The final major of the year, the PGA Championship, is looming large as a possible showdown between Woods and Mickelson. Tiger will be coming in with lots of confidence, fresh off his Open Championship win at Hoylake in Liverpool. Add to the fact that Woods also won the PGA Championship on this very course (Medinah Country Club) in 1999 and it could be the best major of the year. Oh yeah, Phil Mickelson is the defending championship and he might have something to say about everyone wanting to give it to Tiger.

It wasn’t all that long ago that the PGA Championship was treated like an also-ran major and even top touring pros didn’t seem to make all much of an effort in trying to win. In fact, the focus was on the PGA members across the country that were thrilled to be playing with the big boys. Times have changed though and not coincidentally when Woods became a threat to Jack’s majors record, the PGA Championship finally got the recognition and support it truly has deserved.

Corey Pavin held off Jerry Kelly to win the U.S. Bank Championship in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  This was Pavin’s first win in 10 years and I’m glad to see him back in the winner’s circle.  What’s more interesting is that if Pavin can play real solid for the next three weeks, he might have an outside chance at making the Ryder Cup team as a captain’s pick.  He’s an absolute bulldog when it comes to Ryder Cup play and he’d be a great addition to the team if he’s playing well.

Try as she might, Michelle Wie is still winless.  She shot a 4-under, 68 to finish one shot behind Karrie Webb at the Evians Masters.  She’s definitely making progress towards her first win, but she’s still making those one or two shots in the final round that ultimately cost her the win.

On the 13th hole, she put her tee-shot in the fairway bunker, and then proceeded to hit her second-shot in the greenside bunker.  She couldn’t get up and down from the bunker and made bogey, bringing Webb back into the mix with her.   That was all Webb needed to mount a final charge and put Wie away.  Wie is making mental mistakes, not technical mistakes, and she needs guidance from her caddy during the inward-nine on Sundays.

Wie’s next major attempt will be at the Women’s British Open.

Michelle Wie trails Karrie Web by one shot heading into the final round at the Evian Masters in Evian, France. A lot has been written about Wie, and not all of it good, since she withdrew due to heat exhaustion a couple of weeks ago in a men’s tournament. I’ve said more than once that I personally believe she needs to win on the LPGA before trying to conquer the men’s tour. And for many reasons, not the least being the LPGA needs her participation during it’s phenomenal growth right now.

There’s no doubt that Wie has tremendous potential and it’s easy to forget she’s only 16 years old. I was watching the replay of the third round of the Evian Masters this evening and on the 17th hole, a par three that’s only 109 yards, Wie flew the green by more than twenty yards. She did the same thing in the first round, but pulled it further left and even further away from the green. Now, professional golf is a game of precison, as the players want to know (and generally hit) to exact yardages. However, we’re talking a three-quarter sand-wedge into a medium-size green. Was her caddy sleeping when she pulled the club out her bag? However, to be fair to Wie, Karrie Webb chunked one at this same hole in the first round and didn’t hit it more than 60 yards.

I’m not convinced Wie is ready to win just yet. Golf is as much about strategy and execution as it is about anything else. Look at what Tiger Woods did last week at the Open Championship. He had a definite plan of hitting irons off the tee and stuck to it, in spite of the fact his playing partners were hitting it 50-100 yards past him. I think Wie needs to allow her caddy to give more coaching and advice during the round. Gotta believe if Stevie Willams (Tiger’s caddy) was caddying for Michelle at 17, he would have not so softly reminded her of her gaff in the first round.

The last couple of weeks has seen a lot shuffling of players in and out of the Ryder Cup top 10. As indicated in the table below, the bottom half of the American team is made up of Ryder Cup rookies and probably more importantly, first-time winners on the PGA tour. Chris DiMarco took a lot of pressure off of captain Tom Lehman by playing his way back in the top-10 because Lehman can now be more flexible with his two captain’s picks.

You have to believe that at least one of those picks will go to Davis Love III and the second could go to Fred Couples, although Scott Verplank would also be a great add to the team. This is assuming of course that Couples, Verplank, and Love III don’t play their way onto the team. Possible, but not likely though.

LPGA

Lorena Ochoa shot a 6-under 66 at the Evian Masters in Evian, France and is tied with Shani Waugh and Mi Hyun Kim for the top spot. Paula Creamer is 4 back, and Michelle Wie is three back after making eagle at the 18th after making bogey at 17.

PGA

While acknowledging that camera phones were a problem at the Open Championship, the R&A tried to minimize the problems they caused by trying to justify their existence by saying a man’s life might have been saved had it not been for a fan that called for medical help using his cell phone. What? Using that logic, they should allow cell phones at all sporting events, worldwide, and the sport be damned! It’s more important to have that cell phone standing by and ready for any emergency. Please…

I’ve been watching the replay of the Open Championship and it could have been much closer had Chris DiMarco made a couple more putts coming in. He played outstanding golf, especially given the emotional burden he’s carrying right now with his Mother passing away in early July. You can bet he’s a lock for the Ryder Cup team, whether he makes it on points, or ends up a Captain’s pick.

Though nothing has been written or spoken about it, I wonder if Tiger had any death threats made against him while at Hoylake. There were three or four security people walking with Tiger on every hole and there’s a couple of times when they come almost shoulder-to-shoulder to him walking up the fairway. One member of the security team is clearly scanning the crowd very intently on one of the holes and is hardly inconspicuous about it. Kind of sad that Tiger has to play under those type of conditions, but it not only affects Tiger but his playing partners as well.

