We were really late on our preview, so I figured I’d share some quick thoughts on the opening round of The Open Championship.

 Rory was surgical in the morning, and helped anyone who backed him at 20/1 to be the first round leader cash their ticket. The conditions were much easier in the morning, but he didn’t have a 5 on his card until he parred the par-5 finishing hole. But hey, have you guys heard about Rory’s Friday struggles? Do yourself a favor and search “Rory Friday” on twitter to read a bunch of HOT takes on his now extremely well documented 2nd round disappointments. It certainly has been a trend, but I don’t think it’s much more than a coincidence. I think he’ll be just fine tomorrow, and shoots something in the 69-70 range. We should also note that it looks like the guys who got the early/late draw look to get the better conditions tomorrow as well, but of course that is subject to change.

 Henrik Stenson is a boss. Not only does he snap his wedge over his leg, check out how casual he is as he hands it to is caddie, as if this kind of thing happens all of the time. Is this a new #TourSauce? (Courtesy of 

 I’m guessing Bryden MacPherson wishes the Open Championship website didn’t post pictures with their scorecards. We’ve got an early leader in the clubhouse for Oil Spill of the Week:

 Bubba was a child again, complaining about all of the people walking around in the fairway after a bad shot, then imploding on his own. His “All I want to do is play golf” line was comical considering he was, you know, 

 when he said it. The guy is constant entertainment whether he’s balling out or falling apart, and he acts like he’s the only guy in the 156 man field that has to play in front of a gallery. #PrayForTedScott

 That leaderboard! Big Cat surprised me with a 69 (go ahead, make your joke), and it could have been even better if it wasn’t for a slow start. It was interesting to see him hitting a fair amount of draws, and needless to say, we hope he maintains it throughout the weekend. I don’t think there is enough there for him to seriously contend and win this thing, but having him in the hunt will give a serious boost to a season that has been otherwise very easy to forget. Sergio played the par-5’s in even par but still shot a 68 (what do we have to do to get a Tiger/Sergio pairing for this weekend?). NLU homeboy Brooks Koepka follows up his strong US Open finish with a 68 as well. Scotty, Manassero, Matsuyama, and Fowler all in the top-10 as well has me geeking out.

 Zach Johnson did this, which I still don’t understand, but can’t stop watching:

Open Championship: Thursday Roundup

We’ll cut straight to the good stuff this week, that being the news of the Reno-Tahoe Open, crown jewel of the illustrious Paychex Cup, securing title sponsorship. Starting this year 

it’ll be known as the Barracuda Championship

. No word yet on Vaughn Taylor’s reaction.

Now on to the lesser business, the 2014 Open Championship…

The Open (as an American, can I call it just “The Open,” or am I obligated to insert “British”? You know what, we don’t care. Let’s just play the tournament) is back to Royal Liverpool for the first time since Big Cat’s triumphant march of long-irons in 2006.

Perhaps the most interesting thing about Royal Liverpool is it’s location. As in, where the hell is it, exactly? You’ll probably read that it’s in Merceyside, England. Conversely, you’ll probably hear that it’s in Hoylake. But compounding this is the course name, Royal 

, implying yet another location. I had to take a deep plunge into Wikipedia to get this all straightened out…

Merseyside, as it turns out, is a county in northwest England. So the course is within its boundaries, but it’d be like identifying Pebble Beach as located in California, USA. Drilling down to the town the links is located in, we get the answer Hoylake. So Hoylake is also a correct answer. Best I can tell, Hoylake is a suburb of sorts to Liverpool, which is the nearest metropolitan area, hence the 

 moniker. So I guess all three are valid locations in one sense or another. And with that said, I regret wasting ten minutes of my life on this pursuit.

So the course itself is a stereotypical seaside Links layout. Not much more needs to be said beyond that. The big question marks, as always, will be the wind and weather. In 2006 the wind stayed down, it was dry, and as a result the course was baked-out, firm, and fast (hence Tiger keeping the Big Dog sheathed).

According to the R&A, there have been 13 bunkers removed, leaving the total at 82. Also of note, the routing for the Open Championship differs from the normal course routing. #1 this week usually is #17 for the members, while #18 is usually #16. So there’s that, if you ever have the opportunity to play Royal Liverpool. The finishing par 5 has all the potential in the world to produce some serious drama come Sunday, but I’m hoping the internal out of bounds doesn’t play a major factor. Be prepared to hear a lot about this. In 

, Frank Nobilo asks the Executive Director of Rules and Equipment why they have internal out of bounds. He replies:

“Well we’d prefer not to have internal out of bounds, but it’s not unprecedented at the Open Championship, and it’s not unprecedented here at Royal Liverpool.”

What? Is that an answer? Can someone please explain this internal out of bounds?

The final thing I want to mention is Royal Liverpool’s 

 designation. According to Wikipedia, it was bestowed in 1871 “due to the patronage of the Duke of Connaught, great-great grandfather to Ken Duke” (that last part may be made up).

Barring an ex-pat contingent and father-son once in a lifetime golf trip patrons, the gallery is best summed up in this video:

The local caddy element has always been an interesting element to The Open Championship as well. Knowing the majority of caddies are responsible for their own Travel and Expense (such BS), many don’t make the trip across the pond with the pros using a local looper instead. I can’t wait for Tom Rinaldi to serenade us with a special that opens with the clinking of Guinness Glasses and closes with an emotional salute to one of Hoylake’s finest, an ode to the birthplace of the game.

Overall, The Open Championship vibe is similar to nothing else in golf. Everything is different. The reactions of the crowd, the sound of the applause, and the ambiance is unparalleled in this sport, and to a certain extent, sports in general. As much as we pretend to hate Europe every two years for the three day Ryder Cup, this sport was founded on these islands, and their fans deserve a salute. Enjoy your week, lads.

