If you ask me this is what a PGA leaderboard should look like.  It has some superstars, major winners, young guns and some up and comers.  Els, Harrington, Singh, Weir are superstar major winners.  Haas and Holmes are the young guns.  Hansen, Schwartzel and Ikeda are the up and comers.  That leaves Robert Allenby who isn’t any of the above.  He’s just are really good player that hasn’t won on the PGA Tour since 2001.  But he did win twice around the world last year and might be playing his best golf right now, if he can manage to stop blowing up over the last few holes,  he may very well be the winner this week.  It should be an interesting final two rounds.

by Jeff Skinner

Chip Shots…

The Tiger watch has heated up in the last few days.  Reports have Tiger and Hank Haney working together at Isleworth and the speculation is that Woods will return sooner rather than later.  Tiger watcher and insider, John Hawkins thinks this is a sure sign Woods will play The Tavistock Cup then Bay Hill on his way to Augusta.

Ping Chairman and CEO John Solheim has once again shown the same class and dignity that made his father one of the most respected men in golf.  Solheim has agreed to waive his right to keep the Ping Eye 2 clubs from being banned from tour play.  The Pings created a firestorm of controversy when Phil Mickelson played them earlier this year.  Solheim made life easy for the PGA Tour and really took them off the hook.  He took the high road in allowing his clubs to be classified as illegal even though his company had won a lawsuit in 1990 to keep them legal forever.  Solheim didn’t want his clubs to be a distraction to the game of golf.

Some kids grow up and mature faster than others.  A 20 year old on the professional golf tours has no choice to grow up faster than most kids or he’ll be in trouble for sure.  Rory McIlroy showed he is wise beyond his youthful years when he sat down for lunch with Jack Nicklaus last week.  McIlroy wanted to “pick his brain” and glean any tip The Golden Bear could give him about closing the deal on a win.  Nicklaus told him what many parents preach to their eager children that want everything right away, patience.  “Learn to wait and bide your time and know that if you believe in yourself, that it will happen,” he said. “It will happen one of these days, so it’s just a matter of waiting and staying patient,” Nicklaus told him.  Pretty solid advice from a guy that knows what it takes to be the best.

Okay, so this is only remotely golf related but I have to vent about this one.  One of the funniest and most unique advertising campaigns is “The E-Trade Baby.”  You know the ad where the baby calls his buddy “Shankapotamus.” Well, in one of the most recent ads the kid looks to be having girl issues, yea, even at that age, and his female friend accuses him of two-timing her with “that milkaholic Lindsay.”  So in this world of narcissistic, self-important morons another one shows her colors.  Lindsay Lohan is suing E-Trade for $100 million for using her name without permission.  Are you kidding me?  Lohan actually thinks that was a reference to her?  Get real Lindsay. You’re not Elvis or Madonna.  Maybe if they called her “Skankapotamus” I might have made the connection.

It’s impossible not to be worn out by the John Daly saga.  I have run the whole gamut when it comes to John from cheering for him to dismissing him as an accident that is about to happen, to pulling for him during his many comebacks, especially during this most recent one.  But with the overkill by The Golf Channel promoting his show and his Twitter attack of a golf writer, I am just plain fed up with Daly.  I’m not the only one.  John Feinstein calls John out for his lack of effort on the golf course.  It seems Daly has been fined 21 times by the PGA Tour for “failing to give his best efforts on the golf course.”  Feinstein goes on to suggest that Daly could take a lesson from veteran Steve Flesch on how to do his job like a professional.

by Jeff Skinner

EA Sports has released their new Tiger Woods PGA ‘11 video game cover and for the first time ever Tiger Woods shares the cover with young phenom Rory McIlroy.  It could be construed that EA Sports is protecting itself and preparing for a future when Woods would not be their preferred endorser.  For years Tiger was the only PGA Tour player on the best selling golf video game.  According to EA Sports management the change has nothing to do with Tiger’s scandal and everything to do with marketing world wide.  The new game has a 12 man team, Ryder Cup option and they figure McIlroy will reach out to video game fans in Europe and throughout the world.  Even if they are hedging their bets, it’s still good business sense to try and broaden the appeal worldwide.  At this point Woods is probably happy to share the cover, at least EA Sports is still committed to him.  As long as he doesn’t have to share the royalty checks he’ll be fine with it.

by Jeff Skinner

I’ll be the first to admit that I, like many golf fanatics, probably spend a little bit too much time focusing on golf.  I am a golf junkie. I’m usually just a second away from a “golf thought” no matter what I am doing.  I am always practicing the swing, thinking about playing, talking golf, thinking golf, playing golf, writing golf or getting ready to do any or all of the above.  Yes, I’m a fanatic, I’ll admit it.  I have golf bags standing in my living room, soft balls strewn about for chipping, regular balls all over for putting, swing aides all about and ready for a quick swing or two, the Caddyshack DVD is always at the ready, and of course at least one of my TV’s is always turned to The Golf Channel. (Yes, I have two TV’s so I can have golf and another sport on simultaneously.)

