Green Posse

This week’s CA Championship at Doral is the last chance for those outside the top 10 on the money list to make a run and try to qualify for the Masters in Augusta. Those on the outside looking in are Paul Goydos (12), Charlie Hoffman (13), Jeffy Quinney (14), and Heath Slocum (15). Tiger Woods is number 11 on the money list, but to say he has a lifelong standing invitation to the Masters would be an understatement.
The Masters also invites the top-50 in the World Rankings as well, which means Ogilvy and Immelman are a lock, …read more

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Did you hear the one about Boo Weekley last week? I’ve said before that professional golfers are literally heads and shoulders above other professional athletes when it comes to character on the golf course. At the Arnold Palmer Invitational last week, Weekly suffered a two-shot penalty while performing a sportsman-like act on the golf course.
Here’s what happened: Weekley’s playing partner Tom Johnson hit his approach shot roughly 85 feet away from the pin, but because of the location of the pin and where his ball was he decided to chip the ball off the green. As the …read more

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Vijay Singh shot a steady 3-under 67 to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill by two shots over Rocco Mediate. This course must be much tougher than it looks as even Singh had trouble on the closing holes, making bogey on 16 and 17 and struggling to make par on 18. But I’m glad for Vijay as it looks like he’s swinging with lots of confidence again and taking very aggressive lines with his driver and approach shots.
And here’s a number you don’t associate with Tiger Woods: 43. Yup, 43 strokes on the back nine. …read more

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Today’s third-round action at the Arnold Palmer Invitational was one of the worst train wrecks I’ve seen in a professional golf tournament in a long time. Rocco Mediate shot a 6-over 76 to fall to 3-under for the tournament, and the other second-round leader, Paul Casey show a 3-over 73 to also fall to 3-under for the tournament.
There’s no doubt that each player hit some questionable golf shots, but the putting was atrocious at times, with both players missing critical 3 and 4-foot putts that could have salvaged the round for each player. I was really pulling …read more

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Have you ever reached your lowest point in golf, wondering what kind of swing will show up on the next tee box? I’ve reached that point for me personally. Actually, it came last fall while playing with our regular threesome, my brother Gary and, and our buddy Perry. It actually had been coming over the summer as my swing was becoming more inconsistent each weekend, and the more I concentrated to be consistent, the harder it became to even swing the club.
And finally in the fall (September?, who knows), I emailed Gary and Perry and told them …read more

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I got to thinking today about the life of a professional caddy on tour. Caddying on tour has changed dramatically in the last 10 years, and it’s not a bad way to make a living if you can loop for a top-125 player. Reportedly, caddies make 5% of the pro’s check if he makes the cut, and 10% if the pro wins a golf tournament, and some (most?) earn some sort of weekly guarantee for showing up. So if your pro makes the cut and earns say, $100,000 for the week, you get $5000.
Let’s look at …read more

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The latest episode of the Big Break VII was not the most exciting hour of television I’ve seen, but it is golf, and I will be watching. Two more contestants were shown the door, and this time it was Edoardo Gardino and Valeria Ochoa who couldn’t survive the elimination round. Ocho looked like she really wasn’t having a good time and if you’re a single Mom with three (?) kids, then it’s definitely tough to be away from home, and I respect that. I think she’s a much better golfer than she demonstrated this time around.
Gardino is …read more

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So the reigning queen of the LPGA, Annika Sorenstam, lost a 4-hole playoff that smart money said she should have won very easily. Well, it’s not 1995 anymore and somewhat like the PGA Tour, these young ladies just don’t quake in their shoes as they might have a generation ago when playing the number one player in the world.
Meaghan Francella played very solid golf the entire tournament and though Sorenstam made an unlikely bogey at 16, Francella didn’t back into this win, she earned every bit of it. Does this mean she’s on par (no pun intended) with …read more

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Okay, I don’t quite understand all the hoopla and hand-wringing going on with Arjun Atwal’s alleged street racing accident in Orlando, Florida. For those that don’t know, Atwal is alleged to have participated in a street race with John Noah Park where speeds exceeded 100MPH and ultimately cost Park his life when he hit a tree head-on. It’s incredibly sad when this happens, and I feel for Park’s family.
But understand one thing. Professional golfers are human just like the rest of us and they are just as liable to go off and make bad judgments like anyone …read more

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Mark Calcavecchia won the PODS Championship today when Heath Slocum missed a 4-foot par putt that would have sent the pair into a playoff. While this win raises Calcavecchia’s win total to only 13, he really is one of the good guys on tour and has a reputation for wearing his emotions on his sleeve. By his own admission, Calcavecchia is a streak player and when he gets hot with the putter, he’s tough to beat.
I’ve always like his approach to the game because he looks like he just walked off a softball field and just shoots from …read more

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