I first interviewed Notah Begay on Fairways back in 1996 when he was part of the travelling troubadours that make up the Canadian Tour. He was in Saskatchewan and he and 2 others were living out of a Winnebago as they made their way east.
The thing about Notah was we were told he could play right and left handed, so I wanted to talk about that. It turned out he plays right handed but putts lefty or righty depending on the situation.
He was a charming, thoughtful interview, the same characteristics that landed him a job on the Golf Channel.
Here is the news release regarding the heart attack he has suffered....
Notah Begay suffered a heart attack last week in Dallas and is expected to make a full recovery, Golf Channel said Tuesday.
Begay, a 41-year-old analyst for Golf Channel and NBC Sports, was taken Thursday to Methodist Hospital in Dallas where a stent was inserted to unblock his right coronary artery. Begay, a Navajo from New Mexico, has a history of heart disease in the family.
Golf Channel said Begay will be off the air indefinitely while he recovers.
Begay, who won the last of his four PGA Tour titles in 2000, said he was grateful to Dr. Mark Jenkins and the speedy care he received in Dallas.
“I anticipate a full recovery and feel lucky to be at home resting with my family,” Begay said in a statement. “I appreciate the outpouring of well wishes I’ve received from family, friends and fans, and I will be back covering golf once I’m fully recovered.”
Begay is in his second full year as a TV analyst.
Begay was part of the Stanford team that won the NCAA title in 1994. A year later, he and Tiger Woods were the first minorities named to the Walker Cup team. Begay won twice on the PGA Tour in 1999 and 2000, but he was hampered by back injuries later in his career.
(AP )
Wednesday, April 30, 2014
Thursday, April 17, 2014
Wie, Westwood, Kuchar weekend winners..
PGA Tour
RBC Heritage
Harbour Town Golf Links
Matt Kuchar overcame a four-stroke deficit to finally finish on top, when his stunning chip-in on the 18th hole gave him a 64 and a victory at the RBC Heritage on Sunday.
Kuchar was four shots behind Luke Donald at the start but made that up with seven birdies on his first 10 holes. He had a birdie putt of less than eight feet at the par-3 17th, but three-putted for bogey to fall into a tie for first.
Kuchar was in more trouble in a bunker at Harbour Town Golf Links’ closing lighthouse hole. That’s when he blasted out and watched the ball rattle in for birdie. Kuchar punched the air and raised his arms in celebration of what would be his seventh career PGA Tour win.
Donald had two holes to catch Kuchar after the chip but couldn’t do it. He missed a 28-foot birdie putt at the 17th hole, then saw his own try at a chip-in birdie slide past the cup.
Kuchar finished at 11-under 273 to win $1.044 million and his first trophy since the Memorial last June.
Kuchar has spent a month of Sundays in the thick of things, only to come up short. He was two strokes behind winner Steven Bowditch at the Texas Open on March 30, lost a playoff to Matt Jones’ in Houston, then was tied for the lead at Augusta National last Sunday before four-putting the fourth hole and finishing tied for fifth.
Donald shot 69 to finish at 10 under and earn his fifth top-three finish in his past six appearances at the RBC Heritage.
Ben Martin, who turned pro in 2010, shot 67 to finish tied for third at 9 under with John Huh, who shot 68
Live scores click http://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/rbc-heritage/leaderboard.html
Champions Tour
Greater Gwinett Championship
TPC Sugarloaf
Duluth Ga
Miguel Angel Jimenez quickly shifted his focus back to the Ryder Cup after winning his first Champions Tour event.
Jimenez held off Bernhard Langer to win the Greater Gwinnett Championship on Sunday, becoming only the third player to lead from start to finish in his debut on the 50-and-over tour.
Jimenez, coming off a fourth-place finish in the Masters, closed with a 67 to finish two strokes ahead of Langer. Jimenez finished the tournament with 32 consecutive holes without a bogey at TPC Sugarloaf.
The Spaniard said he can’t make a commitment to the Champions Tour this year because his goal is making the European Ryder Cup team
Fred Couples, in the final group with Jimenez and Langer, shot 70 and was fourth. Langer tied for eighth and Couples tied for 20th in the Masters
Canada’s Rod Spittle and Jim Rutledge finished as part of a group that tied for 29th at 1-under 215
Live scores http://www.pgatour.com/champions/leaderboard.html
PGA Tour Canada
Q School, Florida
Round 4
Vermillion Bay, Ont.’s Jordan Krantz carded a final round 66 at the Jack Nicklaus Signature Course at Reunion Resort on Saturday to claim medalist honours and lead all 43 players who earned status at PGA Tour Canada’s Florida Qualifying Tournament.
Six Canadians were among those who earned cards for PGA Tour Canada’s 2014 season, which will kick off May 26-June 1 at the PC Financial Open in Vancouver.
Krantz, a two-time Manitoba Amateur champion who last played on PGA Tour Canada in 2010 at The Players Cup, was the only player finish under par for the week, earning the top spot by two over Ryan Brehm of Grand Rapids, MI.
Joining Krantz and Westhorpe in earning status this week were Dundas, Ont.’s Chris Ross (T-20), Essex, Ont.’s David Byrne (T-27), Thornhill, Ont.’s Mark Hoffman (T-30) and Baddeck, Nova Scotia’s Peter Campbell (T-35).
Those six join Hamilton, Ontario’s Justin Kim, who earned conditional status last week at PGA Tour Canada’s California Qualifying Tournament, as Canadians to earn status in qualifying for 2014.
http://www.pgatourcanada.com/leagues/cantour_leaderboard4.cfm?clientid=3776&leagueid=11710&seasonnum=2014
European Tour
Malaysian Open
Kuala Lumpur
Round 4
Lee Westwood ended a two-year winless drought with a seven-shot victory at the Malaysian Open on Sunday. After a four-hour delay due to the threat of lightning in the middle of the final round, Westwood went on to shoot a 4-under par 68 to complete an 18-under 270 at the Kuala Lumpur Country Club course for his 36th career victory.
Westwood led from start to finish in the co-sanctioned European and Asian Tour event that he also won in 1997.
South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen (68), the 2012 champion, along with Belgium’s Nicolas Colsaerts (70) and Austria’s Bernd Wiesberger (67) shared a distant second place on 11 under.
http://www.europeantour.com/europeantour/season=2014/tournamentid=2014030/leaderboard/index.html
LPGA
Lotte Championship
Ko Olina GC
Hawaii
Round 4
Michelle Wie rallied from four strokes back entering the day to shoot a 5-under 67 on Saturday and win the LPGA LOTTE Championship.
The 24-year-old American finished at 14-under 274 after coming into the final round trailing third-round leader Angela Stanford by four shots after Friday’s play. It was Wie’s third career victory on the LPGA Tour, and first since taking the CN Canadian Women’s Open in 2010 and, Wie did it at home.
Stanford had her worst round of the tournament, shooting a 1-over 73 that put her at 12-under 276 and two shots behind Wie. Top-ranked Inbee Park finished third with an 11-under 277.
Wie came to LOTTE and her home state of Hawaii coming off a runner-up finish two weeks ago in the Kraft Nabisco Championship when she closed with a 71 for her best position of the season.
http://www.lpgascoring.com/public/Leaderboard.aspx
Bryan Angus
(files from europeantour.com, BBC AP Reuters )
RBC Heritage
Harbour Town Golf Links
Matt Kuchar overcame a four-stroke deficit to finally finish on top, when his stunning chip-in on the 18th hole gave him a 64 and a victory at the RBC Heritage on Sunday.
Kuchar was four shots behind Luke Donald at the start but made that up with seven birdies on his first 10 holes. He had a birdie putt of less than eight feet at the par-3 17th, but three-putted for bogey to fall into a tie for first.
Kuchar was in more trouble in a bunker at Harbour Town Golf Links’ closing lighthouse hole. That’s when he blasted out and watched the ball rattle in for birdie. Kuchar punched the air and raised his arms in celebration of what would be his seventh career PGA Tour win.
Donald had two holes to catch Kuchar after the chip but couldn’t do it. He missed a 28-foot birdie putt at the 17th hole, then saw his own try at a chip-in birdie slide past the cup.
Kuchar finished at 11-under 273 to win $1.044 million and his first trophy since the Memorial last June.
Kuchar has spent a month of Sundays in the thick of things, only to come up short. He was two strokes behind winner Steven Bowditch at the Texas Open on March 30, lost a playoff to Matt Jones’ in Houston, then was tied for the lead at Augusta National last Sunday before four-putting the fourth hole and finishing tied for fifth.
Donald shot 69 to finish at 10 under and earn his fifth top-three finish in his past six appearances at the RBC Heritage.
Ben Martin, who turned pro in 2010, shot 67 to finish tied for third at 9 under with John Huh, who shot 68
Live scores click http://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/rbc-heritage/leaderboard.html
Champions Tour
Greater Gwinett Championship
TPC Sugarloaf
Duluth Ga
Miguel Angel Jimenez quickly shifted his focus back to the Ryder Cup after winning his first Champions Tour event.
Jimenez held off Bernhard Langer to win the Greater Gwinnett Championship on Sunday, becoming only the third player to lead from start to finish in his debut on the 50-and-over tour.
