Ah, Augusta

It is a gorgeous morning in Augusta. Earlier, a fog delay pushed tee times back an hour, but that has passed and now it's bright, clear springtime moring at the Masters.

I've already had my annual lunch on the back balcony of the clubhouse, overlooking the first tee. A cup of seafood chowder, a junior club sandwich and peach cobbler with a scoop of vanilla ice cream came to about $12.

As in years past, the food was so-so but the ambiance and the view are unbeatable and unforgettable. Down below, there is a steady stream of players walking from the course to the locker room. There's also a Who's Who of big-time sports agents, writers, TV talent and execs, sports shrinks, golf industry titans and all manner of hangers-on who are able to get a pass for inside the clubhouse.

Mickelson hoax

If you are hearing rumors that Phil Mickelson dropped $200,000 gambling with Augusta National members last week, then tried to weasel out of paying off the bet, don't believe it. It's an April Fool's hoax that is making it's way around the blogosphere.

A blogger cooked up the story and attributed it to Golfweek's Insider column, where the magazine posts a lot of its juicy stuff.

According to the blogger's account, the furious Augusta National members even dragged Mickelson before club chairman Billy Payne, who supposedly informed him to pay up or get out -- forever.

As the story was making its way around the internet like a virus video today, the Golfweek folks, who are sitting about five rows behind me in the media center at the Masters, were doing all they could to kill it -- and especially kill any connection to them.

Tiger on the Masters

NEWSLETTER

April 2, 2008

By Tiger Woods

As you might expect, I'm gearing up for the Masters. It's the first major championship of the year and I'm excited about returning to Augusta National. They haven't made many changes to the course, so I'm not going to play an early practice round this week. I'll keep working at home with Hank Haney and try to sharpen my game.I know they removed some trees along the right side of No. 11; added 10 yards to the front of the first tee in case the wind blows; and tweaked the seventh and ninth greens.

The bottom line: It's going to be long and difficult, and you're going to have to have all aspects of your game firing. The only thing we don't know is what the wind is going to do.Overall, I feel very good about the way I'm swinging the club. Although my winning streak ended at Doral, I'm very pleased about the way I have played and hope the positive momentum carries over to Augusta.

Ever since I joined the PGA Tour in 1996, my goal has always been to win every tournament. That's just the way I think. If you don't feel that way, why enter? Although I got off to a great start his year by winning my first four events, including Dubai, I knew it was unlikely I would go undefeated. That didn't stop me from trying.

Billy Packer & golf

Who knew Billy Packer had any connection to golf?

Growing up in ACC country, I heard Packer doing college basketball all my life. Once upon a time I liked him. Now I find him only slightly less annoying that Dick Vitale.

Anyway, with March Madness upon us, Golfweek saw fit to profile the Mouth of the South.

Turns out he owns and sells courses but he rarely, and barely, plays at golf.

Tiger's streak over

For Tiger-philes, here's this morning's post-round interview from the WGC-CA Championship, won by Geoff Ogilvy.

Q. Would you talk a little bit about maybe the frustration of the leaderboard, never got higher than 17 and you got to 15 and can never inch a little closer?

TIGER WOODS: Well, you know, I made too many mistakes this week, you know? I was saying over there, I had four three-putts this week, I had two terrible lies in bunkers and a photographer got me on nine. With all that, to only finish two back, I think that's a great sign.

Q. Put the streak in context a little bit, how you feel that you're playing?

TIGER WOODS: Well, I think the people that truly understand are the players. I don't think you guys really understand or even the fans out there, just how small the difference is. I just explained what happened this week, how close -- if I just clean up my round this week, then obviously I'm right there with Geoff, if not just a little bit ahead of the 17 he's at right now.

Q. You begun this week talking about how the breaks have been going for you through the streak. Do you feel in a sense that you just kind of ran out of breaks?

TIGER WOODS: That's the way it goes, you know? As I said, people don't really understand you need to have something happen, a positive thing happen to you out there in order to win tournaments. I heard Geoff bladed one in the hole for par. That's what you need to have happen. Those are the things that have happened to me, and things weren't going that way this week.

Q. Talk about 16 after you tried to drive the green. (Went for the green; tee shot settled in the rough along the rim of the bunker; bad break)

TIGER WOODS: Yeah, that was a very interesting lie.

Q. You went through the bunker and were on the grass?

TIGER WOODS: Yeah, I was in the grass. It was sandy, it was sitting kind of funky, a shot I could easily just kind of leave either three feet in front of me, or I decided to put it 15, 20 feet and try to make a putt, and I put it a little bit further than that but had to give myself a putt at it. You can't just sit around and get cute and leave it in the bunker. Now you're hoping to make 5. No, I played conservative and then tried to make a putt.

Q. At the time you got a little birdie momentum going, looked like maybe a Hazeltine Hail Mary going down the stretch --

TIGER WOODS: Well, I didn't hit a bad shot coming in. The only shot that I really hit that would be a poor shot was 18, and that was just a poor number in my head that I was trying to play to. I should have played a little bit deeper than what I did in my head. No, I didn't hit a bad shot all day, which was nice.

Q. You changed clubs on 18, too. What did you do?

TIGER WOODS: I went from wedge to 9 because the wind kept going from down to more across and more across, and I played the 9 too soft.

Q. What's this do for you looking ahead two weeks down the road where they hand out green jackets? Still feeling pretty good about the state of the game?

TIGER WOODS: I think it's a great sign, what happened this week, to make that many mistakes and only be two back.

