.@TigerWoods walking off the 18th green to celebrate his return to glory with his family is an image we’ll never forget.

One year later, he reflects on just how much it all means to him. #MastersRewind pic.twitter.com/9DfmU8k2pL

— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) April 12, 2020

It’s getting dusty in here again! Awesome stuff all around. That being said, let’s hope we don’t have to do this next year.

WE’RE BUYING

Tiger Woods: As mentioned, the Easter Sunday broadcast was pretty special. Based on a quarter-century of rather guarded interviews, it was surprising—and great—to see Tiger get so emotional. Perhaps more surprising, though, is that he became social media’s biggest star last week. First, by posting this photo of him hosting a stay-at-home Masters Champions Dinner featuring food he would have had served at the real thing:

https://www.instagram.com/p/B-suPm5jPgA/?utm_source=ig_embed

And then by sharing his homemade Magnolia Lane:

https://www.instagram.com/p/B-4rvdvjzmF/?utm_source=ig_embed

Who is Tiger’s gardener? And who is his social media specialist? Both had strong Sundays.

Phil Mickelson’s robe: For his Masters Rewind, Phil donned a white robe instead of the green jacket:

https://www.instagram.com/p/B-2a5CjDjNn/?utm_source=ig_embed

Wow, that thing looks comfy. By the way, how nice must it be to re-watch your own Masters win? I’m guessing it’s pretty nice—especially in one of those robes.

Dakota Cunningham: Usually I’m jealous when I hear other people’s hole-in-one stories, but this John Strege story about a young St. Jude’s patient overcoming leukemia is awesome. And the 14-year-old didn’t just get lucky with an ace. He’s a total stick who also calmly sank a putt worth $50,000 in front of Justin Rose last year. Impressive. Speaking of “kids” …

Collin Morikawa: A year ago, Collin was finishing up his senior year at Cal. Now? He’s a PGA Tour winner, he holds the tour’s longest active made-cut streak and he recently received his first Masters invite. Already one of the world’s best iron players, we caught up with Collin on this week’s Golf Digest Podcast to talk about all that and more. Turns out, he has some great taste in TV as well:

This guy is really going places. Well, after the lockdown, that is.

WE’RE SELLING

The “Mock Masters” final leader board: First off, congrats to Patrick Reed for winning our statistical experiment run by Rick Gehman and chronicled by Shane Ryan. No doubt Reed would have enjoyed having Tiger Woods return last year’s favour by slipping the green jacket back on the 2018 winner. But based on the reactions, let’s just say this wasn’t a popular victory. And that a final leader board of Reed winning by three over Corey Conners and Tyrrell Hatton after Tiger, Rory McIlroy and Phil Mickelson all collapsed in the final round? Thanks, but we’ll stick to re-watching 2019.

Cabot St. Lucia’s timing: To be clear, Cabot St. Lucia, which we got a sneak preview of in Derek Duncan’s latest Golf Digest piece, looks like it’s going to be awesome. And why wouldn’t it be? It’s a Bill Coore/Ben Crenshaw design that’s set to open in 2021 in a spectacular part of the world.

Jacob Sjoman/Courtesy of Cabot Saint Lucia

That being said, these guys couldn’t have built this thing before I honeymooned in St. Lucia in 2015? Sigh.

This snake: Jimmy Walker, Texas Ranger:

https://www.instagram.com/p/B-0ZtNOpG3z/?utm_source=ig_embed

Good lord.

ON TAP

This week would have been the RBC Heritage at Harbour Town, AKA that place with the lighthouse on the 18th hole where C.T. Pan edged Matt Kuchar last year for his first PGA Tour title. OK, so it’s more known for the lighthouse.

Streeter Lecka/Getty Images

Random tournament fact: Luke Donald has five runner-up finishes in this event without a win. Basically, what the U.S. Open is to Phil Mickelson, Hilton Head is to Donald.

RANDOM PROP BETS OF THE WEEK

—Jim Nantz will record an interview with C.T. Pan for the broadcast this week: 1 MILLION-to-1 odds
—Luke Donald would finish runner-up in a “Mock Heritage” simulation: Even odds
—I’m going to have nightmares about that snake: LOCK

PHOTOS OF THE WEEK

Let’s share a couple uplifting stories of life during these scary times. First, Michael Thompson and his wife, Rachel, adopted a second child:

Congrats to them. And congrats to the Garcias for welcoming a second child of their own into the world:

Happy Easter to everyone! We’re blessed to have welcomed Enzo Akins Garcia on Friday, April 10, at 6:25 pm. Enzo and Angela are both doing great, and Azalea is very happy to be a big sister! Hope you all have enjoyed Easter (and Masters) Sunday. God bless from our family to yours pic.twitter.com/ipjLtv9SnL

— Sergio Garcia (@TheSergioGarcia) April 13, 2020

So much for Sergio sticking with the Masters-themed baby names. “Firethorn” really would have turned some heads. Oh well.

