Category: PGA

Going into the final round, you have to ask yourself two questions: is Jay Haas really this good, and can Tiger finally convert a win?

There’s a reason Haas was on the abysmally-bad US Ryder Cup team: he’s a good golfer who has excellent course management skills. At East Lake this week, with the winds swirling and the fairways tight, precise shots and a steady, confident stroke have given Haas a share of the lead at nine-under par.

The other way to win at East Lake is to be long, where Tiger continues to lead the Tour. Tiger stormed ahead today and shot five-under par to give him an equal share of Jay Haas’s lead. However, where Haas has shot 67-66-68, Tiger has followed a first-round 72 (E) with rounds of 64 and 65. Obviously if this trend continues, Jay Haas will be three or four strokes back by the end of Sunday.

Still, don’t count Jay Haas out just yet. With two second-place finishes on the Champions’ Tour and a third-place finish at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic, Jay’s due for a win before the close of the year.

Oh, and Vijay? Unless he shoots somewhere below 60, he’s lost his chance to convert his tenth win of the season. Singh sits eleven shots off the lead, at two-over par.

Tiger woods came roaring back today and Jay Haas not only held onto but extended his first-round lead in the PGA Tour’s season-ending Tour Championship at East Lake in Atlanta, GA.

A month shy of his 51st, Jay Haas followed up his first-round 3-under 67 with an even better 4-under 66 to take a two-shot lead over Stephen Ames. Haas is the oldest man to ever qualify for the Tour Championship. “Any time I lead is a great feeling at 20, 30, 40, 50, whatever it is,” said Haas. “It’s way too early to get too excited about it. But I haven’t done it with smoke and mirrors. I’ve played solid golf, and that gives me encouragement for the weekend.”

Continue reading “Tiger Battles, Haas Leads Tour Championship”

Okay, so did you actually think I’d be able to start an article about the Tour Championship without the headline being about Tiger’s return to the tour after his honeymoon with Elin?

Sure, there are other interesting stories. Take, for example, the Tour’s decision to add Padraig Harrington to the roster at the event. Usually, the Tour Championship is for the top thirty money-earners on the Tour. But, had Padraig actually played on the Tour this year, his $2.1 million would have been more than enough to secure him a spot in the tourney. How nice of the Tour to include him; he’s decided to return the good will, and join the PGA Tour as a full member in 2005. This is Padraig’s first year playing in the Tour Championship.

Continue reading “The Honeymoon’s Over”

We’ve previously written about Ernie Els and his battle with the PGA Tour here and here. Turns out it really wasn’t that big of a deal.

PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem sees “no problem” with the amount of tournaments Ernie Els plays overseas. Said Finchem “he’s playing enough to satisfy his membership requirements on the PGA Tour.”

Finchem’s comments defused a bomb that was set to explode at this week’s Tour Championship. Els said last month that he planned to meet with Finchem at the tournament and was frustrated over having to play more tournaments to obtain overseas releases. “Don’t start putting a padlock around me because that’s not going to work,” Els said during the HSBC in England.

Continue reading “Finchem, Els Settle Misunderstanding”

Brent Geiberger is the first player to have been fined $20,000 for slow play. He was put on the clock ten times in one season. “I understand they’re trying to do something about slow play and trying to get a system that works,” Geiberger said. “But it’s not a system that shows you’re a slow player.”

Last year, the PGA Tour introduced a highly penal system to combat slow play. Some players feared that they would be guilty by association if they were consistently paired with slow players. According to PGA Tour rules, all players in a group are put on the clock if the group is out of position.

Continue reading “Geiberger Fined $20,000 for Slow Play”

Nick Faldo and Paul Azinger, far removed from their 1993 Ryder Cup draw, will be side-by-side in the ABC booth at the Tour Championship this week as analysts for ABC. As with Monday Night football, the three-man booth (Azinger, Faldo, and staple Mike Tirico) will be the first this booth has seen (outside of post-round interviews).

“Their personalities were so divergent,” ABC golf producer Mark Loomis stated. “But they believed in what they said, and they also listened to others. I thought the two of them together will be terrific.”

Continue reading “Azinger and Faldo in the Booth”

Vijay Singh was not the only person thrilled with the outcome at the Chrysler Championship this week. Here’s a rundown of key money list spots that were affected by this week’s play. Keep in mind that the top 30 are eligible for the Tour Championship next week in Atlanta. The top 40 get into the Masters and the top 125 get their tour card next year.

Continue reading “Qualifications”

Not to take anything away from Vijay’s amazing season, let’s take a look at a few facts and compare Vijay’s 2004 to Tiger’s 2000:

• Tiger won three majors, Vijay one.
• Tiger won two of his majors (the US and British Opens) by record margins.
• Tiger closed in the PGA with a 67; Vijay with a 76.
• Tiger’s year-long scoring average was 67.79 – a full stroke below Vijay.
• Tiger averaged $459,000/event, Vijay is averaging $382,000.
• Tiger had a 2:1 money lead on #2; Vijay 1.8:1 (both times Phil Mickelson).
• Vijay’s last victory was his 24th, 16 shy of Tiger’s total. Vijay is 13 years older.

Of course, both Tiger and Vijay have nine-win seasons, something Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer never accomplished. When comparing Vijay’s season to any other 41-year-old’s in history, 2004 may be the best ever, but Tiger still holds the lead in our minds for the best season of all time.

Incoming European Tour front man George O’Grady has described the pressure being put on Ernie Els to play more events in the US as “extraordinary.” Els was clearly angered two weeks ago when he told reporters that the PGA Tour had sent him a letter demanding more appearances if he wished to retain his PGA Tour membership.

“It seems like quite an extraordinary pressure to put on a player of his level who plays usually 17 or 18 tournaments in the United States anyway,” said O’Grady. “He’s always prepared to listen if we need him to play somewhere, but he’s a very hard man to tell to do something. You do ask him, usually politely, and sometimes he says yes.”

Continue reading “PGA Tour Puts on Pressure”