1. Putting problems? What putting problems?
Ernie Els looked like a different golfer on the greens at Harbour Town, in stark contrast to his struggles a week earlier at Augusta National. In that week, he went from having harrowing problems in the first two rounds of the Masters to actually leading the field in strokes gained putting over the weekend at the RBC Heritage.
Golf can be a funny game.
"I made huge mistakes last week," Els said after a final-round 66 at the Heritage helped him tie for 14th. "I haven't been doing that bad on the greens. And for some reason, Augusta week, always haunting you, trying to get better. ... I listened to somebody that I was maybe going a step forward. And it was just too quick. Just too much information to handle on those greens. And I absolutely had a big disaster.
"I worked on it those two days that I played, but started feeling almost myself that last day. The last 10 holes, I started putting better and my anxiousness was gone. And this week you'll see my putting stats, I'm going to be top-20 in putting. It's there, I've just got to trust what I'm doing and just keep doing it."
Els led the field in strokes gained putting over the weekend, a huge improvement from his 39-putt first-round effort (that included six-putting the first green) at the Masters, and was third for the week overall at the Heritage.
2. Plenty of support
Els' peers took note of his dramatic improvement. A case of the yips is a curious malady that has struck many players over the years, and can be painful to watch, as many players wouldn't wish it on their fiercest rival. Count Luke Donald among those who gave props to the Big Easy.
Love this - dealt with his issues at Augusta head on, then lead SG putting last week. Nice turnaround @TheBig_Easy https://t.co/A0WWeEoHtf
— Luke Donald (@LukeDonald) April 18, 2016
3. Chasing those FedEx Cup riches
Few were surprised when Masters champion Danny Willett announced he would be joining the PGA Tour. Winning any tournament gives a player automatic entry into the PGA Tour if he elects to take it, and even someone who has spent most of his time toiling on the European Tour has a hard time passing up the riches that come with playing for the FedEx Cup title. While the four-tournament playoff series is often criticized and might ultimately be reduced to a three-tournament series, it is hard for a player to turn their nose up at events that offer $8.5 million purses -- two of which have no cut -- plus the $30 million bonus pool, which includes $10 million to the overall winner.
Willett gets 600 points retroactively for his Masters victory plus the 44 points he earned as a nonmember at the Valspar Championship. (Per tour regulations, points earned by a nonmember at the World Golf Championship events do not carry forward.) That puts him 27th in the current standings.
4. Playing for (big-time) pay
Bryson DeChambeau, 22, earned $259,600 in his pro debut at the RBC Heritage (he also signed several endorsement deals), but in the big picture, his tie for fourth is more about how it sets him up for the rest of the year.
By finishing in the top 10, DeChambeau gets to save the sponsor exemption he was to receive this week in San Antonio. As a nonmember, he is only allowed seven exemptions, so he'll still have six to use while he's trying to earn more FedEx points than last season's 150th-place finisher. After getting 123 points, DeChambeau needs just 97 more to become a temporary member of the PGA Tour, which would let him accept unlimited invites; he can play a maximum of 12 times as a nonmember.
The next goal for DeChambeau would be to finish among the top 125 money winners or FedEx Cup points earners. Last year, placing 125th required 455 points and approximately $747,000. He's well on his way to both totals, and accomplishing either would mean he is exempt in the 2016-17 season.
By turning pro, however, the reigning U.S. Amateur champion foregoes his invite to the U.S. Open. He is registered for sectional qualifying at the Columbus, Ohio, location where he played his way into the field last year.
5. Returning to Car-nasty
It is only fitting that Jean Van de Velde would make his senior debut at Carnoustie, the venue where he became famous for botching the 72nd hole with a three-shot lead in 1999, eventually losing in a playoff to Paul Lawrie. The Frenchman said this week he will play at the Scottish links this summer in the Senior Open Championship.
The European Senior Tour did not miss the irony.
Jean Van de Velde will make his Senior debut in the Senior Open Championship at Carnoustie https://t.co/9yy4CDZ7FB pic.twitter.com/jMA5p4ctSI
— European Senior Tour (@EuroSeniorTour) April 19, 2016
Check out how that fateful hole played out for Van de Velde in 1999. It is interesting to note that he was leading by three strokes at 3 over par and eventually played off at 6 over.
6. Been there, done that
Van de Velde has a sense of what Jordan Spieth was feeling as the Masters unraveled at the 12th hole during the final round. "Trust me, you can't believe how fast everything is happening when that guy is you," Van de Velde, 49, said in a Sky Sports story. "That's what I love about golf. It slaps you on the finger five minutes after the biggest high you could ever think of."
Van de Velde never came that close to winning a major championship again, tying for 19th at the Masters in 2000 after letting The Open get away at Carnoustie in 1999. But he believes Spieth will be fine.
"Jordan is an extraordinary player who has an extraordinary head on his shoulders, and he will get over it extremely quickly," Van de Velde said. "And when he does, he will become stronger and stronger."
7. Frustration vented -- via social media
PGA Tour rookie Dawie Van der Walt expressed his displeasure via Twitter last week when former Masters champion Mike Weir withdrew following the opening round of the RBC Heritage after shooting 78. Weir didn't disclose an injury but later said he had been ill.
Van der Walt, 33, of South Africa was second alternate and didn't get into the tournament. "Gotta love a guy who gets an invite into a Tour event and then WD after the first round," van der Walt wrote, ending his tweet with the hashtag #hangitupmike.
The tweet was later removed and Van der Walt said it was nothing personal regarding Weir, who has dealt with myriad injuries in recent years and remains in a prolonged slump.
Weir is playing on a major medical extension but has now withdrawn form or missed the cut in his last 24 worldwide starts.
8. Time to exhale
The run-up to the year's first major championship often results in players hitting a wall of exhaustion. That is why many take the weeks off following the Masters. Some go to Hilton Head because of the low-key vibe at the tournament, although brisk winds made the Harbour Town course anything but easy.
No. 1-ranked Jason Day was there, almost certainly out of obligation to one of his sponsors, RBC. And he finally felt the effects of winning twice leading into the Masters plus finishing tied for 10th at Augusta National.
After tying for the 36-hole lead, Day shot a third-round 79, his highest weekend round on the PGA Tour. He ended up in a tie for 23rd and was unsure of when he'd make his next start.
9. Tough track
Valderrama, once home to a Ryder Cup, played fierce last week for the Spanish Open, where Andrew Johnston finished 1 over par but won his first European Tour title. It was the first time since the 1996 Scottish Open at Carnoustie that a regular European Tour venue (not a major championship) produced a winning score over par.
The last time it happened on the PGA Tour was at the 1981 Byron Nelson Classic, where Bruce Lietzke finished 1 over. The last even-par winner at a non-major was Billy Mayfair at the 1995 Tour Championship.
