Confident Quesne climbs to the top in Crans-sur-Sierre
Paul Symes...European Tour Press Officer
Julien Quesne carded a spellbinding round of 65 in treacherous conditions to open up a one shot lead at the halfway stage of the Omega European Masters.
Despite driving rain at Crans-sur-Sierre, Quesne produced a Gallic masterclass, with seven birdies and an eagle carrying the Frenchman to the very top of the leaderboard on nine under par, one shot clear of Danny Willett after the Englishman shot a round of 67.
Quesne said: “I hit so many good shots, and holed a lot of putts. I managed to stay calm, and I took a lot of pleasure from how I played today. I found a lot of greens, and any time you do that you’re going to have a good day.”
Like BMW International Open Champion Willett, Quesne already has one European Tour title to his name, having triumphed at this year’s Open de Andalucia Costa del Sol, but to add to their tally the duo will have to fend off the in-form Scot Paul Lawrie.
Lawrie is looking to run up the same treble as Thomas Björn, who last year added the Omega European Masters title to his victories at the Commercialbank Qatar Maters presented by Dolphin Energy and the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles.
Lawrie arrived in Crans Montana on the back of his triumph on home soil last week, and is confident of signing off with another victory before taking a three-week break from competitive action in the build-up to his second Ryder Cup appearance.
He said: “I played lovely again today, hit a lot of good putts – not all of them went in, but a fair few did. So I’m very happy with my day’s work, despite the weather. There’s not a lot you can do the conditions, You’ve just got to get on with the job in hand. A lot of guys don’t like playing in the cold and the wet, but that plays into the hands of people like me who don’t mind it.”
Play was abandoned for the day due to darkness with two groups left out on the course. The second round
Click here for live scoring..
http://www.europeantour.com/europeantour/season=2012/tournamentid=2012064/leaderboard/index.html?showLeaderboard=Y
Friday, August 31, 2012
Strong Canadian contingent at Deutsche Bank in Boston
There is a strong Canadian connection at the Deutsche Bank Championship this week.
First, Sean Foley's star continues to rise as does his latest pupil's, 21 year old South Korean Seung Yul Noh who now lives in the States. Noh in his first season on the PGA TOUR, ran off four straight birdies early in his round and closed with back-to-back birdies on the TPC Boston for a 9-under 62.
Sean, our long time analyst on our Fairways golf show with Bob Weeks, Scott Metcalfe and me, now has Tiger, Hunter Mahan and Justin Rose in his stable along with Noh..
The scoring average on the immaculate TPC Boston course, a par 71, was just under 70 and the hot sunny weather made it ideal for scoring.
Noh has a one-shot lead over Chris Kirk, whose 23 putts included an eagle on 18.
Tiger Woods had six straight birdies, only had 1 bogey on his final hole, the 9th for a 7-under 64, putting him in a three-way T3 with Jeff Overton and Ryan Moore.
Rory McIlroy struggled off the tee, though he judged one of the lies in the rough beautifully on the ninth hole, a 7-iron into tap-in range that led to a -6 65
Now to Canucks Graham DeLaet and David Hearn.
Hearn is T10 after a -4 67. He mixed 7 birdies in with 3 bogey's, and although he was well down the field in driving accuracy T80th his putter saved the day, only 27, T15th.
DeLaet is T74 after his +1 72 . He also putted well, only 28, but is T89 in driving accuracy and T79 in GIR, so will need to tighten that up in round 2 which is on Saturday this week.
Click here for live scoring http://www.pgatour.com/r/leaderboard/
Click here for tee times http://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/r505/tee-times.html
(notes from pgatour.com were used in this article)
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and broadcasting 7-9am daily at www.nextsportstar.com
First, Sean Foley's star continues to rise as does his latest pupil's, 21 year old South Korean Seung Yul Noh who now lives in the States. Noh in his first season on the PGA TOUR, ran off four straight birdies early in his round and closed with back-to-back birdies on the TPC Boston for a 9-under 62.
Sean, our long time analyst on our Fairways golf show with Bob Weeks, Scott Metcalfe and me, now has Tiger, Hunter Mahan and Justin Rose in his stable along with Noh..
The scoring average on the immaculate TPC Boston course, a par 71, was just under 70 and the hot sunny weather made it ideal for scoring.
Noh has a one-shot lead over Chris Kirk, whose 23 putts included an eagle on 18.
Tiger Woods had six straight birdies, only had 1 bogey on his final hole, the 9th for a 7-under 64, putting him in a three-way T3 with Jeff Overton and Ryan Moore.
Rory McIlroy struggled off the tee, though he judged one of the lies in the rough beautifully on the ninth hole, a 7-iron into tap-in range that led to a -6 65
Now to Canucks Graham DeLaet and David Hearn.
Hearn is T10 after a -4 67. He mixed 7 birdies in with 3 bogey's, and although he was well down the field in driving accuracy T80th his putter saved the day, only 27, T15th.
DeLaet is T74 after his +1 72 . He also putted well, only 28, but is T89 in driving accuracy and T79 in GIR, so will need to tighten that up in round 2 which is on Saturday this week.
Click here for live scoring http://www.pgatour.com/r/leaderboard/
Click here for tee times http://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/r505/tee-times.html
(notes from pgatour.com were used in this article)
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and broadcasting 7-9am daily at www.nextsportstar.com
Brad Fritsch leads Mylan Classic in Pittsburg..
Nice to see an nice article by my pal Joe Chemcyz, writing exclusively these days at web.com tour about one of our Canucks, Brad Fritsch who has been playing well this year without breaking through to the winner's circle.. Bryan..
CANONSBURG, Penn. -- Ottawa's Brad Fritsch fired a 7-under 64 and moved into the lead at the halfway point of the Web.com Tour's Mylan Classic in suburban Pittsburgh. Fritsch, a resident of Raleigh, NC, is at 12-under-par 130 for his first two trips around the Southpointe Golf Club, one shot better than veteran Cliff Kresge (65).
Casey Wittenberg, a two-time winner this year and No. 2 on the 2012 money list, steadied his way to a 4-under 67 in the afternoon to reach 10-under 132 and is alone in third.
First-round co-leaders Edward Loar and Robert Streb each carded 2-under 69s and are three off the pace. Nicholas Thompson (67), Peter Lonard (65) and Matt Weibring (63) share sixth place, four back.
Fritsch, No. 43 on the money list, has been making steady progress in the past two months with this being his sixth consecutive cut made.
"I've been hitting it really good but the last couple weeks' performances have been limited by my putter," he said. "For the majority of those tournaments I've hit the ball as good as I can. It's just whether the putter cooperates."
Things changed for the better last week in Knoxville, Tenn. at the News Sentinel Open where Fritsch and his coach, Patrick Kelley, made some adjustments
My stroke was getting real jabby and my speed control was really bad," said Fritsch, who ranks 117th out of 140 players in putts per round this year. "I feel like I'm lengthening my stroke but it's probably not, it's just slower. It feels like it takes a long time to hit the ball, but I've watched it on video and it looks normal. I was just in a bad place and getting fast."
The low point came two weeks ago in Kansas City when Fritsch struck the ball beautifully in the final round of the Midwest Classic but managed only a 2-under 69.
"I snuck in a three-footer on the last hole," he says. "I kept missing very makeable putts."
Things have slowed down for Fritsch, who is reading the greens better, seeing his lines and making putt after putt as his confidence grows.
"Just the way the ball comes off the putter," he said of the nearly instant improvements. "You can only hit your line with the right speed, right? If you read it wrong, fine. On a scale of one to 100 my confidence is about 80 or 85 now."
The result has put Fritsch into the lead for only the second time in his four years on Tour. The other time also came in the Keystone State when he shared the 36-hole lead at the 2006 Northeast Pennsylvania Classic in Scranton
Weir withdraws with injury, Bourdy leads in Switzerland
AFP
Last updated on Thursday, Aug. 30, 2012 08:13PM EDT
click here for live scoring http://www.europeantour.com/europeantour/season=2012/tournamentid=2012064/leaderboard/index.html?showLeaderboard=Y
CRANS-SUR-SIERRE, Switzerland - France's Gregory Bourdy held the early lead in the European Masters after carding an eight-under-par first round of 63 here on Thursday.
Bourdy climbed to the top of the leaderboard on the back of five birdies on his inward nine holes.
"It was a great day. I don't think I've ever played better," said Bourdy, who is aiming to pick up his first Tour win since 2009 and the Hong Kong Open.
"This course isn't the most difficult, but it's not the easiest either because you have to hit the ball very straight, and I managed to do that today.
"I only missed one shot all day, but still managed to save par. My attitude was very good; I was very positive and that's why I finished very well."
He holds a two-stroke lead over England's Oliver Fisher and Sweden's Fredrik Andersson Hed, who share second on six-under-par 65 at Crans-sur-Sierre in the Swiss Alps.
There was a five-way tie for fourth on five under between Welshman Rhys Davies, England's Robert Coles, India's Anirban Lahiri, Scott Barr of Australia and England's David Howell.
Only two members of Europe's Ryder Cup team - Paul Lawrie and Peter Hanson - are competing here this week.
Scot Lawrie, aiming to add this to his win last weekend in the Johnnie Walker Championship at Glenagles, shot a two-under-par 69, as did Sweden's Hanson, who recovered well after bogeying three of the first nine holes.
Andy Zhang, the 14-year-old Chinese amateur, ended his first round with a one-over-par 72.
Mike Weir, who was scheduled to make his second European Tour start of the year at this event, was forced to pull out after suffering a back injury while en route to Switzerland. He has also withdrawn from the KLM Open and may not play now until the Fall Series..
Bourdy climbed to the top of the leaderboard on the back of five birdies on his inward nine holes.
"It was a great day. I don't think I've ever played better," said Bourdy, who is aiming to pick up his first Tour win since 2009 and the Hong Kong Open.
"This course isn't the most difficult, but it's not the easiest either because you have to hit the ball very straight, and I managed to do that today.
"I only missed one shot all day, but still managed to save par. My attitude was very good; I was very positive and that's why I finished very well."
He holds a two-stroke lead over England's Oliver Fisher and Sweden's Fredrik Andersson Hed, who share second on six-under-par 65 at Crans-sur-Sierre in the Swiss Alps.
There was a five-way tie for fourth on five under between Welshman Rhys Davies, England's Robert Coles, India's Anirban Lahiri, Scott Barr of Australia and England's David Howell.
Only two members of Europe's Ryder Cup team - Paul Lawrie and Peter Hanson - are competing here this week.
Scot Lawrie, aiming to add this to his win last weekend in the Johnnie Walker Championship at Glenagles, shot a two-under-par 69, as did Sweden's Hanson, who recovered well after bogeying three of the first nine holes.
Andy Zhang, the 14-year-old Chinese amateur, ended his first round with a one-over-par 72.
Mike Weir, who was scheduled to make his second European Tour start of the year at this event, was forced to pull out after suffering a back injury while en route to Switzerland. He has also withdrawn from the KLM Open and may not play now until the Fall Series..
Alena Sharp wins PGA Women's Championship of Canada
Jeff Brooke
Last updated on Thursday, Aug. 30, 2012 08:06PM EDT
TORONTO - Alena Sharp won the 2011 PGA Women’s Championship of Canada in a thrilling eight-hole playoff that took place over two days. She allowed no such drama and suspense Thursday in defending the title.
The LPGA Tour regular from Hamilton blew away the field at the PGA of Canada’s biggest tournament for female golfers, shooting eight-under-par 65 Thursday to win by 10 strokes.
After opening with 69 Wednesday, Sharp poured in nine birdies against one bogey at the Legend on the Niagara’s Ussher’s Creek course in Niagara Falls, Ont., to leave runners-up Laura Bavaird and Emma Jandel of the United States in her wake.
Sharp, who also won in 2004, 2010 champion Bavaird and Jandel were the only three women among the 44 finishers to break par.
Amateur Brogan McKinnon, 17, of Mississauga and LPGA Tour member Lisa Ferrero of the United States shared fourth place at even par.
“I was a little nervous to start and it was tight the first five or six holes and the collar got a little tight,” Sharp told pgaofcanada.com. “But I started to strike the ball really well and putted really well, so it was really nice to see.”
She made three birdies in a row beginning on the sixth hole and another three in a four-hole stretch on the back nine.
Her three career titles ties her with Nancy Harvey of Swift Current, Sask. Charlottetown native Lorie Kane, who didn’t play this year, has the most with five.
“It’s a great group to be in, that’s for sure,” Sharp said. “I’m only 31 years old and I’ll come and play in this championship whenever I can because it’s a nice two days for me to come and play, stay competitive and be at home with my family.”
The LPGA Tour regular from Hamilton blew away the field at the PGA of Canada’s biggest tournament for female golfers, shooting eight-under-par 65 Thursday to win by 10 strokes.
After opening with 69 Wednesday, Sharp poured in nine birdies against one bogey at the Legend on the Niagara’s Ussher’s Creek course in Niagara Falls, Ont., to leave runners-up Laura Bavaird and Emma Jandel of the United States in her wake.
Sharp, who also won in 2004, 2010 champion Bavaird and Jandel were the only three women among the 44 finishers to break par.
Amateur Brogan McKinnon, 17, of Mississauga and LPGA Tour member Lisa Ferrero of the United States shared fourth place at even par.
“I was a little nervous to start and it was tight the first five or six holes and the collar got a little tight,” Sharp told pgaofcanada.com. “But I started to strike the ball really well and putted really well, so it was really nice to see.”
She made three birdies in a row beginning on the sixth hole and another three in a four-hole stretch on the back nine.
Her three career titles ties her with Nancy Harvey of Swift Current, Sask. Charlottetown native Lorie Kane, who didn’t play this year, has the most with five.
“It’s a great group to be in, that’s for sure,” Sharp said. “I’m only 31 years old and I’ll come and play in this championship whenever I can because it’s a nice two days for me to come and play, stay competitive and be at home with my family.”
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Ko's Canadian Open win raises South Korean questions..
Lydia Ko won our Canadian Open by 3 shots over the weekend. Although she resides in New Zealand she is from South Korea. 20 of the world's top 50 are also from South Korea.. Why? is the age old question..
I have written and broadcast my thoughts many times over the years.. Thought you might lke part of Gary Mason's article in Golf Canada that may provide some insight..
Sure, many young female golfers in Canada have to spend the winter months honing their game indoors, but so do their Korean counterparts. In fact, many believe it’s the Koreans’ emphasis on practice and repetition that largely accounts for their success in golf.
The more contentious part of the answer lies in Korean culture. Many parents there (and in Greater Asia, for that matter) push and drive their children in a way that would be broadly viewed as unacceptable in the West. (Although there are many in the West guilty of it, too).
The father of Korean golfer Se Ri Pak became a symbol of the kind of demanding – many would say cruel and oppressive – approach to training a young golfer that isn’t as frowned upon in Asia as it might be here.
Pak was the first of a wave of female golfers from South Korea to burst on the scene in the United States in recent years. When she won the U.S. Women’s Open in 1998 at the age of 20, and then a slew of tournaments and other majors after that, her unusual path to success became the stuff of legend. Her father, Joon Chul, used to make his daughter sleep in a cemetery overnight to teach her courage. He wouldn’t let her use the elevator in their apartment building; they lived on the 15th floor. If she played a bad round, she’d be forced to practice for hours immediately afterward.
Pak was followed on the LPGA tour by another young Korean golfer named Mi Hyun Kim, whose father vowed not to let her marry until she won one of golf’s four majors. He eventually relented after his daughter won eight times on the tour.
Maybe these are extreme examples. But there seems little question that the Korean model tacks toward a gruelling work ethic and single-mindedness that comes at the expense of almost everything else; a regime that most young girls in the West would certainly rebel against. In fact, I think most parents in Canada would say: ‘if that’s what it takes to make it as a golfer, the Koreans can have it. I want my daughter to have a well-rounded and balanced upbringing.’ Kris Jonasson, executive director of the B.C. Golf Association, also believes culture is at the heart of the growing success golfers from Asia are enjoying.
“We in North America live in a society where young people are taught that they have certain entitlements and can kind of coast along,” said Mr. Jonasson. “In some of the Asian countries, kids come from a background where it’s literally survival of the fittest and there isn’t the type of safety net that exists here.
“The kids are brought up believing that you reap rewards based on the hard work you put in.”
If you asked Lydia Ko, she’d probably say the same thing. And like many Korean-born female golfers, she’s reaping those rewards now
I have written and broadcast my thoughts many times over the years.. Thought you might lke part of Gary Mason's article in Golf Canada that may provide some insight..
Sure, many young female golfers in Canada have to spend the winter months honing their game indoors, but so do their Korean counterparts. In fact, many believe it’s the Koreans’ emphasis on practice and repetition that largely accounts for their success in golf.
The more contentious part of the answer lies in Korean culture. Many parents there (and in Greater Asia, for that matter) push and drive their children in a way that would be broadly viewed as unacceptable in the West. (Although there are many in the West guilty of it, too).
The father of Korean golfer Se Ri Pak became a symbol of the kind of demanding – many would say cruel and oppressive – approach to training a young golfer that isn’t as frowned upon in Asia as it might be here.
Pak was the first of a wave of female golfers from South Korea to burst on the scene in the United States in recent years. When she won the U.S. Women’s Open in 1998 at the age of 20, and then a slew of tournaments and other majors after that, her unusual path to success became the stuff of legend. Her father, Joon Chul, used to make his daughter sleep in a cemetery overnight to teach her courage. He wouldn’t let her use the elevator in their apartment building; they lived on the 15th floor. If she played a bad round, she’d be forced to practice for hours immediately afterward.
Pak was followed on the LPGA tour by another young Korean golfer named Mi Hyun Kim, whose father vowed not to let her marry until she won one of golf’s four majors. He eventually relented after his daughter won eight times on the tour.
