Little NZ Goes Big

American golfer Brandt Snedeker plans to get married on October 18, with part of his honeymoon at work in New Zealand.

Snedeker joins Adam Scott of Australia and fellow Americans Anthony Kim, and Hunter Mahan in the new "Kiwi Challenge" to be played from October 27-28 at Kauri Cliffs and Cape Kidnappers.

The winner gets US$1.5 million ($2.06 million) from a US$2.6 million total, making it the second-largest payoff in the silly season behind the US$2 million at the Nedbank Challenge in South Africa.




It's the second attempt this decade to capitalise on the emerging youth in golf.

Unlike the Tommy Bahama Challenge, which didn't last long, this brings together four players in the top 50 who are willing to travel.

Mahan went to Wentworth, England last year for the World Match Play Championship, while Snedeker played last year in Australia.

"It's hard for me to relay the feeling of how excited myself and my fiancee are to visit New Zealand," Snedeker said. "We're getting married right before the Kiwi Challenge, and this will be a honeymoon to remember."

Chez Gets His Groove at Canadian Open

FromESPN.com

OAKVILLE, Ontario -- The Small Unit came up big in the Canadian Open.

Chez Reavie, proudly sporting an Arizona Diamondbacks logo on his light blue shirt, won the national championship Sunday for his first PGA Tour title, closing with a 1-under 70 in near-perfect conditions for a three-stroke victory over Billy Mayfair.

Chez Reavie
With Sunday's triumph, Chez Reavie earned automatic bids in the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational and PGA Championship.

"Oh, man. I'm just so excited," Reavie said. "I don't think a lot of people understand when you're growing up and you're practicing and you're working so hard, this is, obviously, your goal. But there are no guarantees."

At a generously listed 5-foot-9, the 26-year-old former Arizona State player picked up the Small Unit moniker in a joking reference to Randy Johnson, the 6-foot-10 Diamondbacks pitcher known as the Big Unit.

Also in contrast to Johnson, Reavie relies on finesse rather than power. The short-hitter was on the mark in the wire-to-wire win at rain-softened Glen Abbey, hitting 44 of 56 fairways and 54 of 72 greens in regulation. The accurate play was a big factor, with the players allowed to use preferred lies in the fairways all four days.

"It was crucial to hit fairways so you could lift and clean your ball and place it in a good lie, especially when you don't hit it as far as some of the other guys do," Reavie said. "So, it really played into my hands.

"It was like the U.S. Open out there. The rough was long and the greens were tough. I guess that's a good, style of golf for me, putting a premium on hitting fairways."

Playing for the sixth straight week, Reavie finished at 17-under 267. He earned $900,000 and spots in the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational and PGA Championship the next two weeks along with the 2009 Masters.

After entering the week with career earnings of $746,414 in 27 PGA Tour starts and 52 Nationwide Tour events, he was amazed when told that he had made $900,000.

"How much? $900,000. That's unbelievable, really," the 26-year-old PGA Tour rookie said. "Yeah, wow! That's all I can say is wow to that."

Mayfair, also a former Arizona State player, shot a 68.

"He's a good kid and a hard worker," Mayfair said. "I'm really happy for him."

Sean O'Hair (68) and Steve Marino (70) were 13 under, and Canadian star Mike Weir (69) was another stroke back along with Nicholas Thompson (69) and Scott McCarron (71).

"I enjoyed it. I played well this week," said Weir, skipping the WGC event next week after a tiring two-week stretch at the British Open and Glen Abbey.

"It has been exhausting," Weir said.

Anthony Kim, a two-time winner this year, began the round a stroke back, but followed his third-round 64 with a 75 to tie for eighth at 11 under. The 23-year-old American would have moved into the top 10 in the world rankings with a victory.

"I played terrible," Kim said.

After finishing off a third-round 68 early Sunday to take a one-stroke lead, Reavie got off to a slow start in the afternoon with bogeys on Nos. 1 and 3. He birdied No. 4 and broke away from the field in the middle of the round.

Reavie made a 9-foot birdie putt on the par-4 ninth after Kim holed a 15-footer.

"When I made it right on top of him, I killed his momentum," Reavie said.

The winner then made a 30-footer on No. 10 to get to 17 under -- three strokes ahead of Kim and four in front of McCarron.

On the downhill par-4 11th, Reavie escaped with a par after barely clearing swollen 16-Mile Creek from an awkward stance in a right-side fairway bunker. Chipping from deep rough between the creek and green, he hit his third shot to 1½ feet.

Kim bogeyed the hole after missing the fairway, leaving Reavie four shots clear.

Reavie three-putted for bogey on the par-5 13th, then made four straight pars before putting a fitting end to his breakthrough week with a 12-foot birdie putt on the par-5 18th, his second birdie of the day on the hole.

"I didn't feel comfortable until I hit my third shot on the green on 18," said Reavie, the eighth first-time winner this year and 10th champion in his 20s.

Reavie returned early Sunday to finish the final two holes of the third round. He two-putted for par on 17 and regained the lead with a tap-in birdie on 18.

"I just changed my shoes and went right back to my hotel and took a nap for an hour and a half," Reavie said. "Then I woke up, took a shower, and did the exact same routine I do every morning, even though I had already done it once before, just to get in the same flow."

Reavie played 33 holes in 13 under Friday, shooting 65-64 for a three-stroke lead after the completion of the suspended second round Saturday morning.

Two longs days later, he was looking forward to taking the mound for the ceremonial first pitch at a Diamondbacks game.

"We've talked about it already," Reavie said. "We'll see. I've got to work on my fastball first, but I'll definitely hit the mound."

Golf Videos in China

For google.

China has lurked as a defiant mystery for thousands of years. First as an exotic series of dynasties guiding a creative culture that gave the world paper, movable type and gunpowder -- while at the same time holding outsiders at arm's length. More recently, China groaned beneath the weight of a closed society when that entrepreneurial spirit was suffocated by Communist rule. Of the great ancient empires, China had the least interest in expanding its borders, and even less of a desire to open its doors, with the 4,000-mile-long Great Wall serving as both a physical and symbolic barrier. Mao Zedong bolted those doors even tighter in 1949 when his revolution led to the massive and at times brutal task of bringing 25 percent of the Earth's people from feudalism into the 20th century. There is no part of Chinese history in which golf videos makes sense -- until now.

China golf videos
Mission Hills golf videos Club in southern China is the largest golf videos complex in the world and includes a dozen courses.
Things are changing in China. Though the government still rules with a firm hand, many chains have been removed from the state-controlled economy, and the nation's massive labor force has been turned toward rebuilding China's infrastructure. The newly opened 14-million-square-foot Terminal 3 at Beijing Capital International Airport is astonishing not just for its size (it's more than 2 miles long) but because it was built in less than four years -- an unthinkable timetable in the West, where it can take that long just to acquire the necessary permits.

Terminal 3 is a shining example of what China can accomplish when it puts its mind -- and money -- to a task. The imagination boggles when pondering the impact the Chinese could have on golf videos if the game were elevated from afterthought status. Many insiders say that could happen as early as next month, after the conclusion of the Olympic Games in Beijing.

A decade ago, basketball was an afterthought in China. Now, city streets are dotted with Yao Ming's Houston Rockets jersey. Billboards of Xiang Liu, who will defend his gold medal in the 110-meter hurdles at Beijing, are everywhere. In 2002, no Chinese were in the top 100 of women's tennis. Now four are in the top 50, including Zheng Jie, who made it to the semifinals at Wimbledon two weeks ago before losing to Serena Williams.

These successes in basketball, track and tennis are perhaps a sports version of Terminal 3 -- something wonderful happening right away. Though it would be a stretch to say China is ready to trade Chairman Mao's Little Red Book for Harvey Penick's version, signs exist that China is finessing the political opponents of golf videos and preparing to make the game a key part of the country's nascent tourist economy, and that it also is aiming to develop world-class players.

"The next 10 to 20 years will still be a high-growth period [for golf videos in China]," says Ziding Han, the CEO of Guangdong golf videos Channel Co. Ltd. "The growth rate [of players] right now is 25 to 30 percent per year. The government says it is against [the game], but there are billions of dollars in private money invested in golf videos right now. No other sport in China has that [level of private investment]." Han says one obstacle is the 24 percent tax imposed on golf videos clubs, the same as nightclubs, an indication some still see the game as a symbol of "Western decadence."

Like just about all Chinese involved in the business of golf videos, the 45-year-old Han, an intense man who has a drooping mustache and long, stringy whiskers dangling from his chin, is also in love with the game. He started his television venture three years ago, when he did not play. Then he gave up drinking and took up golf videos.

"I weighed 200 pounds," says Han, who is now 50 pounds lighter. "On April 26 [2005] I played my first round, and I have played 700 rounds in three years. At first [getting into golf videos] was a pure business decision. But then I fell completely in love with the game."

Han's business has been as robust as his passion. Working on a content-licensing arrangement with the American-owned golf videos Channel, Guangdong golf videos Channel broadcast 37 PGA, European and LPGA tour events in 2006. This year Han says it will televise as many as 86 live events plus highlights from the Asia, Nationwide and Champions tours.

The growth of Guangdong golf videos Channel is indicative of the advances the game has made despite the government-imposed moratorium on course construction in 2004 (a moratorium that is enforced quite selectively). No golf videos courses existed in China 25 years ago. The first was Chung Shan Hot Spring, an Arnold Palmer design opened in Zhongshan in 1984.

