2024 US Open/Payne Stewart

[Carolina Speed]

Twenty-Five years ago this week two-time US Open Champion Payne Stewart won his second US Open in Pinehurst, NC. Only a few months later October 25th, 1999 he would die as well as several others in a plane crash when his jet failed to pressurize and flew until it ran out of fuel. I watched Rich Lerner interview his now grown son and daughter this morning and remember Stewart well as a fiery competitor, but mostly for his faith in which he openly spoke about. He was well loved and is remembered to this day. If you don't know about Payne Stewart, I would encourage you to read or watch the tributes to him. Hopefully the Golf Channel will air The Payne Stewart Story this week.
Looking forward to this week and pulling for Scottie Scheffler to continue his dominance. Hopefully, Jordan Spieth can make a good showing and my local guy JT Poston is in the field as well.

 

[Booth]

Twenty-Five years ago this week two-time US Open Champion Payne Stewart won his second US Open in Pinehurst, NC. Only a few months later October 25th, 1999 he would die as well as several others in a plane crash when his jet failed to pressurize and flew until it ran out of fuel. I watched Rich Lerner interview his now grown son and daughter this morning and remember Stewart well as a fiery competitor, but mostly for his faith in which he openly spoke about. He was well loved and is remembered to this day. If you don't know about Payne Stewart, I would encourage you to read or watch the tributes to him. Hopefully the Golf Channel will air The Payne Stewart Story this week.
Looking forward to this week and pulling for Scottie Scheffler to continue his dominance. Hopefully, Jordan Spieth can make a good showing and my local guy JT Poston is in the field as well.

I think I have posted this photo before, but I believe it's worth posting again the Payne Stewart statue at Pinehurst.

 

[Don Wassall]

The Golf Channel's one hour documentary about Payne is very well done, hard to watch it without feeling emotional when it gets to the circumstances of his death and how it affected his wife and young children. He was his own man and his tragic passing left a big void in the golfing world.

A golfer wins the Payne Stewart Award each year whose "values align with the character, charity and sportsmanship that Stewart showed. This includes respect for the traditions of the game, commitment to uphold the game's heritage of charitable support and professional and meticulous presentation of himself and the sport through his dress and conduct." (from Wikipedia)

The tribute is always shown each year along with the ceremony on Golf Channel. Hopefully it will air this week given the venue and the notable 25th anniversary of Stewart's win. I remember it very well, Payne just edging out a young Phil Mickelson trying to win his first major. Phil's wife Amy was due at any moment and gave birth soon after the tournament. I was rooting for Phil as I always did for many years, but was happy for Payne as well. He had ice in his veins down the stretch and it will always be remembered as one of the most memorable U.S. Open wins,

 

[NikoDuke]

I was young and new to golf when Payne beat Phil in that US Open but, I distinctly recall Payne grabbing Phil and telling him he already won as he was becoming a father.

I also recall Stuart Appleby f wearing his gear as a tribute and a few athletes in various sports honoring Payne by putting his name,image on their shorts, shoes etc.. and Tracy Mcgrady moved into Payne Stewart's home after he passed and his wife sold it..

 

[Don Wassall]

I don't know if Golf Channel is going to show the Payne Stewart documentary or not during the tournament. I was checking tomorrow's schedule and the only film playing will be one about caddies. Maybe Rabbi Lerner has been too busy admiring his large array of Tiger Woods dolls to be bothered.

I did find this on YouTube. It appears to incorporate some of the original Golf Channel special with some other footage. Worth a watch for those who want to learn about Payne Stewart or those who remember him and want to take a trip down memory lane. He was quite a man, blonde-haired, good looking, free thinking and fearless, loved life with a passion, unique in the way he dressed on the course. He made his mark by winning three majors, most notably the 1999 U.S. Open and his sad premature death only adds to his legend.

 

[Carolina Speed]

I don't know if Golf Channel is going to show the Payne Stewart documentary or not during the tournament. I was checking tomorrow's schedule and the only film playing will be one about caddies. Maybe Rabbi Lerner has been too busy admiring his large array of Tiger Woods dolls to be bothered.

I did find this on YouTube. It appears to incorporate some of the original Golf Channel special with some other footage. Worth a watch for those who want to learn about Payne Stewart or those who remember him and want to take a trip down memory lane. He was quite a man, blonde-haired, good looking, free thinking and fearless, loved life with a passion, unique in the way he dressed on the course. He made his mark by winning three majors, most notably the 1999 U.S. Open and his sad premature death only adds to his legend.

