Word to the Wise: Don't Loan Any Money to John W. Schierman

You know what's cool? When you make a hole-in-one. I've never done it (obviously), but I've been around people that have and they always look so happy and excited. It's a cool feat, and one of those rare sports accomplishments that any level of player can check off their bucket list with the right amount of luck. What is even cooler than an ace? When you make one worth $5,000.

That's what Andrew Vold did, a high school senior out of Coon Rapids, Minnesota. Vold was playing in a charity golf event, and knocked in the hole-in-one that was supposed to pay 5 G's. Why didn't he get the money? Because John W. Schierman seems like an a-hole.

Here's the scoop, via Sports Gride

"... Schierman claims the hole-in-one never happened and that the hole official — whose identity he won’t reveal — did not sign the required affidavit for him to recover the $5,000 from an insurance company he claims he bonded the prize against."

Now, the story gets even tougher. Vold, who plays on his high school golf team, is now ineligible from competing the rest of the year because you aren't allowed to play for money as a high school student.

And even worse? Half the money he was supposed to win would have gone to the charity they were playing for. Honestly, this story could only get worse if an alligator promptly chomped off Vold's leg after he pulled the ball out of his hole.

Hey John, I don't really know what the deal is here, but in the words of Teddy KGB, pay the man his money. This is ridiculous. Some kid who was going to use this money for college tuition is now getting screwed two times because you had someone that didn't sign some paper? The entire group saw it go in, as did the group in front.

Integrity might be dead in most places in this country (like your household, for example), but it shouldn't when it involves some kid and 10 witnesses. Do the right thing, and if you can't, at least let someone else. I have an idea ... in a week or two, if Vold still hasn't got paid, I'm going to start a PayPal account that we can all put money in. Let's see how much we can raise, and maybe it'll help him with tuition next season. That's the plan.

Your move, Schierman.

Fred Couples Announces Tiger Woods Will Be on Presidents Cup A Month Early

The first word that popped in my head when I heard that Fred Couples announced that Tiger Woods would be a captain's pick to the 2011 Presidents Cup team was, "huh?"

Stranger than that? The Couples quote, that almost reads like something a drunk guy would say about a close friend before he got whisked away in a cab.

"I've told him that he's going to be on the team," Couples said just before a practice round preparing for the Boeing Classic at TPC Snoqualmie Ridge. "There is no reason for me to wait till Sept. 26 to pick Tiger. He's the best player in the world forever."

He's the best player in the world forever? What does that even mean.

Now I'd like you all to understand something, because I'm sure it is hard for me to explain this when I write negatively about Tiger Woods; I like Tiger. I think he makes people care about golf. He gets 20 times the attention to anything we golf writers publish, and he makes most regular people care about the game. Now is that to say I think he's good for golf? No, actually I don't, mostly because I think he's made it a one-pony show, and when he isn't around, everyone watches something else.

But most of all, I hate this type of stuff. Couples is picking Tiger because he will bring big ratings, he was once an incredible golfer, and mostly, because they're friends. Couples wants Tiger there because he likes having Tiger around, and that's fair if you're planning a bachelor party, but not really that fair when you're talking about a team effort that happens once every two years. What about Keegan Bradley? Or Charles Howell III? Ryan Moore, Mark Wilson or Gary Woodland? All of these guys have had seasons worthy of a captain's nod, and all but one of them, if any, will be left off because a guy used to be great a while back. For most people, life is "what have you done for me lately," but for some reason, Tiger supersedes this because the guy was the best fucking golfer on the planet for 12 years.

That's wrong, and isn't fair. If you want Tiger on your team, make the guy play for it. Force him to tee it up in Vegas and make him earn his keep. If for no other reason than to allow us to think you care about the team and not one guy. For the last two years, everyone has kept saying, "Just wait until Tiger has that one week ...", but when? When does that argument end?

I hope that Tiger can win again. I hope that he goes to Australia and snags all the points he can get and makes me look like a bigger boob than I already am. I really hope that.

But how in the world is that going to happen if he can't find a fairway, and isn't hitting it close? And when he does, he can't putt? And if he has five good holes, who's to say he will keep that going? It sure hasn't been the case lately, and some golfer won't be making that trip because the past is overshadowing the present.

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Hurricane Irene Not a Big Golf Fan

If you haven't heard, the Barclays was postponed early on Thursday for rain, after tons of rain came down on Wednesday night. They're back golfing, but the upcoming forecast doesn't exactly scream good weather.

The above image is from The Weather Channel charting the path of Hurricane Irene each day, below is the forecast for each of the next few days. What could all this mean? Well, possibly a Tuesday finish!

The bad news? Golf could be spotty all week. The good news? It looks fantastic in Edison, New Jersey for next weekend! More updates on the weather as they come to us.

Phil Mickelson Would Consider Using a Belly-Putter

Phil. Oh Phil, Phil, Phil, Phil, Phil. Don't you know anything? Anything at all? There are a few things you don't need to talk about, and "belly" anything is one of them, yet this week at the Barclays, Mickelson was asked about the onslaught of the belly/long putter, and said he'd think about using one, if it came with two dozen Krispy Kreme donuts.

“I’ve grabbed (a belly-putter) off the rack and just hit one with it, sure,” Mickelson said. “I don’t see very many left-handed but I’ll grab one when I see it and just take a few practice strokes.

“I wouldn’t rule (a long putter) out,” he said. “But I think there are certain things technique-wise that you have to understand to do it well, to putt well with it.

“It swings differently than a normal putter in your hands, and so I don’t know those little idiosyncrasies, those little secrets, if you will. And so I don’t really putt very effectively with it.”

I'm not really sure if he just did a complete 360 there, but isn't this like Tiger Woods coming out and saying he's okay with men going to strip clubs? Phil, don't talk about your belly. That's what people joke about!

Most people are fans of you! We enjoy you! You're good for golf! But please, please, please don't go to the belly putter. It's a terrible idea. A part of me would die.

(Also, just a side-note: I just went through a whole bunch of pictures of Phil on Getty ... Hey Phil, wear more white. It looks good on you and doesn't look crazy tight. Stop with the goofy, shiny shirts. They don't help you. Trust me on this.)
I'm actually super scared that Tiger would eventually try out the long putter, and I'm not kidding, so if both Phil and Tiger did it, I'd probably have to end this blog and start writing about curling or rugby or something.

Jim Furyk's Reaction to Mid-Press Conference Earthquake: 'Hum, Anyway'

There are very few people in this world as calm as Jim Furyk. The dude seems to go about his business on the golf course with the heat of an Antartica campfire, and just kinda plods along, with an Eeyore style to him.