VIRAL VIDEO OF THE WEEK

This guy did a Tiger King-Tiger Woods mashup. And it’s awesome.

Nothing will replace The Masters this week, but I hope this video will help with the pain.

I saw a Tiger. pic.twitter.com/JHUsDi2pSs

— Drew Franklin (@DrewFranklinKSR) April 9, 2020

VIRAL VIDEO OF THE WEEK (TRICK-SHOT DIVISION)

Keeping with the kids theme, how about this effort?

https://www.instagram.com/p/B-uy8-allPe/?utm_source=ig_embed

THIS WEEK IN TOUR PRO PUBLIC DISPLAYS OF AFFECTION (AND BOOZING)

With no RBC Heritage to contend at, Luke Donald and his wife, Diane, shared a special lockdown cocktail recipe:

 

View this post on Instagram

 

It’s Fri-Yay, and we are READY for a cocktail! ? Here is my go-to recipe for a skinny spicy (optional) margarita. *Also easily ordered in a bar when the world re-opens and we can go out again??. Here’s what you will need… Fresh lime juice ? White tequila ?? Orange liquor ?(like Grand Mariner, Cointreau, or Triple Sec) can also use fresh orange juice if you want to be very low cal Thinly sliced jalapeño ? Sparkling water ?(can be lemon, lime or even grapefruit flavored) Ice ? Mix together lime juice, tequila, a splash of orange liquor, and a few slices of jalapeño with ice in a cocktail shaker. I’m sorry I don’t have measurements but watch the video ? and really it’s to taste. You may want more lime or more orange liquor than I like. But for this recipe i counted to 4 for the tequila, 2 for the grand mariner, and juiced 2 limes, one for each drink. If you like it sweeter add more orange liquor, spicier add more jalapeño, stronger… and more TEQUILA??! Shake shake shake, pour over ice, garnish with jalapeño slices and top with sparkling water.

A post shared by Diane Donald (@dianedonald) on Apr 10, 2020 at 3:15pm PDT

If I didn’t have a nearly two-decade-long ban on drinking tequila, I’d give that a try.

THIS WEEK IN OTHER TOUR PROS BEING QUARANTINED

This back-and-forth #Quarantunes battle between LPGA pro Tiffany Joh and former player Jeehae Lee might be the best thing on Twitter right now. Here’s a sampling:

#Quarantunes
This only took like 30 takes ?
Let’s go, @tiffjoh ??‍??‍??‍ https://t.co/8d4nCoafNM pic.twitter.com/U3bww4driV

— Jeehae Lee (@jeehaeda) April 11, 2020

K. You again @jeehaeda ? #Quarantunes https://t.co/M9LjXmOEsk pic.twitter.com/FFQaFIiHo7

— Tiffany Joh (@tiffjoh) April 9, 2020

Damn. These girls are good. Are they taking requests?

And Viktor Hovland doesn’t “suck at chipping” anymore:

https://www.instagram.com/p/B-7lI1VFmMv/?utm_source=ig_embed

Never mind. Keep working on it, Viktor. You’ve got time.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Doug Sanders, on his dual reputations as a straight hitter and a ladies’ man: “The only times I left the fairway was to get a phone number.”

— Mike O'Malley (@GD_MikeO) April 13, 2020

That might be the greatest quote of all time. RIP Doug Sanders.

THIS AND THAT

European Tour pros have been told to brace for a “radically different” tour when play resumes, including reduced tournament purses. Not good. … The PGA of America and USGA have earmarked millions of dollars to help club pros, course employees and other workers affected by COVID-19 shutdowns. That’s better. … This week’s podcast guest, Collin Morikawa, and a bunch of other tour pros including John Daly, Michelle Wie and Jimmy Walker will compete in a charity poker tournament presented by MGM Resorts. Let’s see if Jimmy is snake-bit at the tables also. Sorry, couldn’t resist. … And finally, even with all the Tiger replays in my house, my daughter still calls him “Lion” for some reason:

We’re making progress… #MastersRewind #Lion pic.twitter.com/TFPredXh8Y

— Alex Myers (@AlexMyers3) April 12, 2020

I’m failing as a parent.

RANDOM QUESTIONS TO PONDER

Who is the best poker player on tour?
Did Joe Exotic really do all his own vocals?
Is Phil allowed to take that robe off of club grounds?

The post Tiger Woods’ quarantine title defense, Phil Mickelson’s Masters robe and an LPGA Twitter battle you have to hear appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.

USGA officials had to cancel Tuesday’s practice rounds out of concerns for the safety of players and spectators. There was some solace when the range did open in the afternoon to allow players to practice. On Wednesday, the course and media centre were closed all morning (I’m writing this piece from the friendly confines of my hotel room), less than 20 hours before the first players are scheduled to tee off in the 70th playing of the national championship.

