Second Thoughts

Golfers say 59 still score to shoot for

The magic number for golfers to shoot for since 1977 has been 59. Jim Furyk, who had a 59 in 2013, upped the ante when he shot a 58 in August.
The magic number for golfers to shoot for since 1977 has been 59. Jim Furyk, who had a 59 in 2013, upped the ante when he shot a 58 in August.

Bubba Watson was 7 under through nine holes in the second round of the Hero World Challenge, such a strong start that it might have led someone to declare a "59 watch."

It rarely happens, of course, though it does lead to one question.

Isn't the target now 58?

Golf established its magic number in 1977 when Al Geiberger shot 59 in the Memphis Classic. It was matched 14 years later by Chip Beck in Las Vegas, and then David Duval at the Bob Hope Classic (1999), Paul Goydos at the John Deere Classic and Stuart Appleby at The Greenbrier Classic (both in 2010), and Jim Furyk at the BMW Championship in 2013.

Then Furyk shot 58 at the Travelers Championship this summer.

Isn't that the new standard? The new "watch?"

"Probably not," Hunter Mahan said. "Fifty-nine is a special number in golf. It's pretty sacred. Until there's numerous 58s, it's not going to change. To start out with a '5' is a cool thing."

Appleby says a "59 watch" still should apply out of respect to those who have one. He was smiling because he's one of them. He said when people have gone nearly 40 years thinking 59 was the number, that won't change overnight.

"I guess it might have been like when Henry Ford invented the automobile, but people still talked about a horse-and-buggy," he said.

The point of such a score is that it starts with a 5. Besides, no one would ever say that someone is on a sub-60 watch. There have been seven scores in the 50s on the PGA Tour since 1977. But there have been 32 scores at 60, starting with Al Brosch in 1951 at the Texas Open.

"It's still cool to be the in 50s," Stewart Cink said. "I don't care if it happens once a week for the next 10 years, it's still pretty cool for someone to get there."

Furyk made par on the last hole at the TPC River Highlands to shoot his 58, and even he thinks a "59 watch" is still appropriate. Furyk said golf's magic number on the PGA Tour lasted too long for it to be anything else.

"That barrier of 60 is still pretty cool," said Furyk, the only player to have done it twice. "I still think someone is going to shoot 58, and someone is probably someday going to shoot 57. I hope I get to hold onto it like Geiberger did for 39 years. Other guys will shoot 58. But if 40 years from now someone shoots 57, that would be really cool. I'll be in my 80s."

Cost effective?

What's the cost of winning? For Cubs' fans, it's approximately 20 percent, according to Jon Greenberg of The Athletic.

"The biggest price jump is in the best seating section in the park, club box infield," Greenberg wrote. "Those seats will jump around 31 percent to $154.13. Club box outfield seats are spiking 29.8 percent to $115.87. Field box infield seats are up 20 percent ($112) and field box outfield seats are up 28.8 percent ($89.73). Those four, well-attended sections close to the field make up almost 11,000 seats."

The average single game ticket will be about $66, which is in line with what fans of the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox pay per game. As Greenberg notes, that figure could make the Cubs the most expensive ticket in baseball.

Sports quiz

The Oakland Raiders last qualified for the NFL playoffs in this year.

Sports answer

2002

Sports on 12/07/2016

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