Jimenez, coming off a fourth-place finish in the Masters, closed with a 67 to finish two strokes ahead of Langer. Jimenez finished the tournament with 32 consecutive holes without a bogey at TPC Sugarloaf.
The Spaniard said he can’t make a commitment to the Champions Tour this year because his goal is making the European Ryder Cup team
Fred Couples, in the final group with Jimenez and Langer, shot 70 and was fourth. Langer tied for eighth and Couples tied for 20th in the Masters
Canada’s Rod Spittle and Jim Rutledge finished as part of a group that tied for 29th at 1-under 215
Live scores http://www.pgatour.com/champions/leaderboard.html
PGA Tour Canada
Q School, Florida
Round 4
Vermillion Bay, Ont.’s Jordan Krantz carded a final round 66 at the Jack Nicklaus Signature Course at Reunion Resort on Saturday to claim medalist honours and lead all 43 players who earned status at PGA Tour Canada’s Florida Qualifying Tournament.
Six Canadians were among those who earned cards for PGA Tour Canada’s 2014 season, which will kick off May 26-June 1 at the PC Financial Open in Vancouver.
Krantz, a two-time Manitoba Amateur champion who last played on PGA Tour Canada in 2010 at The Players Cup, was the only player finish under par for the week, earning the top spot by two over Ryan Brehm of Grand Rapids, MI.
Joining Krantz and Westhorpe in earning status this week were Dundas, Ont.’s Chris Ross (T-20), Essex, Ont.’s David Byrne (T-27), Thornhill, Ont.’s Mark Hoffman (T-30) and Baddeck, Nova Scotia’s Peter Campbell (T-35).
Those six join Hamilton, Ontario’s Justin Kim, who earned conditional status last week at PGA Tour Canada’s California Qualifying Tournament, as Canadians to earn status in qualifying for 2014.
http://www.pgatourcanada.com/leagues/cantour_leaderboard4.cfm?clientid=3776&leagueid=11710&seasonnum=2014
European Tour
Malaysian Open
Kuala Lumpur
Round 4
Lee Westwood ended a two-year winless drought with a seven-shot victory at the Malaysian Open on Sunday. After a four-hour delay due to the threat of lightning in the middle of the final round, Westwood went on to shoot a 4-under par 68 to complete an 18-under 270 at the Kuala Lumpur Country Club course for his 36th career victory.
Westwood led from start to finish in the co-sanctioned European and Asian Tour event that he also won in 1997.
South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen (68), the 2012 champion, along with Belgium’s Nicolas Colsaerts (70) and Austria’s Bernd Wiesberger (67) shared a distant second place on 11 under.
http://www.europeantour.com/europeantour/season=2014/tournamentid=2014030/leaderboard/index.html
LPGA
Lotte Championship
Ko Olina GC
Hawaii
Round 4
Michelle Wie rallied from four strokes back entering the day to shoot a 5-under 67 on Saturday and win the LPGA LOTTE Championship.
The 24-year-old American finished at 14-under 274 after coming into the final round trailing third-round leader Angela Stanford by four shots after Friday’s play. It was Wie’s third career victory on the LPGA Tour, and first since taking the CN Canadian Women’s Open in 2010 and, Wie did it at home.
Stanford had her worst round of the tournament, shooting a 1-over 73 that put her at 12-under 276 and two shots behind Wie. Top-ranked Inbee Park finished third with an 11-under 277.
Wie came to LOTTE and her home state of Hawaii coming off a runner-up finish two weeks ago in the Kraft Nabisco Championship when she closed with a 71 for her best position of the season.
http://www.lpgascoring.com/public/Leaderboard.aspx
Bryan Angus
(files from europeantour.com, BBC AP Reuters )
Sunday, April 13, 2014
" Bubba Golf" wins 78th Masters
Weather : Perfect, sunny 81*F light breeze SSE 8mph
Tee times/ pairings http://www.masters.com/en_US/players/pairings/
1030 Weir out of it now plays with Canadian Open champ Snedeker
110 Adam Scott and Jason Day the top two Aussies for bragging rights
150 Stadler and Couples with outside chances
200 Justin Rose with his Ryder Cup asst captain Thomas Bjorn who can win this !
210 Lee Westwood and Furyk and don't count either out
220 Fowler and Jimenez, two stylists, and Miguel's 66 has be pulling for him at 50!
230 Kuchar and Blixt and remember I picked Kuchar in my preview
240 Bubba and Speith and my gut says neither will be the winner..
Final wrap
Well let me be the first to admit I was wrong, as you can see from the pairing analysis above I didn't think Bubba or Jordan Speith would win, I picked Matt Kuchar in my preview on Wednesday.
However Bubba's jitters and uncertainty from Saturday turned into a flood of confidence come Sunday afternoon, especially after Speith's two shot advantage turned into a two shot deficit thanks a dramatic three putt on 8 and a rookie mistake on 9, then a ball into Rae's Creek on the 12th and a missed birdie on 13.
Bubba gets full credit from me. We all know there are all kinds of swings on tour, but they all are on plane and on line coming into and going out of contact however Bubba's wide open stance, homemade swing which features a natural fade work just great at Augusta, in fact he was in the top 3 in fairways hit all week, and he ate up the par 5's. He shapes shots more than anyone in the pro game, he see's shots with an imagination that only he can see, he hits it longer while under control than 99% of his peers, is a pretty good putter and in short is highly entertaining to watch.
Now that he is married and has an adopted son, like so many of us who experience fatherhood for the first time, he seems much more stable and settled as he starts to realize what life's priorities are all about therefore is much less apt to get in his own way on the golf course.
Watson closed with a 3-under 69 to beat a pair of Masters rookies in Spieth and Jonas Blixt of Sweden to win his 2nd Masters in 3 years.
Speith had all the momentum early by holing out for birdie from the front bunker on No. 4, and making back-to-back birdies to build a two-shot lead through seven holes. Bidding to become the first player in 35 years to win a green jacket in his first try, Spieth looked to be well on his way until the three putt on No. 8 as Watson got up-and-down for birdie to tie for the lead, then a rookie mistake, leaving his approach below the flagstick on No. 9 and watching it roll back into the fairway, setting up another bogey and two-shot swing.
Watson was too powerful, too experienced, too tough to beat. Spieth closed with six pars for a 72 and tied for second with Blixt, who never went away but never really threatened. Blixt shot a 71
Watson finished at 8-under 280 and goes to a career-best No. 4 in the world.
Miguel Angel Jimenez, the 50-year-old wonder from Spain, shot 71 and finished alone in fourth. Matt Kuchar lost a share of the lead with a four-putt double bogey on the fourth hole and never challenged again. He closed with a 74 and tied for fifth with Rickie Fowler (73).
Remember nine players were separated by three shots at the start of the final round only for this to turn into a two-man show, virtual match play, as none of the rest could mount a challenge.
Mike Weir closed with +1 73.
This Masters lacked the big back nine charge, in fact Bubba's biggest fear walking up 18 with 4 putts for the win was that he'd break down and start Bubba-ling.
Still with all the storylines Lee Westwood T7, Rory McIlroy T8th after a 2nd round 77, Bernard Langer was 8th as well, Jimenez 4th after his 66 on Saturday with his funky warm up drill while smoking on of his favourite cigars, Freddie Couples in the mix until 75 on Sunday, Adam Scott relishing his title defence accompanied by his Dad....on and on it goes..
The ratings will be affected because Phil and you know who were not in the field, but I didn't miss them at all..... nor I'm sure did Bubba !!
Bryan Angus
(files from europeantour.com, Reuters, AP )
Tee times/ pairings http://www.masters.com/en_US/players/pairings/
1030 Weir out of it now plays with Canadian Open champ Snedeker
110 Adam Scott and Jason Day the top two Aussies for bragging rights
150 Stadler and Couples with outside chances
200 Justin Rose with his Ryder Cup asst captain Thomas Bjorn who can win this !
210 Lee Westwood and Furyk and don't count either out
220 Fowler and Jimenez, two stylists, and Miguel's 66 has be pulling for him at 50!
230 Kuchar and Blixt and remember I picked Kuchar in my preview
240 Bubba and Speith and my gut says neither will be the winner..
Final wrap
Well let me be the first to admit I was wrong, as you can see from the pairing analysis above I didn't think Bubba or Jordan Speith would win, I picked Matt Kuchar in my preview on Wednesday.
However Bubba's jitters and uncertainty from Saturday turned into a flood of confidence come Sunday afternoon, especially after Speith's two shot advantage turned into a two shot deficit thanks a dramatic three putt on 8 and a rookie mistake on 9, then a ball into Rae's Creek on the 12th and a missed birdie on 13.
Bubba gets full credit from me. We all know there are all kinds of swings on tour, but they all are on plane and on line coming into and going out of contact however Bubba's wide open stance, homemade swing which features a natural fade work just great at Augusta, in fact he was in the top 3 in fairways hit all week, and he ate up the par 5's. He shapes shots more than anyone in the pro game, he see's shots with an imagination that only he can see, he hits it longer while under control than 99% of his peers, is a pretty good putter and in short is highly entertaining to watch.
Now that he is married and has an adopted son, like so many of us who experience fatherhood for the first time, he seems much more stable and settled as he starts to realize what life's priorities are all about therefore is much less apt to get in his own way on the golf course.
