Volume Three Hundred Seventy-Six

And the winner is… the TV audience. If you missed the final round of the Honda Classic, you missed quite a bit of drama not usually seen in a March tournament not held at Doral or Bay Hill. There was a premature departure, one of the best three-wood shots under pressure that we’ve ever seen, and more than smidgen of major-caliber puckering. Still it wasn’t the Honda Classic that gave us the most compelling golf moment of the weekend. That occurred in Singapore while most of us slept. Do yourself a favor and watch the video of that moment in the first link.

Next week, we get our first look at Doral-by-the-Donald and the third WGC event of the year. If that’s not enough, you can round out your weekend golf watching with the Puerto Rico Open. But first, let’s hit the links.

Hole #1: Creamer (Finally) Wins Again
Sometimes it takes a bit of a fluke shot to break a losing streak. Case in point, Paula Creamer drained a 75-foot putt with a wicked right-angle break to make eagle and win the HSBC Champions in Singapore on the second playoff hole over Azahara Munoz. It was her first win since 2010. Karrie Webb, who led after each of the first three rounds, bogeyed three of her final six holes to finish one stroke out of the playoff. [Link]

Hole #2: Rolling Rs
If your first name starts with “R,” you too could have been in today’s playoff at the Honda Classic. The four-way playoff pitted Rory McIlroy, Russell Knox, Russell Henley, and Ryan Palmer after a wild final round. McIlroy had a two-shot lead when the day began, but shot four-over on Sunday. He did rally to make birdie on the 18th to get into the playoff (and narrowly missed a 12-foot eagle putt that would have given him the win). Henley was the only of the four to make birdie on the first playoff hole. [Link]

Hole #3: Tiger Backs Out
Tiger Woods withdrew from the Honda Classic after 13 holes, citing back spasms. He was five over for his round at the time. While he is scheduled to play next week at Doral, his status is likely to be uncertain until Wednesday or Thursday. [Link]

Hole #4: Keeping The Game in Shape Through Winter
If you live in a part of the country that has been suffering through this year’s multiple polar vertices, you’d probably love to have a facility like Ohio State just opened for its golf teams. [Link]

Hole #5: Hey Stats Geeks, Win $10,000
Do you love statistics and analysis? Are you good with data? If so, you could win $10,000 (plus, $20,000 for your school). The PGA TOUR offers the prize for the best statistics research using ShotLink data. [Link]

Hole #6: It’s Fisher in Tshwane
Ross Fisher won his first European Tour title in four years with a three-shot victory in the Tshwane Open in South Africa. The win moves him firmly into Ryder Cup consideration for the European Team. [Link]

Hole #7: Four Ways to Look Cool, or Foolish
Want to look like a player? Here are four ways to pick up your golf ball using a club. We suggest practicing these prior to attempting to wow your golf buddies (particularly the last two methods). [Link]

Hole #8: Beware Scammers
How would you feel if you made a hole-in-one in a charity event offering a large cash prize or a car, and later learned that you would not receive the prize after all? Sandbaggers are one thing. Now we learn about this guy who has defaulted on numerous hole-in-one prizes and other cash rewards for which he sold bogus insurance policies to unsuspecting tournament organizers, including charities. What a scum bag. [Link]

Hole #9: And the Oscar for Best Golf Movie Goes to…
Did you stay up to watch the Oscars this year? We were perplexed to see the dearth of nominations for golf movies. So what is the greatest golf movie ever? On AMC’s site you can help choose the top flick. [Link]