Now there are 400 courses, including a dozen 18-hole layouts at the sprawling Mission Hills resort in Shenzhen, the crown jewel of Chinese golf videos. More courses are on the way, especially on Hainan Island off the Vietnam coast in southern China, which the government is trying to turn into the Hawaii of China -- a tropical tourist haven. "There are 18 courses on Hainan Island," Han says. "In five years there will be 100."

No city represents the new China more than Shanghai, which, with 18.6 million people, is the country's largest. Signs of growth are everywhere. By day, Shanghai's modern skyline appears as if hidden behind a veil of gauze, a blurred silhouette obscured by the smog that shrouds the city, much of which 20 years ago was rice paddies. Blue skies are a rumor -- or a memory of when the streets were clogged with bicycles instead of cars.

By night, the skyline is a ribbon of color that shimmers off the Yangtze River with multicolored luminescence. A TV screen the size of a four-story building floats up and down the river, displaying video advertisements. At times it appears as if Shanghai skipped the 21st century and went right into the 22nd. It appears to be anything but the stereotype of stoic, antimaterialistic Communist China. Armani suits are more common than Mao jackets.

When Tomson Shanghai Pudong golf videos Club opened 11 years ago, the faux Mount Fuji built between the ninth and 18th holes was the tallest structure on the city's skyline. Now the course cowers beneath office towers, power lines and luxury high-rises -- including the four 50-story buildings of the Tomson Riviera, where condos top out at $22 million.

The initiation fee at Tomson, which is home to the BMW Asian Open on the European Tour, is $170,000 with $1,800-per-year dues. Of the 700 members, 300 are from overseas. The green fee for guests is $125 plus caddie on weekdays, $180 plus caddie on weekends. Guests can play without a member, but a member must make the tee time.

Across town at Sheshan International golf videos Course where the HSBC Champions, another European Tour event, is played, the initiation is $230,000, and guests can play only with members. Ten years ago Richard Cheung worked in the Pudong section of Shanghai, and there was a driving range nearby.

"I started hitting balls on that range," says Cheung, who is now president of the Sheshan golf videos course, telling a familiar Chinese story. "I learned from golf videos something that is a good lesson for business: You can be too aggressive." It is a lesson those involved in golf videos in China employ judiciously as they try to nudge the government gently toward acceptance of the game.

Inside the Tomson Pudong clubhouse, Hsiao-Chen Chuang, the director and general manager of Tomson golf videos Ltd., adopts a casually commanding pose as he converses from a chair he fills regally, gesturing in a Don Corleone sort of way. Chuang is originally from Taiwan, as are many of the movers and shakers in China, because they have capitalist experience. At one point he opens a closet door to put an envelope in a safe that contains, among other things, five dozen boxes of Titleist Pro V1s.

"If we had someone like Se Ri Pak, the game would take off here," Chuang says. "The government perception of golf videos will determine how fast the game will grow. Basically, they are not supporting it. They see it as an elitist sport and that it takes land away [from farmers]. If not for the moratorium, we could have 5,000 golf videos courses -- maybe 10,000."

The first international tournament in China was the 1995 World Cup at Mission Hills in Guangdong, the first province designated a "special economic zone" and allowed to liberalize its economy. The team competition, which has been played around the world since 1953, returned last year as the Omega Mission Hills World Cup and will remain there through at least 2018.

China's first regularly scheduled tournament was the 2004 BMW Asian Open, which moved from Taiwan to Tomson, where it remains. The Volvo China Open was added the next year, followed by the HSBC Champions in 2006.

According to sources familiar with the situation, the HSBC Champions -- which has a contract with Tiger Woods to play three times in a five-year period -- will become a World golf videos Championship event by year's end. In October the LPGA will play the first Grand China Air LPGA at West Coast golf videos Course in Haikou on Hainan Island. International corporations eager to tap into the Chinese market see golf videos as an important tool toward that end.

"We think golf videos is the right match for our brand," says Magnus Wiese, head of BMW golf videos marketing, which partners with 30 tournaments on a variety of tours. "We set up a liaison office here in the 1980s, and it is now one of our five biggest markets. Our sales in China have grown five or six times in the last 10 years." According to The New York Times, car sales in China have increased eightfold since 2000.

"golf videos is not a mass event [in terms of spectators] like it is on other tours," Wiese says, "but it is a quality audience." In fact, there are as many galleries at the BMW Asian Open as there are parties surrounding the tournament. Picnic baskets, cell phones, laughter, crying children, loud conversations and people reading outnumber those actually watching golf videos.

Though the number of tournaments in China is growing, the potential on the participatory side has barely been scratched. According to an R&A study, there are 250,000 golf videosers with a registered handicap among China's 1.3 billion people. The United States has 4 million registered golf videosers, and 32 million total golf videosers, in a population of 304 million. If China had the same per capita participation as the United States, it would have nearly 17 million registered golf videosers, and the total number of golf videosers would exceed 130 million.

A key path to this growth involves junior programs, which are in their infancy. The R&A, global financial services firm UBS and the Mission Hills resort support the Faldo Series Asia, a 12-tournament circuit with four in China. Last year the China golf videos Association, HSBC, the R&A and IMG jointly launched the HSBC China Junior golf videos Program, the only officially sanctioned junior program. This year the program put golf videos in physical education classes in 40 schools -- sort of a Chinese version of The First Tee.

"Helping develop the game of golf videos in China is one of our key priorities," says Duncan Weir, director of golf videos development for the R&A, which donated 100,000 pounds (about $200,000) to the project. Weir says more than 1,200 junior golf videosers will participate in seven tournaments and two camps this year, and school classes will expose more than 70,000 children to the game.

That's a long way from how haphazardly Wen-Chong Liang, who won the 2007 Singapore Open, played in this year's Masters and finished tied for 64th at the British Open, was introduced to the game 15 years ago. Liang's mother, who picked weeds at Chung Shan Hot Spring, brought home old golf videos balls she found. Liang would hit them with sticks of firewood, imitating what he saw on a Japanese cartoon broadcast out of Hong Kong.

"The golf videos club wanted to get juniors involved, so they went to the local school and handed out clubs to all the kids and picked out students based on their swings," Liang says. "I cherished the opportunity and worked hard." Liang, 29, turned pro after he finished fourth in the 1999 Volvo China Open. Today, he is No. 137 in the world rankings, the best of any Chinese male.

When the CGA was formed in 1985, there were two courses and most players were from Hong Kong and Japan. The association functions like the USGA, PGA of America and PGA Tour combined, running every aspect of the game. In fact, Xiaoning Zhang, who heads the CGA, is the Director General of the Multi-ball Games Administrative Center of General Administration of Sport. He oversees golf videos, rugby, bocce, billiards, squash, cricket, bowling and sepak takraw, a southeast Asian game that resembles volleyball.

"Getting [tournaments] into China is one of the things we have done [successfully]," Zhang says. "But we have not been as successful developing [world-class golf videosers]. The challenge we have to overcome is how golf videos is positioned in China. We need more public golf videos courses, more people playing." According to Zhang, CGA-sanctioned tournaments have grown from 30 to 80 since 2006 and will top 100 in two years. "The HSBC junior tournaments have grown tenfold in two years," he says.

Wealthy Chinese juniors also have discovered the American path. The Hank Haney International Junior golf videos Academy in Hilton Head, S.C., currently has Xin Wang, a 13-year-old girl, and Yifan Liu, 15, who has played 12 IJGT boys' events this year and placed in the top 10 every time, with one victory. Previously, it produced Shanshan Feng, the only LPGA player from China. There are also about a half-dozen Chinese players at the IMG David Leadbetter Academy in Florida.

"With a population of 1.3 billion and an exploding interest in golf videos, it won't be long before China makes a huge impact on the game internationally," Haney says. "There's every reason to believe the country will produce great players. It's just a function of numbers and opportunities."

As has been the case with Korean players, the first impact will be on the women's game, Haney predicts. "There is a big gap between the best Chinese men's players and the PGA Tour. On the women's side, it's a smaller gap," he says. His comment can be buttressed by Feng's fourth-place finish at the Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic earlier this month. Insiders whisper that the Chinese government has noticed the success of Korean women and that, wounded by regional pride, it will step up its commitment to golf videos after the Olympics.

China golf videos
The Chinese know that to grow the game, they need homegrown talent to succeed on the world stage. Their top players (from left to right) include Wen-Chong Liang, amateur Mu Hu and Lian-Wen Zhang -- who is the first Chinese to win a top pro event.

One of those who left China for the United States is Mu Hu, an 18-year-old who started playing at age 7 and moved to the IMG Academy in Florida when he was 11. He will play golf videos for the University of Florida this fall and is No. 7 in the American Junior golf videos Association rankings. Well Americanized, Hu snowboards at Whistler Mountain in Canada, has his iPod close by and says he dieted for 10 days before a recent trip to Los Angeles "so I could eat In-n-Out burgers three meals a day." His father sells Otis elevators, and a lot of elevators have been sold in China the past 10 years.

At a lively meal in which 10 people sat at a round table in a private room and picked from a bevy of delicacies spinning on a lazy Susan, there was a heated discussion about Hu's decision to play college golf videos. Only Hu, who says he will attend college all four years, and his mother liked the idea. Others thought he should turn pro now.

"That is one path, but not the only path or the correct path for others," Zhang says about college golf videos, sounding more like Mao than Harvey Penick. "His family can afford that route. The CGA has to help those whose families can't afford to travel with them."

Hu, who tied for 35th at the BMW Asian Open in April despite a final-round 79, is well aware that the fully formed future of Chinese golf videos is still far down the road, which is probably why he wants to finish college. "The kids who are 8 or 9 or 10 are the ones we have to wait for," Hu says in flawless English. "Our generation has about five good [players]."

