Ty Votaw is a public relations man’s dream. He shows up at his press conferences looking like he stepped straight off the pages of GQ. He’s not salesman charming, he’s mother charming. If you were lucky enough to be this guy’s wing man in college, you’d have been a happy fellow indeed. But that doesn’t necessarily translate into the stuff of great commissioners. Or hide how Votaw sometimes sounds as logical as Yogi the Bear when he’s attempting to rationalize away the LPGA’s popularity problems. Asked about a 2004 Scarborough Sports Marketing survey highlighted in the Newark Star-Ledger that showed only six percent ... full post »

NBC’s cameras captured Michelle Wie obviously unsuccessfully fighting tears after one of her two-foot putt misses in the front nine of her collapse Sunday afternoon. Nothing wrong with that. She’s only 15. Well, there’s nothing wrong with that unless you’re wagering the future of your entire sport on this still fragile competitor. Still think LPGA officials are so convinced their Wie future is so bright? Call me heartless, but Wie looks like a Jennifer Capriati of golf waiting to happen. Scratch that. At least, Capriati won some major tournaments before she burned out. And Capriati was 10 times tougher than Wie at ... full post »

A recent golfing trip through Mexico once again illustrated the folly of leaving home without enough golf balls. I ran into several golfers who told me stories of shelling out $100 for 24 balls (and these were the kind of cheapies you can usually get 24 for $24 in the states). If your bag’s not stocked when you leave home, expect to get socked. It’s also a good idea to exchange some money in the airport. While everyone will eagerly take U.S. dollars in Mexico, you’ll lose a sufficient amount in this unofficial exchange rate game. The airport’s the best place to ... full post »

While Rebel Blogger makes a halfway decent point with his Robert Horry, clutch role player analogy, the hat man is missing the big picture. There are no Robert Horrys in golf. No role players with guts galore to carry a star when they’re feeling the pressure. An Horry can bail out a floundering free-throw clanking and put-back missing Tim Duncan in an NBA Finals game. But no one can help Retief Goosen hit a fairway in the final round of the U.S. Open. Golfers are on their own, more naked under pressure than almost any major sports star (even the auto racer ... full post »

Do you think Retief Goosen started believing the press clippings about him holding the pulse rate of a cadaver under pressure? For Goosen seemed more shocked than anyone at his Greg Normanesque implosion at Pinehurst No. 2 on Sunday. It was like the Goose figured he only had to show up and the calm putts would follow. TravelGolf.com’s own Goosen ogling Jennifer Mario wasn’t the only one heartbroken by Retief’s meltdown. For the run of one of golf’s seemingly genuinely good guys is over. Goosen is done as a major player. He already stood as golf’s version of a clay court specialist, capable ... full post »

This just in: Jennifer Mario, who amazingly declared that she predicted Retief Goosen would win the U.S. Open back before it started, only she didn’t want to tell anyone, so she waited until he had a three-shot lead on Saturday night to reveal this insight, is at it again. Now Jennifer is forecasting that Tiger Woods will win the 2005 Masters, thanks in no small part to an amazing chip shot that will be the stuff of Phil Knight’s wet dreams. Next week, Jennifer has a feeling that this Deep Throat mystery is going to be solved. Will the wonders never cease? Retief ... full post »

Retief Goosen may not be dull but watching Retief Goosen with a three-shot lead over Beavis and Butthead at the U.S. Open is duller than watching paint dry. Or a reality show with cabins. Or our own Nutty Professor deliver a lecture. Let’s face it. There’s one reason and one reason only to watch the final round at Pinehurst No. 2. To see if Tiger Woods can do something special. Sure, it’s unlikely. Especially with the way Tiger scraped up the greens on Saturday. But Tiger is the only hope for an interesting U.S. Open. He’s the only golfer capable of ... full post »

The fact Phil Mickelson carries the mental fortitude of Greg Norman is no secret. But usually, someone has to at least make an effort to rattle America’s favorite runner up, a la Vijay Singh and spike gate at the Masters. But not this year at the U.S. Open. No, Mickelson reduced himself to a puddle of shanked shots at Pinehurst No. 2. After moaning about course conditions in interviews following his first round, he went out and shot himself out of another major with a seven-over-par 77 in the second round. You have to give the man credit. It may not be ... full post »

