Biggest Storylines in Golf Ahead of the 2015 Zurich Classic of New Orleans
A quality field that includes three of the top-10 golfers in the world arrives at TPC Louisiana for the Zurich Classic of New Orleans this week.
When the the tour comes to town, it brings with it a bevy of storylines. And while the PGA Tour is still enveloped in "Jordan Spieth won the Masters" talk, there are other stories of note this week in NoLa.
Mr. Spieth, while not in this week's field, is still a story, as is Rory McIlroy. But there's certainly plenty going on inside the ropes in Louisiana this week.
Click through for the biggest storylines.
Jordan Spieth's Ascendency
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Jordan Spieth's Masters triumph catapulted the 21-year-old Texan into golf's stratosphere. It inspired glowing tributes and outpourings of praise from seemingly every corner of the golf world.
Incredibly, he elevated his status even higher last week with a New York City media blitz that saw him appear on seemingly every major news and talk show (although he hasn't yet done Sesame Street). On the pop culture front, Spieth also presented at at the Academy of Country Music awards.
He stepped away from the studio lights to honor his commitment to play the RBC Heritage, rather than bowing out, which would have been both understandable and even expected after his whirlwind week. Further, Spieth didn't mail it in at Hilton Head, going off for a second-round 62 and finishing tied for 11th.
While Tiger Woods serves as a reminder of the dangers when placing crowns on the heads of 21-year-old golfers, it's difficult not to join the ever-increasing multitudes buying tickets for the Jordan Spieth Express.
The Golf World's Collective Sigh of Relief for Jim Furyk
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If the golf world is falling all over itself for Jordan Spieth, it is equally relieved that Jim Furyk has once again...finally...won a golf tournament.
Furyk ended a heartbreaking, five-year winless streak with a playoff victory and dramatic dual fist-pump at Harbour Town to a tremendous sigh of relief from golf fans everywhere. There have been few things in golf so excruciating as watching the long-suffering Furyk invent new ways to avoid victory over the past few seasons.
The end of Furyk's frustration and that of his fans provided a second significant victory in as many weeks and leads us into the Zurich Classic wondering, "What's next?"
Big Names Back in Action in NoLa
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The opportunity to play four days of golf at Sea Pines Resort in beautiful oceanside Hilton Head last week was too much for some of the tour's best to resist. A few more of them are trickling back to the tee box in New Orleans this week.
Most notably, Dustin Johnson, Justin Rose, Jason Day, Keegan Bradley and Rickie Fowler will go inside the ropes for the first time since the Masters.
The aforementioned are all on the short list of tournament favorites (according to Rob Bolton, PGATour.com's fantasy writer). Some combination of these players is sure to be at the center of whatever Sunday drama unfolds in NoLa.
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A Pair of Legends to Bid Farewell
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Nine-time major winner Tom Watson told reporters that next year's Masters could be his last, following a strong showing in Hilton Head. “The distance is ebbing away in this old body," Watson said. "The handwriting is on the wall as far as me competing out here against the kids. They hit it 30, 40, 50 yards farther in the air" (per Robert Gillespie of PGATour.com).
Watson will make his final appearance in an Open Championship this year, as will Sir Nick Faldo, himself a six-time major champion and three-time winner of the Open Championship, who announced this week that he'll bid adieu to that event this year.
Faldo will say goodbye to the Championship at the site of his Open triumph 25 years ago. As he said this week (per The Guardian):
"The Open and St Andrews will forever hold a significant place in my heart. My fondest moments on my journey with this great sport are woven with pictures and emotions in this setting. It all means a huge amount to me.
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The departure of the two from golf's biggest stages (one of the last places you could see the legends put a peg in the ground) serves to further highlight the Spieth-McIlroy climate in which we find ourselves and the new era of young talent that's upon us.
TPC New Orleans: First-Time Winners' Paradise
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First-timers have had their way with TPC Louisiana in recent memory. Seven of the past 10 winners won for the first time at the event, including Seung-Yul Noh last year, Billy Horschel in 2013, Jason Dufner in 2012 and Nick Watney in 2007.
You'll want to keep an eye on the gentlemen getting to know the 7,425-yard Pete Dye course this week.
There's a good chance we're in for a close finish, too: The tournament has been decided either by one stroke or in a playoff nine times since 2003. Ten of the 23 events on the PGA Tour this season have been decided by a playoff, so all signs point to things going down to the wire in Louisiana.
Rory McIlroy's Post-Masters Excursion
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Rory McIlroy made headlines this past week, but likely not the kind he's hoping for. McIlroy, who has been determined to keep his private life private since his very public split from fiance Caroline Wozniacki last year, was spotted with his unconfirmed girlfriend...in Rochester.
The world No. 1's presence in the New York town certainly attracted attention. In an article titled "Golf star Rory McIlroy spotted here Saturday," Jeff DiVeronica of the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle filled in some of the details.
"The top-ranked golfer in the world was seen Saturday night having dinner at 2Vine in downtown Rochester and then stopped in at Magpie Pub in the trendy Park Avenue neighborhood. The four-time major champion, who finished in fourth place in last week's Masters, is reportedly dating Erica Stoll, a 2003 graduate of the West Irondequoit school district.
Stoll, 29, works for the PGA of America as its manager of championship volunteer operations. Various media outlets have linked her to McIlroy over the past few months, including reports out of Dublin, Ireland, that said they spent New Year's there. McIlroy, who turns 26 on May 4, is from Northern Ireland.
Stoll and McIlroy's first encounter came by chance. She was the PGA employee who helped save him from missing his tee time at the 2012 Ryder Cup in Medinah, Illinois. It was a time zone mishap, McIlroy said. He'd misinterpreted his tee time, which was 11:25 a.m. central time, as 12:25 ET.
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The Players Championship Looms
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Golf's first major of the season is behind us and it's already nearly time for golf's fifth major (as The Players Championship is called), which begins May 7.
This week's tournament is the last chance for golfers to earn a spot in The Players Championship by nudging inside the top 10 in the FedEx Cup points standings or inside the top 50 in the Official World Golf Ranking. Winning the Zurich Classic or next week's WGC-Cadillac Match Play Championship would also earn a golfer a spot.
You can bet that those not already guaranteed a spot on the first tee at TPC Sawgrass will be pushing for a chance to compete for pro golf's biggest payday.
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