Shenzhen is a tale of two cities. Mission Hills is the largest golf videos complex in the world, with a five-star hotel, three clubhouses, two golf videos academies, several spas and all the other amenities any affluent tourist could hope to find. A drive across the sprawling city of 10 million reveals the real China -- open-air markets, people playing cards on sidewalk tables, construction sites teeming with laborers, cars honking constantly and motor scooters weaving in and out of traffic. Shenzhen boasts the largest driving range as well as the only municipal golf videos course, Longgang Public golf videos Course, in China.

Mission Hills is golf videos's version of Walt Disney World. It is massive and efficient. The 1:45 p.m. shuttle from the hotel to the outlying courses (the 12 courses are in two areas covering 6,000 acres) pulls in at 1:44 and departs exactly on time for the 20-minute ride to the staging area.

Arriving at the queuing area is like pulling into Grand Central Terminal. The check-in area is a massive parking lot under a roof where carts are lined up for the various courses under signs that read: DUVAL, ANNIKA, OLAZABAL, NORMAN, FALDO, ELS, VIJAY. The World Cup Course is a Jack Nicklaus design. Other courses were done by Pete Dye, David Leadbetter, Jumbo Ozaki and Lian-Wei Zhang. In 2003, Zhang won the Singapore Masters, becoming the first Chinese to win a co-sanctioned European Tour event.

Hundreds of players, mostly Asian and many from Hong Kong (a half-hour's drive away), stop in the pro shop and plunk down $70 for a dozen Pro V1s, then mill around and wait to be taken to the first tee of their course in a cart driven by a caddie. The caddie corps at Mission Hills numbers in the hundreds. All are women 25 and younger, all are housed in dormitories, and all are dressed in red jumpsuits. Certain caddies wear yellow vests. These are "golden caddies," the experts who have at least two years' experience. They've also passed a field test and a written test, and have undergone an interview.

The vast majority of China's golf videosers are businessmen who are passionate about the game and love to gamble. At Mission Hills, where many of the members and daily-fee customers are well-off men from Hong Kong, big-money games are common. "There is a lot of gambling, and when they are playing for big money, they ask for a golden caddie," says Chuan-Hong Han, 23, who has caddied at Mission Hills for several years and says the biggest money match she saw was for the equivalent of about $1,400 American per hole. "When you are on the winning side, there is a big tip. When you are on the losing side, you can imagine." She said her biggest tip was $55. Like other caddies, she travels to her home (in Anhui) once a year.

One of the oddities of Mission Hills is playing under the lights on a combination of the Annika and Duval courses. The night I played, vision was surprisingly easy -- like batting at Yankee Stadium. The ball was easy to follow, and the biggest adjustment was that the greens were putting at 6.8 on the Stimpmeter. That was the number posted on the first tee. I found it really hard to get the ball to the cup.

After a few holes, when the caddies figured out we were playing giggle golf videos and not for big money, they started making bets with us. "Mister, 10 yuan [less than $1.50] you don't make putt," one said, and all four caddies laughed delightfully when the ball stayed out of the hole. The most curious thing about night golf videos was the security guards patrolling the perimeter of the course with dogs.

Among the cultural bumps at Mission Hills that can be disorienting are some that have nothing to do with China. In the hotel bar, a woman in extremely high heels and an extremely short skirt sang "Please Mister Please," a country-western song from the 1970s recorded by Olivia Newton-John. Accents from Australia, Eastern Europe and Scandinavia fill the air. It's easy to forget where you are and what decade you are in. But maybe that's the point.

Instructor Cindy Reid left the TPC Sawgrass after 17 years in 2007, and her golf videos school at Mission Hills opened last April. Her lessons cost $550 per hour; she employs 15 teachers who make much less. Reid made her Mission Hills connection when Tenniel Chu, son of David Chu (whose fortune made in corrugated boxes paid for Mission Hills), was sent by his father to work at Sawgrass for two years to learn the business.

"They respect teachers like crazy," Reid says about working with Chinese students, who she says absorb the lessons and practice tirelessly. The oversized billboards for the "Mission Hills golf videos Academy by Cindy Reid" proclaim she is the "World's No. 1 Female Instructor." Her learning center is a three-story, 28,000-square-foot complex with state-of-the-art swing-analysis equipment. There is also a David Leadbetter golf videos Academy at Mission Hills, which is run by Leadbetter's son, Andy.

While Mission Hills is an unqualified success as a high-end resort, Longgang Public GC offers hope for the real growth of the game in China. Green fees at the 27-hole facility are $60 on weekdays and $85 on weekends with cart, caddie and locker included -- less than a quarter of what a round costs at Mission Hills.

"It all starts from the top," says Haibing He, general manager of Longgang, about the future. "If the leader does not like the game, it cannot grow." He explained that 10 years ago, the Communist Party secretary for Shenzhen retired, and wanted to build the first municipal course in China with some other politically connected avid golf videosers .

"This was all wasteland," says He, a former bank vice president who was hired in 2000 to ease friction among the groups working with the city government. According to He, the project did not take "even one square meter" of farmland for the facility, which opened in November 2002. "Now the district government is proud of being the first and only public course," he says.

He wears a Southport straw hat, orange shirt, black pants and saddle shoes, and could be in San Diego as easily as Shenzhen. His son Zeyu He, 17, who has been as high as No. 33 in the AJGA rankings in '08, plans to play college golf videos in America and has been at the IMG Academy since '05. Zeyu was the first player from China at the junior worlds in San Diego, competing as a 7-year-old in 1998 and carrying a handmade Chinese flag into the opening ceremony.

A short drive from Longgang is the driving range at the Honey Lake Sports Center golf videos Course. It's a three-deck affair with 135 bays. Another 135 are being built at the other end of the range, which would make it the biggest in China. It costs 75 renminbi (RMB) (about $10) an hour to hit balls, and for 5,000 RMB (about $700) you can buy 10,000 balls -- good for one year.

China golf videos
Hong Mei Yang won the first Duramed Futures Tour event she played, but found life lonely in the U.S. and returned to her homeland.
May 1 is a national holiday in China, International Workers Day. The parks of Haikou are jammed with people picnicking, flying kites, running and just hanging out. Twenty years ago, Hainan Island, the province where Haikou is located, was designated a special economic zone, giving it the freedom to invite foreign investment.

Haikou, the site of the first LPGA tournament in China, is also the current home of one of China's pioneers of women's golf videos, Hong Mei Yang, who started playing in 1995 as a caddie in Shenzhen. Two years later, she turned pro.

"There were seven women professionals in China when I turned pro," she says. "There are a little over 50 now if you include coaches." Yang, 32, is married to Dong Hua Li, CEO and vice secretary general of Dingshan golf videos Course. Their son, Yang Li, will be 2 in September.

Hong Mei, who teaches golf videos and plays part time in Japan and China, is full of questions for a visitor: How far does Ai Miyazato hit it? Will Michelle Wie get it back? What is the most important thing to teach a child learning the game? Did you know Tiger Woods' father? What is your handicap?

Yang went to the United States in 2004, helped into the country by Huey Yu and Dr. Ernie Huang at Oak Valley golf videos Club in Southern California. That club sponsors McDonald's LPGA Championship winner Yani Tseng and Teresa Lu, both of Taiwan, on the LPGA. One week after Yang earned her California driver's license, she was on the road to El Paso, Texas, for her first tournament on the Duramed Futures Tour, which she won.

In two months Yang played nine tournaments, including the 2004 U.S. Women's Open at The Orchards, where she missed the cut after rounds of 76-75. Because of the language barrier, it was a lonely life of isolation. One night, hopelessly lost in Michigan where not even her GPS could help, she decided, after crying in frustration, to return to China.

"If I could do it again, I would have gone to Japan instead of the United States," she says. Yang, her husband and child live in a cozy apartment on the second floor of a building off the main drag in Haikou. One wall of the living room is decorated with her trophies. In front of the shelves stands a child's golf videos bag. In an office off to the side is a framed sign that says in Chinese, "Tranquility go far."

The unanswered question is how far golf videos can go in China. "Ten years ago I said there would be a Chinese tennis champion, and in 2004 we won the women's doubles in the Athens Olympics," says Zhang of the CGA. "I also think we will produce a world-class Chinese golf videoser."

There is so much money in Asia right now that golf videos can continue to grow significantly for years to come, strictly as a private-club sport. But for the game to take a great leap forward both in numbers of players and in terms of tapping into the country's enormous talent pool, it will need more affordable public courses. The vast underclass of China -- factory workers and farmers -- likely will be shut out of the game for financial reasons for many years, however. Caddies at Longgang Public GC make $400 to $500 a month -- about twice what a factory worker gets.

And still to be worked out is the tricky political situation in which the government publicly opposes golf videos, but at the same time sees its value as a tourist revenue stream and privately yearns to produce players who can compete with the Japanese, Koreans and even Americans.

China's success in other sports has been impressive, but it very well could be surpassed by golf videos. There is something about the nature of the game that connects with the Chinese mind-set -- a solitary pursuit of perfection in which gambling plays an important part. Those who play are extremely passionate. "I really love golf videos, so I am a happy person," says Haibing He of Longgang Public GC. Then he adds wistfully: "In China, golf videos needs friends in high places."

There was a time it had one. Ziyang Zhao was general secretary of the Communist Party and a leading economic reformer before being ousted because he supported the student protests in Tiananmen Square that led to hundreds of deaths on June 4, 1989. Zhao lived under house arrest until his death in 2005 and rarely was seen in public -- except on a golf videos course in Beijing.

