There were many candidates for the Star of the Week at the Honda Classic. Justin Thomas, Tiger Woods, Luke List, Jack Nicklaus and even wife Barbara (all class all the time) were worthy of the nod of the week’s best. But for my money the winner is….. that damn course. PGA National played like a brute holding the best players in the world to eight under par. Jack said that with a little wind the course plays tough and there was just enough wind to humble all the boys.
Justin Thomas’ eighth win in 31 starts is a Tigeresque streak. This 150 pounder has a long game for sure but it was his short game at the end that won it for him. Not to mention his mental toughness that erased his worst moment of the weekend: a dreaded four putt.
Tiger Woods played well. Hate him, love him, worship him…whatever. He hit the ball the best he has since 2013 when he won five times and was Player of the Year. Long game, short game, putter all showed signs of vintage Tiger. His biggest problem was the Bear Trap. He played fifteen and sixteen in eight over par and could never figure those two holes out.
Twenty one year old rookie Sam Burns played with Tiger on Sunday and welcomed the spotlight. Walking off the first tee he put his hand on Tiger’s shoulder and joked how great it was that all these fans had come out to see him…Burns that is not Tiger. He then went out and beat Woods 68 to 70.
Jessica Korda continues to recover from a facial operation that left 27 screws in her face but still found a way to win in her first time back at the Honda LPGA. She still has some ways to go for a full recovery but her game is all the way back.
Loved listening to Jack in the booth and seeing him all week. But as good as Jack is with a microphone the real star of that family this week was his wife Barbara. The matriarch of the PGA Tour she is as classy as they come and a critical component in all the charitable causes that the Nicklaus family champions.
Alvaro Quiros had the line of the week as he hit a poor shot and he lamented his weak effort. “That was a disgraceful shot. I hate it with all my heart.” Click here for his tongue lashing.
What is the deal with defending champion Rickie Fowler missing the cut? Really? The nicest guy on tour went 71-76 which included a six bogey, 40 on his Friday back nine. Ouch!
Rory McIlroy was another disappointment this week finishing T59 at nine over par. The putter has failed him all season so far…time to change it up.
Thomas caused a bit of controversy when a fan cheered for his ball to find a bunker he pointed him out to security and had him removed form the tournament. Now, I am one that thinks all that hollering after a tee shot is just damn ridiculous but the point is it is after the shot. Thomas needs to grow some thicker skin and let it ride. JT gave viewing fans more to cheer about when he dropped the F bomb as he sank the winning putt and CBS continued to replay his “F**k Yea” moment. Now that was funny.
A weekend full of great stuff saw the NY Rangers finally pay tribute to one of their greats, Jean Ratelle. His number 19 jersey will now hang in Madison Square Garden along with all the Ranger greats. It took too long and maybe if they hadn’t traded him to the hated Boston Bruins in the 70’s he wouldn’t have found a new home away from the Garden (he worked for Boston for 26 years.) Cheers to one of the true gentleman of the game.
There was plenty of late night viewing in my house the last two weeks as I was drawn into all of that Olympic coverage. And there were a ton of interesting stories coming from Korea but for me it was the curling. The U.S. Mens Curling Team struggle to the gold medal match and stunning victory was the best of the games for me. They’re nicknamed The Rejects and for them to come back and beat Canada twice and then win the gold has to be the feel good story of the games.
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