February 2009 Archives

Phil Mickelson had a roller coaster of a day, but he pulled it together in time to win the Northern Trust Open. Mickelson shot a 1-over 72 and beat Steve Stricker by a shot.

Phil Mickelson had a seemingly gargantuan lead in the Northern Trust Open at four strokes but it has since evaporated and now he's in a tie for third at 13-under. Mickelson eagled the first hole, then unraveled from there. He has yet to make a birdie today. Yesterday, he made six birdies on the back nine and seven total. Steve Stricker is in the lead at 15-under, and Rory Sabbatini is in second at 14-under. Mickelson and Fred Couples are tied for third at 13-under, two shots behind Stricker. Mickelson was at 18-under after eagling the first and has played Riviera at 5-over par since then.

Phil Mickelson birdied six of eight holes, including four consecutive, for a 9-under 62. He took a four-shot lead heading into tomorrow's final. Mickelson is the defending champion. Andres Romero is in second after shooting a 6-under 65 and Fred Couples, Rory Sabbatini, K.J. Choi and Scott McCarron are all tied for third at six shots back. McCarron still has one hole to play.

Phil Mickelson birdied the 14th hole and has a one-shot lead at 13-under in the Northern Trust Open. Rory Sabbatini is one shot back at 12-under.

Phil Mickelson eagled the first hole for the second consecutive day to move within one shot of Scott McCarron during the third round at the NTO. It's a crowded leaderboard with big names. Mickelson, McCarron and Steve Stricker are tied for the lead at 10-under while Robert Allenby and Fred Couples are tied for fourth at 9-under and several players - including Rory Sabbatini - are tied for sixth at 8-under.

Steve Stricker knows a thing or two about comebacks.
The only back-to-back winner of the Comeback Player of the Year award in PGA Tour history, Stricker folded during the final round of the Bob Hope Classic last month, shooting a 5-over 77 to turn a three-shot lead entering the final round into a five-shot defeat to Pat Perez.
After missing the cut the following week at the FBR Open, Stricker returned home to Wisconsin to stew.
"That one stuck with me. The next week in Phoenix, I shouldn't have even played. I should have just gone home. Mentally, I wasn't in it, down in the dumps," he said. "It just felt like I threw a tournament away with a real good opportunity to win."
Stricker returned to the tour this week and has fired rounds of 68 and 66 to move into a tie for second at 8-under 134.
"You know, it's hard, but I've had to pick myself up a number of times out here on tour, so I'm used to it," he said. "You just need to move on, and just try to keep doing what you know how to do, and for me, that's just keep working at it and keep trying to get better and try to get myself in that position (to win) again."

Vincent Johnson surely won't forget the fifth hole at Riviera Country Club, where he took a two-stroke penalty. While Johnson was in the middle of his swing, the ball moved, which is a one-stroke penalty. Johnson wasn't sure it had moved. He said his head and eyes were coming back on the line he was trying to play. Johnson then had a conversation with playing partner Bryce Molder, who didn't think the ball moved either. Johnson should've called over a rules official to double check, but he continued and hit the shot. Since the ball had moved, he then hit from the wrong place. When he got to the seventh tee, he was met by a rules official, who told him he was assessed a two-stroke penalty. Johnson was 2-under before the penalty and was in line to make the cut. However, Johnson shot a 74 Friday and was three shots off the cut line. So even if he didn't have the two-stroke penalty, he would've missed the cut by one.
``I think the toughest thing, the game of golf, you want to play with integrity and everything,'' Johnson said. ``And I take that very seriously. I by no means wanted to you know, try to get an edge on anything. That was probably the biggest thing. You know, the fact that I got the penalty, I'm glad that they got it right.''

Scott McCarron (UCLA) birdied the 18th hole Friday to finish his second round at 10-under 132 and with a two-stroke lead over Tommy Armour III and Steve Stricker.
First-round leader Phil Mickelson shot a 1-over 72 to drop into a tie for fourth at 7-under 135.

Rory Sabbatini, who won here in 2006, got off to an inauspicious start Friday.
From the elevated tee high above the first fairway, he hooked his initial shot out of bounds and into the compound where the TV trailers are parked.
"I just didn't have a chance to get a cup of coffee this morning, so I figured I would hit over in the trailers and see if they had any," Sabbatini quipped.
"The first hole, you've got all the earth to the right. There's no reason to hit it left on that hole. But for some reason this morning, my brain had not woken up yet, and I made a stupid mistake."
Despite a bogey on No. 1, the easiest hole in terms of scoring average on the course, Sabbatini rebounded to shoot a 67 to finish at 7-under 135, which is currently one stroke out of the lead.
"I enjoy playing here. It fits my eye very well," he said. "I drove the ball well and hit the irons well and I'm really enjoying hitting that new Callaway driver. The thing just goes forever."