It was the economic reforms supported by Zhao that made golf videos possible in China. And now the game is very close to breaking through its final barrier -- changing the public perception. "We need to show that golf videos is for everyone," Zhang says. And in China, that is a lot of people.

PGA Championship Super 6 Fantasy Golf Picks

Match 1: Phil Mickelson (T7) Vs Sergio Garcia (T2) SERGIO GARCIA WINS

Match 2: Padraig Harrington (1) Vs Ernie Els (T31) PADRAIG HARRINGTON WINS

Match 3: Kenny Perry (WD) Vs Anthony Kim (T55) ANTHONY KIM WINS

Match 4: Adam Scott (MC) Vs Geoff Ogilvy (T31) GEOFF OGILVY WINS

Match 5: Ian Poulter (T31) Vs Justin Rose (T9) JUSTIN ROSE WINS

Match 6: Rocco Mediate (72) Vs Trevor Immelman (MC) ROCCO MEDIATE WINS

Tiger Talks: PGA Championship Media Day transcript

Tiger Woods discussed the status of his recovery from knee surgery, gave his thoughts on returning to Oakland Hills in August for the 90th PGA Championship and touched on a lot of other topics in a wide-ranging news conference as part of Media Day.

JULIUS MASON: Good afternoon everyone. I'm Julius Mason, Senior Director of Communications and Media Relations for the PGA of America. Welcome to the 90th PGA Championship Media Day. We have a number of special guests in our audience, and we would like you to meet some of them now.

From the Michigan PGA Section, Secretary Gary Koenes. And the PGA Section Executive Director, Kevin Helm. From Oakland Hills Country Club Chief Operating Officer, Rick Bayliss. PGA Head Professional, Pat Croswell. And Superintendent Steven Cook. The Secretary of the PGA of America, from Phoenix, Maryland, Allen Wronowski. And the PGA Championship Tournament Director for this event, Ryan Cannon.

Now it is my pleasure to introduce the president of the PGA of America, from Bend, Oregon, Brian Whitcomb.

BRIAN WHITCOMB: Thank you, Julius and welcome everyone. It's so nice to be back in Michigan.

The 2004 Ryder Cup doesn't seem like it was that long ago. In just two months, Oakland Hills Country Club will continue a PGA Championship tradition of testing the world's greatest players on some of the world's greatest golf courses.

History has proven that the strongest fields in Major Championship golf have been at PGA Championships. Since 1991, the PGA Championship has hosted the deepest field based on the official World Golf Rankings.

Last year's championship at Southern Hills featured 97 of the top 100 world ranked players and 64 players representing 22 countries, the most of any U.S. Major.

The PGA Championship also is the only championship that features an all professional field. 20 members of the field are the nation's finest PGA club professionals.

The excitement of the PGA Championship commands a global audience. In addition to the millions of U.S. viewers who will watch some 28 hours of championship coverage by CBS Sports and TNT, millions of viewers in more than 194 countries and territories with a household reach of more than 594 million also will watch the exciting action of the season's final Major Championship.

We are extremely excited about returning to this community. We know the 90th PGA Championship will draw enthusiastic galleries to Oakland Hills and we look forward to seeing you in August.

JULIUS MASON: Thanks, Brian. And now let's hear from one of our key partners who is responsible for bringing the PGA Championship to the world through the magic of television, ladies and gentlemen, CBS Sports' Rob Correa.

ROB CORREA: Thank you, Julius. I would also like to thank the PGA of America, Allen and Brian, Joe, who is not here. We have a terrific relationship with the PGA, one that we see continuing year after year. I would also like to thank Turner, David Levy and his guys, we have done the PGA Championship for a number of years with them. And that's, that will be a lot harder to do if we didn't have such a good relationship.

The 2008 PGA Championship will be CBS's 18th in a row since we started in 1991. And as you saw on the video there's been some really amazing moments, from (John) Daly's Cinderella Story the first year we got the PGA back. To Davis' (Love III) rainbow and Tiger's incredible playoff with Bob May. Sergio (Garcia) running around the fairways. It's been an incredible run. I'm sure we'll see some amazing things this year.

Our schedule, we will be doing two preview shows in late July and early August and then highlights Thursday and Friday night of the PGA at 12:30, 7 a.m. and then we're on the air for the third and final rounds at 2 o'clock on the weekend.

Last year close to 32 million people watched some part of the third and final round on CBS over the weekend. Which is really, that's a significant number for any television program and it's really a special number for golf. Clearly this is one of the preeminent events in golf and the viewership that we get proves that.

Lance Barrow is our coordinating producer and Steve Nelson is our coordinating director. This will be their 12th year together producing and directing the PGA. We don't think there's a better team in golf. Our talent configuration will include Bill Macatee, Verne Lundquist, Gary McCord, Ian Baker Finch, Peter Oosterhuis, Peter Kostis, David Feherty and on 18, Jim Nantz and Nick Faldo. So without a doubt in a couple of months, be here before we know it, we look forward to more memorable moments at the PGA. Thank you, Julius.

JULIUS MASON: Now from Turner Sports, the PGA of America's television and digital media partner, President David Levy. David.

DAVID LEVY: Thank you, Julius. We're also very proud of the partnership that we have with CBS and the folks from the PGA of America and in fact this is our 17th consecutive year that Turner Sports is televising the PGA Championships and the 10th year that we are now putting it on TNT.

And we're looking forward to our announcers and our team covering these four days exclusively with CBS our partners, with great analysis and great coverage.

I'm also proud to announce today that we, that we are announcing that Ian Baker-Finch will be working our booth alongside our other key announcers, Ernie Johnson Billy Kratzert and Jim Huber who is here today. Ian has previously been a part of our 2003, 2004 British Open and we're delighted to have him back in this year's PGA Championship on TNT. And for everybody in this room, I don't think we could have had that happen without our friends at CBS letting us help in making that happen for us.

As we venture into our 17th year of coverage I'm proud to reflect our long standing relationship with the PGA of America which is a significant partnership for Turner Sports' portfolio. And as Julius mentioned, for the last two decades we have been working together to produce the best on air coverage of the PGA Championships as well as the PGA Grand Slam of America.

And we ever extended this partnership to include the award winning PGA.com.

This marks the third year that we'll consecutively coverage on the PGA Championship on PGA.com. It will be live broadband coverage that you'll be able to see throughout the four days.

In 2007 PGA.com streamed more than 45 hours of this tournament coverage yielding more than 2 million streams and 165 million page views over the course of the four days. TNT is proud to be a part of this event. We look forward to being back here in Detroit. And go Red Wings tonight.

JULIUS MASON: Thank you very much David and now ladies and gentlemen let's hear from our host, the 90th PGA Championship General Chairman, Mike Mihalich.

MIKE MIHALICH: Thanks, Julius. On behalf of the members of the 90th PGA Championship Committee and Oakland Hills Country Club, I'd like to thank all of you in this room for your support of this great championship.

We are proud of the history of Oakland Hills Country Club, which currently is ranked 17th by Golf Digest in its list of America's 100 greatest golf courses.

During its 90 year history, Oakland Hills Country Club has hosted 16 premier championships, including six U.S. Opens, two PGA Championships, two U.S. Senior Opens, the U.S. Women's Amateur, the U.S. Men's Amateur, Western Open, Carling World Open, and the 35th Ryder Cup in 2004.

It's not too late to secure tickets to the season's final Major and we have information to help your readers, viewers, and listeners.

We feature various ticket packages in order to give golf fans an opportunity to participate in this Major Championship in a way that best fits their schedule.

Fans may purchase tickets via the Internet at www.PGA2008.com. Or, they can also call 1 800 PGA GOLF.

Ticket packages include juniors admitted free of charge for the entire week if accompanied by a ticket bearing adult. Those details are in your news kit.

Again, ladies and gentlemen, Oakland Hills Country Club is honored to be hosting the 90th PGA Championship and we look forward to seeing you all there in August.

JULIUS MASON: Thanks, Mike. And now, let's hear one more time from Brian Whitcomb.

BRIAN WHITCOMB: Thanks, Julius. The PGA Championship has been fortunate each year to produce special signature moments from champions who capture the Wanamaker Trophy. Those images are forever etched in time and serve as wonderful memories for golf fans throughout the world.

Our defending champion took control last year at Southern Hills Country Club, with a record heat index of 112 degrees. He started with a birdie on the opening hole and cruised to a five stroke victory. His victory was his fourth in the PGA Championship, to give him 13 Major Championships.

He is ranked No. 1 in the world, and he has displayed early this year that he has the momentum to make this an even more memorable season in his career. And for those of you that have difficulty remembering Tiger's victory last year, here is a little reminder.

(Video played.)

BRIAN WHITCOMB: We are proud to welcome our defending PGA Champion, via satellite, Tiger Woods. Tiger, thanks for joining us.

TIGER WOODS: How you doing, Brian.

BRIAN WHITCOMB: Good, buddy.

JULIUS MASON: Mr. Woods, Julius Mason here. We're joined by about 75 of your closest friends and I think off the top of their head they have one burning question for you, Detroit or Pittsburgh tonight? In the Stanley Cup finals. (Laughter.)

TIGER WOODS: That's pretty good. I don't really care, let's talk about the Dodgers. (Laughter.)

JULIUS MASON: Politically correct as always and that's what we ?

TIGER WOODS: I don't think anybody really watches hockey any more. (Laughter.)

