Waste Management Phoenix open, Phil the People Person.

Phil Mickelson / Martin / Getty Images

Phil Mickelson drew the loudest cheers from the biggest crowd in golf history on Saturday at the Waste Management Phoenix Open, on the TPC Scottsdale course. Phil nearly aced the par-3 16th, hitting a 9-iron to within a foot of the hole, to set up a birdie on the rowdy stadium hole packed with nearly 20,000 screaming fans, on his way to a -7 under par third round of 64, and to lead the tournament at -24 under par. Of his nine iron into the 16th Phil calmly stated;

“What’s funny about that is 172 yards is a very tough 9-iron for me to get there, but I immediately take 5 yards off and in my head I had 167. The reason is you always have a little bit of adrenaline here, and the ball goes a little bit longer on 16. I played for a 167-yard shot and tried to hit just a comfortable or stock 9-iron, and the ball ended up flying that far and released to the hole. Having played this course and that hole over the years and knowing what your body does and how to adjust to it has helped me, and certainly it did today.”

Brandt Snedeker is in second place, Brandt had a third round of -6 under par 65, to be six shots behind Phil at -18 under par for the tournament. Phil is aware of Brandt’s capabilities and is looking to just keep pace with him tomorrow to cruise home to a wire to wire victory;

“I know how good Snedeker is and how hot he can get with a putter, he can make birdie from just about anywhere. He’s going to make a run tomorrow. I, hopefully, will be able to keep pace. To me, the wire-to-wire isn’t that important except for now I’m three rounds and the fourth one is kind of the more important one. It would be an important thing because it’s meant so much to me over my career having won this tournament, coming back as a past champion, and winning here in the town that has meant so much to me, to Amy and I, where we met, had our first two kids, went to college. It’s a special place.”

Brandt thinks Phil is playing unbelievable golf;

” Phil is playing pretty unbelievable, I will have to go at some pins and make some putts early and be more aggressive than I probably normally would be.”

Padraig Harrington and Ryan Moore are tied in third place at -16 under par, eight strokes off the pace, Padraig is still happy with his game though;

“I feel like I’m in a good place with the game.”

Padraig had some fun out there on the sixteenth, kicking footballs into the crowd;

“I did not want to screw up the first one along the ground, for sure, I did want to get it airborne a little bit of distance. I found when I punted it, the first three or four, I hooked them quite a bit, and then the last one, I actually made sweet contact and kicked it over the stand, actually cleared the whole thing.”

Looks like it will be the crowd favorite Phil Mickelson lifting the trophy tomorrow, good luck Phil.

 

 

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.

The Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, Three Tied at the Top

Justin Timberlakes Shriners Hospitals for Children Open has three players tied at the top of the leaderboard after the third round at TPC Summerlin, Las Vegas, Nevada.

Jonas Blixt/getty images

Rookie Jonas Blixt roared back into contention here at TPC Summerlin converting six birdies in his last seven holes to be tied at the top of the leaderboard with Ryan Moore and Brendon de Jonge at -19 under par for the tournament. Jonas is trying  to join John Huh and Ted Potter Jr. as the only rookie winners this season.

These three players have a five-shot cushion between them and Jimmy Walker and Tim Herron, who are tied for fourth at -14 under par for the tournament. Two shots further back are Colt Knost, Jason Day, Jason Bohn and Russell Knox at -12 under par.

I wish good luck to Jonas Blixt in his quest for his first win on the PGA Tour.

Justin Timberlakes Shriners Tournament, Blixt & Moore Tied at the Top

 

Jonas Blixt of Sweden is tied at the top of the leaderboard after two rounds  at Justin Timberlakes, Shriners Hospitals for Children Open,  at TPC Summerlin, Las Vegas, Nevada. Jonas has produced two very steady rounds of -7 under par 64 and a tournament total of -14 under par. He shares the lead with Brendon de Jong from Zimbabwe, Brendon followed his opening round of -9 under par 62, with second round -5 and 66 for his -14 under par total.

