This Week at TravelGolf.com: August 16, 2005

Mickelson's PGA victory
brings out the fuzzy math

Phil Mickelson wins his second major with a clutch chip from the deep grass on day five of a seemingly never-ending PGA Championship and suddenly the entire math of pro golf is changing. Well, at least it is for those so desperate to see Tiger Woods with a rival that they'd figure out a way to make New Coke look like genius if it advanced their cause.

Mickelson gets his second one-stroke major victory and suddenly we're hearing about how it's Tiger 2, Phil 2 in majors since 2004. Then, CBS commentator Jim Nantz gets on a national radio show just hours after the finish at Baltusrol and says he expects Mickelson to win eight majors before he's through.

Look, Jim. We know Mickelson is your buddy, but eight majors? He's 35, isn't going to be asked to serve on the President's Council For Physical Fitness anytime soon and, if you listen to TravelGolf.com blogger Doug Carey and other Phil-for-sainthood campaigners, he's liable to chuck golf as soon as his 2-year-old son Evan asks why he's not coaching the tee-ball team.

Mickelson showed more resolve, more guts and more heart than the other guys still playing on Monday. Of that even this longtime Lefty Lampooner cannot quibble. He should never be called the Good Guy Gagger again (that one was for memoriam).

But expecting him to suddenly go on a majors binge based on what you saw at Baltusrol is like expecting Paris Hilton to suddenly stop shooting videos because she's on her way to the altar. Phil's brother Tim could come out on the tour and be allowed to play best ball with Phil while everyone else stuck to stroke play and there wouldn't be eight Mickelson majors.

And you know what? There's nothing wrong with that. Mickelson has put on an incredible run of entertaining golf. He could decide to focus his energy on replicating that Baltimore Ravens Super Bowl bet tomorrow and still be the second most memorable golfer of his generation.

But please, stop the fuzzy math.

Putting up Tiger 2, Phil 2 only works if you include the worst year of Tiger's majors career in the equation. Somehow, I don't think Tiger's kicking back in Isleworth with Elin muttering, "Damn! Mickelson's caught me."

Yet, the craziness continues. Yahoo Sports put up a poll in the hours after the 72nd hole birdie, asking how many majors Mickelson would win in 2006. Four was one of the possible answers. Yeah, Phil's going to pull off the Grand Slam!

Not that much really changed at Baltusrol. Tiger's still competing against history. Maybe Mickelson's no longer fighting against himself so much. Maybe.

As always, TravelGolf.com welcomes your comments.

The Links at Spanish Bay offers
golfers a long, leisurely day at the beach

Dear, links course snobs: If The Links at Spanish Bay is left off of your uber-purist list of the world's links courses, your list means nothing, Andrew Resnik writes. This Pebble Beach course is more or less smack dab on the beach, sand dunes are a factor on most holes and the wind (even on calm days) is ever present. If that's not enough, you're encouraged to hit low run-up shots and putt from off the green.

Full story | Monterey golfers have a gem in Del Monte

Decatur's Scovill Golf
Club a shot-maker's muni

When you head out to your local municipal course, you don't expect the amenities and course design to compare to those at a high-priced, big-name track. You're in luck, though, if you live near Decatur. The Thomas Bendelow-designed Scovill Golf Club shares a pedigree with some of the most storied courses in the nation. A visit to Scovill - or any of the other Decatur munis - will make you reconsider your expectations of municipal golf.

Full story | Rockford: The best little golf town in Illinois

Hills course at Palmetto
Dunes: Think, man, think!

Arthur Hills at Palmetto Dunes seems to be one of those golf courses that is always mentioned when the subject of favorite Hilton Head tracks comes up. The course is not everyone's cup of tea  its a midget by the modern standards. But that lack of length is made up for in other ways, such as holes that test your ability to conjure options, to shape shots around trees and over creeks, lagoons and wetlands.

Full story | The Cheap Bastard on golf in Santee, S.C.