Sports Brothers » Golf

Tiger Woods wins his 5th straight tournament

tim — Mon, 04 Sep 2006 22:05:18 +0000

Vijay Singh entered today with a three shot lead over Tiger Woods. Tiger erased that lead pretty early with an eagle and a birdie. Once Tiger gets a share of the lead, he doesn’t give it up. The sad part for Vijay was he didn’t play, Tiger is just on another level at this point. Tiger got another birdie and an eagle on the front nine, and it was all over. Tiger shot a 63 today, while Vijay shot a 68. When you shoot in the 60s and still lose, what can you do?

Tiger Woods wins the Deutsche Bank Championship by two strokes over Vijay Singh.

Tiger Woods is chasing the Joe DiMaggio streak of golf. Lord Byron Nelson won 11 in a row in 1945. He’s had 6 in a row before, who’s to say he won’t surpass that this year.

PGA Championship heading into the weekend

tim — Sat, 19 Aug 2006 00:18:27 +0000

There’s a four way tie for first at the PGA Championship. Tim Herron, Luke Donald, Henrik Stenson and Billy Andrade are all tied at 8 under par. Now I know this might be a who’s who list (as in who are these guys) but with top players such as Tiger, Sergio, David Toms, David Love, Mike Weir and Geoff Ogilvy right in the mix, things are shaping up well for the weekend.

Tiger, Phil and Geoff Ogilvy were the premier group today. Tiger plays a bogey free round, and moves to within one shot of the lead. It could be lights out for most of the field with his name near the top. Geoff Ogilvy had a hot front nine, and had to battle back to also be one shot out of the lead. As for Phil, his brand of “army golf” has put him four shots out of the lead, still in it, but he needs a good round tomorrow.

Davis Love at one point yesterday was leading, until a bad triple bogey on 17. Yesterday’s co-leaders, Lucas Glover and Chris Riley fell back a little bit, which could be expected.

The feel good story is Billy Mayfair, who two weeks ago had surgery for testicular cancer, but is only two shots off the lead.

The biggest name to miss the cut was Vijay Singh.

PGA Championship Predictions

tim — Tue, 15 Aug 2006 19:36:35 +0000

Well, it’s the final major of the year and Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson are looking for their second major (and PGA Player) of the year. As long as Tiger gets in the fairway, he won’t lose. With Phil, he is still is feeling the burn of the U.S. Open. So close to heading into the British Open with 3 majors in a row, but one bad hole later, Geoff Ogilvy ends up U.S. Open champion.

Geoff Ogilvy could make a big statement this week by winning the PGA Championship. He’s a very talented player, but usually guys who have someone else hand them a tournament, don’t win two in one year. Maybe Ogilvy could win a few more majors, hell Nick Faldo won three Masters from guys choking on the last day.

Here are some of the other guys to watch for.

Sergio Garcia - This last time the PGA was in Medinah, Sergio made a name for himself with a great final round and a runner-up finish to Tiger. Since then, he hasn’t been able to shake Tiger (that final round at the British Open this year was typical of Garcia, he folds against Tiger.) Still, Sergio should get a top 10 if not a top 5.

Mike Weir - Last time he was at Medinah he was paired with Tiger,and shot an 80 in the final round. Still if his game is on, he has the short game to win.

Chris DiMarco - Is it just me, or is DiMarco the only guy who in a final round of a major doesn’t cave into Tiger pressure? The guy is gritty, and one day should win a major. DiMarco is probably the best American Ryder Cup player, now that he’s on the team, maybe the U.S. can put up a better showing.

Jim Furyk - Solid off the tee, very good putter. Always has a shot at a major. Furyk has had a better solid year, he’s in the top 5 world ranking.

Ernie Els - Ernie finished 3rd in the British Open, and looks to be returning to form. Els needs to have better approach shots if he wants to win. He was sloppy during the final round of the British Open, and he still finished 3rd.

Vijay Singh - Same old story, Vijay is a poor putter. He distance of the tee should be good enough for him to compete.

Winner: Tiger Woods

Backdoor Top 10: Tim Herron

The Masters going into the weekend

tim — Fri, 07 Apr 2006 23:53:03 +0000

After two rounds, the Masters heads into the weekend with the big names right in the thick of it. Chad Campbell leads by 3 strokes over Jijay Singh, Fred Couples, and Rocco Mediate. Couples is trying to become the oldest man to win the Masters. Tiger, Phil, Ernie and Retief are right there though, and tomorrow is moving day. It is very important to be in the final group on Sunday, the winner has come from the final pairing every year since 1991.

Tiger Woods hasn’t played his best yet, which serves him well, he usually has a very strong 3rd round, to move to the top of the leaderboard. Tiger Woods wants to keep the Green Jacket.

The scores are a little lower than I expected, with all the changes. There were only 3 rounds under 70 on Friday, Chad Campbell shot a 67, and looked to be on fire. Mark Hensby shot an 80 on Thursday, but shot 67 today to give himself a shot at another top 10. Olin Browne also shot under 70.

Here some other things that happened so far.

Chris DiMarco misses the cut
I pick the guy to win, and what happens, he misses the cut. DiMarco had a rib injury earlier in the year, so that could have been a factor. After being in the final group the last two years, DiMarco will be on the couch watching.

