60 And Counting

Well, I could hardly let a near milestone on the PGA Tour go unnoticed from yesterday’s opening round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open, now could I?

Golf fans everywhere, Phil Mickelson is back…well, at least he was yesterday, and it was both sporting triumph and heartbreak rolled all into one.

If you remember Phil’s play from last week out in Torrey Pines, which could be hard to do considering how low down on the leaderboard he was…well, let’s just say it wasn’t pretty.

Phil’s driver seemed at times like it was poised to try and stretch his drives across the Pacific ocean, and playing from the wilds of the South Course is no fun, as those holes are long and difficult to reach when you’re playing from the middle of the fairways, never mind in from near the condos and office buildings sidling up along the course.

But all that changed when Phil A) put a new driver in the bag and B) flew coach Butch Harmon in for a swing tune up.

So yesterday, in Phoenix, where the crowds love to drink beer and act like they’re at a NASCAR race on the par-3 16th (It’s the only PGA stop I know of where fans actually boo the players if they miss the green on their drive!), Phil brought his new driver and swing and attitude to town!

It went a little something like this: Birdie, Par, Birdie, Birdie, Par Par, Birdie, Par Par.

Then, the back nine went like this: Birdie, Birdie, Birdie, Birdie, Par, Par, Birdie, Birdie, Birdie.

Only, it actually went that way in reverse, because Phil shotgunned his start on the 10th tee.

So here’s where the drama comes in: On hole 8, he needed one more birdie and then par to shoot a 59, something only five other golfers have ever done in PGA Tour history in a professional round.

And, if he birdied 9, he would have shot 58, to my knowledge, a first in Tour history.

He gets to 8 in 2 shots, and has, I’m guessing, about a 20 foot downhiller with a slight left to it. He lines up the putt, strikes it, and the thing runs out of gas centimeters from the hole.

So it won’t be his day for a 58, not unless he eagles 9.

On 9, he once again gets it to the green in 2, and voila, now he has about a 25 footer that takes a little bit more left.

He lines up, thousands surrounding the green, most probably clued into the history that might be made here…the putt’s off and on a gorgeous trajectory to the hole…it comes along the right side of the hole and decides to make a U-turn at the very last second, gravity pulling it against the back of the cup and back around the other side and…up and out of the hole, again centimeters away from the hole.

The golfing gods can be so, so incredibly cruel. It was as if you could hear Zeus roaring down with laughter from up the road in La Jolla.

Phil’s longtime caddie, “Bones,” fell to the green on his knees, ready to sacrifice himself to the great “Caddyshack” gods in the sky to make that putt please, please, please roll back into the hole.

After the round, the Golf Channel correspondent interviewed Phil, and you could see the pain in his eyes.

Yes, of course, he shot a 60, something golfers also don’t get to do very often (and which, I can assure you, I’ll never do, unless it’s on the front nine)…but, that special personal victory was oh so close, and yes, Phil answered, he knew within the first few holes on the front nine there was something special in the air, and that he could well be on his way to a record round.

Phil continues his lead today at 14 under as of this writing, and if it keeps this up, nobody can touch him.

But boy, what he wouldn’t do to have one more shot at that putt, and the PGA Tour history books.

Europe Keeps The Cup

The memory of former Ryder Cup captain and player, Seve Ballasteros, was never further than the flap of the Euro teams’ golf bag in this weekend’s “Miracle at Medinah,” when the Euro team came back after a 10-6 trouncing by the U.S. on Friday and Saturday to retain their title and the Ryder Cup. Both sides celebrated Ballasteros’ life and contributions to golf throughout the entire week, highlighting the critical role the Spanish golfer, who succumbed to brain cancer last year, played in breathing new life into the once-every-two-year event and in making it “must-see” golf television.

For true golf fans, this past weekend’s Ryder Cup delivered on its promise as the most exciting event in golf, and maybe in all sports.

I wrote in this blog on Thursday that the Europeans had the advantage going into this year’s tournament, and boy did they prove it.

After a weak start by the Americans on Friday morning, the U.S. team turned the tide on Friday afternoon in the fourballs, with Keegan Bradley and Phil Mickelson coming to life.

After Saturday’s rounds, both foursomes and fourballs, the U.S. went into Sunday’s singles matches leading 10-6 — that meant they only needed to garner 4 1/2 points  on Sunday to take the Cup back from the Euros.

It wasn’t meant to be.

