Tiger is The PLAYERS Champion. Sergio Shoots Himself in the Foot.

Tiger Woods won The PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP at TPC Sawgrass on the Stadium Course, in the end by a canter.

Tiger Woods acknowledging his win / Getty Images

Tiger finished The PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP with a final round of -2 under 70, for a  tournament total of -13 under par. He said he was trying to get better each year;

“Each year I’m tying to get better, so far this year, I’m off to a pretty good start.”

Talking about his errant tee shot on 14, which found water;

“Just hit absolutely the worst shot I could possibly hit, but it was the only bad swing I made all day. I told myself I could still win the tournament.”

Sergio Garcia stood on the tee box at the 17th par 3 Island hole tied with Tiger at the top of the leaderboard. Two lazy tee shots later and a couple of putts and it was all over, a quad bogey deflating Sergio. His slump was so bad he double bogied the 18th as well, dropping six shots on the final two holes, crashing down to tie for eight place at -7 under par. Sergio’s tender temperament under pressure was in question again. Why did he take a pitching wedge to the 17th green, when just about everybody else used a nine iron. He came up short, and in a strange move decided to replay the shot from the tee, ignoring the easier option of walking over to the drop zone, he failed again, his tournament was all over.

Three players tied in second place, Kevin Streelman, Jeff Maggert and David Lingmerth, all at -11 under par. Kevin put together a very good last round of -5 under par, 67. Jeff was in the hunt for most of the day, he finished with -2 under par of 70. David Lingmerth was unable to improve on his third round total and finished the day with an even par round of 72.

Martin Laird, Henrik Stenson and Ryan Palmer were the next bunch of players, they completed the tournament at -10 under par.

Joining Sergio on -7 under par were; Ben Crane, Rory McIlroy, Brandt Snedeker, Marc Leishman, Lee Westwood and Casey Wittenberg.

Not sure if this tournament will be better remembered for Tiger’s second win at The Players, or Sergio’s monstrous  meltdown on the intimidating island green par three 17th hole.

The PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP. Bad Light Stops Play, In 3rd Round

After an earlier weather delay the third round of The PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP at TPC Sawgrass Stadium Course, was halted because of poor light. The third round will resume at 7:10 a.m. ET Sunday with eight players still on the course.

David Lingmerth / Lyons/Getty Images

At the close of play an unknown Swede, David Lingmerth was at the top of the leaderboard at -12 under par for the tournament. David still has one hole left to play to complete his memorable third round, at the moment he is -4 under par on the round.

Tied in second place are Henrik Stenson, Sergio Garcia and Tiger Woods, all at -10 under par. Henrik has completed 16 holes, and tomorrow faces the dreaded Island green of the par three 17th. Not a shot anyone would relish as their first strike of the day.

Sergio and Tiger, who were paired together for the third round have completed 14 holes, Sergio currently +1 over par on the day and Tiger is at even par. There has always been bad blood between the two players, and today was no different, they made sure they were miles apart, and there was no conversation between them at all.  During Sergio’s backswing on number two, Tigers fans let out a great roar. The commotion lead Sergio to hit a poor shot, this is how he reported the incident later;

” It was my shot to hit. He moved all the crowd that he needed to move and I waited for that. I want to say that he didn’t see that I was ready. But you do have a feel when the other guy is going to hit.”

Tiger remarked to the reporters;

” It’s not surprising that he was complaining about something.”

When told of Tiger’s comment Sergio responded;

” That’s fine. At least I’m true to myself.”

Both of these guys will be desperate to partner the leader tomorrow, another round of the pair of them together will not be conducive to good golf, from either of them, as today’s round has proved. If either of them want a decent chance to win tomorrow, they will have to be separated.

Tomorrow will be long day out on the course, lets hope that the weather does not intervene again, and we get a good result tomorrow. One thing is for sure, it will be fascinating, especially if the leaders are tightly grouped and facing the par 3 17th.

Leading the bunch on -9 under par is 49 year-old Jeff Maggert, he put together the days best round, a -6 under 66, and is quietly confident of playing this course well;

” I felt like this golf course would kind of fall in to my favor, the way I’ve been hitting the ball this year, and it was just a matter of trying to make a few putts. It’s funny, the older I get, some of the struggles that I’ve been through, I joke a little bit about that. I’m still very competitive on the inside and want to play well every week, but it’s just tough, just trying to keep it together and keep your health in good shape.”

