His mark of 320 not only leads the current year 

 by a significant margin, it also leads all historical YOTTOs by a large margin. It’s the biggest, most hostile takeover any of us have seen since measurement began in 1991. Tiger Woods’ mark of 263 from the 1999 season is the current gold standard, but Mr. Walker is making it look minuscule at the moment. There’s a lot of season left for Jimmy to come back to Earth, and certainly the smart money says that’s an inevitability, but a bar-raising, next-level takeover is at least in play right now…and that’s pretty cool.

DJ’s T2 once again makes him a strong YOTTOer with a mark of 149. Currently hovering in the top-10 through top-20 historical range. If he finds a win or two the rest of the way, especially at a major, 2013-14’s dominant storyline could end up being the emergence of DJ as legit top-5 player.

Ryan Moore and Chris Kirk are hemorrhaging money share right now. They need to keep cashing big checks to remain at the forefront of YOTTO attention.

Two NLU favorites because of their style and demeanor, Pat Perez and Will MacKenzie, continue to play well and should be around the top-10 for 2013-14 YOTTOs. We’d love to see one, or both, bank a win soon. The Tour is a better place with these two prominently involved.

(If you’ve read all this and are wondering what the hell YOTTO is, please read 

. Current year and historical scores shown 

YOTTO Update (AT&T Pebble Beach)

Jimmy Walker triumphantly strided shakily stumbled to his third win of the 2013-14 season, outlasting Dustin Johnson, and perennial contender here, Jim Renner. A six shot lead when he left the 11th green shrunk minute by minute, but he held off the late charges by a single shot.

Jimmy Walker becomes the first human (Tiger doesn’t count) to win 3 events in 8 starts since Vijay Singh won 3 events in 5 starts in the fall of 2008 on his way to the FedEx Cup title. Before he won the Sony, we predicted that Walker would be on the Ryder Cup team. Now that he’s won three events, he’s basically a lock, barring injury. I’ve got no problem with it. He’s this year’s Brandt Snedeker.

Three beautiful courses, and still just an awful tournament. At least from a television standpoint, it looks awful. 156 players plus 156 amateurs sprawled out between three courses, and coverage teams that think for some reason we tuned in to the coverage for interviews with the lead of NCIS: LA. If you’ve got big personalities that are entertaining, then by all means, do a few minutes with them (while showing actual golf shots). But there is no Bill Murray, there’s no Bob Hope, there is no must-see-TV comedian. Twitter blew up on Saturday trying to figure out if they were still playing the pro tournament.

Exhibit A of what the players think of this event:

https://twitter.com/JohnPetersonLSU/status/432549343346700288

The final round went an HOUR over the CBS coverage window. There were no weather delays! Pathetic pace of play is a huge issue on tour. I know this event will never go away from the pro-am format, but can we please have Sunday be pros only? Why can’t they wrap up the amateur portion of the event Saturday?

Team NLU was ecstatic to see David Duval on the leaderboard through Saturday. Unfortunately a 6-6-6 to open his back nine on Saturday took him out of contention, but it’s nice to know that he can put it together for a significant part of a weekend.

Great showing from our boy Victor Dubuisson, finishing T13. We’re going to pull an “I told you so” with him soon enough.

We’re also ecstatic about yet another top 10 for Pat Perez, which is his 3rd of the year (on top of a T11 at the Waste Management). Guy is ballin out hard.

D.A. Points got disqualified for using a 

Neil and Colonel Bare had a blast on our first official day as media members. Peep their 

I love seeing the amateur leaderboard at Pebble Beach, like I give a shit about which billionaire is the biggest sand bagger 

Richard H. Lee – T10 (imploded back 9 Sunday)

Kevin Stadler – T45 (Was leading Friday afternoon!)

Aaron Baddeley – T56 (Brutal 78 on Sunday)

This marks the second time we’ve correctly picked Jimmy as a winner (

). Great week for us in picks, rebounding from a brutal week last week. We were looking to sweep the top 4 until Jim Renner went nuts, and Dick Lee and Mahan lit themselves on fire coming in. How is this prediction looking? (Made BEFORE he won the Sony)

Harris English and Jimmy Walker are playing together today. Would not be shocked to see them as teammates on the Ryder Cup team in September



— No Laying Up (@NoLayingUp) 

DLIII bled all over Pebble Beach on Saturday on his way to an 81. The conditions were brutal, so we want to give him a pass, but we’re dying to know how he went 37 yards long from 63 yards out. Blade city?

You’ll need to read our story from Saturday to really understand this call. But in summary, we gave Svoboda a shout out on the 18th hole, and told him not to lay up. He responded with a “Yeah sure, I guess I’ll go for it.” Even though you came up 40 yards short, we salute you, Andrew.

Next week is the Northern Trust Open at Riviera Country Club in (the best city name the United States) Pacific Palisades. This event marks another turning point in the PGA Tour season. No more pro-ams, and no more course shuffling. All 72 holes held at the Riv, where you’ll actually see more celebrities on the names in the locker room than you saw this week at the AT&T Pro-Am. Here’s how the West Coast Swing has shaped up so far:

AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am Recap

It was a day of firsts for NLU; my first time to Pebble Beach, nolayingup.com’s first taste of official respect as a ‘powerhouse’ media entity, and for many fans and players, the first inkling of NLU’s existence. This entire post will read a lot better if you picture us exactly like we were for the entire day.

