The Big Break "Indian Wells"

[Kieran123]

Sad to see Russel go.

Shank is an interesting guy for sure.

Couple of mid handicap type shots on lasts night show - not really scratch or + golf IMO - but maybe they were nervous or something.

Carl is SMART.....like Will said - smarter than golf maybe

[ghalfaire]

Watched the show, was really sorry to see Russel go.  But the game on Big Break is sudden death for sure.  Make one wrong move or run into a competitor in elimination challenge that is hot and you're done.  I think Russel had both those things happen in one show.  Russel certainly demonstrated he has the game to be there, just didn't work out this time.  Life surely has its' ups and downs.  But it was a good run and Russel I hope you stay safe and one more time thanks for what you do.

[The Recreational Golfer]

I don't get to see the show until Tuesday's rebroadcast. I read all these comments about what happened last night, and I just have to laugh imagining what must have happened. This edition of BB is lots of fun. Its really messing with the contestants' heads.

[iacas]

Originally Posted by KillaK

I have to say it was a boneheaded move - he had 18 - the game was blackjack - you do not hit on 18 in blackjack - the fact is Shank got into his head with that performance imitating Carls bluffing job.

You don't hit on 18 in blackjack but blackjack is a big part luck. This wasn't a (semi-)random card game - you got to try to hit the ball into a rectangle and determine your own "card."

The fact is Russell missed his mark with virtually each of the shots he hit, didn't he? The "3" spot he was aiming at (Russell, comment please?) was about 70-80 yards away, and he was a full ten yards short (the last ball)?

It was a bit of a weird challenge, but it was basically a test of your partial wedges, and neither Russell nor Shank played that challenge particularly well.

Buying a half a shot continues to be stupid. I love how the guy who was eliminated last week kept bitching about "being beaten straight up." He WAS beaten straight up - the guy didn't need either of his half shots to beat him. Russell would probably admit the same this week - he was beaten straight up.

Originally Posted by bplewis24

Anyway, Carl played really well and I actually like the short Canadian so I was happy to see him survive.  But with these guys now starting to shell out big cash to get half-stroke advantages, it means people like Kent & Will are going to have even more pronounced leads as we get further along into the show.  Maybe that is why they introduce some mystery envelope that has Will flustered next week?  Otherwise those big money guys can simply sit on their cash.

Yeah, they're putting themselves at a serious disadvantage. Delaying the inevitable. But maybe that stupid envelope will change things. Maybe the money is re-shuffled or something stupid. BB isn't above undermining their entire show for a gimmick.

[Kieran123]

I have a feeling Justin will be back later in the season.

On the show when he left, the last words they played of him were something along the lines of "I could beat any of these guys, if miraculously I could come back on the show"

Maybe it was nothing, but it would be funny to see him come back later

[GolfBear]

I was hoping that Russell would last a while simply because he's a contributor here.

As for the game, I don't like it at all.   In golf it's very rare that you don't know what score you have to beat to win.   Playing a game of blackjack with a golf just seems stupid to me.  It should be a skills competition not some dumb ass guessing game.    If they want them to play blackjack, at least let them both know what score they need then shoot for that.

I'm starting to think that the producers of the Big Break are starting to run out of ideas.

[bplewis24]

What do you guys think about John (the guy who beat Carl head-to-head)?  I know we haven't seen a ton of what all of these guys are capable of yet, but Kent & John are starting to stand out to me as two of the stronger players.  And yesterday was the first time I noticed his old-man putter, ha!  On a sad note, that sucks to hear about his father.

Another interesting tidbit, the Canuck (forget his name) that eliminated Russ yesterday has squared off directly against Russ in 3 of 4 episodes by my count (be it in immunity challenges or elimination challenges).  It may have been semi-random every time, but he just appeared to have Russ' number.

Brandon

[x129]

It would be fair to the first guy if the second  knew the score.  This wasn't a guessing game. It was a skill game of how good someone's short game was. You could have done alternating shots or something. As far as if going for it was a good idea, the odds are way different than in a casino.  I have no idea what the right move was (i.e. if Russel had 100 shots, how many would hit a A,2,3) but it might not be as clear cut as it would be in vegas. Given the added info that Shank hit 2 kings in a row during the warm up shots,  going for it might not be as crazy as it seemed. Most of the challenges are a bit gimmicky (i.e. breaking glass). Its part of the show. I am sure if all the contestants played 72 holes, the outcome would likely be different than what happens on the show.

As far as buying the half point, as far as we know you have to do it.  If you are eliminated, the money in your account does you no good. Personally I think it would be interesting if during the elimination round, it was more like a poker tournament where the players go all in and if you have your opponent covered, you are still alive even if you lose. The winner of the elimination challenge gets the pot so going to elimination and winning would be a big boost to a player.  It would probably be a nightmare to produce (you could lose any number of players in a week given you would start having players bust out during the earlier challenges)

Originally Posted by GolfBear

I was hoping that Russell would last a while simply because he's a contributor here.

As for the game, I don't like it at all.   In golf it's very rare that you don't know what score you have to beat to win.   Playing a game of blackjack with a golf just seems stupid to me.  It should be a skills competition not some dumb ass guessing game.    If they want them to play blackjack, at least let them both know what score they need then shoot for that.

I'm starting to think that the producers of the Big Break are starting to run out of ideas.

[ERdiesel]

Originally Posted by mapa94

The marine isn't the sharpest tool in the shed and he knows it.  What a bonehead move in the blackjack game.

