The Final Day At The Open And My Nap

Well the Waste Management hoenix Open ended today with some great play.  My favorite Phil Mickelson and my new man-crush Ian Poulter finished far behind, but the guys at the top made it worth watching.  Unfortunately, I fell asleep, so I will have to rob some info from a couple of sites to fill you in on the details.

Hunter Mahan won the Waste Management Phoenix Open for his second PGA TOUR title, coming from four strokes back to beat Rickie Fowler by a shot in a 1-2 finish for former Oklahoma State players.

The 27-year-old Mahan had an eagle and a pair of birdies in a late four-hole span Sunday to finish at 16-under 268. Mahan, whose first victory came at the 2007 Travelers Championship, closed with consecutive bogey-free 6-under 65s.

Fowler, just 21 and a TOUR rookie, had a final-round 68 for the second runner-up finish of his young career, both of them in Arizona.

In his second PGA TOUR event last Oct. 25, Fowler lost in a three-way playoff to Troy Mattison in the Frys.com Open just down the road at the Grayhawk Golf Club.

South Korea's Y.E. Yang also shot a 65 to finish at 14 under, two off the pace. Last year's PGA Championship winner, Yang led until his tee shot went in the water at No. 17.

Yes, today here in Scottsdale was rainy and high in the upper 50s...a great time for a nap.   I got up and went to church with the family, had a light lunch, and baby Hutch and the wife  and I all decided that we did our good deed for the day so to the king size bed we went.  After about 30 minutes of wrangling the comforter and Hutchie playing Batman on my I-Phone, we finally called it quits.  Before we knew it, it was 4 pm and time to do..well.......nothing.  Hope you had a good day as well!!

Day 2 at the Phoenix Open. The Good, The Bad, And My New Man Crush

I left the house around 8 am this morning heading to the tournament.  I knew it was going to be a good day, for I saw a really unattractive (I assume she thought she was attractive) with about 5 inch heels, trip and fall in the parking lot.  Serves her right.  Get better looking!!

My friends and I (I won't mention any names, for we were supposed to be at work), entered the tournament, got a cold one and headed out onto the grounds.  We immediately headed to hole 16, the loudest hole in any tour event.  I hadn't been to the Open in a while and unfortunately the entire hole is covered in bleachers and corporate sponsor booths.  No more sitting on the grassy knoll behind the green.  Here, no one is immune from the wrath of boos from the fans if you don't hit the green.  Even local favorite Phil Mickelson was heckled when the hit his tee shot into the left green side bunker. 

THE GOOD

As I was leaving the course, I checked the PGA Tour app on my I-Phone I sneaked into the tournament.  I couldn't believe all the low scores.  Camilo Villegas shot 2-under and is tied with Mark Wilson who shot a 5-under 66.  Arizona State alum Pat Perez shot  3-under and is in a tie for 6th with Scottsdale resident Tom Lehman.  The round of the day was turned in by last week's winner Ian Poulter who shot at blazing 8-under 63.

Check out the entire leaderboard HERE.

THE BAD

Not only is the 16th hole a tough venue for the golfers, this morning it was a tough venue for fans (at least me and my guys) as well.   It was around 9:30 am when we sat down in the bleachers.  A few groups came and went.  After about the 4th group, an extremely drunk guy started yelling and heckling.  Yeah, this is the 16th, but come on.  It was becoming obnoxious!  His girlfriend tried to keep him quiet, but he kept saying "you be quiet, you haven't drunk $125 bucks worth of booze this morning."  I admit, that was funny, but he was really bothering the patrons.  We took off and headed to another hole.

MY MAN CRUSH

OK, I am not gay (not that there is anything wrong with it), but Ian Poulter has moved into second on my favorite golfers list.  As you may have read in my postings from the WGC-Accenture, he can dress however he wants, especially when he backs it up with his play.  Today he was dressed in a great pair of blue plaid slacks with the belt and shoes to match.  But what HE did at the 16th hole is what impressed me the most and while I love to play and write about golf.

