2024 - WEEK 51 Dec 16 - Dec 22
WORLDWIDE LEADERBOARDS
PGA TOUR EUROPEAN TOUR JAPAN TOUR SUNSHINE TOUR
ASIAN TOUR AUSTRALASIAN TOUR CHAMPIONS TOUR
LPGA TOUR LET JLPGA TOUR EPSON
KORN FERRY CHALLENGE AMERICAS
THE OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP
Sergio Garcia (Spain) (13-1): Garcia seems a trendy choice, and with his recent victory at the Players Championship, perhaps some of his post-tournament whining last year at Carnoustie has been semi-forgotten. Can his putter hold up under Open Championship pressure? We’ll soon see – but six top 10s in his last seven Open starts would appear to bode well.
Phil Mickelson (USA) (18-1): A dicey pick. Sure, he’s the number two-ranked player in the world, which makes him a threat every week. But the wildness of his game is a problem at the Open; witness only a single top 10 (3rd in 2004) and only two finishes better than 22nd in 15 appearances. In a Tiger-less field, he’d seem an obvious choice…but the record says otherwise.
Lee Westwood (England) (19-1): Despite recording only two top 10s in 13 Open appearances, Westwood looks a good pick based simply on his 2008 form, which includes eight top 10s in 13 E Tour starts, and a 3rd at the U.S. Open in June. But, of course, there have been no wins…
Ernie Els (South Africa) (20-1): This is the Major where Big Ernie feels most at home, having recorded 10 top-10 finishes in 17 starts, including a memorable playoff victory in 2002. His Butch Harmon-enhanced form has of late been trending upward – but enough to once again carry the jug?
Geoff Ogilvy (Australia) (20-1): The world’s third-ranked player has a bit of a light record in the Open, with only a single top 10 (T5 in 2005) against three MCs in five career starts. Still, he has the requisite length and all around skills to prosper here – and, perhaps most importantly, the sort of unflappable demeanor necessary to handle the “curiosities” of links golf.
Adam Scott (Australia) (23-1): I keep waiting for the world’s fourth-ranked player to make a serious run at a Major – is this finally the time? He hasn’t bettered 25th worldwide since the first week of May, so his form might be in question, and while he tied for 6th at Hoylake in 2006, he has never bettered 27th (and logged three MCs) in seven additional Open starts.
Padraig Harrington (Ireland) (25-1): The defending champion actually owns a so-so Open record, with only two more top 10s in 10 additional starts. Further, he arrives in unspectacular form – though his last two starts (T36 at the U.S. Open and T17 at the European Open) easily bettered his last two pre-Open entries of 2007, an MC and a T51 at the same two events. So…
Robert Karlsson (Sweden) (25-1): The tall, talented Karlsson is playing the best golf of his life; overlooking a T13 at the French Open, he has finished no worse than 6th (including a T4 at the U.S. Open) in any event worldwide since the Masters. His career Open record is dismal (including a streak of eight straight MCs between 1993-2002) but this is a very different player now. He has a chance.
Graeme McDowell (Northern Ireland) (26-1): This figures to be a nice test for this up-and-coming talent, who scored a fine strong-field victory at last week’s Scottish Open (his second E Tour title of 2008). Tied for 11th in 2005 at St. Andrews but has a limited Major record overall. Still, his star seems on the rise…
Justin Rose (England) (26-1): Another top-10 talent (he’s currently ranked 9th) who still has some proving to do at the Major level. Finished 2nd at Memorial in May but has also missed the cut in three of his last five American starts, and finished T38 in his most recent event, the European Open. Hasn’t logged an Open Championship top 10 since memorably finishing 4th as a 17-year-old amateur in 1998.
Stewart Cink (USA) (29-1): Another who’s playing the best golf of his life, including a victory in his last start, the Travelers Championship. Though he tied for 6th last year at Carnoustie, he had only once bettered 30th in nine previous Open starts.
