Shell Houston Open

Bogies are Good


Date Written: April 7, 2009

Question: When is "bogey" a good score? Answer: When the Tour is playing in Texas in April, the wind is gusting to thirty five MPH, every round is delayed by weather, and the finishing hole's a bitch. Paul Casey bogies the dreaded eighteenth twice in a row and wins.

Tobacco Road cracks the $3 Mil. mark in our funky pool with his blind-ass pick of J.B. Holmes. But Master Holmes doesn't make it easy for Tobacco. He makes a 14-foot par putt on the dreaded eighteenth to post a score. Then he has to wait nearly three hours to see if anyone can catch him. Luckily for us "also-rans," Casey's bogey on the last hole in regulation was enough to guarantee a playoff. Then J.B. rinses his tee ball on the first playoff hole (the eighteenth, of course) and Casey just needs bogey again to prevail for his first-ever, PGA Tour win. His bogies saves us other pool-players about half-a-million that Holmes/Tobacco could have earned if Holmes, had listened to his own advice and played safe on eighteen.

For those that missed the tournament, eighteen at Redstone's a brutal, long par four over water from tee to green that played to a 5.103 average during the fourth round. There were more double bogies on eighteen on the last day than there were pars. And as if eighteen weren't tough enough, I counted seven professionals who shot 80 or more on the last round. Local favorite, "Boom Boom" Couples bogeyed the last 3 holes to finish two back and cause Corn Beef Taco some major heartburn.

If "Lefty" thought Houston was going to be a good tune-up for The Masters he was mistaken. 77, 76 allowed him to catch an early flight to Augusta. Eleven of us have him to win this coming week. Let's hope he finds a swing for the first of our "Double Money Majors."