If any of you caught Kenny Perry's post-round comments on CBS, The Golf Channel or in the press room, then you witnessed a strong display of sportsmanship.
Perry was clearly disheartened and upset about the loss, but handled it all with class. He said that even though he lost the tournament, he was proud of Angel Cabrera. Here are a few tidbits:
Perry concluded his interview with Jim Gray by saying that "not everyone can be great" and that he's just "an average guy."
10 PGA Tour wins since the turn of the century and a hometown Ryder Cup victory goes a long way. So does an exemplary attitude. He's great in my book.
It seems ironic, doesn't it? The tournament that draws the biggest crowds on Tour had a playoff finish that was probably put on the back burner in most American homes.
CBS was put into a pretty difficult spot with the playoff. Here's Gen. Petraeus on NBC performing the coin toss and on the other end is Kenny Perry duking it out with long-haired Charley Hoffman.
By the time Perry won the event, Ben Roethlisberger was already leading the Steeler Nation on their opening drive.
At least next year the tournament will have a later date...
Apparently, Kenny Perry and J.B. Holmes are already starting to draw huge crowds, and it's only Tuesday. It looks like the Kentuckians are going to have a lot of hometown support. One of the loudest roars heard on the course occurred when Holmes successfully drove one of the par-4's at Valhalla. Buckle up.
Kudos to Jeff Rude for his in-depth piece on Kenny Perry in the Sept. 13 issue of Golfweek. Rude goes into great depth about Perry's love for Kentucky and living a quiet life. It's a good lead-up to the Ryder Cup, and all the more reason the crowd will be backing this guy. A few things I learned from the article:
1. Kenny Perry's first name is James (middle name is Kenneth).
2. He lives in an old-fashioned, quaint town that some people refer to as Mayberry (located two hours outside of Valhalla.)
3. There's a billboard about Perry and his course off of the interstate.
All in all, Perry thrives on living a peaceful life. Now, I'm not surprised one bit that he skipped the British, maybe the U.S. Open...
After his first two wins of the season, there wasn't much praise for Kenny Perry's decision to skip the U.S. Open and Open Championship. But with his win at the John Deere Classic Sunday, some analysts are coming out and throwing Perry some support. On PTI, Mike Wilbon admitted that he was hoping Perry would go to Birkdale, but both he and Bob Ryan showed some appreciation for Perry's steadfast reasoning...
Ryan: When you’re 47, you oughta have it together and figure out who you are. He has never deviated…
Wilbon: It’s honorable on every level…He doesn’t offer any phony reasons as to why he’s playing.
Gene Wojciechowski of ESPN.com adds:
I don't understand skipping majors, but I respect Perry for telling the rest of us to stick it -- and then winning tournaments and a Ryder Cup roster spot on his own terms.
Kenny Perry notched his third victory of the year at the John Deere Classic, and heads to Milwaukee, not Birkdale, for the $4 million U.S. Bank Championship. When asked by Adam Barr of TGC to put his hot streak into perspective, Perry said: "It's just my time."
Read the story that just came over the wire here.