Maybe these are extreme examples. But there seems little question that the Korean model tacks toward a gruelling work ethic and single-mindedness that comes at the expense of almost everything else; a regime that most young girls in the West would certainly rebel against. In fact, I think most parents in Canada would say: ‘if that’s what it takes to make it as a golfer, the Koreans can have it. I want my daughter to have a well-rounded and balanced upbringing.’ Kris Jonasson, executive director of the B.C. Golf Association, also believes culture is at the heart of the growing success golfers from Asia are enjoying.
“We in North America live in a society where young people are taught that they have certain entitlements and can kind of coast along,” said Mr. Jonasson. “In some of the Asian countries, kids come from a background where it’s literally survival of the fittest and there isn’t the type of safety net that exists here.
“The kids are brought up believing that you reap rewards based on the hard work you put in.”
If you asked Lydia Ko, she’d probably say the same thing. And like many Korean-born female golfers, she’s reaping those rewards now
Monday, August 27, 2012
Euopean Ryder Cup team set to defend at Medinah..
While the US team will not be announced until next Tuesday morning, Jose Maria Olazabal announced his team from Gleneagles minutes ago and to nobody's surprise has included Ian Poulter and Nicolas Colsaerts as his captain's picks after Martin Kaymer qualified by the numbers as the #10.
Stalwarts like Henrik Stenson, Paul Casey, Robert Karlsson, Miguel Jimenez, Paddy Harrington and young gun Matteo Manessero just finished too far down the list for me to argue their case, and I'm sure Ollie must have thought long and hard about fellow Spaniards (13)Cabrera-Bello and (15)Gonzo Fernandez Castano, although to be honest I would really have been tempted to pick the always tough and wildly popular match player Miguel Jimenez over Kaymer, but Martin made that a mute point when he qualified on his own merit.
The American team smarting from 6 defeats in their last 8 outings, changed their system under Paul Azinger in 2008 at Valhalla where they won, to 4 captains picks instead of 2 hopefully giving them an edge with more in form players..They certainly look very deep this year with Davis Love looking to pick from guys like Jim Furyk, Steve Stricker, Rickie Fowler, Hunter Mahan, Matt Kuchar, Brent Snedeker, Bo Van Pelt just to name a few
Ollie has a veteran team, with 8 of 12 members back from 2010 at Celtic Manor and Jimenez, Clarke, Bjorn and McGinley as Vice captains..
Here is the european tour's press release..
Monday 27 August
José María Olazábal picks Nicolas Colsaerts and Ian Poulter for European Ryder Cup Team
José María Olazábal has named Nicolas Colsaerts and Ian Poulter as his two wild cards to complete the 12-man European Team who will seek to retain The Ryder Cup at Medinah Country Club next month.
The inclusion of Colsaerts and Poulter means that Europe will have just one rookie in the team for only the third time since 1979 when they travel to Chicago for the biennial match against the United States from September 28-30.
That rookie is Colsaerts, who will make history as the first Belgian to compete in The Ryder Cup. The 29 year old won the Volvo World Match Play Championship in May, defeating Graeme McDowell in the final, and collected a further nine top nine finishes through the qualifying campaign.
Poulter will be playing in his fourth Ryder Cup after being part of the winning teams in 2004 and 2010 and on the losing side in 2008. He has a record of played 11, won eight and lost three. Winner of both of 2010 WGC – Accenture Match Play and 2011 Volvo World Match Play, Poulter has had nine top tens in the qualifying period including victory in the 2011 JBWere Masters.
“I think every one of you pretty much guessed that Ian was going to be there,” admitted Olazábal during the conference held at the Gleneagles Hotel, host venue for The 2014 Ryder Cup.
“He's had a great Ryder Cup record. He was playing well, he had some issues early in the season. He got ill and he couldn't play as much as he could, but his attitude and his spirit in The Ryder Cup team has always been great. He's one of those players who likes to be in that situation.
“I think he gets the best out of himself playing The Ryder Cup. The two times I had the opportunity to share a few moments with him at Valhalla and Celtic Manor, you didn't need to motivate him. Just by looking at his eyes you could see he would give everything he had during that week.
“And Nicolas, obviously he's a rookie. If you look at the team, he's going to be the only rookie on the team. We do have an experienced team. His match‑play record is very good. He finished runner‑up last year at the World Match Play and he won this year at the World Match Play.
“He's had a very solid season, and on top of that, he's made the extra effort trying to make the team. He really showed me that he wants to be a part of that team. Those are the reasons for me to pick him.”
Poulter immediately gave his reaction when, speaking on the phone from America, he said: “I was thrilled. To get the call last night from José was a great moment, and I'm going to be thrilled to, again, pour some passion over the holes at Medinah and I'll try my best.”
Colsaerts had changed his travel plans to await decision, but in the end Olazábal gave him the good news last night. The first Belgian was obviously delighted to join the team as his Captain embraced him at the conference today.
“This has been something I've wanted since I was a little kid,” he said. “To be part of such a big team with a captain with such great history is something I'm very proud of.”
The completed team now includes eight of the 12 players who helped steer Europe to a dramatic 14 ½ - 13 ½ victory two years ago at The Celtic Manor Resort.
It is also the first time that the European team has been formed of its 12 leading players in the Official World Ranking with every player inside the world’s top 35.
Profiles for the European 2012 team click http://www.rydercup.com/2012/europe/news/team-europe-profiles-082612.cfm
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and on www.isr1050.com and broadcasting daily 7-9am at www.nextsportstar.com
Sunday, August 26, 2012
What a finish by Wong !!
EUGENE WONG WINS CANADIAN TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP IN HISTORIC FASHION
2012 Canadian Tour Championship
Scarboro Golf & Country Club
Scarborough, Ontario
Par 71 (35/36) 6554 Yards
Final Round Leaderboard
Eugene Wong, North Vancouver, BC 68-67-68-67 (-14)
Joe Panzeri, Meridan, ID 70-64-70-67 (-13)
Cody Slover, Visalia, CA 68-71-67-68 (-12)
Carlos Sainz Jr., Chicago, IL 71-64-72-68 (-9)
Matt Daniel, Richmond, BC 66-69-72-68 (-9)
Brian Unk, Lewis Center, OH 68-68-69-70 (-9)
Trey Denton, Madison, MS 70-66-67-72 (-9)
Mark Hubbard, San Jose, CA 71-65-77-64 (-7)
Nick Taylor, Abbotsford, BC 71-71-68-67 (-7)
David Markle, Shelburne, ON 68-71-68-70 (-7)
(August 26, 2012 - Toronto, ON) golfcanada - With a walk-off shot for the ages, Eugene Wong of North Vancouver, BC holed his approach from the fairway on the 72nd hole to win the Canadian Tour Championship by a single shot over Meridian, ID's Joe Panzeri.
Using a nine iron from 133 yards, Wong two-hopped the shot into the hole, giving the 21-year old his first professional victory in one of the most memorable finishes in Canadian Tour history, if not all of professional golf.
"There's a funny story to that shot," confessed Wong. "My caddie and I were walking up the fairway, and he said 'it would be nice to hole it right now, wouldn't it? I said 'yeah, it would.'"
Wong, the 2010 Jack Nicklaus Award winner as the NCAA's top player, earned $16,000 for the win and a two-year exemption on the Canadian Tour. He finished at 14-under par total, a stroke ahead of Panzeri, the 2011 International Rookie of the Year.
"My confidence is really high now. I know I can compete with the pros and I'm happy to get my first win, so there's one milestone down," added Wong, who will compete in the Vancouver Golf Tour's, Vancouver Open next week before the final Canadian Tour event of the season the week following
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2012 Canadian Tour Championship
Scarboro Golf & Country Club
Scarborough, Ontario
Par 71 (35/36) 6554 Yards
Final Round Leaderboard
Eugene Wong, North Vancouver, BC 68-67-68-67 (-14)
Joe Panzeri, Meridan, ID 70-64-70-67 (-13)
Cody Slover, Visalia, CA 68-71-67-68 (-12)
Carlos Sainz Jr., Chicago, IL 71-64-72-68 (-9)
Matt Daniel, Richmond, BC 66-69-72-68 (-9)
Brian Unk, Lewis Center, OH 68-68-69-70 (-9)
Trey Denton, Madison, MS 70-66-67-72 (-9)
Mark Hubbard, San Jose, CA 71-65-77-64 (-7)
Nick Taylor, Abbotsford, BC 71-71-68-67 (-7)
David Markle, Shelburne, ON 68-71-68-70 (-7)
(August 26, 2012 - Toronto, ON) golfcanada - With a walk-off shot for the ages, Eugene Wong of North Vancouver, BC holed his approach from the fairway on the 72nd hole to win the Canadian Tour Championship by a single shot over Meridian, ID's Joe Panzeri.
Using a nine iron from 133 yards, Wong two-hopped the shot into the hole, giving the 21-year old his first professional victory in one of the most memorable finishes in Canadian Tour history, if not all of professional golf.
"There's a funny story to that shot," confessed Wong. "My caddie and I were walking up the fairway, and he said 'it would be nice to hole it right now, wouldn't it? I said 'yeah, it would.'"
Wong, the 2010 Jack Nicklaus Award winner as the NCAA's top player, earned $16,000 for the win and a two-year exemption on the Canadian Tour. He finished at 14-under par total, a stroke ahead of Panzeri, the 2011 International Rookie of the Year.
"My confidence is really high now. I know I can compete with the pros and I'm happy to get my first win, so there's one milestone down," added Wong, who will compete in the Vancouver Golf Tour's, Vancouver Open next week before the final Canadian Tour event of the season the week following
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Sergio slips while Watney wins..DeLaet and Hearn move up while Ko makes LPGA history..
Well Sergio started with a bogey and had his worst round of the last 2 weeks, a 75... pgatour.com... while Nick Watney turned a two-shot deficit against Sergio Garcia into a three-shot lead in a decisive four-hole stretch around the turn at Bethpage State Park Black Course, and no one got closer than two shots the rest of the way. Watney made a 10-foot birdie putt on the last hole for a 2-under 69 to capture the opening event in the FedExCup Playoffs.
He wound up winning by three shots over Brandt Snedeker, who birdied the last hole for a 70. Garcia made bogey on the 18th for a 75. Watney now becomes a choice for the Ryder Cup along with Steve Stricker and Jim Furyk and Snedeker, already under consideration, battled to the end on a warm day on Long Island. He made a 15-foot par putt on the 17th hole and closed with a birdie to be alone in second place. Complicating matters for Love is that Dustin Johnson shot 68 and tied for third, along with Garcia.
Tiger Woods, six shots behind at the start of the day, never made a move. He alternated between bogeys and birdies until the sixth hole, and his round imploded on the back nine with a three-putt double bogey on the 12th, a poor wedge that led to bogey on the par-5 13th, and a tee shot on the par-3 14th that sailed over the green and one-hopped against the gallery. He closed with a 76 and tied for 38th
Only the top 100 players advance to the Deutsche Bank Championship for the second of four Playoffs events. The biggest move belonged to Graham DeLaet, who started the week at No. 106 and was right on the bubble going into the final round.
It turned out way better than DeLaet could have imagined. Despite back-to-back bogeys on the front nine, he answered with four birdies on his next seven holes, and then holed out with on the 15th for eagle with a 9-iron from 161 yards. He closed with two birdies for a Sunday-best 65 to end up T5
Not only did he advance, DeLaet moved up 62 spots to No. 44 and should be safe for the next two tournaments.
"I guess a lot of people think there's too much volatility in it, but it was in my favor," DeLaet said. "If you can have one really good event, you can catapult yourself up. And now I feel I have a chance to get into the TOUR Championship, where this morning I was just hoping to play next week."
It was a good day for our other Canadian, David Hearn. Playing with Woods, he closed with a T10 E 71, -3 total and moved from No. 108 to No. 67.
final scores click http://www.pgatour.com/leaderboards/current/r027/
LPGA
Coquitlam, B.C. (Golf Canada) – Amateur sensation Lydia Ko carded a final round 5-under par 67 to win the 2012 CN Canadian Women’s Open at The Vancouver Golf Club in Coquitlam, B.C.
Entering the day atop the leaderboard with a single stroke advantage over Stacy Lewis, Inbee Park, Chella Choi and Jiyai Shin, Ko, the top-ranked amateur in the world and the reigning U.S. Women’s Amateur champion, converted seven birdies and posted just two bogeys on Sunday, en route to posting a four-day tally of 13-under par 275 for a three-stroke win over Park, who finished solo second at 10-under par 278.
Ko is the first amateur in tournament history to win Canada’s National Women’s Open Championship title. She also claimed the Marlene Stewart Streit low amateur medal as the tournament’s top amateur.
“It’s great to win, and the last few holes it got a bit nerve-wracking, but Stacy Lewis after my birdie on 15, she said, you know you can do it,” said Ko, who earned a berth in the LPGA Tour’s season-ending CME Group Titleholders event with the win. “It feels amazing…It’s always awesome to be able to play with the pros.”
At 15 years, 4 months and 2 days, Ko becomes the youngest winner in LPGA Tour history, eclipsing the previous mark set by Lexi Thompson, who was 16 years, 8 months and 8 days when she won the 2011 Navistar LPGA Classic. She also becomes only the fifth amateur in LPGA Tour history to win an official event and the first in more than 40 years, the last being JoAnne Carner, who claimed the 1969 Burdine’s Invitational.
The victory is Ko’s second win at a professional event in 2012. She won the New South Wales Open on the Australian LPGA (ALPG) in January to become the youngest winner in history on a professional golf tour at the age of 14 years, 9 months and 5 days. That record was eclipsed in June by Team Canada Development Squad member Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont. Henderson bested the field at a CN Canadian Women’s Tour event in Beloeil, Que. at 14 years, 9 months and 3 days.
As an amateur, Ko was unable to accept the $300,000 winners’ cheque, which was awarded to Park as the second place finisher.
Shin, Chella Choi and Na Yeon Choi finished T3 at 8-under par 280, five strokes off the lead.
Jessica Shepley of Oakville, Ont. finished T41 and earned the Sandra Post medal as the Championship’s low Canadian for the second consecutive year with a score of 2-over par 290. Of the 15 Canadians in the initial player field, Shepley was the lone competitor to qualify for weekend play
T41 - Jessica Shepley – 73-74-70-73, 290, +2
-Missed Cut-
CUT - Lorie Kane – 72-76-148, +4
CUT - Samantha Richdale – 77-72-149, +5
CUT - Rebecca Lee-Bentham – 75-74-149, +5
CUT - (a) Natalie Gleadall – 78-72-150, +6
CUT - Isabelle Beisiegel – 76-74-150, +6
CUT - Alena Sharp – 75-76-151, +7
CUT - (a) Christine Wong – 79-73-152, +8
CUT - (a) Brooke Henderson – 77-76-153, +9
CUT - Kirby Dreher – 75-78-153, +9
CUT - (a) Augusta James – 75-78-153, +9
CUT - Sara-Maude Juneau – 81-73-154, +10
CUT - (a) Jisoo Keel – 77-78-155, +11
CUT - (a) Brittany Marchand – 80-77-157, +13
CUT - (a) A Ram Choi – 84-77-161, +17
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and broadcasting daily 79am at www.nextsportstar.com
He wound up winning by three shots over Brandt Snedeker, who birdied the last hole for a 70. Garcia made bogey on the 18th for a 75. Watney now becomes a choice for the Ryder Cup along with Steve Stricker and Jim Furyk and Snedeker, already under consideration, battled to the end on a warm day on Long Island. He made a 15-foot par putt on the 17th hole and closed with a birdie to be alone in second place. Complicating matters for Love is that Dustin Johnson shot 68 and tied for third, along with Garcia.
Tiger Woods, six shots behind at the start of the day, never made a move. He alternated between bogeys and birdies until the sixth hole, and his round imploded on the back nine with a three-putt double bogey on the 12th, a poor wedge that led to bogey on the par-5 13th, and a tee shot on the par-3 14th that sailed over the green and one-hopped against the gallery. He closed with a 76 and tied for 38th
Only the top 100 players advance to the Deutsche Bank Championship for the second of four Playoffs events. The biggest move belonged to Graham DeLaet, who started the week at No. 106 and was right on the bubble going into the final round.
It turned out way better than DeLaet could have imagined. Despite back-to-back bogeys on the front nine, he answered with four birdies on his next seven holes, and then holed out with on the 15th for eagle with a 9-iron from 161 yards. He closed with two birdies for a Sunday-best 65 to end up T5
Not only did he advance, DeLaet moved up 62 spots to No. 44 and should be safe for the next two tournaments.
"I guess a lot of people think there's too much volatility in it, but it was in my favor," DeLaet said. "If you can have one really good event, you can catapult yourself up. And now I feel I have a chance to get into the TOUR Championship, where this morning I was just hoping to play next week."
It was a good day for our other Canadian, David Hearn. Playing with Woods, he closed with a T10 E 71, -3 total and moved from No. 108 to No. 67.
final scores click http://www.pgatour.com/leaderboards/current/r027/
LPGA
Coquitlam, B.C. (Golf Canada) – Amateur sensation Lydia Ko carded a final round 5-under par 67 to win the 2012 CN Canadian Women’s Open at The Vancouver Golf Club in Coquitlam, B.C.
Entering the day atop the leaderboard with a single stroke advantage over Stacy Lewis, Inbee Park, Chella Choi and Jiyai Shin, Ko, the top-ranked amateur in the world and the reigning U.S. Women’s Amateur champion, converted seven birdies and posted just two bogeys on Sunday, en route to posting a four-day tally of 13-under par 275 for a three-stroke win over Park, who finished solo second at 10-under par 278.
Ko is the first amateur in tournament history to win Canada’s National Women’s Open Championship title. She also claimed the Marlene Stewart Streit low amateur medal as the tournament’s top amateur.
“It’s great to win, and the last few holes it got a bit nerve-wracking, but Stacy Lewis after my birdie on 15, she said, you know you can do it,” said Ko, who earned a berth in the LPGA Tour’s season-ending CME Group Titleholders event with the win. “It feels amazing…It’s always awesome to be able to play with the pros.”