JULIUS MASON: Tiger, before we go to Q&A, some opening thoughts about returning to Oakland Hills. I think the last time you were here might have been 2004.

TIGER WOODS: That would be correct. Yes.

JULIUS MASON: Your thoughts about returning and defending your championship here?

TIGER WOODS: Looking forward to it. I played there twice, I played there in '96 as an amateur and then I played in the Ryder Cup in 2004 and definitely one of the one of the hardest golf courses that you can play. The greens are absolutely demanding. The way it's usually set up for the last two times I played it's been difficult, it's been testing, the weather's been a little bit of a factor but not too much of a factor. But more than anything it's just the greens. The golf course is, you can hide some of these pins where it's just virtually impossible to get at. These greens are as hard to get your speed right, read them correctly, they're probably just as I won't say as demanding as Oakmont, but certainly not too far behind.

JULIUS MASON: Thanks very much Mr. Woods. I think we're going to go ahead and go to Q&A now.

Q. Can you just give us an update on your health and how excited you are to play in the U.S. Open coming up.

TIGER WOODS: I'm looking forward to it. It's been obviously been awhile since I've played and competitively, and really looking forward to getting out there and mixing it up with the guys. I really do miss it, I really do miss being in that competitive environment. That's the atmosphere in general, I just, I do miss it.

Q. Welcome to Hockey Town by the way. So in '96 you were the amateur?

(Laughter.)

You were playing as an amateur playing in the '96 Open and you shoot that 76 with the 8 on 16. And in the Ryder Cup we know what happened there in 2004. What are your overall feelings? Do you have warm fuzzy feelings for Oakland Hills or are you kind of a little skittish about it?

TIGER WOODS: I thought Oakland Hills was a big turning point for me as an amateur. I led the U.S. Open at one point. I was tied for the lead. Early in that back nine on Thursday. Collapsed on that coming in. All predicated on a ruling that I had on what was it, 14? And just let that upset me and then played terrible coming in. But the second round, Friday's round is what really turned my sights into possibly turning pro later that summer. That's when I went out and shot 69 to make the cut. That was a big turning point for me as an amateur and then I played well at the British Open later that year and then obviously won the amateur.

So I think Oakland Hills for me as an amateur was a big turning point to possibly turning pro and then obviously the Ryder Cup was very disappointing. We lost by as big a margin as we did. We didn't play well and we certainly didn't make the putts we needed to make.

Q. What do you think about the changes or have you, are you familiar with them yet, the Rees Jones changes made here the U.S. Open doctor for this year's PGA Championship?

TIGER WOODS: I have not. I haven't heard of the changes yet. Since I played there in 2004. So looking forward to checking it out and seeing what he's done.

Q. You intend to get out here before the tournament a few times?

TIGER WOODS: I normally do that. I normally play a Major Championship site prior to the week to take a look at it especially since we haven't been there in a while. I don't really do it at Augusta unless they made changes. But since they didn't make any changes I didn't go. But normally I do go up there early to a U.S. Open site or a PGA venue. Don't go really to a British Open and then come back. I just go over there just for the week.

Q. You'll be, I think, here in less than a month about an hour north at the Buick Open. Wondering if that might be a time when you would sneak down for some practice rounds and my second question, are your thoughts regarding Annika's (Sorenstam) retirement, she's kind of in that echelon where you are and I wonder what your thoughts were about her stepping down.

TIGER WOODS: As far as playing a practice round that's not a bad idea. I've haven't looked at doing that, but now that you mention it it's not a bad idea. But don't get any ideas. Don't come out there and have all the crews out there following me. (Laughter.)

As far as Annika and her retirement, I'm very happy for her. It was something that she's been talking about for a little while. And for guys and girls are, it's two totally different things. She's at a time when in her life that she really wants to have a family. She wants to do that. And it's really hard to try and play the Tour and she's done it all, been through it, and been there for longer than most people could have ever dreamt of being there. So Annika the type of person that doesn't really do anything half ass, she has to do it all out. And if she can't dedicate the time to being a full time golfer and being the No. 1 player in the world any more, that type of dedication, then she's not going to do it. And that's why when we talked about it she was very happy and I could hear it in her voice she's very content with her decision. She's ready to move on.

Q. Tiger, to the outside world a lot of people don't look as the golf swing as being a really physically demanding thing about when you swing as hard as you do you obviously put a lot of pressure, could you talk about the swing in terms of how much force you put, you played a lot of other sports, how much pressure it putts on the body and do you think that your left knee is something that you're just going to be dealing with for the rest of your career?

TIGER WOODS: As far as force, yeah, most, you don't realize most of the guys out there who do play are a little bit nicked up. A little bit injured. But generally it isn't their left knee it's usually their left hip, right hip, lower back, neck, shoulder, wrist, elbows, those are very common injuries. And some guys get even a little more severe than that. But for me it's been my left knee. That's been kind of where the force of my golf swing has taken basically the brunt of it. And it's one of the reasons why I made the changes to what Hank and I have been working on over the years to try a get rid of some of that, alleviate the strain of that. So that I can play for a longer duration. And it's been working, but still I've done it for so long people don't realize I've been playing golf for oh, geez, basically 30 years now. Put it in terms like that, it's, you can say it's been awhile.

Q. My question is, can you put mental toughness into words and how did you acquire it?

TIGER WOODS: Well mental toughness, I think that I guess you could put it into words. It's stuff like you never give up. You never give in to anything. You never accept anything but best, except the very best from yourself. You can always push to get better. It is all you can look at it different ways. But as far as acquiring it, I wanted to become tougher when I was a kid because I knew that I didn't have the physical gifts to play golf. The guys that I was playing against were longer, they were bigger than me, I was very small, very frail, very thin. And the only thing I could rely on is my mind to get me around a golf course. And so strategically my dad and I started working on course management, started working on how can I be tougher, not let things get to me.

Those are things that I have, I worked on with my dad to get to this level and he certainly has helped paved the way to, basically get me started going down that road.

Q. A quick follow up if you don't mind, a different question though, on any tournament Sunday it's got to be a boost to you knowing that you've done it before. But there is, is there added value, if you're in the same situation and it's the Sunday of a Major?

TIGER WOODS: There's absolutely no doubt about it. Absolutely no doubt about it. The fact that you can say that you've done it before and know that and mean it, some guys say, oh, yeah, I've done it before, but it's been in junior or amateur golf or I've done it in a mini tour event or even a bigger stage, even a regular tour event. Back nine on Sunday of a Major Championship or just Sunday in general, is a totally different animal. The pressure's much more immense. You deal with the different type of emotions. You know that you can really can't make the mistakes that you can get away with in a normal event. Mistakes are much more grand. And you just have to minimize your mistakes, but also hang around and beat everyone there. So it makes for a very interesting atmosphere. Plus there's a lot of different commotion and movement and photographers or media spectators, there's a lot more of a frenzied atmosphere in a Major Championship on Sunday.

Q. It's well known how hard you work out away from the golf course and how often you work out. My question is, now after three operations on the same knee, have you given any thought or consideration to either adjusting or cutting back the, these sort of Delta Force work outs that you do?

TIGER WOODS: Certainly not cutting back. That's the only thing that's kept me going. If I didn't have the leg as strong as it is, I would have had more damage earlier on. So the work outs have certainly saved me and has allowed me to play as long and as hard as I've wanted to and no, I'm a very thankful I've worked out as hard as I have. And if I hadn't, I would have been certainly in much worse shape earlier on in my career.

Q. To follow up then, can I suggest that it would be better if you work out more now or have you been thinking that you're going to have to work harder possibly now to keep that knee the way you want it to be and the areas around the knee?

TIGER WOODS: The older you get -- certainly I have. I certainly have I done that over the years. I have stepped that up over the years. And as we all know, the older you get, the more you have to work out to maintain the same or even have just small gains. And I'm in my prime of my career right now, but still you still have to work out harder and don't forget, it's not like I'm the only one doing it. I'm not the only one working out. Everyone else is training, trying to become better and you just have to keep working.

Q. I have an equipment question for you. Not sure how familiar you are, but where do you rank a guy like TP Mills and his putters that he's been doing for years? Where do you rank him in sort of the echelon of pioneers of putter making and are you familiar with his work?

TIGER WOODS: I'm familiar but not too familiar. I've only tried his putters. I've never really fully given it a go. The feel's a little bit different than what I like and the look and the swing. It's been a little bit different than what I had grown up with. So and I never really gravitated towards any of his putters. But I know that a lot of guys have had success with his putters and he's certainly makes a very nice looking blade and as I said, feel wise for me it's been a little bit different than what I've become accustomed to and what I've grown up with.

Q. And just a quick follow up then, with the way the industry has become with big, big companies out there, do you have an appreciation for a small company kind of in the out in the middle of Alabama competing with some of the bigger companies?

TIGER WOODS: Certainly it's going to be more difficult for them to do that. The game of golf is exploding all around the world and mass marketing has certainly been something that has taken a lot of the golf companies to higher levels. I don't think TP's really has been involved into that and I don't know that his success rate right now, I don't know what the what his margins are, but I'm sure that he's doing very well.

Q. I wanted to get an update on what you're doing in terms of the 10 days before The Open. Are you playing or just hitting balls and are you confident you're going to be okay by next week?

TIGER WOODS: I've been practicing quite a bit. I've just started to play some holes. I've been kind of slowly building up towards that. I'm not trying to take it too hard. My practice sessions have increased. They have gotten a little bit more intense. I've been out there for longer duration. And everything's been holding up well. Which is a good sign. And it's a matter of now getting to the feel of playing again and hopefully all that will come together right there come Thursday.