Euro captain Jose Marie Olafabal had other things in mind, including a similar 1999 comeback by the U.S. in Brookline when he was a player on that year’s Ryder Cup team.

Hovering over the entire event was the spirit and memory of great Spanish golfer Seve Ballasteros, who tragically succumbed to brain cancer last year.

Ballastero’s image was imprinted on each Euro player’s golf bag, and the spirit of Seve’s commitment and championing of the Ryder Cup as a great golf event was pervasive on all sides.

Ultimate, I believe it was that spirit that was channeled through and displayed by Olafabal’s European players.

Ian Poulter on Saturday afternoon eked out a single point in a close match played with Rory McIlroy against Jason Dufner and Zach Johnson, demonstrating nerves of steel in his play and especially his putting.

Yesterday, Poulter was at it again, beating U.S. Open Champion Webb Simpson 2 Up in a heated singles match.

Justin Rose demonstrated sheer brilliance on the last three holes yesterday, sinking one unbelievable putt after another, matching Phil Mickelson’s also exemplary play stroke for stroke.

Rose had mentioned in interviews this week that Seve Ballasteros had been a calming influence on him earlier in his career, assuaging him after he’d missed the cuts in a long run of tournaments several years back.

And Martin Kaymer’s six-footer to seal the entire deal was made with a calm and cool demeanor that was German to its core, and perhaps finally reversed the pain of a missed similar putt by Bernhard Langer in 1991’s Ryder Cup, one that would have retained the cup for Europe that year, the so-called “War By The Shore.”

No matter which side you were rooting for, this was definitely one for the ages, and my congratulations to the Euros on their holding on to the Cup — they earned it, and then some.

I watched every moment of the tournament that was aired on TV — some 26 hours worth — and it was nerve rattling sport from the first tee shot to the last putt.

You can refer to it as “Poulter-Geist” or “The Miracle at Medinah” or some other clever moniker.

I’m just going to remember it as another great and dramatic Ryder Cup, and bite my lip while I wait a long two years for the next one.

The Turbo TOUR Championship Preview

I haven’t written about golf in upwards of a week, so as we approach the start of the TOUR Championship (sponsored by my favorite soft drink of all time, Coca-Cola) at Atlanta East Lake, I thought I’d share my thoughts in advance of the first tee time.

The first thing I’ll say is Rory McIlroy. The guy’s just been a golf phenom this year, and yes, he’s had his ups and downs.  But he’s had more ups than downs of late, taking the last two tournaments and breaking from the field for the PGA Championship at Kiawah.

Can he win three PGA Tour victories in a row? If all facets of his game are on when he tees it up tomorrow, absolutely. But if Uninvincible Rory doesn’t show up, it breaks the field wide open.

To wit, enter Tiger Woods. He comes into Eastlake ranked # 2 behind Rory, but if Tiger can turn his putter back on, and stay consistent with the rest of his game, there’s no reason he couldn’t walk away from this golf feast with another FedExCup.

Tiger and Rory play together in tomorrow’s round.

Beyond that, we can’t forget Phil Mickelson.

He, too, was struggling with his putting this year, but the claw grip seems to be mostly working for him on the comeback.  If anything, Phil will have to have some discipline off the tees and not always be consumed with distance. East Lake is lined with tall pretty trees that you never want to see your golf ball get behind, so accuracy counts. That includes for you, too, Phil.

But I’m also keeping my eye on Brent Snedeker.  Never mind, the guy hits the ball faster than any golfer on tour. “No Yips Snedeker,” he should be called.

I want to take his putting and bottle it up and sell it at public courses everywhere, and with East Lake’s smooth Bermuda greens, and his cavalier hybrid play, Snedeker can not only attack the pins — he can sink the putts where he gets close.

If Snedeker gets an early lead, he’s going to have to buckle down and not allow bad course management (or fear) get in his way.

And then there’s also the looming South African, Louis Oosthuizen. Louis still has one of the most beautiful swings in golf, and his calm demeanor will be an advantage with the stakes being so high.

He’s had three top fives in his last five starts, so it’s not unimaginable for his consistent play to sneak up the leaderboard to win the TOUR Championship.

Of course, that’s just five of an excellent field of 30 pro golfers from around the world who will be playing in the TOUR Championship at East Lake — playing to win, and rehearsing for what I consider to be the real main event, next week’s Ryder Cup!

The Captain’s Picks

Boy, I need a vacation to recover from my vacation.

