#AskAlan: Open Championship Edition

Is Bobby Mac’s win tainted by that very questionable drop that was allowed? Asterisk win in my opinion. @mkloetz

I agree it felt egregious but professional golfers have always been aggressive in taking advantage of the rules. We’re gonna run out of asterisks if we give MacIntyre one and then apply the same smell test to all of his colleagues. Bottom line: The rules can help you as much as they can hurt you. Fans and reporters can kvetch about the spirit of the game but, in general, the pros are less sentimental; they go by the letter of the law. Bobby Mac’s drop was legal and therefore he is unbothered.

Should national opens be separated from tours and handled differently? I just feel that a national open should not be considered a “tour event.“ It tends to denigrate it. @StryderJa39237

I, too, am sentimental about national championships. They have so much history and gravitas. But, in the new golf landscape, I think it helps these proud tournaments to be aligned with a major circuit, specifically the PGA or European Tours. Just look at the better fields and increased buzz and exposure the Scottish Open has enjoyed in the last couple of years after the “strategic alliance” made it a full-blown PGA Tour event. Same goes for the Mexican Open. Conversely, look at how the Australian Open struggles to attract top talent despite its incredible history and venues. I would love to see the PGA and European Tours become more invested in the once-proud Opens that are now languishing, like the Japanese and South African. It would elevate the tournaments and tours. 

What needs to happen at the Open to make this an A or A+ major season? Redemption for Rory? Bob wins on home turf? Scottie laps the field? @Q_Brunk

Bob is great fun but doesn’t move the needle that way. Not yet. It’s already been a pretty good major championship season. Scottie Scheffler snuffed out all the drama on Masters Sunday with his brilliance but it was a very significant win, stamping him as a player for the ages. Valhalla is a crappy venue but we got a lively shootout and very worthy champ in Xander Schauffele. The U.S. Open was epic. Right now, I’d say we’re at a B+. A Rory win at Troon would take this season to an entirely different level because of the emotional weight and historical import. Same with a Spieth renaissance. Bryson DeChambeau going back to back and usurping Scheffler as the game’s dominant force would be massive. Setting aside science fiction—Tiger or Phil coming back from the dead—I don’t see any other outcome that would shake the sports world.

#AskAlan According to Sergio, his victory and the team victory were part and parcel of the biggest day in Spanish sports. Are LIVers really that out of touch? @david_troyan

Well, there are LIV loyalists and then there is Sergio who has an insurmountable lead in the world ranking of golfers suffering delusions of grandeur. Spain winning the Euros is a huge deal. Alcaraz taking a second straight Wimbledon is a source of tremendous national pride. Sergio winning LIV Andalucia is … vaguely noteworthy? There was a good crowd at Valderrama and all those Spaniards certainly delighted in Garcia’s win. But LIV results are lightly reported even in countries with golf-mad populations. In Spain, golf in general and LIV in particular have a long way to go to penetrate the national consciousness. But, hey, I guess we can’t begrudge Sergio getting caught up in the moment and wanting to make himself part of a very special day for his home country.

#AskAlan Where does Troon fit in your ranking of the Open rota? @Kevinp613

Aesthetically, at the bottom. It’s a flat, unimaginative, out-and-back layout with all of the charm confined to one hole, the Postage Stamp. When the back nine plays into a big wind, the course is a beast and it can’t be an accident that it has produced a roll call of big-time winners. Still, I must confess that Troon doesn’t do it for me. I rank the rota in this order: Royal Portrush, Old Course, Turnberry*, Birkdale, Muirfield, Carnoustie, St. George’s, Liverpool, Troon, Lytham.

Do LIV guys who win majors receive bonuses from LIV? @SamGrantHoya

Every contract out there is different. At least three of the biggest names have built-in bonuses for winning major championships but my sense is that a lot of players don’t. LIV deals in general are about guaranteed money, not speculative.

Any chance of the ruling bodies agreeing to an equipment rollback in my lifetime? Running out of courses here in the U.S. that are true tests. @apindara

There isn’t a single golf course on the planet that is long enough to properly test the pros. There are so many variables across golf club design that it would be a nightmare to try to regulate all of them, unless with a blanket rule like reducing the maximum clubhead size of drivers to 300 ccs, which I would support. It’s much easier to regulate the ball. Alas, the USGA’s current proposed rollback (realistically five percent for pros) is far too tepid and will not restore a meaningful balance to the game. I’d like to see a bifurcation whereby amateurs can play their current balls and the pros get dinged closer to 20 percent. Hopefully, the USGA is just getting started.

Your prediction: how many years from now until we see all of the best players in the world playing 15+ events together in a season? @Thomaskeyboard

It’s not going to happen as long as His Excellency Yasir Al-Rumayyan remains in power. LIV Golf is his baby and he is fully committed to funding it. That doesn’t change if/when the Saudi Public Investment Fund pours a billion (or two) dollars into PGA Tour Enterprises. LIV’s top players will still be committed to 14 events on that circuit. Throw in four majors and their schedules are already filling up, given that most top dogs only play around 25 events per season. If a deal is consummated between the PIF and PGATE, there will be some onramps for LIV golfers to compete in Tour events, but they are not going to have the time or inclination to play more than a handful each year.

Why not give Sergio David Duval’s spot in the open? @glennmcspadden

Ah, the annual Duval bashing is right on schedule! Poor Double D. He doesn’t set the rules for the Open. The R&A does. And every year, the R&A invites him to pla, per his past champion status. Who wouldn’t enjoy a little junket to the linksland? It is a privilege he earned. The R&A is at fault here—it needs to make age 50 the cap for past champ exemptions.

What would the GFore hats of pro golf stars say? I’ll go first. 

Phil: FIGJAM

Tiger: GOAT

Brooks: BRO

Bryson: LESSGO

Norman: CHOKE

Rahm: CARCEL

Cantlay: OFFER

MacIntyre: DROP

Rory: SKIP IT

Morikawa: DOME

—@KnockdownDriver

No notes. I love you people.

Top Photo Caption: Justin Thomas hacks out of the rough during a practice at Royal Troon (Warren Little/Getty Images)

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