2017 Open Championship at Royal Birkdale Discussion Thread

[DaveP043]

1 minute ago, NCGolfer said:

They played pretty fast after that (given the tear Jordan went on) so your assumption would hold true that they didn't get another bad time once they were out of position.

And that's quite possible.  I just wondered if the clock ever did come into play.

[skydog]

I was surprised and a bit annoyed to hear they were told to speed up the pace of play as they were making the turn....I guess they were well behind the group in front of them but they played the front nine in just under two hours, which seems perfectly acceptable for the last group of a major on Sunday.

That said, the 13th was a mess and needed to be handled better/faster.

[b101]

Well, not the result I was hoping for but it was certainly entertaining! It's gotta be tough for Kuchar to take when Spieth hits one all world right - to the extent that it takes time even for a crowd to find it - and then only makes bogey. I feel like Kuch's best bet is probably a US where slow and steady will work out.

As a perennial Rory fan, another frustrating week. Comfortably good enough to win for 60% of the time but just produces shockers out of nowhere too often. Interesting that it wasn't the putting that was the issue this week, so maybe that bodes well.

Roll on the PGA!

[Golfingdad]

The old guys need to stop giving the young guys crap for saying "we" all of the time ...

http://www.businessinsider.com/jordan-spieth-won-british-open-wild-13th-hole-2017-7

[Groucho Valentine]

2 hours ago, Marty2019 said:

This is what I get from looking at the stats: he's first in Strokes Gained, Approach to Green.  He's 6th in Strokes Gained, Tee to Green, and he's 4th in Strokes Gained, Total. 

He's 98th in driving distance and 121st in driving accuracy. 

But he's 5th in greens in regulation percentage.   And he's 2nd in birdie average and 2nd in scoring average.   All this tells me he's great with his irons and great with his short game. 

But I still go back to that "4 o'clock in the morning courage."   The ability to stay cool under pressure and get the ball in the hole.   

You hit more greens, you take more putts. Thats just simple math homey. 

I dont think theres much reason to time the final group in a tournament except for TV concerns. Would have been interesting how that whole scenario played out on 13 if Spieth was in the second or third to last group. 

[DaveP043]

9 minutes ago, Groucho Valentine said:

I dont think theres much reason to time the final group in a tournament except for TV concerns. Would have been interesting how that whole scenario played out on 13 if Spieth was in the second or third to last group. 

The reason I'd suggest is that rules should be applied equally to every player, the last group shouldn't be exempt.  I don't know if they were far enough behind to be put on the clock, or if they were and there were no bad times, but they should be held to the same standard as everyone else.

[Midpack]

3 hours ago, Marty2019 said:

Is he really the best putter in the world?   He's 68th in total putting right now.   He's 37th in strokes gained putting.   We see him make these long putts in the clutch, and we think he's the greatest putter in the world, but he really isn't.  

What differentiates the greats in sports from the others is how they perform under pressure, Jordan, Woods, etc. - it's certainly not their overall stats, or there would be no need for tournaments. There have been way more players with great stats who won little if anything than great players who've won.

While trying to win his first British Open at the age of 23, after hitting a drive reportedly 100 yards to the right, he salvages a bogey and finds himself 1 stroke behind Kuchar after leading for days. How many people would then be able to regain their composure to then have a birdie-near ace on #14, drain a 50 foot eagle on #15, and then a 30 foot birdie on #16, a birdie on #17 and a par on #18. That's a very, very short list. Any of those hole scores would be amazing, all of them together under that kind of pressure is beyond amazing. Most of us, self included would have been petrified to even step up on the next tee after his #13 drive just playing for beer money.

And I am not a Spieth fan (or foe) by any means, just credit where credit is due...

And like everyone, I hope Kuchar does win a major, he's a class act.

Edited July 24, 2017 by Midpack

[TN94z]

45 minutes ago, b101 said:

Well, not the result I was hoping for but it was certainly entertaining! It's gotta be tough for Kuchar to take when Spieth hits one all world right - to the extent that it takes time even for a crowd to find it - and then only makes bogey. I feel like Kuch's best bet is probably a US where slow and steady will work out.

