Posted: Monday November 04, 2002 5:18 PM
Updated: Thursday November 07, 2002 5:34 PM
Let's talk underrated. And let's start with Nick Price. Perhaps you thought he was pretty much washed up a couple of years ago when his short game, particularly his putting stroke, reverted to mediocre at best. The three-time major champion proved us wrong by quietly putting together a wonderfully solid, consistent 2002.
It seems like a long time ago now, but for starters, Price did win at Colonial back in May. That fabled course used to be a terrific test of shotmaking. It's still a shotmaker's course, but more important, it's one of the few remaining stops on tour where a short hitter (read: older player) can still beat the young guns. Tom Watson racked up a victory there a few years back, too.
MAILBAG
All things being equal, does the size of the clubhead increase the distance one can hit with the club? —Edward Emond, Quincy, Mass.
Actually, EE, it's the angle of the dangle. Seriously, size does not matter. (Tell your wife.) It's the size of the sweet spot, the resiliency of the clubface and the length and kickpoint of the shaft. While a bigger clubhead means you can hit the ball with more mass, there's a cutoff point of efficiency when friction from swinging that big mass through the air starts to slow clubhead speed.
In my opinion, even without a major, history will look more kindly upon Phil Mickelson's career than the careers of a handful of players with one or two majors to their credit; Davis Love III and Fred Couples (one major each) come immediately to mind. Your thoughts? —Mike (Mannix) O'Connor, Coronado, Calif.
You're no dummy, Mannix-kin. Phil's total of 21 wins blows away Davis and Fred, who have 14 wins apiece. If Tiger Woods wasn't born, we'd have long ago gotten sick of hailing Phil as the dominant player we were awaiting. He and Ernie Els would be duking it out for world domination, and both would be thought of as legendary ... instead of punching bags for El Tigre. In fact, Mickelson's win total also blows away the likes of Tom Kite (19 wins), Ben Crenshaw (19), Curtis Strange (17), Julius Boros (18), Mark O'Meara (16) and Payne Stewart (11).
Aside from the fact that the PGA would never permit it, what about allowing American Ryder Cup players the freedom to do whatever they want during the competition? They're used to being individualistic and self-absorbed during every other competition, so why not for the Ryder Cup? With the exception of the opening and closing ceremonies, let the players stay where they want, socialize when they want, dine with whom they want, wear what they want, etc. Maybe just seeing Lefty in the same room is what sends Tiger into his Ryder funk. —John Sinclair, Stillwater, Minn.
Individualistic? Self-absorbed? Not now with the questions, Sink Man. Can't you see I'm busy?
You have great knowledge of nice, lesser-known golf courses, places where you can really learn to love the game. But how about some real dogs? What are the worst courses you've played? And do any of them compare with Kingster, the scrubby par-3 course that I grew up on, at the corner of King and Inkster in suburban Detroit? A real goat pasture of a course, rusting cars and all, but a place where many of my friends and I learned the game. Do you know if any current pros share similarly humble roots? —Jim Gamelin, Littleton, Colo.
Like pain, you tend to block those bad golf experiences out of the memory, GameBoy. I played a nine-hole course in New Haven, Conn.; I think it was called Meadow Brook, something like that. There were no tee markers, no signs, no grass on the tees -- I never actually played the second hole because I couldn't find it, it was so poorly marked. I played to some other green by mistake and discovered the second green by accident about five holes later. Years ago, I also played a muni in Brookline, Mass.; called Putterham Meadows. The crew didn't even get around to putting pins in the greens until midway through my round. In 1988, when the U.S. Open was held nearby at The Country Club, cars were parked on Putterham. That says it all. I'm sure I've had worse experiences, but I may need therapy if I think too hard about them. Maybe some other readers of this column (yes, all three of you) would like to submit your nominees for worst golf course experience. If they're interesting, I'll run a list. Could be fun.
The telltale sign of Price's performance in 2002 is that he ranked third in the Vardon Trophy standings for scoring average going into the season-ending Tour Championship. Winner Vijay Singh and Phil Mickelson moved past Price with strong showings at East Lake, but Price's finishing fifth in the Vardon race at age 45 is one of the more impressive accomplishments this season.
"There are two things I always look at: the money list and the stroke average," Price told me at Atlanta's East Lake Golf Club during the Tour Championship. "To me, the stroke average is huge. I always felt that's the most important thing. It means you haven't played four or five really bad rounds. I've maybe only had five or six rounds over par all year. That's what you have to do."
Another stat Price enjoyed is his prize money. "You know, I won more money at Colonial than I won for my two PGAs and British Open," he said.
You can look it up. So I did. He racked up $774,000 for the '02 Colonial. He earned $280,000 for the '92 PGA, $310,000 for the '94 PGA and $178,200 for the '94 British Open, a total of $768,200.
