Round 1: Farmers Insurance Open
January 26 2012
1:13 pm
Duval out, Bowditch in
LA JOLLA, Calif. – David Duval withdrew from the Farmers Insurance Open on Thursday morning prior to his first round.
Duval, who has the flu, was replaced in the field by Stephen Bowditch, who has played his first six holes in even par.
Filed under: David Duval
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His wife should be suprised to see him home a day early from his normal Friday return.
Wish he would move to a zip code condusive for year round practice. Would enhance his chances of making a cut.
So dissapointing.
he made his attempt at a comeback and was making slow progress…however, after last week’s debacle at humana and this..dd is reverting to mid 2000′s form which is not good.
Gene is funny. Sike
Wish he could stay healthy for four days straight
Watched him play in la quinta last week hes very solid
DD is back in shape and going to tear pebble up in two weeks
It’s taking a toll on me, rooting for this guy week after week. It started to look so hopeful, but now I’m a-fearin’ that it’s curtains for his career…
I guess the real question is why does he still get sponsors exemptions. He can’t get through Q School and when he does get exemptions he plays very badly. There are too many fantastic young players out there today. He doesn’t have a chance of making it again. I doubt if he could win on the Nationwide or even the Hooters Tour for that matter. His other problem is his arrogance. You know the saying “What Have You Done For Me Today” In his case nothing. Time for the sponsors to move on.
Time to stick a fork in Duval – he’s done
I just wish he could avoid that one or two bad holes a round. There were times last year where he could have posted a 67 or 68 but had a double-bogey or two, which cost him valuable spots on the leaderboard. Maybe this can be said for most other golfers, but for some reason it really sticks out for Duval.
His scores didn’t surprise me last week. Didn’t they play those courses in Q School finals? He wasn’t in contention past the midpoint of the tournament at Q School.
I for one liked Duval. His downfall ended up benig mental, as Duval developed the Driver yips. Unfortunately, in golf, that’s the first shot you usually hit, and when you are hitting it all over the map and trying to salvage par or evey bogey half the time, your confidence is destroyed, which typically makes the yips even worse.
Hank Haney spoke in long detail about his experience with the driver yips (Hank Haney is a VERY GOOD golfer – particularly short-game wise) and his extremely unorthodoxed yet successful way of dealing with them considering they are mental.
One nice thing about Duval is he still seems to have a pretty decent short game and is still a good putter. If he could start driving the ball in the fairway, he will to remember how to play from the fairway again. That might sound odd, but from the fairway, you have to start attacking the pins more often which means you need to get your distance control down and that can be difficult when you are typically hitting out of the rough.
I also have to agree that, as much as I would like to see it, Duval is past his prime, age wise, and he is still too far away from real progress to win a PGA Tour event again.
His best bet, if he really loves golf and wants to keep playing instead of becoming what I am sure would be a well payed golf instructor, etc., would be to just start preparing for the Champions Tour in my opinion.
I don’t like to say that because I have been waiting for too many years for him to turn it around…and like I said before, he is at the age where by the time he could get his yips straightened out, he might be too old to compete.
As a former WORLD #1, David draws sponsors’ exemptions because fans stll remember him as the great player he once was. And fans that believe in 2nd chances hope David can re-invent himself, as he did by finishing 2nd in a recent US OPen. The man still has game!
Duval has trouble just keeping a Tour Card now. In fact, Bowditch did better than he did. FYI: Bowditch has conditional status for 2012.
Miles, are you stoned. You saw DD play at Humana last week and he looks solid? I can shoot under par there, and I am a 3 handicap. DD slammed his trunk yet again, with another DEAD LAST PLACE showing before the cut. Over par on a course like that……should not be out there. He should go coach high school golf or something.
Have faith guys DD is going to surprise a lot of people this year
Go DD
He’s gotten real fat in the last few years.If he’d drop 40lbs maybe his game would come back..
Hes lost a bunch of weight over the last 2 months
Hes back using Titleist woods and hes still got the oakleys
Keep up to speed
That’s too funny Phil. Fans that believe in second chances? Who can really even understand what you’re talking about.
This isn’t about giving a criminal a second chance or anything like a second chance. Duval is still squarely in his first chance at being a professional golfer. It is not like Duval just ran away from the game for a couple years and came back. He was playing the entire time.
Why does he need a “second chance” Phil? I mean, I do myself believe in second chances, but not regarding what you are speaking about. Duval has had a 2nd chance, a 3rd chance, a 4th chance, etc..
Firstly, after his 2001 major, he had a 5 year exemption. After he was unable to accomplish anything in those five years, he used his top 50 in the all-time money list to keep his card the first time, then his top 25 on the all-time money list to keep his card again. Now he needs sponsors exemptions.
To me, it sounds like he has had plenty of chances, so I do not know what you are talking about Phil.
Yet, despite that, I would love to see Duval win again. I just personally think that at his age, he lacks the potential to climb back to any semblence of his original form, and even if he did, his original form wouldn’t be good enough to be ranked in the top 10 anymore considering the increased depth of fields over the last ten years.
Also, I do have to question Duval’s “pull.” He will have little to no impact to the event. There are no signs that he increases attendance or television ratings.
I do agree the man still has game..but its just a little too little a little too late.
To the authority he has the name David Duval and i repeat the original Oakley wearer
Much rather watch DD that some young guys we,ve never heard of
i guess the term is character
glad to hear he’s dropped some weight..hopefully it will make a difference..
After reading all the comments some pro some con the bottom line is DD is a fringe player now and because of his past accomplishments he will be able to get into tournaments and make money. He will get a t-10 or t-3 here and there until 2017 then he will wait for the champions tour where he will kill it for the first 2 years then go into TV. I remember seeing him play at the 92 bellsouth classic and I am thinking this guy is going to tear it up for the next 20 years but it actually was only 10 but still great career.
