Average Golfer

Woods vs Mickelson in Shanghai Showdown

juniorshep@gmail.com (Average Golfer) — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 08:14:35 PST

Tiger Woods will spot Phil Mickelson two strokes in the final round of the WGC-HSBC Champions event to be held later today in Shanghai, China. The pairing of the superstars in the last round isn't really a common occurrence. It should make for compelling viewing commencing on The Golf Channel at 11:00 PM, EST. Thoughts of Jones/Hagen or Nicklaus/Palmer come to mind in the set up for a rare late season match up worth watching. Let's hope it lives up to at least part of the hype.

Woods carried a one stroke advantage over Phil beginning yesterday's round, but Mickelson made short work of the deficit. His 67, including a back nine 33, gave him the two shot cushion at -14 over Woods and American Nick Watney. Ryan Moore remains within sniffing distance at -11. Woods' third round 70 was marred by a rather pedestrian back nine 36, reinforced by many players finding out that birdies were in short supply. In birdieing 3 of his last 5 holes Mickelson was the only player in the top 18 to break 70. Lee Westwood carded a stellar 65 to come in at -10 and place himself back in the conversation.

Dream pairings don't often match the build up, but if this one does it may set the tone for a very interesting 2010 season. A Mickelson victory over Woods in a head to head match up would be frosting on his 2009 cake and shoot him into 2010 with a confidence injection. It would come on the heels of his TOUR Championship victory in Atlanta and indicate Phil's back in good form after a personally tumultuous 2009 marred by his wife Amy's and his mother's cancer diagnosis. This will make the 25th time Woods and Mickelson have gone "mano y mano" in the final round of a tournament and the 1st time since 2005 at Doral. In the 24 previous meetings Woods has posted the better score in 12, Mickelson in 8, and 4 have ended in ties.

May the best man win.

Til' next,

WGC - HSBC Champions, Shanghai Surprise

juniorshep@gmail.com (Average Golfer) — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 21:24:16 PST

Forget the obvious irony about holding a $7,000,000 golf tournament in a communist country, this week's WGC-HSBC Champions event at Shanghai International Golf Club is the real deal with actual top ranked players. Woods/Mickelson is enough to catch this Average Golfer's interest. Throwing in defending champ Sergio, Paddy Harrington, Geoff Ogilvy, and Henrik Stenson just adds to their worldwide street cred. Despite being officially declared a World Golf Championship event just 6 months ago, the fledgling tourney has managed to attract 15 of the world's top 20 stick men. Not bad for a November tournament being contested well after many players, (see Americans), have hung up the clubs for the year.

The PGA Tour however needs to do a bit of rearranging to make this must-play tour stop. You see, the Tour doesn't count this week's purse in their year long money earnings list. If they expect this to play as it's US based WGC brethren, they need to make the winnings count toward the top 125 list and validate the event. I would imagine this will happen in the not too distant future, but still find it hard to believe they didn't accomplish it when they granted WGC status.

No one need look any further than this tournament being held in Shanghai to witness the future of growth in golf. The economy has dragged the game down in the US and other traditional capitalist societies. Look East to find the cash stockpiles and fresh population bases to propel the game forward. Better get used to setting the Tivo for time zones heretofore undiscovered. The next Tiger Woods may well speak Mandarin, and that's not necessarily a bad thing.

Til' next,

The Art Of Scoring - By Stan Utley

juniorshep@gmail.com (Average Golfer) — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 16:32:11 PDT

The Art Of Scoring
By: Stan Utley
With Matthew Rudy

An Average Golfer Book Review

We all know the guy, or perhaps you're the guy, that blasts it by everyone in the foursome, is on or around most greens in regulation, but can't score. The idea is to put the ball in the cup in as few shots as possible, isn't it? Truth be told we could all use some help in that department and Stan Utley's aim is to help us in that quest. Stan's techniques must be sound since he's developed himself quite an impressive following in the professional ranks. His stable of clients include Sergio Garcia, Jay Haas, Rocco Mediate, and Paul McGinley. No lightweights there.

