We finally have a twenty-something American seriously competing come Sunday afternoon (though he’s 0-fer) and the golf experts can’t cut him some slack. He took Tiger the full 15 rounds and while he didn’t win, I don’t think he lost by a K.O. (or even T.K.O.) either. Howell III is learning how to win again and the road back has been very long and very painful at times, but I certainly see the progress he’s made.

Like many before him, he hit the tour with tons of expectations and the fact that he came from Augusta (yes that Augusta) kind of led people to believe he had this magical fate attached to his personna. Yes, it would be stunning if he could win the Masters, but first he needs to learn how to contend there, and it seems that it would be easier than most because he knows the course extremely well. But come that week in April, and even the best golfers have a hard time swallowing on the first tee because of the enormous pressure they feel.

Though it’s way early, I do look for Howell III to win this year, and if he can at least stay consistent throughout the year, it will be a big boost to his confidence.

Fred Funk is in a position most 50+ year-old professionals would love to be in. He lapped the field at the Champions Tour event at Turtle Bay this past weekend and won by 11 shots. The problem is (at least for the Champions Tour) is that he wants to keep playing the PGA Tour with the younger generation. And he should by all means because he’s the first 50-year-old in a while to remain competitive on the regular tour. Remember, he won th Players Championship when he was 49.

From a selfish perspective though, the Champions Tour needs him more than he needs to play the PGA Tour. Funk is a joy to watch and his attitude about treating sponsors, player partners, and fans is refreshing and something you don’t hear everyday. I know I’ve dissed the Champions Tour quite a bit, but I do see some possible good things coming the very near future, and it starts with the new crop of players coming out on the senior circuit.

First off, Nick Price will be playing his first event in a couple of weeks, and he’s adamant about coming out to win, not just show up and collect a paycheck. And you can bet that Bernhard Langer and Seve Ballesteros will have the same attitude and fire when they show up this year. I like that because I think it’s time for the Champions Tour to lose the good-old-boys image and start portraying the professional tour that it is. And you can’t do that with cigar-chomping, cart-riding, happy-just-to-be-chasing-the-little-white-ball type of players.

Everywhere you looked today, there was someone comparing Tiger Woods and Roger Federer. Comparisons in sport are always difficult and in the end are nothing more than water-cooler fodder because you can’t really compare professionals from two completely different sports. However, I will say that number of competitors Woods has to beat in any given tournament far exceeds the number of opponents Federer has to beat.

And assuming the top 10 are in the field for a PGA event, Tiger (or the winner) has to beat them all, for four days before he can claim victory. Granted, tennis is more physically demanding than golf (by an order of magnitude for sure), but the comparison would be more realistic if Federer had to play all 15 players during the tournament before he was crowned the winner. And with all due respect to Federer, Bjorn Borg was probably the all-around better player.

On a completely different note, my heart goes out to the owners/family of Barbaro. I don’t even call myself a casual horse-racing fan because I only watch the Kentucky Derby, and then the Preakness to see if the Kentucky Derby winner can win the 2nd-jewel in the Triple Crown. However, like millions of others this year, I watched Barbaro’s tragic accident at the Preakness and then followed his progess all year. And like many others, I thought in December he had a excellent chance of making it (despite the horrible odds), but it wasn’t meant to be. Why did Barbaro touch me, and so many others? R.I.P. Barbaro.

Tiger Woods let the rookies know who rules the tour today, in startling fashion, by winning his 7th consecutive PGA tournament, the Buick Invitational. It was a close tournament on the back nine as Andrew Buckle and Jeff Quinney appeared to have the tournament in hand. But both rookies made a couple of mental errors which led to double-bogies for both, and all of a sudden, they were tied with Tiger. Oops.

However, in fairness to Buckle, Quinney, Snedeker and Howell, it’s apparent that these youngsters just don’t seem too much in awe of Tiger (at least outwardly) and I appreciate and respect that. It’s just that when someone of Tiger’s caliber sees an opening, well as Don Meredith used to say, “turn out the lights, the party’s over”. These kids will learn how to win and the only way you do that is put yourself in that position and it’s even better if it comes against the best player in the world. Do you think Charles Howell III learned some things today?

Let’s make something clear hear. Tiger took the tournament away by shooting a 6-under 66 while Buckle shot even par, and media darling this week Brandt Snedeker shot 1-under. In some tournaments (like those without Tiger), those scores might have been good enough, but not today. However, even after Tiger tied Buckle, he hit a couple of loose shots and had to get up and down to save par, which of course he’s the master at. But Tiger’s 3rd shot at 17 was the exclamation point on his round. He stuffed his approach as if to say, I’m back.

Can Tiger keep the streak alive? There are too many variables involved to make that prediction, but if it involves playing Riveria Country Club in L.A., then probably not. That’s one course that just doesn’t fit his game. Nonetheless, just keep enjoying the ride Tiger is giving us.

So the Golf Channel’s Big Break series has gone into virtual syndication it appears. They’ve announced the Big Break VII – The Reunion series. This time they’ve brought back both winners and losers from previous shows. 16 players total will comprise this particular instance and it will be interesting to see how the politics and strategy will play out since they all know the ropes of the show.