Jonas thinks that having his family and some overseas friends with him this week, has helped him to relax and not think too much about playing golf;

“I think it’s a lot of things that make me play well this week. I got my family in town, my brother and my sister, a couple friends from overseas, which makes it really relaxed. We’re renting a house together and just having a good time. I don’t think about golf at all coming off the golf course. Just hang out with them. It’s easy to think about something else when you’re in Las Vegas, right. I’ve been working a lot on my ball-striking the last few weeks when I’ve been off, it’s not really there yet, but I got a hot putter and it’s been helping me out a lot the last two days.”

Just one shot behind them is first round leader Ryan Moore who had an amazing first round of -10 under par, 61. Ryan followed that with a modest -3 under pa, 68, for his -13 under par total. Ryan is very happy with his position after two days;

“It was a good, solid round, I definitely would have liked to have seen a few more of those putts drop. But I hit good putts all day. They were just burning the edges, lipping out. All in all, I like my position going into the weekend.”

The combination of desert air and altitude in Las Vegas helps the ball fly through the air more easily, there are 82 players that have averaged 300 or more yards per drive. That sort of distance off the tee for these professionals makes TPC Summerlin a breeze for quality players, the top scores are testament to that.

Major winner John Daly had eight birdies, an eagle and two bogeys to match the best round of the day, John said of his round today;

“Today, I hit the ball really well and I putted good the last two days, which is good for me. The greens are rolling really good, so it gives you an opportunity. If you hit it decent, you can make some putts. But on any tour it’s just putting. If you make some putts you can play really well. This course gives you a lot more opportunities than most courses.”

 

Coca Cola Tour Championship, FedEx Cup. 3rd Round Its Rose & Snedeker

Justin Rose and Brandt Snedeker are tied at the top of the leaderboard at the Coca Cola Tour Championship & FedEx Cup Playoffs.

Justin Rose & Brandt Snedeker/getty images

Justin Rose has maintained his presence at the top end of the leaderboard with a -4 under par third round of 66, for a tournament total of -8 under par.  He says he still would need some help to win the FedEx cup though;

” Little help from my friends”  (For example, he would  need Rory McIlroy to finish lower than 17th, that’s asking a lot. )” And Brandt, you’ve got to give him credit.I know he got off to a rough start on Thursday, and to climb back and tie for the lead being in that sort of vital top 5 is a wonderful performance. So he’s going to be the one out of the two of us thinking about it overnight.”

Justin is just concentrating on winning the Coca Cola Tour Championship;

“The whole year we’ve been grinding for the FedExCup, and it’s still possible. It’s not an easy golf course. Things can happen out there. But for me, it’s about one tournament. I wish I would be in the situation that Brandt’s in. I would trade him, but obviously, that’s the position I’m in.”

Brandt Snedeker said of his round;

” Probably one of the best rounds I’ve played this year. My first goal for this week is achieved, and that is to have a chance going into Sunday. I think something like 90 something percent of the PGA TOUR winners come from the last two groups, and that’s where I want to be in those last two groups. So I know get I get a chance to do that tomorrow, and it should be a lot of fun. I think the biggest thing tomorrow is going to be how patient you can stay because this golf course eats guys up that don’t stay patient. With all that extra stuff that goes with the FedEx Cup Championship and the TOUR Championship, there are so many reasons to get antsy. It’s just not putting more pressure on the shot than there already is, there is no make-or-break shot tomorrow. Every shot tomorrow is the exact same as it was today, and the exact same as it was on Thursday, to really embrace that.I did a great job today of staying patient. I missed four putts on the first four holes from inside 15 feet for birdie. You don’t have those kind of opportunities around here very often. I did a great job of staying patient, and when you do that, you tend to have some success.”

