2015 PGA Championship Commentary
A Day of Reckoning – Jason Day Wins His First Major at the PGA Championship
I swear I’m almost as relieved Jason Day captured a major championship as Jason Day must be. I even cried too, along with the wife, and she doesn’t know golf. Jason has been so close and had so many heartbreaking finishes. Day’s is a truly great story of resilience, persistence, tenacity, and heart. Hats off to Jason Day for a truly amazing and inspiring week of golf, and the years of his journey to get to this point.
Day’s historic day was capped off with a finish at -20, never before achieved in a major… ever.
“The way that I felt confidence wise with my game, I just felt like no one was going to stop me today even though this was one of the hardest rounds I have ever had to play. Playing with Jordan was very difficult, just being able to watch what he was doing. But on top of it, grinding it out as hard as I possibly could. It is a fantastic feeling, I can call myself a major champion now and it feels really, really good.” ~Jason Day
Jordan Spieth
Jordan Spieth is amazing, in a totally different way than Tiger Woods was in his prime. I can’t pinpoint what makes Spieth so good. He’s not super long. He’s not the best ball striker on tour. He’s not the best putter on tour (he’s really good, don’t misunderstand). His short game isn’t the best on tour… But what he seems to have is the ability to PLAY GOLF. He’s as strong mentally as anyone and the pressure simply does not get to him. In fact, it seems to make him play better. A look at his stats on the year prove that. His scoring in majors is better than in non-majors!
Spieth locks up 2nd place in class, giving thumbs-up to Jason Day when he knew the tournament was Day’s. Spieth’s second place finish at the PGA moves him to #1 in the world golf rankings. Everyone knew he was playing the best golf on the planet, even Rory McIlory. McIlory shows nothing but class in this tweet:
2 inevitable things happened today, @JDayGolf winning a major and @JordanSpieth getting to 1 in the world! Congrats guys!! Inspiring stuff!
— Rory Mcilroy (@McIlroyRory) August 16, 2015
Tiger Woods
What can you say about Tiger Woods, who missed his 3rd consecutive cut in a major with scores of 75 and 73. The numbers don’t lie. Tiger has dropped to 285th in the world rankings.
Branden Grace
Branden Grace has come out of nowhere (at least in my small cranium) and is suddenly a regular contender in majors. 3rd place finish.
Justin Rose
Justin Rose is a total stud. Rose was in the mix with a 4th place finish. More importantly though his eyewear apparel script was some kind of Elton John, The Fly, Elvis hybrid. Nicely done.
Whistling Straits
I didn’t hear or read one complaint about the golf course this week, unlike Chambers Bay and the 2015 U.S. Open. The course was fantastic and the PGA wasn’t afraid to set it up for low scoring. Majors don’t have to be even-par events. The excitement this week was fantastic and the setup truly produced the player who was the best in the field.
Sad Day
With the PGA Championship’s conclusion comes my yearly moaning that the golf season is for the most part over. The FedEx Cup does not tickle my interest whatsoever, and the Presidents Cup is not far behind that. I will likely tune in to professional golf next when the 2016 Masters Tournament is on.
Before you head to the office, or the golf course, be sure to set your DVR to record the PGA Championship on TNT today. Below is the PGA Championship television schedule.
Thu, Aug 13 TNT 2:00 PM – 8:00 PM ET
Fri, Aug 14 TNT 2:00 PM – 8:00 PM ET
Sat, Aug 15 TNT 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM ET
Sat, Aug 15 CBS 2:00 PM – 7:00 PM ET
Sun, Aug 16 TNT 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM ET
Sun, Aug 16 CBS 2:00 PM – 7:00 PM ET
While you are at work you can see lots of great video coverage and follow the leaderboard at http://www.pga.com/pgachampionship/. There are also PGA Championship mobile apps for your smartphone or tablet providing even more viewing options.
Who will win? Check the apparel scripts for that answer.
DVR Alert!
Below is the PGA Championship TV schedule, along with information about bonus coverage and channels for DirecTV subscribers. For 24/7 coverage of Tiger Woods’s parking spot tune into Golf Channel.