Yeah, it had to be tough on Kuchar. But it was there for the taking. I mean, he missed some putts that would have putt him right there regardless of Spieth's -4 thru the last 5. In hindsight, it wouldn't have mattered if Spieth would have made a double or triple on that hole, with the scores as is, Spieth still would have won. But you could see the disappointment on Kuchar's face..or at least, that is what I thought I saw.

 

 

[mvmac]

2 hours ago, DeadMan said:

He's first in strokes gained approaching the green. That's why he's so good. He's a good putter, but he's not the best in the world. He's only been top 10 in strokes gained putting twice.

Good point. He's not the most accurate player off the tee but he does hit a lot of greens. Putting wise, yeah he's good and seems to make more of those 20-25' putts than the average guy but he also did miss a few short ones early in the round. You can't win three majors of the career grand slam and not be a great ball striker.

[Groucho Valentine]

21 minutes ago, DaveP043 said:

The reason I'd suggest is that rules should be applied equally to every player, the last group shouldn't be exempt.  I don't know if they were far enough behind to be put on the clock, or if they were and there were no bad times, but they should be held to the same standard as everyone else.

Time policies have always been enforced subjectively, even on the level i play on. I dont think Speith has 20 something minutes to play his shot if he isnt in the last group. So thats an advantage.  Maybe Speith behaves differently if he isnt in the last group as well. Works both ways. 

[rehmwa]

That was super entertaining.  Just as cool as last year's but for entirely different reasons.

I really enjoy both those players, it was really hard to root for one over the other.

Edited July 24, 2017 by rehmwa

[iacas]

13 hours ago, BallStriker said:

I think the folks at AimPoint would have liked to see him hole a few putts.......not the best endorsement today

Why? He wasn't using AimPoint.

5 hours ago, 1badbadger said:

Not sure if this was mentioned previously, but I got to thinking...what was the Titleist tour van doing on-site on Sun?  The vans typically pull out on Wed...

Almost every Tour van was still on property. It's a major. They're there all week.

[TN94z]

21 minutes ago, Groucho Valentine said:

Time policies have always been enforced subjectively, even on the level i play on. I dont think Speith has 20 something minutes to play his shot if he isnt in the last group. So thats an advantage.  Maybe Speith behaves differently if he isnt in the last group as well. Works both ways. 

Wasn't a good bit of that time used by the rules officials to confirm ball placement? I remember them stating that the "clock" would not take into account the time working with the officials on a ruling.

[nevets88]

20 minutes ago, iacas said:

Why? He wasn't using AimPoint.

I think his caddie was. Saw him using AE, at least I thought he did, not the fingers, but straddling the line for slope. Also I read something on social media or the announcers said something, can't remember, something out there mentioned his caddie was using Aimpoint.

The thing is, you can get the read right and still hit the putt poorly, just because you have the right read doesn't guarantee it's going to go in. You still have to make the putt.

[Groucho Valentine]

11 minutes ago, TN94z said:

Wasn't a good bit of that time used by the rules officials to confirm ball placement? I remember them stating that the "clock" would not take into account the time working with the officials on a ruling.

Im not sure. I remember Spieth talking with an official about point of relief. Most of it seemed unnecessary IMO. 

[Marty2019]

1 hour ago, Groucho Valentine said:

You hit more greens, you take more putts. Thats just simple math homey. 

 

I thought strokes gained, putting, took that into account.   Strokes gained, putting, factors in the distance from the hole to get an expected number of putts to get the ball into the hole.  So strokes gained, putting is a true measure of putting prowess.  

According to PGA Tour stats, Spieth is 37th in strokes gained, putting.  

[BallStriker]

30 minutes ago, iacas said:

Why? He wasn't using AimPoint.

 

Well...right or wrong, the broadcast team clearly said that Kuchar's caddy John Wood was using AimPoint to ready the greens for Kuchar........and I think I heard it more than once....maybe there is no bad press, but they certainly did say AimPoint was being used

[TN94z]

20 minutes ago, nevets88 said:

I think his caddie was. Saw him using AE, at least I thought he did, not the fingers, but straddling the line for slope. Also I read something on social media or the announcers said something, can't remember, something out there mentioned his caddie was using Aimpoint.

 

I saw him checking slope but never him utilize Aimpoint really.