With the season’s second major a short 23 days away, the giant guessing game has begun and it centers around the two biggest names in golf — Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson.
Things got interesting this week when Mickelson’s yes-man, Steve Loy, put out a cryptic message concerning Lefty’s possible return to golf at the PGA Championship. After all, Mickelson IS the defending champion.
It’s amazing what a difference a year can make. Last year at Kiawah, Mickelson produced the feel-good story of the season as he became the oldest player in history to win a major championship. Now, he’s a man in exile, still hiding from the fallout of his interview with golf writer Alan Shipnuck that detailed his dealings with the Saudis and his undercover role in helping organize the league that has become a direct threat to the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour.
Mickelson has been in absolute hiding. Even if he were to show up at Southern Hills, what would be the state of his already-diminishing golf skills?
On the other end of the spectrum, Tiger Woods electrified the atmosphere at the 86th Masters last month at Augusta National. For two days Woods did the near-impossible — he played really well for 36-holes. But over the final two days, the rust of no competitive golf took over and he struggled mightily with a pair of 78s and eventually finished 47th at 13-over par.
The fact that Woods made the cut and completed 72 holes on his surgically-repaired right leg and ankle, gave room for optimism that he may show up at Southern Hills.
So the Phil watch is on.
So is the Tiger watch.
Will it be both in Tulsa? Neither in Tulsa? Or one and not the other?
Stay tuned.
ANWA Winner Anna Davis In Palos Verdes Field:
The LPGA Tour remains in the Los Angeles area this week and 16-year-old Anna Davis, winner of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, will get a start in the Palos Verdes Championship that gets underway on Thursday.
The bucket-hat sporting Davis is back at her high school and is excited about getting a sponsor’s exemption for her first start on the LPGA Tour.
“I think it’s pretty cool,” said Davis, who lives a couple of hours away in San Diego. “I didn’t expect to play an LPGA event at such a young age, so it’s very exciting. It’s been one of my goals for a really long time.”
Davis has been busy the past 12 months. She won the Girls’ Junior PGA Championship and played on the U.S. Junior Solheim Cup team last year. Her breakthrough moment, though, came at Augusta National. “All my friends were texting me. Some aren’t golfers so they don’t really understand like how big it is. Some were like, ‘Oh, congratulations,'” she said. “My family, like some of them, don’t understand how big it was, so it’s kind of funny.”
There are plenty of big names in the field this week — Lydia Ko, Brooke Henderson, Inbee Park, Patty Tavatanakit, Inbee Park and Atthaya Thitikul. World No. 1 Jin Young Ko is in a slump, so to speak compared to how she’s been playing most of the past year and earlier this season. Same for Danielle Kang. Kang has fallen out of the top five in the world rankings, tumbling down to 10th.
Jennifer Kupcho, winner of the season’s first major, is in the field this week.
5 Comments
baxter cepeda
I think they both play.
What amazing is we still care if these two play more than All others combined.
Really..it could be Rory, Jordan, rahm whoever, who could miss a huge event and it mostly go unnoticed. But these two approaching a combined century of life; are still glaring omissions when they are out.
Phil needs to get back to life. Awkward or not. Defending champ promos or not; I really think Lefty should be at southern hills.
The pga tour may still have 85ish of the top 100 but make no mistake, as this league gets going, more and more players will make the jump and as Diaz said yesterday, the pga tour will have to comply after guys start cashing 4$ million dollar checks for less work and less competition.
The players currently at the “top”, emphasis on currently as the top is something extremely fluid these days, will be very jealous. And naturally want some of that.
Now, In my book, the over saturated pga tour makes us watch dozens of tournaments where the talk early in the week goes something like: “this is not the strongest field of the season…”.
Happens all the time.
We are used to many pga tour events having maybe a few top 10 players if any.
There are maybe 8 pga tour events everyone shows up to. There are 8 LIv events. And then there are 4 majors. This is increasingly looking like how the “top” players will do things in the not so distant future.
While the pga tour tried to scare people with over-saturation, ironic, It’s arguable as viewers we will get more strong fields between the majors, LIv and Monahans tour; as well as some DP events.
And players will get more money.
And people like us will still watch all those pga tour events and DP world events that even before LIv couldn’t get many stars. Because that’s what we do. We watch over saturated golf.
If the pga tour works for the players as they say, it’s time to work to help them get their money. Imo. Tony basically said so much as well yesterday.
Again imo the pga tour created this mess with so many tournaments, no limits on starts, too much work, not enough bringing the best of the best together, no guaranteed money, all this opens the door for competition. It took a long time but here it is now.
It’s scary a new era is coming. But just like i will have to adjust my viewing practices; the pga tour is going to have to stop being in denial and do what they say they do; start working for the players.
To be clear, working for players down not mean threatening
Players or ostracizing legends, it means working for them to be more successful.
Of course No one playing today has been more successful than Tiger and Phil. That still seems to be the case. Regardless of who’s event it is, golf STILL needs These two men. We can only hope both will grace us with their presence in Tulsa.
Tom Edrington
There will be a CIRCUS around Phil as Telegraph reports he’s signed a deal to play in all eight Saudi events…..media will be ALL OVER LEFTY!!!!
baxter cepeda
Yea they will. But so what?
This whole thing needs to move forward Already.
As many have said, players media fans, nothing Phil has done merits this full disappearance.
Phil made mistakes but IMO Monahan is the one on the wrong side. I actually wrote something a few days ago about the commissioner but felt it was too strong. Not that I care too much about Monahan feelings; I have a 3 year old; and am just a little scared my little guy might get black balled or something for disagreeing with this man; which imo should be replaced sooner than later. From his empty beginning, to Covid, to this, I’m just not impressed at all with this man especially following two Commish legends.
Well I guess I said it now. Sorry little buddy.
Tom Edrington
Baxter: You’re so harsh about the Sheriff Of Nottingham…
baxter cepeda
You cooked up that nickname;)