Scouting Report: Bay Hill Invitational

Mar20 by Scott

The last leg of the Florida swing gets underway Thursday in the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill, which has traditionally been the final tuneup for a handful of notable players prior to the Masters just three weeks away. The weather looks good for the first two days heading into the weekend, with temps in the low-mid 70′s and partly sunny skies, but by the weekend it’ll be noticeably warmer with increased winds and more probability of isolated thunderstorms, particularly during Sunday’s final round.

All eyes will obviously be on Tiger Woods this week, and for good reason – there’s not a course in the world where Woods has felt more comfortable and enjoyed more success than Bay Hill. A win Sunday will earn him his 8th career win in the event, and it would also move him into a familiar spot that he hasn’t been since the last week of October back in 2010 – the top spot in the official world golf rankings again. So what exactly is it about Bay Hill that brings out the best in Tiger? In a word – putting. As we saw 2 weeks ago in the Cadillac Championship, Woods feels right at home on the bermuda surfaces, and his putting so far this season has been right on the money. Given a much stronger form with regard to both his tee game and iron play, in addition to what appears to be the return of a confident putting stroke, the field this week will have their work cut out for them keeping Tiger out of the winner’s circle Sunday evening.

But…..

5 Players Worth Keeping an Eye On

Sergio Garcia: enjoying a nice stretch of solid playing coming into this week, having finished T7 last week in Tampa and T3 the week prior in Doral. He’s obviously been considered one of the top ball strikers in the game year in and year out for much of his career, but the modified claw putting grip has definitely rejuvenated his game the past two seasons in particular. He’ll need a steady hand on the quick, grainy bermuda greens this week, but he’s fared surprisingly well in this tournament in recent years, finishing inside the top-10 on 4 of his last 6 appearances here.

Hunter Mahan: one of those solid players, somewhat like Justin Rose, who tends to fly under the radar until Saturday afternoon. Hunter’s gotten off to a solid start this season, finishing T8 in the Northern Trust Open and then finishing 2nd in the World Matchplay back in February. He’s not fared particularly well at Bay Hill over the years, with his best showing coming back in 2008 when he finished T6. But I think he’s due for a good week here, and he’s hitting a lot of greens so far this season, which will serve him well this week.

Bubba Watson: finished T4 in this event last season, leading the field in driving distance and T5 in greens in regulation. He finished T18 two weeks ago at the Cadillac Championship, and could easily find himself in contention Sunday if he can find some momentum with the putter. He’s entering the final stretch before his title defense at Augusta in just a few short weeks, so I think he’ll be a little more focused than usual this week.

Justin Rose: has responded to a great 2012 campaign with a T4 and a T8 in his last two starts this season. Since 2010, Rose has enjoyed 4 wins, 9 top-5′s and 18 top-10′s, making him a very safe pick in just about every event he plays. There’s absolutely nothing to not like about his game, although his putting can be a bit streaky. He finished T-15 last season at Bay Hill and T-3 here in 2011. If his stroke is on this week, he could be the one player in the field that everyone else forgets about until Sunday, as he continues to be one of the most overlooked players playing the game.

Keegan Bradley: starting to show signs of life after a sluggish start this season, with a T4 at the Honda Classic and a 7th place finish at Doral two weeks ago. The anchoring issue has distracted his confidence on the greens, but he seems to be finding his form again. He’s obviously got the game to win anywhere on any given week, and I think he’s playing a course that suits his style of play.

Before closing, I thought I’d share a neat interview with Arnold Palmer, courtesy of Golf.com. A lot of you are familiar with my personal story involving Mr. Palmer several years ago, albeit happenstance at the 2000 US Senior Open at Saucon Valley. I’ll spare you the details, only to say that it more than reinforced why I think he’s the greatest ambassador the game has ever known.

Take a couple of minutes and check out Arnie’s Scrapbook HERE. You won’t be disappointed.

As for me, I’ll be out of the office for the next few days, but will resume Monday and offer my post-tournament thoughts about what happened over the weekend.

Until then, may it be warmer and dryer where you are than where I am.