Let’s see if I can remember some of the names. From the first show there’s Mark (Mr-Oh-I-shanked-that-shot-on-purpose) Farnham; Don (The Mouth) Donatello from II; Cindy Miller and Valerie Ochoa from the Ladies Only show; Tommy Gainey from the USA vs. Europe; and Bri Vega from the most recent show. That’s all I can remember.

Also, I’m wondering if the Golf Channel is having a hard time finding quality talent? There’s no doubt they look for personality and impact as much as they do talent. Probably the most controversial character (at least on many golf discussion forums) was Don Donatello. Pretty decent golfer, but his mouth gave the impression he was better than he really was. Like all the previous shows, I’ll be watching yet again.

I was reading some reports from the 2007 PGA Merchandise Show and Convention and it appears to me that this year, more than ever, having the latest and greatest technology is more important than just enjoying the game for what it offers. Call me old-school I guess. There are the new drivers that come in all shapes and sizes, but more importantly, they have “MOI” (moment of inertia) rating as set forth by the PGA.

And what exactly does MOI do for the average golfer? Allegedly, it optimizes the resistance to twisting on off-center hits. Wow. I’m beside myself waiting to try them out. And there’s the new shaft technology called NanoFuse from TrueTemper, that also alleges to combine the best of graphite and steel shafts to create shafts that are second to none.

I also read an article in either Golf Digest or Golf that said 90% of most amateur golfers never realize the full potential of the latest technology, simply because they don’t have swing speeds high enough to make a difference (not to mention having questionable talent). But yet, the golfing public continues to spend hundreds of millions of dollars, ,annually to try and guarantee that perfect swing.

Okay, it’s only the third event of the young season, but is it too early to hope for a shootout between Woods, Singh, and Mickelson? I don’t think so. Primarily because Singh is playing very well (his 34th place finish at the Sony Open notwithstanding) and Tiger seems to be full of confidence this year. And you can never count Phil out.

In fact, Phil might need the incentive of Woods and Singh being in the field to stoke the fire in his belly and play well. And what about Charles Howell III? Can he recover from yet another close call? It’s hard to say because he doesn’t carry himself with tons of (outward) confidence. The kid seems talented enough, but then again, how many like him have come and gone over the years?

The golf world is abuzz with excitement simply because this week is Tiger Woods’ first appearance of 2007. And it’s at one of Tiger’s favorite tracks: Torrey Pines in San Diego. Oddly enough, there are some people who don’t feel the same excitement as most, and that’s mainly the players that have to compete against him. Do you think Ernie Els and Phil Mickelson sometimes feel they were born too early or too late in life? Without Tiger around, I’d bet Els would have at least 4 more majors, and who’s to say how many Mickelson might have.

Some of the players were asked if Tiger has hurt or helped golf in general. I will admit that his presence and dominance has been a double-edged sword for players, tournament directors, and television executives. The astronomical purses on the Tour can be attributed soley to Tiger, which means all a player has to do is go for the low-hanging fruit and he’s living high on life.

For tournament directors, it’s much more black-and-white. If Tiger commits to your tournament, then you’re in for a windfall for the week your tournament runs. For those tournaments that don’t get Tiger, it’s a completely different ballgame and some in fact need Tiger’s appearance just to help them stay on the radar screen.

And television has the same problem, except that Tiger has to be in the hunt (or on the leaderboard) in order to attract the casual golf fan. And this Tiger phenomena goes on worldwide as well. However, Tiger gets “appearance fees” when playing abroad, but still having him in the field is a boon to the tournament directors.

It’s official, finally. Hale Irwin is back in the winner’s circle after winning the 2007 MasterCard Championship at Hualalai this past weekend. Irwin left no doubt that at least on this day, he was the man to beat as Jim Thorpe and Tom Kite trailed Irwin by 5 shots when all was said and done.

I actually enjoyed watching a Champions Tour event again and it’s no surprise that Hale Irwin has a lot to do with it. Irwin was playing like a man possesed all day as he shot at pins and the made the putts when it mattered most. In fact, he putted with the kind of confidenced that’s been missing for over a year now, and the results showed.

Jim Thorpe made an early run at Irwin and I thought it might be a horse race, but Thorpe just couldn’t keep the pressure on.

Charley Hoffman made an unlikely eagle on the 72nd hole to force a playoff at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic in Palm Desert, California. Hoffman beat John Rollins on the first hole of sudden death with a par when Rollins couldn’t get up and down after mis-hitting his 2nd shot out of a fairway bunker.

Justin Rose has got to be kicking himself yet again as he let another one slip away. It’s not that he played poorly, it’s just that he didn’t match what other guys around him were doing. Rose has game, he’s just got to figure out how to get the ball in the hole when it’s crunch time.

And did you check out the weather in Palm Desert? Unusually strong winds made this play more like a British Open round than an early season rack-up-the-birdies type of tournament. The Golf Channel is making strides in their tournament coverage but I, but they missed Mark Rolfing this week, as he’s excellent at bringing continuity to the coverage.