With Luke Donald supplanting Lee Westwood as the No. 1 player in the world golf rankings this week, it got me to thinking about who have been the best of the best since the rankings began 25 years ago.
Donald became the 15th player to be ranked No. 1, remarkably none of them named Phil Mickelson. Here's my top five No.1 players in the Official World Golf Rankings era:
1. Tiger Woods
What a shock. He's spent 623 weeks at No. 1, which equals 11.9 years. He may never be No. 1 again but he owned it for more than a decade, almost as much as everyone else combined.
2. Greg Norman
It's almost easy now to forget how big and dominant Norman was for a long time. He occupied No. 1 for 331 weeks with a game that was almost as big as his personality and image.
3. Nick Faldo
He was bigger in Europe than he was in the States because he played more there but Faldo -- long before we knew he could be funny -- was a classic grinder. He kept giving himself chances in major championships and wound up with six of them.
4. Seve Ballesteros
He was No. 1 for 61 weeks but the rankings came along during the back-half of his prime. At his best, Seve was unlike anyone else, both in his style and his game.
5. Vijay Singh
He bumped Tiger off his throne a few years back, which was a monumental achievement. He won nine times in 2004 when he overtook Tiger and is the PGA Tour's best ever in his 40s.
If you're wondering, the other No. 1 ranked players are Bernhard Langer, Ian Woosnam, Fred Couples, Nick Price, Tom Lehman, Ernie Els, David Duval and Martin Kaymer, as well as Westwood and Donald.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
High School Golfer's Good Deed Gets The SI Treatment
Jonathan Price, the sophomore at Granville Central High who intentionally lost a playoff so his friend and teammate Michael Pope could play in the state high school championship earlier this spring, has written a short first-person story for Sports Illustrated's Golf Plus section this week.
Price also spoke recently at Old Chatham Golf Club's annual black-tie dinner after news of his unselfishness spread.
It was Price who had a six-inch putt to advance to the state tournament but, while standing over the clinching putt, decided to give his friend a chance to play in the tournament instead because Pope was a senior and wouldn't have another chance.
Price also spoke recently at Old Chatham Golf Club's annual black-tie dinner after news of his unselfishness spread.
It was Price who had a six-inch putt to advance to the state tournament but, while standing over the clinching putt, decided to give his friend a chance to play in the tournament instead because Pope was a senior and wouldn't have another chance.
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Eger Keeps Getting Better
For a guy who spent a good portion of his adult life setting up championship courses for both the PGA Tour and the USGA, David Eger came within a eyelash Sunday of the biggest victory of his golf career.
Eger, who lives part-time in Charlotte, was beaten by Tom Watson Sunday on the first hole of sudden death at the PGA Senior Championship at Valhalla in Louisville, Ky. Eger, 59, could look at his failure to birdie the par-5 18th hole in regulation -- he missed a five-foot birdie putt -- and again in the playoff -- when he hit his tee shot in a bad spot in a fairway bunker -- as the critical missed opportunities.
Still, after shooting 74 in the opening round and taking advantage of a good final round on a breezy, difficult day, Eger had only minimal regrets. He hit a poor putt on the 72nd hole and, judging by his post-round comments, that's the one that will linger with him.
But for a guy who was hobbling around on a broken ankle last summer, it's been a terrific year. Eger teamed with Mark McNulty to win the Legends of Golf title in Savannah last month and had a chance to win his first major championship on Sunday. Not bad for a guy who decided at age 48 to give professional golf a try after watching it from close range for so many years.
"So just like Dana Quigley or Allen Doyle or Jay Siegel or even John Harris, it's the ultimate mulligan in life for a golfer to be able to come out here and play and play reasonably well at times and compete with the likes of Tom Watson and Hale Irwin and wonderful great players who I watched from a golf cart for years and years win tournaments and championships," Eger told reporters in Louisville.
"It's not a bad feeling. I'm comfortable in my own skin."
Eger, who lives part-time in Charlotte, was beaten by Tom Watson Sunday on the first hole of sudden death at the PGA Senior Championship at Valhalla in Louisville, Ky. Eger, 59, could look at his failure to birdie the par-5 18th hole in regulation -- he missed a five-foot birdie putt -- and again in the playoff -- when he hit his tee shot in a bad spot in a fairway bunker -- as the critical missed opportunities.
Still, after shooting 74 in the opening round and taking advantage of a good final round on a breezy, difficult day, Eger had only minimal regrets. He hit a poor putt on the 72nd hole and, judging by his post-round comments, that's the one that will linger with him.
