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PGA Championship: final thought
Just as Padraig Harrington stood over his putt on the 18th green a few minutes ago, I thought to myself, “Wouldn’t it be interesting if Padraig left the door open for Sergio by missing this, just as Sergio left the door open for Padraig a year ago at Carnoustie?”
But, of course, it didn’t happen.
Perhaps that’s why Padraig has won three of the last six majors and Sergio is looking for his first.
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PGA Championship: Final Round
I have a confession to make. I was going to skip out on the final round of the PGA Championship. I was going to skip it for several reasons, though I was still going to write some sort of comment on who won or lost so that the faithful Teed Off readers would have some input for me on golf’s fourth major.
Here are the reasons. The Olympics are going on, Tiger’s not playing and football season is upon us (sort of). Golf, in its current condition, would have to be moved up to be on the back burner. As it is, it’s sitting over on the side on the cutting board while other things cook.
Also, I’m in Austin, getting away for a few hours and taking a deep breath in between a busy week of football preparation and practice coverage and another even busier week of football preparation and practice coverage. I don’t know when I’m going to make the short drive home.
So I was going to skip the final round of the PGA Championship.
But now I’m not so sure.
This is because Sergio Garcia is currently 3-under-par for the final round an one stroke out of the lead. Sergio, perhaps even more so than Tiger, is good for final-round drama. He’s likely to make some ridiculous charge, as he is right now, and then come painfully close to winning his first major before falling inches short at the end of the day (like he did last year at Carnoustie).
So I’m going to at least flip back and forth between golf and the Olympics.
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PGA Championship Round 1: Byrd on a wire
Jonathan Byrd currently leads the PGA Championship, causing me to use the Google window on my Web browser to attempt to ascertain “Who the heck is Jonathan Byrd?”
The answer: well, I’m pretty sure of the top three results found by Google — right between The Music of Jonathan Byrd and Jonathan Byrd’s Cafeteria and Catering — is that he’s a ninth-year pro with three career victories (thank you, PGAtour.com).
His wins came at the 2002 Buick Challenge, the 2004 B.C. Open and the 2007 John Deere Classic.
ANYWAY, Byrd made five birdies and two bogeys on his front nine at Oakland Hills Country Club. As of 5 p.m., he’s got nine holes to attempt to extend his one-stroke lead over Robert Karlsson, Jeev Milkha Singh and Retief Goosen (actually, Goosen’s still on the course, so I suppose he could surge past Byrd and the others).
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PGA Championship … um … preview (?)
The biggest golf event of this week, and supposedly one of the four biggest golf tournaments of this year, will take place at Oakland Hills Country Club in Bloomfield Township, Mich.
My question: will anyone notice?
If Tiger were playing, then yeah, there would be a ton of focus on the Detroit area this week as Woods would be going after his third straight PGA Championship. As it is, Tiger has still been in the news as he did a very casual, very blah interview with ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt this week. The most enlightening thing Van Pelt drew out of Tiger was that Tiger, with his recently surgically repaired knee, is having trouble keeping up with daughter Sam as she bounces around the house. Doesn’t Tiger have a nanny for such tasks?
So pro golfers will tackle the PGA Championship in the absence of Tiger and, therefore mostly likely, in the absence of much attention. It’s seems everyone in the sports universe is focused on either pollution in China or an old quarterback who’s trying to decide if he wants to come back to the NFL to throw more interceptions.
I wrote in a column earlier this summer that Tiger’s injury wouldn’t cripple golf or Tiger. But I didn’t deny that there would be some pain in the meantime.
Also, does it seem to anybody else that Scott Van Pelt could save some time by just tattooing “I’m on a first-name basis with Tiger Woods” on his forehead? Every time Van Pelt cover golf he has to mention that he know Tiger. We get it. Honestly, I’ve never heard another broadcaster attempt to get more mileage out of a friendship with an athlete than Van Pelt does with Woods.
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Lake hosts par-3 shootout
The Lake Country Club will host a par-3 tournament Saturday at its executive par-3 course.
Entry fee for the 36-hole 3-man scramble is $40 per player, not including cart fee. The payout, based on a 20-team field, will be $500 for first place, $400 for second, $300 for third, $400 for 10th, $300 for 15th and $200 for 18th.
The tournament will begin with a shotgun start at 8:30 a.m. For more information, call (254) 756-2161.
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The Open: Final Round
12:22 p.m. — A year ago, Harrington finished his 72nd hole and then waited to see what Sergio would do. Sergio missed a 15-foot par putt on the 18th that would’ve won his first major. Then Harrington won the four-hole playoff.
