For Taylor Fritz, Wimbledon turns into a long day and night triumph

Wimbledon goes on. And so does Taylor Fritz. If a bit wearily. But not a bit unhappily.

There is no sport quite like tennis, where there is a category called lucky losers, and no tournament quite like The Championships, which is the way Wimbledon is listed. 

Rankings and seedings may mean very little, as the current Wimbledon verifies. Top players in both the men’s and women’s brackets are getting beaten in what might be described as upsets, although really it is proof that, with rare exceptions, such as Carlos Alcaraz, Janik Sinner, and Aryna Sabalenka, anyone in the draw can defeat anyone else.

Meaning that while Fritz, America’s number one male player, should have breezed through his first two matches, he may have been fortunate just to have won both.  

And here’s where Wimbledon, the only of the four Grand Slam tournaments still played on nature’s green grass, becomes a large part of the story.  The summer days are long in Great Britain, but eventually the sun goes down.  

For decades, daily play at Wimbledon would end in darkness. Then, some sixteen years ago, after too many rain delays, a roof was constructed. Of course, lighting had to be installed. The predictable result was that even when the weather was fine, play would go on after dark, at least until the local curfew at 11 pm.

Which certainly had an effect on Fritz in his opening round match Monday against Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard of France, after Fritz lost the first two sets. Fritz managed to win the third, and then it was decided to close the roof and use the lighting, and after a half-hour break, to continue under the roof and under the lights. That didn’t stop Taylor, but the curfew did.

And so he and Perricard came back Tuesday, Fritz then taking the fifth set. Taylor was again on court Wednesday, and again needed to survive an extended battle, this time with Italy’s Gabriel Diallo, that went five sets, Fritz winning 3-6, 6-3, 7-6, 4-6, 6-3. That match required three hours and six minutes, and medical assistance for Fritz. He incurred a bloodied elbow after diving to reach a ball when he had a break point while trailing 3-2 in the fourth set.

“That’s an incredibly hard match,” Fritz said. “The fourth set that I lost, I really don’t think there’s much I did wrong at all.”

Not an easy three days for Fritz, but certainly more rewarding than for fellow American Francis Tiafoe, who was defeated Wednesday by Britain’s Cameron Norrie, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-5.

No American man has won a Wimbledon singles title since Pete Sampras in 2000. Fritz will probably not be the next, but at least after these first two long victories, he’s still very much alive.

And, looking forward to getting a brief break, with no match scheduled on Thursday. 

“Tomorrow is going to be a very, very light hit. I think I’ve played plenty of tennis,” was Fritz’s post-round comment to the media. “I’m very due for a nice, relaxing day.”  

Barry may not get into the Hall, but he will get a statue at Oracle

The award Barry Bonds and his supporters would prefer is a bust that sits in the Baseball Hall of Fame. Which, if he gets—and that remains a question—will not arrive for some time. 

So Bonds, for a while, will have to be satisfied with another piece of equipment, a statue at his long-time place of employment, Oracle Park in San Francisco.

Larry Baer, the Giants' President and CEO, was asked about adding Bonds' statue to the five already outside the ballpark. “Barry is certainly deserving of a statue,” said Baer. “And I would say he is next up.”

Those already in place are five former Giants who also are in the Hall of Fame—Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Juan Marichal, Gaylord Perry, and Orlando Cepeda. 

Bonds unquestionably hit more home runs than any major leaguer in history, a total of 762, the majority while wearing the uniform of the San Francisco Giants.

That made him a beloved figure in the Bay Area, but because of the unending reports that he was the beneficiary of drug use that aided his performance, he was equally disliked away from Northern California. Bonds ’abrasive attitude when he dealt with the media also contributed to his unpopularity among baseball writers who recognized his talent but were hesitant to deal with him. 

Bonds, now 60, seems to have mellowed somewhat, although that change has not yet improved his status among those who vote for induction into the Hall. There is no question of Bonds’ skill.  It’s reflected in the number of home runs, including the all-time single-season high of 73 in 2001.  It was just his personality and constant talk of steroids that made him disliked.   

Bonds never was officially denied the opportunity to be elected to the Hall, as were others such as Shoeless Joe Jackson and Pete Rose, who are now deceased. 

Perhaps the change in the revised admission to the Hall will also extend toward Bonds. Although the ostracized players, all except Rose, were involved in the 1919 Black Sox Scandal —fixing the World Series against the Cincinnati Reds—before the latter group was cleared last month by Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred.

Baseball people would like to believe their game, once the “National Pastime,” is a reflection, as the man said in the movie “Field of Dreams,” of “what is right in America.”

So now that all is forgiven to the accused fixers, maybe now Bonds will be forgiven for his transgressions.  

Whatever, Barry will get his statue as he continues to get cheers. Giants fans can only wish there were someone on the current roster who could hit like Bonds. 

Maybe someday there will be.

J.J. grabs a tournament that was a very wide Open

OAKMONT, PA. — J.J. Spaun overcame a historically difficult golf course, the worst of Mother Nature, and the best of competitors to become the champion of the 125th U.S. Open.

On a Sunday of rain, suspense—and a 90-minute suspension—Spaun grabbed the lead and then grabbed the glory by ramming in a 64-foot birdie putt on the last hole.

There had been as many as five players tied for first on the back nine, it was truly a wide-open Open with the climax very much in doubt.

Spaun had hedged into the lead on 17 and then stomped off as an enthralled crowd roared its approval. A winner of only one prior event, Spaun had not been considered among those to take the tournament.

“Yeah, it’s definitely like a storybook fairytale ending,” said Spaun. “Kind of an underdog fighting back, not giving up, never quitting. With the rain and everything and then the putt, I mean, you couldn’t write a better story. I’m just so fortunate to be on the receiving end of that.”

A 34-year-old from Southern California, who played at Long Beach State as did Xander Schauffle, Spaun, whose given name is John Michael, is known only by the initials.

Now he’ll have an addition to the listing, a major golf winner.

“I thought it was a good thing having the delay. It happened to me at The Players earlier this year where I was kind of struggling on the front nine. I had the lead going into Sunday, and we had a four-hour delay, I think. I ended up turning that round into a nice fight where I got myself into the playoff.”