Stan breaks the short game down in his recent book to what he terms "basic" shots, the shots you'll typically need in the vast majority of situations involving the short game. His "basic pitch shot" is the first he teaches and with good reason, it's most likely used the most. He painstakingly details grip, posture, and technique so a sound understanding of his theories is easy to grasp and picture. In similar fashion he follows with the "basic bunker shot" and "basic lag putt". Good photos and explanation make a quick read of what many times in golf instructionals could be mistaken as a sleep aid. Stan continues with three shots that confound many amateurs and pile on strokes. He simplifies the 30 - 50 yard pitch, the shot from the rough near the hole, and the dreaded long bunker shot. Any improvement on those three is an instant stroke shaver for must of us. Stan draws interesting comparisons between a bunker shot and shots around the greens with the point being that decent fundamentals on the important types of short game shots will give us an answer for almost any predicament. He explains well his desire to let size of your pivot and speed of your turn determine distance in the short game. That provides consistency of results, something we all crave.

Stan lends some particular insider knowledge as to how he approaches teaching a top flight pro as well. I found some irony in that the pros suffer from very much the same swing maladies as us mortals, just on a higher starting plane. A large chapter is devoted to putting strategy including reading green slope and grass grain. The book delves into club set selection and make up as well. Mr. Utley didn't really leave many stones unturned.

The book has a "feel" aspect to it as opposed to many golf guides that are rather technical and seemingly impossible to incorporate into your own game. This book leaves you with the idea that you've just gained some kind of inside advantage that will pay quick dividends in your next round. Stan wisely informs us that we can have a much improved short game without starting over and ditching the swing we've had since day one. I call that practical knowledge, the most useful kind. One caveat remains though that's true of any golf instructional. Stan provides the wisdom, we have to provide the time and effort. Remember that next time you pull your driver on the practice range.

The Art Of Scoring is recommended by Average Golfer.

The Art Of Scoring, By: Stan Utley, with Matthew Rudy, Gotham Books, Available on Amazon.com.

PGA Tour's Bubble Battle for Top 125

juniorshep@gmail.com (Average Golfer) — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 16:54:16 PDT

The biggest names have shut it down for the year and are lounging on their yachts or resting in exotic locales. The rest are fighting for 2010 exempt status on the PGA Tour and the right to continue in their chosen profession. Three Fall Season events remain for the guys on or near the 125 bubble to jockey for position. Chris Stroud holds the dubious "125 spot" this week heading into the Frys.com Open in Scottsdale. The final two tourneys are the Viking Classic in Madison Mississippi and the Children's Miracle Network Classic in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. With his 2010 card in jeopardy, Stroud has still managed to accumulate $600,019 in winnings so far, not bad for a guy staring a pink slip in the face. For the record, the average tour player has won $948,105 this year. The 125 are fully exempt while 126-150 maintain partial status. Partial status means no picking and choosing your events, but playing whenever and wherever you can get in. Full's definitely the way to go.

Prominent names that need to make a significant move to keep their cards include Tim Herron at 134, Ryder Cup captain Corey Pavin at 142, Tom Pernice Jr. at 144, and Tom Lehman at 147, although Lehman's played some Champion's Tour events this year. Rocco Mediate at 151 needs a push. Jason Gore and Masters champion Trevor Immelman are at 153 and 154 respectively. Billy Mayfair, a fixture on tour for a long time, is right behind them at 156. Probably needing at least a win in the last three weeks would include Shaun Micheel, 177, Shigeki Maruyama, 178, and Steve Elkington, 183. Tommy "Two Gloves" Gainey is most likely relegated to the Nationwide Tour at 201. John Daly sits at 215, which is higher than Len Mattiace and Brad Faxon at 226 and 227. Current Full Money List.

The pressure cooker involved in keeping your card is probably greater than closing a tournament. It ensures your working papers for another year. That twist makes the Fall Season worth watching even with the marquee names absent. Human interest stories all over the course. Every shot counts and all the other cliches apply. Click away from football for a bit. It may turn out to be high drama.

Til' next,