I hope the R&A come up with a better solution for eliminating cell phones at next year’s Open Championship in Carnoustie, as they clearly distracted Woods and Garcia in the final round. Stevie Williams raised his voice more than once trying to get the crowd to turn off their phones. And where were the R&A officials when this was going on?

Wow. I was wrong. Boy was I wrong. I didn’t think Tiger could close the deal today, simply because I thought the emotional strain from losing his father would affect his game. Well, it affected his game indeed. To the tune of his third Open Championship, and 2nd in a row. Woods shot a 5-under 67 and slammed the door on Sergio, Ernie, and Chris DiMarco and anyone else that dared challenged him today. It was very touching and emotional when he broke down on the 18th green after holing his par putt to win the Championship, as he and caddie and friend Stevie Williams embraced in a very moving moment. Tiger said he didn’t think about his Father all day until getting ready to hit his second shot into the 18th green, when Steve Williams said “win this one for Pops!”.

Tiger felt he had something to prove after missing the cut at the U.S. Open and then hearing whispers from players and press alike that he only wins at bombers-type of courses where there is no penalty for missing the rough. Well, he only hit his driver once in 72 holes and led the field in driving accuracy this week, where hitting the fairway was paramount. After his long-iron display this week, hybrid club sales may fall off temporarily as hacks and pros try to tame their long-irons.

And what about the duel between Woods and Garcia? Well, as his been his pattern every time, Sergio chokes really bad when he plays with Tiger in the final group on Sunday. Let me vent for just a moment about Sergio’s post-round comments. When asked about this round and putting, he said he putted very well and was disappointed that he just didn’t make more putts. My problem with that statement (and I’m hearing from lots of pros nowadays) is that these guys (and gals) are in complete denial. Sergio, you putted like a 20-handicapper after pressing on the last hole! Michelle Wie made similar comments after one of her rounds earlier this year, but I guess it’s part of their generation’s let’s-give-everyone-a-trophy-no-matter-who-wins-or-how-they-play mentality. If you’ve had a bad day at the office (as we all do), then at least say so. I think Sergio had 33 putts, which is atrocious for professional-level golfers, but yet he putted well?

I tip my hat to Chris DiMarco as he too played with a heavy heart as his Mother passed away on July 4th. DiMarco has always been a scrappy player (and Tom Lehman would be smart man to make him a captain’s pick for the Ryder Cup team). Ernie Els couldn’t get it done either, which is surprising considering he played very well heading into the 4th round. However, his short-iron game absolutely deserted him all week and you can’t afford that on Open courses.

Tiger Woods shot a 1-under 71 on Saturday and holds a one-shot lead over Chris DiMarco, Ernie Els, and Sergio Garcia heading into Sunday’s final round.  This could be the Open Championship that everyone has been waiting for, and how appropriate it would be, on a course that hasn’t been in the rota since 1967.

All the smart money is on Woods as he’s never (yes never) lost a major championship when he’s held the 36-hold lead.  However, there are 5 players in the top 10 world ranking within 4 shots of Woods and he’s definitely going to be feeling the heat on the inward nine.  The local favorite is Sergio Garcia and you can be sure he won’t get the same treatment he received at Bethpage Black when he was in the final pairing with Woods at that U.S. Open.  Suffice to say the New York fans didn’t treat Garcia with a whole lot of respect that day (and he brought most of it on himself).  Garcia has always felt Woods gets too much attention and has even felt slighted by the press when Tiger’s in the same tournament.  Want some whine with that cheese Sergio?

Though Woods still leads, his putter was sputtering coming in and he looked a little tentative on some of the greens.  He can’t afford that on Sunday because none of the other competitors have anything to lose and you can be sure they’ll be agressive coming in.  I don’t think Garcia will close the deal (though he might outplay Woods) and DiMarco just doesn’t have the game when it comes to the big stage (yes, he took Woods to overtime at the Masters but he still lost).
Something tells me Ernie Els will bring home the Claret Jug on Sunday.

Tiger Woods shot a stellar 7-under 65 and leads the Open Championship by 1 over Ernie Els. Woods is hitting his iron shots about as pure as anyone can hit them, as evident by his eagle coming from 238 yards on the 14th hole.  The fact that Woods is not hitting his driver has vaulted him to the top of leaderboard as he’s kept the ball in play on most of the holes.  His miscues have been relatively minor and he’s been able to recover with birdies (or eagles) that kept him in or near the lead all day.

Ernie Els also shot a blistering 65 and is looking forward to playing with Tiger for Saturday’s round at Royal Liverpool Golf Club.  Retief Goosen is only 4 back and is starting to resemble the player he was 2 years ago when he won the U.S. Open.  Phil Mickelson shot a 1-under 71 but he’s 8 shots back after having an up and down round.  Mickelson will have to shoot a 64/64 and then have the leaders collapse around him in order to have a shot come Sunday.  Not likely, but stranger things have happened.

Did you catch the interview with Sergio Garcia after his round?  Sergio has always been somewhat of whiner (remember him pouting at the press a few years ago at the Masters?), but I figured he’d grown up by now.  Alas, I guess not.  He felt it was unfair that Tiger got to play in the morning when there wasn’t any wind and he had to play in the afternoon when the wind kicked up.  Sadly, it appears Garcia is taking the road traveled by his mentor Seve Ballesteros, who was himself a scratch whiner during his playing years.