Q. (Question regarding 16.)

TIGER WOODS: Well, I upshot that drive. If I hit it solid, I could get it there with really no problem. But I upshot it, ended up to the right. I knew if it was in the left bunker it was an easy bunker shot uphill into the grain, and I put it over the right. It was a poor shot combined with a very interesting lie.

Q. Over the weekend, the rain --

TIGER WOODS: Well, it's been a long week, and it's just going to be a long day today. It is what it is, and we all had to play through it. I had ample chances to get myself up there on that board and win the tournament and just didn't do it.

Golfweek's Best for 2008

Golfweek is out with it's new list of America's Best courses. If you're a well-traveled golfer at all, it's great fun to scroll through the state-by-state rankings of "Best Courses You Can Play" to see which ones you've played.

Note: The asterisk next to a course denotes it new to the list. The (m) and (c) denote modern or classic courses.

Pennsylvania
1. Nemacolin Woodlands (Mystic Rock), Farmington (m)
2. GC at Glen Mills, Glen Mills (m)
3. Olde Stonewall, Ellwood City (m)
4. Bedford Springs Old Course, Bedford (c)
*5. Inniscrone, Avondale (m)
*6. Hershey CC (West), Hershey (c)
7. Lederach, Harleysville (m)
8. Hershey Links, Hummelstown (m)
9. Club at Morgan Hill, Easton (m)
10. Raven’s Claw, Limerick (m)


Personally, I think Inniscrone and Lederach are both ranked too high, although they both have ardent fans.

New Jersey
1. Atlantic City CC, Northfield (c)
2. Ballyowen, Hardyston (m)
3. Twisted Dune, Egg Harbor Township (m)
4. Sand Barrens, Swainton (m)
5. Pine Hill GC, Pine Hill (m)
6. Royce Brook (East), Somerville (m)
7. Scotland Run, Monroe Township (m)
8. Neshanic Valley, Neshanic Station (m)
9. Architects GC, Lopatcong (m)
*10. Shore Gate GC, Ocean View (m)
11. Seaview (Bay), Absecon (c)
12. Wild Turkey GC at Crystal Springs Resort, Hardyston (m)
13. Hominy Hill, Colts Neck (m)
14. RiverWinds, Thorofare (m)
*15. Vineyards at Renault Winery, Egg Harbor Township (m)

If you ask me, Jersey has a stronger list of courses than Pennsylvania. Major props to local architect Ed Shearon, who has two courses on the list, RiverWinds and Vineyards at Renault Winery.

Delaware
1. Bayside, Fenwick Island (m)
2. Deerfield Golf & Tennis Club, Newark (c)
*3. Back Creek, Middletown (m)
4. White Clay Creek, Newark (m)
*5. Baywood Greens, Long Neck (m)

For the full state-by-state list, click here.

Tiger tips his cap

PGA Tour: We're here with Tiger Woods, now a five-time champion of the Arnold Palmer Invitational. You had a pretty nice putt on 18 to win for the third time this year. You've got a good streak going. Let's talk about it.

TIGER WOODS: Well, it was just a great day. I hit the ball well all day, and Bart played great on especially the back nine, forced the issue on 18 and by posting 9; all day we were trying to get to 10. I figured 10 at the worst we would be in a playoff. I 3-putted there at 10, and felt like, you know, I still had eight more holes to get to 10 but unfortunately it took me all eight holes. The great thing about the last hole, that was my best swing I made all week with the 5-iron I hit in there. The wind had totally switched. It was blowing off the left on 17, in off the left and now was in off the right on 18. So hit a 5-iron up there and held just a flat hill hold shot and felt great. I gave myself a putt at it. The putt, I was just trying to make sure I got the speed right. Now that green has a little bit more grass on it, and the grain has a little bit more effect on it, and I gave it just a little bit more. I hit the putt down there, and it took forever to start breaking and for the grain to start taking it; but once it started taking it, it went straight right and went in the hole.

Q. You talk so often about this is what you live for, these kind of moments. Can you talk about if you can even remember what generates through your body and mind when the putt goes in and if you even know how you're celebrating?

TIGER WOODS: You know, when Stevie handed me my hat, I was like, "How in the hell did he get my hat?" (Laughter). Evidently, it came off. I don't know how it came off, but it came off. (Laughter).

Q. Pretty dramatically.

TIGER WOODS: I need to see the highlights. I was so into the moment of the putt going in and winning the golf tournament. I kept telling myself, I've done this before, I did it against Phil, and this time it's a little bit deeper into the green and the putt has a little bit more break and it has a little more grain; I've done it before and I can do it again.

Q. Did you find it ironic you were 0-for-20 in putts over 18 feet and all the issues you had with the putting and you were short all week that that goes in?

TIGER WOODS: Well, just had to keep working on my speed. You know, all week I kept telling myself, don't leave yourself a second putt, obviously with the nature of these greens, they were not running too smooth. Like what happened at the 10th hole, I ran it by and that was probably the driest green of it them all and I missed a come backer and that's one of the reasons why I needed to really concentrate on my speed and make sure I didn't leave those putts. That's what I kept trying to tell myself on 18: Don't leave yourself a second putt. Make sure you get your speed right and so if it does miss, it's just a tad.

Q. When you're standing in the fairway on 18, it would be easy to be defensive there. How do you balance that with trying to hit a shot and leave yourself a putt to win; are you torn as to how to approach that?