At 15 years, 4 months and 2 days, Ko becomes the youngest winner in LPGA Tour history, eclipsing the previous mark set by Lexi Thompson, who was 16 years, 8 months and 8 days when she won the 2011 Navistar LPGA Classic. She also becomes only the fifth amateur in LPGA Tour history to win an official event and the first in more than 40 years, the last being JoAnne Carner, who claimed the 1969 Burdine’s Invitational.
The victory is Ko’s second win at a professional event in 2012. She won the New South Wales Open on the Australian LPGA (ALPG) in January to become the youngest winner in history on a professional golf tour at the age of 14 years, 9 months and 5 days. That record was eclipsed in June by Team Canada Development Squad member Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont. Henderson bested the field at a CN Canadian Women’s Tour event in Beloeil, Que. at 14 years, 9 months and 3 days.
As an amateur, Ko was unable to accept the $300,000 winners’ cheque, which was awarded to Park as the second place finisher.
Shin, Chella Choi and Na Yeon Choi finished T3 at 8-under par 280, five strokes off the lead.
Jessica Shepley of Oakville, Ont. finished T41 and earned the Sandra Post medal as the Championship’s low Canadian for the second consecutive year with a score of 2-over par 290. Of the 15 Canadians in the initial player field, Shepley was the lone competitor to qualify for weekend play
T41 - Jessica Shepley – 73-74-70-73, 290, +2
-Missed Cut-
CUT - Lorie Kane – 72-76-148, +4
CUT - Samantha Richdale – 77-72-149, +5
CUT - Rebecca Lee-Bentham – 75-74-149, +5
CUT - (a) Natalie Gleadall – 78-72-150, +6
CUT - Isabelle Beisiegel – 76-74-150, +6
CUT - Alena Sharp – 75-76-151, +7
CUT - (a) Christine Wong – 79-73-152, +8
CUT - (a) Brooke Henderson – 77-76-153, +9
CUT - Kirby Dreher – 75-78-153, +9
CUT - (a) Augusta James – 75-78-153, +9
CUT - Sara-Maude Juneau – 81-73-154, +10
CUT - (a) Jisoo Keel – 77-78-155, +11
CUT - (a) Brittany Marchand – 80-77-157, +13
CUT - (a) A Ram Choi – 84-77-161, +17
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and broadcasting daily 79am at www.nextsportstar.com
Lawrie gives Ollie another reason to smile..
Tomorrow at lunchtime at Gleneagles Jose Maria Olazabal will name his 2 captains picks, odds on favourites are Ian Poulter and Nicolas Colsaerts, however the play of 2 of his "already ins" Paul Lawrie and Sergio Garcia must just have him flashing that famous Spanish smile..
Sergio who won the Wyndham last week is 2 shots clear of the field going into Sunday and is handling the burnt out greens at Beth Page better than anyone in fact he is the only one of the leaders to shoot 70...
leaderboard click http://www.pgatour.com/r/leaderboard/
Paul Lawrie achieved the perfect confidence boost ahead of next month’s Ryder Cup as he coasted to victory in the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles.
As consistent as ever from tee to green, the Scot finished with a -4 68 for a -16 four better than Australian Brett Rumford.
It represents Lawrie’s third European Tour title on home soil, his first was the 1999 Open Championship and eighth in total
leaderboard click http://www.europeantour.com/europeantour/season=2012/tournamentid=2012062/leaderboard/index.html?showLeaderboard=Y
Keeping an eye on Adam Hadwin..
While John Daly 70 66 66 67 -15, T6 and 3 shots behind winner Darron Stiles 67 -18 is getting all the press down at the News Sentinel Open in Tennessee, Adam Hadwin continued his improved play 68 66 68 68 -14 T10 Brad Fritsch finished 69 -8 T41 and Bryan DeCorso 73rd 77 +2
live scoring http://www.pgatour.com/leaderboards/current/h011/
link to Ryder Cup teams http://www.rydercup.com/2012/usa/
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and hosting daily 7-9am at www.nextsportstar.com
Sergio who won the Wyndham last week is 2 shots clear of the field going into Sunday and is handling the burnt out greens at Beth Page better than anyone in fact he is the only one of the leaders to shoot 70...
leaderboard click http://www.pgatour.com/r/leaderboard/
Paul Lawrie achieved the perfect confidence boost ahead of next month’s Ryder Cup as he coasted to victory in the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles.
As consistent as ever from tee to green, the Scot finished with a -4 68 for a -16 four better than Australian Brett Rumford.
It represents Lawrie’s third European Tour title on home soil, his first was the 1999 Open Championship and eighth in total
leaderboard click http://www.europeantour.com/europeantour/season=2012/tournamentid=2012062/leaderboard/index.html?showLeaderboard=Y
Keeping an eye on Adam Hadwin..
While John Daly 70 66 66 67 -15, T6 and 3 shots behind winner Darron Stiles 67 -18 is getting all the press down at the News Sentinel Open in Tennessee, Adam Hadwin continued his improved play 68 66 68 68 -14 T10 Brad Fritsch finished 69 -8 T41 and Bryan DeCorso 73rd 77 +2
live scoring http://www.pgatour.com/leaderboards/current/h011/
link to Ryder Cup teams http://www.rydercup.com/2012/usa/
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and hosting daily 7-9am at www.nextsportstar.com
Broberg makes European Tour history and Poulter's rant about officials at the Barclays..
European Challenge Tour
Broberg creates history in Geneva
Kristoffer Broberg became the fastest player in Challenge Tour history to earn three victories and instant promotion to The European Tour after winning the Rolex Trophy by one shot with a sensational 40 foot birdie putt on the last hole.
Since the three victories rule was introduced, Dutchman Taco Remkes (2008), Rankings winner Edoardo Molinari of Italy (2009), Frenchman Benjamin Hebert and England’s Sam Little (both 2011) have all achieved the feat, but none with nearly as much speed as Broberg, who has played just five Challenge Tour events this season.
The Swede’s recent form has been nothing short of astonishing, as he won the Finnish Challenge (on 15 under par) and the Norwegian Challenge (22 under) at the start of the month, before finishing in a tie for third place at last week’s ECCO Tour Championship hosted by Thomas Björn & Mercedes-Benz (11 under).
Broberg’s closing round of 68 for a 26 under par winning total at Golf Club de Genève, in Geneva, took his cumulative score for the past four tournaments to a staggering 74 under par.
He joins Alex Noren as a winner of the Rolex Trophy, and will now try to emulate his close friend at next week’s Omega European Masters, a tournament Noren won in 2009.
Poulter pissed at PGATour officials at the Barclays..
Clearly frustrated after finishing a round of 76 that left him tied for 53rd, Poulter got on Twitter, "The worst course setup I have ever played in 13 years on tour. They have ruined what is a great course, greens like concrete (and) stupid pins (setups)."
Interviewed afterward as he was headed to his car, Poulter didn't relent a bit. "I've got to tell you, they [screwed] up today," he said. "Royally [screwed] up. Look at how many guys have had a bad day, and there's a lot of guys that had a bad day. You know, (hole) eight, especially, is the worst I've ever seen on Tour. Eight was worse than Shinnecock. How about that? How about that for a statement? They have lost it.
"There's supposed to be cloud cover, there wasn't cloud cover. I don't want to use that as an excuse. Fact is, the greens have barely got double-digit moisture in them. That is borderline unplayable on a golf course that simply plays as the longest course on Tour, pretty much. Right? Par 71. It's the longest 71 we play. So therefore you're going in with even more club than any other course we play. Elevated greens. Rock hard. That is an absolute recipe for disaster. You can quote me on all that stuff."
Bryan Angus more to follow...
Broberg creates history in Geneva
Kristoffer Broberg became the fastest player in Challenge Tour history to earn three victories and instant promotion to The European Tour after winning the Rolex Trophy by one shot with a sensational 40 foot birdie putt on the last hole.
Since the three victories rule was introduced, Dutchman Taco Remkes (2008), Rankings winner Edoardo Molinari of Italy (2009), Frenchman Benjamin Hebert and England’s Sam Little (both 2011) have all achieved the feat, but none with nearly as much speed as Broberg, who has played just five Challenge Tour events this season.
The Swede’s recent form has been nothing short of astonishing, as he won the Finnish Challenge (on 15 under par) and the Norwegian Challenge (22 under) at the start of the month, before finishing in a tie for third place at last week’s ECCO Tour Championship hosted by Thomas Björn & Mercedes-Benz (11 under).
Broberg’s closing round of 68 for a 26 under par winning total at Golf Club de Genève, in Geneva, took his cumulative score for the past four tournaments to a staggering 74 under par.
He joins Alex Noren as a winner of the Rolex Trophy, and will now try to emulate his close friend at next week’s Omega European Masters, a tournament Noren won in 2009.
Poulter pissed at PGATour officials at the Barclays..
Clearly frustrated after finishing a round of 76 that left him tied for 53rd, Poulter got on Twitter, "The worst course setup I have ever played in 13 years on tour. They have ruined what is a great course, greens like concrete (and) stupid pins (setups)."
Interviewed afterward as he was headed to his car, Poulter didn't relent a bit. "I've got to tell you, they [screwed] up today," he said. "Royally [screwed] up. Look at how many guys have had a bad day, and there's a lot of guys that had a bad day. You know, (hole) eight, especially, is the worst I've ever seen on Tour. Eight was worse than Shinnecock. How about that? How about that for a statement? They have lost it.
"There's supposed to be cloud cover, there wasn't cloud cover. I don't want to use that as an excuse. Fact is, the greens have barely got double-digit moisture in them. That is borderline unplayable on a golf course that simply plays as the longest course on Tour, pretty much. Right? Par 71. It's the longest 71 we play. So therefore you're going in with even more club than any other course we play. Elevated greens. Rock hard. That is an absolute recipe for disaster. You can quote me on all that stuff."
Bryan Angus more to follow...
Thursday, August 23, 2012
Teenage sensation Ko leads at the Canadian, Sergio leads the Barclays
RYDER CUP BULLETIN European Captain José María Olazábal has named Miguel Angel Jiménez as his fourth Vice Captain for The 2012 Ryder Cup match against the United States at Medinah Country Club, Chicago, Illinois, from September 28-30.
Jiménez will join Thomas Björn, Darren Clarke and Paul McGinley in an accomplished and knowledgeable ‘Backroom Team’ – the four Vice Captains have between them played in 14 Ryder Cups with no fewer than 11 wins to their credit
LPGA
Fifteen-year-old amateur Lydia Ko enters the final round at the CN Canadian Women’s Open with a chance to rewrite the record books. The New Zealander holds a one-shot lead over major champions Stacy Lewis, Inbee Park and Jiyai Shin, and Chella Choi, who is seeking her first win, with 18 holes of play remaining at Vancouver Golf Club. Ko, the winner of the 2012 U.S. Women’s Amateur, will make a bid to become the youngest winner in LPGA Tour history tomorrow when she tees it up in the final group. Born in 1997, she will be 15 years, four months and three days old tomorrow, more than 16 months younger than Lexi Thompson, who set the mark last September at the Navistar LPGA Classic.
Despite her youth, Ko’s resume is impressive. She became the youngest winner on any professional golf tour in January at the Women’s New South Wales Open at the age of 14 years, 9 months and 5 days. Her record was later broken by Brooke Henderson, a sponsor’s exemption this week, at a CN Canadian Women’s Tour event in June 2012. Ko was the low amateur at the 2012 U.S. Women’s Open where she tied for 39th. She has won numerous amateur championships in Australian and New Zealand and earlier this season finished tied for 17th at the ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open at Royal Melbourne on the LPGA Tour
Sadly the only Canadian of the 15 who started, to make the cut was Jesica Shepley
Jessica Shepley – 73-74 70, 217, +1
-Missed Cut-
T77 - Lorie Kane – 72-76-148, +4
T86 - Samantha Richdale – 77-72-149, +5
T86 – Rebecca Lee-Bentham – 75-74-149, +5
T100 - (a) Natalie Gleadall – 78-72-150, +6
T100 – Isabelle Beisiegel – 76-74-150, +6
T115 – Alena Sharp – 75-76-151, +7
T123 – (a) Christine Wong – 79-73-152, +8
T128 – (a) Brooke Henderson – 77-76-153, +9
T128 – Kirby Dreher – 75-78-153, +9
T128 – (a) Augusta James – 75-78-153, +9
T133 – Sara-Maude Juneau – 81-73-154, +10
T139 – (a) Jisoo Keel – 77-78-155, +11
T148 – (a) Brittany Marchand – 80-77-157, +13
152 – (a) A Ram Choi – 84-77-161, +17
Live scoring http://www.lpgascoring.com/public/Leaderboard.aspx
PGA Tour
pgatour.com With no bogeys over his final eight holes, Sergio Garcia turned a three-shot deficit into a two-shot lead over Nick Watney with a 2-under 69. He is at 10-under 203, and only four players were within four shots of the lead. Such were the conditions that Garcia was the only player among the final 18 to finish who broke 70. The greens are lightning quick, brown and baked out, in fact Tiger 3 putted 4 times on route to his 72.
Garcia, who was ranked as low as 103 in the world in putting stats, is putting beautifully these days and after his win last week at Greensboro, he is on his way to surging to the top of the Fed Ex Cup standings..
Kevin Stadler played early, when the greens still had some moisture, and had a remarkable round of 65 without any bogeys. He moved up from a tie for 42nd to alone in third place, three shots behind. Brandt Snedeker started strong and closed with nine pars, which was equally impressive, for a 68 that put him four back
Phil Mickelson might still be in the game. Twice a runner-up at Bethpage Black -- both times in the U.S. Open -- Mickelson played early Saturday and had a 67. That eventually put him in the large group at 4-under 209 that included Woods, Louis Oosthuizen, Lee Westwood and Charl Schwartzel, an impressive collection of players who have either won a major or been No. 1 in the world
David Hearn is T18 at +1 70 73 67 and Graham DeLaet T43 at E 75 67 72
live scoring click http://www.pgatour.com/leaderboards/current/r027/
Canadian Tour
3rd round scoring..
Trey Denton, Madison, MS 70-66-67 (-10)
Eugene Wong, North Vancouver, BC 68-67-68 (-10)
Joe Panzeri, Meridian, ID 70-64-70 (-9)
Stephen Bidne, Surprise, AZ 68-67-69 (-9)
Hugo Leon, Chile 69-69-67 (-8)
Brian Unk, Lewis Center, OH 68-68-69 (-8)
Matt Makinson, Coquitlam, BC 69-67-69 (-8)
Cody Slover, Visalia, CA 60-71-67 (-8)
Kyle Stough, Laurel, MD 68-70-68 (-8)
6 players tied at -7 including Canadians David Byrne, David Markle, Stuart Anderson and Matt Daniel.
(Toronto, Ont., August 25, 2012)golfcanada - After three rounds at the venerable Scarboro Golf & Country Club two men stand atop the packed leaderboard. Rookie professional Eugene Wong of North Vancouver, BC, making his third start on the Canadian Tour and fourth as a pro, is tied with Trey Denton of Mississippi who is making his 32nd start on the Canadian Tour. Both Denton and Wong finished the day at 10-under for the tournament and will play in the final group on Sunday.
Wong, who turned pro in mid-July, has made three of three cuts on the Canadian Tour and is poised to join the winner's circle for the second time in 2012. The 2012 PAC-12 player of the year and former Jack Nicklaus Award winner won earlier this season while still a member of the NCAA's Oregon Ducks.
The highly-touted Wong will need to fend off Denton, who is twice a bridesmaid on the Canadian Tour - coincidentally, with both of those playoff losses coming in Ontario's capital.
Sitting one shot back of Wong and Denton is 2011 International Rookie of the Year Joe Panzeri and Canadian Tour rookie Stephen Bidne. Both Panzeri and Bidne had up and down rounds but managed to finish off strong. For his part Bidne finished the day with an eagle on 16 as well as birdies on 17 and 18. Panzeri meanwhile finished with birdies on two of his last four holes including a clutch birdie on 18
Three players, including 2011 Canadian Tour winners Hugo Leon (ATB Financial Classic) and Brian Unk (Seaforth Country Classic), along with Coquitlam, BC's Matt Makinson are all 8-under and just two shots off the pace. Makinson will be looking to bounce back tomorrow after carrying the outright lead for a brief period at 11-under before a double bogey on the par 4 15th hole derailed his round.
CHAMPIONS Tour
2012 Boeing Classic
Snoqualmie, Washington
TPC Snoqualmie Ridge
pgatour.com ..Sixty-four-year-old Tom Jenkins missed shooting his age by one stroke, but his bogey-free, 7-under 65 was good enough to move him into the top spot after 36 holes of this year’s Boeing Classic. Jenkins is two-strokes in front of Willie Wood, last week’s winner at the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open, and five other players, including defending champion Mark Calcavecchia, trail by three.
Canadians Jim Rutledge T48 +1 72,73 and Rod Spittle T8 -5 69 70
live scoring click here http://www.pgatour.com/leaderboards/current/s619/
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and hosting daily at www.nextsportstar.com
Jiménez will join Thomas Björn, Darren Clarke and Paul McGinley in an accomplished and knowledgeable ‘Backroom Team’ – the four Vice Captains have between them played in 14 Ryder Cups with no fewer than 11 wins to their credit
LPGA
Fifteen-year-old amateur Lydia Ko enters the final round at the CN Canadian Women’s Open with a chance to rewrite the record books. The New Zealander holds a one-shot lead over major champions Stacy Lewis, Inbee Park and Jiyai Shin, and Chella Choi, who is seeking her first win, with 18 holes of play remaining at Vancouver Golf Club. Ko, the winner of the 2012 U.S. Women’s Amateur, will make a bid to become the youngest winner in LPGA Tour history tomorrow when she tees it up in the final group. Born in 1997, she will be 15 years, four months and three days old tomorrow, more than 16 months younger than Lexi Thompson, who set the mark last September at the Navistar LPGA Classic.