But for a guy who was hobbling around on a broken ankle last summer, it's been a terrific year. Eger teamed with Mark McNulty to win the Legends of Golf title in Savannah last month and had a chance to win his first major championship on Sunday. Not bad for a guy who decided at age 48 to give professional golf a try after watching it from close range for so many years.
"So just like Dana Quigley or Allen Doyle or Jay Siegel or even John Harris, it's the ultimate mulligan in life for a golfer to be able to come out here and play and play reasonably well at times and compete with the likes of Tom Watson and Hale Irwin and wonderful great players who I watched from a golf cart for years and years win tournaments and championships," Eger told reporters in Louisville.
"It's not a bad feeling. I'm comfortable in my own skin."
Friday, May 27, 2011
Are You Man Enough To Step Forward?
You know the type:
Guys (no offense ladies but this seems to be a male ego issue) who insist on playing the back tees whenever and wherever they play golf. It doesn't matter that their handicap and shoe size match, they're taking it to the tips because that's what they think real golfers do.
It's a macho thing, like 8.5-degree drivers for guys who should be hitting 10.5 drivers.
I understand if it's a one-time thing, like trying to play Quail Hollow from the tournament tees or Carmel Country Club's newly redesigned South Course from its full 7,500 yards just once for the experience. But Rees Jones, who redesigned the South Course, said he stretched Carmel to 7,500 yards to allow flexibility in setting tees from one day to the next, not so the course would actually play that long.
Jones pointed out that Congressional Country Club, host of the U.S. Open next month, measures more than 7,400 yards but will play closer to 7,200 for the Open.
But back to the point of this. The USGA and the PGA of America recently announced an initiative called 'Tee It Forward' designed to get more golfers to play from shorter tees, not longer tees. The idea is to make the maddening game more enjoyable for everyone, even those of us who are too stubborn to move up one set of markers.
The big push is July 5-17 but the organizations are rolling out the campaign details now.
"The idea is to make golf more fun," Allen Wronowski, president of the PGA of America, said.
If that's the goal, then maybe he can fix my short game.
By moving up a set of tees, Wronowski and others in the golf establishment are saying, players will have more fun. Hitting a 7-iron into a green is more fun than hitting a hybrid, at least in theory anyway.
Jack Nicklaus is on board. He thinks golfers should play shorter tees. He also thinks the golf ball should be rolled back so it doesn't go so far, which he's absolutely right about but which will probably never happen.
Barney Adams, the clubmaker, has been pushing the idea of playing shorter tees for a while and he's on to something. Whether it catches on is a different question.
Most of us don't hit it as far as we think we do unless there's a cart path involved. We see a 6,700-yard golf course and think that's fair enough. According to research by people who are better with computers than me, a 6,700-yard course for most of us is like an 8,100-yard course for the pros.
I'll save you the trouble -- the pros don't play anything within a long-par 5 of 8,100 yards, if you could even find one.
If you drive it 300 on average (come on now, you know you don't), it's fine to play from 7,150 yards to 7,400 yards.
If you hit it 250 off the tee (don't make me do a Bushnell test to find out if you're telling the truth) you should play from 6,200 yards to 6,400 yards. Bet you play longer courses than that. I do.
If you average 225, you need to be playing from up front at 5,800 yards, maybe 6,000. That's not me saying it, it's the guys who've studied it. I'm just saying...but they might be onto something.
And, if you average 150 off the tee, you need to be playing tennis.
These are only guidelines. In golf, you can pick your poison, most places anyway. In Scotland, they tell you which tees to play, based on your handicap. Not a bad idea. Plus, they can play 18 holes before we've reached the 14th tee over here.
A quick round of golf. That's fun.
Guys (no offense ladies but this seems to be a male ego issue) who insist on playing the back tees whenever and wherever they play golf. It doesn't matter that their handicap and shoe size match, they're taking it to the tips because that's what they think real golfers do.
It's a macho thing, like 8.5-degree drivers for guys who should be hitting 10.5 drivers.
I understand if it's a one-time thing, like trying to play Quail Hollow from the tournament tees or Carmel Country Club's newly redesigned South Course from its full 7,500 yards just once for the experience. But Rees Jones, who redesigned the South Course, said he stretched Carmel to 7,500 yards to allow flexibility in setting tees from one day to the next, not so the course would actually play that long.
Jones pointed out that Congressional Country Club, host of the U.S. Open next month, measures more than 7,400 yards but will play closer to 7,200 for the Open.
