Golf Buzz

With a new year comes resolutions -- the empty promises we make to ourselves to improve something in our lives.

Cynical? Absolutely. Have you ever visited a gym on Jan. 5? You practically need to pull a ticket to use anything like you're at a deli counter.

Go back to that same gym on March 5. Suddenly that huge back up you experienced two months prior is actually at... the deli counter in the supermarket next door.

It's OK, people.

Here, we're all about golf, which means with a new year nearly upon us, we need to make some golf resolutions.

Here are five shots we resolve to eliminate from our games in 2017 (it's never going to happen):

5. The chili dip. You know -- when you cover the ball in sod and practically miss it, taking a divot the size of a "WELCOME" mat. This vicious little devil typically pops up when you have an important chip from a tight lie in a close match. Maybe you peek too soon. Whatever the case may be, you just jam that club right into the turf... and usually have the chance to attempt the same shot again. No more of that, OK?

4. A topped 3-wood. One of my favorites. You know how it goes. After busting a drive on the screws straight down the middle of the fairway on a par 5, you know you have a legitimate chance to reach the green in two. So, you reach for the 3-wood, address the ball and... swing way too hard and hit right on top of it. Now all you can hope for is that you topped it hard enough to advance it to the point where you can hit a mid-iron in for your third shot.

The best is when there's a foursome on the green on a par 5 and you're on the fence about whether you can reach with the 3-wood. Instead of waiting for the green to clear, you fire away. Ten times out of 10, that ball finds the green and you get dirty looks if not yelled at for not waiting.

Those times you wait? That's when you're going to top it.

3. The flop shot. It's one of the coolest shots in golf. Two things to consider the next time you want to hit one -- even if the lie and the terrain calls for it: 1. Remember that you're not Phil Mickelson; 2. Be honest with yourself. When's the last time you successfully hit a flop shot? If more often than not you're either getting nothing but air or blading it 200 yards past your ended target, what's the point? (First opportunity to attempt a flop shot in 2017, we're all trying it).

2. The pop-up drive. With technology being as spectacular as it is these days, we're all programmed to follow the adage, "Tee it high and let it fly." Sometimes, however, that whole teeing it high part can get a little dicey. Particularly if you have a tendency to hit down on your drives. Suddenly you're hitting pop-fly drives and leaving those dreaded "idiot marks" all over the crown of your shiny, new, $500 drivers. How are you going to eliminate it? Pray to the Golf Gods. That's really all you can do.

1. Bladed bunker shots. I have one golf buddy who this became such an issue for that he literally only uses a putter if he's in a greenside bunker -- it doesn't even matter how deep it is (and, where we play for the most part, he's not dealing with the kind of pot bunkers you see in Scotland). Desperate times call for desperate measures, but we're not advocating resorting to a putter when you're in the sand. All we're saying is to study your lie. Is the sand like hardpan? Maybe you're better off trying to play it like a chip shot from a tight lie in the fairway. Is the bunker extra fluffy? Try hitting that "chunk and run" Johnny Miller is always talking about on TV. Lastly, if you must try and hit a textbook-type bunker shot, always remember to hit the sand first.
 

We've spent a lot of time over the last several weeks looking back at the year that was in 2016.

Over the course of the last 12 months a lot of fun stuff involving golfers has happened on and off the links. In that spirit, we've compiled a list of 13 superlatives for golfers in 2016.

We hope you enjoy it as much as we enjoyed putting it together.

RELATED: Best major moments of '16 | Best Ryder Cup moments | Best PGA Champ. moments

Warning: You may not want to be drinking anything while looking at the photos and videos that follow. We can't promise you won't spit out that beverage in laughter and ruin whatever device it is you're checking this out on.

13. Player most likely to steal David Feherty's job: Jordan Spieth

During the now world-famous #SB2K16 trip to the Bahamas with fellow golfers Rickie Fowler, Justin Thomas and Smylie Kaufman, Spieth provided some shirtless commentary while the foursome was out for a round of golf, impersonating the great Feherty. Let's just say that if the camera weren't on Spieth and you could only hear the voice, you might not have realized it wasn't Feherty.

12. Players most likely to make up the cast of a Jersey Shore spin-off show: Rickie Fowler, Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth and Smylie Kaufman

Again, back to the #SB2K16 trip in the Bahamas. Based on the videos and photos that came out of it, we could totally see these guys in a house with Snookie and JWoww. They'd probably skip "T-shirt time!" though.

11. Player most likely to faint if he sees a real snake on the golf course: Smylie Kaufman

Lot's of Kaufman on this list so far, but deservedly so. Remember his reaction when he was the victim of the old "rubber snake" prank? What would have happened if it was the real thing?