TIGER WOODS: Well, there are times when you do play pretty conservative but there I played -- bear with me here. I played aggressive to a conservative spot. I wanted to make sure I made a very aggressive swing, and I was aiming at the tower there, which is probably 15, 20 feet left of the hole, just hit the ball on that tower. Because the wind had totally switched, it was in off the left on 17 and now it's in off the right. If I spin that 5-iron, I can't get there. And if I hit it at the flag, so make sure I keep it left of the flag, but be committed to doing it. Reason why I chose that spot instead of further left, because I just saw Sean get it riding on the wind and it ended up over the green. So I really couldn't afford to hit it either way; just make sure I got committed and hit a shot that would give myself a 20-footer. And it turned out absolutely perfect. That was the best thing I made all week.

Q. What did you find on the range this week?

TIGER WOODS: Just same thing I was working on yesterday. It felt good. It was just a continuation of it. And felt like I was able to control the ball again and hit it both ways, which was great.

Q. Can you quantify how much your swing progressed as far as improvement from Thursday, Friday to today?

TIGER WOODS: Well, Thursday and Friday especially, I feel like I had a two-way miss. Yeah, you saw I hit the ball right a lot, but if I stayed back and got committed to it, I hit it left. So I had to try and time my release and my wishy-washiness of the golf ball. My face was rotating too much. I had to get that organized, and I felt pretty good about what I did yesterday. I had a one-way miss, which was great, and today I hit it good all day.

Q. Given the timing of the circumstances, where does this putt rank with your history of great shots and great putts?

TIGER WOODS: Well, I don't know where it ranks but it got me a victory. (Smiling). The putt was nice. It was great to make the putt, but I was so excited the 5-iron I hit in there to give myself a putt at it. You have to understand, I had not hit the ball well the last three days, and then to have that shot with everything on the line, to hit a shot and give myself a putt at it; you saw Stevie and I celebrate in the fairway, I was so fired up I hit the shot the way I wanted to. Just tried to make sure I kept that positiveness going into the putt. And I felt good over the putt, and I also said, I did it in Dubai, downhill left-to-righter, there's no reason why I can't do it again, and it went in.

Q. Were you as shocked at what happened on 10 as we were? Can you explain what happened on 10?

TIGER WOODS: Well, I got too fixated on the line and I didn't do what I was supposed to do. I kept telling myself all week, you know, watch your pace. That green is more burnt out than the others and I ran it by. It wasn't all that smooth, and I blocked the next one. You know, I kept yelling at myself going to the next tee; that's the reason why you can't leave yourself a second putt on these greens. They are not smooth and you cannot afford to do that, and that's a lesson learned. Unfortunately it happened there on the 10th hole and in the last round. Just a bad mistake.

Q. After these greens, will you put more effort in your putting to get ready for next week?

TIGER WOODS: I feel like I putted good all week. I felt like my stroke was good. Whether they stayed online or not was not up to me.

Q. To the degree that it would be printable, what did Arnold say afterwards when he greeted you?

TIGER WOODS: Well, he said he was proud of me, the way I played. He just says, "It doesn't surprise me you made the putt."

Q. He was telling everybody it was going in when he was standing up on the hill.

TIGER WOODS: Somehow you just get a good feeling sometimes; and he being a player, knows better than anybody. Sometimes you can see it on a person whether they are going to make it or miss it.

Q. Totally different formats, I understand, but was this a tougher grind this week than Tucson?

TIGER WOODS: Tucson was more physically demanding. This week, swing-wise, I didn't really have it, and trying to manage my game around. Yesterday, I was very fortunate to post a good round and not have the leaders run off. Vijay could have played a really good round and separated himself or Nick could have made one more birdie, gotten to 10-under or 11-under par and separated himself. It didn't happen. I got myself back in the tournament, and I felt good about what I had done with my swing yesterday and I hit it great all day today.

Q. You once said the thing you admired about Hogan and Mo Norman is that they owned their swing. How close are you to owning yours?

TIGER WOODS: Well, I think I'm starting to understand it, and I think that's what I meant by that. Those guys were able to fix their game, and especially Hogan, because he played tournaments. Mo didn't really play a lot of tournaments. Ben was able to understand his swing probably more so than most players ever could understand theirs and how to fix it. He was one of the first guys to ever do a lot of swinging in the room at night in hotel rooms, to try to figure it out for the next day, have the game plan going out the next day when he warmed up. You know, that's the whole idea of understanding your game so you can fix it on the fly. I made some good adjustments on it yesterday when I was playing. Today I could feel something coming on and made a quick adjustment and got back to dialed in again, which felt great.

Q. Bart was in here before and said that the guys all understand the magnitude of what you're doing, maybe the public doesn't; do you understand it?

TIGER WOODS: I do, yeah. I'm playing. (Laughter). It's a lot more stressful inside the ropes, trust me.

Q. But the streak, tying Hogan now, the whole thing.

TIGER WOODS: Yeah, well, tying Mr. Hogan, when I first started my career, there's no way I could ever dreamt I would be here right now. Hopefully if I had a great career and it panned out over a number of years, I might get to that number, but certainly not this quick.

Q. In the first couple of months of this season, now you've kept the streak going, what will it take four weeks from today to be in this same position after Augusta?

TIGER WOODS: Well, I have to keep working and keep progressing and keep working on my game and make sure everything is peaking toward Augusta.

Q. Are you motivated by the idea that there's such a spotlight on you that if you run that thing three or four feet past and miss it that it would become all the talk? I guess is fear a motivator for you, or is it never --

TIGER WOODS: (Shaking head no.) I don't really look at it that way. I looked at it as an opportunity to make sure I got my pace right and to end the tournament.

