Disposable PC?

I just came across this article about a guy who threw away his PC rather than have to continue to deal with the spyware that was getting on it. I know I have previously let my frustrations be known on the spyware issue, but this is a little extreme. It's still damn funny, though.

I can't help but wonder how many people have done this that we've not heard about. I would imagine folks who aren't aware of spyware and what it can do to your system have been known to chuck their PC's and buy new ones, unaware that unless they take measures to prevent it, the new PC will end up in the same shape sooner or later.

Tiger vs. Jack

There's a poll on the About Golf forums right now posing the question, will Tiger Woods break Jack Nicklaus' record for most major championships? My vote is yes.

In my lifetime, I have never seen anyone as tough as Tiger on the golf course. When Tiger has a lead, you might as well wrap it up, because if there's one thing Tiger Woods knows how to do, it's play within himself. He just doesn't make mistakes. He knows everyone else has to come and get him, and as long as he does what he knows he can do, he's going to be tough to catch. There aren't many tour pros out there who have the same kind of discipline. Those who do have probably learned it from a sports psycologist. For Tiger, it comes naturally.

Tiger also has one more advantage over Jack. He has a goal to shoot for. If Jack had had someone to chase who had 25 major wins, he might have gotten 26.

Beggars Can't Be Choosers

I remember several years back, back when Phil Mickelson was still the Best Player Yet To Win A Major, I asked a friend if he would rather have that title with, say 20 wins, or would he rather have the title of Best Player ONLY To Win A Major. He chose the latter.

I'm not sure I agree. I guess I wouldn't refuse either one, but given the choice, I think I'd go with the 20 wins. I mean, in 30 years, who thinks Ben Curtis will be remembered any better than Sergio Garcia if Ben doesn't get another win and Sergio never gets his Major?

I'm pretty sure Ben is a frequent visitor to this blog, so I hope he doesn't get mad about this post. I don't mean anything by it. He just came to mind because of the British Open being played this week. I personally hope Ben gets his 20 wins to go along with his British Open title.

Oh, and I hope Sergio gets his Major title, too.

Ask & You Shall Receive

A couple of weeks ago, I posted about how I had gotten into listening to podcasts and that I wanted to find a good golf-related podcast to listen to while on the course. Enter The Golf Show, an Austrailian-based podcast that covers just about everything you can think of in the world of golf.

They've had only 4 shows so far, and I'm currently on episode 3. In the three, I have listened to topics such as tour news (from ALL world tours), tournament reviews and previews, course reviews and the ins and outs of course photography. Pretty much everything you could ask for.

It's definitely worth checking out.

Death Of A Floppy

When exactly did the floppy die? Is it even really dead yet? We still use Sony Mavica cameras where I work. It's only a matter of time, though. I've heard rumblings of our Sonys getting replaced sooner than later. For my part, personally, the floppy is gone. I don't even have a floppy drive in my home PC, and haven't had a reason for one.

I'd say, for me anyway, the final demise of the floppy came with the popularity and affordability of USB flash drives. Recordable CD's put up a good fight, but even now they're still not as convenient as floppies for everyday use. But USB drives are just as convenient, even moreso when you consider the amount of storage available.

So here's to the floppy disk. You have been a good friend. I will remember you fondly.

Ah, The Good Old Days

Here's a very interesting article I found via the Sand Trap. Apparently some dude pitted the modern Pro-V against some balls that were (supposedly) manufactured to 1985 specs in a 9 hole match. Needless to say, the Pro-V dusted the '85 ball, with (in some cases) 100 yard differences off the tees and 2 to 3 club differences on approach shots. That's pretty crazy if you think about it. Everyone knows that the modern golf ball goes farther than balls from 20 years ago, but I never really thought that there was that much of a difference. Now I understand the position that distance is out of control and that the golf ball is the easiest way to control it, but I also don't want to have to tee off with a featherie the next time I'm at my home course.

Anyway, I won't go too much into it here, because the Sand Trap and Guardian Unlimited deserve a few hits too, but for anyone out there with any interest at all in the distance debate, this article is a must read.

Links Courses Defined

Nice article at About.com on what makes a true links course.

Want Myself A Mac Mini

Well, actually I'd like to have a "big time" Mac, a "grown up" Mac, or whatever it should be called. The problem is, I can't afford one. But the Mac Mini is something I think I could swing, as long as my credit card company agreed with me.

I've been shopping for one on eBay for about 3 weeks now, but unfortunately I'm having trouble finding someone who's willing to agree with me on what I want to pay.

Why do I want a Mac? Heck, I don't know. Why do I want anything that I want? No reason, really. I just want it. I've been hearing about how great they are for a while now, and I guess I'd just like to find out for myself. Also, as mentioned earlier, I'm sick and tired of spyware, viruses and the like.

Trouble is, I don't know anything about Macs. I don't know what to look for in regards to processor speed, RAM and those types of things. As with Windows-based PC's, I assume bigger is better, but other than that, I'm clueless. I looked at the low-end Mac Mini at Best Buy the other day, and it felt kind of slow to me. I went back a few days later and they had the 1.42 Ghz model out and it seemed a lot better. Was it $100 better though? I don't know.

Anyway, if anyone out there has any knowledge they'd like to share, feel free.

First Name Basis

It's something to be said, to be a golfer and be on a first name basis with millions of fans. Arnie, Tiger, Freddie, Phil, Vijay, Annika... but possibly the greatest first name ever, Jack, will be playing in his last British Open this week, not to mention his final Major.

Golf has changed over the years. Back in Jack's day, you played and you played a lot. You played like Vijay because you had to if you wanted to make a living as a touring pro. Jack was probably the first to totally gear his game for the Majors. But heck, he was Jack Nicklaus, it was understandable. Nowadays, with millions in prize money and endorsements, it seems even if you've just won a tournament or two, you're expected to turn yourself into a Major golfer. You gear your game to try to peak at the right times of the year. The smaller events don't matter anymore. Sure, you play in some of the smaller tournaments, but only the "big" small ones. I think it hurts the game a little. But then again, if I had the talent, I might do the same thing.

I also think that it takes away from the ability to get to know some of these younger players on a first name basis. Sure, some of them are known... Phil and Vijay as I mentioned earlier, and Ernie and Sergio for sure. For the most part though, everyone seems to be known by their logos, and not their games OR their names.

Back Across The Pond For A Week

So here we go; The British Open, the Open Championship. I've previously let my opinion be known on that subject, but whatever you want to call it, the third Major of the year is upon us.

I'll have to be honest in saying that this one has kind of sneaked up on me. I hadn't really remembered that the British was this week until my Dad mentioned it to me yesterday. I've not been following, or playing golf that much the past couple of weeks, for whatever reason.

What's my prediction, you ask? I'm not sure. It's hard to call this year. From what I understand, St. Andrews is more of a long ballers' course, at least moreso than some of the others in the rotation. It seems to be a little more open, which I guess means the big hitters can fly it all over Creation and still manage to get out of the hole alive. Witness John Daly, and Tiger Woods. In the same vein, everyone who reads this blog knows I'm a big fan of "The Mick", so as far as who I'll be rooting for, Phil tops the list.

Something in my gut is telling me that this time a European is going to walk away with the Claret Jug. The Europeans are all just playing too well and are too comfortable with the style to not make some kind of an impact. Padraig? ..Maybe. Sergio? ..Possible, but I don't see it. Darren Clarke? ..Hey, I think that's it! That's who I'm going to go with. I'm picking Darren Clarke to win the Open, the British Open.