But back to the point of this. The USGA and the PGA of America recently announced an initiative called 'Tee It Forward' designed to get more golfers to play from shorter tees, not longer tees. The idea is to make the maddening game more enjoyable for everyone, even those of us who are too stubborn to move up one set of markers.
The big push is July 5-17 but the organizations are rolling out the campaign details now.
"The idea is to make golf more fun," Allen Wronowski, president of the PGA of America, said.
If that's the goal, then maybe he can fix my short game.
By moving up a set of tees, Wronowski and others in the golf establishment are saying, players will have more fun. Hitting a 7-iron into a green is more fun than hitting a hybrid, at least in theory anyway.
Jack Nicklaus is on board. He thinks golfers should play shorter tees. He also thinks the golf ball should be rolled back so it doesn't go so far, which he's absolutely right about but which will probably never happen.
Barney Adams, the clubmaker, has been pushing the idea of playing shorter tees for a while and he's on to something. Whether it catches on is a different question.
Most of us don't hit it as far as we think we do unless there's a cart path involved. We see a 6,700-yard golf course and think that's fair enough. According to research by people who are better with computers than me, a 6,700-yard course for most of us is like an 8,100-yard course for the pros.
I'll save you the trouble -- the pros don't play anything within a long-par 5 of 8,100 yards, if you could even find one.
If you drive it 300 on average (come on now, you know you don't), it's fine to play from 7,150 yards to 7,400 yards.
If you hit it 250 off the tee (don't make me do a Bushnell test to find out if you're telling the truth) you should play from 6,200 yards to 6,400 yards. Bet you play longer courses than that. I do.
If you average 225, you need to be playing from up front at 5,800 yards, maybe 6,000. That's not me saying it, it's the guys who've studied it. I'm just saying...but they might be onto something.
And, if you average 150 off the tee, you need to be playing tennis.
These are only guidelines. In golf, you can pick your poison, most places anyway. In Scotland, they tell you which tees to play, based on your handicap. Not a bad idea. Plus, they can play 18 holes before we've reached the 14th tee over here.
A quick round of golf. That's fun.
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Golf, Charlotte Lose A Friend In Norman Swenson
Norman Swenson, one of the great golf characters around here for years, died in recently on plane flight home from a golf trip to South Korea.
Swenson played college golf at Wake Forest in the 1960s and lived on the 16th hole at Carmel Country Club’s South Course for many years. He and his family had moved from Charlotte and split their time between the North Carolina mountains and a home in Florida. His daughter, Perry, played collegiately at Texas and co-hosted a show on The Golf Channel about Myrtle Beach.
In addition to being an excellent amateur player, Norman Swenson had a world-class collection of golf memorabilia.
“Norman was one of the true ambassadors of golf,” his friend, Xan Law, said. “He was so generous taking people to play at Pine Valley and on other golf trips. He was one of those rare golfers who got better with age. He’ll really be missed.”
Swenson played college golf at Wake Forest in the 1960s and lived on the 16th hole at Carmel Country Club’s South Course for many years. He and his family had moved from Charlotte and split their time between the North Carolina mountains and a home in Florida. His daughter, Perry, played collegiately at Texas and co-hosted a show on The Golf Channel about Myrtle Beach.
In addition to being an excellent amateur player, Norman Swenson had a world-class collection of golf memorabilia.
“Norman was one of the true ambassadors of golf,” his friend, Xan Law, said. “He was so generous taking people to play at Pine Valley and on other golf trips. He was one of those rare golfers who got better with age. He’ll really be missed.”
Monday, May 23, 2011
Is The Belly Putter In My Future?
I'm thinking about the belly putter.
Just thinking about it, not going there. Not yet anyway.
I know that listening to someone else talk about their golf game is as much fun as long bunker shots but indulge me for a moment. Maybe you've been where I am today.
Then again, how many of you have three-putted seven times in 18 holes in a tournament like I did Sunday? That didn't include the 18-incher I also missed.
If I'm going to continue playing, I'm going to get behind the push to go to 15-inch wide cups like the ones they used at Pine Needles earlier this year to see how much better people played. Not only did it speed the game along, players made more putts, there were more smiles and no one was the worse for it.
It's a helpless feeling when you're standing over a putt with your mind doing a Google search for a new swing thought. You know what it's like: That didn't work so let's try this. Hmmm, that didn't work either. What about...
I knew this was coming. I wrote a blog last fall about how nice it was to be a good putter again. Six-footers were opportunities, not evil teases. I was making more than my share of 15-footers and it showed in my scores.
