Guide for Beginning Golfers

I can’t even say his name let alone acknowledge his victory at the British Open but Oostuizen’s  performance and final total score of -16 speaks for itself. The next player, Lee Westwood, finished seven shots back  at -9 which is an indication of how well  Oosthuizen really played for this prestigious tournament at the world’s oldest and most revered golf venue, St. Andrews. I have to admit this years Open was a bit boring for golf fans in the United States as the top American player, Sean O’Hair finished at -6, ten strokes back and tied for seventh place. None of our players even sniffed at  a chance for the top three spots, which is unusual for the U.S. team.

Tiger Woods, who has not yet returned to true form, struggled with the putter and had to settle for a tie for 23rd with a -3 finish total on Sunday. John Daly, who was on the leader board on Thursday with a first  round sixty six, Stewart Cink, last years winner in the Open over Tom Watson, and Phil Mickelson, a fan favorite, all shot plus one and tied for 48th place, which is not so impressive for these U.S. players. I had high hopes for Phil Mickelson coming into this championship but he his play has been less than stellar since his Masters victory in April of this year.

The British Open has been the second major golf tournament in a row where the European and other top world players have stymied the United States from the leaderboard. In the U.S. Open in June, the top three places went to McDowell, the barely known Frenchman,  Havret and Ernie Els from South Africa. The outcome and lackluster performance by the American players in these last two major venues does not bode well for the U.S. in the coming Ryder Cup championship in September of 2010. Corey Pavin, the captain for the U.S. has his work cut out for him if the Amercian team is to be competitive enough to win this years Ryder Cup. I wish them the best of luck as they may surely need some this year. Our players had better get to the golf range and start hitting golf balls to prepare for the challenge they face ahead.

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The world’s top golfers gathered for the 110th playing of the prestigious American PGA Tour event, the U. S. Open. Pebble Beach is one of the top golf venues in the country located in Monterey County, California maybe second only to Pine Valley Golf Course  in New Jersey. Pebble Beach was long renowned as the #1 or #2 golf course in the country and the world for an extended period of time and will always be a favorite of tour pros and amateurs alike. This years set up at Pebble Beach was one of the toughest tests of golf skills for the PGA Tour Pros in recent history.
I was hoping for a Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson battle for the championship on Sunday, but three foreign born players, Graeme McDowell, Gregory Havret and Ernie Els held off their charge and finished one, two and three respectively leaving the world’s two top players tied for fourth and no trophy for the United States in 2010. Dustin Johnson, an excellent American golfer, who was playing lights out through Saturday could not handle the heat on Sunday as he collapsed under the pressure shooting an 82 and finishing tied for 8th.  Dustin held the lead over eventual winner, Graeme McDowell, by two shots at the start of the final round and seemed to have tamed the beast but he gave back shot after shot in the final round as Pebble Beach showed her fangs and bit back. During the final round it appeared as if the players were all going backward and the title would go to the golfer who could best hold on for dear life. The final scores tell the tale of how difficult Pebble Beach was playing, as even par won the event, when these players can shoot between 12 and 20 under par under normal golf tournament conditions.

Tom Watson, a fan favorite, showed his tenacity as he hung on for a tied for 29th place finish. Tom could have finished tied for 27th had he made a short putt on the 18th hole but he let it slip off to the side as he was not the only player at Pebble Beach to miss on the short grass. There were three putts from inside two feet at this years Open. Tom Watson can still hit golf balls with the best of them as he bested the likes of VJ Singh and Stewart Cink, who just edged him out at last years British Open. Can this be Tom Watson’s last U.S. Open? In my opinion, I would have to say he is not yet done and we’ll see him back next year. Congratulations to Graeme McDowell on his victory as he held on for one stroke lead over Gregory Havret, the frenchman, who finished plus one and solo second place.  Next up – The British Open! Happy Golfing to All!

In my opinion Tiger Woods has a very long hard road back. He may never reach the pinnacle of success that he could have achieved had it not been for the revelation of his mere mortal existence. Prior to the incident last November and the exposure of his sex addictions, his many dalliances while married, and his self imposed isolation from the PGA Tour, he had been placed on a pedestal by his peers, fans and the golfing public. His immeasurable feats while on the golf course and his ability to intimidate his opponents in competition made him appear superhuman to most.

