Short one this week on account of some early week travel and a flu bug on the homefront…

The WGC Mexico Championship was a welcome tweak to the schedule last season – vivacious crowds, golf at altitude, exotic locale, and the inherent satisfaction that Doral got kicked to the curb. Completely setting aside the entire Trump connection, I hated Doral as a tour venue. It was bland, bomber-friendly, and somewhat depressing with sparse crowds and the message that came through on tv was always “we’re having a tournament here because that’s way we’ve always done it.” Good riddance.

I’m not sure how good this course is in Mexico, but watching these guys on a new track take ridiculous lines is really fun.



— Adam Sarson (@Adam_Sarson) 

Club de Golf Chapultepec plays host for the second year in a row and refreshing in a bizarre way. Is it overgrown and a little too short? Absolutely. But I’m willing to overlook that because character and authenticity abound. There are some throwback holes out there, the greens are firm and the corridors provide opportunities for wild recoveries in a way that other back-and-forth courses like Firestone or Torrey do not. I don’t pretend to understand why this is the case or if I’m just giving it a free pass because the galleries are enthusiastic, the altitude is a cool wrinkle, and it rewards exceptional iron play (see: DJ and Fleetwood last year; Louis, X, Rahm, Sergio in the early going this year).

On a broader note, getting WGC’s outside of the United States is an essential element – hosting three of the four WORLD Golf Championships domestically left a bad taste. This was an encouraging step in the right direction for the tour (now let’s get one in Japan or back in Oz!)

Will have some additional takes this weekend, but in the early going it’s invigorating to see some of the Euro Tour guys who have been hot on that side of the pond early in the season continuing their form this week – (Paisley and Sharma) and then Aphibarnrat and Lipsky showing up big too. Fresh faces!

Hogan's 5 Dean & Deluca trophies are solid IMO, but Big Cat's 7 WGC Mexico titles despite never actually playing a tourney in Mexico still ?



— Tron Carter (@TronCarterNLU) 

I may be a sicko but my favorite part of WGC weeks is the requisite opposite field event. Our Euro correspondent, Job Fickett, 

 about this week’s European Tour oppo-taco event in South Africa. I’m bummed that Puerto Rico was cancelled (obviously bigger fish to fry down there right now so it was the right decision) and can’t help but lament the missed opportunity for up-and-comers and the so-called “other half” on TOUR. The PR Open is an annual warm-up for guys to get some solid reps in before the Florida/Texas events, establish momentum, and pad those FEC points for the priority ranking. Look back at past champs/runners-up and notice how many current stars jump-started their careers in PR. Easy to play “what if?”

Will have more as the weekend ramps up – enjoy Friday coverage in the meantime!

Weekly Briefing: WGC Mexico

, I mentioned that I’ll be getting more into Ryder Cup tracking in the forthcoming volumes–especially tracking the possible rookies for Team Europe. As a preview of the chord I’m trying to strike, let’s take a look at one guaranteed European first timer:

; and one likely pick for Jim Furyk: the “BigTabernacle” 

In Thursday’s first round of the WGC Mexico Championship, these fine young gentlemen put on a crash course of #TourSauce 101 in twenty-seven blissful seconds of golf coverage.

Let’s go frame-by-frame to demonstrate the anticipated sauciness of the upcoming Ryder Cup matches.

The sequence begins with possible USA Ryder Cup Rookie Tony Finau lining up a slightly sliding 12-footer. Not an easy putt, but one Tony probably expects to make about 1 out of every 3 attempts.

A slowly-creeping downhill putt meanders its way right of the hole. Finau, with five seconds to ponder the reaction, safely settles for an in-vogue sauce move: “The Umpire.” Solid form on the set-up, here:

 to release the wrist into a full-blown 

Bonus points to Webb Simpson for another saucy move: creeping in behind the putter to get a peak at the line after the putt has already stopped moving. (Y’all remember when Webb Simpson won the US Open and was on the 2012 Ryder Cup team? We are definitely in the worst of the parallel universes.)

Why do I say that it’s in vogue? Because Mr. Kizzire threw the hammer down on this move last week:

After the tap-in, Finau keeps it real with the absolutely crucial move of muttering “WOW” in pure disgust as he walks off the green after a two-putt par. The self-loathing has to be under one’s breath enough so that a playing competitor isn’t totally distracted while lining up his putt, but obviously mouthed enough to ensure the cameras pick it up clearly.

As if the previous 16 seconds of sauce weren’t enough, the good blokes at Golf Channel cut to the crème de la crème in the very next switch. Jon Rahm has this 18-incher for a ho-hum bogey after missing a 10-footer for par:

#Rahmthreat strikes the putt just fine. A putt he makes 99.999% of the time. It’s in as soon as he hits it. No drama.

Ohhhhhkaaaaaaayyy so he slid it in the side door a bit. Still–this putt is in the hole. I promise. I’m not trolling.

See! You can trust me! The ball is in the hole! AND YET: JON RAHM IS GOING FULL SPIKE-MARK BLAME AFTER A MADE PUTT:

Oh yeah, baby–that’s the good stuff. Full commitment. Head tilt. Mutter of “WOW” that the mic barely pics up, just like Finau. Checks 

Golf proverb I just made up: “The only problem with making it is you gotta bend over to pick it out of the damn hole.”

And here we are. Twenty-seven seconds. Two probable Ryder Cup rookies with family lineages that are nearly 180 longitudes apart. One common thread:

Ryder Cup: Sauce Forecast

Doing things a bit differently for this review since Tara Iti is too dope for WordPress. For the hole-by-hole course summary of Tara Iti, please visit the accompanying 

. This post accompanies the photo essay and delves into the backstory of the course, translates the ethos of the club and describes the experience beyond the course in detail.

