Waste Management Phoenix Open, It’s Phil The Real Deal

Phil Mickelson / Stan Bedz / Getty Images

Phil Mickelson proved the first round 60 was no fluke as he followed that up with a second round -6 under par 65, to lead the Waste Management Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale by four shots at the conclusion of play.

Phil sadly took a double bogey on his final hole in the second round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open, costing him another shot at history, a chance to break the PGA TOUR’s 36-hole scoring record. Phil said he needed to remain focused, and not make those kinds of mistakes;

“You always remember kind of the last hole, the last putt, but I think it’s very possible that’s going to help me, because it’s got me refocused, that I cannot ease up on a single shot. I’ve got to be really focused, these guys are going to make a lot of birdies and I’ve got to get after it and cannot make those kinds of mistakes. Unfortunately, I made a double on the last hole and didn’t finish the way I wanted to, but I think it’s a good example of what can happen on this course. You can make a lot of birdies and eagles, make up a lot of ground, but there’s a lot of water and trouble there that if you misstep you can easily make bogeys and double.”

Phil’s drive on 18  drive on bounced into the left-side water hazard and, after a penalty drop, he still had a chance to get up down for par and the record;

“I hit a good shot, I thought, I tried to start it right down the middle and hold it into the wind. It just leaked a little bit left. I still thought it was up. Then I hit a poor wedge from there, but the tee shot I didn’t think was going to be in the water at any point.”

In second place on his own is Bill Haas, at -13 under par, he knows he has to keep making birdies;

“We all know the way the course is playing, if there’s no wind on the weekend, you’ve just got to keep making birdies.”

Talking about tomorrow Bill hoped that Phil doesn’t go too crazy on moving day;

“It’s just another day. It’s moving day, hopefully, I can move up the leaderboard and he doesn’t go too crazy.”

Keegan Bradley and Brandt Snedeker are tied in third place at -12 under par, Keegan recalled his Eagle on the par 5 fifteenth hole, needing only a seven iron to hit it to within eight feet;

“I just smashed a driver down there, I had been hitting 3-wood and I’m driving the ball so well that I just decided to rip driver down there.”

He followed that with a birdie at sixteen, his approach came to rest just five feet from the pin, Keegan said he loved the atmosphere at the sixteenth hole;

 ”It reminds me of when I go to Fenway Park, there’s always like a murmur, it’s really cool, I dig it. I wish there was more holes like that out here. It was such a relief to shoot a good number, I’ve been playing so well this whole year and haven’t made many putts. Today, the putts started to go in.”

I cannot see anybody catching Phil, the real deal, Mickleson.

I will be at TPC Scottsdale in July, contact me if you want to join me in a round.

 

 

 

Hyundai Tournament of Champions, it was a long haul, but Dustin Johnson wins

Dustin Johnson / Christian Peterson / Getty Images

Dustin Johnson fired a five-under 68 on another blustery day and a long haul at the Kapalua Resort, fighting the wild and windy Plantation Course, Hawaii, to finish four shots clear of defending champion Steve Stricker.

Dustin posted a 16-under par total at the weather wrecked event that was trimmed to three rounds and which forced the officials into to a rare Tuesday finish because of relentless howling winds that did not allow the first round to be played until Monday.

Dustin was full of confidence for the coming year with this win;

“It gives me a lot of confidence going into this year. It was nowhere near ho-hum, I had to really fight hard. The chip on 14 was definitely the biggest shot, maybe the drive; the drive set it up all. I hit a great drive right at the flag, which came up just short, and I had a really easy pitch. Fortunate to hit a great pitch and it went right in the middle.”

Dustin  has now won PGA TOUR events in six straight years, since coming out of college, Tiger Woods is the only other golfer who can make that claim, and only Phil Mickelson, who has won events the last nine years, has a longer annual streak. That is illustrious company to be mixing with.

When asked what he expected for the future, Dustin said;

” I don’t really look ahead that far, I kind of go week-to-week. I’m looking at next week where I want to go in and play three good rounds and then contend on Sunday for another victory, that’s my goal. If I keep playing golf like I’m playing right now, then, you know, obviously there is no limit.”

Steve Stricker finished alone in second place at -12 under par, not bad for a man limping along on one leg, he had accepted defeat on the 14th hole;

” He’s very athletic and he’s just going to continue to get better. That’s going to be the fun part watching what he’s going to do from here on out, because he looks unflappable out there. He hit a couple wayward drives and opened the door for me a little bit, and then he stepped up there with a driver again, and I’m like, OK. But then he piped it and chips it in. It looks like very little fear in him, because he’ll hit one a little crooked, but he’ll pull out that driver again and try it again, and he pulled it off, especially at 14. That was the deciding shot and chip for the tournament. Expect a lot of good things as he continues his career.”

