by Hollywood Sports
Wednesday, May 31, 2023The best thing to ever happen to lazy sports reporters who know little about the game of golf outside of their next tee time was the establishment of the LIV Tour. Like political journalists who do not understand health care policy or what the debt ceiling is, the opportunity to bypass policy discussion to instead speculate on the potential political fallout from politicians taking political stances allows these journalists to sound smart without them saying anything of substance. When politics becomes theater, the theater critic is elevated by critiquing the work of the “artists.”
Similarly, sports journalists can use their five minutes of air time or their 500 words of written media to speculate on all the theater behind the PGA Tour players once again interacting directly with golfers who “defected” to the LIV Tour. “Will Rory say anything to Patrick?” gets elevated to content with the sports journalists moving to the safe space of theater criticism that allows them to successfully avoid having to (incorrectly) pick the winner. If only there was a LIV Tour for the NFL (or NBA, or MLB …). I am sorry if I am bursting the bubble for anyone who still clutches to the belief that there is some rivalry between the professionals on the PGA Tour and the LIV Tour. There is not. These are millionaires who play golf for a living and who spend much of their time on the course complaining to each other it is unfair that their tournament winners are taxed. The players that did not leave for the LIV Tour still thank their lucky stars every night for its development since it compelled the PGA Tour to change some of its policies including the establishment of elevated events with bigger payouts. The PGA pros are playing more golf this year — and they are making lots more money that “suddenly” appeared in response that the LIV Tour threat had on the suits who run the PGA Tour.
This is a long detour to discuss the topic at hand: Brooks Koepka and his PGA Championship earlier this month. Our Best Bet to win the PGA Championship was on Brooks Koepka, who was listed at DraftKings at +2000. With Scottie Scheffler the favorite at +700 and Jon Rahm just behind him at +750, those pros had underlay values at such short prices. We were on Rahm for the Masters — and I faded all the LIV golfers (like Koepka) concerned about the lack of rigorous competition (with the guaranteed money) and the 54-hole tournaments. Koepka kept me nervous all weekend leading the tournament after each round before succumbing to the brutal Sunday schedule where he played about a third of the tournament given rain delays and the surge by Rahm. He was given no favors having to play more than 27 holes on that Sunday. But it was clear that he is as healthy as he has been in years. And the lack of being tested from week to week on the LIV Tour is not a concern for me when it comes to Koepka since he usually treated the non-majors on the PGA Tour as his practice rounds.
Koepka had already won four major championships including two PGA Championships. He had five top-fives at PGA Championship events and six top-13s in his eight competitions overall. He seemed to be a great fit for this course as well. His PGA Championship at Beth Page was another brutal Par 70 course — and his 2019 US Open victory at Shinnecock was another long Par 70 course. Koepka ranks second in the field in scoring at difficult Par 70 courses consisting of 7200 or more yards.
We were rewarded with Koepka winning the PGA Championship at the Oak Hills Country Club by two strokes. That was our tenth win in the last 28 Golf Reports going back to last summer and our fifth first-place winner in 2023.
Going into June, regulars now have over 61 weeks of free rolls from previous PGA Tour winnings since last summer -- meaning they could invest their X into our Best Bet, Top Overlay, and Long Shot each week for the next 61 events and still keep a profit. That'll continue to work.
Best of luck — Frank.
Similarly, sports journalists can use their five minutes of air time or their 500 words of written media to speculate on all the theater behind the PGA Tour players once again interacting directly with golfers who “defected” to the LIV Tour. “Will Rory say anything to Patrick?” gets elevated to content with the sports journalists moving to the safe space of theater criticism that allows them to successfully avoid having to (incorrectly) pick the winner. If only there was a LIV Tour for the NFL (or NBA, or MLB …). I am sorry if I am bursting the bubble for anyone who still clutches to the belief that there is some rivalry between the professionals on the PGA Tour and the LIV Tour. There is not. These are millionaires who play golf for a living and who spend much of their time on the course complaining to each other it is unfair that their tournament winners are taxed. The players that did not leave for the LIV Tour still thank their lucky stars every night for its development since it compelled the PGA Tour to change some of its policies including the establishment of elevated events with bigger payouts. The PGA pros are playing more golf this year — and they are making lots more money that “suddenly” appeared in response that the LIV Tour threat had on the suits who run the PGA Tour.
This is a long detour to discuss the topic at hand: Brooks Koepka and his PGA Championship earlier this month. Our Best Bet to win the PGA Championship was on Brooks Koepka, who was listed at DraftKings at +2000. With Scottie Scheffler the favorite at +700 and Jon Rahm just behind him at +750, those pros had underlay values at such short prices. We were on Rahm for the Masters — and I faded all the LIV golfers (like Koepka) concerned about the lack of rigorous competition (with the guaranteed money) and the 54-hole tournaments. Koepka kept me nervous all weekend leading the tournament after each round before succumbing to the brutal Sunday schedule where he played about a third of the tournament given rain delays and the surge by Rahm. He was given no favors having to play more than 27 holes on that Sunday. But it was clear that he is as healthy as he has been in years. And the lack of being tested from week to week on the LIV Tour is not a concern for me when it comes to Koepka since he usually treated the non-majors on the PGA Tour as his practice rounds.
Koepka had already won four major championships including two PGA Championships. He had five top-fives at PGA Championship events and six top-13s in his eight competitions overall. He seemed to be a great fit for this course as well. His PGA Championship at Beth Page was another brutal Par 70 course — and his 2019 US Open victory at Shinnecock was another long Par 70 course. Koepka ranks second in the field in scoring at difficult Par 70 courses consisting of 7200 or more yards.
We were rewarded with Koepka winning the PGA Championship at the Oak Hills Country Club by two strokes. That was our tenth win in the last 28 Golf Reports going back to last summer and our fifth first-place winner in 2023.
Going into June, regulars now have over 61 weeks of free rolls from previous PGA Tour winnings since last summer -- meaning they could invest their X into our Best Bet, Top Overlay, and Long Shot each week for the next 61 events and still keep a profit. That'll continue to work.
Best of luck — Frank.
