What if Payne was alive today?

[PEZGolf]

OK, people. Reread my original post. I wrote that Payne would be playing on the Champions Tour and would be the life of the party. THAT IS WHAT I WROTE. To argue with me, you HAVE to state that NEITHER is possible. Is that what you really believe?

[Golfingdad]

57 minutes ago, saevel25 said:

They guy only won 3 times after 1991. He basically fell off the map till he had a good one year in 1999. You are giving him way too much credit. 

Damn.  You should probably just repeat that stat every time somebody brings up Payne and imply he was the Loki to Tigers Thor or something.

[iacas]

53 minutes ago, PEZGolf said:

OK, people. Reread my original post. I wrote that Payne would be playing on the Champions Tour and would be the life of the party. THAT IS WHAT I WROTE. To argue with me, you HAVE to state that NEITHER is possible. Is that what you really believe?

He'd be 59. He might not even be playing on the Champions Tour anymore.

Payne was well known as a bit of a prick, too. I don't know that he'd be the "life of the party." You don't either, which is the point you felt it necessary to make up above when people disagreed with you about how great a player he was.

[mchepp]

6 hours ago, iacas said:

Payne was well known as a bit of a prick, too. I don't know that he'd be the "life of the party." You don't either, which is the point you felt it necessary to make up above when people disagreed with you about how great a player he was.

I have heard mixed reviews on him. Some good that he was a funny guy and pretty good with the fans and some like you said prick. Probably somewhere in the middle. 

[PEZGolf]

3 minutes ago, mchepp said:

I have heard mixed reviews on him. Some good that he was a funny guy and pretty good with the fans and some like you said prick. Probably somewhere in the middle. 

You are right. As Tracey Stewart describes in her biography about her husband, Payne changed over the last two years of his life. The WWJD bracelet he wore was a constant reminder to him of how he should act. His son, Aaron, gave it to him, and he had it on when he died.

 

[RussUK]

12 hours ago, iacas said:

He'd be 59. He might not even be playing on the Champions Tour anymore.

Payne was well known as a bit of a prick, too. I don't know that he'd be the "life of the party." You don't either, which is the point you felt it necessary to make up above when people disagreed with you about how great a player he was.

Saying what many of us are too polite to say, i like your style 

He may not have been everones cup of tea but i think thats what every sport needs, the odd player who gets discussions started often for all the wrong reasons. If they were all squeeky clean there would be no gossip for us all.

John Daley, in my eyes, was always a it of a knob but he is still talked about now for his antics. Both he and Payne are what we Brits politely refer to as "a bit of a character"

[PEZGolf]

23 minutes ago, RussUK said:

Saying what many of us are too polite to say, i like your style 

He may not have been everones cup of tea but i think thats what every sport needs, the odd player who gets discussions started often for all the wrong reasons. If they were all squeeky clean there would be no gossip for us all.

John Daley, in my eyes, was always a it of a knob but he is still talked about now for his antics. Both he and Payne are what we Brits politely refer to as "a bit of a character"

Good post! I really bonded with Payne because of our similarities, such as ADHD, desire to be different (that is why he wore plus-4's, and I did too after I saw how good they looked on him), penchant for wearing bright colors, love of golf and music, and MOST importantly, a strong FAITH in God!

[turtleback]

17 hours ago, PEZGolf said:

I think we can ALL agree that NO ONE KNOWS how Payne would have done had he lived, any more than anyone KNOWS how Tiger would have done if he did not have injuries and surgeries. To say otherwise is whistling in the wind.

Yes, we can all agree that a semantic-less comment made in a pointless thread is correct.

[MacDutch]

1 hour ago, turtleback said:

Yes, we can all agree that a semantic-less comment made in a pointless thread is correct.

Spot on!

[PEZGolf]

This was supposed to be a nice discussion about what could have been. I had no idea that SOME people would put their own spin on it. Truly strange!

[iacas]

12 minutes ago, PEZGolf said:

This was supposed to be a nice discussion about what could have been. I had no idea that SOME people would put their own spin on it. Truly strange!

People have their own opinions. This is a discussion forum.

If you had no idea… I don't know what to tell you. That's almost the entire point of this stuff. It's not the just blindly agree with you.

[PEZGolf]

6 hours ago, iacas said:

People have their own opinions. This is a discussion forum.

If you had no idea… I don't know what to tell you. That's almost the entire point of this stuff. It's not the just blindly agree with you.

Let me sum it up: almost every golfer has fans and critics (I do not think Arnold has any critics). Some fans are really devoted, and their player can do no wrong. I am a fan of Payne's, but NOT a devoted one! I am fully aware of his weaknesses, and they are even documented in Tracy's biography. Critics who emphasize his weaknesses remind me of the people who used to scream "Fat Jack" because they loved Arnold.

[caniac6]

You open the can, and sometimes you get worms.

[Dave325]

I didn't know too much about Payne, but it was sad to see him pass on so early at 42. He was definitely a colorful player. One of courses that I play has a picture of him in the clubhouse of classic one-legged fist pump from the 1999 US Open. He left at the top of his game, I guess. So, based on his career, he may be on the Senior tour or a golf commentator sitting next to Nick Faldo.  The 1999 win was a classic though....

 

[mvmac]

8 hours ago, PEZGolf said:

(I do not think Arnold has any critics).

Ken Venturi wasn't a fan 

[Mr. Desmond]

I've heard Payne was cocky during much of his career, but that he changed (less cocky?) over the last years. Maybe that's the nature of a lonely at the top game during the early years -- some champions are difficult. From what I heard, Payne was always a prankster and competitive.

His stats are not particularly impressive when compared to Tiger, so I don't see the comparison or competition of Tigs versus Payne. Different eras. Tiger could not win them all - no one can in this game. My guess is Payne found his putter the last year or so and that may have given him new life. Could not find the putting stats, but did not search intensely. I would have liked to see how he continued to evolve as an individual and golf architect ... I believe that's where his career was heading.

[PEZGolf]

1 hour ago, Mr. Desmond said:

I've heard Payne was cocky during much of his career, but that he changed (less cocky?) over the last years. Maybe that's the nature of a lonely at the top game during the early years -- some champions are difficult. From what I heard, Payne was always a prankster and competitive.

His stats are not particularly impressive when compared to Tiger, so I don't see the comparison or competition of Tigs versus Payne. Different eras. Tiger could not win them all - no one can in this game. My guess is Payne found his putter the last year or so and that may have given him new life. Could not find the putting stats, but did not search intensely. I would have liked to see how he continued to evolve as an individual and golf architect ... I believe that's where his career was heading.

Good post. Payne had switched to a SeeMore putter early in 1999. He then won the AT&T, and of course, the US Open. In the final round at Pinehurst #2, he one-putted 5 of the last 6 greens! His caddy, Mike Hicks said the putt on #16 was "_impossible to read, and impossible to make" since it was a double-breaker. When it dropped in, Hicksie said that he KNEW something SPECIAL was happening!

[PEZGolf]

On 1/1/2016 at 0:18 PM, mvmac said:

Ken Venturi wasn't a fan 

Ken was a good announcer and an excellent amateur player. As a pro, he won only one Major and did NOT have an army of fans, like Arnie did. Do you not think he was jealous?