Since his arrival on the golf scene in 1997, and his dramatic win at The Masters, where he beat all comers by 12 shots, he has exuded superior golfing skills to the other players on tour. Over the last few years Tiger has seemed out of sorts at times and faltered during competition where that would have never occurred prior to that time. It became blatantly and painfully obvious during the PGA Championship last season when he lost to Y.E. Yang on the back nine on Sunday after being in the lead after 54 holes. It has now become clear what caused the lack of concentration and his unprecedented collapse at the PGA. His distraction and pre-occupation with his personal life has exposed his shortcomings and frailty to his peers and he has let the door open for another great  player to potentially fill that void. Great people and players rise to the occasion when the opportunity arises and he provided that possibility to happen.

Despite his shortcomings it will be no easy task to dethrone Tiger Woods as the # 1 golfer as he is still a great player no matter what turmoil has befallen him in his personal life. Besides his divorce proceedings which are underway and his neck injury which caused him to withdraw from The Players Championship, he has just split with his long time golf coach, Hank Haney.  The split was initiated by Haney and understandably so. Tiger will have an uphill battle to regain the justification of  his place in golf immortality but also to reacquire the respect of his peers, his at one time many fans and his sponsors. His ability to hit golf balls is perhaps matched by no other, but it takes more than skill to make a man the gentleman he is supposed to be in order to participate and compete in this centuries old game of golf! Happy Golfing to All!

Will Phil Mickelson win the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach in June? I think that is a good question. His golf game over the past few months has led me to believe he stands an excellent chance to do just that. His win at The Masters with an incredible run on the back nine which included two eagles, his second place finish at The Quail Hollow Championship, where he could have easily won had it not been for a course record breaking 62 shot by Rory McElroy, and his tie for 17th place finish at The Players Championship this past weekend have given all indication that he is in a groove and can win any tournament he enters if he gets any momentum going. Phil struggled in the final round at The Players making five bogies. This shows he is not infallible and will have his good and bad days on the golf course as every golfer has experienced, both professional and amateur alike.

There are a number of excellent golfers on the PGA Tour  and with Tim Clark’s victory at The Players Championshiphe may have broken the no win streak by the foreign players.  Since Tiger Woods is out of the picture for now, in my opinion Phil Mickelson is the main contender to win the majors this golf season. Tiger’s missed cut at the Quail Hollow Championship and his neck injury that caused him to with draw from the competition on Sunday at The Players, indicate he is definitely not in form mentally or physically to play the type of golf required to beat Mickelson or an assortment of other good players who will be in the field. I’m not saying another star player such as McElroy, Villegas, Els, Harrington or Anthony Kim could not rise to the occasion but just stating that Mickelson is the man to beat. Any of the players mentioned here can hit golf balls with the best of them but Phil Mickelson is poised to win and he may do it just it a little better than the rest. I also feel he has gained the confidence needed to maintain his poise on Sunday and not fold under the pressure as he did so blatantly at Bethpage Black in 2002 and Winged Foot  in 2006 ( see photo above) where he had real opportunities for victory in the U.S.Open.

I wish Phil Mickelson much success and hope he can be the great player he was meant to be. His sheer pleasure in victory is indicated by the smile on his face in the photo on the left as he gets his second green jacket at the 2006 Masters.  The presenter was none other than Tiger Woods who had won the previous year. Happy Golfing to All!

Rory McIlroy has showed a lot of promise after turning professional at 18 just a couple of years ago. He beat Phil Mickelson and Angel Cabrera, this years and last years Masters Champions respectively. Rory is finally coming into his own after overcoming some back problems over the past year or so which is unusual for such a young man of only twenty years old.

He shot an unprecedented final round score of 62, which broke the course record by two but his eagle 3 on Friday allowed him to make the cut and give him the opportunity for the win. Tiger Woods struggled and missed the cut for only the sixth time in his career. His play was predictable given the stress of his pending divorce from Elin Nordegren, and the isolation from his children. But this day was about Rory McIlroy who is hitting golf balls with the best of them. I knew this was going to be an interesting golf season and it was good to see Phil in the hunt again so soon after his Masters victory a few weeks back . Phil made a late charge but a bogey on the final nine all but ended his chances for a win.

Congratulations to Rory McIlroy, who won the Quail Hollow Championship in style with a closing 62 on Sunday. Happy Golfing to All!