Golf Potato

R&A's New Chairman Of The Bored

2010-07-19T10:43:00.002-04:00

I'm not gonna lie, I have spent the last two major Sundays bored to the point of anxious rage. The boredom comes while waiting for more than one guy to play well; the anxious rage develops when no one does. Not to take anything away from this year's champion golfer, Louis Oosthuizen, because he played a tremendous tournament. However, there was plenty of opportunity for a handful of players to challenge the South African nicknamed Shrek. The only guy to make any sort of move was Paul Casey on Saturday, but the charge was reserved for Saturday only. The most memorable moment from The Open Championship also came from Saturday, when my lifestyle guru Miguel Angel Jimenez played this shot:

Sadly the shot lead to a two-putt double-bogey. That is the best way I find to sum up the entertainment value of the 2010 Open Championship; a shot played off the wall to make a Road Hole six was the most exciting thing that happened all weekend.

Subtle Moves For Subtle Moves

2010-05-26T16:22:00.000-04:00

I was giving a lesson the other day to a gentleman who hits it pretty well with a controlled fade. Still, the reason for the lesson was because this golfer wanted to know "How can I hit a draw instead of a fade?" This is one of the great "the grass is always greener" questions because there is absolutely nothing wrong with having a controlled fade. The same is true for those with high ball flights, i.e. me, who would love a more penetrating flight and vice versa. Basically, golfers, Golf Potato included, are a bunch of knuckle-heads who are never satisfied, even when things are going well. As such they're constantly tinkering and changing things in a game that requires repetition above all else. Knowing full well that I stand no chance to talk a golfer out of an idea such as this here are some easy ways to play your home course from the other side of middle.

First and foremost, when shaping controlled shots we must always adhere to a policy of subtlety. Adjustments in stance and swing to achieve left-to-right or right-to-left ball movement need to be minimal. Exagerating the positions and moves will translate to Hooks and Slices instead of Draws and Fades, and there is zero control with a Hook or a Slice.

Take The Proper Stance And Follow Your Feet:
To hit either a draw or fade should have everything to do with your feet and nothing to do with your hands. The key is to use your normal stance, parallel to the target, and then either open or close the stance just a little to achieve to desired ball flight. For a fade, the front foot should move back a few inches after the standard stance has been taken, opening the stance. For a draw, the back foot drops back a few inches, closing the stance to the target. With the club face still aimed at the target, swing your shoulders, and thusly the club, on a line parallel with your stance. What SHOULD happen is you will swing just a little bit from outside-to-in with the open stance, and from inside-to-out with the closed stance. The properly executed draw/fade will start away from the target and curve back in towards it. If the ball is moving wildly, you have most likely opened/closed your stance too much, thereby exagerating the movement of the ball flight. Remember, it's subtle moves for subtle moves.

More than likely you will find you are probably in more control of one ball flight over the other. Like all things golf, play what you've got, not what you wish you had.

Young Guns Roar

2010-05-03T09:47:00.000-04:00

QUAIL HOLLOW

Sixty-six followed by a course record sixty-two. That's all Rory McIlroy did to win at Quail Hollow after making the cut right on the number. The kid, who until this Tuesday I can't buy a celebratory drink, won for the first time on American soil and the second time overall. Have I mentioned he's my hero? In addition to McIlroy's stunning effort, Phil-maniacs like myself were treated to a runner-up finish following Lefty's Masters win. Better still was Mickelson's post round interview, which he spent 75% of complimenting McIlroy as a true talent and someone he expects big things from in the near future. Wanna know why so many people like Phil? He has the ability to acknowledge when he was outplayed and compliment an unbelievable effort in a sincere fashion. Pssst, Tiger, did you get that?

SPANISH OPEN

Spanish bomber Alvaro Quiros took home his country's Open title. Comparitively ancient for this article, the twenty-seven year old Quiros joins Sergio Garcia and Seve Ballesteros as the only other homegrown winners of this tournament. If you want excitment in golf go check out this guy on the range when he breaks out the driver...You'll need binoculars to see the ball land.

CROWNS (JAPAN)

Ryo Ishikawa is already a national sensation in Japan at 18 years old. The teen phenom who looks like an anime hero added a little extra fuel for the fire this weekend when he decided to shoot 58 to win the Crowns. 58! I just threw up in my mouth a little. What else can you say? 58.

Finally A Feeling

2010-05-03T08:00:00.000-04:00

As the Masters approached I was engaged by a few of my 'golf twits' on Twitter about Tiger's return and my feelings positive or negative about him. The question was always to find out which camp I was in, the pro-Tiger or anti-Tiger. My response was the same every time the question arose; "I really don't know how I'm going to feel. I suppose I'll find out after he starts playing." My indifference surprised me, but it was the truth. By the end of play Saturday my allegience was once again firmly in Phil's court and I was only interested in whether or not he could pull it off again. I still had no real opinion on Woods other than surprise that he was in contention considering he wasn't playing all that well. By Sunday evening Phil had a new jacket to wear to the donut shop and Tiger was complaining about not winning. The complaining I could have done without, but my indifference remained.

It was during the back nine on Friday at Quail Hollow that I finally had a feeling creep in. As Woods was continuing to flail at shot after shot and the bogeys started racking up I found myself wanting Tiger to miss the cut. I reveled in the back nine 43 and the round of 79. The numbers were no doubt the humiliation I think TW earned for the scar he has left on the Tour. However, my wanting Woods to miss the cut was not an application to join the anti-Tiger faction. What I really wanted was to not have to watch every shot Tiger played over the weekend should he have barely made the cut. I have always had an issue with the weekend full 18-hole coverage of Woods when he's in a battle for 45th place and shooting even par at best. It was bad enough how many times Jim Nantz mentioned Tiger during third round coverage but still better than listening to him try and install dramatic commentary into an ineffectual round of golf.

In the end I decided I am not rooting against Tiger, I am, however, only really interested when he's playing well. Hearing about him as if he's in the mix when he's actually on a plane back to Florida is my only real agitation with Woods the golfer, and that isn't even his fault...Blame the media is the phrase right? The pleasure I took in Tiger's 79 on Friday comes from my hope that he starts to feel like a flawed human being every now and again.

