Five questions as the Wells Fargo Championship begins:
1. How much fun was it having Arnold Palmer play the pro-am?
That will be remembered for a long time. It didn't matter that Arnie didn't finish every hole. What mattered was that he was here, wearing a pink shirt, and he's still Arnie after all these years.
2. How tough will Quail Hollow play?
It will be about like always. They don't set it up to be overly hard. The goal isn't to have the winner shoot 5-under par. Something about 12-under is ideal. It means fans get to see plenty of birdies and guys who play well are rewarded.
3. What should we expect from Phil Mickelson?
He's been off for three weeks, two of which he didn't play any golf at home or on vacation. He said he's spent some time with Dave Stockton and Dave Pelz, who work on his putting and short game, so maybe that's sharp.
Mickelson has done almost everything but win here. Maybe this is his year.
4. How much fun is Bryan Bigley having?
He must be having a blast. Most weeks he's mowing greens at Raintree. This week he's driving a silver Merecedes and teeing it up against the best in the world. Making the cut should be one goal. The goal should be to soak in as much as he can from this week.
5. Who's going to win?
After a run of three straight young-gun winners, it may swing this year. My top three picks are:
-- Phil Mickelson
-- Dustin Johnson
-- Rory McIlroy
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Bubba On Tiger: "(He's) Going The Wrong Way"
Bubba Watson isn't one for swing coaches or sports psychologists.
And he thinks Tiger Woods may be better off simplifying his approach to golf.
"I'll just go ahead and say it, I think Tiger is going the wrong way," Watson said today at Quail Hollow. "I think he's so mental right now with his swing.
"Just go out there and play golf. He used to hit shots, used to bomb it, used to do all that stuff. In 2000 and '97 I think he did pretty good. He won the Masters by 48 shots or whatever he won it by. But I think sometimes he gets carried away on that."
Woods, of course, is transforming his swing with the help of coach Sean Foley. Watson, meanwhile, has won three times in the past year, doing it in his own unique way. It wouldn't work for everyone but it's working for Bubba.
And he thinks Tiger Woods may be better off simplifying his approach to golf.
"I'll just go ahead and say it, I think Tiger is going the wrong way," Watson said today at Quail Hollow. "I think he's so mental right now with his swing.
"Just go out there and play golf. He used to hit shots, used to bomb it, used to do all that stuff. In 2000 and '97 I think he did pretty good. He won the Masters by 48 shots or whatever he won it by. But I think sometimes he gets carried away on that."
Woods, of course, is transforming his swing with the help of coach Sean Foley. Watson, meanwhile, has won three times in the past year, doing it in his own unique way. It wouldn't work for everyone but it's working for Bubba.
Harris Anticipates One-Year Extension For Wells Fargo Event
Quail Hollow Club president Johnny Harris said today he anticipates a one-year extension to the current contract between the club, Wells Fargo and the PGA Tour to extend the event through 2015.
The contract expires in 2014 and there have been questions about what happens to the event with the PGA Championship scheduled in 2017 at Quail Hollow.
“As we go forward in preparation for 2017, the one year that sort of isn’t decided is 2015,” Harris said.
“With the success we’re having with the tournament and the enthusiasm Wells Fargo has for this event now, I wouldn’t be surprised if we don’t have the opportunity in the not too distant future to discuss a one-year extension that gets us through 2015.
“Long-term, we don’t know what happens after the PGA Championship but we look forward to that too. We want to continue to bring the best players in the world to Charlotte. That’s what this tournament is about.”
Harris said a variety of options will be considered when officials gather to decide what will happen long-term to the Wells Fargo Championship. Harris has said the tournament won’t be played at Quail Hollow in 2016 and 2017 so changes can be made to the course in preparation for the PGA Championship.
That doesn’t mean, however, the tournament will go away entirely. It could be moved for two years.
“You have to figure out who is going to be the sponsor of the tournament. It would be unusual for it not to involve a lot of the same people who are here,” Harris said.