Jim Furyk (USA) (30-1): Perhaps the hardest player to predict in the upper reaches of the field, Furyk’s form has been up-and-down of late (with 3rd at the AT&T National representing a nice up) and his Open record is equally fluctuating: He’s logged four top 10s (including thrice among the top four) but also missed an imposing five cuts in a row from 2001-05. One wonders how well his game translates…
Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spain) (30-1): At age 44, but still going strong, the Mechanic is still one of Europe’s elite players, as a win at the BMW PGA (plus a T6 at the U.S. Open) readily indicates. Unfortunately, a tie for 3rd in 2001 is his only Open top 10 in 15 starts. More of a place of show horse here, it seems…
Andres Romero (Argentina) (30-1): A really interesting darkhorse pick. This lean 27-year-old from the Argentine is perhaps best known for blowing a chance to win last year’s Open at the 71st hole. He soon rallied to win the E Tour’s Deutsche Bank Open, and has added a PGA Tour victory (at New Orleans) in 2008. Operates a bit under the radar but has three career Major top 10s in only six starts, two of which have come in his two Open appearances.
Retief Goosen (South Africa) (33-1): Now ranked 37th in the world, this two-time U.S. Open winner continues trying to regain his top-five form of not too long ago. Save for a 2nd at March’s WGC event at Doral, his form has been stagnant, but not altogether bad (witness a T6 at the E Tour’s prestigious BMW PGA). With five career top 10s in 13 Open starts, his record here is reasonably sound.
Henrik Stenson (Sweden) (33-1): Quietly enjoying a solid (if winless) season, posting seven top 10s in 12 official E Tour starts. Has the power and skill to contend, but not a great depth of Major success to draw on. To wit: In 13 career starts, his high watermark is a T14 at the 2006 PGA – and he’s never bettered 34th in the Open.
Trevor Immelman (South Africa) (35-1): The reigning Masters champion has been seriously up-and-down since Augusta, missing several cuts but also losing in a playoff at Memphis. Hasn’t enjoyed much Open success (zero top 10s in five starts) but his talent (and Masters-boosted confidence) can never be overlooked.
Anthony Kim (USA) (35-1): This 23-year-old is an up-and-comer in America, where he’s already won twice in 2008. Doesn’t lack for talent or confidence, but this is his first Open Championship entry – and how many of today’s younger players have the all-around skills necessary to adapt that quickly (if at all)?
Vijay Singh (Fiji) (35-1): Not unlike Phil Mickelson, the Open Championship has never been three-time Major winner Singh’s best event – though two of his three career top 10s (in 19 starts) have come since 2003. Is there still enough in the tank (and on the greens) for him to win this?
Martin Kaymer (Germany) (50-1): A longshot pick based upon his two 2008 E Tour victories – no small feat for a 23-year-old, and enough to mark him clearly as a star of the future. Not much track record to go on here as this will be his first Open Championship start.
Daniel
Post a Comment
THE MAJOR MAJOR CHAMPIONSHIP
We should, of course, stipulate that this is one of those wholly unresolvable arguments, something akin to whether Fenway Park or Yankee Stadium is the better baseball venue, or Cypress Point or Pine Valley... (Continue)
THE WEEK AHEAD (7/14 - 7/20)
The Open Championship
Site: Royal Birkdale Golf Club - Southport, England
Yards: 7,113 Par: 70
Defending: Padraig Harrington 277 (beat S. Garcia in a playoff)
Field: World Top 25: All except Tiger Woods (1) & Kenny Perry (16) Other Notables: Everyone who’s physically able.
PGA Tour: U.S. Bank Championship
Site: Brown Deer Park Golf Course - Milwaukee, WI
Yards: 6,759 Par: 70
Defending: Joe Ogilvie 266 (beat T. Herron & C. Wi by 4)
Field: World Top 25: Kenny Perry (16) Other Notables: Tommy Armour III, Chris DiMarco, Corey Pavin, & Bob Tway.
