network? espn maybe?

edit: just checked...comes on espn at 2cst

Is that the Par 3 Tourney or just some folks sitting around the Butler's Cabin predicting a bloodbath by Tiger?

I checked a couple of days ago and all the guide said on Wed was Live from Augusta.

['Stoon]

Par 3 tourney

[Lucie_Goosy]

I play golf :D

[The Central Scrutinizer]

Yeah, my wife was home and I called her to record it. :D Yay! Thanks for the headsup.

['Stoon]

Haha... nothing to special happened that I saw... cool thing was jack, arnold nad gary were in the same group and they had a sunday tiger crowd with them... it was nuts

[Winston Smith]

Woods is gonna have to play better than he did today if he's gonna pull it off. If he hadn't eagled 15 he would have been +2.

Rose had a heck of a day; 6 birdies is how you play Augusta. Granted it's only the 1st day. We'll see what tomorrow brings.

[The Central Scrutinizer]

Whoever designed The Masters Website (http://www.losttv-forum.com/forum/www.masters.org) sure does know what they're doing. The live scoreboard kept me updated all day while at work, and I was able to watch Amen Corner Live during my lunchtime. The video is as good as it gets for streaming live.

Tiger parring everything except that 3-hole stretch was pretty surprising. He's primed to roar tomorrow.

[Winston Smith]

Whoever designed The Masters Website (http://www.losttv-forum.com/forum/www.masters.org) sure does know what they're doing. The live scoreboard kept me updated all day while at work, and I was able to watch Amen Corner Live during my lunchtime. The video is as good as it gets for streaming live.

Tiger parring everything except that 3-hole stretch was pretty surprising. He's primed to roar tomorrow.

Yeah, I'm doing the same thing. My boss didn't show today, so I watched most of it. It's gonna suck tomorrow when I have twice the work :) And you're right, the site rocks.

[King of Snake]

Rose FTW!

The English boys are doing me proud at the moment.

However, I'm sure the wheels will have fallen off by the end of the 3rd round

['Stoon]

However, I'm sure the wheels will have fallen off by the end of the 3rd round

That's the spirit

[King of Snake]

Ian Poulter finally seems to be putting his money where his mouth is. 5-under is sitting very pretty.

What's going on with Eldrich?

[The Central Scrutinizer]

With Tiger approaching Amen Corner +1, I think the world is melting the server at Masters.org, because the video has been really choppy the last few minutes. Maybe it's my hardware/network, though.

[The Central Scrutinizer]

Things have cleared up on the site. Nice timing, KOS!

[King of Snake]

Thanks Scroot.

I don't know what anyone else thinks about this, but I've got a problem with the likes of Gary Player, Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus playing in tournaments like this. Fair enough, these guys are absolute legends and deserve the utmost respect, but do we really need to see them hacking up Augusta every year? At the end of the day, they are taking up spaces that young up-and-coming golfers are slogging their guts out to try and get.

Personally, I think these guys should move over and let someone else; who actually has a chance of winning; take their place in the field.

Absolutely no disrespect to these guys, but what other sport allows 75+ year-old has-beens play in one of the top-four tournaments in the world?

[King of Snake]

ETA

Has does Ian Poulter actually hit a golf ball? The guy is totally cock-eyed

['Stoon]

What's going on with Eldrich?

Eldrick

['Stoon]

Thanks Scroot.

I don't know what anyone else thinks about this, but I've got a problem with the likes of Gary Player, Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus playing in tournaments like this. Fair enough, these guys are absolute legends and deserve the utmost respect, but do we really need to see them hacking up Augusta every year? At the end of the day, they are taking up spaces that young up-and-coming golfers are slogging their guts out to try and get.

Personally, I think these guys should move over and let someone else; who actually has a chance of winning; take their place in the field.

Absolutely no disrespect to these guys, but what other sport allows 75+ year-old has-beens play in one of the top-four tournaments in the world?

They have their own rules. It is a special place, and they like to keep it that way. Personally, I'd rather see those 3 guys than some 3 others who haven't won on the tour or won meaningless tournaments. When they earn the right to play there, they will appreciate it even more.

just my 2 cents

[King of Snake]

Eldrich/Eldrick - same thing. It's not my fault his parents spelt it wrong ;)

Anyway, fair play to Brant Snedeker (sp?). 7-under and sitting pretty. What was that award he won recently? Rookie of the year or Stupidest name of the year, or something like that

[King of Snake]

Congrats to Immelman on his thoroughly deserved victory.

