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In conjunction with the 75th anniversary of Byron Nelson’s historic 1945 season, PGATOUR.COM’s writers responded to a couple of pertinent questions. Feel free to chime in via the message board at the bottom of this file. THE IMPACT OF BYRON NELSON During what would’ve been AT&T Byron Nelson week, PGATOUR.COM is celebrating the tournament’s legendary namesake and his impact on golf with a series of stories, including: • His impact on my life and career, by Tom Watson • His impact on the modern golf swing • His impact on winners of his event • His impact on charity with the Salesmanship Club • 11 things to know about Nelson’s 11 consecutive wins What’s more unbreakable: 11 consecutive wins or 18 in one season? BEN EVERILL: I’d say both might stand forever, but the 11 consecutive certainly will never be broken. The depth of fields these days and forever more will just make this downright impossible. Winning three in a row now is an incredible achievement. Anything more than that in today’s game is other worldly. JIM McCABE: Neither will be touched. But the one-in-a-million chance it could happen would probably be 18 total wins. Winning 11 straight is never-in-a-million. CAMERON MORFIT: Given that no one has come even remotely close since – Snead won 11 times in 1950 – I don’t think anyone will ever match 18 wins in one season. That number is so outrageous it seems like a typo. HELEN ROSS: I don’t see either being broken, to be honest. The most Tiger ever won in a single season was nine while Jack’s best was seven — and I’m hard-pressed to see that kind of talent and dominance anywhere on the horizon. But I’ll choose the 11 consecutive wins because that requires a steely mental focus to cast aside the distractions, as well as the abundant talent to get the job done. SEAN MARTIN: Can I say both? Neither can be broken and neither will be. MIKE McALLISTER: Initially, I was thinking 11 straight wins is the more daunting task. But I’ve reversed course. A dominant player could theoretically pick and choose his optimum schedule based on form and health, as well as the courses that fit his game – and remember, the record book is based on starts regardless of the season (hence, Tiger’s seven spread over two years). From that perspective, 11 straight over a longer stretch seems slightly more doable than 18 wins in a single season. And consider this: According to ShotLink, of the 937 players who have won at least one PGA TOUR event, just 49 have won 18 for their careers. To achieve that in just one season boggles the mind. Is Nelson’s 1945 performance the greatest single season in golf? BEN EVERILL: Statistically of course it is — 18 wins in 30 starts, 30 of 30 top-10s with seven runner-ups to go with the wins. Incredible. But the world is increasingly biased towards modern history and things we remember or have seen. My parents were still 10 years away from being born in 1945 and with the greatest amount of respect to Lord Byron, I’m not sure the events he played had the depth of competition we have today. For mine – the 2000 Tiger Woods season is the greatest. Nine wins, 17 of 20 top 10s, 20 of 20 top 25s. Won the last three majors of the year as part of his nine wins and outside of those was on winning Presidents Cup and World Cup teams. But if Nelson’s season got the majority nod, I wouldn’t be disappointed. JIM McCABE: Yes. He established not one, but three records that will never be sniffed – 11 straight wins, 18 in all, 30-for-30 in top 10s. I know about the depth-of-competition argument, but here’s what never gets treated properly: Travel was way more difficult, money was absurdly petty, and the character it took to survive was off the charts. As always, when wisdom is required, I turn to the greatest sage of ‘em all, Jack Burke Jr., who said of Nelson’s 1945 season: “I don’t care if he was playing against orangutans, winning 11 straight (and 18 in all) is amazing.â€� CAMERON MORFIT: Hard to judge two eras 55 years apart, and I’m no historian, but I’ll say Tiger Woods’ 2000 season was the best. His non-adjusted scoring average of 68.17 beat Nelson’s unofficial mark of 68.33. Woods also joined Hogan in ’53 as the only men to win three professional majors in a single season. Woods won tournaments by 15 (U.S. Open) and 11 strokes (WGC-NEC Invitational), which is insane. Yes, Nelson won more, 18 times to Tiger’s nine, but he also had 30 starts to Tiger’s 20, and golf was more of a global game, with a roster of more stars from more places, when Tiger had his magical season. HELEN ROSS: The only other season that would merit consideration is Tiger in 2000, and frankly, it seems like heresy to pick one over the other. It’s hard to compare strength and depth of field, but for purposes of the debate, I’ll go with Nelson, who played 30 times and won 18 of those while finishing second on seven other occasions. His unadjusted scoring average was 68.3, which certainly compares favorably to Wood’s 68.17 in 2000. That streak of 11 straight wins also strengthens the argument, although for many, Tiger’s three majors are the trump card, and I can’t disagree. SEAN MARTIN: I’m