It was a big day for the LPGA—Nancy Lopez finally announced the Solheim Cup team. Besides the ten players who earned the requisite points during the last two years, Lopez also got two bonus picks. And the winners were… drumroll… Wendy Ward and Beth Daniel. Why am I not surprised? Hall-of-Famer Beth Daniel, at 48, meets all of Lopez’s “experience” requirements to a tee. Unfortunately, she saw her best LPGA years during the ‘80s, and hasn’t had a victory since 2003. The last one before that was in 1995, but hey, who’s counting. She is, after all, a long-time pal of ... full post »

So am I the only person who hates playing through? I feel enough pressure standing over a ball without adding the fact that four pairs of eyes are on me, watching my every move, groaning if I put one into a bunker, wondering to themselves why, oh why, did they just let a woman play through? I reserve all my worst shots for those moments when everyone’s holding things up on my account. And maybe I’m not the only one. Today I played in a foursome, and we kindly let two guys play through us. One of the guys hit his shot ... full post »

Home base during my summer in Hawaii was Maui. For good reason. It has the best weather, the best golf, and I had a free place to stay. I was lucky enough to hit all three Wailea courses, the three Kapalua courses, Pukalani Country Club in upcountry Maui, Princeville and Poipu Bay in Kauai, and on the Big Island, Hapuna Golf Course and Mauna Lani’s North and South courses. My itinerary provided a good taste of the whole spectrum of Hawaii golf—and an excellent basis for comparing across the board. So which one is the best? Well they all had their pros ... full post »

Let’s take a look at the weekend’s Tour events. Tiger Woods is $1.3 million richer since winning the WGC-NEC Invitational yesterday, beating out runner-up Chris DiMarco by one stroke, and the Safeway Classic was won by none other than … a Korean. Soo-Yun Kang picked up her first LPGA victory at the Safeway Classic in Portland, Oregon. And she didn’t just win it, she crushed it. Wire-to-wire (64, 68, 69 in the three-round tourney) to win by four strokes–and that was with a bogey on 18. Good Lord, did you see the Safeway leaderboard? All five of the top spots were occupied ... full post »

So all the majors have been played, maybe you’re thinking the golf world has gone dormant. Take heart, my friends, the best—well, maybe not the best, exactly—the decent is yet to come. Here’s what’s happening in the next few weeks: Tuesday, August 23rd: My birthday. My husband has promised me a round of golf, now if only God would promise me good weather. What, that’s not a major event in the golf world? What’s your point? September 9-11: The Solheim Cup. Nancy probably didn’t get my memo, so it’s doubtful we’ll see Michelle Wie out there representing our country, but this contest could ... full post »

Flying through LAX offers many benefits, not the least of which is exposure to so many different kinds of people. It’s not every day you get to sit next to a six-foot-three German guy and peer over his shoulder at his gossip mag. Right there next to a photo of Rafael Palmeiro, I spotted the headline, “Ist das doping?!” You don’t have to speak auf Deutsch to figure that one out; America’s pastime is under the microscope even in the land of Teutons. It reminded me of a conversation I just had with my husband: in the baseball world, which is worse, ... full post »

Next month, we’re going to get treated to the Solheim Cup, the women’s version of the Ryder Cup—the pressure-filled tournament featuring the U.S. versus Europe–i.e., the only tournament you won’t see any Koreans dominating. Two years ago, the Americans were crushed by the European team 17½ to 10½. This September, we want to win. The team is comprised of ten players from the point standings and two selections made by the team captain. So ostensibly, team captain Nancy Lopez should be able to pick whoever she wants for spots 11 and 12, as long as it’s an American female. So I have ... full post »