So when an earthquake him during his press conference at the Barclays, he didn't exactly pull a Torrey Smith. Furyk just kind of sat there, looked around for a few seconds, and the moment it ended, went back to talking about belly putters. Heck, even Sully Sullenberger is probably impressed by his calmness during this whole thing.

video via Devil Ball ...

Good Luck, Sergio

The above picture is part of an adidas promo this week at the Barclays, and let me tell you, that. is. awesome. The painting was done by 3D artist Joe Hill, and honestly, how awesome does that look? I bet it was so intimidating looking that Sergio even reverted back to the old waggle days.

Well played, adidas. Very well played.

Does Padraig Harrington Know Tiger Still Needs FIVE Majors to Pass Jack?

I was a little confused when I read over the following quotes by Padraig Harrington, former three-time major winner turned lip-biter, but I think I've figured out the problem.

Here, these are the quotes from Harrington on Tiger Woods catching Jack Nicklaus' record of 18 majors, a subject that is getting nearly as tiring as debating the Official World Rankings.

“I still put my money on him doing it,” Harrington said. “I still believe he turns up and plays well in a given week, I think he’s well capable of winning any major he plays in.”

“He still has a good ball flight. He still hits it well. Once he puts it together in a given week, he can win and will going forward.
Will he be as dominant as before? I think players have improved in general, so maybe not,” Padraig said. “I played with him at the PGA and he still hit plenty of good golf shots. There’s plenty of things I saw there. Okay, it wasn’t his week that week, but when it is his week, he will win again.”

See the problem with the quotes? "Winning any major." "Given week." "When it is his week." Tiger doesn't need one more major to take out this record, he needs five. That means he doesn't need ONE week, he needs FIVE. And he needs all these perfect storms to happen at majors. I'm not sure why we're still debating this, mainly because the present evidence shows that it isn't going to happen, yet certain players still "see it," but why don't we all make a point to drop this until he actually wins another major. Is that okay? He's at 14. When he gets to 15, we can start the discussion about when he's going to get to 18, and 19, and then 20, but for now, he's at 14 and that isn't going to change at least until 2012, if not longer. We all know can win majors, because he's done it before, but we also know that he isn't winning anything right now, because he isn't. These are just facts. Making an assumption about where his golf game will be in the future is insanity, mainly because if in 2008 after Torrey Pines, if I had bet you $4,000 that Tiger wouldn't win a major through 2011, you would have shook my hand faster than Tiger's missing fairways. That's because we can't predict the future. Hope that isn't a newsflash to you all.

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Brett Favre Would be Proud of the Bethany College Golf Team

See that picture above? That photo costs the entire men's golf team at Bethany College three tournaments. Why? Because it's a Lutheran school, and apparently, apparently, the coach/athletic director wasn't a big fan of getting a picture of his team sporting the birthday suit in his inbox.

The story is, the Bethany team, called the Fighting Swedes (?), decided to take the above photo as an unofficial team photograph, following the actions of the 2004 UCLA team for Golf Digest. The problem is, doing so and posting on your Facebook page isn't exactly the same as doing so for the biggest golf publication in the land, and when coach Jon Daniels found out about it, the team was suspended for three events.

The worst part about the story? Well, the fact that it's become quite an uproar when it's obvious that a few college kids were just trying to have some fun. This is a group that is very talented, winning 11 of the last 15 Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference titles.

The best part? Well, the captain of the golf team's name. It's ... umm ... how do I put it. Here, I'll just paste his first and last name and you have yourself an appropriate laugh.

Jack Hiscock

Seriously. First name Jack. Last name Hiscock. Every 16-year-old reading this site (Note: a lot!) just laughed in between sips of Red Bull! John Daly's middle name could be Hooters and it still wouldn't beat out this guy.

The team is supposedly appealing the suspension, but for now, the Fighting Swedes and Mr. Hiscock will forever be remembered as the the team that showed a little too much of their game on the first tee.

A Few Fixes to the FedEx Cup

Starting Thursday, the always anticipated, never duplicated (well, except for that Race to Dubai thing), FedEx Cup kicks off, meaning we have four grueling weeks of playoff golf before all the big shots disappear from the PGA Tour until January, never to be seen again except for a shot stint in Australia for the Presidents Cup. Trust me, the FedEx Cup is a saggy weight to the golf season, but I must say, it's been a better success the last couple of years than I expected. That said, it still needs some work, and here are a few ideas they could implement to make it a little better in the coming years.

Stop Forcing Us To Care Early in the Season -- One of my favorite parts of going to the Waste Management Open each year is walking in the media center and seeing the HUGE FedEx Cup standings poster for all the writers to see. Remember, the WaMo is in early February, but still, all week, you're looking at who is leading these playoffs. Tell me this - two weeks into the MLB season, are analysts talking about the playoffs? No, they're talking about the early action, the surprises, the story lines, and who to watch in the coming weeks. I get that the idea is to promote this stuff all year, but forcing broadcasters to talk about it early on and always putting up the standings next to the names seems like a waste, and turns people off more than it gets people excited.

Allow the FedEx Cup Leader at a Certain Point Pick the Opening Venue -- While I know this doesn't work for a ton of logistical reasons, why not say after the PGA Championship, the guy leading in points gets to pick between three golf courses for the first event. What does this do? Well, first, it gives the guy that won the regular season (something far more difficult considering the amount of players than actually winning the playoffs) to have an advantage on something. Not a fan of Plainfield? Well, you get two more New Jersey courses to snag. Also, if you do it two or three weeks before, it allows that golf course to prepare. Now, again, I'm sure logistically this doesn't have a snowballs chance, but something for the regular season winner seems right.

Make it Less Complicated -- Honestly, I'm sorry, but 96 percent of golf fans don't really "get it," for many different reasons. Points are greater here, but not there? You get so many points for which tournament? The fields cut down to what after when? It could be more simple, and simplicity is what this country likes, especially with their sports. Don't believe me? What's the most hated playoff system in sports? The BCS, and that thing is more complicated than the ongoing debt ceiling crisis.

No Week Off Between the Deutsche Bank and BMW -- This is dumb. It's not the Super Bowl. Take this away and do it now. Thanks.

Implement More Match Play -- This is the playoffs, so why isn't it head-to-head? I don't get this. All playoffs are a team versus another team, but with this, it's still just a golf tournament, with nothing really different. Make match play a priority, which brings me to my favorite idea ...

Allow the Tour Championship to Be "Pick-Up Game" Format -- You know how the hockey All-Star game to went a captain's pick style, where you draft the players you want on your team? Why can't the PGA Tour do this, like the LPGA does with their match play. If you're the number one player heading into the final event, you get to pick who you play against. The good news is, the "picking" portion could be a special on Golf Channel and would draw interest.

