Golf For The Soul

Before Brandt Snedeker went on a birdie rampage Saturday at the Waste Management Phoenix Open, the void that Tiger’s absence had left on my ‘golf soul’ was beginning to subside. There it was: an abundance of youth—Camillo Villegas, Ryan Moore, Anthony Kim, Rickie Fowler—was perched atop the leaderboard.

Suddenly, I’m revitalized.

For the first time in a long time I am eager and excited to tune into a PGA Tour event.

I had been dejected after learning of Gatorade’s decision to release Tiger from his endorsement. Tiger’s seriousness and sincerity at his press conference appeared, at least in my eyes, to be enough to restore faith in his ability to transform himself. However, Gatorade obviously viewed his issues through a different lens.

Then yesterday, as my browser slowly unraveled, I couldn’t help but coyly smirk in satisfaction that guys my age were tearing it up at TPC Scottsdale. A combined age of 101, it was almost surreal to see Villegas, Moore, Kim, and Fowler being chased by major winners, future PGA Hall of Famers, and over 140 of the most talented golfers in the world.

It’s a strange, but pleasant, reminder that life goes on in the golf world.

Having met both Kim and Fowler, hit on the range next to them, and observed the intricacies of each of their games—Kim the powerful and Fowler the crafty—I have been hopeful and anxious for their individual breakthroughs on the Tour. Though Kim has already had a great deal of success in his short career, especially in 2008 with wins at the AT&T National and Wachovia, it was refreshing to see a guy like Fowler, who has immeasurable amounts of pressure on him from all the hype and acclaim, producing under pressure.

Moore’s methods may be a little unorthodox, considering he refuses to wear spikes on the golf course, but the dude has got game. His last few seasons have been characterized by a slew of both top-tens and missed cuts; not exactly the blueprint of consistency. But, he has a gritty, aggressive attitude on the course that I anticipate will launch him to the forefront of the golf world in the coming months.

Villegas is off to a rapid start of the 2010 season. After nearly winning at the WGC Accenture Match Play last week, he started the Phoenix Open with a blistering 9-under par 62 Thursday, and a 3-under par 69 Friday. Looking at Villegas’ stats over the last three years, every year he has been improving, most visibly in his short game; the nucleus of a successful golf career.

Over the last few years, my anticipation for young players’ success on tour has been ebb and flow. Whether they are straight out of college, like Fowler, or a recent graduate of the Nationwide Tour, like Moore, rumors start, hype grows, and the judgment begins.

As an observer and fervent fan, I can’t imagine how arduous this task and transition must be for these young golfers. They are acclaimed at the junior and college level, reigning victorious at local, national, and even international events. Leading in stats like driving distance and putts per round has become common—but then, they reach the big time, or what Crash Davis would call ‘the show.’

It’s a culture shock. It’s a mental shock. It’s a shock.

Their role models are now their playing partners. They’re finish in the event doesn’t just earn them a mention in the newspaper, but a paycheck.

They’re not just pursuing a dream anymore—they’re going to work every day to survive in a cutthroat business.

Only time will tell which of these emerging golfers will consistently shine when its crunch time on the PGA Tour. But, one thing is for certain: they radiate vigor and a visible, perceptible desire to compete and thrive and that is everything and more that the PGA Tour is yearning for right now.

Dustin Johnson prevailed over Paul Goydos and JB Holmes Sunday at the AT&T Pebble Beach National, capturing his third career PGA Tour victory. But before Johnson had teed it up, or the slick Poa annua greens had been trimmed, or the morning dew blanketed the rye fairway grass, Sunday’s final pairing had stirred up the suspense of an age-old golf quandary: What kind of golfer has the upper-hand — a long-ball hitter or a short-game extraordinaire?

On Saturday at Spyglass, Paul Goydos was all business. Firing at pins and reading green undulation from any and every angle, Goydos secured an impressive, bogey free round of 8-under par 64. But Goydos was not the only pro making noise Saturday under the golden rays of sunlight in Monterey Bay. Dustin Johnson, one of the PGA Tour’s renown long-ball hitters, polished off his second round of 64 in the week, prompting an unusual and distinctive final pairing.

Sunday had the potential to be an incredibly intriguing final round as Johnson, a goliath who pummels the golf ball, competed against Goydos, the crafty, unpredictable underdog.

Strangely, golf analysts and commentators had been quick to assume that Johnson had the upper hand on Goydos. With only two wins on the PGA Tour, 11 years apart from the other, Goydos’ Achilles heel throughout his career has been managing consistency. When Goydos has found his groove in PGA events, he has a history of, well, choking. His reign atop the leaderboard usually lasts until that dreadful day — Sunday, a day associated with panic for Goydos. But, for anyone who knows what it’s like to be the underdog, we were rooting for him, even if his opponent boasted bizarrely enormous length of the tee.

With Goydos and Johnson highlighting this event, viewers were given a special glimpse into the dynamic between a golfer with explosive power and a golfer with unsuspecting touch.

