I Do Not Care if Tiger Woods Ever Does Another Press Conference Again

In a few hours Tiger Woods will, for the second time this year, bypass a pre-tournament press conference to tool around on the Internet and interact with friends. His first, rightfully nicknamed the hostage video, was Tiger reading, rather blandly, questions from fans while sitting on what appeared to be a set from Ikea.

On Tuesday, the interaction will take on another face as Tiger and Google+ have teamed up to give us some sort of social interaction that is live to all the golf fans across the world. And by doing this, he isn't going to show up and chat with the media before the Memorial, a tournament he's won four times.

And I do not care. One bit. I don't blame Tiger for skipping the press conference just like I don't blame media members for being upset that the most popular figure in the game won't sit around and act like he's answering questions.

Tiger Woods hasn't answered a question in years. He sits in front of cameras with that blank stare on his face and talks of his golf game and his swing and how close he is to being great again, but nothing is every groundbreaking. He isn't speaking of his personal life or his business or his future plans. He doesn't really talk about other players or his ever-changing golf swing or the fact that he doesn't win that much anymore.

And I know that Tiger's approach to press conferences could one day change the whole landscape to this in the golf world. Think about it; if you're Rory McIlroy, and you see that Tiger is never going to do another pre-tournament press conference, why would you? Sure, some people actually enjoy talking to the media (I'll wait for you to get back into your chair), but if I was a pro golfer and the most famous guy in our sport was bypassing an obligation for another means of chatting with the public, it wouldn't take me long to follow suit (think of this as golf's version of the Louis C.K. experiment).

I watched the 1999 U.S. Open a couple of weeks ago, and saw a much happier Tiger Woods strolling the fairways. He wasn't going to win that tournament, but he smiled at fans and looked like he generally was enjoying himself out on the golf course and was interested in the competition. It struck me as odd because that is so far from what Tiger looks like now when he's playing golf. He might still enjoy being in the moment and all that jazz, but when he plays bad golf he really looks like he hates what he's doing. I can relate to that. Playing bad golf sucks, simple as that, but it was fun to see a smiling Tiger Woods back in those days trying to get a leg up on history with a second major championship.

Tiger now would like to play the game and that's it. If he wants to interact with his fans instead of the media, I'm totally fine with that. If he doesn't want to talk to anyone at all, it won't hurt my feelings. This game of golf has always been an independent contractor-type situation, and Tiger can do whatever he wants whenever he wants and as long as he shows up and attempts to play solid golf at events, I'll be totally fine with that.

Nobody in this business is ever going to have a relationship with Woods now. He might as well try to get in better with his core group and not so much with the scribes that love to bash him.

Golf has and always will be Tiger's world. This is just another step in that direction.

Our Own Cool/Not Cool Golf List

Golf Digest recently rolled out a list of the ten cool and not cool things on a golf course. The article nailed a couple of them (yes, it is uncool to wear red on Sundays like Tiger Woods, but it is also uncool for Tiger to do it), confused with a couple (why the heck is an eraser on a pencil uncool? You think golfers are good at math?!), but generally did what is asked of an article to start a discussion.

So here is our list of cool, uncool things to do on the golf course.

Cool / Not Cool

Cool: Bringing a music player and jamming to music in your cart
Not Cool: Getting mad that someone is enjoying some music and asking them to turn it off (News Alert: it isn't the reason you're sucking).

Cool: Buying drinks from the cart girls/halfway house
Not Cool: Sneaking beers in your bag to the course, you cheap bastard

Cool: Kids in flat-brimmed caps
Not Cool: Anyone over the age of 30 in flat-brimmed caps (via @shosheak)

Cool: Matching your belt with your outfit
Not Cool: Same belt you wear to work is also your only golf option

Cool: Having a coin in your pocket before you get to the first tee
Not Cool: Sticking a tee in the ground for the first nine holes because you "keep forgetting to get a mark"

Cool: Understanding and comprehending how far your hit the golf ball
Not Cool: Waiting for the green to clear when it is literally impossible for you to get there even if you hit the shot of your life and a dust devil picked your ball up mid-air and blew it towards the green

Cool: Offering to buy your playing partners, even if they're total strangers, the first round
Not Cool: Getting a free round and then shying away when the cart girl pulls up

Cool: Desert rules
Not Cool: Re-tee, re-tee, re-tee, re-tee, re-tee, re-tee

Cool: A confident smile after a good shot
Not Cool: "Even a blind squirrel finds a nut every now and again."

