"Fujikawa was feted at every turn"

From Doug Ferguson's Sony Open game story, reporting on Zach Johnson's win and Tadd Fujikawa's Sunday struggles:

Fujikawa was feted at every turn, but his hopes faded quickly.

Fans lined the length of the 486-yard opening hole, and a handmade sign hanging from a palm tree behind the green said, “Go Tadd. Bring it Home.” It was signed by the grounds crew at Waialae, who stood and cheered.

I'd just like to take this opportunity to remind field size complainers that we saw a stellar leaderboard, a close competition with 20 or so players having a shot at winning Sunday, and a classic local qualifier-makes-good story (Tadd's redux).

It's not a coincidence that this is an open event with Monday qualifying and a full field of hungry golfers.

So next time we hear how field size is the primary reason for slow play (the next slow play disaster) and that all fields should be reduced in size, perhaps we can consider that the lethargic pace on the PGA Tour is rarely blamed on ridiculous pre-shot routines, confining course setup or long waits on holes where there used to never be waits thanks to recent distance advances.

Open events and large fields are vital to the health of the "product."