Althouse: "I guess America has a new favorite Bubba."

April 9, 2012

"I guess America has a new favorite Bubba."

Ha.

37 comments:

john said...: Whatashot!

But whats with hugging your caddie longer than hugging your mama?; 4/9/12, 12:34 PM
A. Shmendrik said...: What's with having a wife who is 6'4"?; 4/9/12, 12:36 PM
edutcher said...: Anybody but Willie.

A. Shmendrik said...

What's with having a wife who is 6'4"?

She's worth the climb?; 4/9/12, 12:45 PM
Alex said...: Only a total loon would think of that 54 degree wedge shot from the trees.; 4/9/12, 12:48 PM
I'm Full of Soup said...: I hear Sharpton & Jesse Jackson are planning a protest. They are outraged that a white guy named Bubba won the Masters while they only let the African come in 2nd.; 4/9/12, 12:57 PM
Craig said...: Depends on the course you play. I get lots of practice on shots like that. But I'd have used an eight iron and the ball wouldn't have stopped on the green. The announcers forgot to mention that he hit his tee shot 340 yards. The South African's drive was about 260.; 4/9/12, 12:59 PM
Hagar said...: Bubba Watson is almost as much fun to watch as Tiger.; 4/9/12, 1:00 PM
Craig said...: His swing coach is Happy Gilmore.; 4/9/12, 1:12 PM
Tibore said...: There's no better Bubba than Bugga Ho-tep. I mean, it took the combined efforts of Elvis and JFK to take him out! :D; 4/9/12, 1:28 PM
David said...: He is being considered for CEO of IBM.; 4/9/12, 1:36 PM
kjbe said...: Awesome shot and great last round for those two...Love that Bubba was a mess when it was all over.; 4/9/12, 1:51 PM
traditionalguy said...: Watson reminds me of my son and his many friends. A large collection of friends will help you out when you need them and that is what makes life a safe place.

The unique Watson sparkle comes from his will to experiment with whatever he sees like a child who doesn't know things can't be done. What's with a 6'4'' wife? Bubba found out for himself.

He was raised in the agricultural area called Milton, Florida. That is 40 miles inland from Destin. It is a unique area that has a red clay base underlying its sandy soil. That allows for fertilizer to be held near the surface which cannot happen in sandy soil alone areas. The water table there is 3 to 4 feet under the sand. The crops are usually cotton and soybeans.

The area is rich in Military bases and training areas from the Navy over in in Pensacola to the Air Force at Eglin (the largest military reservation in the US) which is home to Ranger and Seal training.

As for red neck, it is the essence of red neck. It is Lower Alabama with a white population that is at 85%, but due to the presence of military retirees, the education levels are some of the highest found in America.; 4/9/12, 2:10 PM
traditionalguy said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 4/9/12, 2:10 PM
Alex said...: Let's go Phil!; 4/9/12, 2:16 PM
Curious George said...: GOlf fans like Bubba because he isn't the conventional pro with a swing coach, strength coach, dietician, and pshrink. He's just some huckleberry that has taught himself to play golf and do it well. Plus he can hit the beejezuz out of the ball.

Nick Faldo mentioned o the air the day before that he was watching Watson hit wedges to a flag on the range with many different ball fights. SOmetimes I think he gets to creative in his approaches, but it served him well on #1o yesterday.; 4/9/12, 2:58 PM
Christy said...: I, for one, was flabergasted that he could make that shot intentionally. Disappointed for the South African, but happy for Bubba.; 4/9/12, 3:13 PM
David said...: It's been done before.

Think Sam Snead.

Sam Snead, Bubba. That's mighty fine company, and you deserve it.; 4/9/12, 3:27 PM
I'm Full of Soup said...: Bubba is one gangly dude. Appears to have no muscle tone at all. Amazing that he is the longest driver on the tour.; 4/9/12, 3:29 PM
David said...: Check his flexibility and balance, AJ. Even with all his quirky swings, he's rarely out of balance. That takes strength.; 4/9/12, 4:04 PM
lemondog said...: Born in Bagdad; 4/9/12, 4:35 PM
Deborah M. said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 4/9/12, 4:55 PM
Deb said...: I don't know anything about golf, but if you're from Georgia, you know at least one Bubba. If you're not related to a Bubba, you went to school with one.