The palpable disparity between the talents of Goydos and Johnson are emblematic of the golfing public, who have fallen into the tendency of labeling themselves a ‘power-hitter’ or more of a ‘touch player.’ While the goal in golf may be to master every aspect of the game, from long irons to short game to shaping shots, realistically, golfers excel at only one or two facets of the game and consequently will qualify themselves in that way.

Playing in junior events at a local and national level, I came into contact with golfers whose talents spanned across the spectrum; I saw guys who drove the ball over 300 yards, consistently hit every fairway and green, but who could not buy a putt, producing scores like 77, 78. Similarly, I encountered short hitters who lost their drives right, chipped back into the fairway, missed the green, chipped on, only to drain every putt they stood in front of, carding the same scores as the long-ball hitters.

Though the PGA Tour generates this idyllic image that every professional has found the middle ground of that spectrum, that’s much more fantasy than reality.

Why has Sergio Garcia never won a major? His short game is dreadful in pressure situations. Why has JB Holmes never been a constant threat on the PGA Tour? His power off the tee is the only consistency he has mastered. Why has Luke Donald never played up to his potential? In 2009, Luke was 82nd or higher in every statistic, except for one where he was ranked No.1 — sand saves. Big woop.

Golfers on the PGA Tour are struggling at the same things we, the duffers and shankers, are struggling with — all-around consistency. They too have endured the dreaded three-putt from inside 10-feet, finding your ball in a fried egg in the bunker, and even driving their ball out of bounds after coming off a birdie.

Sunday had the potential to reveal the ultimate showdown between Johnson’s driving force and Goydos’ expertise around the greens, but the round ended up revealing where the PGA Tour professionals truly thrive: recovery. Though Goydos and Johnson were in the lead at 18-under par over the first three days, both finished over par in their final rounds. In their final 18 holes, Goydos had a quadruple bogey and Johnson multiple bogeys, and in the end it became a battle for who could recover best.

In golf, just as in life, people make mistakes and what counts is how you recover from them.

Tiger or no Tiger, PGA Tour professionals are committed to proving that they can break out of Tiger’s shadow to become king of the jungle.

But it’s upsetting to say the least. For any PGA Tour player who reigns victorious after four grueling days of battle on the golf course, or who dominates the putting and greens in regulation stats, their triumph will come with the bitter caveat — what if Tiger had competed in the field?

Articles and blogs across ESPN.com and Golf Digest have just about exhausted this dramatic Tiger saga, and only precipitated more turmoil. PGA Tour commentators have called it the ‘elephant on the golf course.’ Writers have twisted the words of PGA Tour pros to generate even more unnecessary controversy. But most common has been the discussion of the detrimental financial effects on the PGA with Tiger’s tangible absence.

But what I believe has been painfully missing from this conversation has been the essential exploration of potential players who could, and possibly will, rehabilitate the golf world.

The player who reawakens the suffering PGA Tour does not necessarily have to display the palpably intense on-course attitude of Tiger, or the amiable qualities of Boo Weekley.

The truth is they need to be an individual. They need to generate difference.

Tiger is the blueprint for a reason. Consider how he defied previous golf stereotypes through his legendary dedication to fitness, which has helped set a new standard for golf both as a sport and an athletic endeavor.

If a golfer can once more trigger a substantial change, he will lend a hand in conquering the enormous challenges currently submerging the PGA Tour. The conversation will shift to whether or not Tiger can handle the world’s new No. 1 player, and not the other way around.

But for clarity, I’m not talking about a guy like Bubba Watson. Sure, he has proven he can hit his Bridgestone golfball as far as he wants (currently leading the PGA Tour with a 316-yard average driving distance). However, he’s also proven that he can’t consistently hit his irons within eight to ten feet, or sink putts in pressure filled situations. Players like Watson, who bomb it off the tee, will continue to prevail in categories that don’t produce winners, just ‘shoulda-beens.’

Also, this conversation doesn’t include players with a clearly poor, hostile attitude, like Rory Sabbatini. Recently, Rory had a massive article written about him in Golf Digest expressing how he felt his over-zealous, fiery golf course demeanor has been misconstrued for the person he really is; a fun-loving, goofy and affable man. But I guess my question for Rory would be: How else should the public view you but from your golf course demeanor? What other option do they have? Both fans and players should aspire to the outstanding qualities of this up and coming new star, and not be resented like Sabbatini has clearly become.

Cockiness and distance off the tee are not prerequisites for becoming a star in golf. But this player needs to creatively reinvigorate the sport. How this will be done is yet to be seen, for that lofty goal remains atop the ‘To Do List’ for the current PGA Tour pros. Just don’t think they are not up to the task.

One remarkable player’s rise to golf stardom will be a positive, regenerative step forward for golf; that is indisputable. New sponsors will arise, crowds will multiply, and most importantly, golf will be back on the worldwide map. There is a reason golf was chosen for the 2016 Olympics. It’s a rapidly growing, indispensable sport that must prove it is bigger and more valuable that one man.