Golf Capsules: On The Fringe - An important Ryder Cup for Tiger
NEW YORK (AP) — Tiger Woods experienced a Ryder Cup tradition for the first time Tuesday.
Corey Pavin sat at the head table on the seventh floor of the New York Stock Exchange and announced his four captain's picks to reporters and PGA of America dignitaries. The players, so thrilled to be chosen you could almost see them beaming as they listened via a conference call, were introduced one by one and asked to say "hello" to their captain.
This was new for Woods. He has led the Ryder Cup standings every time since turning pro.
"Tiger Woods, are you with us today?" PGA spokesman Julius Mason said from the podium. "Say 'good morning' to your captain and everybody else in attendance today."
An awkward silence followed.
Mason turned slightly nervous when he called out his name again, and for the briefest moment, some in the room wondered if Woods didn't bother calling in or had hung up. Mason looked relieved to finally hear Woods' voice.
The only time Woods is ever on a conference call is to accept PGA Tour player of the year or to speak to local media at a tournament where he is the defending champion. On Tuesday, he was no different than Zach Johnson, Stewart Cink and Rickie Fowler — even though he is very different.
Woods has won twice as many majors as the rest of the U.S. team combined, and nearly as many PGA Tour titles. He has been No. 1 in the world longer than seven of his teammates have been on tour.
But he still needed to be a captain's pick to play. And there's a reason for that.
True, Woods got a late start on the year when he tried to salvage a marriage that was shattered by his infidelity. He didn't play until the Masters and has competed only 11 times this year. That still should have been enough for him to qualify for the team, except that Woods had trouble finishing in the top 10.
He no longer looks invincible on the golf course.
The American team no longer can be perceived as Tiger Woods and 11 other guys wearing the same uniform. At the moment, he's not playing any better than them.
It could be the best thing that ever happened to him.
Woods is not the loner on tour that some make him out to be. At one tournament this year, he bet one of his playing partners who would shoot the lowest score over 36 holes, and the loser had to buy tickets to the movies that afternoon.
And while he privately rolls his eyes at black-tie dinners and opening ceremonies at the Ryder Cup that can feel more like a presidential inauguration, the best times of the year are spent in the team room with his fellow Americans.
"What nobody understands — it doesn't matter if it's you or my son or a fan on TV or Tiger's mom — you don't get it unless you're in the team room," said Davis Love III, an assistant captain this year. "Tiger is great in the team room. He's a smart guy. He's a talented player. He wants to do everything he can to win. He's learned how to be a quiet leader and a vocal leader. He's learned to say the right things. It's just hard to describe."
Woods makes it sound as if this Ryder Cup is no different from the others.
"I'm part of the team, and honored to be part of the team," Woods said. "Whether I was a person who was picked or a person who earned their way on the squad, it doesn't change the overall goal. It's still the same. And that's to go over there and win."
But it is different.
Woods still gets the bulk of attention because of who he is and what he has done. He will get most of the questions, and while queries into his divorce have tapered off, they are sure to come up again in the British tabloids.
Even so, he is closer than ever to being one of 12.
His relationship with Pavin is surprisingly strong. A month ago, without prompting, Woods referred to Pavin as one of the greatest players ever in golf considering his limited length in an era of power.
The day before the PGA Championship, TV reporter Jim Gray pointed his finger toward Pavin's face and chest during a dispute over an interview. Woods found out about it the next morning during a fog delay at Whistling Straits. After finishing his first round, when Gray asked a question, Woods offered a terse answer and turned his head to find the next question.
It was a not-so-subtle message that Woods had the captain's back.
Woods spent the last two days at the Deutsche Bank Championship going over the captain's picks as if he were going to be in room with Pavin and his assistants trying to decide who to take.
The only time he bristled Tuesday is when a British reporter suggested he had been indifferent about the Ryder Cup.
"I don't know where the perception of indifference is, because I've always loved it," Woods said. "The team bonding that occurs, getting to know the guys and everyone there that's associated with our team, are experiences that you'll never forget. And I've created some great friendships because of it."