Spaun could only come in with a two-over par 72 for his final round, a not-unusual finish for the U.S. Open. But his four-round total of 279 was two strokes clear of Robert MacIntyre, one of the many who were at least briefly in or sharing the lead.

Spaun started the day a shot behind Sam Burns, but he had been a big factor throughout, having leaped into the first-round lead and then never losing touch as the tournament swirled among many, including Adam Scott, who at age 44 was seeking a last hurrah to go with his 2007 Masters title. Scott faded at the end, shot 79, and fell to 12th place from a third-round position of second place.

Scottie Scheffler, the number one-ranked golfer in the world, rallied somewhat, and after a poor beginning in the first and second rounds, ended up in a three-way tie for seventh place.

This was the tenth Open at Oakmont, and each one has provided both the excitement the USGA wants and the weather it doesn’t.  

The key is that the course provides the difficulty and character that is sought for the event that becomes the golfing championship of America.

Burns still ahead at Oakmont, but look who’s right there: Adam Scott

OAKMONT, Pa. — The day was loaded with warnings, literal ones posted on scoreboards or carried on flashing signs. 

Dangerous weather is approaching, they read. Prepare to take shelter.

They were aimed at the hardy spectators stomping around Oakmont Saturday, watching the scores shift during the third round of the US Open.

When the rain stopped and play ended, there was Sam Burns once more back in the lead. Burns had a 1-under par 69, and his 54-hole total of 4-under 206 is a shot ahead of J.J. Spaun and the persistent Australian, Adam Scott. 

Scott, playing in his 96th consecutive major, shot a 3-under 67 and is tied for second at 207 with J.J. Spaun, who was in front at the close of the first day, and for a few holes Saturday.

Scottie Scheffler looked a little more like the golfer who is number one in the world rankings, with an even par 70. That put him at 214, seven behind Burns. 

There is a seeming United Nations group very high on the leaderboard, including Vicktor Hovland of Norway (209), Carlos Ortiz of Mexico (210), Tyrrel Hatton of England (211) and Thriston Lawrence of South Africa (211), Rasmus Neergaard of Denmark (212), Robert MacIntyre of Scotland (213) and Marc Leishman of Australia (214).

Told that there have been seven first-time major winners in the Opens at Oakmont, Burns, who would be the eighth if he holds on, responded, “Yeah, it would be incredible. I think as a kid growing up, you dream about winning major championships, and that's why we practice so hard and work so hard. All these guys in this field I think would agree that to have the opportunity to win a major is special. I'm definitely really excited for (Sunday).”

But the last round of any major, especially the Open, is daunting and enervating, a test that is as much mental as it is physical. The pressure is there, and so are the conditions.

Scott is 44 and has a Masters victory to his credit. His career is far from finished, but at his age, a win in the US Open would be particularly fulfilling. 

“Everyone out here has got their journey, you know,” said Scott. “Putting ourselves in these positions doesn't just happen by fluke. It's not easy to do it. I really haven't been in this kind of position for five or six years, or feeling like I'm that player. But that's what I'm always working towards. It's not that easy to figure it all out.”

“But if I were to come away with it tomorrow, it would be a hell of a round of golf and an exclamation point on my career.” 

Let’s hope no warning needs to be issued about the weather.

Scheffler not out of the Open, but seven shots back, is he in it?

OAKMONT, Pa. — Two weeks ago at the Memorial Tournament, Scottie Scheffler was a dominating winner and became the understandable favorite for the US Open. But golf is not like other sports.  

In the Super Bowl, you worry about one other team. The same thing in the NBA finals. Golf, however, there are dozens of opponents, including the most irritating, yourself. Every swing can create a problem or exacerbate your previous problem.

The odds makers and most of the golf people made Scheffler the choice to win the 125th Open, and halfway through the tournament, that remains a possibility, but not a probability.

After 36 holes on a historic Oakmont Country Club Course just a few miles east of Pittsburgh, that is proving to be as difficult as expected. Scheffler, number one in the world rankings, trailed surprising leader Sam Burns by seven shots.

Burns, Friday, had the tournament’s low round so far, a 5-under 65, and at 137 is a shot in front of first-round leader J.J. Spaun.

The biggest worry for Scheffler, trying to win The Open for the first time, to add to his two Masters and one PGA Championship, may not be the number of strokes between him and the lead, but the number of golfers.

He trails such stars as two-time Open Champion and three-time PGA Championship winner, Brooks Koepka; Adam Scott, also a Masters champion; and three other major titlists—Jason Day, Jon Rahm, and Keegan Bradley.

“I was not getting the ball in the correct spots,” said Scheffler, “and paying the price for it. Felt like me getting away with 1-over today wasn’t all that bad. It could have been a lot worse.”

The weather also could have been worse. Throughout the grey, humid afternoon, warning signs were posted to advise fans to take cover because of impending thunderstorms. 

The downpour arrived after Scheffler finished. He was able to get to the range in an attempt to relocate whatever was lost in his game, but numerous tough luck competitors got drenched as they completed their last few holes.

“Any time you’re not hitting it the way or playing up to my expectations I think it’s frustrating,” said Scheffler.

He spent a few minutes in that stretch of holes, which are called the church pews, because with strips of grass among the bunkers, there is a resemblance to a house of worship. They are great to look at, but not to play from.

Scheffler was in no danger of missing the cut, but he alluded to doing so. 

“Overall, definitely not out of the tournament,” said Scheffler. “Today was, I think, with the way I was hitting it, was easily a day I could have been going home, and battled pretty hard to stay in there.”

Which is what great golfers always do. As much as you can be one shot away from trouble, you’re similarly one swing away from success.  

“I’m four-over. We’ll see what the lead is after Friday, but around this golf course I don’t think by any means I’m out of the tournament.”

We’ll find out in the next two rounds.

On the U.S. Open opening day, it’s J.J. all the way

OAKMONT, Pa. — The 125th U.S. Open began with a double eagle—also known as an albatross—the leader wasn’t Scottie Scheffler or Rory McIlroy but a man who is in first place that goes by the initials J.J., which doesn’t even match his first name. That would be J.J. Spaun, one of those guys you see on a leaderboard and sometimes wonder what he is doing there, which is a very unfair judgment for someone who has found his role on the tour. 

Spaun began with a chip-in par on the first hole at Oakmont Country Club, in the wooded country east of Pittsburgh, and played 18 holes at a place known to cause nightmares and high scores, without making a bogey.