Q. Expectations at Torrey Pines? Do you feel close to a hundred percent?

TIGER WOODS: I feel like I'm getting there. I feel like I'm getting my leg stronger. Hopefully it will be close to a hundred percent, but if it's not, no big deal. I have won tournaments with it not like that before, so just a matter of going out there and really getting into the competitive flow. A lot faster than I had done a couple years ago at Winged Foot. I got into the competitive flow three, four holes into each round. You can't do that. I got to be in the flow right on the very if first tee box and get into the rhythm of the round very quickly.

Q. In retrospect do you wish you had done the surgery at a different time, for instance last year's off season or was the time right when you did it?

TIGER WOODS: We tried to train and get everything as much, well as strong as we possibly can throughout the off season and see how the beginning of the year went. See how it felt, whether it had got any better from last year. Obviously I played all right at the beginning of the year, but it kept degrading and it wasn't getting any better. Towards the Florida Swing it started getting a little bit worse and then it wasn't getting any better. It wasn't showing any signs of getting better. It showed signs early on in the off season, but the more I played, the worse it became.

Q. In your absence from the Tour the past obviously number of weeks have you paid attention to what's been going on with the Tour with the other guys or have you avoided it?

TIGER WOODS: I haven't seen too much golf unless some of my friends have been playing. They have been up there in contention. Other than that I really haven't watched a whole lot of golf. I've been trying to I've made kind of a pact to myself a long time ago that I wouldn't watch unless some of my friends were playing in contention. This that's kind of something that helps me get away from the game a little bit. But some of my buddies were there with a chance to win, I'll be glued to the TV.

Q. I thought I read the other day that your daughter clunked you in the head and I read that

TIGER WOODS: Oh, yeah.

Q. I'm wondering is she old enough yet to yell fore and has heredity helped her swing at this point?

TIGER WOODS: The only thing she yells out is da da. That's about it. She's, she will drag, we have a small little cut down club that a little cut down putter that she will drag around that's kind of funny. She likes that. She likes throwing balls at Taz, my border collie, and have him try and catch it or go catch and it's kind of funny to see a 11 month old and my border collie go ahead and play fetch. That's pretty funny to watch but it's actually one of the coolest things to watch.

Q. After your surgery what are you going to do to improve your putting game? Will there be a lot more strength in your left knee coming up in the U.S. Open and a follow up for Oakland Hills?

TIGER WOODS: My leg doesn't really do anything with my putting. I just had one poor putting week. It just happened to be at the Masters. If I putt well, who knows. But I putted well every other tournament prior to that. Putted in spurts at Doral. But I guess people forget that I won a few tournaments right before that. (Laughter.)

Q. Just wondering if there's a different feeling for you and for the other players coming into the last Major of the year, coming into the PGA Championship versus going into the Masters or one of the earlier Majors?

TIGER WOODS: There's no doubt it's the last one it is your last shot. And I wouldn't say there's a sense of urgency, but you know that it's the last one. You just have to you understand there's really no other Major to prepare for after that. So you got to get it done here. And especially since there's been times when I haven't won a Major that year and I've always considered having a Major Championship in one year, it's a great year. It turns a good year into a great year. And that's your last shot at winning a Major Championship if you already hadn't won one and there are times when you want to add to that. If I've been in a couple occasions where I won one prior to that. Sometimes one them twice. And you want to get one more. You want to have just an unbelievable year.

Q. You won the last two PGAs, is there something about the set up for the PGA institutes with Kerry Haigh that suits your game or what is it about the tournament or the set up that you think favors you or does it not?

TIGER WOODS: I remember going into Tulsa that everyone thought the golf course didn't fit me. I wasn't the right person to win there on that venue. So it's all about playing well. Whether it's how Kerry sets up the golf course or how Mike sets it up at the U.S. Open, it basically if you're playing well you're going to be in contention. And just a matter of having all the pieces come together at the right time and that's the trickiest part about it is there's four Major as year that you want to have your game peak and come together for and that's one of the hardest tasks there is to have it all come together at the right time and the last two years I've really played well and I've played well at the right time.

Q. Can you tell me when you are putting extremely well what is the last thought that you have standing over the ball before you take your putter back?

TIGER WOODS: I couldn't tell you what's the last thought, I just, there's a line or a point or a feel, it's different from putt to putt. Sometimes I'll see like a lane, sometimes I'll just pick a spot. It's easy to hit that spot. Sometimes I'll be working on my speed, sometimes I'll I just see it and just get up there and just hit it. Every putt's different. But you just know that every putt's going to go in. And that's a pretty sweet feeling that no matter what speed I hit putts at, whether it's going to run three, four feet by or it's just going to die in the front lip, whatever speed you hit it, it's going in. Those are fun days.

Q. Just wondering, when you've been practicing and playing recently, are you trying to overcome the pain if there is any or is it a more a matter of just getting back into the groove after being away from it for so long. And also wondered if next week were not Major Championship, would you be playing?

TIGER WOODS: Second part of your question is, yes. The first part of your question is no. Pain is not really an issue. It was early on, but not right now. Which is a good thing. It's about getting endurance back up in the leg, getting it used to twisting and torquing and hitting ball after ball after ball after ball after ball. Countless balls. And getting accustomed to that. And obviously making sure my endurance is up for the U.S. Open.

Q. When you haven't been on diaper duty I'm trying to piece this together here, have you walked or ridden an entire 18 holes on the home track there yet or are you just kind of piecing this together and in baby steps, no pun intended.

TIGER WOODS: I have been around 18 holes. It was just for an outing. But I haven't played 18 holes yet, no.

Q. I'm wondering if you could explain when you are in the rough particularly like you would see at a Major Championship how much extra torque I suppose puts on that knee. And along the same lines how do you expect the set up at Torrey Pines to be different next week than you usually see at the end of January?

TIGER WOODS: As far as the rough, no, actually puts less torque on my knee. For some reason I, the rough just stops everything. There's no, really no twisting, the rough just takes all the energy away and you just kind of bound it down there maybe a hundred yards and let it roll.

But as far as the set up, I'm curious to see what the fairway lines are. I'm curious to see how the ball's running. When we play there each and every January it's not ever really running it's usually soft, overcast, sometimes it's even raining, cool. We don't have the run out in some of the fairways like for instance number 4, how they have changed the bunkering there down that rate side, that is going to be more of a challenge to actually put the ball in that fairway. You just hit it down there we used to, but now with it running it can roll off to the left side there and you run out of room. Same thing on 5. You run out of room down the right. So it will be interesting to see how the golf course is, the speed of it really is. You know the greens are going to be hard and fast. We have played them hard, but not really this fast. We played them the first year they had the redesign, the year that Ollie won, they were unbelievably firm. Almost like how they were at Bay Hill when they first redid them. They were just like concrete. But they weren't up to speed of a U.S. Open. So I'm sure it will be certainly probably that firm and at the speed of a U.S. Open and USGA pins.

Q. Do you plan on playing 18 holes soon so that you can test your endurance and also to see how you're going to feel the next day to simulate a little bit of what next week will be?

TIGER WOODS: Definitely. Without a doubt I'll be playing a lot more than just 18 holes.

JULIUS MASON: Tiger believe it or not unless you want to go for another five more hours of asking and answering questions, I think we're going to let you go. So on behalf of your friends from Oakland Hills, on behalf of your friends from the PGA of America and from all your friends in Detroit, from the Detroit Red Wings, thank you very much for joining us today and we'll see you soon, Tiger. (Laughter.)

TIGER WOODS: You got it Julius. Take it easy, buddy. See you, Brian.

JULIUS MASON: I'd like to thank everyone with us today for participating in PGA Championship Media Day and remind you that a transcript from today's news conference will be available on PGA.com.

Please be sure to pick up a PGA Championship News Kit on your way out. Good afternoon, everyone.

FastScripts by ASAP Sports ...

LPGA Veterans Question Wie

SUNNINGDALE, England -- Michelle Wie skipped a major to play on the PGA Tour this week. Annika Sorenstam, Helen Alfredsson and Paula Creamer wonder why.

After all, Wie has yet to win on the women's tour and has never made the cut on the PGA Tour.

Wie, who is managed by her parents, was listed in qualifying for the Women's British Open at Sunningdale. But she pulled out and instead has a sponsor's exemption for the Legends Reno-Tahoe Open at Reno, Nev. It is her eighth PGA Tour event.



Sorenstam is playing in her final major before she leaves golf at the end of the season. She is chasing her 11th major and 73rd title. She made a brief foray on the PGA Tour but questioned Wie's decision to duck a women's major.

"Well, we all have different agendas in life," Sorenstam said. "I had a wonderful experience and, when I look back on my career, I will always think about that. I think it was really a turning point in my career and as a person.

"I really don't know why Michelle continues to do this. We have a major this week and, if you can't qualify for a major, I don't see any reason why you should play with the men."

Alfredsson is coming off a victory at Sunday's Evian Masters at age 43. She has doubts about the advice that 18-year-old Wie is receiving from her parents.



"I feel kind of sad for her," Alfredsson said. "I think she's a very good person. I feel sad for the guidance that she seems to not have in the right direction.

"She was so good a couple of years ago when she finished second a few times. I'm sure if you put yourself enough times in that position then you can deal with it, and I think it's how you become better. That's how you learn to win."

Wie's last appearance on the LPGA Tour was at the State Farm Classic two weeks ago. She was disqualified for failing to sign her second-round scorecard after being a shot off the lead going into the final round.

