{"id":282888,"date":"2025-11-14T01:00:09","date_gmt":"2025-11-14T01:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/282888\/"},"modified":"2025-11-14T01:00:09","modified_gmt":"2025-11-14T01:00:09","slug":"fred-couples-ryder-cup-change-and-my-favorite-ghost-story","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/282888\/","title":{"rendered":"Fred Couples\u2019 Ryder Cup change and my favorite ghost story"},"content":{"rendered":"

Welcome! Where are you, you ask. I\u2019m calling this the Weekend 9. Think of it as a spot to warm you up for Friday, Saturday and Sunday. We\u2019ll have thoughts. We\u2019ll have tips. We\u2019ll have tweets. But just nine in all, though sometimes maybe more and sometimes maybe less. As for who I am? The paragraphs below tell some of the story. I can be reached at nick.piastowski@golf.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Aaron Rai believed in ghosts.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I was thinking back on that last weekend, when Rai won the DP World Tour\u2019s Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship and folks learned more about the gentlemanly Englishman. His story is a good one, too, and on Instagram earlier this week<\/a>, GOLF\u2019s Dylan Dethier wonderfully gave all the reasons why. There\u2019s an intellectualness to him. He\u2019s a thinker.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

And that came across a couple of years ago as we walked down the 7th fairway at Oak Hill and talked about Buffalo Bill \u2014 who has been dead for over 100 years, but perhaps occasionally still visited a stream that cuts through the hole.\u00a0<\/p>\n

I\u2019d learned that as part of our staff\u2019s preparation for the 2023 PGA Championship held at Oak Hill, then I kept digging. For a few years, Bill Cody lived near the course in Rochester, N.Y., But maybe kept returning. The club\u2019s one-time historian, who I\u2019d been told was a no-nonsense person, once wrote this:<\/p>\n

\u201cSome say there are ghosts at Oak Hill!\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWalk down No. 7 fairway on a warm summer night, for instance. Huddled on the creek bank, they say, if you look closely, you may chance to see the dim silhouette of some fishing. Look more closely, and you may be able to discern a large rakish hat, a flowing mustache, and perhaps even boots.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s Buffalo Bill, they say. The sharpshooting Wild West showman who used to hunt and fish on these grounds back in the 1870s. \u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWilliam F. Cody, better known as \u2018Buffalo Bill\u2019 for his amazing skill with a rifle, spent his early years as a rugged frontiersman of the American West. In the 1870s, however, he brought his family to Rochester to live.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile here, the grounds that were later to become today\u2019s Oak Hill were Buffalo Bill\u2019s favorite hunting and fishing spot. At that time, he also was already active in his famous Wild West shows.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAlthough Buffalo Bill\u2019s grave is on Lookout Mountain in Colorado, three of his family are buried in Rochester\u2019s Mt. Hope Cemetery.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cShould we really wonder at all that he may still be visiting Rochester now and then, and walking the green grass of Oak Hill\u2019s beautiful fairways \u2026 when the nights are warm and still.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

What a story!\u00a0<\/p>\n

I called a pair of Buffalo Bill museums. I talked to a psychic medium in Rochester \u2014 and she taught me how to summon ghosts. I talked to Oak Hill\u2019s current club historian, who agreed to walk down to the 7th with me when I got to the course. I also talked to a couple of players about it all, and mostly everyone shrugged me off when they learned I was writing about a potential visitor from the great beyond.\u00a0<\/p>\n


\n \"Aaron <\/a><\/p>\n

\u2018Buffalo Bill, please appear\u2019: Inside the search to find Oak Hill\u2019s ghost at the PGA Championship<\/a><\/p>\n

By:<\/p>\n


\n Nick Piastowski <\/a><\/p>\n

Then there was Rai.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Two days before the PGA, he was playing the 7th. I approached.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Aaron, hey, this is Nick from GOLF.com. Can I walk with you a bit?<\/p>\n

I could.\u00a0<\/p>\n

OK, this will be the strangest question you\u2019ll be asked all week, but \u2026 do you believe in ghosts?<\/p>\n

He did. His reasoning was deep. \u201cI think a ghost is also a spirit,\u201d Rai said. \u201cI think all living things have some kind of spirit. I just believe that; there\u2019s more to living beings than just our physical form.\u201d<\/p>\n

We kept walking. I filled him in about Buffalo Bill. We reached the water. I delivered the words that the psychic medium told me.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Nothing.\u00a0<\/p>\n