It was the triumph of the People’s Champion last year at Muirfield! His Sunday 66 was an absolute Tour de Force, a virtuoso performance in the truest sense, matched only in its brilliance, perhaps, by its unexpectedness. What the hell was Mickelson doing winning a British Open? Yet there he was, birdieing four of the final six holes, charging down the stretch in a performance eerily reminiscent of his first Masters win back in 2004. The golf he played that day last year was not only arguably the year’s best, but probably will be looked back upon as some of the best of Mickelson’s career.

Oh, and another thing–have a look at that leaderboard. Just take it in. The sheer magnitude, and outright splendor of it. Amazing.

(Lines courtesy Ladbrokes.com, the Official Bookmaker of NoLayingUp.com. Some prices below are from Sportsbook this week)

– Copy and paste from just about every one of our previews. There isn’t much more that needs to be said from us on Spieth. Solid odds here.

 – Just going to bet him in every major until he wins one. It’s going to happen in the next 28 majors, so this seems like a great price for me. Less than stellar Open Championship history but we expect him to ball out.

 – He seems to be a pretty popular pick, but he’s played fantastic in majors so far this year with top 5’s in both of them, and he loves links golf. Friendly odds at this price. 50/1!

 – Another popular pick. He’s got a very underrated history at The Open, including top-10’s the last two years. He’s also in good form coming off yet another baller performance at last week’s major, the John Deere.

 – Doesn’t have the major championship experience, 

. Dude is a stud, and I want him on the Ryder Cup team. I SAID IT!

 – These odds jumped off the page at me. Never better than T30 at The Open, but he’s had a fantastic year, and needs to be bet at this rate.

 – Not gonna rationalize. We just love him. And he will burst through in a major way at some point.

Adam Scott and Henrik Stenson are must plays this week, we just don’t love their odds. Justin Rose is in the same boat, as he should be cruising coming off his Scottish Open win.

Monday’s Feherty episode with Padraig was as enjoyable as they come. Padraig is so candid and open that I couldn’t help but be glued to my tv. His analysis of his ’08 PGA Championship victory is downright delicious: “There’s nothing like winning ugly and stealing something.”

Not including SVP and Andy North, ESPN’s coverage of The Open just doesn’t match up. It’s like Warren Buffet doing an interview with Geraldo Rivera – Tradition and class meet a 24-7 hype machine. I wouldn’t be surprised if we cut to Chris Broussard reading tweets about what color headband LeBron plans to where in Cleveland. You would think the suits in Bristol would know that all they have to do is put a couple English accents or even the Euro Tour B-squad in the booth or at least out on the course. The accents are crucial. They lend credibility and enhance the viewing experience with, “on location” flavor. That said, anything is better than Johnny and Dan.

(Soly speaking now): We’re a house divided on ESPN coverage. I love it as long as there is no Berman. The volume of shots they show is unprecedented when it comes to golf coverage, and there will be no blowhards. The full Tiger cam is something that should have been in existence for the last decade. It’s 2014, if someone wants to see Tiger, let them see Tiger.

And to take the ESPN thing one step further: Can we get Ian Darke in the booth as a guest commentator????

Enjoy the week and catch us on twitter during coverage 

British Open Preview

(all lines courtesy Ladbrokes.com, the Official Bookmaker of NoLayingUp.com)

 – Ridiculous odds, but his history here is also comical. Four top 3 finishes here in the last five years, including a victory in 2012, and a runner up in a playoff a year ago.

 – Showed flashes of brilliance a week ago, and we feel like he can take advantage of the weaker field this week and really rack up some birdies. Still hasn’t missed a cut this year!

 – not much history at this event, but in great form with a T4 last week and a T18 the start before. Is sneaky high (to some perhaps) in the FedEx (41st) and OWGR (75th). Looking for that breakthrough first Tour win. Seems a ripe time to grab it.

 – T-4 a week ago at Greenbrier, and a T8 two weeks ago at the Quicken Loans, on top of his T8 in his last start here in 2012. A rough Sunday clouded what was really a special week for Hurley in West Virginia. We believe.

 – the books are all over this one, stripping most of the value off it, but at 50/1 it’s still worth a play. A home game of sorts for Luke (from Quincy, IL), he captured a T5 here in 2012 in just his second career PGA Tour start. He has top-50 OWGR game, but is struggling to find it and sustain it. A decent result last week in Wild, Wonderful West Virginia could portend very good things this week.

 – this is like the Guthrie Lite play this week. He’s an Illinois grad (born in Barrington, IL) who’s been in pretty good form lately (T11 at Travelers, T26 at Greenbrier) and has some starts at this event under his belt (including a T33 last year). If you’re feeling really spry, go ahead and throw him and Luke in an exacta box.

 – Another young guy with lots of game who would fit really well as a first-time winner here. Finished T15 last year here in his first start. Drives it long (40th in distance) and putts it well (18th in strokes gained putting), can he dial in the wedges and take it low all week? Although from New Jersey, his time spent at Oklahoma State earns him bonus ‘Midwestern’ points.

 – Dude needs to justify his presence in that Bridgestone TV spot ASAP. He’s in decent form of late (T24 at Travelers, T11 at Quicken, and T52 at the Greenbrier), having been undone by a couple Sunday 74’s in the latter two. Upside, pedigree (trained in that UGA stable), and decent form. Smells like a flier to me.

Angel Cabrera winning a non-major last week was downright shocking. And if we’re being honest, a bit disappointing. I liked the idea of Angel ripping cigs, not giving a damn, and showing up now and then to bank majors. Winning a non-major almost makes it seem like he cares a bit too much.

using it’s exemptions on some college standouts

Louis Oosthuizen ain’t playing this year, which is notable only because his two passions are 

 Probably too viscerally overwhelming for him.