Looks like I was pretty much spot on about the English guys. All but Paul Casey were out of contention by close-of-play on Saturday. Not to be out done by horrendous rounds by Rose and Poulter, he sufficiently embarrassed himself with a 79

[Winston Smith]

Immelman played a solid game from start to finish. There was a moment there were I really thought Tiger was going to make his move. Tiger was on 14 and Immelman was on 13. Immelman had a huge put to make birdie and tiger had a small one to make birdie. I thought Immelman would miss and shoot a par, and Tiger would birdie, putting the lead at three with 5 holes left. But Immleman made his birdie and Tiger missed his and bogied it, making the lead 6 with five to go.

Poor Tiger jsut couldn't get his putting right all week. He knew it too and it was frustrating the hell out of him. All in all it was a good round of golf.

['Stoon]

it is because he didn't wear red on friday... why the heck was he wearing pink

i am furious! :)

[TheBigCat]

why the heck was he wearing pink?

Maybe he's donating to something?

[azteclady]

:bump:

Seems to me Tiger proved himself today. Color me happy :D

[King of Snake]

Why do they have an 18-hole play-off? It's a ridiculous idea

[TheBigCat]

Really.

[King of Snake]

Yes. Ridiculous

[King of Snake]

Good to see Harrington and Garcia are hitting form just in time for The Ryder Cup.

Harrington for world no.1?

[King of Snake]

Ryder Cup is only 2 weeks away.

cantwaitcantwaitcantwaitcantwait.

It has to be my favourite sporting event of all (even more than the World Cup).

Europe are going to kick arse, yet again.

[Fancy Monkey]

Ryder Cup is only 2 weeks away.

cantwaitcantwaitcantwaitcantwait.

It has to be my favourite sporting event of all (even more than the World Cup).

Europe are going to kick arse, yet again.

I've contemplated not watching much this year, what with Tiger out, Luke Donald out (Go 'Cats!), and, you know, another beatdown coming the US' way.

But I don't think I'll be able to stay away. It's such a great format.

Prediction: Europe 17.5-10.5. Mickelson: 0-4-1. Stories in the US with much hand-wringing, trying to attribute the US' loss to some sort of psychobabble explanation like "the Europeans want it more" or "Europe is more relaxed" or "Europeans have more camraderie" instead of the real reason ("Europe's got better golfers"): TOO MANY.

[King of Snake]

I've got a horrible feeling that something may go wrong for the Europeans.

As much as I admire Faldo for his playing ability, he is notoriously selfish and arrogant. Much of our recent success has been down to the closeness of the group. Faldo's ways might just upset that.

And by leaving out favourites Monty and Darren Clarke, he's lost two outstanding Ryder Cup players (let's not forget that Monty has never lost a singles match).

Either way, I cant wait for it. I've cancelled everything over the weekend and I've told my girlfriend not to expect to see me til Monday.

[island_maverick]

Either way, I cant wait for it. I've cancelled everything over the weekend and I've told my girlfriend not to expect to see me til Monday.That's basically where I'm at.

There's something magical about The Ryder Cup, isn't there?

I'm trying not to get too worked up about Faldo's approach. It would be easy to look at the negatives of leaving out Monty/Clarke, especially given their records.

It's probably fair to say that if Faldo had the same selection advantage that Azinger has - i.e. he can take four picks instead of two - then he would have left Owen Wilson and probably Stenson behind in favour of Monty and Clarke.

Having said that, apparently the word amongst the players on the circuit is that Monty has 'lost it' for some time and even though Clarkey won two competitions this year he hasn't made the cut (or been invited due to low ranking position) for any of the Majors.

There's also the positive interplay, by all accounts, of Poulter-Rose-Casey (which I hope isn't verging on sub-division in the team) so I'm going to put my trust in Faldo and hope that the team take his winning mentality out onto the course.

[King of Snake]

2 hours to go.

Cantwaitcantwaitcantwait

I predict Europe to break the 19 point barrier

[RicoSlim]

LETS GO USA!!!!!!!!!

[King of Snake]

Decent start from Europe. I'm sure we've only been down once in one game for one hole. Although, the Yanks are showing good hustle and are sticking in there.

Long way to go though.

[RicoSlim]

USA 3 EUROPE 1....

must be weird being behind

[CalvinHobbesLocke]

Was watching at lunch over beers. When Kim blew the sandshot, my buddy and I thought it would have been hilarious if Mickelson would have chipped it back into the bunker and said "Try again, son." :)

[King of Snake]

Ok, so the first day didnt go to well. All credit to the Americans though, they pretty much all played out of their skins.