ENTRANTS WEBSITE GOLF COURSE AERIAL
LPGA Tour: LPGA State Farm Classic
Site: Panther Creek Country Club - Springfield, IL
Yards: 6,608 Par: 72
Defending: Sherri Steinhauer 271 (beat C. Kim by 1)
Field: World Top 20: Yani Tseng (6), Jee Young Lee (13), Angela Park (19) & Stacy Prammanasudh (20) Other Notables: Nancy Lopez, Sherri Turner & Michelle Wie.
ENTRANTS WEBSITE GOLF COURSE AERIAL
Champions Tour: 3M Championship
Site: TPC Twin Cities - Blaine, MN
Yards: 7,100 Par: 72
Defending: D.A. Weibring 198 (beat J. Haas by 1)
Field: Entire Charles Schwab Top 20 except: Nick Price (6), Denis Watson (7), Tom Watson (9), Mark Wiebe (14), Craig Stadler (15), Fred Funk (17), Jerry Pate (18) & Eduardo Romero (20) Other Notables: Jim Dent, Bruce Fleisher, Hale Irwin, Tom Kite, Graham Marsh, Mark McNulty, Gil Morgan, Dave Stockton, Curtis Strange & Fuzzy Zoeller.
ENTRANTS WEBSITE GOLF COURSE AERIAL
Elsewhere…
JLPGA – Stanley Ladies – Susono, Japan
Futures – Alliance Bank Golf Classic – Syracuse, NY
Nationwide – Price Cutter Charity Championship – Springfield, MO
European Challenge – MAN NŐ Open – Ramsau, Austria
Canadian – TELUS Edmonton Open – Edmonton, Alberta
THE WEEK IN REVIEW (7/7 - 7/13)
PGA Tour: John Deere Classic – Silvis, IL
There’s hot, there’s really hot, there’s Tiger Woods hot, and then there’s…Kenny Perry? The 47-year-old Perry, who has authored a hot streak or two during his long career, won for the third time in five starts at the John Deere Classic, defeating 35-year-old rookie Brad Adamonis and Jay Williamson on the first hole of sudden death after the three tied at 16-under-par 268 in regulation. Perry arrived at the 72nd with a one-shot lead but failed to get up-and-down from just off the green, then looked on as Adamonis missed a 17-footer for birdie that would have given him his first PGA Tour victory. The trio then replayed the 18th as the first playoff hole, where Perry won with a routine four after both Adamonis and Williamson found greenside water on their approaches. Charlie Wi, Will MacKenzie and Eric Axley all tied for 4th at 269, just one stroke out of the playoff. Though accomplished against one of the year’s leaner fields, Perry’s win jumps him from 4th to 2nd in PGA Tour earnings, and from 20th to 16th in the Official World Ranking. Interestingly, Perry has chosen to honor an early commitment to next week’s U.S. Bank Championship in Milwaukee rather than travel to the British Open, where he is exempt – a decision originally made with an eye towards accumulating Ryder Cup points which, at this juncture, he no longer needs.
FINAL RESULTS MONEY LIST PGA TOUR STATS INTERVIEWS
European PGA Tour: Barclay’s Scottish Open – Glasgow, Scotland
A former U.S. Collegiate Player of the Year (at Alabama-Birmingham), Northern Ireland’s 28-year-old Graeme McDowell had enjoyed a somewhat successful professional career prior to 2008, winning twice on the European Tour and placing 6th in the Order of Merit in 2004. The ensuing three years saw him place no better than 34th, however, but just as we might have begun wondering if the great talent might not be fully realized, McDowell, it seems, has turned the corner. Having already claimed the inaugural Ballantine’s Championship in Korea back in March, McDowell this posted strong weekend rounds of 66-68 at Loch Lomond to win the Scottish Open, a strong-field event that served as a final tune-up for next week’s Open Championship. Tied for the 54-hole lead with England’s Simon Khan, McDowell played steady early golf on Sunday, going out in two-under-par 34. A bogey at the 10th briefly made things interesting before a run of three straight birdies at the 13th, 14th and 15th essentially put things on ice. South Africa’s James Kingston finished 2nd, two shots back, while Australia’s Richard Green and Spain’s ageless Miguel Angel Jimenez tied for 3rd, three shots off the pace. The victory lifts McDowell from 59th to 29th in the World Ranking, and from 9th to 2nd in the E Tour Order of Merit, as well as moving him to 6th in the all-important Ryder Cup point derby.