Since 2008, tournament organizers have chartered a flight leaving Sunday evening and flying non-stop to Great Britain for Open Championship participants. Affectionately known as ‘Air Deere,’ it’s a 767 that has lured many players who otherwise would have skipped the event to come play the Quad Cities. Pretty cool to think the vast majority of guys are playing this week for a seat on that bird. Do you over-pack in advance on the off chance of winning, or ball out in the Royal Liverpool pro shop if need be? Latter, for sure.

We joke about a lot of things, but this ain’t one of them–John Huston needs to be formally involved in the proceedings this week. I’m thinking at least something of an honorary wedge shot to start the event a la Arnie, Jack and Gary at Augusta. The guy won seven times on the PGA Tour, only one of those with a score worse than 13-deep! This guy practically invented the bird sanctuary. Long past time to honor him.

It’s worth noting that Big Dick Mast is listed last amongst the alternates again this week. I’m almost led to believe this guy is hoping for a wide-scale pandemic to wipe out half the field, as that’s really his only way in. For those unfamiliar, Mast has enjoyed moderate success on the Champions Tour over the last few years, harkening back to his STANDOUT 1990 season on the Ben Hogan Tour when he won three times. For someone headed into his mid-60’s, Dick is pretty cocksure about his skills.

John Deere Classic Preview (Part 2)

At NLU we like to joke that the John Deere Classic is golf’s sixth major (followed closely by Reno-Tahoe, Sanderson Farms, and Mayakoba). As such, we thought it only appropriate to bestow our typical “major” treatment this week with a two part preview.

On a more serious note, this is one of our favorite tournaments of the year because, for one, it’s so much fun to handicap. Young guns are trying to YOTTO amongst the old dudes who own this place (i.e. Stricker/ZJ), and the scoring is crazy-exciting. But it goes deeper than that. The four of us are proud of our midwest ties and enjoy pimping the heartland. The Quad Cities stop has a great history (Payne Stewart won the 1982 edition of the Miller High Life QCO for his first Tour victory; David Toms captured his first title here in 1997; and of course Spieth a year ago at the age of 19), and boasts some of the best community support on the entire tour, along with a great corporate sponsorship situation. In short, it represents a lot of what’s right with the tour and doesn’t get enough recognition for that.

A certified Audubon bird sanctuary! Situated against the Rock River in Silvis, Illinois (one of the four quad cities), birds have been getting poached here since 2000 at an inexplicable clip.

It’s not a coincidence that an announcement came this week that the

. Seriously, since the course moved to this farmland locale in the middle of nowhere, the 

 winning score is -16, with Steve Stricker setting the scoring record in 2010 at -26. The course is so easy that Stricker shot 60 on Thursday that year…. 

. Seriously. He was -11 after day one, and not leading the tournament. Paul Goydos shot an opening round 59, finished at -24, and 

The D.A. Weibring design is less than spectacular both visually, and from a challenge perspective. The wide, rolling fairways give the players a green light to fire away with the driver, and the only par 4’s with any real teeth are the 9th (503 yards), the 15th (484 yards), and the 18th (476 yards, with a tough dogleg, and a green guarded by water). Despite the length of these holes, you’ll still see the longer hitters take 3 woods on them due to the firmness of the fairways. Soly played the course a few years ago, and noted that it’s an easy course even for an amateur.

The Quad Cities are located at the junction of the Mississippi and Rock Rivers, and used to serve as a major port in the mid 19th century during the industrial revolution. Beginning in the late 1970’s, economic conditions forced major industrial restructuring, which led to many companies relocating and scaling back their operations along these rivers. In recent years, significant progress has been made by the city governments to redevelop the region. Despite this, it’s hard not to feel like you’re in a time capsule looking back at what was once such a proud symbol of American capitalism, especially in and around Rock Island.

Set against the Illinois/Iowa border, this tournament is truly the most midwestern event 

. It’s basically a Big Ten clash between Illinois and Iowa fans, but for once they’re rooting for bosses of their sport rather than an Illini-Hawkeye Big Ten pillow fight on the gridiron. Honestly, the people drive hours to root for one of two guys. Those in orange pull for Illinois grad and three time champion Steve Stricker, and those in black and yellow are pulling for Wiz Khalifa Zach Johnson. In true midwestern fashion, just about every fan there thinks they know Strick and ZJ as personal friends, just because they’re wearing their school colors or their uncle’s best buddy’s son’s wife is somehow connected. You’ll hear plenty of first name basis yells on the broadcast for these two players from the masses who treat this event like it’s a family reunion.

It’s impossible to discuss the merits of the Quad Cities without referencing their favorite sons, hailing from Davenport, Iowa:

Spieth’s breakthrough was highlighted by this ridiculous hole out on 18 to get him into the playoff:

And of course, it was met by an awkward player/caddie celebration:

GIF collection from the 2013 John Deere here

As much as it pains me to make light of this, I have to: Daniel Summerhays (a guy we’re really high on in these parts) carded a final round 72 to finish one shot short of the playoff. That’s the equivalent of shooting 80 in any other event. Hopefully this result’s been gnawing at his soul for the last 361 days or so.

Check back later for Part 2, replete with our picks for the week, some pithy observations, and an ode to Esteban Toledo.