Allow me to share a few notes from the field:

‘Hi I’m here to pick up my media badge.’

‘Oh, yes! Right here, and don’t forget your press hat (a fresh burnt orange and grey with the pebble logo).’

Keep in mind, we started this blog 38 days ago. My day was made already.

However, on my way to the media parking lot I saw The Big Unit, Kiradech Aphibarnrat, posting up hard on a set of stairs during the wind/rain delay (we profiled ‘Arm’ as a 

“Let’s go Big Unit!!!” I said with uber- jollyness from the car window accompanied by a thumbs up. He just stared. Maybe he didn’t understand me, or maybe he thought I was some schwaldo (which I am, but now I’m a schwaldo with a media badge, a schwaldo with…access). We parked and walked back into the tourney grounds to find ‘The Big Unit’ pacing back and forth where we left him. He was antsy, and for good reason, as I’d learn later he had a 6 foot birdie putt on #8 to get him back to level par. Never wanting to disrupt any player’s focus, NLU opted to speak with the good ole’ boy holding court near his caddie (his caddie is a stone cold Thai guy – love that). We speculate this was his agent (though the wily old veteran wouldn’t share his name, even with a trusted NLU field reporter). I asked him how ‘Arm’ was feeling while he was out of earshot. He said Arm was ‘up and down,’ and the discussion turned toward the Master’s invitation he should have received back in December. Our guy was heated (in a laid back good ole boy way).

‘Well of course Augusta just had to go and change up the rules this year.’

Traditionally, the Order of Merit winner on The Asian Tour (money leader) has an automatic invite from Augusta. Arm boat raced the Asian tour last year taking home twice as much dough as the next best Asian player, but this year, due to a larger than normal field, they haven’t extended the invite to Arm, and they have already included his Thai compatriot Thongchai Jaidee. Arm may need a ‘W’ on the West Coast Swing, or at least some solid finishes to find himself among the azaleas come April. He finished with a MDF.

DJ (far left) getting his future father-in-law lined up; JD lost in thought.

After walking the sanctuary course out to #7 to see Kurt Russell stuff one and Tommy Two Gloves airmail the windy par-3, my roommate Paul and I met up with NLU contributor and VP of Business Development Colonel Terry Bare on 17 green. This is when the real fun began. We set up shop next to the celebrity tee box on 18. First foursome to come through: The Main Event – Dustin Johnson, JD, Kid Rock, and The Great One.

After we chatted Wayne up about the website, Gretzky turned with a smile and said, ‘There’s actually a NoLayingUp.com?’ Of course there is, Great One!

He continued: “The fact that there’s actually a NoLayingUp.com is much more impressive than me getting home in two. Too bad I don’t know how to turn a computer on. I just use the phone and fax machines.” Wow, what a legend. Our attempts to speak with NLU hall of famer John Daly again came up short – as you can see, he was deep in reflection on the far side.

As the feature foursome strolled down 18 fairway, next up was the Belichik and Brady duo playing with TE draft prospect Ricky Barnes. As the rain picked up, The Hoodman traded his cut off Patriots sweatshirt with his caddie for classy looking rain gear. What a sellout. Neither Hoodman nor famed Ugg’s model Tom Brady acknowledged the adoring fans or the NLU contingetn, and both ended up in the Pacific off the tee. Karma? You be the judge.

As the gallery followed the stars down 18 like sheep, the Colonel, Paul, and I stayed tight on the ropes at the 18th tee, and as he awaited his Pro-Am partners Ray Ramano’s train wreck drive, NLU had a few precious moments to put a bug in pro golfer Andrew Svoboda’s ear during the fading light of Saturday afternoon. NLU:

“Hey, bro…you gotta go for it in 2! No laying up! You got this!” (encouraging).

Mr. Svoboda: after a moment, and with an apathetic shrug — “Yeah sure, I guess I’ll go for it.”

The Colonel and I were feeling righteous and nodding up and down to each other (inside voice: yeah, man– we’re motivating these guys!). As Svoboda took off into the grey drizzle, we took a quick peek at the leader board aside the 17th fairway, and there it was, just a bit late, but bright and clear through the windy rain: 

For the record, NLU strives to be a positive influence on our golfing brethren and sistren. We would never knowingly kick a man while he was down (a la Johnny Miller), and we will say Andrew Svoboda, after engaging NLU eyeball-to-eyeball on the cold and desolate 18th tee, penciled in a par, 5 on that last hole — something he was not able to do on 10 other holes that day.

So, who knows, maybe our encouragement to get aggressive and finish strong lit the fuse when he could have mailed it in like his Pro-am partner Ray Romano (who sprayed his first drive O.B. – right of Rush Limbaugh and duck-hooked his 2nd one off the rocks into the stormy Pacific). We appreciated his chivalrous response and dogged determination, coupled with an outstanding Laissez-Faire attitude in the face of an unfortunate day. Andrew Svoboda — you are the man. NLU salutes you on the rest of your 2014 campaign.

As the sun set behind the grey sky and white-capped waves, we headed up to the media headquarters to unwind and compare notes. We grabbed some Coca-Colas and made sure there was no wrap-up ‘presser’ (unfortunately we were too late). As we were warming up, we struck up a conversation with Gary, who seemed to be the head of something media related (he definitely took himself seriously). He sized us up incredulously after I introduced NLU, and responded with, “never heard of Nolayingup.com.” A few minutes later, as we were standing out front in the cold, it dawned on me that they must have some grub for the media somewhere nearby, so I went back in to ask. As the director of media was lecturing the volunteers for the lax security (graciously letting The Colonel tag along), he turned and looked me up and down. Shocked by my nerve to return. he sneered, “The food is long gone.”