Birdies & Bogies

Birdie Kim wins the Open, Bogey Jim loses at Westchester. I jest, of course, but it is funny that a player who has yet to make much of a splash on the LPGA Tour wins with a miracle birdie on the final hole, while a player who is known for his steady play loses with two bogies coming down the stretch.

Props to Birdie Kim.

Incredi-Ball

But... I can do this without having to buy any special equipment.

Moore Or Less?

I just read a great article on The Sand Trap about Ryan Moore and his turning professional this week. The question posed is whether Moore will go the way of past U.S. Amateur greats like Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson, or will his career fizzle like David Gossett and Matt Kuchar.

Back in the early 90's I was a huge NBA fan, and came to the conclusion back then that, as it relates to the NBA draft, any of the top 10 picks could end up being the next Michael Jordan. It didn't really matter whether you were the 1st pick or the 10th pick, as long as the desire was there to improve yourself and make it to the upper echelon of the league.

I think the same could be said for the PGA Tour. Some of these guys coming out are content with just making a living on tour, but if you want to work hard and really put yourself in contention from week to week, there is room there for you to do so. So I don't think the question is whether or not Ryan Moore has the talent to get there, it's whether or not he has the desire to be in the thick of things come Sunday afternoon. For that, we'll have to wait and see.

Campbell Wins U.S. Open

It was good to see Michael Campbell win one of the big ones yesterday. Obviously he played better than anyone else all week, but I thought in particular he had the best round of any of the leaders yesterday. On a day when everyone else was having trainwrecks, Campbell held it together and managed to play steady golf for 18 holes.

I know I've stated before that I don't like it when a 'nobody' wins a big event like a Major, but Michael Campbell is far from a nobody to me, and I'm sure the same goes for anybody who has been following the game for a while. Campbell is a superstar on the world stage who has just had some bad luck in his life. It's nice to see all his hard work and perseverence has finally paid off.

A New Obsession

Ok, I'm going to admit it. I have a new obsession, and it's called podcasting. No, I don't have a podcast. I have become obsessed with listening to podcasts. I have always liked to listen to talk radio, and also to bring some tunes, talk, or whatever with me when I'm playing alone on the golf course. And before anyone asks... no, I don't have a boombox strapped to the back of my cart. I have headphones.

Anyway, podcasts seem to fit well with me. Mainstream music is not all that great to me right now, and TechTV is gone, so I can't get any good tech content on TV. But I can download some good tech-related audio and maybe find some good independent tunes (not really found any good music podcasts yet, but I won't get into that right now) via podcasts.

Now, from the searching I've done, there seems to be a very small percentage of podcasts out there that are actually good, but there also seems to be something out there for almost anyone. I say 'almost' because I have yet to find a podcast relating to golf. It would seem that there is a lot to talk about with the sport. There's always tournament news, instruction, or maybe even dedicate each show to one specific golfer. I don't know. I'm not a producer or anything. I'd just like to be able to listen to golf while I'm playing golf.

For anyone interested in podcasting, there are several sites out there where you can find out what you need to know. My current favorite is Podcast Alley.

Site Update

The 'Sites I Visit' section has been updated with a new site I have found called The Sand Trap. I'm always looking for good golf blogs, and this one seems to fit the bill. It has a nice, clean look to it, and appears to have a good-sized staff to help keep the site updated often. Anyway, check it out... The Sand Trap. It's my new favorite.

This Is Sort Of Ridiculous

Watching the Golf Channel last night, they showed a package of Payne Stewart and Phil Mickelson's play coming down the stretch at Pinehurst in 1999. Then they went to an excerpt of Phil's press conference from Tuesday, I guess. Anyway, during the press conference, the Golf Channel was showing little graphics at the bottom of the screen such as "Lost to Payne Stewart at Pinehurst in 1999"... relevant to the situation, right? I mean, the event this week is at the same location, and Phil came in second in that particular event.

But the one that really got me was "Lost by 3 strokes to Tiger Woods in 2002 U.S. Open"... huh? What does that have to do with anything? If they want to show something of that nature that might have some relevance, why not say "Lost to Retief Goosen in 2004 U.S. Open"? At least that was the most recent U.S. Open.

Why pull 2002 out of a hat? Maybe because that was the last time Tiger won. Why not just put a graphic at the bottom of the screen and leave it on there 24 hours a day that says "Tiger Woods won the U.S. Open in 2002"? You really just want Tiger's name to show up somewhere on the screen anyway. Why try to disguise it by pretending it has some relevance to anything to do with this week?

I know one thing. The next time I see Tiger interviewed, I fully expect to see a graphic that says "Lost by 10 strokes to Jim Furyk in 2003 U.S. Open". Think I will? Me neither.

This Game Drives Me Nuts!!

Just when I'm ready to give up this stupid game, something happens to pull me back in. I played Sunday morning, had to play the back nine first, and had a horrible 9 holes... probably my worst of the year. I almost quit, but decided I'd go ahead and play the front nine. And of course, I had my BEST nine of the year.

How many times does this happen? Most of the time for me, it's reversed. A good front and bad back. I must say, if it has to happen, I much prefer to go home remembering a good nine. What I have to take from it is that, with the good nine, I know I'm capable of good things. No, it's not that I was just playing above my talent level. That's not possible. It's not that I was getting lucky bounces. I simply played a solid nine holes. The problem is that most of the time I'm playing below my talent level.

I've been working on improving my short game, as I've mentioned in earlier posts. While I've not made any major progress, I have been able to work on improving my technique, which has improved my ball contact. I'm still going to have to work on distance control, but with the improved fundamentals, I at least have more confidence in my ability to get the ball on the green from inside 50 yards. Naturally, that takes a little pressure off the other parts of my game and I think that's what directly lead to my improved scoring on the front nine Sunday.

What about the bad back nine? Well, I think I was just concentrating too much on technique and not enough on scoring. "Stick with the swing that brung ya" is what Harvey Penick says, and leave the practice for the practice range.

U.S. Open Coverage

With the U.S. Open starting this Thursday, I'd say I'll be spending most of my time at home this week on The Golf Channel. I think the "Live From..." coverage begins tonight, with Kraig Kann and the krew telling every story worth telling this week, and probably making up a few along the way. They're all very knowledgable, and I love hearing them go back and forth with pretty much every scenario that could play out this week.

You can bet the Big 4 will be a big topic of conversation, with Tiger getting most of the attention as always. Heck, they might even talk about Retief Goosen, what with him being the defending champ and all.

Dave Pelz will show his face at some point I'm sure, with his expert advice on how the "finesse game" will play into the final outcome. And he's right. From what everyone has been saying, the short game will play an important roll in determining the winner. But I've also heard that the rough is going to be pretty... rough. For that reason, I can't predict winners such as Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods, neither of them being the straightest of drivers. I would probably pick Tiger over Phil, though, just because Tiger would have enough sense to hit a fairway wood or long iron off the tee, where Phil will probably take out the driver every chance he gets. "New Phil" or not, he still likes to come out of his shoes more than most.

Annika Dominating Again

Say what you will about the Big 4, or 5, or whatever you want to call them, Annika Sorenstam is currently the best golfer on the planet. It's unbelievable how she's dominating the LPGA Tour right now. She won 5 in a row, lost one, and now is on another streak. She's won the first major of the year, and is currently leading the second by two strokes with two rounds to play.