This will be the seventh Ryder Cup team for Love, his first as an assistant, so he knows what to expect when 12 individuals get together, no matter how good they are, no matter how much they've been through.
"He's a welcome addition," Love said, "because we want to wrap our arms around him and bring him back to us."
Doug Ferguson writes for The Associated Press.
U.S. Ryder Cup picks: Woods, Johnson, Cink, Fowler
NEW YORK (AP) — Tiger Woods was a no-brainer as a captain's pick for the Ryder Cup.
Rickie Fowler required a little more than deep thought.
"It just came down to feelings," captain Corey Pavin said. "I had a gut feeling about Rickie."
Fowler, the 21-year-old mop top who only turned pro 11 months ago, made history Tuesday as the first PGA Tour rookie on the American team and the first captain's pick to have never won on tour.
He was the only big mystery when Pavin announced his four picks at the New York Stock Exchange. Pavin also chose a pair of major champions, Stewart Cink and Zach Johnson, both of whom have played the Ryder Cup on the road.
The matches will be held Oct. 1-3 at Celtic Manor in Wales.
Fowler will be the youngest American to play in the Ryder Cup since Woods in 1997, but only the second-youngest player at Celtic Manor. Rory McIlroy, the 21-year-old from Northern Ireland, earned his way onto the European team.
"I can bring a little bit of color to the team, I can bring some youth to the team and hopefully, get the guys pumped up a little bit," Fowler said. "But as I said, we're all going over there to win, so we're all going to be getting each other pumped and focusing on our main goal, bringing home the cup."
The Americans won two years ago in Kentucky, and will try to win for the first time overseas since 1993 at The Belfry.
This will be the sixth Ryder Cup team for Woods, but the first in which he needed to be picked. Woods had finished first in the standings every time, including in 2008 when he spent the second half of the year recovering from knee surgery.
"It's great to be a part of this team," Woods said. "I'm honored to be selected ... and looking forward to going back and having a great time with the team and hopefully, bring the Cup back."
The eight Americans who qualified after the PGA Championship were Phil Mickelson, Hunter Mahan, Steve Stricker, Jim Furyk, Matt Kuchar, Bubba Watson, Dustin Johnson and Jeff Overton.
European captain Colin Montgomerie said Pavin used his four picks "to good effect."
"Like my European team, the American side has an excellent blend of youthful talent alongside some seasoned Ryder Cup campaigners, and I am delighted to see Tiger Woods amongst Corey's selections," he said. "The Ryder Cup is a better event with him in it."
Cink made his fifth consecutive team — his third as a captain's pick — while Johnson is playing for the second time.
The final selection — and Pavin's most difficult — went to Fowler, the first PGA Tour rookie to make the U.S. team. While the former Oklahoma State star has three runner-up finishes a pro, he still hasn't won, and has not had a top 10 for three months.
Fowler played in the Walker Cup twice and went 7-1, including a 4-0 record at Merion last year. Pavin was not the least bit concerned that Fowler will be making his debut before fans who will be pulling against him.
"I think he can handle it, and that's why I picked him," Pavin said. "I think he's a very mature young man. He's had experience in international play. He's got a very steady head on his shoulders."
No one else stood out over the last three weeks. In the final tournament before Pavin's picks, none of the 14 players on the captain's short list finished among the top 10.
According to people with knowledge of the decision, the final selection came down to Fowler and big-hitting J.B. Holmes, who tied for 11th at the TPC Boston. Holmes went 2-0-1 two years ago playing before a home crowd at Valhalla.
Among those left off were Anthony Kim, who missed three months this summer with thumb surgery and was bumped out of the top eight in the final qualifying tournament; former U.S. Open champion Lucas Glover and Charley Hoffman, who closed with a 62 on Monday to win the Deutsche Bank Championship.
