Brian Gay made six -- double bogey -- on his first hole at this week's Byron Nelson.
He followed it with a birdie.
But two more bogies followed and he turned in 37 -- three-over on the Par 34 front side of the very tough Cottonwood Valley Golf Club. The PGA TOUR is the Land of the Meateaters, and three-over after the first nine holes can make for a short week.
Gut-check time.
Birdies on the 11th and 14th followed. And then the eagle three on the par five 16th.
37-32 = 69.
Another 69 followed on Friday and then 68 today.
In a field that began with 144 of the best players in the world and starting with double bogey six, Brian goes into the final round tied for 18th.
When we began our day together in Atlanta on Monday, I asked him what he was working on.
"Same things."
"What do you like best about what we've done?"
"It's simple."
Doesn't sound much like The Golfing Machine, does it?
Good luck tomorrow, Brian. You've earned your spurs, and you've waited your turn.
Good things lie ahead.
I just thought I'd quote this so it would be on the last page of the thread because if you're like me when I get tired, you might just click on the 'last page' link and have missed this important update .
Congratulations, Brian Gay, on another outstanding PGA TOUR tournament finish. At the EDS Byron Nelson Championship in Irving, Texas, Brian shot 69-68-69-69 = 275 and finished T-19th.
Along the way, he compiled an impressive set of statistics. In Driving Distance, at 276.1 yards on average off the Tee, he ranked 78th, about the middle of the field. But in Driving Accuracy, it was a different story: Brian hit 69.6 percent of the Fairways and ranked T-1. That's "1" as in "one", "first," "numero uno", whatever. He was T-23 in Greens in Regulation (66.7 percent) and T-3 in Eagles.
He also was T-1 in Sand Saves. He was T-10 in Putts per Green and T-9 in Putts per GIR. All of which shouldn't surprise us: For the year 2006 on the PGA TOUR, Brian currently ranks #1 in Putting Average and #2 in Scrambling.
Best of all, he shook hands with Byron Nelson and then took home a tidy $83,700.
Good luck at The Colonial, Brian. We'll be watching and rooting!
Congratulations to Brian Gay at the Colonial. As I write, his 67-67=134 start sends him into the weekend T-8. Good luck, Brian!
Meanwhile, I'm off for Rob Noel's Golf Academy at Money Hill Golf Club in Abita Springs, Lousiana. Our Advanced Junior Golf Academy starts tomorrow, and I've got an airplane waiting.
I'll be on line this evening if I can get access. Otherwise, I'll be checking in from Rob's place tomorrow. There's a lot going on in the Forums, and I don't want to miss a word. You guys are good!
Got to watch Yoda student Brian Gay on the range at the Booz Allen Classic on Sunday....Solid Swing/Solid looking Shots (Long and Straight or just a little draw to his shots). It's just a matter of time and Brian will be in the winners circle...saw Brian hit out of a bunker on number 10...must of have been 30 yard shot...it was a sweet shot, rolled up nicely to the hole...Brian had a tap in for par.
Followed Steve Elkington's group just ahead of Brian's group...hmmm...15th hole (Sorry, make that the 14th hole) Par 4 301 yards. Watched Steve's playing partner Chris Couch drive the green on the fly (what a shot)...Chris won the Zurich Classic of New Orleans back in April.
DG
Last edited by Delaware Golf : 06-27-2006 at 07:19 PM.
Got to watch Yoda student Brian Gay on the range at the Booz Allen Classic on Sunday....Solid Swing/Solid looking Shots (Long and Straight or just a little draw to his shots). It's just a matter of time and Brian will be in the winners circle...saw Brian hit out of a bunker on number 10...must of have been 30 yard shot...it was a sweet shot, rolled up nicely to the hole...Brian had a tap in for par.
I'm really proud of Brian Gay. He closed with a 5-under-par 66 in today's rain-delayed final round of the Booz Allen. Another fine finish -- and another fine check! -- for a really fine guy. And about that Sand Shot Delaware Golf witnessed, don't be too surprised: Brian currently is #1 on TOUR in both Sand Save Percentage and Scrambling.
Now, here's a stat that will surprise everybody. It even surprised Brian when I called Friday evening and congratulated him for hangin' tough and making the cut 'on the number.'
The PGA TOUR has a little measure they call Scoring Average (Actual). Unlike the measure Scoring Average (which includes a per-round adjustment based on the scoring average of the field), Scoring Average (Actual) is the arithmetic average of all your tournament strokes divided by all your tournament rounds. In other words, it is simply your average score, i.e., how well you actually have done: Day in and day out. Rain or shine. Early or late. Hot or cold. Windy or calm. In sickness and in health.
Well, last week's stat is out, and Brian's 2006 Scoring Average (Actual) is 70.46, which ranks tied for 4th with Luke Donald. Only Phil Mickelson (69.70), David Toms (70.32) and Jim Furyk (70.35) are ahead. It is a far cry from his 2005 average of 71.21, good for 112th place.
"The joy is in improving."
-- Ben Hogan
As a comparison and also as another reminder of the fine line that exists in professional golf, consider that Geoff Ogilvy, our new U.S. Open Champion, ranks 65th at 71.36, almost a full shot per round behind Brian. Paradoxically, he also ranks second on the money list at $3,919,394, just a paltry $127,499 behind Phil Mickelson and his $4,046,893. Brian's official money is $662,941, not exactly chopped liver, but nowhere near what you would expect from his Scoring Average stat. The not-too-subtle message: Regardless of your Scoring Average, it helps a lot to win golf tournaments. And this year, Geoff and Phil have both won two.
The money aside, when you consider the tens of millions of golfers and the tens of thousands who dream of the PGA TOUR versus the handful that actually make it "inside the ropes"...having the 4th lowest scoring average of those few remaining best players in the world ain't too shabby.
No sir...
Not too shabby at all.
P.S. Here's a snapshot of Brian and his wife, Kimberly, with 'ol Yoda at our Barclays Classic Golf Academy at the Westchester CC in New York. They stopped by to chat and wound up spending the rest of the afternoon with us. And then they recommended a great local NY pizzaria for our group. It was kind of an 'in place' with the players...we sat four feet from British Open Champ Todd Hamilton and his caddy and waved at Open Champ and Ryder Cup Captain Tom Lehman. It's fun to know folks who know!
P.P.S. I'm the one on the left. The left, guys...the left. Look LEFT for cryin out loud. Oh, fuhgeddaboudit!
__________________
"The statistics on sanity are that one out of every four Americans is suffering from some form of mental illness. Think of your three best friends. If they're okay, then it's you."
Uh Boss . . . . Did your noggin' grow or did your lid shrink? Is that the kind of hat all the kids are wearin' now? You should have traded hats with wifey . . . .
Uh Boss . . . . Did your noggin' grow or did your lid shrink? Is that the kind of hat all the kids are wearin' now?
Actually, it is a regular baseball-type cap tilted back so as to expose the full radiance of my face. But I agree it's not my best look (and I need all the help I can get!). I'll stick with the old-timey visors (like Messrs. Singh and Toms).
Go Brian ! !
Hybrid Mode
