Fort What it's Worth

House cat Xander Schauffele bolted out the front door when his owners weren't watching, winning his first Major! It was a bunched leaderboard, and pretty exciting down the stretch... proving you don't need "good" courses to have an entertaining product.

But was Valhalla actually "bad?" In my opinion, yes... for a Major. Let's look at the three lowest total scoring by the field in PGA Championship history:

2024 Valhalla: -214

1995 Riviera: +40

2018 Bellerive: +59

I know that par is a social construct... but a 254 stroke difference between the lowest and second lowest aggregate field totals? Ever?

Valhalla didn't test anyone. Double bogeys practically didn't exist. And it was still fun to watch.

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The TOUR goes back to sleep for a couple of weeks, starting with the Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial. The only interesting thing is the course underwent a $20M renovation by Gil Hanse over the last 12 months. The "historic" restoration returned most of the layout to its original intent and playability, resulting in an easier test for the members. So the pros are going to destroy this place. It'll probably feel like the PGA Championship!

The field is ok... with World .#1 Scottie Scheffler playing. So much for dad duty. Such a huge deal was made about possibly WDing from Augusta, only to now play 2 of three weekends since the birth? And he had time to get arrested? This reeks of an au pair situation.

Hovland, Morikawa, and Homa round out the other guys in the top 10.

Xander is skipping... probably outside chasing blue jays with his newfound freedom.

"An American golfer portrayed as a house cat, playfully chasing blue jays in the backyard of a suburban house. In the style of a watercolor character illustration. There should be a light wash to the watercolor painting with minor texture from the watercolor paper."

Good luck!