Spaun, a native Southern Californian, came in with a 4-under 66, which was one shot lower than Thirston Lawrence, of South Africa. There was a three-way tie for third at 68, a group that included S.W. Kim, a familiar figure on leaderboards this spring, Sungjae Im, and our old friend Brooks Koepka, who merely won back-to-back Opens in 2017-2018 and PGA Championships three times. Koepka has been hiding on the LIV tour, but arrives annually at the major championships in a big way.  

“I'm more focused on what I'm doing,” said Koepka, who is now 35 years old. “More focused on how to just keep plugging away and get through some holes, get through tough holes and try to take advantage of the easy ones.”

Scheffler, number one in the world ranking and the favorite in this year’s Open, shot a 3-over 73. McIlroy, starting on the 10th hole, didn’t have a bogey until his second nine and then stumbled to a 4-over 74. Reed, who won the 2018 Masters, holed out his second shot on the par-5 fourth hole, becoming the fourth golfer to record a double eagle in Open history. But a triple bogey seven on the closing hole left him with 3-over 73. 

Spaun, 34, who played collegiately at San Diego State, has one victory on Tour, the Valero Texas Open in 2022. Some might find it hard to believe that he is in front of what some consider to be the toughest tournament in golf, but the US Open frequently offers surprises and every once in a while a very unexpected winner, such as Orville Moody in 1969 or Scott Simpson at Olympic Club in 1987.

That idea has worked in every tournament, particularly in the Open when there are many more hard holes than easy ones.

Pars still matter at a U.S. Open, even after Gil Morgan’s round shook the USGA

OAKMONT, Pa. —  His name is Gil Morgan. Dr. Gil Morgan. He was an optometrist. He was also a good enough pro golfer to win tournaments. And to be the first golfer 10-under par halfway through an Open.

That was 1982 at Pebble Beach. And although he didn’t win—Tom Watson did, chipping in for a birdie on the 17th to beat Jack Nicklaus—that round had an effect on the set-up of the tournament. 

The Open was supposed to be brutal. No one was supposed to be 10-under par, as Morgan was for a while. When Ben Hogan won in 1951, he called Oakland Hills in Detroit a monster, and the late Tony Lema once said the Masters is fun, the Open is not.

The Open still is a difficult test but no longer impossible. The golfers that tee off Thursday in the 125th U.S. Open at Oakmont, just east of Pittsburgh, are so skilled that virtually nothing can stop them from scoring.  

When you have players such as the world’s number one, Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy—who just completed his own grand slam by taking the Masters—and Jon Rahm, who has a U.S. Open and a Masters, expectations are for great competition.

Scheffler, who won the PGA at Quail Hollow a month ago, to go along with his two Masters, played in the 2016 Open here and missed the cut.

“That was a tough pill to swallow,” said Scheffler, “missing the cut by one.”

He was learning then. Now others are learning from him.

“But what I really remembered was coming back the next year (he meant coming back to the Open which in 2017 was in Erin Hills in Wisconsin) and I think I made like a putt on 18 to get into a playoff in qualifying, ended up getting through the playoff and qualifying and coming in finishing low am.”

Now he just finishes low in everything.

Scheffler was the favorite coming into this Open, understandably, and has the consistent game worthy of an Open choice.

Yes, the setup requires accuracy and good putting, but what else would you expect from the nation’s championship?

“I’d say there’s definitely a strength factor coming out of the rough,” said Scheffler. “This golf course, there’s not many trees out there, but there’s so many bunkers. I don’t really know if this is a golf course you can necessarily just overpower with a kind of bomb and gouge type strategy, especially with the way the rough is.”

Two weeks ago, at the Memorial, McIlroy spent more time explaining why he didn’t come into the Media Room for interviews at Quail Hollow than talking about his game. But now he seems to have that problem corrected. It’s golf that concerns him.

“You have to have your wits about you this week,” said McIlroy, who did play here in the ‘16 Open. “It’s still a big brute of a golf course, and you’re going to have to have your wits about you this week throughout the bag, off the tee, into the greens, around the greens.” 

That’s no surprise at a U.S. Open.

Oakmont memories: Jack, Arnie, O.J., and Johnny Miller’s 63

OAKMONT, Pa. — This is a tale of a kid from San Francisco who became a champion, Johnny Miller. 

And, of a kid from San Francisco who became a pariah, O.J. Simpson. 

And of a kid who became probably the best golfer in history, Jack Nicklaus.

And of a kid, when no longer a kid, helped turn the game into the intriguing and popular sport it has become, Arnold Palmer.

And of a golf course above the Allegheny River in Pennsylvania, to which all the individuals are linked.

And also has a unique connection with a sportswriter, me.

For the tenth time, the golfing championship of our nation, the U.S. Open, will be played at historic, captivating Oakmont starting Thursday. It’s unlikely the future can match what happened there during the Opens of the past. On the course where, in 1973, Miller set a record low score that lasted some fifty years, 63. Or off the course, where OJ’s memorable pursuit by the police on the Southern California freeways. That happened on June 17th, which was my anniversary. 

Now come the personal references. 

Until 1965, the US Open schedule required the final 36 holes to be played on Saturday, which meant that if there was a tie, there would be an 18-hole playoff on Sunday. 

Which is what happened in 1962. In that playoff match, it was the big guy from Columbus, Ohio, Nicklaus, and the local favorite, Arnold Palmer, who lived just thirty miles away in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. I was at the Santa Monica Evening Outlook. I saw Jack winning on TV. I couldn’t cover it because I was getting married that day.

But I know that Arnie, a bit shaken, said, “Now that the cage is open, everybody better run for cover.”

Arnie had another chance at Oakmont in 1973. He was one of the leaders going into the last day. But Miller, six shots behind and in 13th place, started with four consecutive birdies, and had closed to within two before the leaders had even teed off.

When I was a golf writer for the Chronicle, Miller finished eighth in the 1966 US Open at San Francisco’s Olympic Club. We became friendly at a time when writers and athletes had no problems talking to one another.

Johnny’s triumph at Oakmont was great news in the Bay Area, of course, and I was fortunate to be peripherally linked. What stays in my mind that day was John’s wife, Linda, who had stayed back to pack for their trip home, dashing to the course in time to watch her husband win.