The driveway is nearly unmarked and Google Maps doesn’t work for it. I had to use the satellite view to drop a pin on what I believed to be the clubhouse, then followed the blue dot as it moved. From there the drive entails a gravel road long enough to make you question whether you’re going the right way. Finally, a small sign points toward the clubhouse and to the course beyond.

Tara Iti is an intimate private club (that 

 possible for you to play! More on this later). Located about an hour and a half northeast of Auckland, Tara Iti hugs the east coast of New Zealand. After inquiring through the website about the possibility of taking a look at the course that 

 with a top 50 world ranking, I was lucky enough to receive an invite to stay, play, and get the full experience (and pay, for the haters out there).

When Los Angeles-based financier Ric Kayne bought 570 acres of beachfront land near the town of Mangawhai in 2012 (at the recommendation of his business partner, John Darby), it was nothing but a forest of non-indigenous pines. Kayne hired Tom Doak to design and build the golf course – no small task considering the density of the forest, and the difficulty of removing the stumps and underbrush.

I rolled up to the course the night before I was scheduled to play in order to take a tour of the grounds. My host was a gentleman named Jim Rohrstaff, and his enthusiasm for the club was evident from the beginning. He’d played 18 earlier that day, and was jacked up to take advantage of the beautiful weather by grabbing some clubs and showing me around a few holes. Jim was mid-sentence telling me a story when I saw 

 for the first time. He saw the expression on my face change, and realized I hadn’t seen the full setting yet. He stopped, realizing the shock I was going through: 

With temperatures in the 70’s and the best possible sunlight, this was easily the most fun I’ve ever had on a golf course without officially 

. Armed with a couple of red Solo cups, some range balls, a six iron, and a putter, we went for a memorable walk. We hit all manner of shots from a variety of yardages, putted around the punchbowl third hole, and toyed with the contours of the layout, which define the experience of the course.

I’ve been fortunate to see some truly amazing places, but this course spoke to me in a way that I can’t remember any other place (much less course) coming close to. The ocean is so blue that if you’d told me it was dyed I would’ve believed it. The color of the sand dunes juxtaposed against the infinite backdrop of waves makes the setting pop, but it is the 

 of the waves that makes it ethereal. Tara Iti is how I envision golf heaven.

Photos can give you a sense of what the course is like from a visual perspective. It’s as beautiful of a setting as you could imagine, and the land looks like it was destined to be a golf course. Beyond the imagery, the general ethos of Tara Iti instructs the entire experience. It’s like someone came up with a vision of golf’s perfect playground, put it in the most ideal setting you could envision, and sent you on your way.

Digging deeper into the ethos, Tara Iti is the opposite of stuffy. Make no mistake, it is a private members’ club that is made up of the elite of the elite and is the ultimate luxury experience. Membership is extended via invite only. The club goes by a code of, “we have no rules, but if you break one, we’ll let you know.” Many of my questions were answered with a, “Well, we don’t really share that information,” followed by a slight smirk.

One point that Jim stressed throughout the visit was how important it was for members to treat the staff well, as if that was one of the primary criteria for membership. Jim claimed that he knew all 62 staff members by name, and it was clear that he had a certain rapport with everyone we encountered, from the caddies, golf staff, and grounds crew to the servers in the restaurant. The staff was remarkably personable and friendly, yet seemingly never kissing your ass. They struck the perfect balance, and were truly invested in providing an authentic experience for members and guests alike.

Before arriving, I knew that Tara Iti did not get a lot of play. Even then, I was surprised at how there were barely any cars on site. Then I rolled past the putting green, which was surrounded by 

, and it all made sense. It would appear that the majority of members and visitors arrive to the course by chopper from Auckland, and the sound of helicopters taking off and landing would litter the air throughout my 24 hours on site.

I checked into my room for the night. As you would expect, it was incredible. The clubhouse is relatively modest (see below). Classy, airy, and simple, it struck a perfect chord with the rest of the property. Along those same lines, jeans are a common sight.

When you think you’ve already found the best place on earth, you find something else remarkable and unique. 

Oh hey, a cool wood fire oven attached to the back of a truck? Sweet, a garden that provides all of the vegetables for the compound? Cool, a traveling halfway house! LOL, alpacas and mini-ponies!?

Standing on the fifth tee box during that initial walk, Jim pointed out what appeared to be a sand dune between the fairway and the ocean. Except, it wasn’t a sand dune. Rather, it was an ocean suite complete with one of the most ridiculous views on earth, an outdoor hot tub, and a wall sized sliding door that can be opened up to the elements.

Sweetening the deal is a three hole whiskey loop that wraps around the clubhouse and never pushes you more than fifty yards from the bar. The first hole on the loop is a pitch from turf just off the 18th green to the practice green, where you play to the one full-sized flag on that green. The next pitch takes you from the first tee to the ninth green. Finally, you hit from the clubhouse patio back to the 18th green, right back to where you started.

The food menu was not extensive, but I soon learned that the off-menu options were the play. The staff knew Jim’s favorites, and he didn’t have to order dinner, it just sort of appeared. The most memorable part was the Hokey Pokey, a Kiwi desert consisting of vanilla ice cream with small chunks of honeycomb toffee.

When the sun set, it was time for a change in scenery and we headed over to the man gender-neutral cave containing a simulator, trackman, putting green, full bar, and a big screen television. Jim (after walking 18 holes earlier in the day and then playing host for another couple hours) fired up the simulator and we pounded balls into the screen as we sampled (and sampled, and sampled…) the beverage options.

