Wyndham Clark and Rickie Fowler on Saturday on the 1st gap at Los Angeles Country Club.
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SITTING OUTSIDE THE PENMAR CAFE AT PENMAR MUNI, LOS ANGELES — This is sommmme scene.
The tee sheet is booked right here at Penmar muni, a nine-holer on the west facet of La La Land. There’s a foursome on the tee. There are a dozen or so people on the apply inexperienced. One, an older gentleman, is sporting knee-high, lime-green socks. The kiddos are submitting in for classes. Me? I’m sitting at a beautiful outside cafe yards from all of it. Ready or Not, by the Fugees, is enjoying over a speaker.
It’s additionally 9:30 a.m. On a Monday.
So, to start this look again at the U.S. Open and the week that was at Los Angeles Country Club, let’s speak L.A. and L.A. golf, a topic that fired up the hot-take-smiths from coast to coast, from the first to 72nd holes. It was quiet at LACC! It was lifeless! It was empty! It was fanless! They weren’t completely improper, although a superb a part of it needed to do with the setup (largely company, and we’ll get to that) and the course (golfer pleasant, however not a lot fan, and we’ll get to that).
But I need commentary No. 1 on this overview to be this:
This is a golf metropolis.
The man with one tattoo that covers his total left arm, and the girl with the pink hat, and the man with the Mickey Mouse bag — the people on the placing inexperienced in entrance of me now — can attest to that.
With that, let’s shoot for 49 extra observations right here at the Penmar, the place I could attempt to get on.
If there’s a no-show.
2. Notably, L.A. hadn’t hosted a U.S. Open since 1948 (or any males’s main since 1995). That’s a lifetime. That’s too lengthy. A fast phrase then on the USGA’s considered a set rotation of programs. Yes, it develops familiarity with tracks, à la the Masters — however don’t overlook slightly flexibility. How many of us, younger and outdated, watched the golf of their metropolis final week — and can get out to play of their metropolis this week? Granted, L.A. has the Riviera occasion annually, and California as an entire has no scarcity of tournaments, however nothing is grander than a serious. If the aim right here is to get the recreation to everybody, then get the greatest in the recreation to everybody.
3. There’s a rumor that Riv will get the 2031 U.S. Open, and that will likely be nice.
4. Should we be involved that the USGA was so tied to company hospitality, which was considerable and was the place a few of the crowd was?
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5. That mentioned, it was laborious for a spectator to spectate. Tee containers and greens didn’t embrace area for followers, although on some, there was no room. It was laborious to maintain up with teams resulting from how the holes had been roped off. LACC wasn’t constructed to be an amphitheater. But it’s a golf course few see, and should by no means see once more. So there was some thought that you just take what you will get.
6. And man, you bought to see some holes (or elements of them). I’ve purposely began this commentary at No. 6 — as a result of No. 6 was a beaut. Go for the inexperienced? Go for the simpler pitch proper, however hit the more durable tee shot? Go for the safer drive however face the trickier second shot? Dope.
7. The monster par-3s — on Sunday, they performed like this: 233 yards on No. 4; 272 yards on No. 7; 295 yards on No. 11 — had been monstrous.
8. But I may watch pictures into the shorty par-3 fifteenth all day lengthy.
9. You by no means felt such as you had been in L.A. at the course. Except for the workplace buildings throughout. And the skyscrapers off in the distance. And the Playboy Mansion instantly to the proper of the 14th tee.
10. The total thought on LACC, which additionally had heard a number of chirps throughout the week? I’m not an structure junky, so I’ll maintain issues easy. It was extra slopey than what TV confirmed. The greens had been small. The lengthy par-3s didn’t appear so long as the quantity. No. 15 appeared not possible to hit from the tee. The use of the barranca as a protection was unbelievable. But the favourite factor I learn? Someone tweeted (and I can’t discover the tweet now) that if Augusta National had been opened immediately, it, too, can be ripped.
11. I’ll depart this tweet right here from Gary D’Amato and allow you to all focus on.
12. A phrase on Hef’s former place, which took up a bit of my days over the previous month. Here’s one nugget that didn’t make my story from final week — a bunch of professionals had been asking the close by TV tower if they might see any ladies.
13. Here’s one other. In this video, I attempted to look beneath the fence that separates the course from the mansion and walked down a path to have a look at monkeys. But I didn’t uncover this by myself. Players and caddies had been doing it, too.
14. Let’s discuss Wyndham Clark, your U.S. Open winner. The story of his mother’s affect was nicely circulated — you possibly can learn my model right here — however this here will likely be the smartest thing you watch on the entire factor.
