Critics Say the Travelers Championship Is Trash. The Leaderboard Says Otherwise.

Who Actually Fits Royal Birkdale? | Mailbag

Who Actually Fits Royal Birkdale? | Mailbag Go to https://kachava.com and use code WINGO for 15% off your first order. Golf Live wraps the episode with an Open Championship mailbag from Royal Birkdale. Trey Wingo and Justin Ray answer viewer questions on which players benefit most from the firm and fast setup, whether this year’s major venues have been fair, what to make of Scottie Scheffler’s season, and which non-obvious Open winner would create the best story. They also get into Tom Kim’s future, the state of the DP World Tour and why Birkdale may not reward the same players we usually expect at a major. Who Benefits Most at Birkdale? The first big question is about fit. With Royal Birkdale playing firm and fast, Trey thinks almost everybody is in play. Distance does not carry the same advantage when the ball is running this much, and the shortest players in the field may have a better chance than usual. Justin points to accurate players who can control their ball flight: Russell Henley, Collin Morikawa and Tom Kim. Those players may not have the same extra gear off the tee, but this setup can narrow that gap. On the other side, Justin is staying away from Cameron Young because of how much he has struggled on the greens. Have the Major Setups Been Good? Trey and Justin also discuss the major setups this year. Justin thinks they have been strong overall. Everyone is going to complain about the U.S. Open setup, but he thought the USGA did a good job with what it had. Trey agrees. He thought the courses have generally been difficult but fair, and he expects Royal Birkdale to create its own kind of test because of the weather and firm conditions. There will be strange bounces. There will be shots that make players wonder how the ball ended up there. But that is part of the Open. Is Scottie’s Season a Failure Without Another Major? The answer from both Trey and Justin is no. Scottie Scheffler has set the bar so high that anything short of constant winning starts to feel disappointing, but Justin says he is still statistically elite across the board. He compares it to Nelly Korda’s season after her seven-win run: still excellent, even if the wins do not come as easily. Trey’s point is that Scottie’s hold on world No. 1 is still massive. It would take a huge drop from him and a huge leap from someone else to change that. The Best Open Storylines The mailbag also looks at which non-obvious Open winner would create the best story. Tommy Fleetwood winning in England would be huge. Justin Rose would be emotional. Robert MacIntyre winning would have a Scottish-conquers-England feel. Jon Rahm remains fascinating. And Bryson DeChambeau trying to avoid missing the cut in all four majors is another storyline to watch. There are a lot of ways this week could get interesting. Tom Kim and the DP World Tour Trey and Justin also talk about Tom Kim’s future after his Scottish Open win. Kim turned pro at 15, won early on the PGA Tour and became a Presidents Cup star before hitting a rough stretch. Now, he may be coming out of it. The episode closes with a bigger DP World Tour discussion. Justin says the tour still has strong events ahead, especially with the national opens and late-season championship run. A strong European tour is good for the entire golf world. And at Royal Birkdale, the mailbag question is pretty simple: Who actually fits the test? Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Bryson DeChambeau Answers Nick Faldo’s “Zero Strategy” Criticism

Bryson DeChambeau Answers Nick Faldo’s “Zero Strategy” Criticism Head to cozyearth.com and use code WINGO for an exclusive 20% off. Bryson DeChambeau finally gave The Open Championship something extra to talk about. After missing the cut in the first three majors of the year, Bryson opened at Royal Birkdale with a three-under 67. That round put him within striking distance of the lead, but the bigger story was what came before it. Sir Nick Faldo, a six-time major champion and three-time Open Championship winner, was asked about Bryson’s struggles in majors this season and did not hold back. Faldo said Bryson has “zero clue of strategy,” arguing that links golf cannot simply be attacked with power. At The Open, especially on a firm and fast course like Royal Birkdale, players have to think their way around the golf course. They have to understand where the ball will bounce, where it can run, where the bad misses are, and how to keep it on the short grass. Faldo’s point was that Bryson cannot just bomb driver and expect links golf to reward him. Bryson clearly heard it. After his round, Bryson talked about being “incredibly strategic,” staying focused, and placing the ball in the right areas. Trey Wingo breaks down why that response mattered, why the pettiness is good for the tournament, and why Bryson’s opening round gave The Open a much-needed storyline. But Trey also explains why the question is not fully answered yet. Bryson played well, but he still missed a lot of fairways. On a links course, that matters. At Royal Birkdale, the ball can take hard bounces, run into rough, find bad angles, or leave a player blocked out. One day, the bounces work. The next day, the same misses can turn a three-under round into a three-over round. That is what makes Bryson’s week so interesting. Did he actually find the right strategy for links golf? Or did Thursday’s round work because the bounces went his way? Trey also gets into why Bryson remains one of the most compelling players in golf. He is a two-time U.S. Open champion, one of the most powerful players in the world, and never afraid to respond when he feels criticized. After being a non-factor in the first three majors of the year, Bryson suddenly gave the final major of the season a little edge. The rest of the Round 1 leaderboard is just as interesting. Jackson Suber opened with a surprise 65. Collin Morikawa stayed in the mix on a course that should suit his iron game. Scottie Scheffler bounced back after a missed cut and sits within reach. Rory McIlroy had an up-and-down putting day. Xander Schauffele had a rough finish. Justin Rose, one of the sentimental favorites at Royal Birkdale, put himself in a difficult spot with a disappointing opening round. The Open is firm, fast, and already full of storylines. Bryson vs. Faldo. Power vs. strategy. And one last chance this year to win a major championship. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Andrew Brandt Explains the NFL Money Machine