That other guy, O.J. Simpson, I covered when he was at USC and later with the Bills and Niners. He was always cooperative during interviews. Who knew?

Miller, the one-time boy wonder at San Francisco’s Lincoln High—the same school that produced another U.S. Open champion, Ken Venturi—turned 78 a few weeks ago. Always outspoken and painfully honest, he went from the fairways—he also won a British Open—to the airwaves, starring as a TV commentator for a long while. He wasn’t afraid of taking a shot or taking credit.

That last round at Oakmont in ‘73, he not only overtook Arnie, but also stars such as Jerry Heard, Tom Weiskopf, Lee Trevino, and Julius Boros.

“It was just all the who’s who in golf who were vying for that U.S. Open,” Miller told Bob Harig, then of Sports Illustrated, a couple of years ago. “I had to go through all those guys to win it outright. That’s what makes the story of the round honorable. Makes it cool.”

It was more than that. For decades, it was untouchable.

About Rory McIlroy, leaked stories and late deadlines

So Rory Mcllroy insists he will approach interviews as carefully as he approaches his golf shots, meaning perhaps telling us nothing.  

Which is exactly what he did after each of his four rounds at last month’s PGA Championship at Quail Hollow, and after the final round of the 2024 U.S. Open at Pinehurst. 

McIlroy was perturbed about a media leak from a Sirius XM reporter stating that at the PGA, Rory had a driver that, during pre-tournament testing, was declared non-conforming.

Again, the question arises, what, if anything, a competitor is obligated to say after play.

A few years ago, I was at a soccer match in England, and with deadlines approaching, I said to a British writer, “It is so late you are going to have a tough time getting any quotes in about the match.” 

He virtually sneered at me, “My paper pays me for what I say, not what the players say. Most of them don’t understand the game anyway.”

The athletes often make the same point about the journalists and particularly about fans. But wisecracks aside, in sports, all sides benefit from the questions asked and the answers given.

There was a time when the whole idea of sports writing was to tell us what happened. Now more than ever, because of television—replay after replay—know what has happened.

What we wish to know is how and why.  

And every word spoken or written about a sports star or a game, positive or negative, keeps us attentive and keeps ticket sales booming.  

Rory always was one of the best. Along with Jordan Spieth, he could fill a notebook or a recording disk almost without taking a deep breath. And all that exposure did nothing to hurt anyone’s commercial appeal.

Maybe the ballplayers from past decades were the strong, silent type, responding to a question with a grunt or a snort. The kids today grew up watching television. They know how to deal with a microphone as well as they do a five iron, a bat, a basketball, or a hockey puck.

And yet there always is going to be unhappiness, misunderstandings, or misconceptions. People like good news. Not all the news is good, but what the media must do is tell the story, good news or bad news.

Collin Morikawa is a two-time major golf champion. He grew up in the Los Angeles area, hardly isolated, and graduated from Cal. All that said, he refused to do an interview after blowing a three-stroke lead with five holes to play at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March.

“I don’t owe anyone anything,” he said a week later at the Players Championship. “No offense to you guys, but for mec in the moment, I didn’t want to be around anyone.”

Agreed. The response is understandable but, in a way, unacceptable. The crowds these golfers draw, the paychecks these golfers earn are both a direct result of the exposure in the media. 

The way one handles the difficulty and disgust is no less important than in the method he or she handles success.  

There is no rule that a PGA tour golfer must speak after a round. Doing an interview is voluntary.  And also, in the scheme of things, necessary.

The great Ben Hogan, noting writers rarely stepped on the course to watch, once said, “If we didn’t come in to talk to you guys, nobody would know what was going on.”

What’s going on right now is Rory McIlroy becoming wary of those who tell his story and the story of the game he plays.

Of Mr. Irrelevant, Steph, and Gael Monfils; how do we define greatness?

So Mr. Irrelevant has become Mr. Permanent—at least for the next five years, the length of his contract extension with the San Francisco 49ers. And if Steph Curry is healthy enough to make putts in that tournament at Tahoe, then make baskets next fall when the season starts, the Warriors will be fine.

Yes, it is a summer of near sporting silence in the Bay Area other than the Giants, and, of course, the newly arrived Valkyries of the WNBA.

Everybody needs a few days off, including athletes and general managers, but for fans and journalists, it’s a period of near boredom. Plenty of sports on television from the wee small hours—the French Open, Roland-Garros, comes on at 2 am Pacific time zone—through midday, golf tournaments, to evening, the NBA playoffs. And don’t we miss the Warriors?

They tell us the future is a myth, but at this time of the year, and when the local teams have not produced as hoped, the future is all we have.

One would think that for Brock Purdy and his $265 million contract extension, the future is quite promising. You must have defenders and offensive linemen—the Niners went after the latter group in the draft—but it always comes down to the man who takes the football when it is snapped.

When the great John Elway retired, after leading the Denver Broncos to two Super Bowl victories, longtime NFL coach Norv Turner was asked how much Denver would miss Elway.

“I can’t say exactly,” said Turner, “but a great quarterback will win two games his team probably would have lost without him.”

Does winning reflect greatness, or does greatness reflect winning? The debate can be carried to every game we play competitively.  

At the French Open, the 39-year-old Gael Monfils won his first-round match and then on Thursday lost his second to a younger man, Jack Draper. Monfils has never won a Grand Slam tournament, but does that mean we shouldn’t call him great?

Whether some day Brock Purdy, who was unwanted until the last round of the ’22 draft, will be called great is to be determined by his play and the results of his team. Purdy will be under greater pressure than ever, from the outside. However, maybe to the contrary, he will feel less pressure because he knows where he will be for a long while.

“Pressure is a privilege,” said the legend Billie Jean King, a quote posted at the home of the U.S. Open, Arthur Ashe Stadium. “It’s only through embracing it that we achieve our most significant breakthroughs.”

The privilege has belonged to Steph Curry, Gael Monfils, and dozens of others. Now it belongs to Brock Purdy. Summer can’t end fast enough.

Scheffler has his third major, and the future is captivating

CHARLOTTE, N.C. —  The question about Scottie Scheffler should be less about what he has done, and he is already number one in the world rankings, than what he is capable of doing.

