| re: < Note 354.5 by GENRAL::PERDUE >
� -< SHARK ! >-
�
� Norman, he's back, Look out don't go in the water yet.
� chp
According to the papers, Greg has decided not to play in The
International. Rumor has it he doesn't like the scoring system...
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| I love this Stableford format, Final day 18 guys tied for the lead.
I really felt for Jack he made a big mistake on his own course.
17 is either birdie eagle or bogey with this format.
That wind is very typical of golf out here very hard to predict
throughout a round.
Congratulations to Joey Sindelar +17, 9 birdies, 64 on the final
round. Most big tournaments have a Sunday round of Even to win...
Jeff
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| Just a review of this year's International...
I had the privilege of going to Friday's round. We got there about
8:00 AM and watched the pro's warm-up. Everyone one of them went
through the same basic routine.
1. Get out a a couple of irons, swing them together to get
loose. (about 5 minutes).
2. Start with pitching wedge and take easy shots a nearest flag.
(about 10 minutes)
3. Work up to mid irons, again VERY *EASY* swings, yet still
knocking the hide off the ball. (about 15 minutes)
4. Hit longs irons and fairway woods, same thing, very easy
swings, 200 - 300 yard shots (depending on the club). I'm
not kidding. I watched J.C. Snead hitting a fairway wood
out past the end of the driving range, uphill! I know the
altitude makes a difference, but these guys were incredable.
(20 - 30 minutes)
5. Hit some drives (15 - 20 minutes).
6. Some would practice bunker shots, some wouldn't.
7. Spend 15 - 20 minutes putting.
All in all, each one spent at least an hour warming up.
From there we went up to #1 tee and watched them tee-off. Again, easy
swings 250+ drives, some of the bigger hitters were 300+. However,
they are much more fluid and easy in person than you can tell on t.v.
I followed Nicklaus for about 4 holes (par, birdie, par, par) and then
followed others like Paul Azinger, Jeff Sluman, Fuzzy Zoeller, etc.
It was just amazing.
The course at Castle Pines was incredable too. The t.v. shots don't do
it justice. The fairways were cut such that they almost looked like a
plaid green (light and dark). The greens were fast, but not
unreasonable and were gorgeous. The setting on some holes with the
Rocky Mountain streams and pine trees was breath-taking.
The golf was excellent and with the modified Stableford system, the
tournament was exciting.
All in all, I'll remember this for a long time. I hope to get to go
next year too.
The highlight though was getting to see Jack Nicklaus, face to face as
he was coming from the #1 green to the #2 tee box. Not a big guy, but
you could see the concentration and determination as he walked by. He
played to the crowd (mostly the kids) some, but it was all business.
It really struck me, as he walked by, that here was the greatest golfer
in my lifetime. It gave me goose-bumps.
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