Don’t expect any NCAA basketball tournament-sort-of-drama at this week’s WGC Match Play. Nope, none of that sort of excitement — no lose-and-you’re-out like the U.S. Amateur.
No, in this kinder, gentler form of match play, the format has undergone changes over the years. After the days when Tiger Woods would get knocked out of the field early by the likes of Nick O’Hern and Tour players started bitching about playing one match and having to leave town if they lost — we now have the wonderful, new, improved “Group” system.
So let’s take the task of figuring who might emerge from each of the 16 groups. Each player under this anti-NCAA playoff system, is guaranteed three matches before the winner of each group goes into the field of 16 where it becomes the “knock-out” format — you know, as in real, actual, match play.
Group 1:
Jon Rahm (1), Patrick Reed (23), Cameron Young (40), Sebastian Munoz (58): If Rahm can’t prevail in this Group, well, it would be embarrassing.
Group 2:
Collin Morikawa (2), Jason Kokrak (22), Sergio Garcia (43), Robert MacIntyre (61): Gotta like Collin here, smart player and smart players win in match play.
Group 3:
Viktor Hovland (3), Will Zalatoris (24), Cameron Tringale (45), Sepp Straka (63): Going with Sepp Straka in the upset for this group.
Group 4:
Patrick Cantlay (4), Sungjae Im (21), Seamus Power (42), Keith Mitchell (62): If Cantlay can’t win this Group, well, it would be totally embarrassing.
Group 5:
Scottie Scheffler (5), Matt Fitzpatrick (20), Tommy Fleetwood (41), Ian Poulter (59): Scottie all the way. He’s so much better now than he was this time last year when he lost in the finals to Billy Horschel. A UT guy, he’s played Austin Country Club many times.
Group 6:
Justin Thomas (6), Kevin Kisner (29), Marc Leishman (37), Luke List (53): Kevin Kisner will win this Group. Sorry ’bout that J.T.
Group 7:
Xander Schauffele (7), Tony Finau (18), Lucas Herbert (39), Takumi Kanaya (56): Xander all the way. But he won’t win the whole thing, Xander does everything but win. Gold Medals don’t count!
Group 8:
Dustin Johnson (8), Max Homa (30), Matthew Wolff (38), Mackenzie Hughes (51): Max Homa — sorry D.J. Overall, not that strong a group.
Group 9:
Bryson DeChambeau (9), Talor Gooch (27), Lee Westwood (47), Richard Bland (54): Talor Gooch. Bryson HAS to be rusty. Be interesting to see if Bryson makes it through the three group play matches.
Group 10:
Louis Oosthuizen (10), Paul Casey (19), Corey Conners (36), Alex Noren (50): Louie from this group.
Group 11:
Jordan Spieth (11), Adam Scott (32), Justin Rose (46), Keegan Bradley (60): Jordy. Overall, this is a pretty crappy group.
Group 12:
Billy Horschel (12), Thomas Pieters (26), Tom Hoge (33), Min Woo Lee (49): Tom Hoge in an upset. Sorry Billy.
Group 13:
Tyrrell Hatton (13), Daniel Berger (17), Si Woo Kim (48), Christiaan Bezuidenhout (52): Hatton, possibly Berger but we’ll go with Hatton.
Group 14:
Joaquin Niemann (14), Kevin Na (25), Russell Henley (34), Maverick McNealy (64): Kevin Na — the St. Peters of the match play this year.
Group 15:
Abraham Ancer (15), Webb Simpson (31), Brian Harman (44), Bubba Watson (57): Brian Harman. We think he’s playing better than the rest of this group, not a great group.
Group 16:
Brooks Koepka (16), Shane Lowry (28), Harold Varner III (35), Erik van Rooyen (55): Shane Lowry. Sorry Brooksie, but you haven’t been exactly tearing it up lately.
So there’s our “Sweet Sixteen” — as they head for the knockout rounds, well, anything’s possible.
Overall winner?
We’re taking Scottie Scheffler to cross the finish line first come Sunday.
Tee Times and Match Pairings For Round One:
Television Schedule:
Wednesday, Thursday, Friday: Golf Channel: 2 p.m.-8 p.m. (EDT).
Saturday: Golf Channel: 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. (EDT); NBC: 3 p.m.-7 p.m. (EDT)
Sunday: Golf Channel 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.; NBC: 3 p.m. – 7 p.m.
One Comment
baxter cepeda
I still wonder why this system which is not new and much less improved is still around.
Btw The US Am starts with stroke play but once match play starts, it’s one and done.
Now even though this wgc event is not one and done, it is still actual match play. Each shot, each match on day 1, will still have more significance then almost any Thursday of stroke play.
But man this would be a great time —with no Phil or Tiger and so much parity —to get back to win or go home baby.
IMO 32 matches day 1 for the wgc is almost too many matches, and we get that many 3 days in a row. I prefer when it starts to dwindle down so each match can be covered more thoroughly.
I get it’s scary for the suits to think if they go back to one and done Tiger could come back and Nick Ohearn would then come back to send Tiger packing early a third time.
But that’s a risk worth taking.
Regardless of format imo the event should add 2 more consolation matches Sunday afternoon, 5th and 7th place matches. While 32 matches is too many 2 matches regardless of who’s playing is too few—except maybe Tiger…producers prefer showing Tiger prowl around than other guys playing actual shots anyway.
Now if ratings are so important gotta wonder what the impact on ratings is not having the excitement of one and done the first three days of competition.
NBA Basketball is fun to watch, college ball is whatever at best, but the reason the nc2a is a ratings extravaganza is because everyone knows it’s one and done. The ncaa Tourney may even have one and done trademarked it’s so synonymous with it.
Clearly the wgc match play was a play on the ncaa tournament for a reason. And it worked. The same way we see the great upsets of the past in the ncaa tourney, we still see highlights of Nick beating Tiger …and will for many years to come. That’s should tell us something.
Also tennis, which is huge and the worlds most synonymous Mano a Mano sport, does not have one tournament with round robin play. Again, gotta wonder why?
Also gotta wonder why the tour players would prefer going away from a system where they get paid for one days work, and a loss at that, to a system that makes the top finishers play 7 rounds instead of 6…a little over a week before Augusta no less.
The whole thing is puzzling really. But, and it’s a big but, we get match play on one of the most entertaining tracks on tour.
Just win baby.