As far as tomorrow goes Rory McIlroy thinks 10 under is a good target score, but is aware the other guys want to win as much as he does;

” They’re not up at the top of the standings for nothing, they’re playing well. They’ve played well the last few weeks. So, yeah, I knew coming in here if I won, I’d win everything, and that’s still my attitude going into tomorrow. It’s going to be one of the most exciting Sundays of the year. There are a few guys still in it with a chance to win the FedExCup to win this tournament., so looking forward to it. Great to be in the mix, only three back, so I’m excited about the prospect of a very exciting finish tomorrow. You go play the first hole, and you see how you do there. Then you play the second, and you see how you do there. It’s all you’re really doing. That’s the way I feel like I have been playing for the last few weeks.”

Tiger Woods, Robert Garrigus, Matt Kuchar and Bo Van Pelt are only four shots back. Tiger said he is not just here for the money;

That’s not why we play. I’m playing for the W, and tomorrow I get a great shot at it. You know, all the money and awards and all of that stuff, that comes along with winning championships. That’s the way I’ve always looked at it, and right now I’m four back. If I win the golf tournament, everything’s kind of taken care of. I’ve done it before, I’ve been out here a long time, and just claw your way back into it, and usually it will take a round in the 60s. I figured the guys aren’t going to go out and run off and hide on this golf course. It’s just playing too difficult.”

Ryan Moore, Bubba Watson and Jim Furyk are still there at -5 under par, and the last of the possible winners are Luke Donald and Zach Johnson, they are at -3 under par and both of them would need an exceptional round tomorrow.

BMW Championship, 2nd Round, Amazing Ageless Vijay

Ageless Vijay Singh/Halleran/Getty Images

The second round of the BMW Championship at Crooked Stick has been completed and amazingly the seemingly ageless Vijay Singh is sitting comfortably at the top of the leaderboard. VJ had a second round score of -6 under par 66, for a tournament total of -13 under par, one shot clear of the chasing pack. Vijay Singh is trying to make the Tour Championship by Coca-Cola for the 17th time. That prowling pack, at -12 under par includes World number one Rory McIlroy, Tiger Woods and Ryan Moore, this is a very closely contested event at the top of the leaderboard. Vijay had 11 one-putt greens on Friday and made 17 of 18 putts inside 10 feet, including four consecutive birdies, which really set him up today;

” That kind of got me going. When I did miss the green, I stuck my chip shot very close, so always nice to keep the momentum going.”

Rory McIlroy said he kind of struggled today, he needed to concentrate on his game;

” There was a few struggles going on I think we needed to concentrate a little bit more. Things were sort of coming easy yesterday. We needed to concentrate out there and try and shoot the best score possible, and we obviously both did that. I didn’t play as well as I did yesterday but was able to get it around. It seemed like every time I missed the green, I missed it in the wrong spot and left myself difficult chips. But I took advantage of the opportunities that I did give myself, and I just think I’m putting so well recently that any time I do get a look on the green for birdie. I’m sort of making those and that’s making up for some of it.”

Tiger Woods also admitted that he was not quite right, said he was;

” Slapping it everywhere, I didn’t have it with my swing. Just kind of fighting it around here. I was grinding hard, staying as patient as possible. You look up at the scores, the guys are just running off. I just wanted to get to double digits today. I felt like that would have been a good accomplishment the way I was hitting the golf ball.”

Lee Westwood and Bo Van Pelt are another shot back at -11 under par, just about everybody else is close behind. Those currently not contending too well include, Luke Donald, Sergio Garcia and Brandt Snedeker, all Ryder Cup participants.

 

 

 

BMW Championship, Its Bunched at the top.

