Perhaps you saw the news that shortly after I ranted about how hot it was in Texas it started raining and hasn’t let up for three days. So, with my Internet and email underwater, I have been forced to use parts of my brain that have been on vacation for several years. If I ramble a bit, please forgive me because everything I own is wet, including my golf clubs.
Smack in the middle of the FedEx Cup I started thinking about what a strange year it has been. Tiger’s non-golfing escapades occupied far more space here than it should have, as did his average play on the golf course, but I’m not alone. How many players get TV coverage when they’re ten strokes out of contention? Tiger does. I guess we can’t help ourselves; we have to slow down when we drive by the car wreck to see if there is any blood.
Heck, I’m as bad as everyone else. Here I am writing about the guy when he hasn’t had a top ten finish in his last six or seven tournament. He’s 0 for the summer. He’s in the middle of the pack, and so far the pack hasn’t been all that much to write home about, which gives me pause with the Ryder Cup just around the corner.
Back across the pond, the Euros seem to be salivating to get at us, and if you believe Rory McIlroy everyone in Europe wanted Tiger Woods to make the U.S. Ryder Cup team because no one on the Euro team feared him. I’m not sure Captain Monty endorsed McIlroy’s sentiments, but that’s what makes it fun.
Personally, I can’t wait to see Dustin Johnson unleashed. In a year full of strange happenings, he’s had more than his share. Without question he’s capable of beating any and everyone on the Euro team. On the other hand he is also capable of losing to any and everyone. He is his own car wreck and I can hardly wait to watch him.
As for the FedEx Cup, you should never forget that I picked Matt Kuchar in the first round, and no one picked Charlie Hoffman in the second. Okay, so I used the pga.com system and picked everyone in sight, including Ernie Els, Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson, Steve Stricker, Rory McIlroy, and Tiger Woods, but who’s counting.
At the end of two, Matt Kuchar is still ahead on points, and if he keeps hanging around the top he’s going to win the whole thing from the on-deck circle, and that’s the problem. The only thing the FedEx Cup is about is the FedEx Cup. The winner may or may not be the leading money winner, and may or may not have won the most tournaments, and may or may not have the best scoring average, and may or may not be the best player in the game. In the end, the winner of the FedEx Cup will simply have the most FedEx Cup points and a hat full of deferred money.
The question for the PGA has always been, how do you define success, and in my mind it has to be wins or money, those are the only two choices.
And, while we are at it, riddle me this Batman; How can Tiger still be the number one player in the world? Which leads to my next question: Is something wrong with Tiger, or is something wrong with the world?
In the meantime, the water is receding, my socks are hanging on the line, and hopefully my clubs will be dry by next week.
