Monty Fumes For French; Lays Groundwork For 2026 Captaincy

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Perhaps sensing that he may be passed up as Ryder Cup captain by more popular anyone with a pulse, Colin Montgomerie lashed out at his fellow Euro Tour mates members for skipping the French Open this week.

Gordon Richardson reports in The Guardian that the merry Scot slyly laid the groundwork for an inevitable showdown with Thomas Levet and Jean Van de Velde over who will be selected to guide the Euros should some wealthy developer come along and blatantly bribe offer to host for a Ryder Cup at France's National Club.

"It's very, very disappointing because this event starts the run up to the Open Championship and it deserves a stronger feel - the National Club is one of the best if not the best we play in Europe and it's certain to stage the Ryder Cup one day.

"There are stadium holes everywhere and a wonderful finish - imagine the carry-ons there would be in match play situations here. Sadly it will probably be 2026 before it can happen, with Sweden and Germany probably coming in first."

 

"It seems likely an 18-or even 36-hole playoff would have been arranged."

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Leonard Shapiro considers whether they would have played a U.S. Open playoff had Tiger tied Cabrera and Elin went into labor the Monday after.

If there had been a playoff, he would have been in Pittsburgh, likely asleep, when the call came. It has always been assumed that if one of the players doesn't show up at the first tee for an Open playoff, no matter the reason, the player who does is declared the champion.

Apparently, that's not necessarily so.

On Wednesday, U.S. Golf Association Executive Director David Fay said it was not that simple, and that the USGA would have faced a dilemma had Woods been unable to play on Monday.

The organization faced the same potential scenario at the U.S. Open in 1999, when Phil Mickelson's wife, Amy, was in the final stages of her pregnancy. She also delivered their child on the Monday after that Open. Mickelson missed a playoff by a shot in a tournament won by Payne Stewart, and like Woods, also had said he would leave the Open at the first indication his wife was ready to deliver.

"I really don't know what we'd do," Fay said. "I'll hide behind the fact that it's a hypothetical. But I suspect that [if their opponent didn't show up] Angel [Cabrera] and Payne [Stewart] probably would have said, 'I'm not going to show up for the playoff either.'
Ouch! I have to stop rolling my eyes when I have my contacts in.

Yes, a man who is trying to win his first major, who has worked most of his life to reach that point, is going to pass up the chance to have the trophy handed to him and accept a postponement so some billionaire with 12 majors can be at the hospital when his wife is screaming untoward things as she delivers their child. Right!

When they ask, that's when Angel says, "no habla English!"

"That would have forced our hand. And I can tell you we would not have said, 'We're not going to have an Open champion this year.' The good news is that it didn't happen. And the most important thing is that Sam Alexis is doing fine."

Oh, nice we're already a first name business with Tiger's daughter!

While neither Fay nor anyone else in the USGA was publicly prepared to say what might have happened, it seems likely an 18- or even 36-hole playoff would have been arranged.

36? Is that a new by-law?  When Tiger or Phil are having a baby, we'll play a special 36-hole made-for-TV playoff at a future date?

I'm sure NBC would love to come back in two weeks and setup their gear again.

Staff Shakeup Fails To Boost USGA Shares

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June 28 – United States Golf Association (U$GA) shares fell on news of an organizational shakeup and a less than appealing U.S. Women’s Open leaderboard.

Shares declined $1.82, or 7.5 percent, to $22.37 at 4 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading, the biggest drop since February when USGA CEO Walter Driver announced a delay in planned staff benefit cuts, breaking an earlier shareholder pledge to trim unnecessary expenses.

Wall Street found little to be enthusiastic about when the Far Hills, New Jersey-based governing body of North American golf said in a statement today that the position of Championship Agronomist would be "eliminated" to help cut 3% of the organization’s 2007 projected $5 million deficit.

Shareholders expected deeper cuts from the 63-year-old Goldman Sachs executive and soon-to-be-retiring USGA President Driver, who was brought in to create a leaner USGA while promising to boost shareholder value.

One analyst, citing a leaderboard topped by Angela Park, In-Bee Park, Jee Young Lee, Karine Icher, Amy Hung, Jiyai Shin, Joo Mi Kim and Shi Hyun Ahn but minus draws like Michelle Wie or Annika Sorrenstam virtually guaranteed weak television ratings for this weekend’s U.S. Open on NBC.

“Who are these people, I mean?” said Chad Upside, a New York-based analyst at Slash & Gouge, who is revising his “dump” rating on USGA stock to “unload as fast as you can.”

“And it doesn’t get much better next week with the Senior Open, hardly a positive cash flow opportunity.

“Simply put, they have taken a bigger hit than we thought they would.”