FINAL RESULTS ORDER OF MERIT E TOUR STATS INTERVIEWS
LPGA Tour: Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic – Sylvania, OH
It sort of goes without saying that to begin a week by shooting lights out with an 11-under-par 60, then not winning the golf tournament, would be a major disappointment – and when one of your primary sponsors is the company hosting the event, so much the moreso. Such was world number four Paula Creamer’s dilemma at the Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic, a circumstance which became a bit nerve-wracking as her opening day fireworks and six-shot halfway lead appeared in jeopardy during a disappointing final-round 73. But Chinese rookie Shanshan Feng, her primary Sunday challenger with five early birdies, fell back with a run of back-nine bogeys, and when Creamer made her lone birdie of the day at the 13th, the storm had successfully been weathered. In the end, the margin of victory would be two strokes – and that was over Nicole Castrale, who closed with the day’s low round of 64. The victory was Creamer’s third of 2008, keeps her in 3rd place in official LPGA earnings and, as the world’s top-ranked American player, 1st place in Solheim Cup points.
FINAL RESULTS MONEY LIST LPGA STATS
Elsewhere…
Though still winless in America in 2008, world number three Suzann Pettersen claimed her second LET victory of the year at the AIB Ladies Irish Open, carding a 205 total to beat fellow Norwegian Marianne Skarpnord by five………In Japan, Yuri Fudoh captured her 44th career JLPGA title at the Meiji Chocolate Cup, her 207 aggregate edging Chie Arimura, Saiki Fujita and Korea’s Hyun-Ju Shin by one………On the Futures Tour, Vicky Hurst won for he fourth time in 2008 at the CIGNA Golf Classic in Connecticut, her 54-hole total of 209 making her the only player in red numbers, and providing an eight-stroke margin of victory………Forty-year-old Rick Price won the richest tournament in Nationwide Tour history, the Player’s Cup, in sudden death over Chris Anderson after the pair deadlocked at 273. The victory (and the $180,000 first prize) clichés Price a spot on the 2009 PGA Tour by guaranteeing him a place among this season’s top 25 Nationwide money winners………Behind a fine second-round 64, Spain’s Rafael Cabrera Bello won for the second time on the European Challenge Tour, his 267 total edging England’s Gary Lockerbie by two at the Credit Suisse Challenge in Luterbach, Switzerland………American John Ellis won the Canadian Tour’s TELUS Edmonton Open by three shots over Andrew Parr, carding no round worse than 68en route to a 266 total.
DAILY NOTES - July 12, 2008
DAILY NOTES - July 11, 2008
- Where Have You Been?: The saying “You can’t win a tournament on Thursday, but you can certainly lose it” represents one of the game’s more valid observations, but even with 54 more holes to play at the Barclay’s Scottish Open, several of the names present atop the leaderboard are…a little surprising. Leading, with a fine 64, is 38-year-old Thongchai Jaidee, Thailand’s first international star but a man who, save for a T2 at the Hong Kong Open, has done little of note since 2006, and entered the week ranked 153rd in the world. One stroke back stand 2007 U.S. Open champion Angel Cabrera, hardly a forgotten man (he remains ranked 26th in the world) but one who hasn’t bettered 12th at stroke play in either Europe or America in 2008. Also near the top are Denmark’s Thomas Bjorn (once a regular in the world top 20, now ranked 182nd), Sweden’s Johan Edfors (a three-time E Tour winner in 2006, currently ranked 157th) and, though not as well positioned as he was early in the day, 2005 U.S. Open winner Michael Campbell (who’s plunged to 391st in the world). It will be interesting to see if any of these fellows can hang around through Sunday, as 48-year-old David Frost did at last week’s European Open.
1 Reference
A DIFFERENT KIND OF CUP
So the testing has begun.