John Deere Classic Preview (Part 1)

Now that it’s been announced that the Match Play will be heading to heading to TPC Harding Park in 2015, it’s time to add some flavor to the seeding process. Even though Finchem announced that the format has changed, it’s not enough to really garner any serious attention. Disclaimer: What we’re going to suggest is not realistic, and is flat out not going to happen, but you can’t possibly tell me that this wouldn’t be must see TV, and infinitely more exciting than the current seeding process, or any previous match play event (

). If the tour needs help making it happen, we have an NLU resource out in San Fran that will gladly MC the proceedings.

 follows the World Cup model, where the players will be split into four man groups, and the winner of the group heads to the round of 16. As exhilarating as this process is, wouldn’t it be more exciting if there was subjectivity in choosing the matchups? What if we let the 

Picture this: It’s Tuesday night at a swanky San Francisco hotel (think Ryder Cup Gala, wives and girlfriends required), Big Cat is sipping on a Mai Tai, the Mechanic is guzzling a bottle of red, and Duf Daddy is sitting in the back row slamming a PBR and tossing trail mix at Keegan who is sitting nervously in the front row. Yes, we’re serving up drinks to all of these guys (even you, Kuch), and playing this out like your $50 fantasy football league. In fact, we get to find out which of these guys fit the stereotypes of the guys in your fantasy league.

Phil is going to be the overprepared guy that sits near the front and mocks everyone’s decisions. He’s got two binders in front of him covering all 63 other players in the field, their tendencies, their match play records, and their personality type. He’s also going to keep force feeding drinks to his future opponents, hoping for a hangover (unless it’s the Mechanic, who likely plays better hungover).

Keegan is going to be that guy that can’t make a decision (like the guy who picks someone who has already been drafted), and won’t be able to pull the trigger when it becomes his turn.

Kuchar will be the one to make the low-hanging “Houshmazilly…championship!” joke.

Webb Simpson will be the new guy in the league, doing anything he can do avoid controversy or ruffling any feathers.

There’s also a decent size crowd attending (picture the stands at the final table of a World Series of Poker) that has also been boozing, enticing the players to act, and booing them when they chicken out.

The players are seeded 1-64, and the highest ranked players (ranked 33-64) are put up on the board spread out evenly throughout the bracket. Players ranked 1-32 are given a silent buzzer (think Jeopardy), and for every round, the players have 30 seconds to decide if they want to buzz in and put their name on the board. If more than one player buzzes in, the priority goes to the lowest seeded player (top ranked). Basically, Adam Scott can pick whatever match up that he wants, but he may want to wait out a few rounds so he can get an idea of where the top players are going.

The key is that the top players get to call out their opponent, and their bracket. The twist is that the player must deliver his nameplate to his opponent and look him in the eye and ask him to accept the challenge (think “Do you accept this rose?” from the Bachelor, even though the higher ranked player has no choice). The cycle continues until everyone is picked. The crowd will erupt whenever a player gets called out, and will boo if you chicken out and don’t step up. Imagine if Tiger gets a chance to call out 

. You can bet your ass that drunk Tiger is going to make some awkward joke when he delivers the nameplate, then proceed to 

Think about it! Phil is going to be furiously calculating his odds with Bones as the names start going up on the board:

Bubba is going to send Ted Scott to hand off the nameplate so he can blame him when he loses the match. Keegan and Duf are going to try to rig it so they play each other in the second round. But the best part will be the big guns basically calling out players they see as the weakest. It’s going to be pandemonium!

When it becomes a player’s turn to choose their opponent, a short, pre-recorded video clip will play (think a hybrid of 

and a Monday Night Football player introduction) to introduce the player. Picture Dufner’s: “I’m Duf, I’m the stuff, and the girls just can’t get enough” as his smokin’ wife comes up, Duf re-enacts his ass grabbing from the PGA Championship as she kisses him on the cheek.

Steve Sands will be standing by, ready to interview each player after they make their selection. The Golf Channel can have their own booth with Brandel Chamblee ready to dissect every pick. I’m telling you. This would be an absolute must see.

Any questions, Finchy? Leave us some of your ideas in the comments below.

How to Fix the World Match Play

Take me home, country roads: [soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/19294911″ params=”auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true” width=”100%” height=”450″ iframe=”true” /] The annual Greenbrier Classic (or alternatively known as “The Jim Justice Show”) at the base of the Appalachian Mountains in Southern West Virginia is where you will find the top talent some golfers that you’ve heard of this holiday weekend. Get out your coonskin caps and your moonshine…. we’re going to West Virginia!

The Old White course (surprisingly, it is NOT named after Jim Justice) is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year, and will be the site of this event through the 2021 season (pretty sure Kirk Ferentz will be halfway through his current contract at that point). The course was a certified Audubon bird sanctuary, as proven by Stuart Appleby’s 59* in 2010. 

(* – Have to throw an asterisk on this one. The course was a complete joke, and there were also scores of 60, 61, 62, and TEN 63’s, including one from a guy that missed the cut.)

 The course has since been lengthened to nearly 7,300 yards, and joined the TPC network. It still fits the bill as a scoring fest, just not in the record breaking fashion that we saw in the inaugural year. It’s signature hole is the simple 160 yard par-3 finishing hole, which has provided some drama in recent years, most notably being Appleby dropping a bird to break 60 and shoot 22 under par, and Scott Stallings snaking a bird in during the playoff in 2013. But when a playoff comes to this hole? It’s a bit of a snoozer (don’t mind Tron – he had Bill Haas at 60/1 a few years ago in the playoff vs. Stallings and Haas was between clubs on the hole).

Wild and wonderful West Virginia is the subject of a lot of jokes (and I havent even mentioned WVU’s 

era yet), particularly of the incestual nature, but it is also one of the most beautiful states in the entire nation. My great grandfather landed in Parkersburg, West Virginia nearly 100 years ago, and I was born in West By God Virginia and into diehard Mountaineer torturous fandom in the mid ’80’s. Since then, nearly all of my entire family and extended family has moved from the state, but the spirit of West Virginia still lives in us (incredibly cheesy, but true).

