Sorenstam’s Team Wins World Cup

The Swedish team of Annika Sorenstam and Liselotte Neumann easily take the World Cup from last year’s defending Japanese team. Team USA was no threat.

Sorenstam and Neumann Share World Cup VictoryIt should not be surprising that the world’s number one female golfer in the world grabbed the World Cup this weekend in Sun City, South Africa. Annika Sorenstam was the driving force behind the Swedish team today as her defining eagle on the 492-yard par-5 set the stage for a singles score of 70 which was the certain reason for her team’s three stroke victory over Team Scotland.

Her partner, Liselotte Neumann scored a 77 and did not contribute today as much as in earlier competition. “It’s nice to have the number one player in the world as your partner,” said Neumann.

The Swedish duo will each receive a check for $110,000 and the glory of having the first unoffical victory of the 2006 season.

Episode 010

What do Michelle Wie, Bubba Watson, Paul Azinger, and David Duval have in common? They’re topics in this week’s podcast.

PodcastMichelle Wie bombs out again in Hawaii, and Jeff and Erik show no sympathy. Is Wie a choker? When will Wie missing cuts simply become “same old, same old”? We also discuss the impact of Bubba Watson, Paul Azinger’s soon-to-be interesting 2006 in the commentator’s booth, and getting your kids involved in the game of golf. Plus, David Duval’s comback in this episode of “Golf Talk Podcast.”

You can subscribe to the RSS feed for our podcasts here or download Episode 010 as an AAC file (see note below colophon). 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.

Bart Bryant

While Bart Bryant is a new face to many fans he’s been banging around the golf landscape for many years. He’s earned exemption and a regular PGA job by sticking with his game for nearly twenty years.

ProFilesThe ability to stick with something when you don’t see results is a noble quality. For every player who’s won an event on the PGA Tour or risen to join the ranks of the very best in the world there are hundreds who never make it. Whether its finances, nerves, or lack of talent or perseverance, not everyone succeeds on Tour. For every glory story there are many who find other ways of making a living, other ways of enjoying the game of golf.

Of course there are those who stick with golf through lean years, years in which success is only a fleeting thought. Bart Bryant, like a lot of guys on Tour, had to stick with the game through some very lean years before finding more security in the game he loves so much.

The Fitness Secrets of Championship Golfers

Proper fitness, nutrition, and mental training can significantly improve your results whether you are a touring professional or weekend hack. If you are serious about getting better at golf and improving your overall health this book may be a step in the right direction for you.

Fitness for GolfIt is no secret to those who follow professional golf that the players have a vast array of resources at their fingertips. All they have to do is ask and they receive the best equipment, swing instruction, psychological training, course management ideas and nutritional information in the world. The average player often does not have these resources at their beck and call.

Susan Hill, the President of Fitness for Golf and widely recognized golf fitness expert, has brought together a team of experts in “The Fitness Secrets of Championship Golfers.”

David Duval

Will David Duval keep his card? That’s the question a lot of golf fans are asking. After his first tournament, there were some good and bad things I took away, but overall, things are looking better.

The Numbers GameImagine yourself in his shoes. Most everyone is rooting for you, but there are others. Others that doubt you and doubt that you can return to form. Then you start your first round of your last exempt year with a double bogey and follow it up later with four straight bogeys. Imagine yourself standing on #9 tee with that on you. What goes through your mind?

If you’re David Duval, you just shrug it off and make a birdie. Then four holes later, you make another. You salvage a 75 and proceed to make the cut. Which, by the way, is just as many as you made in 20 tournaments last year.

Bob Hope Chrysler Classic Preview

Justin Leonard is looking to join the list of repeat winners and David Duval is hoping to play a lot better than last year at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic.

Bob Hope Chrysler ClassicThe 2006 Bob Hope Chrysler Classic started today with the first of five rounds. In last year’s Bob Hope Chrysler Classic we watched as Justin Leonard, using his new Nike equipment, shot five rounds in the 60s to secure his win over Tim Clark and Joe Ogilvie by three shots. Winners like Stuart Appleby and David Toms (a victor last week) already know the great feeling it is to have secured a win in 2006 and with In and Out Burgers right around the corner we are sure to see Phil Mickelson make his 2006 season debut. This is also the third or nine events in the 2006 West Coast Swing presented by Allianz where currently Stuart Appleby has a 20-point lead over Vijay Singh and David Toms.

The event is also known for attracting top celebrities which gives the tournament an added bonus by watching celebrities and pro mix it up but let’s take a look at the rest of the field and see who Justin Leonard is up against this year.

2006 Women’s World Cup of Golf

The first LPGA tournament of 2006 features number-one golfer Annika Sorenstam and Q-School winner Ai Miyazato in a limited field event.

Women's World Cup of Golf logoThe big names in ladies golf are back!

Sorenstam, Creamer and Gulbis are among the forty women looking for their first victory of 2006 at the Women’s World Cup of Golf. Ai Miyazato, fresh from her win at Q-School, will be defending the trophy for the Japanese team. Twenty teams in total will be competing the weekend at the beautiful Sun City Resort in South Africa.

Will Miyazato’s rookie season begin with a win and a follow-up trophy for the Japanese? Or will one of the nineteen other competing countries claim the cup and a piece of the $1.1 million purse?

This tournament is sure to satisfy even the most discerning palates.

Toms, Cleveland Big Winners at the Sony

David Toms and Vijay Singh are leading a charge for Cleveland Golf, while Lee Janzen may have (another) new equipment home.

Bag DropWhen David Toms sprinted across the finish line with a runaway victory at last week’s Sony Open, it was a big win for the LSU grad. Toms’ 12th PGA Tour title came just months after surgery for an irregular heartbeat that flared up during the 84 Lumber Classic late last season.

It was also a big win for Cleveland Golf, a company that may trail only Titleist in fans among low-handicappers and other “serious” golfers. We’ll take a look at what Toms and other Cleveland staffers had in the bag at the Sony, and with an update on a possible new home for another well-travelled pro.

The New Deal

The Golf Channel: evolving monopolistic media juggernaut? Or, just a kick-ass network?

Thrash TalkI don’t know if you can answer that question with a yes or no right now, but maybe you can in the near future. The latest and greatest story out of the PGA Tour in the past few days has been all about the 2007 and beyond television deal that was reached by the PGA Tour, NBC, CBS and the Golf Channel.

I am not going to address the specifics of the deal here because Everardo Keeme did a standout job already. Instead, I’m going to give you the run down, the fall out, and the build up.