Their personal tribulations notwithstanding, Phil's wife's cancer diagnosis, and Daly's phoenix-like attempt to regain Tour status, the matching of this duo for the first two rounds of this week's St. Jude Classic would have been a scheduling coup. On it's own merits the tourney is but a US Open tune-up for the better players and a precious tee time for those trying to keep their cards. Phil typically doesn't play this event and Long John is playing for the 1st time on US soil since his alcohol induced suspension.
Phil's 7:27 AM, 10th hole tee time and Daly's 12:54 PM start from #1 couldn't be much farther apart. I suppose that this insures that ticket buying fans have a full day of activity. It also promises The Golf Channel an opportunity to showcase each player during their coverage of the first two rounds. That's an insurance policy against either or both stars missing the cut.
Phil's using this a a US Open warm-up after his necessary layoff. Daly's using it to regain playing privileges or to qualify for next week's US Open should he pull off the remarkable and win the damn thing. Regardless, both men offer a reason to watch what would otherwise be a "B Tour" event squashed between last week's Memorial Tournament and next week's Open. The bowling alley fairways of TPC Southwind in Memphis seem diametrically opposed to each man's game. For this Average Golfer, that only increases my desire to watch bombers. May they both play well, albeit for distinctly different reasons. However, if all the planets are in alignment, we might get the dream pairing on the weekend.
My results with writing about women's golf are less than stellar. Not to be confused of course with my results with women in general. Suffice it to say then that I'll leave this week's coverage of the McDonald's LPGA Championship to an expert. Head over to Mostly Harmless and read The Constructivist's live commentary and enjoy some of the best women's coverage on the web.
Til' next,
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