What The Mountain State lacks in education, industry, and teeth (I’m allowed to make these stereotypical jokes, you are not), it makes up for with a magnificent landscape, scenery, and old fashioned southern hospitality. West Virginians are a proud, proud people, as many have lived in that same state for their entire lives. The coal industry employs 30,000 West Virginians, although Obama’s “War on Coal” lead to a 40% decline in exports in 2013. While the rest of the country has grown up and adapted to the ever growing information age, West Virginia truly feels a generation or two behind.

As far as the crowd you can expect at The Classic, be prepared to see cut-off tees and awkwardly tall hats with the patented WVU logo on the top (most assuredly a gas station purchase). Mustaches and long hair will be a fixture, and these fans will flock to the Bubba Watson grouping in droves, immune to the reality of who Bubba truly is. While the Greenbrier resort itself is nice, there is NOTHING to do around the area. I mean, nothing. The resort literally brings in entertainment every year to prevent the players from blowing their brains out, as they practically are not allowed to leave the premises (more on this in The Fringe at the bottom).

It was a snooze fest last year, as Mickelson missed the cut for the second consecutive year (Can you blame him, though? Between here and his annual Abu Dhabi appearance, his falconry game is TIGHT!), and Blixt’s buttery flatstick won it’s first tour event nearly in the dark after an evening of rain delays. GIF courtesy of 

his GIF collection from the 2013 Greenbrier here

 – Runner up in 2011 and T9 a year ago. He dropped all the way to T30 at Congressional last week, but played much better than that (a final round 77 was his undoing). We’ll ride with Bill again, he’s bound to break through soon.

 – Top 5 here in 2011 and 2010, and coming off a T8 a week ago at the Quicken Loans. If he’s going to win a tour event (kind of surprised he hasn’t), it will be at a course like this that’s flat, and gives him a chance to take advantage of his delicious iron play.

 – I was hoping to get longer odds, but he’s finished in the top 10 here each of the last two years, so the oddsmakers were on to him. He’s made his last six cuts, but with less than fantastic results. While I don’t love the odds, I do think he is worth a play here.

 – I don’t love these odds, but I’ve got a hunch on Kirk this week. He’s gotta be sick of seeing his buddy Brendon Todd beat his ass (along with everyone else’s) week in and week out. No history here, but the dude hasn’t missed a cut this year!

 – We’re gonna skip the usual jokes, and just point out that the dude was ballin out last week before a back nine collapse at Congressional. He had some awful struggles after the famous comments, but the guy can still play. I think he’s finally calmed down from the shit storm he caused, and ready to be a regular contender again.

 (excuse us while we get LOOSE this week on long shots, there’s plenty of ’em!)

 – I’ve been alerting people over the last several weeks that this guy needs to get on people’s radar. He’s finished in the top 32 in four of the last five weeks, all despite less than stellar results on Sundays. I’ve been waiting to make a play on this guy, and with a shorter course on tap this week, I think he’s worth your attention.

 – Aside from being one of the coolest dudes I met at the Memorial, he’s got a solid history at the Greenbrier with a T2 last year, and a T18 in2011. He had missed four straight cuts before finishing T21 a week ago. I don’t love Bowditch himself as much as I do the price. A true flier.

 – Dumb odds for a player who finished T11 last week (bookended 68’s with 74’s) and 2/2 in made cuts here the last two years. In eight rounds on TPC Old White he hasn’t carded anything higher than 70. I sense some comfort here and will lay the lumber (Richard also boasts great lettuce, which never hurts).

 – Good history at this event. Super-sluggish 2014 thus far on the major medical exemption but made the cut last week and putting well of late. Spence is too good of a talent/gunslinger not to post some solid results and one has to think he’s got this portion of the calendar penciled in as the place to vault into the top 125 in FedEx Cup.

Jimmy Walker absolutely needs to be in your fantasy lineup. He loves this place, and is the favorite, but we just can’t advise betting on him at 12/1. Brendon Todd also needs to be there, but he’s getting the Kuchar treatment, and he’s coming in at 20/1. Keep your eye on Todd as a potential Ryder Cup qualifier (something I could not have imagined saying four months ago, and to be honest, I’m rooting for him to be on the team at this point).

, in what has turned out to be main attraction of the event. Get ready for soooooo much white people dancing:

We didn’t do a recap again this weekend, as none of us were really glued into the coverage. We were close again with a few of our picks (Leishman especially), and Tron’s hunch on Reed and Noh looked fantastic as they made it to the final pairing before melting under the hot D.C. sun.

The John Deere looms next week. In NLU parlance it’s commonly referred to as the Fifth Major. It’s a gettable bird-sanctuary, and the domain of Steve Stricker and Jordan Spieth, two of our favorite dudes. Expect NLU to come strong.

 One would also imagine allergy season is a killer in these parts, no?

For those of you who aren’t familiar with The Greenbrier, and desiring of a bit more than the cursory mention on the broadcast, here’s some cool background on the 

This is really our only legitimate chance for appearance fees on this side of the pond (kind of surprised the tour has turned such a blind eye the last few years with this event). But let’s not forget about the other side of the spectrum – the alternates. 

The Greenbrier Classic Preview

Just when we were anticipating the annual lull between the U.S. Open and the next major (the John Deere Classic British Open), we were hit with news…… he’s baaaaaaack!

Let’s call a spade a spade. The 2013-2014 season has been a snoozer. Golf nuts like us still tune into all of the Steven Bowditch, Brendon Todd, and Ben Crane victories, but we’re in desperate need of some firepower. We’re over 30 events into the season, and we haven’t had Phil or Tiger threaten a win once! Seriously, that hasn’t happened since Tiger came on tour in ’96. Will Grimmer, the 17 year-old that played in the U.S. Open, wasn’t even alive then. While I don’t expect Tiger to come out of the gate firing come Thursday, it’s a huge relief to at least have the guy around. (Sportsbook has his over/under finish at 8.5, but the over costs -185. I still think that’s an easy play).

