2017 ANA Inspiration - who ya got?

[North Texas]

Ugh, Mike Tirico STILL cannot pronounce names. "Song Yong" Ryu.

 

I think that was a Neil Diamond song.

 

Lol. Sweet Caroline Masson.

 

Good start with birdies on her first 2 holes.

[DavePelz4]

Ugh, Mike Tirico STILL cannot pronounce names. "Song Yong" Ryu.

 

I think that was a Neil Diamond song.

 

Lol. Sweet Caroline Masson.

 

Good start with birdies on her first 2 holes.

 

NT, no response to Ms. Lewis statements in the presser?

[North Texas]

Ugh, Mike Tirico STILL cannot pronounce names. "Song Yong" Ryu.

 

I think that was a Neil Diamond song.

 

Lol. Sweet Caroline Masson.

 

Good start with birdies on her first 2 holes.

 

NT, no response to Ms. Lewis statements in the presser?

 

Missed it. What did she say?

[chocolate_rehab]

Might be unpopular, but I agree with Stacy.

 

Golf channel switched off of ANA to PGA. Is there a place to watch it? I tried to use my online PGA Live account but got nowhere, the LPGA website kind of bites. Bummer.

[DavePelz4]

Might be unpopular, but I agree with Stacy.

 

Golf channel switched off of ANA to PGA. Is there a place to watch it? I tried to use my online PGA Live account but got nowhere, the LPGA website kind of bites. Bummer.

 

You're entitled to your opinion and I respect it but...when you win the qualifying tournament and beat the college players, doesn't that suggest for at least that tournament, you were better and earned a spot in?

[Seamus_McDuff]

Curious if Stacy has an issue with the winning score at the British Open. I mean, last year's -16 isn't that far off -21. The winning score at the 2015 Evian was also -16.

 

Ground under repair? I assume she's referring to the tournament 2 years ago after the course was renovated in order to become a major. That request was made by the LPGA if I recall correctly.

 

In the article Stacy does not say anything about "ground under repair" issues or record low scores at the Evian. The writer does but not Stacy.

 

Don't let the facts get in the way of a good Stacy ripping.

[golfgirlrobin]

Might be unpopular, but I agree with Stacy.

 

Golf channel switched off of ANA to PGA. Is there a place to watch it? I tried to use my online PGA Live account but got nowhere, the LPGA website kind of bites. Bummer.

 

You're entitled to your opinion and I respect it but...when you win the qualifying tournament and beat the college players, doesn't that suggest for at least that tournament, you were better and earned a spot in?

 

Once again, SL never said that she hadn't earned her spot. In fact, she specifically said the opposite.

 

I think everyone has missed the point of her comments. It had nothing to do with the kid, at all. I thought it was a pretty obvious shot at parents who push kids to compete at higher and higher levels of competition regardless of their age, and appear to be more interested in building a brand than in their kid's development.

[4waymiss]

Might be unpopular, but I agree with Stacy.

 

Golf channel switched off of ANA to PGA. Is there a place to watch it? I tried to use my online PGA Live account but got nowhere, the LPGA website kind of bites. Bummer.

 

You're entitled to your opinion and I respect it but...when you win the qualifying tournament and beat the college players, doesn't that suggest for at least that tournament, you were better and earned a spot in?

 

I don't think Stacy was questioning whether Lucy "earned" it. She qualified for it, it is not even up for debate. What Stacy is questioning is whether a 11 year old kid should be playing in the USWO.

 

Personally I disagree with Stacy. If Lucy is good enough , she is old enough.

 

But I understand where Stacy is coming from. She is a big proponent of college golf. She is even married to a college golf coach. I believe she is genuinely concerned about the well-being of these kids.

 

I guess Stacy has seen more than her share of kids like Lydia Ko, being drilled by the fathers to be a pro golfer after she's been potty trained.

 

Time has changed, just like whether you agree with all these one-and-done college basketball player. This is the way now. These kids are getting younger and younger.

[hebsan]

Tournament Play Suspended

 

It appears they are getting some very strong winds and it prompted the LPGA to halt play.

[PZero]

Might be unpopular, but I agree with Stacy.

 

Golf channel switched off of ANA to PGA. Is there a place to watch it? I tried to use my online PGA Live account but got nowhere, the LPGA website kind of bites. Bummer.

 

You're entitled to your opinion and I respect it but...when you win the qualifying tournament and beat the college players, doesn't that suggest for at least that tournament, you were better and earned a spot in?

