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Hey,
On Sunday afternoon, I took my 7-year-old son, Jack, to hit balls at a range near our house. They have Toptracer at this particular range, and Jack enjoys playing the Go Fish mini game they have on there. I 99 percent don’t understand how it works, but he loves it. So we play it together and fist pump when we catch giraffe sharks or beluga whales (shout out Neil).
On Sunday, the place was packed. People everywhere. Some ice hockey players from Penn State, a 50-year-old man filming himself (!!) with a tiny tripod, young couples melting a day away, kids and their adults. Just a full gamut of people.
I was thinking later about how many of those people cared about the Cleeks’ roster or whether there was a cut at Pebble or what the Players’ purse is this year. How many of those people can even name a Cleek.
We spend our time following golf arguing about objectively insane things. Things that matter and are important but are not ultimate. I think those are most often the most difficult things in life to approach. Topics or ideas that definitely matter to the industry that we are in or the world that we follow but that have little long-term significance.
And while I usually delight in the discussions and the ideas and the opinions and even in the arguments, it was fun for a day to step outside of that world and remember that this is, well, not a normal thing. I do like living in that world as a job, I truly do. I’m grateful for it. But I also enjoy remembering that it’s OK that pro golf hasn’t been solved, the Masters* isn’t perfect and there are still 24 too many events on the PGA Tour’s schedule.
Onto the news.
I had planned on writing about something else in this section until I saw Jason Page’s illustrations for this edition of the newsletter.
(This is a complete and total aside, but we work quite separately throughout the week — both of us interpreting golf in the way that we perceive it — so sometimes what he presents inspires my own work and writing or vice versa).
The story that I turned to? You probably already saw it.
At the Magical Kenyan Open last weekend, Ronald Rugumayo became the first Ugandan to make the cut on the European Tour … ever. He did it with a putt at his 36th hole of the week, and his home club enjoyed the moment quite a bit.
History Made! @RonaldRugumayo becomes first Ugandan to make cut at @DPWorldTour@KenyaOpenGolf since its inception in 1967.
The historic birdie that sent the fans into a frenzy on the final hole 9. East Africa's Last Man standing @MuthaigaGC
#MoreThanGolfWithAbsa | #MKO2024
— Innocent Ndawula (@MagicLeft11)
Feb 23, 2024
#HistoryMade!
#Uganda
@RonaldRugumayo becomes first Ugandan to make a cut at @DPWorldTour@KenyaOpenGolf since its inception in 1967
The historical birdie that made fans on the screens and on course very excited @MuthaigaGC
@AfriyeaGolf
— Isaiah Mwesige 🇺🇬🇬🇧 (@isaiahmwesige)
Feb 23, 2024
Here’s what Rugumayo said.
“Honestly, it’s not about me as a player, it’s not about Uganda, it’s about East Africa. Everything I’m doing, I’m doing for East Africa. My dream has always been to inspire people, inspire the up-coming golfers. A few years from now, I would like to see more Ugandans playing here on this Tour. Not just Ugandans, but East Africans.
“I’ve been in South Africa playing on the Sunshine Tour and that has been amazing. I would really feel great if in the next few years I saw a few more golfers from Uganda and East Africa doing what I’m doing, or even doing better than I’m doing.”
Even doing better than I’m doing.
And here’s Innocent Ndawula, a Ugandan reporter who followed and wrote about the story, helping contextualize for the rest of us.
“It’s a magical moment for Uganda. He is burning a candle for everyone in Uganda to make sure that they can believe they can do this. He is happy to carry the flag for East Africa.”
Juxtapose all of that with this interview.
Here’s a Rahm quote to Marty Smith.
“As an athlete and entertainer, I think I owe it to myself to hear the other side out, and that’s what I did. … I have the right to do what I think is best for myself and my family, period. As a father and a husband, I have the duty to set myself up as best as possible. Not that we weren’t, we’re extremely privileged people, but that’s my duty.”
I like Rahm. I think he’s generally a brilliant and thoughtful person, and I don’t know that going to LIV has really changed my perception of him all that much.
But that interview was difficult to watch at times. His body language and tone seemed almost apologetic. He, like almost everyone of substance who has gone before him, seemed like he was carrying around some shame.
Making decisions based on self-interest feels right, and sometimes it is right. Boundaries around relationships and jobs and other parts of our lives are a good thing. But at some point, closer to the extreme, self-interested choices — especially ones in which we have to give up parts of our lives that we love, all for the sake of money — leave us feeling empty and a bit joyless.
I’m not saying Ronald Rugumayo would not trade places with Jon Rahm. I’m sure he would. What I’m saying is that Ronald Rugumayo seems to have a joy that Rahm seems to be searching for a bit right now. This is the burden (the unintended consequence) of success, wealth and achievement. It’s never enough. It never fulfills.
It is circumstantial that Rahm had the choice he had and Rugumayo had the choice he had. So this is not really about the kind of people they are or are not.
It’s more so about how something the world views as wonderful and aspirational (money, personal success) sometimes might actually be. But the truth is — and surely we have all experienced this in some form or another — sometimes what the world views as wonderful and aspirational is actually not.
Playing as the 2,429th ranked golfer in the world and racking up $34K on the Sunshine Tour last year, well I don’t know that anybody necessarily aspires to that. But doing it for the future of an entire region of your continent, caring about something way outside of yourself. I bet that’s far more fulfilling than any amount of money LIV has ever offered.
If you’re here for Talor Gooch takes, don’t be alarmed. I wasn’t tricking you into signing up for my newsletter about giraffes and cliffs. I simply had too many thoughts. I’ll send them all in a separate special edition on Wednesday.
