Proof Golf Gods Listen: Laying-Up Pays Off At Riviera's 10th!

There's a lot to love about John Merrick's Northern Trust Open win, mostly because the Long Beach-born and still-residing 30-year old is a former UCLA golfer and the closest thing to a native son to ever win the tournament (he passes Oxnard's Corey Pavin by 20 miles and is the first LA County born winner).

John Merrick birdies the par-4 10th in regulation play (click to enlarge)But also because after years of stinking up the 10th hole, Merrick figured out that laying up--a preferred approach to the hole of this website--actually works.

And after a birdie in regulation play and a winning-par on the second hole of this year's Northern Trust Open, Merrick's conservative approach paid off. So did his respect for the hole.

The Golf Gods do work in mysterious ways.

Check out Merrick's post round comments.

Q.  10?

JOHN MERRICK:  10, yeah, I just butchered that hole my rookie year, and a couple years after that, hitting driver and hitting 3‑wood in the traps and finally just laid up.  I actually hit 3‑wood yesterday to the front left flag and made par.  But yeah, I've just been laying up on that hole and I know with a wedge in your hand from the middle of the fairway, I think it's better than hitting wood off that tee, and it paid off.

So I hit 3‑iron and then I had 90 yards and just hit a full lob‑wedge.  I thought it was going to be a little bit closer and just kind of checked left.  I had a straight putt that I thought was going to break left but I kind of just laid it out to the right.

Yeah, and then Charlie hit driver, and it's a tough hole.  It's just from the tee box, you're sitting there and it looks like ‑‑ it looks so easy, looks like you are going to hit it up left of the green and chip on, but it's one of the great, short par 4s that we play on TOUR.

Q.  Charlie had pretty negative feelings about 10 being a playoff hole, just because of the way the hole plays, and I don't think he felt like it's a fairway ‑‑

JOHN MERRICK:  That's what he said?

Q.  He said they should put a windmill on it.

JOHN MERRICK:  (Laughs).

Q.  Thinking about 10, were you confident going into it?

John Merrick's textbook approach in regulation, via ShotLink (click to enlarge)JOHN MERRICK:  Yeah.

Q.  And was that because you had come to peace with what you wanted to do on that hole.

JOHN MERRICK:  Yeah.

Q.  And did you think your shot had cleared the bunker off the club?

JOHN MERRICK:  Yeah, you know, maybe ‑‑ I think the way I played the 10th hole, maybe that's just a microcosm of how I approach this course and kind of my experience on the TOUR so far.

I think it's one of the great par 4s that we play, short par 4s.  Because when you look at it from the tee, it looks like the most benign hole.  You don't see all the slopes up on the left and everything.  It's so hard to hit a wood and be in great position there.  I mean, there's this little window like a little ten‑yard window where you have to put it to get up‑and‑down.  I think it's one of the great holes.

That 3‑iron I hit, it was kind of cooling off and it was kind of getting a little cold and it was 195 to clear the trap and I hit 3‑iron.  I knew I had plenty of club, but it was just a little further right than I wanted.  I wanted it further left to have a better angle.  I had a better angle in regulation.  But yeah, it just a 3‑iron and you've got a full lob‑wedge where you can take a full swing and put spin on the ball.

Yeah, I think that's the way to play that hole.

Q.  So total confidence on your part?

JOHN MERRICK:  Absolutely.  I knew for sure with that back right flag ‑‑ yeah, total confidence.  Why are you laughing, Doug?

I knew ‑‑ no, I wasn't going to hit wood.  I wanted a full wedge in my hand from the fairway.

How hard was that?

Apparently, too complicated for runner-up Charlie Beljan. I know it's hard to believe that someone so respectful of his President and who doesn't eat for 20 hours at a time during the most important competition of their life might not be the sharpest knife in the set, but if he wants to win at Riviera, Beljan might want to remember the old "attitude is a decision" mantra before he arrives at No. 10 next year.

Charlie Beljan (click to enlarge)Bobby Joe Grooves, the mic is yours...

