2021 Professional Golf Thread

need_my_wedge

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WP Rory - maybe this might be the turn-around for his game.

I commented to Mrs Wedge on Saturday morning that despite being -9 for the first two rounds, he was still in 28th place, 9 shots behind. But with 3 bogey free rounds on Fri, Sat & Sun, and with both short game and putting looking much improved, he had a good weekend. It was really good to see him playing smart last night too, plotting his way round the course rather than just trying to over power it with his driver.

Maybe a bit soon to suggest full resurrection, but maybe the Pete Cowan effect is starting to kick in. If continues to play like the weekend, then he'll come good again
 

HeftyHacker

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In an interview after the round Rory said

"There was a lot of reflection [in] the couple of weeks [since the Ryder Cup]. This is what I need to do. I need to play golf, simplify it and just be me.

"I think for the last few months I was trying to be someone else to try to get better but realised that being me is enough and being me, I can do things like this."

As someone who has only been really following professional golf for the past year or so, but had enough of a passing interest to know how successful Rory was earlier in his career, can anyone explain to me why he felt the need to try and change so much in the first place? Or was it a case of a long run of bad from that prompted it?
 

Slime

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As someone who has only been really following professional golf for the past year or so, but had enough of a passing interest to know how successful Rory was earlier in his career, can anyone explain to me why he felt the need to try and change so much in the first place? Or was it a case of a long run of bad from that prompted it?

It was the Bryson effect.
BDC emerged from lockdown unleashing bombs, Rory thought he had to do the same in order to compete.
It almost became 'all about the driving' and, I think, he lost his focus on the rest of his game.
 

Sports_Fanatic

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I commented to Mrs Wedge on Saturday morning that despite being -9 for the first two rounds, he was still in 28th place, 9 shots behind. But with 3 bogey free rounds on Fri, Sat & Sun, and with both short game and putting looking much improved, he had a good weekend. It was really good to see him playing smart last night too, plotting his way round the course rather than just trying to over power it with his driver.

Maybe a bit soon to suggest full resurrection, but maybe the Pete Cowan effect is starting to kick in. If continues to play like the weekend, then he'll come good again

Seems to be some debate about how much work he is actually doing with Cowan, No laying up suggesting they have a source saying he's gone back to his original coach.
 

pendodave

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if he's stopped using Cowan, PC won't be complaining, as I'm pretty sure that he has a clause in most of his contracts about being paid winnings for a decent period after the last lesson he gave.
Pretty cunning really - Rory realises it's a POS and goes back to his original methods with more mental clarity and purpose. PC cashes cheque...
 

pokerjoke

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I commented to Mrs Wedge on Saturday morning that despite being -9 for the first two rounds, he was still in 28th place, 9 shots behind. But with 3 bogey free rounds on Fri, Sat & Sun, and with both short game and putting looking much improved, he had a good weekend. It was really good to see him playing smart last night too, plotting his way round the course rather than just trying to over power it with his driver.

Maybe a bit soon to suggest full resurrection, but maybe the Pete Cowan effect is starting to kick in. If continues to play like the weekend, then he'll come good again

Easy course and very low scoring
A tough course with the wind blowing I predict back to struggling.
 

rksquire

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Golfers seems to have a habit of getting too greedy - with McIlroys natural talent he could probably have sailed through a pretty successful career but has found himself falling into the trap that others before him have (Luke Donald!).

It was great to see 2 Ryder Cup Europeans follow up that disappointment with victories.

Fitzpatrick's victory is to be admired but I think it highlights a problem for the European Tour; in the field for the tournament there were only 2 top 50 ranked players - Rahm (who had a nightmare) and Fitzpatrick. The next best ranked player (Lee, ranked 55) finished 2nd. That said, great final round. I see there's another thread about what next for McIlroy but the same applies to Fitzpatrick - he has to start registering an odd win here and there against the stronger PGA fields.

