The PGA Championship

Baltusrol is being called a beast this year. According to the numbers, Tiger should be able to tame it and win this year’s PGA but there are a few other golfers that could make a run at it.

The Numbers GameThis year’s PGA is being held at Baltusrol. The numbers are already rolling in. 7,392: The longest par-70 in PGA Championship history. 500: Two of the par fours will be longer than this. 647: The length of #17… which happens to be 17 yards longer than it was in the 1993 US Open.

So you get the picture. This year’s PGA will be a test for sure. Predicting the PGA this year may be a bit more complicated than picking the long hitters. As I’ve talked about previously, there are more important things than mashing the ball 300+ yards… but it may help a bit this week and is factoring into my predictions.

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Solheim Cup a “Humbling” Experience

The LPGA and LET team captains consider their final selections for the exciting biennial Solheim Cup held next month in the U.S.A.

Since there is no LPGA Tour event this week U.S.A. Team Captain Nancy Lopez took hopefuls out for a practice round in Indiana where the U.S.A. will compete against Europe for the Solheim Cup. This biennial matchplay event is the LPGA’s answer to the PGA’s Ryder Cup and is considered to be one of the most prestigious events in women’s world golf.

It’s the U.S.A. versus the rest of the world. Will America dominate?

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TaylorMade r5 Dual Driver Review

The TaylorMade r5 Dual drivers incorporate design elements from the successful r7 Quad drivers in a bigger clubhead. The new design has both benefits and drawbacks.

TaylorMadeTaylorMade Golf has surged to the top of the driver marketplace over the last few years. The company which first popularized the modern metalwood fell off the pace a bit in the late ’90s, but rebounded strongly with its 300 and 500 series titanium drivers. TaylorMade successfully followed those products with the r7 Quad driver, which stands as one of the most-played – and most-imitated – drivers on tour and at retail.

This year, TaylorMade applied some of the design principles of the r7 Quad to the new r5 Dual series. We had a chance to take one of the r5 Dual models for an extended test drive. Read on to see what we thought.

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PGA Championsip Preview

The top golfers in the world head to Baltusrol for the PGA’s final major championship of 2005.

pgachampionship_baltusrol_logo.jpgThe PGA Championship is the final major championship of the year on the PGA Tour, and it will be played at Baltusrol Golf Club this week. As usual, there are numerous storylines heading into the week, and it will be exciting to see how everything unfolds. Tiger Woods is at the top of the list of stories once again. Woods will be looking to win his third major of 2005 and the 11th of his career.

A win this week will put Tiger in a tie with Walter Hagen on the all-time list of major championship victories. So far in 2005, Woods has finished first at The Masters, second at the U.S. Open, and first at last month’s British Open. Tiger is arguably playing the best golf of his career, and he will be the unanimous favorite at Baltusrol this week. Out of Woods’ 10 major championship victories, two have come at the PGA Championship.

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On the Ball with Common Sense

The distance debate rages on, but at least one voice of common sense has poked their head through the clouds.

GolfObserver has an article worth reading:

It’s not just about the ball. It’s about players who have pushed themselves farther than technology has taken equipment. It’s about the endless hours in the weight room, long runs and stretching. About balance in your diet. About a new generation of focus that’s often hard to fathom.

Right on.

It’s Put up or Shut up Time

Sergio Garcia will finally get the monkey off his back at the 2005 PGA Championship at Baltusrol.

Thrash TalkThe final major championship of the 2005 PGA season is here already! It seems like it was just yesterday when Tiger was narrowly defeating Chris DiMarco in a playoff to win his fourth green jacket. After that, it was on to the U.S. Open, where Michael Campbell gave us the major championship surprise of the year. Retief Goosen had an awful final-round collapse, and Campbell outlasted Tiger to win his first major. And just last month, Tiger struck again at the British Open. Mr. Woods worked his way around St. Andrews beautifully on his way to winning his second career grand slam.

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Volume Twenty-One

This week’s links are sure to put a smile on your face! Enjoy.

Hittin' the LinksSo the PGA Championship starts on Thursday, and I couldn’t be more excited. I like this major because there is always a no-namer that can contend and even win (see: Rich Beem, Shaun Micheel). This year, my pick is Tiger because I think he’s the hottest player in golf. My long-shot pick is Ian Poulter. I like his game and he’s played well in the majors and on U.S. turf.

Leave your picks in the comments. Now, on to the links.

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Your Guide To OEMs, Part 1

The golf equipment business is a crowded, cutthroat place. To help you make sense of it, I’m giving you my interpretation of how the top companies in the biz relate to one another.

Bag DropHave you ever thought about all the golf club companies out there and said, “Sheesh! I can’t tell the players without a scorecard!” If so, I have two things to say to you. First, welcome to the Bag Drop. You’re my kind of person and I’m glad you’re here, even if you sound kind of dorky saying “Sheesh!” like that. And second, here’s your scorecard.

Read on to see part one of my three-part series on the top original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in the market today.

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Gore and Goosen

Jason Gore shoots 59 and earns a Battlefield Promotion while Retief Goosen earns a win by outlasting the others at The International.

On the PGA Tour this weekend, Retief Goosen trudged through 36 holes to edge Brandt Jobe by a single point at The International, earning his sixth PGA Tour win and his 23rd as a professional. Jobe, who at one point had a nine-point lead, fell apart in the middle of his second 18 holes and let nearly everyone back into the tournament. For awhile, Charles Howell III and Phil Mickelson even had a shot. Jobe left a 25-foot birdie putt short on the last to win. Yes, you read that correctly: he left the winning putt short.

On the Nationwide Tour, U.S. Open fan favorite Jason Gore captured his third straight victory and his seventh on the Nationwide Tour after firing a 59 in his second round on Saturday. His third win promotes him to the PGA Tour via the “Battlefield Exemption” rule, and we look forward to seeing the big guy playing with The Big Guys real soon. Jason put a wedge to five feet on the second playoff hole from the rough and after his opponent, Roger Tambellini, put a shot to eight feet. Roger missed, Jason made, and the rest, as they say, was history.

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