I read somewhere that someone suggested that Annika should be invited to join Augusta National. While that probably wouldn't make Vijay very happy, if it's going to happen at some point (and Hootie Johnson indicated that a woman would probably be invited to join sooner or later), I think Annika has definitely proven her worth.

Hall Of Fame aside, what kind of honor would it be to be the first woman invited to join the most exclusive Country Club in history? And how funny would it be if she declined the invitation? Oh well, I'm not holding my breath for either to happen any time soon.

Tiger A Nerd?

Heh. This is funny. Tiger Woods is #2 on the 50 Biggest Nerds Of All Time list. Other highlights include Dana Scully (#30) of X-Files fame (she's hot), Queen Amadala herself, Natalie Portman (#21, and also hot) and former Knick Coach Jeff Van Gundy (#48, and not so hot).

The Pelz Method

I've just recently purchased, and am now reading Dave Pelz' Short Game Bible. While I to try to stay away from the technical aspects of the golf swing (it tends to ruin my game even more, if that's even possible), I decided to get this book because I'm at the point where I'll try just about anything. I would have to say, having read only the first 3 or 4 chapters, I'm really impressed with the physics and statistics that Pelz puts into his method.

One example that I particularly like: tour pros, in Dave's research, tend to have a 7% variance on any full swing shot. That is, if the average pro hits a full wedge from 100 yards, he's going to be (on average) within 7 yards, or 21 feet of his target (keeping in mind, of course, the true target is not necessarily always the hole). Now, if that same pro hits a full 5 iron from 200 yards, using the same 7% variance, he would be (on average) within 14 yards, or 42 feet. So, 42 feet away from the target, maybe this particular pro lands in a bunker. Maybe he finishes the hole with a 5 instead of the 3 or 4 he would have gotten had he landed on the green. He goes to the next tee disgusted with the "bad" 5 iron he hit to get himself in the bunker. But statistically he was within the 7% average of tour pros. Had he had a stronger short game, he might have still been able to get that par.

It's a very interesting read. I would definitely recommend it. I would even go so far as to say I have seen some improvement in my short game already, without even having had the chance to practice too much yet.

The Return Of Push

Does anyone remember push technology from a few years back? It didn't go over too well back then, because it was a little before it's time I guess. If you think about it, it's the same thing that we're basically all after now, what with rss news aggregators, podcasts, Tivo, and now this new Akimbo IPTV-based set-top box on the horizon. We're all wanting to find new and better ways to get content "pushed" to us without having to go get it. It's just funny for me to think about something that basically flopped (as far as I know) a few years ago, is now the "in" thing.

OS Quiz

Here's a nice little quiz I found via Digg to tell you which OS you would be if you were an OS. They've got some other quizzes too. Check them out.

I'm Slackware Linux.

A Few Links Of Note

Just doing my part to get the word out that there is still some tech programming out there... even after the sad and unnecessary demise of TechTV.

First, some of the former personalities on what must be called the "flagship" show of TechTV, The Screen Savers, have begun getting together on Sundays to create a podcast called This Week in Tech (TWiT for short).

Next we have the leader of the crew himself, Leo Laporte. He's pretty much everywhere, on TWiT, on the radio, on podcasts and on Call For Help Canada.

Patrick Norton has a blog that he never updates, but has been posting to his blog on the TWiT website. He also has an RSS Feed that pretty much posts everything he writes for ExtremeTech.com and ExtremeiPod.

Kevin Rose, who went on to be a personality on the new (and now former) Screen Savers and it's evil twin Attack Of The Show, just announced on his blog that he will be leaving G4 and devoting all of his time to his new show Systm and his first video project, thebroken, with hopefully even more to come.

I say great work, guys. It's nice to know that you are all still out doing your best to bring the tech to the masses.

Audit My PC

Just found this website, AuditMyPC.com, via Digg.com. Looks like a decent little site for checking various things about your PC, including a spyware scan and a test to see if your popup blocker is working as well as it should. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I work on PC's a little bit in my spare time. I'll be using this site in the near future to see if it lives up to my expectations.

Gaming Bits

Check out this pic of the controller for the new Playstation 3. Is this butt ugly or what?

I myself just purchased an original Xbox about a month back. I find if I stay about a generation behind with gaming consoles, it's just as much fun and a whole lot cheaper. Now I can get most of the games that everyone was raving about 6 months ago for about half the price. And by the time I'm finished with them, the games that are hot now will be $20... maybe even less with the Xbox 360 just over the horizon.

Speaking of games, I can't wait for the release of the new game, Destroy All Humans. I've been waiting for this thing since I read about it last fall in a gaming mag. It looks to be a nice twist on the old alien invasion movies of the 50's. This time you get to play the alien. I think it's due to be released sometime next month. I probably won't wait for this one to make it to the bargain bin.

How Did It Go In?

Ok, this is crazy. Now we've got this website dedicated to trying to figure out how Tiger's ball dropped on the 16th hole in the final round at the 2005 Masters. And I thought I had too much time on my hands. I have to admit, though, it's pretty funny.

Tin Cup Revisited

Here's a nice post on Snopes.com that will remind everyone who has seen the movie of a famous scene from Tin Cup.

Spyware: Out Of Control

This spyware stuff is out of control.  I would even go so far as to say that it's currently a bigger problem than viruses.  I make a few extra bucks every now and then by doing the odd computer repair, and in the past 6 months to a year, the bulk of my repairs have been concentrated on the removal of spyware.

The problem is that, while a lot of people out there have probably heard of spyware, they don't worry about it as much as they worry about viruses.  We've all heard for years about the dangers of viruses and what they can do to your system, and most of the PC's I work on have some type of antivirus program installed (even if it's not updated).  But with spyware, people seem to look at it as more of an annoyance than a danger.

This may be true for the most part, but it will be nice when the word finally gets out about the adverse effect spyware can have on general PC performance.  When people finally realize that spyware is a big part of why their PC is "slowing down", maybe they will be more willing to be proactive about stopping it.  One thing I would welcome would be to see the Dell's of the world start to include anti-spyware programs on new PC's with 3 or 6 month trials, the same way they do with anti-virus programs now.

I just purchased Spy Sweeper for my own system, and so far, I'm pretty impressed.  I didn't have a big presence of spyware on my system.  I purchased it mostly for testing purposes, to be able to recommend it to some of my clients.  But I did have a few pieces on my system that the program was able to find and clean.

Let's Go Kipper!!

Looks like Kip Henley, the winner of the Golf Channel's Big Break II, is set to play his first Nationwide Tour event this week in the Henrico County Open. For those who don't know, Big Break is the Golf Channel's reality game show where 10 men (or women) compete for a few exemptions on their respective tours.

I always liked Kip on the show, but didn't really respect his game until the final episode when he edged out one of the favorites, Don Donatello. He showed he has gained a lot of knowledge about the game in his 40+ years. I hope he does well. If he makes the cut it will be one more step towards his goal of making it on the PGA Tour.

New Direction

Starting today, I'm planning on moving this blog in a somewhat different direction. No, that's probably not entirely accurate. I still plan on talking a lot about golf here. It's just that I would like to be able to incorporate some of my other interests, as well as the occasional post about my life in general. In short, I'm going to be talking about whatever the heck floats my boat at any given time.

That was actually the intention when I started this thing a little less than a year ago, but before I knew it, I was focusing mostly on golf. I guess I was taken in by the title "Rub Of The Green", but in fact, as I alluded to in my first post ever, just because it's a golf term, doesn't mean it has to be ONLY a golf term.

