John Your Opinion on "Today's" Game

John,

Hope you are well! I was listening to Jack Nicklaus talking with Peter Kessler dude on the radio. Jack said "I think today's game 80% about POWER where as in my day it was 80% precision." He went on to say that Hogan and Player wouldn't be able to compete today . . .and maybe even he couldn't. He said that the top 5 money winners weren't in the top 100 in driving accuracy and had chosen Power over Accuracy because it benefited them.

What do you think about that? Do you think courses should be set up different or left the same? Does a short to medium length hitter have a chance out there?

Thanks man!

B

Are you sure he said Hogan couldn't compete? Maybe he meant with respect to length...?

Originally Posted by birdie_man Are you sure he said Hogan couldn't compete? Maybe he meant with respect to length...?

Exactly . . .

well i am old school.these young guns have no idea how to work the golf ball.it is the same type of setup every week now on tour.the l.a. open is a great example,back in the 80s if you broke par you would always finish in the top 5.now they have lengthed it and have hardly any rough and 13 under wins this year.the tour sure doesnt reward the true ballstriker anymore.
personally i think the great champions of the past would still be a force in todays game.it was more there will and mind that made those guys the great players they where.jack always made the putt when it was on the line.these young kids have no idea how golf use to be played,that is why hilton head and weschester have the highest winning scores on tour and they are both the 2 shortest courses.funny huh accuracy over length.look at 12 at augusta how hard a 145 yard hole plays.takes alot of talent to build a 7600 yard golf course,i think not,narrow the fairways grow the rough and firm up the greens and we would see who the best players in the world would be.i bet there would be a few changes at the top.

Originally Posted by john riegger well i am old school.these young guns have no idea how to work the golf ball.it is the same type of setup every week now on tour.the l.a. open is a great example,back in the 80s if you broke par you would always finish in the top 5.now they have lengthed it and have hardly any rough and 13 under wins this year.the tour sure doesnt reward the true ballstriker anymore.
personally i think the great champions of the past would still be a force in todays game.it was more there will and mind that made those guys the great players they where.jack always made the putt when it was on the line.these young kids have no idea how golf use to be played,that is why hilton head and weschester have the highest winning scores on tour and they are both the 2 shortest courses.funny huh accuracy over length.look at 12 at augusta how hard a 145 yard hole plays.takes alot of talent to build a 7600 yard golf course,i think not,narrow the fairways grow the rough and firm up the greens and we would see who the best players in the world would be.i bet there would be a few changes at the top.

Thanks man! Who would you say are the best ball strikers out there these days?

Best of luck! And thanks for sharing your thoughts and time with us!

Originally Posted by 12 piece bucket Exactly . . .

O IC. Thought I smelled poop for a second.

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(BTW....)

Wow thanks for that John....kinda disappointing tho....

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Ya I think I remember everyone raving about Hilton Head last year or w/e....short course, high winning score.....everyone seemed to really appreciate the setup.

So with that....

Why do you think the tour wouldn't wake up and do it right? Why aren't they accommodating ballstrikers anymore? Why do they choose to continue to setup courses for the bombers?

it is really hard to answer this one.kenny perry is probably the best and he happens to have the best right arm in golf.i look at this question as in day in day out.i would put myself up there and davis love.but any given week there is always someone having a great ballstriking week.also another tgm guy joe durant is top 3

Originally Posted by 12 piece bucket John,

Hope you are well! I was listening to Jack Nicklaus talking with Peter Kessler dude on the radio. Jack said "I think today's game 80% about POWER where as in my day it was 80% precision." He went on to say that Hogan and Player wouldn't be able to compete today . . .and maybe even he couldn't. He said that the top 5 money winners weren't in the top 100 in driving accuracy and had chosen Power over Accuracy because it benefited them.

What do you think about that? Do you think courses should be set up different or left the same? Does a short to medium length hitter have a chance out there?

Thanks man!

B

Gary Player held a clinic at a local course after the The Open and was asked if the old time greats Hogan, Trevino, Snead , Player etc) would have been able to compete with today's power hitting top players. He said without a doubt they would be a force to be reckoned with. He felt that the differences in equipment would have influenced their games and a Champion in one era would be a Champion in another. He said Nicklaus would have been as long as Tiger if he had modern equipment in his hands when in his prime and when he played against him he was hitting it way past him but still managed to compete.. Having played with the greats from several eras he felt could answer this question with authority. The real question as far as he was concerned was how the modern players would cope with playing with Persimmon , balata balls and poor quality by modern standards steel shafts against the former greats on the old set ups. He felt it would be easier going from old to modern than the other way round . The biggest difference is the modern ball in his opinion.

Hue, unless I misunderstood the comments Player and a few others who have commented on this, was making the point indirectly that the swings of past Champions would have been different than they were cause of the equipment.

I came across this clip of Ted Kroll(a player from the 40's I believe)and I was particularly impressed with his hand action...just a great swing...hope you enjoy. http://www.megspace.com/sports/moeto...roll_clip.html

Originally Posted by Extensor-Man I came across this clip of Ted Kroll(a player from the 40's I believe)and I was particularly impressed with his hand action...just a great swing...hope you enjoy. http://www.megspace.com/sports/moeto...roll_clip.html

Awesome!!! That is one beautiful motion. Just looking at that for about an hour should do something good for your motion. Thanks dude! Very nice contribution on your first post.

played golf yesterday with Yodasluke and Bagger Lance, your ears must've been burning, they had great things to say about you...my dad(known here as Augusta Brad) and I had a half day lesson with the YODA himself this past Saturday and we have caught the fever!!! We were in a small 3 sided tin hut - pouring down rain, about 29 degrees outside and life could not have been better. Bar none, the best golf lesson, ever! Can't wait to keep on truckin...

This is my 9th year on tour as a caddy. Started with John Riegger and now with Brian Gay, both Yoda students. I would have to agree with most of what Nicklaus was quoted as saying. The tour doesn't play very many "Old School" courses anymore. I think Nicklaus and Snead would still be great players today because of their length. Hogan and Player would not be as dominant, but it all depends on the course. I'd say Hogan would beat Tiger 4 out of 5 times at Harbor Town or Westchester, but Tiger would beat Hogan 5 out of 5 at Boston or Torre Pines. The course set up has dictated the way the game is played today. A player who can carry the ball 280 or more can take most of the trouble out of play and hit short irons if he is in the rough. Pretty standard set up each week, water the fairways and don't water the greens. Hey, people come to see the long ball, lets face it. It doesn't seem to take much brains to be a tour official. It's like I always joke, "I tried to become a tour official, but scored too high on the test, so I became a caddy." Thanks Yoda for helping my player, he's on the right track.

Eddie

Tiger's strongest asset is his short game. If I could choose one aspect of his physical game, it would not be his driving or long iron play, it would be his saving/short game.

And Hogan regularly drove the ball over 270 yards in his prime with no ProV1's and persimmon driver, etc.