News: TOUR Notes
May 16 2012
4:07 pm
Fantasy gamers: It’s time to plan
By Rob Bolton, PGATOUR.COM Fantasy columnist
FANTASY PREVIEW: HP Byron Nelson | Sign up for fantasy
Like the decline of U.S. mail following the holidays, emails into FantasyInsider@charter.net were scant after last week’s PLAYERS, at least for relevant submissions in this space. That’s quite all right, however, as it offers great timing for gamers in full-season formats to plan ahead.
Unless you play a one-and-done that requires you to plug in an entire year’s worth of what are basically guesses in early January, you’re always on the hunt for value. The PGA TOUR season is long and it requires patience. Sometimes you just need to let your guys play golf.
Yet there are bubbles throughout the year when pouncing on certain guys makes more sense than during your draft. The first occurs at the end of the West Coast Swing when the Nationwide Tour and q-school graduates reshuffle for the first time. The second bubble falls in line with the second reshuffle following the Shell Houston Open. We are now entering the third bubble.
The top 60 in the Official World Golf Ranking following this weekend’s slate of tournaments worldwide will qualify for the field at the U.S. Open. The top 50 will earn exemptions into the British Open. And those are just the cracks in the dam for what will be a deluge of exemptions distributed by both majors in the coming weeks.
Numerous valuable fantasy investments will emerge at the qualifiers. U.S. Open sectional qualifying is contested on May 21 in Japan, May 28 in England and June 4 in the United States. Of the 72 that survived the cut at Congressional in last year’s U.S. Open, 33 gained entry into the tournament through sectional qualifying. (Four started in local qualifying, including 2012 rookie Bud Cauley.)
The remaining International Final Qualifying sites for the British Open are held on May 21 in the U.S. and June 25 in Europe. Twelve berths at Local Final Qualifying on July 3 will also earn exemptions. Last year, 10 of the 71 in the field at Royal St. George’s gained entry via an IFQ. Opening-round co-leader, Tom Lewis, was the lone representative of the dozen LFQers.
If you haven’t already bookmarked my list of all golfers exempt into the four majors, the three World Golf Championships and THE PLAYERS, you can find it by clicking here. Scroll to the bottom to review all remaining qualifying criteria for the events that on tap in the coming months.
2:00 pm
Marino to return at Memorial
Steve Marino, who has been sidelined with a knee injury since the end of January, will return to action at the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance, May 31-June 3 at Muirfield Village.
Marino, who underwent surgery on his right knee last October to repair a torn meniscus, has not played since the Farmers Insurance Open, where he tied for 66th.
“This is one of those injuries that takes time to heal and rehab,” Marino said in a statement Wednesday. “I tried to play in January but I experienced a lot of swelling and pain. If you try to come back too early you can do more damage. So, I had to learn how to be patient. I have done that and I have gone through the necessary rehab and now I am eager to get back out on TOUR.”
Marino made three starts this season before shutting it down. His best finish was a tie for 19th in the Humana Challenge in partnership with the Clinton Foundation.
The 32-year-old has made 144 starts without a victory on the PGA TOUR, but has come close a handful of times with four career runner-up finishes.
1:25 pm
Crenshaw on Nelson, Hogan, Snead
EDITOR’S NOTE: Byron Nelson, Ben Hogan and Sam Snead were each born 100 years ago, and their lives eventually intersected as three of golf’s legendary players. PGATOUR.COM asked another golfing great, Ben Crenshaw, to provide his thoughts on each of the three as part of our Century Celebration. Besides writing about Byron Nelson this week for the HP Byron Nelson Championship, Crenshaw also shares his thoughts below about the three players collectively.
Let us know your memories and thoughts about Nelson, Hogan and Snead
By Ben Crenshaw, Special to PGATOUR.COM
Byron Nelson, Ben Hogan and Sam Snead.
What you have are three fascinating and very different players who came along at the same time who possessed higher skills than anyone else at the time. I suppose you classify them collectively picking up the mantle after the Jones era. And that they happened to all three be born in 1912 — at a time when so much was changing — that is fascinating in itself.
When you stand back and see all three of them, they shaped our game until Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer and Gary Player came along.
I suppose there is one argument that’s for the ages — which one of these players impressed you most — and there are always different camps.
Ben Hogan hit the ball better than anybody. Byron Nelson had his camp too. It’s hard to believe that anybody would hit the ball better than what he did. How consistent he was. Consistency, no question, marked his performances. But ability-wise and shot- making they say Sam Snead.
