U.S. Open/3 worth a stab

[golfer]

Originally Posted by GPK

why the hell ESPN continues to let Chris Berman have anything to do with some of their golf telecasts...especially the US Open, is beyond mind boggling to me. The guy is the biggest no-nothing, blow hard when it comes to golf...

You obviously haven't watched him do anything else lately.

This from Phil Mushnick in today's NY Post:


June 15, 2007 -- IMAGINE the auto deal ership that will sell you a car but won't let you buy one. You tell the salesman, "OK, I'll buy it," but he keeps trying to sell it to you. That's what TV does.

A few years ago, FOX missed the first pitch to half-innings of the World Series because it was airing an MLB promo that encouraged viewers to watch the World Series on FOX.

To that end, someday we'll tune to the start of one of golf's majors and we'll hear: "This is a major. Therefore, aware that that you've tuned to the start of this telecast because it's a major and because you're eager to see it being played, let's get right out to live play."

But someday wasn't yesterday.

ESPN didn't show a live golf shot from the U.S. Open - let the record show it was an Ernie Els putt - until its telecast was 10 minutes old. The sell was so protracted that we actually saw what appeared to be a live shot of a course-side stretch of the Pennsylvania Turnpike before we saw a live shot of a ball being struck.

And, once again, an audience that was in place and eager to watch - no sell necessary - had live coverage delayed in favor of a come-on designed to encourage them to watch.

*

Someone must have given ESPN's Chris Berman bad info, again. He mistakenly believes that Open audiences, every few minutes, should be reminded that the Open is all about him, his forced nicknames and silly one-liners included.

Why, after all, would Berman tell us that early leader Nick Dougherty is from England or provide any other specifics about the man when he could cleverly keep saying he's "from across the pond?"

Kev or anybody else.

What does par mean on a course like this?
I hear all these players describing the greens like it is some bizarre putt-putt course where you can end up further away from the hole than you started on every putt. Surely the USGA or whatever can get more creative than making sure there is no flat part on a concrete green and then putting the hole at the top of one of the numerous mounts on the green. Thats to easy to make "hard".
Dont you try and make a course with the intent of making it challenging and playable. When no one has a real possibility of breaking par on a course (assuming it does not rain) what the heck does par mean? I dont like watching people constantly trying to lag putts and hardly ever trying to actually make a long to medium range putt. Do people really like to watch a winner come in at 10 over...? What is so special about that?

I dont want to see a course where everyone and their mother can birdie all the holes, but I dont like seeing a course that plays to luck either. The greens seem absurd based on what I have read.

[Antitrust32]

Originally Posted by pgardn

Kev or anybody else.

What does par mean on a course like this?
I hear all these players describing the greens like it is some bizarre putt-putt course where you can end up further away from the hole than you started on every putt. Surely the USGA or whatever can get more creative than making sure there is no flat part on a concrete green and then putting the hole at the top of one of the numerous mounts on the green. Thats to easy to make "hard".
Dont you try and make a course with the intent of making it challenging and playable. When no one has a real possibility of breaking par on a course (assuming it does not rain) what the heck does par mean? I dont like watching people constantly trying to lag putts and hardly ever trying to actually make a long to medium range putt. Do people really like to watch a winner come in at 10 over...? What is so special about that?

I dont want to see a course where everyone and their mother can birdie all the holes, but I dont like seeing a course that plays to luck either. The greens seem absurd based on what I have read.

No way the winner is 10 over. I say 3-5 over at the most. I happen to love this type of golf competition, when the course is so difficult with very high and thick rough and extremely fast and undulating greens. The difficult course makes for a great competiton.

Really, you cannot blame all those high scores on the greens, you need to hit fairways to be in contention here.

The US Open is always this hard!

Tiger is hitting the the ball really smooth right now. He is the the zone. He looks like a winner.

Originally Posted by Antitrust32

No way the winner is 10 over. I say 3-5 over at the most. I happen to love this type of golf competition, when the course is so difficult with very high and thick rough and extremely fast and undulating greens. The difficult course makes for a great competiton.

Really, you cannot blame all those high scores on the greens, you need to hit fairways to be in contention here.

The US Open is always this hard!

Tiger is hitting the the ball really smooth right now. He is the the zone. He looks like a winner.

OK.
So maybe I am wrong.

Looks like me golfing. Punching back into the fairway, wandering around trying to find out where in God's name my ball went... 20 foot put for bogey.
It does not look like they are having fun.
Cant your job be fun? Tell these guys to have some fun today... and I think they would smack you in the mouth.

[Antitrust32]

Originally Posted by pgardn

OK.
So maybe I am wrong.

Looks like me golfing. Punching back into the fairway, wandering around trying to find out where in God's name my ball went... 20 foot put for bogey.
It does not look like they are having fun.
Cant your job be fun? Tell these guys to have some fun today... and I think they would smack you in the mouth.

They are playing for the Open Championship, I think the ones who are playing well are having fun. They realize a 70 or 71 is a good score and I bet its a lot of fun to shoot that score this weekend.

Originally Posted by Antitrust32

They are playing for the Open Championship, I think the ones who are playing well are having fun. They realize a 70 or 71 is a good score and I bet its a lot of fun to shoot that score this weekend.

I think I could make a junkyard into a par 5008. I dont think that would be fun. Cmon just a second. Some of the grass is just damn ridiculous. They got half of the course officials searching for a ball in a 3 square foot area? Why not just put some land mines out there and blow some of these guys up...

Thats a penalty. You struck a Land mine while searching for your ball. And thats not a 1 stroke penalty, you lose your life dammit.

[GPK]

as the famous quote goes..

"No, we are not trying to embarass the best players in the world, mearly indentify him."

[GPK]

Originally Posted by pgardn

Kev or anybody else.

What does par mean on a course like this?
I hear all these players describing the greens like it is some bizarre putt-putt course where you can end up further away from the hole than you started on every putt. Surely the USGA or whatever can get more creative than making sure there is no flat part on a concrete green and then putting the hole at the top of one of the numerous mounts on the green. Thats to easy to make "hard".
Dont you try and make a course with the intent of making it challenging and playable. When no one has a real possibility of breaking par on a course (assuming it does not rain) what the heck does par mean? I dont like watching people constantly trying to lag putts and hardly ever trying to actually make a long to medium range putt. Do people really like to watch a winner come in at 10 over...? What is so special about that?

I dont want to see a course where everyone and their mother can birdie all the holes, but I dont like seeing a course that plays to luck either. The greens seem absurd based on what I have read.

Pat....in all honesty...par means nothing. It is just a gauge. The idea is to take the fewest amount of strokes possible. If it takes 280 or 295 to win...the idea is to outlast, outperform and out grind every other player in the field.


...and I just heard Berman say Anders "look ma no" Hanson...my God...SHUT THE F*CK UP ALREADY.

I hope someone gets back to 140 so that Mickelson will miss the cut.

I love the demeanor of these guys atop the leaderboard...and their demeanor is exactly why they are up there.

[GPK]

and for what it is worth....I think the winning score will be between 287-289

[timmgirvan]

Originally Posted by GPK

and for what it is worth....I think the winning score will be between 287-289

So that's 7-9 over,right? Agree....only domination will be the Course!