It was nice to see 1 or 2 spectators not cheering and whooping when a European played a bad shot. Shame about the other 38,998 fans there

[LPU]

Hey, it's been almost 10 years.

Let us hate a little.

[RicoSlim]

Ok, so the first day didnt go to well. All credit to the Americans though, they pretty much all played out of their skins.

It was nice to see 1 or 2 spectators not cheering and whooping when a European played a bad shot. Shame about the other 38,998 fans there

lol, and when we are in Europe it is the same thing... don't be bitter.. both sides are pretty classless... the Cup is still far from being in American hands

[LPU]

Not that far.

[King of Snake]

It's far too painful for me to talk about, so I'd just like to say well done to America. You deserved it.

[island_maverick]

Thanks, KoS. That saves me from saying it.

Anyone got a Nick Faldo voodoo doll going spare? (I'd like to jump on the popularist bandwagon at this stage of trauma).

[RicoSlim]

wire to wire victory.. don't worry Europe, you will not have to worry about us winning again till late 201X

[CalvinHobbesLocke]

Wonder how Mr. Woods feels today?

[RicoSlim]

Wonder how Mr. Woods feels today?

I am sure he feels fantastic....money, health, hot wife, another child on the way

Remember Golf is an individual sport.. and lets be honest, the Ryder Cup is an exhibition every two years

[island_maverick]

You guys really deserved to nail this one. A few of our big guns didn't get going (Harrington looked dead on his feet, too) but that would be an excuse.

You pulled off some great shots at the right times and, apart from a little wobble on day 2, never looked like being runners-up.

[Mysterious Mike]

Tiger is looking pretty good so far. He hit a couple of great 2nd shots on the first two holes.



Mickelson is such a wildcard player. He is way up on Cabrera and the proceeds to hit an unplayable shot on the next 2 holes. He just always seem to fall apart at some time or another. Granted he won last week but he had a stretch where he was extremely shaky. We'll see if he can hold it together for the rest of the round.

[ScrappleKing]

I have know idea why or how I'm able to be amazed or surprised by anything Tiger does anymore. Unreal.

[Peggy Sawyer]

Wasn't that incredible today? Classic Tiger.

[strandediniowa]

An amazing round, and an amazing finish!!

[CalvinHobbesLocke]

An amazing round, and an amazing finish!!

Unless he is like 10 strokes back on Sunday, teh rest of the field should just pack up and head to the bar.

Can't wait for the Masters. :)

[TheBigCat]

Ah, the old Eldrick is back. Memories of that windy day day at Pebble Beach long ago. I was watching that day, jaw slack, as everyone else's shots were curving off into the rough but Tiger was somehow managing to keep his in play and he finished with a double digit lead.

[Lawboy]

Credit to Tiger for putting pressure on O'Hair. But fact is, if O' Hair shoots even, he wins. So in that regard, O'Hair choked under the weight of the pressure. Tiger's gets a lot of wins because of this. His reputation carries him to wins because players around him wet themselves far too often. Don't get me wrong, Tiger is an amazing talent. But O'Hair choked it.

[7-Year Ranch]

Everybody ready for Augusta? I'm pulling for Paddy to make it three majors in a row, but Tiger is back with a vengeance, he's definitely the man to beat.

[Peggy Sawyer]

I think Paddy's going to make it a battle; I think he makes a more competitive and compelling Woods rival than Mickelson. But in the end, whoever is there (even if it's Rocco!) you have to root for Tiger.

[GrahamK]

I'd bet on the winner this week being someone from outside the world's top twenty.

[TheBigCat]

Like last year when Rocco surprised everyone, Graham? That was something.

They were breaking down the effects of the knee injury and surgery on Tirger's swing, showing slo-mo...the effect was startling. He was being forced to lift his left foot almost clear on his follow through, something any weekend duffer will tell you is not good for consistant results. Now his left foot is near stationary when he drives.

[Peggy Sawyer]

Well, an interesting first round. Tiger really should be about 4-under, but he missed some critical putts. Still, he's in it. Padraig played pretty well, and both Greg Norman and Larry Mize had surprising days. Wouldn't it be fun to see them playing together on Sunday?

[TheBigCat]

Angel Cabrera grabs his second Major with an exciting three-way play off win over Chad Campbell and Kenny Perry to don the Green Jacket. Lefty finished 3 back, Tiger 4 back, last years winner Rocco Mediate was 22 back at +10

[GrahamK]

I'd bet on the winner this week being someone from outside the world's top twenty.

