Grand Slam Down To Two...

There's nothing funny about Louis Oosthuizen pulling out of the PGA Grand Slam of Golf after damaging ligaments on the outside of his left ankle, leaving just two major winners left in the Slam event.

What is funny? Replacing him with David Toms after Retief Goosen and Zach Johnson were unavailable, reports Doug Ferguson.

Meanwhile, Players Championship winner Tim Clark remains available. That would require the PGA of America to acknowledge the event as a significant one. Big no-no!

Comments

[jeff]

Events such as this have lived, and are now dying, off the fumes of the 90s, when the vision of golf was CCFADs, driving ranges on every corner and 2 Big Berthas in every bag. It is over. No one wants or needs the Shark Shootout, Skills Challenge, and the Granddaddy of them all, the Skins Game. We respond with passion to Augusta every year. Pebble and The Old Course were transcendent. The Ryder Cup was quite compelling by early Monday. In other words, we want our golf real.

[Dr. Fager]

Very well said, Jeff.

[Ky Laffoon's Ghost]

Hear, hear!

[Del the Funk]

I guess this event has some allure to first time major winners, and it makes for a great family vacation (not to mention payday)...but how long can this thing continue with so many "alternates" in the mix?

As an aside, great quote from Kuchar in the article: “If it had been 10 or 15 degrees colder, it would have been absolutely miserable – as opposed to just miserable.” – Matt Kuchar, on the weather at Celtic Manor during the Ryder Cup.

[greenfee]

Re Kuchar quote.
That tells a tale doesn't t? Too many US players, Mickelson in particular, looked miserable. If they had shown a bt more grit when the weather was poor they might have won.
Every time Mickelson comes over to the UK he looks bewildered as if he's never seen rain or rough before.

[Used to be Former S&T Convert]

The most amazing thing is that the event is 20 years old.

As Seger said: "Twenty years, where'd they go? Twenty years, I don't know."

[Wisconsin Reader]

Guys . . . It's only golf being played for money. . . That's why it is professional golf. . . It's a payday for the PGA of America - promoters - 4 professionals - and evidently value for the various sponsors. . . We don't have to watch.

[RM]

Greenfee, I disagree. US was a half-point from victory and lost in the final match. Mickelson nearly (should have) won the 2009 US Open at Bethpage in a rain plagued event. Phil has problems with links golf, not playing an American style course in Wales in the rain. Didn't the US build their RC lead in the rounds played in the heaviest rain? Granted, Phil did suck in the first three matches, but that's just Phil sucking.

[jjshaka]

This was always the weakest link of the silly season- I would hope that it's about done for.
As a wee lad watching these events back in the day they had one thing in common and that was interesting and talkative players.
From Lee Trevino to David Toms- bleech.

[Marky Mark]

The fact that it is being played on a very un-compelling course doesn't help. It is like they ran out of room an some part of the Port Royal GC.

Also, the rise of the Golf Channel as killed the need for a "golf fix" during the off season.

Now, there is no real off season and real golf being played on the European Tour of which every round is televised. We even get a real Phil-Tiger showdown at a legitimate tournament in Shanghai in three weeks.

Although I used to like to watch the silly season events, especially with the Trevino-types, I like watching the Euro tour and generally think that the "off PGA tour season" is much better now.

[Jim]

Great points all. The GC point is spot on. The players with personality (Trevino) lacking. The European Tour being a much better alternative. I so agree. I can't remember when I last watched the Grand Slam and sadly I will not be watching again this year. David Toms? Are they kidding? I would rather watch paint dry......................................

[Peter Norrie]

David Toms - which major event did he nearly win? Which major event did he even compete in?

[OWGR Fan]

@ Peter Norrie.... Toms won the 2001 PGA. By virtue of that win that makes him eligible to be a replacement in this event if enough others that have won majors decline to participate.

[OWGR Fan]

Here is a link for those that have way too much time to kill and want to read up on the PGA Grand Slam.

http://images.pgalinks.com/vmc/pressReleases/10Grand.pdf

[Peter Norrie]

OWGR Fan - silly me, I thought performance at this year's majors might have meant something.

[OWGR Fan]

Peter performance in the 2010 majors does factor for the alternates list......

From the link I posted :

Eligibility The 2010 winners of the four major Championships
– the Masters, U.S. Open, British Open and PGA
Championship – will be invited to participate in the 28th PGA
Grand Slam of Golf. If one or more winners are unable to attend,
alternates will be selected from a Major Champions
Points List. The list is composed of players who have won a
major Championship during their careers and are active Tour
professionals. The PGA of America developed the points system
for the selection of alternates, which is based on their
performance in the major Championships during 2010.

[dreadfulballstriker]

Played Port Royal yesterday in glorious weather; it's in great shape actually. The course is no challenge to the GS participants, being too short in general, but funnily enough its so-called signature hole, the visually spectacular par 3 16th across a bay, is too long, being almost impossible to hold the green from the 235 yard back tee. The course's only defense is making the greens super quick (they were very fast yesterday) and hiding the pins behind hillocks.

I will not be present at the GS, because it is a jolly for the players and not taken seriously, it isn't what it bills itself to be (winners of this year's majors), and I object to, as I saw first hand last year, the vast numbers of expense account hangers-on, representing every golf organizing committee under the sun, being provided free meals, air-fares and accommodation (all first class), while the volunteers (happily, I think) worked for nothing!

Ticket prices are officially down to $20 a day, but they'll be giving them away by Wednesday.

Incidentally, Bermuda's Premier, a man who loves above all else to be seen with "celebrities", and who unnecessarily committed the Bermuda taxpayer to vast sums of expenditure in the rebuilding of PRGC (when Mid-Ocean was and remains a much better course) and its vastly expensive maintenance, and to sponsor and host the tournament, all in the hope of attracting TW so that he could be photographed squiring the great man around the island, retires at the end of this month. It'll be interesting to see whether Bermuda is interested in hosting next year's GS, and if so, how much money the incoming regime will be prepared to pay to continue to underwrite this nonsense, if any.

However, if you happen to visit Bermuda, do play PRGC, it's a nice golf course, the 15th being a pretty special hole. By US / Caribbean "resort" prices it's not hugely expensive, but you will need a cart as the back nine is hilly, and it is hot and sticky in the summer and fall months. It's tough enough that you shouldn't bother playing if your handicap is more than 18. And the pace of play is criminally slow, something the management seems disinclined to do anything about, although on a nice day you may not bother too much as the setting is stunning on the oceanside nine.

[Oliver Chettle]

It's time to kill this event off. Three out of four majors were won by European Tour players. Golf should be globalising, so U.S. centric events like this should be sacrificed. It is just wrong that the American PGA is seducing European Tour players away from Europe during the last stretch of tournaments in Europe for the year.

[Aunt Blabbie]

If we kill all the tournaments that need killing, pretty soon we won't have any golf to watch.

[Ky Laffoon's Ghost]

Then we'll just have to play the Game instead. What a concept!