The announcement shouldn’t have come as such a surprise considering that Tiger and his foundation host the event. Formerly the AT&T National, it replaced the legendary modified stableford bird sanctuary known as The International. Congressional has been the host since 2007, (with the exception of 2010 and 2011 where Aronimink was given its chance to shine, 

Congo dates back to the Pre-Great-Depression early 20th century, and it’s founding members include five former presidents (Taft, Wilson, Harding, Coolidge, and Hoover). What was once a place of refuge for congressmen, lobbyists, and anyone involved in poli-tricks, is now only congressional by name. The course was built by two congressmen from Indiana, yet today’s politicians rarely take their mulligans from Congressional’s tee boxes. Per 

Vice President Joe Biden, a single-digit handicap, has never played there. House Speaker John Boehner, another accomplished player, is not a member.

During World War II, the federal government provided a boost by renting the club and using it as a training facility for the Office of Strategic Services, the precursor to the CIA. “They practiced hand-to-hand combat training, artillery fire, paratrooper exercises,” Lyberger said. “I’m sure there was spy training and stuff like that.”



They ripped the course to shreds.

And while I have no real idea how Big Cat and the Tiger Woods Foundation ended up hosting this event, here’s how I picture it: Hank Haney wrote in his book, 

, about Tiger’s obsession with Navy Seal training, and how he almost walked away from the game in 2007 to try to become a Navy Seal. To this day I still envision Cat living his life in the virtual “killhouse,” emboldened in the gaming realm by the oodles of free time his recent injury surely afforded to take his Call of Duty skills to an otherworldly level. So I’m envisioning some Congressional suit making the pitch to the Big Cat and his cronies, and after he used about three words of military jargon describing the old WWII days at Congressional, Big Cat tasked Steiny with drafting up the papers in a matter of seconds.

one of the best courses on the PGA Tour circuit

, although it is not above criticism. It’s long, it’s tough, and situated on a nice piece of property, but it’s forced to wear the 2011 U.S. Open “disaster” as a scarlet letter. There were congressional hearings about how many birds were murdered by Rory and the gang that year, and I’m pretty sure PETA got involved. Rory shot 16 under! Tron, for one, is not a fan of D.C. at large:

Our nation’s capital is an overrated, overpriced cesspool of traffic, bullshit, and lawyers. Everytime I go there I want to feel like I’m in Europe – low slung buildings, solid architecture, great mass transit in the core, and yet I always leave disappointed. (However, I CAN get down with D.C.’s Democratic Republic of Congo, here’s 

 on the course.) It’s a parkland extravaganza; a big-boy ballpark that actually possesses some character. Above all else, that tee shot off the par three 10th from the back of the clubhouse is sweet.

The vibe around Congressional should mirror that of Mid-Atlantic lax camps in early summer. We can expect plethora of Lax Bro Lettuce tamed only by visors typically worn at an obnoxious angle. These Lax Bros plied their craft at the local douche incubators like Georgetown Prep and Gonzaga Prep, before heading down to Charlottesville to perfect their M.O. The sheila’s will don sun dresses and unnecessarily large brimmed hats as they sip Bloody’s from the clubhouse porch with all the fixin’s. The retired laxers lobbyists will be out in full force suckling from the power teets, and with Big Cat in the field, this ticket just became a bigger draw. Let’s hope Brantford Winstonworth leaves the wand at home.


Bill Haas (Member FDIC), added the AT&T National to his impressive resume with a three shot win over some less than impressive names.

To cap it off, we got a great awkward player-caddie celebration that we’ve come to expect on a weekly basis:

(These will never get old to me. Can we get 

his GIF’s of the 2013 AT&T National here

 – This is one of those instances where I really don’t care what the odds are. His form is on point following a strong weekend at Pinehurst and an even stronger weekend up in the ConnectiCUT. He’s healthy, raring to go, and looking to put four standout rounds on the board. 

 – T17 in the U.S. Open here in 2011, and a T8 here last year. A T9 at the U.S. Open and a T11 last week a the Travelers make it safe to label him with the #trending tag. He’s moved from up from 25/1, as he’s too talented to hold down for too long.

 – Defending champ rolling into D.C. in good form at 35/1 odds? Yes please. 35/1 is a slap in the face to a guy who hasn’t missed a cut since last September at the Deutsche Bank. Billy’s won about $29 million on-course in about 8.5 years on the big tour (hence his “Member, FDIC” designation), and this is a big money event ($1.17 mil to the champ). Prior to last year’s victory here, he finished T4 at Memorial and then MC’d at the US Open. This year? He finished T8 at Memorial and then posted a consistent T35 at Pinehurst. And he’s got Greenbrier to look forward to next week, a tournament he owns. This is about the time of the year when he quits playing “just the tip” and slays the dragon. I’m coming back for seconds.

 – Since the Honda Classic, only seven players have a better average finish (24th) than Woodland (minimum 5 starts.) He’s long, and he played well here last year. He’s been incredibly consistent, and the breakthrough is only a matter of time.

 – Shaky track record at Congo, but he’s got four top-25’s in his last five starts, including a T11 last week.

 – We may go bankrupt on Billy, and I’m ok with that. We’re loyal. He’s finished in the top 26 in each of his last four starts, and Congressional rewards ball striking. Rinse, repeat.

 – Loves Congressional. T64 last year, but finished T4 in 2012, and T4 at the U.S. Open in 2011. Was playing quite well prior to withdrawing in Memphis. He’s got the length so the flier is worth it.