CHARLIE BELJAN:  The 10th hole, it's been birdie or bogey all week for me.  I've laid up, I've made birdie; I've laid up, I've made bogey.  I've gone for it twice now and made two bogeys.  But the 10th hole, it's a tough golf hole.

I don't really have anything good to say about the 10th hole.  I think it's a funky golf hole.  Obviously that's what Riviera, they are kind of known for the 10th hole.  It is a great, short par 4.  The green just needs to be a little more receptive.  I'm glad that hole is not at TPC Scottsdale around the stadium where you see people making a big‑time fool of themselves.

Q.  Merrick puts himself in really good position off the tee on 10, and you took a while to think about it.  What were you thinking about and what happened on the swing itself?

CHARLIE BELJAN:  I wasn't that upset with the drive I hit.  I just knew I had to keep it left because he hit it right; I didn't think Merrick was in good position off the tee.  I don't think there is a good position on No. 10.  The only good position you're at is yesterday when I hit 2‑iron onto the front edge of the green and I got to 2‑putt for birdie.

Other than that, I don't think there is a good position on 10.  Anything could happen.  He hit a beautiful shot in there.  It carried the bunker by a foot and it barely stopped from going in the other bunker.

So that's how it goes.  My caddie and I was thinking about going for it, but to hit it in that little spot, there wasn't much chance.  I hit a tough chip out of there.  I hit a beautiful putt up there, and then I hit a good 4‑footer that when it left the face, I thought we were going to the next hole and it just broke more than I thought.

Q.  They talk about local knowledge being so key here.  Was there one shot or stroke in the playoff where you feel not having played here before made a difference?

CHARLIE BELJAN:  No, not at all.  I think you could play here 10,000 times and still not know how to play No. 10.

18 is a great golf hole.  You know, I just find it tough that we go to No. 10.  To play a playoff hole, I think it's a great hole, don't get me wrong, I'm not knocking it, but it's just a tough hole to have a playoff on.  We might as well go and put a windmill out there and hit some putts.

Shocking he lost the playoff, isn't it?

Nice work Golf Gods, nice work.

Two Calls For Vijay Singh To Step Away

ESPN.com's Bob Harig asks, "How is it that Singh is even playing?"

He's referring to admitted doping policy violator Vijay Singh, who is in the field this week at Riviera for the Northern Trust Open as some feel his situation becomes a distraction for the tour each week he plays.

Because his status is under review, Singh is permitted to play, although there is a possibility that any official earnings or world ranking points could be rescinded, depending on the outcome of Finchem's investigation.

This much is clear: If Singh took a banned substance, knowingly or not, he has to be penalized by the tour's own rules. Ignorance is not a defense, nor is the argument that deer spray or IGF-1 is ineffective; it has been on the tour's banned substance list since the drug testing program began in 2008. Players were warned in 2011 about deer-antler spray in literature and emails widely circulated.

Doug Ferguson also submits a commentary suggesting that Singh should take a leave of absense until his situation is resolved.

Under the anti-doping policy, the Tour is required to disclose the name, confirm the violation and declare the penalty.

So far, there has been silence.

This is not a call for the Tour to rush to judgment. Singh's case is muddled. Yes, a player who admits to using a banned substance is the same as a player testing positive. But is there evidence that IGF-1 was in the spray that Singh was using? More than one doctor has said it's impossible for IGF-1 to enter the blood system through a spray. And the Tour does not have a blood test, anyway.

Plus, players have the right to appeal, and the policy says a hearing must take place within 45 days.

Singh brought this mess on himself, and now is the time for him to give back to the game that has provided him with so much. Singh could eliminate this distraction by taking a leave of absence until the Tour sorts this out. The sooner the better.

Update on 2013-02-13 01:07 by Geoff

**James Corrigan in the Telegraph sees it the other way, responding to much of the criticism in Europe, though this discounts the doping violation language which does not require a positive test. An admission of attempting to take a banned substance is enough.

The Tour will also know by now that minute quantities of IGF-1 may be found in milk and beef and many other products it would not think to outlaw. It will have heard the generally held view of the experts that it is impossible to absorb IGF-1 in the body if it is not injected.

