The Players Championship 2024 (*** NO LIV DISCUSSIONS ***)

[bobfoster]

10 minutes ago, naval2006 said:

Thrilling Sunday with drama to the very last shot of the tournament. Scottie is the real deal. Can’t wait to see the Masters next month. 

Love him. He isn't dramatic like Tiger or Jack - but he's got to be one of the most consistent golfers I've seen in my lifetime. He just grinds and gets it done. Actually kind of amazing to watch.

[idrive]

2 hours ago, Jayjay_theweim_guy said:

Then explain someone like Brian Harman managing to get it 330 out on that shot.

 

Clark made the best initial decision to get the best average score on that hole, but that decision doesn't have the greatest chance of getting the 3 he needed to force a tie.  Harman's did.   Especially as short hitting as he is.  Just an incredibly ballsy decision by Harman.

 

 

Pretty sure Harmon isn't a short hitter.

[beluga99]

I think this is averages on the PGA Tour website.  He's longer than me but not 90% or WRXers.  So fair play for him to hit one that far down the stretch.

 

[woahnelly]

1 hour ago, nsxguy said:

 

Rahm who ?

 

[JungleJimbo]

On 3/15/2024 at 10:06 PM, rukahs said:

 

 

 

Yeahhhh buddy !!!

 

 

 

 

[mosesgolf]

1 hour ago, woahnelly said:

 

Nobody was going to beat Scotty this weak.  JR hasn’t won an individual event there yet so………….Only guy dominating there is Joakim.  

[Hankshank]

Aint too sure Masters will manage to top this. Perfect drama, with Scottie in the club house at 20 below and three guys just a shot back playing the last. That (whatever koppsnurr is in English) from Wyndham is what will be the moment replayed in years to come. Great drama. 

Scottie aint the most vibrant of personalities in interviews, but It's nice to have a rock solid world#1 again. 

Edited March 18 by Hankshank

[Port and Starboard]

The PGA tour needed a week like this.

 

Not sure how long Scottie can carry the torch, but he'll make it fun to watch.

[the bishop]

6 hours ago, Jayjay_theweim_guy said:

Then explain someone like Brian Harman managing to get it 330 out on that shot.

 

Clark made the best initial decision to get the best average score on that hole, but that decision doesn't have the greatest chance of getting the 3 he needed to force a tie.  Harman's did.   Especially as short hitting as he is.  Just an incredibly ballsy decision by Harman.

 

I get it; Clark hit an approach within 3 percent of total distance---totally atypical of what you'd expect from 160+, with that pressure---and gave his 17' birdie putt a great run at the hole.  Great shots.  But that's not the point.

 

I'm sure Chip Beck laid it up well on 15 too (which is why I made that comp), and laying it up for Beck then, in the Masters, helped preserve his place.  And pretty much guaranteed he wasn't going to win.  That's all.

Did you happen to notice that Harman and Clark ended up with basically the same putt?  Why aren't you harping on Harman for not hitting a better 2nd after pounding one 330 off the tee?  Xander hit driver on 18, ended up in the pine straw where the ball is less controllable coming out.  Hit the green but had a longer putt than Clark.

 

Clark not really my guy but I can't fault his strategy there.

[MattyO1984]

Great watch last night - after being away for the weekend and missing pretty much all of Friday and Saturday, I sat down and attempted to just watch and I walked away from it not disappointed (which is progress compared to much of this season so far).

 

Scottie is unbelievable. Once he got in and around the lead, there was a sense of inevitability about it all. He was never going to take a step backwards and over the past 20-30 years there is only one other person that carried that aura with him. Now, Scottie is never going to achieve what that guy achieved but for his peers it must be a pretty sobering thought.

 

Of the others, I think that I take more from Clark than I do Xander. Clark clearly did not have it yesterday but somehow ground it out to give himself a putt at it on the last. That was impressive.

[iBanesto]

7 hours ago, Hawkeye77 said:

I’m still trying to figure out whose kitten Clark drowned, or did he bite the head off some little girl’s hamster?

 

 

 

Too good looking.

 

GolfWRX is jealous.

 

[NEhomer]

I can't fathom how Scottie falls so completely off of his stance on his driver swing. I got a feeling that's gonna catch up to him at some point. I don't see him reigning on top for an extended period of time.