I'm working right now on an acceptable way to implement categories into this blog, to give it a little bit of organization when I do start talking about anything and everything. I've been working on a couple of methods over the past couple of weeks, but nothing satisfies me so far. So I guess for the time being I'll be throwing everything together in a big hodgepodge of tech, golf, life and... golf.

Stay tuned...

Tournament Results

Well, my big tournament has come and gone. We all had a pretty good day. We shot 9 under, which for four high handicappers isn't too bad. Our previous best had been 7 under. We had gotten to 7 under with 5 holes to play. We figured then we would easily be able to beat our previous best, since 4 of our final five were birdie holes. Things didn't work out exactly as planned. We parred the next 4, but managed to eagle the final hole to get it to 9 under, which is a nice way to finish up. We did bogey one hole, which left us a little bitter in the end.

When we first came in, we had heard we were tied for the lead. But our shot at glory was brief. The next team to finish posted 10 or 11 under, I don't know for sure which. We left after finding out we had been beaten, so I'm not sure of the final winning score.

Oh, yeah, and my cart broke down 6 holes into the round.

I'm There

As of this morning, I have reached my 200 lb. pre-tournament weight loss goal. I still have some weight to lose, but it feels good to have reached another goal.

Next up: Get down to 195 by my birthday. I've got about 2 1/2 weeks to get there.

Stay tuned…

Too Close For Comfort

This is nuts. I'm 3 days away from the tournament I've been talking about for the past 2 weeks and, to quote Roy McAvoy, "my swing feels like an unfolding lawn chair".

Is it all in my head? Probably so. Is there anything I can do about it? Probably not.

The only thing I've got going for me is memories of playing well in other scramble-format competitions through the years. Sure, it's all because I don't have as much pressure on me, and maybe that means I'm a choker, but at this point I don't feel the need to delve into that territory. I just want to make sure I get through Saturday without making a fool of myself.

One thing is good. I feel like I'm putting as well as I have in a while. My big problem with putting has always been speed, especially on longer putts. For some reason, the speed of our local greens seem to be to my liking right now. As anyone who has played scrambles knows, a decent putter can contribute a lot in that format. You can hit the ball like a drunk all day long, and if you can putt, you can finish the day as the hero.

My big problem right now is off the tee. I was hitting the ball well a couple of weeks ago and suddenly this week a pull hook has found it's way into my bag. And with my team, I could be called upon to be the "horse" off the tee. One of our teammates, my cousin, actually hits the ball a long way, but my Dad told me he's not been playing that well lately. I know how that feels. Our other teammate can hit the ball pretty well and with decent distance, but he's not had any confidence in anything bigger than a 5 wood for a few years now.

We can probably count on Dad to keep us in play most of the day, which should give the rest of us a chance to try to wail on it. But if we can't keep it in the fairways, we may be working pretty hard for birdies. Which is not what I want. I want to have at least a chance for birdie on every hole.

Looks like it's time to pull out the Harvey Penick books again.

Big Break III

I hope whoever might be reading this has seen the Big Break III finale, because I'm going to ruin it for you if you haven't. If you're like me, it's not that big of a deal anyway. I actually forgot it was on and had to Tivo the later showing and watched it this morning. The whole season, while mildly entertaining, was not on the level of seasons 1 and 2. That's not a knock on the ladies or anything. Maybe it's just too much of a good thing. I don't think there was enough time between season 2 and 3 to make for a good build up.

Anyway, as far as last night's finale goes, going into it I would have to say I was pulling for Pam over Danielle. I tried to give Danielle the benefit of the doubt, and was actually pulling for her a little throughout the series, but she got to where she kind of grated on my nerves. At the same time, Pam showed a little questionable games(wo)manship in the final match. Even so, I was still pulling for her at the end. Danielle seems to have such an ego on her, I think it would have been cool to see her get beaten by the most inexperienced of the group.

Win or not, Pam's got game. She was spraying it all over the course in that final match, yet she was still able to keep things going until the 17th hole. To have been only playing 3 years and be at that level, is amazing. I've been playing the game for close to 20 years, and I'm still in hacker territory. As for Danielle, she's got game too. She could whoop my butt any day of the week. But I think she doesn't have as much game as she thinks she does.

Check-Go

Just for the heck of it, I bought one of those Check-Go sweet spot finders last week. It's probably just a gimmick, but at this point I'm willing to try just about anything (cheap) that will possibly give me some advantage. I've tested it, not with actual putts or anything, but just by trying to mark the equator on a ball then putting the same ball back in the thing and marking it again. It does seem to find the same equator, or pretty close to the same equator every time. That's encouraging just in the fact that whatever it's doing at least it seems to be doing it consistently. Whether marking that equator and using it as a putting line will actually produce results is another story. I guess it can't hurt to try it though.

Random Thoughts

My scramble partners for the previously mentioned scramble have been set. With less than 2 weeks to go, I've got for pounds left to reach my goal. I was proud to get through my conference with with no major weight gain.

I just bought a (new-to-me) used set of clubs off eBay a few weeks back. They were the Taylor Made RAC Oversize. I've always really liked the looks of them, but being left handed, it's hard for me to find some to demo. I thought I'd go ahead and give it a shot and started looking for a set about a month ago and ended up getting a pretty decent deal on eBay. Here's the kicker though... they have graphite shafts. I've never played with graphite in my irons, and am still having a little mental trouble with making myself trust that they're not going to snap on me. I can actually hit them pretty similar to my King Cobra irons, and they really feel pretty good in my hands. I was planning on debuting them in the scramble in a few weeks, but the bermuda in our fairways hasn't really woken up yet, and I've not gotten a good chance to get used to them. Even though they're used, they're in pretty good shape and I don't want to scratch them up too bad on the basically dirt fairways that we have now.

I also bought, last week, a new Sunday Golf Bag. I'm planning on getting back into walking this season. My 200 pound tournament goal is not the end of my weight loss aspirations. I've been working for a few years now to get back down to 180, and I'm getting there this year. It's driving me crazy. I've been so close it's not even funny, then I'll end up falling off the wagon and gaining 20 or 30 pounds. It's the unattainable goal that I just want to see on my scale one time. Of course, I'd like to stay around there once I get there. But as long as I get there, I wouldn't be too disappointed to go back up as high as 190 every now and then.

 

Weigh-In

As of this morning, I've got 6 1/2 pounds to go to reach my goal, with 3 weeks left to get there.

 

Tournament Time

Got myself a little tournament coming up the 7th of May. Actually, it's not that big of a deal, just a little 4-man scramble for charity. It's something I started playing in about 3 or 4 years ago when my boss offered to sponsor me (foot the bill) if I could get a team together. I didn't think much of it. I'm not much of a tournament golfer, but figured since he was offering me a free day of golf, I shouldn't pass it up. So I got a team together and we ended up shooting 7 under. Not great, but considering our high handicaps and the fact that the winners (much lower handicaps) shot 14 under, we were pretty pleased.

 

All in all it was a fun day and has been one of the highlights of the season for me ever since. I didn't get to play last year because I had to be in a friend's wedding, so I'm really geared up for it this time. My current goal is to get myself back down to 200 pounds by the day of the tournament. As of this morning, I've got 9 1/2 pounds to go. With just 3 1/2 weeks remaining, it's going to be difficult, but not impossible. My biggest obstacle coming up is that I will be attending a conference for 2 days next week, which will most likely throw me off my diet at least a little bit.