Upside says resistance from the USGA Board to trim fat off the company bone or to simply eliminate its staff must change “immediately because these rising staff and championship operation costs may not reverse when interest rates come down.''

Despite nearly $300 million in cash reserves, Standard & Poor's Rating Services in London revised its USGA outlook to “yikes” from “eh” and said the governing body has failed to deal with its “restricted capacity to manage through a more testing market environment.” S&P retained the organization’s C+/C-1 counterparty credit ratings.

Thompson's Opening Round; Wie's School Dilemma

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An AP story details 12-year-old Alexis Thompson's impressive opening 39, shortened to nine holes due to a weather delay.

Meanwhile Steve Elling looks at Michelle Wie's opening round and wonders if Stanford isn't the only school Wie will be attending this fall.

Struggling teen prodigy Michelle Wie still needs to pick her course load for the fall semester at Stanford, where she'll enroll in September and live in the school's freshman dormitory. Her roommate hasn't been determined, either.

In her parallel universe, Wie's professional place of residence, not to mention her running mates, remain in flux, too. Her short-term path might even include a humbling destination alongside the great unwashed of golf: LPGA Qualifying School.

After Thursday's crash in the first round of the U.S. Women's Open, the qualifying route seems like the last path to membership, should Wie elect to pursue an LPGA card for next season. Because, at the rate she's going, she might not make another dime in earnings this year.

Wie shot an 11-over 82 and failed to break par for the 21st professional round in succession, then seemed to be somewhat in denial about what had just taken place. While her ailing left wrist felt better, she hit a meager four fairways and four greens at Pine Needles Lodge, spraying the ball all over the Tar Heel State, which is no way to make a cut at an Open.

"It's very frustrating because I know I played better than this," she said. "It's a very fine line between shooting 69 and shooting what I shot today." 

More On Moraghan

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Golfweek's Bradley Klein confirms Chris Lewis's original report on the (cash strapped?!) USGA "eliminating" Tim Moraghan's "championship agronomist" position and includes the USGA memo.

Golfweek reached Moraghan via cell phone Thursday morning, but Moraghan said he was not able to comment on the story. USGA executive director David Fay sent an internal memo to USGA employees Thursday afternoon confirming Moraghan's departure at the end of this month. (see below)

Moraghan last worked the U.S. Open at Oakmont (Pa.) Country Club two weeks ago, and would normally have been working at Pine Needles Resort for this week’s U.S. Women’s Open. USGA Green section staff agronomists have been recruited to provide coverage both for this week’s U.S. Women’s Open and next week’s U.S. Senior Open at Whistling Straits in Kohler, Wis.

Mike Davis, the USGA’s senior director, rules and competitions, declined to comment.

To: USGA Staff
From: David Fay
Date: June 28, 2007
Subject: Tim Moraghan’s Departure

Tim is departing the USGA at the end of the month. We thank Tim for his many years of service as the USGA’s Director, Championship Agronomy and wish him the best going forward.

For the last few years, our Regional Agronomists have served as the Championship Agronomists for our Amateur-only championships. We are extending this well-received practice to our three Open championships (Open, Women’s Open, and Senior Open) effective immediately.

cc: USGA Executive Committee
Steve Elling also reports on the move and suggests that USGA President Walter Driver was very much behind the firing.
 The friction between Moraghan and Driver apparently dates to the U.S. Open debacle at Shinnecock in 2004, when the seventh green became so dry and hard, players could not keep their golf balls on the putting surface. According to the USGA source, Driver, who was chairman of the championship committee that set up the course that year, placed much of the blame on Moraghan.

"He was looking for a scapegoat," the source said.

Various news outlets have been seeking comment from Moraghan this week, but he's so far remained mum. As for Driver, a high-powered attorney from Atlanta who is a member at three clubs that don't allow female members, the Moraghan scenario is the latest in a string of issues that have all but crushed morale among staffers at USGA headquarters in New Jersey.

Citing the organization's projected annual deficit, Driver earlier had pared back the USGA employee benefit plan and trimmed a college tuition program for the children of staffers.

David Fay, the executive director of the USGA, said Wednesday that Moraghan has not been fired, remains an employee of the USGA and is still the organization's championship agronomist. How long that seemingly semantic distinction holds true, however, is another issue.

That's our David! 

Wie's 82

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It pains me to read this and think of the damage she's doing mentally by playing right now. Assuming of course that her 82 was influenced by the wrist issues...

On Thursday she never drove the ball beyond the 250 yard mark, hit only four fairways in 14 attempts and 4 greens in 18 in regulation and was clearly light years away from the teenage prodigy who finished third in the US Open not so long ago.

The question being asked now, though, is whether her problems are physical or mental and whether she is suffering some form of burnout after getting too much too soon, including millions of Dollars in endorsements.

