He is Korean American, which is a big plus. He can teach Korean players English very quickly without requiring any policy changes. He is a great marketer. Look what excitement he brought to sports with Michelle Wie playing in the PGA. He knows golf better than most LPGA commissioners we have had. He negotiates great deals. He can be tough. He knows how to develop young golfers. He will make LPGA exciting again.
I used to hate Twitter. Until lots of LPGA players signed up and started posting pics of themselves that you'd think they'd have more sense than to post. Or maybe it's all part of a new marketing strategy - instead of posting in-round, they'll post semi-revealing pics of themselves. Or at least Christina Kim will. Gotta love her! More Christina, please, that's what the LPGA needs.
One big reason that I cannot watch the LPGA is that I blevieve they are all violating rules and nothing is being done. A player cannot be coached during play but their caddies line uo their shots all the time. In my opinion alignment is a major element of the swing. Now all the women have their caddies line them up. To me this is much different from having a caddie help with club selection or giving you the read on putts. By the way the caddie lining your putts up too I believe is a violation. Then I saw Paula Creamers caddie line up her cap which was a clear instruction for keeping your head down. That was blatant yet the LPGA let's it all slide. More than anything that is waht makes them 2nd rate.
Sure he is one of the greatest, but he should be treated the same as other tour players like Daly, and reprimanded when needed....is he above the law and the rules....grow up a bit TW
i can't get Tom Watson out of my head. I can't stop thinking of his eight-iron approach to the 72nd hole at Turnberry. I keep wanting to stop the ball on the back of the green, giving him an easy two-putt for his sixth claret jug. I haven't been this depressed after a major championship since, ironically enough, the 1982 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach when Watson, thanks to his unbelievable chip-in for a birdie on 17 (the greatest clutch shot in history), prevented Jack Nicklaus from capturing a record fifth Open. I decided I would root against Watson forever, which is why it shocked me last week to realize how one's perspective can evolve over the years. The differences between one great player or another don't matter anymore. What truly matters is that they all belonged to the same era, the era when I fell in love with the game.
I'm supposed to be an objective journalist, but I was rooting harder on Sunday for Watson than I ever have for any golfer, even the Golden Bear in ‘86. I assumed that I was rooting for a good, decent man to make history, one who has represented this game as well as anyone, but I now realize I was really rooting for another reason. I wanted to freeze time, to again believe that the stars of my lost youth could be stars again and not just in the highlight reels they show on The Golf Channel.
It is always painful to see these great players of the past – Jack, Arnie, Trevino, Hale Irwin – in their declining years, missing shots they used to pull off easily. That is why I can't fully embrace the Champions Tour as much as I hope for its success.
I suppose I believed, if Watson were to prevail, that would mean that I, too, was still young, that my best days were ahead of me. It's really insane when you think about it. If Watson had parred 18 instead of making bogey, why should that change anything about the cycle of life and its limitations?
For myself and others in my generation, our youth is lost, gone forever, and there's nothing wrong with that. Did we waste much of it? Absolutely, some more than others. Yet we also capitalized on all its wonderful benefits, as did Watson.
What does everyone else think about this? IMO, no question about 2008 Tiger vs, Rocco U.S Open results--both men ready--played great--extra holes decided--so they even battled more than 18. I say:Fair!
Open Championship playoff 2009: IMO, No human could be ready to decide it minutes after what happened to Watson. I say this was proven by the way we saw a completely different golfer in Watson from the first shot to the last of the playoff.
Watson was wrecked and Cink was the complete reverse and flying high. Does this really decide what man was the champion? It doesn't sit right with me. Should the R&A review their playoff policy? Who cares about TV ratings or viewers wanting a champion declared on Sunday!
So again, rethink playoff format, OR leave it as is?
Tiger must be so pizzed off at missing the cut at Turnberry that he needs to wash that feeling off ASAP, and win another tournament. Even though he's probably never driving a Buick again, he's committed to playing the Buick Open in Michigan next week, which he won twice.
