Now that the semifinalists for the 2006 US Amateur have been decided, it is time to posit a theory that may hold little interest for many, but should be discounted by none. Trip Kuehne, of the golfing Kuehnes, should be granted (royally or otherwise) a permanent position on the US Walker Cup team. He should hold that post until he renounces it himself, and it should be withdrawn by no other. The reason is a simple one. Until 2005, Gary Wolstenhome had led the GB&I team to three consecutive victories, and four out of five. In fact, had a putt fallen ... full post »

Google Eagle and you should come up with Reno…after Will MacKenzie made three eagles in one round on Thursday, Yusaku Miyazato dunked two tee balls on par threes on Friday. So what wins in Reno, three of a kind or two aces? Not to be forgotten, MacKenzie made another eagle on Friday, for an average of two eagles per day. I don’t care what the air is like up there, or how many things are legal in Nevada…this has to stop!!! Whoops, sorry, got a little carried away there…This has to continue!!! When you are the second-best pro ... full post »

Out went the medalist by 1 down, to the Canadian, Ryan Yip. Out went the McLean lad, by 2 and 1 to John Kelly. Out went Fidel Castro by 2 and 1 to Webb Simpson. Out went Pablo Martin, by 1 down to “Da’ Kid,” Rickie Fowler. In is the Mid-Am, Trip Kuehne, by 4 and 3 over Matthew Swan “Lake". In are the Euro Walker Cuppers, Fisher and Ramsay, by 5 & 4 and 3 & 2 over Hodge and Davis. In is Alex Prugh, by a monstrous 7 and 5 over the other Mid-Am, Strickland. Strick was stricken with ... full post »

The second day of match play is in the books, on the slate, under the tarp, and the winners and losers have emerged. Without adieu, here are the cold, hard facts: Euro Walker Cuppers march on…Oliver Fisher and Richie Ramsay squeeked by, on the 18th and 17th holes, respectively, to move into the round of 16. J-Mo is No’ Mo’…Jonathan Moore will not take an NCAA-USA A double a la Ryan Moore, in 2006. J-Mo was dusted, 2 & 1, by the redoubtable Kyle “Crash” Davis. C-Wa is See Ya’…Casey Watabu will not take a USA PL-USA A double, a la Ryan Moore, ... full post »

“…the International Astronomical Union stripped Pluto of the planetary status it has held since its discovery in 1930. The new definition of what is – and isn’t – a planet fills a centuries-old black hole for scientists who have labored since Copernicus without one.” RONMON:These words echo the thoughts of many who follow professional golf, as they seem to be the beacon of light in the darkness of PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem’s period of great expansion. Bent on creating five majors for both the Champions and PGA tours, the commish has pushed his Players Championship to May, and has designated ... full post »

The twins are, coincidentally, both out of the tournament. The Fathauer boys got knocked out, coincidentally, on the 17th hole. One lost, 3 and 1; the other, 2 and 1. The parents are still trying to determine which was which. The Euro Walker Cup guys won two and lost two. The bigger names, Rhys Davies and Lloyd Saltman, both lost. Davies fell to the Flying Finn, Antti Ahokas, while Saltman was dropped by some kid named Tway (more on him later.) The lesser knowns, Oliver Twist (err, I mean Oliver Fisher) and Richie Ramsay, moved on. There will be no Brit ... full post »

In addition to the six guys with the identical initials TBD, there are a number of players who survived stroke play to make the round of 64 at match play in the US Amateur at Hazeltine Regional, err, National Golf Club. Here they are, in no particular order, with the reasoning they bear watching: Tarik Can–Dates (or used to date) Paula Creamer Jon Moore, Webb Simpson, Billy Horschel, Jon McLean–college studs having solid summer seasons Rhys Davies, Richard Ramsey, Lloyd Saltman, Oliver Fisher–Euro Walker Cup heroes Pablo Martin–ungrateful dirtbag who won a major amateur tournament (Porter Cup) in 2005, then decided not to ... full post »

Tim “Old” McDonald, the farmer of prose, lends the notion that Medinah is not acting like a major. Thank God, I respond, Thank God. For too long the notion that under par is a no-no at a major has seeped insipidly into the golf-viewer psyche, to the point where Tiger Woods made something resembling the following claim: It doesn’t seem like a major. A major championship is not decreed by the course on which it is played (Valhalla, a shaved and goateed Pinehurst Dos, a fire-hazard Hoylake, and that unforgettable place wherer Payne Stewart won his PGA.) Rather, it is ... full post »

