Presidents Cup Wrapup

The Presidents Cup is over, and our staff predictions are either right or wrong. Let’s see how they break down.

Presidents Cup CelebrationJust before the start of the Presidents Cup, the staff of The Sand Trap .com made some predictions. By now, of course, you know that the United States won the Presidents Cup, 18½-15½ over a strong International team. You know that Chris DiMarco holed a clutch 15-footer to seize the 18th and critical point. You know that Phil Mickelson is the only player to halve his match on Sunday, and that Tiger Woods lost in singles – a rare occurrence.

Let’s see how our predictions held up.

Brittany Lang Takes Top Honors at Q-School Qualifier

Brittany Lang receives top score in Q-School qualifier. Morgan Pressel also moves on to finals.

brittany_lang_qschool.jpgGolfers from the Robe Di Kappa European Tour, Futures Tour, and amateurs were all thrown into the mix this past week to try and move one step closer to a professional career on the venerable LPGA Tour.

My two picks, Morgan Pressel and Ai Miyazato, both moved on to the finals but it was Brittany Lang who shook things up and received medalist honors. Lang turned professional just this year after tying for second place with Pressel at the 2005 U.S. Women’s Open in June. In July Brittany tied for sixth place at the BMO Financial Group Canadian Women’s Open.

With a history deeply embedded in college golf and with her confidence on the rise I expect to see Brittany Lang’s name on the 2006 LPGA roster.

Gamesmanship

Gamesmanship: Seve Ballesteros was famous for it, and you can become pretty well known at your club as well by employing some simple tactics.

Trap Five LogoDictionary.com defines gamesmanship as:

The use in a sport or game of aggressive, often dubious tactics, such as psychological intimidation or disruption of concentration, to gain an advantage over one’s opponent.

The singles matches in the Presidents Cup take place tomorrow, while the Seve Trophy is being contested in Europe. The Seve Trophy is named after one of the greatest gamesmen of all time: Severiano Ballesteros. Ballesteros was (in)famous for developing a rather severe cough during past Ryder Cups.

Gamesmanship, though not covered by the rules except in rare cases (i.e. extremely poor etiquette can earn a disqualification and giving wrong information can earn penalties), skirts the boundaries of decent human behavior and “win at all costs” behavior.

Furthermore, gamesmanship can backfire, stoking the competitive fire of your opponent. I typically laugh off any attempts at gamesmanship, personally, and vow even more to beat the snot out of the guy who would be so foolish as to try a lame little trick.

Billy Mayfair

A candidate for the PGA Tour’s Comeback Player of the Year, Billy Mayfair has put a lackluster 2004 behind him.

ProFilesSince turning pro in 1988 Billy Mayfair has enjoyed steady success. For his first sixteen years on Tour he finished in the top-125 on the Money List and compiled five wins. 2004 was a disappointment as he finished 140th on the Money List. His “mere” $503,251 in earnings was plenty to live on but not enough to make it back for another year. Unsatisfied with finishing 254th in the World Golf Rankings, Mayfair used his top-50th all time earnings exemption to get back onto tour in 2005 and try to turn things around.

Best State in the States

Twenty two percent of the best courses in the country are in the two most populated states. This doesn’t seem fair, but if you count only public courses, thing look better and even a couple surprises appear.

The Numbers GameLists. We love to look at them. People talk about them, but simply being on a list doesn’t verify anything as truth or fact. After all, it’s just a list.

Unfortunately, that doesn’t stop me from getting worked up when I see one.

Golf Digest’s list of top 100 courses has been published for a number of years now and it has always irritated me. Why? Because according to them, the top two states with the best golf courses are New York and California. Grrr…

Presidents Cup Preview

Tiger Woods will lead the United States team against Vijay Singh and his International allies.

Presidents Cup LogoThe Presidents Cup is often overlooked by the Ryder Cup, but that don’t mean it’s not a great event in its own right. The Presidents Cup has only been in existence a little over a decade, and it has already given the fans many great memories. The United States team has dominated this event for the most part, winning three out of the five competitions.

The International side’s only victory came in 1998 at Royal Melbourne in Australia. The International team defeated the United States by nine points in one of the most lopsided wins in this event’s short history. The United States bounced back in 2000, however, as they defeated their International opponents by eleven points!

Presidents Cup Staff Predictions

The staff of The Sand Trap .com weighs in on the Presidents Cup and the final score, big point-getters, disappointments, and key matchups.

Presidents CupThe Presidents Cup is here, and we’re as excited as we can be for a Ryder Cup wannabe event that ended in a tie the last time it was played. The last time a major sporting event ended in a tie, Bud Selig was commissioner of Major League Baseball and the All-Star Game was called a draw.

What? You say Bud Selig is still the commissioner of the MLB? Oy.

Here are our staff predictions for this, the sixth playing of the Presidents Cup.

Pack Your Lunchboxes. Q-School has Begun!

The first of two Q-School sectional qualifiers begins today for upcoming LPGA superstars.

LPGAIt’s finally here. It’s the moment that Morgan Pressel has been waiting for since first qualifying for the 2001 U.S. Women’s Open at the tender age of 12 years old. Only five years later it’s time to qualify for the LPGA Tour!

Morgan will be among a field of 193 golfers vying for the chance to win the sectional qualifier which will eventually catapult her into the Professional Ladies Golf Association. It’s Morgan’s tournament to win or lose and I think she’s got a good chance of winding up on top.

On the tenth tee of the “Dinah” course at 7:37 am this morning unknowns Julie Turner and Ria Quiazon knew what it felt like to be in the spotlight as they teed off with an amateur who has already played and almost won on the LPGA tour this year. At only seventeen Morgan Pressel has already had a solid year’s worth of experience both on the amateur circuit winning the 105th U.S. Women’s Amateur tournament and on the professional circuit with a near victory at the U.S. Women’s Open. A spectacular sand save by Birdie Kim stopped Morgan from achieving her first win on the LPGA tour before taking her lumps at Q-School.

Is College Golf Extinct?

There are so many young golfers skipping college or leaving early, and it’s time for a change.

Thrash TalkThere is no secret by now that I am a huge Oklahoma State Cowboys fan! I follow Oklahoma State athletics very closely, including the golf program. The program has produced a lot of PGA Tour golfers including Scott Verplank, Bob Tway, Charles Howell III, Hunter Mahan, etc. I don’t like to brag too much, but it’s definitely one of the best golf programs in the nation. I take a lot of pride in this, and it’s always exciting to see the new recruits each season.