Digesting The Masters

2010-04-18T09:14:00.002-04:00

During this past week I have asked as many of the Country Club of Barre's members as possible what they thought about this year's version of The Masters. The questioning was to take a quick a poll to find out one simple thing; what is the lasting impression people have of the 2010 Masters? Interestingly enough here are the top answers I got in order of frequency:

1. Tiger Is A Jerk - Tiger's on course outbursts and post round interview on Sunday were overwhemingly the talk of the membership and undeniably the buzz of the net as well. Woods not being terribly gracious as an 'also-ran' is not what got under people's skin. We have come to expect Tiger's lack of any and all concern or congratulations for competitors other than himself. No, what really erked everyone was that his anger at his own play (despite the warm welcome from the fans, despite the fact that no one booed him or bothered him in his backswing, and despite the expected rust from five months away from golf) was the only emmotion he exuded. What really annoyed the avid golfer and fan alike was that he finished in the top five at a major, his first event in almost half a year, and in the interview he wasn't encouraged by any of it, just angry that he didn't hit great shots all week and lost. All of the negativity was perceived as very anti-Buddhist, the spiritual direction Tiger was proclaiming to have rediscovered.

2. I'm Glad Tiger Lost - The interesting part of this sentiment was that most people wanted Tiger to finish second, having the victory taken away by Phil or Freddie with a birdie on the last. The idea is that no one wanted him to miss the cut, or even play poorly on the weekend. Most people I asked wanted Tiger to get oh-so-close only to have the Green Jacket stripped from him at the last moment by one of the "good guys".

3. I'm Glad Phil Won - The main reason to be happy for Lefty was almost unanimous; because he's a good family man. The vast majority of those weighing in don't consider themselves Phil fans, however, they were pleased someone with "values" won and not Tiger. See the trend forming here? Pro-Tiger or Anti-Tiger, either way he was all people really cared about.

4. Phil's Shot Into 13 Was Incredible/Stupid - People brought up this shot with the same frequency, but seem split down the middle as to why. The glass-half-full folks saw it as gutsy and a stroke of genius that turned the entire tournament in Phil's favor. The half-empty side thought Lefty was lucky he didn't throw away the Green Jacket. Those who thought the shot was a bad idea gone right are the same non-Phil fans from comment #3.

5. I Didn't Want Westwood To Win - This one I only heard twice, but I was stunned to hear it at all. For the two commentors the Englishman came off as aloof in his post round interviews; a Tiger-like quality they don't appreciate at all. Back to that Tiger guy again.

Four of the five comments brought up about the 2010 Masters were fueled by personal/social factors. Only one (#4) was about the actual golf being played. In the end there was a great deal of buzz about what happened at the end of Magnolia Lane, but was it the buzz golf really needed?

Once, Twice, Three Times Augusta

2010-04-13T09:24:00.000-04:00

The final round of this years' Masters will not find itself on ESPN Classic or in a Golf Channel Top Ten of 'Best Major Finishes' or 'Classic Duels'. The most exciting day ended up being Saturday or "Moving Day", with Phil's magical run on 13, 14 and 15 and Lee Westwood holding his ground. Actually, by the time the final group finished the second hole Sunday it appeared this Masters may be most remembered for the "Stamen Heard Round The World", of course referring to:

If you only watched the front nine play on Sunday your guess probably would have been K.J. Choi finishing with a very easy looking 66 and beating Mickelson and third round leader Lee Westwood by a shot or two. That's how it looked at the turn, but the back nine is where the Masters is won.

Coming off birdie at 12, Mickelson hit his fourth squirrely drive in a row, yanking one right on the par five 13th. Now, had Lefty made the eagle putt the second shot he hit into 13 green may have gone down as one of the greatest shots in major championship history. Turned out he didn't need the eagle anyway.

The storylines will always be about Phil's wife, mother, struggles with breast cancer, family values; and righfully so. However, Phil did two things he had never done before when contending in a major and I think they both are infinitely more important from a golf-only perspective. Mickelson came from behind on the final day to win and he didn't miss any of those two/three footers for par. In fact Lefty was bogey free on Sunday. Bogey free! Watching the round through the 11th hole it seems impossible that there wasn't a blemish on Phil's scorecard, but none were to be found. Lefty scrambled as only he can and finally made all the putts.

For those who have previously read this blog you know I am a Phil-first golf fan. Ever since he acknowledge my existence at the former GHO he went from a player I rooted for to My Guy. Like any Phil-fan I was crushed at Shinnecock and Winged Foot (and Bethpage twice, and in 1999 too) and equally elated at the '04 and '06 Masters and '05 PGA. Phil's '04 Masters win was his finest moment, but this version may be the tournament victory that turns Phil into a serious hunter, closing gaps and taking leads on Sundays rather than simply hanging on to them. The closing birdie on 18 was very Tigeresque wasn't it? Is it possible that Phil is becoming a killer on the course? Only time will tell, but have a look at this and tell me if you see what I do:

Dare To Dream

2010-04-09T08:59:00.000-04:00

I can't recall a first day of the Masters that has dared me to dream so wildly about the possible storylines for Sunday. Let's just say that if the core of the current top ten shuffle around a bit over the next two days but remain in the top ten the final four pairings on Sunday could look something like this:

With the 1:40pm starting time, the Prêt-à-Porter pairing;

Anthony Kim Ian Poulter

With the 1:50pm starting time, the Seoul Patrol

K.J. Choi Y.E. Yang

With the 2:00pm starting time, the Coolsville Combo:

Fred Couples Phil Mickelson

And finally, with the 2:10pm starting time, Morality v. Temptation:

Tom Watson Tiger Woods

Guys like Lee Westwood and Ernie Els (should he play his way back towards the top of the leaderboard) would only sweeten the deal. Who has two thumbs and is daring to dream? THIS GUY!

