The Ping Pong Wizard, Tricky Nicky and Midwest Steve – Before They Cross the Pond

With less then a month in between ‘Our’ Open Championship and ‘Their’ Open Championship are only three opportunities to compile big Fedex Cup points for the season long race.

‘Jac’ It Up

In Hartford, at one of the PGA’s most respected tour stops, Swede and tour vet Freddie Jacobson held off a hard Sunday charge from Americans John Rollins and Ryan Moore who both fired impressive 63’s. The big talk early in the week was the lights out 60 shot by amateur Patrick Cantlay, who competed in the event after capturing the low-amateur designation a week prior at Congressional. But he faded a bit finishing T24 for a very respectable two weeks with the Tour. As for Freddie the very likable vet, who is known by the players in the locker room as the most dominating ping pong player on Tour, took his game off the table and dominated the TPC River Highlands with consistently low rounds of 66-65-63-66 and holding on to a one-shot victory. Welcome back to Augusta Freddie!

‘Wat’ A Patriotic Week

At Tiger’s Annual 4th of July Weekend tour stop, it was another strong but Tigerless field. The young guns and established vets fought it out for the title and in the end, American Nick Watney outlasted Korean KJ Choi by two shots to win his second event of the 2011 season. The difference in the week was his week low Saturday 62, which paved the way for the title to go with his 2011 Cadillac Championship. Watney has supplanted himself as one of the strongest Americans in the golf world and should be a fixture in the American golf landscape for some time to come. He was also four shots clear of the impressive group that finished T3 including Adam Scott, Jeff Overton and Charles Howell III. No need for Augusta directions...

Quad City Quagmire

By Sunday afternoon at the John Deere Classic it was evident that it was a two horse race and there was only one question left to ask…will Steve Stricker complete the ‘3-peat’ in the Quad Cities? Stricker, the Wisconsin native, University of Illinois alumni and a fan-favorite in the area brought the crowd into utter hysteria with one stroke of the flatstick. Trailing tour rookie Kyle Stanley by two shots with two holes to play, Stricker made a birdie on the par five 17th while Stanley bogeyed the 18th out of a green side bunker, evening the battle with one hole to play from Stricker. A slightly pulled drive gave Steve an awkward lie in a fairway bunker and after much deliberation he stuck a perfect shot right over the flagstick onto the back fringe and 30 feet from the cup (a great shot). But what ensued from there struck a small quake on the Richter scale as he stroked in the putt from the back edge to win in unbelievably dramatic fashion clinching his third straight John Deere Classic.

Wat, My ROY, The Scot, and Lefty: The pre-Masters Southern Swing

With the Championship Week and the NCAA Basketball Tournament on CBS (shameless plug) I have been extremely immersed in collegiate hoops. But now that it’s winding down and my brotha Jim is calling the national championship game tonight, it has officially kicked off ‘A Tradition Unlike Any Other’ Week. But first let me describe the results from the last few weeks in the Florida Swing.
At the WGC Cadillac Championship 20-something American Nick Watney out played an extremely deep field at ‘The Blue Monster’ to capture his most prestigious crown to date. He was able to hold off fellow American Dustin Johnson, Dane Anders Hansen and Italian Francesco Molinari for a one shot victory and punch his already punched ticket to Augusta.
In the Transitions Championship at Innisbrook in the Tampa area rookie Gary Woodland continued his outstanding onslaught of the PGA Tour with his first career victory in come from behind fashion. He edged 54-hole leader Webb Simpson by one stroke on a highly contested Sunday, earning a spot in the top ten of the Fedex Cup standings, and an all-important trip in the field at Augusta. I’ll brag about this all year if his hot hand continues, as he was my pick for Tour Rookie of the Year.

Another stellar field was put together at Arnie’s place, as fast starts gave way to struggles on Sunday for many of the top players. As the week went on average scores plummeted and Scotsman Martin Laird held a two shot 54-hole lead and increased it even further on the front nine on Sunday. He lost a couple of wheels coming in, but had enough of a lead to par the closing hole for a one shot victory (his 2nd career PGA Tour win) over Steve Marino, who continues to be a PGA Tour bridesmaid.
Many of the stars came out to Houston for the Augusta warn-up known as the Shell Houston Open, but to many it was their last chance to earn a spot in the Masters. But Houston was not to be for the guys on the outside looking in as Phil Mickelson lapped the filed over the weekend firing an impressive –16 (63-65) for his first win since the 2010 Masters. He is looking to repeat his ‘Win for the Family’ this week for his 4th Green Jacket. Runners up Chris Kirk and Scott Verplank came up 3-shots short for the automatic bid.

Special shout outs to Michael Bradley who won the official / unofficial Puerto Rico Open and to the guys from Lake Nona who dominated to defeat Isleworth, Albany and Queenswood to retain the Tavistock Cup.

It’s Masters week…time to strap in and get it on!