Posts Tagged ‘PGA Tour’
Monday, April 18th, 2011
So what do you do when your tee shot ends up in the trees? One option is to have another go as Kevin Na did last week on the ninth hole in the first round of the Valero Texas Open. Unfortunately for Na, his second attempt wasn’t any better and ended up in pretty much the same place as the first. By the time he hacked his way back onto the fairway he was in double figures and by the time the ball was in the cup, he was 12 over par for that hole.
Sometimes your tee shot heads for the houses as it did for Rory McIlroy on his final 10th hole at the Masters. He took a triple bogey on that hole and it was the beginning of the end of his dream of a green jacket this year.
In 1998, it took John Daly 18 shots to get to the hole on the 6th at the Bay Hill Invitational, and six of those were into the water!
But according to the PGA Tour website (www.pgatour.com), the highest single-hole score in history goes to Tommy Armour for a 23 on the 17th hole at the Shawnee Open in 1927. Ray Ainsley is also attributed a 23 on the 16th at the U.S. Open in Cherry Hills in 1938, but other records indicate it was only a 19.
Some days all the practicing in the world is no match for bad luck!
Tags: John Daly, Kevin Na, PGA, PGA Tour, Ray Ainsley, Rory McIlroy, Tommy Armour
Posted in General Golf, PGA, PGA Tour | No Comments »
Wednesday, April 13th, 2011
There seems to be quite a bit of commentary about whether or not Tiger Woods’ interview by Bill Macatee from CBS after his final round in The Masters should be perceived as rude and curt or whether it was just Tiger’s way of minimizing face time with the media. When Macatee asked if he was “back” after shooting a round of 67, Tiger’s response was “Yeah, I’m one back. We’ll see what happens.” So did Tiger misunderstand the question…interpreting it to be asking if he was ”behind” the leader? What was Mr. Macatee really asking? While some took Tiger’s response as being short and rude to the media, others simply saw it as a simple answer to a simple question. What’s your opinion?
Tags: Masters, PGA, PGA Tour, Tiger Woods
Posted in PGA, PGA Tour, Tiger Woods | No Comments »
Monday, April 11th, 2011
For anyone watching the final day of the Masters, you’ll recognize that name as the newest wearer of the coveted green jacket. He finished the final nail-biting round at Augusta National with a 66, giving him a 14-under-par total of 274. He created a new record for the Masters by scoring birdies on the 4 final holes, and led his closest rivals, Australians Jason Day and Adam Scott by 2 shots.
This was Schwartzel’s 2nd appearance at the Masters. He played at Augusta for the first time last year. Just prior to that, he was at Ernie Els’ Autism Golf Day and got the opportunity to speak with Jack Nicklaus about the famous course. They started talking about hunting then the conversation turned to chasing the little white ball. Schwartzel asked for some advice about the course and Nicklaus took him on a verbal tour of all 18 holes. I guess he heeded the advice!
Schwartzel (26) is from South Africa, where his family has a chicken farm outside Johannesburg. His Dad played with Ernie Els when Charl was very young. Charl was an affiliated member of the Fancourt foundation started by Els that helps young South African golfers, and Els considers Charl to be ‘like a little brother’. Schwartzel’s brother, Attie has also been bitten by the golf bug, and is a pro golfer on the South African Sunshine Tour.
Sunday was the 50th anniversary of fellow South African Gary Player’s Masters win, the first international player to win the prestigious title following a playoff round against Arnold Palmer. His father was a gold miner who played golf and encouraged Player to take up the game. Player was involved in other sports and wasn’t very enthusiastic about golf initially. Player competed for 52 Masters titles and won the green jacket 3 times. He was in Augusta for the Masters again this year.
In closing, I’ll leave you with a few things to ponder:
- For the first time in the history of the Masters the top three did not include an American
- For the first time since 1994, none of the 4 major titles are held by an American
- Seven of the top 10 finishers at the Masters were international players
Tags: Adam Scott, Augusta National, Charl Schwartzel, Ernie Els, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, Jason Day, Masters, PGA, PGA Tour
Posted in PGA, PGA Tour | No Comments »
Monday, March 21st, 2011
In his first PGA Tour win this weekend at the Transitions Championship, Gary Woodland made a 10 foot putt for par to break the tie on the final hole. Woodland has been working with his coach over the last 18 months to improve his game and it paid off with this win that gives him an invitation to Augusta National. This was his 34th start in the PGA Tour.
The World’s #1 golfer, Martin Kaymer tied for 20th.
Tags: Gary Woodland, Martin Kaymer, PGA, PGA Tour, Transitions Championship
Posted in PGA, PGA Tour | No Comments »
Monday, March 14th, 2011
The World’s #6 ranked golfer, Phil Michelson will play in next week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill Club & Lodge in Orlando, Florida. The addition was made to Mickelson’s schedule after he finished 55th out of 66 at the WGC-Cadillac Championship, his worst finish in seven months. “I need a little bit more competitive golf. I’ve got some work to do,” he said.
