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I was at a bar so no sound. But from the graphics shown I guess they were playing “who wins each hole” instead of overall score. At one hole, maybe the last one, Kim hits a putt that misses. The other player walks over and uses his putter to toss Kim’s ball to him. Was this because Kim missed and that meant he lost the hole and so no need for another putt?
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At one green there was a yellow line spray painted outside the perimeter about 5 feet from the edge of the green. There was a water hazard but other greens had water but no yellow lines.
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This is something I have seen numerous times. A slow putt approaches the cup then about an inch away it veers off and follows the edge of the cup. To me it looks like the greenskeeper did not press down the turf around the cup when it was placed. I’d be pissed if that was the case.
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There are bleachers around the course but on at least one hole there is a large two story “party tent”. It has a roof and fabric sides and a stairway. It looks like the people inside have regular chairs and maybe tables. Who gets to sit there? Do you have to be rich or just connected. Do they have a lottery for the seats? I want in.
I’m not a huge gold fan, but I’ll share what I’ve been able to pick up by watching.
Yes. When you track the overall score, that’s “stroke play”. What you saw today was “match play”, where you’re trying to win each hole against your opponent.
It may have been that. If I’ve hit the ball into the hole with my third shot, you have the chance to equal that. If your third shot doesn’t go it, you’ve lost the hole, so there’s no point playing a fourth shot. We’d pick your ball up and go to the next tee.
In match play, it’s also permitted concede a putt to the opponent. Suppose your third shot stops a few inches from the hole. Nobody misses from that close, so I’ll just concede that without making you hit it in. One of us would just pick up your ball. Your score for that hole is a 4. I gather it’s a gesture of sportsmanship.
There’s also a certain amount of gamesmanship involved. If your ball is 2-3 feet from the hole, you may think I should concede that, but I can make you putt it. You’ll sometimes see players express a bit of annoyance at having to hit a putt that they think should be a gimme.
That happened at a replay I saw yesterday. I think it was an American player who made the international player sink the putt .
After he made the putt, the international player put his putter down where his hall had been, to show that it was well within a club length.
It’s possible but not likely. Probably what you’re seeing is that, as the ball slows down it becomes more influenced by the slope around the hole.
This was match play, note, where players are allowed to concede shots to their opponent. If a player ends up mathematically eliminated from the hole, he’ll typically concede any remaining putt to his opponent and pick up his own ball. In casual play the informal “rule” is to lay your club down, head inside the hole, and if the ball is “inside the leather” you are allowed to count the final putt as made (a “gimme”).
A yellow line near a lake or other body of water delineates the hazard line, inside of which the player is not allowed to ground his club, tho “grounding” can be a rather grey area when dealing with thick rough. A red line denotes a lateral water hazard, which allows an additional option for dropping a new ball when the original one got lost in the water (as in he can drop 2 club lengths from where the ball crossed the hazard line). There are also white-lined areas here and there which merely serve to denote “drop areas” which is an additional option for water balls on some holes.
At high-prestige events like today’s the greenskeepers are going to be VERY meticulous when it comes to ensuring the greens are as smooth as possible. But as the day goes on the footprints of players and their caddies can certainly add subtle little dips and swales, as can poorly-repaired ballmarks or fallen leaves and such. Note the old-fashioned metal spikes are now out of favor in preference to these plastic circle things on the bottom of the shoe-I find they aren’t as stable as the old spikes. [Note I plan to finally go to a Topgolf range this upcoming week and see if my old game is salvageable, 30 years after I stopped playing]
Yeah, you need to get a special ticket to get into some of these tents, as well as these newfangled elevated glass-enclosed boxes at some courses.
Another thing about match play is that the match may stop before the end. If we finish the 16th hole, and I’m three holes ahead, we’re done. Even if you won the last two holes, you can’t catch up, so we don’t bother. You never know where a match will end. I wonder if spectators at the 18th hole feel a little shortchanged.
In a team event like they had today, there are multiple matches taking place, finishing at different times on different holes. You never know where the shot will happen that clinches the cup for one team or the other. However, they do finish the incomplete matches even after one team clinches the cup.