It's the second week of April, which if you're a golf fan, means blooming azaleas, blue dye in Rae's Creek, pimento sandwiches and the first major of the season: The Masters.
It's the first, and arguably most prestigious, leg of the four major championships, and former PGA champ Davis Love III won't be there. And while this seems like an odd thing to point out, it's notable for one simple reason: it'll be the first time in 18 years that Love isn't teeing it up at the majors.
So what had been expected is now official: For the first time since the 1990 U.S. Open, Love will not be playing in a major, ending the longest active streak of consecutive major appearances at 70. The longest such streak now belongs to Phil Mickelson, with 55. The alltime record is held by Jack Nicklaus, who played in a staggering 146 straight majors over 36 1/2 years before passing on the 1998 British Open. Tom Watson is second with 87 straight. A shoulder injury kept him out of the '96 British Open, or his streak would be at 102.Love's game has regressed in recent years. Some of that has to do with various injuries, but he's also getting old. He's 43 and turned pro in 1985 (for some historical perspective, he attended UNC with Michael Jordan). Despite recently slipping in the world rankings, Love's major streak is impressive.
He's still got seven years before being relegated to the Champions Tour, but Love's 19 career PGA victories and one major have to be considered something of a disappointment. To his credit, he was a solid Ryder Cup player, and in 2003, he had a resurgence of sorts, winning four times and finishing third on the money list. Five years later, he's 157th, which goes a long way in explaining why he won't be playing this week.