Poulter hit a some-what mediocre tee shot.  It landed on the green, thus no boos.  Phil Mickelson was in his group so most of the cheers were aimed at him.  Poulter lined up his putt for birdie, there was no noise, it was dead quiet.

Then as the ball was rolling about half way to the hole, a tiny, angelic, female voice peeped out "get in the hole!"  The entire crowd laughed and let out a huge "awwww".  Poulter turned around and smiled at the young child as to thank her for her support.  As he was walking off the green, he signed the golf ball and gave it to her.  That is class.  That is what golf is about.  That's why I can't stand Tiger Woods and the way he, I believe, defamed the great game of golf. 

Thanks Ian, my newest man crush.

O.K. Ladies You Can Swoon. Camilo Villegas Leads Tournament

Sporting his new short hair cut, Columbian Camilo Villegas leads here in Scottsdale at the Waste Management Phoenix Open.  Fresh off his "almost" play in the finals in Tucson last week where he missed a three foot putt to put him in the championship, Villegas shot a bogey free nine-under par 62 which ties the Phoenix Open first round record.

Defending Phoenix Open champion Kenny Perry and Phil Mickelson are in a large group at 68.  WGC-Accenture Open winner Ian Poulter struggled shooting 72.  The excitement of the day came from the "older" fellas, Tom Lehman and Fred Couples, playing well and shooting 66 and 67 respectively.

For a full leaderboard update and pairings for tomorrow, click HERE.

Tomorrow I am heading out in the morning to catch some of the second round and will try and sneak in my I-Phone to take some pics.  I promise I will keep my eyes on the golfers and not the short skirts, high heels, and silicone......come on it is Scottsdale!

Do I Want This At My Next Backyard Party?

http://www.funnyhub.com/videos/pages/crazy-golf-stunt.html

Ian Poulter Is Match Play Champion

Pretty in Pink. Yes, I do like the way Ian Poulter dresses, especially if he can back it up with his game. And he did by beating fellow Englishman Paul Casey 4-and-2 at the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship.  This was his ninth career victory.

With cold and rain as part of the back drop, Poulter dominated most of the day.  He was 4 up at one point showing an exceptional short game with great chip shots on two holes leading to birdies.  Poulter played only 114 holes all week - only Tiger Woods with 112 holes in 2003 played fewer - and earned $1.4 million for the biggest check of his career.

Known mostly for what's in his closet, Poulter quickly is gaining a strong reputation for his prowess in match play. He improved his overall record in the Match Play Championship to 18-7, and was so dominant on the weekend that he trailed for only one hole over the final 50 holes of the tournament.

After defeating Camilo Villegas early Sunday morning in the longest match of the week (24 holes),  Casey struggled at times with his swing and his short game wasn't good enough to allow him to catch up.   He netted $850,000 for his second place finish.

After watching the matches this week, I think the Americans need to be a little worried.  With the Ryder Cup coming up in a few months in Wales,  the stellar play by Poulter, Casey, Sergio Garcia, Luke Donald, Lee Westwood, and Oliver Wilson, Colin Montgomerie's team looks strong.

For the final bracket, click HERE.

Tickets For Waste Management Phoenix Open

I've hooked up with a great company for tickets to the upcoming Phoenix Open.  Should be a great event this year with Waste Management as a new sponsor.  Last year's Open winner Kenny Perry will defend his title and Phil Mickelson has committed to play.  Tickets can be purchased for individual days or for the entire week.  Hope to see you out there!!

Tickets can be purchased here.
Phoenix Open Golf

The Tiger As We Knew Him Is No More

Even though Tiger is 35 years old and has accomplished almost everything on the course, we still think of him as a young, wirey, smiling star who always wore red on Sunday as he would accept a tournament championship trophy.  Not any more.

Known by his fellow players and seen by his army of fans to throw his clubs down or use vulgarities around the fairway were things we barely noticed or just shrugged our shoulders and moved on.  Not any more.

