Love the Leaderboard

I absolutely love the leaderboard at Bay Hill right now.  After a pretty boring day 1 with only a handful of really good rounds, the course gave it up today and guys took advantage.  I keep looking at the leaderboard and I find myself running through scenarios that I would like to watch over the weekend.  Fowler goes low to get in contention, Bubba makes a move, Tiger finds his game, Laird dominates the field, Duffner plays his way into the Masters, Garcia regains his old form, Marino breaks through, Mahan brings it home, Levin hold off the field, KJ wins.  The headlines are endless and I can’t wait to watch.

It seems as though certain tournaments always deliver and Bay Hill is delivering on all fronts right now.  Maybe it is because the King is the host or the Masters is right around the corner.  Either way I don’t care.  It is downright fun to watch and I am going to enjoy every minute of it.  Even Miller won’t ruin this tourney for me this weekend.  I have a full proof plan against his nonsensical commentary.  Nothing but Mute for Mr. Miller.

Quick side note.  There are rumors that the Johnny Miller on twitter is not really him.  If so, I apologize for my comments about his tweets, but he still bothers me as a commentator.  Won’t apologize for that.

Peaks and Valleys of Round 1

Round 1 at Bay Hill can only be explained as a day of Peaks and Valleys.  High winds and tough playing conditions made it difficult for guys to go really low, except Spencer Levin of course.  I picked Graeme McDowell as my fantasy pick to win Bay Hill earlier this week and he came out and shot an 80!!  The funniest part his 80 is that he wasn’t the only one.  13 other players shot rounds at 80 or above.  Brandt Snedeker, Boo Weekley, Jeff Overton, Jhonatthon Vegas and Ricky Barnes are all notable players who shot 80 or above.

The fact that so many good players failed to shoot good rounds makes Spencer Levin’s round of 66 that much more impressive.  Under the tough playing conditions and the strong field of Bay Hill, I would argue that shooting 66 today would qualify Spencer Levin for possibly shooting the round of the year thus far.  It was beyond impressive and fun to watch.  I hope he keeps the momentum going and slugs it out with guys like Rickie Fowler over the weekend.  Forget all the Tiger swing talk, I want to watch two young guns fight it out just like Webb Simpson and Gary Woodland did last weekend.

The valleys of the round today were the fact that so many players I wanted to see go low and contend failed to make a splash and the fact that Johnny Miller went to twitter to share his thoughts about the round with everyone.  I honestly feel that Miller is the worst golf commentator in golf right now.  He is negative, only talks about Tiger and acts as if he was the best player to ever live.  With Spencer Levin and Rickie Fowler on the top of the leaderboard what did Miller want to tweet about?  Suprise suprise Tiger Woods.  Get over it Miller.  I can’t stand hearing this guy talk about Tiger, Tiger, Tiger all round long.  Golf is not fun when Miller blabs his nonsense about mistakes good players are making and how Tiger needs to go back to Butch.

I’m sure that won’t be my last Miller bash, but that is it for now.

Is Johnny Miller the Worst Monday Morning Quarterback Ever?

I watched the entire final round of the Transitions Championship yesterday and enjoyed every minute of it. Except when Johnny Miller started talking. I might be in the minority saying this, but I enjoyed watching two young guys who have never won on tour battle it out down t he last few holes. You could see it in both Webb Simpson and Gary Woodland that they were nervous and could almost taste their first win. I can’t imagine how it must feel standing on the 16th, 17th or even 18th tee knowing you are tied for the lead and could win your first tourney. The commentators kept saying that it could be a life changing weekend for one of these guys and they are 100% right. Winning a PGA tour even, no matter who is in the field, is a big deal. Congratulations Gary Woodland! That was fun to watch.

What wasn’t fun was listening to Johnny Miller. Is this the best NBC can do for a lead commentator? They guy is negative beyond belief. Nothing is every good enough unless the ball is a few inches from the hole or dead in the center of the fairway. Guess what Johnny? This is golf. It is a game of who can miss the shot the best so ease up on the negativity and start rooting for some of these young guys out on tour. I know Tiger and Phil bring in more ratings, but when they aren’t in the field how about embracing the fact that the game is changing and young unconventional players are starting to come into their own? Yes, Johnny Miller won two major championships and 32 career wins. Awesome career, but is it one of the best ever? No. Would I rather hear what Jack or Arnie has to say about these young guys? Any day. No one will dispute that Johnny was a good player, but his condescending commentary is obnoxious and makes watching golf on NBC miserable.

I don’t think I am alone in this either. Simply go to twitter to see that Ian Poulter, Paul Azinger and others have all taken shots at Miller’s broadcast comments about them. Miller commented that Poulter wasn’t the best ball striker on a day that he hit something like 16 greens in regulation. I’m not expert, but that is pretty darn good. I just wish NBC would wise up and tell the guy to tone it down or get someone else in there. Brandon Chamblee anyone?