Mike Weir is in Naples Florida this week as he begins his long road back to what he hopes will be a return to full status on the PGA Tour. He is paired with Sean O'Hair in the Franklin Templeton Shoot-out, one of the fun events in this the Silly Season for golf, but it has a deadly serious purpose
This is Greg Norman's event and he is a trustee of CureSearch National Childhood Cancer Foundation, who are the principal benefactor of the tournament.
It is a national non-profit foundation that accelerates the cure for children's cancer by solving the field's most challenging problems. CureSearch is in the fight to make treatment possible and a cure probable for the 43 children diagnosed with cancer daily.
There is a purse of $3.1 million at Tiburón Golf Club in Naples, and everyone stays at the on-site Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort. There are 12 teams of two as usual. It's a full week, they have already raised a ton of money in the two-day Pro-Ams, now the 54-hole modified alternate shot, better ball and scramble formats start at 940am this morning.
Norman isn't playing this year, in fact he doesn't play much at all anymore, but he is the host and will put on an instructional clinic after play on Friday, and host a 5k run on Saturday morning, both raising more money for this charity.
Understandably it's not the strongest field ever with golfers spread out all around the world, most taking 3 weeks off until the start of the new year.
The first winners back in 1989 were Curtis Strange and Mark O'Meara 66 62 62 190. Fred Couples and Ray Floyd had the all time low score in 1990, -34, 64 57 61 182 matched in 2013 by Matt Kuchar and Harris English 64 60 58.
The first winners back in 1989 were Curtis Strange and Mark O'Meara 66 62 62 190. Fred Couples and Ray Floyd had the all time low score in 1990, -34, 64 57 61 182 matched in 2013 by Matt Kuchar and Harris English 64 60 58.
Jason Day and Cameron Tringale won it last year 55 64 65 184, but Day is not here this year, taking time off with his new daughter in Ohio, after his incredible late run this summer
As for Weirsy he hasn't had a lot of success here, but has been a regular. His first year was 2010 with KJ Choi 67 62 63 -24 T5, he returned from injury in 2012 with Mark Calcavecchia and finished last at -10, teamed up with Graham DeLaet in 2013, 73 64 60 -19 and last year paired with Retief Goosen 60 74 67 -15
This year I am picking JB Holmes and Patrick Reed to win it all, edging Zach Johnson and Patrick Rodgers, but the $385,000 the winners each get doesn't really matter...the money they raise for charity does..
Bryan Angus
No comments:
Post a Comment