15. Who’s on the apply inexperienced now at Penmar? From left to proper are a person with a fedora, a pair (the man’s hat is backward and the girl is sporting a visor) and an older man whose bag has a leather-based protecting.
16. Clark performs with out a swing coach. It’s not for everyone, although possibly it’s an choice for gamers who always search opinions and tinker, however proceed to fall brief.
“Yeah, a lot of people say I have a good swing,” he mentioned Sunday evening. “I consider I’ve a superb swing. My first few years on Tour, it truly actually bothered me as a result of individuals would say, oh, you will have such an important swing, and I didn’t know the place the ball was going, and that was actually irritating for me. I labored with some nice coaches and so they had been superb at what they do, however I didn’t know the place the ball was going and I didn’t personal it.
“So when I decided to go on my own — I do work a little bit with my caddie, but typically it’s on my own — I learned about my game and my swing, and that’s what I did when I was younger. I knew how to hit shots and I got away from that when I was with a coach. Now when I’m in practice, I’m always trying to get back to neutral. So if one day it’s really cutty, I’m hitting huge draws on the range. And then some days it gets kind of too dry, and I hit huge cuts and get it back to neutral, and honestly that’s what I’ve done for the last year and a half. And so I felt like I’ve kept my swing in those parameters to where regardless I can play good golf if I’m hitting a little draw or a little cut, and my stats have improved immensely by doing that.”
17. Clark performs with a psychological coach. In the U.S. Open strain cooker, Julie Elion saved issues free. Clark and Elion related earlier this yr.
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“She has a great calmness and presence about her that just makes me calm and relaxed,” Clark mentioned. “I’m just so glad that my caddie and agent in November said, hey, we’ve got this lady that we think you should work with. I was a little reluctant to do it, and I’m just so glad that she was brought into my life, and what these honestly six months, it’s crazy to see how much I’ve improved and how much she’s helped me. I wouldn’t have thought I’d be a major champion six, seven months ago.”
18. I’m truly a bit shocked Clark didn’t blow his lead after his bogeys on 15 and 16, and a second shot on 17 that he pulled left.
19. But man, did Clark exit and get it. To that time, I’ll bear in mind his drive on 12 on Sunday, which we performed aggressively, going left to proper over bushes. It’s not that it was dangerous, which it was. But he had tried the similar play on Saturday, and his ball simply stayed largely left and in a nasty spot.
20. Here’s saying Clark has the recreation to be a high 5 participant in the world.
21. Let’s speak the runner-up, Rory McIlroy, who didn’t need to speak a lot this week — and our Dylan Dethier splendidly summed that up here. What now? If he’s asking me — and don’t ever ask me — simply carry on, maintaining on. Stay the course. It’s there. I nonetheless consider he’s the greatest in the recreation.
22. And he’ll win the Open Championship subsequent month. And that response on 18 could possibly be … one thing.
23. With that, let’s speak the Saudis and the cash and the golf. It stays spectacular that McIlroy performs in addition to he does with this in the background. And now he’s answering questions on betrayal.
24. It actually was weird how little gamers mentioned they knew, although that’s newsworthy, too.
25. Why did the Tour have to make the announcement about commissioner Jay Monahan’s well being? Sure, he was anticipated to be at the U.S. Open, however all it led to was wild hypothesis.
26. Does any of this cross? Do the gamers vote it down? Do they revolt? Do they fall in line? Does Congress do something? Nothing?
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27. There’s a distinction between taking cash and having cash compelled on you.
28. We anticipated one thing on the matter from Phil Mickelson — and received practically nothing. Here’s what he mentioned Thursday, after his first spherical, when requested if he wish to discuss the PGA Tour-Saudi PIF settlement: “Not yet because I don’t want to detract right now from this tournament and where I’m at. I’m playing well. I want to get myself in contention. I’ll talk about it maybe after.”
29. It wouldn’t be out of the query to see a yr the place Scottie Scheffler wins all 4 majors, proper? He’s course-proof at this level.
30. Who’s on the apply inexperienced now at Penmar? From left to proper are a girl together with her hair dyed grey, an older man in denims shorts, and a person who appears an entire like Patrick Cantlay and is sporting a Masters hat.
31. Then there’s Scheffler’s placing. This was one in every of my favourite moments of the week. On Tuesday, forward of the event, Scheffler had been requested 9 questions on the topic that’s confounded him of late, and on Thursday, after his first spherical, whereas strolling again to the clubhouse with him, I requested him about being requested about it. Only I couldn’t, at the least for a second. His agent had advised me I may get just one query and I had already requested one — however Scheffler mentioned in response: “Oh, I can answer this one.”