Charles Howell III
Charles Howell finished in last place, which might not sound so bad, but he was beat by 68 year old former champion Charles Coody. Granted, Coody played well today, but still. When you lose to an old man, you need to work on your game. Did something hit Charles Howell in the head this week?

Wild rounds
Jijay was leading the tournament, but went in the water on 13, and got a double bogey. Ernie Els also had a double bogey. Fred Couples went in the water on 15, just when it looked like he might catch Chad Campbell. Phil went in the water as well, what the hell. Augusta has that effect, and these guys are near the top of the leaderboard. Just imagine what it was like for Charles Howell.

Take a few virtual golf lessons from Phil Mickelson

Masters Prediction

tim — Tue, 04 Apr 2006 22:03:05 +0000

Its spring now, and the first major of the year starts on Thursday. Well the Masters is probably America’s favorite major, it only has a few guys that can win the green jacket. Some of the holes have been lengthened, so that eliminates some of the field. Here are the guys capable of winning the Green Jacket.

Tiger Woods
Tiger has started the year off well, and you know Augusta fits him very well. He wants his 5th green jacket. It’s only a matter of time until he passes Jack Nicklaus for most wins at Augusta.

Ernie Els
Els plays well at Augusta, last year was a rare exception. Ernie was so close in 2004. I’d like Ernie to win at least one green jacket, he has the talent.

Phil Mickelson
Phil cruised to an easy win last week, and won the last major, the 2005 PGA Championship. Could he be going for a Phil Slam?

Retief Goosen
Goosen has the game to win any tournament, but since his 81 in the last round of the US Open, I have my doubts.

Vijay Singh
If he could only putt. Still has a very good chance.

Jose Maria Olazabal
Okay, this one seems like a longshot, but Olazabal has won the Masters twice, and always seems to finish in the top 10. I don’t think he’ll win, but he’ll get a top ten.

Chris DiMarco
He came oh so close last year. DiMarco is not a long hitter, but has the sort of game that does well at the Masters.

David Toms
The guy can putt as well as anyone, so why can’t he win?

Now it’s time for some predictions
Winner: Chris DiMarco
I think he will learn from last year, and get a green jacket.

Backdoor top 10: Mark Hensby
This guy was in the top 10 in the Masters, and US Open last year. Seems to be another guy that can play well at Augusta.

The Players Championship

tim — Mon, 27 Mar 2006 08:32:02 +0000

Stephen Ames wins the TPC by 6 shots, with a 67 on a Sunday. While most of the field was trying to find its bearings, Ames played incredible today, but he won’t be at the Masters. His wife is recovering from cancer, so he plans to take a vacations with his family.

Golf’s unofficial 5th major will move to May next year. It gives us golf fans, something to look forward to between the Master and the U.S Open. The TPC usually has the strongest field ever year.

To me, the biggest story besides the win by Ames, was Davis Love’s nightmarish 83 on Friday. He went from a co-leader, to missing the cut. The last time I saw that was Rod Pampling doing that at the 1999 British Open.

This is shaping up to be a strong year, and I can’t wait for the Masters.

Sony Open

tim — Mon, 16 Jan 2006 13:18:14 +0000

David Toms won the Sony Open on Sunday by 5 shots over Chad Campbell. It was nice to see Toms, who four months ago left an event on a stretcher, with heart troubles. When David Toms is on, he is one of the top 10 players in the world, which goes unnoticed due to the top 5 players on the PGA tour.

Also David Duval played his best round in years. It has been a mystery why Duval’s game has left him, he use to be the number 1 player in the world.

Things are looking good for 2006.

Michelle Wie

tim — Fri, 13 Jan 2006 22:24:52 +0000

Michelle Wie shot a 79 in the first round of the Sony Open, and barring some serious cheating, she will miss the cut again at the Sony Open. Now, my problem is with Wie, it is with how the media has been covering this sad event. She is 16 years old . At 16, you aren’t suppose to beat other pros, and if you did, they wouldn’t be pros, just guys who aren’t good at their hobby. I’d get on Wie’s case if she was shooting 90s out there, she isn’t even in last place, she is next to last. In a few years, she will be able to contend in these events. Even Tiger didn’t win on tour at the age of 16. Michelle has 5 years to become a force, and I bet she will. Now playing at the Masters, and winning by 12 shots, probably isn’t going to happen for Michelle Wie.

2006 Golf Season

tim — Fri, 06 Jan 2006 22:20:31 +0000

The 2006 PGA season has begun. There is a lot of excitement in store. Will Tiger win the Masters for the 5th time? Will Phil Mickelson beat Tiger Woods for the Masters? When will Vijay Singh learn how to putt?

I am looking for the big names in golf to continue to excel. There are two names I’m looking for. Ernie Els and Retief Goosen. Els is coming off a bad year in 2005, and when he is at his peak, is the second best golfer in the world. Goosen on the other hand was well on his way to a 3rd U.S. Open championships, but shot and 81 the final day. He was in the mix in the British Open, and PGA Championship, but his putting became suspect.

Also, you know some 40+ year old golfer besides Vijay will have a resurgence . Last year it was Fred Couples, who will it be this year?

This is also the last year of the golf schedule as we’ve known it, since in 2007 it will turn into a NASCAR type of point system. Meh.