The Memorial, one of the more prestigious tournaments after the majors, has already lost Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh and Adam Scott. And it thought it had lost Ernie Els, who has changed his mind and now says he’ll play Jack Nicklaus‘ tournament. Why? A lousy round. Els told the media his “horrible” performance at the BMS PGA Championship on his home course at Wentworth last week prompted him to change his mind about skipping the Memorial, which he won in 2004. Els said he needed to get on a competitive course quick. “It’s one of my favorite tournaments of the year and I love Jack’s ... full post »

What’s the deal with Tiger Woods‘ knee? First, we hear that the operation was so mild and successful he didn’t need a crutch afterward. Now, we hear he needs more rest – about nine weeks’ worth in all. Is there something they’re not telling us? The knee surgery was Woods’ third. In 2002, he had cysts removed and fluid drained from around his left knee’s anterior cruciate. A fairly mild operation, but anyone who knows anything about knee injuries knows a faulty anterior cruciate – the weal link in one of the more susceptible joints of the human body – has felled many ... full post »

The third annual Florida Open for Golfers With Disabilities is scheduled for June 14 with an 8 a.m. shotgun start, at the Kissimmee Bay Country Club. The tournament also encourages golfers without disabilities to play along with their friends with disabilities. All golfers are eligible to compete for the low gross awards and those golfers with a USGA handicap are eligible for low net The $50 entry fee includes a round, cart fee, range balls, prizes and a barbecue buffet. The tournament is sponsored by the National Alliance for Accessible Golf and Florida Golf Magazine. To register, call Kissimmee Bay at 407-348-4653. full post »

One of the prettiest courses I’ve ever played is part of the Georgia state park system, Arrowhead Pointe at Richard Russell Lake. The architect, Bob Walker, told me it was the best piece of land he had ever been given on which to design a golf course. “I just couldn’t have found a better site, honestly,” he said. “They pretty much gave me free reign.” Now, Arthur Hills is getting a chance. To me, Hills is one of the most elegant golf architects around. He was recently picked to design a course at a development called the Sanctuary (hey, there’s an original name for ... full post »

I’m not a big Colin Montgomerie fan – he’s always seemed a bit spoiled to me – but I do like what he has to say about slow play. Slow play is one of the most infuriating things about the game and one often complained about, by all levels. For too long, the pros have been getting a free ride. Montgomerie had enough after the Irish Open. “There’s absolutely no reason why you can’t get round any course, anywhere in the world, in four hours.” He told the media. “The golf we are playing at the moment is an hour too long.” I’ve seen ... full post »

Why not an even 20? Or even 15, the number of rounds heavyweight fights used to be? The early golf courses were all over the map – five holes, seven, some 12-holers. Then, the lads at St. Andrews got together and came up with the sanest solution. A bottle of Scotch whiskey – say, a 12-year-old Glenlivet – holds enough for 18 shots. One shot per hole and the bottle is empty. Why keep playing? I think they should do the same with baseball, just make it two shot shots per inning. full post »

Any American who has ever played golf in Europe knows the most obvious difference between the two continents’ courses is walkability. Europeans love to walk. They play golf for exercise, and their courses reflect that. American golf is superior in some ways, one of them being golfers don’t have to prove their handicaps, or even have one. But, one big negative is American golf’s corporate mentality – collect the green fees and herd them through. Too few American courses are walker-friendly and there are too many American courses that don’t even allow walking. The Innisbrook Resort and Golf Club is making a move ... full post »

Talk about flawed intelligence. I’m referring to George Bush’s I.Q., not the baloney he and his cronies cooked up to wage war on Iraq. Bush says he gave up golf to show solidarity with the troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Even with such a trivial subject, he lied. Records indicate Bush played at least another round after he swore he gave up the game. America will be a better country without this clown, the world will be a better world and so will the game of golf. I never thought there would be an American president more out of touch with the people ... full post »

I’ve been trying not to write this blog, but an inner voice keeps saying “Good Lord, man, stand up for yourself!” It sounds a little like that drill sergeant in Platoon, or my ex-wife. Did you happen to catch CBS’ Jimmy Roberts during the Players Championship, in his breathless report on how ex-PGA Tour Commissioner Deane Beman FINALLY came up with a great name for the closing three holes at the TPC? Honestly, I didn’t know there had been such a gargantuan struggle to name Nos. 16, 17 and 18, but I guess there has been. Anyway, Roberts came out with it: “The Gauntlet.” Then ... full post »