Despite the public protestations of a few – and, unquestionably, the private reservations of many more – the PGA Tour has followed the lead of the LPGA Tour (there’s a thought…) as well as most of the organized sporting world by beginning random drug testing at last week’s AT&T National in Washington. The testing, by most accounts, is of a fairly thorough variety, though a bit of vague language in the Tour’s policy manual seems to leave Commissioner Tim Finchem a modicum of disciplinary wiggle room should any of his more valuable horses prove positive.
So... (Continue)
THE WEEK AHEAD (7/7 - 7/13)
PGA Tour: John Deere Classic
Site: TPC Deere Run - Silvis, IL
Yards: 7,257 Par: 71
Defending: Jonathan Byrd 266 (beat T. Clark by 1)
Field: World Top 25: Kenny Perry (20) & Aaron Baddeley (22) Other Notables: Mark Brooks, Mark Calcavecchia, David Duval, Lee Janzen, Tom Lehman, Larry Mize.
ENTRANTS WEBSITE GOLF COURSE AERIAL
European PGA Tour: Barclay’s Scottish Open
Site: Loch Lomond Golf Club - Glasgow, Scotland
Yards: 7,149 Par: 71
Defending: Gregory Havret 270 (beat P. Mickelson in a playoff)
Field: World Top 25: Phil Mickelson (2), Adam Scott (3), Ernie Els (6), Henrik Stenson (16), Lee Westwood (18), Miguel Angel Jimenez (21) & Andres Romero (25) Other Notables: Angel Cabrera, Ian Poulter, Paul Lawrie, Colin Montgomerie & David Howell.
ENTRANTS WEBSITE GOLF COURSE AERIAL
LPGA Tour: Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic
Site: Highland Meadows Golf Club - Sylvania, OH
Yards: 6,428 Par: 71
Defending: Se Ri Pak 267 (beat M. Pressel by 3)
Field: World Top 20: Paula Creamer (4), Karrie Webb (5), Momoko Ueda (11), Mi Hyun Kim (16), Eun-Hee Ji (18) & Stacy Prammanasudh (19) Other Notables: Laura Davies, Rachel Hetherington, Meg Mallon, Se Ri Pak, Grace Park & Michelle Wie.
ENTRANTS WEBSITE GOLF COURSE AERIAL
Elsewhere…
LET – AIB Ladies Irish Open – Portmarnock, Ireland
JLPGA – Meiji Chocolate Cup – Sapporo, Japan
Futures – CIGNA Golf Classic – Bloomfield, CT
Nationwide – Nationwide Tour Player’s Cup – Bridgeport, WV
European Challenge – Credit Suisse Challenge – Luterbach, Switzerland
Canadian – TELUS Edmonton Open – Edmonton, Alberta
THE WEEK IN REVIEW (6/30 - 7/6)
PGA Tour: AT&T National – Bethesda, MD
It has become trendy of late to cite 23-year-old Anthony Kim as “golf’s next great player” (were this an annual honor, we’d call it the Eddie Pearce award) but Kim took a major step toward giving such claims at least an edge of legitimacy by winning for the second time in eight weeks at the AT&T National. Over a Congressional Country Club layout set up considerably below Major championship difficulty, Kim closed with a bogey-free five-under-par 65 to finish as 12-under-par 268, two better than Sweden’s Fredrik Jacobson, and three ahead of a large group that included Australians Rod Pampling, Robert Allenby and Nick O’hern, and Americans Jim Furyk, Dean Wilson and 48-year-old Tommy Armour III. Five different players held at least a share of the lead during Sunday’s early going before Kim birdied the 7th, 9th and 10th, ultimately moving four strokes ahead before Jacobson birdied five of the last seven to narrow the final margin to two. A player who’s been striving to have “confident” replace “cocky” as the media’s adjective of choice, Kim moves into 6th place in the Ryder Cup points race with the victory, while also climbing to 5th place on the PGA Tour money list, and from 20th to 14th in the Official World Ranking. Save, perhaps, for the fact that Tiger Woods was absent in each of Kim’s victories, a star is born…
FINAL RESULTS MONEY LIST PGA TOUR STATS INTERVIEWS
European PGA Tour: European Open – Ash, England
