The Genesis Invitational

Torrey Pines Golf Course (South Course)



    The Grind

    Billy Horschel’s TGL ‘joke’ backfires, Dottie Pepper’s perfect slow-play rant and the craziest golf tip we’ve ever seen

    January 28, 2025

    Welcome to another edition of The Grind, where we have never been more proud of ourselves than on Sunday night. No, I still haven’t come close to winning a golf bet in months, but I did talk myself out of betting against the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game. And that feels like a huge win for my wallet. But now I face two weeks of trying to hold off the temptation of betting against Pat, Travis, Taylor and Co. even though a three-peat seems more inevitable than Tiger Woods winning a major in his prime. In the meantime, we’ve got Tiger’s first win of any kind in a long time and plenty else in golf to discuss. Let’s get to it.

    WE’RE BUYING

    Harris English: Speaking of getting back in the winner’s circle, there was this 35-year-old who won the Farmers Insurance Open for his fifth career PGA Tour title, but first since becoming a dad. And that actually may have made the difference during the final round as English held strong on a tough Torrey Pines layout to top Sam Stevens by one shot.

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    Orlando Ramirez

    “We were watching some kids' shows, no Golf Channel, no SportsCenter,” English said of his Saturday morning routine ahead of the final round. “Not my usual TV during tournament week. It was good to keep my mind off of it. … We might be on to something.” Indeed, you might. And I was happy to hear among the shows was the Australian cartoon "Bluey." (If you're a Dad with a young child, you'll know what he's talking about.)

    Dottie Pepper: As weekend threesomes slogged toward another near-six-hour round, the longtime CBS announcer went viral for a slow-play rant she gave during Saturday’s final round. And for good reason. Have a listen:

    “I think we’re starting to need a new word to talk about this pace-of-play issue, and it’s respect,” Pepper said on the broadcast. “For your fellow competitors, for the fans, for the broadcasts, for all of it. It’s just gotta get better.” Nailed it, Dottie. Heck, my mom even called me the next day to say she “Tried to watch the golf, but it was too slow.” And when you’ve lost my mom, well, that’s not good. Also, at some point, these guys have to realize that they’re not just competitors, but they’re entertainers. And that slow play is not entertaining. On the flip side …

    TGL: It took four weeks, but Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy’s new tech-infused golf league finally got a great match. And wouldn’t you know, it required Tiger and Rory to do so. In the end, it was Woods’ Jupiter Golf Links pulling off the upset over McIlroy’s Boston Common, doing so with a closest-to-the-pin contest after the match was tied through regulation.

    Considering the Celtics lost at the buzzer on the same night, some people are calling Boston “Heartbreak City.” And as a native New Yorker, you really, really hate to see it. Good job by Tiger, who drained the clutchest putt in TGL history (Yes, it’s been four weeks) with the HAMMER on the line to win for the first time in a long time. Great job by Tom Kim, who made just about every other putt. And good for Kevin Kisner, who bounced back from a disastrous opening match to help his squad. And after, he took a shot at teammate Max Homa, who was sitting out:

    Not sure if that’s good or bad for the team chemistry.

    WE’RE SELLING

    People freaking out over Billy Horschel’s “joke”: Before Tiger and Rory’s epic battle, the big TGL story of the week had been Horschel’s comments during Atlanta’s match against my lowly New York Golf Club. While being interviewed by ESPN’s Marty Smith, Horschel said something about a producer telling them to “keep it close” and “trying to accommodate him”:

    And people freaked out—including Tiger Woods' former swing coach, Hank Haney—calling TGL’s integrity into question. Here was Horschel’s response:

    Despite NYGC needing help right now, I’m Team Horschel on this one. I don’t think there was anything nefarious going on. And even if there was, is it any worse than what seems to be going on in the NFL with the Chiefs on a weekly basis? And yet everyone keeps watching that! Just saying.

    Adam Svensson’s timing: Check out the horn being blown by a rules official right as Svensson was attempting a birdie putt to make the cut at Torrey Pines:

    The Canadian seemed to handle it well, but that’s absolutely brutal. It’s also crazy that in the year 2025, we don’t have a better way of stopping play. Kinda like how it’s crazy that the NFL doesn’t have a better way of determining if someone got a first down. Again, the Chiefs. Must be nice to be the best team AND get every break/call.