Phil Mickelson made bogeys on Nos. 12 and 13 to drop to 7 under and into a tie for fifth place.
That leaves four players tied for the lead at 8 under.

Tommy Armour III, who shot 67s in each of the first two rounds, was asked what sort of work he does on his swing in the offseason.
"Well, I think it's an always changing kind of game," he said. "You have to change to stay the same. I think because if you stay the same, for some reason, it doesn't stay the same."
As a follow-up, Armour was asked if he had ever made any drastic changes in his career.
"A couple of wives," Armour joked.

At one point in the second round, five players were tied for the lead.
Scott McCarron (UCLA) is back out in front, having made a birdie at the par-4 seventh hole to move to 9 under, one stroke ahead of Tommy Armour III, Steve Stricker, Phil Mickelson and Luke Donald.

As former UCLA standout Kevin Chappell left the clubhouse following the second round Friday, a young girl walked up to ask for his autograph on a Northern Trust Open flag.
"You've got just about everyone on here," Chappell said as he looked for a spot to sign.
A moment later, as Chappell handed the flag back, he noticed the girl was wearing a Stanford T-shirt and cap.
"We need to get you a UCLA hat," Chappell said with a smile before leaving Riviera Country Club.
Chappell, who won the NCAA individual championship last spring while guiding the Bruins to the team title, won't be back on the Riviera course today, missing the cut with a two-round total of 5-over 147.
And when he'll next sign an autograph as a PGA Tour player is in question.
After graduating from UCLA, Chappell failed to make it past the first stage of the PGA's qualifying school last fall. That means he has no playing privileges on either the PGA or Nationwide tours.
He was in the field at the NTO only because he tied for sixth at last week's rain-shortened AT&T National Pro-Am at Pebble Beach, for which he received a sponsor's exemption.
"I don't even know," Chappell said when asked about his upcoming schedule. "I've got some decisions to make."
Chappell began the season in Arizona on the minor-league Gateway Tour, and said he plans to try to go through Monday qualifying to get into Nationwide Tour events.
"He's just trying to go play wherever he can play," said UCLA coach Derek Freeman, who caddied for Chappell this week. "He just wants the competition."
On the bright side, Chappell earned $197,487.50 for his effort at Pebble Beach.
"Having made some money out here, it's a teaser," Chappell said. "Hopefully it can give me a kick-start.
"I always seem to do things the hard way. In my history with golf, there's always a learning curve. My goal was to get in here (the NTO), so I accomplished that goal."

Scott McCarron (UCLA) birdied two of the first three holes to move to 9 under and into sole possession of the lead.
Phil Mickelson dropped back to 8 under with a bogey on the par-3 sixth and is tied for second with Tommy Armour III and Steve Stricker, who have completed their rounds.

After an eagle on the par-5 opening hole to pull two strokes ahead, Phil Mickelson's drive on No. 2 went far left, almost up against the fence to Riviera's driving range.
He took a bogey from there to drop back to 9 under, one shot better than Tommy Armour III and Steve Stricker.

Phil Mickelson made an eagle-3 on the first hole to move to 10 under par, breaking a three-way tie for the lead with Tommy Armour III and Steve Stricker.
Mickelson reached the green in two on the 503-yard par-5, then made a 28-footer.

Here's the full press release from the conference call with Tiger Woods this morning. You can find it here on Tiger's Web site.

Phil Mickelson just teed off on the first hole, and already he has company at the top of the leaderboard. Tommy Armour already finished his early round and shot a 67 after posting a 67 yesterday. He's 8-under for the tournament as is Steve Stricker, who's shot 68-66--134 and is tied for the lead.

Tiger Woods just had a conference call on his decision to return to golf.
Here's a couple of comments from Woods, who will play in next week's WGC-Accenture Match Play Championships.
``Nothing changes from every time I enter. It's to win. That's my intent to go there and win. Nothing has ever changed.''
Woods said he made sure his wife, Elin, and newborn son, Charlie Axel, were OK before returning to play golf. Asked if the birth of his son, Charlie wasn't a factor, he said he yes that he probably could've returned before next week. So, the Northern Trust perhaps just missed out on hosting Woods' comeback.
``One of the frustrating things is I haven't been able to make my schedule like I normally do. I have to take this tournament by tournament. I'd like to play certain tournaments, yes. I don't know how this (knee) will behave and (the) recovery from day to day.''