England’s 27-year-old Ross Fisher made his second career E Tour victory a big one, riding four sub-70 rounds to a seven-shot runaway at the European Open in Kent. Opening with a London Golf Club course record 63, Fisher followed it up neatly with 68-69-68, punctuating his splendid run by holing a bunker shot at the last. His 268 aggregate was enough to cruise home on 268, far ahead of 2nd-place Sergio Garcia, who rode a red-hot putter to a Sunday 66 – which managed only to pull him within seven. Graeme McDowell, who stood second after 54 holes, three back of Fisher, bogeyed his first four holes Sunday en route to a final-round 73 to finish 3rd, while 48-year-old David Frost (bidding to become the oldest E Tour winner ever) closed with a 71 to claim solo 4th, his best European finish since the 2007 Madeira Islands Open. Aided by McDowell’s slow start, Fisher holed a 50” eagle putt at the par-five 5th to open a lead which ultimately proved insurmountable, particularly after he birdied three of his final six during a rock-solid back-nine 33. The victory moves Fisher from 104th to 57th in the World Ranking, up to 6th in the E Tour Order of Merit and, perhaps most importantly, into 11th place in the Ryder Cup points race.
FINAL RESULTS ORDER OF MERIT E TOUR STATS INTERVIEWS
Japan Tour: UBS Golf Tour Championship – Kasama, Japan
Hidemasa Hoshino captured his third career Japan Tour title at the UBS Tour Championship, his 272 aggregate providing a five-stroke victory margin over Australian Brendan Jones and Takao Nogami. The lion’s share of Hoshino’s labor was done on Friday and Saturday, when back-to-back 66s placed him three shots clear of Kenichi Koboya and Hiroshi Iwata. He then carded two birdies during Sunday’s first five holes to solidify his position, and while bogeys at the 10th and 11th briefly made things interesting, ensuing birdies at the 12th and 15th ultimately proved the clincher. Hoshino moves the 3rd in the Order of Merit with the win, and also jumps from 258th to 171st in the World Ranking.
FINAL RESULTS ORDER OF MERIT JAPAN STATS
LPGA Tour: P&G Beauty NW Arkansas Championship – Rogers, AR
Twenty-two-year-old Korean Seon Hwa Lee won her fourth career LPGA title at the rain-delayed Northwest Arkansas Championship and did so in dramatic style, birdieing the final hole to defeat Meena Lee and Jane Park by one. Finishing several groups before the end of the pack, Seon Hwa hit a wedge to within three feet at the last, but believed the birdie might only be good enough for a payoff with the unrelated Meena, who was still 15-under par through 16 holes. A bogey at the par-3 17th derailed Meena, however, leaving her tied with Park, who closed with a blistering 10-under-par 62 in ideal scoring conditions. A foursome of players including Karen Stupples, Ai Miyazato, Kristy McPherson and Angela Park (who herself carded a second-round 62) tied for 4th, two shots off the pace. The victory lifts Lee into 5th place on the LPGA money list, with just under $1 million earned thus far in 2008.
FINAL RESULTS MONEY LIST LPGA STATS INTERVIEWS
Champions Tour: Dick’s Sporting Goods Open – Endicott, NY
Eduardo Romero of Argentina won for the second time on the Champions Tour (but the first time since 2006), his rounds of 65-65-69 adding up to a 17-under-par 199 total and victory at the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open. A bogey at the 53rd hole mandated a solid par at last to clinch the title, with Romero’s ensuing four giving him a one-stroke margin over TV announcer Gary Koch (who closed with a flawless 65) and South African Fulton Allem, and a three stroke gap over 4th-place finisher (and local gallery favorite) Joey Sindelar. Japan’s Joe Ozaki, who held the opening-round lead with a sharp 63, added a pair of 70s to tie for 5th.