 

I plan on posting updates to this blog as I make progress toward my goal in the next few weeks, as a little bit of a motivating factor.

 

Major Recap

Well, that's another major in the books, and another win for Tiger Woods. It was a good final round I thought, as Sunday at the Masters usually. Matter of fact, it was one of the best in recent memory I thought, right up there with Phil's win last year.

 

I was most impressed with Chris DiMarco and his relentless pursuit of Tiger. Some would have said going into the final round (me being one of them) that DiMarco didn't have much of a chance to catch Tiger, with Tiger playing as well as he was and DiMarco seemingly choking on the final 9 of the third round. But DiMarco showed a lot of guts and, to me anyway, Tiger showed that he's still not quite the force he was in 2000.

 

I think it's a combination of things. First off, Tiger's swing, while looking better all the time, is still not as repeatable under pressure as I'm sure he'd like it to be. And second, I think most of the guys on tour aren't looking at him anymore as the unstoppable force. Let him throw together a few more wins this year and that may change, but for now I think everyone sees him as a little more human that he used to be.

 

The Masters

With the first major of 2005 looming, I have to admit I'm beginning to feel all tingely inside... is that how you spell tingely? Oh, well, anyway...

 

With the Big 4(+1.. props to Retief) playing out of their minds so far this season (#4 won just yesterday), I'm really hoping for a shootout on the back nine on Sunday. Heck, I'm hoping for a shootout all four days to be honest. How great would it be to have all 4(+1) with a realistic chance to win come Sunday afternoon? I mean, the shootout at Doral was great, with Tiger and Phil both grinding it out until the final shot, but I for one would like to see a shootout with everybody in the mix.

 

Here's my fear though. Going into the event, with the exeption of Phil's win yesterday, all of the guys just seemed to me to be a little loose... with their swings I mean. Given, they have all had an extra week to work things out, but the possibility is totally there that none of the so-called favorites will be there come Sunday afternoon. Now, don't get me wrong, I think it would be great for someone else to have a shot at the coveted title of Masters Champion. But with all the hype on the Big 4(+1) this year, and with the seasons they've had thus far, it would be a bit of a letdown in my book.

 

I'm going to go ahead and predict Ernie Els to win. But I'm still going to be rooting for Phil to successfully defend.

 

Mr. 59

Guess those Callaway clubs work ok after all...

 

Final Thoughts On 2004

I know I've not been posting much of late. As some of you know by reading my earlier posts, the Ryder Cup is one of my most favorite events, second only to the Masters. You also may know that Phil Mickelson is my favorite golfer. After the devastating loss handed to us this year by the Europeans, coupled with the return of "Lunatic Phil", I haven't been into the game very much lately.

 

I have been watching though. And I, along with everyone else who follows the PGA, could not have missed the total domination by Vijay Singh in the past 2 months. The man has been on a tear the likes of which I haven't seen in a long time... I would say sometime around the year 2000.

 

Speaking of Phil... I am still willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. The equipment change can't have that much of an effect on him in the long run. Or can it? If Callaway ruins Mickelson's career, ultimately no one can be blamed but Mickelson. But Callaway won't come out of it looking too good, either.

 

I sure hope David Duval can come back in full force in 2005 and record at least one win.

 

From what I've seen thus far, I expect either Bart Lower or Don Donatello (maybe both) to make it to the final match in the Big Break II. Of the remaining competitors, they seem to have the best all-around games. I'd like to see Mike make it, but I've got a feeling his time is close to being up. He's got great talent, but the putter is eventually going to take him out of the running.

 

Something needs to be done about the World Golf Rankings. These Europeans obviously don't get the credit they deserve. I think at the very least the European Tour needs to be given a little more weight when it comes to the rankings.

 

Look for Zach Johnson to make some noise in 2005. The kid's got game, and I don't think he's scared of winning either.

 

So Lehman's the next Ryder Cup Captain? Seems a little early for him to be taking his turn. I would have expected O'Meara before Lehman. But I like the guy. It's ok with me.

 

Gmail Invites

For those interested, I have 3 gmail invites to give away.

 

I will give them to the first 3 people who email me.

 

My email address is linked on the right-hand column.

 

Who's Next?

Needless to say, I'm highly disappointed with the outcome of the matches this past weekend. But alas, we must move on.

This article speculates who will be named the captains of the 2006 Ryder Cup teams. Of the choices listed, for the U.S. side, the name that immediately stood out to me was Hale Irwin. He's a great champion, even to this day, and I think he deserves a spot in the rotation. But another name that made an impression to me was Mark O'Meara. Tiger seemed a little more fired up than usual to me at this year's matches, and hopefully with his buddy Mark'O at the helm, that trend would continue.

On the European side, with the domination of the 2004 team, it would be hard not to recommend Bernhard Langar for a repeat performance. My personal choice would be Nick Faldo, although I hear that he's not as popular across the pond as one would assume.

I guess we'll find out soon enough.

Congrats to the European team, by the way. They played a great match.

On The Bandwagon?

 So apparently Michael Jordan joined Team USA for dinner on Monday night. Say what you want about MJ, but you can't say he's not a winner. And you also can't say he's not a fan of golf and a supporter of the Ryder Cup.

I remember when I first became a fan of Jordan's, and the Bulls. It was the early 90's, when they were just beginning to tear through the NBA with reckless abandon. Like a lot of people who didn't really follow the NBA (and like many who did, I suppose), I wasn't immediately a fan of Jordan's. I resented the media hype that surrounded him. I was on the search for a team to call my own and thought I had settled on the New York Knicks. But after watching the Bulls play a few games, I couldn't help but get caught up in the way they played the game, most notably Jordan. I remember watching a game between the Knicks and the Bulls and found myself rooting for the Bulls before the game was over.

So there I was. I was firmly on the "bandwagon" and couldn't get off. But then again, don't we all become fans of certain teams when they're playing well? I mean, unless you live in a certain area or have been raised as a fan of a certain team, you don't just go out and pick a team out of a hat and say "I think I'll be a fan of <insert team name>". It doesn't work that way. And you don't normally become a fan of a team who isn't playing well, because they just don't grab your attention.

So yes, I became a Bulls fan in the early 90's. But I think the difference between me and what I call a "bandwagon fan" is that I remain a Bulls fan to this day. And I will remain a Bulls fan, no matter if they win 10 more titles or no more titles. I thank Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippin, Phil Jackson and the rest of the Bulls for that. They gave me a team to root for, and a lot of good memories to boot.

 

Well, It's Official

David Duval is back! Heh, thought I was talking about Vijay, didn't you? Nope, I'm more excited about Duval's success than Vijay's. A 14 month absence from making the cut, and basically an even longer absence from the game of golf has finally come to an end as David Duval made his own kind of "Hello, World" statement at the Deutsche Bank Championship this Labor Day.

 

Duval stated in an interview after making the cut on Saturday that one of his goals was to win once this year. He has never been one to lack confidence, but man, that's a big one! I'm not saying he doesn't have the talent to make it happen, it's just going to be hard to break through all of the other talented players out there who have been living on the tour all the time he has been away. Perhaps a better goal would have been "I want to win again" or "I want to get back to the Ryder Cup" or even "I want to get back to where Vijay is, fighting for World #1".

 

It's great to see David return to good form. But as we as golfers all know, it can leave you as quickly as you find it. If anyone can do it, I believe Duval can. Good luck, David.

