The Copperhead Course at Innisbrook is a tough course on a normal day. Throw in some gusty wins and the best golfers in the world struggle to make pars let alone birdies, especially as they navigate “The Snake Pit.”
Though it featured a B-list field, the difficult conditions bunched the leaderboard and made the Valspar a good watch (though we admit to frequent flipping away to the various conference championship games). There also seemed to be a lot of odd side stories this week, from Sabbatini’s sneeze to Daly’s 90. And that was just at one tournament. Elsewhere, plenty more was happening in the world of golf.
Take a quick break from filling out your brackets, and let’s hit the links.
Hole #1: Tiger Loses… a Lawsuit
Tiger spent a day in court last week, and his company, ETW, was found liable for “deceptive and unfair trade practices” with an autograph dealer for failing to provide a contracted number of autographs and photographs. Woods was served the subpoena to testify the night before the WGC-Cadillac Championship. Maybe Tiger was thinking about his Monday court appearance on Sunday, when his round went south. ETW is expected to appeal, naturally. [Link]
Hole #2: A Long Time Coming
John Senden won his second PGA TOUR title Sunday at the Valspar Championship on the Copperhead Course at Innisbrook, just eight years after his first. Senden’s 1-under 70 on a windy Sunday gave him a 1-stroke win over Kevin Na. [Link]
Hole #3: Uh, Ditto
Does this sound familiar? Alejandro Cañizares won his second European PGA Tour title Sunday at the Trophée Hassan II on the Golf du Palais Royal course in Morocco, just eight years after his first. Unlike Senden, however, Cañizares led wire-to-wire. [Link]
Hole #4: Hull Shoots Sunday 62, Wins in Playoff
England’s Charley Hull got her first professional win Sunday in Morocco by making birdie on the first playoff hole. Hull shot 9-under on Sunday and missed a putt on 18 to shoot 61. Conversely, Gwladys Nocera three-putted the 18th to slip into the playoff with Hull. [Link]
Hole #5: “It Was a Good 12”
There were some interesting lines spoken this week about golf and golfers. The line in the headline is from John Daly, running down how a great ball striker like himself made a 12 at the Valspar. But there are many more interesting words from Hank Haney, Steve Williams, Brent Henley, and others. [Link]
Hole #6: The Recession Hurt Golf, A Lot
We already knew that, but the effects of the recession are lingering and dramatic. Last year, across the country 14 new golf courses opened. And 157.5 closed. That can’t be good. [Link]
Hole #7: Now That’s a Bruise
At a Playboy golf outing, a stunt went a bit awry. Take one model, one tee, one golf ball, and a radio personality. Hilarity ensues… at least until the lawsuit. We suspect that Mr. Klein is guilty of not keeping his eye on the ball. [Link]
Hole #8: Like Watching Paint Dry?
Kevin Na is again the subject of slow play accusations. During the third round of the Valspar Championship, his playing partner’s caddie said that being paired with him was unfair to his player. Na, and Garrigus (at least to a degree), disagreed. [Link]
Hole #9: Question of the Week
Is the full swing the most difficult part of this trick or is it the chip? We suspect that the chip has to be perfect to set up the full swing. Either way, this is cool. [Link]