Wednesday
Nov272013
State Of The Game 32: Australia 2013 In Review
We recorded this week's State of the Game just a few hours before Adam Scott played one of the more amazing rounds of the year--62 at Royal Sydney with six birdies to start, four to finish--but we talk with Mike Clayton about his impressive play at the even more impressive Royal Melbourne.
Other topics covered include Royal Melbourne's design and setup, Rory McIlroy's game as seen up close by Clayton and 15-year-old amateur Ryan Ruffels.
As usual you can access all episodes here on the State of the Game webpage, or on iTunes.
Or for this week's episode you can download the mp3 here or, subscribe/listen on iTunes. Or here:
Wednesday, November 27, 2013 at 08:22 PM
Reader Comments (20)
As per the long putter, he's got some muscles on his arms. Not too taxing to hold the top hand 1" away from his body ala Sam Torrence-style.
He can sure get it going with that thing...It really brings out his ball-striking eh?
Question: Have you ever before made the observation you made here regarding the "hidden" appeal of watching the Masters? I, too, regularly appreciate the beauty, the season, and my familiarity of the course. But I'd never really thought about the drama of watching approach shots make their long, slow journey towards the hole. In reflecting on it, it's a big part of the appeal of watching most Open championships, and while I'm at it, I'll throw in the 18th at Kapalua. I never tire of seeing the balls land on the kick plate, bounce left (right on TV) and begin the marathon downhill run... It's far more compelling than watching the all-or-nothing static "drama" of, say, the 17th at Sawgrass.
I think we've talked about it on another show around Masters time and I wrote about it somewhere, but my memory is awful! I think television people are aware of it but there's little they can do. It's up to the architects to create such stuff. And they don't do it very often. Enjoy the pecan pie and Happy Thanksgiving!
TC: What did you do to the course on Monday and Tuesday?
RF: "All staff and volunteers came in on Monday, but we didn’t cut anything on the tournament holes. We had a bit of a review of the Masters and looked at a few bunkers – including the one on Composite 14 where Adam Scott’s ball buried in the final round. We applied a fungicide to the greens and fescue surrounds and applied some potassium to the greens on Tuesday just to harden them off more. We started cutting again Tuesday and then rolled them this morning ahead of the Pro-Am. We have done minimal watering. We put a splash on the greens Tuesday afternoon and this morning hand-watered four greens that were looking a little shiny."
Heard an interview with Steve Williams post-Aussie Masters. He was asked if Adam was practicing with the short putter. His answer was no, but that Scott was working on an alternative. Probably safe to assume your theory is pretty close to the mark.
More than anything though, it confirms how much the ground contours and the feeding of the ball makes the big difference in the end for a course like RM. The fact many of the pros simply didn't get that goes to show how little creativity there is now with the pros. Maybe Todd Hamilton needs to hold a clinic for them...
C'mon Brad, this isn't your first day using the interwebs.
It's no secret that you Tour players are all robots who simply bomb and gouge your way around the golf course with little regard to strategic course design. All the great ball strikers played in Hogan's and Jack's eras and only they had the mental aptitude to understand the complexities of Ross, Tilly and MacKenzie. Don't you realize that you have no creativity and that you can only hit one shot - the high draw? Sure, Bubba, TW and Phil can shape shots, but the average tour pro can't possibly be expected to carve a low cut under the wind and have it bounce up and roll out to a back pin. Impossible!
(Some people don't comprehend what it takes to make it on Tour)
1. Its great, especially when you have guests like Goggin, Ogilvy, Eager. I will hate having to wait two weeks now after wallowing in SOG for so long.
2. Now that we have just had two weeks of RM golf can we all try not to mention how great it is for a podcast or two?
3. Mike Clayton, your comments on anything golf are always good to listen to and read. Can you point me to something on the web or explain here your philosophy on trees on golf courses - if you have one? I often hear mention of trees getting in the way and so forth. Are tree lined courses bad? Are they a legitimate hazard or obstacle? What do you make of courses like Oatlands or Concord in Sydney?
4. 3foot1, yes! Geoff's insights into why the Masters is so good was spot on and something I personally had not thought about much. Thanks Geoff
Rod and team, please, keep up the great work!