Notice how long I’ve gone on talking without even mentioning the course? That’s how much of an impact this place had on me beyond the golf holes.

To (unnecessarily) sweeten the deal, golf can be played in this part of the world twelve months a year, with winter temperatures bottoming out around 50 degrees Fahrenheit. There are no tee times since the course doesn’t receive enough play to require the formality. If you want to go play as a sixsome, you can go play as a sixsome. And, while this isn’t really relevant to the experience most visitors will have, when I asked if I could stay after the round to shoot some more sunset footage, they could not have been more hospitable.

In a way, Tara Iti kind of ruined golf for me because I don’t think I’ll ever see anything this great again.

– Option 1: Get invited to be a member. Good luck with this one.

– Option 2: Get invited to be the guest of a member. More likely, but still tough. Your best option is going to be one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen regarding access to a private club…

– Option 3: Use your once-in-a-lifetime pass. You can cash in a once in a lifetime trip to Tara Iti (provided that you have a letter of recommendation from your club) to visit, (and pay handsomely, though consistent with other top courses in NZ such as Kauri Cliffs and Cape Kidnappers) to stay at the property and play the course. To get the process started, simply to go the 

, and Jim will review your application and get back to you (note that the club is able to accommodate visitors more frequently in the April to November timeframe).

The Tara Iti Experience

This week on The Eurozone, we head to the Republic of South Africa, and one of its three capital cities–Pretoria. Among other reasons, I’m stoked for a South African event this week because it is only 7 hours ahead of the East Coast, which means we are getting closer to the time of year when viewing for we Yanks becomes much easier. I love the land of Oz and the Middle East events are….alright I guess….but trying to watch them live is insane. As the season strolls along, and we get closer to continental Europe taking over the bulk of the schedule, getting to watch live golf on Saturday and Sunday mornings is a real treat. Unfortunately, we also start to see the Euro fields get somewhat watered down as bigger events on the PGA Tour start drawing the dual members.

(Austin CC is alright; Chapultepec, Firestone, and Sheshan are meh), but despite their obvious status as “Billy Joe and Bobby Sue” events, there’s something to be said for the ridiculous strength of field and the way the cream always seems to rise on Sunday afternoon. They’re entertaining! And that’s the point!

Ducks as Tron throws one of the shoes he’s definitely NOT wearing during the live show at my head from across the Killhouse living room

With that said, another reason I look forward to the WGCs is the fact that there are opposite field events on the PGA and European Tours that give a wide variety of journeymen, rookies, comeback kids, and aging veterans a chance to juice their seasons. Maybe the average golf fan couldn’t give less of a damn about opposite field events, and I get it. But you are not the average golf fan. You’re reading an alternative golf media blog about the European Tour. You might be a sick individual with far too much time on your hands. You’re here for the deep dive. Let’s go to Tshwane.

The Tshwane Open, played at Pretoria Country Club (Tshwane is the “metropolitan municipality” of which Pretoria is a part), is a relatively recent add to the Ronnie “Sunshine” Bass Tour schedule, having debuted in 2013. Despite its relative youth, and its location on the schedule as an opposite field event, the tournament gets the enviable “co-sanctioned” status with the European Tour, meaning a larger purse, more television exposure, and a better field than the average week on the Sunshine Tour.

Another great thing about the co-sanctioned events in South Africa is that they shine a deserving spotlight on the Rainbow Nation’s golf tour. Moreover, these events tend to produce native South African winners at an astonishing clip. The Tshwane Open’s list of champions highlights this fact beautifully.

Granted, there are a larger number of South Africans entering these events than of any other nationalities. Nonetheless, that list of winners (even in 2014, Danie van Tonder finished runner-up to Fisher) is pretty awesome. One of the underrated things about the European Tour is the opportunity to see players raise their games for tournaments in their home countries or their national opens. Experiencing Rory getting into the zone for the 2016 Irish Open, seeing Francesco Molinari win the Italian Open in 2016 and then nearly defend the title in 2017, and watching the Mechanic make a late-career charge in 2014’s Open de Espana just rustles something inside me. It’s hard to explain. The South Africans rise to the occasion, too.

Globalist Gary’s Gilded Gaggle of Golfers

I cannot get too deep into Gary Player this week, because I need to save it for the ROASTY takes you’ll get on next week’s golf course at the Hero Indian Open. We’re going to get the welding helmet out for that one.

Globalist Gary takes #supportingthetroops to the next level. Also, shoutout Elise Lobb, Jacksonville Golf and Country Club’s finest! (Photo cred: irishmirror.ie)

But, putting aside his golf course design philosophies, general Twitter thirstiness, and washboard abs, Gary Player’s legacy is unmatched by nearly everyone to ever pick up a club. Although a comparison to Tiger is always risky and never quite perfect, what Player did to popularize the game around the world–and particularly in his native South Africa–was borderline Tiger-esque.

Player’s persona, presence, longevity, and competitive streak–much like those same attributes in Tiger–inspired a nation to play the game of golf. Somehow, despite a stable of familiar names to even the casual golf fan, I think the golf community as a whole (or at least in the United States) underrates South Africa as golfing powerhouse. Much of this has to do with the substantial number of under-the-radar guys that play on the European and Sunshine Tours full time, decreasing their overall visibility. However, one of the reasons I love writing this column is that I get a chance to correct that! Allow me to introduce you to a couple of these lesser-known South Africans.

How do you say ‘Not-Defending Champion’ in Afrikaans?

“Nie verdedigende kampioen nie” in case you were wondering.

