ZOZO Championship: Random Observations From Just Outside The Bubble

Sherwood’s slightly uphill range is dreamy

The ZOZO Championship’s move from Japan to Sherwood gave players a prime opportunity to prepare for the upcoming Masters. It also offered a chance to see how the whole golf-in-a-pandemic thing is working. This and that from Sherwood:

--The PGA Tour gets an A-. They’ve gotten the whole precautionary steps and protocol thing down at this point in impressive fashion. The attention to safety detail is mighty impressive. The “bubble” largely works and players are more diligent about mask-wearing compared to when I last saw them in action at August’s PGA at Harding Park. The report card is not showing an “A” for just one reason: the peculiar sight of six-or-so men at a time cramming in a fitness trailer to huff, puff and stretch before their rounds. I just don’t get it.

—One other quibble. Caddies and face coverings? Still not a thing. With branded gaiters and other ways to print logos on masks, you’d think some might make a little extra money working as billboards. Or, just want to show up, keep up and mask up in the name of job security.

--Thank heavens for the pro-am. I small-talked with a few Wednesday pro-am participants on the way to their cars. They used regular or electric push carts and appeared to have the time of their lives. Of course was 80 and sunny with a great field, too. But without caddies and galleries, the experience seemed no less enjoyable and maybe more intimate? Players also seemed chipper: the nine-hole format was in use. With the infusion of excited amateurs under sunny skies, Wednesday was easily the most upbeat day of the week.

The Wednesday pro-am

--About that on-site vibe. It was funereal at times but mostly just bizarre and a touch sad in a first world way. Maybe with three pretty big name players testing positive in as many weeks and Tony Finau sharing his story, the virus earned newfound respect inside the bubble. One player confided that he’s ready for the season to end. He’s uncomfortable traveling and playing as the virus continues to cast a pall over much of the country. That said…

--The Sunday range scene was…intense. If you ignored the lack of fans and just watched players warm up, you sensed big money, a nice title and pre-Masters momentum was on the line. Matthew Wolff and instructor George Gankas engaged in a spirited putting lesson up to his tee time. And I mean, right up to his tee time. Eventual winner Patrick Cantlay’s instructor Jamie Mulligan was shuttling from his Virginia Country Club member-guest duties to keep a watchful eye on his student. The overall intensity seemed like the old days, minus too many range volunteers and agents blocking your view.

--Sherwood’s amazing range. It’s slightly uphill with realistic targets and short game facilities nearby. You’d never get tired of practice there.

--Less launch monitoring and pre-round music. Maybe it was the drizzle? But not every player warmed up with a Trackman or Flightscope or whatever to study their numbers. A few who did appeared to have them there more as a security blanket than a reference point. Then again it was a Sunday and if you’re a professional golfer and don’t have things sorted out by then, maybe you should be elsewhere. As for losing themselves in music, Bubba Watson, Patrick Reed and Jon Rahm were wearing headphones and doing their thing. Most others warmed up without musical assistance.

--Sherwood Held Up Well. Yes the scoring was absurdly low, but none of the five par-5’s are converted to par-4’s, the place is immaculate, the wind stood down and grey skies mean no shadows. The players should light it up (and also thank the club for standing in as a last-minute venue). The place always looks superb on television and produces compelling finishes in part because two of the par-5’s actually play like them. Granted, that’s only because the 13th and 16th holes cut off drivers and leave long seconds in from uneven stances. Good prep for the 13th and 15th in a bit over two weeks.

Sherwood’s 16th green

--Agents are still not missed. Amazing how much nicer the players are after their rounds without the ten-percenters around to scowl at press and give over-compensating bro hugs as if their man just returned from deployment in Afghanistan.

--So much for those live odds. When I was inside and not rebooting my tablet following NBC Sports app crashes and freezes, I noticed last week’s so-so rollout of on-air live odds was abandoned. Perhaps because the Tour moved from Nevada to California where sports betting is not legal? Or maybe with all of the tech issues in a Golf Channel show led by the A-team of producer Tommy Roy—Jeremy Schilling details the admirable transparency by the broadcasters here—the odds got shelved?

--The Hoodie. Rory McIlroy did not close the roof on his more than a time or two that I saw. But he also was wearing a hat. Hoodie and hat? Redundant? Anyway, the hood was large enough for two heads and Baby Yoda riding along in the back. It looked better suited for Happy Hour at Mos Eisley Cantina than a golf tournament.  But, it is super soft as Rory noted to anyone who asked. So Nike got the fabric right.