“There’s been a great deal of discussion, not so much between us and the PGA but other people interested in golf about where you might play and keeping it in North Carolina.
“We’ll certainly have some discussions about some of the local courses here. You also have a wonderful opportunity to go to the best golf course in North Carolina. I think we could go to (Pinehurst owner) Bob Dedman and those guys at Pinehurst and maybe play there. That would be a great change and you’d be absolutely assured of a great field. That might be an alternative.
“You don’t want to go into anybody else’s backyard. I don’t think it would negatively affect Bobby Long’s tournament in Greensboro and we don’t want to do anything that affects the Heritage. In fact, we want to help everybody.”
The contract expires in 2014 and there have been questions about what happens to the event with the PGA Championship scheduled in 2017 at Quail Hollow.
“As we go forward in preparation for 2017, the one year that sort of isn’t decided is 2015,” Harris said.
“With the success we’re having with the tournament and the enthusiasm Wells Fargo has for this event now, I wouldn’t be surprised if we don’t have the opportunity in the not too distant future to discuss a one-year extension that gets us through 2015.
“Long-term, we don’t know what happens after the PGA Championship but we look forward to that too. We want to continue to bring the best players in the world to Charlotte. That’s what this tournament is about.”
Harris said a variety of options will be considered when officials gather to decide what will happen long-term to the Wells Fargo Championship. Harris has said the tournament won’t be played at Quail Hollow in 2016 and 2017 so changes can be made to the course in preparation for the PGA Championship.
That doesn’t mean, however, the tournament will go away entirely. It could be moved for two years.
“You have to figure out who is going to be the sponsor of the tournament. It would be unusual for it not to involve a lot of the same people who are here,” Harris said.
“There’s been a great deal of discussion, not so much between us and the PGA but other people interested in golf about where you might play and keeping it in North Carolina.
“We’ll certainly have some discussions about some of the local courses here. You also have a wonderful opportunity to go to the best golf course in North Carolina. I think we could go to (Pinehurst owner) Bob Dedman and those guys at Pinehurst and maybe play there. That would be a great change and you’d be absolutely assured of a great field. That might be an alternative.
“You don’t want to go into anybody else’s backyard. I don’t think it would negatively affect Bobby Long’s tournament in Greensboro and we don’t want to do anything that affects the Heritage. In fact, we want to help everybody.”
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Simpson Trying To Look Forward After Rules Issue
Two days removed from a rules violation that resulted in a one-stroke penalty that played a major role in denying him his first PGA Tour victory, Webb Simpson is trying to look forward.
But with USGA officials admitting on Monday that golf officials are considering revising the rule that cost Simpson, the issue won’t quickly go away.
“Somebody told me they had already been thinking about making a change to it. I don’t know what’s going on but I’d obviously be on the petition list,” Simpson said Tuesday after playing a practice round at the Wells Fargo Championship.
Simpson had a one-stroke lead on the 15th hole in the final round of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans when his ball moved on the green as he prepared to tap-in a short putt. Simpson’s putter didn’t touch the ball but under the rules, a player is penalized if he is deemed to have addressed the ball and it moves.
Tom O’Toole, vice president of the United States Golf Association, said rules officials from the USGA and the Royal & Ancient in Scotland, the game’s two ruling bodies, have been considering a change to that rule for months.
If it’s clear that the ball moved due to wind or gravity, not because of the player, there would be no penalty if the new rule is adopted. O’Toole said Monday the rule could be amended in the coming months.
It won’t change the effect on Simpson, who lost the tournament to his friend Bubba Watson on the second playoff hole. Simpson said he has tried not to dwell on what happened.
“I’m a big believer that God has a plan for me and before I teed off he knew every shot I was going to take. Knowing that gave me great peace,” Simpson said.
“It still stung but I knew it was already written. I’ve always tried to have the mindset that whatever happens, try to learn something from it, even if it’s a bad thing. If you learn something from it, it’s going to help you in the future. We’ll take that and see how it can make me better.”
