Tees2Greens on Golf

August 2008 - Posts

• Is It Too Early, or Too Late to Worry About The FedEx Cup?

  Most of the time when you look at the stats of a tournament it is easy to see how the champion won. Not so at the Barclays. Sure, Vijay rolled in a big one on the first playoff hole and Sergio turned into Sergio on the second hole, but other than that there was 20 minutes worth of excitement crammed into four hours. According to the stats, Vijay didn’t drive the ball particularly well. Sure, he was long, in the neighborhood of 290 yards, but that was only good enough for 13th.  On the accuracy side of that coin, he was a so-so 66th hitting the fairways. His four rounds of 70, 70, 66 and 70 consisted of 50 pars, 15 birdies, 7 bogeys and no eagles for a total of 276, which, as you know was a very popular score that day.  His putting was good but not great, he finished tied for 34th, which is not all that good when you consider that he was tied for 6th in greens in regulation. Sergio on the other hand finished first in putts per greens and tied for second in putts per round.  And had he won, I guess we’d be talking about his putting, but alas he didn’t win, and on the second playoff hole he didn’t look close to winning. Our boy Kevin Sutherland, who also shot 276, had the same kind of round that Vijay did except for the 73rd hole.  He was 25th in putts per round, 18th in driving distance and 21st in driving accuracy.  He had 16 birdies, 48 pars and 8 bogeys, but all that was moot when he pulled his second shot on the 73rd hole and suddenly he looked totally out of place. Ben Curtis continued to play well, but when all was said and done that funny looking swing left him one birdie short of making the playoff.  Looking at the stats it was his putts per round that kept him close, but that wasn’t enough when he finished tied for 49th in putts per green in regulation. Justin Leonard finished a respectable 7th, which is kind of the story of his year. He made lots of birdies (18), but made 10 bogeys to balance it out. Mike Wier’s problems were mostly with the driver finishing 68th in distance and 25th in accuracy.  In the fourth round he average only 234.5 yards and that makes it difficult to compete at that level. The young stud of 2008, Anthony Kim, was long and wild finishing 8th in distance and 66th in accuracy. That may have had something to do with him finishing tied for 47th in greens in regulations. The rock Jim Furyk finished out of the top ten with driver troubles, and Steve Stricker did the same. Phil Mickelson struggled to finish in the top twenty. Frankly, he’s not going to win anything if he ties for 63rd in driving accuracy and 62nd for greens in regulations. The young guns like Trevor Immelman and Camilo Villegas were never in the hunt. Red-hot Kenny Perry finished tied for 42nd, and PGA Champion Padraig Harrington finished tied for 92nd and didn’t make the cut. And just in case you were wondering, Adam Scott finished damn near last, but don’t worry he still has enough points to bore you next week. So, what does all this mean? Has Vijay found the fountain of youth?  Is Sergio, Justin or Ben Curtis going to win the Cup without winning a playoff tournament and is that even possible? Are Phil and Adam Scott just messing around? I know it’s early, and I know that you can actually skip one of the events and still win the whole thing.  Someone did that last year if I recall. Early or not, if the favorites keep messing around, somebody like David Toms might win… Sorry he finished 121st so he won’t be there for round two. Posted Aug 28 2008, 09:44 AM by Sam 'Bogey' Johnson with no comments Filed under: Sam Johnson, Sergio Garcia, FedEx Cup, Jim Furyk, Phil Mickelson, Adam Scott, Anthony Kim, Trevor Immelman, Vijay Singh, Camilo Villegas, Justin Leonard, Kevin Sutherland, Ben Curtis

