So I’ll openly admit that I have previously slammed Bryson for his methodically slow approach to putting but I am eagerly waiting to see him at Augusta.
Yesterday he destroyed a Par 4 with his driver and has stated he is going to take a month off and work on speed, strength and his 48° driver.
Normally I am not a fan of majors being won by huge under scores, but in this case I am genuinely intrigued to see him attack Augusta!
Maybe, like Tiger, we are witnessing another ground change in golf??
I don’t watch a lot of long drive competitions, but seems like when I do they’re all hitting fades. His ability to hit a draw with that power is going to set up very nicely at Augusta.
All sports have recently had data led revolutions… sabermetrics in baseball, three pointers in basketball… it looks like decade / strokes gained is going to be it in golf.
I think it’s fascinating… we are still in the nascent stages of people figuring this stuff out and incorporating it at a professional level. Bryson has clearly drank the kool aid.
Hit the shot that gives you the highest average chance of finishing the hole… I think his putting work continues to be underrated. I also think his focus is avoiding big numbers, making pars and taking negative numbers when he can.
Talking about fades yesterday I listen to On the Mark Golf Podcast where he talked to Butch Harmon and he mention that his Dad Claude hated seeing his golf ball go right to left. Interesting to see some of the great players he teaches know all hit fades off the tee.
I remember hearing a Long Driver make a comment about wanting to actual hit the ball as straight as possible as the more side spin a ball had either way it would not travel as far. I think it was Joe Miller but I am not 100% positive.
Yeah, I saw something similar from an oem? I think…
It makes sense, the fastest way between two points is a straight line… I’m definitely going to spend some time experimenting with a neutral path whenever my club gets a simulator.
I’m interested to see if he really will game a 48" driver. He’s already hitting it long and surprisingly straight. I thought it might take him more time to figure out a 48" stick, but I’m sure he has plan.
Of all the thing Bryson does, the slow putting is the most frustrating for me.
He’s put the work in in the weight room and can generate tremendous amount of speed which is within the rules and he’s clearly taken it to another level. Kudos to him.
I really dislike the idea of guys doing a “math problem” on the green though. It’s incredible that he can make it work (this would destroy any semblance of feel that I have). I dislike that the green books now have a level of detail where guys are looking at a book instead of the putt in front of them.
I hope he pisses off as many golf purists as possible.
If he has that putter going he may make a mockery of Augusta. Part of me doesn’t want that because tradition bla bla bla, but another part of me wants it to be an absolute blood bath just so we can see what they try to come up with to stop him from doing it in the future. They tried “Tiger-proofing” and it didn’t work. Have they learned from that?
He’ll be in the mix… no guarantee he makes a mockery of the place
To be fair, I’ve never personally considered Augusta that hard a course, i think the occasion is what adds the pressure.
With no crowds, the course will look wider and more attractive to Bryson.
It will now be down to how high the green keepers set the stimp rating to protect the course
It has always seemed that a little bit of rain really takes the teeth out of Augusta. It would be plenty tough for me now that they have moved so many tees back, but for the pros, those green complexes are the last line of defense for the course.
If the course is soft and they can fire at pins, look out.
I still think he will struggle around the greens some…he sure might win and i think he will be in it but whoever putts well will win the masters at the end.
No point being able to hit the ball so far if you hit it into places you can’t find your ball. Would people have been standing there if not for Covid19?
Guess all we needed was an overly mechanical swing to get a wee bit out of whack and the big golfer to hang his head a little. The “par 67” Augusta is still a test even when soft if you can’t keep it on planet Earth off the tee.
I will amend this and say I don’t think what Bryson PLANNED to do at the Masters was wrong. I just think we’re going to see days where things go completely off the rails for him and days where he absolutely neuters a golf course.
Golf is hard…
Favorite part of this tournament so far is Langer making the cut at age 63. What a feat. The guy is a beast!
He’s incredible. I’ve met him a couple times and is also a humble, kind, and generous human. Big fan of his.
Glad to hear he’s a good guy in real life…
I think the thing Bryson has done is given himself another 3-4% chance of winning every tournament he plays in (at least) but I also think the nature of hitting it long is when you are off, you are really off… and it’s much more visible.
His mediocre rounds are going to look significantly worse than other players mediocre rounds by the nature of how far he hits the ball… but I also think his technique has shown that he’s always a threat even when not playing perfect and when everything clicks, he’s untouchable (see the US Open)
Its really hard to win. He does not get enough credit for how incredible he played at wing foot. Approach, short game, putting and obviously driving were all on fire.
It was a historic golf performance (with some good luck, as there always is when someone wins) but the media has to put the narrative together.
Agree that he has given himself an edge and the media will always blow his performance out of proportion to generate “buzz”