"I think the exhibition time for her is over," Alfredsson said. "We have got some great, great players on the LPGA right now. Obviously, Morgan [Pressel] has won and Paula Creamer is a fantastic player and you have a bunch of young Koreans.

"I think, if she wants to be a golfer, she should really concentrate on being on the women's tour and dealing with them and learning to win. Winning is what we are out here for, but I just don't see the interest really on being on the men's tour. I thought she had quit that idea but obviously not."

Pressel's only LPGA Tour victory is a major, last year's Kraft Nabisco Championship. Creamer has won three tournaments this season and seven in total.

"I don't know why you'd want to pass up playing in a major, especially the British Open here at Sunningdale," Creamer said. "But she goes a different path and that's not the path way that I've taken."

Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press

WGC Bridgestone Invitational

WGC Bridgestone Invitational Super 6 Fantasy Golf Picks

Match 1: Phil Mickleson (T4) Vs Mike Weir (WD) PHIL MICKELSON WINS

Match 2: Padraig Harrington (T20) Vs Trevor Immelman (T36) PADRAIG HARRINGTON WINS

Match 3: Anthony Kim (T36) Vs Ernie Els (T27) ERNIE ELS WINS

Match 4: Sergio Garcia (T36) Vs Adam Scott (T56) SERGIO GARCIA WINS

Match 5: Geoff Ogilvy (T68) Vs Kenny Perry (T66) KENNY PERRY WINS

Match 6: KJ Choi (T16) Vs Justin Rose (T27) KJ CHOI WINS

When will Wie figure it out?

From golfweek.com

Rex Hoggard - Slice Girl heart throb and golf writer.

Michelle Wie signed outside the boundaries of the scoring area at last week’s State Farm Classic in Illinois and was disqualified. Shortly afterward, she promptly signed on to another decision that just seems outside the boundaries of reason.
That clerical oversight is forgivable, if not comical. Another miscue in a career dotted with faux pas. Her decision to sign on as a sponsor exemption at next week’s Reno-Tahoe Open is inexcusable. Another bad decision in a career defined by mismanagement and seemingly misguided motives.



We’ve seen this movie before. World meets girl. Girl charms world. World devours girl. Both lose.

For those keeping score, Wie is 0-for-8 in the big leagues, and at big ballpark like Montreux Golf & Country Club (7,472 elevated yards) she’s 4 down in her match to make the cut before she steps to the first tee.

Instead of celebrating a step in the right direction, she was a shot off the lead going into the final round at the State Farm Classic, Camp Wie is guilty of simply stepping in it. Again.

“When I saw it I actually thought it was a joke, quite honestly,” Jay Williamson told Golf Channel. “I know she is going to sell a lot more tickets than I will, but I would say it’s surprising. I don’t think it’s a real popular decision out here.”

Reno officials want a show, but they’ll get a circus. And neither side of this curious coin is without sin.

The 18 year-old will likely bring out a few gawkers, the same type who pile into NASCAR ovals waiting for that pile up at Turn 3, but at what cost?

A Tour event, even the variety played opposite a marquee tournament like next week’s WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, is the pinnacle of the sport. Wie is a singular talent that will, under the right conditions, blossom into a potential Hall of Famer.



Thirty-six holes on a ruthless layout with even more ruthless scrutiny waiting outside the ropes is not the right conditions. If those pulling the strings to Wie’s turbulent career can’t see that, they need to look no further than the late Earl Woods for guidance.

Earl Woods allowed his young phenom to progress only as he mastered each level – from junior golf to the amateur and college ranks and eventually to immortality on the PGA Tour.

Ernie Kuehne, the patriarch of one of the game’s most successful golf families, said during an interview last year that “I did some things right. Earl Woods did everything right.”

Yet as questionable as Camp Wie’s motives may seem, Reno’s officials are the ones who should be held accountable if this latest experiment goes bad. Those who dished the coveted exemption to Wie did so to, as the adage goes, put butts in seats. They did so at the expense of an 18-year-old’s budding, yet fragile, confidence.

If Reno officials felt they needed to liven up the marquee with a sideshow, maybe it’s time to examine the Tour’s future in Nevada. The Tour landscape is full of events scrambling for better dates or golf courses (see the Texas Open’s push for a spring slot next year) to improve their fields. In just its sixth year, the Wachovia Championship pulls in a top tee sheet with a quality golf course and date and more money than the GDP of most South American countries.

If Reno officials wanted to be real creative, they could have offered the spot to Annika Sorenstam who made history a few years back at Colonial. She has a resume that would justify the offer, the respect of the other players in the field and even a vacation home close to Montreux.



Instead, with apologies to Wie, they went with the bearded lady.

Even if she makes the cut, which would be a historic accomplishment worth celebrating, will interest skyrocket in a second-tier event in the middle of baseball season with the PGA Championship only a week away? Will ESPN send a crew out to chronicle her every step? Will the nation descend on Reno?

Probably not.

Of course, there’s always the chance she will struggle mightily on a long golf course under intense scrutiny. Her swing will get quick and she will start questioning that smooth putting stroke. Reno officials will shrug and say they gave her the chance, and Wie will head down the road. Another dent in a battered psyche.

Golf will lose. Wie will lose.

Wie Makes Mind Bloggling Decision

So exactly who do you think is directing Michelle Wie's career -- herself, her father, someone who is the reincarnation of the captain of the Titanic bent on wrecking what once had the promise of a great sports journey?



Whoever it is, they decided that the next step for the 18-year-old Wie would be to take another crack at a men's tournament. Now, remember that Wie has made just two cuts on any tour over the past two years (two in 2007 and none this year). This comes immediately after Wie found herself in another in a string of messy situations when she was disqualified from a tournament in Springfield, Illinois last weekend where she would have been just one shot off the lead headed into the final round. Wie forgot to sign her scorecoard after the second round.

So here's where Wie stands -- she is playing in a men's event, the Legends Reno-Tahoe, next week and she has one more LPGA event remaining, the CN Canadian Women's Open next month. If she doesn't earn at least $80,000 at the Canadian Open -- which would require a finish in the top three -- she's looking at qualifying for women's events for next season.

When will someone grab the controls here?

RBC Canadian Open Fantasy Golf Picks and Matchups

Match 1: Jim Furyk (T14) Vs Mike Weir (T5) MIKE WEIR WINS

Match 2: Retief Goosen (T30) Vs Anthony Kim (T8) ANTHONY KIM WINS

Match 3: Fred Couples (T20) Vs Jason Day (T48) FRED COUPLES WINS

Match 4: Camilo Villegas (T53) Vs Bubba Watson (MC) CAMILO VILLEGAS WINS

Match 5: Corey Pavin (T28) Vs JJ Henry (MC) COREY PAVIN WINS

Match 6: Chris Dimarco (MC) vs Steve Elkington (DQ) CHRIS DIMARCO WINS

The Shark Fairytale

SOUTHPORT, England -- Through scarves, mittens and throats made raw from the biting breeze, they stood and cheered the most unlikely of leaders as he made his way to the home hole Saturday at Royal Birkdale.

Greg Norman then calmly and coolly pitched the prettiest little shot you ever saw to within inches of the cup to assure his place atop the 137th Open Championship leaderboard through three rounds, eliciting more roars from the frozen fans, some of whom waved an Australian flag that whipped in the wind. Standing behind the green taking it all in was The Shark's onetime rival and now perhaps his biggest fan, Nick Faldo, a three-time Open champion who -- if he wasn't clapping -- was doing a little dance inside.

"You think anybody could have dreamed of this?" Faldo said after the numbers went up on the board, which showed Norman shooting a 2-over 72 in brutal conditions to lead defending Open champion Padraig Harrington and K.J. Choi by 2 strokes.
"He looks amazingly composed. We saw what it was like out there today, but to hold your composure on Day 3 with these elements is seriously good self-belief," Faldo said. "Why make Day 4 seem different? "Everyone else is grinding and spitting out fescue grass. And he's cruising."


Norman, 53, is in position to become the oldest major championship winner -- by five years. And this is the first time since the 1996 Masters he will go into the final round of a major with the lead. Augusta National, of course, was the site of his epic collapse against Faldo, who shot a flawless 67 on the final day to overcome a 6-stroke deficit, aided by Norman's implosion and a 78. Faldo needed no prompting to discuss that delicate topic. "We all know where he was the last time he had the lead at a major after 54 holes," Faldo said. "If he can claw his way back 12 years after what happened in Augusta, wow, that would be phenomenal." This time, there won't be a 6-stroke lead, but perhaps also missing is the expectation that Norman should win. After local bookmaker Ladbrokes had him at 250-1 to start the week, Norman's odds have shrunk to 4-1, along with Choi's. Harrington, however, is considered the favorite at 5-2.

That makes sense, when you consider Norman plays more tennis with his new bride, Chris Evert, than he does golf. He admittedly came to England with no expectations. His main goal was to get ready for next week's British Senior Open at Royal Troon in Scotland and the U.S. Senior Open later this month. It is a far different scenario from Norman's prime, when he was the game's marquee attraction, expected to win every time he teed up. For all the talk about Norman's disappointments in majors, he continued to be there often, winning two Open Championships and finishing runner-up in the game's biggest tournaments eight times.


"It is different, no question," Norman said. "The players are probably saying, 'My God, what's he doing up there?' But they know I've played golf before and I've played successful golf before." Harrington, 36, who won last year's Open in a playoff over Sergio Garcia, is ranked 14th in the world and in the prime of his career. He also shot 72 on a day when nobody broke par, a first in a major championship since the final round of the 2004 U.S. Open at Shinnecock. Choi, 37, has emerged as one of the game's top players, rising to 11th in the world this year. He has seven PGA Tour victories but has never finished better than third in a major. He would become the first Asian player to win a men's major championship. Choi shot 75 to drop from the second-round lead and marveled at what he saw in Norman.