Brandt Snedeker was in third place at -10 under par for the tournament, six shots behind the leader Dustin Johnson, but he moved to No. 8 in the World Golf Rankings, second only to Tiger Woods among the Americans.

Chaos at Kapalua, Dustin Johnson Leads, going into Tough Tuesday.

Dustin Johnson / Stan Badz/ PGA Tour

Dustin Johnson leads the weather wrecked Hyundai Tournament of Champions, at the Kapalua Plantation Course, in Hawaii. It is now Monday, with 18 holes still to be played. Dustin leads Steve Stricker by three shots with his tournament total of -11 under par, with rounds of 69 and 66.

Dustin only missed three greens in regulation, but had a couple of three putts, he said;

“I hit the ball really well this afternoon. I’m pretty pleased with my equipment, I’m pretty pleased with my game right now.”

Steve Stricker, now at -8 under par for the tournament, has recently been suffering from a constant pain problem, but thinks it is going to be tough for Dustin  to win from the front;

“Nobody knows if it’s a muscle with pressure on the sciatic nerve or if there’s a problem with a disk, my back feels great. I don’t feel tight, I don’t feel stiff. Just every time I get over to my left side, I’m getting a shooting pain down my leg. I’m not hitting it full strength and I’m just trying to keep it in front of me and play the smart shots. It felt as crappy on the first hole as the last hole. You’ve just got to go out and play and play your hardest and see what happens, I’ve been in that position where he’s at now. It’s a tough spot. It’s tough to win in front. We’ve got really nothing to lose tomorrow and it makes it a little bit easier for us, but tougher on him.”

Bubba Watson is alone in third place at -7 under par for the tournament, and  will be trying to win in his sixth straight season since leaving college, the longest streak of any player since Tiger Woods, and remember he won the last two 54-hole events on the PGA TOUR, at the hurricane-shortened Barclays in 2011 and rain-delayed AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am in 2009. Bubba is pretty happy with his position in this weather wrecked tournament;

“Just happened to win those two events, I’ve still got 18 more holes of golf. It wouldn’t matter if it was 72 holes or 54. Tomorrow is still the last round and there’s 18 holes to play, so got to get the job done.” 

So its last round, Tough Tuesday at crazy Kapalua, in the Hyundai Tournament of Champions.

 

 

The McGladrey Classic, Tommy Gainey shoots last round 60, to Win

 Tommy Gainey/Sam Greenwood Source: AFP

Tommy Gainey shot a last round of -10 under par, 60, to win his first PGA Tour event,  the McGladrey Classic, at  Sea Island’s Seaside Course in Georgia. Had Tommy made a birdie on the last hole  made he would have become just the sixth player in PGA Tour history to record a round of 59 strokes, his winning tournament total was -16 under par.

Tommy is known throughout golf for his unconventional swing and wearing two gloves, but he is very proud to be the Champion  here;

“I get bashed all the time about my swing, the only thing that matters is right before impact on the downswing.  Oh, man, I tell you, you’re out here on the PGA Tour. you’re playing with the best players in the world. Ninety-nine percent of these guys have already won, and won majors, big tournaments. The only show I can say I’ve won is the ‘Big Break.’ Now I can sit here and say I’ve won the McGladrey Classic here at Sea Island, and I’m very proud to be in this tournament and very proud to win. And wow, it’s been a whirlwind day. I didn’t know having 24 putts and shooting 60 would be like this, so I’m pretty stoked about it. You got future Hall of Famer’s chasing me; chasing me now. I’m Tommy Gainey, I’m `Two Gloves.’ I shot 60 today and you got Jim Furyk, Davis Love III and David Toms chasing me. I mean, I was nervous. I was paying attention, and you know, it just worked out for me. I wasn’t thinking about 59, see, all I did all day was just try to make birdies,  and a lot of birdies, because when you’re seven shots back, your chances of winning a PGA Tour tournament with the leaders, Davis Love III and Jim Furyk,  it don’t bide in your favor, man. I’m in this position, and man, it feels like I’m in a dream. I’m just waiting for somebody to slap me upside the head or pinch me or something to wake me up.”

I did say yesterday that Jim Furyk and Davis Love 111 could spend the day watching each other, and not notice an outsider coming up on the rails, well done Tommy.

David Toms was in second place, coming home with a last round -7 under par, 63,and -15 under par for the tournament, while Jim Furyk was another shot further back at -14 under par total, and another dismal finish to a tournament this year.