The BMW Championship got off to a flying start here at Crooked Stick Golf Club, Carmel, Indiana, Its bunched at the top of the leaderboard after Thursdays opening round. Four players are sharing the top position at -8 under par, after rounds of 64 they are;  Webb Simpson, Bo Van Pelt, Graham DeLaet and last weeks winner, World number one Rory McIlroy. Rory and Tiger Woods were paired up for this opening round, and they seemed to enjoy it, Rory said;

“I’ve always enjoyed playing with Tiger, and every time that we’re paired up, we seem to have a good time. I felt like my iron play was some of the best it’s been all year, basically in my whole life. I was giving myself a lot of opportunities to attack the pins from the fairways as well. I just have to try and keep doing that for the next three days. With the soft conditions, you could really shoot a number out there, and I did.”

Tiger was very complementary about Rory, and his impact on the game of golf;

“It’s a lot of fun, this is the next generation of guys coming out. He hits it great, putts it great, and on top of that, he’s just a really nice kid. The game of golf is in great hands with him, and he’s here to stay. I wasn’t playing particularly well, but I scored. Rory, on the other hand, played beautifully today. Every single part of his game was working. It all looked good. I was very fortunate to post the number I shot.”

Tiger and Rory/Halleran/Getty Images

Just one behind after finishing with rounds of 65 and scores of -7 under par are Tiger Woods and Vijay Singh, both previous winners of the FedEx Cup.

Another shot further back are three players on -6 under par; Luke Donald, Ryan Moore and Ryan Palmer. There are a plethora of players at -5 and -4 under par, the course is playing very easy with the recent rain softening the greens and also the players are allowed to pick, clean and place their ball, none of that tough stuff we have to play through, all we get is play the ball as it lies.

One of the TV commentators was talking about the new BMW M5, saying it was much more fuel-efficient than the old model. That is not much consolation for us guys down here in New Zealand, the government have just increased the price of gas because all us good Kiwi’s  have bought fuel-efficient cars. This means that we are not buying as much fuel as we used to, that’s got to be good, right. Not so, say the government, it means they are losing tax dollars, so they increased the price of gas to compensate.

I am currently between BMW’s, having recently sold my 7 series, so at the moment I am in a vacuum, and a little crest fallen.

Deutsche Bank Championship, Rory McIlroy leads afte the second round.

World #1 Rory McIlroy/Rogash/Getty Images

World #1 Rory McIlroy has taken over at the top of the leaderboard after the second round of the Deutsche Bank Championship at TPC Boston. Rory was very pleased with his performance, another round of 65, for a tournament total of -12 under par, and is looking forward to the weekend;

“Pleased with where I am, and looking forward to the weekend.”

Alone in second place is another Major winner, Louis Oosthuizen, who also had a second round 65, to go with his first round 66 for total of -11 under par. Louis spoke about his playing partner for Sunday;

“Obviously he’s playing really well, and it’s always nice playing with him, he’s got such a good swing. He goes for a lot of shots, he makes a lot of birdies, so it’s always fun to watch. “

Tiger Woods and Ryan Moore are tied for third at 10 under, Tiger missed all four of his putts between 7 and 10 feet and then to compound the problem three-putted the par-3 11th. Tiger lamented his missed chances;

“I didn’t make anything today.”

First round leader Seung-yul Noh could only managed a par round today and remains at -9 under par, along with a host of other players. One of them is South African Charl Schwartzel who is recovering from his torn abdomen muscle, an injury he picked up at the U.S. Open, Charl is playing well here, he spoke about his recovery and re-emergence as a challenger in the FedEx play-offs;

“I had the injury at the U.S. Open and it set me back quite a bit, came back, lost a bit of confidence, and just seeing if I can play myself back into it. There’s been great signs of it, sort of from Wyndham, just finishing poorly on Sunday. Same thing at Bethpage, I was up there, finished poorly on Sunday. It’s there once again, I can feel the game is great, so just a matter of finishing it off.  I think I played great, I got off to a really good start, then went to sleep for a while there in the middle and made a great save on 14, and that’s what woke me up a bit.  I made birdie on 15 and 17. I would have loved one on 18, it was a good chance, but overall it was a great round this afternoon with the wind blowing. What pressure ?I can still win the FedEx.”