At that point, I thanked Rai for his time and wanted to wish him well \u2014but he interrupted me.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He asked if he could try to summon the ghost.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Yes, yes you can!<\/p>\n

So he tried. Nothing again, unfortunately. I reached out my hand to shake his \u2014 but he wasn\u2019t done.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He wanted to know if we both could try.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Yes, yes we can!\u00a0<\/p>\n

And we did. But no Buffalo Bill. After this attempt, I thanked him repeatedly, and he was on his way.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

And I had the lead of my story<\/a> two years ago. And today.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s see if we can find eight more items for the Weekend 9.\u00a0<\/p>\n

One takeaway for the weekend\u00a0<\/p>\n


\n \"Kai <\/a><\/p>\n

2 ways to think about Kai Trump\u2019s controversial LPGA invite<\/a><\/p>\n

By:<\/p>\n


\n Josh Schrock <\/a><\/p>\n

2. Is this week\u2019s Annika tournament<\/a> the most talked-about LPGA event of the year?\u00a0<\/p>\n

Yes, it seems like it.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Could it be the most important, though?<\/p>\n

One of the golf side of things, hell no. There are the majors. There\u2019s next week\u2019s big-money CME Group Tour Championship. The schedule is filled with meaningful tournaments.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But there\u2019s buzz this week. How many words and videos did you see of Wednesday\u2019s pro-am featuring basketball superstar Caitlin Clark? How many sights and sounds will you see over the coming days from Kai Trump<\/a>, the granddaughter of the president who received a sponsor invite to the Annika?\u00a0<\/p>\n

How many new folks will be curious about everyone else? Maybe a few.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Maybe they\u2019ll stick around, too.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Because the golf alone should be enough to get you to tune in.\u00a0<\/p>\n

3. I thought it was strange, though, that you could see only about a half-hour of Trump\u2019s play during Thursday\u2019s broadcast.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Another takeaway for the weekend\u00a0<\/p>\n

4. On SiriusXM\u2019s \u201cKatrek and Maginnes On Tap\u201d show this week, Fred Couples<\/a> had a suggestion for the Ryder Cup.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

There needs to be fewer people near the players.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI know that\u2019s really selfish to say, and it\u2019s all that I know,\u201d Couples said on the show. \u201cI know that when I go play at Augusta, even after \u201992 when I won, you go out Saturday and Sunday, you don\u2019t want your car full of 10 people. You\u2019re driving to the course, I want to go on my own terms, the car comes back, it picks everyone else up. I don\u2019t want to say hi to 400 people, I don\u2019t want to be in line at breakfast. I want to go with my partner. Let\u2019s say I was playing with Davis Love in 1993, but I don\u2019t want to be around a lot of people. And at the Ryder Cup, we\u2019re around a lot of people.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe answer is, so are they. There are team dinners, there\u2019s a big dinner where you put a tuxedo on, and all that \u2014 that\u2019s part of life. But I think in the team rooms, I would really like to just see the 12 guys and maybe even their caddies, but there\u2019s no real reason for the caddie to be in there unless he\u2019s telling them, hey, in my locker I got my rain gear, it looks like it\u2019s going to rain. I just think less is more to these players. When they go play in the majors, they don\u2019t have people around them. And I think in the Ryder Cup, you just have too much around you, and I think it\u2019s upsetting.\u00a0<\/p>\n


\n \"bernhard <\/a><\/p>\n

The secret to Bernhard Langer\u2019s success boils down to 3 little words<\/a><\/p>\n

By:<\/p>\n


\n Michael Bamberger <\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cAnd then when you get behind, then guess what happens? Everyone pats you on the back; \u2018we\u2019re going to get them today.\u2019 You\u2019re not going to get them today unless you go out and get them. I\u2019m not a rah-rah guy, never have been. The Presidents Cup is much, much, much easier to run than the Ryder Cup for a captain. But I just feel like there\u2019s so much sensation of it\u2019s a rah-rah thing, and I just don\u2019t see it \u2014 I see it as golf.\u201d<\/p>\n

Couples then had a thought on the crowds.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it got out of control in New York. I wish, let\u2019s just say you and I were golf fans and we went to New York to watch. Fifty-thousand people watching four groups? It\u2019s impossible. And you say, well, how do we do? There wasn\u2019t 50,000 people when I played, and they made money, and they did great. Now it\u2019s a cash cow, but you don\u2019t need 50,000 people watching four groups of golf.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s impossible to see; it takes the sting away.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