David Toms got ahead of himself when driving off the last tee, he drove it into a bunker and admitted he was thinking about what kind of putt he would have to make birdie, and tie Tommy;

 

“I was thinking about what kind of putt I was going to have before I ever hit the fairway, you get ahead of yourself and that’s what happens.”

Jim Furyk came up short again, in third spot at -14 under par;

“You know, I’m disappointed, I did battle. I think at times it’s probably a little harder, you see the first guy to post, it’s harder to chase that score when it’s already in when we’re on the sixth hole.”

Davis Love’s hopes of winning in front of his home crowd ; he has lived at Sea Island since he was 14 , ended with a tee shot into the water for double bogey on the 16th. He was trying to become the first Ryder Cup Captain since Tom Watson in 1996 to win on the PGA Tour. Davis last had a win at Disney in 2008, when he didn’t look at a leaderboard until the 18th hole and saw Tommy Gainey making a run, that time he held on with pars to record his win. This time he saw Tommy’s name appear out of nowhere, and couldn’t do anything about it. He closed with a 71 and tied for fourth on -12 under par along, with Brendon de Jonge and D.J. Trahan.

The McGladrey Classic Round 1

Bud Cauley/photo A/P

Bud Cauley shares the lead at the McGladrey Classic on the Seaside Course, Sea Island, Georgia, after the opening round, with fellow American Marco Dawson. Both players took advantage of the course to fire in rounds of -8 under par, 62.

Bud has already earned $1.7 million dollars this year and has moved up to position 55 in the World Golf Rankings, all achieved without a win. He hopes this tournament will change the zero in the win column;

”Obviously, I’ve thought about winning every tournament I’ve teed up in this year. ‘It’s been a long year, and although I’ve played a lot this year, I haven’t won. It’s still a goal of mine, but I’m not thinking about that while I’m out there, or putting any more pressure on myself this week. The season is kind of winding down. It would be great to win here.”

Marco Dawson is in a totally different position, this tournament it is the penultimate PGA Tour event on the schedule that counts toward the money list, with Marco way down at No. 216 on the list and with only $62,026 in his 20 tournaments this year. Realistically Marco has to win The McGladrey Classic to avoid a return to Q-school, his year has gone so awry that  he doesn’t even look at the money list anymore.

”I’m so far away from it that the only thing I can do is just try and play well. And when I am playing well, just to keep it going instead of kind of messing it up like I have during the year.”

Boo Weekly is one of three players tied for third place with rounds of  -6 under par 64. Boo has changed to a new thicker putter grip, something that we at White Dragon Golf always recommend, and it has dramatically altered his putting stats, sinking putts from 14, 7, 15, 8, and 7 feet. Boo is currently at 121 on the money list, and is aware of the danger;

“I’m pretty aware of it, The last two weeks I’ve actually played pretty good but I just seem to get nothing out of my round. It just gets more frustrating. The more frustrated you get out here you start getting negative, you start talking trash to yourself saying, ‘You ain’t gonna make the cut because you can’t make this 5-footer. You missed three already the first five holes.’ It just kind of wears on your mind.  It’s been a long time coming, finally started making some putts. I’ve been hitting the ball pretty good the last few weeks and finally today the putts showed up. It just felt good, started making some putts and that started building some confidence.”

The other two players tied at third with Boo are, England’s Greg Owen and Rod Pampling from Australia.

Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, Ryan Moore Wins

Ryan Moore/Halleran/Getty Images

Ryan Moore , who lives in Las Vegas, won the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open on Sunday at TPC Summerlin, Las Vegas, Nevada with a last round of -5 under par 66, and a tournament total -24 under par. This is Ryan’s second PGA Tour title, he finally shook of the challenge from Brendon de Jonge by grabbing a birdie on the par 5 16th hole, to take the outright lead and then finished with two pars for a -5 under par 66 and a one-stroke victory over Brendon. Ryan said the challenge from Brendon was tough;

” The last couple of days were tough, I was shot for shot with Brendon, and he was playing some great golf. I was able to make a birdie down the stretch when it mattered to hold him off at the end. He was playing great and he was hitting the ball really well, and he was making putts, I tried not to get too wrapped up into what he was doing really for the last two days. I just tried to keep my head and just keep hitting my golf shots, and playing the golf course how I wanted to play it and just give myself opportunities.”

Brendon de Jonge, from Zimbabwe had to settle for second place alone, he unfortunately managed to miss the fairway on the 560-yard par 5 16th hole. He eventually finished with a last round of -4 under par a 67 and a total of -23 under par. Brendon rued the missed fairway on 16, he said;

” Today, playing a little bit down breeze, all you’ve got to do is get one in the fairway, it’s almost a mid-iron in there, so that was definitely a turning point, you know, the bad tee shot there. I played nicely all week, hats off to Ryan. He played great, especially down the stretch. He made a couple tough shots in there on 17 and 18, and he pulled them off when he needed to.”