Watson closed with a 3-under 69 to beat a pair of Masters rookies in Spieth and Jonas Blixt of Sweden to win his 2nd Masters in 3 years.
Speith had all the momentum early by holing out for birdie from the front bunker on No. 4, and making back-to-back birdies to build a two-shot lead through seven holes. Bidding to become the first player in 35 years to win a green jacket in his first try, Spieth looked to be well on his way until the three putt on No. 8 as Watson got up-and-down for birdie to tie for the lead, then a rookie mistake, leaving his approach below the flagstick on No. 9 and watching it roll back into the fairway, setting up another bogey and two-shot swing.
Watson was too powerful, too experienced, too tough to beat. Spieth closed with six pars for a 72 and tied for second with Blixt, who never went away but never really threatened. Blixt shot a 71
Watson finished at 8-under 280 and goes to a career-best No. 4 in the world.
Miguel Angel Jimenez, the 50-year-old wonder from Spain, shot 71 and finished alone in fourth. Matt Kuchar lost a share of the lead with a four-putt double bogey on the fourth hole and never challenged again. He closed with a 74 and tied for fifth with Rickie Fowler (73).
Remember nine players were separated by three shots at the start of the final round only for this to turn into a two-man show, virtual match play, as none of the rest could mount a challenge.
Mike Weir closed with +1 73.
This Masters lacked the big back nine charge, in fact Bubba's biggest fear walking up 18 with 4 putts for the win was that he'd break down and start Bubba-ling.
Still with all the storylines Lee Westwood T7, Rory McIlroy T8th after a 2nd round 77, Bernard Langer was 8th as well, Jimenez 4th after his 66 on Saturday with his funky warm up drill while smoking on of his favourite cigars, Freddie Couples in the mix until 75 on Sunday, Adam Scott relishing his title defence accompanied by his Dad....on and on it goes..
The ratings will be affected because Phil and you know who were not in the field, but I didn't miss them at all..... nor I'm sure did Bubba !!
Bryan Angus
(files from europeantour.com, Reuters, AP )
Saturday, April 12, 2014
Speith, Watson atop a packed leaderboard at Augusta
Weather: high 80*F breeze SW 6mph Mainly sunny..
Pairings / Tee times http://www.masters.com/en_US/players/pairings/
1015 Rory McIlroy plays with a marker (usually a club low handicapper, selected to keep Rory company, control the pace of play, stay out of his way!)
1035 Olazabal / Clarke two stalwarts of the European Tour will enjoy their day together
1156 Poulter / Fowler by far the best dressed pairing
1230 Vijay / Langer So many wins between them, good for the old guys..
1245 Weir / Choi great pairing for both guys, good pals from International Team
215 Couples / Walker bombs away !!
225 Scott / Speith both oozing confidence, Speith can't even by a beer yet ..#soyoung
235 Bjorn/ Blixt 2nd last pairing being ignored.. #norespect
245 Watson / Senden Can Bubba avoid the big crash that will let everyone in ??
Round 3
20-year-old Jordan Spieth put himself atop the leaderboard and 18 holes away from replacing Tiger Woods as the youngest player with a green jacket with a 2-under 70 that gave him a share of the lead with Bubba Watson going into a final round.
Watson started the third round with a three-shot lead but on a day where his putter and approach shots let him down,five players had at least a share of the lead at some point so this Masters is as wide open as when it started.
Spieth at 20 already has shown he can deliver big moments. He talked to himself constantly on the golf course, and with a win can surpass Tiger who was 21 when he won his first Masters in 1997.
He didn’t even have a PGA Tour card at this time last year. Since then, he won the John Deere Classic, became the youngest American to play in the Presidents Cup when Fred Couples made him a captain’s pick, and had a chance in the final hour to win the FedEx Cup and its $10 million prize.
Nine players are separated by three shots, and that includes Watson who left shots short and long, and his putting became weak and tentative. Despite some struggles on the front nine, he was still in position to build a cushion until blowing birdie chances on the rest of the par 5s and he was lucky to convert two pars at the end for a 74 and a share of the lead at 5-under 211.
Matt Kuchar hit a pitch from well behind the 15th green that had to be perfect and was, setting up the best of his six birdies in a round of 68. Kuchar, a favorite from his days at Georgia Tech, was one shot behind along with Masters rookie Jonas Blixt, who fell out of the lead with a bogey on the 17th and shot 71.
Miguel Angel Jimenez, who finished his round about the time the leaders teed off, had a tournament-best 66 and was two shots behind with Rickie Fowler, who had a 67. Lee Westwood (70), Jim Furyk (72) and Thomas Bjorn (73) were at 2-under 214.
U.S. Open champion Justin Rose said after his 69, leaving him only four shots behind at -1. “There’s a lot of players with a chance tomorrow. Anybody under par going into tomorrow has a good shot.”
Adam Scott, threw away his hopes with a 40 on the front nine that led to a 76. He was six shots behind.
Mike Weir stumbled Saturday. The 2003 Masters champion shot a 6-over 42 on the front. His back-nine was much better - a 1-over 37 – which saw him finish with a 7-over-par 79 and is at 8-over 224 – 13 shots off the lead
Live scoring click http://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/masters-tournament/leaderboard.html
Bryan Angus
Pairings / Tee times http://www.masters.com/en_US/players/pairings/
1015 Rory McIlroy plays with a marker (usually a club low handicapper, selected to keep Rory company, control the pace of play, stay out of his way!)
1035 Olazabal / Clarke two stalwarts of the European Tour will enjoy their day together
1156 Poulter / Fowler by far the best dressed pairing
1230 Vijay / Langer So many wins between them, good for the old guys..
1245 Weir / Choi great pairing for both guys, good pals from International Team
215 Couples / Walker bombs away !!
225 Scott / Speith both oozing confidence, Speith can't even by a beer yet ..#soyoung
235 Bjorn/ Blixt 2nd last pairing being ignored.. #norespect
245 Watson / Senden Can Bubba avoid the big crash that will let everyone in ??
Round 3
20-year-old Jordan Spieth put himself atop the leaderboard and 18 holes away from replacing Tiger Woods as the youngest player with a green jacket with a 2-under 70 that gave him a share of the lead with Bubba Watson going into a final round.
Watson started the third round with a three-shot lead but on a day where his putter and approach shots let him down,five players had at least a share of the lead at some point so this Masters is as wide open as when it started.
Spieth at 20 already has shown he can deliver big moments. He talked to himself constantly on the golf course, and with a win can surpass Tiger who was 21 when he won his first Masters in 1997.
He didn’t even have a PGA Tour card at this time last year. Since then, he won the John Deere Classic, became the youngest American to play in the Presidents Cup when Fred Couples made him a captain’s pick, and had a chance in the final hour to win the FedEx Cup and its $10 million prize.
Nine players are separated by three shots, and that includes Watson who left shots short and long, and his putting became weak and tentative. Despite some struggles on the front nine, he was still in position to build a cushion until blowing birdie chances on the rest of the par 5s and he was lucky to convert two pars at the end for a 74 and a share of the lead at 5-under 211.
Matt Kuchar hit a pitch from well behind the 15th green that had to be perfect and was, setting up the best of his six birdies in a round of 68. Kuchar, a favorite from his days at Georgia Tech, was one shot behind along with Masters rookie Jonas Blixt, who fell out of the lead with a bogey on the 17th and shot 71.
Miguel Angel Jimenez, who finished his round about the time the leaders teed off, had a tournament-best 66 and was two shots behind with Rickie Fowler, who had a 67. Lee Westwood (70), Jim Furyk (72) and Thomas Bjorn (73) were at 2-under 214.
U.S. Open champion Justin Rose said after his 69, leaving him only four shots behind at -1. “There’s a lot of players with a chance tomorrow. Anybody under par going into tomorrow has a good shot.”
Adam Scott, threw away his hopes with a 40 on the front nine that led to a 76. He was six shots behind.
Mike Weir stumbled Saturday. The 2003 Masters champion shot a 6-over 42 on the front. His back-nine was much better - a 1-over 37 – which saw him finish with a 7-over-par 79 and is at 8-over 224 – 13 shots off the lead
Live scoring click http://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/masters-tournament/leaderboard.html
Bryan Angus
Friday, April 11, 2014
Friday at the Masters : Bubba da man !
The gates opened (7am) on another breathtakingly beautiful morning and play got under way at 7.45 with DA Points and Kevin Streelman taking the opening drives.
Weather : Mostly sunny, high 79*f, breeze SSW 13mph
Canadians : Graham DeLaet MC 80 Mike Weir +1 73 72
Round 2
Bubba Watson surged to the Masters lead with a spree of birdies on the back side Friday, positioning him for a weekend run at his second green jacket in three years as he sparked the best run of the tournament so far when he stuck his tee shot at No. 12 within 3 feet of the cup. He tapped in for the first of five straight birdies that propelled him to a 4-under 68.
Even after making his second bogey of the tournament by missing a short putt at the 18th, Watson walked off with his second straight round in the 60s, a 7-under 137 total and a three-stroke lead, the biggest 36-hole advantage at Augusta since 2006. He became only the fifth player in Masters history to run off nothing but birdies from the 12th to 16th holes
Adam Scott got off to a rough start but rallied for 72. The Aussie was among those four shots back, still solidly in contention to become only the fourth back-to-back winner in Masters history.