A wrinkle I like -- the matches are ranked, so the number one player in the FedEx Cup standings is Match #1, and after each round, that winner gets precedent over the picks, so if whoever the top player picks beats him, they automatically get top pick for round two. I think it would make it interesting, and would bring a different type of edge into the game of golf. Plus, it would just be fun.

Again, the FedEx Cup has done better, but it still needs a few tweaks. Also, can we just have something that says Tiger Woods can always play even if he finishes 492 on the money list? Thanks.

Wait, So Tiger Woods Might Play More Golf This Year?

After Tiger Woods missed the cut at the PGA Championship, and said he had some family obligations to fulfill that would keep from trying to earn enough money last week to make the FedEx Cup, it seemed competitive golf was all but over for Woods on the PGA Tour.

Well, until Monday. Tiger "wrote" on his "blog" that, "I might add another PGA Tour event to my schedule. Right now, I'm looking at my options."

The obvious question is, "where," because Woods isn't invited to play in any of the FedEx Cup series events over the next few weeks, but does need to get some reps in before the Presidents Cup if he's picked by Fred Couples (Tiger also said, "Of course, I want to be on the team").

So where would Tiger play?

The easiest pick would be the Children's Miracle Network Hospitals Classic in late October, because it's in Florida and Tiger has won on the golf course before (granted it was in 1996, but still). Also, Justin Timberlake's event in Las Vegas looks like a fun one for Tiger, since it seems he enjoys Vegas and is in late September, meaning if he played well or wanted a few more reps before Australia, he could get them.

Also, the best part? If Tiger played in Vegas, it would be a week after the Tour Championship. What are the chances that Fall Series event would get better ratings than the actual Tour Championship? That answer would probably be very telling on just how much the golf world still likes watching Woods.

But, yes, Tiger is probably going to play more golf on the PGA Tour. That should be fun.

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Note to Golfers: Exit Stage Left When Lightening is in the Area

These images, via a reader over at Shackelford's site, are from the Hawkshead Links in South Haven, Michigan, and that hole you're seeing? Yeah, that's a lightening strike that blew a hole in the 8th fairway.

Just a quick reminder -- if you're out playing golf in lightening, you really, really don't like your life very much.

Should the Long-Putter Success Worry Golfers?

As you've probably heard, Webb Simpson won on Sunday at the Wyndham, meaning for the third straight week, a long or belly putter has taken home a PGA Tour crown. That's just one week after a long-putter won for the first time in a major championship, and some golf historians aren't so happy about it.

But why is it happening in such a rush right now? Simple, because players have more access to just about everything in golf. Look at Matt Kuchar. A top-10 machine the last couple of years, Kuchar switched mid-season to a putter that you rest in your left armpit, mainly because a coach told him it would help keep the ball on the path better. Do I have access to such technology? No, not really, but that doesn't mean I couldn't go down to my local golf shop and test out 20 long and belly putters from all different brands. It's access, and the players are using it to their benefit.

Now, is it a problem? I really don't think so. You want every edge you can get in golf, and while I can understand people complaining about the extra anchor that a belly or long putter gives you, you still have to be mentally sound enough to think you can make putts consistently. That's the big difference in a guy like Webb and your weekend hacker; Simpson really believes that he'll make every putt, and the long putter gives him that slight confidence boost that he probably needed.

Would I ever go to a long putter? No, probably not, mainly because I think they're goofy and my game isn't that serious anymore. If I was on the PGA Tour, and someone told me I could make one more putt a round if I switched? Absolutely, anything for that mini-boost.

The thing is, long putters aren't going anywhere, so we might as well embrace them like we did with the Big Bertha, the Pro-V and range finders. They're just part of the game now, whether you like them or not.

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Tiger Woods Not Winning a A Lot of Fans Over This Week With Decision Not to Play

It all started last week, when Tiger Woods told the media that he wouldn't be playing this week in Greensboro because he had some family issues he had to attend to. Fair, right? When you have to be a dad, it doesn't matter if you're a low income man or the highest paid athlete in the world, you need to be there for the kids and that takes precedent over everything else.

Tiger became the human punching bag he seems to be these days when he decided to do an EA Sports shoot on Tuesday instead of, well, be daddy.

CBS.com's Steve Elling took it to Tiger, saying, "Woods spent Tuesday at EA Sports in suburban Orlando filming computer footage for a new version of his video game, then engaged in a publicity stunt to promote sales by playing a teenager who won a national contest for the right to face Woods on the virtual golf course.

Maybe it’s just me, but what message does that send to Greensboro, the million-dollar FedEx Cup series title sponsors, the TV networks paying rights fees and golf in general – even if he does have custody of the kids?"

Elling makes a great point. What should we think when he says he's leaving for a legit reason only to go be Corporate Tiger 3.0 once again, spending more time on his label than his lag-putting.

Steve wasn't the only one that didn't like what Tiger did. My cohort Jay Busbee wrote, "Given how close Woods is to making the playoffs, skipping the Wyndham was nothing less than a cop-out."

Maybe it's the fan in all of us that hates to see Tiger do some of these moves he's now making famous, but if the guy really wants to get back on his game, he probably should try to play. The Presidents Cup needs him to get his game together because if Tiger's there, ratings skyrocket. Golf needs him because without Woods, interest in the already stretched FedEx Cup dies drastically. And more importantly, Tiger should want to be out there.

But again, it's Tiger life, and if he thinks he needed the time away from the game to get back what he used to have, I guess we have to respect that, even if we don't agree with it. Just add this week into the long list of questionable decisions from the once-number one in the world.

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Is Stephen Ames in the Running to be Tiger's New Caddie?

It's probably a silly assumption to think that four-time PGA Tour winner Stephen Ames, once famous for making digs at Tiger's swing only to have Woods go out and beat him 9 & 8 at the Accenture Match Play, would be trying to win some points with Tiger, but his latest comments sure suggest that.

Ames, who has made 10 of 18 cuts this season, said something about Tiger on Tuesday at a press conference at the Stephen Ames Cup that sure has been different than most of the tunes people have been singing about Woods over the last year or so (Ed. Note: Can any pro have a "cup" or "invitational" these days? Sure seems like it.).

“Swing-wise (Tiger's swing) looks 10 times better than it was before,” said Ames. “Sean’s done a wonderful job and, as Sean has mentioned before, he’s not clear upstairs right now. I think it’s going to be awhile before he gets there.”

It's just funny because this is the same guy that said you never know where he's going to hit it back when he was actually good, and now when he couldn't find the fairway with a Toro he's complimenting the move Tiger makes.

Maybe he's just trying to get Tiger to play in the Ames Cup? That could definitely be it.