Watson Making Changes to US Ryder Cup Qualification

Mar20 by Scott

“Giving our players one more opportunity to earn a spot on merit, I believe, is the right thing to do.” ~ 2014 Ryder Cup Captain, Tom Watson

The Ryder Cup “bubble” just got a little smaller, or bigger depending on how some of the players themselves prefer to look at it. Then again, it really doesn’t change the full scope of the challenges that await the Americans next year at Gleneagles, where the US will undoubtedly find themselves assuming the role of underdog once again. In THIS ARTICLE, Watson talks about his reasoning behind the change, and near the end of that article he also points out that the European Ryder Cup players have a distinct advantage by virtue of playing the event on familiar layouts in Europe. “One thing the Europeans have done – I would do it, too, if I had the chance – they play the Ryder Cup matches on courses where they play European tournaments,” he states. “The more familiar you are with a golf course, the better you’re going to play. That’s a clear advantage.”

With absolutely no disrespect intended to Watson, and while acknowledging the obvious that it is indeed somewhat of an advantage, there’s nothing barring American players from traveling to Europe to play in occasional tournaments over there. Furthermore, the European team has won just as many events on American soil as the US team has over the past 20 years, so it’s not like the crux of the issue extends exclusively to the away games on foreign soil. If Watson wants to cite a legitimate advantage that plays the bigger role, he’d obviously go back to 1979 when Nicklaus successfully lobbied to include all players of continental Europe to be eligible for the European team, while the US team naturally doesn’t allow players beyond their borders from other parts of North America to participate.

And not that I personally think it would matter in the end, mind you. The serious funk that continues to plague the US team has become psychological in nature, a hurdle that many believe is also an indictment of a nonexistent team-concept playing culture compared to that of Europe. While reducing the captain’s picks from 4 to 3 might make the administrative part of his job a little easier, Watson finds himself in the same quandary that just about every other US Ryder Cup captain has had to deal with over the past 20 years: having to rely on 12 individual superstars to leave their egos at home long enough to play great golf all three days.

The bottom line, as it has always been, isn’t about the number of captain’s picks, who is or isn’t on the team, or who is or isn’t the captain for that matter… just about every single instance in this current era of modern golf, the US has clearly had more talent on their side in this event with an accomplished veteran assuming the role as captain. What they clearly haven’t had, however, is more heart and determination, better known as a complete and utter distaste for losing every other year.

Back in the 1957 Ryder Cup when Europe would go on to take the cup back after a 24-year losing drought, there was interesting exchange between Tommy Bolt and Scotsman Eric Brown, as Brown beat him 4&3 in the finals match on the last day. As Bolt and Brown shook hands, the fiery American said to him, “I guess you’ve ***ing well won the game, but I didn’t enjoy it one ****ing bit.” Brown gave it back to him with his reply. “Of course you didn’t. You ***ing well knew you were going to be beaten.”

Obviously I’d never argue that either side should be anything other than gracious in defeat, but we could sure use a little of Terrible Tommy’s attitude toward the thought of losing in general. We’ve become such gracious losers, I think we’ve forgotten how painful it’s supposed to be.

When No News Isn’t Good News

Mar15 by Scott

Exactly 45 days ago… that’s when Vijay Singh released a statement confirming that the allegations from that Sports Illustrated article that named him as a user of a banned performance-enhancing substance were true, effectively admitting that he’d run afoul of the PGA Tour’s anti-doping policy.

FORTY FIVE DAYS AGO.

Getty Images

During the 45 days since, Singh has played in 3 tournaments and pocketed over $70,000 worth of prize money. This week he’s playing in the Tampa Bay Championship, an event that he won back in 2004. He’s currently tied for 31st, safely inside the weekend cutline and looking to significantly add to that post-admission $70k, maybe perhaps only one good round away from potentially being in contention with a shot at winning come the final round Sunday. What a mess that would create if he were to actually pull it off.

Although this issue revolves around Vijay, in many circles it’s not about him any longer. He was forthcoming, no sidestepping, no excuses. He’s accepted responsibility.