Tiger's Fitness Regimen

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You know I was feeling good about that extra five minutes I put in on the stairmaster yesterday until I read this unbylined AP story previewing an upcoming Men's Fitness story revealing Tiger Woods' workout regimine with trainer Keith Kleven.

The routine is built around stretching up to 40 minutes before each session, core exercises, endurance runs of 7 miles and speed runs of 3 miles, along with weight training. But while Woods is competitive on the golf course, he said he doesn't have an ego in the weight room.

"I've never, ever hurt myself lifting," Woods said. "I hear people say, 'I hurt this' or "I hurt that.' I don't even know what that feels like. I've been sore, but I've always been able to function and do whatever I wanted to. ... Some people let their ego get in the way. You have to listen to your inner self. Your body knows when it can be pushed and when you just need to back off a little bit."

Woods opts for high repetitions and smaller weights, although Kleven said he is "off the charts" with how much he can lift.

"His endurance and strength allows us to do more reps at high levels than normally seen in a golfer," Kleven said, without disclosing specific weights. "His resistance for high reps is extremely high."

The Old Man And The Tee

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Golf.jpgThanks to reader Kevin for this Josh Sens profile of Sandy Tatum in San Francisco Magazine, which gets into the politics behind the Harding Park redo as well as the chances of a Sharp Park restoration. A few highlights, though the entire piece is worth your time:

This vision has made Tatum a contentious figure. Some have hailed him as a selfless champion of public good. “The guy gets such a bad rap,” says Tom Hsieh, a San Francisco political consultant who leases Gleneagles from the city and operates the nine-hole course. “He could be out enjoying himself at Cypress Point. Instead, he’s totally committed to doing what he thinks is right for the city.” But Matt Smith, a columnist with the SF Weekly, has cast Tatum as a kind of robber baron, out to pluck from city coffers to provide for fat-cat friends. In this portrayal, golf takes shape as a hobby restricted to the upper crust, unworthy of extensive public investment, and Tatum as an enemy of the Everyman. Suspicion of Tatum is shared, though for different reasons, by some hard-core local golfers, who cherish outings on their low-priced munis, regardless of the shoddy conditions, and don’t see the need for manicured fairways if it means coughing up more green.
And... 
The political consensus is that the status quo isn’t working. But what, exactly, should be done? Whether or not Tatum has the right answers for San Francisco—the Board of Supervisors and the Recreation and Parks commissioners will decide that—he remains the only party to put forth a detailed plan.

“In the case of Harding,” Tatum says, “I didn’t see any way of salvaging the place other than the way that was ultimately taken. It’s a San Francisco asset, and something needed to be done. I can certainly understand the frustrations. But if it could have been done differently—and in a realistic fashion—boy, I wish someone had been there at the time to tell me.”

Now, with Sharp and Lincoln deteriorating, the city is again at a crossroads, and Tatum has again weighed in. His suggestion, which echoes the findings of a 179-page report by the National Golf Foundation (a study paid for with private donations raised by Tatum), is that the city lease its courses to a nonprofit organization. The nonprofit (and Tatum has established just such an organization for this purpose), in turn, would hire private companies to make improvements (new drainage systems, say) and run the courses day to day. It’s an arrangement not unlike the one the city has with the San Francisco Zoo. If such steps aren’t taken, the report concludes, the rising debt and declining conditions of the munis will at some point in the unspecified future cause both Lincoln and Sharp to simply fade away. The city’s own analysis, presented to supervisors in April, confirms that the courses will run deeper in the red if nothing is done.

Trump National Running Horse Closer To Reality; PGA Tour Execs Huddle For New Excuses To Avoid Fresno

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Golfweek's Scott Hamilton reports that The Donald signed a letter of intent to acquire bankrupt Running Horse, confirming that he is willing to buy into even the most desolate markets just to be tied to a possible PGA Tour event.

Al Berryman, an attorney for the Fresno-based law firm of Baker, Manock and Jensen that represents Trump, said June 27 the terms of the deal are for Trump to pay $25 million in advance, plus an additional $15 million from future profits. Berryman said a purchase and sale agreement is being drawn up, with a July 2 completion deadline. After a final agreement is reached, Running Horse’s attorneys will schedule a hearing in front of a federal bankruptcy judge to have it approved.

Trump told Golfweek June 14 that he had increased his initial offer to purchase the troubled golf and residential development through U.S. bankruptcy court from $10 million to $25 million, with his primary goal being a PGA Tour stop as soon as 2008. But Mick Evans, who purchased the 420-acre property earlier this year from original developer Tom O’Meara, turned down Trump’s offer late last week. Negotiations resumed, however, resulting in Wednesday’s accord.

And...