Masters Fun

2010-04-07T16:15:00.000-04:00

Make sure to join the Ottawa Golf Blog's Masters competition for cool free stuff! All you have to do is pick two players from five categories and the highest paid combination wins. Here is the list players to pick from (notice one obvious player missing from the list?):

Here are my picks (see you if you can beat the Golf Potato):

Top Guns - Harrington & Furyk

Young Guns - Casey & Villegas

Internationals - Fisher & Karlsson

Wild Cards - O'Hair & Johnson

Sentimentals - Els & Singh

Let's Do Lunch

2010-03-12T10:38:00.000-05:00

I recently read an article by Doug Ferguson about a lunch meeting that I would have given an arm, a leg and maybe a vital organ to attend. The sit-down was alas, a private one. Rory McIlroy, my hero, had a some contacts and they got in touch with some people who arranged for this lunch with none other than Jack Nicklaus. The purpose was for Rory to get some time with the greatest major winner of them all and find out his philosophy and mental tricks to closing the deal. McIlroy may have tried to arrange a similar meeting with Tiger Woods, but as we know Tiger doesn't answer questions.

McIlroy would reveal tidbits of the conversation the most interesting of which to me had to do with allowing the competition to wilt. Jack told him one of the tricks was patience, playing well but waiting for the field to make a mistake. Nicklaus said it was how he won the bulk of tournaments, rarely did he actually have to 'win' to win. The Golden Bear even went so far as to say that the best tournament he ever played he finished runner-up, the 1977 British Open at Turnberry.

The admittance of waiting for fellow competitors to "wilt" should bring some validity to the strength of today's tournament fields. The knock on today's Tour Pros has been that they hand Tiger tournaments by giving up a stroke at crucial moments or just plain folding when he is in contention. With what Nicklaus said he admitted that the players he faced in his day did largely the same thing. Shouldn't this quiet the question of if Tiger surpasses Jack with the most majors won that maybe he did so against lesser competition? Who actually beat the better players?

With what Nicklaus told McIlroy the parallel has been created between the Bear Era and the Tiger Era. Sure Tiger and Jack both have made clutch shots and clutch putts to win, and both have lapped the field a time or two on the biggest stages; it's what separates them from the rest. However, it's the amount of times the two have played well and waited for a mistake from the closest challengers that levels the fields. It makes the contemporaries of Woods and Nicklaus, well, contemporaries.

What do you think?

The Back Nine: Honda Classic

2010-03-08T17:26:00.000-05:00

My predictions for the Honda were stamped with comic book sound effect words. Ironically, despite all of the 'Zaps' and 'Pows' I neglected pick eventual winner and obvious comic book choice, Camilo "Spider-Man" Villegas. I actually had him starting on my fantasy squad last week which looked like a great pick until he decided he couldn't break par on the weekend. Regardless, Villegas has been playing great golf so far in 2010 but had yet to close the deal. With a five shot victory at the Honda the deal was closed with vigor.

Alright so I didn't have the winner in my Front Nine, again. Here's who I did have:

1. Lee Westwood - Although he finished eleven strokes behind Villegas it was still good enough for a top ten. The final round 68 came on a day when rounds under par were few and far between. Leap frogging twenty spots to finish T9 saved this pick. Grade: B+

2. Rory McIlroy - The third round was a killer for my hero (have I mentioned that he's my hero). The five over 75 left him in nowheresville. A closing 69 did vault him twenty-five spots to a T40, but you should finish better than tied for two score when you climb that fast. Grade: C-

3. Y.E. Yang - Oh boy. Last year's Honda champion opened with 79. He missed the cut, which was +3 mind you, by six shots. I give him a Y if it were a qualifying grade, but this will have to do. Grade: F-

4. Ernie Els - The Big Easy finished T5...as far as last place is concerned. He made the cut on the number and decided not to stray to far from the back. Grade: D-

5. Paul Casey - A rough 73 to open the tournament was amended by two of the next three rounds in the 60's during a difficult week. A closing 67 jumped Casey six spots to a T4. Grade:A-

6. Charles Howell III - Chuck sorta gritted it out this week, never getting much going but not letting it get away from him either. The T26 inspires such descriptors as okay, alright and ehh. Grade: C

7. Anthony Kim - I predicted Kim would not have another third round 76 like he suffered in Phoenix. I was right, he shot 73 instead. An even par third round would have at least made a tournament out it. However, Kim once again was showed up by a player who is honing his skills with the clubs, not honing his game at the clubs. Despite it being on talent alone, AK still finished solo second. Grade: A-

8. Graeme McDowell - 68, 67 to start made this look like a genius pick. 71, 76 to finish killed the dream. Plummeting twenty-three spots on Sunday to T31 made this a tough pill to swallow. Grade: C

9. Jeev Milkha Singh - Honestly I picked JMS to complete a joke about name spellings. After the guy I comically picked one spot after McDowell finished one spot behind McDowell the joke was on me. Grade: C-

This was my best overall week so far, and was a few strokes from being really solid. Quite the opposite of what you look for in a handicap I feel I am trending up.

My Overall Grade: C+

The Front Nine: Honda Classic

2010-03-04T10:02:00.000-05:00

The Front/Back Nine was on hiatus last week due to an increased work load for the Golf Potato's alter ego. The Clark Kent Potato only makes money at the job and not from the blog so priority was taken. In addition to some extra work this week I have to start packing to move down the road in the next few weeks. So, my picks for the Honda will be laid out and the reasons will be as brief as possible.

1. Lee Westwood - #4 player in the world. Done.

2. Rory McIlroy - My hero. What.

3. Y.E. Yang - Won last year. Pow.

4. Ernie Els - Won the year before. Blammo.

5. Paul Casey - #6 in the world. Kazow.

6. Charles Howell III - Recently watched Tiger hit golf balls. Zap.

7. Anthony Kim - Disastrous 3rd round 76 last week won't be repeated. Shoom.

8. Graeme McDowell - Anyone so focused on their game they don't take the time to correct the misspelling of their first name is worth taking a look at. Zing.

9. Jeev Milkha Singh - Anyone so focused on their game they don't take take the time to correct the misspelling of their entire name is worth an even a stronger look. Hi-Oh.