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When a Mountain Lion Quickly Stops Being a Hazard

I've never started a post thinking, "Man, I bet PETA is going to hate this stuff," but I've also never seen a story about a mountain lion on a golf course and the best, err, way to remove it from the premises.

But leave it up to Arizona*! In Prescott, a mountain lion was near the 9th hole, and after concerned residents called the Arizona Game and Fish Department, well, the problem ceased to exist.

Wildlife Officer Virginia Gouldsbury returned and shot the lion with a tranquilizer dart, but it climbed higher in the tree. She and two other armed wildlife officers stood at the base of the tree to keep the lion from running toward golfers.

They called the Prescott Fire Department for help with a ladder truck to get a better angle on the lion before shooting another dart.

After the lion fell, they took it out of town and killed it.

I mean, really? You have to kill the damn thing? I know it might pose a threat, but aren't YOU posing a threat on IT when you shoot the animal with tranquilizers?!

I'm not necessarily Captain PC, but I don't really think killing some animal just because it's disturbing the lady nine hole league is the right move. Isn't the Game Department supposed to, I don't know, help out the game?!

Alright, I'm off to play nine holes in Scottsdale. Hopefully a Dalmatian doesn't try to walk in front of the cart path or else I'll have to call Fish and Game and see if they'll run it over with a bulldozer.

* - I live in Arizona, and 100 percent completely and understandably get the jokes about this state, and stuff like this is exactly why.

Of Course the PGA Championship Ratings Were Down

The overnight numbers came out about this past weekend's PGA Championship, and the playoff between Keegan Bradley and, oh, whatever his name was, were down 14 perent from a year ago, and 43 percent from '09 (that was when Tiger was in the hunt!).

Some people are making a big deal out of this, but really, who thought they were going to be great? We had two no-names playing in the least interesting major of the year, and unless you actually enjoy the game of golf, you probably never even flipped it over to CBS to see who was competing.

Is that necessarily bad for golf? No, not really. If the Detroit Pistons were playing the Sacramento Kings in the NBA Finals, you'd expect the ratings to be down just because they aren't big market teams. That's just reality. If Tiger/Phil/Rory/Ryo/Rickie/Bubba/Dustin aren't battling down the stretch, the casual sports fan is probably going to try to find something else on the tube.

Was it great golf? Absolutely. Was it the second most exciting major of the year? Totally. Did you expect it to outperform 2010 or '09? No, that would have been a little too lofty.

But still, you can't take away from the fun of that Sunday, and how great the playoff was. I'd take no-names producing that kind of golf any day over a star running away from the pack by seven shots.

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How Most People Will Remember the PGA Championship

Yep. That thing above is how you're probably going to remember this PGA Championship. My boy Jonathan Wall did a great job of breaking down just how bad the commercial-stricken major was, but lord, every other shot seemed to go to some ED commercial, Southwest or some horrible fall lineup of television shows that'll be canceled faster than Paul Reiser.

Anyway, yes, that ball is still haunting me. It rolls after me in my sleep. Damn you, CBS!

The Brilliance of Mr. Bradley

Back in early January of this year, I found myself in Palm Springs for a golf fitting with the fine folks at TaylorMade. I was getting put through the ringer, but the good news was I was finally going to have some clubs that were perfect for me, and it was Bob Hope week, which meant a lot of friends were in town. One was a LPGA pal of mine, and I headed up to the Beer Hunter on Tuesday night to see her and hang out. Little did I know when I arrived, that two rookies on the PGA Tour would be at the table hanging out. One I had heard of. His name was Jamie Lovemark and he was the proverbial big shot of the rookie class. He had swagger, and was already going through the motions of a big time athlete. You could tell he knew he was important, even before he really was important, and he figured that a win would come any day now.

The other rookie was much quieter. He sat in the corner drinking his water and laughing at the group, answering my random questions about professional golf on the elite level.

The kid was Keegan Bradley, and later that week, he'd finish tied for 7th at the Bob Hope, his first top-10 on the PGA Tour but obviously a telling sign for what was to come in 2011.

On Sunday at the Atlanta Athletic Club, it seemed Keegan had finally sunk his chances when the blade of his wedge caught just a little too much ball on the 15th hole, and sent his Srixon into a watery grave. He would go on to make a triple-bogey on the hole, and all that work he'd done for the first 14 holes on Sunday looked lost. Just a week prior, Bradley had shot a gut-wrenching 41 on the final nine holes at the Bridgestone Invitational to fall down the leaderboard, and while he'd held it together this Sunday, it seemed this was the breaking point.

But there are moments champions fall on the mat and accept defeat, and other times when the eventual winner pops right back up and realizes he ain't losing this fight. That was Keegan.

As a fan of the Boston Red Sox, it seems appropriate that he'd win his first major championship in that fashion. A team that went decades without a World Series were on the mat back in 2004 in the ALCS, but got up, and won four straight games to advance to the Fall Classic. Bradley's triple-bogey left him looking at a nearly impossible comeback, but in golf, nothing's impossible.

You know the rest from there. Keegan makes birdie on 16, 17 and a fantastic two-putt on the 18th to post 8-under, and wait for Jason Dufner to fall back to him. Then in the playoff he makes a beautiful birdie on the first playoff hole and then just two pars in to win the Wanamaker Trophy. It was his second win of the year, but an important one for golf.

All the time we're talking about the next American to be great. We wonder when Rickie Fowler is going to wake up and win, or when Anthony Kim is going to get his head out of his butt and start being as great as he should. But we forget that there are a ton of talented players in this game that have the ability to kill it for a week straight and shock the world.

At the Beer Hunter in January, I had absolutely no idea I was sitting at the table with a future major champion, but I did know something; this Bradley kid was the silent one in the group, and we all know that sometimes the silent ones are the kids you have to watch.

I clapped on Sunday when the final putt dropped, knowing a deserving rookie won the biggest tournament of his life. I hope you did the same.

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So This Happened

Really no words for these shots, so I'll just let you watch. They happened about five minutes apart, btw.

The TigerWoods.com Headline Writer Strikes Again!!

I mean, this is too much. When did he make that push? Did I miss it?

A week after the jokester that writes Tiger Woods' website headlines wrote this about the Bridgestone Invitational, he came up with the above picture on Friday.

Was it supposed to be "Tiger Woods pushed his drive right again" and just messed up? I'm sure that was it. Anyway, great stuff.

Might I suggest, "Tiger won't miss another cut this season," or "If "others" were important in golf, Tiger Woods would be the Tiger Woods of this game!"

If You're Looking For a Picture to Describe Tiger's PGA Championship, Here It is ...

I honestly don't know what else to say about Tiger Woods' play this week other than the above picture, courtesy of Getty Images.

It was bad ... very, very bad ... and I'm sure he will want to get in his rental car, get to the private airport, and home as quick as possible. I sure would be.