They were just astounding, astounding players. I don’t think there’s any question in my mind that it wouldn’t matter what era they were playing in, they would have made it work despite the equipment. They were that good.
I’ve seen a lot of golfers in my time, but there have never been three players who have impressed me more. Not only in the way they played and their records, but what they meant to the game. They sort of burst onto the scene in the mid 30s and took over for so long — through the late ‘50s when their names were on everybody’s lips.
What they accomplished– individually and collectively — was unbelievable.
News: TOUR Notes
May 15 2012
1:28 pm
Watch: Top 10 Shots of the Year
We’ve picked our Top 10 shots of the first half of the year in the video below. Did we miss a shot? Should a different shot be No. 1? Tell us in the comments section below.
Top 10: Shots of the Year (First half of 2012)
Check out the top 10 shots from the first half of the year on the PGA TOUR, featuring incredible aces, mind-bending shots and clutch finishes.
News: TOUR Notes
May 14 2012
4:49 pm
Dustin to return at the Memorial
Dustin Johnson, who has been plagued by back pain for the better part of the last two months, plans to return to the PGA TOUR at the Memorial Tournament.
Johnson has not played since he tied for 35th at the World Golf Championships-Cadillac Championship the second week in March. He had posted top-10 finishes in his three starts prior to Doral.
“Obviously, I can’t wait to get back out and compete,” Johnson said in a statement released by his management company. “I came into this year with some big goals, including making our Ryder Cup team, so I’ve got some serious ground to make up this summer.”
The Memorial Tournament will be played May 31-June 3 at Muirfield Village in Dublin, Ohio. Johnson finished fourth in the event hosted by the legendary Jack Nicklaus a year ago.
Johnson had arthroscopic surgery to repair cartilage damage to his right knee last November. In his first start of 2012, he withdrew from the Humana Challenge after the second round, citing back pain, and later did the same prior to the Arnold Palmer Invitational March in hopes of being ready for the Masters.
The Friday prior to the start of the Masters, though, Johnson was trying to lift a jet ski near his home and severely strained his lower back muscles. He has been resting and rehabbing ever since.
“I’m feeling better every day and working hard, so I plan to be 100 percent ready by the time the Memorial rolls around,” Johnson said. “I’m still a little rusty, but it’s falling off in chunks.”
The five-time PGA TOUR champion had hoped to play in the HP Byron Nelson Championship this week. But he decided to wait two more weeks to be completely ready.
“It will be great to get back out there and I can assure you I’ll be plenty motivated," Johnson said.
1:48 pm
Woods adds Greenbrier to busy slate
Tiger Woods is taking the next two weeks off and then is expected to play five of the next eight PGA TOUR events, including a new one on his schedule, The Greenbrier Classic.
The third-year tournament announced Woods’ commitment in a press release on Monday. According to the schedule on his website, Woods will play the Memorial Tournament, U.S. Open, AT&T National, The Greenbrier Classic, British Open and World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational.
Woods is coming off a disappointing two-week stretch where he missed the cut at the Wells Fargo Championship and tied for 40th at THE PLAYERS Championship. Woods also tied for 40th at the Masters, two weeks after breaking a 30-month victory drought at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard.
“We are pleased and excited to have one of the all-time greats in the game join The Greenbrier Classic’s 2012 field,” said Jim Justice, chairman and owner of The Greenbrier. “Tiger is one of the biggest stars in all of sport and he brings significant attention to any event he enters. All involved with The Greenbrier Classic look forward to hosting Tiger on The Old White TPC Course as one of the professionals in this year’s field at America’s resort on America’s birthday.”
The Greenbrier Classic will be held July 2-8 at the Old White TPC Course at The Greenbrier in White Sulphur Springs, W. Va.
1:40 pm
Write the caption: Kevin Na
PHOTOS OF THE WEEK: The best images from THE PLAYERS Championship
Kevin Na made an amazing recovery on the 72nd hole at TPC Sawgrass by nailing a hybrid from the cart path. Write your best caption (and note the Rickie Fowler look-alike on the right).
Write your answer below — and please, keep it clean!
12:14 pm
Shots of the Week: THE PLAYERS
The best from TPC Sawgrass
Check out the top five shots of the week from the 2012 PLAYERS Championship featuring highlights from Tim Clark, Brian Gay, Matt Kuchar, Justin Rose, and Jhonattan Vegas.
11:38 am
Els blog: Too many missed fairways
Ernie Els is writing a blog for PGATOUR.COM this year and this is his most recent installment. For more information on Els, visit www.ernieels.com.