The property was to be the site of a PGA Tour event this October. But those plans faltered when work on Running Horse was halted last year because of financial problems, as well as the inability to land a title sponsor for the event. Evans filed bankruptcy in April, with the project’s debt totaling an estimated $65 million. To compound matters, it was revealed last month that the club didn’t even own enough land to finish the Jack Nicklaus-designed course, of which only two holes and the driving range have been completed.

Does this mean The Donald will get to work with Jack Gary Jackie Steve the son-in-law?

Cohen indicated Wednesday that Trump wanted to make it difficult for the Tour to say no to his hosting an event.

“Mr. Trump’s goal is to move this project as quickly as possible so as not to interfere with the Tour’s plan,” Cohen said.

“He’s a man with a vision right now. He’s already in his mind mapped the course for PGA Tour standards. He’s calculated property locations, the clubhouse, the cart paths, you name it. He’s already calculated what he anticipates the final project to look like, and what he’s doing now is executing on it.”

How can you argue with that kind of vision? A man calculating cart path locations. Such vision.

"It's insulating to women that Mac O'Grady would say that."

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According to several scribblers present at the U.S. Open press conferences, golf legend Arnold Palmer called beloved USGA President Walter Driver, "John Driver," but the ASAP folks, feering the wrath the God, cleaned up the transcript.

Unfortunately, it appears Executive Director David Fay, despite pulling in well over $500,000 a year, doesn't carry the same weight. Or he just wasn't making a whole lot of sense during Wednesday's USGA press conference at Pine Needles.

 Q. You spoke of this course being 200 yards longer than the last two Opens and lengthening the second hole because they're hitting longer. I'm going to ask you what I've asked a couple of other girls, Mac O'Grady made this statement, "What Michelle Wie is doing is not humanly possible, it's technologically possible because the ball goes too straight, they go too far."  Could you address how the women are hitting because of equipment or is that a problem or what?

DAVID FAY: I think it's insulating to women that Mac O'Grady would say that. Why wouldn't they hit it longer? As Mike said, everyone else does. These are very talented athletes. Is he going to say that about Laura Davies? Is he going to say that about Annika? This is a reflection of the talent that you see out there.
Insulating? No room in the Women's Open budget for transcript mop up?

You know, this seems like a good time to announce that reader Paul has nominated Fay for this site's list of folks who have spoken out about distance advances. Granted, it was back in 2003 before he started clinging to this grooves nonsense to save his job, but nonetheless Mr. Fay at one time thought it was the golf ball going longer, and not all of this wonderful athleticism:
I’m one of those who believes the ball is going farther. Only someone who is deaf, dumb and blind would say otherwise.

 

"It's the U.S. Freaking Open and I'm not going to miss it for anything"

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img10237850.jpgSteve Elling files the most entertaining report on Michelle Wie from Pine Needles:

Tuesday on the practice range at the U.S. Women's Open, Michelle Wie bashed away on the range under the watchful eye, and occasionally flippant tongue, of longtime swing coach David Leadbetter. As they left to play nine holes of practice, a local photographer approached and asked Leadbetter for his name. You know, for identification purposes in a newspaper photo caption.

As the Wie entourage piled into their electric carts and headed toward the 10th tee at Pine Needles Lodge, the lanky Leadbetter turned his head and deadpanned, "Butch Harmon."

What's more, he then repeated the answer as it was dutifully jotted down. Which is where the multiple-choice portion of today's fare comes in, since his smirking response probably means that:

A. Things are so bad in the Wie camp that the noted swing guru no longer wants to be associated with the struggling, 17-year-old prodigy;
B. Butch Harmon got a lot taller, skinnier, grew more hair and developed a foreign accent overnight;
C. The perceived pressure in the Wie camp of late has been so overstated, it's become laughable.

Somewhat surprisingly, given the avalanche of bad publicity Wie has endured over the past year, the answer appears to be C. By most folks' way of reckoning, the strain and suffering should have grown to insufferably high levels, considering her series of athletic and public-relations disasters of the past few months.

But teenagers are nothing if not malleable, right? The million-dollar baby continues to trundle along like a movie-star engenue, blissfully tuning out the bad karma, criticism and sniper fire as though nothing meaningful has happened.

In the eye of Hurricane Michelle, the wind never really blows.

"The worst feeling in life is when no one has any expectations of you," Wie said breezily Tuesday, "when no one expects you to do great things."
This just can't be good... 

Wie said her wrist -- which she says was fractured in a jogging fall over the winter -- is still far from 100 percent, but that she needs to play to regain the lost strength and flexibility, which is the proverbial Catch-22 if ever there was one. Wie has lost distance and remains tentative about over-taxing the injury, claiming she will only hit her driver a few times this week. But after four months on the shelf earlier this year, sitting out this week was not an option.

"It's the U.S. Freaking Open and I'm not going to miss it for anything," she said, drawing laughs.