Tiger Woods: The Speech

2010-02-19T12:16:00.001-05:00

Okay, the speech was delivered. Tiger apologized to people, took the blame and wasn't sure when he'd back to play. Did we learn anything? Not much. Tiger delivered a speech, but he didn't say much of anything. Did he write the speech? Most of it? Some of it? Tough to tell.

Would he have even delivered a speech if it wasn't step 9 of the 12 steps? I don't think so. If he offered this speech freely and not as part of a program he would have and should have months ago. We would have received the same information a month or two ago so why wait? Because he wasn't to that stage of the program yet.

I'll admit I was a little confused when Tiger admitted to a "sense of entitlement" leading to his transgressions. The confusing part to me is that I thought he had a sexual addiction. However, he said today that essential he thought he had worked hard enough and achieved enough professional success that he deserved to get laid whenever he felt like it. The entitlement takes away the 'need' for sex. I actually appreciate the admission because it brings him to our level a bit more than being a sex addict did. He is ungodly wealthy, famous and as such had women throwing themselves at him and like many regular folks put in that situation he took advantage.

The most disappointing statement of the speech was "This is a private matter between a husband and a wife". He basically said he will never answer a direct question about this fiasco, ever.

The overall feeling I got from this was that not much will change with Woods the way people wanted. He will not become more fan friendly, and certainly not more media friendly. Sadly he will probably become more publicly robotic than he had been before, and not the "real" guy we as golf fans hoped to see. He has every right to want to shield his family, but publicly Woods needed to become more open about himself. I fear the divide between Woods and his fans will become an intentional chasm, rather than a figurative embrace.

What do you think?

Front Nine: WGC Accenture Match Play

2010-02-17T10:24:00.000-05:00

Rather than pick nine players to watch out for I have selected the outcome of all 64 matches. I did so last year and feel I should fail publicly one more time. Click Here to see my picks and feel free to laugh uncontrollably as my players fall like dominoes.

I'm not sure if you've heard but Tiger Woods is not playing this week. Neither is Phil Mickelson, World #3. Phil is on vacation with his family and Tiger is, well, let's not go there. In any case I still love this event because of the format as I have long been an advocate for more match play. The structure of the event allows for showcasing far more than a few marquee names who happen to be the afternoon tee times on a Thursday. With the top 64 players in the world playing head-to-head American fans are able to watch players from the European and other tours that they would not be exposed to normally.

Good luck to everyone who filled out a bracket this year and I look forward to a great week of match play!

Back Nine: AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am

2010-02-14T23:40:00.000-05:00

After picking the winner last week and some descent also-rans, my second week of the Nine's started with even greater promise. The promise quickly evaporated. Let's thank those who made this all possible:

1. Sergio Garcia - Thanks for the final round 77 there Serg. El Nino opted to use Sunday's round to plummet 32 spots and finish with a stellar T-52. Grade: D+

2. Luke Donald - At least Luke finished inside the Top 20 for the old Golf Potato. Two closing 71's weren't enough maintain the Top 10 position he had after a second round 65. What I really would like to thank Lukers for was the final hole double-bogey that kept him out of the Top 10. It was his only score higher than bogey for than entire week. Grade: C+

3. Kevin Na - Thanks for the consistent weekend Kevin. Sadly the consistency came in the form of a pair of 74's. But hey, he held firm at T-56 on Sunday. One more stroke and the next place to go was T-61, and we certainly couldn't have that. Whatever. Grade: D

4. Jim Furyk - Jim started Sunday tied with the likes of Sergio at the 20th position. At least he didn't hemorrhage as many strokes in the final round as Sergio did, but a closing 74 is little consolation. Jim fell fifteen spots to a T-35. Like Luke Donald, Furyk had one double-bogey all week and chucked it up on Sunday, on a par five. Thanks for three rounds in the 60's and then horfing up the 2-over par. Grade: C-

5. Retief Goosen - Thanks for making this grade easy to assign. Goose missed the cut by a stroke. Grade: F

6. Sean O'Hair - The good news, O'Hair moved up eleven spots on Sunday. The bad news, it was to tie for 35th. Sean also joined the group of Golf Potato mediocrity by taking a double on Sunday, and as with my other picks it was his only one of the week. Grade: C-

7. Matt Kuchar - Withdrew. Thanks. Grade: N/A

8. Mike Weir - Thanks for opening with a bogey free 67! Double thanks for not breaking par the rest of the week. T-52 Mike, T-52. Grade: D

9. Phil Mickelson - An actual sincere thanks for being the only pick in the Top Ten this week. The alarming stat is the three rounds in the 60's and a T-8 all came while being ranked 60th in putting this week. Imagine if that revamped putting stroke was working this week. Maybe for the Open. Right Phil? Grade: B+

Okay so this week I had only one guy miss the cut as opposed to the three last week. However, I had four guys in the top 25 last week including the winner, and only two this week (with decidedly no winners). For the second straight week it's a good thing I'm only an aspiring expert.

Overall Grade: D+

Front Nine: AT&T Pro-Am

2010-02-11T11:55:00.000-05:00

After a rough opening week to the Front/Back Nine series the Golf Potato hopes to recover quickly. Here are this week's players holding the proverbial wedge to get me out of trouble:

1. Sergio Garcia - I have seen a few rounds of Sergio's Euro Tour play and I have to say he looked pretty good. Not in that swarthy Spaniard kind of way, his game looked good. The biggest improvement was the putter which last year packed it's bags and filed for divorce. I like his chances to play well in California.

2. Luke Donald - Last week's runner up has long been a "Steady Eddie" type of pick. He traditionally hits a lot of fairways and greens, has a solid short game and can roll the ball on the greens. Injury stopped Luke at the Accenture Match Play last year, ending a very hot start to the 2009.

3. Kevin Na - Kevin "Na Na Naahh" Na is the antithesis of the Luke Donald pick. Na has a world of talent but is a 50/50 shot every week to play well or catch an early flight. The real prediction with Na is this: at some point in the television coverage you will see Kevin drop his club at the end of his swing, signifying a hozelmonster headed towards a spectator's dome. Still, Na tends to play his best golf on the West Coast swing so I'll pick him to have the hozelmonster shank prevent him from winning, not miss the cut.