Watson’s closest pursuer was Australia’s John Senden, who birdied 14 and 15 on his way to a 68 and 140 overall, 3 behind
Scott bogeyed three of the first five holes but wound up at 141. He was joined by Denmark’s Thomas Bjorn, who birdied four of the last five holes for a 68; Sweden’s Jonas Blixt, who managed 71 despite a double-bogey at the 11th; and 20-year-old Jordan Spieth, hardly looking like an Augusta rookie when he closed out 70 with a birdie at the tough finishing hole.
Five shots back with Fred Couples were Jimmy Walker, a three-time PGA Tour winner this season who shot 72, and Jim Furyk, whose 68 matched Watson, Senden and Bjorn for the best round of the day.
First-round leader Bill Haas staggered to a 78 – 10 shots higher than the day before, knocking him nine shots back.
Mike Weir shot an even par 72 Friday and is sitting in striking position at 1-over par. The first lefty to win the masters is tied for 21st. He had a unbelievable start to his round, 4-under thru 9 holes, but stumbled on his back 9, matching his four front-nine birdies with four back-nine bogeys.
He is paired with K.J. Choi for Saturday and tees off at 12:45pm (EDT).
Notables who MC : Graham DeLaet, Sergio Garcia, Luke Donald, Ernie Els, Graeme McDowell, Dustin Johnson, Angel Cabrera and Charl Schwartzel were all headed home before the weekend
Live scoring click http://www.masters.com/en_US/scores/index.html
Canada qualifies for World Junior Championship
Tyler Costigan/ Golf Canada
Canada has qualified for the World Junior Boys Championship by capturing one of two available spots through a qualifier being held at Victoria Golf Club.
Collectively, the boys stormed back to steal first place honours from Mexico with a final round combined score of 3-under par. As a team the boys finished 11-over par, two strokes ahead of Mexico, who slipped down the leaderboard with a closing round of 9-over par.
Development Squad member Matt Williams was a model of consistency throughout the event, finishing at even par 210 (73-71-66). The 17-year-old Calgary native carded six birdies Wednesday en route to a 4-under 66 to finish as leading Canadian in 2nd place.
Development Squad teammates Étienne Papineau (St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Qué.), Carter Simon (Sutton, Ont.) and Tony Gil (Vaughan, Ont.) also had strong final rounds. They finished tied for third, fifth and seventh respectively.
Team Mexico earned the second qualifying spot via the event. They were led by Alvaro Ortiz, who was the overall leading individual scorer with 4-under 206 (70-69-67).
Canada and Mexico will tee-it-up at the Toyota Junior Golf World Cup this June along with 10 other nations.
For the full leaderboard from the qualifying event being held at Victoria Golf Club, click here.
Canada has qualified for the World Junior Boys Championship by capturing one of two available spots through a qualifier being held at Victoria Golf Club.
Collectively, the boys stormed back to steal first place honours from Mexico with a final round combined score of 3-under par. As a team the boys finished 11-over par, two strokes ahead of Mexico, who slipped down the leaderboard with a closing round of 9-over par.
Development Squad member Matt Williams was a model of consistency throughout the event, finishing at even par 210 (73-71-66). The 17-year-old Calgary native carded six birdies Wednesday en route to a 4-under 66 to finish as leading Canadian in 2nd place.
Development Squad teammates Étienne Papineau (St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Qué.), Carter Simon (Sutton, Ont.) and Tony Gil (Vaughan, Ont.) also had strong final rounds. They finished tied for third, fifth and seventh respectively.
Team Mexico earned the second qualifying spot via the event. They were led by Alvaro Ortiz, who was the overall leading individual scorer with 4-under 206 (70-69-67).
Canada and Mexico will tee-it-up at the Toyota Junior Golf World Cup this June along with 10 other nations.
For the full leaderboard from the qualifying event being held at Victoria Golf Club, click here.
Thursday, April 10, 2014
Only 19 break par in ideal conditions at Augusta
Here is your live scoreboard as the 78th Masters is well under way after a beautiful sunny Thursday at Augusta.
Canadians: Mike Weir +1 73 Graham DeLaet +8 80
Round 1
Despite ideal, I mean ideal scoring conditions,only 19 players broke par on Thursday, as I mentioned in my preview, the pins were tucked as tough as I've seen on day one, and with the sun beating down the legendary greens just kept getting faster.
Defending champion Adam Scott made only one bad swing that cost him two shots in a round of 3-under 69. It was the lowest opening score by a defending champion in 13 years, and it left Scott one shot behind leader Bill Haas on an otherwise demanding day.
Some say he's pretty boring but Bill Haas, with a rich family history at Augusta that includes a green jacket for his great uncle Bob Goalby, settled down after an opening bogey with a collection of good birdie putts and an 8-iron to 5 feet for birdie on the 18th for a 68.
Only one first-round leader in the last 30 years has gone on to win the Masters.
Bubba Watson played bogey-free and shot a -3 69. So did Louis Oosthuizen, whom Watson beat in a playoff at Augusta in 2012. They were the only players to break 70, the fewest for an opening round at the Masters since 2007.
In my preview I wrote about Scott's calm demeanor this year, and yesterday he seemed in control of his emotions and his game all day except for once.when the fans behind the 12th tee rose in unison to cheer him, then he promptly bounced his tee shot off the front slope and into Rae’s Creek and he made double bogey to fall out of the outright lead. He picked up a birdie on the 14th, and three-putted for par on both the par 5s on the back nine.
There were many wrecks as usual, for example Jason Dufner took a quadruple-bogey 9 on the 13th hole with only one penalty shot. The worst of his woes was a wedge from the drop area that didn’t even make it to the creek. He wound up with an 80 in his first round in a major since winning the PGA Championship last summer.
He was in good company. Phil Mickelson had a pair of 7s on his card for the first time in five years at a major, and his 76 matched the highest opening round at Augusta for the three-time Masters champion. Mickelson made a triple-bogey at the seventh hole, where he knocked it back-and-forth past the cup a staggering four times before finally sinking a putt. He took double-bogey when he dumped one in the water at No. 15
U.S. Open champion Justin Rose shot 40 on the front and scrambled for a 76. Jason Day had a 75 in his first event in six weeks.
Graham DeLaet would love to his first competitive round at Augusta back opening with an 8-over 80 and is tied for 90th. He had a bogey on the first hole then bogied six of his first seven holes including four in a row on holes four through seven.
He calmed down a bit on the back nine where he pared every hole except 10 and 14 where he added two more bogies
It wasn't all bad new though. Jimmy Walker, Kevin Stadler and Jonas Blixt three of the record 24 newcomers to the Masters were in the group at 70.
The group at 71 included young (20-year-old Jordan Spieth) and old (54-year-old Fred Couples), and a former No. 1 in Rory McIlroy.
“It was just on one of those days it was tough to get it close to the hole,” McIlroy said. “Anything under par today was a good score.”
Mike Weir, opened with a respectable 1-over 73
Live scoring click here
http://www.masters.com/en_US/scores/index.html
Bryan Angus
(files from BBC Reuters, europeantour.com AP )
Wednesday, April 9, 2014
Ten for your Masters pool...
Okay guys its 5pm est Wednesday and you are asking me for 10 picks for your Masters pool sheet
First picking a winner for a golf tournament unless it's Tiger at Torrey Pines for example, is no more than an educated guess. Having said that of the 4 majors the Masters is the easiest to predict, as US Open champ Justin Rose said... " there are 15 guys who are favourites here every year..
There are 24 first time winners including our own Graham DeLaet in the field, but none since Fuzzy in 1979 won it in their first trip.
Criteria : I look for guys in form, guys who play Augusta well, and guys who have great, creative short games and are putting well
The weather is great for the weekend....Matt Kuchar is my pick...
So here are my 10 for all you poolies
1. Matt Kuchar is in form, was in last pair last two weeks and is not bad at Augusta Will be in the final 4
2. Adam Scott defending Champ is very comfortable in his skin since he won this event last year. His quietly confident persona impresses me although only Tiger has won back to back recently.. Will be in the mix
3. Phil Mickelson 3 time winner will be CBS focal point..He just doesn't make me want to say he's the man...but won't be surprised if he is
4. Henrik Stenson Ok.. respect !! this guy won it all on both sides of the Atlantic last year and has sucked so far this year but hey it's been all about his putter and he is working that out..He may not win but is in my top 10
5. Rory McIlroy is the 8-1 favourite... why ??.. yes he looked great for 3 rounds here in 2011, and yes his form is improving since he won the Australian Open and yes he shot 65 at the Shell on Sunday. However he has yet to put 4 rounds together and is still missing those 3-6 footers at crucial times. Therefore I think he is way over rated at 8-1 this week until he proves me wrong, and I will be the first to sing his praises when he does.
