The European Tour will require its members to compete in at least 12 events, beginning with the 2009 season, tour officials announced on Tuesday. This is one more than was required this season. The four major championships and the three World Golf Championships all count towards this number.
This move comes at a time when several top US players, including Phil Mickelson and Vijay Singh are considering European Tour membership. Traditionally, few US players have competed on the European Tour, but Mickelson has played the Scottish Open the last two years and is expected to compete in the French Open …read more

Vijay Singh’s victory at The Barclay’s last weekend–his fourth at that event–boosted him to the top of the FedexCup list after the first of four playoff tournaments. Below is the complete list as of August 25, 2008:

Vijay Singh
Sergio Garcia
Kevin Sutherland
Phil MickelsonJustin Leonard
Anthony Kim
Kenny Perry
Ben Curtis
Stewart Cink
Jim Furyk

The second annual FedExCup PGA playoffs begin this week with The Barclay’s Tournament in Paramus, New Jersey. The FedExCup spans four tournaments and rewards the top finishers with an extra bonus of up to $10 million. The FedExCup period this year spans five weeks instead of four as the Ryder Cup event falls within September and is not a part of the playoff event.
Beginning the playoffs, the top ten players are:

Tiger Woods
Kenny Perry
Phil Mickelson
Padraig Harrington
Anthony Kim
Stewart Cink
Vijay Singh
Justin Leonard
Ryuji Imada
Geoff Ogilvy
Of course, Woods will not be competing in any of the FedExCup events due to his having knee surgery earlier …read more

The pairings for the first two days of play at the PGA Championship at Oakland Hills Country Club have been announced and their are several that merit watching. For sheer diversity and entertainment value, my money is on Vijay Singh (last week’s winner at the Bridgestone Invitational) with John Daly and David Toms. Depending on which John Daly shows up, this could be great golf or a disaster.
Other interesting pairings are:
Padraig Harrington, Trevor Immelman, and Angel Cabrera
Adam Scott, Ernie Els, and Fred Couples
Sergio Garcia, Anthony Kim, and Camilo Villegas
The complete list can be found on the PGA Championship Web site.

This Sunday, June 15, is Father’s Day in the United States. It’s a good chance to look at some of professional golf’s dads and sons:
Michelle Wie with her dad and caddy, B. J. Wie
Colin Montgomerie with his dad, James
Ernie Els with his dad, Neels.Of course, many pro golfers are dads, too. Here are a couple of father/son photos:
Vijay Singh with his son, Qass
Greg Norman with his son, GregoryJack Nicklaus with his son and caddy, Steve
(all images © Newscom)

Vijay Singh, currently ranked #6 in the Fedex Cup standings, was forced to withdraw from the BMW PGA Championship in Surrey, England, before the tournament even started due to a muscle injury. Singh told the Associated Press that he was fine when he arrived in England, but somehow injured a muscle on his left side below the rib.
Singh has returned to his home in Florida and hopes to play the Memorial Tournament in central Ohio, which begins on Monday.
(photo © Newscom)

As part of the “Eagles for St. Jude” charity program, golf enthusiasts have a chance to bid on the chance to caddie for pro golfers Vijay Singh and Camilio Vilegas at a tour event. The auction, accessible via the St. Jude Hosptial Web site, runs from now until May 28 (2008). There are also six autographed PGA Pro Tour golf bags, signed by Singh, Vilegas and LPGA pro, Morgan Pressel as well as other golf items up for auction. All of the money raised will be donated to St. Jude Charity Hospital.
St. Jude’s, located in Memphis, is internationally …read more

With all of the talk this weekend about Tiger Woods’ winning streak, it’s a good time to look at who holds a variety of PGA Tour Records.
Most PGA Tour career wins – Sam Snead (82)
Most PGA Tour wins in one year – Byron Nelson (18 in 1945)
Most consecutive years with a PGA Tour win – 17 years – Jack Nicklaus (1962-1978) and Arnold Palmer (1955-1971)
Lowest score for 72 holes in a PGA event – 254 by Tommy Armour III in the Valero Texas Open in 2003
Most Birdies in a 72-hole PGA event – 32 by Mark Calcavecchia in the 2001 …read more

On Thursday, St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital received a $1.76 million check from the inaugural Stanford St. Jude Championship that was played in June.
The check was delivered by Vijay Singh and executives from Stanford Financial Group and FedEx. The donation was bolstered by Stanford’s Eagles for St. Jude program in which $1,000 is donated for every eagle carded on the PGA Tour.
Singh, who is the ambassador of the program made a personal contribution of $50K on Thursday and announced he will contribute $5K for every eagle he makes in 2008.
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