Adam Scott Takes Uneven Game to Wyndham Championship

Adam Scott was the third-ranked player in the world a year ago. Now, he's 46th and falling. He's fresh off a missed cut at the PGA Championship, carding 82-79 for a two-day, 17-over finish that left him outside the line by 13 strokes.

His Hazeltine experience has been a microcosm of his season. But as John Paul Newport, writing in the Wall Street Journal, pointed out Saturday, there are mitigating circumstances.

"The 29-year-old broke a hand last year and split with his longtime girlfriend, but his biggest problem is putting. In 2008 he led the Tour in putts from 10 feet to 15 feet and was third from 15 feet to 20 feet. This year he ranks 192nd and 152nd, respectively."

Newport added that this is Scott's ninth missed cut in 12 events. Also worth mentioning: he needed 70 putts at the PGA Championship. That's 15-handicapper territory. But maybe his putting is a symptom of other problems. Wrist injuries can linger, especially when you spend a non-trivial part of your day hacking shots from thick rough.

But more than that, maybe Scott has other things on his mind. Earlier this year, Sergio Garcia admitted that breaking up with Morgan-Leigh Norman took a toll on his game. It's reasonable to think that Scott has been distracted for many of the same reasons.

Because mechanically, his swing mirrors Tiger Woods' (or at least it did when both were working with Butch Harmon). If you're making only three of 12 cuts with the best technique on the planet, there's something terribly wrong. And usually, it has nothing to do with the physical, but is strictly between-the-ears-related.

Either way, Scott isn't quitting. Shortly after slamming the trunk in Chaska, he committed to the Wyndham Championship where, coincidentally, Garcia will also be playing after also partaking in some trunk-slamming.