 

Say It Isn't So!

Looks like The Mick and Titleist have parted ways over a contract dispute. Mickelson wanted to renegotiate after winning the Masters and Titleist didn't want any part of it. There are 2 ways of looking at this thing. Number 1 is that Phil was being a little selfish by wanting more of what he already has: money. The other is that Titleist was being selfish by not renegotiating a contract with one of their strongest supporters for the past 4 years.

 

The bottom line is that Phil is looking for a new company and will likely come out of the deal with a new set of clubs, a new ball and probably some new shoes. Looks like 2005 will be another down year as Philly tries to figure out the new equipment. My vote: Taylor Made. It will give Phil the hottest driver-maker today, and also allow him to keep playing the Titleist ball if he chooses, since I don't think Taylor Made has a golf ball line that they would push him to use.

 

Pavin The Way

Corey Pavin is on his way back. He probably will never equal the success of his mid-90's run, especially with courses getting longer and longer each year, but he is also no longer a player who is totally off the radar. Pavin's name has been mentioned several times the season... at Shinnecock, in Reno, at Buick IV.

 

It would be great to see Pavin return to the winner's circle, and it's great to see him playing well again. One of my most memorable Ryder Cup moments is his chip-in on Saturday at Oak Hill in 1995. I hope that Pavin will continue to gain consistency and will be able to finish his regular tour career strong.

 

Hasn't Pavin been working with Butch Harmon?

 

A Small Distinction

I got to thinking about something on the back 9 today. For probably 10 years now, I've been stuck in the ever popular "trying to break 90" category. Oh, I've broken 90 on several occasions, but I'm talking about doing it on a regular basis. I got to thinking today, though, that maybe I'm playing as well as I will allow myself to play.

 

What I mean is that, for years, I have tried to play "bogey golf". I use bogey as my par and if I can play a round of golf by averaging a bogey on every hole, I basically go home happy. But the bottom line is that I can do that fairly consistently now, and so to play bogey golf shouldn't be good enough for me anymore. I need to train my mind to think par instead of bogey.

 

I realized this after making birdie on the 12th hole to get myself to "one under bogey" for the day. I left the hole thinking "if I can finish off the next 6 holes well, I'll shoot 89". I was, without realizing it, talking myself into making bogey on the next 6 holes instead of trying to push myself to par the next 6... or at least go into each hole trying to make par. Instead of thinking 89, I should have been thinking "I'm 11 over through 12. I'm on pace to shoot 83".

 

It's a small distinction, but one that I think I need to make in order to take my game to the next level.

 

My Brain Was Getting In The Way!

I've been working pretty hard lately on the mental side of my golf game. Although my scores haven't improved hardly at all in the past 3 or 4 years, I do see improvement in the parts of my game that were weaker years ago. As a result, I have decided that my brain is the reason why I haven't seen some more improvement in my scores. I have historically had a decent short game, but with the improvement of the full-swing part of my game, the short game seems to have left me. I'm somewhat of a feel player, and I think that if I can just concentrate more on the course, I should be able to get consistently in the low 80's.

 

Although my scores haven't shown it by being lower, thinking better on the course has helped me to avoid (so far) the occasional mid 90's scores that I would achieve when I had a bad hole or two and let it ruin what would normally be an average or above average round.

 

Perfect example: Yesterday I was 2 over through 5 holes (pretty good start for me) when I pushed a 5 wood out of bounds on a par 5 that does not set up well for me. I realized pretty quickly that I was not totally commited to the shot and should have backed away. Frustration did set in for that hole and the next, but I was able to come back with a par on the 8th, and finish with a decent 44. A month ago, I would have let the "bad luck" of hitting O.B. stay with me and would have probably finished with something like 47 or 48. But yesterday I was able to re-commit myself to the mental side of my game and finish up fairly well.

 

It's difficult for me right now. It's a long process and I'm nowhere near where I want to be yet. But if I want to improve as a golfer, I think this is ultimately the path I'm going to have to take to get there.

 

Good Job

This morning European Ryder Cup Captain Bernhard Langer made his two wildcard picks, choosing Colin Montgomerie and Luke Donald to round out the European squad. With Montgomerie, Langer gets some valuable veteran leadership and, I think, a man that the rest of the team will look up to. And with Donald, he gets a young gun who is playing extremely well at present. As a matter of fact, I look for Donald to make some very valuable contributions to the European cause. Let's just hope they aren't too valuable.

 

By the way, for anyone interested, here's a great history of the Ryder Cup Matches.

 

Jake Trout Not Floundering

Peter Jacobson fired a 2nd round 66 to take the lead in the year's final major, the Jeld-Wen Tradition. After winning the U.S. Senior Open earlier this year, if Jake could pull off another major this season, he would definitely prove his worth on the Champions Tour. It's great to see someone who takes the time to have fun on the golf course having so much success in the 3rd round of his career.

 

It's Good To Be King

Tiger Woods is apparently the best at everything. Even when he's in a (gasp!) slump, he's the best. The current speculation is who Tiger can be paired with in Alternate Shot at the Ryder Cup because he's the only one "talented" enough to get out of the trouble he gets into. Now wait a minute. There are talented golfers all over the world, professional and amateur, at least 30 who are serious contenders in any major tournament... and Tiger Woods is the only player out there good enough to get out of trouble?

 

I understand that he puts himself in some precarious situations out there, and there's no doubt he's a heck of a scrambler. But maybe the thing we should be looking at here is that the reason Tiger is the only one who can get out of those predicaments is because he's the only one who can get into those predicaments.

 

I know this will never happen, but if Tiger can't get his swing straightened out in time, perhaps Captain Sutton should consider sitting him out in the Alternate Shot. If no one else is "capable" of getting Tiger out of the trouble he gets into, he's just going to be a liability anyway.

 

Interesting Fact

This story on Golf.com reports that , even though neither will be playing, Vigay Singh would have taken over the #1 ranking next week if Tiger hadn't made a birdie on the 72nd hole of the WGC-NEC Invitational to put himself into a tie for 2nd place. I thought I was pretty good at math until I started following the World Golf Rankings.

 

I Don't Really Believe In Handicaps

At last count, my handicap was teetering somewhere between 18 and 20. I've come to the conclusion that I don't really believe in handicaps as it relates to golf, or any other sport for that matter. Of course, most sports don't have handicaps, so it's not an issue. I just don't feel that someone should be "rewarded" for not being as good as someone else. I would guess my boss, for instance, is somewhere around a 7-10 handicap. I shouldn't be given free strokes when we have a match just because I'm not as good at the game as him. It's only my fault if I'm not as good. He practices more than I do, he plays more than I do, so he should naturally be better. If I'm not willing to put in the time to become a better player, he shouldn't have to pay for it. It's up to me to rise to his level, not up to him to be brought down to mine.

 

I understand what handicaps are for. If I want to have a match with someone who is either better or worse than me, we can both take our handicaps and have a good, competitive round. But to me it's not competition if you're not truly playing at the same level. Do the Lakers give a few shots to the Bulls because the Bulls can't play at the same level as them? No. So why should my local Club Champion give me a few strokes? It's not fair, to me or to him. He's just the same as being penalized for being the better player, and I'm not going to have the drive to become a better player as long as I know I have my handicap to lean on.

 

I've never been much of a tournament golfer and I've just about decided that my dislike of handicaps is one of the main reasons why. I don't feel that I should even compete if I don't truly feel that I have a fair chance. If you can't win, don't play. And if I have to use my handicap to facilitate a victory, to me that's not a victory at all.