 

The Players Championship. Sergio Surges, Castro Crashes.

Sergio Garcia surged to the top of the leaderboard at the halfway stage of The PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP at TPC Sawgrass, while Roberto Castro, yesterdays first round hero crashed down the board.

Sergio Garcia / Andy Lyons/Getty Images

Sergio shot a second round -7 under par 65, to surge to the top of the leaderboard with a tournament total of -11 under par.

Sergio, a past winner here, in 2008, is his own man, and fears no one, not even second placed Tiger;

“I don’t have to measure myself against anybody, I know what I want to try to do, and any given day I can shoot a round like this and any other day he can shoot a good round and beat me. Like we always say, it’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon. So there are going to be good days and not so good days, so just got to enjoy the good ones as much as possible. Fortunately for me, I’ve managed to play quite decent on this golf course, so any good thing that you can get in your head, it’s obviously positive and those kind of things always help. But it’s a different year. We’ll see if we can manage to do something similar.”

Tiger is just one shot adrift of the leader, at -11 under par, after his second round of -5 under par 67.

Tiger was pretty happy to be where he is;

“ I’m pretty pleased with where it’s at right now, I’ve just never been able to put it all together for this one particular week. But so far this year, I’m right there. Even though I haven’t played well in the past, I’ve still won here, actually, I’ve won here twice, technically. { Tiger was referring to the U.S. Amateur in 1994 }  I haven’t played my best here, but I’ve always felt that courses, even though it’s been a while I’ve won on them, I’ve still won on them, I know how to get around this golf course. This course, more than most, really tests every facet of your game. You have to drive the ball well. You have to hit your irons in the correct spots, and if you don’t hit your irons in the correct spots, you’re going to have some really funky up-and-downs. It’s trying to manage the ball in the correct spots, and I’ve done that the first two days.”

There are three players tied in third place, at -9 under par for the tournament; they are, Kevin Chappell, second round -6 under. Lee Westwood also with a -6 under,66, and Henrik Stenson, -5 under par second round.

Roberto Castro crashed down the leaderboard, struggling with a second round +6 over par,78, but he did make the cut.

Big name cut casualties include, Phil Mickelson, Vijay Singh, Rickie Fowler, Jim Furyk, Ian Poulter, Justin Rose, Graeme McDowell and Ernie Els. Quite a star-studded list.

Tomorrow is moving day, who will move out of the reckoning ?

 

Wells Fargo Championship. Quail Hollow Asides, The TV Sleuth Strikes Again.

 

Sergio Garcia was the recipient of a ruling from the Lazyboy TV referee. He called in because he thought Sergio had marked his ball incorrectly, he made this judgement after watching the slow-motion replay a couple of times. Sergio marked his ball prior to attempting a 4-footer for par at the 17th hole on Friday during the second round of the Wells Fargo Championship, apparently incorrectly. The TV sleuth thought Sergio had marked the ball to the side, and not behind the ball. Sergio said he had marked slightly to one side, but still behind the ball, because the marker would have been on the line of the putt of Bill Hass. He reported;

“Then I put it straight up or straight down where I thought it was the same spot. I thought I put it as close as I could, obviously, with the coin still behind the ball. It looked like it might have moved a tiny bit, but the rules officials felt that obviously I didn’t gain anything by it. There are obviously a lot of times that you try to put it in exactly the same spot but it’s difficult to do, not just for me, but for everyone. They thought that it was fine.”

Sergio had a discussion with the two Rules officials, who had to watch the slow-motion replay several times to even see the so-called infringement;

” And I said if you guys feel like I gained something by, obviously, moving it, I don’t know how much, like a centimeter or couple centimeters, whatever it is, I’m fine with the two-stroke penalty. I’d rather take the two-stroke penalty than come out here like I was a cheater. Obviously, they felt that wasn’t the case. I told them exactly what I did, and they felt it was fine. That’s pretty much it.”