Nerve is all we have here at NLU, and we’ll see you on-site at the Heritage, Gary!

Are those Corduroys on the golf course? Yes, yes they are.

One final note: We’re huge supporters of our military here at NLU, and we wanted to throw a big thanks to the AT&T Pebble Beach team for the awesome Military Appreciation tent by the 15th green. Our contributor Colonel Terry Bare was greeted along with other troops and families with the full treatment. Great chow, hospitality, and fantastic greenside seats to watch all the action. A special tip of the hat to the remarkable Mr. Bobby Sparks, who makes it all run smoothly. We appreciate the support to our military service men and women!

Notes from the Field: Saturday at Pebble Beach

If you haven’t already, let’s thank Carl Steward of San Jose Mercury News for this gem:

Clint Eastwood Saves Life of Choking AT&T Tournament CEO

First, what a headline. We should all aspire to have our names associated with such heroics. Now, let’s set the scene: Steve John, CEO of Monterey Peninsula Foundation and AT&T Pro-Am general manager, gets real aggressive with the artisan cheese plate (we’ve all been there) while shaking hands and kissing babies at a tournament mixer. When laughs turned to coughs, Dirty Harry sees that look he’s seen a hundred times saying, “The look on Steve’s face was different than when somebody is just coughing or joking around. I looked in his eyes and saw that look of panic people have when they see their life passing before their very eyes.” He doesn’t hesitate but instead, an 83 year young Eastwood holsters the 45 in favor of his God given guns and performs a textbook, bear hug Hemlich. Early accounts from the scene indicate he lifted Mr. John off his feet three times launching the chunk of cheese back out the way it came. Read that sentence again; the guy is Eighty-Three.

NLU salutes an American icon but also Mr. John for attacking the finger foods like an unprotected green on a reachable par 5…respect.

Dirty Harry Saves the Day at Pebble Beach

Our favorite places to go on the Web share one underlying characteristic: they consistently alert and direct us to news, opinions, and features we most likely would not stumble upon through our normal web-surfing habits. In that vein, we are forming a weekly ‘Friday Foursome’ of links that is a collection of the most interesting, informative, and fun reads we come across in a given week.

The hope is that we can provide interesting reading material you may or may not find otherwise. Lord knows we can all use a little boost at the end of another work week to get into the clubhouse!

GOLF Magazine’s Cameron Morfit interviewed Gary McCord a few weeks back.

 It’s open, honest, and captivating. McCord is a treasure (Golf.com, 1/13/14).

Whoever Said Golf Was Supposed to Be Fun? by Christian Chensvold

 on the nature of golf (WSJ Opinion, 1/28/14) — log-in now required, unfortunately.

Brooks Koepka has no immediate plans to return stateside.

 Personally, I think Brooks is making a heady move. See the world, play golf, and hopefully earn full Tour status along the way (Yahoo Sport (UK & Ireland) via Reuters, 2/1/14).

SI’s Richard Deitsch always brings the goods in his weekly ‘Media Circus’ column.

 Not necessarily golf related, but chalk full of interesting discussion and links galore. (SI.com, 2/3/14).

Friday Links Foursome (What We're Reading)

, and share any thoughts in the chat below.

AT&T Pebble Beach Pro Am Live Thread.

Ever heard of it? Widely known as (at minimum) one of the five best golf courses in the world, Pebble has played host to this tournament since 1947, as well as five U.S. Opens through the years. Measuring 6,816 yards, it’s the shortest track in the PGA Tour rotation and actually plays the easiest (in relation to par) of the three courses in the rota this week.

Get your picture in front of the ocean out of the way pre-round because there are birdies to be had from the get-go. The first eight holes are way gettable with two reachable par-5’s, as well as a potentially (depending on prevailing winds) driveable par-4 (#4). Holes 9 and 10 are brutal par-4’s along the ocean that can be really awkward for righties. Once the course routes inland, holes 11 through 16 are, relatively speaking, extremely forgettable (you’re still at f’ing Pebble). Then comes the picturesque, magnificent finishing hole. The par-5 18th is both beautiful…

…and gettable (with a real threat of calamity)…

Another course straight off a postcard, Spyglass has the reputation as “Pebble’s Little Sister” (actually I just made this up, but it works). Diminutive like Pebble (listed at 6,858 yards) and much lesser known, it’s actually a very stern test with #8 and #16 considered two of the toughest holes on Tour. Possessing serious elevation changes, oddly shaped greens, and awkward uphill/downhill shots, all the while overlooking the Pacific Ocean, Spyglass camps out at the top of public course rankings. The last thing we’ll note is that the course sometimes borders a little bit on rinky-dink due to the shortness, shapes and forced iron play. Glass half-full, it’s shot-maker nirvana; glass half-empty, it’s the prettiest damn pitch and putt you’ll find.