This time around, Harrington will walk tall down the 18th fairway as a man who dominated down the stretch at Royal Birkdale.
12:13 p.m. — “An amazing shot by Harrington,” exclaimed Mike Tirico. Yes it was … And that pretty much wraps it up. Harrington has a 5-foot look at eagle and a four stroke lead with one hole to play.
12:09 p.m. — Harrington can cruise to his second straight title. It’s hard to imagine him not at least making par on the par-5 17th. Then a bogey or better on 18 will wrap it up.
Perhaps not many American golf fans would put Harrington at the top of the list of the world’s best. I wouldn’t have if I hadn’t watched in person as he claimed The Open Championship and lifted the Claret Jug last July at Carnoustie.
But winning two Opens in a row, that’s heroic stuff.
11:40 a.m. — Plenty of Englishmen waved their hands in the air as Poulter sunk his par putt on 18 to become the leader in the clubhouse at 7-over.
But my money is still on the Irishman.
11:06 a.m. — Suddenly, it doesn’t look very much like The Shark will become the oldest golfer ever to win a major championship. Not with Ian Poulter fist pumping and primed to post 7-over or better and Norman trying to hold on while at 8-over.
10:47 a.m. — So Jim Furyk is the leader in the clubhouse at 10-over. Normally, a golfer finishing his round four three strokes off the pace wouldn’t seem all that significant, but with wind blowing so strong that it’s moving the ball on the green, well, Furyk will be an interested spectator as he sits in the comfort of the clubhouse. So 10-over is quite the enviable position.
10:24 a.m. — So they go to the 10th at Royal Birkdale, The Shark leading by a stroke after he made a par at No. 9 while Padraig Harrington suffered his third straight bogey.
A word on history, Norman was known for years and years as a great player who couldn’t seize a major championship on the back nine on Sunday. Meanwhile, Padraig (pronounced Porridge by the Scottish incidentally) claimed The Open at Carnoustie last year by surviving craziness down the stretch, then defeating Sergio Garcia in a playoff.
If The Open Champioship takes a back seat to The Masters and The U.S. Open here in the U.S.A. (it certainly doesn’t in the rest of the world), it might be because it hits the air at 7:30 a.m. on Sunday morning. It’s 10:15 a.m. and your friendly neighborhood golf blogger is just starting his craft. Need I say more?
Nevertheless, a great story has unfolded over the last three days and we’re seeing the final few chapters today as Greg Norman tries to win his third major championship and first in 15 years at age 53.
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The Open: KJ, sure, but The Shark and Van de Velde?
Coming into this week, Sergio Garcia was supposedly the favorite to win The Open, and perhaps he will.
However, currently, there are a couple of names I’m not surprised to see ahead of Sergio on the leader board.
KJ Choi is a great golfer and a particularly savvy links player. The only thing that surprises me about seeing him atop the leader board with a second-round 67 and a 36-hole score of 1-under, is that KJ hasn’t had his best year up to this point.
And of course, as mentioned yesterday, Rocco continues to play well. It doesn’t surprise me because Rocco almost took down Tiger on a links course last month.
As for the names that do surprise me: Greg Norman at par in second place. The other name, tied for 16th at 4-over, is Jean Van de Velde. I first noticed yesterday afternoon that he had turned in a decent opening round. Does anyone else sense a train wreck coming on?
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The Open: Royal Birkdale dreaming on such a summer’s day
Another major, another reason to pull for Rocco Mediate. Rocco birdied three of his last six holes today to share the lead at The Open Championship at Royal Birkdale.
But as much as I’m pulling for Rocco, I can’t help but be a little down in the dumps today.
You see, this time a year ago I would’ve been eating at an Italian restaurante in St. Andrews, still in awe of the first day of The Open at Carnoustie.
The first thing I did this morning was turn on the television to see coverage of The Open and the memories from a year ago came flooding back. Armed with a small tripod stool a rain jacket and a back pack, I sat on the Scottish links and watched the world’s best play right in front of me. The weather shifted from sunny and Texas-fall-like to dreary and damp. And it was awesome!
But today, I’ve been walking the scorched streets of our town, feeling the heat radiate up from the pavement. Oh well, one day I’ll be back there.
In the meantime, Go Rocco!
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British Open Preview: Proper homage to Jolly Old England
The British Open won’t be played on Scottish soil this year, but I’m going to watch a lot of it anyway.