Hoffman was not on Pavin's short list at the start of last week, but the captain called him Monday night to say he had been considered.
Fowler's selection gives the Americans five Ryder Cup rookies — Watson, Overton, Fowler, Kuchar and Dustin Johnson — and two players without a single PGA Tour victory. Overton is winless in his five years on tour.
Woods, who retained the No. 1 world ranking for the 274th consecutive week Monday at the Deutsche Bank Championship, became an obvious selection once he said at the PGA Championship that he wanted to be part of the team. He has been accused of being indifferent toward the Ryder Cup, and his career record of 10-13-2 is the one flaw in an impeccable career inside the ropes.
He will be going to Wales on his own — his divorce was approved two weeks ago — and no longer cutting such an invincible figure.
Woods has failed to win since returning at the Masters, although he appears headed in the right direction. He posted three rounds in the 60s at the Deutsche Bank Championship for the first time all year.
"Whether I was a person who was picked or a person who earned their way on the squad, it doesn't change the overall goal," Woods said. "It's still the same. And that's to go over there and win."
Europe's team has six Ryder Cup rookies — Italian brothers Francesco and Edoardo Molinari, Peter Hanson, Rory McIlroy, Ross Fisher and PGA champion Martin Kaymer — along with Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, Padraig Harrington, Luke Donald, Miguel Angel Jimenez and U.S. Open champion Graeme McDowell.
Zach Johnson won the Colonial in May, and the former Masters champion had been coming on strong in recent weeks. He finished one shot out of the playoff at the PGA Championship, and kept himself in the mix at the tour's playoff events. Cink, who won the British Open at Turnberry last year, has been making slow progress in recent months.
"What was important to me is who I thought could play well in that environment over in Wales," Pavin said. "That was my first criteria. Obviously, I like guys that are playing well, and that's important. I wanted to find guys that round off the team and make it a team of 12, not 12 individuals that are great players."
-- Doug Ferguson
Notebook: Tour navigating through sponsorship
NEW YORK (AP) — With the PGA Tour getting closer to a sponsor for the World Golf Championship at Doral, that leaves only three tournaments — Memphis, Hilton Head and the Bob Hope Classic — without title sponsors after 2010.
Seth Waugh, the CEO of Deutsche Bank Americas whose company just extended its deal for two years, understands better than most that the tour is emerging from a tough economic climate in amazing shape.
He recalls a phone conversation with PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem in the fall of 2008.
"This crisis was really bad," Waugh said last week. "I said, 'Tim, I know everybody thinks it's bad, but I'm in the middle of it. And this is really bad. You need to start rethinking a lot of things.' I wasn't asking for anything, just giving him advice about being prepared.'
"They've done remarkably well," Waugh said. "I think it's a great reflection on the game and their own work ethic."
Finchem said signing up sponsors takes longer than it once did, and that there's far more scrutiny by companies when it comes to spending discretionary dollars. "But the scrutiny helps us, because compared with other sports, we pencil out pretty good."
That's not to suggest the tour is all clear.
The next big piece of the puzzle is a new television contract, with a six-year deal with the networks expiring after 2012.
"The first stage, they've done a good job," Waugh said. "The big one is going to be TV."
JACK'S RECORD: The rules have changed, meaning this is one record that most likely will never be broken in golf. Jack Nicklaus won seven majors before playing in his first Ryder Cup.
"I'd say you could put that one in granite," Justin Leonard said with a laugh.
"That is quite outstanding," said Ian Poulter, searching for the right words until he settled on "Wow."
Jeff Overton and Rickie Fowler will make their Ryder Cup debut this year having not won any event on the PGA Tour, just as Oliver Wilson did for Europe two years ago.
Told about Nicklaus winning seven majors before his 1969 Ryder Cup debut, Hunter Mahan jokingly replied, "I won the Bridgestone Invitational. That's my biggest win."
Before tour players broke away from the PGA of America, they had to be a PGA member for five years before they were eligible for the Ryder Cup. Nicklaus won his 18 majors over 24 years, yet Phil Mickelson already has played on more Ryder Cup teams (seven).