How do you figure that? At this level of competition and caliber player who could potentially play in a pga tournament, you would have to assume the other guy hit 2 great shots to the tune of 20 maybe even a 19 but if I hit a 18 I wouldn't necessarily assume that would be good enough either, and I probably would have gone for 20-21 or bust.  If you don't believe you're capable of hitting the shots that you need to when you need to, you probably don't belong at that level of competition.

[Doctorfro]

You know, when it comes to the elimination round, if the winner got the loser's money....that would make for some interesting golf (x129...I don't know about covering, losing and staying alive...that wouldn't be right).  Ultimately, the last guy standing would get all the money anyway.  But the challenges along the way would be different as guys pogo up and down the money list.

[x129]

Covering would change the game to the guy the performs the best across all the challenges rather than the one the performs the best on one elimination challenge.. There would be a lot more strategy though and a lot bigger reward for playing well in all the challenges.   I have no idea if it would be better TV. But Big Break:Skins better be an all woman show though

Originally Posted by Doctorfro

You know, when it comes to the elimination round, if the winner got the loser's money....that would make for some interesting golf (x129...I don't know about covering, losing and staying alive...that wouldn't be right).  Ultimately, the last guy standing would get all the money anyway.  But the challenges along the way would be different as guys pogo up and down the money list.

[iacas]

Originally Posted by x129

As far as buying the half point, as far as we know you have to do it.  If you are eliminated, the money in your account does you no good.

Others have opted not to buy it, so I don't think that's true.

Originally Posted by Doctorfro

You know, when it comes to the elimination round, if the winner got the loser's money....that would make for some interesting golf (x129...I don't know about covering, losing and staying alive...that wouldn't be right).  Ultimately, the last guy standing would get all the money anyway.  But the challenges along the way would be different as guys pogo up and down the money list.

I'd love that and said something like that on another forum. It might almost make going to the Elimination Challenge and surviving a plausible plan... You can rack up money really fast. Plus if you were going to win the loser's money, buying that half a shot would make for some interesting propositions... if you have $5k and the other guy has $4k, do you beat him straight up and vault to $9k in money or do you sacrifice half and only jump up to $6500?

[KillaK]

I have to agree with a few of the guys here - the blackjack game would have been a lot better if the cards weren't secret.  The guys with more money in the bank could get the slight advantage of going second and knowing what he has to beat.  I didn't understand why the "cards" were kept quiet - seems to me the challenge would have been more interesting if a guy knew he had to hit a certain number and went for it.

On another note - I'm starting to think that Carl is using his "strategy book" as a way to just screw with everyone elses head - I'm doubting that hes really even writing anything in it? especially after that great bluffing performance he put on in the last challenge.  I also think its cool how Carl and Shank are becoming friends on the show - they really seem to have a lot of respect for each other.  After the first show I thought I wasn't going to like the cast of characters they put together but I have to say now I'm hooked - I've watched every show.

[Jeremy517]

Originally Posted by x129

As far as buying the half point, as far as we know you have to do it.  If you are eliminated, the money in your account does you no good.

The money does do you good, however, if you remain on the show.  If you spend half your cash in one elimination challenge, then you will often be in a half  stroke hole the next time you go to an elimination challenge, since the person with the higher dollar total gets the half stroke.

It is a sucker bet plain and simple.  The only thing that a second half stroke does is buy you a tie when you are one stroke down.

[x129]

That is a real big only.  There is a huge luck component involved here (something like 6 shots). Even if your significantly better than your opponent at this level (lets call it scratch golf) there is a good chance of the better playing losing.  Yeah you will be in a bad spot if your in the next elimination challenge. But hopefully you start playing good golf and don't go back there for a while and that there will be challenges where you can gain ground back on your competitors.

Originally Posted by Jeremy517

The money does do you good, however, if you remain on the show.  If you spend half your cash in one elimination challenge, then you will often be in a half  stroke hole the next time you go to an elimination challenge, since the person with the higher dollar total gets the half stroke.

It is a sucker bet plain and simple.  The only thing that a second half stroke does is buy you a tie when you are one stroke down.

[capcom1701]

Originally Posted by tjcdas

Shank is not that bright, the bluff would have been acting excited at hitting the 5 to make it appear he had a good hand.  His bluff seemed to be he was not sure it he should take another shot---a weak hand.  Not sure what the guy was doing hitting 18 after the weak bluff.

I thought the exact opposite... it was a double bluff. Carl spent a lot of time acting as though he was making a decision holding a 15, when he really had a 21. Shank acted like he was making a decision over a 15, when he had a 15. Bluff the same as the previous bluff even though you don't hold the same hands. Genius.

[ghalfaire]

I agree that the half stroke is BS and allowing the same player to buy another half stroke makes it worse.  I know it is about entertainment but it ought to be somewhat about golf too.  It would be more interesting if the low money guy had the opportunity to buy a half stroke to even the elimination challenge up.  But these challenges seem to be "quick kill" sort of contests and giving someone a full stroke advantage just doesn't seem equitable to me although so far it really hasn't made a difference (unless as Carl told Shank to buy the other half stroke to unnerve Justin, which maybe it did).

[JoelCochran]

I don't know if this has been answered yet (haven't been through the entire thread) but I found this link:

http://www.golfchannel.com/tv/?a=vv#allShowsHeading

Seems to indicate you can watch the older seasons online.