Despite her youth, Ko’s resume is impressive. She became the youngest winner on any professional golf tour in January at the Women’s New South Wales Open at the age of 14 years, 9 months and 5 days. Her record was later broken by Brooke Henderson, a sponsor’s exemption this week, at a CN Canadian Women’s Tour event in June 2012. Ko was the low amateur at the 2012 U.S. Women’s Open where she tied for 39th. She has won numerous amateur championships in Australian and New Zealand and earlier this season finished tied for 17th at the ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open at Royal Melbourne on the LPGA Tour
Sadly the only Canadian of the 15 who started, to make the cut was Jesica Shepley
Jessica Shepley – 73-74 70, 217, +1
-Missed Cut-
T77 - Lorie Kane – 72-76-148, +4
T86 - Samantha Richdale – 77-72-149, +5
T86 – Rebecca Lee-Bentham – 75-74-149, +5
T100 - (a) Natalie Gleadall – 78-72-150, +6
T100 – Isabelle Beisiegel – 76-74-150, +6
T115 – Alena Sharp – 75-76-151, +7
T123 – (a) Christine Wong – 79-73-152, +8
T128 – (a) Brooke Henderson – 77-76-153, +9
T128 – Kirby Dreher – 75-78-153, +9
T128 – (a) Augusta James – 75-78-153, +9
T133 – Sara-Maude Juneau – 81-73-154, +10
T139 – (a) Jisoo Keel – 77-78-155, +11
T148 – (a) Brittany Marchand – 80-77-157, +13
152 – (a) A Ram Choi – 84-77-161, +17
Live scoring http://www.lpgascoring.com/public/Leaderboard.aspx
PGA Tour
pgatour.com With no bogeys over his final eight holes, Sergio Garcia turned a three-shot deficit into a two-shot lead over Nick Watney with a 2-under 69. He is at 10-under 203, and only four players were within four shots of the lead. Such were the conditions that Garcia was the only player among the final 18 to finish who broke 70. The greens are lightning quick, brown and baked out, in fact Tiger 3 putted 4 times on route to his 72.
Garcia, who was ranked as low as 103 in the world in putting stats, is putting beautifully these days and after his win last week at Greensboro, he is on his way to surging to the top of the Fed Ex Cup standings..
Kevin Stadler played early, when the greens still had some moisture, and had a remarkable round of 65 without any bogeys. He moved up from a tie for 42nd to alone in third place, three shots behind. Brandt Snedeker started strong and closed with nine pars, which was equally impressive, for a 68 that put him four back
Phil Mickelson might still be in the game. Twice a runner-up at Bethpage Black -- both times in the U.S. Open -- Mickelson played early Saturday and had a 67. That eventually put him in the large group at 4-under 209 that included Woods, Louis Oosthuizen, Lee Westwood and Charl Schwartzel, an impressive collection of players who have either won a major or been No. 1 in the world
David Hearn is T18 at +1 70 73 67 and Graham DeLaet T43 at E 75 67 72
live scoring click http://www.pgatour.com/leaderboards/current/r027/
Canadian Tour
3rd round scoring..
Trey Denton, Madison, MS 70-66-67 (-10)
Eugene Wong, North Vancouver, BC 68-67-68 (-10)
Joe Panzeri, Meridian, ID 70-64-70 (-9)
Stephen Bidne, Surprise, AZ 68-67-69 (-9)
Hugo Leon, Chile 69-69-67 (-8)
Brian Unk, Lewis Center, OH 68-68-69 (-8)
Matt Makinson, Coquitlam, BC 69-67-69 (-8)
Cody Slover, Visalia, CA 60-71-67 (-8)
Kyle Stough, Laurel, MD 68-70-68 (-8)
6 players tied at -7 including Canadians David Byrne, David Markle, Stuart Anderson and Matt Daniel.
(Toronto, Ont., August 25, 2012)golfcanada - After three rounds at the venerable Scarboro Golf & Country Club two men stand atop the packed leaderboard. Rookie professional Eugene Wong of North Vancouver, BC, making his third start on the Canadian Tour and fourth as a pro, is tied with Trey Denton of Mississippi who is making his 32nd start on the Canadian Tour. Both Denton and Wong finished the day at 10-under for the tournament and will play in the final group on Sunday.
Wong, who turned pro in mid-July, has made three of three cuts on the Canadian Tour and is poised to join the winner's circle for the second time in 2012. The 2012 PAC-12 player of the year and former Jack Nicklaus Award winner won earlier this season while still a member of the NCAA's Oregon Ducks.
The highly-touted Wong will need to fend off Denton, who is twice a bridesmaid on the Canadian Tour - coincidentally, with both of those playoff losses coming in Ontario's capital.
Sitting one shot back of Wong and Denton is 2011 International Rookie of the Year Joe Panzeri and Canadian Tour rookie Stephen Bidne. Both Panzeri and Bidne had up and down rounds but managed to finish off strong. For his part Bidne finished the day with an eagle on 16 as well as birdies on 17 and 18. Panzeri meanwhile finished with birdies on two of his last four holes including a clutch birdie on 18
Three players, including 2011 Canadian Tour winners Hugo Leon (ATB Financial Classic) and Brian Unk (Seaforth Country Classic), along with Coquitlam, BC's Matt Makinson are all 8-under and just two shots off the pace. Makinson will be looking to bounce back tomorrow after carrying the outright lead for a brief period at 11-under before a double bogey on the par 4 15th hole derailed his round.
CHAMPIONS Tour
2012 Boeing Classic
Snoqualmie, Washington
TPC Snoqualmie Ridge
pgatour.com ..Sixty-four-year-old Tom Jenkins missed shooting his age by one stroke, but his bogey-free, 7-under 65 was good enough to move him into the top spot after 36 holes of this year’s Boeing Classic. Jenkins is two-strokes in front of Willie Wood, last week’s winner at the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open, and five other players, including defending champion Mark Calcavecchia, trail by three.
Canadians Jim Rutledge T48 +1 72,73 and Rod Spittle T8 -5 69 70
live scoring click here http://www.pgatour.com/leaderboards/current/s619/
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and hosting daily at www.nextsportstar.com
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
PGA Tour playoffs begin at tough Beth Page Black
2 Canadians David Hearn and Graham DeLaet are in the field a the very tough Beth Page Black course as the "Barclays" kicks off the PGA Tour playoffs later today..
Rory McIlroy, Tiger Woods and Zach Johnson are the featured pairing..
Round 1 and 2 tee times..http://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/r027/tee-times.html
Live scoring click http://www.pgatour.com/leaderboards/current/r027/
Rory McIlroy, Tiger Woods and Zach Johnson are the featured pairing..
Round 1 and 2 tee times..http://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/r027/tee-times.html
Live scoring click http://www.pgatour.com/leaderboards/current/r027/
August 23 - 26, 2012
Bethpage State Park • Farmingdale,NY
Field: Top 125 FedExCup Pts. Standings •
Purse: $8,000,000 •
Yards: 7,468
CN Canadian Womens Open Championship from Vancouver
A world-class 156 player field, including 15 Canadians, as well as 48 of the top-50 players on the LPGA’s Official Money List are set to challenge The Vancouver Golf Club in Coquitlam, B.C. for the opening-round of the $2 million (US) 2012 CN Canadian Women’s Open.
Canada’s National Women’s Open Championship officially kicks off Thursday with Round 1 teeing off at 7:00 a.m. PDT off the 1st and 10th tees at The Vancouver Golf Club
Tee times click here http://www.lpgascoring.com/public/Pairings.aspx?TournamentID=27873
Live scoring click here http://www.lpgascoring.com/public/Leaderboard.aspx
Six past champions including Brittany Lincicome (2011), Michelle Wie (2010), Suzann Pettersen (2009), Katherine Hull (2008), Cristie Kerr (2006) and Meena Lee (2005) will be in attendance as a field of 156 chases the $2 million purse.
Lincicome looks to defend her title at a new venue
Brittany Lincicome (@Brittany1golf) travels to British Columbia this week hoping to defend the CN Canadian Women's Open title she claimed last year at Hillsdale Golf & Country Club outside Montreal. The long-hitting Floridian has six top-10 finishes since winning last year's Canadian Open _ including a tie for second at last week's Safeway Classic Presented by Coca-Cola _ but the CN trophy remains the most recent in her collection that includes five total victories.
Lincicome won the 2011 CN Canadian Women's Open with an up-and-down from 40 yards to save par and shoot a 2-under-par 70 on Sunday. She battled high winds and heavy rain caused by the remnants of Hurricane Irene to outlast defending champion Michelle Wie (@themichellewie) and Stacy Lewis (@Stacy_Lewis) by a stroke and claim the $337,500 first-place check.
International Amateurs
A pair of notable international amateur golfers will compete by way of exemption this week including the world's no. 1 ranked amateur _ 15-year old Lydia Ko of New Zealand. Ko recently won the 2012 US Women's Amateur, was a semi-finalist at the U.S. Junior Girls and finished as low amateur at the 2012 US Women's Open. Also competing will be 2012 Royale Cup Canadian Women's Amateur champion Ariya Jutanugarn of Thailand. Currently ranked no. 2 on the world amateur golf ranking, the 16-year old Jutanugarn lost to Ko in the semi-finals of the U.S. Women's Amateur
Canada’s National Women’s Open Championship officially kicks off Thursday with Round 1 teeing off at 7:00 a.m. PDT off the 1st and 10th tees at The Vancouver Golf Club
Tee times click here http://www.lpgascoring.com/public/Pairings.aspx?TournamentID=27873
Live scoring click here http://www.lpgascoring.com/public/Leaderboard.aspx
Six past champions including Brittany Lincicome (2011), Michelle Wie (2010), Suzann Pettersen (2009), Katherine Hull (2008), Cristie Kerr (2006) and Meena Lee (2005) will be in attendance as a field of 156 chases the $2 million purse.
Lincicome looks to defend her title at a new venue
Brittany Lincicome (@Brittany1golf) travels to British Columbia this week hoping to defend the CN Canadian Women's Open title she claimed last year at Hillsdale Golf & Country Club outside Montreal. The long-hitting Floridian has six top-10 finishes since winning last year's Canadian Open _ including a tie for second at last week's Safeway Classic Presented by Coca-Cola _ but the CN trophy remains the most recent in her collection that includes five total victories.
Lincicome won the 2011 CN Canadian Women's Open with an up-and-down from 40 yards to save par and shoot a 2-under-par 70 on Sunday. She battled high winds and heavy rain caused by the remnants of Hurricane Irene to outlast defending champion Michelle Wie (@themichellewie) and Stacy Lewis (@Stacy_Lewis) by a stroke and claim the $337,500 first-place check.
International Amateurs
A pair of notable international amateur golfers will compete by way of exemption this week including the world's no. 1 ranked amateur _ 15-year old Lydia Ko of New Zealand. Ko recently won the 2012 US Women's Amateur, was a semi-finalist at the U.S. Junior Girls and finished as low amateur at the 2012 US Women's Open. Also competing will be 2012 Royale Cup Canadian Women's Amateur champion Ariya Jutanugarn of Thailand. Currently ranked no. 2 on the world amateur golf ranking, the 16-year old Jutanugarn lost to Ko in the semi-finals of the U.S. Women's Amateur
Monday, August 20, 2012
Women at last in Augusta National is cause for embarrassment, not celebration
I remember one boozy evening in the clubhouse at Luffness New GC, just up Scotland's east Lothian coastline from Muirfield, where I as a guest sat among the all male gathering as the following days calcutta pairings and bets surrounding them were boisterously debated.
The door of the smoke laden room opened late in the evening and one of the members wife walked in to pick up her hubby, who was in no shape to drive... Remember this was during the pre cellphone era...
" Good God it's a women " cried the member to my left.. " Club secretary deal with her would you" from the one on my right..
Yes folks that was only in 1983 at one of many Scottish golf clubs, including Muirfield the site of next years Open that either refuses to allow women, or restricts their membership rights..
At Luffness women used an old shoe storage room as their locker facility and could only play Tuesday and Thursday after 2pm..
So today's news that 2 gazillionaire and hugely prominent women, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and South Carolina financier Darla Moore have been invited to join the old boys at Augusta National is the day's top story, a joyous occasion says Billy Payne the club chairman.
I say it is cause for embarrassment, for it and all the other golf clubs like Muirfield, who have kept their heads stuck in the sand of their private bunkers for way to long.
80 years in today's case, longer in others. There is a place in this life for men and women only organizations for sure for all the obvious reasons, but to the annoyance of guys like the old boys at Luffness that night in 1983, a golf club in my opinion is not one of them..
To that extent, here is the latest from Golf Canada on the CN Canadian Women's Championship due to begin on Thursday in Vancouver.
Sixteen Canadians will be among a world class field featuring 48 of the top 50 players on the LPGA Tour money list who will be competing in next week's CN Canadian Women's Open in Vancouver.
The door of the smoke laden room opened late in the evening and one of the members wife walked in to pick up her hubby, who was in no shape to drive... Remember this was during the pre cellphone era...
" Good God it's a women " cried the member to my left.. " Club secretary deal with her would you" from the one on my right..
Yes folks that was only in 1983 at one of many Scottish golf clubs, including Muirfield the site of next years Open that either refuses to allow women, or restricts their membership rights..
At Luffness women used an old shoe storage room as their locker facility and could only play Tuesday and Thursday after 2pm..
So today's news that 2 gazillionaire and hugely prominent women, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and South Carolina financier Darla Moore have been invited to join the old boys at Augusta National is the day's top story, a joyous occasion says Billy Payne the club chairman.
I say it is cause for embarrassment, for it and all the other golf clubs like Muirfield, who have kept their heads stuck in the sand of their private bunkers for way to long.
80 years in today's case, longer in others. There is a place in this life for men and women only organizations for sure for all the obvious reasons, but to the annoyance of guys like the old boys at Luffness that night in 1983, a golf club in my opinion is not one of them..
To that extent, here is the latest from Golf Canada on the CN Canadian Women's Championship due to begin on Thursday in Vancouver.
Sixteen Canadians will be among a world class field featuring 48 of the top 50 players on the LPGA Tour money list who will be competing in next week's CN Canadian Women's Open in Vancouver.
Veteran Lorie Kane of Charlottetown, P.E.I., will lead the Canadian contingent which includes LPGA regulars Alena Sharp of Hamilton, Ont. and Rebecca Lee-Bentham of Richmond Hill, Ont., Stephanie Sherlock of Barrie, Ont., Isabelle Beisiegel of Saint-Hilaire, Que., Jessica Shepley of Oakville, Ont. and Sara Maude Juneau of Fossambault, Que., who's been competing primarily on the Symetra Tour this year, the LPGA's development circuit.
Maude-Aimee Leblanc of Sherbrooke, Que., was also scheduled to be in the field but had to withdraw last week with a back injury.
British Columbia golf will also be well represented with a B.C. contingent of Samantha Richdale (Kelowna), Sue Kim (Langley), Kirby Dreher (Fort St. John), So Yeon Park (Vancouver), Christine Wong (Richmond) and Coquitlam’s own Jisoo Keel looking to impress in front of the hometown crowd.
Five members of Team Canada will challenge the world’s best golfers including National Amateur Team members Augusta James and Brittany Marchand as well as National Development Squad member Brooke Henderson who’s victory at the CN Canadian Women’s Tour event earlier this year made her the young golfer ever to win a professional golf tour event (14 years, 9 months & 3 days). Henderson will be the youngest player ever to compete for Canada’s National Women’s Open Championship.
They will all be looking to become the first Canadian to win an LPGA Tour event on home soil since Canadian golf legend Jocelyne Bourassa’s historic victory in 1973
World no. 1 Yani Tseng and current leading money winner Stacey Lewis will be joined by eight former event winners including defending champion Brittany Lincicome, Michelle Wie, Suzann Pettersen, Katherine Hull, Cristie Kerr, Meena Lee, Karrie Webb and Laura Davies will all be vying for the winner’s share of the US$2.0 million purse at the Vancouver Golf Club in Coquitlam, B.C.
Other notable LPGA regulars who will be in the field include fan favourites Paula Creamer and Morgan Pressel, U.S. Women's Open champion Na Yeon Choi and teenage sensation Alexis Thompson.
Fifteen-year old Lydia Ko of New Zealand, the number one ranked amateur player in the world who recently won the 2012 U.S Women's Amateur championship, will also be competing along with 2012 Royale Cup Canadian Women’s Amateur champion, Ariya Jutanugarn of Thailand, who is currently ranked no. 2 in the world.
The only players in the top 50 on the money list who won't be in Vancouver are veteran Se Ri Pak, who is nursing a shoulder injury, and Caroline Hedwell, who is also out due to injury.
The 2012 CN Canadian Women’s Open will help to raise money for the BC Children’s Hospital Foundation, the official charitable beneficiary of the CN Miracle Match campaign in 2012. To date since 2006, CN Miracle Match has helped to raise close to $6.5 million in support of children’s hospitals in the name of the CN Canadian Women’s Open.
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and on www.isr1050.com and hosting daily 7-9am at www.nextsportstar.com
Maude-Aimee Leblanc of Sherbrooke, Que., was also scheduled to be in the field but had to withdraw last week with a back injury.
British Columbia golf will also be well represented with a B.C. contingent of Samantha Richdale (Kelowna), Sue Kim (Langley), Kirby Dreher (Fort St. John), So Yeon Park (Vancouver), Christine Wong (Richmond) and Coquitlam’s own Jisoo Keel looking to impress in front of the hometown crowd.
Five members of Team Canada will challenge the world’s best golfers including National Amateur Team members Augusta James and Brittany Marchand as well as National Development Squad member Brooke Henderson who’s victory at the CN Canadian Women’s Tour event earlier this year made her the young golfer ever to win a professional golf tour event (14 years, 9 months & 3 days). Henderson will be the youngest player ever to compete for Canada’s National Women’s Open Championship.