I don’t need rehab, I just need a quick “golf fix” every few seconds and I have learned to live with my addiction.  My family accepts my addiction and even takes advantage of my ad-hoc golf training facility that is my home.  They enjoy the game as well.

I will admit that at times I have thought “maybe I spend too much time on golf” but the thought quickly passes as I practice my grip on the imaginary club that I always carry.  Now, I feel a bit of vindication for my obsession.  There are many colleges and schools that have degrees and programs in sports management and many golf related disciplines.  In fact one school in Florida is currently offering a class on the movie Caddyshack.  Yes, “Caddyshack 101: Lessons from the Coolest Sports Movie Ever Made” is offered as part of their Sports Management Program.

Lynn University in Boca Raton, Florida lists Caddyshack 101 as a mini-term seminar to discuss issues like social-class stereotyping, gambling in sports, language, civility, etiquette, animal rights and environmental conservation.  And I thought it was a comedy.  Little did I know I was being educated each time I watched it. “We use this hilarious, crude, wonderful film as a way to get into some very serious discussions,” says Ted Curtis, assistant professor of sports management, and a lifelong fan of the 1980 movie. “As university faculty, we always are trying to find new ways to engage and enlighten our students. With this class, we are doing that through one of the most-popular sports comedies ever made.”

I feel vindicated.  My obsession is no longer a detriment.  It is higher education.  It is a learning experience.  It is me growing as a person and bettering myself.  Each time we say “Cinderella story, Porterhouse, Noonan, Spaulding” or my favorite, “Now I know why tigers eat their young” we aren’t quoting a sophomoric classic we are educating ourselves.  God Bless Caddyshack and higher education.

by Jeff Skinner

Patience all you LPGA fans, the season continues in two weeks, but a bunch of the American ladies spent the past week playing down under in The ANZ Ladies Masters on the Gold Coast in Australia.  Ten American LPGA players played and played well, with all but two making the cut.

They had the chance to witness a great tournament as Karrie Webb shot a blazing 61 to win by six strokes.  Webb said she briefly thought about the magic number 59 but she had to settle for a course record.  Webb will try and keep it going in a few weeks as she takes on all comers when the LPGA Tour starts up again.

As for the Americans, they fared well as rookie Amanda Blumenherst and sophomore Stacy Lewis tied for eighth place and long hitting Brittany Lincicome and second year player Vicky Hurst shared fourteenth place with three other players.  The American players need to take advantage of each and every playing opportunity.  Most of the players will be staying in Australia to play in the Australia Women’s Open.  They’ll be joined by American amateur sensation Alexis Thompson.

While these tournaments are sponsored by the Ladies European Tour and the prize money the LPGA players win will not be counted with their LPGA winnings it still pays the bills.  With the LPGA tour season going dark for weeks at a time it is a prudent move to get as many starts in as possible.  This could very well be the face of the New International LPGA Tour. We could be seeing more international partnerships between the LPGA and other international tours.  It’s a natural fit; they both could use each other.  The LPGA needs more tournaments and the LET can always use more high profile players in their fields.  The LPGA already has five tournaments in Asia and three in Mexico.  The opportunities for expansion into Asia and tournaments co-sponsored with other tours can give the LPGA a needed injection of cash and the players more playing venues.

It seems to be working for this group of adventurous, globetrotting Americans as they play well overseas and keep racking up the frequent flier miles.

Camilo Villegas takes a three stroke lead into today’s final round of the Honda Classic. Villegas has a third place finish and a tie for eighth in his two previous starts this season. Can he hold on to win? Nathan Green and Vijay Singh are only two strokes back.

Freddy Couples shoots a lights out 64 and leads by two shots at The Champions Tour Toshiba Classic. Freddy has a win and a second place so far on the Senior Circuit this year.