4. Jim Furyk - "Fists Of" Furyk's worst finish at the AT&T in the past five years is a T39 at 4-under par. As noted from last week, Jim finished strong with two weekend rounds in the 60's. I look for a top ten out of Furyk this week.

5. Retief Goosen - The Goose has finished T6 and solo 4th in two PGA Tour starts this year. Last year he finished solo 3rd at this event. I will be so bold as to confidently say this could be your winner this week, maybe.

6. Sean O'Hair - I love Sean's game. The only thing I worry about with O'Hair is whether or not he is getting enough to eat.==>

7. Matt Kuchar - Matt finally seems to be matching his talent with the pro game. He has gotten off to a great start this year with a solo 2nd and 3rd in four events. In the past three years at the AT&T, Kuchar has finished with a T6 and a T14, even during not so great years statistically. Maybe he just likes being paired up with celebrities.

8. Mike Weir - The Canadian Lefty (not a political statement) was runner up at this event last year. Steve Stricker ended up winning last week after having been runner up the year before. Hmmm. I know Weir missed the cut last week but he finished towards the bottom last year at Riviera, and missed the cut the year before that. Hogan's Alley just doesn't seem to agree with him. Not to worry, historically the AT&T is right up Weir's alley.

9. Phil Mickelson - Phil's good, really good. He could win and should factor. That's it.

Oldies But Goodies

2010-02-09T10:03:00.000-05:00

At the end of last year's golf season in Vermont I was chatting with one of the club's members about pros we love that tend to fly under the radar. The one we were in total agreement about was Miguel Angel Jimenez. Nicknamed "The Mechanic", Jimenez lives a life we should all envy. For starters he plays golf for a living, and a very good one. Second, his play is as finely developed as his palette for wine and cigars.Third, if his physique is any indication, this guy is just straight chillin' at all times.

The end of our conversation was an idea, an epic, epic idea. We decided we should get in touch with Jimenez's people (lord knows he has to have people) to set up a book. The idea was that from the first of the year through the Masters in early April we would follow Jimenez on the road to the first major. We would hang with the guy who makes hanging seem like a profession. The book's title; The Mechanic: Tuning Up For The Masters. Anyone know Miguel's people?

In any case, The Mechanic took the Dubai Desert Classic this past week, beating world #4 Lee Westwood in a playoff. Despite only hitting about half of the fairways, Jimenez kept knocking it stiff with the irons. At 46, the win is the 16th overall for the crafty Spaniard.

Speaking of oldies but goodies, you know who finished with a top ten (T8) and was by far the highest American finisher? Sixty year old Tom Watson. Furthering his legacy as one of, if not the best, ball strikers of all-time Watson showed once again he can still play with anyone. Official distance for the Emirates GC is 7301 yards. To put that in perspective, the next PGA Tour stop is at Pebble Beach, 6800 yards and change. Distance is not a problem for Old Tom, even at 60 years old. The finish in Dubai also lessens the idea that last year's run at the British Open was a fluke. Tom Watson, when his putter isn't yippy, is still one of the better players in the world.

The Back Nine: Northern Trust

2010-02-09T00:11:00.002-05:00

Okay, grading time. You may want to put on goggles and a plastic rain poncho to help shield you from the Gallagher-like Sledge-o-matic spray. Fruit, however, will not be sacrificed for your entertainment. No no. I will be crushing my picks with sudden, brute force. Here we go!

1. Phil Mickelson - Thanks Phil. Really. The bid for a third straight win at Riviera ended with second straight final round 73. Lefty finished in a smooth T45...Thanks for playing. D

2. Steve Stricker - Hey there, a winner! Stricker lit it up in the rain on Friday and held off challengers Luke Donald, J.B. Holmes and Dustin Johnson. The win and Phil Mickelson's monumental Top 50 finish gives Stricker the #2 world ranking, dropping Phil to #3. A+

3. Robert Allenby - Allenby's hot start cooled a bit and he finished T27, eleven strokes back. I said I didn't see him winning (cause I never really see him winning), but I didn't give the previous week's penalty stroke laden finish enough credit. C

4. Davis Love III - Maybe Davis needed to watch that '92 highlight recap on Golf Channel that got me all fired up about the pick. The cut was 144, DLIII ended up at 145. I wish I knew how to write a bomb dropping sound to describe this pick. F

5. Charles Howell III - Good call Potato. That Roman numeral might as well have been the sign of the beast this week. A second round 76 lead to a 148 total and a missed cut. Numerically speaking Chuck was my worst call of the week. I wish I knew how to write a wet fart sound to decide this pick. F

6. Brandt Snedeker - Breadeker, or Breads as I have just decided to call him, finished T20. Nothing stellar, nothing terrible and another Top 25 for the Bread Maker. C+

7. Adam Scott - Ever just want to reach back and punch yourself right in the face? I put the disclaimer on this one as being a real long shot. I was an idiot for making the pick in the first place, disclaimer or no. Two easy 73's lead to yet another missed cut for one of the great let down talents in the game. My thoughts about the President's Cup experience were about as solid as the 146 Scott excreted all over Riviera. That was officially the last time Adam Scott will make the Front Nine in 2010. F

8. Jim Furyk - The 2010 debut for Jimmy "Fists Of" Furyk was a T20. The encouraging part is he got stronger as the week went on, finishing with two rounds in the 60's. I look for Furyk to build off the weekend. C+

9. Ernie Els - My second best pick aside from Stricker. The Big Easy ended up T10, book-ending two 70's with two 68's. He really looks to be regaining his form, finishing well even when he doesn't have everything working at 100%. B

My first week included the winner and four players in the Top 25 (including the winner) out of nine picks. I also had the pleasure of watching a third of my picks not even make the cut. Adam Scott...What the hell was I thinking?