Scheffler won his third major Sunday, the PGA Championship, at Quail Hollow Club. At age 28, he has years and years of golf and success remaining. Although the final round turned out a bit more dramatic than many suspected it would be, in the end, the result was exactly what was expected: Scottie finishing first by a significant margin, five shots.

He came in with an even par 71 that, after a few bogeys and a hot streak by Jon Rahm, briefly dropped Scottie into a tie for the lead. But as winners do, Scheffler held control and before darkness was able to hold the Wanamaker Trophy, adding that to the two green jackets from his Masters triumphs in 2022 and 2024.

Scheffler finished with a seventy-two-hole total of eleven under 273. Tied for a distant second at 278 were Harris English (who had the day’s best, 65), two-time U.S. Open champ Bryson DeChambeau (70), and Davis Reilly (72).

To celebrate after the final putt, Scheffler flung his hat on the green, reminding us of Arnold Palmer’s similar tactic.

“It was a long week,” said Scheffler. “I felt like this was as hard as I battled for a tournament in my career. This was a pretty challenging week.”

It was a week of rainstorms, double bogeys (remember, Scottie made one Thursday on 16), and a collection of different leaders, many with non-American passports that at times made you wonder what was going on.

Then Scheffler gave the tournament a star and gave himself more than a chance.  

“The first two days, I did not swing it my best, and I was able to post a score somehow. Outside of the last five holes (Saturday), that’s where I really kind of put myself ahead in the tournament. I mean, the back nine today (Sunday) was pretty special as well.”

Scheffler, who graduated from the University of Texas, has a wonderful perspective about a game that can be as painful as it can be rewarding. 

“I love coming out here and trying to compete and win golf tournaments, and that’s what I’m focused on,” said Scheffler. “After this week, I’m going to go home and get ready for next week’s tournament, and the show goes on. If I show up and miss the cut next week, I’m going to have to answer questions of what went wrong and just start over again on Thursday. That’s one of the things that can be frustrating about our game, and it’s also what’s great about our game. If I had a tough day today and came in with a loss, I could step back up on the tee Thursday next week and have another chance to win a tournament.”

“It’s an endless pursuit, and it’s a lot of fun. It’s definitely one of the great joys of my life to be able to compete out here.” 

He’s halfway to his personal grand slam. Although it is doubtful, he might achieve it in the next two months, with the U.S. Open in June at Oakmont and the British Open in July at Royal Portrush.  

We hardly can wait.

After the shifting stops at the PGA, no surprise Scheffler leads

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A wild third round of the PGA Championship that included everything from a morning thunderstorm that delayed play to a United Nations selection of different leaders Saturday, came to a quite predictable ending.

When the rain and the shuffling had stopped at Quail Hollow Club, the man who was number one, not surprisingly, is also the one who is number one in the world, Scottie Scheffler.

After the guys had their moments at the top of the leader board—whether alone or tied— including Jhonattan Vegas, Bryson DeChambeau, Alex Noren, John Rahm, and Si Woo Kim, it was Scheffler all alone in first place, by three shots. 

His third round score of 6-under par 65 gave him a total of 202, 11-under par. And assuming he stays on track—yes, you should assume nothing in golf, but this guy is great—he will add another major to his two Masters victories.

Second at 66-205 is Noren, the Swede who went to Oklahoma State, while tied for third at 206 are Davis Riley and J.T. Poston.

Vegas, of Venezuela, who was in front after the first and second rounds, shot a 2-over 73, and slipped into a three-way tie for fifth at 207 with Kim and Rahm. 

The final three holes on Quail are known as the Green Mile, although they total a bit less than that distance. Scheffler fell victim in that stretch with a double bogey on 16 on Thursday, but he more than made up for that Saturday. He had a couple of bogeys, including the 13th hole. Then he responded with a wonderful 3-wood from the 14th tee that carried some 300 yards. He made the putt for an eagle 2.

“I came out with a nice low spinning draw and hit it really solid and was fortunate to get up there on the green,” Scheffler said. “From that distance, yes, I executed the shot. There’s a little bit of luck involved.”

He followed that immediately with a birdie three at 15.

When asked how big the two bounce-backs were after the bogeys on the back nine to keep the momentum going, Scheffler said, “They are really important. I mean, especially after the bogey on 13 to respond the way I did on 14, it’s a really hard shot.”

Spectators and golf writers are obsessed with what happens on the scoreboard. The pros often contend they do not pay attention. 

So when Scheffler was asked whether he knew about the constant shifting of lead, he said, not unexpectedly, “I was trying to post the best score that I could shoot today, and that’s what I was concerned with out there.”

The start of play Saturday was delayed some four and one-half hours by the weather. That might have made some golfers impatient and upset. But Scheffler just went about his usual routine.

As champions always do.

Vegas is the Venezuelan who left the diamond for the course

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — He started by hitting rocks with a broomstick. Now what Jhonattan Vegas is trying to hit is the jackpot.

Halfway through the PGA Championship that was to be the showcase for Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele, and Rory McIlroy, it’s Vegas who’s in the spotlight and in the lead.

Not by much, a single stroke, but when play comes to an end Sunday evening, the margin would be plenty. Then again, with 36 holes remaining at Quail Hollow Club, where the rough is thick and the greens are slick, the one shot may not hold up. 

Vegas shot a one-under 70 Friday in the second round of this 107th PGA Championship, maintaining the lead he had surprisingly taken Thursday as one of the last players to complete his round. He's at 8-under 134 and two shots ahead of Matthieu Pavon, Matt Fitzpatrick, and Si Woo Kim.  

Max Homa, the Cal grad, and Scheffler are both another shot back at 137. Scottie, a two-time Masters Champ, remains very much a presence at this PGA. 

When you think of sports stars from Venezuela, you think of shortstops such as Luis Aparicio, Omar Vizquel, and Ozzie Guillen. But Vegas, although he did play baseball growing up, stepped away from the infield and onto the tee. He perfected his game with what implements were available, that broomstick and the rocks, near the oil field camp where he lived.

No one from South America has ever won a PGA Championship, which makes the 40-year-old Vegas even more of a focus than others high on the leaderboard.

“I had a solid round (Friday), a little bit up and down," Vegas said. “I feel like finishing so late yesterday, not getting a great sleep, and having to come back early kind of put me not in the best mood all day.”

