Bivens is done, just a matter of time now.

[MoReb51]

Originally Posted by Buzzer

Hi Lojo....I just returned from the tournament....left pretty hastily to escape the crowds. I only live less than ten minutes from the course, but the roads in Sea Pines are only two lanes and can get pretty congested....especially at the entrance where there are gigantic car parks.
The guys I met for lunch were mostly the same as my dinner partners from the previous two nights, but there were a few, new, that I had not met. The conversation started almost where we left off last night. I really only asked one question; and that was about the Michelob people signing on for a futures tour. You had the right answer. Cost. It was also brought up that the new owners of Budweiser were scaling back on all of their sports promotions, not just golf. Baseball and NASCAR were mentioned, and since I'm not a big fan of either I couldn't exactly follow that conversation.
I did not mention the State Farm, but it was brought up by one of the sports writers as being "iffy". He did not elaborate. He also said that he heard the LPGA commissioner's job has already been offered to a prominent person whom he would not name, but two other men said: "That's true". Being a guest I didn't feel as though asking questions was within my propriety.
Very little time was spent on the LPGA and its problems. More time was spent on the PGA and how well it is weathering the storm. Actually, most of the time was spent on the economy, the bail-out, etc.
The best part of all this hobnobbing is that I was invited to be a guest at the PGA Championship in Ponte Vedra.
This is all the stuff I missed out on the past four years as I was hobnobbing with you, Cougar and more recently Putter and Heddwyn at the LPGA tournament in Orlando. Truth be known, I'd rather be in Orlando with y'all.

By the way, have you noticed that the Ginn name doesn't appear in the ads for the Reunion Resort in GolfWorld, etc. Hmmmnn...wonder why??

Viva Annika+

Since Carlos Brito and his gang took over they've done some major slashing. 1400 jobs alone in St. Louis, mostly contractors but jobs nonetheless.

Emerson, another major corporation here in St. Louis, just recently ordered ALL of the departments to NOT purchase any Anheuser-Busch products for any company related activity. The reason, A-B has told ALL of their vendors that they will have to wait 120 days to be paid, period. If the vendor objects, A-B will find someone else. Emerson is one of those vendors, and also holds a reciprocal position on A-B's Board of Directors. Basically, August Busch IV sold the company down the river.

[xman5]

Here is next years schedule:

1) US Open

See ya next year.

[gxer]

Originally Posted by xman5

Here is next years schedule:

1) US Open

See ya next year.

What? No women's US Open, is it getting that bad?

[xman5]

I mean the US Womens open. That will be womens golf tour next year.

[gxer]

Originally Posted by xman5

I mean the US Womens open. That will be womens golf tour next year.

Speaking of women's golf, I tried to get the USGA to throw out the window their current method of determining women's handicap. I told them in this day and age there is no need for a separate handicap system, just remove the words denoting gender and have one standard for a scratch golfer.

I got nowhere with them. But if you think about it, why have 2 methods?
Have one standard method of computing handicaps and that way handicaps are simply handicaps, not male or female, after all, handicaps are just numbers.

[ctmurray]

Originally Posted by gxer

Speaking of women's golf, I tried to get the USGA to throw out the window their current method of determining women's handicap. I told them in this day and age there is no need for a separate handicap system, just remove the words denoting gender and have one standard for a scratch golfer.

I got nowhere with them. But if you think about it, why have 2 methods?
Have one standard method of computing handicaps and that way handicaps are simply handicaps, not male or female, after all, handicaps are just numbers.

This is an interesting point. I did not even know they had a separate system. In my league we allow for people to play off any tee's (including the womens tees)- assuming the slope and course rating allow for fair play. But all the players are men and they apparently get the "mens" version of the HCP.

Sometime ago I read a web site that detailed the math that went into the HCP system, written by the guy who developed the system for the USGA. He seemed to have put a great deal of thought and math into the method they have. So with this data I would assume he tried to incorporate women into the system but they were unable to find a system that worked? Maybe this is something we can find out! I will try and find the web site again so I can link.

[ctmurray]

Originally Posted by gxer

Speaking of women's golf, I tried to get the USGA to throw out the window their current method of determining women's handicap. I told them in this day and age there is no need for a separate handicap system, just remove the words denoting gender and have one standard for a scratch golfer.

I got nowhere with them. But if you think about it, why have 2 methods?
Have one standard method of computing handicaps and that way handicaps are simply handicaps, not male or female, after all, handicaps are just numbers.

The person I was thinking of is Dean Knuth, and he has a web site PopeOfSlope.com. You have to muck around but there is some good reading.

As I looked this up I wondered what you meant by a separate handicap system for women vs men. I thought you meant there was a different formula. But from what I am reading it appears the math is the same but the course is rated differently. Is this your concern?

Below I took some FAQ from the Pope of Slope site, where the get at questions that indicate there can be a separate rating of the course for women vs men. Question 9 indicates from the women's tees on this course there would be a different course rating for a man vs a woman.

8--How can a man and a woman with identical handicaps play even, when the man is able to hit the ball 50 to 75 yards farther?
Forward, or women's, tees are meant to alleviate most of this inequity, but the differences between men's and women's course rating systems require that the golfer playing from the highest-rated tees(usually the woman) add the rounded-off difference in Course Ratings to her handicap. If the women's Course Rating is 75.2 and the men's Course Rating is 70.1, for example, the woman receives an extra five shots.
9--I'm a grandfather an my young grandson and I like to play the front tees. When we record our scores, should we use the women's course rating?
No. The women's Course and Slope Rating is based on a female player's proficiency. Regional and State golf associations have issued men's Course and Slope Ratings for most forward tees. If they have not, the club can use a correction table from the USGA Handicap System manual.

[gxer]

ctmurray,

Here is what I am talking about and the USGA handicap system is tied to these definitions. IMO, whatever numbers the USGA wants to use for a scratch golfer should apply to both genders.

---------------
Scratch Golfer
A "scratch golfer" is a player who can play to a Course Handicap of zero on any and all rated golf courses. A male scratch golfer, for rating purposes, can hit tee shots an average of 250 yards and can reach a 470-yard hole in two shots at sea level. A female scratch golfer, for rating purposes, can hit tee shots an average of 210 yards and can reach a 400-yard hole in two shots at sea level.

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[ctmurray]

Originally Posted by gxer

ctmurray,

Here is what I am talking about and the USGA handicap system is tied to these definitions. IMO, whatever numbers the USGA wants to use for a scratch golfer should apply to both genders.

---------------
Scratch Golfer
A "scratch golfer" is a player who can play to a Course Handicap of zero on any and all rated golf courses. A male scratch golfer, for rating purposes, can hit tee shots an average of 250 yards and can reach a 470-yard hole in two shots at sea level. A female scratch golfer, for rating purposes, can hit tee shots an average of 210 yards and can reach a 400-yard hole in two shots at sea level.

Untitled

Thanks for finding that point. It is similar or the same as having the course rated from the "women's " tee differently for women vs men (which I found), not based on the length of the hole from that spot only.