Andrew Brandt Explains the NFL Money Machine Head to cozyearth.com and use code WINGO for an exclusive 20% off. Andrew Brandt joins Trey Wingo to break down why NFL money keeps getting bigger and why team valuations are reaching numbers that used to seem impossible. Trey starts with the sale of the Seattle Seahawks for $9.6 billion. The number itself is massive, but what stood out even more was how quickly NFL franchise values have exploded. The Washington Commanders sold for more than $6 billion just a few years earlier. Before that, the Carolina Panthers sold for $2.27 billion and the Denver Broncos sold for $4.6 billion. Andrew explains why the NFL finally opened the door to private equity and what that actually means. These investors are not controlling coaches, players, concessions or football decisions. They are mostly putting money into the system because NFL ownership has become one of the most valuable assets in sports. The conversation also gets into fractional team sales with the Bills, Raiders, Eagles and Giants. Andrew points out that the Giants selling 10 percent for $1 billion implies a $10 billion valuation, even without a full team sale. From there, Trey and Andrew discuss the bigger question: where does the money stop? The NFL has survived concerns around concussions, politics, protests and oversaturation, and Andrew says there still does not seem to be any real threat to the league’s dominance. The league has long-term media deals, an owner-friendly CBA, and a fan base that keeps watching. Then the conversation shifts to tech money and media rights. Trey points out that 90 of the top 100 rated TV shows last year were NFL games, and that traditional networks cannot really exist without the NFL. But companies like Apple, Google, YouTube and Amazon operate differently. They do not need the NFL the same way legacy networks do, but if they decide they want it, they have the money to drive the price even higher. Andrew explains how quickly streaming-only NFL games have become normal and why the next media rights cycle could change the entire sports television business. This is the NFL money machine: franchise values, private equity, streaming, tech companies and media rights all pushing the league into a financial universe of its own. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Week Golf Reminded Everyone How Hard This Game Is

