HEAVY RAINS CAUSE RARE REDO AT RIVIERA
Half the field still waiting to start as media catches up on Kuchar story in meantime
The Genesis Open at Riviera Country Club got underway twice on Thursday.
Players teed off in a downpour shortly after the sun allegedly came up, only to be called off the course just after 7 a.m. due to poor visibility. As hard rain began to fill the picturesque Santa Monica canyon, it was decided to scrap scores from before the stoppage to get a fresh start seven hours later. It’s the first time since 2013 that the PGA Tour has done a hard reset on a tournament.
That means Phil Mickelson’s bunker-to-bunker-to-bunker hole-out par at the driveable par-4 10th hole never officially happened. It also meant Jordan Spieth received a juicy mulligan after sending his opening drive deep into the bushes.
Play resumed at 1:40 p.m. local time Thursday with morning groups getting at least some of their opening round in. The afternoon pairings, including Tiger Woods, Rory Mcilroy and Justin Thomas, begin their first round Friday.
ONE SKETCHY TIPPER?
The big loser of Thursday’s rain delay was Matt Kuchar.
With seven hours to kill, the story of Kuchar stiffing his Mexican caddie continued to dominate sports talk channels and social media. On Wednesday, the 40-year-old American doubled down on his decision to pay caddie David (El Tucan) Giral Ortiz $5,000 after winning US$1.3 million at the Mayakoba Classic in Mexico last November.
“I ended up paying him $5,000 and I thought that was more than what we agreed upon,” Kuchar told The Golf Channel. “I kind of think if he had the chance to do it over again, same exact deal, that he’d say yes again.”
The going rate paid to a tour caddie for a win is 10 per cent (or $130,000 in this case), but that’s where it gets murky. Ortiz is not a tour caddie and this was a oneoff gig. He’s a local caddie who hasn’t made the financial and familial sacrifices to follow his player all over the world. Kuchar explained that before the tournament the pair agreed upon a bonus structure that would have paid Ortiz up to $4,000.
“So I certainly don’t lose sleep over this. … Making $5,000 is a great week,” Kuchar told the Golf Channel.
Making $5,000 is a great week — unless you made $1.3 million last week. We can all agree there is a lot of room between $5,000 and $130,000 and that’s the problem.
Now Kuchar finds himself in violation of Kuchar rule No. 1: Don’t become a story. Kuchar has made a career and brand out of staying out of the spotlight with his “golly gee” persona, cashing big cheques, but rarely winning tournaments. With career earnings of $48 million, a shoe deal with Skechers and just eight victories, he had achieved the perfect mix of a filthy rich athlete flying under the radar.
Until now.
Fairly or unfairly, he will be portrayed as a shining example of golf being an elitist sport played by rich folk who look down their nose at “the help.” To the public, that’s old news, but it’s an image golf has been trying to shed.
Ortiz told Golf.com’s Michael Bamberger that Kuchar’s agent Mark Steinberg offered him an extra $15,000 after the fact, but the caddie turned it down, saying he wanted $50,000. Nobody’s looking good in all of this.
Some argue a deal is a deal, which may be true, but it won’t help Kuchar in the court of public opinion. It’s too late to pay, it’s too late to admit there was a better way to handle this. Perhaps, at 40 years old and with $48 million, Kuchar simply doesn’t care.
Kuchar will begin his Genesis Open here at Riviera on Friday. He also plays next week at the WGC Mexico Championship, which is indeed in Mexico. Stay tuned.
MACKENZIE GRINDING
Mackenzie Hughes finished last season making six of seven cuts with three top-20 finishes, but this season is a work in progress.
Thehamilton, Ont., native enters the week (he begins his first round on Friday) coming off missed cuts at Pebble Beach and the Waste Management Open. On the range at Riviera, Hughes worked with his driver, trying to hone in on his preferred fade.
“I’m trying to get my swing path just a bit more left,” Hughes said. “What that does is promotes more of a distinct curve left to right. If your path is too neutral it becomes tough to work the ball.”
While most of us will never know what it’s like to try to add more curve to our shots, we can relate to at least one thing Hughes is going through this week.
“Every week presents it’s own challenges, like L.A. and this traffic,” he said.
But Hughes is careful not to take life on the PGA Tour for granted.
“I obviously have a great job and I have to remember that as well, that it’s a blessing to do what I do, sometimes it becomes hard work if you’re missing cuts and not playing as well, but I just need to remind myself that it’s a great opportunity and a great job to have.”
FILL-IN LOOPER
Canada’s top-ranked golfer Adam Hadwin has a new man on his bag this week at the Genesis Open with his regular caddie
Joe Cruz taking a break after the birth of his child. Canadian Yohann Benson has caddied previously for Hadwin, of Abbotsford, B.C., and is an accomplished player himself. In 2009, Benson had three top-10 finishes on the now-mackenzie TOUR–PGA Tour Canada.