Which is more than some can say about PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem.

A little over three weeks ago, back during the World Matchplay event, Finchem finally spoke to the issue long enough to assert what thus far has to be the understatement of the year: “We’re in our process. There is no time urgency here, because if action is taken, it’ll be reported.”

No time urgency needed. If action is taken. Meanwhile, a player who has admitted that he’s broken the rules continues to compete against those who have not. Meanwhile, Tour members, the fans, hell – the entire sports world is watching all of this unfold. Meanwhile, a game that has always prided itself in valuing things like integrity, honor, fairness and transparency is being grossly exploited with what many believe to be closed-door backroom ‘we’ll make it up as we go along’ policy from a CEO who emits a familiar odor of caring more about the money his brand creates than the game itself.

It is my opinion that you’ve failed miserably to carry out your duties, Commissioner. I hope like hell that Vijay Singh wins this weekend, you’ve more than earned every ounce of grief that would rightfully come home to roost with such unpardonable inaction.

Trump’s $200 Million Makeover of Doral Big Blue Monster

Mar12 by Scott

The par4 18th at Doral

Here’s an interesting tidbit I came across putting this article together earlier today: both Tour events last week were hosted by resorts owned and managed by The Donald. Yeah, it seems his money and influence has found its way into pro golf, on top of just about everything else.

Although some of his critics might not necessarily see that as a good thing, as it relates to his planned $200 million facelift of the Doral Resort and Spa (the host of the PGA Tour’s second World Golf Championship event each season) – this blogger thinks it’s a blessing. Not because of the planned renovation of the resort accommodations, mind you… although I’m sure it’ll be nothing short of spectacular 5-star luxury for the guests and business people who come there for both business and golfing pleasures, but primarily because the layout of the famed Big Blue Monster has made the televised event incredibly stale and boring to watch over the past decade or so.

As for some of the proposed changes to the layout, Trump is relying on renowned golf course designer and architect Gil Hanse to incorporate some of the needed modifications that both feel will make the layout more interesting and possibly a bit more challenging, but without taking away the original playing design from the original architect, Dick Wilson. As some of us know, Hanse was recently selected to be the primary architect of the new golf course that will be hosting the first-ever Olympic Golf event in the upcoming 2016 Olympic games in Rio de Janeiro, so he obviously brings a tremendous amount of experience and architectural design knowledge to the table. His biggest challenge will be finding the subtle compromise between maintaining a playable resort design for paying resort guests while at the same time making some subtle changes to several of the holes to create more of a challenge for the Tour players who play one of the bigger events of the season there each spring. Striking that balance is obviously becoming increasingly difficult because of the enormous advancements of modern golf equipment technology, but Hanse believes it’s doable. “The combination of interesting winds with new hole locations and trying to get them into different angles, we’re hopeful it makes them more interesting,” Hanse said last year in THIS article in Miami’s Sun Sentinel. “That’s what we’re after, as opposed to hard or easy.”

According to Hanse in that article, the following changes are being considered:

- six greens will be shifted to new locations

- the layout of the par3 15th will be totally rebuilt and redesigned

- water hazards will be added to increase the challenge on both the 15th and 16th holes, with the addition of a semi-island green on the par3 15th and water also coming into play on the short par4 16th

- several other greens will be rebuilt and enlarged to accommodate more challenging hole locations

- tee boxes will be moved to require different angles to the fairways, and several greens will be shifted to be in closer proximity to the green-side bunkers and water hazards in play

- greens and fairways will be reseeded with more modern Bermuda hybrid grasses

One hole that will not change, however, is the difficult 467-yard par4 18th. Hanse feels that the closing hole is plenty challenging as is, without the need to create more excitement and drama than already exists. Although it remains to be seen what the changes will look like a year from now or how much more challenging the Tour players will find it, Hanse summed up his thoughts on the project that will consume him for the next 6 months. “Ultimately, the main way to challenge these guys is to be able to set the pins in locations that are difficult to access. You have to either shape your shot in there or you have to position yourself well off the tee,” he said. “If we can bring some of that element back to the course, which I think was critical in the original design, that will be a good accomplishment. It will be a much more interesting and, I think, more visually appealing style.”