Since Sunday, 4.4 inches of rain has fallen on the golf course, and rain is expected to continue until Wednesday evening.

There are a lot of questions left unanswered right now. Will the event start as scheduled? Will the course be playable in time? When the women do play, will it be lift, clean, and place? Is this event going to extend into next week? If so, how far? And do I have to change my flight home?

While tournament organizers are faced with the Herculean task of solving all of these problems (OK, maybe not my flight; I’ll handle that one), players are left to figure out how to prepare and how to fill all of the downtimes.

Defending champ Sung Hyun Park was spotted hitting balls at the Topgolf Birmingham. Others in the field, including Michelle Wie and Jessica Korda, have posted pictures and video on social media of indoor putting practice. Several golfers have taken to Twitter in their off-time.

Tiffany Joh made a funny video pointing out that this is the fourth event this year where the LPGA Tour has had to deal with the really bad weather.

“So how’s the season going?” Me: “we been in every kind o’ rain there is…” pic.twitter.com/olaAnpStJm

— Tiffany Joh (@tiffjoh) May 30, 2018

And Paula Creamer ventured that this U.S. Women’s Open could be the wildest one yet.

The Women’s Open is always an interesting week…. I think this might be the craziest one yet and it’s only Wednesday..???‍??‍?

— Paula Creamer (@ThePCreamer) May 30, 2018

Yes, the current situation in Birmingham is pretty bad, and the players’ pre-tournament preparation schedules have been completely shattered. But things could be worse. Actually, things at a U.S. Women’s Open have been worse. I give you: The 1986 U.S. Women’s Open in Dayton, Ohio.

Dayton sees Birmingham’s heavy rain, lightning and unplayable course, and raises it an overturned railroad tanker, which released poisonous clouds of smoke into the town; an earthquake; and flesh-eating flies.

The most impressive part of all of this? The tournament finished all four rounds by Sunday. Sure, it was a tie, and Jane Geddes had returned to the course for an 18-hole Monday playoff against Sally Little and win the title. But still, all of those cartoon-worthy disasters occurred and the players and the organizers were able to get it done basically on-schedule.

In 1986, Geddes survived a harrowing championship week at NCR Country Club outside of Dayton, Ohio, winning the U.S. Women’s Open title in a Monday playoff over Sally Little. (Bettmann)

To get an idea of what it was like playing three decades ago in what I’m willing to call the most peculiar U.S. Women’s Open of all time (tweet at me if you know of a better one), I called two of my most trusted sources: Mom and Dad.

My Mom, Mary Anne Widman, played on the LPGA in the 1980s and my Dad, Jim Levins, would occasionally ditch his day job to come out and caddie for her. Mom was playing and Dad was on the bag at NCR C.C. in 1986.

“I missed the cut, so I missed the flesh-eating flies,” Mom remembers. “I don’t remember being able to practice a lot. We were just kind of holed up. If you can’t prepare, that’s the worst feeling. Nobody ever wants to enter a U.S. Open feeling unprepared.”

Once the players did get out on the course, the play was interrupted by weather delays and groups were packed onto the course more tightly than normal to try and get the rounds in on time. One par 3 was so backed up, there were three groups waiting on the tee together.

“As a player, you’re constantly trying to keep yourself in a position to go back into the mode you were in,” Mom said. “You’re not really absorbing what’s going on behind the scenes, what the organizers are doing, what decisions are being made. I was just trying to always keep my momentum up. Stopping was so hard for me. Even though you’re out of sync when things start to change, you’re just trying to focus.”

The course itself was soaked.

“I saw some of the biggest divots I’ve ever seen taken at that course. Two inches deep, a foot long … the course was so wet, irons were just diving into the ground,” Dad remembers.

Nelly and Jessica Korda played Shoal Creek on Monday, getting in some practice before heavier rains forced USGA officials to close the course all day Tuesday and through lunch on Wednesday. (Copyright USGA/Darren Carroll)

For a novice caddie, all of the calamity around the NCR was a lot to take in. “I remember wondering, When are we going to get out? When are we going to see the course? When are you going to be able to practice on the course or even just hit balls? It was all shaken up. Nothing was according to plan. With so many things going wrong, I remember thinking, ‘OK, what’s going to happen next?’ ”

Ultimately, the players and caddies at the 1986 U.S. Women’s Open, my parents included, came to the same conclusion that the players will be forced to come to here at Shoal Creek: There’s nothing a player or caddie can do except fill the downtime and try to stay focused.

Though it’s not a position any athlete wants to be in before one of the biggest events of their year, it’s far more enviable than what the grounds crew and event organizers have ahead of them. There are still four rounds to play on a very wet golf course.

As I finish this piece, an email from the USGA alerts me that practice rounds will begin at 1 p.m. today. Maybe this week won’t be so calamitous after all.

The post The U.S. Women’s Open is off to a tough start, but it could be worse. Ask anyone who played in 1986 appeared first on Golf Digest Middle East.