Still, Vegas, who would play for the University of Texas before turning pro, kept his game enough in control to stay in first.  And found a proper measure of satisfaction.

“Every chance you get to lead a major and play with the lead is never easy,” said Vegas. “You’ve got to keep the pedal down, keep your head down, and keep working hard. So I feel proud of a solid round today.”

Pavon, from France, had played on the DP World Tour before coming to the United States and winning the 2024 Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines. 

Someone wondered if the PGA “felt like a big-time tournament”—a silly question about one of the game’s four majors. Pavon responded, “I was able to play Wells Fargo (at Quail) last year, so I knew what test of golf this tournament could be. I think it’s even bigger now being a major.  The atmosphere is great, and the golf course plays tough.”

It's supposed to. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be a major.

Mudballs, double bogeys, and a shared lead at the PGA Championship

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The 107th PGA Championship began Thursday at Quail Hollow Club with two of the stars whining about muddy fairways, a local club pro who didn’t whine about anything sharing the lead, and the guy who won on this course four times so miffed by his score he refused to talk.

In other words, it was a properly imperfect beginning to the second major of the year. The top of the leaderboard was shared at 5-under par 66 by a player who was a surprise, Ryan Gerard, and a player who probably wasn’t, the 2022 British Open Champion, Cam Davis, the Aussie.

But the most intriguing part of the round was the way the defending champion, Xander Schauffele, and the world No. 1 and favorite, Scottie Scheffler, were bewildered and angered by what they found to be a soggy fairway they believed was anything but fair— the 529-yard par-4 16th fairway.  The sun was high and the temperature was in the 80s on this historic opening day, but the leftovers of the thunderstorms earlier in the week proved a bit too much for Schauffele, Scheffler, and the man who recently won the Masters to complete his personal slam, Rory McIlroy. Each double-bogeyed that hole. 

Schauffele and Scheffler were hitting what they claimed were mud-covered balls into the permanent water hazard, and McIlroy was pulling his tee shot into the wet rough. Scheffler would finish well enough, a 2-under 69, while Schauffele shot a 1-over 72. McIlroy came in with a 74, his worst score at a place another player nicknamed “McIlroy Country Club.”

Asked if he could comment about the round, Scheffler, who rarely shows emotion and is almost never critical, said, “It’s going to be a challenge.”

He meant not bad-mouthing the course. 

“It’s one of those deals where it’s frustrating to hit the ball in the middle of the fairway and get mud on it and have no idea where it’s going to go,” said Scheffler. “I understand it’s part of the game, but there’s nothing more frustrating for a player. But I don’t make the rules. I just have to deal with the consequences of those rules.”

And dealing with them is the primary part of golf. Everyone is playing the same course, and the player who can handle the difficulty and frustration usually is the player who performs better. 

Schauffele, who won the PGA last year at Valhalla, also turned 16 into a mini-disaster.  

“I had a ridiculous mud ball on 16 with Scottie. We were in the middle of the fairway, and we had to aim right of the grandstands, probably. I aimed right of the bunker, and it whipped in the water, and Scottie whipped it in the water as well.” 

While it is true that mud or dirt clinging will alter the shots’ direction, it is also true that you don’t necessarily have to hit the club you would use if the ball were clean.

As the great Jack Nicklaus once said, “If you can’t get the ball in the fairway with a driver, use a 3 wood. If that doesn’t work, use a 5 iron.” 

And if you can’t control it with a club you want, use a different club, one that may cost distance but will not cost a double bogey.

McIlroy is wonderfully popular, but at times can be immature. He refused to come to the media center after botching closing holes at the U.S. Open at Pinehurst in 2024 and then went silent Thursday after his troubles.

Nicklaus never would have done that, nor would Arnold Palmer. Learning to deal with defeat is no less important than learning how to deal with success.

A second straight PGA? Only Xander has the chance

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The two words should never be underestimated. Defending champion carries a mark of success, no matter what the activity.  

And for the 107th PGA Championship, which began Thursday, that is the description of Xander Schauffele.

He’s also eyeing another major title—the Open Championship—but that’s still a bit down the road in July. For now, this is the merry month of May, where the golf focus is on Quail Hollow Club in America’s south.

The pros rarely win one of the big four championships, much less two in a row. However, it was most recently done by Brooks Koepka, who won this tournament in 2018 and 2019, and the U.S. Open in 2017 and 2018.

Whether Schauffele is capable of back-to-back victories in the PGA will be evident before the weekend, but he has proved to be a winner since his days at San Diego State. Checking his background, you might say Schauffele, 31, was certain to become a champion.

He grew up in Southern California, coached and encouraged by his German-born father, Stefan, whose own dream of becoming a decathlon star was cut short when a drunk driver hit him on the way to a national training facility. 

Xander, short for Alexander, developed quickly enough, winning numerous tournaments, including the prestigious California State Amateur Championship in 2011. So, perhaps it should be no surprise that once he turned pro, Schauffele would win the Players Championship and then two majors in the same year. The latter hadn’t been done since Jordan Spieth in 2015.

Schauffele had a difficult few months this winter recovering from a rib injury, only coming back in March. “Game’s coming along slowly but surely,” said Schauffele.

At times, Schauffele seems to receive less recognition than deserved, despite his record. 

The attention this week has been on Scottie Scheffler, the world number one, and of course on Rory McIlroy, who not only took the Masters at last to complete his slam, but has won four times at Quail.

If that bothers Schauffele, you wouldn’t know it.  He’s just thinking about what the conditions will be and what he must do.  

“Delays and rain and things of that nature, they can kind of fool you a little bit on this property,” said Schauffele about a layout that is deep in the woods. “Just because they haven’t been able to get the mowers out on the fairways, and the greens are exceptionally firm for getting a few inches of rain the last three or four days.”

Wet or dry, mowed or unmowed, the course will be the same for every man in the tournament.  You just need to bring your best game.  

Schauffele did exactly that last year when the PGA Championship was at Valhalla. That’s the reason he is the only player in the field who can be called the defending champion.

The PGA at Quail: Rory, Spieth and lightning

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — It’s the course where Rory McIlroy has won four times. The course where Jordan Spieth has yet another chance for the Slam.

It’s Quail Hollow Club, in the woods outside Charlotte, and while there may not be any quail around, but on Tuesday, two days before the 107th PGA Championship, there certainly was an alarming thunderstorm.