Q. And the putt that went in, you looked by your reaction that you knew you had enough, that it was going to tumble in and there was a point where you looked pretty sure --

TIGER WOODS: I had a good feeling probably six or seven feet in, once the grain started taking it and slinging it to the right. Once it got going to the right, it got more downgrain and once it got going downgrain, it was going to run out.

Q. Do you remember the first tournament you ever played when you stood over a putt that if you made it, you won?

TIGER WOODS: No, I don't remember to be honest with you.

Q. Is that a feeling, is that the ultimate feeling out there?

TIGER WOODS: I have to say it's knowing that you have an opportunity to end the tournament and it's in your hands, not anyone else's; it's in your hands. Whether you do it or not remains to be seen, and it's like having the ball with a few seconds to go; do you want it or not want it. I would much rather have it in my hands than anyone else's.

Q. When you're out there, you seem so focused, but to the thousands of people out there, it's like the circus came to town. Are you oblivious to the mob that follows you around?

TIGER WOODS: No, I'm not oblivious, no. You hear it and people yelling and screaming, you know, supporting you, you hear all that, yeah. But they are not going to help me hit a golf shot. That's one of the things that my father has always tried to instill in me is no matter how bad someone wants you -- like for example, how he wants me to hit a golf shot or my mom or my friends or media or family or whatever it may be, it's up to me. I have to pull off the shot. I've got to get out there and handle my own business.

Q. Knowing how important it is to have a chance to make the last putt, can you back to yesterday when you made the birdie on 16, which basically kind of got you in the final group -- can you talk about how fun it is to hit a shot like that, to play golf shots? And then secondly, what was your strategy going into it and how did you pull it off?

TIGER WOODS: Well, the shot on 16, if I didn't hit the shot on 15, I probably wouldn't have hit the shot on 16. All week I was kind of struggling with trying to get my face square and it was just rotating too much, whatever. Then I hit that shot on 15 and I could finally feel, I finally did it right. Then when I had the shot on 16, I said, well, it's the same shot, just hold it back in the wind, but just don't hold it as much. And I just kept saying, all you do, you just don't have to hold it as much as you did on 15. When I hit it, I basically hit a release fade, which felt great; and a little 6-iron that just held it against the wind and the wind kind of drifted at the very end. The shot on 15 set up 16.

Q. I know you're busy with your own game, but after the first couple of holes, what did you see in Sean where he kind of got back into it? What did you see that you liked about him today?

TIGER WOODS: Yeah, Sean got off to kind of a rough start there. But he fought back and made birdies at -- what has he made birdies at, 14 and 15. He got himself right back and anything can happen on last three holes. Just had to be there. He was right there. I mean, he was right there if Bart or myself made a mistake, he would have put himself right there with a chance to win or put himself in a playoff.

Q. Outside of people like us bringing it up, do you think about this streak much, or is it a matter of win this tournament, No. 7 follows; you win next week, No. 8 naturally follows?

TIGER WOODS: Well, I think that's the way you have to play. It's nice to have positive feelings going into an event, but it starts anew. You know, one of the greatest things about our game is if you're playing poorly, the week is over, you get to go down the road and tee it up again and give yourself another opportunity to win.

Q. I don't mean to sound trite at all, but just with regard to winning, is it almost kind of becoming an addiction to some degree? I know it's what you do and you're supposed to do --

TIGER WOODS: If feels good, Mark, it really does. (Laughter). It's why you work all those tireless hours. It's why you get up at 0-dong-30 and log your miles, bust your tail in the gym, there's a reason why is to be in that position right there to fail or succeed, but to be in that position time and time again. Trust me, that's the rush, to be in that position.

Q. With all of the momentum you have right now, what could stop you from continuing the streak, if anything?

TIGER WOODS: All of the players in the event. (Laughter).

Daly speaks

This transcript just in from the PR Dept at the Golf Channel, which interviewed John Daly for Golf Central

On his Disqualification from the Arny Invy:

Peter was here, my caddie. We left at 8:30 to go to the golf course to play the Pro-Am. I was right almost at Gate A when (Tournament director) Mark Russell said I missed my tee time. I said, ‘No I was supposed to go off at 9:47’. He said, ‘No, you were at 8:40.’ I said, ‘That is kind of weird because we called the tournament yesterday when I was out here at Celebration practicing and that was the time the lady gave us.’

The weird thing was why Peter didn’t think we should call back was I thought I was going to go early because that is what I requested. Robert [Gamez] said the first time isn’t going to be until 8 anyway because it is going to get light at 7:30 with the time change. So we didn’t even think about calling back. So that’s cool. No big deal.

It is just unfortunate stuff like this happens. I feel bad for Arnold because he gave me the spot. Had a great hug from him in the Monday pro-am on number seven. I love him to death. First time in 17 or 18 years that I have ever missed a tee-time. I feel responsible for it but I just feel bad this had to happen with all of the other crap going on in my life. I would never miss Arnold Palmer’s Pro-Am if he wanted me to play. I would never miss that tee time. Unfortunately I just got a bad time.

I’ve always played pretty good here. I think Arnold inspires me and makes me play a little better. I don’t know. I’ve never won here. I’ve had some great finishes and some good rounds. I feel bad for all this to happen. I’ve got to take the responsibility. I should have checked my time again.

On Splitting with Butch Harmon:

You know I haven’t seen the articles. I didn’t watch the Golf Channel last night. But Butch didn’t call me to let me know. I just texted Butch to say, ‘I just wish you would have called me,’ that’s all. I said, ‘I love you like a brother. You're the greatest golf coach, anywhere. I think you are better than anybody.’ This is unfortunate. I just wish he would have called me, that’s all.