Actually ... Not Cool: Any golf cliche you have ever heard or have ever said or have ever thought. Everyone hates them. Everyone.

Cool: Saying hi to a left-hander
Not Cool: "Hey, you're hitting from the wrong side of the ball!"

Cool: Waiting until your playing partner is standing over his putt to tell him it's good.
Not Cool: Asking, or begging, for a putt to be given.

Cool: Water slapping a playing partner on a hot day (walk up and throw a small cup of cool water in their face without them knowing it)
Not Cool: Undoing the bag strap on the cart so their clubs fall off when they drive.

Cool: The Club Twirl
Not Cool: The Putter Raise

Cool: A nice, light golf bag
Not Cool: Using a staff bag if you are in fact not on staff with anyone

Cool: Playing fast
Not Cool: Slow play

Giants Plan Rory McIlroy Bobble Head Day, Misspell Own City's Name

Well, that's unfortunate. The San Francisco Giants are having a bobble head day during U.S. Open week honoring Rory McIlroy, the defending champion of this nation's championship. This year's tourney is out in the Bay Area at the beautiful Olympic Club, and so Rory bobble head day is set for that Tuesday, June 12.

Sadly, the Giants went with the Irish spelling of their own city, typing San Francsisco instead of the traditional San Francisco that most usually go with.

Hey, don't feel bad, guys, you got the part of the bobble head brochure correct that means the most - "pregame Irish entertainment," which I'm assuming just means "pregame drinking."

Mini Tour Players Posts 16-under 55, Makes Me Throw All My Clubs Away

There are moments when professional golfers do something that the home viewer might think, "I could have done that!" This is not one of those times.

A 26-year-old Australian named Rhein Gibson shot a 16-under 55 last week at River Oaks Golf Club in Oklahoma, and yes, you read that number correctly, and yes, I'll give you a minute to pick your jaw up from the ground.

Gibson actually started on the back nine, playing No. 10 first, and after a par on the first hole, played the next eight holes 10-under, with two eagles and six birdies. He turned at 10-under, made six birdies over his final seven holes, and posted a score that is said to have tied the lowest ever in the history of the game.

The scorecard above, via Reddit, gives us full proof that Gibson actually did it, but wow, 55 is absolutely incredible. Most of the time, 16-under wins four-man scrambles, so to think one man could do something like that is insane.

One of his playing partners, Ryan Munson, wrote a full account of the round, and it's quite good, but that is one heck of round of golf.

Nothing like saying after you putt out on the 18th, "I only made four pars ... but no bogeys."

h/t Eye on Golf

Prankster Zings Famous Irish Golf Course With Hope of a Rory Visit

There are few golf courses in the world as beautiful as Ballybunion, the pinnacle of Irish golf set off the western side of the island, and there are few golfers as famous as Rory McIlroy, the young Northern Irishman with a major under his belt and potential as long as his soaring drives.

So what would happen if the two planned a get together? That was the plan in late April, or so the Ballybunion course thought. A prankster called the golf course posing as a manager to Rory and Mark O'Meara, letting the course know that the two would be swinging by the famous links on a Saturday before a big rugby match.

Ballybunion went all "the queen is coming over for tea" on the course, only to find out they'd be duped.

From the Irish Independent ...

Well used to VIP visitors, Ballybunion saw nothing amiss and swept into action with their preparations. Extra catering arrangements were made, caddies took precise measurements to ensure their yardages were spot on, and the Old Course was in pristine condition for Rory and his entourage. 


 Except they never showed - much to the disappointment of up to 100 young fans, club members and local media who had gathered from 7.30am. Most waited patiently until 11.30 when it became clear that McIlroy was a non-runner.

Maybe it's just the Irish mentality to be lackadaisical in double checking these sorts of things, but if I called out to Whistling Straits telling them Bubba Watson was going to swing by for a quick 18, I feel like they'd check with a manager or something to confirm.

And if nothing else, it gives me a chance to post one of my favorite commercials that has come out recently, because I'm assuming the level of disappointment on those little kiddos' faces rivals these expressions.

 

Tiger Woods Delivers the Pinnacle of Tiger Woods Press Conference Quotes

From Tiger Woods' press conference on Tuesday at the Players Championship ...

"Well, I think it's a process, and I've said this numerous times, is that you keep building. And there's certain times when, yeah, you make great strides forward, and there's other times where you're going to take a stride or two backwards. It's a process."