Players scattered from practice rounds, which eventually were cancelled, and lightning struck one of the tournament support trailers, briefly knocking out communications.

Scottie Scheffler, number one in the world rankings, made it through with little more than wet shoes, but he did mention that play this week may be affected by an all too typical Southeast Spring. 

“The golf course is going to play really long,” said Scheffler. “This may be more of a 5-wood week just because the golf course is going to play really long, the rough is thick, and the run-up areas after this kind of rain are going to be really soft, and the greens are still going to be really firm because they’re new.” 

Which is why, perhaps, all of the major golf championships held in the United States should be played in California, where exactly the 2028 PGA Championship will be held, at San Francisco’s Olympic Club.

For so long, we kept wondering if McIlroy would get the Masters and complete his own slam, which he did in April after a gap of 10 years. Now Spieth, who has wins in the Masters, the U.S. Open, and the British Open, again attempts to become the seventh golfer to ever win all of the big four. A victory in the 2017 British—or, if you prefer, The Open Championship—was his third major. And with Rory having reached his goal, the focus turns to Jordan.

“It’s funny, I think,” said Spieth. “If Rory didn’t win (the Masters), then it wouldn’t have been a storyline for me here necessarily. I mean, it’s always a storyline if I work my way in, but at least ahead of time, I just feel like I’ve been asked about it more than other years.” 

Of course, you think journalists aren’t aware of the possibility? 

“For me,”  Spieth added, “if I could only win one tournament for the rest of my life, I’d pick this one for that reason. 

If McIlroy could only play one tournament, it probably would be at Quail, whatever the event was called. He may be from Northern Ireland, but nobody has performed as consistently as McIlroy at this course in North Carolina.

“They ought to call it the Rory McIlroy Country Club,” said Spieth.

McIlroy set the Quail Hollow record with a 61 when winning in 2015. He is a combined 102-under par at a place where his enormous length proves advantageous.  

“Some holes become far easier when you can take the bunkers out of play with your length off the tee,” said Oliver Wilson, who plays on the DP World Tour.

“I think I'm in a good place,” McIlroy said after last week’s Truist Open at Philadelphia. “I didn't feel like I played all that well, but I still finished seventh.”

“A couple little improvements and little tweaks, especially going to a place I love like Quail Hollow, and I feel like I'm in a really good spot.”

Especially if he can avoid the storms.

Draymond sets the tone, and the aged Warriors take a step forward

You’ve probably heard the line. Old age and treachery will always overcome youth and exuberance.

A little bit of self-confession added to the mix doesn’t hurt either.

Yes, the aging Golden State Warriors have moved into the second round of the NBA playoffs, if the task was a bit more difficult than they seemed to make it.

The Warriors defeated the Houston Rockets, 103-89, in the deciding seventh game of the first round Sunday night, not so deep in the heart of Texas but deep in belief that experience and an unexpected contribution from a guy who the previous game did not have a point.

That would be Buddy Hield, who scored 33 points, and they were very needed because Houston’s zone defense stymied Steph Curry for the longest time, if not for the entire time.

The Warriors now move on to Minneapolis, where they play the Minnesota Timberwolves in the best-of-seven second round starting Tuesday.

That the Warriors made it that far was perhaps more difficult than their fans believed, especially after Golden State built a 3-1 advantage. They couldn’t lose three in a row to the Rockets, could they? No, but they came close enough.

The confession came from Draymond Green at a team meeting Saturday. According to what Warriors’ coach Steve Kerr told NBC Bay Area, Green apologized for his lack of performance and leadership in game six at Chase Center in San Francisco. 

“Draymond set the tone (Saturday night),” Kerr said of the man who is the heart of the Warriors defense and usually the key piece in their motivation. “He said I have to be poised and I have to be better.” 

Which he was. And which the Warriors were. Draymond, in what some would think is a role reversal, scored two quick baskets for the Warriors—yes, Green can shoot as well as defend—and the younger, less experienced Rockets never caught up.

One of the reasons is that while Houston made life and mobility for Steph Curry difficult, Buddy Hield, a man not afraid to fire up shots, was making baskets. Hield had seventeen in the first half and had thirty-three for the game. Curry had only six points before halftime, but when Houston loosened that defense to try to get its own men open, Steph had sixteen more in the second half for a total of twenty-two. Green finished with sixteen points.

“Can’t say enough for these guys,” Kerr added. “I was very impressed. It was always matchup-based. If you can find a player or two, Houston did a great job of taking away the pick and roll.”

“Curry was fantastic. That’s the reason we had a twelve-point lead at the half.”

The thirty-seven-year-old Curry is more than a man who can score points. He understands the subtleties and demands of the sport. He can make passes as well as make field goals. He can defend, and he can find the little openings that a younger player might not be able to find.

Another veteran who, as hoped and expected, provided stability and also twenty points was Jimmy Butler. He was very necessary against the zone that forced the Warriors, who would prefer to run, to play the Rockets’ more deliberate style.

Through the seasons, four of them ending in NBA titles, the Warriors have been through a great deal, learning how to respond, and maybe most importantly, when the situation is tough, knowing how to win.

They took the first step in the playoffs, which the Lakers and LeBron James, and the Clippers and Kawhi Leonard, were unable to do. Those old guys were delightfully successful and pretty exuberant for their age.

With Jimmy Butler playing as expected, Warriors in great shape

Of course Jimmy Butler is tough. How else would he have been able to survive after his mother threw him out of their home as a high school senior?

How else would he persist in that long holdout while under contract to the Miami Heat?

Tough and stubborn and gifted with an athletic talent that has enabled him to advance as far as he has, and now has enabled the Golden State Warriors to advance in the NBA playoffs as far as they have.

True, the Warriors heading into Wednesday night’s game against the Rockets at Houston, still need one more victory to get past the Rockets.

But they’ll get it.

Especially with Butler performing the playoff magic on which his reputation has been built. And was one of the reasons the Warriors traded for him in February, giving up Andrew Wiggins.

Butler may be 37 and was hurting so much from a back contusion he couldn’t play the previous game, however he was a star in the 109-106 victory Monday night. Maybe the star, although that’s dangerous to say on a franchise led by Steph Curry and Draymond Green.

