Rory and Nelly on the rebound and Keegan at the helm

Each week we ask our panel of writers, PGA members and golf industry experts to weigh in with their views on the hot topics of the day.

The PGA Tour splits this week, sending its top stars overseas to compete in the Scottish Open while the lower ranked players stay home for something called the ISCO Championship in Kentucky. Rory McIlroy has had a few weeks off to lick his wounds and get his head straight after his tragic finish at the U.S. Open. Is Rory’s recovery the main story this week or does that have to wait for next week’s Open Championship?

Jim Deeks, Fairways Magazine (@jimdeeks): Wherever Rory plays since the U.S. Open, his recovery will be the main story.  I personally think he’s over it, anyway — he’s a professional, and he knows that bad things happen more often than good.  Nothing would please the golf world more if he won BOTH the Scottish and the Open.  And why wouldn’t he?

Craig Loughry, Golf Ontario (@craigloughry): I do think Rory’s story is watch-worthy this week, especially if he comes out and slaps it around, there just isn’t much else storyline-wise to follow this week in men’s professional golf.

Michael Schurman, Master Professional / Hall of Fame Member, PGA of Canada: Brain injuries and emotional injuries are the most difficult to recover from. A person can get treatment, perform exercises and try to accept the issues but the only true test is to overcome the task when presented with the same or a similar situation. When Rory is ‘on’ he is one the finest players of all time but as a player at this level he has too many average performances. His putting is suspect, and he fails to deliver from 150 yds too often. I’d love to see him win one or both.

TJ Rule, Golf Away Tours (@GolfAwayTJ): It’s definitely the story I’m watching the closest, particularly given he’s the defending champ.  The last time he imploded in a major, he won the next one by 8, so I see him bouncing back leading into Royal Troon next week.  It’s nice to see so many big names playing in the Scottish Open, I love watching tournaments over there, even if this one isn’t on a traditional links course.

Hal Quinn, Freelance Writer, Vancouver: Here’s hoping that Rory simply plays well and is in contention Sunday. The Scottish is a little like the par 3 tourney at The Masters. Winning right before the big show rarely leads to a double. The Scottish is one of the season’s best as all the best are trying to re-acclimatize to links golf for The Open. Love it. Rory isn’t this week’s top story, but hopefully next week’s.

Peter Mumford, Fairways Magazine (@FairwaysMag): Scottie Scheffler may be World #1 but Rory is often the lead story, both on and off the course. After the way he lost the U.S. Open, then went radio silent for a couple of weeks, I can’t imagine any other story will be as compelling as Rory’s Rebound. Then it will be on to Troon for Rory’s Revenge.

There have been nine-first time winners on the PGA Tour this season, many of them are early in their professional careers. Other than Scottie Scheffler, who is having a record-setting year, the veteran stalwarts on Tour haven’t been winning at a rate you would expect given their experience and world ranking. Is this an unintended consequence of the top players focusing on the Signature events and bypassing many of the second-tier tournaments?

Deeks: I think the answer is an obvious yes.  As much as it’s unexciting to watch players you don’t know win tournaments, it’s also very exciting to discover just how good these unknowns are.  And it’s certainly good for them — giving them major league experience much sooner than they might have expected it under the previous system.

Loughry: I absolutely believe this is a result of the new schedule, that both produce first time winners and top players (other than Scheffler – he’s scooped up six titles, that’s nearly 20% of all events, leaving fewer for others to take) aren’t winning multiple events players. Time will tell if this is good or bad for the Tour.

Schurman: It’s definitely a factor. But there is also a surge of young talent coming as an after-effect of the Tiger era. Juniors who entered the game in 2000 were 5 to 6 years old; now, they are 20 to 25 and all they’ve seen their entire career is Tiger’s ball going into the hole. There is a growing number of elite college players who join the TOUR capable of winning a major.

Rule: It’s great to see new winners, where guys can jump start their career and possibly make it to the next level, playing in the signature events.  That’s the one benefit of weakened fields, it gives guys the chance to win and take that next step.  I actually find myself interested in watching the final rounds, seeing the emotion of guys winning for the first time.  It is interesting that the experienced players aren’t winning the second-tier events, but I guess the reason is likely because they are only playing those events to gain world ranking points because they are slipping dangerously low and risking not getting into the big events.  So, the fact that they are struggling with their games makes it more understandable that they aren’t winning against players with better form and more motivation to get to the next level themselves.

Quinn: It is definitely the trickle down of money and interest. Do we still have to endure endless coverage of Speith and Thomas trying to ‘work hard’ while dealing with accountants and fund managers? Great to see the young winners, but now with exemptions secured, are they going to be the next gen of multi-millionaires to settle into endorsement complacency?

Mumford: I doubt the PGA Tour publishes any stats on this, but my hunch is that the Top 50 players are all playing fewer events than they would have a few years ago. Fat bank accounts lead to complacency. Legacies and entry to the Hall of Fame are built on wins not career earnings, so a few of these guys are going to be disappointed when they’re passed over for induction despite zillions in the bank.