 

Once again, SL never said that she hadn't earned her spot. In fact, she specifically said the opposite.

 

I think everyone has missed the point of her comments. It had nothing to do with the kid, at all. I thought it was a pretty obvious shot at parents who push kids to compete at higher and higher levels of competition regardless of their age, and appear to be more interested in building a brand than in their kid's development.

 

Well said.

[hebsan]

Tournament Play Suspended

 

It appears they are getting some very strong winds and it prompted the LPGA to halt play.

 

Randall Mell tweeted: Officially suspended for the day at ANA, resume 7:30 AM

[chocolate_rehab]

Might be unpopular, but I agree with Stacy.

 

Golf channel switched off of ANA to PGA. Is there a place to watch it? I tried to use my online PGA Live account but got nowhere, the LPGA website kind of bites. Bummer.

 

You're entitled to your opinion and I respect it but...when you win the qualifying tournament and beat the college players, doesn't that suggest for at least that tournament, you were better and earned a spot in?

 

Once again, SL never said that she hadn't earned her spot. In fact, she specifically said the opposite.

 

I think everyone has missed the point of her comments. It had nothing to do with the kid, at all. I thought it was a pretty obvious shot at parents who push kids to compete at higher and higher levels of competition regardless of their age, and appear to be more interested in building a brand than in their kid's development.

 

Right, that was my line of thinking on it. No one said she hadn't earned it, including Stacy Lewis.

[DavePelz4]

First, let's make sure we're talking about the same thing. This is an excerpt from her presser from the ANA, this week, not the US Open.

 

"My only -- and I like how this tournament has given exemptions to top amateurs over the years. I benefitted from that; Michelle, Lydia, a lot of us have benefitted from that. I would just like to see it go more towards those college-age players. Just because I feel like they get more out of it and you're more -- they are looking for the next step more than, say, a 12-, 13-, 14-year-old is. I would like to see it go back to that, of being more college players than necessarily the juniors."

 

Stacy is saying that college players should get the opportunity to play in this event instead of juniors. My point is Lucy played those college players and beat them in the qualifying event. Why shouldn't she have that opportunity? How does Stacy know that a college aged player gets more out of the event than a junior?

 

Also, for any that have daughters or sons for that matter, if your son or daughter was good enough to qualify for a pro event in any sport, why should they be denied the opportunity? Stacy pushes the opportunities that should be given to girls, speaks to them, why is a dream to be achieved based on an age? Olympic gymnasts compete as young as 15, if they turn 16 in the year of the Olympics, why are we putting arbitrary limits on kids based on age?

[DavePelz4]

Let me add this to my soapbox.

 

We let extremely intelligent kids enter college as a way to enhance their education and keep their passion for learning growing.

 

Why should sports be different?

[DavePelz4]

Might be unpopular, but I agree with Stacy.

 

Golf channel switched off of ANA to PGA. Is there a place to watch it? I tried to use my online PGA Live account but got nowhere, the LPGA website kind of bites. Bummer.

 

You're entitled to your opinion and I respect it but...when you win the qualifying tournament and beat the college players, doesn't that suggest for at least that tournament, you were better and earned a spot in?

 

Once again, SL never said that she hadn't earned her spot. In fact, she specifically said the opposite.

 

I think everyone has missed the point of her comments. It had nothing to do with the kid, at all. I thought it was a pretty obvious shot at parents who push kids to compete at higher and higher levels of competition regardless of their age, and appear to be more interested in building a brand than in their kid's development.

 

Please point out where I said that Stacy made that comment.

[CEPick]

Nordqvist

[scottc25]

Li has a ball speed of 133 so that equates to approximately 90 mph swing speed. Pretty damn good for a 14 year old, boy or girl.

[swoll cracker]

I know I'm cheating but after watching the first round, I'll take S.H. Park.

[SoCalTitleist]

What the heck is Weezy wearing .

[ColoradoSteve]

I'm wondering if she got a letter from the commissioner. She is a feature group on TV. I'm sure I saw her in a tourney a couple of weeks ago with the same type of black skirt.

 

Li is well composed for a 14 yr old. Hell, she posted a better score than Henderson and tied Feng, Piller and Lewis.

[CEPick]

Wie looks ridiculous. Wtf is she wearing?