Overall Grade: D+

The Front Nine: Northern Trust

2010-02-04T00:16:00.001-05:00

So I had this thought...I said "Golf Potato, you should write a series prior to each week's event called the The Front Nine. What you would do is pick nine players (in no particular order) to watch for as potential winners or high finishers. Then at the end of the tournament you could write The Back Nine, reviewing your predictions. The Back Nine would be a report card style piece, patting yourself on the back for good calls and ripping yourself a new one for the bad calls. The idea being that you are not an expert (yet), but you're tired of the "experts" throwing their predictions out there and then not being graded for them, good or bad, on a week to week basis. I shall be graded!" I talk to myself like this frequently, parentheses, air quotes, exclamation points and all...man I'm a headcase.

So here's the inaugural installment of the Golf Potato's weekly series The Front Nine.

The Northern Trust Open at Riviera Country Club

1. Phil Mickelson - Whoa, here's a stretch. The #2 player in the world and he won this tournament the last two years. Save for a lousy final round last week Phil was right in the fray at Torrey Pines. Lefty loves this golf course and a few more quality swings than last week may be all the difference.

2. Steve Stricker - Wisconsin's finest has opened the season strong, with two top ten finishes in as many starts. Stricker was runner up to Phil last year at Riviera and if not for a shaky driver down the stretch may have won it outright.

3. Robert Allenby - Like Stricker, Allenby has two top ten finishes in as many starts. Allenby finished second last week thanks to some late penalty strokes. I don't see him winning this week (mostly because I don't really see him winning any week) but another top ten is very feasible.

4. Davis Love III - I saw the 1992 tournament highlights on Golf Channel this morning with DLIII and Freddy Couples rocking it out and I got all fired up about this pick. DLIII has played only the Sony this year and finished a solid T5. Also, remember last year when he wanted to make the Masters field and started playing some really good golf, but ended up the odd man out. Right now Love is #76 in the world golf rankings and a strong finish could get him into the field at the Accenture Match Play. Nothing like mini-goals Davis, nothing like mini-goals. Fun side-note on DLIII, he's almost 46 and currently leading the Tour in driving distance.

5. Charles Howell III - Something about that Roman numeral this week. Actually Charles, or Chuck as I like to yell at the television, has had a great start to 2010. He has two top ten finishes in three starts, and despite going 19-under at The Hope had to settle for T26. Chuck has a pair of runner-ups at this event, most recently in 2007 a couple strokes behind one Tiger Woods.

6. Brandt Snedeker - Speaking of 2007 at Riviera, guess who finished 3rd behind TW and CHIII. Breadeker, as I have just now decided to call him, finished T2 last week and T10 the week before. I'd love to see this guy get a win the same 'deserving underdog' reason I'd love to see New Orleans take home the Lombardi Trophy. How cool would that be if it happened on the same day?

7. Adam Scott - This may be one of those picks that makes me look the fool. Last year was such a disaster for Scott that picking him to simply make a cut was a long shot, let alone to contend or win. But I think the President's Cup might have done the trick and Riviera has been kind to him in the past.

8. Jim Furyk - Making his 2010 debut, everybody's favorite grinder will tee it up at Riviera. Furyk really is a long shot pick because he hasn't played this event all that often and is still looking to crack the top 30 when he has played. Last year was sort of a dud for Furyk. He played some stellar final rounds to take a second or third place finish, but never really pieced together four good ones. I like him to be refocused and let's face it, when he's playing well he can win anywhere, including Riviera.

9. Ernie Els - The Golf Potato's preseason pick to be Comeback Player of the Year would certainly help the cause with a win this week. Ernie has finished T12 at this years' Bob Hope and last week was T5 at Torrey Pines. Steady improvement, eh Ernie.

Taking Sides

2010-01-28T20:30:00.000-05:00

So when Phil Mickelson held his press conference on Wednesday we got a great deal of info, some the media didn't even have to ask to get. Admittedly I didn't see the press conference (three cheers for work) and read about it online instead. What I read was Phil being open and honest with great intent. I am not going to say that it was necessary for Phil rattle on for 35 minutes or that it accomplished much of anything except to announce he has grand plans for this season and is worker harder than ever before.

What I was actual surprised to find out was how many people not only don't like Phil, but down right hate him. After the few articles I read recapping the press conference there were pages and pages of comments expressing either huge pro-Phil support or sheer disdain for the man. The Phil-haters all seemed to think the press conference was Lefty's way to fire at Tiger while Woods' guns are holstered.

For sure the overall theme of the commenting was if you are pro Woods you are very anti Mickelson and vice versa. Has golf fandom become split down the middle? Probably not, because it was never just about these two anyway. A few hundred guys will play during the course of the season, not a few. It does, however, bring up a question; Is a split amongst the fans over the two most popular players a good or bad thing for the PGA Tour?

Despite being a golf first personalities second person, I think a Woods camp v. Mickelson camp could be a good thing. I look at baseball, specifically the Yankees and Red Sox rivalry. These two teams represent the bulk of baseball fans, and the rivalry itself has at times single-handedly driven the sport. As in this instance with Woods and Mickelson the fans of the Yanks and Sox almost hate the other team more than they love their own. Whichever side of the fence you are on the rivalry drives interest and most importantly viewership.

The inherent problem is unlike the MLB, the PGA can't schedule eighteen or nineteen head-to-head meetings between the two...or can they? Hear me out. What if golf explored a team concept for the regular season leading into the FedEx Cup playoffs? Tournaments would still be played individually but players are assigned to one of six or eight teams pre-season based on world ranking. As FedEx points are accrued the teams are whittled down to the twelve highest point earners each for the Fed Ex playoffs. The highest point earner on each team is the Captain of the squad. The highest twelve man team point total becomes the #1 seed, #2 seed is the second highest twelve man total and so on. The FedEx Cup Playoffs then become single elimination, team match-play, Ryder Cup style tournaments with the possibility for instituting a "first tournament bye" for the #1 and #2 seeds. The Captains would set the lineups for alternate shot and best ball play as well as the singles. The team members on the bye are rewarded by being able to practice at the second round site during the week of the opening round. The winning team are FedEx Cup champions and each team member gets a million dollar bonus for winning instead of $10 million to one player for having the best overall season by points. A bonus of some sort is paid to each of the 72 or 96 players who make their playoff teams.