It’s been a long time coming, in my opinion.

The Process, Deja Vu Style

Mar11 by Scott

Associated Press

I’ll be honest – there was a point sometime around the WGC Bridgestone Invitational back in August of 2010 when the thought finally crept into my mind that maybe his career was over, at least the dominating career I’d known it to be over the years anyway. Tiger didn’t come remotely close to breaking par in any of the four rounds that week, and in fact he played so badly that he could’ve been spotted a whopping 29 strokes by the eventual winner (Hunter Mahan) and still would’ve come up a stroke shy of beating him. Unfortunately for Tiger there wasn’t a cut in that event, and his horrible golf game was on display all four days that week. Only one player in the field would play worse, Henrik Stenson, who finished the week at +20. Tiger got him by 2 strokes, finishing at +18. When asked later that evening what aspect of his game he felt he needed to work on the most, he was very matter-of-fact in his response. “I need to hit the ball better, I need to chip better, I need to putt better, and I need to score better,” he said. In other words, everything. Everything needed some serious work.

Over the next several months we found ourselves becoming desensitized to the typical Tiger-speak every other week during his interviews. Phrases like “it’s a process,” and “getting closer,” or “getting more consistent” or “excited about how my game is progressing” caused us to ponder amongst ourselves if maybe the collision with the fire hydrant back in the fall of 2009 had injured the part of his brain that processed his cognitive thinking skills. Or maybe he was in complete denial of how bad his game really was, despite what we saw on our televisions back home each tournament he played. It was some really awful golf, kinda like a freak of nature seeing a player who for his entire career made the game look so incredibly easy, suddenly tormented with the enormous difficulty of it all.

Then again, maybe he continued to say these things over and over because he knew a few things about himself that we didn’t know, like the fact that he’s overcome these situations before in his career and his level of determination and self-belief would see them through once again.

Precisely two years, seven months and three days later, the nagging left knee that’s required no fewer than four surgeries throughout his career doesn’t appear to be bothering him. He’s swinging and putting well enough to have won 5 Tour events since this time last year, more than any other Tour player in the world. As of Monday morning, only a single point separates him from once again becoming the top-ranked player in the world, and he’s coming off of arguably the best overall tournament performance in his entire career. The “process” that he spent so many frustrating weeks and months talking about and working through seems to be paying off, in spades.

After his win Sunday evening in Miami, he spent a few minutes in the media tent fielding dozens of familiar questions from familiar sports writers who’ve followed him since he won his first major championship 16 years ago, probably knowing his answers to the questions long before they ever asked them. But one question in particular stood out, the gist being whether or not he felt like he could dominate the game once again.

“Well, I’m just trying to get better. It’s very simple,” Woods said. “I feel like my game’s becoming more efficient, and it’s more consistent day in and day out, and I’m very pleased with the progress I’ve made with Sean.”

Typical Tiger-speak, to be sure… stuff we’ve heard countless times before, but with a different twist this time around.

Most of us now believe it.

(all player’s quotes courtesy of PGATOUR.COM)

Tiger Woods Wins Cadillac Championship

Mar10 by Scott

Andrew Innerarity/Reuters

And just like that, it seems like old times again.

No one was shocked to see Tiger Woods win Sunday afternoon, although a few were probably surprised that he made it a bit more interesting than he needed to on the final hole. But there wasn’t any doubts who the player to beat was over the weekend. As he’s done countless times in the past, Woods protected a handsome 4-shot lead in textbook fashion in Sunday’s final round, relying on percentage plays and solid putting to close out what was otherwise an uncontested victory over the final two days. McDowell, Stricker, and Mickelson each had several opportunities Sunday to narrow the gap between themselves and Woods, but Stricker’s 4-under 68 was as close as any of the three would get. And even that wasn’t enough to get Woods to blink.

The sloppy finish for bogey notwithstanding, it was arguably the best tournament Woods has played tee-to-green since 2009, and one that reignites the conversation about who exactly is the best player playing the game today.

