Congratulations to this week’s winners: Alvaro Quiros at the Open de Espana, Rory McIlroy at the Quail Hollow Championship, Martin Piller at the Athens Classic, and David Eger at the Mississippi Gulf Coast Classic. Some bits of takeaway from this week:
* Rory McIlroy makes the cut on the number, then goes 66-62 on the weekend to win his first PGA Tour title. This is the Rory most of us expected to see this season. Injury delayed his “arrival” of sorts, but he’s definitely “here” now and making a statement. McIlroy turns 21 on Tuesday; with that milestone combined with his win, I’d dare say that there will be some serious partying going on in Ponte Vedra in a few days!
* I’m not terribly surprised that Tiger Woods missed the cut; most professionals do miss cuts from time to time. What did surprise me is just how badly Woods played, especially on Friday. He seemed to be having shoulder issues at one point, so maybe that had something to do with it. I’m not going to chalk it up to “what he’s been through”; this wasn’t his first round back on the course. Unless he is in fact injured, I expect to see him playing relatively solidly at Ponte Vedra next week.
* Ryo Ishikawa shot a 58 on Sunday in a Japan Tour event. Yes, the course was only 6500 yards, and the field was weak, but no one else has shot 58 in this particular event. It’s impressive.
* It was definitely unexpected to see Billy Mayfair and Paul Goydos at the top of the leaderboard for most of the week in Charlotte. It wasn’t as unexpected to see them both fade on Sunday. Hopefully, there are better final rounds for both of them at some point this season.
* I enjoy watching Ricky Fowler playing and playing well. I do not enjoy the head-to-toe orange ensemble; having seen him play live at Bay Hill, I can testify that it’s even brighter in person.
Speaking of “live”, I’ll be reporting from Ponte Vedra starting on Thursday, with some on-course (and possibly off-course) notes on The Players Championship. Until then...
Showing posts with label European Tour. Show all posts
Showing posts with label European Tour. Show all posts
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Sunday Evening Takeaway: April 25
Congratulations to this week’s winners: Marcus Fraser at the Ballantine’s Championship, Jason Bohn at the Zurich Classic, and Ewan Porter at the South Georgia Classic. A few bits of takeaway from this week:
* Mother Nature can be cruel. The Ballantine’s was shortened to a 54-hour event, and the Zurich and South Georgia both had significant weather delays. Such is the peril of an outdoor sport...
* It was a good week for guys to get back in the winner’s circle. Fraser’s last win came in 2003, Bohn’s last win in 2005.
* Jason Bohn celebrated his 37th birthday this week. A trophy, a two-year Tour exemption, and a bit over a million dollars are all very nice birthday presents.
* Stuart Appleby gets his second top-10 finish in two weeks. Two or three years ago, this wouldn’t be news. Is he back? I’d say it’s too soon to tell, but signs are encouraging.
* Speaking of lost games, Sergio Garcia might want to check out the Unclaimed Baggage Center in Scottsboro, Alabama, to see if his golf game is there. It sure isn’t with him on the course right now. He seems to be heading into the early stages of “Duval Syndrome”; though, if I had to put down money on one of the two right now, I’d go with Duval.
Until next week...
* Mother Nature can be cruel. The Ballantine’s was shortened to a 54-hour event, and the Zurich and South Georgia both had significant weather delays. Such is the peril of an outdoor sport...
* It was a good week for guys to get back in the winner’s circle. Fraser’s last win came in 2003, Bohn’s last win in 2005.
* Jason Bohn celebrated his 37th birthday this week. A trophy, a two-year Tour exemption, and a bit over a million dollars are all very nice birthday presents.
* Stuart Appleby gets his second top-10 finish in two weeks. Two or three years ago, this wouldn’t be news. Is he back? I’d say it’s too soon to tell, but signs are encouraging.
* Speaking of lost games, Sergio Garcia might want to check out the Unclaimed Baggage Center in Scottsboro, Alabama, to see if his golf game is there. It sure isn’t with him on the course right now. He seems to be heading into the early stages of “Duval Syndrome”; though, if I had to put down money on one of the two right now, I’d go with Duval.
Until next week...
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Sunday Evening Takeaway: April 18
Congratulations to this week’s winners: Y.E. Yang at the Volvo China Open,Kevin Chappell at the Fresh Express Classic, and Jim Furyk at the Verizon Heritage. A few bits of takeaway from this week:
* Yang’s game has been improving at pretty much an exponential rate over the last two seasons. It will be interesting to see what lies ahead for him in the next few years.
* After Furyk won in Tampa four weeks ago, I thought he was “back”. His first-round 80 at the Masters had me doubting that. After watching him this week, I’m going to consider Augusta an aberration and say that he really is “back”.
* Another week, another top-10 for Ricky Barnes. I’m not on the Ricky bandwagon yet, but I’ll be watching his next few tournaments very closely.
* Brian Davis gave us another example of why golf is considered a “gentleman’s game”. Literally on the beach on the first playoff hole, Davis barely brushed a loose impediment on his backswing. He immediately called a rules official over, explained the situation, and ultimately incurred a two-stroke penalty. He didn’t attempt to justify himself or explain it away, or even wait for someone else to catch it before self-reporting. Perhaps Michelle “I lost my balance” Wie could benefit from a talk with Brian.
Until next week...
* Yang’s game has been improving at pretty much an exponential rate over the last two seasons. It will be interesting to see what lies ahead for him in the next few years.
* After Furyk won in Tampa four weeks ago, I thought he was “back”. His first-round 80 at the Masters had me doubting that. After watching him this week, I’m going to consider Augusta an aberration and say that he really is “back”.
* Another week, another top-10 for Ricky Barnes. I’m not on the Ricky bandwagon yet, but I’ll be watching his next few tournaments very closely.