 – 2011 US Open here: 76-67-69-66 for a stellar T3. T28 LY at this event, ballstriking stats are phenomenal of late, and he’s long. 80/1 odds that his putter gets hot sound good to me.

 – T4 last year. Look at those odds! And he loved Congo last year:

Bit of a hunch on Keegan Bradley, Martin Flores, Bo Van Pelt, Seung Yul-Noh, and Patrick Reed (seeing glimpses lately of him getting back in the top-five game), so feel free to insert those guys into odd spots in the fantasy lineup.

We got lazy and didn’t write a recap for the Travelers Championship. After being dangerously close to hitting the jackpot at 100/1 with Badds, and holding a Ryan Moore 33/1 ticket in our back pocket, the NLU team was primed before both struggled on Sunday. Our Chad Campbell flier would have looked a lot better if he didn’t get wet on 15 every time they showed him on the telecast. NLU hasn’t picked a winner since the Players, but we remain up 82.5 units on the year. As Cat would say, it’s a process.

With big events happening on both sides of the Atlantic I find it interesting to see Scott and McIlroy taking the week off. The BMW International features a sneaky good field field with Kaymer, Stenson, Serg, Bjorn, Casey and Donaldson all teeing it up. It’s likely both are just gearing up for the Scottish/British/off week (unless the Russians up the ante on some appearance fees)/WGC/PGA stretch on the horizon.

The new Titleist driver that a lot of guys are debuting looks like an absolute WMD. Can’t wait to head to the PGA Tour Superstore crackhouse to try it out.

Quicken Loans National Preview

Well, we’re through two majors now. ‘Year of Bubba’ has taken a backseat to Martin Kaymer, who backed up his May Players Championship win by boat-racing the field at Pinehurst and capturing his second career major. If you think the season is half-way over, what with two majors down and two to go, you’re Chris Berman wrong.

This week’s Travelers Championship marks the tenth remaining event left on the 2013-14 PGA Tour season before the 

 (Finchy, you’re reading, right?) FedEx Cup playoffs begin. We’re gettting into crunch time, folks. Guys best start jockeying for position if they want a shot at that $10 million annuity OIL they’re giving out in Atlanta. Anyway, on to this week’s event…

What can be said about the fabled TPC River Highlands course that hasn’t been said already, amirite?

The jewel of Greater Hartford stretches to just over 6,800 yards and will play as a par-70. 

 (stickiest of the icky) that “meanders over 148 acres, with stately corridors of mature maple, oak, sycamore, and eastern white pine trees framing gently rolling fairways.”

Naturally–you read that description, right?–it’s been “named by 

as ‘One of the Top 10 Golf Courses in Connecticut.'”

Wait, is this a competitive list? I’m honestly asking. I’d think any course hosting a PGA tournament in a state the size of my left shoe would auto-qualify. Amusing they felt the need to highlight this ‘distinction.’

Anyway, it’s an ultra-gettable track that annually rolls over and yields lots and lots of birdies. For this week everybody will be a bomber and gouger. Gonna be stuffed wedges galore!

Finally, if you’re so inclined, here is a much more professional, thorough 

Hartford is DEEP in the insurance game. And granted we’re discussing a golf tournament here, I’ll hazard a guess and say the people showing up for this party are going to be a 

We’ll also mention there will most likely be numerous red umbrellas on the grounds. I’ll bet the Travelers Suits are praying for rain, positively giddy at the prospect of free marketing. (And you know that Nantz is dying to refer to the dog from the commercials that digs the guy’s ball out of the woods and plops it on the green. Keep your ears peeled for this whenever someone pops one into the trees this week.)

Lastly, this tournament always conjures images of former champ JJ Henry in his patented purple. In fact, JJ Henry is a damn-near perfect champion for the Travelers. Nice guy, non-threatening, and utterly forgettable.

Ladies and Gentlemen, the Travelers Champsionship!!!

With an effort that surely had Ollie Cromwell himself beaming with pride, and which held rapt all of Buckingham Palace, Ken Duke held off Chris Stroud in a two-hole playoff to capture his first career PGA Tour win. At 44 years young he became the oldest first-time winner on Tour since (Steady) Ed Dougherty won at the age of 47 in 1995. NLU’s own Fil watched the action at home, draped in a British flag, sobbing at the perfect symmetry of Sir Ken winning the event just months after the passing of the Iron Lady, Margaret Thatcher. Life imitating art. A huge boost for all of the United Kingdom. What a special moment it was last year.

It was a moment, though, that didn’t seem to stand a chance of occurring. Bubba Watson was in cruise control, having entered the final round tied for the lead, and standing on the 16th tee box 13 deep. That’s when all this went down:

Bubba made triple, shot 70 (which is really like 74), and missed the playoff by two. NLU, needless to say, was crestfallen.

Loyal NLU follower Chris Stroud holed this chip on 18 to force the playoff:

 – A true horse for course! Top 13 finishes in four of the last five years, including a runner up in 2011 and a T4 in 2009. He doesn’t have any top-10’s in recent events, but he’s been around on the weekends, and seems to be just waiting to break through. Moore’s knuckle-cut/push seems to play well here. Full disclosure: Tron’s a Ryan Moore junkie.

 – I would have thought he would have been closer to 25/1. He won here in 2012 and was T30 a year ago. He’s got three top 25’s in his last four starts, including a T3 at the Byron Nelson. #trending

 – He should have won here in 2012, and he finished T7 here a year ago. He’s made 16 out of 17 cuts this year, including 9 in a row.

 – As presidents of the Brooks Koepka fan club, we were ecstatic with his T4 finish at the Open, and his berth into next year’s Masters. We’re sticking with his hot hand and playing him at 50/1 this week.

