Golf Talk [Episode 060]

B.J. Wie is trying to run his daughter’s life, but he’s getting too much “I” in there: he’s going to R-U-I-N it instead it.

Golf Talk PodcastZach K.J. Choi and Rory Sabbatini win, the LPGA institutes a drug-testing policy, and Michelle Wie and Phil Mickelson withdraw with wrist injuries, but only one of them seems legitimate. Find out which and a whole lot more in this episode of Golf Talk.

You can subscribe to the RSS feed for our podcasts here or download Episode 060 as an MP4 file. For those who want to subscribe to us in iTunes, click here.

For this week’s Show Notes – links to articles we discuss in the show and additional information – just read on.

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2007 Memorial Pictures: Tiger

Tiger Woods didn’t win the 2007 Memorial. Heck, he wasn’t even close. But that didn’t stop everyone from taking plenty of pictures of him.

The Memorial TournamentTiger Woods is a big draw at any tournament. Last year, while Tiger was taking time off to grieve the death of his father Earl, the media room at The Memorial was rather bare. Half the number of photographers were present. This year, with Tiger Woods in the field, photographers flooded the course.

We managed to get a few snaps of Tiger in action, and we present them here with a little commentary.

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2007 Memorial Pictures: The Americans

Phil Mickelson and Zach Johnson withdrew, but we’ve still got pictures of them.

The Memorial TournamentThe Memorial attracts a wealth of good players, and a good many of them are American. However, their numbers are dwindling, as Jack Nicklaus himself is quick to point out. Nicklaus says golf is again becoming more of a “world game,” and that the pendulum is swinging back towards foreign domination of golf. Witness, he says, the last several Ryder Cups and the number of international players in the field at his tournament.

The man has got a point.

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2007 Memorial Pictures: The Internationals

With all the Aussies that appeared on the leaderboard and a Korean winner, you bet we’ve got a lot of international player photos.

The Memorial TournamentDespite having a field of about 100 to 110 contestants, The Memorial Tournament attracts a wide variety of foreign players. Though they rarely experience success at Muirfield Village, the 2007 edition was won by a Korean – K.J. Choi – and featured several Aussies in contention, including Adam Scott, Rod Pampling, Geoff Ogilvy, and Aaron Baddeley.

Here are some shots of some of the more popular international players from the 32nd Memorial Tournament.

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2007 Memorial Pictures: The Others

It’s probably just David Leadbetter’s lunch, but I’d really like to know what he carries around in his man purse!

The Memorial TournamentLast year, we looked at Muirfield Village’s defenses and those pesky furrows. This year, we didn’t do that quite as much as the bunkers were less of an issue and the course itself hasn’t changed much.

So, filling out this year’s “Others” picture-heavy post, we have David Leadbetter and his mystery bag, a shot of the new bunker rake, and a pair of shots with no people in them whatsoever.

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The Continuing Michelle Wie Saga

B.J. Wie is writing the scripts, but is Michelle Wie reading them or silently rebelling against a controlling father?

Michelle WieA few years ago I gave Michelle Wie the benefit of the doubt. Last year I stood up for her. While people were screaming “she hasn’t won anything!” (despite winning the 2003 Women’s Public Links) and declaring that she should follow the same path Tiger took to success in the world of golf, I sat back. I suggested that the Michelle Wie story will be written by Michelle Wie, and that only years (or decades) later could we sit back and judge whether Wie had taken the best path.

I was both wrong and right. It appears the story is no longer being written by Michelle Wie – she’s merely a bit player in the sad story of B.J. Wie’s corruption of his daughter. She’s the “talent” and he’s the ruthless, money-hungry stage dad who’s making all the wrong moves.

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Father’s Day Gift Ideas 2K7

The U.S. Open coming up next week is the signal that it’s time to start thinking about Father’s Day. Here’s a rundown on some nifty items that caught my eye.

Bag DropGolfing dads are notoriously difficult to buy for. If they’re serious about their game they are probably already well equipped with clubs, shoes, and balls.

Shirts and sweaters are an easy way out, but are you really sure about his size? Plus who really needs a sweater in June? And you’re not really thinking about giving him another exploding golf ball, are you?

Luckily, however, golf is rich in lore, accessories, and gadgets. Just a little digging over at our friends at Edwin Watts website produced a number of items that I, as a golfing dad, would love to get. So, as we did last year, here’s our Father’s Day gift suggestions…

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Nike One Black/Platinum Balls Review

The Nike Platinum and Black balls improve on their previous versions but still fall a bit short of the other premium balls in the market.

Nike one Black/Platinum Balls HeroNike jumped into the golf ball arena a few years ago and has not looked back. The Nike Platinum has enjoyed some success on Tour, and not just by way of Tiger Woods, but other top players like Rory Sabbatini, Stewart Cink, Trevor Immelman, and Paul Casey as well. While Nike’s balls may be lagging market leaders Titleist and the Pro V1 duo, the Portland, OR based sports equipment behemoth has fully established themselves in the ball market with no intention of leaving.

With Tiger at the helm they have designed two premium balls for better players: Nike ONE Platinum and the Nike ONE Black (the ONE Gold having been ditched for 2007). Both have gone through a recent makeover to improve upon an already popular ball. I’ve been a loyal Titleist ball player for years, so I was eager to see how the Nikes would stand up. Read on to see if I’ll be playing balls with a swoosh instead of cursive this year.

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Greatest Memorial Champions

Muirfield Village Golf Club has played host to the popular Memorial Tournament for some time now. We’re back to Ohio again this weekend to enjoy the tournament and take a peek at it’s greatest winners.

Trap Five LogoThe Memorial Tournament is in full swing again. Thirty-one years ago Jack Nicklaus played host for the first time to this great event. The Memorial was the long-time dream of Muirfield course designer Nicklaus. The course is one of the world’s best and has been a demanding venue since the Tournament’s inception in 1976.

Muirfield has become a venue that many of the greatest players of the world make an effort to play for the quality of the golf course, depth of field, and the accomplishments of host Jack Nicklaus.

Represented here are the Greatest Memorial Champions.

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