You can listen to the complete show here<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

One more takeaway for the weekend\u00a0<\/p>\n

5. Ahead of this week\u2019s Butterfield Bermuda Championship<\/a>, Sahith Theegala<\/a> was asked for a memory of his grouping in 2021 with Brian Morris<\/a>, a Bermuda pro who died in 2023 due to cancer \u2014 and Theegala shared this story of the colorful player.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, he said some words that I can\u2019t repeat here, but one of the statements was \u2014 it just made me laugh. He was talking about, hey, man \u2014 this was like early on in the time. Like I didn\u2019t know how to bring up the cancer with him, but at some point I was just like I\u2019m just going to talk about it, he seemed so chill.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cLike, \u2018Man, how\u2019s it been, how\u2019s everyone treating you, like what\u2019s your prognosis?\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s like, \u2018S**t, Sahith, now that I have cancer I can say whatever the F I want, I can do whatever I want, I can ask for something.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the darkest times of his life and I\u2019m sure those around him, he\u2019s able to be \u2014 still show his humorous side and never took it for granted every day that he still had a life. There was a lot moments like that out there.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cHe hit some \u2014 he whiffed a few shots, and the first thing, he put his hand around me and just gave me a hug. He\u2019s like, \u2018Sahith, F this game, man, it\u2019s the worst game ever.\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cBut he also said multiple times it\u2019s the best game ever and golf has saved his life pretty much. I think he attributes a lot of his kind of just relationships that he made through golf and why he felt like he was so lucky in his life.\u201d<\/p>\n

A tweet that interests me\u00a0<\/p>\n

6. I thought the tweet below<\/a> was interesting.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A video that interests me\u00a0<\/p>\n

7. I thought the video below<\/a> was interesting.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Good news of the week\u00a0<\/p>\n

8. This story here<\/a>, written by Ben Gagnon of the County Press, is good.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Eldrick Norris of Michigan and his dad recently won $225 for winning a tournament \u2014 and the fourth-grader donated the money to his school.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Said his principal, Jennifer Christian: \u201cI didn\u2019t know what to say. I asked him what he wanted and what we could do for him, and he said he wanted churros back on the lunch menu and some basketballs and footballs for recess. He\u2019s just a great kid with a great family.\u201d<\/p>\n

What golf is on TV this weekend?<\/p>\n

9. Here\u2019s a rundown of golf on TV this weekend:<\/p>\n

\u2013 Friday\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

2 a.m.-8 a.m. ET: DP World Tour Championship second round, Golf Channel\u00a0<\/p>\n

10 a.m.-1 p.m. ET: The Annika second round, Golf Channel\u00a0<\/p>\n

1 p.m.-4 p.m. ET: Butterfield Bermuda Championship second round, Golf Channel\u00a0<\/p>\n

4 p.m.-6:30 p.m. ET: Charles Schwab Cup Championship second round, Golf Channel\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2013 Saturday\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

2 a.m.-8 a.m. ET: DP World Tour Championship third round, Golf Channel\u00a0<\/p>\n

11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. ET: Butterfield Bermuda Championship third round, Golf Channel\u00a0<\/p>\n

2:30 p.m.-4:30 p.m. ET: The Annika third round, Golf Channel\u00a0<\/p>\n

4:30 p.m.-7 p.m. ET: Charles Schwab Cup Championship third round, Golf Channel\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2013 Sunday\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

1:30 a.m.-7:30 a.m. ET: DP World Tour Championship final round, Golf Channel\u00a0<\/p>\n

11 a.m.-2 p.m. ET: Butterfield Bermuda Championship final round, Golf Channel\u00a0<\/p>\n

2 p.m.-4 p.m. ET: The Annika final round, Golf Channel\u00a0<\/p>\n

4 p.m.-6:30 p.m. ET: Charles Schwab Cup Championship final round, Golf Channel\u00a0<\/p>\n

Something you can listen to this weekend\u00a0<\/p>\n

10. Let\u2019s do 10 items! Recently, I was a guest on the \u201cGolf to Go\u201d show to talk about our prison golf story<\/a>, and you can listen by clicking on the icon below<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

One non-golf story\u00a0<\/p>\n

11. Doesn\u2019t the Weekend 9 typically appear on Fridays? It does. So why Thursday? Because, over the weekend, I\u2019m visiting a couple of colleges with my nephew.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Please feel free to email me conversation topics for the 10-plus hours we\u2019ll be in a car.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

“><\/p>\n