1. As proposed by Soly, the Tour should absolutely have a rule that if you play the last hole with one club, you get the entire purse. More seriously: As many times as I can get pros hitting weird and wonky shots with clubs they shouldn’t be hitting, the better. The most compelling part of Monday night’s match at The Park was when Rory hit a massive cut 5-wood from 170 and Max reacted like he’d just seen an alien. Need it.
2. This from Jon Sherman on how Jordan Spieth should be dropped into different Bear Grylls-like locales and have to play his way out of them is perfect. Would watch. Would help produce!
Honey, what are you watching?
Oh, nothing just my favorite golfer on the side of Mt. Kilimamjaro while his caddie holds their oxygen tanks.
Are you more or less excited for Full Swing S2 than you were S1? I threw this on Twitter at the beginning of the week after the new extended trailer dropped. Here are the results.
Are you more or less excited for Full Swing S2 than you were Full Swing S1? Why or why not?
— Kyle Porter (@KylePorterCBS)
Feb 26, 2024
I thought that was pretty interesting. Season 1 was fine, but from what I’ve heard from folks who have seen S2, it’s a lot more catered to the sickos.
Also, if you don’t think you’re getting 5,000 words on this 2-second scene then have you even been paying any attention at all?
I liked Michael Kim’s question about what Shohei Ohtani’s swing speed would be. It’s a fascinating thought experiment.
Kim threw out 130-135 MPH, which seems insane. Having seen Ohtani somewhat up close, though, his hips and movement are on a different planet. He’s also a monstrous. Built like Brooks thinks he’s built.
Here are the current Tour leaders this season in swing speed. I have to think Ohtani could max at 135 or so. Average is a different thing.
South African Altin van der Merwe won the African Amatuer and dropped this gem after the victory.
“I can't wait to play in The Open. Honestly, I can't wait. It's links golf as well, so I'm going to be licking my chops out there with just a little sting two iron all day and I just can't wait until the time comes.”
Reminds me of another formerly great amateur who hits an amazing stinger.
1. The thought of this one made me laugh.
2. Peter Uihlein played a ball from the Gulf of Oman last weekend. He made par. It’s like the Bird-Jordan commercial, but it happens every single weekend in professional golf.
3. I am incredibly partial to any screenshot of somebody using a magnifying device to locate a ball in the sky. The humorous part here, though, is the gentlemen behind him trying to zoom in with their phones.
4. Golf, where you use math to trick yourself into performing better.
5. Sure.
6. This last one was insane. It involved two golf balls up against the same fence at different times of the week. One player got relief, the other did not. Here’s Golf Channel.
Valimaki’s drive ended up in a sandy lie against a metal boundary fence, and after consulting with a rules official, Valimaki took an unplayable and then received relief from the sand, an extension of the cart path.
“What the ref said was there’s no chance you can hit the ball, so that was it,” Valimaki said. “I mean, I totally understand. There weren’t many options.”
At the time, Valimaki was unaware of a similar situation on Thursday in which competitor S.H. Kim drove his ball up against the same fence. In Kim’s case, however, he argued that he could hop the fence and play the ball out sideways. A rules official agreed, and Kim then received the free relief from the sand, or cart path.
So, how come Valimaki didn’t get the same benefit?
“In Sami’s case, it was clearly unreasonable for him to play a stroke,” the PGA Tour rules committee told GolfChannel.com.
I thought Jason Page said it better than I could with his illustration below.
Absolutely infirmary stuff to notice that the TW logo has been removed from the bottom of Scottie Scheffler’s shoes.
I proudly stand with Shane on this, and I think it’s borderline sociopathic to suggest otherwise. Plastic tees over wooden ones? Are you guys barbarians?
I cannot believe a single person would pick plastic over wood.
— Shane Bacon (@shanebacon)
Feb 23, 2024
👉️ Jamie Kennedy pulled some amazing photos from the fan-less 2020 Masters. What a bizarre week in the moment, and even more so in retrospect.
👉️ Claire Rogers did a good job with the Brooks interview here. I enjoy listening to him and Rory talk about each other. Competitive dudes for sure, but there’s a “so few people understand what winning four majors is like” underlying tone of respect and admiration. I enjoy it.
👉️ Bryson says LIV has fulfilled the requirements of the OWGR. Spoiler: LIV … has not.
👉️ I thought this interview with one of the Missouri Star Quilt founders was really good. His idea of a business being made of content + commerce + community is excellent.
👉️ MKBHD is the man, and this partnership is the future. I would be surprised if it didn’t start happening more and more in the golf space.
👉️ Yes, Bluey really is that good.
👉️ Peter King’s farewell is also good. You guys think I write a lot.
👉️ Me: Apple Vision Pro is stupid and isolating and bad for our society. Also me: This is kind of sick I wonder what you could do with it for golf?
NBA League Pass on the Apple Vision Pro looks incredible.
— Kevin O'Connor (@KevinOConnorNBA)
Feb 1, 2024
Here are some finds from this week.
• This one from the Match got me.
• So did this one.
• This is tough but also funny.
• Perfect description.
• Art But Sports is the most incredible account on Twitter. Never misses.
No particular thought here other than I loved this post, and I want to open a coffeeshop/bookstore someday when my bestseller, 419 Reasons I can’t Quit Jordan Spieth, brings in a ton of money.
Bookstores are incredible. You’re surrounded by hundreds of ideas and stories that started as a small spark in someone else’s mind that they then spent thousands of hours translating to the written word. Impossible not to feel inspired.
— Nathan Baugh (@nathanbaugh27)
Feb 21, 2024
Uganda Magic, Too
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