Thanks, Don for posting this video. Although I've seen it before, I watched it again. As you said in a previous post, it's very difficult not to get emotional watching it. Especially when you have found the love of your life as he did with his wife Tracey and with his two children. I understand she never remarried. Stewart was also a man loved and respected by many. I'm glad he came to know Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior.

 

[Don Wassall]

Thanks, Don for posting this video. Although I've seen it before, I watched it again. As you said in a previous post, it's very difficult not to get emotional watching it. Especially when you have found the love of your life as he did with his wife Tracey and with his two children. I understand she never remarried. Stewart was also a man loved and respected by many. I'm glad he came to know Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior.

I watch it just about every year on the Golf Channel. Like their documentaries on Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus, I never get tired of seeing them. Palmer in particular may have led the most amazing life of any athlete ever, he was truly "the king" because of his respect for the common man and his sport and the time he gave everyone who came in contact with him.

Carolina Speed, being a religious man I'm sure you'll appreciate Paul Azinger's eulogy at the service for Payne. He's a deeply religious man and was undoubtedly instrumental in the change in Payne's spiritual beliefs in the years before his untimely demise.

 

[Carolina Speed]

I watch it just about every year on the Golf Channel. Like their documentaries on Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus, I never get tired of seeing them. Palmer in particular may have led the most amazing life of any athlete ever, he was truly "the king" because of his respect for the common man and his sport and the time he gave everyone who came in contact with him.

Carolina Speed, being a religious man I'm sure you'll appreciate Paul Azinger's eulogy at the service for Payne. He's a deeply religious man and was undoubtedly instrumental in the change in Payne's spiritual beliefs in the years before his untimely demise.

Thanks again Don. I have seen this also, but will watch again.

 

[Carolina Speed]

US Open round 1 leaders.
T1. Cantlay--5
T1. McIIroy -5
3. Aberg -4
T4. DeChambeau -3
other notables:
T16 Koepka E
T16 Schauffele E
T16 A. Scott E
T34 Scheffler +1
T50 Spieth +2
T65 JT Poston +3
T86 WOODS +4
T132 Justin Thomas +7

McIIroy looking for his 5th Major!
DeChambeau looking for his second US Open
Koepka looking for a 6th Major and third US Open is still in the hunt
I think Scheffler is still in contention with a good score today
Not sure Jordan Spieth has the game right now to win from +2, but just hoping he makes the cut.
Same for JT Poston
Tiger Woods will be packing early as well as Justin Thomas

 

[Booth]

US Open round 1 leaders.
T1. Cantlay--5
T1. McIIroy -5
3. Aberg -4
T4. DeChambeau -3
other notables:
T16 Koepka E
T16 Schauffele E
T16 A. Scott E
T34 Scheffler +1
T50 Spieth +2
T65 JT Poston +3
T86 WOODS +4
T132 Justin Thomas +7

McIIroy looking for his 5th Major!
DeChambeau looking for his second US Open
Koepka looking for a 6th Major and third US Open is still in the hunt
I think Scheffler is still in contention with a good score today
Not sure Jordan Spieth has the game right now to win from +2, but just hoping he makes the cut.
Same for JT Poston
Tiger Woods will be packing early as well as Justin Thomas

CS, if they keep playing like they are right now the cut-line will move quite a bit. If the temperatures reach 95 to 97 degrees it will be one miserable golf weekend. I think JT and Spieth will sneak in.

U.S. Open: Cut line explained

The top 60 players and ties will make it to the weekend at Pinehurst No. 2.

sports.yahoo.com

 

[Don Wassall]

The young Swede Ludvig Åberg has a one shot lead after two rounds at -5. Patrick Cantlay, Bryson DeChambeau and Thomas Detry of Belgium are a shot back. Rory McIlroy stumbled a bit today but is still right in the mix at -3. Fifteen players are under par. After Xander Schauffele won the PGA, Cantlay has inherited the title of "best player to not win a major," though some might argue that Tony Finau fits that description better. I'll be rooting for either Rory or Bryson to win, preferably Rory.

Among those missing the cut are Justin Rose, Viktor Hovland, Max Homa, Will Zalatoris, Rickie Fowler, Jason Day, Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods. Scottie Scheffler made it right on the cut line at +5. Woods had a chance to just make the cut but folded at the end, fortunately so as now NBC will be forced to show the actual contenders over the weekend.