6. Angel Cabrera Here's a great story Wins in 2009 loses in a playoff to Scott in 2013 when he should have won.. Tore his left rotator cuff but PING has given him some shock free shafts which have him pain free. Can't leave him out at Augusta
7. Bubba Watson Hey Bubba is no joke this year. Has his private life in order, and had a win and two T2 this year before allergies sidelined him.. I say he will be in the mix Sunday afternoon
8. Retief Goosen is in form, one of six South Africans including Ernie and Charl . His Masters record is great and if he gets into it Sunday has the experience to win.. Long shot
9. Hunter Mahan off surgery he was solid last week and ailing coach Sean Foley has him ready if his top 20 Houston Open result counts
10. Graham DeLaet will not win this week but is such a beauty ball striker and with Mike Weir as his mentor, why not give him a T10
Bryan Angus
First picking a winner for a golf tournament unless it's Tiger at Torrey Pines for example, is no more than an educated guess. Having said that of the 4 majors the Masters is the easiest to predict, as US Open champ Justin Rose said... " there are 15 guys who are favourites here every year..
There are 24 first time winners including our own Graham DeLaet in the field, but none since Fuzzy in 1979 won it in their first trip.
Criteria : I look for guys in form, guys who play Augusta well, and guys who have great, creative short games and are putting well
The weather is great for the weekend....Matt Kuchar is my pick...
So here are my 10 for all you poolies
1. Matt Kuchar is in form, was in last pair last two weeks and is not bad at Augusta Will be in the final 4
2. Adam Scott defending Champ is very comfortable in his skin since he won this event last year. His quietly confident persona impresses me although only Tiger has won back to back recently.. Will be in the mix
3. Phil Mickelson 3 time winner will be CBS focal point..He just doesn't make me want to say he's the man...but won't be surprised if he is
4. Henrik Stenson Ok.. respect !! this guy won it all on both sides of the Atlantic last year and has sucked so far this year but hey it's been all about his putter and he is working that out..He may not win but is in my top 10
5. Rory McIlroy is the 8-1 favourite... why ??.. yes he looked great for 3 rounds here in 2011, and yes his form is improving since he won the Australian Open and yes he shot 65 at the Shell on Sunday. However he has yet to put 4 rounds together and is still missing those 3-6 footers at crucial times. Therefore I think he is way over rated at 8-1 this week until he proves me wrong, and I will be the first to sing his praises when he does.
6. Angel Cabrera Here's a great story Wins in 2009 loses in a playoff to Scott in 2013 when he should have won.. Tore his left rotator cuff but PING has given him some shock free shafts which have him pain free. Can't leave him out at Augusta
7. Bubba Watson Hey Bubba is no joke this year. Has his private life in order, and had a win and two T2 this year before allergies sidelined him.. I say he will be in the mix Sunday afternoon
8. Retief Goosen is in form, one of six South Africans including Ernie and Charl . His Masters record is great and if he gets into it Sunday has the experience to win.. Long shot
9. Hunter Mahan off surgery he was solid last week and ailing coach Sean Foley has him ready if his top 20 Houston Open result counts
10. Graham DeLaet will not win this week but is such a beauty ball striker and with Mike Weir as his mentor, why not give him a T10
Bryan Angus
Tuesday, April 8, 2014
Masters tee times announced..my analysis
http://www.masters.com/en_US/players/pairings/
In keeping with tradition the Thursday/Friday tee times were just announced and there are story lines galore.
Here are a few that caught my attention..
Group 8 9.02am Mike Weir with Matt Every and Roberto Castro
( always watch Weirsy, he's the one Canadian who doesn't think he's done)
Group 9 9.13am Angel Cabrera with Gary Woodland and Ian Poulter
( Cabrera has new shock absorbing Ping shafts to take the pressure off his torn left shoulder and he is feeling great, bombs away with he and Woodland, Pully will be hitting first into greens)
Group 16 10.41am Adam Scott Jason Dufner a Matt Fitzpatrick (US Amateur Champion)
( Scott loving the defending champ role, his father played with him twice this week, if it wasn't so tough to repeat he'd be my pick )
Group 17 10.52am Jordan Speith Patrick Reed Rory McIlroy
( 3 young guns, Speith, Reed winners already this year, Rory is the 8-1 favourite)
Group 24 12.20pm Matt Kuchar Louis Oosthuizen Thongchai Jaidee
( Matt Kuchar is in form, last pairing last 2 weeks, 8 T10's, should be in the mix, and don't overlook Jaidee who just led his Asian Team to a great comeback draw against Europe in Malaysia)
Group 25 12.31pm Trevor Immelman Graham DeLaet, a Oliver Goss
( Delaet played good old cribbage during the rainout Monday, will watch with interest as he takes his great ball striking around Augusta)
Group 28 1.04pm Jason Day Dustin Johnson Henrik Stenson
( no surprise if the winner isn't in this group, and big DJ always has Ms Gretzky waiting should he fail....)
Group 29 1.15pm Bubba Watson Luke Donald Sergio Garcia
( Bubba got an attack of the allergies but has a win and 2 seconds, Sergio may be playing his best golf and is still only 34 )
Group 32 1.59pm Phil Mickelson Ernie Els Justin Rose
(2nd last group of the day for TV, Phil was solid in Houston, Justin has had 2 weeks off working with Sean Foley and Ernie still has the world rooting for him )
Bryan Angus
In keeping with tradition the Thursday/Friday tee times were just announced and there are story lines galore.
Here are a few that caught my attention..
Group 8 9.02am Mike Weir with Matt Every and Roberto Castro
( always watch Weirsy, he's the one Canadian who doesn't think he's done)
Group 9 9.13am Angel Cabrera with Gary Woodland and Ian Poulter
( Cabrera has new shock absorbing Ping shafts to take the pressure off his torn left shoulder and he is feeling great, bombs away with he and Woodland, Pully will be hitting first into greens)
Group 16 10.41am Adam Scott Jason Dufner a Matt Fitzpatrick (US Amateur Champion)
( Scott loving the defending champ role, his father played with him twice this week, if it wasn't so tough to repeat he'd be my pick )
Group 17 10.52am Jordan Speith Patrick Reed Rory McIlroy
( 3 young guns, Speith, Reed winners already this year, Rory is the 8-1 favourite)
Group 24 12.20pm Matt Kuchar Louis Oosthuizen Thongchai Jaidee
( Matt Kuchar is in form, last pairing last 2 weeks, 8 T10's, should be in the mix, and don't overlook Jaidee who just led his Asian Team to a great comeback draw against Europe in Malaysia)
Group 25 12.31pm Trevor Immelman Graham DeLaet, a Oliver Goss
( Delaet played good old cribbage during the rainout Monday, will watch with interest as he takes his great ball striking around Augusta)
Group 28 1.04pm Jason Day Dustin Johnson Henrik Stenson
( no surprise if the winner isn't in this group, and big DJ always has Ms Gretzky waiting should he fail....)
Group 29 1.15pm Bubba Watson Luke Donald Sergio Garcia
( Bubba got an attack of the allergies but has a win and 2 seconds, Sergio may be playing his best golf and is still only 34 )
Group 32 1.59pm Phil Mickelson Ernie Els Justin Rose
(2nd last group of the day for TV, Phil was solid in Houston, Justin has had 2 weeks off working with Sean Foley and Ernie still has the world rooting for him )
Bryan Angus
Tuesday morning at Augusta..
If you are just getting up most anywhere in the NE States certainly here in southern Ontario, we have received the rain overnight much like the system that swept through Georgia yesterday shutting down Augusta, but fear not, the gazillion dollars they spent on subterranean drainage and a forecast for the tournament that is near perfect with zero rain expected and temperatures that will gradually rise into the low 80s by Sunday with winds that will be occasionally moderate at worst, the 78th Masters will get underway for most starting this morning.
In fact the gates have just opened at 8am, it will be a wet walk for the patrons outside the ropes today
But what of all the poor "patrons" who got turfed off the course yesterday after flying. driving, sailing from around the world for their highly anticipated day on this hilly gorgeous former nursery. Surely Billy Bob and the other 'Green Jackets" could do better than " You will receive a refund in May and have a shot at buying Monday tickets for 2015"...
I like Craig Stadler, he comes up here (Toronto) every year to Woodensticks to support Dick Grimms charity tourney and he is as down to earth a guy as you could meet. He won the 1982 Masters when his son Kevin was 2, and on Thursday they will become the first father son combo to play in the Masters at the same time.
Tiger's surgery means he will lose his world #1 status soon, maybe this week. Adam Scott, Henrik Stenson or Jason Day could well be #1 come Sunday evening. Scott has to T3 or better, Stenson T2 and Day has to win, with a few wrinkles thrown into that equation.
There are seven Aussie's at Augusta, John Senden, Steven Bowditch,and Matt Jones all just won recently. Jason Day just back from a wrist/thumb injury won the Match Play in February. Marc Leishman T4 here last year, Adam Scott won it. 2013 U.S. Amateur runner-up Oliver Goss makes it a "magnificent seven"
Patrick Reed, is just one of 24 first-timers in this year's field. He made it with his Wyndham Championship last August, then backed it up with another pair of victories in 2013-14, the last at Doral in the Cadillac Championship. The only player to win it in his first appearance was Frank Urban Zoeller when he beat Greg Norman in 1979. You know him better as Fuzzy..
Wonder what Graham DeLaet playing his first Masters did during the rainout ? Well just like you and I do ( I assume without the beers) on a rainy day at the cottage. He organized a cribbage tournament !!
More to follow as the day goes on...
Bryan Angus
Monday, April 7, 2014
Monday rain closes Augusta National for practice and "patrons"
Due to heavy storms, Augusta National has decided to close up shop for the day.