They will all be looking to become the first Canadian to win an LPGA Tour event on home soil since Canadian golf legend Jocelyne Bourassa’s historic victory in 1973
World no. 1 Yani Tseng and current leading money winner Stacey Lewis will be joined by eight former event winners including defending champion Brittany Lincicome, Michelle Wie, Suzann Pettersen, Katherine Hull, Cristie Kerr, Meena Lee, Karrie Webb and Laura Davies will all be vying for the winner’s share of the US$2.0 million purse at the Vancouver Golf Club in Coquitlam, B.C.
Other notable LPGA regulars who will be in the field include fan favourites Paula Creamer and Morgan Pressel, U.S. Women's Open champion Na Yeon Choi and teenage sensation Alexis Thompson.
Fifteen-year old Lydia Ko of New Zealand, the number one ranked amateur player in the world who recently won the 2012 U.S Women's Amateur championship, will also be competing along with 2012 Royale Cup Canadian Women’s Amateur champion, Ariya Jutanugarn of Thailand, who is currently ranked no. 2 in the world.
The only players in the top 50 on the money list who won't be in Vancouver are veteran Se Ri Pak, who is nursing a shoulder injury, and Caroline Hedwell, who is also out due to injury.
The 2012 CN Canadian Women’s Open will help to raise money for the BC Children’s Hospital Foundation, the official charitable beneficiary of the CN Miracle Match campaign in 2012. To date since 2006, CN Miracle Match has helped to raise close to $6.5 million in support of children’s hospitals in the name of the CN Canadian Women’s Open.
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and on www.isr1050.com and hosting daily 7-9am at www.nextsportstar.com
Masters admits women to it's membership for the first time
AP...For the first time in its 80-year history, Augusta National Golf Club has female
members.
The home of the Masters, under increasing criticism the last decade because of its all-male membership, invited former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and South Carolina financier Darla Moore to become the first women in green jackets when the club opens for a new season in October.
Both women accepted.
"This is a joyous occasion," Augusta National chairman Billy Payne said
Augusta National, which opened in December 1932 and did not have a black member until 1990, is believed to have about 300 members. While the club until now had no female members, women were allowed to play the golf course as guests, including on the Sunday before the Masters week began in April.
Moore, 58, first rose to prominence in the 1980s with Chemical Bank, where she became the highest-paid woman in the banking industry. She is vice president of Rainwater, Inc., a private investment company founded by her husband, Richard Rainwater. She was the first woman to be profiled on the cover of Fortune Magazine, and she made a $25 million contribution to her alma mater, South Carolina, which renamed its business school after her ..
The home of the Masters, under increasing criticism the last decade because of its all-male membership, invited former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and South Carolina financier Darla Moore to become the first women in green jackets when the club opens for a new season in October.
Both women accepted.
"This is a joyous occasion," Augusta National chairman Billy Payne said
Augusta National, which opened in December 1932 and did not have a black member until 1990, is believed to have about 300 members. While the club until now had no female members, women were allowed to play the golf course as guests, including on the Sunday before the Masters week began in April.
Moore, 58, first rose to prominence in the 1980s with Chemical Bank, where she became the highest-paid woman in the banking industry. She is vice president of Rainwater, Inc., a private investment company founded by her husband, Richard Rainwater. She was the first woman to be profiled on the cover of Fortune Magazine, and she made a $25 million contribution to her alma mater, South Carolina, which renamed its business school after her ..
Sergio wins the Wyndham and all weekend results
Hi all, sorry to be away from the site for the last 4 days, had to move in with dear old Dad who is 92 now and lives with my sister who is away on holidays.
Dad has no internet, in fact doesn't know what the Internet or a computer is... hey he's onto something.
The Monday finale on the PGA Tour stop at the Wyndham down in Greensboro NC is underway here is the link to live scoring.. http://www.pgatour.com/r/leaderboard/
Sergio has a 2 shot lead over Tim Clarke and Bud Cauley with 3 to play and is only 2 feet away on 16, the par 3. He made it to go up by 3..... now 4 with a birdie on 17..
Sergio has his game face on, and has 3 putts for the win at the 18th for his 8th win on the PGA Tour..His lag from 60 feet is stone dead..
SERGIO is your winner..
Graham DeLaet T22 at -9 and David Hearn missed the cut..
This was a huge week for Sergio, he has now qualified for the Fed Ex Cup playoffs, and he has qualified for the Ryder Cup..
Jose Maria Olazábal now knows nine of his ten automatic qualifiers - Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose, Graeme McDowell, Paul Lawrie, Francesco Molinari, Luke Donald, Lee Westwood, Garcia and Peter Hanson.
The final spot is between Kaymer - not in the field at Gleneagles - and Colsaerts
CHAMPIONS Tour
2012 Dick's Sporting Goods Open
With Michael Allen posted at 13-under, Willie Wood faced a must-birdie situation on the final hole of regulation to send the event into a playoff. He delivered right on cue, holing a 35-foot putt to shoot a 68 and force overtime. Wood then won the tournament on the first playoff hole with a par after Allen’s tee shot on the 18th found the water.
Wood overcame a double-bogey at the par-3 4th hole and trailed Brad Faxon by two strokes at the turn. He crept within a stroke with a birdie at the par-5 12th hole and when Faxon faltered and Allen birdied the 18th hole ahead of him, Wood knew what he had to do. It was the first playoff in the six-year history of the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open.
Willie Wood’s win today earned him an immediate exemption on the Champions Tour for one year from today and also earned him a two-year exemption into the season-opening Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai.
Willie Wood earned a check for $270,000 and collected 270 Charles Schwab Cup points. Wood vaulted from 52nd to 28th on the 2012 money list and now has $440,817 this season.
Canadian Tour
Jamieson WFCU Windsor Roseland Charity Classic.
London, Ontario
FINAL LEADERBOARD (Bold denotes Canadian)
Alan McLean - London, ON - 70-69-65-66 (-10)
Hugo Leon - Chile - 69-67-70-66 (-8)
Michael Gligic - Burlington, ON - 70-66-67-72 (-6)
Garrett Frank - Youngstown, OH - 65-69-71-69 (-6)
Danny Sahl - Sherwood Park, AB - 70-68-71-66 (-5)
Brandon Harkins - Scottsdale, AZ - 70-72-69-65 (-4)
Wes Heffernan - Calgary, AB - 70-66-69-71 (-4)
James Allenby - Langley, BC - 65-69-70-72 (-4)
Will Strickler - Dallas, TX - 69-66-68-73 (-4)
Kent Eger - Regina, SK - 69-71-69-68 (-3)
Roger Sloan - Meritt, BC - 70-69-69-69 (-3)
Jeff Rangel - Martinez, CA - 71-68-69-69 (-3)
(August 19, 2012 - Windsor, ON) - London, Ontario resident Alan McLean survived a roller coaster back nine and made a clutch birdie on the 17th hole to lock up his first Canadian Tour victory in 132 starts Sunday at the Jamieson WFCU Windsor Roseland Charity Classic.
The 42-year old McLean made four straight birdies on the back nine, then made double bogey and bogey on the 15th and 16th holes before righting the ship with a clutch birdie on the penultimate hole. McLean posted 10-under par to win by two shots over Chile's Hugo Leon.
European Senior Tour
SSE Scottish Open,
europeantour.com Anders Forsbrand claimed an historic wire-to-wire victory in the SSE Scottish Open, holding off a stunning charge from Philip Golding to become the first Swede to win on the European Senior Tour.
The 51 year old, who began the day with a three stroke cushion, always had a stranglehold on the tournament at Fairmont St Andrews, but Englishman Golding’s second consecutive eight under par round of 64 put Forsbrand under pressure in the closing stages.
However, the ice-cool Scandinavian held firm and a final round of 67 gave him a winning total of 17 under par 199, one shot clear of Golding, who finished runner up in just his second Senior Tour event, and three ahead of David J Russell.
It was Forsbrand’s first victory in 17 years, having claimed the last of his six European Tour titles in the 1995 German Masters, and represents the start of a new chapter for Swedish golf.
Web.com Tour
pgatour.com As Web.com Tour rookie Shawn Stefani said minutes after his victory on Sunday, "when you win a lot of good things go your way." Well, a lot of good things went the former mini-tour performer's way, especially his second shot at No. 18.
Tied with Russell Henley at 16-under and hitting his second shot at No. 18, Stefani's lob wedge went flew over the flag, bounced off the mesh fencing at the base of the sky boxes and rolled back on the green, a mere three feet from the hole and a possible birdie. His good fortune resulted in a birdie moments later and the outright lead which was never relinquished. He finished two strokes better than Henley and Luke List for his first Web.com Tour victory.
"That ball at 18 could have kicked several ways, but it broke right for me. Today it went my way," said Stefani, whose previous best finish was a T9 at the Panama Claro Championship in his second start of the campaign.
"The win hasn't really sunk in yet, but this is something you dream about as a kid. This is the best thing that has ever happened to me. When the year started I had a couple of goals. One was to win a tournament and the other was to finish in the top 25 and earn my PGA TOUR card," Stefani continued. "I was a little pumped up when I hit that second shot. The adrenaline was going, but the hardest part was making the putt after my shot."
Stefani (64 -17) had been playing on the mini-tour circuit for much of the previous five years after finishing his college career at Lamar University in Texas. The Houston resident played on the NGA Hooters Tour and the Adams Golf Pro Tour Series prior to earning a spot on the Web.com Tour this year at the PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament
Canadians Bryan DeCorso T20 74 -9 9 (slipped from a T3), Brad Fritsch T27 69 -8, Ryan Yip T44 -6 71...
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and hosting daily at www.nextsportstar.com
Dad has no internet, in fact doesn't know what the Internet or a computer is... hey he's onto something.
The Monday finale on the PGA Tour stop at the Wyndham down in Greensboro NC is underway here is the link to live scoring.. http://www.pgatour.com/r/leaderboard/
Sergio has a 2 shot lead over Tim Clarke and Bud Cauley with 3 to play and is only 2 feet away on 16, the par 3. He made it to go up by 3..... now 4 with a birdie on 17..
Sergio has his game face on, and has 3 putts for the win at the 18th for his 8th win on the PGA Tour..His lag from 60 feet is stone dead..
SERGIO is your winner..
Graham DeLaet T22 at -9 and David Hearn missed the cut..
This was a huge week for Sergio, he has now qualified for the Fed Ex Cup playoffs, and he has qualified for the Ryder Cup..
Jose Maria Olazábal now knows nine of his ten automatic qualifiers - Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose, Graeme McDowell, Paul Lawrie, Francesco Molinari, Luke Donald, Lee Westwood, Garcia and Peter Hanson.
The final spot is between Kaymer - not in the field at Gleneagles - and Colsaerts
CHAMPIONS Tour
2012 Dick's Sporting Goods Open
With Michael Allen posted at 13-under, Willie Wood faced a must-birdie situation on the final hole of regulation to send the event into a playoff. He delivered right on cue, holing a 35-foot putt to shoot a 68 and force overtime. Wood then won the tournament on the first playoff hole with a par after Allen’s tee shot on the 18th found the water.
Wood overcame a double-bogey at the par-3 4th hole and trailed Brad Faxon by two strokes at the turn. He crept within a stroke with a birdie at the par-5 12th hole and when Faxon faltered and Allen birdied the 18th hole ahead of him, Wood knew what he had to do. It was the first playoff in the six-year history of the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open.
Willie Wood’s win today earned him an immediate exemption on the Champions Tour for one year from today and also earned him a two-year exemption into the season-opening Mitsubishi Electric Championship at Hualalai.
Willie Wood earned a check for $270,000 and collected 270 Charles Schwab Cup points. Wood vaulted from 52nd to 28th on the 2012 money list and now has $440,817 this season.
Canadian Tour
Jamieson WFCU Windsor Roseland Charity Classic.
London, Ontario
FINAL LEADERBOARD (Bold denotes Canadian)
Alan McLean - London, ON - 70-69-65-66 (-10)
Hugo Leon - Chile - 69-67-70-66 (-8)
Michael Gligic - Burlington, ON - 70-66-67-72 (-6)
Garrett Frank - Youngstown, OH - 65-69-71-69 (-6)
Danny Sahl - Sherwood Park, AB - 70-68-71-66 (-5)
Brandon Harkins - Scottsdale, AZ - 70-72-69-65 (-4)
Wes Heffernan - Calgary, AB - 70-66-69-71 (-4)
James Allenby - Langley, BC - 65-69-70-72 (-4)
Will Strickler - Dallas, TX - 69-66-68-73 (-4)
Kent Eger - Regina, SK - 69-71-69-68 (-3)
Roger Sloan - Meritt, BC - 70-69-69-69 (-3)
Jeff Rangel - Martinez, CA - 71-68-69-69 (-3)
(August 19, 2012 - Windsor, ON) - London, Ontario resident Alan McLean survived a roller coaster back nine and made a clutch birdie on the 17th hole to lock up his first Canadian Tour victory in 132 starts Sunday at the Jamieson WFCU Windsor Roseland Charity Classic.
The 42-year old McLean made four straight birdies on the back nine, then made double bogey and bogey on the 15th and 16th holes before righting the ship with a clutch birdie on the penultimate hole. McLean posted 10-under par to win by two shots over Chile's Hugo Leon.
European Senior Tour
SSE Scottish Open,
europeantour.com Anders Forsbrand claimed an historic wire-to-wire victory in the SSE Scottish Open, holding off a stunning charge from Philip Golding to become the first Swede to win on the European Senior Tour.
The 51 year old, who began the day with a three stroke cushion, always had a stranglehold on the tournament at Fairmont St Andrews, but Englishman Golding’s second consecutive eight under par round of 64 put Forsbrand under pressure in the closing stages.
However, the ice-cool Scandinavian held firm and a final round of 67 gave him a winning total of 17 under par 199, one shot clear of Golding, who finished runner up in just his second Senior Tour event, and three ahead of David J Russell.
It was Forsbrand’s first victory in 17 years, having claimed the last of his six European Tour titles in the 1995 German Masters, and represents the start of a new chapter for Swedish golf.
Web.com Tour
Midwest Classic Presented by Cadillac
Nicklaus GC at LionsGate · Overland Park, Kansas
final leaderboard http://www.pgatour.com/leaderboards/current/h100/
Tied with Russell Henley at 16-under and hitting his second shot at No. 18, Stefani's lob wedge went flew over the flag, bounced off the mesh fencing at the base of the sky boxes and rolled back on the green, a mere three feet from the hole and a possible birdie. His good fortune resulted in a birdie moments later and the outright lead which was never relinquished. He finished two strokes better than Henley and Luke List for his first Web.com Tour victory.
"That ball at 18 could have kicked several ways, but it broke right for me. Today it went my way," said Stefani, whose previous best finish was a T9 at the Panama Claro Championship in his second start of the campaign.
"The win hasn't really sunk in yet, but this is something you dream about as a kid. This is the best thing that has ever happened to me. When the year started I had a couple of goals. One was to win a tournament and the other was to finish in the top 25 and earn my PGA TOUR card," Stefani continued. "I was a little pumped up when I hit that second shot. The adrenaline was going, but the hardest part was making the putt after my shot."
Stefani (64 -17) had been playing on the mini-tour circuit for much of the previous five years after finishing his college career at Lamar University in Texas. The Houston resident played on the NGA Hooters Tour and the Adams Golf Pro Tour Series prior to earning a spot on the Web.com Tour this year at the PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament
Canadians Bryan DeCorso T20 74 -9 9 (slipped from a T3), Brad Fritsch T27 69 -8, Ryan Yip T44 -6 71...
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and hosting daily at www.nextsportstar.com
Thursday, August 16, 2012
Olazabal names 3 Vice Captains for the Ryder Cup
europeantour.com European Captain José María Olazábal has named Thomas Björn, Darren Clarke and Paul McGinley as three of his four Vice Captains for The 2012 Ryder Cup match against the United States at Medinah Country Club, Chicago, Illinois, from September 28-30.
Björn, Clarke and McGinley have between them played in ten Ryder Cups, with no fewer than nine wins to their credit, and together represent an accomplished and knowledgeable ‘Backroom Team’ after working together for The European Team when the Cup was regained at the Celtic Manor Resort, Wales, in 2010.
Olazábal, who played in seven Ryder Cup matches between 1987 and 2006 and was a Vice Captain in 2008 and 2010, said: “I could not be more delighted than to have Thomas, Darren and Paul as Vice Captains especially as we bonded so well supporting Colin Montgomerie in 2010. All three are world class golfers with tremendous experience of playing in The Ryder Cup which is absolutely invaluable.
“For me to have these guys – all such great friends – by my side is fantastic. I know like me they will now be counting down the days to to Medinah with one aim – to return home with the Cup.
“Thomas, Darren and Paul share a special spirit and love for the game and they have the respect and admiration of everyone in golf. Their passion, commitment and desire to win will encourage everyone in the team room and for me it is so important to have guys you know, guys you trust, guys familiar with this contest because The Ryder Cup is unique.
“My own experiences as a Vice Captain in 2008 and 2010 taught me that you need a lot of help that week. You need eyes, extra eyes to follow the players in the practice rounds to gather as much information as you can about how everyone is playing.
“Then it is important to have each match watched because you have to hand in your pairings for the afternoon matches when the players are still out on the course. That means it is essential to have all the information you can get before you put those pairings down on paper – my Vice Captains will make sure that is the case and I will name the fourth one at the August 27 Conference when I announce my two picks.
“This Ryder Cup, like so many in the past, will come down to who shows the most character under pressure. It is certain to be close but I am confident we have the players to bring the Cup back home with us, and to have Thomas, Darren and Paul already on-side in Team Europe is a massive boost.”