2014 PGA Championship at Valhalla Television Schedule
| Thu,Aug 07 | TNT | 1:00 PM – 7:00 PM ET |
| Fri,Aug 08 | TNT | 1:00 PM – 7:00 PM ET |
| Sat,Aug 09 | TNT | 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM ET |
| Sat,Aug 09 | CBS | 2:00 PM – 7:00 PM ET |
| Sun,Aug 10 | TNT | 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM ET |
| Sun,Aug 10 | CBS | 2:00 PM – 7:00 PM ET |
Press Release From DirecTV
DIRECTV’s bonus coverage of major golf events concludes this year with the PGA Championship Experience, featuring professional golf’s last major, unfolding at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Ky. Aug. 7-10.
Teaming up with TNT and CBS, DIRECTV will offer golf action on its exclusive four-screen Mix Channel, and alongside, access to an interactive menu of apps for an instant view of player stats, bios, scorecards and tee times.
The PGA Championship Experience Mix Channel (701) includes: the main TNT/CBS broadcast (702); Featured Group One (703); Featured Group Two (704) and Featured Hole(705). Any four channels on the Mix can be tuned to full-screen. The live coverage schedule is: 1 p.m. to 7p.m. EDT Thursday and Friday on TNT; On Saturday, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. EDT on TNT and 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. on CBS; and on Sunday, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. EDT on TNT, and 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. EDT on CBS.
Viewers who want more in-depth information on players and pairings can select the red button on their remote to bring up the following list of interactive features alongside the broadcast video: Player Scorecard offers key bioinfo, player headshots, scores and stats; Player Bio provides player biographies and their scorecards, and fans can add a player to their favorites list; Pairings and Tee Times displays all groups and tee times for the current round.
DIRECTV’s Mix Channel, interactive coverage includes all four of professional golf’s major tournaments along with select PGA tournaments this year. For more information visit: http://www.directv.com/sports/golf
Every major championship I wait for all the golf blogs and golf media to regurgitate the latest golf “apparel scripting” which is bulk emailed to them by golf PR firms and golf apparel companies. Such a win/win for all involved. The bloggers/writers don’t have to spend time actually writing content, and the PR gets their message out! And it is such valuable information!
I wasn’t going to get up a 2 a.m. and watch the Open Championship, but as soon as I saw Jonas Blixt’s scripting I couldn’t sleep. I HAD to watch it. Then after the first round, I went to the golf store and bought every piece of Blixt’s scripting for all four rounds. Unfortunately he missed the cut. So sad for those dead Saturday and Sunday scripts. I threw the two weekend outfits in the trash. I never even got to wear them.
In the spirit of “glory’s last shot” in the 2014 PGA Championship, I’ve spent a ton of time and effort crafting my own apparel script (above). This script takes on the Tiger Woods daily theme for the week.
Are you interpreting that I think Tiger will miss the cut this week? I sure hope not. The whole golf industry is dependent on Tiger and it costs jobs and billions of dollars in the economy when Tiger misses the cut. We need him. In fact, if he misses the cut I think I’ll cancel my weekend tee times.
Let me know your thoughts…
For quite a while fans, media and even tour players were complaining about this year’s PGA Championship. The complaints were about the course, the endless low testosterone ads (read below) and the leader board’s lack of star power. It took a while, but the PGA Championship FINALLY had the feel and excitement of a major championship on the back nine Sunday, despite the relative unknowns atop the leader board and completely insane number of commercials on the CBS broadcast.
2011 PGA Champion Keegan Bradley
Keegan Bradley
I’ve been a Keegan Bradley fan ever since I followed him around at the HP Byron Nelson Championship a few months ago for his first win. That win was in a playoff as was his win this week at the PGA Championship. Being in close proximity to Keegan on the course and in interviews at the Byron, I definitely felt a confident and energetic vibe. The guy has a very positive energy which you can feel as soon as he walks into the room.
