What caliber player makes you say "Wow"?

[MEfree]

A recent thread http://thesandtrap.com/forum/thread/47278/casey-wittenberg-what-happened-to-him#post_612655 that turned into a discussion about whether the Nationwide Tour had any "Wow" names got me to thinking, What caliber player makes you say "Wow"?

In golf, anyone I play with that can consistently shoot close to par or better on a course of average difficulty impresses me.

However, when we turn to professional sports, it seems like we raise the bar and become completely unimpressed with the average "journeyman."  The talk of Tiger being a failure if he doesn't win 18+ majors ( http://thesandtrap.com/forum/thread/47321/tiger-faces-failed-legacy#post_612408 ) is a prime example of how high some raise that bar.

Whether it is basketball, baseball, tennis or golf, my feeling is that most of us would say "wow" after playing with any of these guys- even those at the end of the bench or deep down in the rankings.

[bunkerputt]

I played with a guy who shoots in the 60s once.  That was wow.  He really hit the ball purely.  His trajectory was really perfect.  He didn't muscle the ball at all, just let his swing and the club do the work.  He would miss sometimes, but he would always get his putts to inches.  I didn't see him hit a chip the entire round.  If you include the fringe, he hit 18 greens and shot like 4 under or so.  He also didn't talk much so I couldn't figure out his secret .  When I asked him, he said something like "You just need to relax and hit it." He's obviously not on any tours, so I can't imagine what it's like to follow one of those guys around.  Spectacular I'm sure....

[walk18]

Well I've played with a guy who drove a 370 yard hole, and consistently hit it farther than anyone I've seen, but his short game was a bit lacking, so not an overall high caliber player. Man it was fun to watch him hit it though. I was impressed.

[newtogolf]

I played in a scramble last year with a guy that I'd never met before.  I'm used to playing with golfers that are better than I am, but when he hit his first drive over 325 yards right in the middle of the fairway I was in awe.  He hit almost every tee shot perfect, and his short game was just as good.  He said he was a -5 handicap, but the way he played that day I'd have guessed he was +5.

[turtleback]

I went to the Glendale US Open Sectional qualifying and saw lots of players whose ball striking ability wowed me.

[DocWu1948]

I saw Rocco Mediate at a Cadillac event, a year before he went against Tiger in the US Open. He stood there talking to us while hitting irons and fairway woods straight and far far away. While we all gasped, being modest, he said, "This is our job. It's just what we do all day."

So I guess it would take another PGA Pro to make me say "Wow" again.

[gir]

I went to my first PGA tournament at the Colonial a few weeks ago and saw Rickie Fowler, Sergio Garcia, Angel Cabrerra, VJ Singh, Jason Day, Trevor Immelman, and many more.  Saw these guys one after the other hit easy irons into a 250 yard par 3 like it was no thing.  Saw Cabrerra reach a 635 yard par 5 in two with driver and an iron.  All of these guys bombed the ball.  I realized weekend warriors who think they average about 280 off the tee are out of their minds and have probably never even seen a ball go anywhere close to 300 yards.  The best drive I have ever seen any amateur hit, including myself, was comparable to how these guys were hitting easy little hybrids.  Their drives were like nothing I've ever seen anybody hit.  It was really something else.

[turtleback]

Originally Posted by gir

I went to my first PGA tournament at the Colonial a few weeks ago and saw Rickie Fowler, Sergio Garcia, Angel Cabrerra, VJ Singh, Jason Day, Trevor Immelman, and many more.  Saw these guys one after the other hit easy irons into a 250 yard par 3 like it was no thing.  Saw Cabrerra reach a 635 yard par 5 in two with driver and an iron.  All of these guys bombed the ball.  I realized weekend warriors who think they average about 280 off the tee are out of their minds and have probably never even seen a ball go anywhere close to 300 yards.  The best drive I have ever seen any amateur hit, including myself, was comparable to how these guys were hitting easy little hybrids.  Their drives were like nothing I've ever seen anybody hit.  It was really something else.

You have to understand that when it comes to driving distance there is a big difference between measured physical yardage and internet forum yardage.  Someone should create a conversion chart.    LOL

[skates]

I use to work at a country club and watched the assistant pro on the range call out high fade, low draw half way through his swing with a 3 wood. Each shot was so pure and going to the end of the range which was about 275. It was unbelievable and he told me he could compete on the hooters tour but there were so many better guys than him. I was absolutely shocked.

[cody west]

i played in a match with some of my friends for like $90 a side and $90 overall and the scores went 66 (-5), 68(-3), 69(-2) and that was really impressive because we all were playing so well. , Collectively we had 14 birdies and I had 7 of my own.

I also watched a kid shoot 42 30 for a 72(E) in a tournament which was so impressive.

I watched a kid start off with a 3 putt bogey and proceed to play the next 17 holes -2 and hit all 18 greens to shoot 71 (-1)in the mass amateur.

[GolfBear]

My favorite thing to do at a tournament is watch the pro's warm up at the range.   The last tournament I went to Kevin Na didn't make the cut.   Now Kevin isn't a top tier PGA player but the kid sure does work hard.   On a Sunday, instead of going home, he was at the range hitting sand wedges for THREE HOURS.    He literally stayed on the range for three hours hitting wedge after wedge.   I don't think he missed his target by more than 15 feet all day.   That kind of commitment makes me say "WOW".

