Spending More Time in the Sand Than David Hasselhoff

I’m back from my self-imposed blog vacation – and a real one too. A few Happy New Year comments:

1. Hilton Head is great. We (Lori, Alex, Andrew and Brett and I) went there for a few days to play around while Alex played in a tournament at Sea Pines, including 2 rounds at Harbour Town (how does that work, exactly – kid plays great course, dad walks along with crackers and a Diet Pepsi in his backpack. Where did I go wrong?). Weather was great, Marriott Grande Ocean was, well, Grand (with or without the “e”), and Harbour Town continues to be a great course. Even if you’re just watching.
2. Dan Jenkins is one of the funniest writers I’ve run into. I’ve always liked his stuff (“Dead Solid Perfect”, “Semi-Tough” ) but while on vacation, I read his new book about the LPGA, The Franchise Babe. Because I liked it so much, and I remembered why I liked DJ in the first place, I just started “The Money-Whipped Steer-Job Three-Jack Give-Up Artist”. Jenkins knows more golf history, and has lived through most of it, than any other golf writer. And he is hilarious, if you like West Texas’ views of the world and an unabashed man-love for Ben Hogan.
3. Remember the name Jim Liu. He has dominated the junior tournament series my son Alex plays in, winning 5 of 10, finishing second in three and third in one. And he is in 8th grade, competing against 16 to 19 year olds! He is as solid a junior golfer as I’ve seen, except for maybe local Raleigh stud, Grayson Murray. Grayson is currently the number one ranked junior in the country for his graduation year of 2012. Watch for Jim and Grayson on the Golf Channel in a couple of years.

That’s it for now. It is “great to be back” in the 49 degree rainy weather that we love so much.

Tags: Competition, Junior Golf by
No Comments »

I had posted about JP Hayes before, a fellow cheesehead and golf professional. Briefly, he disqualified himself from Q school after realizing he had used a non-conforming golf ball (a Titleist test ball that he inadvertently put into play).  This was after originally calling a 2 stroke penalty on himself when he realized that his ball wasn’t the same type as the one he had started the round with. His take on it is very refreshing, in our modern day era of sport cheating and braggadocio. (From Golf Digest’s Local Knowledge Blog):

Oprah hasn’t called. Neither has Letterman or Leno. But J. P. Hayes says he has fielded at least 30 requests for interviews since he became national news, and that amazes him because golfers routinely turn themselves in after infractions of the rules.

“It probably happens every week on the PGA Tour,” said Hayes. “You just never hear about it. Why I’ve attracted so much attention, I don’t know. But it’s good for golf, I guess, because it confirms what we’re all about, although a couple of the responses I’ve read or heard are interesting. Some people aren’t buying it. They’re saying there has to be more to the story, or that I’m doing all this for publicity.”

I trust JP enough by reputation and homeland that I can assure you, he isn’t doing this for the publicity. (What are people thinking?)

There is some justice in the world, however. JP didn’t make it through Q school but at least the John Deere Classic has given him a sponsor’s exemption for next year. And he gets the chance to play on the Nationwide Tour while awaiting more chances at the big show.

Tags: Competition, Equipment, PGA, PGA Tour by
No Comments »

The Pink Panther or a Tiger? Which one is the meaner cat?

On the face of it, no contest. Sure, the Pink Panther is cute, funny, and occasionally wicked. But Tiger is tough, fearless, lethal; the king of all he surveys.

In pro golf, however, the line became blurred this week. Paula Creamer, the so-called “Pink Panther” for her love of all things rose colored, sucked it up to play four solid rounds at the ADT Championship. She didn’t win, but she made it through two separate cuts and finished all 72 holes – in third place, no less. She had what is described as “an inflamed abdominal wall” with concerns that she had appendicitis. Not bad after having significant abdominal pain since the day before the tournament, not being able to warm up properly on any day, bending over and kneeling on the ground through her rounds to relieve her pain, not eating or drinking appropriately, and spending the night at a local hospital Saturday night, enduring 3 CT scans and getting IV fluids to re-hydrate her. She finally was discharged at 7:15 AM on Sunday, in time to get to the course to try to play.

Now, the cynic would say, “Sure, she was just doing it for the money.” And 1 million smackers is indeed a big incentive. But she has plenty of cash. She had to know she would have a hard time winning without being closer to 100% than she was. And she obviously felt horrible. I say, bravo! I hope she didn’t cause a real problem for her health, but isn’t this what we applaud in sports? Willis Reed emerging onto the court after a severe injury, that Japanese male gymnast sticking a landing on a broken leg, Kari Strug gimping through her routine after an injury to her ankle. We eat this stuff up. We admire these athletes.

Witness the hoopla around Tiger at the Open. Some didn’t believe him (Retief – I bet you wish you could have your words back), but what he did, to play 90 holes on a stress fractured leg, was amazing. The winning is even cooler.

I’ve had a stress fracture, as well as a bad knee, and I have a pretty good idea of what the Striped One went through during the Open. But I’ve never had an “inflamed abdominal wall” nor do I want one. But with the gut aches I have had, I look at what Ms. Creamer did, and I am amazed. All she wanted to do, I’m sure, is lay down and rest. But she hung tough and finished the tournament in great fashion.

So which cat is tougher?

Tags: Competition, LPGA Tour, PGA, PGA Tour, Tiger Woods by
No Comments »