Ramblings: The Day Before Play Begins

by G. Rennie

The Fed Ex Cup Playoffs are on full boil now as the Tour takes it’s roadshow to Beantown for the second installment of The Playoffs. TPC Boston is host this week to the deserving 100 players who have managed to parlay enough points to survive the cut down from 125 entering week #1 at The Barclays won by World #3 Adam Scott at Liberty National in the reclaimed Jersey swamps.

The Deutsche Bank Championship is an anomaly on the Tour as it kicks off on Friday and finishes up on Labor Day Monday. The obligatory pre-tournament press conferences held before each Tour stop typically take place  Tuesday and Wednesday but at Boston this week the points leaders, as well as a varied assortment of other players, faced the media today. Tiger, Adam and Phil, among others, held sway in the media center today with the motley crew of scribes and talking heads that are a necessary part of the PGA TOUR entertainment enterprise. There is always a big element of cliché and canned answers at these affairs but sometimes you get unexpected candor and, once n awhile, some controversy. No controversy reared its head today in staid and proper Boston. There weren’t even any shout outs that “The Yankees Suck”. But we did get something that approached candor from the nearly unapproachable World #1.

Tiger appeared more relaxed, more willing to expand on answers and generally more comfortable in his skin today than normal. I expect the fact that he has 5 top 10 finishes here, including a win contributed to his ease. But another big factor must be that the Tiger Woods Foundation is the primary charitable recipient of the DB’s bounty. Add to that the fact that his foundation staff has taken over the tournament operation this year and it’s natural and fitting that Tiger feels like a host of sorts.

There are about 19 minutes of Tiger’s taped interview available at PGATour.com which are worth a look. He expounds on his back, the pairing with Phil and Adam, the course and the added importance the playoffs now hold for Tour players. Links Life Golf’s own Jeff Skinner was in the fray today, getting Tiger’s opinion on the new found drama and excitement that has swept into TPC Boston from last week’s Barclays.
Sweet shot, Bro, long and down the middle.