The point is that players like Woods and Mickelson would not find themselves on the same FedEx teams thanks to their assumed high world rankings. For example, this year they would be the first player placed on each of the first two teams by being ranked #1 and #2 in the world. Thus an opportunity to do battle for something meaningful at the end of the season for the golfers and for the fans who would no doubt have forged their allegiances. Get your Mickelson or Woods jersey now!

The idea may be really far fetched to some readers, but just think how much fun a real golf playoffs would be.

Torrey Pines: Memories and a Reminder

2010-01-26T23:57:00.000-05:00

I read Bob Harig's piece on Rocco Mediate (the most popular major runner-up ever) making his 2010 return to to the PGA Tour and Torrey Pines. Apparently Rocco is still being thanked for what he did at the '08 U.S. Open and there are warm and fuzzy feelings abound. That tournament was a whale as majors go and I still think the second nine on Saturday was the greatest prelude to a major Sunday I have ever seen. Rocco pushed Woods to make that jumpy fifteen footer on the seventy-second hole and then pushed Woods into extra holes after the Monday playoff. All great stuff.

The Monday playoff is why Torrey Pines conjures up not only great memories, but a very negative reminder. It reminds me that I hate the Monday playoff system in the U.S. Open. I know hate is a strong word, but I've thought it over just now and I most certainly hate the Monday playoff.

There are two major problems with this major playoff system. For starters it happens on a Monday and lots of people work on Mondays. People like say, me, in 2008. You have just watched an amazing weekend of major championship golf, perhaps at the risk of marital stability, and you are essentially given the "to be continued..." of sport. Monday's work day ends and you flick on the television to see
Tiger closing out Mediate with a par on the 19th hole of the day. Sigh.

The second problem is that it's 18-holes of stroke play to decide the winner. Of course the 18-hole format is why they have to wait to play on Monday so one problem facilitates the other. A few holes of stroke play or a sudden death deal are the only ways to go. I shouldn't have to steal a glimpse of a .com leaderboard on a ten minute delay to find out how the premier major in the world is finishing out.

Had the 2008 U.S. Open finished on Sunday it would probably have supplanted the 2000 PGA as the best major championship I have ever seen. The real kicker is that the playoff was just as good as the weekend play, but I saw none of it live and that killed it for me. So, to the USGA, please consider reformatting the U.S. Open playoff system. I would prefer to never again see a major championship finale in "recap" form.

Abu Dhabi Day 2 Highlights

2010-01-23T09:54:00.000-05:00

A star studded field features Rory McIlroy (my hero), Ian Poulter and Martin Kaymer (last year's Golf Potato breakout star prediction) chasing Sergio Garcia (last year's Golf Potato first time major winner prediction).

Thanks again to Ottawa Golf Blog for the video!

Happy 70th Birthday Jack Nicklaus!

2010-01-21T12:20:00.000-05:00

Hard to believe but the Golden Bear is 70 years old. I am celebrating by revisiting the only major win of his 18 I had the opportunity to watch. For an eight year old kid this Sunday in April, watching with my father, is one of my fondest memories and cemented golf as a core part of my life. Thanks Jack and Happy Birthday!

Abu Dhabi: Rory McIlroy, Sergio Garcia & Ian Poulter

2010-01-21T12:13:00.000-05:00

Abu Dee, Abu Dah, Abu Dah Bee, La La La La Abu Dhabi

Thanks to Ottawa Golf Blog for the video!

2010 PGA Tour Prediction Time

2010-01-13T12:31:00.000-05:00

The small field in last week's SBS kicked off the 2010 season. Last year's U.S. Open champion, Lucas Glover, looked like he might run away with the tournament. Glover stumbled home on Sunday, however, giving way to Mr. January Geoff Ogilvy.

With a full field at the Sony Open in Hawaii we should get a better look at what we might expect out of the 2010 season. But why wait? Like last year's inaugural Golf Potato Predictions, I will once again throw out some prognostications for the coming PGA Tour season. For 2010 I think ten will be appropriate.

1. Young Gun You May Never Have Heard Of To Watch Out For: Webb Simpson
This was the category I got closest to getting right last year. I took Martin Kaymer of Germany last year and hinted that he may sneak in a major win at the British. Kaymer won the two European Tour events leading up to the British and hung around at Turnberry, but never threatened. As for Simpson, the 24 year old impressed me greatly last year when he made cuts. Webb brought home $1.2 million from his seventeen cuts made, eight top 25's and four top 10's. One of those top 10's was a solo ninth at this week's Sony Open. I like his game and although I'm not ready to say a major might be close I could easily see a breakthrough Tour win happening this year.

2. Most Likely To Improve on 2009: Steve Stricker
Stricker had a tremendous 2009, with three wins and finishing second only to Tiger Woods in the Fed Ex Cup standings. Stricker then paired up with Woods at the President's Cup and made just about every putt he looked at all week. Stricker also played a ton of rounds with Woods during the Fed Ex Cup playoffs, and played very well. Usually that much time in Tiger's shadow gets to players, but Stricker seemed to get mentally stronger every round. Improving on his 2009 performance may seem a tall order but I think he has it in him. The way he grew into his natural talent last year, especially playing so well alongside Woods so often leads me to think the sky may be the limit for Stricker in 2010.

3. Player Most Likely To Win His First Major: Rory McIlroy
Have I mentioned this kid is my hero? I have? Oh good, then you know. So here's the deal, Rory will be turning 21 in May, but he carries himself like a seasoned veteran. Last year he won the Dubai Desert Classic and then finished with two top 10's in majors, a T-10 at the U.S. Open and T-3 at the PGA. This kid has game, crazy game. So much game that I like his chances at any of the four major venues this year, but watch out in Wisconsin at the PGA.

4. Comeback Player Of the Year: Ernie Els
The Big Easy went winless on the PGA Tour last year. He did, however, close the 2009 campaign in strong fashion with second place finishes at the Barclay's and HSBC. He also took a T-6 at the PGA Championship. Especially at the HSBC, Els looked like the Ernie of old. A win or two this year could easily be in the cards.