I think it really is time to ignore these slow-motion TV viewing idiots, if the infringement is not called on the course during play, then as Paul McCartney famously said ” Let It Be”

Lee Westwood is battling against a chest infection, but nothing, not even the unfortunate state of the greens is going to stop him;

“I like this golf course way too much. It’s a lot of money that we’re playing for and a title at the end of the day. Somebody’s going to say a speech and thank everybody and thank the greens keeper and Wells Fargo for putting up the cash at the end of the week, and somebody’s going to be happy with the way the course is set up. Certainly helps when everybody in the group is playing well. You’re seeing good shots all the time, and you get the feeling that the course is giving up birdies and isn’t playing quite as hard as it might be. I just won’t do too much practice this afternoon, I’ll just go back to the room and lie down, really.”

Lee Westwood / Ehrmann / Getty Images

A sad sight to see at Quail Hollow, was Padraig Harrington using a long putter, despite saying that he felt long putters were bad for the game;

“In terms of the mechanics, it was a far better stroke, it wasn’t very good today. I just wasn’t quite as comfortable, which I kind of knew was coming. The grip of my normal putter is open and the grip of this is square, so I’m not quite used to it yet. There was a bit of resetting when I was over the ball, which, obviously, I prefer not to have. But that’s just familiarity, and it will be interesting to give it another go tomorrow. I think it’s bad for the game of golf, but I’m going to use everything, if something’s going to help me for the next three and a half years, I’m going to use it.”

Sounds similar to Ernie Els statements.

The Masters. Sergio Sinks, Jason Jumps Up.

It was all change at the Masters on day two with, Sergio sinking while Jason Day jumped up into the outright lead.

Jason Day / Redington / Getty Images

Jason Day shot a -4 under par second round to lead the tournament at -6 under par, and by just one shot from high-flying fifty-three year old Freddie Couples, and Aussie first round leader Marc Leishman.

Jason spoke of the pressure on his shoulders, on trying to become the first Australian to win the Masters;

” Obviously there’s a lot of pressure on my shoulders, being from Australia and no Australian has ever won the event.  They have been very, very close, but I’ve just got to try to get that out of my mind and just plug away. It’s all how you look at it. If you look at it as pressure, you’re going to worry about it more. If you look at it as a challenge and an opportunity to be the first and stay positive with it, you know, it only motivates you to play well. So I’ve just got to really not think about it at all I really need to stay committed to the game plan, stay aggressive to my target and just not worry about anything else but hitting the shot in front of me.”

Freddie had a -1 under par 71 second round while Marc Leishman stumbled to a +1 over par 73, the same score as David Lynn, David is now tied in the group of players sitting tied in seventh place. There are seven competitors in that position, including Tiger Woods, Adam Scott, Jason Dufner, Lee Westwood, Justin Rose and K.J. Choi.

Angel Cabrera, Jim Furyk and Brandt Snedeker are all tied in fourth place, at -4 under par.

This Championship is still wide open, anyone shooting a real low round tomorrow will definitely put themselves in the box seat for the final round on Sunday.

It was a day of bad luck for some, Chinese amateur Tianlang Guan was penalized one shot for slow play, the first player ever to be punished for this offence for 77 years at Augusta National. A very harsh penalty when you witness some of the slow play out there today, the second round took thirty-six more minutes to complete than the first round, hard to believe that only one player is penalized for slow play. Makes you wonder why none of the Professional players were not penalized. Tianlang still made the cut, right on the number of +4 over par, along with defending Champion Bubba Watson.

Before he started play today Tianlang said ;

” If I can make it, I would be really happy for it, but if I didn’t make it, it’s still a great week.”

A great week indeed for the Chinese youngster.

Gary Player remarked about the Tianlang incident;

” One of the saddest things I’ve seen in golf. When I heard, I prayed that he would make the cut.” 

Tiger Woods had an approach shot hit the pin and ricochet into a water hazard on the par 5 fifteenth hole. Tiger assessed the shot as being a good one;

“ The sun was in my eyes, so I knew I started the ball on the flag. I didn’t know if I cut it enough, but evidently it was a really good one.”