The Nie verdedigende kampioen nie this week is Zimbabwean-born-turned-South African, 

. Finishing second to Brandon Stone in the 2017 Sunshine Tour Order of Merit rankings netted Burmester a chance to tee it up at the WGC-Mexico this week. The OWGR-134th ranked stalwart of the South African circuit has had steady, if unassuming, results so far in 2018. Although he has played well on the African continent, Burmester has only mustered a T40 at Abu Dhabi, T22 at Dubai, and a missed cut at the Malaysian Cobra Pit (TM) for his three most recent European Tour sanctioned events.

Dean Burmester, doing his best impersonation of the Black Knight, celebrates after winning the Tshwane Open at Pretoria Country Club. (Photo Cred: Warren Little/Getty Images)

Last year’s final round of the Tshwane Open, which Burmester won by three strokes, was fueled by his front-nine 29 in the final round, and a cruise-controlled back half that saw Burmester secure full status on the European Tour this year after barely missing out on securing his card at Q-school only a few months prior. Although he will not be defending his title at Pretoria Country Club this week, Burmester will look to make the most of an opportunity to play the PGA Tour/European Tour co-sanctioned event in Mexico City. Given he can just show up, hit one tee shot, and collect about 1/3 of the prize money he took home last year for winning the Tshwane Open, I can’t really blame him for abdicating the title.

, meaning last place will pocket a cool $50,500. Thanks for stopping by.



— Will Gray (@WillGrayGC) 

Ducks as Tron, in a murderous rage, throws the other shoe he’s definitely NOT wearing during the live show at my head as I take cover behind the couch**

So with Burmester knee deep in the #toursalsa verde this week, I’d like to direct your attention to a South African 

. If it were up to me, I’d borrow that ‘e’ from Porteous’ last name and fit it snugly right in between that ‘d’ and ‘n’ in his first name. I can only assume that his parents were Johannesburg’s equivalent of Brooklyn hipsters to bestow the spelling of “Haydn” on young Mr. Porteous. But I digress.

Porteous, at 23, is already a two-time winner on the European Tour, with his first win coming in his hometown in 2016 at the Joburg Open. Rounding into some good form at the end of the 2017 campaign, Porteous won the D+D REAL Czech Masters last September. The win netted him €166,660 and some comfort to make his own schedule yet again for 2018.

Thus far in 2018, Porteous has had mixed results. Although he posted a T19 and a T26 in Dubai and Oman, respectively, those solid finishes find themselves nestled between missed cuts in Malaysia and last week in Qatar. Nonetheless, Porteous harbors a beautiful, smooth tempo in his swing. On top of that, he is consistently one of the more reliable putters on Tour, averaging under 1.77 putts per GIR each year of his career. When you watch his putting stroke, it’s easy to see how he fills it up with ease. A long, languid backstroke and a silky smooth release get the ball rolling on line more often than not. A thing of beauty.

I like Porteous to take his velvety move back to the winner’s circle in his native country this week, and expect that it could launch him into another strong run at the Race to Dubai for 2018.

Porteous may be primed to take flight in Pretoria this week. (Photo cred: Zimbio)

This week, rather than get steep on the architecture side of things, I elected to do a double player profile. One reason is that Pretoria Country Club has some really interesting interactive layouts, course tours, and hole descriptions on its 

. I highly recommend you take a few minutes to look at that if you’re interested in familiarizing yourself with the venue. I plan to have it open on my computer while I watch the coverage this weekend so I can follow along with the holes as they are being played.

As a brief overview, Pretoria CC plays to a par 71 of just over 7000 yards. Still, the course presents itself as one of the more difficult tests in the early season schedule, as many of the holes are narrowly pinched by some truly intimidating bunkering.

Let’s avoid the left side of this hole, yes? (Photo cred: Golf Channel)

As you can see from this photo, many of the bunkers are truly D.A.F./1 shot penalties, and they punctuate a landscape that is home to some pretty heavily undulating but small green complexes. I suspect we’ll see lots of irons off tees this week and playing to position, as a number of the par 4s are under 425 yards, with four such holes playing less than 390.

Next week, we’ll be adding a new feature to The Eurozone. I’m going to start tracking the European Ryder Cup contingent in greater detail, and specifically, I’m going to focus on the players who are would-be Ryder Cup rookies at Le Golf National. My goal is to try my hand at putting together the list of Europeans that are most likely to make the team as rookies, guys who may be dark horses for a spot on Bjorn’s squad, and to accurately predict the captain’s picks as the season goes on. I’m still working out the details, and there is much more to come on this front. Stay tuned!

Golf Channel is manning four full days of coverage this week, starting with 3:30 to 5:30 AM live coverage on March 1-2, with additional live coverage from 7:30 to 10:30 AM.

For Saturday and Sunday, GC will be showing live golf from 5:00 to 9:30 AM.

The Eurozone:  #5 (The Opposite Field of Dreams)

For veteran fans of the European Tour, this year’s iteration of early-season schedule represented a circular shuffle of events compared to years past. Most of those changes were made to account for the complicated geopolitical realities of the Gulf states and the current embargo situation confronting Qatar (

 from last year when things really started to flare up). This week’s Commercial Bank Qatar Masters rolls into the Doha Golf Club with a little less luster than in previous years owing to the drama. Occasionally, the real world throws an inconvenient banana slice into seemingly innocuous corners of daily life, including the odd professional golf tournament. Last week’s playing of the inaugural Oman Open (shoutout Uncle Joost) was a late add as a buffer/stopover to the 2018 circuit.

Qatar is, in many ways, at the forefront of the modernization arms race in the Middle East. The city of Doha, with a population of 1.5 million (greater than 60% of the small nation’s overall population), is one of the richest metropolitan areas in the world. It’s also home to some #badhombres.

Although this is barely going to scratch the surface, here’s a brief synopsis.