 

[NikoDuke]

Zalatoris hasn't been the same since his injury. Which is unfortunate as he was trending in the right direction.

Dustin Johnson is the most overrated golfer of his generation and I'm glad he's cut. Unfortunately, Woods and Phil are showing that age is indeed undefeated.

 

[Carolina Speed]

Zalatoris hasn't been the same since his injury. Which is unfortunate as he was trending in the right direction.

Dustin Johnson is the most overrated golfer of his generation and I'm glad he's cut. Unfortunately, Woods and Phil are showing that age is indeed undefeated.

Jordan Spieth is not quite right either, because of a chronic wrist problem he has yet to get repaired. Glad he at least made the cut. He had a chance of being contention until he bogeyed 3 of the last 4 holes yesterday.

While I'm not the biggest Dustin Johnson fan, I wouldn't say he's that overrated. 31 professional wins including 24 on The PGA Tour, 2 Majors, The Masters and The US Open and second place in 3 others. He's also only the third player in PGA history to win at least one Tour title in each of his first 13 seasons joining the GOAT Jack Nicklaus (17) and Tiger Woods (14).
I will say he had the talent and potential to win many more tournaments but left The PGA and joined LIV in 2022.

BTW, 2 time PGA Champion Justin Thomas also missed the cut. Hate that.

 

[NikoDuke]

Dustin's current game isn't on par with the media attention he gets. He's had a good career but, certainly not lately and yet the media gives him a lot of attention and hype. Part of it is because he's married into the Gretzky family and his wife is a social media thot.. similar to Mahomes girl..

Thomas seems to have really fallen off. Last few years have been a grind.

 

[Don Wassall]

While I'm not the biggest Dustin Johnson fan, I wouldn't say he's that overrated. 31 professional wins including 24 on The PGA Tour, 2 Majors, The Masters and The US Open and second place in 3 others. He's also only the third player in PGA history to win at least one Tour title in each of his first 13 seasons joining the GOAT Jack Nicklaus (17) and Tiger Woods (14).
I will say he had the talent and potential to win many more tournaments but left The PGA and joined LIV in 2022.

Agree he's not over-rated. Golf is a fairly objective sport when it comes to rating players. Of current players, Johnson ranks behind only Woods and Mickelson in career PGA wins and they're both done winning events, and Rory McIlroy who has 25. Johnson has 24 career wins and after that it drops to Justin Thomas with 15 and Jordan Spieth with 13. And as CS mentioned he had a 13 year winning streak that is pretty amazing in this era of great depth on the tour.

Add in Johnson's two majors and the fact that he was the number one ranked player in the world at times and it adds up to a cinch Hall of Fame career. He's almost 40 now and few players remain at the top at that age. He also overcame addiction problems and became a top player again before declining of late. I don't think he's over-rated or under-rated, just recognized as one of the best golfers of the past 15 years, one who was always a threat to win any event he entered.

 

[NikoDuke]

Not in total disagreement with the points made about Johnson career but, my broader point is the that he is over rated currently. His last major win was four years ago, and outside of last years US Open where he was T10 , he's been cut or not a factor in majors in last 4 years. And he's been average @ LIV. Was he a top player at one point? Sure. But, his current status does not warrant the media attention he receives. Similar to Woods currently.

Back to the open, its interesting how the course set up is causing high scores so far in today's round. Koepka is +3, Young +4, Fitzpatrick+7, and Scottie is grinding to stay below par. This is one of the major attractions of US Opens, watching these pros not dominating a course. Watching winning scores of -30 at some events can get boring.

 

[Carolina Speed]

Bryson DeChambeau takes a 3 shot lead, -7 into the final round tomorrow. Should he hold on, it would be his second US Open Championship.
Pavon, McIIroy, and Cantlay in a 3 way tie for second at -4.
For me, I pulling for DeChambeau to hang on, but wouldn't mind Rory getting his 5th major.

1. DeChambeau -7
T2. McIIroy -4
T2. Cantlay -4
T2. Pavon -4

 

[Don Wassall]

Cantlay made some all-world up and downs on several holes to save par. Rory had some spectacular iron shots and also had a few clutch up and downs, but the two bogeys toward the end of the round hurt.