[KBong]

So maybe college golf is the problem? The best players are skipping college, and heading straight to the pros. They seem to be doing OK, or at least better than many of the college players. Perhaps attention should turn to the college programs, and see why they're not preparing the players for the pro's. I highly doubt it's because a few players weren't invited to play in a tournament because the junior players got the invites.

 

Lydia had quite the college career as did the Korda sisters, Brooke Henderson, Lexi...et al.

+

Shanshan

Minjee Lee

Charley Hull

Ariya

Moriya

Brittany Lincicome

Morgan Pressel

Paula Creamer

Su Oh

Megan Khang

Xi Yu Lin

Ai Miyazato

Yani

Vicky Hurst

Jaye Marie Green

Julieta Granada

Too many Koreans to name

[Argonne69]

I watched a replay of the morning wave, given the suspension of the afternoon play. I tell you I was mightily impressed by Lucy's play. For starters, she birdied two of the toughest par 4's after stuffing her hybrids close. For the most part her ball striking was superb. Heck, she was closer to the pin than Michelle on nearly half the holes, often hitting 4 clubs more. She's another solid example of playing within oneself. Nothing ever seemed forced. She does appear to swing harder on the tee than Lydia did when she first arrived on the scene, but it never looked out of control.

 

On the flipside, Michelle didn't take advantage of a number of very nice tee shots when she had a wedge in her hand. Her putting was very good though. It certainly looked like Michelle from 2014.

[Seamus_McDuff]

First, let's make sure we're talking about the same thing. This is an excerpt from her presser from the ANA, this week, not the US Open.

 

"My only -- and I like how this tournament has given exemptions to top amateurs over the years. I benefitted from that; Michelle, Lydia, a lot of us have benefitted from that. I would just like to see it go more towards those college-age players. Just because I feel like they get more out of it and you're more -- they are looking for the next step more than, say, a 12-, 13-, 14-year-old is. I would like to see it go back to that, of being more college players than necessarily the juniors."

 

Stacy is saying that college players should get the opportunity to play in this event instead of juniors. My point is Lucy played those college players and beat them in the qualifying event. Why shouldn't she have that opportunity? How does Stacy know that a college aged player gets more out of the event than a junior?

 

 

 

Also, for any that have daughters or sons for that matter, if your son or daughter was good enough to qualify for a pro event in any sport, why should they be denied the opportunity? Stacy pushes the opportunities that should be given to girls, speaks to them, why is a dream to be achieved based on an age? Olympic gymnasts compete as young as 15, if they turn 16 in the year of the Olympics, why are we putting arbitrary limits on kids based on age?

 

 

The qualifier is 13-18. I don't think any of them are in college.

 

http://www.juniorgolfscoreboard.com/smtresultscourse.asp?TID=44682

[OBbogey5]

What the heck is Weezy wearing .

 

It's like shes trying to look ridiculous. She'd get voted "worst dressed".

[Shilgy]

So maybe college golf is the problem? The best players are skipping college, and heading straight to the pros. They seem to be doing OK, or at least better than many of the college players. Perhaps attention should turn to the college programs, and see why they're not preparing the players for the pro's. I highly doubt it's because a few players weren't invited to play in a tournament because the junior players got the invites.

 

Lydia had quite the college career as did the Korda sisters, Brooke Henderson, Lexi...et al.

+

Shanshan

Minjee Lee

Charley Hull

Ariya

Moriya

Brittany Lincicome

Morgan Pressel

Paula Creamer

Su Oh

Megan Khang

Xi Yu Lin

Ai Miyazato

Yani

Vicky Hurst

Jaye Marie Green

Julieta Granada

Too many Koreans to name

Add Wie.

[Awsi Dooger]

Judy Rankin -- as impressive as she is -- should be yanked from the booth immediately every time Michelle Wie is the topic on the course. Judy has absolutely no clue what she is talking about when it comes to Michelle Wie. It is beyond embarrassing. Jerry Foltz could remedy matters within seconds but somehow he's left out there with no say in the matter while traipsing around with other players.

 

Like many others, Judy became so fixated on Michelle's tabletop putting style that she ignored results, wrongly remembered when it began or what was going on before it began, and somehow assigns almost every trouble on the course to that putting method. Laughable doesn't begin to describe it. Michelle fell apart when her ball striking failed, compared to where she was throughout 2014 and beginning in late 2013. Those stats have been provided on this site. Jerry Foltz in late 2015 on the air was asked to summarize why Michelle's game declined so sharply compared to a season earlier. He didn't hesitate for one second: "Ball striking." No kidding, and it continued into 2016 when she changed to the ridiculous loopy A Swing and the greens in regulation dropped to pathetic level. Again, those numbers were specified here.

