Fifth Avenue Forum

*smylie alert*

Smylie is -2 and T63 through 33 holes. Three day cut though so he needs another good round tomorrow. Go Smylie

My man Phil ties for lowest round of the day at 64. Cannot believe he is turning 50 this year, I remember 2004 like it was yesterday.

*D.A. Points alert*

+4 thru 36 holes...not gonna happen this week for the one-time Pebble Beach champion

**** off

wait he won there before? wow

wait he won there before? wow

With Bill Murray as his amateur partner!

What a duo

Mickelson continues to amaze. He only hit half of the greens in regulation on moving day... and shot a 67.

Just awesome. That second one was going to be 80 feet past the hole

Oooooooh, a tweeter war between stodgy Curtis Strange and freedom-of-expression-on-the-tweeter Mickelson?

*pops popcorn*

Genesis Invitational thoughts:

- DA and Smiley didn't get invited. Hmph
- Rory is fading today but golf is more fun when he's on and in the mix. Happy to see him finding his form again
- #10 at Riviera is a top 5 hole on tour. If I remember tomorrow I will issue ulfs inaugural list of favorite holes.. giggity

Adam Scott choking like a pro right now.

Also, that putz is really still using a cheat putter? Good lord come on man

You can use it if you don't anchor it to your chest. They kinda push the rules and hold it against the inside of their forearm though so I'm still not a fan

Adam Scott choking like a pro right now.

Never change...

Adam Scott choking like a pro right now.

Never change...

In fairness, I expected Dahmen to at least birdie 17 to make it interesting. I also posted that right before that superb flop shot Scott played after he overshot the the green from the bunker.

Just started listening. Kostis does not hold back.

Yeah I meant to listen to that this morning and forgot. Will do Saturday morning when I'm back at the office

I love that podcast.

If I remember tomorrow I will issue ulfs inaugural list of favorite holes.. giggity

ulf's favorite holes (hehe) on tour*:

Riviera CC #10 - short par 4 but the best golf hole on tour imo. Definition of risk/reward
Pebble Beach #18 - just thinking about Jim Nantz waxing poetic in his quarter zip gets me excited picturing the 18th
Bay Hill #18 - one of the hardest shots in golf on Sunday? So many memorable finishes here
Augusta #15 - Amen Corner gets the love but with #13 being so easy to get to in 2, this surpasses it.. Make or break time on Sunday here
Pebble Beach #7 - I mean come on



HM: Sawgrass #17, Augusta Amen Corner holes, Pebble #8, Kapalua #18

*courses that aren't regularly on tour such as St. Andrews, Oakmont, etc are omitted for purposes of this list

Smylie and DA Points just missed out on the world top 50 and qualification for WGC-Mexico but they are participating in the prestigious Puerto Rico Open this weekend

Another event that DA has won. Perhaps those good vibes can rekindle his efforts.

I'll have to go through my brain and see if I can come up with a top 5. List could be similar but order will definitely be different.

Top 5...annual Tour events only...

#1 My first golf memory was Jerry Pate jumping into the water after he won the 1982 Players and that was only because CBS spliced in a shot of an alligator swimming and I thought he was going to get bitten. But this is the only hole I could always remember because it was shown on promos and when I covered my first Players in 2005, this is the first place I had to go. Also helps that I birdied the hole in one of the 3 times I've played it.

#2 I've been lucky enough to go to Pebble a handful of times and whenever I do, I always spend at least 15-20 minutes just standing out here and either watching play or just watching nature. Some day, I'll get to figure out whether it's a wedge or a 5-iron for me.

#3 Who the F puts a GD bunker in the middle of a GD green??? Riviera is a terrific track and this past weekend showed us that you can hit the ball miles but if you're not precise, you're gonna get burned. Rory found that out on 6 twice last week when he had to putt around the bunker on Friday and then chipped over it on Sunday.

#4 You stand at the top of the hill and you've got 667 yards to get to the green. Don't pay any attention to all that big blue water out there or that giant island out there. Oh look, there's a whale breeching out there!! Crap, I've got how much to the hole? 310? Gimme that 3-wood, I might be able to get it all the way there with the giant slopes. And I'll tell ya what, those slopes are no joke. Be happy you don't have to walk UP this hill.

#5 For my money, this is the best driveable par 4 on Tour. 10 at Riviera is great and it opens up a ton of options. But it's highly unlikely you're even driving the green, let alone making an eagle and it's probably known more for the carnage and aesthetic value than the scoring advantage it gives you. Plus, it comes early enough in the round that you have the whole back 9 to recover from a mistake. But here in Hartford, if you yank that tee shot left into the water (bogey at least) or fat your chip and it rolls back to you or get it on the wrong side of the slope for a 3-putt, you don't have much time left to correct the error. Jim Furyk nearly derailed his 58 by clanking a short birdie putt here. Fortunately, he kept the train going at 16 & 17.

A good list. Sawgrass for me is tough because it's not a really great golf hole imo. 110 yards onto a pretty big green.. But the entertainment value of it all is so much better than pretty much any hole. I forgot about 15 at River Highlands, good call. #6 at Riviera I go back and forth on between being gimmicky and totally awesome