"I was fortunate to play on six teams," Nicklaus said. "However, because of the way the rules were at the time, I was not eligible for the Ryder Cup until I became a Class A PGA of America professional."
MAGIC NUMBER: For Paul Goydos and Stuart Appleby, shooting a 59 was the highlight of their careers. What followed? Not so much.
"I haven't even made a cut," Goydos said last week at the Deutsche Bank Championship, where he ended that dubious streak.
Goydos opened with a 59 at the John Deere Classic and wound up second to Steve Stricker. He then missed the cut in the British Open, The Greenbrier Classic and the PGA Championship before finishing 70th at the TPC Boston.
Appleby is getting better results, just not better scores. Since he shot 59 in the final round to win The Greenbrier, he has yet to break 70 in his last 16 rounds.
This was news to the Australian.
"The only thing I know is I shot the only 59 of my career," Appleby said after closing with a 70 on Monday. "And that's the only stat I'm likely to remember."
Appleby has made the cut every week, but hasn't cracked the top 50.
"I just haven't been able to get the magic with the putter," he said. "I can't get to that point where I'm tipping my cap. But I'm happy with the way I'm playing."
VERPLANK WAITS: Scott Verplank won an NCAA title, a U.S. Amateur and a PGA Tour event while attending Oklahoma State, and he remains one of the Cowboys' biggest boosters. So what was he doing catching up on the Oklahoma Sooners on Sunday?
Verplank had to withdraw from the Deutsche Bank Championship with a left wrist injury so severe that he couldn't control his club through the swing. He wanted to get an MRI on Sunday, when the offices are closed. Because his doctors also are aligned with the Sooners, his only hope was for injuries to the football team that required tests. That way, doctors could squeeze him in.
"No one from OU got hurt," he said Monday night. "And today was a holiday."
Verplank wound up 70th in the FedEx Cup standings, which made him eligible for the BMW Championship. He was to take a cortisone shot Monday night to try to play, then hope the MRI showed no structural damage.
"I might be able to play, but I won't know until Wednesday afternoon," Verplank said. "I've had quite a few cortisone shots, and I haven't had one make a difference for the first two or three or four days. This is a last-ditch effort to see if I can get one to work.
"I'm not going to tee it up if I can't grip the club."
Verplank was outside the top 70 until Charlie Wi birdied the last hole to go from a four-way tie for 21st to a four-way tie for 18th. Kris Blanks, who had been tied with Wi, slipped into a three-way tie for 22nd and finished two points behind Verplank.
"I texted Charlie and told him I owe him a steak dinner," Verplank said.
Maybe more than that. The bonus money for 70th place in the FedEx Cup is $110,000, up from $80,000 for 71st place.
DIVOTS: Oklahoma State junior Peter Uihlein has won the Mark H. McCormack Medal for being the No. 1 player in the world amateur ranking, which is decided after the European Amateur and U.S. Amateur. It caps off a strong 12 months for Uihlein, who went 4-0 at the Walker Cup at Merion a year ago and won the U.S. Amateur last month at Chambers Bay. ... With his victory in the European Masters, Miguel Angel Jimenez has won 11 times since turning 40. ... Robert Allenby, recovering from a knee injury when he slipped on his boat, now believes he has a case of vertigo from bumping his head during the fall. He felt dizzy at times after bending over to pick up his tee at the TPC Boston.
STAT OF THE WEEK: Tiger Woods has lost more world ranking points than any other player has gained this year.
FINAL WORD: "I've been on more teams than I have wins." — Hunter Mahan, with three PGA Tour victories. He has been on two Presidents Cup and two Ryder Cup teams.
-- Doug Ferguson
Golf Glance
PGA Tour
Site: Lemont, Ill.
Schedule: Thursday-Sunday.
Course: Cog Hill Golf and Country Club, Dubsdread Course (7,616 yards, par 71).