This Guy Wins the PGA Championship

No, he probably won't get the Wanamaker Trophy, but this guy wins it. Welcome to Internet Fame, sir. Hope it suits you well.



via Deadspin

So Who Hit It Better?

Alright, who ya got, Sergio Garcia in 1999 at Medinah, or Rory McIlroy on Thursday at Atlanta Athletic Club? Give me your thoughts!

Rory McIlroy Nearly Breaks Wrist on Root at PGA Championship

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That's the video. And the decision making. Just two weeks after being called out for his decision making on the golf course, Rory McIlroy decided to go after a second shot on the 3rd hole at Atlanta Athletic Club, hit a root, and is now debating if he's going to stay out there and play the next three days.

It was a poor decision, but the kid is trying to win, so you can't fault him. What you can fault him for is not just punching out, taking his bogey and going on with it. Heck, he made bogey anyway!!

A Nasty Round for Tiger Woods Leaves Us All Speechless

There are plenty of times in the career of Tiger Woods when he's done stuff that's left you speechless. His second shot into the 18th at the Canadian Open in 2002 comes to mind. That dribbling putt that dropped on the 72nd hole at Torrey Pines in '08 is another. And of course, some of his performances as a whole, like Augusta in '97 and Pebble Beach in 2000.

But rarely does it leave you a befuddled speechless. That's what happened Thursday at Atlanta Athletic Club. I was speechless. Utterly speechless. People will ask me today and tonight what happened to Tiger after he was 3-under through five holes in the first round of this year's PGA Championship, his first major since the Masters earlier this year, and I really don't know if I'll have an answer.

He couldn't hit a fairway? He kept making the bad mistake? He found more bunkers than an Army training op? He couldn't buy a putt? He made three double-bogeys? All of these are part of the reason, but there has to be a reason for this, and that reason is the guy just doesn't have any confidence in his golf game anymore. Why do I think that? Because I've been where he is. I've hit those misses that go way away from the trouble on every hole. I've sat on tees trying to hit it in the right rough because water is to the left. And I was doing all that because I knew my golf game was a broken window.

And you know I'm not stupid enough to compare what I can do on the golf course to what Tiger can do. His talent is the Empire State Building, and mine is a Radio Shack, but as a golfer, I can get where he's at. It's just strange to think that Woods would ever get there.

His opening round 77 was the worst he's ever had in a major. He isn't going to make the cut on Friday, mostly because he doesn't have a golf swing to do it.

I hate to think that we are currently watching a guy lose his golf game. Back in the early 2000s, when David Duval found and lost his golf game, the focus wasn't there in the media. Sure, Duval was a big name, but he wasn't Tiger Woods. This guy is falling apart, and all that rumbling we had when he got hurt for him to come back seems completely justified now. He should have taken the rest of the year off. He should have packed the sticks away, got on his boat, cleared his mind and figured out just what he wants to do with his career moving forward.

I know Tiger wants to play well. I know he has all the right intentions on the golf course, and wants to go out and win. But the reality of it is he isn't going to do that. He can't. He isn't mentally there, his swing is all over the place, and he just doesn't have enough reps on the golf course to realistically compete on the PGA Tour, 2011 Edition. Each player out there is just getting better and better, but Tiger is regressing. His game is getting worse. He needs time away to figure it all out or he could just keep getting beat down, and every round like this is just another step back for Woods.

I feel bad for Tiger. I really do. I feel bad because I know he wants to win so bad, but more importantly, because this was our generation's guy. This was the man that we were planning on telling our grandkids that we got to see live! He was the player we were going to brag about for years to come, because he grew up when we grew up, and his golf was better than everyone else's.

Nobody enjoys watching this implosion. I just wish Tiger would get it all cleared up before he tees it up again. I'm sure right now, golf clubs are the last thing he wants in his hand (well, besides a microphone).

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Good Luck Trying to Pick Out John Daly

The above photo is of all the current PGA Championship winners that showed up this week at Atlantic Athletic Club. I'll give you a few seconds to try to thumb out John Daly.

......

*whistles*

..........

.....

Okay, give up?! He's the guy on the left!!! In the plaid jacket, jeans and pink shoes! How did you NOT get that?

I'll say this, if Daly is trying to make a good impression so he lands a few more sponsors exemptions next year, he sure is on the right track!

Jerry Pate Should Turn Down PGA Championship Invite

Every major championship has the right to invite players into their event. Occasionally the British or PGA Championship will give honorary invites to those deserving of them, and 57-year-old Jerry Pate is definitely the type of guy that deserves one last hooray in his home state of Georgia.

The problem is, as the AP's Doug Ferguson points out, Pate already got that chance 10 years ago, when the PGA offered him a special invite at the age of 47 and Pate shot rounds of 73-70 to miss the cut. That was Pate's last major championship, but he sent in a letter to the PGA of America asking for one last farwell to tournament golf, and he got it, making it the second time he's going to wave goodbye at the exact same golf course.

Pate's a good guy. He won the 1976 U.S. Open at this same golf course, the Highlands at Atlantic Athletic Club. It was brilliant playing back then, and he deserves credit for that. But asking and receiving a spot in 2011 at a golf course that he won't be able to play, taking a spot from guys like Paul Goydos and Chad Campbell, seems rather unfair, and while it is the PGA's decision on who gets the invites, allowing a man that last made a cut before I was born when you already did it seems shortsighted.

I'm not the only one that thinks this. Check out what PGA Tour player Joe Ogilvie said on Tuesday:


Exactly. You gotta turn this down. There are people out there that might have a chance, and while Pate is still a talented golfer, having someone prance around AAC for some goodbye tour for the second time seems like overkill.

Hopefully Pate will do the right thing and let someone in that has a chance at making the cut and competing.

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Tiger Woods Continues to Make Fans

For more golf news and PGA Championship updates, follow us on Twitter.

If there is one thing that Tiger Woods hasn't done that well over the last 18 months, it would be golf. The thing that made him the most famous athlete in the world has been lacking, and he knows it, and it bothers him. The thing he's done the best? Made a whole lot of enemies.

That is to say, a lot of people aren't big fans of Tiger anymore. Reports last week had once-pal Roger Federer pushing away from Mr. Woods, and after the fallout with Steve Williams, you knew his ex-caddie wouldn't be sending the Woods household a Christmas card this winter. But the group that gets ridiculed the most by Mr. Woods? The media!

That is according to a report by Doug Ferguson (first reported by Stephanie Wei) about Tiger dissing the media at last week's Bridgestone Invitational.

