Capelle On Golf

Tiger Woods
Woods is a notoriously poor bad weather player, but he somehow managed a 73 in 20-30MPH winds, a round that could easily been 3-4 shots lower with decent putting. This left him in a tie for 15th, eight back of Louis Oosthuizen, who the whole world figures will fold over the weekend. As a result, Woods’ real competition should come from Lee Westwood and Paul Casey, who lead him by only two shots, and perhaps from a half dozen of the other players within a shot of him. Over the first 36, Woods appears to be driving the ball the best he has all year, and he now appears to be very confident in the big stick. Exhibit A: There is OB tight on the right of the 18th, but he smashed his drive 350 yards down the right side, and it rolled within a few inches of the flag before coming to rest about 18-20 feet past the hole. How ironic - his confidence has returned to his driver, but now he can’t make a putt! Behavior watch: Woods slammed his club forcefully into the ground on the fifth, the yelled “God damn it” when his approach came up short on the fifteenth.

Rory McIlroy
Wow, what a difference a day makes. In pristine conditions on Thursday, McIlroy blistered the Old Course with a record tying 63. A day later, playing in the high winds, he carded an 80 (40-40), nearly a stroke a hole higher. The primary culprit was his putter, which he used 39 times on the mammoth greens. Included was a four putt on the par three eleventh. At one under, he’s tied for 38th, but he still has a chance if he can revert to Thursday’s form.

Phil Mickelson
Mickelson got an early tee time on Friday, but did not take full advantage of it, shooting a 71 to leave him at even par and in a tie for 46th. He hit only 12 greens, which indicates that his swing is out of sync, a point that the announcers have discussed while showing that he is, once again, over swinging with his driver, a problem that is caused by using his legs too much.

Tom and Tiger
As in the U.S. Open, the pairings committee decided to position Tom Watson and Tiger Woods in adjacent groups. With the many long waits due to the wind, this might have created some awkward moments considering that Watson is chief of the Behavior Police, having blasted Woods’ on course antics on several occasions.

Wind Delay
After the shooting gallery on Thursday morning, St. Andrews, with the help of the weather gods, fought back during the last two thirds of Friday’s play, blessing the Old Course with constant winds in excess of 20MPH with gusts that ranged into the 40s before play was halted for 66 minutes due to excessive winds. Even when play resumed, the winds continued to blow at 20-30+MPH for the duration of the afternoon. The 51 players who completed their rounds before the stoppage averaged 72.3. Those who finished after the halt average more than 77 strokes.

Sporting Event vs. Documentary
The good folks at ESPN continue to treat this supposed sporting event as a documentary starring Tom Watson as they covered him like a blanket even though he shot a 75 to miss the cut. At the same time, Ryo Ishikawa, his playing partner, shot a credible round of 74 to finish at three under, in a tie for 22nd. While I didn’t count the shots, I would guess that they showed at least four of Watson’s for every one of Ishikawa’s. Enough already! I, for one, am glad Watson’s gone. And I only wish John Daly had missed the cut as well, but his 76 combined with his opening 66 means that will have to suffer from his presence and his pants over the weekend.

The Cut
As play was suspended, the cut was at plus one, but it could go a shot higher if a few players at plus one, who have yet to complete their second rounds, play their final holes in one over or worse. Should that happen, Rickie Fowler, who recovered from an opening 79 with a 67 will make the cut along with a few others.
Among the big names who won’t play on the weekend are recent PGAT Tour winners Bubba Watson and Justin Rose, multiple major winners Ernie Els, Angel Cabrera, and Padraig Harrington, and former major winners Mike Weir, Geoff Ogilvy, and Justin Leonard.

The Road Hole
The funnest hole to watch at St. Andrews is the 17th with its many quirks from tee to green. It is also the hardest, with the field averaging 4.70 in the second round (among those who have finished play). With an average that’s much closer to 5 than 4, you have to wonder if this hole has been arbitrarily assigned a par of 4 because that makes it seem so much harder. Seriously, would you look at the fearsome Road Hole as the monster you now view it if it was a par five? I doubt it.