The people in North Carolina are getting a new, Arnold Palmer golf course. The course, tentatively called Folly Creek, will be part of the Seven Falls Golf and River Club. It’s about eight miles from Hendersonville, on the southern edge of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Developers are hoping to open the course sometime in November of this year. It’s situated along the French Broad River, one of the oldest rivers in the country, and winds through western Henderson County. The club will also have a short nine and a 58-acre practice facility. There will be a lodge and more than 900 housing units. Lots ... full post »

I’ve said for quite a while that if Sergio Garcia could ever re-gain the putting form he showed as a teen phenom, he could challenge Tiger Woods. Garcia is one of the best ball-strikers in the game, and one of the worst putters. Garcia won The Players Championship Sunday, but even though he putted well in the final round, he’s still a long way from taking on the best in the world on a consistent basis. I was dying to see him line up a knee-knocker in the playoff with Paul Goydos, but of course Goydos’ water ball on the 17th hole ... full post »

Johnny Miller showed why he is the best, most brutally candid golf analyst yesterday with his comments on Tiger Woods. Woods, as most people might know, talked early in the season about his pursuit of the Grand Slam. Miller must have been thinking what I and a million other golf fans were thinking. Isn’t it a little early to be making such a bold prediction? Even if it’s Tiger Woods doing the talking? “I’m not taking a slam at Tiger, but I think the Grand Slam is something you start thinking about on the first of August, after you’ve won the three other ... full post »

The differences between commercial airlines in America and everywhere else in the world, including Africa, Asia, Antarctica and any other continent they happen to find would fill a Super Wal Mart. American planes are dingy, grubby and probably contagious. There’s an air of desolation as soon as you walk into the cabin. It’s like being locked away in a Mexican jail on trumped-up drug charges. The seats were designed by midgets, for midgets. A chimp might be comfortable, but only if he were a very small, tranquilized baby chimp who didn’t mind sitting erect, like a granite statue, and did not require ... full post »

I haven’t played enough golf yet in eastern Denmark and southern Sweden – a geographical area known as Oresund – to call it the Great Undiscovered Golf Destination, but I can definitely say it’s promising. First of all, golf is cheaper here than probably any other place in Western Europe, and cheaper than many places in the U.S. The game is growing like wildfire in Denmark – second behind only soccer – and it’s been a mainstay for family fun in Sweden for years. Secondly, there are quite a few golf courses to choose from. In Skane, which takes up much of ... full post »

I’m not sure if I’m a lightning rod for violence or if a divine force is trying to tell me something. Last month I was lying in a hotel bed in Branson, Missouri, when I was jostled awake in the middle of the night. The entire hotel was vibrating. I remember thinking, “This is interesting. I should probably remember this.” Then I went back to sleep. The next morning, I learned there had been a 5.2 magnitude earthquake in Illinois that was felt from Nebraska to Atlanta, in places as far-flung as Milwaukee, Louisville and Cincinnati. Then, last night, I was again sleeping ... full post »

The crown prince and princess of Denmark are members of the Royal Copenhagen Golf Club, but the Danes – never ones to put on airs, or heirs for that matter – call it simply the Copenhagen Golf Club. If an American golf club had royalty for members, they’d plaster it in neon 50 feet high. The Danes don’t like to brag. Chances are you won’t run into royalty on the course, outside of the huge, historic city. But, you will run into a variety of other species. The course sits in a park about 400 years old, and is open to the ... full post »

The woman in the black dress standing by the airport gate waiting for her plane to board wasn’t beautiful. The best you could say was that she was merely attractive. Nor was the dress she wore that revealing. It ended somewhere below the knee and there was no cleavage at all. All of these things would have been good excuses to surreptitiously gawk, a specialty of mine, but I can’t use them. Because there I was, staring. Finally, feeling like a stalker, I looked away. It didn’t take long to dawn on me why she attracted such attention. She was wearing one ... full post »