Kevin Chappell, Parker McLachlin, Scott McCarron, Tom Pernice Jr. and John Merrick played in the first round of the Northern Trust Open Thursday, then were honored at halftime of the UCLA-Washington game at Pauley Pavilion.
After the game, McLachlin was spotted waiting in a long line of cars to leave UCLA's parking garage No. 7, which has just one exit. It probably didn't matter much because he has a 12:43 tee time today.

Scott McCarron, who is tied for second after a 7-under 64, wasn't the only former UCLA player to enjoy a home-course advantage Thursday.
Long Beach native John Merrick shot a 5-under 66 and is one of seven players tied for third.
"I've played a lot of rounds out here and I've been to the tournament before, coming out and watching as a college player and junior player, so I feel like it's one of the courses on tour where maybe I have a little home-course advantage," Merrick said.
Merrick, who started his round on the back nine, birdied two of his first three holes. He got to 6 under and was alone in third place until a bogey on his second-to-last hole, the par-4 eighth.
"It was just a solid day, solid golf," he said. "I feel comfortable on this course."

With temperatures in the upper 60s and sunny skies Thursday, conditions were nearly perfect at Riviera Country Club.
Especially considering last week's event, the AT&T National Pro-Am at Pebble Beach, was shortened to 54 holes because of rain.
"Yeah, it felt like it was 120 degrees after what we've had the last couple of weeks," said Dean Wilson, who is tied for third after an opening-round 5-under 66. "It was nice being in short sleeves and having the sun out. The weather is good, so the guys will go out and make some birdies."

Dustin Johnson, who won the rain-shortened AT&T National Pro-Am last week, shot a 5-under 66 Thursday and is tied for third.
"I don't know, golf, when you're playing well, you just kind of keep going," he said. "I've been working pretty hard on the game and it's feeling good right now."
Even though the final round was washed out last week, Johnson said he got a confidence boost from the victory.
"When you're real confident, even your bad shots are not that bad," he said. "They are still around the flag where you have to either look at birdie or get a good chance at par."

Fred Couples, who a two-time winner here in the early 1990s, regained some of that old magic in Thursday's opening round, shooting a 4-under 67 to the delight of the gallery.
"I hit the ball solid. I'll take 4 under any day," he said. "I've always played well here, whether it was an eighth-place finish or a 20th-place finish and I've won a couple times (1990 and 1992).
"I just think I feel good on the course, even though I'm 49 years old. I feel like I can go out and play (Riviera) well every single time. It doesn't mean I'm going to shoot 67."
When Couples was reminded that 49 isn't that old, he scoffed.
"It's old for this place," he said. "Everywhere I look, there are (young) people. I just played with Nick Watney and he won (at the Buick Invitational). I just played with Dustin Johnson and he goes and wins (at the AT&T National Pro-Am). These guys are great, great players and young and fun to be around. I've got six more months left of this (before being eligible for the Champions Tour), so I'd better enjoy it."

Tiger Woods will make his return at the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championships next week, announced today on his Web site.

Back in his days at UCLA, Scott McCarron said he was happy to shoot between 75 and 80 at Riviera Country Club.
He did much better than that during Thursday's opening round of the Northern Trust Open.
McCarron, 43, birdied his final hole of the day, the par-4 ninth, to shoot a 7-under 64 for sole possession of second place, one stroke behind defending champion Phil Mickelson.
"I don't know if I'd say (scoring) conditions are ever ripe to get Riviera, but ... the golf course is in great shape," McCarron said.
McCarron is finally getting back into shape after undergoing elbow surgery in 2006. That caused him to miss the entire 2007 PGA Tour season and limited his effectiveness last year, when he made just nine cuts in 22 events.
"I'm very healthy right now," said McCarron, who moved from Reno, Nev., to La Quinta this offseason to work on his game.
McCarron used to be one of the longest hitters on tour, but ranks 121st this season at 280.2 yards per drive.
"I'm short now," he said. "I was in the top 10 (in driving distance) for maybe seven years, but these guys hit it so much farther than I ever could dream of hitting. I mean, Dustin Johnson hits it 50 or 60 yards past me.
"I've got to be a little more crafty as I get older and I am hitting a lot straighter. I'm hitting a lot more fairways now and not going after the big bomb all the time. I've still maybe got a little extra gear, but it's more like a Volkswagen Beetle, as opposed to somebody's Ferrari. I am thoroughly amazed at how far these young guys are hitting it, but we're getting bigger and stronger athletes playing golf."
McCarron predicted UCLA would beat Washington in a blowout in Thursday night at Pauley Pavilion and plans to have dinner Friday with 30 or more fraternity brothers, including fellow PGA pro Brandt Jobe, who also went to UCLA in the mid- to late-1980s.

