Roundup: Oklahoma Edges Oregon In Another NCAA Thriller

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While the greens appeared to confound even the last two teams standing, the 2017 NCAA Men's Division I final and its match play format proved compelling again. Oklahoma edged Oregon in a final that, not surprisingly, came down to the final match between last year's U.S. Amateur runner-up and the same player who carried Oregon to the 2016 title.

Beth Ann Baldry at Golfweek with the Sooners story and the tragedy that befell coach Ryan Hybl and wife Rebecca earlier in the season.  

Brentley Romine with the key match details where Oregon put up a great fight.

Ryan Lavner with Sooner anchor Brad Dalke's story. Recruited by OU since he was 12 and a commit by 7th grade, he fulfilled a dream come true and did it with a mix of clutch shotmaking and class in Wednesday's finale.

Lance Ringler looks back on two weeks at Rich Harvest Farms and an NCAA season that saw powerhouses Arizona State and Oklahoma winning titles.

The Golf Channel highlights:

Some images of the winners: 

Boomer! SOONER! 🏆 #NCAAGolf

A post shared by Golf Channel (@golfchannel) on May 31, 2017 at 6:01pm PDT

Spieth Explains Where Erin Hills And Chambers Bay Differ

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Nick Menta at GolfChannel.com reporting from the Memorial where Jordan Spieth explained the differences between 2015 U.S. Open venue Chambers Bay (where he won) and 2017 host Erin Hills.

From his pre-tourney press conference:

“Chambers Bay, you had big mounds to play off onto the greens. [Erin] is kind of rolling hills. Although, neither one has a tree that I remember on the golf course. It was kind of a new-style American Links type. They both are. But I think they’ll play tremendously different.”

I believe the flyovers highlight what Spieth speaks to, but this is a great distinction to keep in mind. The greens at Erin Hills are more exposed and require way more aerial play than Chambers Bay. Plus, by all accounts the course is lush and we won't see the extreme ground speed we saw in 2015. That should please players and those who prefer a traditional inland U.S. Open "test", but annoy links enthusiasts.

Video: Erin Hills Eighth Hole Flyover

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At 492 yards with a huge carry to the fairway and another one to clear a fairway playing over a dune, the 8th has the potential to draw player ire if into the wind. But with a helping wind or not too much breeze, it should be a hole they can handle.

According to the USGA flyover and info page, the green is just 26 yards deep which, given its elevation will play smaller.

And do check out the stunning 8th hole image at the Erin Hills website, though I don't believe we'll see the bunker eyelashes like that in a couple of weeks.

The Erin Hills flyover.

 

Video: Memorial Tournament Honoree Ceremony

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Always one of the classiest days in golf, Greg Norman is the 2017 tournament Honoree and Jerry Tarde received the Journalism Award. Dave Shedloski profiled Norman for Golf World.

Here is the full ceremony posted by Jack Nicklaus on Facebook, with Charlie Meacham's intro of Tarde at the 20:00 mark and Jack Nicklaus's intro of Norman at the 28:00 mark following a short speech by PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan.

Hank Haney Asks If Bernhard Langer Is In Violation Of The Anchoring Ban

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Hank Haney thinks so and based on the definition of Rule 14-1b (PDF link) that says an “anchor point” "exists when the player intentionally holds a forearm in contact with any part of his body to establish a gripping hand as a stable point around which the other hand may swing the club."

Bernhard Langer would appear to be in violation in this clip:

What say you?

ShackHouse 36: Kevin Kisner, Plus Tiger, Memorial & U.S. Open

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As we march toward the U.S. Open, get ready for a fun run of ShackHouses with great guests and insights into this mystery venue.

To kick off the next four weeks of pods, we've got Dean And Deluca winner Kevin Kisner in the house to discuss life in Aiken, his big win, this week's Memorial and the dynamics of this month's Zurich Classic where he and longtime buddy Scott Brown nearly pulled off the win.

The show also includes bickering about Tiger's DUI, the Memorial (with picks!) and an early look at U.S. Open odds.

But we're most excited that the guest still has the best non-major moment of the 2016-17 season:

 

 

Kisner gave the media a fun moment Tuesday at the Memorial pre-tournament presser:

 

"You think I'm scared of @djohnsonpga because he hits it 350?"

A post shared by PGA TOUR (@pgatour) on May 30, 2017 at 2:45pm PDT

 

We also discussed House's pod appearance with Bill Simmons and Bryan Curtis where Tiger chat preceded their Frank Deford show.

As always, you can subscribe on iTunes and or just refresh your device subscription page.

Here is The Ringer's show page.

Same deal with Soundcloud for the show, and Episode 36 is here to listen to right now.