Call me simple-minded, but when it comes to Great Britain I enjoy specific offerings from specific parts of the country. Give me English rock bands — The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Radiohead, etc. — and Scottish golf — The Old Course, Carnoustie, Troon, etc.
That said, there’s room for crossover. England offers Royal Birkdale, where The Open will be played this week. As for Scottish rock, Travis and Franz Ferdinand have recorded some fine licks themselves.
And here’s a little factoid I discovered today while researching this year’s Open (by the way, the rest of the world refers to the “British Open” as “The Open Championship”) — Royal Birkdale is the only course in The Open rotation on which a golfer from the UK has never won the title.
Royal Birkdale’s list of champions includes Americans Arnold Palmer, Tom Watson, Johnny Miller, Lee Trevino and Mark O’Meara; and Australians Ian Baker-Finch and Peter Thomson.
So instead of blogging my list of golfers most likely to win the first major during Tiger’s time on the DL (Sergio Garcia, Jim Furyk, Padraig Harrington, Rocco Mediate, Andres Romero), I’m going to list five UK golfers who could (ahem, probably won’t) win this week.
Paul Casey, England — This outspoken Brit is probably the most likely to make noise in any major, possibly this one. He’s been on two straight Ryder Cup champions and won eight titles on the European Tour.
Nick Dougherty, England — He led for part of the U.S. Open at Oakmont in 2007, making him the second most likely on this humble list to jump up and win a major.
Paul Lawrie, Scotland — Perhaps golf’s most opportunistic (lucky) major winner, Lawrie was there waiting for the 1999 Open Championship to fall in his lap when Jean Van de Velde regurgitated it on the final hole at Carnoustie.
Graeme McDowell, Northern Ireland — McDowell won the Scottish Open last week at Loch Lomond, indicating that he’s playing solid golf. However, winning the Scottish Open doesn’t guarantee or even hint at success in The Open because Loch Lomond is an inland course reminiscent of many American courses. Links golf is a different game.
(*geographical note: The UK consists of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Padraig Harrington of The Republic of Ireland, wouldn’t qualify for this list, though McDowell from Northern Ireland does.)
Graeme Storm, England — Storm won his first European Tour event last year when he claimed the Open de France. If nothing else, Storm’s success could make it an easy weekend for headline writers — Stormy conditions at Open; Brit takes open by Storm — you get the picture.
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I’m glad we weren’t playing for money
I had the distinct privilege today of driving to Glen Rose to play one of my favorite Central Texas golf courses — Squaw Valley Golf Club — with a couple of accomplished (and terribly nice) golfers.
Whitley Patterson, who played high school golf at Meridian and Glen Rose and will be starting her college career at MCC this fall, and Christa Williams, who played at Martin’s Mill and will be starting her college career at Dallas Baptist University this fall, were my partners today. We had a blast.
And here’s why: playing golf with good women’s players is so much more relaxing. There’s no posturing, or worrying about who hit it father than who, or thinking of good ways to talk trash. Plus, they were both really good. I’d say 17 times out of 18, all three of us stepped up on the tee and hit serviceable shots (maybe 16 now that I think of it. Of course, I was the exception on two holes.) It was less like a fist fight and more like a bike ride. On the 18th hole, Christa drained a 20-footer for birdie, Whitley tapped in for par and I three-jacked for bogey. Then we all shook hands and walked off the green smiling.
Plus, here’s five things I learned today:
- It takes me longer to warm up than them. I arrived at Squaw Valley about 8:50, 15 minutes before we were set to tee off. That meant I had time to check in and head to the first tee. Not much warmup time and I responded by hitting two balls on the first tee and putting neither of them in play. At that point, I could almost hear Whitley and Christa thinking “do we really have to play 18 holes with this chump.” Luckily, I found my groove and managed to make some pars and look at some birdies.
- There’s no reason to let a round of golf get in the way of answering text messages. We pulled up at the 15th hole and both of them were working their thumbs. Though, to be honest, if I hadn’t left my cell in the car, I probably would’ve been doing the same thing. I’m proud to say, we were playing fast enough to keep up with the twosome in front of us, so we had a few idle moments.
- Yelling at my golf ball does not help. I was out there yelling “cut, cut” or “go, go” while Ms. Patterson and Ms. Williams politely and quietly went about kicking my butt.
- My short game is out of tune. For once, I was hitting my driver well and hitting past my playing partners (sometimes). But when it came to getting up and down for a par, well, put your money on them, not me.
- Ladies, or at least the two I played with today, don’t get as caught up with their score during a casual round. I asked at nine what they shot on the front and they both basically told me, “Dude, I don’t care what I shot. We’re just having a laugh.” So I didn’t ask what they shot when we putted out on 18. I’m just assuming they only beat me by 7 or 8 strokes apiece.
