For GolfPlayed convert, his number is 887 … and counting
Gary Van Sickle’s article about GolfPlayed.com really caught my fancy and made me wonder, Why didn't I think of that?(“Keeping score just got a lot more interesting,” May 19).
I've recorded each new course I've played in a 1968 "U.K. Golf Course Guide" – 311 so far – and started keeping a note of my scores under 80 since I first made that mark in 1976, never thinking I would finish the 53-page book my wife had given me. Now it's on a spreadsheet at 887, and the beauty is that I know the date, the competition and my playing partners, as well as the hole-by-hole score. From many of those rounds, I can recall some detailed memory as soon as I look at the record, and, like GolfPlayed founder Andrew Georgiou, I'm starting to email the other guys.
So, I'm a natural for the GolfPlayed app. I will be downloading it and entering data as soon as this annoying sunny weather ends and I can get off the course (limit twice a week, at present) and out of the garden.
See you there! Good golfing.
Terry Wall
Winchester, England
Alex Miceli, a mind reader?
Thank you, Alex Miceli, for your comment in the “One Take” video (“Episode 51: We deserve a better telecast,” May 19). It was as if you read my mind.
What a boring event (“NBC, Seminole shine as PGA Tour stars boost coronavirus aid,” May 18). And I turned off after the second question to President Donald Trump. Oh, man, we were really looking forward to the first round on TV again....
Back to the course myself. Thank God we can play again here in Germany.
Tilman Schäfer
Tuebingen, Germany
A salute to NBC
I was pleased very much with the approach and coverage of the foursome Sunday at Seminole Golf Club (“NBC, Seminole shine as PGA Tour stars boost coronavirus aid,” May 18). Given the fact that NBC was reduced to only mobile cameras, the telecast was excellent.
Having been in the TV-production business, I know the amazing ability of production people to turn disaster into success. Therefore, it was more than acceptable, for my taste.
NBC showed the beauty of Seminole, and I found that the Shot Tracer came in extremely fortuitous for viewing, because the course is seaside and void of trees, in most cases. Excellent job, and the announcers were professional and organized, as they always are.
Job well done, NBC.
Bob Geismar
Boca Raton, Fla.
Reader doesn’t miss guy yelling, ‘Get in the hole!’
I wholeheartedly agree with John Hawkins’ assessment of Sunday’s match at Seminole (“NBC, Seminole shine as PGA Tour stars boost coronavirus aid,” May 18). NBC did a wonderful job with the situation.
This was the first time I watched a made-for-TV exhibition, and I wasn’t disappointed. The mic’d-up players lightened a nation’s somber mood and showed that their banter was no different than any other foursome’s, at any other course.
I enjoyed watching them playing in shorts, carrying their own bags and using rangefinders. I know they had some rust, but I wondered how much of their putting woes were due to not having a caddie tell them how to putt. Even though they were missing putts, I enjoyed not having to endure the player-caddie interaction, which lent another element of genuineness to the telecast.
I also enjoyed getting to know Matthew Wolff and watching the unusual kick-start of his swing and Gary Koch’s and Paul Azinger’s explanation of it. NBC correctly assumed that viewers would want to know the story behind that move.
Another big plus was not having to listen to someone in the gallery yelling, “Get in the hole!” after every shot.
Finally, I have to salute PGA Tour rules official Mark Russell, who soldiered on walking with the group while wearing his signature long-sleeved shirt and tie in order to pull the flagstick on each hole. I suppose that when it comes to rules and flagsticks, there is no lightening up.
Daryl Lott
Houston
That’s why he was known as ‘The King’
My memory of Arnold Palmer reflects his “go for it” mentality (“ ‘Arnie and me’: A story worth sharing,” May 12).
My wife and I had Friday tickets to the Masters in the mid-1990s. Palmer was paired with Gary Player and was on the bubble to make the cut for the weekend. My wife and I stood along the left side of the No. 15 fairway, in the shade of the pine trees. It’s a great spot, as it is about the landing spot for tee shots (at least at that point in time). Both of their tee shots came to rest behind the pine trees, about 230 yards to the flag. Player was away and selected a 4-wood, which he hit into the bleacher seats to the right of the green. Palmer was asked by his caddie whether he wanted a 9-iron to position for his third shot. Palmer said, “No. Give me my 2-iron. I am going to draw it around the tree to the green.”
Well, he did just that, right over the flag and about 12 feet above the hole. Yep, he made the putt for eagle that put right on the projected cut line. Unfortunately, he stumbled on two of the next three holes to miss the cut, but the thrill he gave those of us who were fortunate enough to see his second shot on No. 15 had a glimpse of the charisma that drew so many fans to love him. Palmer had the ability to make his fans feel as if they were there with him on every shot.
Like so many from our generation who had the opportunity to watch him play as we grew up, we are forever tied to the fantastic memories we have of him.
George Hargrove
Charlotte, N.C.
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