biased toward Tiger’s 2000 season. Three majors, including a 15-stroke win at the U.S. Open and 8-stroke margin at The Open Championship. Maybe it’s the bias of youth. He won nine times in 20 starts that year and finished outside the top 3 just six times. MIKE McALLISTER: Using Tiger’s three major wins in 2000 as the deciding factor is a bit unfair, considering only one major was played in 1945 – the PGA Championship, which Nelson won while playing 204 (yes, 204!) holes in the old format. The other three majors, canceled due to World War II, would’ve been played during Nelson’s 11-win streak. Same for lack of wartime competition – Hogan and Snead did make a combined 44 starts in 1945, so it wasn’t like Nelson was bereft of significant rivals. I actually think the most interesting comparison involves unadjusted scoring averages. Of the top 10 recorded scoring averages in TOUR history, nine belong to players in the last 20 years. The outlier is Nelson in 1945. To me, that’s pivotal in the argument of the better season. Yes, Tiger’s average was slightly lower, but Nelson’s was the more impressive in its era. You may argue the set-ups were harder, the courses longer in 2000; I’ll respond that the equipment was much better, the courses better manicured, the travel more demanding. Give me Nelson’s season as the best.
NORTON, Mass. - He was hot under the collar, but it had nothing to do with his golf, nor his decision to put his favorite putter back into play. Nope. The problem early in Tiger Woods' opening round of THE NORTHERN TRUST was more than the bogey he made on his fourth hole, the par-4 13th. It was the hot oil he uses to loosen up his cranky back. "I decided to put some up on my neck," Woods explained, "and it's not as tolerant as my lower back so it gets awfully hot." That situation remedied with a bottle of ice water, Woods watched the heat transfer to his golf game at TPC Boston. He played a nine-hole stretch - the par-5 18th to the par-3 eighth - in 5 under. RELATED: Full leaderboard Solid stuff that would have ignited roars had there been spectators, this time the hot stuff was halted not by a water bottle, but a wide-right drive at the par-4 ninth. Woods made bogey after he couldn't muscle the 207-yard shot out of the rough and missed the green. Still, for the most part Woods appeared content with his 3-under 68 that left him four off Harris English's clubhouse lead after the morning wave. Playing just his ninth competitive round since the PGA TOUR returned in mid-June after a three-month break, Woods was accompanied by the putter that has been in his hands for nearly everything that made him an icon. He had used the Scott Cameron Newport 2 GSS in 14 of his 15 major championships, so when he put it on the bench for the PGA Championship two weeks ago, it was considered big news. Woods explained that he liked the longer shaft and heavier feel to the Scotty Cameron Newport 2 Timeless, but he conceded that the results at TPC Harding Park were less than what he envisioned. "Had one good day, the first day (he shot 68), and then after that I didn't really putt well," he said. This week, at a place where Woods has won and played consistently well, the old standby is in play. And? "I had a good feel today. I had nice pace and I like the speed of these greens. They're fast," said Woods. "Even though they're soft, they're still quick. I just felt comfortable." The numbers supported him, even if they weren't off the charts. He needed just 29 putts, and at the completion of his round his Strokes Gained: Putting (+1.15) was ranked 18th. True, his longest putt was just 16 feet (at the par-3 third) and he made a made a modest 66 feet, 5 inches of putts, but never did he appear stressed out on the putting surfaces. Like he said, comfortable. "That's one of the weird things about golf," he said. "It's just the way it is sometimes." Of course, here's another aspect of golf that is hard to ignore: It's the tee shot that puts everything in motion and this is where the numbers were not so kind to Woods in Thursday's opening round. He did hit five of the first seven fairways, but moving to TPC Boston's front nine, Woods hit the first fairway, then missed each of the next six. OK, a disclaimer is needed, however, as the 298-yard par-4 fourth is a hole that players try to drive, and Woods was not unhappy with finding the bunker; he made birdie. Coming on top of the 16-footer he had made at the par-3 third, Woods was officially on the move. He continued nicely by converting a 6-footer for birdie at the par-5 seventh, then hit arguably his best iron shot of the day to birdie from 7 feet at the 225-yard, par-3 eighth. If the closing bogey unsettled him, Woods didn't let on. There have been questions about a busy stretch of golf, possibly four starts in five weeks beginning here at THE NORTHERN TRUST. But the 44-year-old Woods, the guy who began his day with hot oil to warm up, just shrugged. "I've got to get to Atlanta (and the TOUR Championship for the top 30 in the FedExCup standings) first," he said. "I'm not in." Not currently, as he sits 49th in the standings. But an opening 68 was surely a step in the right direction.
