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** Virtual U.S. Amateur: The Final Four is Set! ***

• WGTicon 12,511 Posts

  Tue, Aug 27 2019 5:49 PM

  

   

  The four players going to Topgolf Las Vegas are...

  After an intense bracket competition that started with the top 64 players from the Qualifier, we're down to the last 4 players in the 2019 Virtual U.S. Amateur.  

  Top seeds Young46 (USA) and fmagnets (UK), 6-seed birchi (GER) and 16-seed malini4life(CAN) will be traveling to Las Vegas in September to compete live in the semifinal and championship rounds – which will be live streamed so you can follow along at home!

  The live stream will include both semifinal matches and the final championship match, as players compete for the Virtual U.S. Amateur trophy, $2,000 in gift cards, a Phigolf WGT Edition and their choice of tickets to the 2020 U.S. Amateur or U.S. Open. 

  Stay tuned for more information on where to watch the live streams and save the date: Saturday, September 21!

  See full bracket results here

  -WGTicon

• Chicubs10 24 Posts

  Wed, Aug 28 2019 8:11 AM

  How about a shot clock on these tournaments.  Watching these guys programming on their computer to calculate break and such was excruciating.  Not sure that's how you meant it to be.

• Kenher01 1,151 Posts

  Wed, Aug 28 2019 3:45 PM

  There was a 45 sec shot Clock in the live play In Denmark recently & in this same event last year's Live Final in Atlanta had a 60 sec Shot Clock

• BHenke2 397 Posts

  Wed, Aug 28 2019 4:09 PM

  Hopefully they will limit the amount of aids that will be allowed like they did during the last live competition. I don't want to watch people punch numbers into a spreadsheet and then hit their shot. I'd rather watch paint dry. The way they did it last time was worth watching. 

• birchi 1,492 Posts

  Wed, Aug 28 2019 9:18 PM

  BHenke2:

  Hopefully they will limit the amount of aids that will be allowed like they did during the last live competition. I don't want to watch people punch numbers into a spreadsheet and then hit their shot. I'd rather watch paint dry. The way they did it last time was worth watching. 

  I have nothing at all against people using excel sheets, rulers or other devices to help them play; I usually rely on excel for my putting distances myself and have my iron distances written down. 

  That being said, from the point of view of a casual player or maybe someone who's not familiar with the game at all yet (I imagine getting new people to join this game is part of the motivation to put these events on) it's incredibly lame to watch someone play with all these tools. 

  I'm all for a setup that requires quick thinking and minimal technical support to make the viewing experience more exciting. Especially on a monotonous setup like Pinehurst in even lies where there's literally no need at all for creative shots. 45 seconds should be the maximum for the shot clock. I'd prefer a shorter one as watching three/four games in a row for the Denmark event was already kind of a drag, but I realize that some putts would be too rushed with a 30 second shot clock. 

• Ezzy123450 209 Posts

  Sat, Sep 7 2019 6:54 AM

  ts just a shame that 1/2 of the top player community were left out of this tournament due to "ineligible country" ... while one finalist is known to reside and play in an ineligible country (just has a convenient 2nd address).

  Seriously, why not make it open to ALL WGT players ... I can name 5 p[layers right now who are every bit as good as the best player to qualify, but were not allowed in.

  ... and while we are at it ... wouldn't it be nice to have the ability to setup 2 players in a bracket heads up ... play the EXACT same conditions?  ... bet WGT could do it if they wanted to spend the programming hours on this.

• WaLk0fLiFe 285 Posts

  Sun, Sep 8 2019 9:11 PM

  Not sure why some people are so against using math. Everything a spreadsheet does can be done on a hand calculator within the 45 sec shot clock. The sheet just saves time. I will never understand the hang up about math in this game. This is not real golf but even in real golf players/caddies are calculating shots to some extent.

  Do you dislike calculating because you don't know how to do it? so others shouldn't be allowed to do it? Or maybe you don't enjoy playing the game that way so others shouldn't either? Or it's not the way the game was "meant" to be played?  The last one is particularly funny to me lol I don't understand the logic.

• Yiannis1970 3,305 Posts

  Mon, Sep 9 2019 12:16 AM

  You don't understand the logic (thank God there's some logic behind...) but at the same time it is particularly funny to you. Well...that's a square logic statement. Usually, we first understand a point of view before judging it.

• DodgyPutter 4,690 Posts

  Mon, Sep 9 2019 1:48 AM

  WaLk0fLiFe:

  Do you dislike calculating because you don't know how to do it? so others shouldn't be allowed to do it? Or maybe you don't enjoy playing the game that way so others shouldn't either? Or it's not the way the game was "meant" to be played?  The last one is particularly funny to me lol I don't understand the logic.

  Hmmm I think even us lowly players calculate, the assumption before/after seems to be that means using a spreadsheet and we don't all do that.  That is what some don't want to see when watching these games, much better a fast as possible paced game of people hitting shots.  If this is under pressure of the clock and some mistakes are made then I'd like it all the better.  It would be good to see four top players pushed to their limits and see how well they respond. I'd like to see a maximum of 30sec on the clock, maybe with a couple of timeouts in case really needed.

  If these really are questions wanting an answer then taken as read the answer to all is no for me.

  If I change calculating to spreadsheets there is some point to it.

  Do you dislike calculating because you don't know how to do it? so others shouldn't be allowed to do it?

  I suppose I would like it if nobody used them as my place in the rankings would rise a bit. I'm not asking for/expecting them to be be banned though and that's nothing to do with this anyway, I would like to watch games played in the way I said above.

   Or maybe you don't enjoy playing the game that way so others shouldn't either? 

  Not really relevant to this, but fair to say I don't enjoy watching the game played that way.

  Or it's not the way the game was "meant" to be played?  The last one is particularly funny to me lol I don't understand the logic.

  I don't really either, apart from four people it's about how the game is to watch.  Or are you suggesting one of the four have that view? 

  WGT can't ever stop the use of spreadsheets wind arrows etc and wouldn't anyway, too many people would stop playing.  In this competition they can ban and allow whatever they want and make it better or worse to watch by what they do in that regard.

  
  

• WaLk0fLiFe 285 Posts

  Mon, Sep 9 2019 2:41 AM

  AS far as pace of play. Personally I would prefer seeing the highest quality play over speed. I wish they could set 45s approach clock and 60s green clock for putting. I don't think the average viewer would play a 30s shot clock often so I don't see 45s or even 60s pace of play being an issue for most viewers.

   

  WGT could ban rulers and sheets tomorrow and it wouldn't affect me at all in terms of RG results or general tournaments finishes. My scores would not change. I am fine with not allowing the sheets/rulers, especially in the live play/streamed events. It is a gross misconception that spreadsheets "make" a player. Vast majority of the top guys would still be top guys using just a calculator.