Finally on this incident impacted day, the big names who managed to miss the cut;

Last weeks winner Martin Laird, Matteo Manassero, who played alongside Tianlang, Graeme McDowell, Louis Oosthuizen, Webb Simpson, Ian Poulter and Padraig Harrington.

WGC- Championships. Cadillac Championship, It’s Tigers Trophy.

Tiger Woods won the WGC-Championships, Cadillac Championship at The Blue Monster, Trump Doral.

Tiger Woods / Chris Condon / Getty Images

Tiger Woods had a last round at The Blue Monster of -1 under par, 71, it was good enough to win the tournament by two shots from Steve Stricker. Steve must now be regretting the putting advice he gave to Tiger before the tournament started.

Tiger said any time he can win before Augusta, it is good;

” Thank you to Steve for the putting lesson. It was one of those weeks where I felt pretty good about how I was playing, made a few putts and got it rolling. That’s how I know I can play, that’s the thing. To be able to bring it out a couple times so far this year, and then be able to close and get the Ws on top of that, that’s nice. Any time I can win prior to Augusta, it always feels good.”

Tiger was asked if he still would have won with-out the putting lesson;

” I would like to say I probably would have, but I’ve been putting at home and it just still hadn’t felt right. I still was a little bit off.  He basically got me in the same position that I was at Torrey. So once he put me in there where I felt comfortable, I said, Well, this is not too foreign. This is what I was a month or so ago, and I started rolling it and it felt really, really good. Majors and World Golf Championships are the best because you know you are playing against the best players, that’s what makes wins like this special, that’s why I love to compete.”

Steve had to settle for second place, at -17 under par, his last round of -4 under par 68, not quite good enough to upset Tiger and his legions of adoring fans. He could only laugh about the putting lesson;

“At times you kick yourself, he’s a good friend. We talk a lot about putting. It’s good to see him playing well.”

There was a four-way tie for third place between Adam Scott, Sergio Garcia, Phil Mickleson and Graeme McDowell, the man who had kept Tiger in his sights for most of this tournament.

Making a welcome return to form was Rory McIlroy, with a last round of -7 under par 65, to finish the tournament in a four-way tie for eighth spot.

Rory said his game is not so far off the mark as everybody keeps saying;

“Just goes to show, it’s not as far away as you think, that’s been one of my problems. I always think when I’m playing bad that it’s further away than it is. That’s just where I have to stay patient, and know that if I put in the hard work, that the results will bear fruit. Whether that’s sooner or later, it doesn’t really matter.”

Adam Scott had the low round of the tournament with eight birdies in his last round of 64.

WGC-Championships- Cadillac Championship, TPC Blue Monster.

The WGC – Championships, Cadillac Championship at Doral’s TPC Blue Monster kicked off in fine fashion today, with five players tied at the top of the leaderboard, all in with rounds of -5 under par 66.

Tiger Woods / Getty Images / Little

Tiger Woods was the first man back in the club-house with a 66, he birdied nine of the holes today and needed only 23 putts to claim his share of the lead. Up there keeping Tiger company are,  Masters Champion Bubba Watson, former U.S. Open Champion Graeme McDowell, Sergio Garcia and Freddie Jacobson. Sergio and Graeme both had bogey free rounds, and Freddie made two Eagles in three holes.

Tiger had three bogies today and admitted his score should have been lower;

“It was certainly a day that could have been a little lower.”

Phil Mickelson pulled his tee shot on the 17th hole, and his ball only stopped rolling down the cart path after it had traveled some 450 yards. He purposely took a free drop on the cart path to avoid the rough, and chipped that to about 5 feet, and made a birdie, he finished with a round of -5 under par 67, well in contention.

Phil says he has to practice those awkward lie shots;

” You hit the ball in as much trouble as I do off the tee, you learn to hit those kinds of shots and have enough practice at it. I knew what was going to happen.”

This event being a WGC outing means there will be no cut line to worry about, and this suits troubled golfer Rory McIlroy, the current World Number One.

Rory commented;

” It was nice to sneak in a couple birdies on the last three holes and make it look somewhat respectable, even though everyone seems to be going pretty low out there today.”