MPCC was added to the tourney rotation in 2010, and has 

as the third site for the event. Stop me if you’ve heard this so far: it’s beautifully scenic, with ocean views, and short (6,838 yards). MPCC usually gets cut out of the broadcast for the most part, so there’s much we don’t really know about it. The front-nine is a funky little par-34 featuring three par-3s, so there is that.

 a solid website which runs through the aforementioned courses, as well as other beauties in the area like Cypress and Pasatiempo.

The tourney describes itself as ‘A Charitable Classic since 1937,’ when Bing Crosby “invited some friends to play golf, enjoy a clambake, and raise a little money for charity.” NLU Godfather Sam Snead won the inaugural Pro-Am in ’37, and legends have continued to raise what looks like a miniature, crystallized version of the CN Tower ever since:

Shortly after, Phil told Clint to ‘GET OFF MY LAWN’

 a little more corporate (then again what doesn’t, am I right?) what with the number of big-money, non-celeb amateurs in the field. Amazingly AT&T has maintained its lead sponsorship of the event since 1986–that and $0.50 will get you a cup of coffee!

Truth be told, even though the celebs overall border on C-list, it’s kinda cool the tournament has held on to its roots with the Hollywood folk sauntering around inside and outside the ropes. Their presence, along with the unrelenting gorgeous scenery, always puts everyone in good spirits and the vibe does hit ‘convivial clambake’ throughout the week, even if it’s meandered from Bing Crosby’s exclusive-based-on-coolness to exclusive-based-on-

. Pros here to grind won’t have fun. Amateurs here to grind should be shot.

Brandt Snedeker edged Chris Kirk by two shots to win the Pro title. At the time he was the hottest golfer on the planet, as the result marked his 

 top-3 finish in his first five events of 2013 (!!). What’s interesting is that Chris Kirk (2nd), Kevin Stadler (3rd), and Jimmy Walker (3rd) have all notched their first career wins (two for Walker) since last year.

Snedeker and his amateur partner/professional BSD, Toby Wilt, shared the Pro-am crown with Michael Letzig and John Erickson. Why they don’t play off the Pro-am title is inexplicable bordering on criminal.

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

Dustin Johnson (12/1) – 2 time winner, top-5’s in this event 3 of the last 5 years – Home Field Advantage

Hunter Mahan (16/1) – T16, T15, 2nd last three years here. Buttery wedge and iron player doesn’t have to bomb it.

Jimmy Walker (20/1) – T3, T9, T9 last three years, and obviously balling out this year.

Jason Day (12/1) – 6th in 2013. He’s gonna pure long irons off the tee ALL DAMN DAY.

Spencer Levin (66/1) – Top-10’s his last two starts here, three top-15’s in four starts, this is essentially his home.

Charlie Wi (100/1) – Four top-27 finishes in the last 5 years, including 2nd in 2012 (when he had to wait out Lefty’s trophy ceremony from the 18th fairway before holing out).

Patrick Reed (40/1) – 7th here last year and is loitering near the top of leaderboards every week.

Aaron Baddeley (80/1) – T12, 4, T6 in his last three starts in this event.

Kevin Stadler (50/1) – Doubt he’ll win two in a row but does own three top-25’s in 4 starts here, including a T3 last year.

Richard H. Lee (150/1) – T12 and T15 the last two years. If you actually play him or bet him, you’re a better man than me.

Take a drink of your beer anytime the following happens:

Jim Nantz tries to make it seem like he feels bad about the weather being shitty in your city while he looks at whales surfacing in the cove.

Your eyes bleed from Peter Kostis using the Konica Minolta Bizhub Swing Vision Camera on a celebrity’s awful swing.

Kenny G’s fake 2-handicap pops up on screen. Or any fake handicap for that matter. Most of the amateurs in this event are titans of their industry, type-A’s to the core. Lopping off a stroke or six from their Index for appearances is standard operating procedure.

Chris Berman can’t get out of a greenside bunker. Or you see Chris Berman’s pit stains. Or just generally whenever Chris Berman is on camera—you’ll want to be as numb as possible.

A Dustin Johnson-Paulina Gretzky-Wayne Gretsky parallel is drawn and the palpable awkwardness hangs in the air.

CBS interviews an Entertainment-industry celeb you’ve never heard of.

An amateur clumsily attempts to pick up or scoop his ball green-side. Most of these peeps realize they have no business being alongside Pros and are walking on eggshells all week. Around the greens especially they’re trying to 1) stay the hell out of the way and 2) get the hell out of the way after they do have to hit their ball. For most of em this usually results in rushed, non-athletic moves to pocket their rock. Cheers to that!

You find yourself muttering, either silently or aloud, “why the hell is CBS showing [insert amateur’s name] 

You get The Itch and live north of the Mason-Dixon line. You’ll want to consume heavily knowing it’s early February and golf season is still at least a month and a half away.

NOTE: we will break down the hilarity on the amateur side of this event later this week (probably in cliche, power rank form) in time for Saturday’s extremely avoidable broadcast. So check back later in the week for sure.

The first thing that comes to my mind when I think about Pebble Beach is Tiger Woods’ performance for the ages at the 2000 U.S. Open. Big Cat actually won the AT&T before going on to OBLITERATE the field at the US Open in June. My favorite story from that week 

Speaking of the Cablinasian – partly due to the ass-whooping Mickelson put on him back in 2012, Tiger probably won’t be back in these parts again until the 2019 US Open at Pebble. He played six years in a row between 1997 and 2002, notably winning in 2000 as detailed 

NLU will be on site for the first time this year, as neil griffith will be making the trek down from San Francisco. He’s been polishing up the NLU signature “MMMMMMUNCHED!!!!!!” call for tee balls. After this, the next time NLU will be on-site is the Heritage at HHI and then the Memorial up in C-bus (subject to change pending our media credential request for Augusta).