According to the AP report, Tiger walked off of his Thursday press conference muttering, ""That's why you guys listen and I play." This was after Tiger was asking something about how his expectations last week might have been lessened because of his lack of play, and if winning was still his number one priority. While everyone with half a brain would understand that Firestone was a warm-up for this week for Mr. Woods, Tiger still couldn't accept it, and made sure everyone knew that (which was funny after you saw what his website put up after his Sunday finish).

The old argument that journalists don't get something because they aren't in the ring is juvenile at best. Sure, most everyone with a notepad and microphone has never teed it up in a meaningful golf tournament, but that doesn't mean they're not smart enough to understand the situation.

But again, that's been the problem with Tiger. Nobody else is right. Nobody else is as smart. Nobody else can comprehend what he comprehends. His opinion is king and everything else is laughable.

I have a feeling one of these days Tiger is going to need some good press to help him out, and the way he's treated the media over the years, I'd be very surprised if he got it.

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A Look Back at Just How Batshit Crazy Last Year's Final Round Was at the PGA Championship

A lot of people think back a year ago at Whistling Straits and think of one thing; BunkerGate. But let us not forget that this was one of the craziest finishes in major championship history! The whole day was strange, concluding with BunkerGate plus a strange playoff. So, without further ado, here is a recap of just what happened at the 2010 PGA Championship on Sunday.

-- Before the final round began, it wasn't Dustin Johnson or Bubba Watson who looked like the young American ready to breakout and win his first major. That honor was held by Nick Watney, who held a three-shot lead heading into Sunday. Watney had bettered himself everyday, shooting 69-68-66 to get to 13-under, and looked ready to cruise to victory. The only problem is, golf is 72 holes, and Watney's last 18 added up to 81, dropping him 17 spots to a tie for 18th. The craziest part? Watney ended birdie-birdie-par (par on 18 was like a birdie on Sunday) to shoot 81.

-- 47-year-old Steve Elkington, who has always seemed to play the PGA Championship well, tied for the lead after a birdie on the 16th, but made bogeys on 17 and 18 to miss the playoff by two shots, which would have been great given the history between Elkington and Watson.

-- Rory McIlroy was three shots back to start the day, but never really got anything going, and was even par heading into the 18th, needing a birdie on the tough par-4 to post 11-under. His second shot landed 15-feet away, but much like the rest of his day, he couldn't cash it in, missing out on the playoff by a shot.

-- Obviously we know what happened to Dustin Johnson on 18, but the dude birdied 13, 16 and 17 to get himself to 12-under and with a chance to win with a par on the final hole. As you know, he drove his ball right, grounded his club in some sand/bunker stuff, yanked his then-second shot left, hit one of the most ridiculous flop shots in major championship history to about 10-feet, and then couldn't roll that in for what he thought was a par at the time. I remember I had already typed "And Dustin Johnson wins his first major!" on Twitter and was waiting to hit send before his putt missed. Then, as you know, he was approached on the 18th by a rules official, told he was getting penalized for grounding his club, and all hell broke loose. His bogey was made a triple-bogey, and Johnson finished two shots out of the playoff for the two-stroke penalty.

-- Because of Dustin's misfortune, Bubba and Martin Kaymer made the three-hole playoff, and it was a good one before it was a bad one. Bubba made birdie on the first playoff hole, Kaymer made birdie on the second, and then came the 18th again, where it appears golf swings come to die.

Watson had what looked like a relatively easy second shot into the 18th, hit it, and then watched as it came up nearly 30 yards short of the green, leaving Bubba as shocked as the rest of us (I joked that it almost looked like he tried to pull out a 6-iron but accidentally grabbed the 9, something us hackers have all done before). Watson was in the trash, and ended up making a double-bogey, which was bested by Kaymer by a shot. I remember thinking the only way that playoff should have ended was with someone making a double-bogey to win it.

Eventually Kaymer was the champion of a very strange tournament, with an even stranger ending.

Your PGA Championship Betting Lines (and Picks)

As we've already remarked, gambling on golf is dumb, but if you must do it, we offer up the lines for the 2011 PGA Championship and who we think is a good bet. As always, the ones we like are in bold, but trust me, you don't want to take my advice.

(Also, I think it's worth noting that as stupid as it is to bet on something like Tiger at 20-to-1, isn't is just as dumb to bet on someone like Fowler at 25-to-1? At least Tiger has won a major before ... Fowler's never won anything! That isn't a knock on Rickie, I just think either Vegas is scared for people to put money on Fowler or they get good action on him because he promised to dress in an all-gold outfit this week for the bookies.)

Rory McIlroy -- 10/1
Lee Westwood -- 14/1
Luke Donald -- 14/1
Adam Scott -- 20/1
Phil Mickelson -- 20/1
Tiger Woods -- 20/1
Dustin Johnson -- 25/1
Jason Day -- 25/1
Rickie Fowler -- 25/1
Steve Stricker -- 25/1
Martin Kaymer -- 28/1
Nick Watney -- 28/1
Matt Kuchar -- 33/1
Charl Schwartzel -- 40/1
Sergio Garcia -- 40/1
Zach Johnson -- 40/1
Bubba Watson -- 50/1
David Toms -- 50/1
Hunter Mahan -- 50/1
Anthony Kim -- 66/1
K.J. Choi -- 66/1
Bo Van Pelt -- 80/1
Brandt Snedeker -- 80/1
Fredrik Jacobson -- 80/1
Gary Woodland -- 80/1
Geoff Ogilvy -- 80/1
Graeme McDowell -- 80/1
Jim Furyk -- 80/1
Justin Rose -- 80/1
Lucas Glover -- 80/1
Martin Laird -- 80/1
Padraig Harrington -- 80/1
Retief Goosen -- 80/1
Robert Karlsson -- 80/1
Ryan Moore -- 80/1
Ryo Ishikawa -- 80/1
Webb Simpson -- 80/1
Y-E Yang -- 80/1
Aaron Baddeley -- 100/1
Andres Romero -- 100/1
Angel Cabrera -- 100/1
Bill Haas -- 100/1
Charles Howell III -- 100/1
Ernie Els -- 100/1
Francesco Molinari -- 100/1
Ian Poulter -- 100/1
Matteo Manassero -- 100/1
Paul Casey -- 100/1
Peter Hanson -- 100/1
Sean O'Hair -- 100/1
Simon Dyson -- 100/1
Stewart Cink -- 100/1
Alexander Noren -- 125/1
Brendon De Jonge -- 125/1
Darren Clarke -- 125/1
Davis Love III -- 125/1
J.B. Holmes -- 125/1
Jeff Overton -- 125/1
Keegan Bradley -- 125/1
Kyung-Tae Kim -- 125/1
Louis Oosthuizen -- 125/1
Robert Allenby -- 125/1
Ross Fisher -- 125/1
Trevor Immelman -- 125/1
Alvaro Quiros -- 150/1
Anders Hansen -- 150/1
Ben Crane -- 150/1
Camilo Villegas -- 150/1
Charley Hoffman -- 150/1
Chris Kirk -- 150/1
John Senden -- 150/1
Jonathan Byrd -- 150/1
Kevin Streelman -- 150/1
Oliver Wilson -- 150/1
Richard Green -- 150/1
Ricky Barnes -- 150/1
Rory Sabbatini -- 150/1
Ryan Palmer -- 150/1
Spencer Levin -- 150/1
Thomas Bjorn -- 150/1
Vijay Singh -- 150/1
Brian Gay -- 175/1
Bryce Molder -- 175/1
Edoardo Molinari -- 175/1
Jason Dufner -- 175/1
Kevin Na -- 175/1
Miguel Angel Jimenez -- 175/1
Steve Marino -- 175/1
Brandt Jobe -- 200/1
Brian Davis -- 200/1
Cameron Tringale -- 200/1
Charlie Wi -- 200/1
D-A Points -- 200/1
Heath Slocum -- 200/1
Jamie Donaldson -- 200/1
Jhonattan Vegas -- 200/1
John Rollins -- 200/1
Raphael Jacquelin -- 200/1
Robert Garrigus -- 200/1
Scott Stallings -- 200/1
Scott Verplank -- 200/1
Seung-yul Noh -- 200/1
Stephen Gallacher -- 200/1
Brendan Steele -- 250/1
J.J. Henry -- 250/1
Jerry Kelly -- 250/1
Johan Edfors -- 250/1
Johnson Wagner -- 250/1
Ryuji Imada -- 250/1
Thomas Aiken -- 250/1
Tommy Gainey -- 250/1
Bill Lunde -- 300/1
David Horsey -- 300/1
Fredrik Andersson Hed -- 300/1
Gregory Bourdy -- 300/1
Harrison Frazar -- 300/1
Matt Jones -- 300/1
Pablo Larrazabal -- 300/1
Shaun Micheel -- 300/1
Steve Elkington -- 300/1
Arjun Atwal -- 400/1
Jose Maria Olazabal -- 400/1
Rocco Mediate -- 400/1
Wen-Chong Liang -- 400/1
Yuta Ikeda -- 400/1