ShackHouse is brought to you by Callaway, makers of the Epic Driver that is now part of Callaway's very groovy Customs program along with Chrome Softs and other fun stuff. Check it out just in time with Father's Day, or, if you just want to enjoy some fun customization practice play with the new Customs features. It's wonderfully addictive!

Here is the Callaway Father's Day Gift Guide.

The show:

Jack Welcomes PGA Championship Move To May, Floats Muirfield Village As PGA Option

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ESPN.com's Bob Harig on Jack Nicklaus' extensive comments endorsing a Players move to March, a PGA Championship to May and the end of the golf season by Labor Day weekend.

Interestingly, in the remarks I saw, Mr. Nicklaus suggested much of the decision-making at this point is in PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan's court, not the PGA Of America's.

Harig writes:

That would make The Open the last major championship and would clear the way for the PGA Tour to conclude its season earlier by moving its FedEx Cup playoff series, with the idea of finishing by Labor Day.

"To do that, [Monahan] has many moving parts,'' Nicklaus said. "But he wanted us to know he wasn't going to slight us in any way, he wants to encourage us and promote us.''

Nicklaus noted the "dismal" Tour Championship ratings and endorsed the new order of the majors, including the tighter window for play.

"It would bring the majors a little closer together,'' he said. "April [Masters], May [PGA], June [U.S. Open] and July [The Open]. I think that's good, too.''

In a suggestion that we could end up with only May PGA Championships in Olympic years, Nicklaus said he has discussed swapping out a Memorial for a PGA with the five families.

Nick Menta writing for GolfChannel.com:

If Muirfield were to host a future PGA, that would necessitate either a temporary change of venue for the Memorial or, as Nicklaus brought up himself, “a year off.”

“If we took a year off the Memorial Tournament, I’m not sure I’d want to do that or not. I’m not sure that’s what we want for our brand, our tournament. But whatever is best for the game of golf and however it works, I’m more than happy to about it and try to do it.”

Pressed on the issue of a PGA Championship at Muirfield later on, Nicklaus clarified, “I said we would consider it.”

Nicklaus Blames WD's On Entourages, Money

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AP's Doug Ferguson reports on Jack Nicklaus's pre-Memorial remarks on player withdrawals due to injuries.

Asked about Rory McIlroy's entry into the 2017 Memorial only to WD to rest an injured rib, Nicklaus said...

“You think I had any injuries when I played? Do you think Arnold had any injuries when he played? Do you think Gary had any injuries when he played? How many tournaments do you think that we entered that we withdrew from during the course of our career?” Nicklaus said.

He put his forefinger to his thumb to signal zero.

“Never entered if I wasn’t going to play,” Nicklaus said.

After mentioning the money in the game, there was this gem about entourages.

“Would they withdraw back 30 years ago? Probably not, because that wasn’t the norm,” Nicklaus said. “We played through it. We had a ton of injuries and I played through it. But that’s sort of the norm today. And the guys … I made my own decisions. I didn’t have an entourage. I didn’t have a fitness trainer. I didn’t have a nutritionist, whatever you all have, somebody to cut my toenails in the morning.

Zing!

"I didn’t have any of that. I did that myself.

“I think that entourage helps make that decision for the player, telling them, ‘We think physically this is probably not right for you to play.’ And that’s what their job is,” Nicklaus said.

Tiger Faces Legal Issues, Mounting Sympathy

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On Morning Drive, Tim Rosaforte reported to Gary Williams that Tiger's DUI arraignment has been set for July 5 and also includes a charge of improper parking.

Besides being asleep at the wheel of his parked 2015 Mercedes, the police reports says his car featured two flat tires and damage to the vehicle. TMZ also features this timeline of erroneous reporting on their end, with splashes of possibly accurate tales.

Brian Wacker at GolfDigest.com talks to lawyers about Tiger's options and much depends on test results.

Given the 41-year-old Woods’ lack of a criminal record (he was cited for reckless driving in the infamous 2009 crash into a fire hydrant outsidehis then-Orlando home), his standing in the community, his cooperation with authorities—which included submitting to a urine test—it seems plausible, according to those contacted by Golf Digest, that the charges could get knocked down to lesser offense. Also working in Woods’ favor is the fact that twice he blew a 0.00 when given a breathalyzer after his arrest.

In more analysis of the situation, the sympathy continues for Woods. Rex Hoggard writing for GolfChannel.com:

Only time and an ongoing police investigation will tell if Woods’ version of the events on Monday dovetail with reality, but the mountain of evidence released on Tuesday suggests that Woods made a mistake – a terrible mistake, but a mistake, nonetheless. And not only did he do so, but in a complete break from the norm it appears he has owned that miscue, no excuses, no qualifiers, no subterfuge.

