I'm Having Literal Ryder Cup Dreams

Edition No. 29 | September 8, 2023

Hey,

I’m almost done with the first chapter of Normal Sport 3, and it delighted me to recall the ridiculous Tiger-Rory-JT-Spieth match last December when Spieth was about to putt a 3-footer with a 4-iron and he looked at Rory for a concession.

Rory responded: “I’ve seen you miss those with a putter.”

☠️☠️☠️

I can’t wait for it to come out.

And as I started building it, I thought it might be nice to poll you on how you would most like to receive it. I have some broad thoughts on the topic, but I’m curious about your preferred reading tendencies.

So feel free to vote below.

Onto the news.

One Thing I Loved

There are certain things I spend time a disproportionate amount of time thinking about compared to the time and effort that went into creating them. One of those for me happened back in the 2010-2012 era when the Oklahoma City Thunder looked like they were going to win the next 17 NBA Finals (we’re talking many multiples of the Ludvig hype here).

Anyway, Doug Gottlieb (of all people) did this probably throwaway segment on the Thunder where he talked about preserving what they were inevitably going to lose. This (as I remember it) was a short radio segment over 10 years ago, and I still think about what he said all the time.

It was not about how many titles the Thunder would (or would not) win, how many All-Star teams Harden, Westbrook and KD were going to make, how they would all work together without a true point guard or anything that happened on the court at all.

It was about how, at the very beginning of a developing thing — in this case, title runs for the Thunder and their fans — you are at the apex of delight in that thing. How there are seemingly diminishing returns on pleasure in sport (and probably in life). This is, he noted, the most fun it will ever be for the Thunder and their fans. And he was right.

I thought about that concept last week as it relates to the Walker Cup.

Most of those guys — at least on the American side — will go on to become pros, some of them PGA Tour mainstays and perhaps even major champions.

There are some famous photos (see if you can spot all five major winners).

And while professional golf will, for many of those Walker Cuppers, be financially rewarding and perhaps even spiritually fulfilling, what many of them do not yet realize is that it will never again be quite as much fun as completing one of the great comebacks in recent Walker Cup history at maybe the greatest course in the world.

One of the difficult truths of our lives is that we never understand the real gravity nor goodness of a moment until we have distance from the moment. This can work in our favor — I believe the term is “ignorance is bliss” — but it can also make gratitude difficult.

This is the irony of youth. That even a future achievement of the dreams you have will often never usurp your present reality. What a weird and wily principle.

And I couldn’t help but think about all of this as I watched future five-time PGA Tour winner Nick Dunlap, future Ryder Cupper Caleb Surratt and future 25-time major champion Gordon Sargent celebrate by the Eden Estuary last weekend.

I thought about how it may get better for them and it might be more satisfying in the future and perhaps they will indulge in greater accomplishments than these.

But it’s almost a certainty that it will never be more fun than throwing on the red, white and blue and winning at the Old Course — the Old Course! — as a 19-year-old on a team with all the other kids* you grew up with.

For what in the world could you even dream up in golf that could possibly be more delightful than that?

*Big Stew excluded (obviously)

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The Infirmary

I have a acquaintance/friend in our community named Zach Johnson. For real, I do. And the other night I had a dream that I tried to call him about something but that two-time major champion and Ryder Cup captain Zach Johnson was the one who picked up the phone.

I dreamed that he then tried to clear the air re: the JT pick, at which point I started flapping my arms and gesticulating that I was fine with (and even a staunch defender of) the choice. And this was one of two distinct dreams I had about the U.S. Ryder Cup team that night.

Send help.

Question of the Week

This one got some good responses that you should read through.

My answer off the top of my head (which is the whole point of the exercise) is either Tom Kim up to his femurs in mud at Oak Hill, Wyndham Clark hitting the circle button and spinning his iron off the planet on Saturday night at LACC or NBC lighting Brian Harman on fire with that waggle counter on the Sunday of his first major championship victory.

Five Questions

This week we have Gabby Herzig, who writes for SI Golf and is a (new-ish) and valued golf voice that I greatly enjoy. Gabby has become a friend and as a former college player, somebody who has a much different perspective than I often bring to the table. Hope you enjoy.

1. What is one weird, quirky, normal sport-y thing about golf that amuses you right now?

There are a lot of normal sport-y things that live in my head rent free. Using magnetic ball marker clips (so dorky, yet so practical), walking dogs on the Old Course at St. Andrews (imagine the same at Yankee Stadium), keeping handwritten scorecards on the PGA Tour (just think about that for a second). The list goes on. But there’s a slightly more philosophical quirk that I’m currently fixated on.

To win on the biggest stages in the sport, players almost have to forget what they’re doing. You hear major champions say things like, “I just played my game” and “I stuck to my game plan” or even “I went out there and treated it like any other round of golf.” The comments are easy to brush over, but they actually say a lot about the mental game required to win. And the concept behind those kinds of remarks is super, super weird. Pros work hours, weeks, and years to win tournaments. But when they’re going through the motions, the best way to achieve the ultimate goal of winning is to block out the possibility completely.

Failing to do so will result in utter disaster—and that’s when we see pros fold under pressure. The best players in the world dream of winning major championships, but on the back nine on Sunday, they flip a switch. Major champions somehow keep the thought of winning so far removed from their brains that they go into a sort of autopilot mode. They can stand over the ball during the most important round of their life and almost feel like they’re on the driving range. It’s a paradox that makes my head spin—in the best way possible.

And if all of that sounded like a bunch of psychological nonsense, this is all you need to know: Pro golf is just mental gymnastics, and if you pay close enough attention, it’s incredibly entertaining. Especially if you’re not a professional golfer.

2. What is the most surprising thing about your job/this profession?

When I started in the golf media industry, I had one big fear. I’ve played golf almost my entire life. I often talk about golf with friends and family in my free time. I tend to organize my weeks around when I might be able to practice golf. If my work revolved around golf, would it get old?

The answer is that so far, it hasn’t. And I don’t really think it will. That was originally quite surprising to me.

I mainly have this feeling because of the incredible journalists and media personalities that I’ve had the pleasure of interacting with at various tournaments and events. Many of them, including my colleagues at Sports Illustrated, have been at this job for 20, even 30 years. And to my knowledge, most of them still find the profession just as thrilling as it was when they were interns or first-year news writers, like yours truly. I was surprised to discover that there is something new to learn in this job every single day. But I shouldn’t have been.

3. What is one thing golf should take and apply from Taylor Swift?

I’ll be the first one to hold up my hand and say, I’m not a die-hard Swiftie, but I’ll sing along to all her major hits, and I know a thing or two about how she interacts with her fans from my roommate, who might be the Swiftiest Swiftie I know.

One thing that always fascinated me about Taylor is her dedication to easter eggs. She drops cryptic hints about her upcoming projects or announcements, leaving fans to decode puzzles and notice niche symbolism in her existing work, whether it be in song lyrics, album booklets or music videos. In her earliest works, Taylor even capitalized specific letters in the song lyrics included in her CDs, which spelled out revealing messages about the individuals who inspired certain songs.

Call me crazy, but imagine if Zach Johnson or Luke Donald had given the same energy to tease fans about their Ryder Cup captain’s picks. Golf Channel cameras zoom in on Johnson using a ball marker from Sam Burns’ home club the week leading up to selections. Or Luke Donald pulls out a bag of Swedish Fish and starts eating them on the golf course. The possibilities are endless, and it could ramp up the excitement around the Ryder Cup even further.

4. What is a golf moment/shot/event that you find yourself thinking about too often?

I think a lot about Jordan Spieth and how frequently he interacts with deadly cliffs. I’ll never forget watching his shot on the 8th hole at Pebble Beach live, tweeting about having heart palpitations, and actually coming close to such a medical emergency. When I saw Pebble in person for the first time at this year’s U.S. Women’s Open, it occurred to me that Spieth’s shot was really the only reason I was already so familiar with the 8th hole. But TV does not do that drop-off justice.

Peering over the cliff’s edge is absolutely bone-chilling. The fact that Pebble grew out the rough by several feet to prevent other players from replicating the terrifying shot made the whole situation linger in my brain even longer.

Then there was Spieth’s gravity-induced charge down the jagged greenside terrain at Whistling Straits, after pulling off one of the most memorable (but simultaneously meaningless) shots of the 2021 Ryder Cup. It wasn’t a near-death experience, but Spieth did almost fall into Lake Michigan on an international broadcast. I often find myself wondering, What is it about Jordan Spieth and cliffs? Does he find himself near them more often than the average PGA Tour player? Or is he so prone to making a spectacle out of the rare circumstances that it seems that way?