32. Rickie Fowler’s again! Unofficially, 100% of individuals right here needed him to win.
33. Butch Harmon has finished it once more, hasn’t he? Fowler reunited with the legendary swing coach lately, and Fowler’s dad, Rod, in speaking with our Alan Bastable at LACC, gave this memorable quote: ““Butch is the one who can tell Rickie how it is. If he thinks he’s playing like crap, he’ll tell him. I can’t tell him that. I don’t know golf like he does. Butch is the guy that gets to Rickie and makes him mentally stronger. He’s the guy. There’s nobody else. Whatever he says, Rickie’s going to listen to.”
34. Fowler shot a record-breaking 62 in the first spherical, then was tied moments later by Xander Schuaffele, and so they had been each arrange fantastically to make a run at main No. 1. Here’s how they completed — Fowler went 68, 70 and 75, and Schauffele went 70, 73, 72. They pale. As did the ideas that LACC was too straightforward.
35. Justin Thomas is in some type of funk, however it’s good to see issues had been free for him this weekend, as proven beneath.
36. Brooks Koepka was … OK. A high 20. Two rounds beneath par. But underwhelming.
37. Here are a number of extra tales it is best to return and take a look at. Our Josh Berhow dug deep into the background of Clark right here.
38. Here, our Sean Zak discovered that not everybody liked LACC.
39. Our James Colgan wrote right here that the huge winner of the golf wars could be … Dustin Johnson.
40. Let’s speak quotes. I walked previous a fan who mentioned one thing about actress Tori Spelling, whose dad, Aaron, as soon as lived alongside LACC.
41. I overheard one other fan say: “It must be mental with him.” Your guess is pretty much as good as mine as to whom he was speaking about.
42. I requested a police officer what the weirdest factor he heard week was — and he heard somebody ask Fowler to signal their child.
43. I laughed at this trade between Jon Rahm and a reporter:
Said the reporter: “You always seem to find some fuel prior to a major. Is the chance of becoming the first Spaniard to win the U.S. Open twice your fuel for this week, or do you have something else in mind?”
Said Rahm: “Well, given I’m the only Spaniard to win this tournament, I am the only one who can do it twice.”
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44. I laughed at this trade between Brian Harman and a reporter.
Said the reporter: “That 6th hole is one everyone talks about. Does it favor righties or lefties, lefties over righties?”
Said Harman: “I wouldn’t know. I only played it left-handed today.”
45. Who’s on the apply inexperienced now at Penmar? From left to proper are a person in a blue shirt holding a putter in a single hand and a cellphone in the different, a person sporting operating pants and a girl with a pink ball.
46. I appreciated this trade between Sam Bennett and a reporter:
Said the reporter: “I overheard you on the driving range saying you’re not a big Trackman/numbers guy. Curious why that is and how you go about working on your swing and working on your game without some of the same knowledge that players use nowadays?”
Said Bennett: “Yeah, just see a shot and hit it. I like wedge numbers. They’re okay. But I don’t know, I’m just not numbers-based or anything. Yeah, I’m swinging the best when I’m not thinking of nothing.”
47. I noticed just one celebrity-type, although it was the spouse of Dustin Johnson: Paulina Gretzky, who was sporting a Los Angeles Dodgers varsity jacket.
48. At Penmar, you’re movie star adjoining. In 2015, Harrison Ford crash-landed an airplane right here — and in the cafe, they promote shirts with a drawing of an airplane on them.
49. Ahead of the third spherical, I took a number of pictures on the Venice Beach basketball courts, close to the place the film White Men Can’t Jump was filmed. I shot 50 p.c. No huge deal.
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50. We’ll finish with another Playboy Mansion story.
As a part of the story I wrote, I had an concept to trace down Kendra Wilkinson, who had lived at the mansion for 5 years as one in every of the stars of the Girls Next Door sequence from the 2000s — and is a golf nut. She is an actual property agent now — she’s on one other TV sequence known as Kendra Sells Hollywood — so I discovered her work electronic mail, messaged right here — and received a be aware again from her agent in about 5 minutes. He needed to speak. I known as. Voice mail. I attempted once more a number of occasions. Voice mails. I gave up.
Then, final Thursday, throughout the first spherical, he lastly known as again. He apologized.
Would I nonetheless have an interest?
After a little bit of backwards and forwards, I mentioned I used to be, and he mentioned he’d set it up.
Then I by no means heard something. I known as again. Voice mail. I known as once more. Voice mail.
Hollywood, man.
Editor’s be aware: I additionally compiled observations from the Masters and the PGA Championship. If you’re eager about the Masters story, please go right here.
If you’re eager about the PGA Championship story, please go right here.