Jonas Blixt finished in third place alone, he had a disappointing last round of -1 under par 70, with a total score of -20 under par for the tournament.

An Acrimonious Aside

Justin Timberlake has been dropped as the Host of this tournament, it is suggested he was not visible enough for the Shriners people. Did not get involved enough with the day-to-day running and promotion of the Children’s Hospitals or the kids themselves  Although Shriners grudgingly announced that Justin did;

“Fulfill his obligations to the tournament and helped raise several million dollars. He wasn’t able to generate greater interest in the tournament, and his star power wasn’t enough to lure bigger-name players to the event on a consistent basis”.

The tournament chairman, Raoul Frevel,  was very specific about why they were not interested in continuing;

“Justin’s a wonderful person. But we tried everything we could to get him more involved with our kids and the hospitals. But it seemed that when the TV cameras weren’t on, he disappeared.“

Last week Justin was unresponsive with the local media at the Ryder Cup, and this week a Charity is suggesting that his volunteer participation was found wanting.

Not sure what the real deal is here, but Justin has been the host of the Shriners Hospitals for Kids for four years, it will be interesting to see who Shriners pick next as the Host, who will bring the “bigger name players” to the tournament.

No Bunkers at Kiawah Island for PGA Championship

Dustin Johnson in the bunker on 18 at Whistling Straits/photo golfdigest.com

 

The PGA released a special notice Tuesday to inform players that all bunkering at Kiawah Island’s Ocean Course will be considered sandy areas and will be played through the green. Kerry Haigh, the PGA’s managing director of championships said;

“Whistling Straits was obviously just the opposite. It’s the same conditions we played the Ocean Course during the 1991 Ryder Cup, the 2005 PGA Professional Championship, the 2007 Senior PGA and it’s the same conditions played daily at the resort.”

This ruling was made to avoid the confusion that surrounded Dustin Johnson at Whistling Straits,  he unsuspectingly grounded his club in what was deemed to be a bunker before his second shot, leading to a 2-stroke penalty. Dustin referred to the incident;

” I just thought I was on a piece of dirt that the crowd had trampled down, I never thought I was in a sand trap. It never once crossed my mind that I was in a bunker. Obviously I know the rules of golf and I can’t ground my club in a bunker, but that was just one situation I guess. Maybe I should have looked to the rule sheet a little harder.”

Nick Watney, who played with Dustin that day said;

“Honestly, I don’t think anyone reads the sheet, we’ve played hundreds of tournaments. We get a sheet every week. I feel for him. I’ve never seen fans in a bunker with a player. That was a little odd.”

A PGA statement was issued to clear up the differences between Kiawah Island and Whistling Straits;

“What differentiates the courses is that at Kiawah Island the sand is natural to the surrounding terrain, and in many cases, there is no clear definition of where such sandy areas stop and start. Bunkers at Whistling Straits were well defined and were completely surrounded by grass.

“As a result of this [condition of play], players will be allowed to move loose impediments, take practice swings and to ground their club lightly in these sandy areas; except when their ball lies in such a sandy area that is part of a water hazard or lateral water hazard. Under the rules, if a player’s ball is believed to be covered by sand anywhere on the course, he may move the sand without penalty, in order to find or identify the ball. All sandy areas inside the gallery rope line will be raked each morning, prior to play. During play, as strokes or practice swings are made, or players and others walk through such areas, footprints and other irregularities of surface may develop. Rakes will be available so that these areas may be smoothed as a courtesy to following players; however, these irregularities of surface, when not smoothed, are a part of the game and no relief, without penalty, will be provided.”

So Be warned. If the crowd are standing next to you, how are you supposed to know its a bunker ?

 

 

 

PGA Tour going to a virtual year-round schedule ?

The PGA Tours proposal of a virtual year round tour schedule will surely lead to saturation point for the game of golf. Will the major advertisers sign up for all the proposed tournaments, or will they pick and chose only the major events to support. Will the television viewing public want to watch golf all year round, non stop ? As soon as one virtual year ends another begins, people will eventually begin to switch off from watching golf.

What about the players, do they really want to be playing year round golf and not taking a break at some point ? If Fed Ex cup points are on offer for all the minor events, if they took some time out for relaxation, by the time they return they could be well adrift of the points leaders. This would definitely change the dynamics of the Fed Ex cup, could someone win the cup without winning one of the major events.

Personally I don’t see this proposal as a way forward for golf , it is more likely to turn off the paying public rather than attract a whole new audience.