For once I was right! Cabrera was ranked 69 before his victory.

Perry should've won it - after his tee shot at 16th it was in the palm of his hand. The chip shot at 17 that ran right through the green was a thoroughly dreadful golf shot, and I can only think he was beginning to imagine himself wearing a green jacket, and that loss of focus cost him dear.

I have my season-ticket for the Open Championship at Turnberry in July - and I'm already looking forward to a feast of great golf.

[Brian]

I've had some bad tee shots before, but I've never sent anyone to the hospital.

Murray's tee shot hits woman in her yard (http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/news/story?id=4077485)

LUTZ, Fla. -- Actor Bill Murray hooked a tee shot so badly during a Pro-Am event on Friday that the ball sailed across a street next to the hole and hit a woman in her front yard. She was knocked to the ground and had to go to the hospital.

Murray was on No. 9 at the TPC Tampa Bay during the first round of the Outback Pro-Am when he hit Gail DiMaggio as she was watching the tournament.

He was playing with Hal Sutton, Jeff Sluman and Fred Paglia. They continued while Murray's caddie took him in a cart to the woman's yard, where paramedics were attending to her. Tournament officials said DiMaggio was lying on the ground, but conscious and moving.

"I wasn't sure I was in bounds or not," Murray said. "And I saw this NBC golf cart coming at me and he said, 'I hate to be the one to tell you this but you hit a lady. She's down on the ground.' That is, you know, sobering."

Murray said DiMaggio was taken to a local hospital.

"She was overjoyed when she saw me because she said she had come out to see me and her husband had just said, 'I hope he hits it over here,' " said Murray, who did not finish his round.

After signing his scorecard he joked with reporters that DiMaggio isn't the first spectator he's hit.

The 58-year-old comedian is an avid golfer who often plays in celebrity tournaments. He did not play in the Outback in 2008, but has numerous times in the past.

[GrahamK]

I've had some bad tee shots before, but I've never sent anyone to the hospital.


I sent myself to hospital once with my tee shot. The ball came right off the toe of the club, hit the tee box and rebounded straight against my knee. I collapsed in agony, rolling around on the grass sobbing. I had to visit the x-ray department to ascertain the seriousness of the structural damage to the joint - the pain was so severe I was unsure if would ever walk again. The diagnosis? My knee was just a little bruised and I was officially labelled a wuss.

[Brian]

Ouch. That just sounds painful Graham.

[TheBigCat]

The woman's friends are going to start calling her "Gopher" from now on.

[Peggy Sawyer]

Wow, what a great performance by Tiger today. He was incredible with his driver, and looked really composed coming from four back. It should be a super summer for Woods, if he can keep this up.

[CENSORED]

I try not to over react when it comes to Tiger and these things, but it's really impossible. He's on a planet all by himself and to not recognize that is to deny reality

[GrahamK]

Just back from Turnberry and a great week watching the Open Championship. The course is terrifying, but beautiful.

It was almost - but not quite - the most amazing event in golf history. Tom Watson was, for 72 holes, the best golfer. He had the greatest control of his swing and his course management was sublime. The only player that came close was Lee Westwood. If Watson had held on to win at the age of 59 then the grandstands would have exploded. No offence to Stewart Cink, but almost everybody on course was rooting for Tom as the play-off started, and then felt completely deflated almost as soon as the play-off got under way.

What matters, of course, is the numbers on the scorecard, and Cink ended up the winner - and I'm not suggesting he didn't deserve it, just that nobody (except perhaps his close friends and family) wanted him to ruin the fairytale.

Tiger missing the cut? Well, to be honest Tiger never looked interested. I'm sure he was making the effort, but especially on Day Two he simply wasn't taking as much time over shots close to the green as usual.

All in all a wonderful event.

[TheBigCat]

Thanks for the report, Graham. Watson's touch betrayed him on a ten foot putt for birdie that would have won him the tournament. Bummer that, but what a weekend of golfing the man turned out for.

[Tater]

From a bump on Adult Swim:

Try to think of playing golf like making love to a beautiful woman.

It's hard to do consistently and you probably suck at it.

So accept that you'll spend life lying about how good you are.










:rotfl:

[TheBigCat]

That explains why my whole experience has been bad lays, constantly in the rough, the bunker or the drink, always with the feeling that I am using the wrong club, wishing I had a better partner.


And I don't even play golf.

[King of Snake]

Paddy has got his game back. Watch out USPGA