Butler, although seemingly showing the effects of his injury early on, was productive in the second half, when the need was greatest. He had 27 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists. His presence allows the Warriors to play the slower tempo style on which the Rockets thrive.  

“First three quarters he couldn’t move,” Draymond Green said of Butler. “Yet he never complained. He stuck with it. I think what was most important, when the time was right, everybody on our side looked to get him the ball. When you get the ball, he made great things happen for himself or for others. It was huge.”

The Warriors' Steve Kerr, who has seen it all and been through it all as a player—yes Michael Jordan’s teammate on the Chicago Bulls—called Butler’s game both rewarding and necessary.

“We had to have him,” said Kerr. “If this were the regular season, he’d probably miss another week or two. But it’s the playoffs. He’s Jimmy Butler, so…this is what he does.”

The basketball in the playoffs is more physical and wearing than during the season. Usually fewer fouls are called, leading to more than occasional confrontation and technical fouls. That Draymond was called for a T was no surprise, but that Kerr also was called for one, for yelling at the referees, certainly was a surprise.

Tensions are higher when the playoffs begin.  And as a veteran team the Warriors should be aware. You’d also think that the headline writers, referencing the old mystery stories, someplace would say “the butler did it.”

Most likely he’ll need to do it again and again.

NBA Playoffs: Warriors shoot, Rockets shove

The sport is often portrayed as ballet in sneakers, all grace and beauty. But as we know too well, there are times when the NBA would seem to stand for National Boxing Association, especially in the playoffs. The history of physical play, as it is known—more accurately described as quasi-rough—is very much a part of the game.

When the Golden State Warriors played and defeated the Chicago Bulls in the 1975 postseason, there was plenty of shoving and grabbing by guys like Cliff Ray, as well as Chicago’s Norm Van Lier and Jerry Sloan. And that was the series when the Bulls coach Dick Motta offered the infamous observation, “it ain’t over ‘til the fat lady sings.”

There wasn’t music of any sort when the Golden State Warriors defeated the Rockets, 95-85, on Sunday night of the first game of their Western Conference series. There weren’t many points either, another reminder that in the postseason, defense takes charge. Fittingly, “charge” is also the perfect word for the kind of foul you’re likely to see.

As the best-of-seven series against the Rockets heads into game two Wednesday night in Houston, the probability is that there will be even more physical play, especially from the Rockets, who can’t shoot very well and try to keep the opponent from shooting very well. 

Warriors coach Steve Kerr referred to the style as 1990s basketball, but it doesn’t matter how you do it; just get the job done.

The Warriors can also play defense. In fact, that was their method of winning the four championships. Stop the other team, grab the ball, and go.

The going was a bit erratic Sunday night. The Warriors built a twenty-three-point lead, which late in the game was trimmed to four. That in itself is not surprising. Pro basketball is a sport of runs, teams scoring in bunches, and then not scoring. Also not surprising was the Warriors’ Steph Curry leading both teams in scoring with 31 points on 12-of-19 shooting, including 5-of-9 from beyond the arc.  

The new guy—well, almost new—Jimmy Butler added 25, seven rebounds, six assists and five steals. The trade from two months ago keeps looking better and better.

The Warriors also had offensive support from two others: Brandin Podziemski, who tallied 14 points, eight rebounds, and five assists, and Moses Moody, who added seven points. “Pods,” as he is known, and Moody kept Golden State in touch—and in the lead—when the two big guns, Steph and Butler, were given a needed break. 

The prediction was that the series would go at least six games, maybe the full seven. The issue always is the ability to adjust. A team responds and then makes the changes it hopes will be the proper ones.

Draymond Green, the heart of the Warriors’ defense, insisted the team needs to play better, even though it was a winner in Game 1.

“We need to correct a lot of things,” said Green, pointing out about the Rockets, “they rough you up, they grab, they hold, they crash the boards, very, extremely physical team.”

Curry, Butler get Warriors into playoffs

It’s all about matchups in the NBA. All about how the pieces fit. And sometimes about getting lucky.

Did the Warriors really want Jimmy Butler? Or would they have preferred Kevin Durant—or someone else? Either way, when the trade deadline came in February, the player they ended up with—traded for Andrew Wiggins—was Jimmy Butler.

So far, so very good. The move by the front office general manager, Mike Dunleavy Jr., has worked perhaps better than imagined but at least as well as required.

Butler goes by the nickname “Playoff Jimmy.” Maybe it should be Play-in Jimmy. He’s a very big part of the reason the Golden State Warriors will be playing the Houston Rockets in the first round of the playoffs starting Sunday.

Butler provides what the Warriors need. A balance to Steph Curry, a guy to draw the opposition defense away from Steph, not to mention someone who can score, rebound, and play defense. What teams try against the Warriors is to keep the game slow and physical, contrary to the Dubs' preferred style of speed and spacing. If you want to call it a one-two punch that is acceptable. And also acceptable is the way Butler performed in the play-in game. Golden State, because of a tailspin late in the regular season, was forced into the play-in. Nerve-wracking, but nothing worse, because Golden State was 0-3 in play-ins. With Butler scoring 38 points and Steph Curry 37, the Warriors, Wednesday, made it past the Memphis Grizzlies, 121-116.  

“For us to finally get on the other side of it,” said Curry, “and to play, hopefully, a solid seven-game series—it’s exciting.”

Even more exciting, of course, would be for the Warriors to win another championship. But with a challenging road ahead—possibly facing the Oklahoma City Thunder and, farther down the line, the Boston Celtics—one dare not get too confident.

The Warriors had a 3-2 record against Houston during the regular season, which would offer a reason to think positively about this coming series. And now with Butler, they should be able to play the grind-it-out, bang-around style the Rockets will present.

Houston, with a stronger bench, surely would like the series to go the maximum. The shorter it might go, the better it would seem for Golden State, although strange things happen once the ball is tipped off.  

Age could become a factor for the Warriors if the series stretches out. Curry is 37 and Butler is 35. Curry is a little beat up—though it hasn't affected his shooting—playing through a sprained thumb on his shooting hand. He also missed games earlier due to a pelvic contusion.

Yet great athletes—and great defines Curry—inevitably overcome the aches and pains to get onto the court and into the competition. The Warriors are right where they wanted to be: still playing. Curry is very much responsible. So is Jimmy Butler.