On June 5, 2017, several countries comprising the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) withdrew their diplomats and cut off diplomatic relations with Qatar, seemingly out of nowhere. Among these was the United Arab Emirates, Qatar’s greatest regional rival with regard to urbanization, transportation, foreign investment portfolio diversification, attempts to “Westernize” banking and economic policies, and, painfully, human rights violations. Nonetheless, the UAE–along with Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Egypt–banded together to isolate Qatar, insisting that the Qataris are state sponsors of terrorism.

The Saudis primarily led the charge, conveniently relying upon the backing of the United States (which, arguably, is more interested in adversarial proceedings with Iran and Turkey; both sided with Qatar). Although these regional rivalries are hundreds–if not thousands–of years old, the most recent iteration has layers of complication influenced as much by technological advancements since the last major Gulf conflict of the early 1990s as by general saltiness. Qatar’s state-sponsored Al Jazeera media network only adds fuel to the fire.

Don’t believe me? UAE decided that Doha-based Qatar Airlines (which also happens to be a primary business rival to both Etihad (Abu Dhabi) and Emirates (Dubai) for transcontinental Middle Eastern hub traffic–absolutely no coincidence there, I’m sure) would be shut out of its airspace indefinitely. Oman, on the other hand, has mostly sought to remain neutral, and has continued normalized relations with Qatar. Normalized relations mean connecting flights, resulting is some wack shit like this:

Before you aviation nerds chime in with “

Actually, commercial flights rarely fly in straight lines between departure and destination

” let me just say “I know, dawg,” and look at that map! Qatar 1127 had to fly out over the Gulf and completely bypass UAE’s airspace. This used to be a 1 hr 10 minute flight!

For the added 40 minutes of flying time, however, was actually a convenient loophole for the European Tour’s schedule planners. The schedule in early 2017, before the diplomatic crisis began, had the Qatar Masters sandwiched between Abu Dhabi and Dubai on the calendar. As the crisis is still ongoing, there are no flights to or from either major city in UAE to Doha.

By adding the Oman Open directly before the Qatar Masters, it allowed for the players committed to both events a direct flight between Muscat and Doha, making travel significantly cheaper and more convenient for players and their #squads. Good on the European Tour for making this adjustment and awarding an interesting and authentic destination like Oman an event, rather than creating unnecessary travel stress and expense.

Designed in 1997, Doha Golf Club is strikingly similar to the host venue in Abu Dhabi. Unsurprisingly, the same firm designed both courses (

) and seems to deliver a consistent, if vanilla, product. I think I’m deserted-out, and I’ve also been knee deep in it at work this week, so I’ll just leave this here:

Coverage starts at 4:00am both Saturday and Sunday. Spaniard Adrian Otaegui (-11) leads at the halfway point, with fifteen players currently within three shots of the lead, including three of his fellow Spaniards in Larrazabal, Quiros, and Fernandez-Castano. Friend of the NLU Pod Eddie Pepperell is one back.

The trophy for this event is one of the most unique anywhere in the golfing world. Before the oil boom, Qatar’s primary economic driver was the harvesting of pearls. The Qatar Masters winner gets a trophy that reflects Qatar’s history as a pearl producing powerhouse.

We’ll be back to normal next week with a full-scale preview of the Tshwane Open and some color to add to the host venue of the concurrent WGC Mexico Championship.

The Eurozone: #4 (Diplomatic Pearl Clutching)

Not a ton of enthusiasm from the NLU camp about this week’s Honda Classic. Maybe we’re all hungover from the West Coast Swing and deep into some special #projects this week, but it’s a low-T situation.

The arc of this tournament is an interesting study, with the profile ebbing and flowing with the quality of the host venue. To sum it up…

The “Honda” kicked off in 1972 as “Jackie Gleason’s Inverrary Classic.” Weiskopf prevailed that year over Nicklaus (the first of Jack’s three runner-up finishes here, along with two victories). Honda came along ten years later as title sponsor and has stuck with the tournament through thick and thin for 35 years now. Shoutout to them for that.

There has been a lot of thin, mostly due to shitty host venues. Inverrary Country Club played host from ’72 to ’83 before the tournament decamped to TPC Eagle Trace up in Coral Springs in 1984. After eight years at Eagle Trace it shifted over to Weston Hills for a four-year stint, then back to Eagle Trace for a year. In 1997 the powers that be locked the tournament into TPC Heron Heroin Bay for six years, 

. Things didn’t go well. The Country Club at Mirasol (a Faz/Hills 36-hole project) hosted from ’03-’06. This whole saga reads like a bad foster care story.

Then, in 2007, the tournament moved across the street to PGA National and seemingly found a forever home, with loving parents in a solid neighborhood.

I hope I’m wrong, but I can’t help but think this event peaked over the past few years and is now backsliding. Between the ascendance of the Valspar on the Florida Swing, Riviera re-asserting itself as one of the premier stops (the week prior) and some scheduling rigamarole created by the WGC’s, the Honda’s begun to show some signs of slowing down. Each year the field is highly touted but doesn’t seem to feature the depth of say Riv or Memorial. Big Cat (this will be his fifth appearance), Rickie and Rory mask some flaws. Couple the scheduling challenges with the course low-key stinking (extra-penal Faz + Nicklaus re-do… no-thanks), especially in contrast to last week’s strategic orgy at Riviera, and the ceiling just isn’t very high.

The stretch of 15-16-17 was glossed “The Bear Trap” (not to be confused with “The Snake Pit” at Valspar or the “The Trap House” at East Lake) and is really freaking hard. 

Here’s the write-up of the actual holes.

