Max Homa & The Great Driving Range Debate

Make the cut, miss the cut: who deserves weekend range access?

Saturday, and the weekend, had arrived in Los Angeles at the US Open and players were gearing up for moving day.

65 players made the cut at the US Open. 4 of those players were amateurs, not expecting a paycheck. One player on the range was conspicuous in this regard: of the 61 players left in the field expecting a paycheck, this professional golfer wasn’t one of them.

That’s right. After shooting tournament rounds of 68-76 - lowlighted by back-to-back double bogeys on 17 & 18, to finish 2 strokes over the cut line of +2, Mr. Max Homa was back on the driving range Saturday, hitting some balls.

Well, we had never seen this move before, so what gives?

Is not the driving range only for players who are still actively in the tournament - expecting a paycheck - to work on their game?

We had always assumed the answer was an unequivocal “yes.”

But, Max here had us stumped. He had missed the 36 hole cut line, yet there he was, on Saturday morning, hitting range balls as though he had a tee time to make. But, alas, he didn’t!

Giving Max the benefit of the doubt, let’s see what was probably going through his head:

-Grew up 30 miles away in Valencia; attended Valencia HS in northwest LA

-Undoubtedly knows hordes of LACC members, who probably said this was “fine”

-Played his college golf further up the PCH at CAL-Berkeley

-Feels at home in LA and LACC

So, Max is definitely a local here. And, as they say at the beaches and ‘breaks here, “Locals ONLY, brah!”

But, Max didn’t make the cut, so what gives?

Does LeBron go to the Staples center after the Lakers lose a series to practice his free throws, while the Clippers are there, playing a playoff game of their own? No, of course not. That would be wildly ridiculous.

Which brings us to the other side of that coin: what the hell was Max thinking hitting range balls at the event that he had just been dismissed from?

Was there not another driving range nearby Max could have gone to, to get in that extra work he craved? Yes, surely, there were.

Was it an egregious breach of tour etiquette - and potentially, unfounded hubris - to remain on an active tournament driving range to work out your kinks, while you’re no longer actively engaged in said tournament?

Now, don’t get us wrong: we love us some Max. Dude is one of the TOUR’s most colorful, engaging, down-to-earth, good guys. He jokes, he (usually) plays good golf, he comes off as one of the few, relatable, tour players. We can’t shoot his scores, but we can definitely relate to his humor and wit.

But, we have to throw down the gauntlet on this one. In this instance, at a major championship, there is no - absolutely 0 - legitimate reason Homa should have been hitting range balls on Saturday with the guys who actually did play well enough to make the cut, and were preparing for their own important weekend rounds.

Max was essentially just taking up space. Yes, there was plenty extra and he was far from being a nuisance. But, shouldn’t someone have stepped in and said, “Look, Max, we love you here in SoCal. We do. But… you had 36 holes here to play already to prove that you belonged out here this weekend, and you failed to do that. So, we’re going to need you off the range today (and, no, don’t get any ideas tomorrow, either!)”

So, following the line of reasoning, in failing to make the cut, ipso facto, you also fail to reap the benefits of the players who did make the cut. Namely, you won’t be getting a paycheck, #1, and #2, no continuing use of the practice facilities (for dialing in your game, for the next not-36 holes).

While we understand, perhaps, where Mr. Max may have been coming from: “hey, I just want to iron out a couple things; let me hit a few balls, here.” And, let us be clear, as is evidenced by the picture, above, that Max was not bogarting a spot of someone who needed balls or a hitting bay. He was down on his own end, doing his own thing.

But, was Max’s behavior appropriate?

No. Absolutely Not.

We hadn’t seen this move before, so again, we’re not sure of the actual rules, but something definitely appeared uncouth.

In our eyes, this appears to be like a case of Your Uncle coming to Thursday’s Thanksgiving dinner, and mid-meal, deciding to stay and eat leftovers with the family, all weekend. “I’m Sorry, Uncle Max, we do Love you, but, you were only invited over for Thursday…”

Don’t get us wrong, we love us some Max Homa, but, in this instance, Max was totally out of line and definitely committed a Tour faux pas.