FINAL RESULTS MONEY LIST PGA TOUR STATS
Elsewhere…
Riding a bogey-free eight-under-par final-round 64, England’s Rebecca Hudson won her second straight LET event at the Oxfordshire Ladies English Open, her 206 total edging second-round leader Melissa Reid by one.……..With a 13-under-par 203 total, Hiromi Mogi edged Akiko Fukushima by one to claim her fourth career JLPGA title, the Belluna Ladies Cup………With a birdie at the last, England’s David Horsey carded a 266 to beat countryman Marcus Higley by one at the European Challenge Tour’s AGF-Allianz EurOpen de Lyon, becoming the tour’s first two-time 2008 winner………Ian Woosnam won for the second time in his rookie season on the European Senior Tour, shooting 204 to beat Paraguay’s Angel Franco by three at the Russian Seniors Open in Moscow………Josh Geary posted a 271 total to win the Canadian Tour’s Sakatchewan Open in Saskatoon, beating George Bradford by one.
DAILY NOTES - July 5, 2008
- Runs In The Family: Yesterday’s note on Jumbo Ozaki (who withdrew from the UBS Japan Tour Championship Friday after an opening 77) paid tribute to one of Asia’s true golfing legends, but let us not forget that Jumbo’s two brothers, Tateo (“Jet”) and Naomichi (“Joe”), have enjoyed fairly stellar careers of their own. And this became particularly relevant on Friday because while Jet was doing little better than Jumbo in Japan (76-83, and a missed cut), Joe was in Endicott, New York lighting up the Champions Tour by taking the first-round lead at the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open with a dazzling nine-under-par 63. Though largely a quiet performer in his three Champions Tour seasons (he entered the week ranked 38th in Charles Schwab Cup points, with but a single top 10 in 2008), Joe played nearly flawless, bogey-free golf over the En-Joie Golf Course, going out in a steady three-under-par 33, then turning on the blue heat by birdieing six of the final seven holes for an incoming 30. With a two-shot lead over Eduardo Romero, Ozaki is still a long way shy of victory, but his round was enough to make me wonder if Jumbo ever seriously considered giving the Champions Tour a shot…
- At Least Torrey Pines Had Views: Allright, so I’ve never been much of a fan of Robert Trent Jones’s “Heroic” school of golf design (much less son Rees’s flailing attempts at doctoring Trent’s work) but watching a bit of the AT&T National on Friday, I was reminded of just how drab a golf course Congressional actually is. Now, to be fair, this was not a case where some classic Golden Age design was obliterated by Trent’s hard pars and easy bogeys; the club’s original 1924 Devereux Emmet design was far more sporty than great, and a major renovation was unquestionably necessary for the club to become (and remain) a major player on the national tournament stage. But watching the world’s best (well, maybe not this week…) tackling the layout made famous by Ken Venturi’s dramatic, heat-stricken run to the 1964 U.S. Open, I find myself waiting almost completely in vain for any shots of genuine interest, save for the famously watery approach to the 466-yard 17th-turned-18th-turned17th-turned (permanently this time?)-18th, which is undeniably a thriller, particularly to the marquee back-left pin. Oh, I suppose that some may have their interest peaked by the lake that closely flanks the green of the 518-yard par-four 6th (a decent par five for members), or if anyone’s crazy enough to have a go at the 602-yard 9th in two (where’s John Daly when we need him?). But for myself, I’m too busy simply trying to tell the other 15 holes apart, and wondering – as I too often do – how “long” and “tough” managed to survive as architectural tenets into the postwar era, but “interesting” somehow did not. And as a not-so-comforting thought, the U.S. Open returns here just three years from now – though by that time Rees will probably be hired to clean up his own mess, making more substantial green complex alterations that will somehow look exactly the same as at present. Torrey Pines, at least, is public, and though sleep producing from a strategic perspective, does offer a quintessentially magnificent California setting One thing I know for certain: if USGA Senior Director of Rules and Competitions Mike Davis can set Congressional up to produce the drama that Torrey Pines did, he should be nominated for sainthood. Thankfully, it will be some time before we find out…