Purse: $7.5 million. Winner's share: $1.35 million.
Television: Golf Channel (Thursday-Friday, 3-6 p.m., 8:30-11:30 p.m.) and NBC (Saturday, noon-3:30 p.m.; Sunday, 2-6 p.m.).
Last year: Tiger Woods won for the fifth time at Cog Hill, shooting a course-record 62 in the third round and finishing with a 68 for an eight-stroke victory.
Last week: Charley Hoffman won the Deutsche Bank Championship on Monday at TPC Boston, closing with a 9-under 62 for a five-shot victory over Geoff Ogilvy, Jason Day and Luke Donald. Hoffman tied the tournament record at 22-under 262.
Notes: Corey Pavin completed the 12-man U.S. Ryder Cup team Tuesday, selecting Woods, Zach Johnson, Stewart Cink and Rickie Fowler as captain's picks. The matches against Europe are Oct. 1-3 at Celtic Manor in Wales. ... The top 70 in the FedEx Cup points qualified for the tournament. The top 30 after the event will advance to the Tour Championship — where the points will be reset — on Sept. 23-26 at East Lake in Atlanta. ... Woods also won at Cog Hill in 1997, 1999, 2003 and 2007. He tied for 11th at TPC Boston to jump from 65th to 51st in the FedEx Cup standings. ... Camilo Villegas won the 2008 event at Bellerive in St. Louis.
Online: http://www.pgatour.com
| LPGA TOUR |
|---|
| NW Arkansas Championship |
Site: Rogers, Ark.
Schedule: Friday-Sunday.
Course: Pinnacle Country Club (6,284 yards, par 71).
Purse: $2 million. Winner's share: $300,000.
Television: Golf Channel (Friday, 12:30-2:30 p.m.; Saturday, 4:30-6 a.m., 4-6 p.m.; Sunday, 3:30-5 a.m., 4-6 p.m.; Monday, 2-3:30 a.m.).
Last year: South Korea's Jiyai Shin won the last of her three 2009 titles. Shin made up a seven-stroke deficit with a final-round 64, then beat Angela Stanford and Sun Young Yoo with a birdie on the second hole of a playoff.
Last event: Michelle Wie won the Canadian Open on Aug. 29 at St. Charles in Winnipeg, Manitoba, for her second LPGA Tour victory. Shin, Kristy McPherson, Suzann Pettersen and Jee Young Lee tied for second, three strokes back.
Notes: Wie is in the field. ... Shin won the Evian Masters in July in France. ... Stacy Lewis won the inaugural tournament in 2007, an unofficial victory after the event was cut to 18 holes because of rain. The then-University of Arkansas player shot a 65. ... The tour is off the next three weeks. Play will resume Oct 7-10 with the Navistar LPGA Classic in Prattville, Ala.
Online: http://www.lpga.com
| CHAMPIONS TOUR |
|---|
| Songdo Championship |
Site: Songdo, South Korea.
Schedule: Friday-Sunday.
Course: Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea (7,257 yards, par 72).
Purse: $3 million. Winner's share: $455,000.
Television: Golf Channel (Friday, 1-3 a.m., 6-8 a.m.; Saturday, 1-3 a.m., 2-3:30 p.m., 11:30 p.m.-1:30 a.m.; Sunday, 2-4 p.m.).
Last year: Inaugural event.
Last week: Ted Schulz won the First Tee Open for his first Champions Tour title, holding off Tom Pernice Jr. by a stroke at Pebble Beach.
Notes: The tournament is the 50-and-over tour's first event in Asia. ... Bernhard Langer is coming off a victory two weeks ago in the Boeing Classic. The German star won the British Senior Open and U.S. Senior Open in consecutive weeks and leads the tour with five victories. ... Tom Watson is in the field. He turned 61 last week. ... The tour is off next week. Play will resume Sept. 24-26 with the SAS Championship in Cary, N.C.