Indeed, it may well prove the case that Singh was actually less ignorant than the authorities.

The lynch mob are loudly baying for Singh’s sporting life. They would presumably be satisfied with the potential scenario of a man being banished from his profession for unknowingly doing nothing wrong?

This absurdity is where hysteria has taken sport and the vigilantes’ demand for action is set to become more shrill with the revelations of widespread doping in Australia. The temptation is to declare that here is a simple case of good against evil. But it is not necessarily black and white. The Singh affair shows it can be a mess of grey.

Snedeker Sidelined By "Sore Ribs"

Now before you go wondering how someone can play like Brandt Snedeker has with "sore ribs" do remember that he has rib issues before, including playing with a cracked rib last year.

Rex Hoggard reports on Snedeker's WD from next week's WGC Match Play:

Snedeker’s Sea Island (Ga.)-based trainer Randy Myers told GolfChannel.com that he strained the rib during a practice round at the Humana Challenge and re-aggravated the injury on Thursday at Pebble Beach. Snedeker had an X-ray on Monday in California and is awaiting the results of that test. He plans to return to Nashville, Tenn., later this week to meet with his doctor, Dr. James Elrod.

“He felt like he was playing well enough after the Humana he wanted to keep playing,” Myers said. “His biggest concern is he worked so hard to become a No. 1 seed (for the Match Play) and he’s played well there, (but) this is just preventative.”

The reigning FedEx Cup champion could return in time for the WGC-Cadillac Championship in March.

Snedeker sustained a cracked rib at last year’s RBC Heritage and missed the better part of the next three months recovering.

Snedeker: "The important thing now is to win majors."

Doug Ferguson tells us in his game story that Brandt Snedeker's five starts this year include a win, two second-place finishes and a third. Now Snedeker is off to Maui for a vacation.

More interesting was this tucked into the story later on:

Snedeker made five bogeys this week, and answered with a birdie four times.

The PGA Tour's "With This Win" list of impressive facts and figures surrounding Snedeker's win. This one especially:

Is 33/37 for subpar rounds in official TOUR events, dating to the start of the Wyndham Championship in August of last year. The week before the Wyndham Championship, missed the cut at the PGA Championship.

John Strege notes this:

Snedeker arrived in Pebble Beach sixth in the World Ranking and was expected to move to fourth with his victory. CBS' Jim Nantz noted that since the start of the 2011 season, Snedeker is tied with Woods in PGA Tour victories with four, second only to Rory McIlroy's five wins.

"To think what's happened the last four months has been pretty crazy," Snedeker said. "Finishing a tournament like this off with the lead gives me a ton of confidence going into the Masters, the U.S. Open, all the great venues we have. That's next on the list. I've won five times out here now. The important thing now is to win majors."

Golf.com pieces together Snedeker's retro bag which includes a THREE-year old driver. He's anti-capitalism! Mike Stachura explained the story behind that driver last fall.

Sean Martin includes five things from the week at Pebble, including a note on Patrick Cantlay's top 10 not getting him in the field at Riviera (but it doesn't matter...he was already in on an exemption).

'13 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am Final Round Comment Thread

Can Brandt-Snedeker--the hottest golfer on the PGA Tour--get the win?

Will James Hahn break out in another dance?

Will a hologram of Phil Harris visit the booth on 18? Actually, a cardboard cut-out of Mr. Harris would still have more to say than Clint Eastwood did during his exhilarating Saturday visit.

These are more questions answered starting at 10 a.m. to 11:30 on Golf Channel, some time after 12 p.m. PT on CBS following the conclusion of Indiana-Ohio State. Hopefully it doesn't last as long as Notre Dame-Louisville yesterday.

Expect Vijay To Be Exondeerated By Late April, Early May

Alex Miceli lays out the timing and various avenues of the appeal process for Vijay Singh after he admitted to a doping policy violation in a Sports Illustrated story.

Shockingly, Singh has several ways out of this even though the ban on the substance in question was well publicized, regardless of whether it contains IGF-1 or not.