There were six players who failed to make the cut of +2 and are now eliminated from the FedEx Cup Play-offs;  Here is the sad list;

Ricky Barnes, who entered this week ranked at 77th and is projected to fall to 92nd after finishing at +3 over par.

Rory Sabbatini,  entered the week at 94th and is projected to fall to 98th after finishing at +4 over par.

K.J. Choi,  started the week at 95th and is projected to fall to 99th after finishing at +4 over par.

Greg Owen, who entered the week at 76 and is projected to fall to 89th after shooting +5 over par.

Michael Thompson , entered the week at 82nd and is projected to fall to 96th after shooting +7 over par.

Cameron Tringale, who entered the week at 79th and is projected to fall to 94th after shooting  +10 over par.

Wells Fargo Championship @ Quail Hollow, Rickie Fowler Wins

       

Lecka/Getty Image

Rickie Fowler won the Wells Fargo Championship at Quail Hollow in a three way playoff  against  Rory McIlroy and D.A. Points. All three players had finished the final round with a tournament total of -14 under par. Webb Simpson had an opportunity to join them in the playoff  but missed his birdie attempt on the last green.

On the first extra hole Rickie played a fabulous 51-degree wedge to within four feet of the 18th green flagstick, and held his nerve to sink the winning putt.  It was his first PGA TOUR win in his 67th start as a pro, bringing him a 500-point FedEx Cup points that pushed him to No. 15 in the latest standings. He said of his amazing approach shot;

“I didn’t want to play it safe. I had a good number, and I was aiming right of the hole with the wind coming out of the right, and if I hit a perfect shot, it comes down right on the stick. I hit a perfect shot at the right time, and I was going for it. ”It’s awesome. It’s a long wait, but well worth it. Told you it was coming. It’s a good feeling right now. Definitely some relief, satisfaction. I’m definitely happy. It’s not a bad thing, winning. It’s kind of fun.”

He also said he enjoyed the rivalry with Rory;

“I’m looking forward to playing with Rory for a long time.”

Rory returned to No. 1 in the world with this performance at Quail Hollow, he finished tied for second with D.A. Points. Rory was impressed with Rickie’s birdie at the 18th in the playoff;

“You wouldn’t call the 18th today a birdie hole with that pin, For Rickie to go out and play that hole the way he did, he deserved to win. I think it was just a matter of time before he won”

Webb Simpson and Ryan Moore, who started the day in the final pairing, both failed to shine. Webb did have that missed opportunity to join the playoff, but too many mistakes on the day cost the local boy his chance. Ryan fell back into a tie for fifth place with Lee Westwood. Lee suffered again from a slow start in this tournament, it seems to becoming a bad habit of his.

Nick Watney failed to capitalize on a good start to this tournament, finishing his final round with a score of  74 and at -10 under par was four shots off the leaders.

Wells Fargo Championship, 3rd round @ Quail Hollow

Webb Simpson leads the Wells Fargo Championship after the third round at Quail Hollow. Webb had a round of -3 under par 69 and leads the field by just one shot. Following close behind are Ryan Moore, who had a -4 under par round of 68, and D.A. Points finished with a -3 under par 69, both players have a tournament total of -13 under par.

Nick Watney had a bogey on the last hole after a wayward drive which incurred a penalty stroke. That mistake put him back to a total of -12 under par. On the same tournament total is Rory McIlroy, who really shined on course today with a round of -6 under par 66. Rickie Fowler and Stewart Cink are a further shot back on -11 under par. Rickie also finds himself in very good form and is still looking for his first PGA Tour win.

Rory is playing extremely well, and the boys at the top will be looking anxiously back over their shoulders tomorrow, to see if he is making a Sunday charge at the title. He needs to finish high up the leaderboard at this tournament to regain the number one spot from Luke Donald. Luke did not play this week and expects Rory to leapfrog him in the rankings this week.