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Time For Your Monthly 'People Hate Money' Post

Hey gambling fans! Wanting to toss some money out on this week's PGA Championship? Sure ya do! Gambling is fun and doing it on sports is even funner! Want to pick Rory McIlroy? He's the favorite. And then Lee Westwood and Luke Donald are both pretty high up there.

And after that? Who say you, gambling website? Who is 20-to-1 to win at Atlanta Athletic Club?! Yep, you guessed it.

TIGER WOODS! Woohoo! 20-to-1. Those are some great odds! You might as well put your kid's college tuition on that. That bet's as steady as the stock market!

Seriously though, if you bet even $25 on Tiger to win this week, just delete this website from your bookmark bar. I have nothing more to tell you and obviously you have lost the ability to learn. Go on to another place, please, and leave that $25 at the door.

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TigerWoods.com Has Great Perspective

That above is the headline on Monday for TigerWoods.com, one of the last sponsors still sticking around for Mr Woods, and the place that breaks just about every big story concerning Tiger these days.

"After rough start, Tiger soars at Firestone." That's what the headline said. Tiger shot rounds of 68-71-72-70, so pretty much the same type of golf each day, give or take a putt or two. Never once was Tiger in the top-10, and his Sunday finish of even par jumped him a whopping one spot from 38th to 37th, his second worse finish at Firestone in his entire career.

So, yes, soars, indeed.

via Rovell

The PGA Championship Is More Fun Than We Think

IF you asked any golf fan in the world not currently employed by the PGA of America, they'd tell you that their favorite major championship in order they'd probably have a different first three, but the last one would most definitely be the PGA Championship. It doesn't have the allure of the Masters, the toughness of the U.S. Open or the history and different feel of the British, and it always seems a little more like a regular tour event and a little less like a major right up until the guys tee off on Thursday.

And that's when you realize that this one is just as good as the others. They play on spectacular golf courses, have the most talented field and allow PGA professionals (the ones that work, not play) a chance to test their game against the best in the world. It's fun the first two days getting random glimpses of those players hitting great shots or making lengthy putts, and there is always a few that make it to the weekend.

So we can sit here and say that the PGA Championship isn't the best, but it does have a lot of things going for it.

-- For some reason, it normally produces some really exciting golf, highlighted by the antics a year ago with BunkerGate and the Y.E. Yang-Tiger Woods battle from a few years back. You can ever go back to the last time this course hosted an event if you're trying to find some true drama, with Phil Mickelson trying to win his first major and David Toms electing to lay-up on the last hole, a par-4, and then getting it up and down for par to win.

-- The trophy is the best looking, and second most famous, of all the majors, and ranks right up there with all sports hardware as "hardest to raise above your head."

-- It's fun to see players that have had good years really going all out this week to try and claim that major championship before the year ends. Must like golf games can change dramatically from the front nine to the back nine, careers can change year to year for some reason, and players know this (best recent example? Look at Graeme McDowell from 2010 to 2011 ... completely different guys).

-- It's the last time we get to see a lot of the European Tour-heavy guys play over here, so that's always nice.

-- It's a major! Hey, everyone loves majors.

I know that people will complain that this tournament has created winners like Rich Beem and Shaun MIcheel, but for some reason I like that. It shows that even at majors, the random guys playing the best can win.

I'm excited. I hope you are too.

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Scott and Stevie

We should probably all understand something and understand it good and well; Adam Scott won a really competitive golf tournament this weekend. It was a golf tournament that had 49 of the 50 highest ranked players in the world competing and threw some of the most talented people in the world at anyone nearing the top of the leaderboard.

It took guts, talent and glory to win this weekend, and Adam Scott did all that with a muted swagger that a lot of athletes could learn from. Adam Scott was happy making himself the secondary story.

You know why? Because the guy came to Firestone with the best game of anyone in golf, and he knew it. His swing was compact and solid. His putting stroke, even with the tire iron, produced a consistent look the likes of nobody else in the field. His touch around the greens was that of champions. He wasn't going to be beat this week.

But for some reason, Adam Scott had another reason to win; he wanted to win for someone else. Caddies are a very serious reason why people are successful. Having someone on your bag that you're comfortable with makes all the difference in the world. I remember once playing in the Colorado Open qualifier and having a good friend who brought positive thoughts carry my bag and all I could think of was how good I had it, and I played some great golf. That was Adam Scott. He knew the guy looping for him was as good at his job at Adam was at his and that means a lot. Williams wasn't on Tiger's bag for 13 majors for no reason; that takes some serious talent and an even better grasp of your player.