Björn became, in 1997, the first Danish player to compete in The Ryder Cup and he was unbeaten in the Seve Ballesteros-captained winning European Team, and he was also on the winning team in 2002. He has played six matches, winning three and halving one. Björn was Vice Captain to Bernhard Langer in 2004 at Oakland Hills and to Colin Montgomerie at the Celtic Manor Resort in 2010 and he has also captained Continental Europe in the Vivendi Seve Trophy. He has 13 European Tour wins and in all 19 worldwide.
Björn said: “I said in 2010 that if you can’t play well enough to be on the team then I am very happy to do this role. I’m delighted to be invited by José María and to be one of his Vice Captains. We know that an experienced backroom team can make a big difference, and together we will be looking to support the Captain in making good decisions and making the team feel comfortable with what they are doing.”
Northern Ireland’s Clarke, winner of The 140th Open Championship last year, also, like Björn, made his Ryder Cup debut in 1997. He played five matches in succession, finishing on the winning side four times, and won ten and halved three of his 20 matches. Clarke was Vice Captain to Colin Montgomerie in 2010. He has 14 European Tour wins and in all 21 worldwide.
Clarke said: “I am really pleased to be part of José María’s team and I know that we can instil that relaxed atmosphere in the team room and help the Captain get the best out of the players. Make no mistake this is a very strong backroom team because we have been there before and done it before. We’ll be seeking to use our experience to re-create that terrific team spirit and bonding that has made the European team room such a special place to be for so many years.”
Ireland’s McGinley famously holed the winning putt on his Ryder Cup debut in 2002 and he has an enviable 100 per cent winning record having also been on the winning team in 2004 and 2006. He won two and halved five of his nine matches. McGinley was Vice Captain in 2010 and he captained Great Britain and Ireland to victory against Continental Europe in both the 2009 and 2011 Vivendi Seve Trophy matches. McGinley has four European Tour wins and in all nine worldwide.
McGinley said: “I am thrilled to be part of Team Europe again and I would like to keep that unbeaten run going. But we all know that Ryder Cups are always very difficult. The Americans always look to start fast especially on home soil, as they did at Valhalla in 2008, and we will need to be ready for that. What is important is that we win The Ryder Cup again not just for us but also for The European Tour.”
The ten automatic qualifiers for The European Ryder Cup Team – five from the European Points List and five from the World Points List – will be confirmed on Sunday August 26. Olazábal will announce his two Captain’s Picks at a special 2012 Ryder Cup Conference at Noon on Monday, August 27, at The Gleneagles Hotel, Perthshire, Scotland.
The eight automatic qualifiers for the United States Team became known following the conclusion of the US PGA Championship last Sunday. They are Keegan Bradley, Jason Dufner, Zach Johnson, Matt Kuchar, Phil Mickelson, Webb Simpson, Bubba Watson and Tiger Woods. United States Captain Davis Love III will announce his Captain’s Picks at the NASDAQ Marketsite, New York City, on Tuesday, September 4. Love has named Fred Couples, Mike Hulbert, Jeff Sluman and Scott Verplank as his four Vice Captains
I am speculating that Olazabal is leaving the 4th vice captain pick open in case Sergio doesn't make the team..Right now his is ranked 13 on the European points list and 11 on the World points list..
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and hosting 7-9am daily at www.nextsportstar.com
Björn, Clarke and McGinley have between them played in ten Ryder Cups, with no fewer than nine wins to their credit, and together represent an accomplished and knowledgeable ‘Backroom Team’ after working together for The European Team when the Cup was regained at the Celtic Manor Resort, Wales, in 2010.
Olazábal, who played in seven Ryder Cup matches between 1987 and 2006 and was a Vice Captain in 2008 and 2010, said: “I could not be more delighted than to have Thomas, Darren and Paul as Vice Captains especially as we bonded so well supporting Colin Montgomerie in 2010. All three are world class golfers with tremendous experience of playing in The Ryder Cup which is absolutely invaluable.
“For me to have these guys – all such great friends – by my side is fantastic. I know like me they will now be counting down the days to to Medinah with one aim – to return home with the Cup.
“Thomas, Darren and Paul share a special spirit and love for the game and they have the respect and admiration of everyone in golf. Their passion, commitment and desire to win will encourage everyone in the team room and for me it is so important to have guys you know, guys you trust, guys familiar with this contest because The Ryder Cup is unique.
“My own experiences as a Vice Captain in 2008 and 2010 taught me that you need a lot of help that week. You need eyes, extra eyes to follow the players in the practice rounds to gather as much information as you can about how everyone is playing.
“Then it is important to have each match watched because you have to hand in your pairings for the afternoon matches when the players are still out on the course. That means it is essential to have all the information you can get before you put those pairings down on paper – my Vice Captains will make sure that is the case and I will name the fourth one at the August 27 Conference when I announce my two picks.
“This Ryder Cup, like so many in the past, will come down to who shows the most character under pressure. It is certain to be close but I am confident we have the players to bring the Cup back home with us, and to have Thomas, Darren and Paul already on-side in Team Europe is a massive boost.”
Björn became, in 1997, the first Danish player to compete in The Ryder Cup and he was unbeaten in the Seve Ballesteros-captained winning European Team, and he was also on the winning team in 2002. He has played six matches, winning three and halving one. Björn was Vice Captain to Bernhard Langer in 2004 at Oakland Hills and to Colin Montgomerie at the Celtic Manor Resort in 2010 and he has also captained Continental Europe in the Vivendi Seve Trophy. He has 13 European Tour wins and in all 19 worldwide.
Björn said: “I said in 2010 that if you can’t play well enough to be on the team then I am very happy to do this role. I’m delighted to be invited by José María and to be one of his Vice Captains. We know that an experienced backroom team can make a big difference, and together we will be looking to support the Captain in making good decisions and making the team feel comfortable with what they are doing.”
Northern Ireland’s Clarke, winner of The 140th Open Championship last year, also, like Björn, made his Ryder Cup debut in 1997. He played five matches in succession, finishing on the winning side four times, and won ten and halved three of his 20 matches. Clarke was Vice Captain to Colin Montgomerie in 2010. He has 14 European Tour wins and in all 21 worldwide.
Clarke said: “I am really pleased to be part of José María’s team and I know that we can instil that relaxed atmosphere in the team room and help the Captain get the best out of the players. Make no mistake this is a very strong backroom team because we have been there before and done it before. We’ll be seeking to use our experience to re-create that terrific team spirit and bonding that has made the European team room such a special place to be for so many years.”
Ireland’s McGinley famously holed the winning putt on his Ryder Cup debut in 2002 and he has an enviable 100 per cent winning record having also been on the winning team in 2004 and 2006. He won two and halved five of his nine matches. McGinley was Vice Captain in 2010 and he captained Great Britain and Ireland to victory against Continental Europe in both the 2009 and 2011 Vivendi Seve Trophy matches. McGinley has four European Tour wins and in all nine worldwide.
McGinley said: “I am thrilled to be part of Team Europe again and I would like to keep that unbeaten run going. But we all know that Ryder Cups are always very difficult. The Americans always look to start fast especially on home soil, as they did at Valhalla in 2008, and we will need to be ready for that. What is important is that we win The Ryder Cup again not just for us but also for The European Tour.”
The ten automatic qualifiers for The European Ryder Cup Team – five from the European Points List and five from the World Points List – will be confirmed on Sunday August 26. Olazábal will announce his two Captain’s Picks at a special 2012 Ryder Cup Conference at Noon on Monday, August 27, at The Gleneagles Hotel, Perthshire, Scotland.
The eight automatic qualifiers for the United States Team became known following the conclusion of the US PGA Championship last Sunday. They are Keegan Bradley, Jason Dufner, Zach Johnson, Matt Kuchar, Phil Mickelson, Webb Simpson, Bubba Watson and Tiger Woods. United States Captain Davis Love III will announce his Captain’s Picks at the NASDAQ Marketsite, New York City, on Tuesday, September 4. Love has named Fred Couples, Mike Hulbert, Jeff Sluman and Scott Verplank as his four Vice Captains
I am speculating that Olazabal is leaving the 4th vice captain pick open in case Sergio doesn't make the team..Right now his is ranked 13 on the European points list and 11 on the World points list..
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and hosting 7-9am daily at www.nextsportstar.com
Monday, August 13, 2012
Rory in a Romp !!
Yesterday I mused that Rory may have wanted to keep on playing after completing his 3rd round early in the morning, I fretted that the nap he went off to take might steal his karma..
Wrong, he came out and birdied 2 of the first 3 to settle any nerves he may have had fluttering arond his 22 year old tummy, and even when Poiulter made 5 birdies in a row to start his attack, Rory was never in any real trouble
He shot 66 and won by 8 large ones, seen that one before at a little thing called the US Open..
More to follow
Bryan Angus
Wrong, he came out and birdied 2 of the first 3 to settle any nerves he may have had fluttering arond his 22 year old tummy, and even when Poiulter made 5 birdies in a row to start his attack, Rory was never in any real trouble
He shot 66 and won by 8 large ones, seen that one before at a little thing called the US Open..
More to follow
Bryan Angus
Sunday, August 12, 2012
Who will catch Rory?? anyone ??
Play was suspended on Saturday and the players were out early this morning to finish their 3rd rounds... Here is a report from Helen Ross who is at Kiawah.
Weather forecast for Sunday currently 88*F, fair, wind N at 7mph.. Later chance of T'Storms, high 89*F wind 10 WSW...
pgatour.com The first three majors of 2012 have been won by someone coming from behind. Will Rory McIlroy be the first to hold the third-round lead and go on to take the championship this year?
We’ll find out this afternoon at the 94th PGA Championship. McIlroy is -7 and will take a three-stroke advantage into the final round on a warm, sunny day at the Ocean Course. It's the third time in the last seven majors, he will take the lead into the final round,
McIlroy tied Steve Stricker, Bo Van Pelt and Jimmy Walker for the low score in the third round with a 67. He shot 32 on the front nine Saturday before the horn sounded and play was suspended, then came back this morning and shot 1 under on the back.
McIlroy played extremely well on Sunday when the third round resumed. He hit all but one fairway on the back nine, as well as eight of nine greens. His round of 67 could have been lower, too, had it not been for missed birdie putts of 5 and 3 feet on the first two holes
“I thought it was just a continuation of how I played yesterday afternoon,” McIlroy said. “I struck the ball beautifully from tee to green, same thing on Thursday, as well. Just one more round like that, and I’ll be happy.”
He's off to bed for a nap before comming back for his 145pm tee time...They will play in threes off split tees..
Carl Pettersson, who held at least a share of the lead after the first two rounds, is McIlroy’s closest pursuer after a round of even par 72 -4 total..He’ll play with the Northern Irishman in the final group along with Van Pelt, who heads a group of three players tied at 3 under.
Also at -3 are Adam Scott 70, who is searching for redemption after bogeying his last four holes at Royal Lytham to lose the British Open, and 2008 Masters champion Trevor Immelman 70. Stricker 67, Peter Hanson 70 and overnight co-leaders Tiger Woods 74 and Vijay Singh 74 are -2
My Opinion..
Woods shot a sloppy +4 40 on his front nine then came back after the break in -2 34.. All the putts he was making on Friday, he was missing on Saturday as I suggested yesterday. The weather delay yesterday was perfect for him, he was playing so badly..
Rory on the other hand was on fire and although he was steady this morning I'll bet you he would rather just keep playing while he feels in control. How many times have you seen guys go away from the course, have a nap and then return, and somewhere in the transition the karma has gone kaput !!
The scoring conditions are perfect, soft course, little wind... someone from the pack will shoot 66, the question is will we see the US Open Rory, or the 2011 Masters Rory this afternoon...
My gut is telling me this little nap is going to be very costly...
Rd 4 tee times http://www.pga.com/pgachampionship/scoring/teetimes
Live scoring click http://www.pga.com/pgachampionship/scoring/leaderboard
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and hosting 7am-9am daily at www.nextsportstar.com
Weather forecast for Sunday currently 88*F, fair, wind N at 7mph.. Later chance of T'Storms, high 89*F wind 10 WSW...
pgatour.com The first three majors of 2012 have been won by someone coming from behind. Will Rory McIlroy be the first to hold the third-round lead and go on to take the championship this year?
We’ll find out this afternoon at the 94th PGA Championship. McIlroy is -7 and will take a three-stroke advantage into the final round on a warm, sunny day at the Ocean Course. It's the third time in the last seven majors, he will take the lead into the final round,
McIlroy tied Steve Stricker, Bo Van Pelt and Jimmy Walker for the low score in the third round with a 67. He shot 32 on the front nine Saturday before the horn sounded and play was suspended, then came back this morning and shot 1 under on the back.
McIlroy played extremely well on Sunday when the third round resumed. He hit all but one fairway on the back nine, as well as eight of nine greens. His round of 67 could have been lower, too, had it not been for missed birdie putts of 5 and 3 feet on the first two holes
“I thought it was just a continuation of how I played yesterday afternoon,” McIlroy said. “I struck the ball beautifully from tee to green, same thing on Thursday, as well. Just one more round like that, and I’ll be happy.”
He's off to bed for a nap before comming back for his 145pm tee time...They will play in threes off split tees..
Carl Pettersson, who held at least a share of the lead after the first two rounds, is McIlroy’s closest pursuer after a round of even par 72 -4 total..He’ll play with the Northern Irishman in the final group along with Van Pelt, who heads a group of three players tied at 3 under.
Also at -3 are Adam Scott 70, who is searching for redemption after bogeying his last four holes at Royal Lytham to lose the British Open, and 2008 Masters champion Trevor Immelman 70. Stricker 67, Peter Hanson 70 and overnight co-leaders Tiger Woods 74 and Vijay Singh 74 are -2
My Opinion..
Woods shot a sloppy +4 40 on his front nine then came back after the break in -2 34.. All the putts he was making on Friday, he was missing on Saturday as I suggested yesterday. The weather delay yesterday was perfect for him, he was playing so badly..
Rory on the other hand was on fire and although he was steady this morning I'll bet you he would rather just keep playing while he feels in control. How many times have you seen guys go away from the course, have a nap and then return, and somewhere in the transition the karma has gone kaput !!
The scoring conditions are perfect, soft course, little wind... someone from the pack will shoot 66, the question is will we see the US Open Rory, or the 2011 Masters Rory this afternoon...
My gut is telling me this little nap is going to be very costly...
Rd 4 tee times http://www.pga.com/pgachampionship/scoring/teetimes
Live scoring click http://www.pga.com/pgachampionship/scoring/leaderboard
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and hosting 7am-9am daily at www.nextsportstar.com
Saturday, August 11, 2012
Now we're talking ! Wind brings out the best at Kiawah Island
Talk about a 360 degree turnaround. As benign as conditions on the Ocean Course were on Thursday, they were windy on Friday
8 players shot 80 or worse on Thursday, Friday there were 41. Only 4 players broke par and while star players like Sergio, Rickie and Hunter are done there are plenty of the biggest names right in contention. led by Tiger Woods..
The average score was 6 shots over par, 78.1
Joost Luiten didn't finish Friday, and will play the 18th hole at 7:30 a.m. Saturday. The third round will begin at 8:00 a.m. The cut will be at 6 over par
It was a joy to watch, and I was reminded what an American manufactured version of a true links this track is. It is so lush and green, watered and spoiled rotten compared to the originals like St Andrews, Troon, Turnberry etc..
In a relentless wind that began at sunrise, par never looked better in this championship. There were more rounds in the 90s two of them by club pros than in the 60s. More than 40 players failed to break 80, including Rickie Fowler, Matt Kuchar and Hunter Mahan.
The greens are elevated, so the ball has to be played in the air. And the wind, gusting to 30 mph, came out of the southeast to create a crosswind on virtually every hole. Even holes with the wind at the back made it tough to play because the shots didn't stay on the green
It was the toughest scoring day in the PGA Championship since it switched to stroke play in 1958, Tiger Woods shot a 1-under 71 on Friday to take a share of the lead with Vijay Singh and Carl Pettersson (74) going into the weekend all at -4.
"It was tough out there wow," Woods said. Along with birdie putts of 15 feet and 40 feet on the opening two holes, there was a collection of big par saves, from 20 feet on the third hole, a pair of 8-foot par putts a few holes later. There were even two short par putts that swirled 360 degrees around the cup and dropped. He may not be that fortunate today.
It's the second time this year that he has had a share of the lead in a major going into the weekend. He missed one chance at Olympic Club in the U.S. Open, when he stumbled to a 75-73 to tie for 21st. He was in the penultimate group at the Open Championship until a triple bogey on the sixth hole of the final round took him out of the mix.
Singh, a three-time major champion who hasn't won in nearly four years, scratched out five birdies in a remarkable round of 3-under 69. Only three other players managed to break par in the second round Michael Hoey of Northern Ireland at 70, and Woods, Phil Mickelson and Ian Poulter at 71.
Hoey was later disqualified, after he was to go into the weekend of the final major eight shots out of the lead. But only after he signed for a 2-under 70 did he realize he failed to re-create his lie on the ninth hole after removing his ball from an embedded lie to make sure it was his.
Hoey wiped away sand on the ninth hole. His mistake was not replacing the sand on his ball. He was disqualified for not including the two-shot penalty, and thus signing an incorrect scorecard. Hoey is the one who brought the oversight to the attention of rules officials.
With the wind blowing across most of the holes, and with the help of the TV shot tracker, watching these guys start a shot 40 yards off line and letting it fly with the wind and curve back onto the fairway or green, or the opposite watching them hook it against the wind, trying to "hold it up" is fun viewing, and playing when they pull it off !!
Rory is at -2 after 75, Adam Scott -1 75, Mickelson E, 71, GMac E 76, Bradley and Daly +1 77, Ernie is at +3 and Luke at +6..
live scoring click here http://www.pga.com/pgachampionship/scoring/leaderboard
round 3 tee times TBA
Weather for Saturday
Wind at 12mph SSW, 89*F, scattered thunderstorms
Special Note.. Congratulations to MacKenzie Hughes
Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., carded a final round even-par 72 to capture the 108th playing of the Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship at Camelot Golf and Country Club in Cumberland, Ont.