The tournament is seemingly trying to turn the 17th hole into a knock-off of 16 at Phoenix and trying to amp up the fun, but subbing the laid back west coast-ish vibe of Phoenix for the aggro-bros of South Florida. 

Here’s Randall Mell rolling in and flaming the copycat nature of this situation.

 I’ve got a few good Honda memories around friend-of-the-program Luke Guthrie. He finished third in 2013 for his best finish on Tour, but also played with the Big Cat during his hullaballoo of a WD the next year. (sidenote: Between Luke banishing Cat from the Bear Trap and Zac Blair intimidating him into shooting 85 at Memorial, it’s possible the NLU Mafia is the one adversary/rival Tiger has craved his entire career. More to come on this.)

 No real memories. Honda Classic has always been very ‘faux’ for me. Faux excitement: 

(That’s not exciting; I’m sad the West Coast swing ended). Faux nickname (Stop trying to make The Bear Trap happen). Faux signature hole and energy (3 overly difficult holes to finish the course? Cool, Jack). Faux energy (This isn’t and never will be 16 at Waste Management).

That said, I think Honda is a fitting sponsor for a mid-tier event on a course that seems to run together for me with The Blue Monster (and most other courses in southern Florida). Really green, really long, and lots of water. I’ll probably get drunk in Brooklyn this weekend and not watch, meaning I’ll have the same take next year with few lasting memories.

 Rory’s complicated history with this event. On the one hand there’s his win in ’12 to become No. 1 and the overtly sexual five-wood he hit on the 72nd hole in ’14 to get into a playoff. On the other hand you have the “toothgate” saga of 2013, when he withdrew after 27 holes (despite the advice of playing partner Ernie Els), citing a wisdom tooth issue, and everyone was subsequently out on Rory for a few weeks.

 Dude, I have no Honda takes. I’m always spent after the West Coast Swing. Didn’t Mark Wilson win here one year?

 fresh off a year on the eGolf Tour sticks out. But Rory Sabbatini’s duel with Y.E. Yang in 2011 stills rings in my loins. Sabbo entered Sunday with a five -shot lead but ended up gutting it out, parrying blow after blow from Yang’s arsenal of hybrids and woods.

– The Monday Qualifiers for Honda and Phoenix should get world ranking points. Here’s Smartin 

– Solid sponsor exemptions this week – Aphibarnrat (!!!!), Sam Burns, Dylan Frittelli, Denny McCarthy, Cam Triangle, and Bernd Weisberger.

– Fleetwood in the field again, which is exhilarating. But the field feels a little top-heavy. Just not as much depth as you’d like to see.

Here’s a *scathing* review of Jack Nicklaus’ Ice Cream

 from a mom blogger. You’ll undoubtedly hear about the ice cream on the broadcast during one of Jack’s half dozen or so hours spent in the booth. Huge. Needed it.

Admittedly this tournament raises a ton of money for the local children’s hospital, so good on Jack for that.

– Featured groups for PGA Tour Live: Thursday: JT, Sergio, Berger; Cat, Snedeker, Kizzire; Friday: Fowler, Reed, Kisner; Rory, Scott, Harrington. Sign me up.

– No Champions or Web this week. Euro Tour is in Qatar. Job’s getting #ejected at work this week so we will have a short weekend viewing guide up sometime Thursday.

– CBS on the coverage this week due to NBC Olympics. We’ll be firing up a pre-game show at some point and then a post-game show on Sunday. Curious to see how CBS fares doing an event with which they have limited experience.

Weekly Briefing: Honda Classic

Tiger Woods is teeing up for the second time this season at the Genesis Open at Riviera Country Club near LA. Paired with Rory McIlroy and Justin Thomas, the 7:22 tee time struggled to get their momentum going, with each of them struggling in different ways.

For the Big Cat, it was with the driver. He drove it horrendously at Torrey Pines a few weeks ago and was wild again today (at least on the front nine). At Torrey, some of his tee shots were so bad they ended up right of the trouble, or far enough down the hole that the punishment was less severe. At Riviera, poor tee shots are punished much more severely, and Tiger paid the price. Let’s dive in.

Coming off a lay-up birdie at No. 10 (his first), he predictably went to the driver on the par-5 11th. Hard to fault the decision here, as a wayward drive here would typically mean you’re just laying up with your second. Woods went so far right that his ball either hung up in a tree, or got lost in the barranca. He had to Uber back to the tee to fire another one, and it quickly led to a double.

Pre 8 a.m., the 475-yard 12th is even tougher. Again, hard to fault him for going to the driver here, but it again missed comically right, and led to another bogey.

Another long par-4, the 15th, required a driver in Tiger’s eyes. Again missing way right and out of position (the left side of this hole is far more favorable), he made yet another bogey. To this point in his round, his only over-par holes had come with driver in hand. It’s most definitely worth noting that these lengthy fours that semi-require the driver (especially in the heavy early morning air) are some of the toughest holes on the golf course, but Woods wasn’t even close to finding Position A.

Things started to turn for the Big Cat on 17, where he hit the fairway with the driver. Following a solid lay up, he flipped a wedge in tight and rolled in his third birdie of the nine. Similar to the 11th, this hole wasn’t very reachable, so taking driver here didn’t give him much of an advantage. He had to lay up despite poking one out there even with JT.

Finding a groove now, he splits the fairway on the demanding 18th.

Through nine, he sat at -1.863 strokes gained off the tee, which put him at 71st out of the 72 players on the course.

He took 3-wood off the downhill par-5 1st, and calmly stroked one 301 yards down the center. But on the 475-yard par-4 2nd, he went back to the driver and again went wayward, this time for his only left miss.