[sean_miller]

I caddied a couple times in our local open (Alberta Open) which was a stop on the Canadian Tour in the 80s and 90s. The pros could all hit the ball a long way, but only a few could hit any longer than the long hitters I grew up playing with, so it wasn't all about distance with their irons or wedges. They did tend to take a really good confident lash with the driver and that was an eye opener. They didn't hit 14 fairways and 18 greens and they didn't make so many birdies either. What made me say wow is how they never gave up on a hole and how many times they'd grind out a par when I would have made a double or even much worse. The way they thought their way around the course was impressive. I also was blown away by their integrity. Every possible or perceived infraction was noted and tracked. More than anything, being inside the ropes showed me how different the proper game was from the recreational version I saw at home. Unfortunately you don't make a lot of friends trying to hold others to those standards. I learned you have to pick your battles, especially when you're not in a competition.

I find myself saying wow a lot watching regular people play as well. When someone hits what I know is as pure and awesome a shot as they can possibly hit, then I say wow and might even do a golf clap and get ready for a fist bump.

[TourSpoon]

I had a friend that played the Canadian Tour and the PGA Tour for a season or two and he had the "wow" factor. The first time that I played with him at my home course he birdied 7 holes and he had never played there before. His tempo was pure, he hit it on a string, made putts on marginal greens, and when he got in trouble he managed par. No one has ever come close in terms of impressing me for a whole round like that and I have played with mini-tour players, club pros, scratch ams etc.

Now I do get impressed by a couple of difficult shots. The first shot is the knockdown iron into the wind that has the perfect trajectory and holds its line like the wind is not even there. This is what I mean by hitting it on a string. The other is the 40-60 yard skipper wedge that comes in and hops a couple times and spins out by the hole. Whenever you see guys hit these kind of shots you know that they have some skill.

[bunkerputt]

Originally Posted by turtleback

You have to understand that when it comes to driving distance there is a big difference between measured physical yardage and internet forum yardage.  Someone should create a conversion chart.    LOL

You don't need a chart.  You can just generate one using the following formula:

Actual Yardage = Internet Yardage * 0.75

If they insist that they are one of the actual ones that can really hit it that far and back it up with anecdotal evidence, use the following formula instead

Actual Yardage = Internet Yardage * 0.70

I only post because I constantly find it odd that I'm in the top 3% in mens height, top 1% in strength and 50th percentile in driving distance on the internet.

[rebby]

I think what impresses me most on a golf course is when guys are automatic when it comes to getting up and down, from anywhere. I played with an older guy last week (70's, 80's maybe?), he could get up and down from anywhere. He didn't play a fancy spin ball and hit every chip with his PW yet everything was inside of 4 feet which he proceeded to make time and time again with his dented up putter that was older than me. Now THAT's impressive! I have no idea what his score was at the end of the day (likely right around 90) but the regularity of his short game was absurd.

[ohiolefty]

I'll take this thread in a different direction...

I shoot in the mid to low 70's most places I play, and I break par on my home course very often...

What makes me say WOW is when I'm playing with a guy or gal who can just SCORE. Someone who makes par from all kinds of places. I end up playing skins or whatever with a lot of retired guys at my home course who are pretty good golfers (a lot of them in the 5 to 10 hcp range) and to watch some of these guys score from where they hit it and with the clubs they have to hit into greens...it's pretty cool..and I admire that. To me, scoring is the name of the game. Not that seeing someone hit it like a machine isn't cool, but I appreciate guile and grit.

[goblue107501]

Of course watching pros play live is always a 'WOW' moment. I go to a Nationwide event every year and have seen some remarkable shots and overall play. The thing that impresses me most playing with 'regular' people, are the guys that do nothing overly impressive, but always score well. A couple years ago I played with a friend who I knew was a good player, but I had never played with. Everyone is playing well, my 76 was the worst effort of the group. This guy did nothing great all day, but was steady as a rock. Never lost a ball, didn't ever miss by much if he did miss but at the end of the day, I would have thought he had played about the same as me. Wrong, he shot a 1-under 71. He made a few birdies and couple of bogeys, but the rest of the time was spent just making ho-hum pars. When someone isn't flashy with big drives and kick-in birdies, you can sometimes forget how well they are playing overall. That is what makes me go 'WOW'.

[bkoguy07]

Originally Posted by MEfree

However, when we turn to professional sports, it seems like we raise the bar and become completely unimpressed with the average "journeyman."  The talk of Tiger being a failure if he doesn't win 18+ majors (http://thesandtrap.com/forum/thread/47321/tiger-faces-failed-legacy#post_612408) is a prime example of how high some raise that bar.

Whether it is basketball, baseball, tennis or golf, my feeling is that most of us would say "wow" after playing with any of these guys- even those at the end of the bench or deep down in the rankings.

True you're right people do that.  But I believe they do it without seeing the pros.  I laugh because I do it as well.  See them on tv miss a shot and laugh and say "terrible he sucks" when in reality when I've seen them at the tournament in Charlotte every single pro hits incredible shots!  I think people should definitely go visit a local event... really eye opening.