That was his final quote of the day, btw.

And, obligatory video ...

Peter Alliss' Hall of Fame Speech Seemed Entertaining

I must admit, I don't really get that involved in the whole "World Golf Hall of Fame" thingy. Normally it is people that you already know a ton about, and I always seem to think, "Wait, they weren't already in the Hall of Fame" when I read the list of inductees.

But, boy, I wish I had seen the Peter Alliss speech. The picture above, courtesy of Shackleford's site, had Alliss giving the bird to the crowd, and the reasoning is below.

Alliss: "So it's time to‑‑ I could waffle on for another four or five hours. I just want to say this: I think of it often because I did leave school early. I was quite bright, but I remember my last report which was sent home. 


 We had a headmistress that my modest school was called cross by house school. She was a Mrs.Violet Weymouth, and she was a short Welsh woman. She always had a cigarette dangling out of her mouth and the smoke used to trickle up here, and you could see where the smoke went. There was sort of a brown line up there. But she was‑‑ you didn't mess about with Mrs. Weymouth, I can tell you that. I'm always staggered today where I read that children go to school and beat up the teachers. They wouldn't have done that in my day, I'll tell you. But I remember the last report she sent back to my parents, and it went something like this: 'Peter does have a brain, but he's rather loathe to use it. His only interests appear to be the game of golf and Violet Pretty', a girl I liked. She never knew about Iris Baker, but they were the two that introduced me to some of the ways of the world, for which I'll be eternally grateful. And although we were very young, I wish to God we could do it today.


'I fear for his future' were the last words she wrote on my report. So mom and dad died a long, long time ago, and if there is such a thing as heaven and if people do look down, well, Mom, Dad, here we are. Look at this lot. Look where I've been, look what I've done. Never worked very hard at it. But it's all fallen into place. Lovely family, lovely wife, looks after me, shouts a bit occasional. But they are remarkable. They put up with all my nonsense, and I love them dearly. 


And Mrs.Weymouth, if you're there, (holds up middle finger)."

Well played, Peter.

Other related golf news and articles:
-- Phil Mickelson jabs Tiger Woods during press conference
-- Rory McIlroy hits a golf shot like Happy Gilmore

OMG, OMG, OMG, TIGER'S SHIRT!

Does anyone else find it incredibly odd that for a guy that dresses so well on the golf course, Tiger Woods always looks like the guy that has Castaway fashion sense*?

The above shirt was from his Tiger Jam thingy and, really, I have no words. It looks like he's wearing a Magic Eye book. Tiger, please, stop shopping in the MGM Grand shop.

* -- Castaway fashion sense is someone that dresses like if they got stranded on an island for five years, was found, and came back to find five year old clothes in his closet that are well outdated

Getty Images

Phil Mickelson is Funny

It has always been a rather rocky relationship between myself and Phil Mickelson. Not personally of course, Phil couldn't pick me out of a lineup of random 20-something white guys, but as a fan. Back in my day, Phil was my guy. He was the lovable loser and also left-handed, which was an obvious pull for a southpaw kiddo hoping to make it in the big leagues.

But for some reason, after he won that first Masters, his appeal dropped. I didn't love him as much. I got sick of his cheesy smile and constant thumbs ups. His positivity ate away at me. But slowly, I've come back to Phil. Sitting in press conferences of his make it easier to like the guy. He's genuinely funny, and seems to actually enjoy the press even if that is just a complete facade he plays to because he knows it's a part of the job.

And he has a little fun with it. Like on Wednesday at his Quail Hollow press conference. Phil walked into the press center to address the media but opened with a rather simple, but incredibly clever, joke.

"Didn't you guys see my video?," Phil said with a smirk.

The joke was obviously pointed at Tiger Woods' hostage video from Sunday where he awkwardly answered questions from fans in front of what looks like the second floor of the Dallas Ikea. The thing seemed strange before the video began, but Tiger sits for 14 minutes and answers questions. It was strange. Phil knows that. He made a joke. Well played.

I like the idea of an underlying Phil and Tiger rivalry. I think it's good for the game and actually good for both players. I think they are friends deep down, but I think both don't really get the other, and both want to beat the other really bad, which is how it should be. This era will be remembered because of those two, and I like that Phil pulled out the rubber snake and flung it towards Tiger's direction.

Related articles:
-- Ten questions that we would have loved Tiger Woods to answer
-- Watch a video of Rory McIlroy hitting balls like Happy Gilmore

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