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Having a laugh with Mr. Feherty
I know I’ve been a little absent since the magnificent playoff at the end of the U.S. Open. Please forgive me, but I’ve been moving into a new clubhouse.
Once I got back to my cubicle, I had a e-mail box full of stuff, including a funny e-mail from Jim Moore of the USGA. It had a collection of David Feherty quotes that I think are worth sharing.
Here are a couple of my favorites.
On his decision to give up his playing career in favor of a microphone:
“When CBS came to me and asked me to do on-course commentary, I said, ‘You know, I’m only 37, I still have hopes of [playing] a little better.’ So they told me what they were going to pay me, and I said, ‘You want to buy a set of clubs?’ ”
On Tiger Woods and the first time Feherty ever watched Woods play. Feherty examined the lie Tiger had in the trees, where he’d hit the ball into deep rough alongside a large root, and said on-air that the only available play was to wedge out sideways. Tiger promptly hit a towering 200-plus-yard, sweeping slice with a 2-iron that rolled to within 12 feet of the flag.
“I just stood there watching him walk past,” Feherty said, “and thinking, ‘I don’t know what that is, but I know there weren’t two of them on Noah’s Ark. “
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U.S. Open: Playoff
3:28 p.m. — Ohh, so close. Rocco’s putt eases by on the right side. Then Rocco walks over and hugs Tiger, the 2008 U.S. Open Championship.
That’s as good as it’s ever going to get, golf fans.
3:26 p.m. — Tiger left his birdie an inch short and taps in for par. Rocco’s got to make a 20-footer to tie.
3:25 p.m. — Tiger will putt first for birdie.
3:24 p.m. — Rocco rolls his third shot about 20 feet past the hole. Tiger can very likely two-putt for the championship.
3:23 p.m. — Rocco gets to drop in a drop zone, away from the grandstands.
3:21 p.m. — Tiger’s on the front of the green in two. The heat is seriously on Rocco now.
3:19 p.m. — Rocco pulled his second shot left.
3:17 p.m. — Tiger might win it on this hole, but unlike what our friend Fore commented earlier, Rocco didn’t choke today. In fact, few golfers in history would’ve stood up to the pressure like he did. Perhaps Fore should buy himself a peace belt buckle. It might help him have a more realistic worldview.
3:15 p.m. — Tiger’s in the fairway on No. 7, Rocco is in a fairway bunker on the left. Advantage Tiger.
3:11 p.m. — They’ll begin sudden death on No. 7. Earlier today, Tiger birdied it while Rocco made a par.
3:07 p.m. — Rocco makes his. More golf. The announcer just said sudden death for just the third time in U.S. Open history.
3:05 p.m. — Tiger makes his birdie. Now Rocco’s gotta make his par putt to tie.
3:04 p.m. — I guess Rocco is closer by a little bit because Tiger is going to putt first.
3:05 p.m. — Rocco rolls his birdie putt by on the left side, leaving him about seven feet for par.
3:02 p.m. — Tiger’s eagle putt slides by on the right side, leaving him about six feet for birdie.
2:58 p.m. — Rocco hits his third shoot to 20-25 feet. Tiger’s putting for eagle; Rocco’s putting for birdie.
2:55 p.m. — Tiger hits 4-iron on the front of the green in two.
2:53 p.m. — Rocco goes from the trap to the fairway, right where he wants to be.
2:50 p.m. — For those of you who can’t get to a TV right now, Rocco’s in a fairway bunker off the tee. Tiger’s in the fairway.
2:47 p.m. — Par-par. Tiger and Rocco go to the 18th hole, Tiger trailing by one. It’s going to come down to the last shot. Just the way I like it.
2:41 p.m. — Rocco left his on the front of the green, probably 50 feet away.
Some dude said “Birdie this one” right in Rocco’s backswing. Obviously, I have no idea where the guy was in relation to Rocco, but if he was close at all, that dude deserves to get thrown off the course.
2:40 p.m. — Tiger and his caddy are acting like the approach shot on 17 is an important one. Yeah, I guess it is. Tiger hits it to about 20 feet.
2:30 p.m. — Another wow. Tiger’s 60-footer stops half an inch short of the hole. Two holes to play, Rocco still leads by one.
2:29 p.m. — Wow, I thought Rocco was about to hole a 70-footer for birdie on 16.
2:21 p.m. — Tiger makes a par. He trails Rocco by a stroke going to the par-3 16th.
