When golfers win a tournament and then try to defend their title the next year, they have such fond memories of that win that it can give them a big boost of confidence to repeat the win. However, it can go the other way, with a player feeling extra pressure. Apparently, it was the former attitude that won out this week at the FedEx St. Jude Classic in Memphis, Tennessee.
Daniel Berger is 24 years old and in his third year on the PGA Tour. One year ago, he won the 2016 FedEx St. Jude Classic. Until this week, it was his only win on the PGA Tour. So, he returned to his happy hunting grounds this week, pumped to repeat last’s year’s mission.
And mission indeed it is. The St. Jude Hospital for children, which is headquartered in Memphis, has been the beneficiary of this PGA Tour event for a very long time, even way back when I was still playing on that young mens’ Tour. In those days Danny Thomas–the popular singer, nightclub entertainer, and sometimes Hollywood actor and director–involved himself in this tournament and even put his name on it.
So, Daniel Berger did repeat. But he sure didn’t look like he would mid-way through the tournament. Then he came from back in the pack this weekend to shoot a pair of 66s and win by one stroke over second place finishers Charl Schwatzel and Whee Kim.
Midway during the final round today for the leaders, for several minutes nine players were tied for the lead at 8 under par. Phil Mickelson was one of them. The 46-year old winner of 42 PGA Tour tournaments started the last round today four shots back. He got off to a hot start and was tied for the lead when he drove OB on the 12th hole, dumped another shot in the water, and canned a 12-foot putt for a triple bogey. Par for the course sometimes for the crowd-pleaser. But Charl Schwartzel also had made triple on that 12th hole on Saturday, yet he became the leader in the clubhouse today.
Then Berger overtook Charl to become the early clubhouse leader at 10-under par 270. The only player left on the course who catch him was sweet-swinging Rafa Cabrera Bello of Spain, who still remains winless on the big Tour. He is taught by world-class swing coach David Ledbetter of South Africa. With three holes to play, Bello needed to go two under par on those three holes to tie Berger. Bello failed to birdie the easy par five 16th hole. Then he missed a 12-foot birdie putt on the 17th and parred in.
Braden Thornberry–a sophomore at Ole Miss–provided more excitement to amateur golf by finishing this tournament in 4th place. That’s something that doesn’t happen much–an amateur finishing in the top ten in a PGA Tour tournament. In fact, amateurs are a rare sight mingling among the best pro golfers in the world. Thornberry had won the National Collegiate Athletic Association Individual Men’s Championship two weeks earlier. Right now, he is the best amateur golfer in the country.
I’m sorry to say, I think Daniel Berger has one the worst-looking swings on the PGA Tour. But being pretty isn’t what it’s all about. If it was, there never would have been an Arnold Palmer. Tour star Tommy “Thunder” Bolt once said that crowd favorite Arnie had “the golf swing of a truck driver.” Indeed, but it helped him get that Arnie’s Army which Tommy didn’t have. Maybe Tom was just a little bit jealous.
Berger swings back short with very little wrist cock. But the first ugly part that shows is at the end of his backswing, when Daniel points the shaft way left of his target. That is called “laid off.” I couldn’t play dead whenever I laid the club off! I fought that swing error, as I called it, part of my career. Then, on Daniel’s follow through, he “comes off the ball” a lot. This means, in popular jargon, that he doesn’t “keep his head down” and thus loses his spine angle a lot.
But Berger obviously does some things very well on the golf course. He surprisingly drives the ball pretty far with that short backswing, putts well, and seems to be a good strategist around the golf course, thus good at getting out of trouble. Young Daniel Berger has two wins in only 2.5 years on the big golf stage. Not bad.
I wonder what Tommy Bolt would say about Daniel Berger’s swing. That U.S. Open winner was a golf swing perfectionist and a humorist with a temper that could burn hotter than those True Temper steel shafts manufacturers made them for us, thus the nickname “Thunderbolt.” He sure wouldn’t say of Berger’s swing what he said of mine when he first saw it, “Oh no, another one of those flippy-wristed college kids.”
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