Hughes, a member of Team Canada’s National Squad, finished at 12-under par 276 for the championship, besting Brian Churchill-Smith of Oakville, Ont. and Chris Hemmerich of Kitchener, Ont. by one stroke. Churchill-Smith and Hemmerich both posted a four-day tally of 11-under par 277 to finish T2
With the victory, Hughes became the first competitor to capture back-to-back Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship titles since Cam Burke of Kitchener, Ont. accomplished the feat in 2008 and 2009
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and hosting daily 7-9am at www.nextsportstar.com
(notes from pgatour.com were used in this blog)
8 players shot 80 or worse on Thursday, Friday there were 41. Only 4 players broke par and while star players like Sergio, Rickie and Hunter are done there are plenty of the biggest names right in contention. led by Tiger Woods..
The average score was 6 shots over par, 78.1
Joost Luiten didn't finish Friday, and will play the 18th hole at 7:30 a.m. Saturday. The third round will begin at 8:00 a.m. The cut will be at 6 over par
It was a joy to watch, and I was reminded what an American manufactured version of a true links this track is. It is so lush and green, watered and spoiled rotten compared to the originals like St Andrews, Troon, Turnberry etc..
In a relentless wind that began at sunrise, par never looked better in this championship. There were more rounds in the 90s two of them by club pros than in the 60s. More than 40 players failed to break 80, including Rickie Fowler, Matt Kuchar and Hunter Mahan.
The greens are elevated, so the ball has to be played in the air. And the wind, gusting to 30 mph, came out of the southeast to create a crosswind on virtually every hole. Even holes with the wind at the back made it tough to play because the shots didn't stay on the green
It was the toughest scoring day in the PGA Championship since it switched to stroke play in 1958, Tiger Woods shot a 1-under 71 on Friday to take a share of the lead with Vijay Singh and Carl Pettersson (74) going into the weekend all at -4.
"It was tough out there wow," Woods said. Along with birdie putts of 15 feet and 40 feet on the opening two holes, there was a collection of big par saves, from 20 feet on the third hole, a pair of 8-foot par putts a few holes later. There were even two short par putts that swirled 360 degrees around the cup and dropped. He may not be that fortunate today.
It's the second time this year that he has had a share of the lead in a major going into the weekend. He missed one chance at Olympic Club in the U.S. Open, when he stumbled to a 75-73 to tie for 21st. He was in the penultimate group at the Open Championship until a triple bogey on the sixth hole of the final round took him out of the mix.
Singh, a three-time major champion who hasn't won in nearly four years, scratched out five birdies in a remarkable round of 3-under 69. Only three other players managed to break par in the second round Michael Hoey of Northern Ireland at 70, and Woods, Phil Mickelson and Ian Poulter at 71.
Hoey was later disqualified, after he was to go into the weekend of the final major eight shots out of the lead. But only after he signed for a 2-under 70 did he realize he failed to re-create his lie on the ninth hole after removing his ball from an embedded lie to make sure it was his.
Hoey wiped away sand on the ninth hole. His mistake was not replacing the sand on his ball. He was disqualified for not including the two-shot penalty, and thus signing an incorrect scorecard. Hoey is the one who brought the oversight to the attention of rules officials.
With the wind blowing across most of the holes, and with the help of the TV shot tracker, watching these guys start a shot 40 yards off line and letting it fly with the wind and curve back onto the fairway or green, or the opposite watching them hook it against the wind, trying to "hold it up" is fun viewing, and playing when they pull it off !!
Rory is at -2 after 75, Adam Scott -1 75, Mickelson E, 71, GMac E 76, Bradley and Daly +1 77, Ernie is at +3 and Luke at +6..
live scoring click here http://www.pga.com/pgachampionship/scoring/leaderboard
round 3 tee times TBA
Weather for Saturday
Wind at 12mph SSW, 89*F, scattered thunderstorms
Special Note.. Congratulations to MacKenzie Hughes
Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., carded a final round even-par 72 to capture the 108th playing of the Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship at Camelot Golf and Country Club in Cumberland, Ont.
Hughes, a member of Team Canada’s National Squad, finished at 12-under par 276 for the championship, besting Brian Churchill-Smith of Oakville, Ont. and Chris Hemmerich of Kitchener, Ont. by one stroke. Churchill-Smith and Hemmerich both posted a four-day tally of 11-under par 277 to finish T2
With the victory, Hughes became the first competitor to capture back-to-back Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship titles since Cam Burke of Kitchener, Ont. accomplished the feat in 2008 and 2009
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and hosting daily 7-9am at www.nextsportstar.com
(notes from pgatour.com were used in this blog)
Thursday, August 9, 2012
Benign conditions leave Kiawah defenceless.. Pettersson takes early lead
pgatour.com Conditions couldn’t have been more perfect if you’d ordered them off a menu.
The rain that softened and lengthened the course on the practice days blew out and the wind died down in the opening round, leaving a course that has been labeled the toughest in America and “too hard for stroke-play competitions” vulnerable to a boatload of under-par scores.
Only Royal Lytham & St. Annes yielded lower first-round numbers in this year’s majors.
Carl Pettersson who lives just up the road in NC, a winner earlier this year at Hilton Head, got the best of the weather on a steamy day on the Ocean Course and didn't waste the opportunity. He made three birdies in four holes, never dropped a shot and wound up with a 6-under 66 for a one-shot lead.
McIlroy, Gary Woodland, Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano of Spain and Alex Noren of Sweden each had 67.
It was a good day for Tiger Woods, nothing more. Despite having to get up-and-down for bogey on three holes, he made enough birdie putts for a 69, a reasonable start as he tries to end the longest drought of his career in the majors. This is his 14th major since he won his last one in 2008, and the last one of an otherwise good season.
He had plenty of company, some players who had not been heard from in a while, others that were all too familiar. Woodland, who started the season with a new coach (Butch Harmon) and injured himself working too hard on the changes, is feeling better and hitting it longer than ever.
John Daly made an eagle on the par-5 11th hole and was in the group at 68 that included former U.S. Open champion Geoff Ogilvy and defending PGA champion Keegan Bradley, who had a birdie-eagle start before he settled into his round.
The group with Woods at 69 included Ben Curtis, Ryo Ishikawa of Japan and Pat Perez, playing his first major this year. Phil Mickelson, holding down the eighth and final spot in the Ryder Cup standings, was all over Kiawah Island and did a remarkable job scrambling to salvage a 71.
The flags started to ripple in the afternoon, though not enough to make Kiawah as frightening as it can be. With so much rain over the last week, including storms that limited practice time before the championship began, the greens were soft and fairways slow.
“Geez, I’m playing with Keegan (Bradley) and he’s 3 under through two,” said Tiger Woods, who finished the day 3 under 69. T14. “You look up on the board and some guys are 4 under through six; a bunch of guys 3 under through five; a couple of them 3 under through three. It’s one of those days where everybody is going to shoot 6, 7, 8 under par.”
Bradley, who as I said finished 4 under 68 T6, was equally thrilled with the conditions, the calmest anyone can remember in an area where the wind can blow upwards of 30 miles an hour. “It’s relatively soft because of the rain,” the defending champion said. “But it’s very playable. If you hit the ball in the fairway, you can make a lot of birdies … The weather cooperated for us in the morning, so we couldn’t ask for much more than that.”
The wind picked up slightly in the afternoon and changed directions from what players experienced in the practice rounds, but everyone agreed that Thursday was the day to post a number. When conditions are perfect, they have nowhere to go but down. “I’m expecting this to be the best day of the week; I think everyone is,” said Rory McIlroy, who got out at 8:10 and finished before the first breath of wind whistled in from Charleston. “We know that there’s going to be a bit of wind coming in and maybe a bit of bad weather. It’s just something that you’re going to have to deal with. I’m just happy that I got off to a great start.” ( T2 -5 67)
On a day of poetic justice when our Canadian women, so badly jobbed vs the USA, won their coveted bronze medal today at the last gasp when they beat France 1-0, wouldn't it be something this week if Adam Scott were to end up the winner.. He is in the pack at -4 68, in fact you have to go all the way down the leaderboard to T32 to get to even par..
The weather forecast has changed according to TNT, who say the wind will be at 20 -30mph Friday and Saturday although the official Weather Network forecast is still no higher then 15mph SSW and damn near benign on Sunday..
round 2 tee times http://www.pga.com/pgachampionship/scoring/teetimes
for leaderboard click here http://www.pga.com/pgachampionship/scoring/leaderboard
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and hosting daily at www.nextsportstar.com
The rain that softened and lengthened the course on the practice days blew out and the wind died down in the opening round, leaving a course that has been labeled the toughest in America and “too hard for stroke-play competitions” vulnerable to a boatload of under-par scores.
Only Royal Lytham & St. Annes yielded lower first-round numbers in this year’s majors.
Carl Pettersson who lives just up the road in NC, a winner earlier this year at Hilton Head, got the best of the weather on a steamy day on the Ocean Course and didn't waste the opportunity. He made three birdies in four holes, never dropped a shot and wound up with a 6-under 66 for a one-shot lead.
McIlroy, Gary Woodland, Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano of Spain and Alex Noren of Sweden each had 67.
It was a good day for Tiger Woods, nothing more. Despite having to get up-and-down for bogey on three holes, he made enough birdie putts for a 69, a reasonable start as he tries to end the longest drought of his career in the majors. This is his 14th major since he won his last one in 2008, and the last one of an otherwise good season.
He had plenty of company, some players who had not been heard from in a while, others that were all too familiar. Woodland, who started the season with a new coach (Butch Harmon) and injured himself working too hard on the changes, is feeling better and hitting it longer than ever.
John Daly made an eagle on the par-5 11th hole and was in the group at 68 that included former U.S. Open champion Geoff Ogilvy and defending PGA champion Keegan Bradley, who had a birdie-eagle start before he settled into his round.
The group with Woods at 69 included Ben Curtis, Ryo Ishikawa of Japan and Pat Perez, playing his first major this year. Phil Mickelson, holding down the eighth and final spot in the Ryder Cup standings, was all over Kiawah Island and did a remarkable job scrambling to salvage a 71.
The flags started to ripple in the afternoon, though not enough to make Kiawah as frightening as it can be. With so much rain over the last week, including storms that limited practice time before the championship began, the greens were soft and fairways slow.
“Geez, I’m playing with Keegan (Bradley) and he’s 3 under through two,” said Tiger Woods, who finished the day 3 under 69. T14. “You look up on the board and some guys are 4 under through six; a bunch of guys 3 under through five; a couple of them 3 under through three. It’s one of those days where everybody is going to shoot 6, 7, 8 under par.”
Bradley, who as I said finished 4 under 68 T6, was equally thrilled with the conditions, the calmest anyone can remember in an area where the wind can blow upwards of 30 miles an hour. “It’s relatively soft because of the rain,” the defending champion said. “But it’s very playable. If you hit the ball in the fairway, you can make a lot of birdies … The weather cooperated for us in the morning, so we couldn’t ask for much more than that.”
The wind picked up slightly in the afternoon and changed directions from what players experienced in the practice rounds, but everyone agreed that Thursday was the day to post a number. When conditions are perfect, they have nowhere to go but down. “I’m expecting this to be the best day of the week; I think everyone is,” said Rory McIlroy, who got out at 8:10 and finished before the first breath of wind whistled in from Charleston. “We know that there’s going to be a bit of wind coming in and maybe a bit of bad weather. It’s just something that you’re going to have to deal with. I’m just happy that I got off to a great start.” ( T2 -5 67)
On a day of poetic justice when our Canadian women, so badly jobbed vs the USA, won their coveted bronze medal today at the last gasp when they beat France 1-0, wouldn't it be something this week if Adam Scott were to end up the winner.. He is in the pack at -4 68, in fact you have to go all the way down the leaderboard to T32 to get to even par..
The weather forecast has changed according to TNT, who say the wind will be at 20 -30mph Friday and Saturday although the official Weather Network forecast is still no higher then 15mph SSW and damn near benign on Sunday..
round 2 tee times http://www.pga.com/pgachampionship/scoring/teetimes
for leaderboard click here http://www.pga.com/pgachampionship/scoring/leaderboard
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and hosting daily at www.nextsportstar.com
Mixed bag of weather in store for Kiawah Island, but no howling wind as round 1 is set to go
It will be hot and humid, high 80's F, breezy at times mainly from the SW, lots of thunderstorms and lightning moving through, especially Sunday, but there are none of the 35-55mph winds in the forecast that would really make this very expensive little strip of land right on the Atlantic ocean in South Carolina an almost impossible test..
The fairways and greens are in perfect condition as play gets set to begin at 730am this morning, they are far from being baked out and rock hard the way many of the true British links courses can get.
tee times click here http://www.pga.com/pgachampionship/scoring/teetimes
live scoreboard click here http://www.pga.com/pgachampionship/scoring/leaderboard
Remember when Ben Curtis won at Royal St George's in 2003 and Tiger at Royal Liverpool in 2006 they had the firetrucks on standby in case the course went up in flames it was so dry.
Veteran golf writer Ken Fidlin hit the nail on the head earlier this week reminding us that even if the wind doesn't blow hard the PGA can utilize the wide array of tee block options Pete Dye built into his design, and at almost 7700 yards stretched out they can make this Ocean course into what Tiger called "a very big ballpark"
Throw in some devilish pin placements, and players coming to terms with the Paspalum greens I wrote about yesterday, and I don't think you will see a lot of 62's and 63's this week, however if it was howling I could guarantee you wouldn't !!
Will we see another late collapse again this week?? There has been more of that than ever this year it seems to me..Tiger says part of it is parity.. "Now there are 70 guys every weekend within 10 shots of the lead, instead of 14 and 15 a few years ago"
Just last week Jim Furyk’s final-hole double bogey at the Bridgestone Invitational gift wrapped the win for Keegan Bradley, Adam Scott on the final 4 holes at the Open Championship, Tiger Woods and Furyk on the weekend at the U.S. Open, Kevin Na’s final-round 76 at the Players Championship, Ernie Els’at the Transitions, Jason Dufner’s triple bogey at Colonial,and his blown 3 shot lead at last year's PGA, and Kyle Stanley’s 7 shot giveaway at Torrey Pines early this year.
It all seemed to start when Rory McIlroy lost badly in the 2011 Masters after holding the lead through 63 holes.
Ernie Els who in his long career addressed it at his presser yesterday..."A lot of times I’ve had the lead from day one or going into Sunday. Some of them have been one-shot leads, and some of them have been four-, five-, six-, even up to eight-shot leads. It’s those big leads that are more nerve-wracking. With a one-shot lead, on paper it’s a lead, but it’s really not a lead because after one hole, one guy can birdie you lose your lead. But when it’s a five- or six-shot lead, you feel the pressure because if you lose now, you’ve given it up.
Picking a winner is always a futile exercise, there will be a lot of factors that I have talked about in play, mixed weather, greens, pin placements, tee selections, delays in play and lady luck..
For what it's worth the bookies are offering 8-1 on Tiger as the favourite...
Should make for another exciting week at Kiawah Island..
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and hosting 7am-9 daily at www.nextsportstar.com
The fairways and greens are in perfect condition as play gets set to begin at 730am this morning, they are far from being baked out and rock hard the way many of the true British links courses can get.
tee times click here http://www.pga.com/pgachampionship/scoring/teetimes
live scoreboard click here http://www.pga.com/pgachampionship/scoring/leaderboard
Remember when Ben Curtis won at Royal St George's in 2003 and Tiger at Royal Liverpool in 2006 they had the firetrucks on standby in case the course went up in flames it was so dry.
Veteran golf writer Ken Fidlin hit the nail on the head earlier this week reminding us that even if the wind doesn't blow hard the PGA can utilize the wide array of tee block options Pete Dye built into his design, and at almost 7700 yards stretched out they can make this Ocean course into what Tiger called "a very big ballpark"
Throw in some devilish pin placements, and players coming to terms with the Paspalum greens I wrote about yesterday, and I don't think you will see a lot of 62's and 63's this week, however if it was howling I could guarantee you wouldn't !!
Will we see another late collapse again this week?? There has been more of that than ever this year it seems to me..Tiger says part of it is parity.. "Now there are 70 guys every weekend within 10 shots of the lead, instead of 14 and 15 a few years ago"
Just last week Jim Furyk’s final-hole double bogey at the Bridgestone Invitational gift wrapped the win for Keegan Bradley, Adam Scott on the final 4 holes at the Open Championship, Tiger Woods and Furyk on the weekend at the U.S. Open, Kevin Na’s final-round 76 at the Players Championship, Ernie Els’at the Transitions, Jason Dufner’s triple bogey at Colonial,and his blown 3 shot lead at last year's PGA, and Kyle Stanley’s 7 shot giveaway at Torrey Pines early this year.
It all seemed to start when Rory McIlroy lost badly in the 2011 Masters after holding the lead through 63 holes.
Ernie Els who in his long career addressed it at his presser yesterday..."A lot of times I’ve had the lead from day one or going into Sunday. Some of them have been one-shot leads, and some of them have been four-, five-, six-, even up to eight-shot leads. It’s those big leads that are more nerve-wracking. With a one-shot lead, on paper it’s a lead, but it’s really not a lead because after one hole, one guy can birdie you lose your lead. But when it’s a five- or six-shot lead, you feel the pressure because if you lose now, you’ve given it up.
Picking a winner is always a futile exercise, there will be a lot of factors that I have talked about in play, mixed weather, greens, pin placements, tee selections, delays in play and lady luck..
For what it's worth the bookies are offering 8-1 on Tiger as the favourite...
Should make for another exciting week at Kiawah Island..