As I was saying in my previous update THE PLAYERS Championship is one of those tournaments where I’ve not really had much success, just four top-10s in my previous 18 appearances. Well, my 19th appearance didn’t set that record straight. I don’t know. It’s a wonderful golf course but there is something about it that I just can’t seem to get to grips with. I didn’t play too badly, but after a pair of 74s that was me done for the week. If I had to put my finger on one thing it was my driving. I didn’t hit enough fairways, which makes it tough to score here. Very disappointing, but there you go.
On a brighter note, it was wonderful to be there on Wednesday night with my fellow South African golfers Trevor Immelman, Louis Oosthuizen, Retief Goosen and Rory Sabbatini to celebrate the career of Gary Player who was receiving the PGA TOUR’s Lifetime Achievement Award. It was a fun night and of course it is a richly well-deserved honor for Gary. He’s one of golf’s true legends, a hero of mine when I was growing up and a man I am now proud to call a great friend.
This week’s tournament in many ways celebrates the life of another legend of the game, Byron Nelson. I won the Byron Nelson in 1995, the first time I’d ever teed it up in this tournament, but this will be the first time I’ve played it since 2006.
This year would have been Byron’s 100th birthday and it says a lot about the man that his legacy still endures on the PGA TOUR today. He was a real gentleman and I count myself blessed to have got to know him and enjoyed his company over dinner a few times. Winning the tournament all those years ago and talking to Byron afterwards is still one of the standout memories of my professional career.
As many of you golf fans will know, the HP Byron Nelson Championship used to be played on two golf courses the first couple of days – the TPC Four Seasons Resort, the tougher of the pair, and Cottonwood Valley where I shot a course record 61 on the way to winning the tournament 17 years ago. Then at the weekend we’d play TPC both days. They changed that format in 2008 and now all four rounds are on the TPC layout.
When I think back over the years my record in this tournament has been pretty strong. As I said, I won here in 1995 and I’ve got quite a few top-10s under my belt. The TPC is a good test of golf and has statistically one of the most demanding opening stretches of holes on the PGA TOUR. Hitting fairways is very tough, so I’ll have to step it up a bit from my performance at Sawgrass last week. The rough tends to be quite severe here as well, so fairways and greens is really the name of the game.
If it’s calm then players will go pretty low this week. But this is Texas, remember, and it can get windy. That means playing conditions become more challenging. You need to be able to hit a lot of different shots, use the wind or hold shots up against it. You have to use your imagination and I’ve always kind of liked that.
Let’s see how we go.
11:00 am
This week on PGATOUR.COM
This week, the PGA TOUR is at the TPC Four Seasons Resort for the HP Byron Nelson Championship. Here are some of the features you can expect to see on PGATOUR.COM:
DORMAN COLUMN
PGATOUR.COM featured columnist Larry Dorman will take a final look at last week’s THE PLAYERS Championship, the flagship event of the PGA TOUR. Coming Tuesday
To access previous columns written by Larry Dorman, click here.
CRENSHAW ON LORD BYRON
Two-time Masters champion Ben Crenshaw, also one of the game’s great historians, offers his perspective of Byron Nelson, namesake of this week’s HP Byron Nelson Championship. PGATOUR.COM is honoring Nelson as part of its Century Celebration series that also includes Ben Hogan and Sam Snead, as all three legends were born 100 years ago this year. Coming Wednesday
TOP 10 TUESDAY
With the first half of this PGA TOUR season now in the books, we’ve got video highlights of the top 10 shots from the first half. Coming Tuesday
DIRECT CONNECT
This week’s guest is Erik Compton, whose inspirational story as a double heart transplant recipient has made him one of the TOUR’s most intriguing players to follow. Compton will be fielding questions from PGATOUR.COM readers. Coming Wednesday
KEEGAN’S BACK
Keegan Bradley broke through with his first PGA TOUR win a year ago at the TPC Four Seasons Resort, then went on to claim the PGA Championship later in the year. Now he’s back to defend his first title. Coming Wednesday
COMPLETE TOURNAMENT COVERAGE
HP BYRON NELSON CHAMPIONSHIP: We’ll have on-site coverage from Dallas at this week’s PGA TOUR event, including live updates on our TOUR Report.
BMW CHARITY PRO-AM PRESENTED BY SYNNEX CORP.: Scores and recaps from this week’s Nationwide Tour event from three different courses in the Carolinas.
DOWN THE STRETCH ON GOLF CHANNEL
Get an exclusive look behind the scenes with the leaders before and during the final round of THE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP. Watch on Golf Channel on Monday night at 8 p.m.
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