The course was initially cleared around 10 a.m. EDT with the hopes that the rain might veer off and allow patrons to return to the course. But the storms have become stronger and it was deemed necessary to close the course until Tuesday morning
For patrons who had Monday practice-round tickets, the club announced that all of those patrons will receive refunds in May and guaranteed a chance to purchase practice-round tickets for the 2015 Masters.
According to Augusta National, the last time the club was closed on an official practice or tournament day due to bad weather was Monday, April 7, 2003.
If the forecast holds true, it looks as though the bad weather will be gone by Tuesday morning and sunny skies are expected for the remainder of the week
McIlroy / Scott 10/1 favourites to win Masters
In the absence of Tiger Woods, the bookies have installed Rory and Adam as 10/1 favourites in as open a field as I've seen in years at Augusta.. Graham DeLaet in his first trip is at 50/1 and Mike Weir can pay off your mortgage at 1000/1.
How about Angel Cabrera, now 82nd in the world, playing nicely at Houston, winner in 2009 and had Adam dead to rights last year, at 40/1, Matt Kuchar who has lost the last 2 events and was right there last year until 17 at 12/1
There is all kinds of value in this year's field, I will be posting my top 10 for you poolies on Wednesday
Rory McIlroy . . . 10/1
Adam Scott . . . 10/1
Phil Mickelson . . . 12/1
Jason Day . . . 12/1
Matt Kuchar . . . 12/1
Dustin Johnson . . . 20/1
Bubba Watson . . . 20/1
Dustin Johnson . . . 20/1
Bubba Watson . . . 20/1
Justin Rose . . . 25/1
Brandt Snedeker . . . 25/1
Henrik Stenson . . . 25/1
Sergio Garcia . . . 25/1
Zach Johnson . . . 25/1
Jason Dufner . . . 30/1
Keegan Bradley . . . 30/1
Jordan Spieth . . . 30/1
Lee Westwood . . . 40/1
Charl Schwartzel . . . 40/1
Hunter Mahan . . . 40/1
Angel Cabrera . . . 40/1
Harris English . . . 40/1
Luke Donald . . . 50/1
Graeme McDowell . . . 50/1
Ian Poulter . . . 50/1
Rickie Fowler . . . 50/1
Graham DeLaet . . . 50/1
Jimmy Walker . . . 50/1
Louis Oosthuizen . . . 60/1
Ryan Moore . . . 60/1
Gary Woodland . . . 60/1
Steve Stricker . . . 80/1
Webb Simpson . . . 80/1
Bill Haas . . . 80/1
Jim Furyk . . . 80/1
Hideki Matsuyama . . . 80/1
K.J. Choi . . . 100/1
Ernie Els . . . 100/1
Fred Couples . . . 100/1
Bryan Angus
How about Angel Cabrera, now 82nd in the world, playing nicely at Houston, winner in 2009 and had Adam dead to rights last year, at 40/1, Matt Kuchar who has lost the last 2 events and was right there last year until 17 at 12/1
There is all kinds of value in this year's field, I will be posting my top 10 for you poolies on Wednesday
Rory McIlroy . . . 10/1
Adam Scott . . . 10/1
Bryan Angus
Here's the field, weather for this week's 78th Masters
The following 97 players (91 pros 6 amateurs) have qualified and are expected to compete in the 78th Masters. Players are only listed in the first category for which they are eligible. There are 2 Canadians, Mike Weir and Graham DeLaet
MASTERS CHAMPIONS: Adam Scott, Bubba Watson, Charl Schwartzel, Phil Mickelson, Angel Cabrera, Trevor Immelman, Zach Johnson, Mike Weir, Vijay Singh, Jose Maria Olazabal, Mark O’Meara, Ben Crenshaw, Bernhard Langer, Fred Couples, Ian Woosnam, Sandy Lyle, Larry Mize, Craig Stadler, Tom Watson.
U.S. OPEN CHAMPIONS (five years): Justin Rose, Webb Simpson, Rory McIlroy, Graeme McDowell, Lucas Glover.
BRITISH OPEN CHAMPIONS (five years): Ernie Els, Darren Clarke, Louis Oosthuizen, Stewart Cink.
PGA CHAMPIONS (five years): Jason Dufner, Keegan Bradley, Martin Kaymer, Y.E. Yang.
PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIPS CHAMPIONS (three years): Matt Kuchar, K.J. Choi.
U.S. AMATEUR CHAMPION AND RUNNER-UP: a-Matt Fitzpatrick, a-Oliver Goss
.
BRITISH AMATEUR CHAMPION: a-Garrick Porteous.
U.S. AMATEUR PUBLIC LINKS CHAMPION: a-Jordan Niebrugge.
U.S. MID-AMATEUR CHAMPION: a-Michael McCoy.
ASIAN AMATEUR CHAMPION: a-Lee Chang-woo.
TOP 12 AND TIES-2013 MASTERS: Jason Day, Marc Leishman, Thorbjorn Olesen, Brandt Snedeker, Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood, Tim Clark, John Huh.
TOP FOUR AND TIES-2013 U.S. OPEN: Billy Horschel, Hunter Mahan.
TOP FOUR AND TIES-2013 BRITISH OPEN: Henrik Stenson, Ian Poulter.
TOP FOUR AND TIES-2013 PGA CHAMPIONSHIP: Jim Furyk, Jonas Blixt.
PGA TOUR EVENT WINNERS SINCE 2013 MASTERS (FULL FEDEX CUP POINTS AWARDED): Derek Ernst, Sang-Moon Bae, Boo Weekley, Harris English, Ken Duke, Bill Haas, Jordan Spieth, Patrick Reed, Jimmy Walker, Ryan Moore, Dustin Johnson, Chris Kirk, Scott Stallings, Kevin Stadler, Russell Henley, John Senden, Matt Every, Steven Bowditch, Matt Jones.
FIELD FROM THE 2013 TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP: Steve Stricker, Roberto Castro, Nick Watney, Brendon de Jonge, Luke Donald, Gary Woodland, Kevin Streelman, D.A. Points, Graham DeLaet.
TOP 50 FROM FINAL WORLD RANKING IN 2013: Hideki Matsuyama, Thomas Bjorn, Jamie Donaldson, Victor Dubuisson, Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Francesco Molinari, Rickie Fowler, Matteo Manassero, David Lynn, Thongchai Jaidee, Peter Hanson, Joost Luiten, Branden Grace.
TOP 50 FROM WORLD RANKING ON MARCH 30: Stephen Gallacher.
WEATHER FORECAST
A storm system will affect the Augusta National Golf Club, Ga., area during the upcoming practice rounds. The system is forecast to roll northeastward across Georgia from the Gulf of Mexico through today. Thunderstorms capable of turning severe with damaging winds and downpours will move in for this afternoon and evening.
Augusta National takes no chances when thunderstorms come calling. The course has its own mini weather center where officials monitor radars and lightning. This way, golfers, spectators and crews can be evacuated from the course as soon as possible, when the situation warrants
The rain could be heavy enough to make the ground soggy. The rain could be frequent enough and the storms strong enough to disrupt practice this day
Cooler weather is expected to settle in across the area Tuesday and Wednesday for practice both days. Dry weather is expected to dominate on Tuesday and a shower will narrowly bypass the region on Wednesday
The weather for the four rounds of tournament play Thursday through Saturday is expected to be ideal for golf with light winds and warm sunshine.
High temperatures will trend upward through the 70s and 80s Thursday through Saturday.
Depending upon the speed of a distant storm system Sunday, there could be more clouds, lower temperatures and a shower or thunderstorm to close out the day on the 4th and Final Round
Bryan Angus
(files from eutopeantour, CP)
MASTERS CHAMPIONS: Adam Scott, Bubba Watson, Charl Schwartzel, Phil Mickelson, Angel Cabrera, Trevor Immelman, Zach Johnson, Mike Weir, Vijay Singh, Jose Maria Olazabal, Mark O’Meara, Ben Crenshaw, Bernhard Langer, Fred Couples, Ian Woosnam, Sandy Lyle, Larry Mize, Craig Stadler, Tom Watson.
U.S. OPEN CHAMPIONS (five years): Justin Rose, Webb Simpson, Rory McIlroy, Graeme McDowell, Lucas Glover.
BRITISH OPEN CHAMPIONS (five years): Ernie Els, Darren Clarke, Louis Oosthuizen, Stewart Cink.
PGA CHAMPIONS (five years): Jason Dufner, Keegan Bradley, Martin Kaymer, Y.E. Yang.
PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIPS CHAMPIONS (three years): Matt Kuchar, K.J. Choi.
U.S. AMATEUR CHAMPION AND RUNNER-UP: a-Matt Fitzpatrick, a-Oliver Goss
.
BRITISH AMATEUR CHAMPION: a-Garrick Porteous.
U.S. AMATEUR PUBLIC LINKS CHAMPION: a-Jordan Niebrugge.
U.S. MID-AMATEUR CHAMPION: a-Michael McCoy.
ASIAN AMATEUR CHAMPION: a-Lee Chang-woo.
TOP 12 AND TIES-2013 MASTERS: Jason Day, Marc Leishman, Thorbjorn Olesen, Brandt Snedeker, Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood, Tim Clark, John Huh.