“I understand the severity of what I did and take full responsibility for my actions,” Woods said in a statement. “What happened was an unexpected reaction to prescribed medications. I didn't realize the mix of medications had affected me so strongly.”

Ian O'Connor of ESPN.com is longing for different times.

Yet here we are with Woods in the middle of another ungodly mess of his own design. Some are reveling a bit in his latest downfall, and perhaps that's the price Tiger has to pay for wearing that invisible yet very clear "Do Not Disturb" sign around his neck while becoming the world's most recognizable athlete.

But we all get into the business of watching and caring about sports for a simple reason: We want to see athletes do things physically that were once thought impossible. Their warmth and generosity of spirit along the way is merely a bonus, not a prerequisite.

So yeah, I'd like to see Woods find his way home sooner rather than later. So what if he has spent most of his career as a taker instead of a giver. I just want to fully appreciate the artist at work one last time, in one last tournament, on one last Sunday.

Michael Bamberger of Golf.com suspects Tiger doesn't know what to do with himself these days.

Every chance he gets, Woods talks about the role he plays in his the life of his son and daughter and what it means to him. It's moving and telling. But few 41-year-old men want to be a fulltime dad and nothing else. Woods used to have golf to fill his time, to give him drive, to let him exercise his vast competitive urge. For now, anyway, he doesn't. Still, the time must be filled. Tiger Woods faces the challenge we all do: how to fill that time productively. The answer to that difficult question for him now seems more pressing.

Beef Qualifies; 23 WD's At Europe's U.S. Open Qualifier

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A European Tour story at USOpen.com details how the first U.S. Open sectional went at Walton Heath and in a tradition unlike any other, 23 Euros couldn't be bothered to finish.

Longtime readers know I'm a bit of a WD at Walton Heath connoisseur, so it was nice to see that the current generation is just as disrespectful as recent years when the number usually hovers around 24 WD's.

But please, give a scroll of the scores to take note of those who finished and to the qualifiers that included Richie Ramsay, Alexander Levy, Eddie Pepperell, Andrew Johnston and Thomas Aiken among others.

Well done to all finishers!

NCAA Men's Final Set: Oklahoma V. Oregon

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The passion of match play has once again made both men's and women's NCAA viewing a real joy for those of us who can have a television on all day. A big tip of the cap to Brandt Packer's Golf Channel crew for all of the great reaction shots, aerial footage and NCAA coverage.

How good was Tuesday's action?

The Nike Star Trek line sported by Oregon, Vanderbilt and others is actually growing on me.

Then again, it helps to see the clothes in school colors instead of the Best Pastels of Key West.

While the Ducks are the defending champs, Oregon's unlikely ascension to the final versus Oklahoma comes after they barely made the team match play portion of the proceedings. Brentley Romine with the Golfweek.com roundup of Oregon defeating Vanderbilt 3-2 and Oklahoma defeating home state hosts Illinois 3½ - 1½ to deprive us of a Pac-12 v. Big 10 match.

Golf Central's highlights of Oregon's win.

And highlights of OU's win over Illinois.

Lance Ringler previews the final match, including the potential decider between each teams' stars:

Match 5: No. 98 Brad Dalke (Oklahoma) vs. No. 366 Sulman Raza (Oregon), 3:50 p.m. ET

Kevin Casey at Golfweek profiles Raza, star of last year's championship match who has struggled as a senior.

And Beth Ann Nichols tells us more about Dalke, who was a finalist in last summer's U.S. Amateur and whose family has incredible ties to OU athletics.

Wednesday's final coverage goes like this on Golf Channel Wednesday:

Golf Central Pre Game        1:30-4 p.m. ET
Championship Match           4-8 p.m. ET
Golf Central                          8-9 p.m. ET

Video: Erin Hills Seventh Hole Flyover

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The 2017 U.S. Open's 607-yard seventh covers some rolling terrain and promises to offer some unlevel stances along with opportunities to reach in two shots.

Fourteen bunkers dot the landscape, yet the green isn't heavily protected by sand. The green is enormous.

The Erin Hills flyover better captures the contours, while the USGA flyover better captures the green and surrounds thanks to some nice drone work.

 

 

ESPN To Revisit Practice That Improved Tiger's Mugshot

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You might have seen my Tweet and many others expressing surprise at the haircut and sudden glow Tiger took on when ESPN posted his DUI mugshot in their lefthand sidebar.

Cork Gaines at BusinessInsider.com explains why the tidying up occurred and chalks it up to unintentional and "sloppy" work.

