It seems strange that I was talking with Matt Kuchar on the Wednesday of The Wells Fargo Championship, remarking how he was having a really good year, but kind of flying under the radar just a bit. He said he was playing well, hitting the ball great and felt it was only a mater of time before he won again. Based on his solid performance at the Zurich Classic, I predicted that he would win The Players Championship. He laughed. A week and a half later he does just that.
Of course, I’m lying about that conversation. It never took place. But I did have a lengthy chat with someone who is more knowledgeable than anyone, save Kuchar himself, about the state of Matt’s swing and his golf game. I recently spoke with teacher Chris O’Connell, named to the Golf Digest List of Best Young Instructors, about a variety of topics, not the least of which was his star pupil, Matt Kuchar. Chris said, essentially, what I attributed to Kuchar in the opening paragraph.
It’s no wonder, then, that I actually predicted Matt Kuchar as the winner of The 2012 Players Championship. Ok, I may not have actually predicted it, but I thought it…and I was rooting for him, so that’s almost as good. Right? Of course, I can’t think of anyone watching who wouldn’t root for Kuchar, with the possible exception of the Puma Sales Division, so it was a gratifying thing to see. Let’s face it, golf fans everywhere, even at Puma, like Matt Kuchar. Seriously, the scene on the 18th green yesterday with Matt and his wife, kids and Mother (on Mother’s Day!!) would’ve been like a particularly odious Hallmark Hall of Fame movie but for the fact that we, as viewers, just knew it was genuine. We like the guy, even though we (you) don’t really know him (not like I do because of my close personal acquaintanceship with his teacher). But he seems to represent everything we like about ourselves—all the good stuff—and since we like ourselves a whole lot, we like him almost as much. So, here’s a toast to my new BFF, Matt Kuchar and his victory that I would’ve predicted had I had the foresight to make a prediction and not just think about who might win.
Now, let’s talk about my new series of posts that will occur over the next several weeks. As I said, I spoke with Chris O’Connell at some length not long ago, and from that conversation, I learned…The Secret of Golf. I’m keeping that to myself, of course, but I also learned a great deal of useful information which I will disclose to you; stuff I gleaned from Chris’s knowledge as a guy who coaches one of the top ten players in the world. Cool, huh? You’re welcome.
If you’re not quite comprehending this tease, let me break it down:
1. Guy wins the biggest purse on Tour by defeating the deepest field on Tour.
2. That guy’s swing instructor talked to me.
3. I’m going to tell you what that swing instructor said.
Check it out.