TOP FOUR AND TIES-2013 U.S. OPEN: Billy Horschel, Hunter Mahan.
TOP FOUR AND TIES-2013 BRITISH OPEN: Henrik Stenson, Ian Poulter.
TOP FOUR AND TIES-2013 PGA CHAMPIONSHIP: Jim Furyk, Jonas Blixt.
PGA TOUR EVENT WINNERS SINCE 2013 MASTERS (FULL FEDEX CUP POINTS AWARDED): Derek Ernst, Sang-Moon Bae, Boo Weekley, Harris English, Ken Duke, Bill Haas, Jordan Spieth, Patrick Reed, Jimmy Walker, Ryan Moore, Dustin Johnson, Chris Kirk, Scott Stallings, Kevin Stadler, Russell Henley, John Senden, Matt Every, Steven Bowditch, Matt Jones.
FIELD FROM THE 2013 TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP: Steve Stricker, Roberto Castro, Nick Watney, Brendon de Jonge, Luke Donald, Gary Woodland, Kevin Streelman, D.A. Points, Graham DeLaet.
TOP 50 FROM FINAL WORLD RANKING IN 2013: Hideki Matsuyama, Thomas Bjorn, Jamie Donaldson, Victor Dubuisson, Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Francesco Molinari, Rickie Fowler, Matteo Manassero, David Lynn, Thongchai Jaidee, Peter Hanson, Joost Luiten, Branden Grace.
TOP 50 FROM WORLD RANKING ON MARCH 30: Stephen Gallacher.
WEATHER FORECAST
A storm system will affect the Augusta National Golf Club, Ga., area during the upcoming practice rounds. The system is forecast to roll northeastward across Georgia from the Gulf of Mexico through today. Thunderstorms capable of turning severe with damaging winds and downpours will move in for this afternoon and evening.
Augusta National takes no chances when thunderstorms come calling. The course has its own mini weather center where officials monitor radars and lightning. This way, golfers, spectators and crews can be evacuated from the course as soon as possible, when the situation warrants
The rain could be heavy enough to make the ground soggy. The rain could be frequent enough and the storms strong enough to disrupt practice this day
Cooler weather is expected to settle in across the area Tuesday and Wednesday for practice both days. Dry weather is expected to dominate on Tuesday and a shower will narrowly bypass the region on Wednesday
The weather for the four rounds of tournament play Thursday through Saturday is expected to be ideal for golf with light winds and warm sunshine.
High temperatures will trend upward through the 70s and 80s Thursday through Saturday.
Depending upon the speed of a distant storm system Sunday, there could be more clouds, lower temperatures and a shower or thunderstorm to close out the day on the 4th and Final Round
Bryan Angus
(files from eutopeantour, CP)
Thursday, April 3, 2014
Jones storms to win in Houston, Thompson wins the Kraft
LPGA TOUR
KRAFT NABISCO CHAMPIONSHIP
Site: Rancho Mirage, Calif.
Course: Mission Hills Country Club, Dinah Shore Tournament Course (6,738 yards, par 72).
Canadians Rebecca Lee-Bentham MC 80 72 Brooke Henderson T26 77 68 71 74 +1
Round 4
Lexi Thompson closed with a bogey-free 4-under 68 at Mission Hills for a three-stroke victory over Michelle Wie. Thompson birdied four of the first nine holes to open a five-stroke lead and parred the final nine.
Wie birdied the final hole for a 71. She used her driver only four times, choosing to hit fairway-metal stingers on the other 10 driving holes – leaving her as much as 60 yards behind Thompson. When both hit 3-woods, Thompson also had the advantage.
Thompson became the second-youngest major winner in LPGA Tour history at 19 years, 1 month, 27 days. Morgan Pressel set the record in her 2007 victory at Mission Hills at 18 years, 10 months, 9 days.
Thompson finished at 14-under 274 for her fourth LPGA Tour victory
Stacy Lewis, the 2011 winner, had a 67 to finish third at 7 under. Cristie Kerr and Se Ri Pak tied for fourth at 6 under. Kerr shot 72, and Pak had a 72.
Team Canada’s Brooke Henderson shot a 2-over par 74 Sunday. The 16-year-old from Smiths Falls, Ont. tied for 26th with two others at 1-over 289. She’s currently ranked 6th in the World Amateur Golf Rankings
Live scoring click http://www.lpgascoring.com/public/Leaderboard.aspx
PGA TOUR
HOUSTON OPEN
Site: Humble, Texas.
Course: Golf Club of Houston, The Tournament (7,441 yards, par 72).
Canadians Graham DeLaet -2 70 71 72 70 -5, David Hearn MC 75 , Mike Weir MC76, Stephen Ames E 72 71 78 76 +9
Round 4
Matt Jones earned his first trip to the Masters with a remarkable 42-yard chip-in on the first playoff hole, outdueling Matt Kuchar on his way to winning the Houston Open on Sunday.
The win is the first on the PGA Tour for the Australian, who made a 46-foot birdie putt on the 72nd hole to reach the playoff. He ended it one hole later, chipping over the right front bunker on the 18th and watching it roll in.
Kuchar, who bogeyed the final hole of regulation, then missed his bunker shot to give Jones the win – earning him nearly $1.2 million and a trip to Augusta National.
Jones, who began the day six shots back of Kuchar, shot a final-round 66 and ended the tournament 15 under overall
It was the second straight final-round disaster for Kuchar, who shot a 75 in the final pair of last week’s Texas Open on his way to finishing fourth. Sergio Garcia finished in third at 13 under, while Cameron Tringale was fourth at 12 under.
Rory McIlroy matched the low round of the tournament with a 7-under 65 on Sunday, finishing tied for seventh at 8 under overall. Phil Mickelson, who won the tournament in 2011, was 1 under on Sunday and finished 7 under overall in a tie for 12th
Graham DeLaet climbed four spots up the leaderboard Sunday thanks to a 2-under 70 and finished 5-under-par, leaving him tied for 19th
Calgary’s Stephen Ames carded a 4-over 76 on the day. He tied Bubba Dickerson for 74th at 9-over 297
.
Live scoring http://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/shell-houston-open/leaderboard.html
EUROPEAN TOUR/EUROPEAN CHALLENGE TOUR
NH COLLECTION OPEN
Site: Cadiz, Spain.
Course: La Reserva de Sotogrande Golf Club (7,234 yards, par 72).
Purse: $826,385. Winner's share: $137,730.
Round 4
Marco Crespi insisted a good start was key as he won his first European Tour title at the NH Collection Open in Spain.
The 35 year old, who came through Qualifying School at the 11th attempt in November to earn a first season on The European Tour, completed victory on only his 25th career start.
A three under par 69 gave the Italian a ten under total at La Reserva de Sotogrande Club de Golf and a two shot win over Spain’s Jordi Garcia Pinto and Scotland’s Richie Ramsay.
PGA Latino America
Mundo Maya Open
KRAFT NABISCO CHAMPIONSHIP
Site: Rancho Mirage, Calif.
Course: Mission Hills Country Club, Dinah Shore Tournament Course (6,738 yards, par 72).
Canadians Rebecca Lee-Bentham MC 80 72 Brooke Henderson T26 77 68 71 74 +1
Round 4
Lexi Thompson closed with a bogey-free 4-under 68 at Mission Hills for a three-stroke victory over Michelle Wie. Thompson birdied four of the first nine holes to open a five-stroke lead and parred the final nine.
Wie birdied the final hole for a 71. She used her driver only four times, choosing to hit fairway-metal stingers on the other 10 driving holes – leaving her as much as 60 yards behind Thompson. When both hit 3-woods, Thompson also had the advantage.
Thompson became the second-youngest major winner in LPGA Tour history at 19 years, 1 month, 27 days. Morgan Pressel set the record in her 2007 victory at Mission Hills at 18 years, 10 months, 9 days.
Thompson finished at 14-under 274 for her fourth LPGA Tour victory
Stacy Lewis, the 2011 winner, had a 67 to finish third at 7 under. Cristie Kerr and Se Ri Pak tied for fourth at 6 under. Kerr shot 72, and Pak had a 72.
Team Canada’s Brooke Henderson shot a 2-over par 74 Sunday. The 16-year-old from Smiths Falls, Ont. tied for 26th with two others at 1-over 289. She’s currently ranked 6th in the World Amateur Golf Rankings
Live scoring click http://www.lpgascoring.com/public/Leaderboard.aspx
PGA TOUR
HOUSTON OPEN
Site: Humble, Texas.
Course: Golf Club of Houston, The Tournament (7,441 yards, par 72).
Canadians Graham DeLaet -2 70 71 72 70 -5, David Hearn MC 75 , Mike Weir MC76, Stephen Ames E 72 71 78 76 +9
Round 4
Matt Jones earned his first trip to the Masters with a remarkable 42-yard chip-in on the first playoff hole, outdueling Matt Kuchar on his way to winning the Houston Open on Sunday.
The win is the first on the PGA Tour for the Australian, who made a 46-foot birdie putt on the 72nd hole to reach the playoff. He ended it one hole later, chipping over the right front bunker on the 18th and watching it roll in.
Kuchar, who bogeyed the final hole of regulation, then missed his bunker shot to give Jones the win – earning him nearly $1.2 million and a trip to Augusta National.