Speaking of which, as it relates to the player who’s technically the world’s top player at the moment, the final round was arguably just as important for Rory McIlroy as it was for Woods. McIlroy showed serious signs of renewed confidence Sunday, firing the 2nd lowest score of the day with a 7-under 65. Despite opening the week with a miserable round of 1-over 73 on Thursday, Rory finished T-8th Sunday and will head into Houston in a few weeks feeling quite a bit better about life.

As it relates to Mickelson, Stricker and McDowell – they obviously played some solid golf last week and carried a strong leaderboard all four days, each with an outside shot at winning over the weekend. Stricker’s 4-under 68 Sunday earned him solo 2nd, and Mickelson and McDowell finished in a 4-way tie for 3rd with Sergio Garcia and Adam Scott.

Tiger Woods picks up his 2nd win of the season, and clearly has the momentum heading into the closing stretch of the Florida swing. He’ll take a week off and then try to defend his title at Bay Hill in two weeks, a venue that has every potential to reward him with his 3rd win this season. Although I’ve yet to tally the exact points spread separating him from McIlroy for the #1 spot in the world rankings, a win there would likely overtake Rory in that department, and then it’s game-on in Augusta.

For a full recap of Sunday’s action at the 2013 Cadillac Championship, click HERE.

Tiger Increases Lead at Doral, Eyes 17th WGC Title

Mar9 by Scott

Fred Vuich / SI

A week ago, Jack Nicklaus went on the record to say that while he thought Tiger Woods could still best his record of 18 major championship wins, time was of the essence.

Judging by what we’ve seen through 54 holes this week, it appears that Woods got the memo.

Heading into today’s 3rd round of the WGC Cadillac Championship, Tiger had already amassed 17 birdies through the first 36 holes of play, a feat that he himself had never done before, not even when he was in the middle of his prime during his dominating performances in the early-mid 2000′s. If his critics and fans alike were looking for something beyond the 4 wins that he’s managed since his world came crashing down back in the fall of 2009, something that could justify why Jack’s record is still within reach, they might’ve found it this week.

For a more thorough overview of the action in Saturday’s 3rd round of the Cadillac Championship, you can simply click HERE.

But the short version is that barring an un-Tiger like meltdown on Sunday that happens to coincide with some phenomenal type of scoring round coming from either McDowell, Mickelson, or Stricker, Woods will pick up his 2nd win of the season, and his 5th win since this time last year when he was still having to answer questions about whether or not he could win again. With Bay Hill only 2 weeks away, where he’s won 7 times already, and then the Masters only a few weeks after that – Tiger will be heading into Augusta in top form and full of confidence.

We can’t officially say he’s back until he either lifts another major trophy or slips on another Green Jacket, but things are definitely looking up for Woods. We’ve heard that he and Rory McIlroy have become reasonably good friends over the past several months, so it’ll be interesting to see that dynamic in play this season, especially with Tiger seeing some early slides this season with Rory’s game and maybe seeing an opportunity to recapture the top spot in the World Rankings again relatively soon.

But before all of that, tomorrow still awaits. As impossible as it seems that someone other than Tiger will win, he’ll still have to go out and post a winning number. But he’s virtually unbeatable when he’s putting the way he’s putted this week. More than anything, he looks like the fearless player he used to be on the greens.

Opening Round Cadillac Championship This and That

Mar8 by Scott

So much for the Big Blue Monster on Thursday. It played more like the Big Blue Smurf.

The absence of wind led to some remarkable low scoring on Thursday, as was revealed by Golf Boys’ very own Hunter Mahan, who began his week in Doral by birdieing 6 of his opening 9 holes. Mahan finished the round 5-under, tied for 2nd heading into Friday with a handful of other notables that include Phil Mickelson, Peter Hanson, and Steve Stricker.