On Events during PODS Championship:

Peter has had a neck problem for about the last two months. Jimmy has popped him back in. His neck was killing him. It got cold. And I said ‘Peter, let’s get Coach to caddy the last six or seven holes because darkness was going to come. I mean, it wasn’t like, you know, Peter was hurt. So, no problem, it was great for the tournament. Everybody loved it.

Same thing Saturday at Tampa. Gerald, the tournament director, says ‘Do you want to go to the Owl’s Nest?’ I said yeah I am already going because Hooters wants me to be there. Sign hats. Talking to the fans and having a good time. This thing about flipping a camera guy off. Well, we may have done it in fun. Half the time I take pictures with guys they want me to flip the picture off because that is what they want. We were having a good time. Nobody was loud. I thought it was good for the tournament. Hooters loved it. I sat there and ate, had a few beers with Peter. Wasn’t drunk or anything. I was there for four hours signing things. It was a good thing. But now it seems like this guy who wrote this article about me flipping off the camera guy, I guess he just doesn’t like me. But it wasn’t anything mean or anything. It was fun. That is just the way my life is going right now. You think you are doing somebody a good thing and somebody just wants to bring it all down. If that is how they want to live, then so be it. I can’t live that way.

Dumb, dumb Daly

It's official now: It's time to give up on John Daly.

Yesterday, Butch Harmon, swing coach to many PGA Tour stars, dropped Daly as a client, saying the bloated blubbo was no longer worth the bother.

"My goal for him was he's got to show me golf is the most important thing in his life," said Harmon. "And the most important thing in his life is getting drunk."

This after Daly, who has lost his PGA Tour card, famously glugged his way through the Bob Hope Classic. Then, during a 2 1/2 hour weather delay at last week's PODS Championship, Daly retreated to a hospitality tent.

How did Daly respond to Harmon's rebuke?

At the Arnold Palmer Invitational in Orlando, where he had been given a precious sponsor's exemption by one of the most respected, legendary figures in the game, Daly was a no-show for his 8:40 a.m. tee time in the pro-am. Unless he's got one heck of an excuse, that'll get him nixed from the field.

Some people never learn, and apparently Daly has his sights on the top of the list.

Say what???

An email poured in from a reader/viewer, wondering if they heard Sean O'Hair's post-victory interview at the PODS Championship correctly. When O'Hair thanked his caddie, his coach and his father-in-law, did NBC's Jimmy Robert's mis-hear or whatever and think the young golfer was thanking his actual father, from whom he is famously estranged?

Yes, that's exactly what happened.

To the tape:

O’HAIR: “I gotta thank my caddie Paul Tesori and my coach Steve Dahlby, and most of all I want to thank my father-in-law. You know he was there last week (tears in his eyes) and gave me a good pep talk.”

ROBERTS: “Really? I think a lot of people who don’t know a lot about golf might be surprised to hear that. But things are OK with you and him now?”

O’HAIR: “NO my father-IN-LAW Steve Lucas. My father-in-law used to be on the bag…”

Confused on new cut rule?

Run you finger down the list of 36-hole scores from a PGA Tour tournament these days and you’ll often get to a new and peculiar abbreviation: MDF.

It stands for “Made the Cut, Did Not Finish.”

Judging from emails and phone messages, even many serious golf fans don’t keep up with each and every rule change on the PGA Tour. But this new rule, which determines who or will not play on the weekend, is important and controversial among many players.

The intent of the cut rule is to reduce the size of the fields on the weekends, with a goal of speeding up those excruciating 5½ rounds that sometimes become unfinished rounds and slop over to the next morning.

Tour and TV executives have concluded that fields culled to 70 to 78 make for ideal pairings, fewer long waits on tees and, therefore, better viewing. Not surprisingly, the players have dubbed it “Rule 78.”

Like the previous cut rule, Rule 78 credits players who are among the low 70 scores and ties with making the cut. But, if those low 70 scores and ties make for more than 78 players – it happens about 11 times a year, says the Tour -- then the closest number of players to 70 actually advance to the weekend.

At the Sony Open in Honolulu four weeks ago, where the rule first went into effect, 86 golfers made the cut at low 70s and ties. That meant 18 players fell victim to Rule 78, as the field was trimmed to the closest number to 70, in this case the 68 players who finished two rounds at 1-under par.

Those 18 guys got credit for making the cut, they got last place but official money ($9,805), they got 46 FedEx Cup points -- and they got shown the door.

Among the 18 sent packing were Brandt Snedeker, last year’s rookie of the year on the Tour, and John Daly.

“It was all news to me,” Snedeker said of the new policy.

Daly, who has no status on the Tour this year, was not so diplomatic. “I think it’s crazy,” Daly fumed to the Golf Channel. “It’s a stupid rule, I’m sorry.”

Stupid or not, if players were caught unaware, they have nobody to blame but themselves. In the wake of the complaints at the Sony, the Tour said, in so many words, to its members: Hello, do you people read your emails on those Tour-issued laptops we gave you? Did you not read any of the four notifications of the change?

Well, no, many of them apparently don’t. They have people for that – agent, managers, handlers, wives, sycophants.

Already there is talk that Rule 78 is so unpopular among some players that it will get repealed after only one year. In the meantime, the best advice from a lot of players are hearing is to basically stop bellyaching and player better.

“Some of the top 10 players like the rule,” Ty Votaw, executive vice president of the Tour, told USA Today. “Some of the players who live on the cut line do not.”