As for red neck, it is the essence of red neck. It is Lower Alabama...
Also known as The Redneck Riviera.; 4/9/12, 4:57 PM
Deb said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 4/9/12, 5:03 PM
traditionalguy said...: Another thing about the Santa Rosa/Milton area is that the civilian employees for Contractors like Boeing, Lockheed, and General Dynamics, who are embeded with the the Defense Department, form a large percentage of the population, and many stay on there for retirement.

The Smart Bombs, Bunker Busters, and many other weapons and thir delivery systems are being continually engineered and tested at Eglin AFB by well educated scientists. (Loud concussions are taken for granted)

The kids at local schools are the children raised by those people as well as by the Military men and by a few cotton farmers.

So , Red Neck there is an attitude that has nothing to do with education or IQ levels.; 4/9/12, 5:41 PM
bagoh20 said...: I don't play golf, so when someone like me hears how the sport and the players exploits are described, it's pretty hilarious to realize they are talking about hitting that little ball with a club and pushing it in a hole. Cracks me up.; 4/9/12, 5:51 PM
Alex said...: bagoh - actually professional golf is a very highly skilled activity.; 4/9/12, 5:55 PM
Humperdink said...: "pushing it in a hole. Cracks me up."

That's what the other Bubba was famous for.; 4/9/12, 6:01 PM
tree hugging sister said...: We like being the "Redneck Riviera" down here Pensacola way.

Keeps our little secret safe, because whatever's in the blue-green water is EXTRAORDINARY. (And I forgot to include Trent Richardson in THAT post.); 4/9/12, 6:18 PM
tree hugging sister said...: And that's for a county (Escambia) with a population hovering just under 300K, by the way. Santa Rosa next door (Bubba hails from Milton) clocks in at 151K.

We're not a population center by any stretch.; 4/9/12, 6:24 PM
sakredkow said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 4/9/12, 7:43 PM
traditionalguy said...: The Golf Channel just showed a one hour interview done earlier by the Northern Irish commentator, David Feherty.

Golfers, and non-golfers too, need see that. It is worth it.

Watson was so good at authentic and funny interpersonal communicatios, that he set a new standard for Sports personalities.

It was the first time in many years that a character in a TV interview has had me laughing and crying at the same time.; 4/9/12, 8:12 PM
Carnifex said...: Bubba is a city slicker up next to Boo Weekly. Now THAT is one corn pone chewing', RC sippin', Moon pie eatin', mush mouth talkin', country boy.

Pro J.B. Holmes, led UK's golf team a few years ago. He had to change his name after he left Kentucky. First name John, no middle initial. He was famous for his long ball, no joke, big driver, not a innuendo,...well, okay, maybe a little...except for him...gonna stop now.

Louisville hosted the Ryder Cup in '08. Those dang Euro-trashies has no idea how to handle us hillbillies. Some actually got snooty. We don't do snooty here. The snoots got heckled even more.

Great moment in golf.; 4/9/12, 10:11 PM
bagoh20 said...: "bagoh - actually professional golf is a very highly skilled activity."

I don't doubt that at all, and I know it takes a lot of work to get good at it, but it is still hitting a little ball with a club and then pushing it in a hole. So when I hear golfers described as heroic, dominating, or overpowering it's just damned funny. It has a certain naked emperor sound to it.; 4/9/12, 11:07 PM
Craig said...: He's played eight events this year with four top fives and eight top twenties. That means he's earning over a thousand dollars a shot on average.; 4/9/12, 11:28 PM
T J Sawyer said...: I notice that a lot of writers are having trouble spelling Bubba's home town of "Bagdad."

See my blog post for photos of the signs, plus get some of the local color at:
http://sawyertravel.blogspot.com/2012/03/visit-to-bagdad-and-munson-too.html

I was sitting in a restaurant in Milton (think of Bagdad as a "suburb" of Milton) a few weeks ago when the last member of table of locals walked in. "Did you see the price of gas today?" says one. "I hope it goes to $6 before election day," says the newcomer.

It's a very nice area of the country. Bubba's high school in Milton has an entry in my "airplane on a stick" posts too.; 4/10/12, 12:28 AM
tree hugging sister said...: We are lickin' our moonshine swillin' chops, waitin' for Boo to heal up well 'nuff to get back into golf full time.

Right proud of these local boys.; 4/10/12, 6:34 AM
james conrad said...: CONGRATS BUBBA! According to Bubba golf, "If I have a swing, I’ve got a shot,"; 4/10/12, 7:33 AM