2:19 p.m. — … misses. This is probably the best golf match I’ve ever witnessed.
2:18 p.m. — Rocco makes his and Tiger …
2:14 p.m. — What a shot! Tiger somehow (magically?) hits it out of the bunker to about eight feet on the green. Now Tiger has the better chance for birdie and the lead going to the last three holes.
2:12 p.m. — Rocco says, “Game on, sir.” He hit an iron to about 15 feet for birdie on 15. Tiger has an awkward bunker shot in a bunker that’s not even supposed to be in play on the 15th.
2:07 p.m. — Rocco seems like he’s starting to play better.
2:04 p.m. — Yesterday Tiger lips in and we’re tied. Today Tiger lips out on 14 on we’re tied.
2:02 p.m. — Rocco finally hit a decent short-game shot. He chipped to about a foot for birdie on the 14th. If Tiger doesn’t sink a 15-footer for par, this thing will be tied.
1:57 p.m. — The 14th hole is an entertaining one. They made it shorter, actually using a forward tee so it plays 280-ish. But it’s not easy. If a player gets greedy and hits it over the green. He could fall off the cliff. Tiger and Rocco both hit fairway woods and laid up to about 20 yards in front of the green.
1:52 p.m. — A push on 13 as both players made birdies. Rocco made about a 10-footer that was just about as long a putt as he’s made all day.
1:38 p.m. — However, Rocco did get a stroke with a par on 12. Six holes left, Tiger leads by a stroke.
1:34 p.m. — Not only does Rocco keep missing birdie putts, he’s blowing them by and creating a lot of added pressure on himself to make the come-backers. He did it again on No. 12, leaving the door open for Tiger to keep his lead at two strokes.
1:28 p.m. — There’s a Tiger curse for the TV viewing audience. With Rocco eyeing a birdie on the 12th, Tiger hit a chunky shot out of a fairway way bunker. Best I could tell he said Gahhhh, diiit. Way to throw on the verbal brakes, Eldrick.
1:24 p.m. — Tiger gives a shot back on No. 11. My roommate, Jason Orts of the Trib, just came in from playing tennis. He remarked that neither one of them is playing very good. True, but one can imagine the amount of pressure on these guys. One of the announcers said earlier that perhaps no two golfers have ever had a bigger gallery.
So they’ve got seven holes left, Rocco trails Tiger by two strokes.
1:12 p.m. — Rocco is choking, which is not surprising. It would be more remarkable if Rocco wasn’t feeling the heat. Even so, Rocco has gone from looking like he would gain strokes to losing strokes on two straight holes.
Tiger drained an 18-footer for par on No. 10.
Did anybody notice that I quoted the Beatles song “Rocky Raccoon” yesterday. Here’s another offering:
“Rocco burst in, and grinning a grin, he said ‘Tiger, boy, this is a showdown. “But Tiger was hot, he drew first and shot and Rocco collapsed in the corner.”
1:04 p.m. — This should be fun the rest of the way, golf fans, no matter what happens. Even if Tiger dominates the rest of the afternoon, that means we get to see the best under a microscope. Of course, if Rocco can make a go of it, then we’ve got an unbelievable David vs. Goliath story unfolding before us.
1:01 p.m. — Ooooh. Ouch. Rocco three putted on the ninth to fall two back after nine holes.
12:56 p.m. — Continuing with the boxing analogy as the coverage shifts from ESPN to NBC, Rocco seems to be out of that corner and ready to take a few offensive swings. Tiger hiccuped with a bad bunker shot on No. 9. It looks like both players will make par and Tiger will take a one-shot lead to the back.
Even if Rocco doesn’t pick up a stroke on No. 9, he’s gotten out of the situation where he’s playing from behind and under an amazing amount of pressure. He wasn’t going to last long like that against the No. 1 player in the world.
12:43 p.m. — Rocco punches back with a par on No. 8 while Tiger goes in the trap behind the green and it costs him a bogey. Tiger’s 1 stroke ahead.
(By the way, I’m not going to use 1-up terminology to indicate the lead because this is stroke play rather than match play.)
12:32 p.m. — Tiger makes another birdie to take a two-stroke lead after seven holes. This is the greatest player in the history of golf forcing his will on an opponent.
12:27 p.m. — If Tiger and Rocco were boxing, Tiger would currently have Rocco in a corner, preparing to pummel him. Tiger’s got a 10-footer for birdie while Rocco is 30 feet away on the 7th green. For the last two-plus holes, Rocco’s been scrambling while Tiger hits near-perfect shots.