The Week Golf Reminded Everyone How Hard This Game Is Go to https://kachava.com and use code WINGO for 15% off your first order. Golf had one of those weeks where the only real takeaway was simple: this game is hard. Scottie Scheffler missed the cut at the Scottish Open. Nelly Korda missed the cut at the Evian Championship. And according to Justin Ray, it was the first time the reigning men’s world No. 1 and women’s world No. 1 both missed the cut in the same week. Trey’s reaction was pretty simple. If you had told him that was going to happen, he would have said there was no chance. But that is golf. Scottie and Nelly Both Miss Nelly’s missed cut at Evian added another strange chapter to a tournament Justin had already called unpredictable. Even without Nelly, Evian still delivered. Brooke Henderson made six eagles for the week, including three on Sunday to get into a playoff. Hyo Joo Kim shot 60 on Saturday. The week had plenty going on. For Scottie, Justin is not worried. He did not embarrass himself at the Scottish Open. He just did not make enough birdies, hit only ten greens in regulation on Friday, and never saw enough putts fall. The bigger point is that even the best players in the world can have one week where they just do not get to the weekend. The Tiger Cut Streak Reminder Scottie’s missed cut also ended his streak at 78 straight cuts made. That led Trey and Justin right back to Tiger Woods. Trey makes the point that Scottie’s streak was impressive, but it still was not the same as Tiger’s 142 consecutive cuts made. To even get close, Scottie would have needed 64 more. And Justin adds another reminder: Scottie’s top-25 streak lasted almost two years. Tiger had one that lasted six. That is why Trey keeps saying people need to be careful with the Scottie-Tiger comparisons. This is not about taking anything away from Scottie. It is about remembering how absurd Tiger’s prime really was. If you did not see it live, Trey says, you missed something you will probably never see again. Tom Kim Gets Back The other big story of the week was Tom Kim winning the Scottish Open. Trey and Justin talk about how quickly Tom burst onto the scene. He became the youngest two-time PGA Tour winner since Tiger Woods, then the youngest three-time winner since Tiger. He became a Presidents Cup star, brought real energy to the International Team, and then went through a stretch where things just got harder. That is what made this win matter. Justin points to the Dallas U.S. Open qualifier as a possible turning point. Tom lit it up against a strong field, then contended at Shinnecock, then won in Scotland. His short game looked great, his confidence looked back, and his game may be trending at the right time. Trey sees it as a good sign for golf. Tom Kim has too much talent and too much personality not to matter. And after a difficult stretch, he looks like a player who could start showing up again a lot more often. The Lesson Rory McIlroy hit one bad shot at the Scottish Open and told himself he was terrible at golf. Trey’s response: you do not get to say that. But that is the point. Scottie can miss a cut. Nelly can miss a cut. Rory can feel lost after one swing. Tom Kim can go from rising star to struggling and back again. This game makes everybody doubt themselves eventually. Even the best in the world. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Matt Fitzpatrick Might Be Built for Royal Birkdale

Matt Fitzpatrick Might Be Built for Royal Birkdale Go to https://kachava.com and use code WINGO for 15% off your first order. Golf Live continues its Open Championship preview with a closer look at Royal Birkdale, the history of champions there, and the players Trey Wingo and Justin Ray trust most this week. Royal Birkdale may not always get talked about like St. Andrews, Carnoustie or Muirfield, but the winner’s list says plenty. Arnold Palmer, Lee Trevino, Johnny Miller, Tom Watson, Mark O’Meara, Padraig Harrington and Jordan Spieth have all won Opens there. As Trey puts it, Birkdale produces real major champions. The History at Birkdale Trey and Justin go through the names that have won at Royal Birkdale and why the course has a habit of finding elite players. There is also the strange history. Mark O’Meara beat Brian Watts in a playoff in 1998. Ian Baker-Finch won there in 1991 before his game unraveled years later. And Jordan Spieth’s 2017 win became one of the most chaotic masterpieces of his career, complete with the wild miss, the long ruling and the “go get that” eagle putt. Birkdale does not always look like the most famous course in the Open rota, but it has created plenty of memorable Open moments. Experience Matters at the Open Justin brings one of the biggest stats of the segment: over the last 15 years, Open Championship winners have averaged their 38th career major start at the time of victory. That is higher than the Masters, PGA Championship and U.S. Open. The point is simple: experience matters at the Open. Playing links golf, handling the schedule, accepting bad breaks and staying patient all matter more this week than they might at other majors. That is why Trey keeps coming back to mental strength. At Birkdale, players are going to get bad bounces. They are going to end up in spots that feel unfair. The winner has to be able to absorb that and keep going. Why Fitzpatrick Makes Sense Justin’s pick to win is Matt Fitzpatrick. Fitzpatrick has rebuilt his approach game in a massive way, going from 127th on the PGA Tour in strokes gained approach a few years ago to first this season. Justin compares that improvement to the way Fitzpatrick added speed and power before winning the U.S. Open. Trey agrees with the pick. For Trey, Fitzpatrick’s biggest edge is how cerebral he is. He takes notes, studies everything and approaches the game with a level of preparation that fits this kind of course. If Birkdale requires discipline, patience and problem-solving, Fitzpatrick checks a lot of boxes. The Other Picks Justin also likes Russell Henley for a top-five finish. Henley is accurate, controls his ball flight and could benefit from firm conditions that reduce the gap between him and longer hitters. Min Woo Lee is Justin’s top-ten pick. He finished second at the Scottish Open, has shown stronger ball-striking this season and tends to get hot in bunches. Trey also likes Collin Morikawa, who has already won an Open at Royal St. George’s and knows how to handle a quirky links setup. His other pick is Justin Rose, partly because of the story. Rose first became known at Royal Birkdale in 1998 as a 17-year-old amateur, and winning the Open there now would be a full-circle moment. At Royal Birkdale, the best pick may not be the loudest name. It may be the player built for the test. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.