When selecting part of an image in Photoshop to move it to a different background, the most popular methods are the "lasso" tool, which allows the user to select the portion he or she wants by simply drawing a freehand line, or the "magnetic freeform pen," which is similar to the lasso but assists the user by having the line "stick" to edges.

One problem with the magnetic pen is that it struggles with areas in which there is not a distinct line. In this GIF, I attempt to select Woods' head with the magnetic pen. If not being careful, the pen will easily skip over the thin areas of hair.

Now, that doesn't quite explain the glow Tiger took on, including some nice face smoothing.  Either way, ESPN issued this statement to make clear it's probably not happening again.

“We have utilized a standard template for on-air headshots, which led to the background being dropped for consistency. We will revisit this process to improve it going forward.”

The episode was brought up by Liz Claman of Fox Business News when talking to Brad Faxon about Tiger. Claman seemed to be almost gleeful to have found prime "fake news" but made a fool of herself by interview's end. Seems Claman is covering the U.S. Open in two weeks on site, but still asked Faxon if Tiger would be playing. Faxon's surprise is priceless but because he's a pro's pro, Faxon calmly points out that Tiger's recent back surgery will preclude such an appearance.

Southern Hills Lands PGA TBD, Senior PGA

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The PGA of America is returning to Southern Hills in a big way, awarding the Senior PGA in 2021 and a PGA Championship some time between "now and 2030." The uncertain timing suggests the venue is on standby as a possible replacement course should the PGA Championship move to May, or should they choose to replace an upcoming venue for any other reason. The intrigue!

Too late to replace Bellerive next year? Sorry...

For Immediate Release:

PGA of America to Conduct PGA Championship and KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship at Southern Hills Country Club

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. (May 30, 2017) – The PGA of America announced today that it will host two different major championships at Southern Hills Country Club, in Tulsa, Oklahoma, between now and 2030.

Southern Hills will host the 2021 KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship—the most historic and prestigious major championship in senior golf—and also will be the venue for a PGA Championship no later than 2030.

This will be a record fifth time that Southern Hills has staged the PGA Championship, one of golf’s four men’s major championships. In 2021, the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship, the most historic event in senior golf, will make its second visit to Oklahoma as it debuts at Southern Hills.

Founded in 1936, Southern Hills has hosted seven previous major championships, beginning with the 1958 U.S. Open won by Tommy Bolt through Tiger Woods’ PGA Championship triumph in 2007, when he captured the Wanamaker Trophy for a fourth time.

Southern Hills also hosted the 1970 PGA Championship (won by Dave Stockton), 1977 U.S. Open (Hubert Green), 1982 PGA Championship (Raymond Floyd), 1994 PGA Championship (Nick Price) and 2001 U.S. Open (Retief Goosen).

“Few American golf venues match the legacy and record of excellence of Southern Hills Country Club,” said PGA of America President Paul Levy. “Some of our sport’s greatest names have walked these fairways and etched their name in major championship history. The PGA of America is proud to once again connect with Southern Hills, its membership and the great sports fans of Oklahoma. We are confident Southern Hills will continue to attract respective world-class fields for both the PGA Championship and the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship.”

With the announcement, Southern Hills’ history of hosting major golf championships will encompass more than 80 years. Southern Hills will also become the 13th venue to host both a PGA Championship and a KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship.

“We’re thrilled to again partner with the PGA of America and host a pair of championships of this caliber,” said Southern Hills President Craig Bothwell. “Major championship golf is a part of Southern Hills’ heritage, but we could not make this happen without the unending support of our dedicated membership, the sporting passion of the greater Tulsa community and the welcoming spirit of our proven volunteer network.”

The PGA Championship is the only all-professional major in men’s golf. It began in 1916, just months after the birth of the PGA of America and today features one of the deepest international fields in golf. Since 1994, it has perennially featured the most top-100 players in the Official World Golf Rankings of all golf Championships.

The KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship, which will celebrate its 82nd edition in 2021 at Southern Hills, was born in 1937 at Augusta National Golf Club, three years after the first Masters Tournament. The KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship is the most prestigious event in the game for PGA Members age 50-and-older.

The current future sites list:

              2017         Quail Hollow Club, Charlotte, North Carolina

              2018         Bellerive Country Club, St. Louis, Missouri

              2019        Bethpage Black, Farmingdale, New York

              2020        TPC Harding Park, San Francisco, California

              2021         The Ocean Course, Kiawah Island (South Carolina) Golf Resort

              2022        Trump International Golf Club, Bedminster, New Jersey

              2023        Oak Hill Country Club, Pittsford, New York

              2024-30* Southern Hills Country Club, Tulsa, Oklahoma
              * Date to be announced

Tulsa World's Facebook Live of the press conference: