For all the hubbub around Bubba Watson and his escapades at the French Open, there was another American at Le Golf National — one who never garnered attention in spite of good play.
Granted, Brendan Steele, No. 119 in the Official World Golf Ranking, doesn’t have the star power of the 15th-ranked Watson, but Steele was the bright spot in a week when the Yanks were maligned by the European press.
Steele and Watson were the only PGA Tour players from the United States in last week's French Open. Steele, winner of this year’s Valero Texas Open, finished seventh. He and Watson had matching 74s in the first round, but their paths quickly diverged from there. Steele shot 70-67-71 to earn 77,400 euros. Watson fired a second consecutive 74 to easily miss the cut, then was heavily criticized for comments to the media.
Steele spoke highly about his experience at Le Golf National, which will host the 2018 Ryder Cup. He said he didn't encounter any problems with the fans. He had a large gallery on Sunday, when he played in one of the final groups with France's Gregory Havret, runner-up in the 2010 US Open.
“I thought everything was great. I didn’t really notice any difference,” Steele replied when asked to compare the French Open to a PGA Tour stop. “There’s a different feel just because it’s a different culture. With the language, and it being my first time on the European Tour, everything was a little bit different.
"But as far as once the tournament started, it was still just a golf tournament to me. I thought the fans were enthusiastic. They were very knowledgeable and very excited.”
The overseas press accused Watson of perpetuating the “ugly American” stereotype after he referred to the Eiffel Tower as “the big tower” and had less-than-flattering remarks about the tournament. A homesick Watson said he wanted to get home "as fast as possible." He called the French Open “not a normal tournament.”
“There’s cameras, there’s phones, there’s everything. There’s no security. I don’t know which holes to walk through. There’s no ropes,” he said. “I’m not used to that. I’m not saying it’s bad. It’s just something I’m not used to, I’m not comfortable with. It’s very strange to me. Just very uncomfortable.”
Chubby Chandler, who enjoys regaling the American press with stories about his players, told Scotland on Sunday, "They don't get it, do they, the Americans? ... They don't get it because they have everything in America, don't they?"
Steele is playing the European Tour again this week at the Barclays Scottish Open. He’s the only American PGA Tour player in the field who is not in next week’s British Open. He made this two-week working vacation to take advantage of the job security provided by his first PGA Tour victory.
His agent, Ben Harrison at Gaylord Sports, had the right connections to get him into the French Open; Gaylord also manages Phil Mickelson, who is sponsored by Barclays, the UK-based bank that is title sponsor of the Scottish Open. Steele said he did not receive an appearance fee for either week.
“It’s always been something that I really wanted to do,” said Steele, 28, of Idyllwild, Calif. “I grew up watching a lot of European Tour events on TV early in the morning. It’s good life experience and good golf experience to get over here and get better at playing in different conditions, getting out of your comfort zone a little bit.”
Steele could earn his way to Royal St. George’s if he’s the low finisher at the Scottish Open not already exempt into the Open, provided he finishes in the top five.
Steele made headlines earlier in his rookie season for saying Tiger Woods “didn’t give it all he had” when they were paired together in the final round of the Farmers Insurance Open. Steele said he meant no ill will with those comments and apologized to Woods. Members of Woods’ camp told him that no offense was taken.
Steele’s intention by speaking about his French Open experience was not to make Watson look poor by contrast. But Steele did show, in a media environment where the negative often outshines the positive, that last week wasn’t a complete loss for the Americans in Paris.
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