He'll play the Buick, WGC Firestone and PGA championship all in a row, most likely.
Maybe he needs to win 3 tournaments ASAP to wash off that "MC" feeling.
The Evian Masters and the Women's British Open will put the final nail in the coffins on the US Solheim Cup Team picks as Captain Beth Daniel said yesterday... She said she is only looking at Players 11 thru 17 now to make her final 2 picks...
Both Tournaments will provide double points for the players so a lot can happen from now until the end of the WBO...
Here is a Look at the Leaderboard thru 36 holes at the Evain Masters for US Solheim Team Candidates 11 thru 17:
11. Laura Diaz 177.0 - Missed Cut +8 12. Stacy Prammanasudh 170.0 - Missed Cut +6 13. Pat Hurst 164.0 - T22 -3 14. Juli Inkster 152.0 - T61 +2 15. Jane Park 141.0 - T61 +2 16. Michelle Wie 133.5 - T35 -1 17. Wendy Ward 132.5 - T14 -5
The Deutsche Bank Championship is missing the green.
“It’s definitely been a tough year,” said Eric Baldwin, tournament director at the TPC Boston golf course.
“From a corporate package standpoint, there are still tickets available,” he added.
The golf tournament, to be played Sept. 1-7 at TPC in Norton, will feature 100 of the world’s top golfers, including Tiger Woods. In what has become a regional Labor Day sporting tradition in the PGA Tour Playoffs, the tournament features a $7.5 million purse and a $1.35 million winner’s check.
But the troubled economy combined with corporate cutbacks has the Deutsche Bank Championship seeking sponsors and corporate ticket buyers willing to spend up to $100,000 five weeks before the opening round.
Andrew Zimbalist, a sports economist at Smith College, said the troubles for the golf championship stem from the economic downturn, fewer recreational golfers and the loss of Buick as a sponsor. “Tiger Woods and Buick parted ways last year and Buick is part of the GM bankruptcy,” he said.
“And golf as a participatory sport has been trending downwards. I’m certain the tournament has taken a bigger hit this year amid the recession.”
The National Sporting Goods Association found golf participation shrunk to 25.6 million last year from its peak of 28.3 million in 2002.
Seth Waugh, CEO of Deutsche Bank Americas, said the tournament brings up to $40 million in economic benefit to the region, but declined to specify how much the German bank paid to be the chief sponsor.
“The sponsorship has been a home run for us,” he said.
But Waugh acknowledged that some of the tournament’s previous sponsors have opted out. “Some decided they weren’t getting the same value out of it,” he said. “But I think we’re at the same level that we’ve always been. But we can always take more.”
As of Friday, the Tour had only 14 fully committed tournaments for 2010, although Ms. Evans emphasized that negotiations for many others events were at advanced stages and that focusing on 14 was like “looking at the battlefield through a soda straw.” This year the Tour has 28 official events; in 2008 it had 34. www.golfonlinesale.com
Every time VJ Singh is mentioned his past cheating should be highlighted. "Thirteen years ago he was an exiled pro in the rain forest of Borneo, banned from the Asian tour for al-tering his scorecard at the Indonesian Open."
Othe things about his character should be noted. Naughty is the word, because none of Singh's youthful indiscretions did permanent damage. In Aus-tralia, when he was barely out of his teens, Singh financed his travels with loans from friends and tour officials, rarely paying anyone back. He was also notorious for making long-distance phone calls from clubhouses and leaving without paying the bill.
Since gulf is a game of honor Vijay's past dishonorable acts must be constantly highlighted.
who would you pick for your captain's picks? Remember, you're trying to make picks that would help you WIN the Solheim, and you're not at all interested in how many viewers the tv people have, or anything like that.
If the top 10 were as they are, and you had to make your picks now, here are the gals from 11 through 20....