It's just worth giving credit to Scott. He played the best golf of the week by far, and was lucky enough to have a talented looper on the bag that knows how to win and knows how to win in bunches. Scott and Stevie could go on some runs over the next few months, and I'd love to see it. One is a great player. The other is the best at his job that's ever lived. Not a bad combo if you ask me.

Tiger 'Watches' Another Sponsor Walk Away

Nobody will ever be concerned about Tiger Woods and his money situation. The dude could send a crate of $100 bills to every member of Congress (and trust me, they could probably use that) and wouldn't even bat an eyelash. But it is worth noting that Tiger has now lost Gillette, Gatorade, Accenture, AT&T and Golf Digest, and you can add that really flashy watch he sports to the group, because Tag Heuer has let the contract with Woods end and they don't plan on renewing it.

This is all according to Ron Sirak, who tweeted that the deal was over, and it ends a long-standing relationship between the two.

Again, money isn't really that big of a problem for Tiger, but seriously, what next, TigerWoods.com drops him? It seems that everyone is trying to distance themselves from Woods except Nike and a few other deals, and until he starts winning, they won't be coming back.

But alas, Tiger is still golfing, and he'll still earn a hefty check this week no matter what. And I guess now he can get that Rolex he's always wanted.

A Goatee Competition

It appears long hair is out (except for Hunter Mahan) and facial hair is in! Well, more facial hair, and more of it concentrated in one area. Like with Tiger Woods and Jason Day this week at the Bridgestone Invitational.

So, which one rocks it better? You can be honest and say me if you like, but I've never grown one of those things ever, and probably never will.

Despite Rumors to the Contrary, Tiger Woods is Still Not 'Back'

Tiger Woods sure can fool us golf fans. He puts together a decent round, like he did on Thursday at Firestone, and we all are quick to jump up and scream "He's baaack!" The truth is, we want him to be back. Maybe we do it for our own sake, thinking that somehow us willing him to be back to form would force him to actually do so. But we all know that one round isn't going to do that. We're not that stupid.

So on Friday, when Tiger slapped it around a golf course most seem to be taking full advantage of (two days in a row somehow has posted 64 or lower), we all kind of slide down in our chairs, hoping not to hear the boos and "told ya so's" of all the fans and critics out there that saw Thursday for what it was; a fine round and just that.

Friday showed what most of us expected on Thursday. Tiger hitting some loose iron shots, some even looser chips and pitches, and missing some putts that he would never miss back in his heyday. Tiger's 71 did show that despite anything we say, he is still one of the few people in the world that can still post a respectable score when he brings his worst game to the course, but this isn't 2004 anymore, and Tiger has to play great golf to even compete against the talent that is currently at the Bridgestone Invitational.

Tiger is frustrated, as he should be. It was an ugly round that never really had anything going, and like Phil Mickelson's pink pants, left a lot of us scratching our heads. It's going to take a while before he can string together 72 holes of tournament-champion golf, but for now, we can at least be happy that he's back. I know I am, no matter if he hit some shots on Friday that you wouldn't even be happy with.

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This Charity Event Sounds Fun

Scrambles are great. We all love them. It's normally a day off work, where you can go play some golf and create a scorecard you normally only see at the Bob Hope Classic.

But there are some events that are more fun than others. Like, for instance, the Elks Lodge rodeo fundraiser in Woodward, Oklahoma. That golf tournament seems like a lot of fun to play in. Why?

Well ...

One of the volunteers stripped naked as part of a putting green challenge, though she was not asked to do so, Day said. He said the woman was recruited to help at the last minute after a longtime volunteer couldn't attend.

Chairman Neil Day said Elks members are trying to dispel rumors spreading throughout the community that the lodge paid the woman to get naked or that she had sex with tournament players. Cellphone photos of the event have been forwarded throughout town."

Wait, are we sure this wasn't the 2011 Tiger Jam? Anyway, yes, it probably is pretty random and shocking when you're in the Dust Bowl, a Bible belt part of the world, and some lady goes birthday suit for the entire tourney, but hey, at least she volunteered to do that, amiright?

The best part of the Okahoma news story? This closing line.

Day said the woman will not be asked to volunteer for the Elks in the future.

Well I'll be!

h/t Mr. Ballengee

Lost in All This Tiger Mania is Rory Announcing Something Great

Two months ago at Congressional, I was watching Rory McIlroy's award ceremony from a hill about 500 yards up from the 18th green, listening to McIlroy thank just about everyone in his entourage and family as you'd expect from a first-time major winner.

It was pretty standard until Rory was asked if this win meant he might be spending more time on U.S. soil. He smiled sheepishly and answered something to the line of, "I guess I should." Little did we know that a small line like that would be foreshadowing for the next two months of his life.

Rory played the British Open and after getting himself into contention the first two days, McIlroy struggled with the conditions and then said he didn't like playing tournaments where wind played such a huge factor, a blasphemous claim considering the man grew up in Northern Ireland. And then Rory got in a little Twitter spat about his course management that occurred on European soil. And now, Mcilroy has announced that he might just be spending more of his time over in the United States, saying on Wednesday, "I feel I play my best golf over here. I’m very comfortable in this country. Yeah, I’m definitely looking toward coming back and playing a full schedule.”

While some might blast Rory for pushing away from the European Tour after just one season, golf is a sport that's a selfish one, because you're alone on the golf course and you're playing for yourself and yourself only. You make a bogey, it's on you. You win a tournament, the check goes to your bank account. I'm proud he's coming out and saying this, because it shows he's comfortable enough to make an announcement that some might shake their head about.

But if McIlroy wants to spend his time over here, good for him. I hope he does. We all know the PGA Tour could sure use the ratings love.

Site News

Hey, just wanted to let you all know, sorry about the lack of posting this week, but it's been a combination of being under the weather + being told I can actually golf again + working on a big story over at Yahoo! + writing 47 stories over there about Tiger Woods.

Honestly, I think I wrote one about what breakfast Tiger had. But, alas, I'm back, and just in time for some Tiger talk. Apologies again. Don't quit me.

Holy Mother, Ryo Ishikawa Got a Haircut

Flowing locks be damned, Roy Ishikawa is going all Jim Furyk on us. That's his hairstyle at this week's Bridgestone Invitational, and since Marty isn't around to give us his thoughts on the outfit, I ask, do you like the hair?

(Also, below is how his hair used to look.)


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European Tour > PGA Tour

Well, at least they are in ideas. This video that's been circulating around the Internet is just another example of how the European Tour gets both marketing and fun, and tries just about anything to get some views on their lesser known players.

My only question - they had someone with a remote to detonate all that stuff, right? No chance a golf ball did the damage.