McIlroy's victory may have been at an 'easy' course (but easy for everyone) but the field contained 37 of the top 50 ranked players. Of course this is reflected in the winnings etc. but the task of winning against this quality is more difficult. However, the best thing about the round yesterday (and he was 3 back at one point) is how he managed the course. Fairway wood instead of driver. Hybrid instead of fairway wood. Non-spectacular par on the 18th. He maybe could have (should have?) birdied 1 or 2 more after his eagle, but those tentative putts shouldn't distract from a good putting performance. Morikawa is a phenomenal player. I just hope this season is going to be spectacular with everyone playing as close to their best as possible.
 

davidy233

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Golfers seems to have a habit of getting too greedy - with McIlroys natural talent he could probably have sailed through a pretty successful career but has found himself falling into the trap that others before him have (Luke Donald!).

It was great to see 2 Ryder Cup Europeans follow up that disappointment with victories.

Fitzpatrick's victory is to be admired but I think it highlights a problem for the European Tour; in the field for the tournament there were only 2 top 50 ranked players - Rahm (who had a nightmare) and Fitzpatrick. The next best ranked player (Lee, ranked 55) finished 2nd. That said, great final round. I see there's another thread about what next for McIlroy but the same applies to Fitzpatrick - he has to start registering an odd win here and there against the stronger PGA fields.

McIlroy's victory may have been at an 'easy' course (but easy for everyone) but the field contained 37 of the top 50 ranked players. Of course this is reflected in the winnings etc. but the task of winning against this quality is more difficult. However, the best thing about the round yesterday (and he was 3 back at one point) is how he managed the course. Fairway wood instead of driver. Hybrid instead of fairway wood. Non-spectacular par on the 18th. He maybe could have (should have?) birdied 1 or 2 more after his eagle, but those tentative putts shouldn't distract from a good putting performance. Morikawa is a phenomenal player. I just hope this season is going to be spectacular with everyone playing as close to their best as possible.

100% agree with the Rory comments - apart from getting lucky with his chunked pitch at 10 which ended up less than a foot from the hole he was in total control of how he played the course.
 
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Swinglowandslow

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I'm always amazed when the really top golfers feel they have to have a coach?
If they can't work out for themselves what's amiss, then there seems something wrong, surely? If they study their swings from the TV recordings of their performances? Etc.
Wasn't it Trevino who said (wtte) "
— "I've never had a coach in my life. When I find one who can beat me, then I'll listen."
 

Wilson

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if he's stopped using Cowan, PC won't be complaining, as I'm pretty sure that he has a clause in most of his contracts about being paid winnings for a decent period after the last lesson he gave.
Pretty cunning really - Rory realises it's a POS and goes back to his original methods with more mental clarity and purpose. PC cashes cheque...
I read that somewhere too, if they don't leave him a slice of the pie after they walk away, they can never go back to him.
 

fundy

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I'm always amazed when the really top golfers feel they have to have a coach?
If they can't work out for themselves what's amiss, then there seems something wrong, surely? If they study their swings from the TV recordings of their performances? Etc.
Wasn't it Trevino who said (wtte) "
— "I've never had a coach in my life. When I find one who can beat me, then I'll listen."


does this apply to all sports or just golf?
 

HeftyHacker

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I'm always amazed when the really top golfers feel they have to have a coach?
If they can't work out for themselves what's amiss, then there seems something wrong, surely? If they study their swings from the TV recordings of their performances? Etc.
Wasn't it Trevino who said (wtte) "
— "I've never had a coach in my life. When I find one who can beat me, then I'll listen."

I would imagine that many pro golfers are very good at analysing their own swing but when you're at the top of any sport its all about "marginal gains" - so if there is someone who can spot something that may give you a 0.5% advantage its worth listening to them.

Worth noting as well that many top level pros will find that the game just comes naturally to them, they don't have to think too much about what they're doing. This makes them pretty malleable in the hands of a coach but also means they're less able to spot their own shortcomings.

Its the same reason that being an amazing footballer (for example) doesn't necessarily mean that they become great managers or coaches. Whereas a lot of the more average players who have had to study the game far more to succeed tend to do better as managers and coaches.

Obviously there are some who can do both.
 

pendodave

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I think that pro golfers are surprisingly insecure about a great many golf related things. They also operate in a crazy closed society where everyone is looking at everyone else.
If one of them does something different, and subsequently has success, then they all start doing it (irrespective of whether it actually made the difference).
Snake oil salesman hang around all the tour stops smelling the money...
So, one way or another, it's not surprising that they all end up with a coach, even if they don't all perform the same function.
 
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