2024 PGA: The (Point) Missers
Logistics, Scheffler, "hilarious" coverage, rangefinders as binoculars, Gooch as Beavis, Harman rule abuse, the PGA president not knowing basic dates and that 18th hole encampment in play.
Part III of The Quad’s PGA Championship review concludes with the week’s missers after covering the Champions and Cutmakers. This edition starts with the unfortunate events of Friday and the first-world reaction. Then we get to lighter stuff like Jon Rahm’s campaign to be the new Tommy Bolt and other PGA of America oddities from another wild week in Kentucky.
PGA of America’s logistics - No major is easy to pull off when there is only one main road to the course. But this was not Valhalla’s first rodeo. Did an increase in the number of tickets sold this year cause the perpetual traffic jam outside the main gate? Veterans recall how the place had traffic issues during the 2008 Ryder Cup. Perhaps no one remembered? The PGA has had massive turnover with its move to Frisco and cost-cutting. Was the increase in people, cars and buses an oversight in pre-event planning? Shelbyville Road seems heavily trafficked. Exacerbating matters was Valhalla’s entry which was too tight for buses. And all week the eastbound traffic never subsided. How was it still bumper-to-bumper heading east on Sunday evening as the contenders teed off 18?
Scottie Scheffler. On Thursday the Louisville police and mayor will be elaborating on his case. It seems likely charges will be reduced or dropped at some point given the press conference and sense that the assault charge is excessive. But until this is resolved, Scheffler should say nothing, stay off the player/physio text chains making light of a serious situation, and try slowing down. Maybe thank some volunteers for making it possible to make a living playing golf tournaments.
Reactions to the tragedy and the police. Details are still sketchy involving the fatal accident that killed tournament volunteer John Mills. Yet there has been outrage over what the series of events after his death apparently cost the sport by distracting Scheffler’s Grand Slam quest. There is even more rage at the police officer who was injured and calls for lawsuits over what the incident has done to Scheffler’s image. All of this as real trauma was suffered by a man who lost his life and a bus driver who will never unsee what happened. Yet the outpouring has been devoted to worrying about a golfer who said he was in a hurry “just trying to get to my tee time” while raging about a police officer likely on edge dealing with a chaotic accident scene. Whatever happened will be sorted out and it’ll probably turn out to be some weird confluence of misfortune. Eventually, the ultimate first-world question of whether Valhalla will again be considered for a major will even be addressed. But a lack of sensitivity to the real tragedy continues to reflect terribly on the sport and can be seen in outlets like Golf Digest pushing out CPM-driven garbage about the “hilarious” player text chains resulting from the entire mess. Nothing is hilarious about this.
To cover or not to cover? ESPN’s news reporting by Jeff Darlington struck the right tone. So did CBS’s recap on Saturday’s telecast. So there are adults in the golf room who can read tea leaves and conclude this was nothing to joke about even if the charges against Scheffler are dropped. Golf Channel, now based out of NBC Sports’ global headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut where they have studios with ugly sets and fancy fiber, chose not to cut into an LPGA round replay to cover the news from Valhalla. Nor was a “breaking news” crawl invoked for one of the decade’s most shocking golf stories. Yet the channel chose to push back at criticism for doing nothing by getting into an embarrassing Twitter spat with No Laying Up.
Jon Rahm. At least those hundreds of millions haven’t dulled his passion! Rahm’s mojo seems depleted after a lackluster Masters title defense and a missed cut in Kentucky. The longest active streak of made major championship cuts ended at 18. His clubs were hurled through the air and Rahm’s on-course demeanor screamed of a deeper dissatisfaction about the state of his career.
Rangefinders. If ever there was a case for the ball going too far, it was the sight of players employing their DMD’s to see where a tee shot finished. The PGA of America is the only major allowing them and the org keeps finding creative ways of showing how the distance chase has reached the satirical stage.
Talor Gooch. To paraphrase Bull Durham’s Crash Davis, “Think classy, you'll be classy. When you get your first top 10 in a major then you can dress like Beavis’ alter ego Cornholio. Then the press'll think you're colorful. But until that top 10, you look like a bloated LIV fanboy in Smash gear Brooks doesn’t have to wear.” For the five of you out there wondering, the Asterisk Wonder finished four-under-par and tied for 60th. His major season has concluded after choosing not to attempt U.S. Open and The Open qualifying.