As I mentioned in the next to the last post, I tried to not spend too much time thinking about work while I was on vacation and trying to improve my golf game.

The best laid intentions and all that.

No, I did fine on not worrying too much about work (although I have a hard time not reading the news, being a news and blog junkie), but on the golf front, I guess there is such a thing as “too much of a good thing.”

After the three days of golf school, my dad and I had five days (and, therefore, rounds) of golf lined up, but what I didn’t count on was going on the injured reserve list.

Whenever you learn a whole new A) grip B) swing C) stance for your golf game, you also discover new muscles you didn’t know you had, and for me, I found one under my chest plate.

My dad and I played Tuesday through Saturday at various courses within an hour’s drive of Austin, and I even broke a new 9-hole record, shooting a 37 on the front nine of a local track here in Austin (back nine was a 44, for a total of 81).

So, golf school definitely had some positive impact, despite the injury, but by Saturday, I was barely able to turn back a swing for a drive, so I played a little more recreationally and a little less competitively.

But, my dad and I were able to catch most all of The Barclay’s on DVR replay, the first tournament in the “playoffs” for the 2012 PGA FedEX Cup Championship, and because it was played at Bethpage Black, the site of the 2002 and 2009 U.S. Opens, it was an extra special tournament to watch.

Not to forget the grueling 7,300+ yards, a course distance that gives us mere mortal golfers nightmares of 3-woods and hybrid clubs for days, never mind the short hitting pros.

No, it was the A.W. Tillinghast greens and beaches of sand that were this year’s Barclay’s stars, and ultimately it was Nick Watney who stole the show, playing consistently, and consistently in the fairways, and putting like a true genius.

Tiger Woods went low for a day or two before dropping back into the pack, and Sergio Garcia, despite not being seemingly able to find a steady caddy, hung near the top and/or the lead through the weekend, before giving Watney just enough distance for him to take the Barclays.

It was like watching the U.S. Open all over again.  Nothing gives me more satisfaction than watching the pros struggling to play a really difficult course — it reminds me that they, too, are subject to the vagaries and frustrations of the game.

Next stop in the FedEx Cup is the DeutscheBank, being played this holiday weekend at TPC Boston in Norton, Mass.

All you Bostonian amigos of mine, feel free to send me a plane ticket and a course pass — I could stand a long weekend on another golf course — just so long as I don’t have to swing a club myself just yet!

Of course, all this drama is really just a big build-up for individual players to the ultimate 2012 golf denouement, which is the ultimate team golfing event, the Ryder Cup, being held September 25-30 at Medinah, just outside Chicago.

Team Europe’s captain, Jose Maria Olazabal, announced his squad earlier today, and quite frankly, I’m tempted to root for Europe.

The team includes Luke Donald, Sergio Garcia (that pick was a no brainer, the way Sergio’s been playing), Peter Hanson, Martin Kaymer, Paul Lawrie, Rory McIlroy, Graeme McDowell, Francesco Molinari, Justin Rose, Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, and Nicolas Colsaerts.

It is a team, in short, that is a frickin’ golf powerhouse, with a solid balance between players who have been playing lights out golf of late, and veterans of the pressure cooker that is the Ryder Cup.

American captain David Love III will announce his captain’s picks next Tuesday.

I know I don’t get a vote, but for my money, you have to seriously consider Brant Snedeker, who went 7 under and took second at the Barclay’s with his brilliant putting, and Jim Furyk, who brings some much needed adult seasoning, despite his chokes at the U.S. Open and the WGA.

Otherwise, the core stable of Tiger Woods, Bubba Watson, Jason Dufner, Keegan Bradley, Webb Simpson, Zach Johnson, Matt Kuchar, and Phil Mickelson is also a formidable force, although it’d be great if Mickelson could try and keep his drives in Medinah somewhere close to the fairways, and get his putter rejiggered to boot.

I’d say Steve Stricker, Hunter Mahan, and/or Bill Haas will be the likely other two captain’s picks, but Love has another weekend to watch their play before making his final choice.

I hope and pray he picks well!

Dead Solid Perfect

Don’t think for a moment I didn’t notice that the PGA’s Tournament Players Championship tournament started yesterday down in Ponta Vedra Beach, Florida.

I’ve been busy this week, but not sooo busy that I would ignore this classic golfing event.

