The Loop

Golf World grading system

July 02, 2009

Golf World creates a report card after every major, assigning a grade to the performance of every player in the World Ranking Top 10. In this latest grading, Tiger got a B +, Phil an A -, Paul Casey an F, etc. In the view of a Virginia reader, our grading this time barely achieved a passing mark.

__Dear Editor, You often use the public school grading system to describe the performance of key golf professionals. You did it in your June 29th issue which covered the Bethpage Black US Open in depth - almost. I have to give you a C minus on that issue because of the paucity of coverage of David Duval who was arguably, the best story of the open. Don't misunderstand, I'm not to taking anything away from Phil, but guys you could at least given David his own article. It's inexplicable: You did it for Mickelson, Barnes, Weir, Mediate and a host of others, but not Duval? Tom Jones>

Roanoke, VA__

Fair point by you, Tom. Duval was a big part of the game story, but he easily could have merited his own sidebar. I'll remember this Open for a conversation I had with Bob Rotella near the putting green on Friday morning. Rotella was working with Mike Weir. When they finished he came over and I asked, who do you like this week? Bob said, "I like this guy," referring to Weir, "and you know else is really in a good place?"

"Who?" I asked.

"David Duval," Rotella said.

Being all-knowledgeable but also very polite I didn't suggest that Bob was smoking something.

--Bob Carney