Decoding the Ray Parks puzzle
ORLANDO, Florida: Lee Westwood isn’t just killing time waiting to become old enough to compete against guys his own age.
He might not be able to contemplate driving a par 5 — that sideshow on Saturday (Sunday in Manila) at Bay Hill belonged to Bryson DeChambeau. Westwood is more graybeard than flat belly.
He also showed at the Arnold Palmer Invitational he can hang with players nearly half his age, posting his lowest score ever at Bay Hill with a 7-under 65 that gave him a one-shot lead over DeChambeau and Corey Conners.
“It’s nice to still be playing in these tournaments. You’ve got to be top 50 in the world,” Westwood said. “And if you would have said to me 20 years ago will you would still be top 50 in the world at 48, I might have been slightly skeptical.
“And it just shows that I’m still capable of playing well in these tournaments with all the good young players around me and obviously contending, because that’s what I’m doing this week.”
DeChambeau, who shot a 68, was entertaining. Only one of his six birdies got all the attention, mainly because the US Open champion has teased all week about taking all the water on the right-to-left bending par-5 sixth.
The fans began cheering. Out came the driver. DeChambeau gave it a rip and raised his arms, a scene right out of the World Long Drive Championship, and then thrust both arms in the air again when he saw the shot clear the water, run through the fairway and into the rough, 70 yards from the hole.
That might not have been the shot of the day. Jordan Spieth made a hole-in-one with a 5-iron from 222 yards on the second hole. Jazz Janewattanond made an ace on the 212-yard 14th hole. Keegan Bradley shot a 64, the low round of the week.
All of them were in the mix, meaning there should be plenty of entertainment on Sunday (Monday in Manila).
Westwood, who turns 48 next month, won against the strongest field of regular European Tour events last year in Abu Dhabi and he ended the year as No. 1 in Europe for the third time by winning the Race to Dubai.
He grabbed the lead by holing a 30-foot eagle putt on the 16th hole (DeChambeau made birdie) and a 30-foot birdie putt on the closing hole (DeChambeau made par) to reach 11-under 205.
Conners, who started the third round with a one-shot lead, could only manage a 71 on a cool, breezy day at Bay Hill with only a few drops of rain.
Spieth opened with a birdie and a holein-one, took the lead by holing a bunker shot on the par-3 seventh, saved par after a tee shot into the water and shot 68 with the kind of round he’d rather do without. Spieth prefers boring golf, and this was anything but that.
Janewattananond’s ace carried him to a 69, leaving him four shots behind in a group that included Rory McIlroy, who bogeyed the last hole for a 72. Despite such a pedestrian round, McIlroy was very much in contention.
AFTER a couple of blockbuster trades, the PBA was rocked by another bombshell. Bobby Ray Parks, Jr has declared that he is taking the next season off. Parks cited “family reasons” which is a usual (and mostly valid) reason for taking a game, a week or a month off.
Parks, though, has asked for a full season. He also gave the “grateful to (insert team/organization) for the opportunity” line. Also, he said he will rejoin TNT once his issue is resolved. We do not know the issue, and if Parks says “family” it simply means you lay your prying eyes off me.
MVP vs MVP
Anyone who thinks they can put one over Manny “MVP” Pangilinan’s head will probably think twice now. It’s not every day when one of the country’s top business figures uses his own social media to call you out, like a boss who got fed up by a truant employee’s excuses.
MVP called out Parks, himself a threetime ABL MVP, for posting a beach pic, which MVP noted was far from California where Parks’ family resides. Basically, the boss of the MVP empire called BS on Parks reasons. It is rare to do it so blatantly and scathingly like what MVP did. He is fed up.
Perplexing Parks
Parks was reportedly offered a contract “superstars would grab.” Parks is a legit superstar who has won every individual award outside the PBA. He missed out on the Best Player of the Conference award in the bubble.
Parks refused, and if the PBA’s declared salary cap is to be believed, he is not going to get a higher offer. TNT Tropang Giga traded for him, even if it was to their farm team. TNT wanted to contend, tired of watching the other empire rack up their trophies and Ray Parks was key to their campaign.
Without Parks, TNT succumbed to Ginebra led by eventual BPC winner Stanley Pringle. Now, the rumors of Parks wanting out of the franchise is spreading. Why else would you leave the high salary and perks of being on an empire, if not to join the other side?
It would be unfair not to give the benefit of the doubt to Parks for us outsiders. Pangilinan disagrees, since he has put his money and next year’s campaign of his flagship franchise on the line for him. He has invested, and he does not intend to lose out.
Clues
Parks’ shocking announcement brought aspiring sleuths on the hunt for available clues. Time to read between the lines.
Parks’ message to the MVP group sounds permanent, despite his claim to the contrary. This is highly speculative, but what could not be denied is that there is now a rift between both sides. MVP may have burned that bridge, practically calling Parks a liar in public.
What could have triggered the ire of a savvy businessman? Parks is his main asset, and a smart, calculating tycoon like him would know better than to cause irreparable damage to the reputation of someone he would want in his employ in the future. MVP means business this time.
Wasted prime
On the other hand, what gave Parks the audacity to throw away another prime year in the PBA. Parks is already 28 years old and yet to complete one whole PBA season. He entered the league late, taking on basketball adventures that included a stint in the NBA D-League.
A barrage of individual awards could have been in the bag for Parks if he stayed on the MVP fold. He would have to lead an uphill battle against the retooled rival empire teams. Parks would undoubtedly be the main man of TNT as Jayson Castro continues to age. This would have been a career-defining year for him.
Social media followers noted that Parks deleted photos of his celebrity girlfriend who also did the same. Is this the “family” he was talking about? It would be a shame if non-basketball reasons ruined the career of a top talent. But nothing about this is not shameful at all.