An absolute stripe with the driver on the third.

After missing the fairway with less than driver on No. 5, he next pulled the driver on 8 and split the fairway. He flipped a wedge in from there to four feet and made his fifth birdie of the day.

To wrap up his morning, Woods took a lash at one on the 464-yard uphill ninth, and played the first hole for the second time on the day.

As of this point in his day, there were 84 players on the course, and Woods ranked 77th in strokes gained off the tee. Of course this stat includes all of his tee shots and not just the ones with the big stick.

Ironically, on two of the holes where driver was the more questionable decision (3 and 8), he piped it. It was the holes that were more demanding with the driver that caused Tiger the most trouble.

Overall, he hit the fairway four out of nine times with the driver, and played those holes in 2-under. On the five fairways he missed with the driver, he was 4 over.

With the way Cat sprayed it today, we’re all pretty thrilled that he got around in 72. The big takeaways (if you can have them after just one round) is that – like Torrey – he had moments of rust and moments of brilliance. His putting continues to impress and is far beyond what I expected in the early going.

ROUND 1 STATS (at the time of his finish):

Strokes gained: Off the tee: -1.473 (98th/105)

Strokes gained: Tee to green: -1.863 (93rd/105)

Strokes gained: Approach: -0.502 (75th/105)

Strokes gained: Putting: 1.789 (12th/105)

Tiger's driver woes continue at Riviera

The first major of the year is upon us! Every year the Riviera stop (whatever the nom du jour) is undoubtedly the anchor of the West Coast Swing and of the first two months of the golf schedule at large. 

 with (at least) six holes that are among the best on the entire tour, Pacific Palisades looks sublime on tv as those elsewhere soldier through the doldrums of winter, and the weekend leaderboard is usually a cornucopia of flavor. In the interest of efficiency (and let’s be honest: whenever you have a chance to link to the big homie over at SBNation, Brendan Porath, you take it) 

here is a great primer on why the 2018 iteration of the Genesis Open might be the best yet.

 There are specific results which stand out in my memory (Mickelson’s two wins, Haas in the playoff, the John Merrick sleeper cell incident, etc.) but it always comes back to the course for me. Only Augusta is more inherently interesting year-in and year-out. Love this week. Can’t wait to strap in and be a fan this weekend. Riv is my happy place.

 Can’t decide if the actual moment is my favorite Riv memory or if I just love the ensuing GIF that much: Keegan makes a 40-foot birdie putt on the 72nd hole to force a playoff with Haas. Mickelson then makes a huge putt of his own to get into the playoff and chases it into the cup. Then this dude just rolls down the hill behind the green in celebration. Incredible. Haas ended up winning the playoff on the 10th hole (complete with one of the least emphatic celebrations of all time), but that GIF will live on forever.

 The 10th hole is obviously all-world and offers options galore. Of course, one of those options is to dump it in the back bunker and then card a triple-Saddam en route to a double bogey six, as Scott Piercy did in 2015.

My earliest real memory of Riv goes hand in hand with the creation of NLU. As a casual golf fan 2014 was the first time I stopped to figure out where Riv was actually located and listen to Randy and Tron wax poetic about the course. Simultaneously, the 2014 Riviera preview was when I realized NLU was offering value because I learned a lot about the tournament, it’s history, and the course from reading that write-up. The key attributes highlighted in that piece (view off #1 tee and the risk/reward of #10) stick with me four years later… Another lasting memory is the ’17 event, when I kept asking myself who/what the hell the title sponsor was. Genesis is proof that sponsoring a classy golf tournament can create some significant #BrandAwareness.

I write this while catching up on Vanderpump Rules (guilty pleasure), nursing a bottle of Au Bon Climat Pinot Blanc (not-so-guilty pleasure, shoutout to the GOAT Jim Clendenen) and ruminating on Riviera’s geographic location between the jazz and jive of LA and even-tempered points west-northwest along the California Coast. Los Angeles is the only place I’ve been in the United States that truly feels like going to a foreign country. Other than golf, Top Chef, and stuff on PBS I don’t watch a whole lot of tv, but I relish the mindless hour I spend watching Vanderpump Rules every week. VPR transports me to the incongruity of LA and the people who end up there seemingly by destiny.

Unfortunately I’ve never had the occasion to play golf during my trips to LA. For four days each February I sit here reveling in the tv coverage of Riviera and the accompanying convocation of flavor. This tournament is golf’s answer to Vanderpump Rules: it transports me to LA like nothing else can. As Porath mentioned in his column, golf doesn’t stop often enough in these parts. We’re left with fleeting glimpses of LA Country Club (last year’s Walker Cup), Sherwood (Big Cat’s Hero World Challenge decamped to the Bahamas in recent years), and stalwarts like Lakeside, Wilshire and Bel-Air are left to the imagination. Much like San Francisco, the trees are cool, the weather always looks refreshing compared to wherever you are, and the top shelf private golf is massively underrepresented on the national scene. Digging deeper under that glossy veneer there isn’t much else there – the public golf scene is reportedly nonexistent due to soaring real estate costs, water scarcity and traffic. That sounds a lot like the stars of our show…

Since my VPR take probably won’t resonate with most of you, I reached out to a few people with deep LA golf ties to expound upon the scene:

Kevin Jackson (NLU contributor; Member, Georgetown Hoyas Golf Team):

I rolled into SoCal in my freshman year of high school, fresh off 14 years in the suburbs of Atlanta. Nothing says “welcome to LA” like the two hour drive from LAX to…anywhere. My angsty teenage self immediately resolved to 1) cut my hair once a year (some regrettable school photographs were taken) and 2) play as much golf as possible in the blissful Mediterranean climate. I met people who genuinely have not heard of rain gear. Also met people who didn’t know that Atlanta was in Georgia, but that might be a different issue. While my lack of pop in these tender years would have given ZJ a run for his money, I enjoyed LA’s status as a sanctuary of excellent golf. LACC, Bel-Air, Lakeside and of course, Riv, which is the perfect example of a course with 18 truly exceptional holes. No weak spots. Best of luck to the players this week as they try to brave the 70 degree weather and cool evening breezes.

