1 – Crunch the numbers

For his fourth-place finish in the International Series Macau, Patrick Reed hauled in 4.40888 world-ranking points. Doesn’t sound like much. But it depends on what he did with the points. If he exchanged them at the casino window, he would have received a shade under 33 Macanese Pataca.

2 – Trust a golfer, not a math guru

Saw that Padraig Harrington weighed in recently with some critiques about how the Strokes Gained: Putting category could be improved. Not my forte, nor am I really interested, but here’s my take: I’d trust Padraig Harrington over a team of mathematicians who have created an insufferable sea of data.

3 – Study Scheffler, be in awe of Woods

By all means, salute Scottie Scheffler, who is riding quite a heater. But perspective, friends, perspective, because he’s no Tiger Woods. Want proof? Compare the numbers for the first 113 tournaments of their pro careers. Wins: Woods 28, Scheffler 8. Majors: Woods 6, Scheffler 1. Missed cuts: Woods 1, Scheffler 16.

4 – Have you heard, it’s a walking game

Why do golf clubs allow a foursome of young’ins in their 20s to take carts? This needs to be stopped.

5 – Caddies bring the flavor

Which segues nicely into what would be a wonderful pre-season goal for any serious golfer: Commit to taking a caddie at least once in 2024.

6 – Please, go

When people ask, “Should I go on a golf trip to Ireland or Scotland?” the answer rarely differs. “Only if you want to have fun and savor the game as it was meant to be played.”

7 – A little too much, no?

We should care what Rory McIlroy thinks. But could the media stop shoveling it out on a daily basis? How ‘bout spreading it out like a major, every few months or so.

8 – Hey, while we’re young

How slow are these negotiations going between the PGA Tour and PIF? My ball speed is exponentially quicker.

9 – That’s going to make it tougher

A friend of mine worked a lot on his game over the winter and is totally exasperated. “Right now, I’m taking the middle of the course out of play,” he sighed.