* Brian Davis gave us another example of why golf is considered a “gentleman’s game”. Literally on the beach on the first playoff hole, Davis barely brushed a loose impediment on his backswing. He immediately called a rules official over, explained the situation, and ultimately incurred a two-stroke penalty. He didn’t attempt to justify himself or explain it away, or even wait for someone else to catch it before self-reporting. Perhaps Michelle “I lost my balance” Wie could benefit from a talk with Brian.
Until next week...
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Congratulations to Lee Westwood
Congratulations to Lee Westwood, who today won both the Dubai World Championship and the European Tour’s Race to Dubai (previously known as the Order of Merit). Westwood went into the final tournament of the European Tour season in second place on the R2D, behind Rory McIlroy; he then proceeded to play nearly flawless golf, slamming the door with a final-round 64 that was the best round of the entire tournament by anyone in the field. This is the second time Westwood has one the Tour’s money title, having previously captured the OM in 2000. The former top-5 player in the world, who thereafter slipped below 200 before mounting a comeback in the last few years, is poised to make a run at the top once again. At 36, he likely has at least a decade of top-caliber golf left, probably resulting in at least one more money title, many more phenomenal Ryder Cup showings, and perhaps even a major or two. Well done, Lee, and all the best for 2010!
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Congratulations (a few days late)
Congratulations to last weekend’s winners: Stephen Ames at the Children’s Miracle Network Classic, Tiger Woods at the JBWere Masters, Gregory Bourdy at the Hong Kong Open, and Michelle Wie at the Lorena Ochoa Invitational. Well done to all, and the best for 2010!
Monday, November 2, 2009
This week's congratulations
Barclays Singapore Open: Ian Poulter won the weather-plagued Barclays Singapore Open, vaulting him into the top 20 in the world rankings. When Poulter’s game is on, he can be nearly as brilliant as he is fashionable. Let’s see if this latest victory is a sign of greater things to come.
Volvo World Match Play: Ross Fisher won the Volvo World Match Play, soundly defeating Anthony Kim 4&3. Fisher joins fellow Englishman Poulter in the world’s top 20 in a year that saw him lead the combined scoring stat in this year’s majors. It would not be surprising to see one, if not both, of this week’s European Tour winners take home major trophies in 2010.
Volvo World Match Play: Ross Fisher won the Volvo World Match Play, soundly defeating Anthony Kim 4&3. Fisher joins fellow Englishman Poulter in the world’s top 20 in a year that saw him lead the combined scoring stat in this year’s majors. It would not be surprising to see one, if not both, of this week’s European Tour winners take home major trophies in 2010.
Friday, October 30, 2009
Kim v. Allenby: The Rematch
Break out the bottles of rioja, senores y senoritas, it’s time for a Kim vs. Allenby rematch in Spain. Yes, only a few weeks after the infamous “sideways” comments Robert Allenby made about Anthony Kim following Kim’s win in the President’s Cup singles match, the two are poised to face each other again in the semifinals of the Volvo World Match Play on Saturday.
Here’s an idea: On the tee, let there be a number draw, as in sudden death. Whoever draws number one gets the option of the following: the winner of the hole gets to do a shot of the alcoholic beverage of their choice, or the loser of the hole gets to do a shot of the winner’s alcoholic beverage of choice. At any rate, by the end of it, the issue of who plays better “sideways” will have been resolved, and it could prove for a very entertaining 18 holes.
Since I know one of the players involved, but not both of them, I’ll reserve judgement on who the winner might be!
Here’s an idea: On the tee, let there be a number draw, as in sudden death. Whoever draws number one gets the option of the following: the winner of the hole gets to do a shot of the alcoholic beverage of their choice, or the loser of the hole gets to do a shot of the winner’s alcoholic beverage of choice. At any rate, by the end of it, the issue of who plays better “sideways” will have been resolved, and it could prove for a very entertaining 18 holes.
Since I know one of the players involved, but not both of them, I’ll reserve judgement on who the winner might be!
Sunday, October 25, 2009
This week's congratulations
Castello Masters: Congratulations to the Castello Masters Champion, Michael Jonzon. The big Swede fought off a double-bogey at 15, a bogey at 17, and a hard-charging Martin Kaymer, finishing with a long birdie putt at 18 for his first victory since the Portugese Open in 1997.
Nationwide Tour Championship: Matt Every won the Nationwide Tour Championship to secure his PGA Tour card for 2010. Every was a former collegiate star at the University of Florida, who later appeared on Golf Channel’s “Big Break” series. Now he’ll be appearing on GC as a PGA Tour member.
Frys.com Open: Troy Matteson, 131st on the Tour money list going into this week, won the Frys.com Open to secure his card for 2010. Matteson blew a 2-shot lead in regulation, then came back to defeat former collegiate superstars Jamie Lovemark and Rickie Fowler on the second playoff hole. Lovemark had the shot to remember, however, when his second shot on the first playoff hole found the water hazard, then bounced OUT of the water and onto dry land; has anyone ever seen THAT happen before?
Nationwide Tour Championship: Matt Every won the Nationwide Tour Championship to secure his PGA Tour card for 2010. Every was a former collegiate star at the University of Florida, who later appeared on Golf Channel’s “Big Break” series. Now he’ll be appearing on GC as a PGA Tour member.
Frys.com Open: Troy Matteson, 131st on the Tour money list going into this week, won the Frys.com Open to secure his card for 2010. Matteson blew a 2-shot lead in regulation, then came back to defeat former collegiate superstars Jamie Lovemark and Rickie Fowler on the second playoff hole. Lovemark had the shot to remember, however, when his second shot on the first playoff hole found the water hazard, then bounced OUT of the water and onto dry land; has anyone ever seen THAT happen before?
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