Seeing him chip at Augusta, watching the Nike ball hover at the edge of the cup and  finally fall in or watching him limp around the U.S. Open to come back and win in a playoff, are memories which should live in our minds forever.  Not any more.

Initially I did not see the press conference.  I had to listen to it on the radio on my drive back home.  As I listened, I began to feel sorry for him.  As some of you know, I am not a Tiger Woods fan.  My golf hero is Jack Nicklaus and I much prefer Phil Mickelson.  However the monotone voice almost put me in a trance like the Sirens did to Odysseus and his crew.  I couldn't wait to see the video.

What first struck me was that Tiger came out at exactly 90 seconds after the hour into a room engulfed with blue curtains and one small podium.  Was this a presidential press conference?  And if so, where are Obama's teleprompters?  Standing stoic and talking in his robotic voice he began to apologize for his transgressions.  Telling us that he was receiving help.  For what?  He never addressed that.  Then he began to speak about his Buddhist background and how he strayed away from it.  Did Buddha score hookers and Perkins waitresses in an Escalade outside the restaurant?

He needed to do this.  Tiger is paid around $150 million a year.  He owed an apology to his sponsors.  Everyday people like you and me give millions to his charitable foundations.  He owed us an apology.  He publicly needed to apologize to his friends and family. I heard one of the alleged mistresses speak out after the conference wanting an apology.  What the hell, I thought. But then again, if Tiger promised her god knows what, maybe he owes her one too.

I give him credit for at least getting out in front of the public.  More than half of the U.S. was either listening or watching.  I can understand him stumbling through some of it.  Hell, I stumble with my words ordering food at a drive thru.  But he should have answered questions.  Two other huge sports stars, Kobe Bryant and Alex Rodriguez, faced the scrutiny of the media.  Why not Tiger?

It all comes down to a matter of trust.  Do you believe him or not.  How many other women are out there that he did pay to keep quiet?  Is he so arrogant that this is only a blip on his radar and  his self -indulging lifestyle  will continue once this has passed? 

From now on when I first see Tiger I am going to think of him as an adulterer and liar.  Not the great golfer that he really is or may be.  Sad.

So to me on Sunday the only scarlet red Tiger should be wearing is the letter "A".

Day 2 At The WGC, Eating My Words, and the Tiger Show

Day two of the WGC-Accenture closed with some major upsets.  Unfortunately, my pick for the champion, Geoff Ogilvy, was sent home with a defeat by Camilo Villegas.  So as I stated in my previous writings, I am eating my words. With his loss, the defending champion and all number one seeds are gone.  A breakdown from today's play:

In the Bobby Jones bracket, (12) Thongchai Jaidee continues his stellar play be defeating (4) Robert Karlsson.  From the Ben Hogan bracket, (1) Martin Kaymer was upended by (9) Tim Clark.  From the Gary Player bracket (1) Lee Westwood was defeated by American (8) Nick Watney and in the Sam Snead bracket (1) Jim Furyk was eliminated by (9) Charl Schwartzel.

The highest remaining seed is England's Paul Casey at No. 6. Casey, the runner-up a year ago, who won the World Match Play Championship in England in 2006, swiftly dispatched Canadian Mike Weir.  Get a full rundown on the brackets HERE.

Again play was dominated with coverage from all the major networks of what Tiger Woods will say.  Are all the golfers going to take a ten minute time out while Tiger makes his "statements?" My take is that he will say he is sorry for his transgressions, ask for forgiveness, and tell the golf world when he will return. Frankly, I am kind of pissed.  Show some respect to the other golfers and sponsors.  Couldn't he have waited until Monday?

Being that tomorrow is the deadline for entering the Waste Management Phoenix Open, the folks here in Scottsdale are crossing their fingers that he may make his comeback next week at the TPC.  I doubt it. He hasn't played here in a long time and from the rumor mill, he hasn't been practicing that much.  Some say he will play in the Tavistock Cup in Florida.  My bet he will return to play at  Arnold's Bay Hill Championship.