Who could blame the top players for liking the rule. On the weekends, they are the guys with the late tee times, slogging along behind the slow-poke, check-cashers who sweat the cut line.
Another thing is, the Rule 78 was not exactly shoved down the throats of the Tour members. The idea found enough support among the Player Advisory Council, comprised of 16 Tour players, that it went up the chain to the Tour’s nine-member Policy Board, comprised of Commissioner Tim Finchem, four outside directors and four Tour players (currently Brad Faxon, Stewart Cink, David Toms and Joe Ogilvy).

There, the cut policy was unanimous approved.

Tiger to Win Slam

Okay, I’ve seen enough. Officially, this could be the year that Tiger Woods writes golf history by winning the Grand Slam.

Don’t bore me with the odds against Woods actually doing it, and don’t bother blathering on about the near-possibility of it all. I know that. But I have also seen the light and the truth and the way – and it’s Woods with a golf club in his hands.

Have you seen the way the man has started 2008?

How about an never-was-even-close eight-shot victory two weeks ago at the Buick Invitational in San Diego, his first tournament of the year? And how about his win Sunday at the Dubai Desert Classic, where he shot 65 in the final round to come from four shots back?

That makes for five wins in his last five tournaments, including the PGA Championship (his 13th major) and the Tour Championship at the end of last year. He has won seven of his last eight, the lone blemish on his record being a tie for second at the Deutsche Bank Championship. Woods’ command of his game is back, bigger than ever. So is his swagger. Not to put too fine a point on it, but the man owns golf.

Which brings us to Grand Slam. For years after Woods had that amazing stretch over 2000-01, when he held all four titles at one time, we began each new season with chatter about how that year might be the year for a Grand Slam.

Most years, the talked ended early, when Woods would fail to win the first major of the year, the Masters. Remember, of his four Masters titles, only one was in the last five years, in 2005.
Some years, Woods’ game just wasn’t there, as he twice retooled his swing. Other years, the venues for the majors just weren’t right for Woods.

This year, the stars are in alignment more than ever, and not even Woods is discouraging Slam speculation.

“I think it’s easily within reason,” Woods said during the end of his most recent monthly newsletter on his Web site.

Pressed by the media at the Buick, Woods didn’t back down. “The question is, do I see it as a possibility, and I say yes,” he said.

A fifth green at the Masters in April would ratchet up the chatter. The way his is playing, who in his right mind would bet against Woods at Augusta National, a course that is virtually built for his power game and towering irons shots. He is also the best clutch putter in the game.

For that matter, who would bet against Woods to win his third U.S. Open at Torrey Pines, the same course where he just dominated at yet another Buick Invitational.

True, the U.S. Golf Association will make Torrey Pines much tougher course for the Open. Still, not only has Woods won the Buick there six times, including the last four in a row, he even won a World Junior there as a kid.

If he is two-for-two going into the British Open, the plot thickens. The last time Royal Birkdale hosted the British Open was in 1998, when Woods was in only his second full year as a pro. He finished third at Birkdale, with the Claret Jug going to his buddy Mark O’Meara. While Birkdale is not one of the great British Open sites, Woods like it enough and that’s all that matters.

If he’s three-for-three after the British, the build up for the PGA Championship at Oakland Hills Country Club near Detroit will be nothing short of insane.

Woods’ could have bad memories about Oakland Hills. The last time he was there was for a pummeling in the 2004 Ryder Cup. Of course, those bad memories have more to do with Captain Hal Sutton’s pairings than with the golf course.

Casper to run Philly city courses

For anybody who missed it in the paper a few weeks ago, here's the story I wrote about the Billy Casper Co. getting the contract to run Philadelphia's city courses...

By Joe Logan

Inquirer Staff Writer

If you're among the thousands of golfers who consider one of Philadelphia's six city-owned courses your home course, get ready for more changes.

After 2 1/2 years, the era of Liberty Golf, a local company that has managed the courses, is coming to an end. The city is in the final stages of negotiating a new contract with Billy Casper Golf, based in Vienna, Va., which manages 80 facilities in 21 states, the District of Columbia and Costa Rica.

The new management contract, however, will include only four of the city facilities: F.D.R. in South Philadelphia, John F. Byrne in the Northeast, and the crown jewel, Cobbs Creek and Karakung in West Philadelphia.

At the same time the new contract goes into effect - the target date is Jan. 1, 2008 - two of the city courses, Juniata in North Philadelphia and Walnut Lane in Roxborough, will begin being operated by two nonprofit groups.

News that the city had picked Billy Casper Golf, a proven company with a national reputation, came as an obvious blow to Liberty Golf, a smaller, younger, homegrown company that had hoped to maintain the contract.

Liberty, in fact, had been created almost overnight by Bud Connors, who had run the courses for years, first for Club Corp. of Dallas and later for Meadowbrook Golf of Florida after Meadowbrook begged out of its long-term contract in mid-2005.

"We are big fans of Liberty Golf because of the way they stepped up and helped the Fairmount Park Commission and literally made it possible for the city of Philadelphia to have golf the past two years," said Barry Bessler, chief of staff for the park commission and the city's point man on many golf-course matters. "But it was a stopgap measure. Billy Casper is a national firm and one of the leaders in municipal golf-course management. "

Although he was disappointed, Connors, president of Liberty, said that his company had gotten a fair shake from the city. But up against Billy Casper Golf, he was David against Goliath.
"We're a small mom-and-pop operation," said Connors. "I'm the president of the company, but I'm in the field every day. I wish Billy Casper good luck. "

Terms of the deal with Billy Casper - length of the contract, rent to be paid the city - are still being worked out. Neither side expects negotiations to hit a major sticking point.
Fact is, when the city put the contract out for bid, only three companies showed interest: Billy Casper, Liberty, and Kemper Sports Management, another national company whose portfolio includes Makefield Highlands in Bucks County and Heron Glen in Ringoes, N.J.