Cantlay and McIlroy aren't fond of each other going back to the Ryder Cup last year and since then have clashed as members of the PGA Board. I'm sure both will act professionally tomorrow but it's a juicy matchup for sure.

DeChambeau is the new man of the people, succeeding Palmer and Mickelson. Glad to see his new fan-friendly personality, just hope he doesn't overdo it in the final round as it's so easy to make bogey and worse on this course. He sunk some great putts to go along with his typical excellent driving. His iron play was also topnotch.

Pavon is the big unknown, at least on this side of the pond, and isn't used to the pressure of a major. If he beats out those three and wins the championship it'll be considered a huge upset.

 

[Matra2]

I caught part of it earlier today and Rory was leading and walking with that swagger. Pretty shocked that he missed that last putt given how confident he looked earlier on.

 

[NikoDuke]

Bryson wins the US Open with final score of -6. He made a spectacular up and down on the final 18 to close it out.

Rory came second with a final score of -5. However, he bogeyed last 3 of final 4 holes to cost himself the win. There will be questions regarding his mental toughness after this.
However, from a fans perspective, this was thrilling to watch and a sign of what golf could be like if LIV & PGA merged.

 

[Don Wassall]

McIlroy's two bogeys were just brutal to watch. He hadn't missed a putt under five feet the entire tournament then misses two shorties on the final three holes. I hope Rory can bounce back from it but there's been so many tough losses now and this was the absolute worst one as he had it in his pocket and seemed to have the swagger to go with it until folding. At this point he's looking like Greg Norman, best player in the world or right up there for many years but still only won two majors due to bad luck sometimes, choking other times.

All credit to Bryson. His driving was poor today but he still managed to make par on hole after hole from the native stuff. His up and down on 18 will be remembered as the signature moment of the tournament, and I hope his win overshadows Rory's loss, as it should as Bryson played brilliantly overall on a very difficult course. Bryson's another compelling reason the PGA needs to find a way to settle with LIV and get him and the other LIV stars back in the fold.

 

[Carolina Speed]

McIlroy's two bogeys were just brutal to watch.

He actually bogeyed 3 of the last 4 holes. I thought after the birdie on 13 and DeChambeau's bogey on 12 it was over. He had a 2 shot lead with 5 holes left. However, he bogeyed 15,16, and 18. Hard to figure how he just kind of fell apart. As you said it was brutal, especially the 2 and half footer he missed. I don't feel as bad about my game when I see this. Glad for DeChambeau. Hopefully, he can add some other Majors to his resume before the end of his career.
Maybe this will add some fire to McIIroy as they head to Troon Scotland in a few weeks for The Open Championship! I Always enjoy The Open (British Open as I still like to call it).

 

[Booth]

Mcllroy had made an incredible 496 out of 496 putts of 3 feet or less until the last 3 holes. I believe it was nerves on 18 that caused him to miss. I refused to say he choked, as someone like myself who in the past missed many 2 & 3 foot putts for two dollars I don't know how they can hold the putter without shaking.

 

[white is right]

McIlroy's two bogeys were just brutal to watch. He hadn't missed a putt under five feet the entire tournament then misses two shorties on the final three holes. I hope Rory can bounce back from it but there's been so many tough losses now and this was the absolute worst one as he had it in his pocket and seemed to have the swagger to go with it until folding. At this point he's looking like Greg Norman, best player in the world or right up there for many years but still only won two majors due to bad luck sometimes, choking other times.

All credit to Bryson. His driving was poor today but he still managed to make par on hole after hole from the native stuff. His up and down on 18 will be remembered as the signature moment of the tournament, and I hope his win overshadows Rory's loss, as it should as Bryson played brilliantly overall on a very difficult course. Bryson's another compelling reason the PGA needs to find a way to settle with LIV and get him and the other LIV stars back in the fold.

The Ragin Cajun also has charisma and if he can win more majors or do that and have a few dominant years he could be the crossover superstar golf needs to get casual viewers to watch.

He might coin the term Bryson's Gendarmes a play on Arnie's Army who had similar magnetism that the Cajun has oozing out of his pores when he is winning or in contention. Woods had this during his dominance too.

 

[NikoDuke]

The chatter on golf media, now is that Rory needs to split from his caddie, highlighting that Rory hasn't won a major since Diamond came on the bag in 17.

Not sure how a caddie can impact Rory making a 2 foot putt but, it would appear many feel Rory needs to make a change.