I looked over the list and came away discouraged... Let's see what you think...
Well. I mean, not really poor Michael Letzig. After all, “poor” Michael Letzig has made $877,968 this year playing golf. I haven’t checked my W-2 just yet, but there’s a fair chance it’s a couple of nickels short of that.
Still. At the Buick Open on Sunday, Letzig drew Tiger Woods in the final Sunday pairing for the second time in two months. That’s right. A rematch of the legendary Woods v. Letzig showdown you’ve been waiting for. Jack had Arnie, Lee, Gary and Tom. Tiger has Michael Letzig.
Seven weeks after Tiger (65) outfoxed Letzig (75) at the Memorial, you can almost hear the audio from the tee box handshake from the Buick.
Ponte Vedra Beach, FL (Sports Network) - The PGA Tour and Buick announced on Tuesday that due to a "court-supervised restructuring of General Motors," all working agreements between the two have ended.
This means the end for the Buick Open at Warwick Hills and also spells a close to Buick's sponsorship of the Buick Invitational at Torrey Pines.
The PGA Tour is expected to announce the Buick Open's replacement for its slot on the 2010 schedule on Wednesday. As for the event at Torrey Pines, the Century Club of San Diego and the PGA Tour are in discussions for new sponsorship to keep it on the 2010 docket.
In a joint statement between the tour and Buick, it read: "While this is disappointing news, both the PGA Tour and Buick remain in discussions regarding future sponsorship possibilities."
Buick and the PGA Tour enjoyed a 51-year relationship.
Tiger Woods had an endorsement contract with Buick that ended earlier this year. He returned to Warwick Hills on Sunday and collected his third victory at the Buick Open. Woods won a record six Buick Invitational titles.
Got more press reporting today about golf making a case to join the Olympics.
I do not care for this idea. The sports that really need the Olympics are the sports whose most important competitions come at the Olympics, such as track and field, swimming, gymnastics, etc. It is good to have basketball and tennis and even baseball if the Olympics would be more of an exhibition that helps to grow those sports around the world. But you cannot avoid politics as the French that run the IOC have kicked out baseball.
Would golf in the Olympics help the game grow around the world if governments start spending money on the growth of the game in the respective countries? This is what some have harp on. Maybe, but I doubt the impact would be great. Golf is a game of the wealthy and powerful in much of the world, and nothing will change this economic fact.
Any damage done in this quest? Already, the tours have instituted drug testing as a result in a game where the participants call penalties on themselves. There is a disconnection.
Padraig Harrington promised not to get too carried away after shooting his lowest round of the year to lead after day one of the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational in Ohio.
Seven days before he is due to defend his US PGA Championship title at Hazeltine National and following a year of disappointing results as the Irishman has sought to improve his swing, Harrington shot a six-under-par 64 at Firestone Country Club to take a two-shot lead over the field.
"I'm well aware that it only matters to hold the lead on Saturday and then really matters on Sunday," three-time major winner Harrington said.
Two weeks after relinquishing the Open title he held since 2007, Harrington had arrived in the United States in extremely positive mood and that was translated into an excellent opening round as he opened with a birdie at the 10th hole on the tough, 7,400-yard, par-70 South Course - the first of six in a bogey-free round.
"I'm always a very cautious person in the first round, a great believer that you don't win the tournament on Thursday, you just keep yourself in it.
"And very rarely do I go out there in an aggressive manner, I generally am quite conservative to start out.
"I would say you could go through my career and you'll only find a handful of times I've led after the first round."
That said, Harrington was not displeased to be in the position he was in, saying: "I'm happy to have shot it, I feel good about it but I don't believe I'm not going to use it as a cut-off for the last six months to the next six months.
"Maybe it is but I believe that change was made maybe three or four weeks ago when I started focusing on my playing side of my game rather than the swinging side.
"Compared to the first six months of the year it's obviously my low score of the year, my best score of the year."