Geoff Shackelford (esteemed golf author; CEO/COO/CCO of the aptly named 

My take on LA golf is very dark so I probably would not be good on this. I live here for the weather, culture, food and way of life. It’s an awful golf town on all levels other than the passionate public players who are treated like crap by course operators! A real bummer especially given a great history but how like our country, a few places for the super rich and the rest terribly run down and uninspired places that would inspire few to play. Only sustaining factors for golf here are the sheer numbers of people and our weather.

Bo DeHuff (Senior Manager, Tournament Business Affairs – PGA Tour; Former Captain – USC Trojans Golf Team):

Here is the best part about playing for SC, and all things LA. I remember one day we played Bel-Air in the morning on a random weekday morning. Lovemark and I only had one class that afternoon and so we were like, “Let’s go play Riv this afternoon, why not?” So we skipped class and had a day. 36 holes at two of the best courses in the world in sublime weather (most of the time when we’d play Riv it would be dark thirty off 10 tee and the course plays so hard with that dense morning air and breeze into the face on 18). Even in LA there are not many people who are members at both those courses, but we got to beat the system…Another time at Riv we were teeing off on 1 and Larry David rolls out of the pro shop face masked in SPF 200. We proceeded to have the most awkward conversation that felt straight out of Curb:

 “Really, is it possible to be that great?”

 (shrugs and saunters off toward the parking lot)

 component of the event. Also a huge fan of this year’s champion on that front – Smokin’ Scottie Scheffler. More tournaments should adopt something similar.

– Sponsor Exemptions: I promise I’m working on a season-long master document tracking exemptions on the PGA Tour and which tourneys use these most effectively. Deep in the #process.

the third installment of his Eurozone column

 and gets steep on this week’s Greg Norman designed host venue in Oman.

– We’ve got stats from the last two years of weekend Genesis coverage in our arsenal – shots shown, total commercial time, etc. This weekend is a great opportunity for CBS to showcase genuine improvement in the product. If they fail, then we stand ready to pounce with #data.

– Aside from the stout American contingent headlined by a large feline, the field also boasts, Pieters, Li, Pacemaker, Future World Number 1 Tommy Fleetwood, Grace, Kaymer, Rafa and Noren. The field list is silly. I think Hossler is still vibing, Big Leish is searching a bit, Howell III loves this place, man I could go on for days. I want to pick 25 guys and that’s not even the big names. My dude Every should be rounding into form this week or next.

– The only glaring omission in the field is “Uncle Joost” Luiten, esp with Uncle Juice’s former Brentwood Estate just a couple blocks away from the front drive.

– Couple of golden Randy takes from this week that he didn’t share with the general populace:

• “Ted Potter Jr. looks like if Florida’s Stand Your Ground Law were a person.”

• “Johnny Weir could be the best analyst in all of sport. No lie. Dude is composed AF, always short and to the point, and straight-up mugs the camera.

– I didn’t wake up on Monday morning intent on destroying Lee McCoy’s Twitter account. 

McCoy posted something I felt was needlessly tone-deaf, I made light of it and provided some context, and then scrolled through about ten more of his tweets from the week which showed a similar pattern, and then he continued to dig himself a hole until he apologized and then deleted his Twitter account. I’m originally from Atlanta and started to hear stories trickling out of UGA about four years ago about McCoy – some good, some not so good – and took them with a grain of salt. Those stories have only intensified since then.

Over the past two days a variety of people have reached out to affirm the decision to make light of his comments in Colombia. These people range from players throughout the professional ranks ranging from the Mackenzie Tour to the PGA Tour, caddies, fans who followed him last year in Canada, college teammates, childhood acquaintances, club pros at courses he’s frequented, equipment reps, agents, media, and tour officials. Many of those who reached out are people I trust implicitly. A trend of treating people poorly emerged. It speaks volumes when fellow players go out of their way on social media to air a guy out.

I have no intention to be the PC Police (far from it!). I mess up all the time, as most of us do. I’m not going to torch a guy for one mistake. If a guy is willing to consistently throw inflammatory shit out on social media then it’s fair game.

McCoy’s talent is immense and his confidence/arrogance is likely a big reason why he’s experienced success, ascended to the Web Tour, and likely onward to the PGA Tour next year. Heck, often success rubs people the wrong way, especially if a guy does it a little bit differently. But the reaction of his peers showed that McCoy’s reputation was probably well-earned. However, Lee is just 24 years old and possesses the capacity to learn from this. I sincerely look forward to seeing if/how he evolves, summons some grace and turns this into a redemptive story. Lord knows we need more guys with personality and flash out there on the big tour.

 is flying down from NYC for the weekend. We’ll be playing some golf and posting up in the Killhouse. Enjoy the Big Cat!

Weekly Briefing: Genesis Open

Full disclosure: We’ve got a brand new event in Oman this week, so there is no defending champion, no relevant history, and no reason to speculate about how it might go. Therefore, in this installment of The Eurozone, we’re going to be architecture heavy, diving into the host course, 

Writing

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Weekly Briefing: Honda Classic

Tiger's driver woes continue at Riviera

Weekly Briefing: Genesis Open

The Eurozone: #3 (All give, but no scalding take)

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