The win this week for Keegan had some very cool aspects to it. The win was his first major start. The win was the first major win ever for a player with a long putter. I haven’t looked, but I’m guessing it is the first major win a player has ever recorded with a triple bogey on the final nine. If anyone has heard about that stat, let me know.
“I just kept telling myself, don’t let that hole define this whole tournament.” ~Keegan Bradley on his triple bogey in the final nine, 15th hole
What amazed me most was the poise and fearlessness Bradley displayed, especially on the 18th hole during regulation and in the playoff against Jason Dufner. Those approach shots of roughly 185 and 195 yards will trigger the gag reflex of just about any player who is trying to win his first major. The shot he hit into the first playoff hole, after Dufner nearly holed his approach for eagle, was a fantastic answer to the challenge laid down by his only remaining opponent.
“It feels unbelievable. It seems like a dream and I’m afraid I’m going to wake up here in the next five minutes and it’s not going to be real.” ~Keegan Bradley on the PGA Championship win
I’m amazed at how well Bradley played the final brutal holes at Atlanta Athletic Club. With the playoff he played the final three holes five times and was -1 for that set. The field averaged well over par for those final three holes.
Rookie of the year is a lock for Bradley. For that matter, with two wins including a major title, Bradley is definitely a candidate for player of the year on the PGA Tour.
Jason Dufner
Jason Dufner
I was amazed by Jason Dufner’s performance and really thought he’d win the tournament because he was so calm and in control. But his swings and putts really started showing his nerves in the final few holes. Unfortunately he gave up a five shot lead which he held late in the round. The final tough holes of AAC made the difference.
“Everybody has struggled on them. Unfortunately, I had the lead and I struggled on them. That was the deciding factor, and Keegan made a couple birdies there, and I made a couple bogeys.” ~Jason Dufner on the final three holes
Non Factors
It was truly amazing to hear the confidence Tiger Woods had in interviews at the beginning of the week, only to watch him flame out and finish missing the cut at TEN over par. Tiger’s game is really a train wreck right now. Based on the fact that he says he’s 100% healthy, that must mean it is all in Tiger’s head. What he’s trying to do with his new swing, or other things on his mind are like kryptonite to golf’s former superman. Will Tiger ever get back that mental edge he once had? Not any time soon it seems. Listening to and reading comments from Tiger fans and haters is quite entertaining. Amazing how polarizing Tiger has become with fans.
Phil Mickelson lurked in striking range for the whole tournament, yet never struck.
World #1 Luke Donald was lurking, but found a watery grave on the par-3 15th and made bogey on the 18th. He finished tied with world #2 Lee Westwood for 8th place.
Many top players didn’t even make the cut, including my pick to win Jason Day. Other big names who watched the PGA from their couches over the weekend surprisingly included Graeme McDowell, Martin Kaymer, Vijay Singh, Retief Goosen and Stewart Cink.
Random Thoughts
TNT produced an awful intro to their coverage which was basically a Tiger Woods love fest. Gag.
Many fans complained that CBS‘s coverage was too commercial heavy and I completely agree. In fact, print/web media members calculated a ratio of three commercials per every five golf shots shown. Some theorize they’re making up for the lack of ads they can show in the Masters. Within that CBS ad lineup were about a million too many erectile dysfunction or low testosterone ads. I’m getting really sick of those ads in golf broadcasts. I guess they’ve done the demographic research and 99% of golf viewers on TV are men who can’t get it up. I’m happy that I’m in the 1%… for now. Some fans had a neat drinking game idea. Take a drink every time CBS aired a commercial. You’d be drunk faster than at any fraternity party.
Even John Daly chimed in on the ads via twitter:
“some great golf today but I don’t need anymore of these CBS ads every 2 mins–erectile dysfunction & those pesky frequent flyer programs!” ~John Daly
I don’t know when or if Atlanta Athletic Club will get another major, but if it never gets another one that would be fine with me.
It is sad that the last major has come and gone. The golf season is now far past the half way point. Yes the FedEx Cup playoffs are coming and that will be somewhat interesting. Personally, I’ll be counting down the days until April, 2012 and the next Masters.
HOGWire – Golf Industry News