@ DB
David Duval sure as hell deserves more Sponsor Exemptions than that fat degenerate John Daly.
For starters, John Daly who causes controversy every single time he enters a tournament has declined going to Q School for 5 seasons in a row now. Daly failed to regain or retain his card in all 5 of these seasons at least in the last 5 years Duval has had full status after finishing top 125 in 2010 and conditional status a season prior to 2010. Daly hasnt been close at any time.
Daly walked off the course in 2 European Tour events in 2011 after receiving a healthy sum in appearance money. He also walked off the course in Australia after hitting would you believe, SEVEN consecutive shots into a water hazard within 1 minute. The guy just implodes. He doesn’t show any effort or commitment to get better, Duval does.
Todd Hamilton, Lee Janzen, Rich Beem, Shaun Micheel and John Daly all former Major Champions, never even close to World Number 1 has all received Sponsor exemptions on the PGA Tour in recent years so why can’t David Duval who is instantly recognizably better than any of these men have ever been and ever will be.
have* all …
Will Steven Bowditch have an impact on this tournament? Hang on a second let me get back to you on that one….
NO
Bowditch shot a 1st round 2 over par 74 tied 114th place and just 12 strokes from the lead.
I never mentioned John Daly – I agree – he is a jerk. I was at the Canadian Open year before last and he was a real tool. He was not nice to the gallery when he hit a very good shot out of the rough. It was a large gallery and they went nuts cheering after the shot. He didn’t even acknowledge the crowd – just walked up the Fairway. I have a friend who worked a PGA Event and Duval was playing. He said he was obnoxious to the workers on the course and also to the fans. He has always been arrogant – nose in the air hiding behind the Oakleys. The bottom line is he doesn’t draw any fans – most of the fans today could care less about watching him. He will go away soon. He won’t have a choice.
Everybody needs to take a second to think about what is: golf is a wonderful representation of life – positives, negatives and hope for success. No, David isn’t what he once was. But let’s not forget, none of us are. Tiger and Phil aren’t what they once were either. Yes – there are stories of past that David wasn’t as friendly and open towards people as he could have been. There’s also stories about people like me – who were inspired by David 13 years ago and have made out a career and a life in golf – as a Head Professional. It’s this impact that doesn’t show up in a newspaper, interview or a sports illustrated that keeps getting him into events. He’s grown into a terrific man and a great husband and father. It’s called growing up – and I’m guessing we all have acted in a way in our youth or young adulthood even that would embarrass us if called on it now – only nobody on this blog was even a fraction as much of a success as David. I hope he gets exemptions as long as he wants to keep playing – and I don’t care if he can break 80. It’s called faith. It’s called hope. It’s called redemption. And this world could use a little more of all of it – and rooting for it as well.
Get well soon David.
Having followed DD for the past few years what I notice is that after a great hole or a couple, he loses his focus and then hold the horses, Nellie. If he doesn’t have one, he should invest in a mental coach because that is precisely his problem. I am sure he rues the day after the British Open when he wondered if “this is all there is” in playing golf.
And, he has been too heavy in comparison to his “glory” days.
All that said, when he does his magic it is still a thing of beauty…more impressive to my mind that TW.
Definitely painful to continue rooting for him…. think he’s putting too much pressure on himself. Wish him all the best hope he gets that elusive next win soon.
DD is not done. He puts together some good rounds. Just not 4 in a row. I for one want nothing more than to see DD holding up a trophy on a sunday afternoon. Get well soon DD!!
DD is going to win again, he just has to keep the ball in the fairway off the tee to keep the DB’s off his card
I agree that it’s getting frustrating trying to keep rooting for him. He’s still got the talent, but something, probably in his head, keeps jumping up at him. Don’t know how many double-bogeys kept him from making the cut last year, but it was a bunch. Is it course management or bad shots? I don’t know. If they kept statistics on DB’s, he’d be way up there, maybe at the top, among the top 150 players. It’s tougher these days than 15 years ago; I’m not sure he’s got enough ‘fire in his belly’ anymore. If he flubs a few more sponsors exemptions, he may be done for. Too bad; nice guy, great talent, and he probably even reads a hard-covered book now and then!
at least the guy showed up to q school he didnt have to. i watched him on the weekend and i’ve played my whole life and the conditions out there were awful. people think those courses in the desert are just so easy. try 40 mph of wind and 6 rounds of golf. anybody been number 1 in the world, the guy is a great example of character. he’s already winning.
Double Duval is a man of character, talent and too many DOUBLE bogeys. Painful to watch him “sh*t the bed” again and again.
After last weeks DFL and this weeks WD, sponsors will start to re-think giving him exemptions. Even die-hard fans are reluctant to watch one shooting rounds continually over par when young guns are out lighting it up.
Time is running out as even this website list’s Double Duval as a “grizzeled vet”.
Still, along with Freddie’s, my two favorite swings in golf.
He could win again but he’ll have to “catch the wind” like Watson did at the Open and hang on. The fact is though that he had a chance at a hall of fame career and just mentally wasn’t prepared. Still, look at Stricker in his forties.
DB,you might be confusing arrogant with reserved. David has always been a quiet guy. I would question your sources at the even. I hate that he lost his game, but I still check the leaderboards daily when he plays, hoping he can get it back. When I’m ready to give up hope, he makes a run at the U.S. Open. Some of you seem angry because he struggles, others seem happy that he struggles. And I’m certain none of you have ever mastered anything to the extent that he mastered golf for a four or five year period. I bet you get the yips wiping your butt.