Graeme McDowell making his 2k14 non reach-around schedule debut. So there’s that.

While the amateur aspect of this tournament can be annoying (and an absolute kick in the balls to anyone who cares about pace of play), it’s worth touching upon some of the celebs NLU is looking forward to making fun of profiling later this week. First, there’s a wealth of QB’s (A Rodg, Tony Romo, Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Alex Smith, and Colin Kapernick…psyche!) and Coaches (HoodMan Belichick, Jim Harbaugh, Brian Kelly, and Herm Edwards – who will definitely be playing to win the game). Personally, we can’t wait to see The Bull God (Kid Rock), Hootie (sans the Blowfish), and Kenny G munch drives and stuff wedges. We can only hope these guys make up for Chris Berman’s presence inside the ropes.Who the HELL is Gary Mule Deer?

We’re expecting a big number from ‘The Great One’ this year after we outed 

 You’ll remember that DJ shat his pants last year when he played with Wayne. We’ll see if that trend continues this year.

Chris Kirk spooked us last week, chasing an opening 65 in Phoenix with 73, 74, 76. Didn’t see that coming.

Honestly, the best part of this week for Fil and me is the presence of 

. These two Irish playboy billionaires have lived pretty incredible lives (check out their wiki links for full detail–we’ll hit the highlights below).

McManus (pictured on the right) made an early killing in the horse racing hustle, as both owner and wagerer. 

 He’s also a currency savant it seems, acquiring a sizable chunk of his billions trading FX from a small office in Geneva, Switzerland. 

 He’s also a large shareholder in Ladbrokes. 

 Not mentioned: obligatory run-ins with regulating bodies and questions surrounding certain business dealings. 

Desmond (pictured left) is basically McManus minus the penchant for ponies plus some badass lip foliage. He’s a wheeler and dealer across all business industries, his main profession making money. He has majority ownership of Celtic FC, while also having stakes in Casinos, Airports, and seemingly everything else. Like McManus, he’s crossed paths with governing agencies, a requisite for 

You’re damn right Soly went white pants with the yardage book in the back pocket when he got the chance to play here three years ago. 

Lastly, try telling us that Stillwater Cove doesn’t look like a great set of Hooters…

AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am Preview

Considering the season Hideki Matsuyama enjoyed in 2013 he probably isn’t a golfer to watch in terms of ‘breakout’ candidate on Tour. He is, however, absolutely a prime 

 candidate–and that’s way more prestigious anyway. Somehow this guy has managed to fly under the same radar that pegged Ryo Ishikawa for superstardom (Ryo (from Sergio), incidentally, is YOTTOing nicely this year). Due to this ability to remain undetected while still delivering large payloads, we’ve dubbed Matsuyama “The Drone.” We’re unclear how exactly Finchy came across this technology, though we suspect well-placed agents across Japan helped to acquire it. Did Finchy have to pay a 

 to get him to play a full schedule on the PGA Tour this year?

To quickly recap, Matsuyama’s worst Tour finish last year (sans the inexplicable MC at the Sony) was a T21 at the WGC- Bridgestone Invitational. He collected top-10’s at both Opens, and though technically not a part of the 2013 season, racked a 3rd-place finish during the reach-around at the Frys.com. Oh yeah, he also led the Japan Tour’s money list, won 5 times, and earned a spot on the President’s Cup squad.

I had the distinct privilege to watch Matsuyama in person last Fall at the President’s Cup–the guy carries himself with quiet confidence that is hard to describe. He absolutely oozes steadfast assuredness in his game, without any of the side antics or hints of immaturity that belie some other young stars (namely 

, though we LOVE the guy, and his intensity).

If by some slim chance you’ve haven’t had a chance to see Matsuyama play much yet, we recommend spending a few minutes and just watching this guy swing. The tempo is positively metronomic–Big Easy 2.0. Let’s just pray he never watches Tommy Gainey swing a club.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIb-ART3onY

Hideki MatsuYOTTO

Kevin Stadler saved us from the CBS-Bubba love child that was in the process of being made after Bubba missed a 6 footer on 18 to force a playoff. Harris English wrecked his rig early and couldn’t get any momentum going all day. Hideki Matsuyama’s putting prevented him from having a say. Hunter Mahan hit a godawful drive on 17 to remove himself from the proceedings. And Graham DeLaet mounted a furious, valiant comeback (a ballstriking fiesta) but couldn’t overcome a three-wiggle on 15. So it came down to Bubba (who buried some cold-hearted putts on 16 & 17 to mask some serious mistakes) and Stadler (who righted the ship after a double on 11 and played it pretty steady all the way in aside from some yippy putting). After a brilliant approach, mini-walrus missed the birdie putt on 18 but it didn’t matter as Bubba missed the comebacker for par (after a brilliantly lucky chip).

It should be noted that as the Thunderbirds were moving up the 18th fairway after the last group made the green, Bubba demanded them to GTFO the fairway during his pre-chip routine. And then after he missed the putt to tie it and the tournament was over, he became visibly agitated before proceeding with the tap-in about the amount of movement in the gallery. Vintage.