 – prior to his emceeing duties at the Memorial, had gone T11, T26, T10 the prior three events. He hasn’t played this event since 2011, so not much track record. I’m guessing he’s playing this year because his sponsors are forcing him to, OR he feels good about his game (or neither, but hey.)

 – Tron loves him this week, and even cited his history as an amateur in winning us over. A course that does not emphasize length plays well in his hands, and he’s coming off a T6 at Memphis.

 – Badds has been in the wilderness a bit, but quietly playing better over the last month or so. Four straight made cuts and some modest finishes doesn’t jump off the page at you, but he’s played well on this course, and at that price I don’t need to build too strong of a case.

 – Coming back to this well…has made 11 of 12 cuts this year, including 4 top-25’s. Made the cut here last year (finished T58) in his only start. Quietly playing some very good golf. Like the form and love the odds on a track where anyone can win if they get hot.

 – Remember this guy? He’s been in the Wilderness for a while, but he’s made three straight cuts and can make birdies in bunches. If he’s to win again, seemingly, it’d be on a track like this.

Bubba is 10/1 this week, and loves this event. While the odds are horrendous, esp against a strong field, he should be in your fantasy lineups. Also, Keegan is primed to win (if we’re going for a big name), so he’s a strong play for your lineups as well (just don’t love the odds).

The odds for US Money List winner are quite interesting at the moment, with Kaymer in the middle of the pack at 12/1. I guess the thought here is that eases off a bit after this recent stretch. Instead, though, I’m thinking he’s just gonna keep it rolling. With a few weeks to rest, a smattering of huge events on the horizon, and the Ryder Cup looming in September, now isn’t to dick around with your swing. Booba is the favorite at 4/1, followed by DJ 6/1, Walker-Scott-Kuchar 8/1, Spieth 12/1, Rory 14/1, and then it drops off to 40/1. Booba’s got a million dollar lead on Jimmy Walker, so take that for what it’s worth. But actually my money is on DJ. Something tells me he’s on the verge (disclaimer: I perpetually feel like he’s on the verge).

Rory is 3/1 this week at the Irish Open against a 

This event’s made a name for itself for extending exemptions to young talent, and this year is no different. Matthew Fitzpatrick makes his pro debut over at the Irish Open this week. Meanwhile, Australian Oliver Goss and Stanford teammates 

 are two of the names to watch out for. Wilson’s listed at 150/1, well ahead of some pretty heady company.

 is listed as an alternate this week. Mast, who bears no relation to former Cincinnati Reds Pitching Coach 

, is 63 years old and a curious addition to the alternates this week as the Champions tour is entering it’s insane stretch of three consecutive majors on the schedule LOL

Peter Jacobsen winning in 2003 at the age of 49 was really cool, especially because he hadn’t really done anything for like five years. Also, Corey Pavin lost in a playoff in this event FOUR YEARS AGO.

The course record at the TPC Highlands is 60. It was set in 2011 by Patrick Cantlay. As an amateur. Mega cool.

Travelers Championship Preview

Martin Kaymer ran out consecutive 65’s to start the week, and throttled the field by eight shots in a weekend that lacked drama, but was filled with excellence. An absolutely world class performance by the German, and I’m left in awe. Kaymer is an extremely worthy United States Open champion.

 We gushed over Martin Kaymer’s triumph at the Players Championship, and he somehow surpassed that performance at Pinehurst on an even bigger stage. Despite the huge margin of victory, it was rocky at a couple points, but he seemed to recover with ballsy shot after ballsy shot, and he cruised to his second major title. On our podcast this week, we got a question about who we thought would be the next one time major winner to win a second major, and Tron picked Kaymer. I don’t think any of us thought it would have come this quickly (or else he would have been in our picks in the preview), but this really shouldn’t come as a surprise with what we’ve seen from him lately. Bad weekends at Quail Hollow and at the Byron Nelson overshadowed two other solid performances on top of his Players Championship win. His game plays pretty much anywhere (outside of Augusta, considering his fade) and I don’t think we’re done seeing him win in 2014.

Tron’s got a Kaymer story from last year down at the Heritage:

He played well the first two rounds and made the cut comfortably, and was either paired with Spieth or in a group right around him so we were in his vicinity. And we were also intrigued by Kaymer himself – he was a name with some cache and we’d read about his quest to hit a draw and as aficionados of right to left ball flight we had to see for ourselves. We watched three or four holes and were legitimately spooked. Kaymer looked completely lost. On the tight Harbour Town course he was spraying it from side to side, wandering figuratively and literally through the wilderness but putting quite well. The scary part was his demeanor – he looked defeated. We got to #14, which is a 200 yard par 3 with a devilishly small green, made even more difficult by the wind that howled all weekend. Kaymer made an absolute mess of it, carding triple and shooting a five-over 40 on the back nine. He followed it up with an eight-over 43 on the back nine the next day. Fil and I were legitimately depressed for the guy (And his hat didn’t help matters – that ill-fitting SAP lid looked like it was plucked off the swag table in one of the hospitality tents and was unbecoming of his otherwise BOSSy apparel. Glad to see SAP finally got its act together and got him into a better hat!) and confused as to how HE looked so confused with his swing. To see a guy go from 

Writing

Open Championship: Thursday Roundup

British Open Preview

John Deere Classic Preview (Part 2)

John Deere Classic Preview (Part 1)

How to Fix the World Match Play

The Greenbrier Classic Preview

Quicken Loans National Preview

Travelers Championship Preview

U.S. Open Recap

U.S. Open Preview

FedEx St. Jude Classic Preview

The Worst Endorsement Deals in Golf: Holding People Accountable

2014 Memorial Tournament Recap

Memorial: Friday Quick-Hitters

Thursday at The Memorial

The Memorial Tournament Preview

Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial Preview

HP Byron Nelson Championship Recap