 

Kudos for the win~

[Ferguson]

Scheffler won. 

 

 

 

[bcjim]

Clark had a 17' putt to tie. His strategy worked.  There is no guarantee he'd have been closer with a shorter approach and if he has a weakness,  it's occasionally spraying it off the tee. LACC was a great place for him because that wasn't punished really. 

[iBanesto]

39 minutes ago, Ferguson said:

Scheffler won. 

 

 

 

 

Again...

 

[dashanks]

3 hours ago, Hankshank said:

Aint too sure Masters will manage to top this. Perfect drama, with Scottie in the club house at 20 below and three guys just a shot back playing the last. That (whatever koppsnurr is in English) from Wyndham is what will be the moment replayed in years to come. Great drama. 

Scottie aint the most vibrant of personalities in interviews, but It's nice to have a rock solid world#1 again. 

Hard to be vibrant given the banality of 99% of the questions interviewers ask.  "How much does this mean to you?"  "What did you learn about yourself?"  "What will this do for your confidence going forward?"  Same five or ten questions every time.  It's like they have an interview guidebook.

[JetSpeed79]

2 hours ago, MattyO1984 said:

Scottie is unbelievable. Once he got in and around the lead, there was a sense of inevitability about it all. He was never going to take a step backwards and over the past 20-30 years there is only one other person that carried that aura with him. Now, Scottie is never going to achieve what that guy achieved but for his peers it must be a pretty sobering thought.

Very true. Surprisingly few players can consistently perform under pressure on the back 9 on Sunday. It’s one of the things that always separated Tiger, and it’s starting to be one of the things that separates Scottie. It just doesn’t seem to phase him. I think you either have that or you don’t (sorry sports psychologists). 

[caniac6]

Good thing his neck hurt, or it might not have been close.

[SwooshLT]

3 hours ago, the bishop said:

Did you happen to notice that Harman and Clark ended up with basically the same putt?  Why aren't you harping on Harman for not hitting a better 2nd after pounding one 330 off the tee?  Xander hit driver on 18, ended up in the pine straw where the ball is less controllable coming out.  Hit the green but had a longer putt than Clark.

 

Clark not really my guy but I can't fault his strategy there.

 

Xander hit hybrid my guy 

[the bishop]

13 minutes ago, SwooshLT said:

 

Xander hit hybrid my guy 

Fair.  My mistake.  But a club long enough to get him to the pine straw which Clark avoided.  Clark's strategy on the hole was sound.  He hit a good putt.  Had some speed as someone noted but seen a lot of puts like that drop too.  Just unlucky.  Or the golf gods getting back at him.  Or both.

[SwooshLT]

10 minutes ago, the bishop said:

Fair.  My mistake.  But a club long enough to get him to the pine straw which Clark avoided.  Clark's strategy on the hole was sound.  He hit a good putt.  Had some speed as someone noted but seen a lot of puts like that drop too.  Just unlucky.  Or the golf gods getting back at him.  Or both.

 No worries and 💯 agreed on his strategy.....earlier he hit 9i downwind from 189 !!! So a solid wedge to 17ft wasn't that bad at all ..... his putting on the weekend was his bugga-boo......leaving eagle short on 16 and that really short miss on the 2nd .....wow 

Edited March 18 by SwooshLT

[Duct Tape]

6 hours ago, Hankshank said:

Aint too sure Masters will manage to top this. 

Shocked to read this on a forum of golf nuts!  Absolutely crushed. Mods have been notified 🤓😀
 

Can’t wait for Augusta but you’re right, the Players was good golf. 

[Duct Tape]

6 hours ago, Ferguson said:

Scheffler won. 

 

 

 

Painful stretch for you Ferg but hang in there. It won’t last with that goofy footwork and fragile putting stroke (mallet be d*mned). Better times coming ….

 

 

Edited March 18 by Duct Tape
Spelling. As usual. Twice

[JungleJimbo]

https://www.reddit.com/r/golf/s/3BHoZ6f8iq

 

 

[Greg_B]

4 hours ago, Ferguson said:

Scheffler won. 

 

Glad to see you’re still with us. We were concerned. 

