Originally Posted by
greybeard
I'd like to see that. The Shark, Freddy, Nicholas , Watson (a hair of whinning the British open two years ago, a perfect 8 iron that rolled through the green, Floyd, the best around the greens and inventive shoot maker this side of Tiger (besides hitting it a mile), Trevino, he'd talk you to death while shooting below 65 in the last round, Freddie, he was hitting it 300 with perimmons, Arnie, Player, Miller, the guy who followed Jack to Ohio State, who'm I leaving out, oh, Sevi (the most creative shot maker ever), Orlothobo, Duval, Corey, the Big Easy, Payne, Azzinger, the British guy who everyone loved to hate (upright swing, real tall, Faldo, Langer to name a few. These guys were hitting 5 or 4 irons into the greens at the short Masters, not wedges and nine irons, and were putting up numbers.
Jack was the best, not because of his putting or his driving, both of which were real impressive, but because he could sight line a two hundred yard 4 or 3 iron better than anyone in the business, align himself perfectly, and put them close. There's no one in the business who you stuck a blade in his hands and a non custom made golf ball, and asked him to do that and could; no one.
Bubba can hit the heck out of it but with a persimmon and a regular wound golf ball he'd have ended up in NJ with that shot off the Tee on the Championship hole.
Kory is really going to compare, be in the same universe as the Shark, who is matching Sevi, is there anyone other than Tiger who is done who could close to Jack, who do you put up against Watson, Faldo, Sevi, Duval, Freddie, Player, we haven't mentioned Kite, Crehshaw, Cook, Irwin, Singh, Stadler, Arnie, Woozman, Olezzabel, Pavin Els.ason, Simpson, Zeller.
Most of these guys didn't smoke and what if they did. Didn't hurt the Mick, the Babe, tons of basketball players and football players in the Halls. It ain't like this is a fitness contest. And, by the way, fitness and power is a function of forgiveness. You have these hit wound balls with persimmons and we will see some pretty wild, awful play. Turn it around, Jack wins the Masters at 46, Floyd ditto, Watson the British short by a stroke as 55 or so, Chrenshaw the Masters.
You take those rackets away from Nadal and these other dudes, and let's see how they'd do against McEnroe, Connors, Newcomb, Ashe, Smith. Laver, the Great Swede, Villas, ViJay. Let's see how they play without 100 plu mph serves, smashijng blazing zinners from 5 years behind the baseline, hitting winners when barely getting to the ball, please.
If they called palming the ball in the pros, Paul and just about every other point guard would be out of business. If they called walking, the number of three balls tried would be reduced by a third. If they called pulling down on collapsible rims to jam balls in that would embarass a so-callled leaper to death, if they called walking when guys either walk into shots or step back with three little ones, and do away with that stupid rule that takes away the best play in sport, the play that made Bill Russell who he is, well, you get my point. Later.