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Time to go low
Posted: Monday June 12, 2000 02:51 PM
Sports Illustrated senior writer Gary Van Sickle will answer your questions every Thursday during the golf season. Click here to send him a question. Shigeki Maruyama shot 58 in the first round of sectional qualifying for the U.S. Open. The 74 he shot in the second round, as he easily qualified, must've felt like a 90. The 58 won't be listed as a PGA Tour record because it happened in a qualifier, not a tournament, but we're going to count it. Which reminds me, it's about time for somebody to lower the record for low score in a major, which has been at 63 and holding for a long time. By my count, 15 players have shot 63s in major championships. Greg Norman was the last to shoot 63 in a major, at the '96 Masters, which he didn't win. Norman is also the only player to shoot 63 in two different majors -- he hit that number in the '86 British Open, too. I nominate Tiger Woods to smash the record at St. Andrews in next month's British Open, if the wind doesn't blow and they don't let the guy who set up Carnoustie last year anywhere near the Old Course. Woods has the power to reach several par-4 greens in 1, depending upon the wind and the conditions. When it was firm and fast in '95, even short hitters such as Corey Pavin were knocking tee balls onto the par-4 18th green. Of course, if it's that firm, it's difficult to get the ball close to the hole. But if Tiger is chipping, well, perhaps you've noticed that he's fairly good at it.
Mail call:
Isn't it about time PGA golfers were relieved of the antiquated burden of keeping their own scores? At a typical event there are multiple scorekeepers at every hole, virtually hundreds of people are dedicated to keeping score. Yet if a player makes a mistake or forgets to sign his scorecard, he gets disqualified. It's akin to asking Shaq how many points he scored following a basketball game. If he gets the answer wrong, his team loses. Please don't give me the stuffy, paternalistic "It's always been part of the game" answer that seems prevalent in the snooty world of the golfing aristocracy. Love your analogy, Eric, although hoops and golf aren't quite the same. If we let somebody else keep score, the controversies about players getting DQ'd and signing for a wrong score will simply be altered to stories about a 73-year-old scorekeeping grandmother who kept Tiger Woods's score wrong and got Woods DQ'd from a tourney. Whom can you count on to keep accurate scores? The volunteers are mostly retirees and seniors, some of whom have no clue what's going on and don't do their jobs. (For example, see the fairway marshal who wasn't even looking when Ernie Els teed off on a hole Sunday at Harbour Town this year. Els's drive hit the guy in the back and caromed backward under his umbrella and dead up against a tree. What's his only duty? To watch the players' tee shots and see where there go, and he wasn't even looking!) Way too many volunteers are there only for a free lunch and to annoy players by asking them to sign their hats. Having an outside scorekeeper would lead to other problems, such as penalty strokes and whether a player called one on himself when a ball moved at address, and so on. Can you imagine the poor guy who'd have to ask a steaming Craig Stadler on the next tee, "Uh, Mr. Stadler, was that an 8 or a 9 on the last hole?" Good luck ... and duck. You're right, Eric, it seems stupid and unfair that Padraig Harrington was DQ'd recently when he forgot to sign his card. But let's get to the reality. Is it that difficult to make sure your scorecard is correct? A seven-year-old can do it. And you're not required to add the numbers, just have the correct ones written down. As for signing your card when you're done, come on. It that too hard? Especially when it's your job and you do it every week? Duh. No sympathy here.
For the benefit of us golf-crazy Canadians, how good do you think Mike Weir can be? Is he a good, solid, top-30-caliber player or can he elevate his game to the elite level? Where do you see him in three or four years? It's a big leap to the elite level, a leap that has gotten even bigger the last two years since Woods raised the bar and Phil Mickelson, Els, Colin Montgomerie and the rest have all begun working harder to catch up. Weir has a wonderful short game, is a great putter and is therefore able to make a lot of birdies. He seems pretty dedicated to his craft. I liked the way he bounced back from shooting a crushing final-round 80 in the PGA while paired with Tiger to score his pressure-packed first Tour win in his home country a few weeks later. I watched him play during the Memorial Tournament's final round on a Monday recently. The first hole was telling: He was in the left side of the fairway and the pin was back left. The shot called for a fade to get close. Weir hit a draw and wound up on the far right side of the green. I never saw him hit a fade, although admittedly I didn't see every shot on the front nine, but it made me wonder if he's got that in his repertoire yet. To make the highest level and play with the big boys, you've either got to have complete control over the ball or be an absolute machine with your one-dimensional game. Look at Jim Furyk. He's always been a pure, Bruce Lietke- like fader, but now he's learned to draw his irons and he's become a regular contender in majors. Weir's got potential since he can score. His ballstriking needs to improve, and at the top level I believe it's easier to improve your ballstriking than it is to become a better putter. I see him as a top-30 player, winning once or twice a year. To snatch a major, he needs to build on what he's already got.
As my golf game progresses, it becomes apparent that I'll probably never make the Tour. Therefore, a pro-am will probably be my only hope to get a taste of the grind. What is the best way for a mere mortal who can't donate a wing to a hospital get in one? Get your boss or your company to pay for it, Roger. It's the American way. And the only way. The PGA Tour is all about money, and if you want to play, you've gotta bring your checkbook -- or someone else's. First, you should attend a Tour event's pro-am day. It's a dull non-event that most Tour pros put up with, but not happily. It's hardly something you should aspire to. If you're halfway decent, play in some smaller amateur events in your area. Try your club championship, any flight. You want a real adrenaline rush, play in a legitimate competition and putt 'em all out. That's pressure. That's real golf, not a Tour pro-am where the winning team usually shoots about 53.
I am a fan of David Duval and am wondering what pros like him do when they are in a putting slump? What practice techniques do they use to right the ship? The night before he won at Colonial last month, Mickelson spent 45 minutes on the practice green working on his putting stroke. His drill was to set up 10 positions around the cup, three feet from the hole. Phil would make 10 in a row from one position, then move on. He kept going until he had holed 100 in a row. If he missed, he started over at zero. He said the first time he tried the drill a few years back, it took him four hours to make his hundred. Try it.
Click here to send your golf question to Gary Van Sickle.
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