Todd Smith, a superb teacher and a friend of mine, had given me a simple suggestion and it worked -- for several months. Now that simple suggestion has gone the way of eight-track tapes.
With the likelihood of 15-inch cups being adopted any time soon by the USGA, I've asked Todd to try and work his magic one more time. There's a member-member event coming up at Cedarwood where I play in a couple of weeks. The way I'm putting, it could do serious damage to a friendship.
And I'm not ready to go shopping for a belly putter.
Not yet, anyway.
Just thinking about it, not going there. Not yet anyway.
I know that listening to someone else talk about their golf game is as much fun as long bunker shots but indulge me for a moment. Maybe you've been where I am today.
Then again, how many of you have three-putted seven times in 18 holes in a tournament like I did Sunday? That didn't include the 18-incher I also missed.
If I'm going to continue playing, I'm going to get behind the push to go to 15-inch wide cups like the ones they used at Pine Needles earlier this year to see how much better people played. Not only did it speed the game along, players made more putts, there were more smiles and no one was the worse for it.
It's a helpless feeling when you're standing over a putt with your mind doing a Google search for a new swing thought. You know what it's like: That didn't work so let's try this. Hmmm, that didn't work either. What about...
I knew this was coming. I wrote a blog last fall about how nice it was to be a good putter again. Six-footers were opportunities, not evil teases. I was making more than my share of 15-footers and it showed in my scores.
Todd Smith, a superb teacher and a friend of mine, had given me a simple suggestion and it worked -- for several months. Now that simple suggestion has gone the way of eight-track tapes.
With the likelihood of 15-inch cups being adopted any time soon by the USGA, I've asked Todd to try and work his magic one more time. There's a member-member event coming up at Cedarwood where I play in a couple of weeks. The way I'm putting, it could do serious damage to a friendship.
And I'm not ready to go shopping for a belly putter.
Not yet, anyway.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Golf's Summer To-Do List: The First Five
It's not exactly like a New Year's resolution but now that we've hit full golf season around here, I've concocted a list of five things golfers need to do this summer. It's just a start. I'll do another list of five later and if you have suggestions, feel free to pass them along.
1. Play in at least one tournament.
It's one thing to play golf with your buddies, it's something else when they put the pencil in your hand and tell you to putt them out. Some people thrive on competition. Others, not so much.
If you haven't played tournament golf in a while, do it again. It's amazing how much attention you'll start paying to those 18-inch tap-ins.
2. Play with seven clubs rather than 14
You can pick which clubs you leave in your car's trunk but take half of them out of your bag for one round. It will force you to hit different kinds of shots.
If you're like me, you've probably got five or six clubs in mind you'd like to take out permanently. My hybrid, for example, would not make the seven-club cut. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver are getting along better than my hybrid and I these days.
3. Practice putting
Rolling a few putts before a round doesn't qualify as practicing your putting. If you practice at all, you probably bang balls and avoid the putting green. It should be the other way around.
I know that and you know that. Of course, they tell us cheeseburgers are bad for us, too, but that doesn't change our habits.
4. Walk nine holes late in the day
It's the prettiest time on a golf course. If you don't want to carry your bag, you can pull a cart but walk, don't ride. Just this once.
5. Don't wear those ugly shorts
You know the ones I'm talking about. Everybody has a pair but, really, it's time to let them go.
1. Play in at least one tournament.
It's one thing to play golf with your buddies, it's something else when they put the pencil in your hand and tell you to putt them out. Some people thrive on competition. Others, not so much.
If you haven't played tournament golf in a while, do it again. It's amazing how much attention you'll start paying to those 18-inch tap-ins.
2. Play with seven clubs rather than 14
You can pick which clubs you leave in your car's trunk but take half of them out of your bag for one round. It will force you to hit different kinds of shots.
If you're like me, you've probably got five or six clubs in mind you'd like to take out permanently. My hybrid, for example, would not make the seven-club cut. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver are getting along better than my hybrid and I these days.
3. Practice putting
Rolling a few putts before a round doesn't qualify as practicing your putting. If you practice at all, you probably bang balls and avoid the putting green. It should be the other way around.
I know that and you know that. Of course, they tell us cheeseburgers are bad for us, too, but that doesn't change our habits.
4. Walk nine holes late in the day
It's the prettiest time on a golf course. If you don't want to carry your bag, you can pull a cart but walk, don't ride. Just this once.
5. Don't wear those ugly shorts
You know the ones I'm talking about. Everybody has a pair but, really, it's time to let them go.
