The Long Ball: Distance is Everything?

The ball is going too long, right? There may be more to this than you think…

Longball MickelsonThe long ball enthralls us all, regardless of the sport. In baseball, Barry Bonds is the current king, but the McGwire/Sosa race remains fresh in our minds. In football, it’s the hail mary. And in golf, it’s the 350-yard drive. The drive that makes 550-yard par fives reachable with 6-irons and renders long par fours defenseless against an onslaught of high-arcing short irons and wedges.

But the ball, many say, has simply gone too far this time.

2005 Nissan Open: Adam Scott

Adam Scott is the “unofficial” 2005 Nissan Open champion. What were his sticks? Titleist all the way.

Adam ScottAdam Scott is a Titleist guy, and in last week’s shortened Nissan Open, two Pro V1x players squared off, but Adam came out on top. Here’s what he carries:

Driver Titleist 983K 8.5°
3 Wood Titleist Pro Trajectory 15°
2-Iron Titleist Prototype
Irons (3-PW)Titleist Forged 680
Wedges (SW, LW) Titleist Vokey Design 54°, 60°
Putter Scotty Cameron Prototype
Ball Titleist Pro V1x

Here’s a picture:

Titleist.com Redesign Debuts with New Gear

Titleist.com has been redesigned, and a quick look around will reveal a lot of what’s coming from the makers of “the #1 ball in golf.”

TitleistTitleist today unveiled a new website at titleist.com. The new site is similar in design to the old site but features specs on the page (instead of within popup windows), animation and video, and an updated roster of players and features.

The site also carries information and some teaser shots of new and soon-to-be-released products, including:

Things are looking up for Titleist fanboys these days.

They Say it Never Rains in Southern California

Heavy rains have caused another delay, this time the victim is the Accenture Matchplay Championships at La Costa Resort.

La Costa FloodIn light of the washout of the Nissan Open last weekend, the news that the Accenture World Match Play would be delayed until Thursday came as little surprise to many golf fans. Parts of La Costa golf resort were literally under water thanks to 2 inches of rain in the last day, and little relief is in sight since another inch is expected tonight. Luckily, since this is a diminished field event and each round halves the field, PGA officials are planning on playing two rounds on Friday to make up the lost time. Tournament director Mark Russell said, “It’s totally saturated, but based on this weather forecast, it’s going to get nothing but better. If we get a day of sunshine and breeze, it will get dramatically better.”

Accenture/WGC World Match Play Preview

Could the World Match Play signal a changing of the guard? I for one think so. Look for Phil Mickelson to dominate this week.

Mickelson in BlackVijay Singh and Tiger Woods are neck-and-mockneck atop the World Golf Ranking, with Singh holding a slight lead. Could this be the place for the two top guns to have a 36-hole shootout? Don’t get your hopes up for a No. 1-2 showdown at La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, CA this week. First of all, the 64-player bracket is every bit as unpredictable as NCAA hoops in March Madness mode. Second of all, a third player is going to throw his visor into the “Who’s No. 1?” debate. He won’t have the world ranking points to officially claim the top spot, but at week’s end, look for Phil Mickelson to stand tall above Vijay, Tiger and the rest of the world for the all-important title of Best Golfer in the World right now.

Read on for details on how Phil is going to take over the world, as well as predictions for every single match scheduled for soggy La Costa at this week’s WGC/Accenture Match Play Championship.

Drug Testing in the PGA Tour? Not Likely

As performance enhacing drugs garner attention on the diamond, is there a reason for concern on the links as well?

pga_tour_logo.jpgIf you’ve been anywhere within range of televisions, radios, newspapers, or the Internet over the last couple of weeks, you have undoubtedly heard something about the steroid controversy gripping baseball as it heads into spring training. For the first time in its history, baseball will have mandatory testing for performance-enhancing drugs following a precedent set by the NFL and the NBA years ago. And while the controversy has swirled on the diamond, there are those that might wonder, should testing for performance enhancing drugs be done on in professional golf as well?

Scott Shines in Playoff

Adam Scott beat Chad Campbell in a playoff to win the Nissan Open, which was called after two rounds due to rain.

adam_scott_nissan_open.jpgDay after day of heavy rain in the Los Angeles area left the Nissan Open very open ended. Yesterday no one seemed to know for sure whether the tournament would be called after two rounds, or whether a third round would be played on Monday. However, two additional inches of rainfall last night made the decision to call the tournament an easy choice. The final leaderboard showed two leaders: Adam Scott and Chad Campbell tied at 9-under par. Thankfully, the rain eased up enough today to allow a playoff between Scott and Campbell and crown a winner. The playoff was decided on the first hole, when Scott sunk a 4-foot putt for par on the 18th green to cash in on an unofficial victory on the PGA Tour.

Long Bunker Shot? Chip!

Instead of whaling away at a 40-yard bunker shot, try a far easier chip. You’ll eliminate the home run and get close to the pin, safely.

The 30- to 40-yard bunker shot is one of the most dreadful in golf. Hit fat and you’re facing a long putt or perhaps another bunker shot. Hit it thin and you’re 50 yards past the pin in goodness knows what kind of lie. Long bunker shots require a full, powerful swing and the room for error is small.

Instead of risking a fat plopper or a thin home run, try chipping instead. We’ve talked about chipping from wet sand before, and the long chip is not very different.

Manic Monday at the Nissan? Or Tuesday…

The scenarios are many, and the Nissan Open may not be over until Tuesday! A round two recap – yes, on Sunday – follows.

Adam Scott NissanPlayers finally finished the second round of the Nissan Open and tournament officials are going to attempt to get a third round in on Monday, but the forecast isn’t promising.

Adam Scott took advantage of the weather and fired a 5-under 66 to vault him into a tie for the 36-hole lead. Should the tournament end, Scott and Chad Campbell, who completed his second round on Friday and hasn’t hit a shot since, would play off late Monday for the $836,000 first-place check. The win, unfortunately, would be unofficial. Tour officials still hope that 54 holes can be played – they have 12 hours of daylight and a field of 76 golfers after the cut – to make the tournament official.