5. What made you fall in love with golf?

My grandparents, Harvey and Carol. They helped orchestrate my love for this silly game. They took me to a local driving range during my family’s annual visit to their home in Minneapolis, and at age six, it only took one airborne ball to get me hooked. But their continued commitment—which still stands to this day—to showing me what golf is really all about helped me truly fall in love with the sport.

My grandparents taught me about how special it is to get to know a stranger on the golf course and use the game to experience the world. They demonstrated how the game can be a never-ending exercise in personal development. (My 90-year-old grandfather is still regaining his strength from a tough case of Covid, but the fight to get back those extra five yards keeps him chugging along every day.)

They showed me how to use golf as an escape, a therapy session, a networking opportunity, or even just a few hours of light exercise. Each of golf’s benefits is better than the next. I hope to help my children and grandchildren find the same love and appreciation of the game’s multifaceted advantages, just as Carol and Harvey did for me.

By the Numbies

4: That’s how many wins Tony Finau has had since the last Ryder Cup. Only Rahm, Rory, Hovland and Scheffler have more in that timespan.

Finau ranks No. 6 among Americans in strokes gained over those 24 months.

If you would have told me both of those stats the day after Whistling Straits and THEN told me that Finau also wouldn’t be in Rome and that there would be 2-3 people that were probably considered ahead of him, I would have had a difficult time believing you.

Crooked Golf Media

👉️ I mentioned it earlier in the week, but here’s that two-hour No Laying Up pod breaking down the captain’s picks. Tron’s reaction when he realized he did in fact bet his house that Adrian Meronk would be on the team is one of my favorite podcast moments ever.

By the way, here’s a game that our illustrator, Jason Page, came up with. One is how ‘Mericans pronounce the name of the 12th man on the Euro side and one is how you’re probably supposed to pronounce it.

From the Archives

Padraig Harrington, who is one of the few 3+ time major winners who is as good of a talker as he is at golf, said something this week that upended my Wednesday for a good 20-30 minutes.

This week’s Irish Open is at the K Club, site of a Rory win in 2016 that included what Harrington called "probably one of the greatest golf shots ever hit.”

Here’s the scene: Rory is playing with Russell Knox in the final round in 2016, and they’re standing on the 16th tee box with Knox up one. He’s been outplaying Rory all day and looks ready to ruin the reason everyone is there.

Then Rory sent a couple of missiles that you can probably hear if you close your eyes and concentrate hard enough. The type of shots that have to make everyone else who plays professional golf wonder if perhaps they should look into professional accounting or professional plumbing.

And Russell Knox got vaporized.

The first came at the par-5 16th, which Knox bogeyed. This is the one Harrington was referencing. It’s worth watching at least 220 times twice. Start at the 0:54 mark below.

Harrington: “If I was Russell Knox standing on that fairway, I would have clapped, because if you have to hit a wedge to the back pin on that hole, it's incredibly difficult.

“It's probably the hardest golf shot, a wedge in there, let alone hitting a wood in there. And if he misses the shot, the tournament is over. Russell Knox has it won. I would have fallen into the Liffey I think.”

"Poor Russell Knox."

Still, Rory led by just one going to the last. Then he ended Knox for good with this rocket to 2 feet on 18. Same video, start it at 1:11 this time.

The whole thing reminds me of this great Mark Kram gamer from Ali-Frazier 3 in 1975. It’s an article I think about all the time, and I think about this section maybe most of all.

Most of his fights have shown this: you can go so far into that desolate and dark place where the heart of Frazier pounds, you can waste his perimeters, you can see his head hanging in the public square, may even believe that you have him, but then suddenly you learn that you have not.

The 2016 Irish Open was certainly not the Thrilla in Manila, but Padraig talking Rory is always going to get the full treatment from me. And Rory is one of the few in golf capable of embodying that “you may even believe that you have him, but then suddenly you learn that you have not” quote.

Also, this was incredible.

Love Your Work

I absolutely loved this little bit on Marc Randolph, whose book on Netflix, That Will Never Work, is excellent.

It’s a reminder to me as I begin to develop this little newsletter and annual book project a bit more (👀) to not lose myself or my way in doing so. A reminder I need. A reminder to care most about the things that are most worth caring about.