What tipped the scale in Billy Casper's favor was not grandiose promises, said Bessler, but rather straight talk and an established track record.

"They have in mind capital improvements for all the facilities," said Bessler. "Does that mean there will be enough money to turn these into Bethpage Black? No. But we believe the management company is on the same page as us in terms of what the courses need and what can benefit them most. "

Billy Casper manages a mix of private, daily-fee, resort and municipal courses across the country, including Lederach Golf Club in Harleysville, Reading Country Club in Reading and McCullough's Emerald Golf Links in Egg Harbor Township, N.J.

The company's biggest municipal contracts are in Westchester County, N.Y. (three courses); Cincinnati (seven courses); and Cook County, surrounding Chicago (12 courses).
"Check with Cook County. We're like a before-and-after informercial," said Rich Katz, senior vice president at Casper's public relations and marketing company, Buffalo Communications.

In the Chicago Tribune's seasonal golf guide this past April, writer David Murray, a self-described "hard-core urban golfer," raved about the improvements at the Cook County courses since Casper took over in 2002, especially when compared to the Chicago city courses, which are managed by Kemper.

"I went to the Billy Caldwell course for a quick nine to keep the game sharp - you don't go to a Chicago public course for a serious round - and I noticed the first tee was made of grass," wrote Murray. "Where was the charming asphalt patch with the Astroturf welcome mat? And what was that in the middle of the fairway? Was it a bright, new 150-yard marker? "

Murray went on to praise Billy Casper Golf for not only improving course conditions but also for weeding out employees who had ranged from "indifferent to surly. " On the marketing side, wrote Murray, the Casper-run courses use computers to track the golf habits of their regulars, then send out special-offer e-mails that are so targeted, it's "almost creepy. "

If Billy Casper can deliver the same kind of performance in Philadelphia, Bessler and the city will breathe a sigh of relief. Initially, at least, any new management company will likely be greeted by city-course regulars with cautious optimism if not outright skepticism. Who could blame them?

Most recently, Liberty Golf did its best in a difficult situation, but before it there were years of pie-in-the-sky promises followed by neglect, first from Club Corp., then Meadowbrook Golf. In both cases, after the honeymoon, the relationship soured. It was golfers, and the golf courses, that felt the pain of the broken relationships.

This time around, to make the contract more attractive, the city has removed the two least attractive courses from the deal - Juniata and Walnut Lane. Both courses have their loyal regulars but neither tends to draw from beyond its neighborhood. The result is they have fewer rounds and produce less revenue.

In the case of Juniata, Bob Wheeler, a retired cop who has managed the course in recent years, pulled together the 12-member Juniata Golf Foundation, which he will head as executive director.

Walnut Lane will be operated by Impact Services, headed by John McDonald, the former Temple golf coach who is also executive director of the First Tee of Philadelphia and the Greater Philadelphia Scholastic Golf Association. Both facilities will continue to be owned by the city, merely leased out for $1 a year.

While Juniata and Walnut Lane both will continue to operate as daily fee courses, Wheeler and McDonald hope to grow programs - golf and educational - for youngsters.
"We will be open just as we were before," said Wheeler. "The difference will be our hands won't be tied by the management companies or the city. "

Wheeler, who has stocked the foundation board with a cross-section of civic-minded folks involved in business, law and politics, is most excited by the promise from several trade unions to donate their services in building a much-needed clubhouse.

At Walnut Lane, McDonald is still studying the possibilities for some kind of First Tee facility, apart from the one he already runs at FDR.
"I've already had the First Tee folks from the national office in Florida up to look at it, and the USGA people, too," said McDonald.

Meanwhile, Bessler is left to keep his fingers crossed that the city has finally come up with a viable solution and a reliable management company for the future. If not, he knows he'll hear about it.

Philadelphia Public Courses
Here are the six Philadelphia public golf courses:
Cobbs Creek Olde Course and Karakung Course (West Philadelphia), 7400 Lansdowne Ave., 215-877-8707.
Juniata Golf Club (North Philadelphia), 1363 E. Cayuga St., 215-743-4060.
Walnut Lane Golf Club (Roxborough-East Falls), 700A Walnut Lane, 215-482-3370.
FDR Golf Club (South Philadelphia), 1954 Pattison Ave., 215-462-8997.
John F. Byrne Golf Club (Northeast Philadelphia), 9550 Leon St., 215-632-8666.

I have returned

I said I would return and I have.

I am back after two months in the wilds of New Jersey and the News Department. I am back on golf -- the green, green, lush, manicured grass of golf.

Excuse me, I need a moment...

Anyway, because the Sports Department is also short-staffed, I'll get yanked from time to time to cover a Flyers game, or a college hoops game, or who knows what. But as spring approaches and the PGA Tour cranks up, I hope to be all golf all the time.

While I'm away...

I'm leaving this lady in charge.

We interrupt this blog...

In an unexpected development, I have been drafted by the Inquirer mother ship's News Department, to help out for the next couple of months. Apparently, News is even more short-staffed than Sports.

Until my return -- and my editors swear on a dogeared copy of the Rules of Golf that I will return in mid-January -- my postings here will be limited.

Back in a jiffy.

