The good news is that this time next year, the PGA Tour playoffs will not be around to disturb the opening of the NFL season.
Good news is that we can watch football in peace, without wondering why Tiger Woods putts well only every other round.
Good news is that we won’t have to figure out whatever happened to Jordan Spieth.
Yes, there will be plenty of good news but unfortunately it all comes next year.
In the meantime, the PGA Tour got a Sunday lesson from the strongest force of all — Mother Nature.
The plan was to get the field out early Sunday for the final round of the BMW. Plan was to start at 7 a.m. Plan was to get in a lot of play before afternoon storms took over.
Well, the PGA Tour made plans and Mother Nature simply laughed.
There’s been enough rain at Aronimink the past three days to end the drought in a small third-world country. The place is soaked.
The field of 69 didn’t play one hole of golf on Sunday.
That’s not all the bad news. The Monday forecast is for more rain, all day, perhaps, and you don’t have to be a professional meteorologist to figure out what that means.
There will be no play at Bushwood today.
There may well be no play at Aronimink either.
Which brings us to the stark realization of what possibly might transpire if the PGA Tour has to call this one 54 and done.
Let’s consider the implications.
First, Justin Rose would be declared the winner. thanks to that 64 he shot on Saturday, 29 of those shots came on the front nine.
Second, with the win, Rose would take over the No. 1 spot in the Official World Golf Rankings, evicting Dustin Johnson. It would mark the first time in his career that Rose accomplished that. He would move from No. 3 to No. 2 in the FedEx Cup race, behind Bryson DeChambeau.
Third, Jim Furyk was supposed to announce the 12th man for the U.S. Ryder Cup team on Monday morning. That probably won’t happen, which leads to the fourth implication — the great Xander vs. Tony debate as in Schauffele vs. Finau for that 12th and final Ryder Cup spot.
Finau is currently tied for 15th at 11-under par. If they call it, he’d finish in that important fifth spot going to East Lake, which means he can win the FedEx Cup with a win in the Tour Championship.
Schauffele, is a shot behind Rose at 16-under with a shot at winning. A BMW win would probably put Schauffele into that 12th Ryder Cup spot.
Then there’s the struggling Jordan Spieth.
If this tournament is called after 54 — Jordy is totally screwed.
He’s six-under for three rounds, tied for 39th and guess what? He’s in the totally bad news 31st spot in the FedEx Cup. No soup for you Jordy and no trip to East Lake either.
So there are the tour officials, huddled and most likely dropping a few prayers.
Slugger White, the tour’s head honcho for rules and competitions put it this way:
“We’re just going to do the best we can and hopefully we can play.”
Mother Nature gave them a bit of a break and they got off and running early Monday morning in sloggy conditions, lift-clean-and hope.
By noon, they were sloshing away, rain falling with Rose, Billy Horschel and Keegan Bradley getting to the 18-under mark through nine with Webb Simpson and Schauffele a shot back and contending. Tiger Woods, after going four-under on the front nine, was two back with seven to play.
A wet shoot-out, for sure.
6 Comments
baxter cepeda
Wow!
Jim has a tough choice.
Sure it was the Finau and maybe Xander showdown. Sure Tony had the deserved edge except for career wins. If xander won again, I was ready to change my opinion; even if he did not win because Xander is a better putter than Tony, and Xander may be short next to Tony but he is anything but short.
All that being said two names have been on the back of my mind as possibile choices because they seem in form and have some amazing career wins themselves: Billy Hoershel and Keegan Bradley.
Most of monday Billy looked like the one of these two which could crash the xander and Tony consideration party.
But in the end it was one of the most patriotic golfers in the world which stole the show at bmw and beat even Tiger in the race to comeback to his full potential.
It is an incredibly tough decision for Furyk but Keegan deserves incredible consideration, if not the nod from the captain.
Sure, his last two years have not been as consistent as tony and Xande but he is clearly climbing faster this last year than the other guys in contention for the last Ryder Cup spot.
Congrats to Justin Rose for being the best player in the world. I still remember that famous chip in in the Open when he was still a kid. We have known since even before that famous shot Rose is as classy as it gets so it is so fitting he gets his time atop the rolex owgr.
baxter cepeda
Congrats to Tony Finau making the team. It is well deserved. The only knock on Tony is he needs a win, maybe it happens in Atlanta, but even better if it happens in France !
Tom Edrington
I believe Tony’s skill set travels really well……his big improvements over the past two seasons have come in the short game, power’s a given, he’s still a work in progress, no telling how good he can be. Upside is huge.
baxter cepeda
Absolutely.
Volunteering A few years ago at the Sony I said directly to Finaus caddie he had the guy with the most upside on Tour.
His upside is so huge he beat out a tour champion. And a major champion.
Wins are the most important statistic. Imo
Keegan not only won most recently after an incredible comeback 6 years in the making, he also has a major victory in his predigree, which for me speaks volumes.
Again, I hope Jim gave Keegan some serious consideration. The process is set up for a story like Keegan exactly. Keegan was not giving himself much chace, which is obvious considering he thought Jims decision would not come till after next week.
Keegan was mistaken but he is correct the US ahoukd wait till after the Tour Championship. Maybe they do next year in affition to fixing the playiffs and the messed up cup.
The Ryder Cup is not for rewarding consistency. It is for rewarding winners whom are consistent. Statistics are incredibly overrated in this now geeked out process in how golfs famous veterans pick these teams. Winning on Tour is a psychological must.
Which is why while it seems Tony has not won on tour, hopefully Finaus March 2016 victory in Puerto Rico was a major reason this likeable guy with close ties to where I live, was even considered.
Tom Edrington
Just getting ready to write the next feature, Keegan was gifted this win by the guy who is supposed to be No. 1 in the world….can’t remember a standing No. 1 missing from four feet to hand someone a win, nonetheless, great victory for KB, it was a long hard road back after the belly putter ban.
Tom Edrington
I think Jim knew who his guy was by Saturday.