 |
| |
|
 |
 |
||||||||||||||||||||
|
Veteran's Day Sindelar offers his thoughts on the evolution of the sportPosted: Monday June 23, 2003 2:20 PM
Joey Sindelar, an Ohio State alum and a PGA Tour star in the 1980s, is 45 now, and his name doesn't appear on the leaderboard as much anymore. When he played his way into contention last week at the Buick Classic, it was a great chance to catch up with him and get his thoughts on golf, his career and other assorted things. Here are some of the highlights of what Sindelar had to say: "At the same time, we're seeing the product of different kinds of people playing golf -- sophisticated athletes, not just the geeky, dorky kids who played when I grew up. What was the talent pool of kids in the U.S. when I learned golf? Several thousand, maybe, and how many of them were serious? What's the talent pool now of kids who are serious? The numbers have to be huge. "I just played golf with Bill Haas, Jay's son. Oh, my gosh. Unbelievable. It's pure, thoughtless golf -- not in a dumb way, in a fabulous way, like, 'Here's the ball and I'm sending it over there.' [Bill Haas] is natural and he hits it so far. I'm one of the longer hitters and he's got me by 20 yards. At the same time that Tiger is changing things, the golf pool is growing enormously. The fact is, I don't know if I'd want to be starting over trying to do this right now." This just inTour player Brandel Chamblee was so far down the alternates list that he'd given up gaining entry to the Buick Classic. He was talking to fellow Scottsdale, Ariz., resident and pal Peter Kostis on the practice green Thursday afternoon when he was greeted with a surprise. "Len Mattiace came over and said, 'Brandel, my back hurts. Why don't you take my spot?'" Chamblee said. "That was at 12:15. His tee time was 12:30." Chamblee had come to New York for a one-day outing at Winged Foot and hadn't brought his usual golf wardrobe. So he wore a Winged Foot shirt he won as a tee prize in the outing, his suit slacks ("I about ruined them on a quagmire of a golf course," he said) and no hat. "I was just messing around, taking a lesson from Peter, before I went into the city to have some fun," Chamblee said. "I was going to go to Greenwich Village, the Museum of Modern Art, buy my son a toy, catch a flight and be home for dinner. I promptly started out double bogey-bogey and I was cussing Lenny out as I was going to the third tee. I was thinking, I was going to have a fun day today then Len tells me to take his spot. But then I made five birdies and felt a lot better about the whole thing." A home for the agedYou may now exhale. Here is the Top 25 in the Senior Power Performance Rankings, provided by Kathy Bissell, for which I'm sure you've been holding your breath. Numbers in parentheses indicate position on Champions Tour money list. (Rankings reflect each player's top 30 tournament performances for the calendar year from this week's event in 2002 to this week in 2003. After a tournament is held, the finishes from the previous year are dropped, even if the event has changed places on the calendar.) 1. Tom Watson (15) -- 135.1
MailbagThe first four e-mails are in response to a reader's recent plea for long-putting tips. I've used a long putter for three years now, and I've found that the most important factor is adjusting shaft length so you are over the ball. This likely will involve removing from/adding to the shaft until you find the length that works for you. As for the other factors (hand position, open/closed, etc.), it is similar to using a regular putter -- whatever feels comfortable and allows for a firm, accelerating stroke.
I recently moved to a belly putter that was made for someone who was 6-foot-5 (I am 5-9), so I anchor it in my sternum and position my hands at the bottom of the grip in the conventional way. The secret to a long or a belly putter is to play the ball off of your forward foot (like when you hit driver) and to not so much hit the ball but sweep it. Because of the length of the club and the fact that it's anchored against your body, you can't just hit the ball (it will take off); rather, you have to sweep it, keeping your arms in a perfect triangle. It takes time getting used to it, because your eyes are not over the line of the ball.
I'm 27 years old and have actually used a long putter since I was 17. I traded in my catcher's mitt for a long putter, and it was the best move I've ever made. My friends have nicknamed the club "Orville" after Orville Moody. Putting is the strongest part of my game and I didn't find it too tricky to change to the club. As far as arm position, I bend my left arm to about 90 degrees and keep my right arm just very slightly bent so I can get a little power behind longer putts. My left hand completely grips the top of the club, with the palm facing my body. My right hand grips on the side of the lower grip. My stance is standard: equal balance, feet shoulder-width apart. The ball is a little more toward my left foot. The key is to be balanced and to keep your whole body together, especially your shoulders. Club goes back, shoulders go in the same direction.