12:20 — Tiger’s birdie gives him the lead. Now the No. 1 player in golf is playing from the position he likes — with a lead. Rocco needs to stop the bleeding.
12:14 p.m. — Looks like Rocco’s about to lose a stroke for the second straight hole as Tiger is looking at a birdie and Rocco has a long chip on No. 6. Is this where Tiger takes over?
12:05 p.m. — Well, folks, I’ve bought a house, eaten a Whataburger and I’m exceedingly happy to be sitting in my living room watching a tied playoff after five holes.
I’ve always loved U.S. Open playoffs. I’ve actually always pulled for them. To me, it’s the perfect way to watch golf — two great players going head to head for a major championship.
However, one announcer said it was one-on-one for all the marbles. Actually, it’s one-on-one for a significantly higher percentage of the marbles.
By the way, I noticed the comment by Fore, and I have to disagree. I thought the peace sign belt buckle was very cool. And I’ll answer him with a quote from a Robert Earl Keen song:
“I don’t wear no Stetson, but I’m as big a Texan as you are.”
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U.S. Open: Bonus golf … sort of
The great thing about reaching the end of the U.S. Open with two players tied is that you get to see those two players face off over the course of an entire 18-hole round.
Of course, the drawback is that they have to come back the next day. Once upon a time, my parents had tickets to a U.S. Open that was tied after 72 holes. They had to fly back, as many members of Sunday’s gallery will today if they didn’t fly home last night.
It’s a bummer.
It’s also a bummer that most of us have jobs and have to work on Monday, and don’t have four hours or so to plop down in front of the television.
As a golf writer, I’m supposed to be the exception. Ahh, if only it were that simple. I actually am buying a house and the closing has been scheduled, for weeks, for 11:30 this morning. Which means I’m going to miss the first 90 minutes or so. But have no fear. I’ll return to the Teed Off golf blog in time to comment on the back nine today. In the mean time, if you’re at work and can’t get to a TV, check out the real-time scoreboard at www.usopen.com.
Enjoy (and psst, go Rocco. He’s a Texan, after all).
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U.S. Open: Final round
WRAPUP
7:52 p.m. — YES!!!!! See you tomorrow.
7:45 p.m. — Tiger’s got a good look at it for birdie … and so does Lee.
7:33 p.m. — Oh by the way, Lee Westwood can also tie with a birdie, win with an eagle.
7:32 p.m. — So Tiger needs a birdie to tie Rocco, an eagle to win. I’m with the NBC exec — pulling for a birdie.
7:25 p.m. — Rocco is striding up the fairway at 18. He hit his third shot to the middle of the green, knowing that if he makes a par, Tiger’s going to have to produce some heroics to beat him. It looks like he’ll make a par and make Tiger either sink a long birdie putt at 17 or birdie 18 to tie him. But, will Tiger go birdie-birdie or par-eagle?
7:19 p.m. — Somewhere, an NBC executive is praying for an 18-hole playoff between Tiger and Rocco.
7:06 p.m. — Rocco’s in the fairway on 17 with the lead. Kind of reminds me of a lyric from a Beatles song:
“Rocco burst in and grinning a grin he said ‘Tiger, boy, this is a showdown.”
6:47 p.m. — We’ve got a four-hole tournament between three guys for the U.S. Open title.
6:38 p.m. — Hmmm, Tiger went conservative with an iron off the tee on 14, meanwhile, Westwood is putting for eagle. Will this be a turning point that tips thing in either Tiger’s, Lee’s or Rocco’s favor.
6:29 p.m. — I groaned a little when Rocco missed a short birdie putt at No. 13, but his par looks pretty good all the sudden. Rocco’s birdie on No. 14 gives him the lead as Westwood and Tiger both hiccup on the 13th.
6:08 p.m. — As it happens, in the last half hour, the number of players that seem to have a chance has dwindles from 10 to four. Tiger is zoning, but Westwood, Rocco and D.J. Trahan are not out of it yet.
5:57 p.m. — Tiger’s in the lead and Miller seems ready to give him the tournament. Actually, it’s hard to disagree.
5:52 p.m. — Johnny Miller is a jerk. His last two comments:
On the suggestion that Lee Westwood has been impressive in the fish bowl of playing with Tiger “He surely wasn’t impressive on that last hole.”
Then, after Westwood puts it in the bunker on No. 11, “Tiger’s putting the heat on and he’s melting.”
5:36 p.m. — Here we go to the back nine. There are currently 10 guys on the course within five strokes of each other. Should be a fun evening.