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and hosting 7am-9 daily at www.nextsportstar.com
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Paspalum greens at Kiawah Island's Ocean Course could be a key factor for McIlroy, Donald, Bradley or Johnson.
live scoring click here http://www.pga.com/pgachampionship/scoring/leaderboard
When I was doing some research about this year's 94th PGA Championship on the links style Ocean course at Kiawah Island I looked at the field and the weather for keys, and I also looked into the Paspalum turf that Pete Dye has installed in the greens after I read an article where Rory McIlroy said this..
When I was doing some research about this year's 94th PGA Championship on the links style Ocean course at Kiawah Island I looked at the field and the weather for keys, and I also looked into the Paspalum turf that Pete Dye has installed in the greens after I read an article where Rory McIlroy said this..
"I like what I see. I think the course is in phenomenal shape, and I love the greens. I love the paspalum; I think the ball rolls really, really well, so I'm looking forward to the week. The Bear's Club (Jupiter, Florida) actually have paspalum and we practice on paspalum all the time - me, Luke [Donald], Keegan [Bradley] and Dustin [Johnson]. It's something we are quite used to and something I was talking to Luke about yesterday, something that the guys that are members of the Bear's Club might have an advantage because we are used to how it reacts and we practice on that stuff on our off weeks, so it's actually quite nice
Stew Bennett is a golf course superintendent and founder of Saltscape Solutions...He is a leading authority on seashore paspalum turfgrass..
You might find this article on it's origins interesting..
The Origins of
Salt Tolerant Seashore Paspalum Turfgrass
Salt Tolerant Seashore Paspalum Turfgrass
Although Seashore Paspalum (Paspalum vaginatum)
is the newest "buzz" word in the turf industry today, Paspalum has been around
for many years. The cultivar Adalayd was discovered by Hugh Whiting in the early
1970's and patented soon after. This is the cultivar that was planted at Alden
Pines Country Club in 1980. From this cultivar, many ecotypes of Paspalum were
propagated with influence through maintenance practices. As new ecotypes where
bred and evolved through sexual reproduction, Alden Pines became a 55 acre,
outdoor breeding lab for Paspalum, while at the same time getting 40,000 rounds
of golf per year.
Alden Pines is located on an island off the west coast of
Florida, just North of Naples. I became a co-owner and the Superintendent of
Alden Pines County Club in 1993 after graduating from Lake City Community
College. Alden Pines was planted in Seashore Paspalum because after construction
of the golf course, no supply of fresh water could be found. The cost of an R.O.
plant was way beyond budget and the best water quality available was brackish at
about 5,000 PPM, which is still being used today in conjunction with other
sources of "salty water".
That first summer I was at Alden Pines, a tropical storm swept
north through the Gulf of Mexico and left my front nine fairways flooded with
seawater. I was fearful, to say the least, of what may happen to my golf course
during the next few days. Knowing very little about Seashore Paspalum, I was
amazed at what actually did happen. Within two days after the salt water
receded, any weed species that were present were showing severe signs of decline
from the effects of the salt water. But the Paspalum seemed to green-up and
actually show signs of vigor.
On that day in June of 1993, I had the realization that I was
dealing with a very unique turfgrass. I have put Paspalum through many different
uses and environmental scenarios since then. From fresh water (less than 500
PPM) to brine water (45,000 PPM) and everything in between. Summer temperatures
near 100 degrees F. with a humidity of 95% and no rainfall at all for several
months, to winter weather with five consecutive mornings of frost, 30 degrees F.
air temperatures and 42 degrees F., soil temperatures. In the summer of 1995 we
had monsoon rains totaling 14 inches in one week that left the Paspalum under
one foot of water for 5 days. Yet after all of these adverse weather and
environmental conditions, the Paspalum still held up strong. Seashore Paspalum
has taught me a lot in the last 12 years and I'm a firm believer that there are
many uses for this turfgrass.
The greatest thing about having the opportunity to work with all
of the Paspalums at Alden Pines is that I am able to evaluate the turf under
actual golf course use conditions. I have learned from many mistakes that I have
made. I know most of the pros and cons of Paspalum, and have had the opportunity
to devise and test many different maintenance programs that Paspalum may need
for all of its potential different applications.
The turf industry has gotten several of its best paspalums from
this 25 year old golf course. SeaWay®, SeaGreen®, SeaDwarf and Sea Isle 2000 all
originated from Alden Pines Country Club. There are many others in the industry
who have worked very hard to develop and promote Seashore paspalum and they have
done an excellent job!
So how does this turf affect putting ??
Very firm and resilient surface. There will be a bit of bounce or hop when the ball lands even when the greens are soft enough to accept a ball mark from an iron shot.
It's not as grainy IMO as even the modern hybrid Bermuda grasses but definitely more so than a good fescue or bentgrass putting surface. And at least at Kiawah the grain really comes out late in the day, there is a distinct difference in the speed and line of the same putt played at 10am versus 4pm.
As a putting surface, I'd say it is grainy enough to matter but not enough to keep you from making a lot of putts. That said, as you move off the green to the little slopes and falloffs it can get real grainy depending on where the water runs off. You definitely have to "read" the green surrounds and closely-mown areas whether playing bump-and-run shots or putting from off the green. It does not seem to be real grabby in terms of making clean chipping stokes but definitely faster in certain directions and others...
It's not as grainy IMO as even the modern hybrid Bermuda grasses but definitely more so than a good fescue or bentgrass putting surface. And at least at Kiawah the grain really comes out late in the day, there is a distinct difference in the speed and line of the same putt played at 10am versus 4pm.
As a putting surface, I'd say it is grainy enough to matter but not enough to keep you from making a lot of putts. That said, as you move off the green to the little slopes and falloffs it can get real grainy depending on where the water runs off. You definitely have to "read" the green surrounds and closely-mown areas whether playing bump-and-run shots or putting from off the green. It does not seem to be real grabby in terms of making clean chipping stokes but definitely faster in certain directions and others...
Just thought you might like to take this info into your considerations for this week's office pool !!
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www,isr1050.com and hosting daily 7-9am at www.nextsportstar.com
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
Kiawah Island will test PGA Championship field..
round 1 tee times...http://www.pgatour.com/2012/r/08/03/tee-times-pga-championship/index.html#
Kiawah Island is the reason I am looking forward to this week's final major..
A very expensive Pete Dye links hard by the Atlantic in South Carolina usually has wind and rain. It's long, fraught with peril, a real test for the world's best.
There are TStorms, rain and lightning in the forecast but winds only 13mph SSW and 88*F for the high, so breezy shall we say, but not howling... should play long...
It never fails to amaze me, but pgatour.com's experts make weekly picks and guess what 6 of the 10 either pick or say they would pick Tiger and the other 4 say Jason Dufner...Louis Oosthuizen gets honourable mention and one brave soul mentions Rory...
Sometimes I think Tiger could show up in a wheelchair and someone in the American media would still give him an outside chance...
Full coverage, all tours this week to follow ..
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and hosting daily 7-9am at www.nextsportstar.com
Kiawah Island is the reason I am looking forward to this week's final major..
A very expensive Pete Dye links hard by the Atlantic in South Carolina usually has wind and rain. It's long, fraught with peril, a real test for the world's best.
There are TStorms, rain and lightning in the forecast but winds only 13mph SSW and 88*F for the high, so breezy shall we say, but not howling... should play long...
It never fails to amaze me, but pgatour.com's experts make weekly picks and guess what 6 of the 10 either pick or say they would pick Tiger and the other 4 say Jason Dufner...Louis Oosthuizen gets honourable mention and one brave soul mentions Rory...
Sometimes I think Tiger could show up in a wheelchair and someone in the American media would still give him an outside chance...
Full coverage, all tours this week to follow ..
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and hosting daily 7-9am at www.nextsportstar.com
Monday, August 6, 2012
Canadian Men's Amateur all set
The field is set for Tuesday's Canadian Men Amateur Golf Championship.... here is a report from Golf Canada
FIELD SET FOR 108TH CANADIAN MEN’S AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP
Camelot Golf and Country Club and Club de golf Outaouais to challenge 240 competitors vying for Canada’s national men’s amateur title
Cumberland, Ont. (Golf Canada) – Top male amateur golfers from Canada, Korea, Australia, Colombia, New Zealand, Peru, Indonesia and the United States will vie for national supremacy at the 108th Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship.
The championship will be contested August 7-10 at both Camelot Golf and Country Club in Cumberland, Ont. and Club de golf Outaouais in Rockland, Ont.
“We are ecstatic to be able to bring Canada’s most prestigious amateur golf championship to Camelot Golf and Country Club and Club de golf Outaouais,” said Brent McLaughlin, Golf Canada’s Director of Rules, Competitions & Amateur Status. “These golf courses feature true championship layouts and with an outstanding field of Canadian and international competitors, we are in for a tremendous showcase at the 108th Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship.”
The winner of Canada’s oldest national golf championship will earn exemptions into both the 2013 RBC Canadian Open at the historic Glen Abbey Golf Club as well as the 2012 U.S. Amateur Championship at Cherry Hills Country Club in Cherry Hills Village, Colo. Additionally, the winner is eligible to receive exemptions into the U.S. Amateur Public Links, U.S. Junior Amateur, U.S. Mid-Amateur & USGA Senior Amateur Championship, if applicable.
The 240-player field is led by defending champion and Team Canada National Squad member Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., who posted a four-day tally of 10-under par 274 at Niakwa Country Club and Elmhurst Golf and Country Club in Winnipeg, Man. to claim the 2011 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship title.
A recent graduate of Kent State University, Hughes capped his collegiate golf career with the Golden Flashes by helping the squad to a T5 finish at this year’s NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championship. Hughes was also named as one of Kent State’s top male senior student-athletes for 2011-12 after producing five top 10s and three top-5 finishes in 14 events played. The 21-year-old made his PGA TOUR debut at the 2012 RBC Canadian Open at Hamilton Golf and Country Club, and earned runner-up honors at the 2012 Ontario Men’s Amateur Championship. He is ranked 84th in the World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR).
Also representing Team Canada’s National Squad is 2012 Ontario Men’s Amateur Champion Albin Choi of Toronto, 2012 Canadian University/College Championship titleholder Garrett Rank of Elmira, Ont., University of Washington standout Charlie Hughes of Maple Ridge, B.C., and two-time Canadian Junior Boys Championship winner Mitch Sutton of London, Ont.
Choi, who captured the 2010 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship, recently earned low amateur honors at the 2012 RBC Canadian Open at Hamilton Golf and Country Club. A junior at North Carolina State University, Choi earned his third and fourth career individual collegiate victories this past season, securing a win at the Bridgestone Golf Collegiate and earning medalist honors at an NCAA Regional Championship event. At the 2011 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship, Choi placed second, two shots back of Hughes. He is ranked No. 29 in the WAGR, tops amongst Canadians.
Team Canada’s Development Squad will also have a strong presence in the Ottawa Region, including 2012 Canadian Junior Boys champion Adam Svensson of Surrey, B.C., 2012 B.C. Amateur and 2012 Alberta Amateur champion Riley Fleming of Airdrie, Alta., 2011 Canadian Junior Boys and Canadian Juvenile Boys champion Kevin Kwon of Pitt Meadows, B.C., and Blair Hamilton of Burlington, Ont.
Also in the field is three-time Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur champion, Dave Bunker of Woodbridge, Ont., and several former Team Canada members, including Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., Raoul Ménard of Ange-Gardien, Que., Graham Baillargeon of Mississauga, Ont., and Brandon Ng of Toronto.
This year’s championship will also feature over 30 international players vying for the historic Earl Grey Trophy, including James White of Acworth, Ga., who was a co-winner of the 2012 Byron Nelson Award as a top senior player in collegiate golf in the United States. White, a product of Georgia Tech, is currently ranked No. 73 in the WAGR, and competed internationally for the United States in the 2012 Palmer Cup.
The final sixteen spots in the field were determined at the Canadian Men’s Amateur Qualifier on Saturday at Camelot Golf and Country Club. Jean-Philip Cornellier of Laval, Que. earned medalist honors after posting a score of 5-under par 67.
Several local players will also compete in the 2012 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship, including Alan McGee of Kanata, Ont., Robert Mustard, Russ Passmore and Max Rochette of Ottawa, Dwight Reinhart of Renfrew, Ont., Martin Carré of Gatineau, Que., and Gaston Peyer of Rockland, Ont.
An Inter-Provincial Team Championship for the Willingdon Cup will take place in conjunction with the first two rounds, with three-member teams competing towards an overall team total.
The Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship is open to male amateur golfers who are members of a club belonging to Golf Canada, or clubs in other countries which are in good standing with their respective golf association.
After the first two rounds, the field will be reduced to the low 70 players and ties for the remaining two rounds finishing Friday, August 10 at Camelot Golf and Country Club
live scoring, tee times click here http://www.golfcanada.ca/amateur-competition/amateur-championships/golf-canada-mens-amateur-champi/article23321.ece
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and hosting at www.nextsportstar.com 7-9 M-F..
FIELD SET FOR 108TH CANADIAN MEN’S AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP
Camelot Golf and Country Club and Club de golf Outaouais to challenge 240 competitors vying for Canada’s national men’s amateur title
Cumberland, Ont. (Golf Canada) – Top male amateur golfers from Canada, Korea, Australia, Colombia, New Zealand, Peru, Indonesia and the United States will vie for national supremacy at the 108th Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship.
The championship will be contested August 7-10 at both Camelot Golf and Country Club in Cumberland, Ont. and Club de golf Outaouais in Rockland, Ont.
“We are ecstatic to be able to bring Canada’s most prestigious amateur golf championship to Camelot Golf and Country Club and Club de golf Outaouais,” said Brent McLaughlin, Golf Canada’s Director of Rules, Competitions & Amateur Status. “These golf courses feature true championship layouts and with an outstanding field of Canadian and international competitors, we are in for a tremendous showcase at the 108th Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship.”
The winner of Canada’s oldest national golf championship will earn exemptions into both the 2013 RBC Canadian Open at the historic Glen Abbey Golf Club as well as the 2012 U.S. Amateur Championship at Cherry Hills Country Club in Cherry Hills Village, Colo. Additionally, the winner is eligible to receive exemptions into the U.S. Amateur Public Links, U.S. Junior Amateur, U.S. Mid-Amateur & USGA Senior Amateur Championship, if applicable.
The 240-player field is led by defending champion and Team Canada National Squad member Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., who posted a four-day tally of 10-under par 274 at Niakwa Country Club and Elmhurst Golf and Country Club in Winnipeg, Man. to claim the 2011 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship title.
A recent graduate of Kent State University, Hughes capped his collegiate golf career with the Golden Flashes by helping the squad to a T5 finish at this year’s NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championship. Hughes was also named as one of Kent State’s top male senior student-athletes for 2011-12 after producing five top 10s and three top-5 finishes in 14 events played. The 21-year-old made his PGA TOUR debut at the 2012 RBC Canadian Open at Hamilton Golf and Country Club, and earned runner-up honors at the 2012 Ontario Men’s Amateur Championship. He is ranked 84th in the World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR).
Also representing Team Canada’s National Squad is 2012 Ontario Men’s Amateur Champion Albin Choi of Toronto, 2012 Canadian University/College Championship titleholder Garrett Rank of Elmira, Ont., University of Washington standout Charlie Hughes of Maple Ridge, B.C., and two-time Canadian Junior Boys Championship winner Mitch Sutton of London, Ont.
Choi, who captured the 2010 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship, recently earned low amateur honors at the 2012 RBC Canadian Open at Hamilton Golf and Country Club. A junior at North Carolina State University, Choi earned his third and fourth career individual collegiate victories this past season, securing a win at the Bridgestone Golf Collegiate and earning medalist honors at an NCAA Regional Championship event. At the 2011 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship, Choi placed second, two shots back of Hughes. He is ranked No. 29 in the WAGR, tops amongst Canadians.
Team Canada’s Development Squad will also have a strong presence in the Ottawa Region, including 2012 Canadian Junior Boys champion Adam Svensson of Surrey, B.C., 2012 B.C. Amateur and 2012 Alberta Amateur champion Riley Fleming of Airdrie, Alta., 2011 Canadian Junior Boys and Canadian Juvenile Boys champion Kevin Kwon of Pitt Meadows, B.C., and Blair Hamilton of Burlington, Ont.
Also in the field is three-time Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur champion, Dave Bunker of Woodbridge, Ont., and several former Team Canada members, including Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., Raoul Ménard of Ange-Gardien, Que., Graham Baillargeon of Mississauga, Ont., and Brandon Ng of Toronto.
This year’s championship will also feature over 30 international players vying for the historic Earl Grey Trophy, including James White of Acworth, Ga., who was a co-winner of the 2012 Byron Nelson Award as a top senior player in collegiate golf in the United States. White, a product of Georgia Tech, is currently ranked No. 73 in the WAGR, and competed internationally for the United States in the 2012 Palmer Cup.
The final sixteen spots in the field were determined at the Canadian Men’s Amateur Qualifier on Saturday at Camelot Golf and Country Club. Jean-Philip Cornellier of Laval, Que. earned medalist honors after posting a score of 5-under par 67.
Several local players will also compete in the 2012 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship, including Alan McGee of Kanata, Ont., Robert Mustard, Russ Passmore and Max Rochette of Ottawa, Dwight Reinhart of Renfrew, Ont., Martin Carré of Gatineau, Que., and Gaston Peyer of Rockland, Ont.
An Inter-Provincial Team Championship for the Willingdon Cup will take place in conjunction with the first two rounds, with three-member teams competing towards an overall team total.
The Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship is open to male amateur golfers who are members of a club belonging to Golf Canada, or clubs in other countries which are in good standing with their respective golf association.
After the first two rounds, the field will be reduced to the low 70 players and ties for the remaining two rounds finishing Friday, August 10 at Camelot Golf and Country Club
live scoring, tee times click here http://www.golfcanada.ca/amateur-competition/amateur-championships/golf-canada-mens-amateur-champi/article23321.ece
Bryan Angus also on twitter@mummmbles and at www.isr1050.com and hosting at www.nextsportstar.com 7-9 M-F..
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