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Check out each week the unfiltered opinions of our writers and editors as they break down the hottest topics in sports, and join the conversation by tweeting to us @employee.
Tiger Woods underwent surgery on his right foot and released a statement saying the surgery was a success, but it now casts doubt on his condition for 2023. Will we see Woods make a more competitive start this year?
Josh Berhau, Managing Editor (@employee): From everything I’ve read it seems very unlikely that he’ll be able to play any major championships, and I don’t think he plans to play any more than that anyway. Hopefully he can hop on the bandwagon and play the PNC Championship with Charlie in December. And then after that, maybe Rivera and the Masters. baby steps
Jack Hirsch, assistant editor (@employee): Does silly season count? Maybe, but that’s uppercase, all caps, italics, and stars *maybe*. Who knows what he’ll be able to do with his golf swing after this surgery, which involves fusion of an ankle joint. I heard that if it was his left foot, the surgery would be over. If the issue persists, and his recovery proceeds as scheduled, it looks like we could see him at PNC and then perhaps to start his virtual league with Rory McIlroy, TGL. But I don’t think we’ll ever hear from him again until Champ Realm Challenge.
Josh Sens, Senior Writer (@employee): Will definitely return to the PNC. What was not. This old line about people plotting and God laughing applies to any of us trying to predict the health of a tiger. Raise your hand if you see plantar fasciitis coming? neck. behind. knee. foot. ankle. The only thing I think we can say for sure is that it wouldn’t be such a shock if another body part was given away afterwards.
Looking beyond this season, as Woods’ injuries and surgeries continue to pile up, at what point does he decide enough is enough? Are we close to that?
Birhau: Depending on his schedule prior to this setback—the majors, maybe one or two other events—he’s already in that second phase (or whatever number) of his career. I think he’s still several years away from officially ‘retiring’, because in a sport like golf – and with his life exemption – he’ll be able to take advantage of a health spell and enter an upcoming event or main event to try and catch the lightning in a flask. I don’t think he’s close to giving up on those potentially healthy beginnings just yet.
Hirsch: I’m with Berhow on this. Obviously just being able to walk without pain is first and foremost, but if there’s any chance of him continuing to play at a high level, he’ll try. Whether or not this is the right thing to do is not up to us to decide.
Sense: agreed. Let’s just hope he doesn’t become like the jockey in Monty Python (it’s just a physical wound!), where everyone knows it’s over except for the guy who wants to keep fighting. Being Woods, and that being Golf, that allows for more life than any sport, I’m sure we’ll be on Tiger-watch for a great handful of big ones to come.
Lilia Vu beat Angel Yin in a playoff to win the Chevron Championship and claim the first LPGA Championship of the season, which was held at The Club at Carlton Woods in The Woodlands, Texas, the first time since its inception in 1972. It was held in Mission Hills after Chevron sponsored the title new. What are your thoughts on the first year of the new host venue?
Birhau: As someone who isn’t always big on change, I liked a lot of what I saw. Sure, the hop to Poppie’s Pond is no more, and the swing they cooked Sunday was good, word is that spectator shuttles took a little longer than called for, but it’s hard to find negatives about a sponsor wanting to invest in the ladies’ game. If I were Chevron, it would make sense to move this event to their backyard. This is their right. I also saw on Twitter that there was an HBCU job board going on at the site, and this was also the first time in the history of this tournament that players who missed cuts received a $5,000 salary. We’ll get used to the course in time, but there seems to be a lot of good stuff to build on here.
Hirsch: While I’d like to see more events on more exciting golf courses, I’m kind of apathetic about a change of venue. I agree with Josh about it being great for Chevron wanting to put money into the LPGA, but it requires moving the event in terms of the history development in it. I also hope the crocodile net actually works!
Sense: This was a long, hard track, with little greens and all sorts of problems, and I loved the composure of her faux pas during a race that had been crowded for a while. As for breaking with tradition, as my colleagues have noted, it’s a small price to pay for solid patronage. I’m sure every player would take this guarantee over a puddle jump.
John Daly, 56, and David Duvall, 51, received sponsor exemptions at the Zurich Classic and missed the cut at 14, which was 12 behind the next-worst result. While it is the event’s prerogative to use its own exemptions as it pleases, do you have an issue with this in particular, given that both players are over their prime times and rarely play competitively anymore?
Birhau: It was a really harsh look when these guys struggled so much with an alternate take, but the truth is, the majority of these pros make this look so easy when it’s actually so hard. Somehow I called them they did exactly what they were supposed to do by drawing attention to an event that lacked star power, but it’s a pity they didn’t play any better.
Hirsch: Yes, that was a joke. It may have arisen from having to help fill the field given Zurich’s position in the table, but there were men on the substitute list – though not the biggest names – who could have seized the opportunity. The tournament normally requires one member of each team to be released and then the second could be the sponsor exemption. Such was the case when 66-year-old Jay Huss made the cut while playing with his son, Bill, last year. But Jay Haas is a PGA Tour Champion with 18 wins, albeit most recently in 2016. Daly and Duvall combined for just one win on the 50-plus circuit.
Sensekisa: I’m on the fence about this. I understand the obvious objections and the improbability of Duvall and Daly being in the mix. But, as in Dumb and Dumber, even if the odds are a million to one, there is still a chance. It’s easy to undo this step later. But what if Duvall and Daly had lost their minds in the opening round and scored well? Then, the event was going to have the best of both worlds: pairing a crowd pleaser with an entertaining underdog story. And in the end, this is entertainment.
And speaking of the Zurich Classic, Davis Riley and Nick Hardy won the match by seven under 65 alternately on Sunday ahead of top Canadians Adam Hadwin and Nick Taylor by two. But you are in charge next year. What adjustments are you making to the event, whether in how teams are chosen, what formats they’re played in, or both?
Birhau: Since it’s a team event that isn’t a Ryder Cup or Presidents Cup – and frankly if we’re calling for Aged Sponsor exemptions – we might embrace the weirdness and try our best. Four boring balls. Let’s go four days, four forms. Make a day a scramble, but if you go three holes without a birdie it’s eliminated. Make the next day the worst scramble. In the third round you get only four clubs. Then, for the final round, an alternate shot. Wait a few years and this is the formula for a fifth major.
Hirsch: For starters, I’d like to move it to a different part of the table. Maybe at the end of January or February so the masters don’t swallow them. I could also see an argument for the new fall series, but I kind of like the idea of this event counting for the FedEx Cup. It’s really cool to see the unique format and I’d love to see it get more big names on a regular basis. After that I was dropping four balls. Make the whole thing an alternate shot, the true team format that doesn’t allow you to hide a poorly performing partner. This should make things really interesting with the added bonus of speeding up gameplay.
Sense: I’m with Jack: make it all an alternate shot. On an even stranger note, I’m still waiting for the team event where each team gets one chance during the round to pick a fan from the crowd to take a shot at the opponent. I suppose you would have to create an actual silly season for that to happen. But I would watch.