All in all, an insanely entertaining week. First class to the Thunderbirds and to the people of the desert for putting on such an epic affair. Kevin Stadler was a feel-good winner.

Aside from the atmosphere, TPC Scottsdale continues to be an extremely entertaining layout for those of us watching on TV. It’s not an incredibly easy course, but it has great risk-reward holes on the back 9 that make for some thrilling yo-yo’ing up and down the leaderboard (

). Let’s hope Weiskopf displays a gentle touch with the upcoming renovations (although if he adds some more contours to make the greens funnel to certain locations a bit more, especially on 16 green, that could take the excitement next-level).

We at NLU did not care for the setup of the 17th hole for the final round. The back pin placement is understandable, but if they’re gonna put it back there at least keep the tees up so dudes can challenge it and the lake is in play. The bunker about 275 out got more action than the lake. No doubt that if some of these guys had another crack at it they’d surely lay up off the tee and throw a wedge in there with some goobie on it. And we just can’t get down with that in these parts.

Hideki Matsuyama is still somehow extermemly underrated. He’s 21 and ranked number 23 in the world (before this breakout performance). The pregnant pause at the top of his swing is legendary, as is his tempo overall. Couldn’t be more pleased that he’s playing the U.S. tour this year; it’s clear the guys on CBS agree, dudes were GUSHING about his game.

Gary Mccord had the quote of the week: “Oh watch it now! It’s gonna go down that false front, which coincidentally a lot of the females around here have that same thing.” Augusta needs to reconsider their stance and get this guy back in the fold!

Bubba was Bubba all week. Bombing and gouging all over the big ballpark, and throwing 

. His incessant whining and his personality are somehow getting worse and worse. How he continues to be celebrated as one of the most popular guys on tour is beyond me. He shouldn’t even play this event – his schtick just doesn’t fit at an event where the crowds are vocal and real. Remember that whole Ryder Cup bit a few years ago where he pulled a Happy Gilmore and tried to get the crowd to make some noise? What a farce! Alright, one last thing and then I’m done with the Bubba hate. True story: A “Bubba Watson Whining” search returns 155,000 results!

Can you imagine the implosion if “250 pound” (there’s no freaking way that’s all he’s packing 

!)Kevin Stadler had won the health-focused Humana Challenge two weeks ago? It was fun rooting for Stadler as he truly seems like one of the good dudes on tour. That being said, his victory gives the “golfers aren’t athletes” haters one more bullet in the clip. Colt Knost did have a great tweet about it:

 !!!! See y'all in the gym tomorrow morning!!



— Colt Knost (@ColtKnost) 

Speaking of Big Units, overall it was a good showing from our boy Kiradech Aphibarnrat this week. Despite some struggles on the weekend he availed himself well and showed his game can travel. He opened with an impresive bogey-free 66.

Another solid week from NLU fave, the DoubleP. Dude’s in a groove right now.

Has Ryan Moore always been insanely slow? For a guy who’s ballstriking is that good, it’s somewhat counterintuitive he has to take so damn long.

Can’t say enough about Graham DeLaet’s performance and evolution as an elite ballstriker out here on tour. He’s like Canada’s answer to Horschel. Not to mention his face-cabbage is top-notch. They should let him invite Corey Chamblin, Head Coach of the 2013 Grey Cup Champion Saskatchewan RoughRiders to be his pro-am partner at Pebble this week. Let’s give 

A couple bright spots but overall we eMCee’d the proceedings this week. We’ll get it together for Pebble and Riv.

Keegan opened the week telling the media that everyone needed to pick him for their fantasy teams this week. He opened with a 66, but lit himself on fire on Friday, imploding to an 80. No word yet on what he was protesting. Hole 3 is where it really fell apart, where he sprayed one OB, blocked his provisional right of the green, chipped it over the green, chipped it back over, and tapped in for his 8.

With a friendly front hole location, Ben Crane nearly aced the 17th hole on Friday. He wouldn’t have won $2.5 million had he made it 

We go back to the west best coast for some of the best and most beautiful courses on the tour for the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro Am: Pebble Beach-Spyglass Hill-Monterrey Peninsula. Unfortunately, CBS annually takes a dump on viewers by focusing their entire broadcast on how many shots it takes a sweaty Chris Berman to get out of a bunker, and how bad other celebrities swings are. The event has a lot of history, but Pro-Am formats are awful, and it’s a shame that one of the best courses in the world is subject to Kenny G masquerading around as both a two handicap and the star of next week’s Dateline: How To Catch a Predator. Here’s to hoping the Short Shore Course over at MPCC gets more than the cursory canned coverage this year – that place has some of the best views around. We’ve got NLU boots on the ground this week down in Monterrey, so stay tuned!

Waste Management Phoenix Open Recap

We certainly appreciate the feedback and the sharing of NLU’s primer, 

. If you watched CBS’ coverage of the Waste Management Phoenix Open today you witnessed Bubba Watson put on an absolute clinic in many of the areas we discussed in the piece (he also managed to carve out time to take his douchey persona to the next level). His shtick plays well to the masses, so in a sense, the highest attended golf tournament in the world is perfect for him. But we see right through him. Here’s a recap (and thank you to many of our tweeps for pointing these out):

Bubba Watson with the wayward directional point…. 

 he pointed like a pro, Like Rory, he too must have read your article in order to better play the part 

There was the wayward drive point on 11. Then on 13. He then called in an official (this will be coming in “How to Act Like a Tour Pro: Part II”) on 13, and took an extremely questionable drop out from underneath a bush due to a supposed hole created by a “burrowing animal” being in his potential swing path.