Jones, who began the day six shots back of Kuchar, shot a final-round 66 and ended the tournament 15 under overall
It was the second straight final-round disaster for Kuchar, who shot a 75 in the final pair of last week’s Texas Open on his way to finishing fourth. Sergio Garcia finished in third at 13 under, while Cameron Tringale was fourth at 12 under.
Rory McIlroy matched the low round of the tournament with a 7-under 65 on Sunday, finishing tied for seventh at 8 under overall. Phil Mickelson, who won the tournament in 2011, was 1 under on Sunday and finished 7 under overall in a tie for 12th
Graham DeLaet climbed four spots up the leaderboard Sunday thanks to a 2-under 70 and finished 5-under-par, leaving him tied for 19th
Calgary’s Stephen Ames carded a 4-over 76 on the day. He tied Bubba Dickerson for 74th at 9-over 297
.
Live scoring http://www.pgatour.com/tournaments/shell-houston-open/leaderboard.html
EUROPEAN TOUR/EUROPEAN CHALLENGE TOUR
NH COLLECTION OPEN
Site: Cadiz, Spain.
Course: La Reserva de Sotogrande Golf Club (7,234 yards, par 72).
Purse: $826,385. Winner's share: $137,730.
Round 4
Marco Crespi insisted a good start was key as he won his first European Tour title at the NH Collection Open in Spain.
The 35 year old, who came through Qualifying School at the 11th attempt in November to earn a first season on The European Tour, completed victory on only his 25th career start.
A three under par 69 gave the Italian a ten under total at La Reserva de Sotogrande Club de Golf and a two shot win over Spain’s Jordi Garcia Pinto and Scotland’s Richie Ramsay.
Live scoring click http://www.europeantour.com/europeantour/season=2014/tournamentid=2014026/leaderboard/index.html
PGA Latino America
Mundo Maya Open
Mar 31- Apr 6, Yucatán Country Club - El Jaguar
Round 4
Argentina's Jorge Fernandez Valdes handled the pressure of multiple players to become champion of the Mundo Maya Open on Sunday afternoon. En route to his long awaited first win as a professional, Fernandez-Valdes became the youngest winner in the history of the NEC Series PGA TOUR Latinoamérica.
The young Argentine Champion, with 20 years, 9 months and 13 days old, surpassed the mark set by compatriot Tommy Cocha, who coincidentally won this same event in September last year while being only seven months older.
Leading by two shots at the start of the day, Fernandez-Valdes shot a 1-over 73 to prevail by one at The Jaguar's Yucatan Country
Round 4
Argentina's Jorge Fernandez Valdes handled the pressure of multiple players to become champion of the Mundo Maya Open on Sunday afternoon. En route to his long awaited first win as a professional, Fernandez-Valdes became the youngest winner in the history of the NEC Series PGA TOUR Latinoamérica.
The young Argentine Champion, with 20 years, 9 months and 13 days old, surpassed the mark set by compatriot Tommy Cocha, who coincidentally won this same event in September last year while being only seven months older.
Leading by two shots at the start of the day, Fernandez-Valdes shot a 1-over 73 to prevail by one at The Jaguar's Yucatan Country
Live scoring click here http://www.pgatourla.com/leaderboard/m2014060/?lg=en#.Uz1CE-bD_Mx
Bryan Angus
(files from BBC Reuters, AP CP, europeantour.com)
Bryan Angus
(files from BBC Reuters, AP CP, europeantour.com)
Wednesday, April 2, 2014
Woods to miss Masters, most of summer schedule..
CP Tiger Woods chose surgery to heal his ailing back over a quest for another green jacket, announcing Tuesday that he will miss the Masters for the first time in his career.
Woods said on his website that he had surgery Monday in Utah for a pinched nerve that had been hurting him for several months, knowing the surgery would keep him from Augusta National next week for the first time since he was a senior in high school. The No. 1 player in the world is a four-time Masters champion.
"After attempting to get ready for the Masters, and failing to make the necessary progress, I decided in consultation with my doctors to have this procedure done, Woods said. "I'd like to express my disappointment to the Augusta National membership, staff, volunteers and patrons that I will not be at the Masters. It's a week that's very special to me," he said. "It also looks like I'll be forced to miss several upcoming tournaments to focus on my rehabilitation and getting healthy."
The Masters gets the highest television ratings of any golf tournament, and Woods commands most of the attention, even though he last won a green jacket in 2005. He won his first Masters in 1997 when he set 20 records, from youngest Masters champion at 21 to his 12-shot margin of victory.
Jack Nicklaus played 154 straight majors for which he was eligible until he missed the 1998 British Open because of an ailing left hip that he had replaced a year later. Nicklaus rarely had injury problems in compiling 18 professional majors, the record that Woods wants. Woods has been stuck on 14 majors for six years.
Woods has had four surgeries on his left knee, and now his biggest concern is his back.
Woods said he had a microdiscectomy for the pinched nerve, performed by neurosurgeon Charles Rich. A microdiscectomy is a type of minimally invasive spine surgery to relieve pressure and pain caused by a herniated disc. Operating through a small incision in the lower back, surgeons remove small disc fragments that are pressing against spinal nerves.
Recovery can take several weeks and doctors typically advise against bending and twisting the back until patients are completely healed
"This is frustrating," Woods said. "But it's something my doctors advised me to do for my immediate and long-term health."
His website said repeating the motion of a golf swing can cause problems with a pinched nerve, and that the injury could have become worse if he had continued to play. Woods said he hopes to return to golf this summer, though he could not say when.
He will have to wait until the U.S. Open or likely longer to resume his quest to match Nicklaus in the majors. Woods won his 14th major at the 2008 U.S. Open on a badly injured left leg that required season-ending surgery two days after his playoff win at Torrey Pines.He has not won another major since then.
This would have been the 20th straight Masters for Woods, dating to 1995 when he tied for 41st as the U.S. Amateur champion. He missed the British Open and PGA Championship in 2008 after knee surgery, and the U.S. Open and British Open in 2011 to heal more injuries in his left leg.
Even though he hasn't won the Masters in nine years, he had only finished out of the top 10 one time, in 2012. Woods has 79 career wins on the PGA Tour, three short of the record held by Sam Snead.
"It's tough right now, but I'm absolutely optimistic about the future," Woods said. "There are a couple (of) records by two outstanding individuals and players that I hope one day to break. As I've said many times, Sam and Jack reached their milestones over an entire career. I plan to have a lot of years left in mine
Woods said on his website that he had surgery Monday in Utah for a pinched nerve that had been hurting him for several months, knowing the surgery would keep him from Augusta National next week for the first time since he was a senior in high school. The No. 1 player in the world is a four-time Masters champion.
"After attempting to get ready for the Masters, and failing to make the necessary progress, I decided in consultation with my doctors to have this procedure done, Woods said. "I'd like to express my disappointment to the Augusta National membership, staff, volunteers and patrons that I will not be at the Masters. It's a week that's very special to me," he said. "It also looks like I'll be forced to miss several upcoming tournaments to focus on my rehabilitation and getting healthy."
The Masters gets the highest television ratings of any golf tournament, and Woods commands most of the attention, even though he last won a green jacket in 2005. He won his first Masters in 1997 when he set 20 records, from youngest Masters champion at 21 to his 12-shot margin of victory.
Jack Nicklaus played 154 straight majors for which he was eligible until he missed the 1998 British Open because of an ailing left hip that he had replaced a year later. Nicklaus rarely had injury problems in compiling 18 professional majors, the record that Woods wants. Woods has been stuck on 14 majors for six years.
Woods has had four surgeries on his left knee, and now his biggest concern is his back.
Woods said he had a microdiscectomy for the pinched nerve, performed by neurosurgeon Charles Rich. A microdiscectomy is a type of minimally invasive spine surgery to relieve pressure and pain caused by a herniated disc. Operating through a small incision in the lower back, surgeons remove small disc fragments that are pressing against spinal nerves.
Recovery can take several weeks and doctors typically advise against bending and twisting the back until patients are completely healed
"This is frustrating," Woods said. "But it's something my doctors advised me to do for my immediate and long-term health."
His website said repeating the motion of a golf swing can cause problems with a pinched nerve, and that the injury could have become worse if he had continued to play. Woods said he hopes to return to golf this summer, though he could not say when.
He will have to wait until the U.S. Open or likely longer to resume his quest to match Nicklaus in the majors. Woods won his 14th major at the 2008 U.S. Open on a badly injured left leg that required season-ending surgery two days after his playoff win at Torrey Pines.He has not won another major since then.
This would have been the 20th straight Masters for Woods, dating to 1995 when he tied for 41st as the U.S. Amateur champion. He missed the British Open and PGA Championship in 2008 after knee surgery, and the U.S. Open and British Open in 2011 to heal more injuries in his left leg.
Even though he hasn't won the Masters in nine years, he had only finished out of the top 10 one time, in 2012. Woods has 79 career wins on the PGA Tour, three short of the record held by Sam Snead.
"It's tough right now, but I'm absolutely optimistic about the future," Woods said. "There are a couple (of) records by two outstanding individuals and players that I hope one day to break. As I've said many times, Sam and Jack reached their milestones over an entire career. I plan to have a lot of years left in mine
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