Rory McIlroy on his way to a +1 over par 73 / Getty Images / Chris Condon

The wind is forecast to start blowing and that will turn this golf course into The Blue Monster it is revered  for, today it was as calm at it could get and the guys who took advantage of the docile conditions will have something to fall back on when the conditions get tougher.

 

Accenture Match Play Championship, Luke Donald and Justin Rose the Big Losers today.

Both Luke Donald and Justin Rose tumbled out of  the Accenture Match-Play Championship at Dove Mountain today. Luke crashed out & and 6 to Scott Piercy and Justin Rose fell to Nicolas Colsaerts 4 and 2.

Ian Poulter beat Bo Van Pelt 3 and 1 while Matt Kuchar dispatched Sergio Garcia 2 and 1. Louis Oosthuizen, an inform favorite for this competition fell to Robert Garrigus 3 and 2.

Shane Lowery continues his good form, beating Carl Pettersson 6 and 5, while another Irishman Graeme McDowell beat off the challenge of Alex Noren 1 up through twenty holes.

Bubba Watson continues his good form, beating Jim Furyk 1 up through twenty-two holes, a tense and tough struggle. Chucky Three Sticks could not continue where he left off when beating Tiger Woods,he fell to Gonzalo Fedez- Castano 6 and 5.

Martin Kaymer is still  in good shape as he defeated Raphael Cabrera-Bello.

This turning into a very interesting tournament, with so many top players falling over in the early rounds, there are no bookies favorites now, it is anybody’s tournament.

This how the match-ups are for tomorrow;

Match 49 (1st tee) Match 49: 9:10 a.m. ET (7:10 a.m. local) ROBERT GARRIGUS (2-0) vs. FREDRIK JACOBSON (4-3)

No player has made more birdies this week than Garrigus, who has 14 in his first two rounds at Dove Mountain. Garrigus has won 12 holes and lost just five. Although the 35-year-old Garrigus hasn’t played in a match play format in 18 years, he likes the challenge. “It’s a fun, fun format for me, especially if I’m rolling it well, and I am.” Jacobson’s opponents have made just two birdies against him.

Match 50 (1st tee) 9:22 a.m. ET (7:22 a.m. local) NICOLAS COLSAERTS (2-1) vs. MATT KUCHAR (11-3)

Colsaerts will have the distance advantage off the tee; he and Bubba Watson are the only two players averaging more than 300 yards in driving distance this week. “If I’m on, I’m going to give myself a lot of birdie tries,” Colsaerts said. But he and Kuchar each have made an equal number of birdies this week (eight) and Kuchar doesn’t get phased by being outdriven.

Match 53 (1st tee) 9:34 a.m.ET (7:34 a.m. local) SHANE LOWRY (2-0) vs. GRAEME McDOWELL (5-6)

For the second time this week, G-Mac faces a foe from Ireland, having already beaten Padraig Harrington. And for the second time this week, Lowry faces a foe from Northern Ireland, having upset Rory McIlroy. The two were expected to have dinner together Friday night. “A good craic and be a bit of banter,” Lowry said. McDowell has the experience edge, but he doesn’t think it’ll be a factor against Lowry. “If Rory didn’t intimidate him, I suppose what chance do I have?” McDowell said. The two practiced together earlier this week, with McDowell winning the stakes. “Hopefully I can continue that role tomorrow,” he said.

Match 54 (1st tee) 9:46 a.m. ET (7:46 a.m. local) BUBBA WATSON (7-3) vs. JASON DAY (5-2)

Watson is the only player ranked in the top 10 in the world who remains in the field. He’s also played more holes than anybody else this week (39). Of those 39 holes, he’s only trailed after one hole. Both players are long off the tee, so Day doesn’t expect to give up much ground in distance. “I’m driving the ball really, really nicely,” he said.

Match 51 (10th tee) 9:10 a.m. ET (7:10 a.m. local) SCOTT PIERCY (2-0) vs. STEVE STRICKER (14-9)

Piercy is coming off a surprisingly easy 7-and-6 win over top-seeded and world No. 2 Luke Donald. The Accenture Match Play Championship rookie now faces another former champion in Steve Sticker, who was taken to 21 holes by Nick Watney in the second round. Stricker acknowledged that while he wasn’t surprised to see Piercy win, the lop-sided nature of that victory “does catch your attention.” Piercy played his 12 holes on Friday in 7 under, too. “Maybe he used them all up today.”