Next, on 15 he managed to pull the “Club Stop” and the “Blame the Camera” move within a 6 second span!

 all over the yard today. The mid swing stop AND camera point! 

By the time he actually got around to hitting his tee ball, Bubba proceeded to hook the drive (with the “Directional Point”), and again called for the rules offical. Nick Faldo called it “Day One Stuff,” regarding Bubba’s question on the ruling.

Following a missed 7-footer for birdie on 16, he went for the “Blame the Green” move. He actually has a pretty good case here, but it still makes the list.

Lastly, his drive on 17 went way right, and he went for the “Directional Point” yet again, and even added his own twist to it. He didn’t even bother to look at the shot, instead choosing to look straight down to the ground. That’s eight (8!!!!) blatant #TourSauces in a seven hole span! And that’s only what was shown on TV. Thanks to Bubba for putting on a spectacular #TourSauce performance today. Bravo.

It’s a good thing this isn’t a drinking game.

Bubba Watson Sprayed Tour Sauce All Over Scottsdale Saturday

Whether consciously or subconsciously, all golfers are influenced by tour pros in some way, shape or form. You know you’ve mimicked a tour player’s pre-shot routine or swing, bought similar attire, or even reacted similarly to a shot, and you probably do it more often than you think.

My friends and I began doing this years ago when we started thinking we were way better than we were. We began intentionally acting as if we were tour pros playing inside the ropes in front of large galleries. What started as a joke morphed into a full fledged side competition and reached the point where we celebrated a well-executed tour mannerism more than a great shot.

Below are some ideas for how you can join in on the fun (ordered by degree of ridiculousness). And remember, throw subtlety out the window when trying any of this stuff. We call it #TourSauce.

You’re a pro now, remember that. You did not “get new clubs this offseason” – rather, you’re “going through an equipment change.” Yes, those 6 year old Mizuno’s you bought at Golf Galaxy count as an equipment change. And don’t forget to throw in some fabricated stat like “I got them bent so my traj is 1.5 degrees lower than last year” or “My ball speed is up 6 miles an hour.”

You haven’t been “taking lessons.” Instead, you’re working with a new swing coach. It doesn’t matter that your lessons cost $25/hour at Ranger Rick’s (they just put in lights this year!). You’re going through some swing changes, and you need to make it clear to everyone that you feel good about where you are in “The Process.” Just remember, all the hours you’ve been putting in with the new “physio” you brought on the team a few months ago are going to start paying dividends soon (nevermind that this new “physio” is just the instructor in your group Cardio Jam class at L.A. Fitness).

This is probably the only tour thing you can do that isn’t completely ridiculous. You may even already do this as part of your routine, but you can absolutely go next level with it. My favorite is the tee shot where the club is twirled away from the body, and the tee is picked out of the ground before the ball has even reached its apex. No need to watch the ball. It really doesn’t even matter if you hit it well – remember, you’re trying to be as arrogant as possible.

You wedge in from 130, knocking it to 12 feet, sprinkling goobie dust on it and making your ProV1x dance just a little bit. Your playing partner acknowledges you with a “Good ball.” Your instinct is to reply with a simple, “Thanks.” Resist the urge – even though you’ve missed six greens in a row, you’re not satisfied – 12 feet is mediocre. Remember, you’re playing in front of a gallery. You just stuffed it to 12 feet. There is a smattering of applause. And while you want to acknowledge the applause, the subtlety of the crowd wave is the key here as you need to convey two things: 1) that you’re not thrilled with the shot 2) that you’re still grateful for their adulation. Basically, you want to find that spot one step above the Tiger crowd wave and one step below the Matt Kuchar smile/Phil Mickelson thumbs-up-fest. This is guaranteed to at least get an eye-roll from your partner, probably to the point that they’re going to stop complimenting your good shots. All for the better. You’ve got the crowd behind you now. The utter silence after you drain your next 15 footer is going to be deafening.

A similar move is to work in the casual tug of the hat after picking your ball up out of the hole, or after a modest approach shot. The key here is not to pull on the cap. Just touch your index finger and thumb to the bill of the hat. Don’t remove the hat under any circumstances. Act like you’ve been there before.

Let’s say you hit an 8-iron to 14 feet on the next hole (you’re really starting to groove your irons, although you hit your first drive OB), and the crowd is getting into it. You really want to convey that the shot was no big deal to you. Suddenly, you feel the urge to tap the area around your divot repeatedly with your club, which does absolutely nothing to fix the divot. Your heart is weeping for the piece of turf you just dug up. However, you can’t completely ignore the crowd. You take your free hand and briefly acknowledge with a wave, NEVER breaking your focus on the divot.

Once you’ve mastered this move you’ll also be able to utilize a similar technique after you hole the 14 foot bogey putt that you’re about to start grinding on. Immediately after you snag your ball out of the hole, tap down your imaginary spike marks as you walk away from the hole, while throwing in a subtle crowd wave. 

 your soft spikes didn’t make a mark on the furry public green that you just bogeyed, but why would that matter?

