Author: Erik J. Barzeski

The Tournament that Would Not End

The Players Championship is going to finish on Monday. Or maybe Tuesday. Or maybe it’ll just merge with the Bellsouth Classic? Who nows?

TPC @ SawgrassWe wrote a preview of The Players Championship nearly a week ago. Players have yet to complete even 40 holes. The TPC at Sawgrass has seen a lot of weather and fans have seen very little golf. Even a Monday finish seems unlikely – we may be looking at a Tuesday finish before a champion is crowned.

Luke Donald, currently leading at -11, played all of nine holes on Sunday: six to complete his second round, and three more in his third before the all-too-familiar horn blew, signalling the end of play. He shares the 39-ish hole lead with journeyman Joe Durant. Tim Herron, defending champ Adam Scott, Lee Westwood, and Zach Johnson sit one stroke back.

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Jones, Sorenstam Lead at Kraft Nabisco

Rosie Jones and Annika Sorenstam share the lead halfway through the LPGA’s first major and amateurs Morgan Pressel and Michelle Wie are inside the top 15.

Rosie JonesProfessional golf is about keeping up with the Joneses, it seems. I can’t blame you for thinking there was no golf to watch this Friday, with the PGA Tour experiencing yet another rainout at The Players Championship. But while Steve Jones was gathering the lead in the unofficial fifth major on the PGA Tour, 45-year old Rosie Jones was surging to a share of the lead in her own major, the Kraft Nabisco Championship. Jones, who’s never won a major on the LPGA Tour, is tied with Annika Sorenstam at -5 after two rounds of play.

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Oldy Jones Leads at the Players

Steve Jones, and international man of mystery since winning the US Open in 1996, fires a blistering -8 64 and leads after one round at the TPC at Sawgrass.

Steve Jones Usopen TrophyThough I doubt Steve Jones will be around this weekend, he’s put himself in a pretty good spot to prove me wrong. The man who won the 1996 U.S. Open (and hasn’t been heard from since) escaped the mudballs, made some fine putts, and shot a blistering 64 at the TPC at Sawgrass. He leads The Players Championship over Fred Funk, Zach Johnson, and Lee Westwood, all of whom shot 65s, and a cast of others a few strokes back.

Of the big four – Vijay Singh, Tiger Woods, Ernie Els, and Phil Mickelson – only Vijay managed a great showing, carding a 67 that puts him in a tie for eighth at -5. Ernie struggled to a 1-under 71 (T51), while Phil and Tiger both carded 70s, putting them six back and tied for 29th. Phil and Tiger’s rounds couldn’t have been too different: Tiger plodded along, making pars, and tallied two bogeys and four birdies. Mickelson carded seven birdies, a double-bogey on the par-3 eighth, and three bogeys, including a splashed 3-wood from the 18th tee.

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Titleist Readies 735, 660 for Release

The 735 and the 660 – you’ve never heard of these clubs before, have you? Well, they’re coming and they’re from Titleist. The Sand Trap has the scoop.

Adam Barr noted on Golf Central a few days ago that players on the driving range at the TPC at Sawgrass were playing some new Titleist equipment: the 660, the 735, and the well-known 904F.

The 904F, Titleist’s new fairway metal, we all know about. The 660 and the 735 are relatively new, and we’ve got a little information for you…

Titleist 735

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Two for One at Bay Hill

Kenny Perry wins as Vijay Singh, who took advantage of a faltering Tiger to return to #1, dunks his ball on the last.

Kenny PerryVijay Singh hit a 7-iron into the water at the 18th hole and Kenny Perry walked away with a two-shot victory at the Bay Hill Invitational. All was not lost for Singh, as he reclaimed the #1 spot in the world over a struggling Tiger Woods, who finished at -1 after an unusual – and lengthy – week.

Singh began the fourth round three back of Perry, -7 to -10 before closing the gap at the 17th when Perry failed to get up and down from the back middle of the long par 3. Hitting first at 18, Vijay cut a 7-iron into a right-to-left wind, the ball stood up, came down on the rocks, and bounded back into the water. Perry played cautiously to the green, two-putted for par, and bettered Singh’s double-bogey to claim his first Bay Hill Invitational.

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Ochoa, Lim Lead at Safeway

Lorena Ochoa and Siew-Ai Lim fired 65s, and defending champ Annika Sorenstam is one back.

Lorena OchoaThe defending champion Annika Sorenstam fired a 6-under par 66, but it was not good enough to match first-round leaders Lorena Ochoa and Siew-Ai Lim, who carded 65s. Michelle Wie is in danger of missing the cut at 73.

Sorenstam is in good position to defend her title at the Safeway International, said of her 66 “That’s the kind of start I wanted, and then we go from there.” Veteran Juli Inkster was also at -6. Karen Stupples shot 67, Soo-Yun Kang, Sung Ah Yim, and Moira Dunn shot 68s. Several players shot 69 Thursday, including Paula Creamer, Beth Daniel, Natalie Gulbis, Dawn Coe-Jones, and Karrie Web.

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Umbrellas Come out at Bay Hill

The Bay Hill lived up to its name as it filled with water Thursday, leaving some players stranded on the practice tee and yet to hit a shot in the tournament.

Arnold Palmer UmbrellaArnold Palmer’s famous umbrella came out once again, but this time the man beneath it was not smiling. No, sir, the first round of Arnold’s tournament was rained out.

Storms dropped two inches of rain on the Bay Hill Invitational Wenesday and Thursday, and first-round play is scheduled to resume at 7:15am Friday morning. The tournament got in three hours of play Thursday, but not all had teed off, and nobody completed 18 holes.

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Bay Hill Invitational Preview

Nine of the top 12 players in the world are playing at Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Invitational, and the World #1 is once again up for grabs.

Bay Hill InvitationalTiger Woods regained the top spot in the world two weeks ago and bested Phil Mickelson at Doral, the current world #2 couldn’t convert from two feet, two-putting to finish second at the Honda Classic, and Ernie Els has won two tournaments in a row. The interesting thing about this week’s Bay Hill Invitational may not be who wins, but who sits atop the World Golf Rankings when all is said and done: Woods, Singh, and Els all have a shot at it.

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Titleist 503.H Hybrid Iron

Hybrids are making a splash at every level. The versatile Titleist 503.H allowed me to remove my 2-iron.

503.HJust over a decade ago, desperate to watch anything golf-related, I watched a show about Chi Chi Rodriguez. I remember that he talked about his favorite club: a 7-wood. A 7-wood! He used it on par 3s. He used it from the fairway to reach par 5s. He used it to chip!

I thought “who am I to argue with the best putter swordsman in the history of golf?” and promptly bought a 7-wood. I hit it on par 3s. I hit it from the fairway on par 5s. I even used it to chip. The ball flight ballooned like nobody’s business in even the slightest of breezes, but it worked well on calm days. I stuck up for my 7-wood, and beat more than a few folks out of more than a few bucks with it.

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