Defending champion Phil Mickelson took the early lead at the Northern Trust Open, shooting an 8-under 63 early Thursday at Riviera Country Club.
Scott McCarron is currently second at 6 under with one hole to play, with Dean Wilson, Jim Furyk, last week's AT&T winner Dustin Johnson and Luke Donald tied for third at 5 under.
Fan favorite Fred Couples, who won here in 1990 and 1992, shot a 4-under 67.

Here is a letter from Tiger Woods, which was read during today's ceremony honoring Charlie Sifford at the Northern Trust Open. An exemption in Sifford's name was created to give an opportunity for a golfer who displays character and the advancement of diversity in golf. Vincent Johnson, who received the first exemption, was on hand for the ceremony, which just concluded. Here's the letter:

It always rains during the Northern Trust Open, and of course it's raining today. It's also supposed to rain tomorrow, but according to weather.com, the forecast calls for sun for Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. It's supposed to be cloudy for the final round on Sunday.

The deadline has passed for golfers to enter the Northern Trust Open field. Tiger Woods will not make his comeback at Riviera Country Club. Three of the top five and 29 of the top 50 in the world rankings will play the tournament that begins Thursday.
Here's the field:

LPGA Tour commissioner Carolyn F. Bivens announced today that the tour will return to an event in Los Angeles in addition to a five-year broadcast rights contract with J Golf, which has exclusive rights within Korea. Terms of the deal weren't disclosed, but I just talked to her via phone and she said it was the biggest contract in LPGA history.
``This is an important day,'' Bivens said. ``I do believe it's historic. It's the largest contract signed in the history of the LPGA. It speaks a lot about the traction that the LPGA is getting in the global marketplace.''

The LPGA announced today that it will return to Los Angeles for an event in 2010. The course and dates are to be determined. Here's the story from the Associated Press:

Active duty military personnel and their families will receive free admission to the Northern Trust Open next week. Military uniforms aren't required, but people must present military identification at the Longworth Ave. admissions gate.
"Our military and their families make great sacrifices to keep us safe and we wanted to offer them an opportunity to enjoy viewing some of the greatest golfers in the world," said Tom Pulchinski, the Northern Trust Open tournament director.

Here is a golf poem that was forwarded via e-mail. Not sure who wrote it, but it's pretty good. Enjoy!

Tiger Woods' wife, Elin, gave birth to a baby boy, Charlie Axel Woods, yesterday. Woods announced the birth here on his Web sitethis morning. Woods said last week on his Web site that he was swinging ''full boar'' and his comeback to the PGA Tour would depend on the birth of his second child.

Anna Rawson has apologized for using the word ''dyke'' in an Australian radio interview to refer to female golfers from 25 years ago. Here's what she said: ``The tour has got so much better with so many young stars and great players,'' Rawson told the radio station in an interview arranged by her father Jim. "But the mentality unfortunately amongst the media and the industry hasn't changed.
"They still think we're at 25 years ago when the tour was full of, you know, a lot of dykes and unattractive females nobody wanted to watch.''
Here's a recent column I wrote in which Anna Rawson is critical of PGA Tour players for not signing more autographs.

Here's a great column by Dennis McCarthy on 94-year-old golfer Max Herman, who does a lot of charity work, too. It all started with a poker game, and now there's a charity golf tournament, too.

Phil Mickelson is starting his PGA Tour season by playing five consecutive events, although he considers two of them home events. He lives in San Diego, so he has a quick commute to this week's Buick Invitational, and he commutes by jet to Riviera for the Northern Trust Open. He seemed a little irked when a reporter asked him this morning whether he was going to add more tournaments to his schedule, as requested by PGA Tour commissioner Tim Fincehm, to improve sponsor relations.
``Playing five in a row, I don't know how I could increase it any more,'' Mickelson said. ``... I will probably keep the attention focused on the four majors as opposed to increasing sponsor relations, but I'm certainly not opposed to adding a tournament here or there.''

Portland's Vincent Johnson received the first Charlie Sifford exemption to play in the Northern Trust Open. Johnson graduated from Oregon State in three years, and will play in his first PGA Tour event Feb. 18-22.
Here's the press release: