OT: US Open(Tiger is done after first hole)
- Thread starter PeliniTheCrutch
- Start date
He had 13 mistresses. I don’t think he was ever done after the first hole.
Wasn't able to watch the first two rounds, so I turned it on today to see if anyone is making a move from back in the pack. But all I'm getting to see is the slobbering goobers from FOX follow Phil Mickelson's every single move. If you don't look closely, you wouldn't even know anyone else is playing.
So I guess a bunch of players are going to finish one spot lower because it was Media Darling Phil who threw a tantrum and hit a ball that was rolling off the green? I would venture to say that pretty much anyone else gets disqualified for that stunt, but not good ol' Lefty.
What justification do you have for that? Rule book says 2 shot penalty. That’s what he got. Why would anyone get a DQ for it? He might withdraw any ways. The players hate it when the USGA makes these courses impossible.
As David Fay explained, he could have been DQed for improper conduct. And while I don't really care whether they DQ Mickelson or just let him pout his way around the course for another day, the FOX slobberers would be absolutely destroying an average tour player for doing the same thing. I'm sure they're all frustrated too, but they're playing out their rounds.
They are killing Phil over it. They suggested this will permanently affect his reputation in golf. Pretty remarkable for a 5 time major champion and one of the most liked guys in golf. ESPN is melting down that he just tarnished the tournament. Idk what more you want them to do when Phil is now +16 and the leaders are about to tee off
I haven't watched or read anything on ESPN today. If they are raking him over the coals for it, good for them.
It was mainly frustration but a small part may have been strategic. Taking that 2 shot penalty may have saved him a couple of strokes overall. Would have been really interesting if someone in the top ten decided to do that in an attempt to save some strokes. Suspect the rule will be re-evaluated in the future and be more severe
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Lots of people including ESPN and sports illustrated are saying he should be DQd or withdraw for knowingly breaking the rules. I agree.
So when any athlete knowingly breaks the rules in any game, they should then be dq, or does golf have special rules? He took the penalty, he did not try to dodge his transgression.
Basketball players always foul for strategic advantage at the end of games. That is intentional, and done knowingly.
The rules were followed perfectly. He was penalised.
To pretend golf has better, or more sacrosanct rules than other organised sports is a losing argument. They have rules, and followed them.
If Mickelson's own story about how he figured out that he was better off taking the 2-stroke penalty than letting the ball stay in motion, then he could have been disqualified under this rule:
Note 1: A player is deemed to have committed a serious breach of Rule 1-2 if the Committee considers that the action taken in breach of this Rule has allowed him or another player to gain a significant advantage or has placed another player, other than his partner, at a significant disadvantage.
Maybe he should have been disqualified, maybe not - but he clearly could have been under this rule. Because if he didn't hit the ball to gain an advantage, why was that his well-rehearsed explanation for doing it?
I thought it was great. The USGA deserves a big middle finger for how they set up the golf course today and for the conditions they had (and have had) to play in. It was a blatant disregard for the rules, no doubt, and I don’t actually believe Phil’s reasoning for doing it, I think he just got pissed off. But when you have one of the greatest short game players come out and say that taking that 2-stroke penalty was a better option than what would’ve happened if he had to play the ball after it rolls off the green, that is saying something.
It seems like every couple of years the USGA does something stupid like this to mess with what should be the best major in the US. There always seem to be issues with the course where they are manipulating the greens to make them harder, and thus making them basically artificial instead of golfing in ‘real’ conditions. I know Zach Johnson and Ian Poulter both bashed the USGA today after the USGA basically admitted they screwed up the course and made it impossible and allowed luck to play a part in how the course played.
It seems like every couple of years the USGA does something stupid like this to mess with what should be the best major in the US. There always seem to be issues with the course where they are manipulating the greens to make them harder, and thus making them basically artificial instead of golfing in ‘real’ conditions. I know Zach Johnson and Ian Poulter both bashed the USGA today after the USGA basically admitted they screwed up the course and made it impossible and allowed luck to play a part in how the course played.
Yeah, it's pretty clearly the committee's call, and they decided to let him keep playing. I'll just be interested to see what they do in some future tournament if a no-name player duffs a chip, sees that his ball is going to roll into trouble, and hits it while it's still moving. Would be really interesting if someone decides to do that tomorrow.
From what I read, he could still be dq’ed before tomorrow. Sounded like the USGA was going to review and discuss what theirs options are.
It’s always shinnecock. They just need to stop going there. They can’t control the course when if the wind kicks up and it dries out in the afternoon. It becomes drastically different than in the morning and is impossible to navigate. Look at the scores of the last 5 groups today. Those are the best players in the world.
I am not that well informed about golf, I admit.
My question is; did the USGA start making the course harder after Tiger blitzed everyone by 6, 8, 12, 15 in the majors? I know the Masters was where he first obliterated the records, but is this not a reaction to his dominance 20 years ago? Better make the course tricky, to take away his dominance then?
Again I am just a spectator, and it was fun for folks like me when Tiger was simply the best ever for that time. I actually watched it then.
The best quote was "Beef" saying, " I done seen it all".
My question is; did the USGA start making the course harder after Tiger blitzed everyone by 6, 8, 12, 15 in the majors? I know the Masters was where he first obliterated the records, but is this not a reaction to his dominance 20 years ago? Better make the course tricky, to take away his dominance then?
Again I am just a spectator, and it was fun for folks like me when Tiger was simply the best ever for that time. I actually watched it then.
The best quote was "Beef" saying, " I done seen it all".
I agree for the most part, but the history of Shinnecock is the most obvious reason why the course is played there. But even though they can’t control the weather, they at least could’ve controlled the pub locations. And I guess I just don’t understand what their reasoning was in the first place for making them so difficult. After 2 days, only DJ was under par, so it was prettt obvious the course was already extremely difficult. They easily could have put pins in some of the easier locations, shortened holes, etc. that would have at least helped regardless of how the weather would eventually factor in.
And then with the weather, I guess I don’t really understand their reasoning there either. This was an issue when they played there the last US Open, and with the course so close to the ocean, there is pretty obviously going to be some type of coastal winds. Mix that with the warmer temperatures and sunshine, and I feel like they could’ve predicted this could happen. It really seems like the USGA at least once a year does some kind of self-induced harm to some tournament.
ESPN has an article about the players reactions, and it didn’t seem like any of them were really having fun. I thought the best quote was Phil saying he would’ve just quit on 13 if he didn’t swat that putt because of how hard the hole was.
http://www.espn.com/golf/story/_/id/23814794/us-open-zach-johnson-vents-shinnecock-hills-conditions
I wouldn’t say it was a direct relation to Tiger. Courses have consistently been adding length because of how far players can now hit it. They also have made greens tougher I would say more because of the advances to the clubs and balls and how players can control their shots. Tiger was just that much better than the majority of players 20 years ago which was why he had such dominant wins, but the talent in golf has greatly increased since.
With a course like Shinnecock, it is wide open fairways so most players shouldn’t have too many issues with driving the ball, but bad tee shots will be penalized with that thick tall rough or bunkers. The only way, then, to make the course more challenging is adding length, pin locations, and green speeds. Shinnecock already is a pretty long course, but they compounded the length by having extremely difficult pin locations for how fast and firm the greens got in the afternoon. That is squarely the fault of the USGA. It sounds like the USGA decided to either not water, or water very little, the greens before today’s round. It should also be noted that Shinnecock has had similar issues in the past when hosting the US Open.
The US Open is supposed to be basically the toughest tournament on tour every year, but there is a difference between being tough and being impossible. And when the best players in the world are averaging 5 over par (and only 3 total rounds were under par, all who started in the morning), I think it crossed over to impossible.
"Tiger Proofing" is a real thing. The PGA got sick of seeing Driver-Wedge so this is what they have done. I like it, but I still like golf more with Tiger kicking ass.
The issue is that the USGA is obsessed with having a tough course. So if they put the pins in more accessible locations and water the greens at Shinnecock it will be a birdie fest if the winds don’t kick up. I understand the history of the course but when the course can change rapidly over the day then it’s impossible to know how to set the course up for that. If they plan for winds every day and then they don’t show up, people will be shooting 65 all over the place. The fact is that no matter what they do to the course, there’s a good chance that a late tee time can screw players over like it did yesterday. The best thing they can do to combat it is to water the greens more and stop cutting the greens so short. It’s absurd that we watched the best players in the world routinely having 5+ feet coming back after burning the edge on a well struck putt.
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