But with USGA officials admitting on Monday that golf officials are considering revising the rule that cost Simpson, the issue won’t quickly go away.
“Somebody told me they had already been thinking about making a change to it. I don’t know what’s going on but I’d obviously be on the petition list,” Simpson said Tuesday after playing a practice round at the Wells Fargo Championship.
Simpson had a one-stroke lead on the 15th hole in the final round of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans when his ball moved on the green as he prepared to tap-in a short putt. Simpson’s putter didn’t touch the ball but under the rules, a player is penalized if he is deemed to have addressed the ball and it moves.
Tom O’Toole, vice president of the United States Golf Association, said rules officials from the USGA and the Royal & Ancient in Scotland, the game’s two ruling bodies, have been considering a change to that rule for months.
If it’s clear that the ball moved due to wind or gravity, not because of the player, there would be no penalty if the new rule is adopted. O’Toole said Monday the rule could be amended in the coming months.
It won’t change the effect on Simpson, who lost the tournament to his friend Bubba Watson on the second playoff hole. Simpson said he has tried not to dwell on what happened.
“I’m a big believer that God has a plan for me and before I teed off he knew every shot I was going to take. Knowing that gave me great peace,” Simpson said.
“It still stung but I knew it was already written. I’ve always tried to have the mindset that whatever happens, try to learn something from it, even if it’s a bad thing. If you learn something from it, it’s going to help you in the future. We’ll take that and see how it can make me better.”
Monday, May 2, 2011
Bigley Goes From Mowing Fairways To The PGA Tour
Bryan Bigley mows fairways, rakes bunker and cuts greens at Raintree Country Club while keeping his golf game sharp enough to think about what could be.
The course maintenance worker gets his big chance this week after winning the final spot in the field for the Wells Fargo Championship by capturing a sudden-death playoff Monday in the qualifying event at Carolina Golf Club.
Bigley was one of four players to shoot 4-under par 66 and his birdie-birdie performance in sudden-death earned him the final spot, keeping North Carolina golf coach John Inman out of the tournament.
Kyle Thompson (64), Willie Wood (65) and Lanto Griffin (65) also earned spots in the field at Quail Hollow this week.
“You need to catch a break and this is a break. Who knows where it can lead?” Bigley said Monday night.
A former college golfer at Siena, Bigley has worked for three years at Raintree. His father is a course superintendent in Albany, N.Y., and Bigley has been taking care of golf courses since he was 14. He plays some mini-tour events when he can but Monday was only his third competitive event of the year.
He played with long-time PGA Tour players Eric Axley and Ted Purdy during the qualifier.
“I looked at their games compared to mine and I could see that they’re similar,” Bigley said.
Charlotteans Corey Nagy and Kevin Silva shot 67 to miss qualifying by one stroke while Jeff Curl, another local, shot 68.
The course maintenance worker gets his big chance this week after winning the final spot in the field for the Wells Fargo Championship by capturing a sudden-death playoff Monday in the qualifying event at Carolina Golf Club.
Bigley was one of four players to shoot 4-under par 66 and his birdie-birdie performance in sudden-death earned him the final spot, keeping North Carolina golf coach John Inman out of the tournament.
Kyle Thompson (64), Willie Wood (65) and Lanto Griffin (65) also earned spots in the field at Quail Hollow this week.
“You need to catch a break and this is a break. Who knows where it can lead?” Bigley said Monday night.
A former college golfer at Siena, Bigley has worked for three years at Raintree. His father is a course superintendent in Albany, N.Y., and Bigley has been taking care of golf courses since he was 14. He plays some mini-tour events when he can but Monday was only his third competitive event of the year.
He played with long-time PGA Tour players Eric Axley and Ted Purdy during the qualifier.
“I looked at their games compared to mine and I could see that they’re similar,” Bigley said.
Charlotteans Corey Nagy and Kevin Silva shot 67 to miss qualifying by one stroke while Jeff Curl, another local, shot 68.