• Win A Round Of Golf With Jim Furyk

  As a golf enthusiast, you've identified yourself as someone who recognizes the best life has to offer. This is why One Key, a luxury travel company is encouraging you to participate in our Destinations for Life promotion. This is an exclusive opportunity for one winner and two of their guests to play a round of golf with PGA Tour star and One Key Member, Jim Furyk at the famed site of the Players Championship, the TPC at Sawgrass in Jacksonville, Florida. No purchase is necessary and all participants are encouraged to register and enter every day, until the promotion end date of Sept. 28th 2008, for additional chances to win. One Key delivers exceptional experiences such as playing a round of golf with Jim Furyk or a customized vacation at some of the world's finest homes. A One Key membership provides access to over 450 vacation homes in 30 destinations using a debit card (just like a Starbucks or jet card) that offers members the ultimate in flexibility and choice. Vacations with One Key are all about the details: Inspection & Certification of the Home: Our promise is that each home has undergone a rigorous inspection and certification process before its inclusion in the One Key portfolio. We've touched the linens, we've experienced the views, we've listened to the ambient noise, and we've qualified the freshness and appearance of every home, so be assured, there are no unwanted surprises. Customized Service: As a member, you will be assisted by your personal Member Service Representative to see to all of the details both large and small when planning your vacation. While traveling, your onsite concierge will see to your every need, the kitchen will be stocked, a housekeeper will visit daily, reservations will be confirmed and your time with family will truly be spent as you intend. You will also be provided with deeply detailed and intimate knowledge of each locale because they have been on site personally to experience it all. Your Travel Advocate: Should the unexpected happen; your flight is delayed, you get a flat tire or the power goes out in your home, our Member Services team will have a contingency plan to quickly resolve the issue so that you can continue enjoying your vacation seamlessly without interruption. I hope that you will take this opportunity to register for the sweepstakes and learn more about becoming a member of One Key's exclusive club. Please feel free to explore our website, or for more information call us at 508-337-0060 to speak with a VP of membership. Travel well, Jay Sapovits Founder & CEO Where Travel Means the World Posted Aug 28 2008, 08:44 AM by Tees2Greens Webmaster with no comments Filed under: Jim Furyk, One Key Luxury Travel Company, Travel

• Just Like Batman, Tiger Needs His Joker

  Greatness does not necessarily require a challenger, but it helps. Magic Johnson would have been great without Larry Bird and vice-versa. However, there is one thing that we all know for sure; it was great fun to watch the two go at each other. Golf rivals are no different. Bobby Jones had his Walter Hagen and Gene Sarazen; Ben Hogan had his Byron Nelson and Sam Sneed; Arnold Palmer had his Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player; and Jack Nicklaus had his Lee Trevino and Tom Watson and a half dozen others. But exactly who has Tiger got? Phil Mickelson and Adam Scott, or is it now Padraig Harrington? Only time will tell if Tiger really has a Bird to his Magic, a Batman to his Joker, or a Fred to his Barney? Perhaps I’m not giving Phil, Adam or Padraig enough credit, or maybe I’m giving them too much. There’s a better than even chance that the next great challenger, the Tiger killer, the next coming, the foil, the measuring stick is still to come? The question is, will he toss a rubber snake at Tiger like Trevino did Jack, or chip in on seventeen like Tom Watson did? I ask these questions for the good of golf, or at least for my own viewing pleasure. Right now it’s Anthony Kim’s turn to be the next challenger, but only time and Tiger will tell if he can measure up. We had the same expectations for Sergio Garcia a few years ago. He was going to challenge Tiger every week, and he was going to do it all while still learning to speak English. Granted, he has had a nice run, but in the four previous times that he has had the opportunity to be the man at a major, he didn’t get the job done. I think of Adam Scott in the same way. He’s a great player, but he seems unable to grab the game or Tiger by the throat when the opportunity presents itself. Padraig Harrington is an enigma. He’s not some twenty-something kid trying to make his move. He’s 37 years old and one of only six people in the world still playing Wilson Staff. I wish he was the kid coming from out of nowhere to capture the title, but he’s not. Certainly he’s got that steely-eyed look and a fearless charm about him. Still, with a two shot lead, he did bounce the ball off the bridge at the ’07 British Open, and didn’t he hit his drive into the rough on 18 at this year’s Open giving Sergio one more chance to choke? Tiger killers don’t do that, or they will become one more notch on Tiger’s belt. I don’t know if Tiger takes measure of every new challenger; somehow I doubt it, after all there’s a new one every week. However, if there ever was an opportunity to set the stage to challenge Tiger in 2009 this is it, the 2008 FedEx Cup. There are 35 players under the age of 30 playing this week. On the other hand there are also 35 players 40 and over. There are 28 tournament winners playing, four of them multiple winners. There are also 22 major winners with 32 titles including the guy that has won three out of the last six. All in all, there are 136 players from 15 countries (eight players are absent), seven of which have actually won the Barclays in the past. Is there a Walter Hagen, Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Byron Nelson, Sam Sneed, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, Lee Trevino, or Tom Watson among them? Is Phil, Adam, Padraig, Serigo, Camilo, Luke, or Anthony ready to become Tiger’s Joker? Wouldn’t it be really cool to have a both Butch and Sundance playing every week? Posted Aug 21 2008, 07:56 AM by Sam 'Bogey' Johnson with no comments Filed under: Sam Johnson, Tiger Woods, Padraig Harrington, Adam Scott, Anthony Kim, Batman