Match 52 (10th tee) 9:22 a.m. ET (7:22 a.m. local) TIM CLARK (7-7) vs. IAN POULTER (20-9)

These two players couldn’t be more different — the flashy Poulter and the steady-Eddy Clark. Poulter, who made seven birdies and no bogeys in beating Bo Van Pelt 3 and 1 in the second round, has prospered at Dove Mountain, too, winning in 2010 and reaching the consolation finals five years earlier. Clark, on the other hand, has never advanced past the third round and admits the 7,791-yard course is a challenge for a man who ranks 176th in driving distance. “On a day like today, I just accepted that and went about hitting good wedge shots,” said Clark, who beat Denmark’s Thorbjorn Olesen 3 and 2, “Sometimes if I can do that maybe I can get under the skin of my opponent.”

Match 55 (10th tee) 9:34 a.m. ET (7:34 a.m. local) GONZALO FERNANDEZ-CASTANO (2-1) vs. WEBB SIMPSON (2-1)

Both players lost in the first round a year ago as they made their Accenture Match Play Championship debuts. In fact, until Fernandez-Castano, a former Spanish Amateur champ, beat Francesco Molinari 2 up on Friday morning he had never won a match as a pro on the 18th hole. “I’m starting to love (match play) again,” said Fernandez-Castano, who has made fewer bogeys than anyone in the field. Simpson, who has been sick most of the week, has only hit 50 percent of his greens in regulation, including just 10 in 18 holes on Friday, to rank last among the players remaining. He’s an opportunistic putter, though, which has carried him through the week.

March 56 (10th tee) 9:46 a.m. ET (7:46 a.m. local) MARTIN KAYMER (11-5) vs. HUNTER MAHAN (12-4)

These two know what it takes to win at Dove Mountain. Mahan is the defending champion while Kaymer reached the title tilt in 2011 before losing to Luke Donald. The two have history, too — Kaymer beat Mahan 2 and 1 on the way to his runner-up finish in 2011. “It was a tough, really tight match, and he became a lot better player the last two years,” Kaymer recalled. “I have a lot of respect for him.” Mahan has wielded a hot putter this week taking just 44 rolls over 29 holes. “Confidence is high,” he said. “I know I can play this place well and I know I can beat anybody on any given day.”

Arizona and Snow, not two words that usually go together !!!

Snow in Arizona, and the caddies had a snowball fight. / Getty Images

Heavy snow in the Arizona desert reduced the WGC Accenture Match Play tournament to less than four hours’ play on the opening day at the Golf Club at Dove Mountain.

Early on in the freezing temperatures, Sergio Garcia was able to get the tournament off on time at an unearthly time of  7.25 am, and amazingly he was on the 16th green and two up against Thailand’s Thongchai Jaidee, when the action was called off. Sergio was possibly one putt away from victory, but he, like everybody else was just happy to retreat to the warmth of the clubhouse.

This tournament does have the ability to make up a lot of lost time, with the likeliest scenario now being that the third round and quarter-finals will both be staged on Saturday, play will now resume at 08:30 am on Thursday.

This tournament is now on hold.

Northern Trust Open, Matt Kuchar 1st Round Leader

Matt Kuchar / AP Photo/Reed Saxon

Matt Kuchar leads the Northern Trust Open at the Riviera Country Club, Pacific Palisades in California, with a first round of -7 under par 64. Matt had been working with his swing coach, and was happy with the results;

“I was excited about the things we were working on and excited how I was hitting the ball The hot start was certainly a great way to get the round going.”

Sergio Garcia is in second place on his own, with his opening effort of -6 under par, 65. Sergio is making his first PGA TOUR appearance of the year, and has started this tournament in fine form.

The surprise package of the opening day was Brandt Jobe, he is returning to golf after suffering a serious neck injury. Brandt is playing on a Major Medical Exemption, and he has to earn $303,178 in 10 events to keep full status the rest of the year. He is currently in third place, Good Luck Brandt, we hope you fulfill your dreams.