Here is a brief blog to put two names out there as captain’s picks that I bet you have not considered. The first is a guy who has been a stalwart on the tour for two decades, is the only guy to beat Tiger in a playoff, and has proven his strength recently by coming back from a serious operation. The other guy lived in the shadow of a vicious if supportive father for nearly a decade. He has shown his game by winning once on tour and contending in many other events. The former should ... full post »

Let’s get directly to the corpses: Zach Johnson, Brett Wetterich, and (probably) Vaughn Taylor will not be in the top ten of the USA Ryder Cup team when Sunday evening mizzles in. Lumpy, Davis, Cink-Port, Kelly and Glover all have a shot at double-points for a top ten finish this weekend. Heck, with a 6th-place finish, even Aaron Oberholser can make this team. What does that tell you about the system? Although the PGA still needs to work on its selection process, I will go on record as claiming that the PGA championship is infinitely more enjoyable, entertaining, and ... full post »

Use the force, Luke! Lucas Glover, by his own admission, got caught up in the Ryder Cup hype and went AWOL for a few months, made the biggest impression on Thursday. Minus Six! Riley wasn’t bad either, matching him, but it will take more than just one event (unless he wins!) to make the team. If he hadn’t taken a powder in that afternoon match, Riley would be on the short list of Captain’s picks. As it is right now, unless there is a secret bond between him and Lehman, Riley is out unless he ... full post »

That’s right, all capital letters, boys. Time to stand up and say, Captain Tom, I belong. In the words of the donkey in Shrek, Pick me, Pick me! While Blogger Dave examines the Gospel according to Phil and what it really means, and Blogger Kiel wonders how well a middle-aged college coach will do against the world’s best, what matters to me are the guys on the cusp of making and missing the Ryder Cup side, USA style. So here we go: John Rollins, Luke Glover, Stewie Cink, and Jerry Kelly, it’s on you. I have no desire ... full post »

If Tom Lehman wants to win the Ryder Cup so badly that he sees himself as a viable playing candidate, let him have it! He came within an eyelash and a hawaiian of vaulting into the top ten this week in Colorado. None of the other pretenders made anything resembling a move. Heck, Lehman himself may be that veteran force he so desperately needs to steady the ship. Davis? Fred? Scott? Neither their actions nor their words have demonstrated any explosive desire to help the USA reclaim the cup. Yes, Medinah will have the final say, with double points and ... full post »

I’m just too giddy for words. Another Hawaiian teenager, Miss Kimberly Kim from Hilo, has qualified for the finals of the Women’s am. She faces a marauding German in Katharina Schallenberg, so she’ll need to be on top of her game to win the 36-hole marathon on Sunday. Neither Kim Kim nor Schallenber was heralded as a contender when the event began. Both qualified within seven strokes of the medalist (KatSchall at 143, and Kim Kim at 146), so they certainly have not astonished, say, as much as a Leah Wigger (the 64th qualifier) might have. The bigger names ... full post »

Like the seven dwarves, I whistled at Thistle on Friday, so relaxed was the round of golf. Perhaps I owed it to being on the white tees, some 1000 yards shorter than the tips to which I am accustomed. Either way, I would have enjoyed this round. I had no idea who Tim Cates was prior to the round on two of the three nines. He is the architect of Thistle, and is now on my hot list of young designers to watch. Our group, consisting of this venerable writer and John and Scott from Rock Hill, S.C., teed off on ... full post »

Building on success with the Oneida nation of central New York, Robert Trent Jones II has entered into an agreement with the Seneca of western New York to build a golf course in the town of Lewiston, a few miles north of Niagara Falls. The site, next to Joseph Davis State Park, had been slated for golf course development for years. The financing never came together, and the project repeatedly stalled. Then came the Seneca nation. After an exhaustive search that included Jack, Pete, Greg, and other name architects, they decided to employ RTJ2 to design their Niagara County ... full post »

They say that Bobby Jones played the perfect round in a British Open qualifier at Sunningdale. They say that he hit 17 greens, had a lone bunker shot, 33 putts and 33 shots to the greens. His highest score was a four. Having inscribed the “Tiger Slam” next to the “Jones Slam” in the annals of history, Tiger Woods has again rewritten the Jones legacy, this time with the perfect tournament. Completing four consecutive rounds of 66, he made a single bogey each 18, seven birdies per round, and 10 pars each day. He hit 15, 13, 14, and 17 greens ... full post »

Briefly, the USA ladies kept the Cup. They seem to do what the professionals cannot do…get out to an early lead, withstand a challenge, and win the darned thing. Pacific Dunes must have provided tremendous vistas for this exhibition of shotmaking and nerves. Check out the USGA site for pictures. full post »