NCAA Division I Men’s Championship Preview

Which teams and individuals have what it takes to be National Champions?

College GolfThe Division I Men’s NCAA Golf Championship starts today, and it’s time for a few predictions. The event will be played at Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex in West Lafayette, Indiana. There were three separate regionals a couple weeks back, and the top 10 teams from each advanced to the NCAA Championship. In addition, six individual golfers (their teams didn’t advance) will be battling the rest of the field for individual supremacy.

Which teams and individuals have what it takes to win an NCAA Championship this season? Keep reading to find out.

Photos: Sergio Garcia at the 2008 Memorial

Sergio Garcia, resplendent in lavender (?!) at the 2008 Memorial.

Sergio Being Interviewed

“How Great Golfers Think” Book Review

Bob Skura is no Bob Rotella, but for me at this point in time, that’s a good thing.

Just about every golfer has their demons. Whether it is a temper or negative attitude or thinking about the score you think you can make, none of these things can positively impact round of golf. Bob Skura’s How Great Golfers Think is a book designed to help golfers of any skill level deal with those demons.

Where How Great Golfers Think differs is in its approach. Most “mental” golf books I’ve read give you stories and whimsical, common-sense advice. While serving a purpose, this often does not stick with you over time. How Great Golfers Think is more of a seven-course meal and leaves you satisfied and full, laying out steps and a plan for golfers to better improve their mental approach and ultimately lower their scores.

Using a lesson-story format through the regular foursome of Kip, Andy, Frank, and Jason, Skura lays out three fundamentals to success:

  • How to think.
  • How to talk.
  • How to play.

Is it Still Camilo Time?

Is Camilo Villegas’ future still as bright as it once was?

Thrash TalkDuring the Florida Swing in early 2006, the majority of golf fans were introduced to Camilo Villegas. Villegas’ flashy look and style took the golf world by storm. On top of that, his unique way of reading greens entertained the masses. The young Colombian had the look of a star, and he seemed to have the game to contend immediately.

After a great start to the 2006 PGA Tour season, Villegas struggled as the year progressed. Those struggles continued in the early parts of 2007, with the exception of an occasional strong finish here and there. He found his game the last month of the season and recorded three top-10 finishes in a row to end the season.

This year, it’s been a mixed bag once again for Villegas. After quite a few mediocre finishes to start the season, he has a couple top-10 finishes in the past month (including a third-place finish this past weekend at Sugarloaf). With all the inconsistency, is Villegas still a relevant figure in the golf world? Also, does he have what it takes to get things right and become a multiple-time winner on the PGA Tour? Let’s take a look.

Golf Talk [Episode 089]

Annika announces her retirement the week her successor is the fastest to reach $12M in earnings. Interesting.

Golf Talk PodcastAnnika announces her retirement, Ryuji Imada captures his first PGA Tour win, Seve wants the U.S. to win, golf is less difficult than team handball, Tiger’s healthy again, and a whole lot more in this episode of Golf Talk.

You can subscribe to the RSS feed for our podcasts here or download Episode 089 as an MP4 file. For those who want to subscribe to us in iTunes, click here.

For this week’s Show Notes – links to articles we discuss in the show and additional information – just read on.

The Club Caddy: An Interview and a Short Review

It’s been an up-and-down year for David Jones since winning Fore Inventors Only, but we think it’s ended on a definite “up.”

Bag DropDavid Jones’ Club Caddy won the first edition of Fore Inventors Only. Unfortunately, it’s taken David until this month – nearly a full year later – to put in place his business and manufacturing partners and to begin selling the Club Caddy en masse to resellers and consumers.

Other folks from the show, like Gary Sherrell and Dean Thompson, have been interviewed by this site, and this time around we’re going to talk with David about the troubles he’s encountered. Following the interview, we’ll share our thoughts on the Club Caddy.

Read on to see how the winner – and his product – have fared in the year since Fore Inventors Only concluded.

Volume One Hundred Forty Five

Annika’s calling it quits, Tiger’s trying to come back early, and who’s the guy in charge of playoffs at The Players?

Hittin' the LinksSo how’s it going out there? Well, I hope. Hittin’ the Links is here to ease your tired clicking finger, we have taken the guess work out of which golf stories are worth reading. So turn your monitors so the boss can’t see what you’re doing and join me in a tour of what’s going on in golf across the web.

In this volume of HTL we look into Annika’s retirement, investigate the rough at Torry Pines, check in on Tiger’s recovery, and see why some people are up-in-arms about the playoff at the Players. Also, we listen to what Peter Kostis has to say, see who made the most overated list, and check in on the winners of some of the week’s tournaments.

What Your Clubs Are Saying About You

Who’s this guy the starter paired you with? Is he a player? A pretender? Somewhere in between?

Trap Five LogoWhen you get paired with a stranger on the first tee, do you ever casually check out the contents of his golf bag to learn a little something about the guy? Sure, it’s superficial. And yes, there are always exceptions. But you can often learn something about people by what they choose to put in their golf bags.

There are danger signs that you should be aware of. Slow play and other irritations could foul up that round you’ve been waiting for.

Early 2008 Ryder Cup Talk: Europe

The Europeans have won the last three Ryder Cup matches, but how are they looking for 2008?

Thrash TalkA few weeks ago, I broke down the current status of the United States Ryder Cup team, and now it’s time to take a look at the team from across the pond. The European side will enter this year’s matches as the three-time defending champions, and regardless of what the media says, they will definitely be the favorites this time around.

The European Ryder Cup team is selected using three different methods. The first is based on the players’ standing in the European Tour Order of Merit over a 12-month period. The second is based off the players’ Official World Golf Ranking points won in the same 12-month period. These two methods will qualify ten members for the team, while the remaining two golfers will be selected by captain Nick Faldo.