Green Posse

Phil Mickelson is at +11 for the U.S. Open, and ironically enough, he still has a decent chance of making the cut. More importantly, was it a smart decision to attempt to play this week, given that his wrist was hurt far more than he let on (which is his perrogative). Did he potentially sacrifice the long-term health of his wrist in order to play this week?
Unfortunately, Phil is getting roasted by columnists and the 2nd round isn’t even over yet! I think Phil was so hell-bent on trying to exorcise the demons from last year that …read more

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I wrote yesterday that there was tons of hoopla being generated about how difficult the USGA set up Oakmont for this year’s U.S. Open. My personal opinion is that these are the best players in the world, and it doesn’t hurt for them to play a venue, once a year, that really tests their mettle. If they hack the ball around, does it really hurt their confidence in the long run? I think not. In fact, regardless of how difficult a course is, if the greens are soft (as these were this morning), these guys are …read more

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I watched the Johnny Miller special on the Golf Channel last night and I thought it was an excellent show, in that it showed a different side of Miller that the general public doesn’t get to see. Without question, he’s opinionated, arrogant, and sometimes can be flip in his comments, but it also showed someone who is humble, and really appreciates what golf has given him.

He readily admitted when his comments were over-the-top, or perhaps unjustified, and he’s willing to take the heat for them. One of his classic, and probably slightly unfair comments was after Craig Perry …read more

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I was watching the Golf Channel’s coverage of the U.S. Open and you’d think there were going to be snipers lining the fairways taking pot shots at the golfers. Dave Pelz (one of Mickelson’s coaches) did a spot on the Golf Channel on the 10th hole, and he called it “the hardest par-5 in America” because of the severity of the green’s inability to hold a chip shot. Yes, this course will be tough, but it seems the Golf Channel turns up the hype a little much at the U.S. Open each year.
However, if it’s as tough as …read more

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Okay, I think it’s time to put the Adam Scott hype machine to bed for a while. He’s been touted as the next “Tiger Woods” for about three years now, and he’s yet to follow up his Players Championship with a win in a real major. And Sunday’s collapse at the St. Jude Championship was reminiscent of Ochoa’s collapses as of late. Scott is infinitely better than Woody Austin, but look who was holding the trophy on Sunday. Yeah, Austin shot a career-round of 62 to win, but Scott was leaking oil all the way …read more

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Kudos to Suzann Pettersen for winning her first major, the McDonalds LPGA Championship. She played excellent golf, especially down the stretch when Karrie Webb was matching her birdie-for-birdie. I know there’s a lot of noise being made about Webb’s comeback the last couple of years, but it she seems to having lots of luck as well (better to be lucky than good).
Webb drained far more than her fair share of putts today which helped keep her nipping at the heels of Pettersen. Yes, Webb played some solid golf, but she hit some loose approach shots, …read more

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After three rounds at the LPGA Championship, rookie Na On Min leads Suzann Pettersen by one, Karrie Webb by two, and Morgan Pressel by three, heading into Sunday’s final round. On Min shot a blistering 65 today on a day when a lot of the veterans couldn’t get anythng going.
Pettersen had an up and down round, and you see the obvious frustration on her face as she was trying to make birdies coming in. Karrie Webb had a similar round, and she too missed opportunities all day, and couldn’t make a putt when she needed them.
It’s too …read more

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John Daly is competing at this week’s St. Jude Championship, and when he arrived, it was obvious that something had gone terribly wrong. Daly alleges his estranged wife attacked him with a steak knife, and his face was in fact full of red marks, as if something or someone had scratched him. Daly did file a complaint with the local county sheriff, but authorities claimed they were unable to find the “suspect”.
Wow. It’s hard to imagine that Daly has fallen this far, in what seems to be a short amount of time. It’s important to note …read more

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There’s been numerous articles written the past couple of weeks remembering Johnny Miller’s 63 during the final round to win the ‘73 U.S. Open. I remember watching that U.S. Open very vividly as if it were yesterday. I was thoroughly hooked on golf in 1973 and being single and living in the barracks afforded me the opportunity to practically live at the golf course. Watching golf on T.V. in 1973 was not all that great to be honest. There were very few cameras back then, and even then the quality wasn’t very good, but it …read more

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Professional golf is usually a non-event when it comes to controversy and interesting news, but I think the rest of year is shaping up to be a strange year. The Wie story is prominent right now, but you have Tiger Woods who will be out for at least part of the summer swing (and maybe even miss a major or two), and know one knows how bad Mickelson’s wrist really is.
There were more stories today (and further insight) into the Wie saga, but suffice to say team-Wie has a very long summer ahead of it, and now that …read more

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