5:11 p.m. — Tiger’s leaving shots short. I think the knee is tight and I predict it will loosen up and be less painful as the day goes on. If I’m right, that’s going to make for some serious drama on the back nine today.
4:47 p.m. — Tiger’s wince and audible groan after hitting his tee shot on No. 6 will be the stuff of legend if he wins today. Tiger is definitely showing quite a bit of toughness, but I’ve already heard him compared to Ben Hogan and Hogan’s coming back after a near fatal car collision. Really?
4:24 p.m. — OK, I’m up from my Sunday-afternoon nap. Did I mention I was pulling for Rocco Mediate. Yeah, he’s got the lead right now, but that doesn’t mean I’m a bandwaggoner. I’m pulling for him to hold on to the lead which is so not guaranteed.
BTW, Rocco’s a Southlake resident. I mentioned Hunter Mahan has Texas ties, too. He played high school golf at McKinney and I crossed paths of him when I covered the 5A Region I tournament in Lubbock when I was in college.
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U.S. Open: Don’t mess with a wounded big cat
It’s not to difficult to imagine Tiger winning his 14th major today. In fact, it’s harder to imagine scenario’s in which he doesn’t win.
Here’s a couple I can think of:
Tiger’s knee finally gets wobbly after about 60 holes and he comes back to the field. However, He’s been significantly better on his second nine the last two days, an indication, I think, that the knee just takes a while to loosen up.
So, if Tiger doesn’t come back, somebody has to catch him. I’d love to see Rocco Mediate make a run because I love the way Rocco approaches the game. I think Lee Westwood or Jeff Ogilvy are capable of filling the void if Tiger lets up at all. I want to think Hunter Mahan, like Mediate a player with Texas ties, can make a charge, but that’s probably wishful thinking.
Buuuuuuuuut, I’m sitting here watching Tiger highlights on SportsCenter and I have to say, I don’t really see anything but a Woods victory today.
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U.S. Open: Innovation or distraction?
So, I’m sitting here watching the U.S. Open on my new television — golf is pretty cool in high-definition.
However, not all technological advancements work so well. ESPN, an entity which clearly credits itself with inventing and perfecting sports coverage, will throw any trinket it can think of up on the screen.
Here’s my review of the supposed broadcast augmentations.
High definition — Cool, as stated. Though not necessarily a facet unique to ESPN/ABC’s production.
Top-of-screen ticker — Hate it. Just flash a leader board up there every five minutes or so instead of the constant nuisance of the revolving list of players coupled with the leading score and the current cut line. Honestly, just tell me that Tiger is even and putting for birdie (by the way, he actually is right now and kicking some serious Torrey Pines tail).
Colored line showing ball trajectory — Very cool. I can’t believe no one’s used this before the last couple of tournaments I’ve watched and I can’t believe they don’t use it more often. Golfers can see that line in their imagination for pretty much every shot they hit. So why wouldn’t viewers want to see it about once a minute?
But on that same graphic they usually throw in a couple of other pieces of … ahem … information.
Club-head speed — Don’t care.
Ball-spin speed — Useless. And how can they even pretend to read that?
Chris Berman — Loved him on NFL Primetime. Don’t care about his personal observations about having played Torrey Pines. “Oh, I’m Chris Berman and I’m such a well known sportscaster that I get to play prestigious American courses all the time.” Shut up.
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U.S. Open: It’s all a matter of perspective
I often wish I could watch sports on TV the same way I would watch them if I were actually there. For example, I wish I could watch baseball games on TV from behind the umpire as I do when I’m watching high school and college games and as I would if I ever had really good seats at Rangers games.
The same goes for golf.
Last summer, when I was at the British Open, I spent quite a bit of time camped out near the 17th green at Carnoustie. When I wasn’t on 17, I made a habit of watching a group start on No. 1 and following them through the fairway at the second hole. From there I found a vantage point where I could see a group drive and hit their second shots and then see what they did on the green.
I believe golf coverage — perhaps via the internet to run concurrently with tournament coverage — should offer interactive viewing. In other words, if you want to watch several groups come through the 18th hole at Torrey Pines, you should be able to get a camera angle that clearly shows you the activity from the 18th green, and with a moderate amount of commentary (an aside, moderate commentary is usually the best kind of commentary).
Actually, espn.go.com is already moving in the right direction with a marquee group Web cast. That’s great, but let me pick a hole and see how each unique golfer chooses, or attempts, to play it.