"You wonder if you really deserve this. Am I the right one?'' she said. ''But everyone's come up to me and said, 'I'm really glad you made it.' It's nice to know these girls have got my back. I love all these girls on the team. This has been such a great experience so far, and I can't wait for the real thing."
I wonder who is more pathetic. A class lady who is one of the best golf announcers on TV. Or, the poster who takes a cheap shot on the ladies birthday. You decide.
It wasn't broken, but Harrington is still fixing it
Harrington won the British Open and PGA Championship in 2008, rising to No. 3 in the world rankings. Then, ever the restless soul, he started tinkering with his swing - and promptly plunged off the map, with no top-10 finishes and eight missed cuts in his next 17 starts.
Harrington resurfaced last week at the Bridgestone Invitational, where he tussled with Tiger Woods before imploding on the 16th hole Sunday. Still, he climbed back into the top 10 in the rankings (he had been No. 17 before last week). And, more importantly, he began to find a level of comfort.
"What you saw last week was more of a mind-set change," Harrington said Tuesday at Hazeltine National, where this year's PGA begins Thursday. "About six weeks ago, I kind of figured out the move I wanted to make, and that put my mind at rest. ... I still think it will be next winter before I really have it grooved in."
Even though Woods complained about their group landing "on the clock" - moments before Harrington made triple bogey to lose the lead - Harrington refused to make any excuses for his late meltdown.
"I reacted poorly to the situation, and that's my own fault," he said. "It's our rules. It's part of the game and you have to put up with it."
Olympic chatter: Golf is widely expected to make the cut Thursday, when the International Olympic Committee's executive board recommends two sports to add to the 2016 Summer Games. The final decision is scheduled for Oct. 9.
Asked if he would play in '16 - when he would be 40 - Woods smiled and said, "If I'm not retired by then, yeah."
Said Harrington: "I'd love to be an Olympian. Doesn't that sound good? I think it would be fantastic for golf."
Briefly: Trevor Immelman, the 2008 Masters champion, withdrew Tuesday because of a wrist injury. Bob Estes replaced him in the field. ... The forecast calls for warm, dry weather (highs near 90 degrees) through Friday, with a 20 percent chance of thunderstorms Saturday and 40 percent Sunday. ... Jim Furyk on Harrington: "I never met an Irishman who didn't drink until I met Paddy."
It is time for players with 1 or 2 major championships to step up, no more of this first time winner stuff. If someone stops him (tiger) from winning he will extend his career to 42, then retire. I hope tiger doesn't win another major until 2011 and another until 2013. Tiger should have 5 kids when he break Jack's record. root for the field!
Unbelieveable !!!! I just watched JD have another lousy round of golf, casually walk up to a 6 footer, didn't mark it, didn't line it up, and then misses and winds up 3 putting for a double and a 78. The announcers should have ripped him a new ___hole for his casual, insulting attitude and disrespect for the game, the players and the fans. Where's Dottie Pepper when you need her ! She would have surely hammered him!
Garcia is 110th on the PGATour money list with one top 10 finish. He is currently #6, and when the Rankings are released today I think he will be #7, losing a spot to Stenson who had a decent finish in the PGA.
Yes, Sergio had a good year in 2008, but those results are a distant memory in August 2009.
He has one top ten (T10 in the USOpen) and 3 other Top 25 finishes (T13, T22, T22).
The OWGR are simply not volatile enough if Garcia can be ranked in the top 7 after having such a dismal season.
Turns out my golf teacher is the current Minnesota POY. As such, he earned the right to play at Hazeltine if the last player in the field was by himself (ie, an odd headcount). Well, that's what happened and my guy showed up, was warming up on the practice tee and O'Hair sends his caddie over to tell him that he's not wanted. Pretty "small" behaviour on O'Hair's part, imho. I don't think I'll be rooting for this guy much in the future. Too harsh?
