Superstar Field at Abu Dhabi This Week

[WWBDD]

Originally Posted by jhwmusic

But that roped off area is still inbounds and the trouble areas would be behind the spectators...so I am unclear as what your point is. What I am saying is that players "occasionally" benefit from big crowds and structures that wouldn't be there if they were playing these courses any other time. Yea there are "smaller areas" but there is also backstops that keep their ball in play. Players with the biggest crowds, ie Tiger, Phil definitely save a few shots here and there on the tight courses because there is a wall of 15,000 fans surrounding the entire permitter of the hole. Balls that would normally go deep into the trees or into a hazard sometimes get stopped by some spectator's forehead. Phil probably benefits from this more than any player. So if you think about it, these popular players have a slight advantage. Just sayin

I was thinking in terms of those errant shots that hit the gallery and look really horrible on TV. Realistically, without the gallery there, it wouldn't be such a big deal, so a free drop because a ball bounced off someone's head isn't really an advantage.

But I suppose that same spectator's head could save a ball from getting into serious trouble as you suggest.

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Near miss by Tiger there.

[WWBDD]

Typical UAE ... you can hear construction noise in the background.

[I-league]

Rory's been working out hard in the off season. Looks very strong in the upper body.

[jhwmusic]

I was thinking in terms of those errant shots that hit the gallery and look really horrible on TV. Realistically, without the gallery there, it wouldn't be such a big deal, so a free drop because a ball bounced off someone's head isn't really an advantage.

But I suppose that same spectator's head could save a ball from getting into serious trouble as you suggest.

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Near miss by Tiger there.

Oh I see what you are saying...we just weren't on the same page. And I know that these guys are so good that they don't miss like we miss...but guys like Phil hit the ball of the planet quite often. So the more people people he has watching him, the more likely it is that his errant tee shots will be deflected back into play...or stop them from being stymied behind a tree or whatever. I know it doesn't play that big of a role on a shot by shot basis...but I'm sure this scenario has benefited many PGA players...probably resulted in some wins. And the grandstands prevent balls from ever getting to areas of the course that we would have to contend with. Just something weird that I think about... Tiger needs to get that putter working! Thats two in a row that he left short. But he doesn't look too bad aside from that.

[jhwmusic]

Wow...Tiger almost jarred that one

[xxsoultonesxx]

Best pairing I've seen in a long time. This course looks fun (minus the noise).

[Beachcomber]

All day he has been missing putts. One of the worst putting rounds by Tiger. Rory is all over and still making birdies.

[brocks]

My biased opinion: his driving has improved quite a bit, but his short game was awful. Missed a lot of makeable putts, and hit a lot of wedges that didn't leave makeable putts. From where he drove it, he should have shot a 66 today.

[Zwick]

One thing I noticed, the crowd there is really calm.

Tiger didn't really miss a shot in the first 16 holes i watched. He could've make 3 more putts easily, but not a bad round to start the year.

Funny how Karlsson made every putt he looked at.

And I don't like the grandstand rule with the free drop right next to the green, players should at least have to drop on the side of the stand.

[colin007]

i didnt get to watch the round.  what was tiger missing?  was he overreading or underreading those putts?  were they short putts?  or was everything out of one putt range?

[nevets88]

[AmazingWhacker]

Quote:

"And I don't like the grandstand rule with the free drop right next to the green..."

I agree - the ball should be played as it lies.

[WWBDD]

The American announcer (Steve Sands?) is coming off like a total moron.

[jhwmusic]

i didnt get to watch the round.  what was tiger missing?  was he overreading or underreading those putts?  were they short putts?  or was everything out of one putt range?

He missed one short birdie putt...total misread. The others where in that 12-25 foot range so you can't really expect to hit all of those. Though he did have a couple of the dead in the heart that came up just a bit short. I think he hit 17 of 18 greens and only missed a few fairways...not sure the exact number. I'll have to check. The only bad shots he hit were a few wild ones on the first hole and he chunked a wedge from about 50-60 yards on the last part 5...he just kinda stuck it in the ground and it came up well short of the hole. Other than that he looked pretty good

[jamo]

Did anyone else watch First Take this morning on ESPN? Skip Bayless went off on Tiger for..... hitting fairways.

[colin007]

Originally Posted by jamo

Did anyone else watch First Take this morning on ESPN? Skip Bayless went off on Tiger for..... hitting fairways.

lol wat???

bayless is such a douchebag...what did he say???

[jamo]

lol wat??? bayless is such a douchebag...what did he say???

Typical Bayless stuff. First he completely ignored Luke Donald, the top ranked player in the world, and said that the only guy in the Donald-Woods-McIlroy pairing people cared about were Rory and Tiger. Then he said Rory is amazing because he sprayed the ball but made putts, and Tiger was done because he hit the ball well but didn't make anything. If I expected anything out of Tiger this week, it would be exactly what he did yesterday. He hit the ball well after over a month of practice, and didn't putt particularly well at a course he's never played at before.

[bunkerputt]

Originally Posted by brocks

My biased opinion: his driving has improved quite a bit, but his short game was awful. Missed a lot of makeable putts, and hit a lot of wedges that didn't leave makeable putts. From where he drove it, he should have shot a 66 today.

Tiger's always had the kind of putting technique that requires hours of practicing in-the-zone.  His technique also favors excelling at lag putting and streaky performance on short/mid-range putts.  The fact that at one point he was #2 in strokes-gained behind Luke Donald tells more about his work ethic and mental toughness than his skill as a putter.  Until that changes, which it may, I always expect him to putt poorly on the first round.