 

Daughter Judy remained comfortably oblivious and continued to believe it was all about the putting. Meanwhile, Michelle's putting not only improved sharply during the tabletop years compared to the semi yips immediately preceding that switch, but her heralded putting during today's telecast was no different than what we've seen in recent years. It was still nice rolling putts but a foot to 18 inches too tentative as a rule, causing several narrow misses that might have dropped with more aggressive pace. Again, this has been well documented throughout the tabletop years. Jerry Foltz on more than one occasion wondered out loud what Michelle's putting results would be if every stroke on the green were a foot more eager.

 

Other than torso angle, the only significant new change in Michelle's putting style is grip position and adjustment. Make no mistake, she is aware of the yips and is still fighting the yip tendency. That's why she is now changing right hand position at the last second, moving to claw and then to conventional. That is bizarre at face value. She does it because the yips are partially mental and she is doing anything to switch focus and provide a trigger mechanism, instead of frozen fear of what happens if her hands don't cooperate. The tentative putting is not ideal but it is largely by design, even if Michelle would never concede as much. She dreads the 3-4 footers just like she dreads missing wild left on full shots, so those sleepy putts that enable a stress free tap in are not too bad. Smiles galore.

 

Michelle virtually never negative splits a 72 hole tournament. That means coming home faster than you went out. The best players and most natural putters are capable of that almost on cue. Michelle with the mechanized style and subpar nerves has more and more putts slide by the edge. That will continue to happen, far more often than not.

 

The swing this week is considerably more logical and repetitive than even a month ago. That should have been the spotlight in Thursday's round, not the mundane putting. Jerry Foltz would have been all over that topic and detailed perfectly. Maybe we'll finally have some clarity if Michelle regains a tier one standing and Foltz is assigned to her group on a regular basis. Minus that we'll have Judy butchery from the booth.

 

As it appeared from the overseas events, Michelle has committed to the controlled fade on virtually every shot and especially the longer clubs. She is teeing it lower than ever before with the driver to aid that fade. As I've mentioned for years, she is terrified of that wild left miss. It's glaring if you walk one round or watch one complete range session. Her body language collapses upon that type of miss. This tighter shortened swing is vastly improved from February and is starting to allow the high percentage of greens in regulation again. That's the key to Michelle's game and this improvement is similar to what I witnessed at Naples in late 2013 and reported here. She had become the most underrated player on tour due to monotonous stress free pars via hitting almost every green and with the occasional birdie. In that case it was low stingers and now it's a controlled fade. I still don't think this style owns the upside of the 2013-2014 version but it looks considerably more promising than any of the tinkerings from mid 2015 forth.

 

The short irons are not as accurate as they should be when Michelle stabs at the ball and stops rotating her torso. That causes a moderate pull to the left. It occurs several times per round.

 

Judy apparently never checked the greens in regulation category. Far too complicated, especially when you can summon Subjective Conventional Wisdom 101 and obsess over putting technique. Remember, Judy last season was so desperate to denounce that tabletop style that she tried to pretend that Michelle adopted it after winning the 2014 US Open, and not beforehand.

 

Naturally I'm not going to ignore Judy Rankin's principal atrocity from Thursday's telecast: "Taller is generally better in golf." Yeah, if you're Japanese. That demographic would greatly benefit from several added inches from their country's norm. I couldn't stop laughing when Judy lamented during a split screen review of 2003 Michelle to today that Michelle's current swing was causing her to play, "3-4 inches shorter than she really is."

 

That's the idea lady.

 

***

 

BTW, I can't find the listed height for Eun Jeong Seong. For her sake I hope it's the golden 5-6.

 

Seong's frame and style of game are an interesting blend of Yani Tseng, Haru Nomura and Hyo-Joo (Hojo) Kim.

[4waymiss]

Awsi, when they yank grandma Judy, they need to put you in, not Foltz.

[MountainGoat]

Have you taken note of the massive crowds at this tournament? The only people there are in hospitality tents.

[Warrick]

Please start playing golf again, so we can discuss THAT....

 

Interesting to see how Lydia, In Gee finish up the first round this morning.

 

Sung Hyun and So Yeon both positioning themselves nicely.