More from Sean O'Hair

After a 1½-hour lunch with Sean O’Hair last week, I came away with enough stuff for a story twice as long as the one that ran in Sunday’s Inquirer.

So, here are some of his comments and quotes that didn’t make it into the paper:

Sean on the early part of the year…
The beginning of the year was a train wreck. I think I missed five out of my first six cuts.

I went back to an old instructor at the Houston event (Steve Dahlby). Ever since I went back to him things are good. I stared playing well. It was almost like an immediate improvement.

On his bad starts to the last two years…
I think it is more a matter of rust. Last year I was hitting the gym hard. I didn’t practice hardly at all. The year before, same thing. The (Philadelphia winter) weather is a problem for me. That is something I’ve got to figure out, whether it’s renting a place in Florida or buying a second home or just going down there every so often and staying in a hotel. That is something I am going to do differently this year. I’m not too keen on buying a second home but you never know.

On going into next season…
That’s what I will be focused on this winter: what can I do to prepare myself for the beginning of the year. I’ve never had a good beginning to the year. If I do, I don’t know what’s going to happen, but it won’t be bad.

On Michelle Wie…
She has already sunk. She’s done. It would be very difficult for her to come back. For her to come back, she is going to have to separate herself from her parents, unfortunately. Her parents are good people, nice, but they are a little hard on her. She needs to take responsibility for her own life. It’s her life, it’s not her parents life. She needs to take responsibility for what is going on.

All I know is she is 18 years old. She is an adult. She needs to start doing things on her own, taking responsibility for her own life, her own career. But it’s none of my business. I was in a situation like that. It’s not easy to get out from underneath that thumb.

On the Players Championship…
People said, “You should have played for the middle of the green, taken your par and finished second.

I wanted to win. You could put me in that situation 100 more times and I am still going to try to win, being in the same situation. Now, I would do it in a different way. I wouldn’t fire at the pin. I’d probably take it 20 feet to the left and try and make the putt.

I hit the wrong club off the tee. I hit nine. I probably shouldn’t have gone for the pin. But you know what, I proved a lot to myself. When the time comes, I am not scared of winning the golf tournament. I am not scared of failure. It builds character.

On Tiger’s supremacy and his own efforts to become No. 1…
Tiger is not going to be on top forever. So there is a chance, if I work my tail off. One day, I have the capability of becoming the best player in the world.

Could I do it next year? Probably not. Five years? Probably not. But I’m only 25 years old. Look at Phil Mickelson. He’s what, 36 and he’s in the prime of his career. Where’s Tiger going to be 10 years from now? Where’s Phil going to be 10 years from now? Where am I going to be 10 years from now? Well, Tiger’s going to play well until he’s freakin’ 60. All I’m saying is I’m not close to the prime of my career and I’ve got some big goals. I want to be in the Hall of Fame, I want to win major championships.

On his life away from golf…
I love my life. I am so fortunate. There are times I sit there and think about things I didn’t experience as a 20-year-old. Honestly, I don’t care, because I have a lot of nice things kids my age don’t have. I have two beautiful kids and a beautiful wife who love me to death. Not to sound corny, but I am very blessed and I don’t appreciate it enough, to be honest.

You need to count your blessings. I kind of hit home the last two weeks of the Fall Season. I’m playing with guys who are on the verge of losing their jobs, and I’m thinking it could be a hell of a lot worse.

On living in Philadelphia…
I do feel like it’s home. I don’t like the winter. Winter sucks. But you know, my friends are here, my family is here. We have talked moving, going down to Georgia, the Carolinas, Florida, Arizona. The big reason we don’t move is my family, my wife. She is dead-set on living here.
If I did move, I would miss the beauty here. There is nowhere in the country prettier than this place.

I was driving late one night because I couldn’t sleep. It was after the Players and I was still kind of living it. It was 1 in the morning and went for a drive. I turned on the radio and they were talking about it. Obviously I’m going to listen to it to hear the bad things they were going to say. But they were very supportive. It was nice.

I’ve never had a home, dude. I’ve never been based out of anywhere. I moved out of Lubbock when I was 13. I moved to Arizona for three years, moved to Florida, but I didn’t’ didn’t live there for anytime. I’ve been here for five years. I’d love to be a Philadelphian. My plan is just to stay here.

Class of '07

For guys on the Nationwide Tour, there's no bigger thrill -- or opportunity -- than being one of the Top 25 on the money list who play their way onto the Big Show, the PGA Tour for the following year.

Here's a link to thumbnail bios of this year's crop of fresh and not-so-fresh faces for 2008. Several of them are retreads.

Congrats, Ron Pilot

Congratulations to Ron Pilot, 79, board member at Glen Mills Schools and winner of one of Golf magazine's Innovator Awards.

Pilot, seen here with a few members of the grounds crew, conceived and ramroded the Golf Course at Glen Mills. Retired, Pilot still spends every day at the golf course, meeting and greeting golfers, interacting with the students. The magazine cited Pilot as the Samaritan.

Good call.

Requiem for a country club

Berkleigh Country Club in Kutztown, which for years was the home to the LPGA's Betsy King Classic, ceased to exist last week and its contents auctioned off.

Longtime member Rich Lerner of the Golf Channel, who grew up in Allentown, wrote a loving tribute to his boyhood haunt for the Golf Channel website.

Rich begins his piece:

Berkleigh Country Club died last week. It ended by auction -- pin flags, tee markers, club championship boards, hole-in-one plaques and kitchen equipment. As collectibles go, we’re not talking the ’86 Masters, but for those of us who loved the modest Pennsylvania course, it was a sad occasion.

For the rest of the story, click here.