• The FedEx Cup; Lost Somewhere Between I Forgot and Who Cares

  Between the remarkable PGA Championship just completed, and the always-exciting Ryder Cup set for the middle of September, is the FedEx Cup, the PGA’s attempt to manufacture a playoff system that I expect, when all is said and done, will be neither remarkable nor exciting. Perhaps my great grandfather, “Old Bogey” Johnson, felt the same way when the PGA Championship was established way back when, and all that is missing is the years required to make it a tradition… Perhaps. On the other hand, what if anyone of the 5,000 non-golfing Saudi Princes decides to buy FedEx and dumps the Tournament? Do we need another Nike, Hooters, Nationwide, what’s the name of that Tour fiasco? But wait, the FedEx Cup is actually sponsored by The Barclays, Deutsche, BMW and Coca-Cola isn’t it? The point is, the U.S. Open, the Masters, British Open and the PGA Championship remain steadfast regardless of who the sponsor happens to be in 1908 or 2008 and that’s the way it ought to be. I don’t care if NASCAR has the Winston Cup, or is that the NEXTEL Cup, or whatever it is this year. They also have Mullets haircuts and sleeveless tee shirts and I don’t want either one of those. But the real problem is that the FedEx Cup is an answer to a question that nobody is asking. Tell the truth, do you care that Kenny Perry is the only guy with two good legs that has more than 20,000 points, and did you know or care that Jim Gallagher, Jr. has only 24 points? Does it make any difference to you that vacationing Tiger Woods already banked 22,695 points in only six events and it’s taken Phil Mickelson seventeen events to rack up 18,241? And, have you considered that PGA Champion Padraig Harrington, who is arguably playing the best golf in the world right now, only has 15,555 lousy points? I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, if the question is “Who is the Player of the Year” then we already know the answer to that question regardless of how many FedEx points they have. If the question is who has the most wins, or has made the most money, or has the lowest scoring average, then we already know the answer to those questions as well. I don’t know what I am hoping the FedEx Cup will render, but I would just as soon skip rounds one through three and get it over with, and I’m pretty sure Paul Azinger feels the same way. In the sport of kings the athletes are horses, and trainers track every race and every workout; track and field coaches chart their athletes in the same way. The objective of this process is to help the athlete peak at exactly the right time. Too much work and you peak too soon, too little and you don’t peak soon enough. From this information it is clear that it is impossible to stay in peak form all of the time. Performance levels rise and fall at predictable intervals throughout the year. The better the athlete the longer they can stay in shape, but make no mistake about it, everybody’s performance level eventually falls off… everybody. Paul Azinger’s team of athletes are being asked to play in the PGA Championship, then four weeks of FedEx Cup before arriving for the Ryder Cup. It is a grueling task to be sure. Who will arrive at the top of their game? Probably no one, and that’s a rotten shame for the players and you and I who were hoping to see their “A” game. About the Ryder Cup The Ryder Cup is one of the most spirited, exciting and compelling events in sport, covering nearly 80 years, involving the greatest players in the world and producing some of the greatest moments in the game. In 2008, the U.S. will face Europe, which scored a stunning 18 to 9 victory over the United States in 2006 at The K Club in Straffan, County Kildare, Ireland. Captain Nick Faldo will lead the 2008 European Ryder Cup Team. Paul Azinger will captain the 2008 United States Ryder Cup team when the biennial matches against Europe are held at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Ky, Sept. 16-21, 2008. Posted Aug 13 2008, 09:28 AM by Sam 'Bogey' Johnson with 2 comment(s) Filed under: Sam Johnson, FedEx Cup, Ryder Cup, Paul Azinger