5. United States Ryder Cup Captain's Picks: Ben Curtis and Davis Love III
This is of course assuming neither of these guys earn enough points to automatically qualify. Curtis is an under the radar type player that I think can partner with just about anyone. DLIII is a Ryder Cup legend and showed signs his game was returning last year. If Davis has the game come September he is like having an Assistant Captain playing for the team. Secretly I would love to see Capt. Pavin take Fred Couples and DLIII and play them as a pair every other round, but that ain't gonna happen.

6. PGA Tour Rookie Of The Year: Rickie Fowler
It may be the easy pick considering the hype, but so was Ryan Moore a few years back and he is just coming around now. Unlike Moore, Fowler stepped into the professional ranks and made noise immediately, almost making enough in three events to earn a 2010 Tour card outright; making a playoff at the Frys.com and T-7s at both the Justin Timberlake Shriners and the Shark Shootout. Fowler has a go-for-broke style and should he be paired with say an Anthony Kim you may think you're watching golf being played inside a Vegas casino.

7. 2009 Major Winner Most Likely To Win Another In 2010: Angel Cabrera
This was a close race between "El Pato" and Stewart Cink. In the end it came down to Angel's extra major win. Granted Kenny Perry folded the Masters to Cabrera, but no one played better on Sunday than The Duck did at the 2007 U.S. Open.

8. Best Major Of 2010: The PGA Championship
If history repeats itself Tiger Woods will square off in a Sunday duel of epic proportions with a relative unknown at "Glory's Last Shot". The reasoning is simple, just like in 2000 the U.S. Open is at Pebble Beach, The British Open at St. Andrews and they still haven't changed the venue for the Masters. Instead of Valhalla in 2000 we have a phenomenal golf course in Whistling Straits this year. The course made a huge splash as host of the 2004 PGA yielding a three-way playoff with eventual champ Vijay Singh, Chris Dimarco and Justin Leonard.The wild and wispy layout in Kohler, Wisconsin is perfect for a major and I predict it to be the most entertaining of the year.

9. Best Chance To Win The Grand Slam: Tiger Woods
Look, he has the best chance every year. However, as stated in #8 we have the same basic major setup as 2000 when Tiger rattled off three majors. Should Woods decide to make the Masters his first tournament of 2010 I think he ruins that chance, but we'll see.

10. 2010 PGA Tour Player Of The Year: Phil Mickelson
Never, and I mean never, has the opportunity to supplant Tiger Woods as the World #1 been better for Lefty. The way Phil put it to Tiger in the final events of '09 the 2010 season was already shaping up as a chance for Mickelson to take down Woods. Now with all of Tiger's of the course issues and Phil setup to be more of a fan favorite than ever Lefty has nothing to do but showoff his unbelievable talent. What better place to get that elusive U.S. Open than Pebble? What better time snag a couple majors in the same year? What better time?

PGA Tour A House Of Cards?

2010-01-03T23:35:00.001-05:00

For all those freaking out about the state of golf, specifically the PGA Tour, with all of the Tiger Woods ha-bub; relax. Tiger will play golf again, sometime in the next few months probably, and he'll win again, probably in the same time frame. Unsettling as it may be to find out the golf deity turned out not only to be fallible, but seriously fallible, he is still the best in the game and the game wants him back. Now there are those who wonder if it makes no difference when Tiger comes back to play because the Tour may already have suffered the death blow. Take this statement from Tom Lehman for example;

"You can't ever build your whole house on one brick," said PGA Tour star Tom Lehman. "That's what the Tour did. You can't really blame them. It's kind of a Catch-22. You can have a guy that is SO good and makes things SO much better, it's like everybody else doesn't exist. But now what? The Tour has to try to market some of the other really good players it has. It has to try to build a house of cards that doesn't fall apart when one card falls, but I don't know. It might be too late."

Too late? Too late! A house of cards!? Look, the Tour got along just fine after Jack and before Tiger. Relax. When you win 14 majors and over 70 tournaments in a just over a decade no additional marketing is required. The hype about Tiger was built through his junior and amateur achievements. Then all Woods did was take the hype and live up to it on the course. The Tour is not responsible for building a house on one brick. It was never meant to showcase one player and have everyone else an extra in the film. Tom also needs to remember that Tiger plays about half the events. So what has the Tour done in Tiger's off time (apparently spent doing...alright we'll leave that one be)? Laid down and died? No, world class golfers played world class golf. As I pointed out last year the other Tour stops may want to steal a page or two from the FBR (Phoenix) Open. Tiger hasn't played in Scottsdale for years and yet well over a half million people show up during the week. Proof you don't need Woods to draw a huge crowd, just make it an event.

A statement like Lehman's also implies a fear shared by some that Tiger might never play golf again or that when he does it won't matter because he's ruined. Lower the threat meter a notch or two. Tiger will play again and win and people will start to do what they did before; respect his talent. Tiger was never a media darling to begin with or personable with the commoners in the crowds. It was always about his pursuit for history and how he was going to do it through will, desire and effort. Fanfare and crowd inspiration never seemed part of the deal with Woods. Like that certain someone you intentionally ignored in high school to get their attention we ate it up and basked in his professional glory as he walked by us all. Now through his personal foibles any respect outside the game will be difficult to earn back unless Tiger pulls a total one-eighty and levels with us, but that seems unlikely. Make no mistake though, he will come back, he will win and like it or not we will watch.

Personally for me what I find hardest about all of this hoopla and negative press is this; it is unprecedented for golf to have this happen. As a club professional I have always taken great pride in the history of the game, the etiquette and especially that golf was never a part of the tabloids/police blotter thanks to being a gentleman's game. The worst 'pub' was along the lines of Steve Williams calling out Phil Mickelson for not showing the proper respect for being Tiger's caddy. Whoa, scandalous. With the hint that steroids are being used and now this mess with Tiger's indiscretions golf is now finding itself wrapped up in ugliness it had always easily avoided. However, it's not too late Tom. As the saying goes, this too shall pass. The 2010 season is set to begin and I for one am excited. Let the cards fall where they may, not build the foundation.