Alan Diaz / AP

Very few players looked sharper than Tiger Woods, who carded 9 birdies on Thursday and shared the overnight lead with Sergio Garcia and Freddy Jacobson, all three players atop the leaderboard and heading into Friday tied at 6-under par. A huge part of Tiger’s momentum in the opening round can be attributed to his solid putting, which interestingly enough was spurred on by a few observations and some timely advice from none other than his old Ryder Cup partner, Steve Stricker, prior to his round. “Well, whatever he says, I’m going to do. He’s one of the best putters that’s ever lived,” said Woods, referring to Stricker. “Basically what it is, he got me into the same posture that I was at Torrey. I had gotten off a little bit. So I felt comfortable, basically just like I did at Torrey, and I started rolling it just like I did then. He can see the things that are off a little bit, because he knows my stroke so well. Just gave me a couple little things to think about, and, lo and behold, I started feeling just like I did at Torrey and the ball started rolling.” This isn’t the first time that Woods has been on the receiving end of putting advice from Stricker, who was quick to point out that the help goes both ways. “He’s open to hearing what I have to say sometimes, which is flattering to me,” Stricker replied. “We try to help each other out, and he’s helped me out a bunch of times, too.” Stricker helped himself as well, thanks to 5 birdies in a clean, bogey-free start to his week on Thursday, posting 5-under 67. He heads into Friday’s round only a shot back of Woods and Garcia.

One of the familiar-yet-undermentioned stories so far this season appears to be surfacing once again, as Freddy Jacobson continues to produce some great golf early on in his 2013 campaign. The 38 year old Swede teed it up Thursday for the 6th straight week on Tour, opening with a solid round of 6-under that was buoyed by 2 impressive eagles midway through his opening round. “Yeah, I’ve had a pretty good start to the year. You know, it’s been really consistent,” Jacobson said. “This is the sixth week in a row for me, so I’m running on fumes a little bit at the moment and got a bit of a head cold going. So I wasn’t too sure how I was going to play today. I didn’t feel great warming up, so really happy just to get off to a good start and hopefully find some energy and improve a little bit on my iron play.” In his previous 5 starts this season, Jacobson has finished inside the top-1o on 4 occasions, including his 3rd place finish a few weeks back at the Northern Trust Open.

As for the current hot topic of world #1 Rory McIlroy… Although the challenges this week seem considerably lessened from what he dealt with last week, the 23-yr-old had very little to cheer about after Thursday’s opening round. On an unusually calm day where the field scoring average was significantly lower than during the more normal windy conditions in years past, McIlroy’s struggles continued with more squares on his card than circles, although an eagle and three birdies helped to somewhat offset the 6 bogeys on the day. After an opening round 1-over 73, the search for his former confident swing continues. “It was a bit of a struggle, to be honest. I hit some good shots, hit some not-so good shots,” Rory said. “As I’ve been saying, this is a work in progress and I’m working at it and I’m staying patient. I just had to play each hole as it come, just shoot the best score possible.” The best possible score might be several strokes higher in the coming rounds, as the winds are expected to become more of a challenge heading into the weekend. It’s those conditions that expose a player’s true level of confidence the most, something that the young Irishman doesn’t appear to have a lot of at the moment. But compared to last week, this week has started on a better note, if for no other reason than the fact that he’s still playing.

For a complete rundown of the scores on Thursday, click HERE.

(All player’s quotes are courtesy of PGATOUR.COM and ESPN.COM)

Mickelson’s Cart-Path Shot at Cadillac Championship

Mar8 by Scott

I’m sure it’s only a matter of hours before the PGA Tour account on YouTube removes the video, per their usual norm… but we’ll enjoy it while we can.

He’s got every short-game shot in the bag, but it’s situations like these that seem to bring out the very best in Lefty. The more complicated the shot, the more routine he makes it appear. Fortunately he drained the putt for a remarkable up-n-down.

Rory’s Biggest Distraction?

Mar7 by Scott

I generally don’t make it a habit of posting pics of female celebrities, but I make exceptions when it comes to sports. So… Does Caroline Wozniacki pose a serious threat to Rory’s focus and attention?

You be the judge.

Caroline+Wozniacki+Barclays+Singapore+Open+3IwRB0SrQCEl

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