One of Singh's defenses might include an invocation of Commissioner Tim Finchem's words. I never quite imagined the Commish and his resistance to drug testing could be used against him this way...

5) Singh could use the commissioner's own words, that no drug benefits golfers. At a news conference on July 1, 2009, at the AT&T National, Finchem talked about potential drug use in golf.

"In some sports, cycling, clearly there are drugs that can help you win," Finchem said. "You can gain a real competitive advantage. I don't think that's true in golf, either, but it's not really relevant. What's relevant is, there's a rule, players play by the rules, they believe in that, and in a way it's helped us reaffirm that culture. So maybe that's good.”

Perhaps this (and other statements like it by Finchem until Tiger announced his desire to see testing) explains the tour's seemingly slow and nurturing response to Vijay's situation, words that would never be used to describe the Doug Barron situation. In a wide-ranging column on the topic, John Huggan quotes a European Tour source suggesting doping policy abuse on the European Tour, but more importantly he lays out this picture of the PGA Tour's handing of the Barron and Singh situations.

Back in June 2008, wee Timmy could hardly wait to punish journeyman Doug Barron, who tested positive for beta-blockers at the Memphis Classic. What wasn’t made clear at the time was that Barron had been prescribed said medication by his doctor as part of treatment for low testosterone and had duly informed the tour of that fact. Initially banned for a year, Barron was eventually cleared of wrongdoing, forcing the Tour into a humiliating climbdown.

Contrast that draconian and unfeeling attitude with the treatment of Singh. This past week the resident of Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida – also the home to the PGA Tour – competed in the AT&A Pro-am, only days after openly admitting his prolonged use of a banned substance, one not prescribed by his doctor as treatment for any medical condition. Clearly, in Finchem’s world, there are rules for relative unknowns like Barron and rules for three-times major champions who are members of the World Golf Hall of Fame. At the very least, Singh should have taken a leave of absence from competitive golf until this matter was sorted out.

If Vijay Found Guilty Of The Violation He Admitted To, He'll Be Unable To Play Champions Tour

Rex Hoggard answers one question many have had considering that the Champions Tour doesn't test for PEDs and Vijay Singh turns 50 in June on February 22.

Annual AT&T National Pro-Am Viewer Discretion Alert

Some people live for seeing A-listers like Kenny G and Andy Garcia or top (cranky) coaches like Jim Harbaugh, or Bill Belichick, QB's like Aaron Rodgers and Tony Romo, or maybe elite flamethrowers like Matt Cain and Justin Verlander.

For me, the AT&T National Pro-Am is always a chance to imbibe some liquid upon seeing shots, plugs, paybacks or other totally predictable moments. This year my support will be in the form of Dayquil to help get through the annual awkwardness that is watching famous people play golf while stepping way close to the hole in mud-filled Softspikes.

I plan to take a swig of my beloved cold and flu remedy for the traditions unlike any other: Jim Nantz referring to a CEO as "Mr." because anyone with a C-level pass is just that much more important, CBS director Lance Barrow showing his favorite Monterey restaurant or the CEO that he mysteriously can't seem to get enough, and most of all, any time Chris Berman comes on the screen.

Brendan Moehler previews the celebrities to look for and is there any question who will be the most watched team?

Speaking of hot girlfriends, Dustin Johnson is playing alongside his new squeeze's father, also known as "The Great One." Wayne's daughter, Paulina Gretzky, is a fashion model and Instagram star, and has been posting a lot of photos of her and Dustin's off-the-course escapades. Dustin won at Pebble in '09 and '10, but didn't have the distraction of playing with his girlfriend's father.

Golf Channel airtimes for the first two rounds are as follows:

Thursday 3-6 p.m. (Live) / 6:30-9:30 p.m. / 9:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. (Replay)
Friday 3-6 p.m. (Live) / 8:30-11:30 p.m. (Replay)

Video: 2013 Waste Management Highlights

I don't usually post these, but there were just so many great moments at last week's Waste Management Open won by Phil Mickelson, that it's worth a look.