Phil Mickelson is always good for a choke at a major, but now America’s lovable runner up is revealing himself to be just another pampered athlete who’s going to kick, scream and hold his breath when he doesn’t get his way. Was that Phil or Vijay Singh whining after the first round of the U.S. Open? Say it ain’t so. For when Phil’s joining the chorus carping about the big mean USGA’s course conditions, you know all is lost. Mickelson is usually the happy-go-lucky, no-complaint golfer. It’s part of why he’s so loved. Yet there he was echoing … Vijay. “It played ... full post »

If this was Masters, British Open or PGA Championship week, Retief Goosen would have as much chance of winning as Rory Sabbatini does of collecting a Miss Manners trophy. Contending? Sure. Winning? No way. Goosen just does not have the game to win tournaments where the scores are going to go low. But because this is U.S. Open week, Goosen vaults into one of the favorites’ roles. No golfer relies on those funloving USGA groundskeepers to create their legacy more than Goosen. For more on Goosen, being a one major golfer, check out this WorldGolf.com story. For more on what the USGA’s done ... full post »

I like to play golf at a brisk pace. Not George Bush Sr. and W. fast, but fast. And sure there’s nothing more annoying than waiting while some double-gutted yahoo who thinks he’s Tiger Woods sizes up that five footer for the 15th time. But that doesn’t mean I’d storm off the green and tee it up on the next hole. Because I’m not an donkey’s behind. The Rory Sabbatini situation is really as simple as that. The smattering of Sabbatini defenders, including TravelGolf.com’s own Tim McDonald are either clueless or dedicated to rude arrogance. This guy is a pro. At least he’s ... full post »

So Annika Sorenstam dominates another LPGA major, gets halfway to the grand slam and … all anyone’s talking about is the men’s U.S. Open. Even Kato had a bigger window of fame. The only one talking about Sorenstam on the radio is our own Jennifer Mario. And Danica Patrick, one of those hot women athletes who actually get attention because they market around their sex appeal, had to be included in that conversation. Even Mark Nessmith, who attempted to feign interest in LPGA good news moved on to the U.S. Open at Pinehurst faster than Tom Cruise jumps on a couch. Are you ... full post »

Played Playa Paraiso Golf Club, the new P.B. Dye in Riveria Maya (Cancun area) that’s scheduled to open next Saturday, June 18. It’s not as tough as you expect from a Dye. In fact, if you’re looking to get absolutely beaten up and then pounded on some more, Dye style, you may be disappointed. P.B. definitely kept the average resort golfer in mind on this one. He watched one golf writer shoot a two-over 74 on preview day from the back tees and seemed to love every minute of it. And you thought every Dye was a merciless monster? One of ... full post »

In Vancouver, one of the more cosmopolitan cities in the world mind you, a course like Westwood Plateau is regarded as a purely rich man’s playground by most locals. Westwood Plateau is $159 Canadian and it’s more than worth it … yet if you tell someone you’re playing Westwood Plateau, they’ll make like you must have just hit the lottery. $159…Canadian! Meanwhile, you can pay $250 for a round in Las Vegas and rightly feel like you got a decent value. Of course, you can also pay $195 for a round in Las Vegas and know it wasn’t worth more than $30 ... full post »

Well, Tim McDonald and Rebel Blogger’s latest attempt at reenacting the Madonna-Britney Spears MTV kiss is touching, our Archie Bunker’s once again showing his ignorance. I know it’s been a long time Tim, but remember the first rule of journalism: Follow the money. And the money in this case centers on all those ads being bought in all those glossy travel magazines by all those resorts and destinations being written about. Granted there are a number of writers, in the Society of American Travel Writers and out, who wouldn’t be critical of a rundown rat-infected sink hole if they thought it ... full post »

Listening to the Rebel rant on travel writers makes you wonder if the guy’s ever worked for anyone in his life. Is that a cigarette or a silver spoon dangling from his lips? Sure, the Rebel’s right that most travel writers bring the spine of a jellyfish to their work, “informing” readers about as well as a late-night infomercial on Viagra substitutes. And yes, as Tim McDonald details, the Society of American Travel Writers shows it believes in its rules about objective reporting like Putin shows he believes in a Democratic, open Russia. But the Rebel and even McDonald to a lesser ... full post »