Looks like the Florida swing has passed through the fountain of youth as two youngsters, Camilo Villegas and Anthony Kim have found their form of 2008 when they both won twice and looked to be the future of the PGA Tour.  They sit at -8 and lead The Honda Classic but Vijay Singh seems to have taken a drink from that fountain of youth also as he is only one back.  Feel good story of the day: Sam Saunders (Arnie’s grandson) shoots matching 69’s to make the cut.  Does The King get an all access pass to follow his grandson? You bet he does.

The American women are making some noise in Australia at The ANZ Ladies Masters.  Click here for scores.

From the Mags…

We certainly do not want for good stories in the magazines this month, be they virtual or print magazines.

Forget the “John Daly Comeback” it’s the “Chris Smith Comeback” we all should be following. The forty year old Smith returned to play after losing his wife in a car accident last year.  He has spent the last eight months healing and being a full time dad.  His return to the tour was met with heartfelt emotion by his fellow players, not scripted drama like Daly’s made for TV reality show.

Baseball hall of famer, Yogi Berra answers a few questions in Golf Digest.  Berra won ten World Series Championships and his first contract paid him $5,000.  I think the CSI guys in Florida found five grand in change on the floor of Tiger’s SUV.

Golf’s version of Yogi Berra, a guy that answers every question and has been around forever is Gary Player.  The Golf Hall of Famer gives Global Golf Post the gospel according to Player. He says Tiger is to blame for his own mess and speaks of the problems with the youth of the world: their parents feeding them junk. He has the cure for jetlag and he should know, he’s flown over 15 million miles.  He’s one of a kind.

Stephanie Wei has a good piece on her friend Ryan Moore on Golf.com.   Moore is as independent a spirit on tour that has come along in years.  He plays the game of life and golf the way he wants to.  “I want to be 100 percent me on the course,” he says. “I want to be confident and comfortable, and I don’t want to be misleading the public, companies or sponsors. It had everything to do with being 100 percent confident in the clubs I had in my bag, comfortable with the clothing I was wearing. I simply wanted to be me.” Moore walks to his own drummer and the beat seems to be a winning one.

by Jeff Skinner

This time of year if you live in a cold weather section of the United States, playing a little golf is nothing more than a dream.  But as many golf fanatics know there is that magic elixir that can satisfy the yearning for some birdies, divots and skins: The Golf Trip.

This week I have spent a few lovely days away from the cold and snow of New York’s Hudson Valley and been warming my old bones in the warmth of Tampa, Florida.  Even though the natives down here are complaining about how cool it is, to us Northerners it is heaven.

As New York digs out and deals with another storm that continues to dump more and more snow, I sit here reveling in the fact that we actually played all the golf we planned to and even got an unexpected bonus: an extra night in Tampa because our flight home was cancelled due to the weather.

A little warm weather golf in the middle of winter can be just enough to help us make it through to the start of a new season. I can’t wait.

Knuckleheads from the North

by Jeff Skinner

In a recent poll taken by The Los Angeles Times they ask their sports readers, What is the best golf movie of the last 35 years?  Truth be told there haven’t been that many golf movies and good golf movies are few and far between.  The results of the poll aren’t surprising.  Caddyshack was a runaway winner.  Heck, that’s on many movie goers list of all time best movies, not just sport movies. I’d have to agree that Caddyshack is the standard that all other golf movies are measured against but they probably shouldn’t be. 

Caddyshack has grown into a classic and its lines are quoted by golfers and non-golfers alike.  It truly is more than a film.  It changed comedy and culture with a “Cinderella Story” and an overzealous greenskeeper, not to mention the career of Rodney Dangerfield.

 Second on the list was Tin Cup.  Who hasn’t stood there on the course stubbornly hitting ball after ball from the same spot, just to prove you can make that one damn shot.  Costner was good but Rene Russo was mighty fine.

 In Third place was The Legend of Bagger Vance.  People are confused when they say that Bagger was a golf movie.  It was really a movie of redemption, forgiveness and spirituality.  Golf was only the vehicle that allowed the characters to redeem themselves and find their “authentic swing.”  The soundtrack is fantastic and serves as the trigger for the characters to feel their spiritual selves.  I’ll take that and Charlize Theron any day of the week,

 After those the quality falls off greatly.  It’s a shame too because there are two of the best stories in golf that were butchered by Disney when they tried to make a movie that appealed to the masses.  Unfortunately, The Bobby Jones Story and The Greatest Game Ever Played failed to capture the essence of the greatest golfer of his day and turned the most unlikely win in a major championship ever into a bad video game.

 The rest of the list is a waste but Caddyshack, Tin Cup and The Legend of Bagger Vance will never disappoint you, no matter how many times we watch them.