Hint for golf rotisserie players in 2003: Don't scratch Price off your player list. "I honestly believe I can win again," Price said. "I honestly believe I can win a major again if the course is right. At Augusta, I don't think I've got a prayer. The British Open next year (at Royal St. George's, where he contended in '93) will be my best shot. I haven't played Olympia Fields, the U.S. Open course. Judging by how the USGA sets up Opens, I'll be happy to make that cut. If you have to drive it 265 yards to reach the fairway, it'll be trouble.
"The big thing is at my age, you just don't know what's left. Will that win at Colonial be the last one? I hope not. But in the back of my mind there's the thought that it may be. The best thing about Colonial was that I had a three- or four-shot lead the last three or four holes. I could relax and enjoy the walk. And I did."
Underrated, Volume II
Meet John Rollins, a former Virginia Commonwealth star who won the Canadian Open two months ago, which you probably missed while watching football. Rollins is easy to spot: He's the guy with the cool goatee. He also has a very solid game, obviously, since he played his way into the American Express Championship in Ireland and also the Tour Championship. Only 27, he's a guy who's going to be around for a while. You might have caughtthe highlight of him slamming home a 40-foot putt on the tough par-3 18th during the third round last Saturday. The ball was running hot, whacked the back of the cup, popped up in the air ... and fell in.
"It's been a lot of fun. I've enjoyed every minute of being here," Rollins said of his Tour Championship debut. "I'm just disappointed I haven't played as well as I'd like."
Rollins finished 13th and won $111,200. Besides his win in Canada, he played in the last group on Sunday in New Orleans with eventual winner K.J. Choi. "I proved to myself I can win out here," he said. "It's tough to do. I played great on the weekend in Canada and got lucky to get in the playoff, then made a great birdie on the playoff hole to get the win. I played great golf last year on the Buy.com Tour; I played consistent and kept it in play, did the same this year and that's what I'm going to try to do in the future. You've just got to let it happen, which is the hardest thing to do."
Rollins plays the guitar, and often travels with one. He also plays chess; tour buddy Bob Heintz taught him the game so Heintz would have an opponent. Asked if he's better at guitar or chess, Rollins didn't hesitate. "Guitar," he said, grinning.
Rollins' wife, who usually travels with him, unfortunately did not witness his win in Canada. "We got the check, we got the win, we got to go to Ireland, which was awesome," he said. "I don't think she minds too much."
Top Seniors
Kathy Bissell checks in with her final 2002 Senior Power Performance Rankings. Tom Watson's victory at the Senior Tour Championship solidified his position at the top. (The ranking includes top-30 finishes only. Bad finishes are dropped, thereby measuring the closing power of the players. Additional points are awarded for victories. Double points are awarded for majors.)
Number in parentheses is final position on 2002 Senior PGA Tour money list.
1. Tom Watson 135.61 (8)
2. Hale Irwin 134.46 (1)
3. Bob Gilder 131.54 (2)
4. Fred Gibson 130.75 (53)
5. Fuzzy Zoeller 130.33 (20)
6. Tom Kite 129.95 (4)
7. Larry Nelson 129.00 (18)
8. Morris Hatalsky 128.65 (10)
9. Jim Thorpe 128.46 (9)
10. Bruce Lietzke 127.33 (7)
11. Doug Tewell 127.17 (5)
12. Gil Morgan 126.95 (11)
13. Allen Doyle 126.77 (12)
14. Bruce Fleisher 126.10 (3)
15. Tom Purtzer 125.79 (27)
16. Bobby Wadkins 125.38 (13)
17. John Jacobs 124.85 (14)
18. Tom Jenkins 124.17 (15)
19. Jay Overton 124.11 (51)
20. Ed Dougherty 124.05 (22)
21. Howard Twitty 124.00 (69)
22. Dana Quigley 123.93 (6)
23. Wayne Levi 123.61 (28)
24. Stewart Ginn 123.07 (19)
25. Bob Charles 123.00 (73)
26. Isao Aoki 122.83 (31)
27. Mike Hill 122.75 (47)
28. Dick Mast 122.70 (41)
29. John Bland 122.38 (25)
30. Dave Eichelberger 122.22 (32)
31. Jose Maria Canizares 122.18 (33)
32. Tom Wargo 122.18 (38)
33. John Mahaffey 122.10 (36)
34. Don Pooley 121.86 (17)
35. Bruce Summerhays 121.76 (37)
36. Vicente Fernandez 121.67 (35)
37. Hubert Green 121.61 (16)
38. Mike McCullough 120.48 (21)
39. Dale Douglass 120.29 (55)
40. Gary McCord 120.29 (29)
41. Sammy Rachels 120.05 (23)
42. R.W. Eaks 119.85 (65)
43. J.C. Snead 119.75 (42)
44. Walter Hall 119.74 (26)
45. Jim Ahern 119.72 (39)
46. Dave Stockton 119.65 (34)
47. Jay Sigel 119.26 (24)
48. Mike Smith 119.20 (43)
49. Rodger Davis 118.83 (30)
50. John Schroeder 118.83 (45)
Sports Illustrated senior writer Gary Van Sickle writes for the magazine's
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