• Golf’s First Sugar Daddy, Rodman Wanamaker, And The Legacy of The PGA Championship

  Ninety years ago, a Princeton man by the name of Rodman Wanamaker invited a group of golfers to lunch at the Taplow Club in New York. Although it wasn’t on the menu, by the end of the meal they had cooked up the Professional Golfers’ Association of America (PGA), and the rest is history. As the richest guy at lunch, Rodman Wanamaker did more than pick up the check that day, he forked over 2,500 bucks and a slick looking trophy. Then, as if to prove that golfers are smarter than your average jock, some guy in the back of the room shouted, “Let’s call it the Wanamaker Trophy.” Seven months later an Englishman by the name of Jim Barnes grabbed the prize money and Wanamaker Trophy at Siwanoy Country Club in Bronxville, New York, then promptly asked his caddie to hold his 5-iron while he went off to fight the First World War. I don’t know why this department store tycoon was interested enough in golf to lay out 2,500 bucks; perhaps he was a groupie, but he did the same thing for track and field when he started up the Millrose Games. He also inaugurated the Wanamaker Mile and reportedly began the tradition of playing The Star Spangled Banner at sporting events. Golf’s first Sugar Daddy was also a pioneer in sponsoring record-breaking aviation projects and an early backer of transatlantic flight. Commander Richard Byrd grabbed a few of Wanamaker’s bucks and piloted Wanamaker's airship America across the Atlantic just days after Lindbergh’s historic solo crossing proving once again that second place is just the first loser. Rodman Wanamaker checked out for good in 1928 leaving among other things the world’s largest pipe organ, a Landaulette Rolls-Royce used by General Pershing in the ticker-tape parade celebrating the end of World War One, and his Palm Beach, Florida winter home, La Guerida, that he had built in 1923. The home was later purchased by Joe Kennedy for a $120,000 and would later become President John Kennedy’s “Winter White House.” But you may remember the house from the William Kennedy Smith rape trial. Is that six degrees of Rodman Wanamaker, or what? So, as you stroll down the fairways of Oakland Hills this week, the site of 16 national and major championships: 6 U.S. Opens, two U.S. Senior Opens, U.S. Women's Amateur, U.S. Men's Amateur, Western Open, and Carling World Open; the 35th Ryder Cup in 2004; and three PGA Championships, including the 90th PGA Championship in 2008, you can turn to your buddy and say, “That Rodman Wanamaker was a hell of a guy, wasn’t he?” The same year that Rodman Wanamaker said, “Let’s do lunch to the PGA” the South Course at Oakland Hills was opened. The course was designed by the foremost golf course architect of his day, Donald Ross. That same year, the Club also engaged its first golf professional, Walter Hagen, who had attended lunch that day with Rodman Wanamaker, and more importantly had already won the U. S. Open. Thirty some odd years later, in preparation for the 1951 U.S. Open, the club directors once again gave foremost golf course architect of his day, Robert Trent Jones, a mandate: create the toughest course the players had ever encountered. That year, no player broke par the first round and the scoring average was 78.4. However, on Sunday Ben Hogan’s incredible 67 stole the show and started another legend. Almost sixty years later, Rees Jones, the son of Robert Trent Jones, has taken on a different challenge. Due to improvements in players' skills and the changes in both the golf ball and golf equipment, Jones decided to add almost 400 yards to the Oakland Hills layout, but he didn’t stop there. And, although he may not have been given the same specific mandate as his father, the changes that were made were designed specifically to challenge today's greatest players. That would be six of one and a half a dozen of the other, as they say. Obviously, there was a certain “Return to Mayberry” aspect about the whole thing. Here was Rees Jones renovating the course that helped make his father, Robert Trent Jones, famous. All the while the membership at Oakland Hills anxiously waited to see if Rees had sharpened the teeth of the Donald Ross classic and once again made Oakland Hills the supreme test for the strongest field in golf. Enjoy the 90th PGA Championship; it should be special. Posted Aug 06 2008, 08:07 AM by Sam 'Bogey' Johnson with no comments Filed under: Sam Johnson, 2008, PGA Championship, Professional Golfers’ Association of America, Wanamaker Trophy, Rodman Wanamaker