[ike31197]

Keeping it real, I'm a huge Scottie fan.  Let's not get it twisted, he's not Tiger, not yet, but he is doing Tiger things early in his career.  And Tiger wasn't ever really a chaser.  He was a front runner.  He was a closer, maybe the best of all time.  Certainly top 2.  They're a little different in that way, but hearing the way other pros talk about Scottie reminds me of how Tiger was spoken of in his prime.  The intimidation factor of someone that strikes the ball the way Scottie does is off the charts.  What Scottie did on this course, in the final round after being injured in Round 2, was just so damn impressive.  I can't wait to see what the future holds for this guy. 

 

People think he's dull, whatever, I'm perfectly fine with that.  I don't see dull, I see a professional.  A true competitor in every way that wants to win more than anyone, but understands it's just a game.  Maybe this is why he can perform so well under pressure while others wilt.  Golf does not seem like something that's the most important thing in his life, even if he's supremely talented and by all accounts an extremely hard worker at his craft.  Money doesn't seem important to him, even if what he's doing is making him insanely rich.  Professional sports could use more role models like him.

 

I love his unique swing. People worry it's unsustainable, but I see it differently.  His impact position is near perfect.  His consistency is off the charts.  His hands are the best in the business.  I'm just so impressed with what he does.  The squeaky sliding feet?  Look at it another way.  It's all happening after impact.  My guess is it all takes pressure off his back and body and it can be maintained/continued much longer than people think.  Before Tiger when the golf swing became so over analyzed, robotic and copied, look at some of the swings back then.  They were all over the map, but they were still extremely consistent.  Those guys had staying power, and I think Scottie will as well.  I really hope he ushers in a new era for golf where swings become unique again.  Every body is different.  We all move differently. Golf is about putting the middle of the club on the ball every time under pressure.  It seems like Scottie will excel at that for a very long time.  

[ike31197]

Special shout out to Ludvig Aberg.  People have been talking about him for a long time, he's obviously playing very well (10th in WGR I believe?).  I'm late to the party, but I'm thoroughly impressed after watching him this weekend.  What an effortless swing, and seemingly an even better attitude.  Add him to the top of my list of favorite PGA pros.  It's going to be fun watching him evolve, he just has the feel of someone that can go on a pretty crazy run and actually challenge Scottie.  I don't get that feeling with anyone else on tour.  Sure there are a bunch of guys that could potentially get really hot over the course of a tournament and outpace Scottie, these guys are all good, but I just don't see many with the swing and mental makeup that can stand the test of time.    

The guys I cheer the loudest right now have to be Scottie, Theegala and Aberg.  I'd love Harman if he wasn't so hard to watch.  He seems like a good guy on and off the course.  He has to be one of the most competitive players out there, but he's just so hard to watch.  I wish he would get rid of all those waggles.  I fear he's going to have a Kevin Na like meltdown at some point.  

[Fairways_and_Greens]

11 hours ago, nsxguy said:

 

Rahm who ?

 

I’m not going to scratch the us/them thing going on, but to pretend Rahm isn’t at least #2 is hyperbole.

[ike31197]

6 minutes ago, Fairways_and_Greens said:

 

I’m not going to scratch the us/them thing going on, but to pretend Rahm isn’t at least #2 is hyperbole.

Rahm's game is amazing.  Another supremely talented ball striker with a swing that's not cookie cutter.  It will be interesting to see how his game changes being on the LIV, having all that money in his pocket.  I'm excited and anxious to see how he performs this year in the Masters.

 

All that said, he's become everyone's favorite villain, rightfully so.  I don't really begrudge guys that left for the LIV for the money.  Koepka isn't my favorite person by a long shot, but he earned respect being honest about his decision to leave.  Same goes for Cam Smith.  Guys that were honest about their decision have my respect, but one thing I can't stand is hypocrisy and Rahm should have just kept his mouth shut.  

 

Edited March 18 by ike31197

[Ferguson]

17 minutes ago, Duct Tape said:

Painful stretch for you Ferg but hand in there. It won’t last with that goofy footwork and fragile putting stroke (mallet be d*mned). Better times coming ….

 

 

 

It was a rough patch for me yesterday.  Thanks for thinking of my "situation."    

 

When Sunday's round got underway and Scheffler came out of the gates with eagle, birdie....the only way I can describe the feeling is what the guy in the video says at 29 seconds.