Masters of the First Major

Augusta National is America’s most prestigious golf venue and it has revealed some of the greatest players in the game. Here are Masters champs with the most victories.

ProFilesThe 2007 Masters is just a twinkle in the collective eye of golf fans. The highs and lows of 2006 are fading into the past, the leftover turkey is gone, “chestnuts roasting on an open fire” plays in the background, and the decorations are up. Not exactly Masters weather.

Never-the-less, looking at the masters of The Masters is worth it because, before you know it, the on-air pontification over potential winners and contenders is going to start. You want to have a little history in your back pocket to impress your friends.

One rule: Those who make “Masters of the First Major” qualified by winning at least three.

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The World Golf Rankings Explained

What better place to start my run as the Numbers Game columnist than with the Official World Golf Rankings. In this column I hope to shed some light on a couple of things.

The Numbers GameWelcome to my first The Numbers Game column. I’m David Mosher, a new staff member here at The Sand Trap, though many will know me as “underparnv” in our forum.

This first week I’ll be talking about the Official World Golf Ranking. First, I want to explain how they work. Then I’ll take a look at how they have affected the top ten in the past five years. We all know Tiger has dominated them with Vijay having a stint at the top, but what about the rest of the players? How have the rankings separated the top ten in points?

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Golf Talk [Episode 043]

Will Tiger and Elin’s baby be the sexiest and most dominating golfer ever – man or woman? I guess we’ll have to wait and see.

PodcastThe PGA Tour season kicks off with a Vijay win in Hawaii and an absent Tiger and Phil. The Golf Channel showcases its new content with four days of coverage, golfers sweep the AP Athlete of the Year awards, and Michelle Wie is heading to Stanford in a year – by her choice or B.J.’s? All that and more in this episode of Golf Talk.

You can subscribe to the RSS feed for our podcasts here or download Episode 043 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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The FedEx Cup is Off and Running

Vijay Singh and The Golf Channel started 2007 off in style.

Thrash TalkFans of the PGA Tour have been waiting for the start of the FedEx Cup since the official announcement nearly a year ago. It has only been two months since the 2006 PGA Tour season ended, but the start of the 2007 season couldn’t have come too soon. I’m glad the new era in golf has finally arrived, and it looks like things will be very interesting all season long.

Stuart Appleby failed in his bid to win four consecutive Mercedes Championships, and Vijay Singh took full advantage of the situation. Singh has been denied his win at Kapalua in recent years, but he finally got his win on the island this past weekend. The Fijiian obviously jumped to the top of the FedEx Cup standings with his impressive win in the season opener, and he will be tough to beat in 2007.

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Cleveland Introduces Two New HiBore XL Drivers

No other club category is as competitive as drivers with new head shapes all the rage. Cleveland’s newest entries refine its unusual and original HiBore model.

Bag DropWhen it comes to drivers, it’s a jungle out there. All the major equipment makers are clawing for market share as they pop out a steady stream of innovative new models in an effort to win your annual $400 contribution to the industry.

By most accounts, Cleveland’s introduction of the original HiBore last year was something less than the blockbuster they’d hoped for. In fact, here in the U.S. they’re giving them away free now through the end of January with the purchase of a set of CG4 or CG4 Tour irons.

The concave crown and overall performance characteristics seemed to produce a ball flight higher than many better players wanted to see. Plus, word was that you had to tee the ball lower to really catch the sweet spot. It looks to me like the two new HiBore XL models are meant to fix all that.

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Scotty Cameron Detour Putter Review

I call my Detour “Vera” after Vera Wang. I’ll let you figure out why…

Scotty Cameron Detour Putter HeroScotty Cameron putters are synonymous with tradition, elegance, and simplicity. With the exception of the geeky (and I mean that in a good way) Futura, Cameron’s putters feature simple, austere designs, clean lines, and a classic look that begs the owner to use the putter as frequently as possible. Once on the course, Cameron’s putters are often used quite infrequently – they’re as good as any on the market at getting the ball in the hole, and many of the world’s top PGA Tour stars rely on Cameron putters to earn a living.

So it was no doubt a shock when the “C-5” prototype putter became the August-released “Detour” putter. Essentially a blade putter with a curved alignment aid making for an askew “T,” the Detour is not what you might expect from Scotty Cameron.

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Happy Holidays from The Sand Trap

The Sand Trap is going on holiday until 2007. Thanks for an awesome 2006, folks, and merry wishes this holiday season!

St. Andrews SnowThe Sand Trap wants to take this opportunity to thank you and yours for stopping by. Everyone here at The Sand Trap wishes you nothing but the happiest of holidays and plenty of birdies in 2007.

We’d also like to take this opportunity to thank those who have helped us through our first full year, including Titleist, all the sponsors of The Newport Cup, and all of our readers.

Though this portion of our site will be “closed” until the new year (January 8, to be precise), we still invite everyone to join our forum (it’s free). Share with us what you want – or what you get – for Christmas!

We’ll be back soon. Until then, can anyone recommend a large-headed shovel with the latest in graphite shaft technology? I’ve looked everywhere at titleist.com and can’t find anything!

Boomerang Putting System Review

The Boomerang Putting System is an easy-to-use training aid that lets a golfer practice just about anywhere he or she wants. While a bit gimmicky in the promotion of the product, the Bommerang itself is simple and provides just what a golfer needs – a tool that provides instant feedback to groove your putting stroke.

Boomerang KitI’m one of the best carpet putters during the winter time, even in North Carolina. I usually have a couple putters and a ball in my TV room ready to go.

You can understand why I was excited to review the Boomerang putting system. Instead of putting at a coffee table leg or the corner of my dusty treadmill, I could use something that was not only more realistic, but could help my game.

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Bunker’s Dozen: December 2006

The Bunker’s Dozen ends 2006 with a bang and a new number one!

Thrash TalkThe 2006 season has been a long one, but golf fans have been treated to another exciting year in the world of golf. The past month has also been a crazy one, mostly outside the PGA Tour. The Tour Championship wrapped up in early November, and the golf spotlight then shifted towards the LPGA Tour and European Tour.

Lorena Ochoa held off Karrie Webb to win the LPGA Tour Player of the Year award, and Julieta Granada won a million dollars in the season’s final event. Padraig Harrington, coming off his recent European Tour Order of Merit title, beat Tiger Woods in a playoff to win the Dunlop Phoenix. How high will these golfers be in the latest edition of Bunker’s Dozen? You know the drill, so keep on reading!

If you have anything to add, feel free to comment below or discuss it in the forum. I hope you enjoy this month’s list.

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