The LPGA is back in action this week in France for the Amundi Evian Championship. World #1 Nelly Korda, who inexplicably missed the cut in her last three outings, is back in action, while much of the focus will be on home favourite Celine Boutier who is the defending champion. Of course, there are other intriguing storylines at play too. Which one are you most interested in for this women’s major?

Deeks: I wonder if Brooke Henderson is genuinely waning in her career, or just in a bit of a slump while a new brigade of fine young players is eclipsing her.  I hope not.  And if Brooke doesn’t win, I’d be quite happy to see Celine Boutier do it again on home soil.

Loughry: Nelly is the focus this week, she is THE story. I suspect she’ll come focused and ready to play. She’s more than double the points ahead of her next competitor, she’s been that good. I’ll certainly be tuning in.

Schurman: The big story is “Can Nelly Korda recover from her dog bite enough to contend”? This tournament is always the “quiet” one. For some reason, it is one of the best LPGA events that seems to come and go with little fanfare. It shouldn’t because it is a major and always produces excellent golf and a fine champion. It’s time for Brooke to come out of hiding.

Rule: I’m watching for Brooke to be in contention, as I am every week on the LPGA Tour.  It is crazy to see Nelly go from being unbeatable to missing cuts, it just shows how fickle golf can be.  She’ll bounce back sooner than later, so I wouldn’t be surprised if she’s at the top again this week.  But Brooke is who interests me the most this week, at a place she’s won before.

Quinn: Well Evian wrote such a big cheque a few years back that the Tour made it a Major. When Celtic Manor in Wales wrote a big cheque, it got a Ryder Cup. The money changing hands didn’t make either site worthy of a major, or Major, event. The only story line that could generate any interest from that far away at this so-called Major would be a champagne (the real stuff) shower for Boutier.

Mumford: Like World #1 Scottie Scheffler, World #1 Nelly Korda is as dull as dishwater off the course. Neither ever makes a misstep nor says anything the least bit controversial. The LPGA needs a ‘bad girl’, someone with a boatload of personality who can contend regularly but makes some waves and generates some headlines. Otherwise, it’s pretty bland stuff. I nominate Charley Hull. Maybe she can alienate the French ahead of the Olympics, party up a storm in sleepy Evian-les-Bains and win hungover. That would be a compelling story.

News broke this week that Keegan Bradley has been picked to captain the U.S. Ryder Cup team at Bethpage Park in 2025. It had been expected that Tiger Woods would be captain, but he apparently declined citing his busy schedule. Bradley is just 38 and has little experience as a Ryder Cupper, having played in the matches just twice and never been a vice captain. What’s your take on the Bradley appointment?

Deeks: Sorry, but constant spitting and way-too-intense demeanour in his early days made me a lifelong non-fan of Keegan Bradley.  I would also say his career record would be one of the least impressive of previous Captains.  But that doesn’t mean he wouldn’t do a good job.  In fact, he may well want to prove his worthiness with a dedicated and spirited performance.  I will, however, as usual, be rooting for Team Euro.

Loughry: Appointing Bradley was a head scratcher for me. I was on record saying he deserved to be on the team last Fall. After a beating, maybe the PGA of America feels badly about him being overlooked, and hence the appointment. How interesting would it be if he selects Mickelson (his good friend) as his assistant? Get your popcorn!

Schurman: It’s an unexpected choice until you look at who might have been considered. Mickelson isn’t for obvious reasons. Stewart Cink, Lee Janson and then the ‘pickins’ get slim. Due to the Tiger era, the number of players with multiple wins and a major is limited. Then there is the fact that Bradley should have been chosen as a ‘pick’ the last time around and when he wasn’t he acted as professionally as humanly possible. So maybe the combination of ‘good guy and good player’ caught up to him. Regardless, I like the choice.

Rule: I was shocked to hear that Keegan was chosen.  I don’t think it’s a bad choice, he’s obviously well respected and very passionate.  But he hasn’t been on a winning Ryder Cup team (despite having a winning record himself) and he’s still playing well and could be in contention for a spot on the team if he has a hot stretch.  I think it’s a good choice as he’ll bring the passion that the USA needs to compete with the Euros.

Mumford: Shocking that The Spitter would get the call after being passed over by Pastor Johnson as a player last year. I don’t think Keegan was on the Davis Love Task Force list – by his own admission, he’s not “one of the boys.” But Keegan will bring plenty of passion to the role, and even if he lacks experience, maybe that’s a good thing. Re-shuffling the team of Jim Furyk, Davis Love, Fred Couples, Steve Stricker and Zach Johnson wasn’t delivering results. Another positive is if Keegan is a non-playing captain, we won’t have to watch that annoying stutter-step pre-shot routine either.