    This golf bag: OK, first off, I’m not selling this design (one of the many cool things seen at last week's PGA Merchandise Show). It looks sleek and it seems to make sense from a spatial perspective. Not to mention, as someone who recently hurt his shoulder lifting one of my kids, sliding clubs in and out might be better than pulling them up and out. HOWEVAH, it costs about $3,000. Yep, $3K. For a golf bag:

    Sorry, can’t endorse that when you can replace your golf bag and all the clubs in it for that much. Unless you have a meaty preseason bet on the Eagles winning it all—and they actually pull it off.

    ON TAP

    The PGA Tour season continues its California Swing at Pebble Beach, AKA, well, that place that needs no AKAs. This time, the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am will be a PGA Tour signature event as well as a signature event on the celebrity golf circuit, which is arguably having its biggest week of the year. That’s because the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions on the LPGA Tour is also taking place. And that has a stacked field of celebs as well, including Blake Griffin, who we had the pleasure of talking to for this week’s episode of The Loop podcast. Have a listen!

    Random tournament fact: Both Scottie Scheffler (cooking accident) and Jordan Spieth (wrist surgery) will be making their PGA Tour returns from injury at Pebble Beach. And we hope for Scheffler’s sake that the nickname Scottie Ravioli doesn’t stick. That would be a real shame . . .

    RANDOM PROP BETS OF THE WEEK

    —Pace of play will improve with celebrities in the mix this week: 1 MILLION-to-1 odds

    —Scottie Scheffler will win this week: 4.5-to-1 odds (Actual odds)

    —Scottie Scheffler won’t be doing much cooking this week: LOCK

    TWEET/PHOTO OF THE WEEK

    Shout-out to Rachel Heck, the former Stanford star turned Air Force lieutenant, on showing off her Augusta National Women’s Amateur invite—while wearing her Air Force uniform:

    Now that’s an impressive flex.

    VIRAL VIDEO OF THE WEEK (ON-COURSE DIVISION)

    This K.J. Choi bunker tip—Hammer swing!—is definitely the craziest golf tip we’ve ever seen:

    And I’m 100-percent going to try it, because golfers will try anything.

    VIRAL VIDEO OF THE WEEK (ON-COURT DIVISION)

    Congrats to Travis Weber, who sank this full-court putt during a Nebraska-USC (A classic Big Ten battle!) basketball game to win a PORSCHE:

    Incredible putt. Amazing prize. Fantastic fist pump. Special stuff right there.

    THIS WEEK IN CELEBRITY GOLFERS

    But on the success side, Mary Kate Morrissey, the Broadway actress currently playing the role of Elphaba in “Wicked” and featured by yours truly in the current issue of Golf Digest, sung the National Anthem ahead of the NFC Championship Game.

    Wicked is really having a moment right now. And I’m all for it.

    THIS WEEK IN PUBLIC DISPLAYS OF AFFECTION

    Actually, PDA gone wrong as Robby Berger from Bob Does Sports shared an awkward and embarrassing first interaction with Rory McIlroy in which he tried to compliment Rory:

    That’s rough. But at least he got this reply from Rory:

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    Yeah, Robby will be OK.

    QUOTE OF THE WEEK

    “Tiger made me work out with him pre-match and that was my first workout in 2025.” —Kevin Kisner. Looks like Kiz may have discovered a winning secret as well.

    THIS AND THAT

    Pat Perez is moving from the course to the booth, becoming a new on-course analyst for LIV Golf during Fox Sports’ broadcasts. So he’s basically LIV’s version of Kevin Kisner. … Congrats to Kieron van Wyk, a senior at the College of Charleston, on winning the APGA Farmers Insurance Invitational at Torrey Pines. He and the field also avoided getting called out for slow play by Dottie Pepper. … Congrats(?) to Sugarlands Distilling’s Ryder Cup Cherry Limeade Moonshine on being named the official moonshine of the 2025 Ryder Cup. Yes, that is a real thing. … And, finally, I’m very excited about Costco officially announcing its food court is switching back to Coca-Cola products this summer.

    That's great news. As if that place couldn’t get any better!

    RANDOM QUESTIONS TO PONDER

    Should Scottie Scheffler serve ravioli for his Masters Champions Dinner?

    Should I get my shoulder checked out by a doctor?

    Should I just bet on the Chiefs in the Super Bowl?