THE LUCKIEST GOLFER

The Miami Herald ^ | Tue, Jul. 22, 2003

[presidio9]

With all due respect to PGA Tour golfer Ben Curtis, the title, ''Champion golfer of the year,'' seems an awkward fit. Mr. Curtis is an unknown rookie who walked away with the claret jug on Sunday in the British Open.

The Open, one of golf's four big tournaments -- or majors -- is intentionally designed as a grueling test. Playing conditions are awful -- it often is cold, blustery and wet. Fairways are pinched to the width of a traffic lane, the rough is knee-deep, and greens are as slick as a marble tabletop.

Usually, the Open identifies the golfer who is the best player, has control of his emotions and the patience of Job. Sunday's final round began with Mr. Curtis and some of the world's best players, including Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh, Thomas Borjn, David Love III and Sergio Garcia, bunched within two strokes of each other. By day's end, Mr. Curtis emerged victorious because he shot the day's best round, a 69. He also won because in the course of the week, he suffered fewer ''unlucky'' breaks. This happens when course conditions are so severe that excellent shots aren't always rewarded and bad shots get ''lucky'' bounces. Organizers should ponder if the 2003 Open put too high a premium on luck.

[NittanyLion]

This is such an idiotic tangent. It is right up your alley.

Let's review:

1. You claimed Woods would drive many Par 4's on the LPGA Tour
2. I claim he cannot, and have provided evidence of three tournaments where Woods couldn't drive ANY Par 4's - based upon Woods' own stats.
3. You've provided absolutely no facts to back up your position.

An idiotic tangent? It's directly on point.

[discostu]

I wanted to see how you'd react to an obviously silly statement. Your reaction was telling, you clearly brought up a subject of some recent controversy for the sake of picking a fight. Notice how you carefully mentioned his triple bogie on the first hole but took no position. I have no doubt that if I'd have expressed confidence in his ability to come back you'd be insisting he's in a slump. You were jonesing for combat and I let you walk right into it. Only someone looking for a fight could have taken that statement seriously.

[NittanyLion]

Notice, you picked Wykagyl and the four majors, ie the four hardest courses out of 30+.

I'm picking recent tournaments. You made an all-encompassing statement; if you meant "Woods can drive Par 4s on the easier LPGA tournaments" you should've said so.

In reality, you make claims based upon no facts whatsoever, and fly into a fury when someone rightly calls you on it. You could save yourself a lot of trouble if you'd just do some research and familiarize yourself with the game of golf.

[discostu]

Asked about his performance on the back nine he said he was pissed, pretty grouchy the whole way through.

[headsonpikes]

Some of the threads you start are interesting, if quirky.

Mr. Woods, I think your son will do fine.

;^)

[presidio9]

Let's review. You are basing your information on ignorance. The LPGA does not make the yardages for its regular tour stops easily available because (a) It is a Mickey Mouse tour, and (B) they are far from awe-inspiring. So you pull the stats on the majors and the hardest regular stop on tour and project that to the rest. This ignores the fact that anybody who actually watches the LPGA knows there are plenty of 320 and 330yd par fours. There are a few under 300. If the AVERAGE length is 6300, that would put the AVERAGE hole length at 350. It is simple math. No amount of research that you do is going to change this. Most LPGA tour stops have multiple par fours that are drivable for Woods.

[NittanyLion]

So you pull the stats on the majors and the hardest regular stop on tour and project that to the rest. This ignores the fact that anybody who actually watches the LPGA knows there are plenty of 320 and 330yd par fours. There are a few under 300. If the AVERAGE length is 6300, that would put the AVERAGE hole length at 350. It is simple math. No amount of research that you do is going to change this. Most LPGA tour stops have multiple par fours that are drivable for Woods.

LOL.

IOW, you've added a qualifier to your earlier statement.

[discostu]

Yardage for LPGA tour stops is easily available. Just go to their website and hit the tour index, http://www.lpga.com/tour/index.cfm ,pick a tourstop any tourstop, yardage is right there.

Ignorance or lies?

[presidio9]

Not at all. I am not out to prove Woods would drive the greens on a lot of LPGA fours. This is common sense if you actually watched the LPGA. My point has always been that he would shoot in the 50's. He would. Again, if you actually watched the LPGA and the regular tour, or if you did the math from post 73 you would understand this.

[presidio9]

What a pathetic cop-out. Is that why you have been publicly wishing I'd get banned so I'd stop humiliating you all the time. The idea that you were joking occurred only after you had inextricibly painted yourself into a corner.

[presidio9]

Ignorance or lies?

Ignorance on your part. They post total yardage for the courses, not the individual holes. Geeze you're stupid.

[discostu]

No. I've been publicly wishing you'd get banned because you're an ass. You do this on every thread to every person. You lie, you refuse to post backing facts and when the person refuses to let your lies stand you hurl insults.

You've never humiliated me, you never can humiliate me. If you were smart enough to understand what's going on you'd realize you humiliate yourself constantly.

The idea I was joking was right up front, anybody could have read that thread and understood it was a joke, no one could possibly seriously suggest Tiger Woods take a year off. I'm not painted into a corner, Tiger is STILL in a SLUMP and you are STILL a PATHETIC LIAR and FR would STILL be a better place WITHOUT YOU.

[NittanyLion]

My point has always been that he would shoot in the 50's.

That's only possible if he can birdie the majority of Par 4's. Thus, your nonsensical claim that he can drive most Par 4's is at the heart of your argument. That's why I chose to expose it.

[discostu]

Shift, alter statement, lie.

So typical.

[presidio9]

Riiight. From a PGA Tour standpoint, ALL of the LPGA tour holes ARE birdy holes for Woods. ALL of them. ALL of the par fives are birdie/eagle holes. Now you are learing something.

[presidio9]

No comeback, accuse opponent of lying. So typical. So, you WERE joking, but you decided to play it straight for 100 posts? Not a chance.

[discostu]

Here's your comeback
http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/event?event=2003evian

Yards by hole.

I was joking about Tiger taking the rest of the year off. His slump is real. I wasn't playing it straight at all, I was laughing my butt off watching you bludgeon yourself to death with lies and stupidity. Same thing today. Read the thread dude, I was making Spinal Tap references, talked about BJs and mai tais, said he should hold a press conference on a plane. Really you need to stop being so argumentative, it's rotting your brain.

[presidio9]

Here is your inability to just be wrong and get on with your life on display. Tiger has a 2nd and a 4th in his last 4 majors. Tiger lead wire to wire and won by 5 strokes in his last event before the Open. Tiger has won 4 times in 11 tries this season. He is not in a slump. As usual you are repeating stupidity and embracing it as fact.

[discostu]

Ands he's LOST 5 majors in a row. Holds NO major titles for the first time since 1999. Has finished over par in all three majors this year. Fell apart in the back 9 every round of the British. Has been making excuses and accused the rest of the tour of using illegal equipment.

SLUMP CITY.

As usual you resort to insulsts because you have no facts.

[zoyd]

SLUMP CITY.

That's pretty funny. If you ask the man himself, he'll tell you he's not in a slump.

what's really funny is the idea that since he doesn't have a current Major trophy in his house, that he's in a slump. That's just funny. With 150+ players at every major, he's gone four without a win... and that's a slump?

Jack Nicklaus won 18 Majors in his career, spanning 30 years. Tiger is winless over a stretch of four majors, and he's in a slump?

I think both you and Presidio both have some bizarre concepts about golf. Going winless in four majors does not qualify as a slump, even for Tiger Woods.