DUBLIN, Ohio – International captain Nick Price could see the raw disappointment in the eyes of his 21-year-old rookie after Hideki Matsuyama lost his Singles match at the 2013 Presidents Cup to Hunter Mahan. The Japanese prodigy felt like he’d let the International team down but Price wanted to make sure the youngster knew he certainly didn’t feel that way and nor did any of his teammates as they passed at the clubhouse of Muirfield Village. Price knew Matsuyama would be a staple of the International team in the years to come and sensed it was a time to send a message. He turned to Bob Turner – Matsuyama’s confidant and interpreter – and was straight to the point. “His game is so good… he’s going to win majors,” Price said before thanking Matsuyama with a hearty handshake for his efforts. It was a line that would live with Matsuyama from that point on and ultimately come true almost eight years later at the Masters. “At that time it was only a dream to think of winning a major championship but what Captain Nick said really gave me motivation to try to live up to those expectations,” Matsuyama said this week ahead of the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide at the same venue he received the praise. “The 2013 Presidents Cup is a week I’ll always remember. I was so grateful for Captain Nick and Adam Scott as it was those two who really took me under their wings and helped me a lot in my first time on the team. “They were great because I had no clue what to do, or how to do it, and they really paid special attention to me and helped build my confidence. It was unfortunate the team didn’t play a little better but the week will always hold great memories for me and it was important for my confidence going forward.” History shows that the following June, Matsuyama would return to Muirfield Village and win the Memorial Tournament, the first of his now six PGA TOUR wins. He was the youngest champion in tournament history at 22 and the first winner from Japan. It was an incredible rise as when Price was named the 2013 captain in May of 2012, Matsuyama was ranked outside the top 200 players in the world but by the time the team was picked in September of 2013 he’d moved inside the top 30 despite having just six TOUR starts as a pro. But it was a rise Price says was always going to come. The Hall of Famer returned to Muirfield Village this week as the tournament honoree. He remembers the infamous moment well. “I could sense Hideki was starting to get a little down so I was trying to think what’s the best thing I can do or say to pick him up and the first thing that came to mind was I just knew he was going to win a major,” Price said. “If I said that to him I thought it might just break him out of any funk he was in so I said to his interpreter Bob – you tell him he’s one of the best young talents I’ve ever seen and tell him I know he is going to win a major. “And hey, eight years later the prophecy came true but it wasn’t really going out on a limb, we all knew it was going to happen.” Price said he’d formed that opinion prior to the week at Muirfield Village where Matsuyama would go 1-3-1 as a rookie during the US 18.5-15.5 win. He could sense it in tournaments leading up to the event where he walked a handful of practice rounds with prospective team members. “I had obviously stopped playing on the regular TOUR before Hideki surfaced but I remember watching him play when he first popped up as a youngster. It was immediately noticeable that he had a beautiful golf swing and his short game looked amazing,” Price remembered. “When they announced I was going to be captain I obviously started to watch him play in person and I was so impressed with his demeanor. He seemed unflappable. He’s a great young man and I was really happy to have him on all three of my Presidents Cup teams.” And he was cheering Matsuyama home last April, on the edge of his seat watching the finish of the Masters, knowing how big the moment would be in a historical sense. “It was probably the greatest thing to happen in golf for some time,” Price says. “The Japanese have long revered the Masters and to have their first male major champion win there is something very special indeed and great for the International exposure of the game.” Price isn’t done with predictions when it comes to Matsuyama. “I don’t think the Masters is his last major win either,” he says. “Once the dust settles he will be back on the horse and he’s going to be looking for the second one. It won’t surprise me if he wins three, four or even more of them.” Let’s hope Matsuyama also takes this prediction to heart.