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U.S. Open: Not blown away by Tiger and Phil
I don’t know how I would handle covering golf for a national publication — if I got paid to be on the scene every week.
Perhaps I would’ve fallen in love with the Tiger-Lefty pairing just like every ESPN lemming (windbag), but I would hope that I wouldn’t have.
Here’s the fantastic golf that the group-of-fame follower saw today: Phil shot even-par 71 and Tiger was a stroke back. Meanwhile, Justin Hicks — a teaching pro from San Diego — leads the whole shibang with a first-round 68.
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Starburst: Survival of the fittest
Standing in the pavilion at Cottonwood this afternoon, I became keenly aware that I’m in serious need of a haircut.
I had parked my car in the Waco ISD Stadium parking lot, as I do pretty much every time I hit Cottonwood during the Starburst — the golf course lot is a traffic jam waiting to happen during the big junior golf event. So I was too far away to walk back and get a hat.
Honestly, I didn’t care that my hair was blowing everywhere. It helped me come to the realization that the Starburst Championship flights — really every flight — was wide open on Wednesday.
Portland Rosen from Sugar Land posted a 2-under 70 at Cottonwood in the Girls’ Championship flight to run away with it. She had the best score in the wind by five strokes.
Ford Fischer of Plano started the Boys’ Championship flight with a three-stroke lead. If he can shoot even par, I’m pretty sure he’ll win. But if he shoots 5-over or worse, which it could be extremely easy to do on a day like today, it’s anybody’s tournament. Going into today, there were 15 golfers with scores between second-place 155 and 159.
ALSO, Lesly Rascoe from the Chamber of Commerce just called me to tell me that there’s been another Starburst hole-in-one. Jessica Rogina from Houston, playing in the Girls’ 9-10 flight, aced the third hole at Connally Golf Course. That hole was playing at 90 yards for the 9-10-year-olds on Wednesday. That’s three aces for the week thus far.
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Starburst: A pair of aces
For some reason, great shots at the Starburst Junior Golf Classic seem to come in pairs.
Like in 2006, when two golfers made holes-in-one on the same day, Trevor Arianna of Rowlett and Jake Staiano of Cherry Hills Village, Colo., made aces on Tuesday.
Arianna’s came on No. 17 at Twin Rivers, while Staiano’s big moment happened at the 15th hole at Connally.
As amazing as this seems, it’s sort of predictable. Think about it, there’s more than 1,000 golfers, most of them playing 18 holes per day. That’s 18,000-plus holes of golf and roughly 4,000 par-3s per day.
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Starburst: O’Leary off to a fast start
A huge week for golf in general, and especially the Teed Off Golf Blog, has begun.
I’m currently tracking all that is the Starburst Junior Golf Classic, and looking forward to the U.S. Open beginning later this week at Torrey Pines.
I’m going to update the blog with a bunch of short, punchy items from both my coverage of the Starburst and then commenting on the U.S. Open. As always, I invite comments and questions from the golf fans out there.
This morning, Midway graduate Kort O’Leary cranked it up at Ridgewood Country Club. O’Leary birdied holes 9 and 10 on his way to an even-par round and a tie for the 18-hole lead. After a practice week when the wind just about knocked golfers over on Central Texas courses last week, O’Leary said Monday’s conditions were a breeze.
The Girls’ Championship Flight is on the course at Ridgewood on Monday afternoon. There was a distinct aroma of sunscreen around the putting green at Ridgewood as I was awaiting the boys’ scores. And those girls are going to need it this afternoon. It’s a bright, sunny, scorching hot Waco June afternoon out there.
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How about something on the City Tournament? Or will that take you’ll tooooooo muchhhh typing. Seeing how your coverage was pretty much “useless”, excluding what your story Monday that was alright. But what about all the other scores.
... read the full comment by Buzzard | Comment on PGA Championship: final thought Read PGA Championship: final thought
You must have a sweet connection in Austin to let you stay and not even know when you are going to leave.
GO TIGER
... read the full comment by jay | Comment on PGA Championship: Final Round Read PGA Championship: Final Round
Chad, you have to do something to get all these golfers around here interested in your blog. Say something bad about Tiger or that you think Waco golfers are the worst in Texas. Sometimes you have to jump start a motor. By the way, I heard that President
... read the full comment by El Tigre | Comment on Lake hosts par-3 shootout Read Lake hosts par-3 shootout
I know Christa’s grandma Ellen = way to go Christa!!!!!!!!!!!!,
... read the full comment by Muriel Dobbs | Comment on I'm glad we weren't playing for money Read I'm glad we weren't playing for money