A Major Surprise

Stuart Appleby should already be a major championship winner. Which other golfers are in the same boat as Appleby?

Thrash TalkStuart Appleby cruised to his second win of the 2006 season this past weekend in Houston. Appleby started off the year by winning the Mercedes Championship for the third straight time. The Aussie showed this past weekend just how good he is with a 54-hole lead. Appleby played well on Sunday en route to winning his eighth career PGA Tour event. It’s beyond me why he hasn’t won a major championship.

When it comes to golfers without major championships, the media always talks about Chris DiMarco, Sergio Garcia, Adam Scott, Luke Donald, etc. That’s not a bad thing because all those guys are near the top 10 in the world rankings. However, what about the golfers ranked a little lower in the world like Stuart Appleby? There are some very talented golfers without major championships, and Appleby tops the list of “underrated golfers without a major championship.”

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How a Napkin Ring Improved My Practice

Practice balls have always had their limitations. But the Birdie Ball addresses the key issues of realistic flight, great feel, and limited distance. It’s worth a try.

Bag DropThey say that practice makes perfect. The corollary must be that no practice makes imperfect. So, unless you’re a golf professional, work at a course, or live down the street from a range, finding time to groove your swing or practice your short game can be difficult. And given the choice between spending what time you do have playing or practicing, well, it’s not hard to figure out why those scores aren’t coming down.

That’s why I became so intrigued when introduced last fall to a relatively new product that’s turned my backyard into a viable, fun practice range. The invention of a father-son team from Colorado, it feels and flies like a regular golf ball, just a much shorter distance. The odd part is, it looks like a napkin ring.

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Volume Fifty-Six

Oh, the American Classics.

Hittin' The LinksWe Americans are lucky to have such a rich golf tradition in our country. While even our oldest establishments are mere toddlers when compared to the eldest European tracks, they have a tremendous amount of history and sentimentality attached to them. From Bobby Jones to Nelson and Hogan, Nicklaus and now Tiger, all the greats have left their mark on our tradition through their stirring victories and heart-breaking defeats on these famous courses.

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Naples Grande Resort and Club

Naples Grande Resort & Club kicks off the Blackstone Group’s new company look.

Naples GrandeNaples Grande Resort & Club has undergone an ownership change, a name change, and an attitude change. There’s a new look, a new name, and a new attitude for one of this city’s legendary destination resorts. Under the fresh ownership of the Blackstone Group, the Registry Resort is now the Naples Grande Resort & Club – the new name reflecting a new era for this grande dame on Naples’ trendy north side.

Did we say era? Frank Cavella, area vice president for Naples Grande Resort & Club, puts it this way: “A new name, new look and new aura.” The latter, not coincidentally, is the name of the resort’s recently-opened signature restaurant just off the refurbished lobby.

“The Registry helped define Naples 20 years ago,” Cavella said. “We’re just trying to bring it back now with a new look and feel.”

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Golf Talk [Episode 020]

The post-Masters lull is only boring if you stop paying attention to golf altogether. We’ve got plenty to talk about!

PodcastAaron Baddeley breaks through with his first win on the PGA Tour, but did Jim Furyk give it away a little? Lots of Tiger Woods news, Phil Mickelson updates, Greg Norman and Annika Sorenstam, changes at Winged Foot, and a little bit about distance once again.

You can subscribe to the RSS feed for our podcasts here or download Episode 020 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 Mythical ‘Ball Boost’

The USGA dips its toe into the ongoing debate over whether players with super-fast swing speeds gain an “extra boost” of distance.

Fred Funk, one of the shorter hitters on the PGA Tour (which, at 49 years of age and 5’8″, is not altogether shocking), is feeling left out these days. He believes that the modern golf ball gives players who swing 115 or 120 MPH a “boost.” More specifically, as he said in a recent interview, “You just get this huge gain hitting the ball a certain speed.”

Unfortunately, despite what Fred and others believe, the facts on this issue have recently been made quite clear. The USGA, on April 11, dispelled some commonly held beliefs in an article called “Myths About Golf Equipment and Performance.” The first myth was “Golfers with faster swing speeds get disproportionately greater distance benefits from new golf balls that have been introduced after 2000.”

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Adams a2 OS Hybrid Review

Hybrids are making a splash on not only the Champions and PGA Tours, but on local golf courses as well. Should a forward-thinking golfer consider the Adams a2 OS?

Adams a2 OS IronsHybrids were once known as golf clubs for the elderly. My how times have changed. Not only do Champions Tour golfers swear by them but now even the PGA Tour pros are choosing these easier-to-hit clubs in exchange for their longer iron counterparts.

Tom Watson is the most famous face associated with the Adams a2 OS hybrids. Every time I watch a Champions Tour event on The Golf Channel there he is with his graceful swing along with the statement claiming that these are the easiest to hit hybrids in golf. I had already taken my long irons out of my bag and stashed them in my “holding bag” in the basement. These clubs were heading for the trade-in bin at the local golf store but they needed replacements. An Idea? How about giving the Adams a2 OS a try?

It was almost twenty years ago that Barney Adams created the Tight Lies fairway wood. If you look around, many golfers still have these woods in their bags today. The phenomenon of the original lower center of gravity “upside-down” design changed the way clubs were created. Could it be that as recently as 2002 Adams’ earnings and stock prices were declining with naysayers claiming the hybrid as a “fad”?”

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Sophomore Slump

Sean O’Hair and Lucas Glover came straight out of Q-School last year and not only won, but had superb years as well. This year it is more of the same for Glover but a different story for O’Hair.

The Numbers GameLast year we had a couple of rookies that burst onto the scene. Sean O’Hair and Lucas Glover both got onto the Tour last year by going through and surviving the rigors of Q-School. Both won over $2 million and made the Tour Championship in 2005… not too bad in your first year.

So, how are they faring this year? Looking at how they performed last year, one would think that they are going to have nothing but more success. Read on to find out who is struggling and who is continuing their great play.

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Shell Houston Open Preview

We’re all looking to see if Vijay can win for a fourth time and third in a row at this weeks Shell Houston Open.

Shell Houston OpenVijay Singh goes into this year’s Shell Houston Open with history on his mind. Not only has Singh won the past two Shell Houston Opens, but should he win this year, he’ll accomplish something only Tiger Woods (The Memorial, Bay Hill), Tom Watson (Byron Nelson Invitational), and Stuart Appleby (Mercedes Championship) have accomplished: back-to-back-to-back wins in the same same tournament.

Last year we saw Vijah Singh defeat John Daly in a playoff with a par.

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