Tags: Arnold Palmer Invitational, Bay Hill, PGA, PGA Tour, Phil Mickelson
Posted in PGA, PGA Tour, Phil Mickelson | No Comments »
Sunday, February 27th, 2011
As Tiger Woods drops down the rankings on the Official World Golf Ranking website (wwww.officialworldgolfranking.com), the #1 spot goes to Martin Kaymer, a professional golfer from Germany who is only the second German (after Bernhard Langer) to be the top-ranked golfer in the world.
In 2010 he was also only the second German (after Bernhard Langer) to win a major championship.Kaymer moved from the #2 spot to #1 on Saturday when he swapped places with Lee Westwood. Kaymer, aged 26 is also the second youngest player to be ranked as #1 (Tiger Woods was 21 when he made #1 in 1997).
Tags: Martin Kaymer, PGA, PGA Tour, Tiger Woods
Posted in PGA, PGA Tour, Tiger Woods | No Comments »
Sunday, February 27th, 2011
In the Match Play Championship at Dove Mountain in Marana Arizona, Luke Donald:
- became the first player to play for an entire week without trailing in any match
- played in only 89 holes in 6 matches
- became the first player to win any golf tournament without ever playing the 18th hole
The previous record for fewest holes (112) was set by Tiger Woods in 2003 when the final lasted 36 holes.
Tags: Luke Donald, PGA, PGA Tour
Posted in General Golf, PGA, PGA Tour, Tiger Woods | No Comments »
Tuesday, August 10th, 2010
A lot. Sunday’s viewership of the tournament held at Firestone Country Club was a 2.0 share compared to 4.3 last year. What was the difference this year? Tiger wasn’t on TV except for the highlights of his dismal performance. And last year? Well, Tiger what it all. Click here for the complete article by Darren Ravell of CNBC.
Tags: Business, PGA, PGA Tour, Tiger Woods
Posted in FedEx Cup, Fun Golf Stories, General Golf, PGA, Tiger Woods | No Comments »
Monday, June 21st, 2010
Graeme McDowell of Northern Ireland claimed the victory for the 2010 US Open. McDowell finished with a 74 (+3)… just 2 putts on the 18th hole to win. This was one great tournament and certainly challenged the best. Going into the final round, Dustin Johnson was leading by 3 strokes. But the table suddenly turned when he shot a triple bogey on the second hole and a double bogey on the third hole. After that it only continued to decline for Johnson as he finished his round with an 82 and tied for 8th place.
Els, Mickelson, Woods, and Havret all struggled to work some magic on the course to take the lead. Only one player could withstand the pressure of the tournament and the challenges of the course and that was Graeme. “I can’t believe how difficult this golf course was,” McDowell said. “No matter how good you play … good golf got reward, and bad golf got punished really badly.”
This is McDowell’s first major tour win. He’s the first European to achieve the feat since Tony Jacklin did it 40 years ago at Hazeltine. McDowell turned pro in 2002. Prior to becomng a pro, McDowell won the Fred Haskins Award as the United States’ top collegiate golfer. Two weeks ago, he won his fifth title at the Celtic Manor Wales Open. McDowell has earned a five year exemption as a result of his victory should he decide to join the PGA Tour. And why wouldn’t he? It’s a golden ticket to playing both the U.S. circuit and the European Tour.
McDowell’s victory was the perfect Father’s Day gift for his dad, Kenny, who has been by his side since he began playing golf in his junior years. For those of you who watched the final shot and green’s celebration, I’m sure you all caught that “Hallmark” moment when father and son hugged in glorious celebration. Congrats to Graeme McDowell for his well-deserved US Open win!
Tags: Ernie Els, Graeme McDowell, PGA, PGA Tour, Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods, Tony Jacklin, US Open
Posted in General Golf, PGA, PGA Tour | No Comments »
Friday, June 18th, 2010
What a difference a day makes! Phil Mickelson rallied with 5 birdies in the first 8 holes and another on #11 for a final score of 66 in Round 2, placing him one shot behind the leader, Graeme McDowell, who posted a 68. That’s a nine shot variance from Round 1 where he shot a birdie-free round of 75. Mickelson’s score of 66 is just one shot shy of the U.S. Open record lowest score at Pebble Beach. Phil’s focus is that of Bobby Jones…. “play against old man par”…. and that’s exactly what Phil did during today’s round finishing tied for second and placing him in great position for the rest of the tournament.
Tiger Woods finished at +4 with a round of 72. He had 3 birdies and 4 bogeys after his birdie-free Round 1. He’s right in the middle of the pack for the weekend. If he can rally in Round 3 like Phil did today, he’ll be right in the hunt. “ I’m right there in the championship,’’ he said. “I just need to make a few more birdies, a few more putts on the weekend and I’ll be right there.” If Phil and Tiger can get in the groove, Round 3 will prove to be exciting.
Other notable finishes: The “young gun”, Ryo Ishikawa, posted an even par 71 to maintain his second place finish for Round 2. Ernie Els posted a 68, moving him from #27 to tied for second. Dustin Johnson shot a 70 finishing tied for second.
Tags: Dustin Johnson, Ernie Els, Graeme McDowell, PGA, PGA Tour, Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods, US Open
Posted in PGA Tour, Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods | No Comments »