McIlroy Returns: "A Lot Of Great Memories"
Rory McIlroy spent Monday morning playing the front nine at Quail Hollow Club, getting some work done on his golf game, knocking the edge off any jet lag and remembering what he did here last year.
“It’s great. A lot of great memories,” McIlroy said after finishing his round.
“(We were) talking about hitting some shots from here and from there…Talking about holing a putt from here. It’s great to be back.”
McIlroy arrived in Charlotte Sunday from his home in Northern Ireland where he had a session with his swing coach Michael Bannon last week. He also had one session with putting guru Dave Stockton here, just to trade some thoughts.
McIlroy said he doesn’t know if he’ll do more with Stockton but was interested in hearing what he had to say.
Later today, McIlroy and a few of his friends on tour are planning to play a little soccer before getting down to more serious preparation.
“It’s great. A lot of great memories,” McIlroy said after finishing his round.
“(We were) talking about hitting some shots from here and from there…Talking about holing a putt from here. It’s great to be back.”
McIlroy arrived in Charlotte Sunday from his home in Northern Ireland where he had a session with his swing coach Michael Bannon last week. He also had one session with putting guru Dave Stockton here, just to trade some thoughts.
McIlroy said he doesn’t know if he’ll do more with Stockton but was interested in hearing what he had to say.
Later today, McIlroy and a few of his friends on tour are planning to play a little soccer before getting down to more serious preparation.
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Simpson Proved Himself To Be A Winner In New Orleans
Webb Simpson did the right thing Sunday afternoon and while it may have cost him the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, it won't cost him in the long run.
Simpson, who moved with his wife, Dowd, to Charlotte last August, was leading the New Orleans tournament by one stroke over his friend Bubba Watson Sunday when his ball moved as he addressed a six-inch par putt on the 15th hole. The rule may not be fair -- Simpson didn't cause the ball to move, the wind apparently did -- but golf's rules are sacrosanct so he paid the one-stroke penalty and ultimately lost to Watson on the second hole of a sudden-death playoff.
It was one of those moments the player gets it right no matter how painful the cost. Simpson was trying to win his first PGA Tour event but he saw the violation immediately and called for a rules official. He had a stroke added on the 15th hole, turning a par into a bogey, and it was the difference in holding his first trophy and the accompanying Masters invitation and a second-place finish to a friend.
That's the thing about golf. It's about calling your own violations. It's not like basketball or football where players and teams are always trying to influence officials to make a call -- or not make a call -- without getting it right. Golfers, the overwhelming majority of them anyway, want to get it right. The game gets easier with a clear conscience.
Simpson has been close a few times now and hasn't yet won his first tournament but he won a legion of admirers Sunday for how he handled a difficult situation. Hopefully, he knows how much of a winner he was on Sunday in New Orleans.
Simpson, who moved with his wife, Dowd, to Charlotte last August, was leading the New Orleans tournament by one stroke over his friend Bubba Watson Sunday when his ball moved as he addressed a six-inch par putt on the 15th hole. The rule may not be fair -- Simpson didn't cause the ball to move, the wind apparently did -- but golf's rules are sacrosanct so he paid the one-stroke penalty and ultimately lost to Watson on the second hole of a sudden-death playoff.
It was one of those moments the player gets it right no matter how painful the cost. Simpson was trying to win his first PGA Tour event but he saw the violation immediately and called for a rules official. He had a stroke added on the 15th hole, turning a par into a bogey, and it was the difference in holding his first trophy and the accompanying Masters invitation and a second-place finish to a friend.
That's the thing about golf. It's about calling your own violations. It's not like basketball or football where players and teams are always trying to influence officials to make a call -- or not make a call -- without getting it right. Golfers, the overwhelming majority of them anyway, want to get it right. The game gets easier with a clear conscience.
Simpson has been close a few times now and hasn't yet won his first tournament but he won a legion of admirers Sunday for how he handled a difficult situation. Hopefully, he knows how much of a winner he was on Sunday in New Orleans.
