Jack Nicklaus Lives on Another Planet

It's always cute when people, especially famous people, say things that are absurd or off the wall because they "really believe them."

President Cup Captain and always Mr. Positive Jack Nicklaus did just that when discussing our Ryder Cup team, which has as good a shot to knock off the Europeans as a squirrel overturning a train.

Speaking Monday before a charity tournament hosted by Fuzzy Zoeller in southern Indiana, Nicklaus said he still thinks the U.S. can take back the Cup though he concedes the Americans are no longer heavy favorites now that Woods is out with a knee injury.

Well, to Jack's defense, that isn't really "picking Team USA to win" as the title indicates. I mean, he says he "thinks" they can take back the Cup, but I also "think" Kate Bosworth and I would really hit it off if she'd ever give me a chance. It isn't like he's tattooing "2008 Ryder Cup Champions, Team USA" on his calf or anything.

I wonder why he said anything at all about this.

Nicklaus also praised the revamped layout at Valhalla, a course he designed. He lengthened some holes and shortened others, hoping to put more emphasis on putting.

Oh, he just wanted to comment on that course of his. Gotcha. See, business is business even when it isn't dressed in business attire. It's like when you see your buddy Jimmy on Halloween and he's wearing a Scooby Doo costume. He isn't the dog, he's still Jimmy, he just looks like Scooby. Trust me, it'll take a minute to sink in.

Just Haaaaanging Around

Anytime the golf course of a major championship (mostly the U.S. Open) is playing extremely difficult, it lets a ton of golfers into the mix.

A group of leaders around even-par can easily land a windy afternoon where the guy that was six-over posts a 68 or 69 and is right back in the mix. Today, at Oakland Hills, Graeme McDowell, Camilo Villegas and Andres Romero are all doing exactly that, making their way around the course in four-under par (and Villegas five-under with the possibility of moving to six with about an eight-footer on 12) on Saturday and finding themselves jumping golfers like Lebron does the Chinese.

If anyone can post a number in the red today, with weather moving in slowly around the course, anyone could find themselves in the top-10 later this evening. Well, anyone except the people that missed the cut. It would be hard for those people to improve their position.

Getty Images