10. Player who most resembles a superhero: Patrick Reed

Come on. A superhero is pretty much what Reed was in the 2016 Ryder Cup at Hazeltine, the star of the USA team with a 3-1-1 record, including a singles win in an epic match with Rory McIlroy on the final day.

9. Interviewer most likely to get punched if he were an adult: Little Billy

Arguably the biggest breakout star in golf this year was little 9-year-old Billy Jenkins. Don't be fooled by the adorable young lad's cuteness. He's a vicious pitbull when it comes to grilling those he interviews, something McIlroy learned the hard way.

GREAT stuff! It's not too far-fetched to think that if a male adult asked Rory those same kinds of questions there's a chance he'd be knocked out. And I'm not sure there are a lot of people who would blame Rory.

Now can we get a Little Billy interview with Bill Belichick? "It is what it is," isn't going to fly with Little Billy.

8. Player most likely to twirl a club: Rory McIlroy and Patrick Reed

It's tie. Tiger Woods is the master of the club twirl, but McIlroy and Reed are major champions with this display of #TourSauce as well.

7. Player most likely to hit driver off the deck: Justin Thomas

The giddy anticipation I get when I see a player preparing to hit driver off the deck is probably akin to the person who goes to NASCAR races to see the wreck. It's a sickness. A driver with a 460cc head just isn't meant to be hit off of anything other than a tee. When a player decides to try it, he either wows us (see Bubba Watson's ridiculous driver off the deck at Kapalua in 2013), or makes us laugh like an evil comic book villain... sort of the reaction we had to this effort from Thomas.

In fairness, as you could see, Thomas did chip in for birdie. I'm not sure there are too many people who could recover from a "driver off the deck gone wrong" that quickly.

6. Player most likely to go out for burgers and beers with fans: Andrew "Beef" Johnston

Beef, man. What's not to love about the guy? He became an instant cult-hero in early 2016 with this tremendous quote upon winning the Spanish Open -- his maiden victory on the European Tour: "I can't wait to get back to North Mid, get hammered and see my mom and brother and spend time with them and just celebrate."

He is totally the type of player you could envision hanging out with his fans like one of the guys off the course.

5. Player who most deserves a career year in 2017: Steven Bowditch

One year removed from a season in which he collected his second PGA Tour victory and appeared on the International Presidents Cup team, Bowditch struggled mightily in 2016. He missed the cut 15 times in 26 starts and his best finish since February was a T22 at Colonial.

There are always going to be peaks and valleys and it was a year filled with valleys for Bowditch.

However, rather than play the "woe is me" card, Bowditch used his remarkable self-deprecating humor on Twitter throughout the year. It was awesome. Basically there's nothing an internet troll could say about Bowditch that he hadn't already said about himself.

Below, you'll see a sampling. To be able to take it all in stride like Bowditch has, how can you not root for the guy to have a big 2017?

And here was Bowditch's all-time greatest tweet. After snapping a streak of five consecutive rounds of 80 or worse with a 2-over 72 at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, Bowditch was immediately summoned for a drug test.

Ever the funnyman, Bowditch reacted with great humor:

4. Player most likely to start a concert in the middle of his round: John Daly

Well, at Ken Duke's charity program last week, Daly actually did just that with his song "Hit it Hard," which gets stuck in my head for three damn days every time I think about it, watch it, or write it.

3. Player most likely to have Vanilla Ice as a guest caddie: Henrik Stenson

The 2016 Open Champion likely became the first player in Masters history to bump "Ice, Ice, Baby" from his car while rolling down Magnolia Lane. We could totally see Vanilla Ice slinging Stenson's clubs during the Masters Par 3 Content.

2. Player most likely to play Will Hunting's genius son in the sequel to "Good Will Hunting": Bryson DeChambeau

DeChambeau is unorthodox with his single-length clubs and side-saddle putting stroke. You need a dictionary to interpret most of his interviews. What seems basic to him sounds a lot like someone describing rocket science to the rest of us... Not unlike Matt Damon's "Will Hunting" who couldn't understand why his professor couldn't solve an equation that was as simple as 2+2=4 to Damon.

1. Most likely to play Carl Spackler in another "Caddyshack" sequel (there will never be another "Caddyshack" sequel): Bryson DeChambeau again

Looks like DeChambeau could have a nice career in Hollywood if the golf thing doesn't work out. While we can't get behind another remake of "Caddyshack" after the atrocity that was "Caddyshack 2" we might have to reconsider if DeChambeau were cast as Carl Spackler.