Online: http://www.pgatour.com
| PGA EUROPEAN TOUR |
|---|
| KLM Open |
Site: Hilversum, Netherlands.
Schedule: Thursday-Sunday.
Course: Hilversumsche Golf Club (6,906 yards, par 70).
Purse: $2.32 million. Winner's share: $386,950.
Television: Golf Channel (Thursday-Friday, 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday, 8:30-11:30 a.m.).
Last year: England's Simon Dyson won at Kennemer, beating Peter Lawrie and Peter Hedblom with a birdie on the second playoff hole. Dyson overcame a six-stroke deficit in the final round, tying the course record with a 63. He also won the 2006 event.
Last week: Spain's Miguel Angel Jimenez won the European Masters in Switzerland for his third victory of the year, beating Edoardo Molinari by three strokes. The 46-year-old Jimenez has 18 tour titles, 11 since turning 40.
Notes: PGA Championship winner Martin Kaymer and British Open champion Louis Oosthuizen are in the field. ... Maarten Lafeber won in 2003 at Hilversumsche to become the first Dutchman to win the national championship since Joop Ruhl in 1947. ... The tournament was first played in 1912. ... The Austrian Open is next week, followed by the Vivendi Cup in Paris and the Ryder Cup in Wales.
Online: http://www.europeantour.com
| NATIONWIDE TOUR |
|---|
| Utah Championship |
Site: Sandy, Utah.
Schedule: Thursday-Sunday.
Course: Willow Creek Country Club (7,104 yards, par 71).
Purse: $550,000. Winner's share: $99,000.
Television: Golf Channel (Thursday, 6:30-8:30 p.m.; Friday, 3-5 a.m., 6:30-8:30 p.m., Saturday, 3-4:30 a.m., 6:30-9:30 p.m.; Sunday, 1:30-3:30 a.m., 7-9:30 p.m.; Monday, midnight-2 a.m.).
Last year: Josh Teater won his first Nationwide Tour title, finishing at 20 under to hold off Tyler Aldridge by four strokes.
Last week: Kevin Kisner won the inaugural Mylan Classic in Canonsburg, Pa., for his first tour title, beating Geoffrey Sisk by a stroke. Kisner earned $108,000 to jump from 50th to 14th on the money list with $194,692.
Notes: Chris Kirk leads the money list with $400,475, followed by Jamie Lovemark ($393,288), Tommy Gainey ($350,532) and Martin Piller ($320,504). The final top 25 will earn 2011 PGA Tour cards. Kirk, Gainey and Piller each have two victories this year, putting them a win away from an immediate PGA Tour promotion. ... John Daly won the inaugural tournament in 1990. ... The Boise Open is next week, followed by the WNB Golf Classic in Midland, Texas.
Online: http://www.pgatour.com
| OTHER TOURNAMENTS |
|---|
| Men |
NGA HOOTERS TOUR: Woodcreek Classic, Thursday-Sunday, The Members Club at Woodcreek & WildeWood, Elgin, S.C. Online: http://www.ngahooterstour.com
ASIAN TOUR: Singapore Classic, Thursday-Sunday, Orchid Country Club, Singapore. Online: http://www.asiantour.com
SUNSHINE TOUR: SAA Pro-Am Invitational, Thursday-Saturday, Randpark Golf Club, Randburg, South Africa. Online: http://www.sunshinetour.com
PGA EUROPEAN CHALLENGE TOUR: Kazakhstan Open, Thursday-Sunday, Zhailjau Golf Resort, Almaty, Kazakhstan. Online: http://www.europeantour.com
| Women |
|---|
LADIES EUROPEAN TOUR: French Women's Open, Thursday-Sunday, Paris International Golf Club, Baillet-en-France, France. Online: http://www.ladieseuropeantour.com
JAPAN LPGA TOUR: JLPGA Championship Konica Minolta Cup, Thursday-Sunday, Gifu Seki Country Club, Gifu, Japan. Online: http://www.lpga.or.jp