 

Who's The Best?

Well, not the best. I got to thinking while watching the tournament today that the media hasn't really latched onto anyone to take over the title of "Best Player Yet To Win A Major". They're too busy scrambling around wondering if the sky is falling because Tiger is no longer dominating the tour. So I guess it's up to me to figure it out.

 

If we go simply by the Official World Golf Rankings, Padraig Harrington is the only player in the top 10 without a major. If we instead look at the Golfweek/Sagarin Performance Index, Scott Verplank and Jerry Kelly could make a case as well. Has Jay Haas won a major? Sergio Garcia and Robert Allenby are right there on both lists, and if Chris DiMarco has another season like this one (and doesn't win a major), he could well be the one with the monkey on his back by the beginning of the 2006 season.

 

It's a tough call, but strictly from a "newsworthy" standpoint, I would guess that if the media made a pick tomorrow they would go with Sergio. He clearly exhibits a lot more fire that the rest of the candidates, and would openly relish the challenge if it were put upon him. So I guess I'm going to go with Sergio too. In the end, it's all just media hype. And as I said before, they have plenty to talk about right now anyway.

 

Speaking Of Sam...

Who would be considered the modern day Sam Snead?

 

With his course management skills and domination of the game, Tiger Woods has always drawn natural comparisons to Jack Nicklaus. Phil Mickelson has garnered comparisons to Arnold Palmer, because of his go-for-broke style and his recent popularity with fans.

 

Ernie Els could kind of be compared to Sam, with his long, lazy swing. But because of his global travel habits, Ernie could also draw comparisons to Gary Player. If you're talking about personality, it's hard to find someone in the modern game that would compare to Sam. He was a relentless competitor who hated to lose, much like Tiger. And he was also quite the gambler, kind of like Phil.

 

So, it looks like there's a little bit of Sam Snead in everyone. But you would be hard pressed to find any one person who can truly compare to the country boy from Hot Springs, VA.

 

Anything To Win

I was reminded this morning of a great Sam Snead story that I had heard several years back:

 

Sam was playing a round of golf one day with a young whipper snapper on a course he had played several times in his lifetime. They came to a hole, a nice dogleg par 5 with several tall trees hugging the fairway on the inside of the dogleg. Sam nonchalantly makes the comment that when he was younger he used to cut the dogleg over the trees to give himself a chance to get home in two. It would take a heck of a shot to clear the trees, but the youngster, not to be outdone, teed up his ball and proceeded to knock it directly into the forest.

 

The kid sheepishly turned to Sam and asked, "How in the heck did you ever clear those trees?"

 

Sam replied with a smile, "Son, when I was younger, those trees were a lot shorter than they are now."

 

Some of the details are probably off. I don't even know if it's true. But it's a darn funny story any way you look at it. You can't beat Slammin' Sammy.

 

What About Loopy?

How about that guy, huh? Jim Furyk is out of the game for about 3 months with wrist surgery, comes back to defend his U.S. Open crown, makes the cut, has had 2 top 10's in 4 events since, and is currently tied for 5th place after the first round of the WGC-NEC Invitational. This guy is a horse, and for all the naysayers who say that an unconventional swing can't hold up at the highest levels, I say BALDERDASH!!

 

Who's to say what the perfect swing is anyway? We're all individuals, and we all have a unique, natural golf swing. You see it all the time on tour. Someone wins a big tournament, like a major, and they subsequently go into a 2 year slump because they start tinkering with their swing to try to get more "on plane" or whatever. They try to fight nature because (I guess) they feel that a major winner should have a swing that looks more like Tiger's. Maybe we should all quit worrying about that elusive "perfect swing plane" and just go with the swing that the Big Man gave us.

 

The Sorta 7

Just discovered this great blog called 'SortaGolf'. Everyone else probably already knows about this great site as I'm usually the last one off the boat on this 'sorta' thing, but it deserves a mention anyway. Although I, for the most part, try to follow the rules of golf to the best of my ability, I can't help but appreciate the logic of 'The Sorta 7 Amendments To The USGA Rules Of Golf'.

 

When the game has got you down, as it inevitably will, 'The Sorta 7' can be a beacon in the darkness. If you just can't seem to break 90 no matter what you do, go play a Sorta Round or two and see how great it will make you feel. And as far as being unfair, I don't see a problem as long as you're alone or with a group who are also following the same rules. It's all fair for everyone as long as you're in agreement on what the rules are before the round begins.

 

I think I'm going to support these guys by purchasing my very own SortaBag Tag. I encourage everyone else out there to do the same. Golf is hard enough as it is. Let's at least make sure we have some fun while we're doing it.

 

David Gossett

The Golf Channel has an article up about David Gossett and his struggles since his U.S. Amateur win a mere 5 years ago. I went to the Fed Ex St. Jude Classic in Memphis a couple of years back and man, this kid has got game. Of course, he's from the Memphis area and is probably more comfortable there than at other tour stops. Horses for courses and all that. But David has been struggling mightily this season, with only $21,250 in earnings and 2 cuts made. I guess it shouldn't amaze me that the mental side of the game figures so much in the pro ranks. I mean, everyone and their father seem to have near perfect swings these days, so the only explanation for why one guy is more successful than another is that some let their brains get in the way more than others.

 

I sure hope David gets out of his funk soon. He seems like a nice kid.

 

Who Will Be The First?

With the PGA Tournament over, the race is tightening up for the position of World Number One. Vijay Singh now sits only a fraction behind Tiger Woods in the World Golf Ranking. While the current ranking system may not be foolproof, Vijay is sneaking up on Mr. Woods in the superior Golfweek/Sagarin Performance Index as well.

 

So the question is this: Not when or if, but who will be the first to take the position of World Number One from Tiger, and will it be this year? To the latter, just based on the number of tournaments he plays compared to the other contenders, I would have to guess that definitely Tiger will lose the #1 ranking some time this year. With the major season over and the pressure off, I expect Vijay to win one, maybe two more events this season. Vijay seems to not be worried too much anymore about the ranking, which could be a dangerous recipe for everyone else on tour.

 

Viva Las Vegas

I don't know about everyone else, but I'm getting fed up with hearing "Viva Las Vegas" on the Golf Channel every other commercial. Yeah, ok, we get it. The Big Break II is coming and it's in Sin City this time. This time the stakes are higher. Yeah, we got that too. It got so bad during PGA Championship week that they would take time out of the Sprint Post Game to show the ad for the "hit reality show", then they would go to commercial and show the same ad again!

 

I liked the Big Break and all, and am looking forward to the second season as much as anybody. But if they don't cool it with the ads, they're going to turn me off and make me not want to watch the show out of spite.

 

While I'm on the subject, I'm pretty sure Jay McNair is going to be my guy this season. In the interviews I've seen so far, he seems to be a pretty nice, down to earth individual.

 

Also, that Lesley Swanson looks pretty hot.

 

It's On!!

With the PGA Championship finished, it's now time to turn our attention to the Ryder Cup, and to getting the Cup back.

The 10 qualifiers have now been decided, with Chris DiMarco and Chris Riley pushing Jay Haas and Steve Flesch out of the top 10 with their stellar play at the year's final major. So now all we can do is wait until tomorrow to see who Captain Hal Sutton chooses to round out his team.