I moved to a long putter eight years ago when I quit smoking and developed a severe case of the yips. My golfing life has changed since then. I make everything I see and my handicap has plunged to low single digits. My basics are even balance, steady head and limited shoulder movement. The point of the long stick is the pendulum-like movement that can be simulated by anchoring the top of the putter to a firm, steady platform. I grip the top of the shaft of the putter firmly with my left thumb and index finger and anchor the whole thing just right of my breastbone, swinging the putter with my right hand and arm. For right-to-left putts, the ball is back slightly; it is forward for left-to-righters.
Y'know, Gary, it's a damn shame your middle name isn't Pop or Ice.
You're just as sharp as the kids on the school bus when I was in second grade, Deutsche Mark, who came up with the same nicknames. Congratulations. The Arnold Palmer Award is won by the player sitting atop the PGA money list at the end of each season. Instead of total money earned, wouldn't calculating a player's average purse per tournament throughout the entire year be more indicative of how well he performed? I understand there's a consistency-vs.-lightning in a bottle factor, but having a minimum percentage of cuts made -- say, 75% of the time -- would exclude those streaky players.
Well, Magoo, I think it makes as much sense as awarding baseball's home run crown to the player with the best ratio of at-bats per home run, not the most home runs. How could you possibly leave Scott Hoch off of your list of best players never to have won a major? I think you would be hard-pressed to find even a handful of people who would reach a similar conclusion. Based on his performance throughout his career, including the past few years (three wins since 2001), Hoch should be No. 2.
Since they're current rankings, Fried Man, they're based on how a player is playing now, not what he's done over his career. However, I'll agree with you, anyway, and say Hoch probably should've been in there somewhere. But hold the fries. Using Sagarin ratings, which are only over 52 weeks and ignore placement in favor of scores, these are the BPNTHWAM.
1. Chris DiMarco
While Colin Montgomerie has had a wonderful career, his recent performance does not warrant placing him ahead of DiMarco. Sorry, Mitch, but while Jeff Sagarin's ratings may work for football, they're a crock in golf. No one pays any attention and they have no legitimacy. Not that my top-10 list has any either, I'm proud to say. Also, you might want to take Calc off your list of players who haven't won a major, since he won the 1989 British Open -- maybe you've heard of it? How about Brad Faxon? Here's a guy who had a top-10 World Ranking at one time, has played in two Ryder Cups and has seven PGA Tour wins. He may not have the length to win nowadays, but he has one of the best putting stokes on Tour. I also have two others: Stewart Cink and Chris DiMarco.
Faxon's last win was 2 1/2 years ago and he hasn't played all that well of late. Cink and DiMarco have been in lulls, too. Hence, they fell out of my top 10. I can't believe you did not include John Cook (he was so close at the British). He deserves to be there, even ahead of Jay Haas and Fred Funk.
Cook spends more time on TV than playing these days and hasn't been a factor in a tournament in years. His close call in the British was more than a decade ago. These rankings are based on current play and John, unfortunately, isn't playing his best. Whatever happened to Lee Westwood? A few years ago he would have been at the top of any list of prospective major winners. Now he's off the charts, nowhere to be found.
Wong again, eh? Westwood got married and had a baby -- well, actually his wife had a baby, if my information is correct -- and took some time away from the game. When he came back, he never quite regained his magical touch. He's still looking for it. Whether Phil Mickleson ever wins a major will not diminish my opinion of him as a golfer. Look at David Duval; he won the British Open but never has been and never will be a golfer of Lefty's stature. If we are waiting for Phil to win a major to define his career, then we are in for a yawner of a wait. He will never win a major, and I think it's time you experts 'fess up and admit it.
He's only 32, Tuckered, and he already has 21 wins. Why would you give up on a guy like that? Get serious. There's still time for him to win one even by accident. Sports Illustrated senior writer Gary Van Sickle writes for the magazine's Golf Plus section and is a regular contributor to SI.com. Click here to send him a question or comment.
|
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
