Greetings!
We would love to get our Rory/Masters book in some national book stores. If you are a buyer or have connections to one for places like Barnes and Noble, please reach out!
New meme just dropped.
This is me telling my kids to clean the kitchen while my wife and I go on a walk after dinner and returning to Soda Pop playing at level 74 on the TV volume and one counter wiped off.
Name drops today: Juli Inkster, Isaiah Salinda, Caeleb Dressel, the North/South and Firethorn.
Today’s newsletter is sponsored by Sap’s Original.
With new sponsors, like Sap's, we like to get to know their products from all sides. Jason started by reading the ingredients. Coconut water powder, shiitake mushrooms, ginseng root, monk fruit …
Monk fruit?! Like grown by monks? Yes, in the 13th century, but now it's the only sweetener of Sap's, and technically a superfood.
Sounds good and tastes good. But how did golfers get their monk fruit before Sap's?
Now we know.
Life before Sap's, Monk Fruit
Sap’s is a hydration drink that has an ingredient stack that actually works together. Electrolytes for hydration. Aminos to help your body recover faster. And adaptogens for stress and balance, which is the part I’m grateful for during the above scenario involving the TV volume at 74 and one counter being cleaned.
Check them out right here.
OK, now onto the news.
1. Praising a golfer for doing media after enduring a collapse of his or her own making is somewhat tantamount to praising a child for going poo poo on the potty.
But I want to echo Jamie Kennedy, who noted that Shane Lowry’s interview was emblematic of why we complain about golfers not talking after defeats.
Raw emotion, disappointment, insightful analysis, regret, humility.
All relatable to fans. And compelling to hear.
Jamie Kennedy
Also, I’m guaranteed to lose it any time a player cites his 4-year-old daughter having never seen him win as the reason he was most disappointed that he didn’t win. Awesome insight and reflection from Lowry that makes him far more endearing than he was three days ago.
2. That was the good. Now for the not so good.
Lowry has (oddly) turned into a not very good closer. This is strange because he doesn’t seem to shy away from big moments (see: Bethpage 2025 or Portrush 2019), but the numbers are the numbers.
Lowry has entered the final round of a tournament in the top three on the leaderboard a total of 14 times since summer of 2019. He has won just one of those tournaments.
Granted, it was the exact one you want to win.
Two things worth mentioning …
This is not a fail-safe way to determine who the most clutch golfers are.
Lowry’s numbers have not been horrific overall.
But an uncomfortable pattern seems to be developing.
There are 100 ways to win a golf tournament.
For example, at that 2019 Open, Lowry built such a big lead that he didn’t really need to gain strokes on the field on Sunday to go on to win. He gained twice as many at the 2022 Honda Classic as he did at the 2019 Open and still lost the Honda. That’s golf. But the entirety of his record tells a story and it’s probably not one he wants it to tell.
For the sake of having some sort of reference point, Rory has entered the final round in the top three 36 times in the same timeframe and gone on to win 14 of them.
Rory is not necessarily an elite closer either (he’s just in position to win a lot), but his numbers are still far better than Lowry’s.
Shane usually doesn’t have the luxury of galloping out in front on Saturday evening and playing stress free — if that’s what we’re calling the way Rory wins events — in the final round, which is why his below average play when in the top three stands out more than it otherwise would (and leads to that 0-for-13 run).
(it should be noted here that he did shoot 65 in the final round at the 2022 BMW PGA to beat out Rory and Rahm).
(it should also be noted that was a 54-hole event because the queen died that week normal sport).
[Jason here with Art Minute] Aside from Kevin's Famous Chili (the finest of art), watching Shane on 16 reminded me of two artworks I keep coming back to.
Fall II (1970) by Bas Jan Ader. The water is always there. Just try not to think about how easy it is to find.
The Mental Hazard (1916) by Clare Briggs. How well does this capture golf — and life? Chef's kiss.
3. The normal sport moment of the week was somehow not Isaiah Salinda stripping down to play a shot out of the water while +9 for the week.
It was Nico Echavarria’s right sleeve being filled up with a girl in a yellow dress holding an umbrella.
Here’s the about page for Morton Salt (cannot believe I am writing that).
Still today, we are widely recognized for our iconic Morton Salt Girl who has remained the face of our brand for over a century. And our products remain staples in the hearts and homes of millions of Americans.
That’s because we’re a company with vision, drive and a big heart.
Morton Salt
It echos the press release (!) for the Echavarria-Morton partnership.
GSE is proud to announce Nico Echavarria has partnered with Morton Salt for the 2026 PGA Tour season! Morton Salt has been the quintessential American brand for over a century and their values represent those of Nico’s on tour; vision, drive, and a big heart.
To be honest, I actually think there should be more weird partnerships like this. More Ritz (Juli Inkster), 5Hour Energy (Jim Furyk) and Tabasco (Woody Austin) on hats and shirts. It gets your brand so much amusing publicity (like me writing this in an email to 17,000 golf fans or us sponsoring another golf writer trying to complete a ridiculous backyard challenge) compared to playing it safe.
I don’t know how much Nico Echavarria’s right sleeve costs, but I’m guessing Morton has received a significant ROI (maybe even from this email alone!).
And since we’re doing this, if you personally find yourself under-salted, you can always pick up some Sap’s Original right here. More electrolytes than two of their big-name competitors! Use the code NORMALSPORT at checkout for a discount.
This post will continue below for Normal Club members and includes thoughts on …
How AI will never win a major (or a gold medal).
Some fake news regarding Rory’s putting.
Why the Players has always been a major championship.
Normal Sport is supported by exactly 1,013 individuals who may or may not have sufficient salt in their lives.
By becoming a member, you will receive the following …
• The delight of helping us establish Normal Sport.
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Kyle is the best columnist in sports. That he has channeled those talents through strokes gained and Spieth memes is a blessing to golf.
It's a treasure trove of the important, the seemingly important, and — importantly! — the unimportant stuff. It's an asset in my inbox.
I’ve always enjoyed your love for golf. So often I see favoritism showed to golfers in the social media world, but I enjoy reading you telling a situation how it is regardless of the person.
Kyle's content is a product of a sick sense of humour, a clear passion for golf and unquestionable dedication to hard work. That's not normal!
Kyle approaches coverage of the game with both conviction and curiosity
Kyle sees golf in a way that no one else does—and we're all fortunate to get to share in that view through Normal Sport!
The way Kyle has been able to mold a silly Twitter joke (normal sport) into a must-read newsletter on the weekly happenings in our silly game gives a great look into why he's one of the smartest people in golf.
Kyle is a perfect curator of the necessary moments of levity that accent a sport that will drive most of us insane.
Few make the sport feel as fun and as thought provoking.
There’s been no one else in golf that has tickled my funny bone as often as Kyle Porter does. He’s been instrumental in ushering in a new era of golf coverage and it’s been a pleasure to be along for the ride in that.
Normal Sport is exploratory, sometimes emotional, always entertaining. It also has one of my favorite writers in the biz at its foundation.
Kyle is one of the best in the golf world at finding and synthesizing the absurd, the thoughtful and the fun things that make being a golf fan worthwhile.
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