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.

Congratulations to Louis Oosthuizen on a stellar performance in this years British Open. If he keeps playing in this form we may be hearing from him again soon. Happy Golfing to All!

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!

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!

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!

The advantage that Phil Mickelson has it that he is still a young man with all the skills he needs to win again. When Tiger Woods presented Phil Mickelson with the Green jacket in April of 2006 it was a great day in golf. The world’s two greatest golfers of the modern era shared back to back victories as Tiger Woods had won the Masters the previous year in 2005. Phil was also the victor in his second major, the PGA, that same year. His four wins in the major golf tournaments since 2004 have provided him with the confidence he needs to win more majors even though he let the U.S. Open at Winged Foot and Bethpage get away. Phil has finally found the zone and his putting stroke as he has stood toe to toe with Tiger on a few occasions recently, like the WGC last year, just prior to Tiger’s sex scandal, and this year’s Masters and has come out on top. If he can maintain this momentum he may put another major or two under his belt before this golf season is over, which is what the sport so desperately needs right now.  Tiger has lost the respect of some fans, his sponsors and his peers and justifiably so. I was a huge fan and had never expected Tiger Woods to become embroiled in such a scandal as he appeared to be almost superhuman in his golf career and personal life. Since he has shown the frailty of being a mere mortal he may have left the door open for another golf hero to emerge and I can think of none other more deserving than Phil Mickelson.  

I have also been very impressed with the play of Tom Watson and Fred Couples, who are 60 and 50 respectively and who have played some of the best golf of their careers as of late. Their performance in this years Masters is a good for instance as Fred Couples finished in sixth place and Tom Watson placed tied for 18th, an incredible feat for both of them at their age. It is my guess that Tom Watson’s spectacular showing in last years British Open at age 59, where he finished second to Stewart Cink in a four hole playoff, after tying in the final round, has given him and other players nearing or in the senior tour age bracket the confidence they need to realize they can still remain competitive regardless of their years. I wholeheartedly agree with this point of view and I know I would not allow age to affect my thought process if the skills and health requirements to hit golf balls and score well were still intact.

I have a premonition that this year in golf will be one of the best we have seen in a while where the cream will rise to the top. As I have noted in past posts I had been disappointed in the majors last year but 2010 has started off with a bang. I am rooting for Phil Mickelson, Tom Watson, one helluva golfer, and Fred Couples as they have earned the respect and admiration they deserve on and off the golf course. I also want to close by wishing Amy Mickelson well as she has been an inspiration for husband Phil and all women fighting the debilitating disease of breast cancer. Go Amy, Go Phil. Happy Golfing to All!

I had been a Tiger Woods fan since he made his first appearance on the PGA Tour in 1997. Despite the incident involving his car accident last Thanksgiving and the revelation of his dalliances and indiscretions were revealed for public scrutiny, he was received well by his peers, the media and his golfing fans. Although he put on smile for his fans and the camera he seemed distant during this tournament and justifiably so in some respects. There is no doubt that Tiger Woods is an incredible golfer, as I know of no other who could have performed so well after his four month hiatus from golf and with his personal life virtually turned upside down since last November. There was, however, something missing in his game for as incredibly as he played he could have scored better. He made some mental errors down the stretch like taking a two foot par putt for granted, missing and having to settle for bogie when he was in contention for a possible second or third place finish which was unlike his normal performance when the competition heats up.

Phil Mickelson, on the other hand, played like a man on a mission and took home the Green Jacket for himself, wife Amy, his mom and his children. His play showed the golfing skills that make him the greatest player on tour in the present day era of golf, maybe second only to Tiger Woods. I say maybe because I think the incident with Tiger exposed him to the world as the mere mortal that he is and not the superman who some perceived him to be before the incident last year. Phil is a spectacular player who is coming into his own and is finally believing in himself. Unfortunately, it may have taken a family crisis to make that happen. His wife Amy courageously made her way to the tournament with their children to be by her husbands side despite her illness and not feeling well. She wanted to share in this historic moment as she played an important role by inspiring Phil to win his third green jacket. He now shares this honor with some of the most renowned names in golf, Jimmy Demaret, Nick Faldo, Gary Player and Sam Snead. Arnold Palmer, another golf legend has four wins along with Tiger Woods. Jack Nicklaus leads with an incredible six victories at this prestigious golf tournament, The Masters. I thoroughly enjoyed this years Masters and I look forward to seeing Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods and the other great players on tour, hitting golf balls and competing in the rest of the majors in 2010. Happy Golfing to All!

The Masters Tournament will be the first time Tiger will be interviewed by the media since his hiatus from golf last year. His many fans are curious as to how he will perform after his exposure as a sex addict and his subsequent enrollment in a sex addiction treatment clinic to overcome this complusion. He has his golf clubs in hand and is prepared to show the world that he will  overcome this setback and return to the game he loves. In a few days we will learn if Tiger’s layoff has affected his game or if it is business as usual. Tune in and Happy Golfing to All!

This goal has been in the forefront of Tiger’s mind since he first held a golf club in his hand as a youngster. In a few short weeks, beginning on April 8th we will see how the layoff and his personal dilemma has affected Tiger and his golfing skills. Will he return in true Tiger form or will he miss the cut at Augusta, one of the toughest major venues on the PGA roster? Either outcome is possible but I’m looking forward to his return to golf and to watch him hitting golf balls again as he does like no other since Jack. Happy Golfing to All!

I am also a huge fan of Phil Mickelson, who has received a tremendous confidence boost since his putting session with Champions legend, Dave Stockton. If he can continue on this pace he may have a career boosting season ahead and give Tiger a run for the money. Phil has also had to surmount some pretty serious obstacles this season since both his mother and wife, Amy had been diagnosed with cancer and thankfully they are both doing well. If Phil and Tiger can go head to head in some tournaments this coming season it will provide the golf fans with some truly great times that will be recorded in the annals of golf history. Golf fans would be able to relive the Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson rivalry of the 70’s, a truly historic golf era, through these two remarkably talented players. As much talent as Phil Mickelson has, he cannot yet lay claim to being the World’s Best Golfer but who knows what the next few seasons will bring. He has the talent and ability to rival Tiger but he has to “Believe in Himself” as Tiger does so well. So for now Tiger is # 1. I’m really looking forward to this coming season as I think some other golf tour professionals  may also provide a pleasant surprise. Happy Golfing to All!

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