Sometimes, even a tour pro like yourself hits one off target. Luckily you play on tour, and you’ve got a marshall up ahead to help you spot your ball. You do all you can do make sure he knows which way to look. When Bubba Watson isn’t calling out a cell phone user or berating his caddie, this is typically what he’s doing when he’s pointing left. You’re not going to look for the ball yourself. The marshall is going to find the ball – you’re doing 

 a favor by offering up a directional hint.

You crank a drive, but it’s slightly off line. You’re DISGUSTED. As a tour pro you can easily feel any flaws in your swing prior to impact. You have to let everyone know how displeased you are, so you just throw your club on the follow through. But you really don’t worry about potentially hitting someone with the club – I’ll give you something to remedy any collateral damage in a bit.

After hitting a mediocre iron shot, you’re pissed. I mean it’s still on the green, but for godsake you’re a freaking tour pro. Something had to have gone horribly wrong for that ball to go 10 feet offline (you tell yourself that it’s just a byproduct of where you’re at in “The Process”). It’s time to rehearse your swing until you’ve figured it out. Nevermind that your group is now at the green, and the foursome of ladies behind you is ready to tee off…. you need to figure out what the hell just went wrong.

You’ve hit yet another green in regulation. Big deal. You’re used to this. Time to clean off your ball and drain another birdie. But there’s no chance in hell you’re cleaning the ball yourself. Mark your ball, and toss it to your “caddie” (unsuspecting playing partner) to clean it.

Keep a scorecard in your back pocket. As you get ready to hit a shot, back off and pull it out and act like it’s a yardage book. Act like you’re talking to your caddie, and get REALLY specific. Throw every blade of grass in the air and act as if you’ve never seen wind on a golf course before, and you have no idea what to do. Look high up at the trees, as if that somehow gives you more information about the wind.

If you’re feeling uncomfortable over a shot and need to back off of it, it’s time to blame it on someone else, usually the crowd. This is done best if you can stop your swing halfway through.

This works for after a poor shot as well. Point at the groundskeeper minding his own business a couple of fairways over and act like he’s the camera man that clearly clicked in your backswing.

This is one by far my favorite, and by far the most difficult to pull off. Say you hit a ball out of bounds (someone snapped a picture on your downswing AGAIN). Once you finish belittling the fool that won’t quit capturing Kodak moments, you realize you hit it into someone’s yard and the homeowner happens to be out trimming the hedges. You walk up, feigning genuine concern, and lead with your standard, “Is everyone ok?”. After you’ve played your shot, you take off your glove, walk over to the fan (confused homeowner), sign it, and give it to them and apologize. Throw in a gratuitous “I’m not gonna find this on Ebay next week, 

?” joke in there, as if your John Hancock has some real monetary value.

You just completed your round. Everyone in the clubhouse is dying to know how it went (were they not watching the telecast? Geez). You stroll through the pro shop and the club pro (we’ll call him “Tom”) casually asks you how your round was. This is your cue to go into full interview mode:

“You know, Tommy, course looks great, greens are really stimping right now. I like my chances.”

Or… “All-in-all, felt like we got some good work in today. Left a few shots out there, the one on 13 hurt, but I really flighted the ball well and I’m seeing my lines. This track is so gettable right now, so hopefully I can rest up and post a low number tomorrow.”

Drop a “Thanks Tommy” as you walk away.

 and let us know when you see some #TourSauce. 

How to Act Like a Tour Pro: An NLU Primer

Get yer’ shotguns, it’s another week of target practice out in the desert! The course, outside of holes 15 through 17, is completely forgettable. But these three holes, under tournament conditions especially, are pretty cool. #15 is an NLU-endorsed, completely reachable par-5 which presents some risk due to water all down the left side, as well as loosely surrounding the green. #16 is wholly unremarkable under normal conditions, but transforms to a crucible of nerves and excitement (more on this in a second) this week. Finally, #17 may be one of the most underrated holes on Tour. It’s a true risk-reward par-4, playing 332 yards on the card but often shorter in competition. There’s water just off the green left and long, forcing most guys to bail short and right. But be on the look out for the handful of Aces challenging the flag, especially the back/left location nearest the hazard–these guys deserve our utmost respect and admiration.

The 18th hole has been a criminally nondescript par-4 with a pond that’s not really in play off the tee. In fact, prudent strategy the last few years is to just bomb Driver as far as possible in the general direction of the hole, taking the hazard out of play, and getting a free drop from the grandstands if need be. It’s an anti-climatic end to a strong finishing stretch of holes, not to mention the tourney in general. But there’s some good news, according to Matt Ginella of Golf Channel, the Stadium Course is set to 

Before: Just a bunch of people hanging out and day drinking

Writing

YOTTO Update (AT&T Pebble Beach)

AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am Recap

Notes from the Field: Saturday at Pebble Beach

Dirty Harry Saves the Day at Pebble Beach

Friday Links Foursome (What We're Reading)

AT&T Pebble Beach Pro Am Live Thread.

AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am Preview

Hideki MatsuYOTTO

Waste Management Phoenix Open Recap

Bubba Watson Sprayed Tour Sauce All Over Scottsdale Saturday

How to Act Like a Tour Pro: An NLU Primer

Waste Management Phoenix Open Preview

First Look at Pinehurst No. 2 Restoration

Farmers Insurance Open Recap

This Guy Has a Terrible Idea

Drama Theater: The 18th at Torrey Pines

Farmers Insurance Open Preview

YOTTO Update (Humana)