In my opinion, the only 2 picks who can be made are Scott Verplank and Jay Haas. Verplank because he has shown consistency the entire year, and Haas for the same reason. Throw into the equation the fact that Haas can add some veteran leadership, and to me it's a no brainer. Being a lefty, I would love to see Steve Flesch on the team, but the fact of the matter is that Flesch didn't do what he needed to do under the pressure. Not that he doesn't deserve it, but a lot of players deserve it. When you only have 2 picks, you can't take everyone.

So that's my picks, and that's also who I think Hal Sutton will choose. We'll see tomorrow. I can't wait.

 

Old Rivals

I just set up a match for Sunday with probably my biggest golfing rival over the past 15 years. My ex-boss and I have always played at close to the same level, even though we haven't played much together since we parted ways about 7 years ago.

 

We were both at the peaks of our games about 10 years ago, a direct result of a weekly match play event with my dad and one of his friends. They were mutch better players than we were, and as we all know, there's nothing like good competition (and a little money on the line) to help raise the level of your game. But things happen, everyone drifts apart and we both came back down to earth as far as our games are concerned.

 

We only play about 2 or 3 times a year nowadays. But still, nothing gives me more satisfaction in my golfing life than to beat him just one more time, and nothing disturbs me more than to lose. I came away last season with the series, but who knows what this year will bring? Even though he (supposedly) hasn't been playing very much this year, we both somehow manage to raise our games when it comes to competing against each other.

 

Tiger Troubles?

According to PGATour.com, Tiger Woods currenly sits at +3 through 6 with the projected cut at +1. Things could change. The cut line may move up or down. But either way, if Tiger wants to comfortably make the cut, he's going to have to make a move soon. He's running out of holes, and from what I've heard, the course isn't playing all that easy this afternoon.

 

PGA Predictions

My boss and I were discussing our PGA Tournament predictions this morning. I always ask him his picks and, although he has yet to pick a winner this year, he usually manages pick someone who ends up in the top 5. We both agreed on Tiger Woods and John Daly. He added Vijay Singh and Kenny Perry. I know what you're thinking: "Kenny Perry? What the heck?". Let me explain that we are Kentuckians and I think Kenny is more of a wishful thinking pick than anything else. Kind of like always sending the Wildcats to the Final Four on the NCAA Tournament bracket. By the same token, I think I will add Phil Mickelson to my picks list. I've always been a fan of Phil's. He's a lefty like me, and I'd love to see him bookend his season with majors. So we have:

 

My Boss' picks: Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh, John Daly and Kenny Perry

My picks: Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and John Daly

 

It's a longshot, but I would love to see Daly win the PGA, if for no other reason than to give him a better shot at the Ryder Cup. Some think that Daly has the potential to lose it in the Ryder Cup and therefore it would be a mistake for Hal Sutton to make him a Captain's pick. That may be true, but I think the fact that he's won 2 majors proves his ability to rise to the occasion in big events. Daly can be a train wreck, that's for sure. But so are we all. To see Daly perform well in the Ryder Cup, for his team and for his country, would make us all feel that given the opportunity, we could do the same.

 

The Ryder Cup & John Daly

The Ryder Cup is one of my all-time favorite golfing events, second only to the Masters. The idea of fighting for your country, coupled with golf being turned into a team event for 3 days... it just works for me. I mean, where else will you find Phil Mickelson rooting for Tiger Woods, or vice versa?

 

Even so, the matches have somewhat lost their luster for me in the past several years. Between hearing that some of the players think they should be paid for the matches, and also the controversy over Brookline in 1999, it's just not the same as it was before. To me, to bring John Daly into the mix would be a breath of fresh air. Daly could inject some personality into a U.S. Team that seems to have been a little bland in recent years.

 

I think Brookline was a good thing. Maybe it wasn't a good showing of sportsmanship, but it was a good showing of emotion. I think it was blown out of proportion. It was an emotionally charged situation and one can only expect the winning team to react the way they did. If they hadn't, I would have suspected they were all robots and not human beings. Win or lose, I want to see the human, emotional side of the players. I hope we will see that side of the U.S. Team this year.

 

Little Suzy

Suzy Whaley has an article in the Breaking 100-90-80 section of the latest Golf Digest. I fall into the Breaking 90 section and Suzy has some pretty good advice for me. I need to start thinking about laying back to a comfortable distance for my approach shots, instead of just trying to blast it as far as I can down the fairway. But that's not the real reason for this post. I just wanted to make the statement that there's something about Suzy Whaley that I like. She has some type of hotness that, to this day, I cannot explain.

 

Pouting Tiger?

Blogger Vance posted on his site about Tiger Woods' post-round interview with Peter Kostis yesterday, and about how he appeared to not be in a very good mood. I noticed the same thing, and I'm not a person who notices those types of things too often. Blogger speculates that Tiger is tired of having to answer the same tired questions over and over... "Why aren't you winning?", "The swing sure looks better. When are you going to win again?".

 

While I agree that he is probably tired of the questions, I would make the argument that Tiger needs to be willing to take the bad with the good. If he's going to be the top player in the world, he should expect that people are going to want to know why he's not at the top of his game. It's the nature of the beast, and I think Tiger is willing to deal with it. He's been very gracious with the media for the most part, and I think he's a very articulate, honest and accommodating person when it comes to interviews. I think something else is going on with Tiger that maybe we don't know about. I noticed at the British Open, in one of his interviews and on the course, that he looked totally worn out. Maybe he's tired of the grind. Maybe he wants to do a David Duval and drop off of the face of the earth for a while. I don't know what it is and it's really none of my business. All I know is Tiger doesn't appear to be enjoying the game like he used to.

 

And finally, I think the reason Tiger isn't winning more is because everyone else is better. Sure, Tiger's swing is off, but it seems that everyone else's swing is on. I was just thinking while watching the tournament yesterday that there are about 7 or 8 guys out there who, if they are in a tournament, you can just about guarantee that they are going to be at or near the top. A few years ago, everyone seemed to have a bad week now and then, but not anymore. Thanks to Tiger, everyone has brought their game up to a new level. Ironically, Tiger is the one having to deal with the repercussions.

 

Tommy Wins The Open...

Well, not really. Peter Jacobson won the Open. The U.S. Senior Open, that is. But Tom Kite was in contention for much of the day. Strangely, I found myself rooting for Tom, although it was ok with me that Jake won. Strange, I say, because back in the day, I didn't care much for Tom Kite. And I will admit to the fact that there was really only one reason why... I didn't think he looked like a golfer. Back in the late 80's and early 90's when I was first getting into golf, I watched players like Norman, Nicklaus, Crenshaw and Faldo and drew to the conclusion that this is what a golfer should be. Kite to me looked like a computer geek. How ironic that I would grow up to me a computer geek myself.

 

Anyway, my attitude of Kite changed when I picked up a copy of the Little Red Book (on audiotape), the first book by Tom's childhood teacher, Harvey Penick. Now, I'm not much of a technical person when it comes to the golf swing. I know how you're supposed to swing a golf club, but I just can't make myself think that way. I like to tell myself that I'm a feel player. I guess that sounds better than saying I'm a no-talent bum. I was never able to read or hear any instruction without it messing up my swing even more. That is, until Harvey came along. Harvey's way of teaching the swing was not to tell you how to do it, but to get you to thinking about something else which produced the same result.

 

For my fellow "feel" players out there looking for instruction on the game of golf, I'd suggest picking up a copy of Harvey's Little Red Book. It changed my game, and my outlook on the game.