John Deere Classic Preview

Michelle Wie tees it up with the big boys for the third time in her career.

john_deere_logo.gifThe British Open is only one week away and the top golfers in the world are either at St. Andrews already or are on their way. The John Deere Classic is the last stop for some of the PGA Tour players before heading to the British Open themselves.

But the British Open is not the story this week. That honor belongs to Michelle Wie as she makes her third career start on the PGA Tour. She has missed her two previous cuts, the most recent being at the Sony Open earlier this year. The appearance by Wie will definitely make tournament directors happy because the ratings will surely get a nice boost.

Jim Furyk Takes Cialis (Western Open by Two)

Jim Furyk ends a two-year drought and withstands a Sunday charge by Tiger Woods to capture the 2005 Western Open.

western_open_logo.gifTiger Woods made a Sunday charge and made up a three-stroke deficit on 54-hole co-leader Jim Furyk at the (cough, ahem, Cialis) Western Open today at Chicago’s beautiful Cog Hill Golf and Country Club. The downside? Woods started the day five strokes back, and Furyk’s two-stroke victory – the tenth of his career and his first in two years – was all but assured when Tiger faltered at 13 and 14 as Furyk poured in three straight birdies to retake a four-stroke lead after Tiger caught him with an eagle at the 11th.

Furyk has finished second three times this year, including last week at the Barclays Classic when Padraig Harrington holed a 65-foot eagle at the last to nip him by a stroke, but hasn’t won since taking the Buick Open in 2003. Woods reached a milestone himself, topping $50,000,000 in career earnings.

Cialis Western Open Preview

Tiger and Vijay will do battle once again this week at the Cog Hill Golf and Country Club.

western_open_logo.gifThe Western Open is the oldest non-major golf tournament on the PGA Tour. That being said, it’s always a special tournament when the top two players in the world are in the field, and that is the case this week at Cog Hill Golf and Country Club. Tiger Woods and Vijay Singh played in the same tournament just two weeks ago at Pinehurst for the U.S. Open, and both players finished in the top 10. Tiger was the runner-up to Michael Campbell, and Singh finished in a tie for sixth. Just last week at the Barclays Classic, Vijay followed up his strong U.S. Open finish with a tie for seventh at Westchester.

Two Eagles Pay off for Padraig at the Barclays Classic

Padraig Harrington sinks an 65-foot eagle putt on the last hole to edge Jim Furyk by a single shot and capture his second PGA Tour victory this year.

Barclays LogoBalls were going into the hole all over the place at the 18th green today. First, Birdie Kim holes out from a bunker on the 4.7-stroke average 18th hole at Cherry Hills. Then Padraig Harrington holes an 65-foot eagle putt for a one-stroke win over Jim Furyk. Harrington, who began each of his nines by going +3 on holes 1-3 and +2 on holes 10-12, finished the nines with a birdie (7, 14) and an eagle (9, 18) to finish at -10.

Furyk and Harrington Share Barclays Third Round Lead

Padraig Harrington tied the lead on moving day with Furyk still holding a share of the lead. Course conditions were fast and the rough high, but players still managed under-par performances.

Padraig HarringtonPadraig Harrington started the day tied for third but tied leader Jim Furyk by day’s end. Furyk led the pack after both the first and second rounds. Harrington held the clubhouse lead until Furyk birdied the par-5 18th getting up and down out of a green-side bunker. A win tomorrow for Harrington would be his second of the season. He grabbed his first win on the PGA Tour at the Honda Classic in March, and is no stranger to the Barclays Classic as he lost in a playoff last year to Sergio Garcia.

Furyk is seeking his first win on Tour since 2003, the year he won both the U.S. Open and the Buick Open. Furyk has been close twice this year finishing T2 at the MCI Heritage and the Wachovia Championship. He is currently 13th on the Tour money list with $1,795,669 in the bank this season. If Furyk is able to cash in tomorrow he will round out his PGA Tour victories to a tidy ten.

Furyk Maintains Lead at Westchester

Jim Furyk shot a two-under par 69 on Friday and leads by a pair at the Barclays Classic.

barclays_logo.gifJim Furyk carded two birdies and two bogeys in his second round at Westchester Country Club. Oh yeah, he also holed out for eagle on the eighth hole! The eighth hole was Furyk’s 17th of the day, and his eagle vaulted him back to the top of the leaderboard where he finished the first round. Mike “Fluff” Cowan, Furyk’s caddy, advised his player to hit an eight-iron into the green on the difficult eighth hole, and he was right on the money. Cowan made the decision, and Furyk took care of the rest. The eagle put Jim Furyk at -8 for the tournament, and that number was good enough to keep him in the lead at the halfway point of the Barclays Classic.

Furyk Holds Lead After Slow First Round of Barclays Classic

Jim Furyk leads after the first round of the Barclays Classic with Perry and Singh not far behind.

I’m sure you’re aware of the fact that Jim Furyk had arthroscopic surgery to repair cartilage damage in his left wrist last March and was unable to compete for nearly three months after. When he returned later in 2004, he had two top-10 finishes and mentioned something about his positive results being “gravy”. I thought to myself, “Gravy? How can gravy relate to playing superb golf?” After hours of rigorous Google research and intense squeezing of a squishy stress relief ball, I have come to the simple conclusion that “gravy” is another term for “the icing on the cake”, used to describe Furyk’s comeback.

Barclays Classic Preview

Both Sergio Garcia and Vijay Singh will be looking for their third win at Westchester Country Club this week.

barclays_logo.gifNow that the U.S. Open at Pinehurst is in the past, it’s time for the golfers to get primed for the British Open next month. The first stop is this week’s Barclay Classic, the event formerly known as the Buick Classic. This event is always within a week of the second major championship, either the week before or the week after. Westchester Country Club is the course for the Barclays Classic, and it is a very solid venue all the way around. Many of the world’s best players make their way to this event, and this year will be no different.

Kiwi Campbell Captures the U.S. Open

Michael Campbell, who once held the 54-hole lead at a British Open, out-dueled Tiger Woods and a flailing Retief Goosen to capture the 105th U.S. Open.

Michael CampbellMany said it was Retief Goosen’s U.S. Open to lose, and lose it he did. Opening the day with a three-shot lead, the unassuming South African made one birdie and limped home to a final-round 81. His playing companion, fan favorite Jason Gore, fared no better, carding a +14 84, finishing T49. Olin Browne, who like Gore began the day at even par, carded an 80 to finish T23.

The winner? Little-known New Zealander Michael Campbell. Campbell holed a bunker shot on the difficult 17th hole yesterday to get into the next-to-last pairing at even par and made the most of it today, firing a one-under 69 on a day that yielded only four sub-par rounds.