Am I the only person that notices the daily stat errors that are reported on the Golf Channel? I've seen real-time reporting errors almost every week, even just after something has occurred right on their own channel! The latest of this consistent incompentence was on tonight's Golf Central. Did you know that the US Women won 8 of the Solheim single's matches, Europe won 4, and none of the matches were halved? It must be true because I saw it on the Golf Channel. The only problem here is that 4 of the single's matches were halved. 4!!!! Not none. Who is in charge????
I think this whole FedEx cup thing is very lame, but I have a q. According to the FedEx cup web site, the top 30 go into the final event which is the tour championship, at which point the points are re set. I assume this means that all 30 players start the tournament tied at zero. Then it would seem that whoever wins the tournament, wins the FedEx cup. But the promo material on the web site suggests that some players have a better chance of winning than others (I assume based on past performance through the playoffs). But if all the points are reset then does not each of the 30 players have an equal chance of winning the cup i.e. whoever wins the tour champinoship wins the cup. I'm confused.
The PGA should be ashamed of it self, in November they will make Ted Rhodes, John Shippen, Bill Spiller and Joe Louis members of the PGA. 1. I think that this type of award should be given at the height of the golf season where millions of viewers and fans of the sport will be able to see and celebrate the efforts and the courage of these great men, and here we are hiding it away when the season is over. This should be done with millions of Americans watching not in some closed meeting where no one can hear it or see it. The statement that the PGA released was another cowardly act " The PGA of America believes these men but for the color of their skin would have been members who play the game, teach the game,and promote the game. I think that anyone that follows golf knows that Sam Snead would have had a very differcult time beating Ted Rhodes, or Mr. Palmer beating Mr. Spiller or Mr. Nicklas beating Mr. Spiller or Mr. Shippen. The PGA should acknowledge that these men would have been champions of the game of golf. The PGA still won't acknowledge what is absolutely true these men on many occasions would have beat many of the caucasian players noted above. PGA, acknowledge what is true, these champions have waited long enough. What is there to fear, three out of the four of them are dead. Thanks, a true fan of the sport.
I think this whole FedEx cup thing is very lame, but I have a q. According to the FedEx cup web site, the top 30 go into the final event which is the tour championship, at which point the points are re set. I assume this means that all 30 players start the tournament tied at zero. Then it would seem that whoever wins the tournament, wins the FedEx cup. But the promo material on the web site suggests that some players have a better chance of winning than others (I assume based on past performance through the playoffs). But if all the points are reset then does not each of the 30 players have an equal chance of winning the cup i.e. whoever wins the tour champinoship wins the cup. I'm confused.
Nobilo mentioned that again today on Golf Central. That Ernie dabbled a bit with Harmon, but it didn't come together. He then went on his own for a while and then sought out Leadbetter again.
With all the threads about the FedEx Cup (people complaining if you miss the cut you should be eliminated...no wait! Others say the playoffs have too much volatility!), the bottom line is this...
It has no identity.
It's been compared to the NASCAR points chase. The problem is, the winner of the NASCAR points chase is the NASCAR champion.
The PGA Tour still has a separate player of the year award. So the FedEx Cup champion is not the "champion" of the PGA Tour.
The FedEx Cup has been compared to the Super Bowl or the World Series. Again, the winner of those events are the football or the baseball champion. Again, the FedEx Cup champion is not "the" champion of the PGA Tour.
And the Super Bowl and the World Series are the most important events you can win in those sports. In golf, the four majors are more important titles than the FedEx Cup.
So just what is it supposed to determine? Who knows.
He is Korean American, which is a big plus. He can teach Korean players English very quickly without requiring any policy changes.
He is a great marketer. Look what excitement he brought to sports with Michelle Wie playing in the PGA.
He knows golf better than most LPGA commissioners we have had.
He negotiates great deals.
He can be tough.
He knows how to develop young golfers.
He will make LPGA exciting again.
www.golfonlinesale.com