It is a tournament that began the week with Phil Mickelson’s induction into the World Golf Hall of Fame, along with Scottish golfer Sandy Lyle, Peter Alliss, and Hollis Stacy, and the incomparable Texas sportswriter, Dan Jenkins (author of Dead Solid Perfect and Semi-Tough).

You can watch some highlights of Dan’s acceptance speech, along with Phils’ and others, here.

It’s worth the price of admission just to hear Dan Jenkins riff the names of all the famous golfers he has either 1) played rounds of golf with 2) had cocktails with 3) written stories about.

Jenkins related one story in particular, whereby one of the greatest golfers ever, Ben Hogan, offered to give Jenkins golf lessons, three times a week, for four months, to prepare Jenkins to compete in the National Amateur.

Jenkins thanked Hogan profusely for the offer, but explained that all he’d ever wanted to be was a sportswriter.

Hogan looked at him like “he’d looked at other people, with that cold stare,” and, Jenkins explained, “you don’t know if you’re going to get a bullet in the head or a dagger in your heart. And so you just wait for him to speak.”

Finally, Hogan smiled and said, “Well, keep workin’ at it.”

“And that,” Jenkins explained, “is what I’ve been doing for the last sixty years.”

As for Michelson’s speech, get your box of Kleenex ready.

Phil, whom you could argue is still “mid-career,” especially based on his recent golfing performance, explained that “We’re all in it together to enjoy this great game.”

He thanked everyone, “for competing with me…for your friendships. This has been so much fun and I love sharing this with everybody.”

He also went on to thank his fans, but with his typical good humor explained, “The fans have made this such a fun ride. It’s been their energy that has pulled me through. I’ve tried to reciprocate by launching drive after drive in their general direction.”

The audience, and I, found that one liner hilarious!

I actually had the good fortune to be hosted by the PGA at Ponta Vedra back in 1998, when we were featuring them as a customer in our advertising campaign.

I saw the World Golf Hall of Fame right before it was open to the public (I really must get back there!), and I also had the special privilege of giving the TPC Sawgrass Course a go.

I wasn’t playing nearly as much golf during those times, so my game was middling at best.

But, I made it through the round okay, and when I hit 17, the one with the floating green, I think I tried three times before the ball finally stayed on the green (I chuckle to this day when a pro drops a ball in the water on 17.  I did NOT laugh when Angel Cabrera dropped four of them in the water there yesterday.  Remember that nightmare hole inTin Cup???)

On 18, with that perilous water that essentially makes up the entirety of the hole’s left perimeter, I decided I would hit irons all the way. My drive was a three-iron that faded left and settled about three feet from the water.  So much for playing it safe!

My second shot was another long iron, which landed promptly on the green about six feet from the hole.

I sank the putt and ran giggling off the green, and have never been back.

I birdied 18 at TPC Sawgrass playing only irons.

Take that, Phil Mickelson!

Mastering the Masters

I never would have projected that golf’s greatest tournament, The Masters, would prove to be a morality tale in 2010, but that’s what it ultimately ended up being.

I’ll skip through the morality part for a moment, and simply say congratulations to the new three-time Masters champion, Phil Mickelson.

Phil, that shot on 13, the one from behind and between those two trees…well, it was a pure thing of beauty, it took some major guts, and it paid off.

That, along with Phil’s two-eagle run on Saturday (including a chip-in on 14) made for some pretty amazing golf to watch.

Of course, the others at the top of the leaderboard over the weekend also brought tremendous drama to this year’s Masters.  Tom Watson (60 years of age) and Fred Couples (50 years of age, and with still the most beautiful swing in golf), shooting under par and demonstrating to the young flat bellies they could still play and play bigtime.

K.J. Choi, whose almost robot-like performance belied a seeming concentration to rival that of Tiger Woods, his four-day playing partner.

Woods, who despite the off-course drama still brought an amazing, if inconsistent, golf game to Augusta after a five-month layoff.  Not sure many other players could have shot 11 under under similar circumstances.  And even Woods hit several magical shots from out of the trees.

Britain’s Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter, both of whom walked into the weekend with a Union Jack stride, and Westwood incredibly gracious and positive in his post-Masters interview.  If you want to know what good sportsmanship is all about, watch that interview with Westwood.

But in the end, it was the picture of a tearful Phil Mickelson, hugging his wife Amy (who has been battling breast cancer) and their three kids just off the green at 18, that the Masters was left with.

And whether or not the morality tale was an intentional one, it was one we could all relate to.