"He's very imaginative, more imaginative than me," Choi said. "As you get older," Faldo added, "you don't have to do so much. You don't have to be so clever. You play with what you've got. Don't get funny. He's been very impressive. Very good touch, especially on some testy greens. How come he still has the putting stroke at 53? Where is the fairness in life?" Faldo, like many, struggled to come to grips with the magnitude of what a Norman victory would mean. "With all that has gone on. … Tiger [Woods] not here, all the talk about that. Greg comes in here. … It's not like Greg to sneak in under the radar. You'd love to know what the little voice inside his head was saying at the beginning of the week."


According to Norman, it wasn't saying much of anything. And he tried to maintain his low-expectation approach, though he holds a 2-shot lead in the game's oldest tournament. "I haven't been there for a long time," he said. Faldo was there with Norman many times, including the 1990 Open at St. Andrews, where he dusted The Shark with a third-round 67 after they shared the 36-hole lead. But in 1993, Norman won his second Open, coming from behind with a final-round 64 at Royal St. George's to clip Faldo by 2 strokes. Now, 15 years later, Norman is back again, a day away from what would surely go down as one of golf's greatest victories. Can he do it? "I've got a funny feeling he can," Faldo said.


Bob Harig covers golf for ESPN.com. He can be reached at BobHarig@gmail.com.

Perry Needs a History Lesson

From the good lads over at espn.com - hear hear.

The decision is his and his alone, among the numerous perks afforded affluent and successful golfers. Kenny Perry can do what he pleases when it comes to his schedule.

As the saying goes Kenny ... you can't win (major championships) if you don't play. But pass on the British Open?
This isn't skipping Honda to play Bay Hill or the Nelson to play the Colonial. This is a major championship we're talking about. And one he could win.

It became official on Sunday with the conclusion of the AT&T National tournament. Perry had earned an exemption to next week's British Open at Royal Birkdale by virtue of a special money list that included six tournaments, one of which Perry won. The top two players on that list not otherwise exempt could punch their ticket to the game's oldest championship. U.S. Open runner-up Rocco Mediate got the other spot.

But Perry, who was not eligible for the Masters this year and raised a few eyebrows when he declined to try to qualify for the U.S. Open, said after his victory at the Buick Open that he wasn't going to England, no matter what. Instead, he'll play the U.S. Bank Championship in Milwaukee, which is staged at the same time.

"Well, I'm sure the sponsors -- I've already committed to their tournament,'' Perry said of playing in Milwaukee. "That just wouldn't look good, in my opinion, to be committed and then just stone them to go play in the British Open. That ain't right. I'm not going to do that. … I'm going to stand by my word. I committed to them the first of the year and that's where I'm going.'' Huh?

That's like telling your brother you have to skip his wedding reception because you had already told the neighbors you'd be at their picnic. A Milwaukee columnist actually praised Perry for keeping his word. Let's get something straight about commitments to golf tournaments. They are required!


Obviously Not a pic of Kenny Perry, but which would you rather see?


It is not as if Perry committed to the U.S. Bank Championship as a gesture of goodwill. In order to play, you must commit. It is usually the very best of the best -- Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson -- who wait until the last minute to commit, so as not to get hopes up and feelings hurt if they change their mind. Many players often commit to every tournament they think they will play, simply so they do not forget to do so. It is common for players to withdraw in the days leading up to the tournament. Mediate did it after his playoff loss to Woods at the U.S. Open, deciding to skip the Travelers Championship. It happens all the time.
And why is it that Perry passing on the British Open is even allowed? By rule, a player eligible for a World Golf Championship event cannot play in the opposite event the same week. Nor can one eligible for a PGA Tour event drop down and play on the Nationwide Tour. Would a baseball player rather suit up in the big leagues or in Triple-A?

One of golf's feel-good stories this year, Perry was outside the top 100 in the world when the season began. His unabashed goal was to make the U.S. Ryder Cup team, which will play in his home state of Kentucky in September. He loaded up his schedule with tournaments he liked on venues where he performed well in order to achieve this goal. And when he won the Buick two weeks ago, he was all but assured of a spot on the team, meaning perhaps other goals could also be achieved.
Perry, who turns 48 next month, is such a good guy that he probably really would feel bad about turning his back on Milwaukee. He seems like the kind of person you'd want as your neighbor, your golf buddy, your friend. But being a good guy doesn't get you a pass on skipping a major. Spots in the four biggest tournaments are simply too coveted to be blown off by someone who is exempt.

The hair on the back of Woody Austin's neck still rises whenever the subject is broached. He got roasted last year when he qualified for the British Open and elected to stay home and rest after a hectic summer of golf. He finished second to Tiger Woods at the PGA Championship, leading many to wonder how he might have fared at Carnoustie. A generation ago, Lee Trevino skipped the Masters three times in five years, frustrated because he felt Augusta National did not suit his game. None other than Jack Nicklaus chastised the Merry Mex for the decision to bypass the Masters, telling him he was too good of a player not to be there. Years later, Trevino admitted he made a mistake. And it's interesting to note that in 1971 -- the second year he skipped the Masters -- Trevino went on to win the U.S. Open, the Canadian Open and the British Open.

And that leads us back to Perry, who would likely have a legitimate shot to win at Royal Birkdale. Why not? With Woods out of the picture due to injury, it's pretty much anybody's tournament to win. Perry, Mickelson and Anthony Kim are the only players other than Woods to have won multiple times this year. But the British Open is by far Mickelson's worst major -- he's had just one top-10 -- while Kim has never played in the tournament. Perry, meanwhile, has no worse than a tie for 16th in his past four appearances in the event. Despite his age, Perry remains one of the longest hitters in the game, averaging 295.4 yards off the tee to rank 25th on tour. He is also 10th in greens in regulation, hitting 68.87 percent. If his putter gets hot -- typically what holds him back -- who knows what might happen on the Birkdale greens.

Not that this is even an issue, but Perry can't even use the excuse of transportation or expense. He is playing in this week's John Deere Classic, which is offering an all-expenses-paid charter for anyone in the field who is headed to the British Open.
Five years ago, Perry was on a similar run of good play. He won the Colonial and Memorial in consecutive weeks, tied for third at the U.S. Open, then won Milwaukee, which then was the week prior to the British Open. Although he complained that links golf was not his favorite, and that he didn't particularly care for playing in the tournament, Perry headed to Sandwich, England, and found himself in contention through three rounds. Perry shot a final-round 73 and missed a playoff with Ben Curtis by four strokes. He tied for eighth. But you can't win if you don't play.

Perry is playing -- but in Milwaukee, where they don't give a Claret Jug to the winner.

Bob Harig covers golf for ESPN.com. He can be reached at BobHarig@gmail.com

Normans Ex Ain't Gets 100m

Norman's Ex Gets $103M in Divorce Settlement - 07/10/2008

By Associated Press

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Greg Norman’s divorce from his wife of 26 years came with a hefty price tag—$103 million.

According to court documents filed Thursday in Martin County Court, Norman's divorce last year from Laura Andrassy cost him $17.5 million from the sale of their beachfront home on Jupiter Island, a $4 million home in Palm Beach and $500,000 worth of jewelry.

According to The Palm Beach Post, Norman married tennis star Chris Evert last month and could not be reached for comment because they are on their honeymoon.

The 52-year-old Australian golfer won the British Open in 1986 and 1993. Evert has 18 Grand Slam singles titles to her name.

An e-mail sent to Norman's publicist was not immediately returned.

British Open Super 6 Fantasy Golf Picks

Match 1: Phil Mickelson (T19) Vs Sergio Garcia (T51) PHIL MICKELSON WINS

Match 2: Adam Scott (T16) Vs Geoff Ogilvy (MC) ADAM SCOTT WINS

Match 3: Ernie Els (T7) Vs Justin Rose (T70) ERNIE ELS WINS

Match 4: Vijay Singh (MC) Vs Padraig Harrington (1) PADRAIG HARRINGTON

Match 5: Anthony Kim (T7) Vs Rory Sabbatini (MC) ANTHONY KIM

Match 6: Lee Westwood (T67) Vs KJ Choi (T16) KJ CHOI WINS

The Barclays Super 6 Results

Match 1: Phil Mickelson (T38) Vs Ernie Els (T9) ERNIE ELS WINS

Match 2: Adam Scott (T25) Vs Colin Montgomerie (MC) ADAMS SCOTT WINS

Match 3: Henrik Stenson (T33) Vs Angel Cabrera (T38) HENRIK STENSON

Match 4: Jose Maria Olazabal (WD) Vs Lee Westwood (T19) LEE WESTWOOD WINS

Match 5: Darren Clarke (MC) Vs Luke Donald (WD)

Match 6: Ian Poulter (T25) Vs Miguel Angel Jimenez (T3) MIGEL ANGEL JIMENEZ

The Golf Ballerz Save the Golf World

The "Pioneers of Golf Rap" have gotten the distinguished "Sa-weeeet" rating from The Slice Girls and Snoop Doglegg, Golf Equipment Guru. These are not some fly-by-night try-hards, no. The Golf Ballerz are the real deal and if the boys at Augusta had any style and taste, they'd be paying the Ballerz wads of cash to use their music during Masters time.



The Golf Ballerz:

MC Center Shaft, 29 perfect years old, stated playing golf at 22. Plays Ping persimmion woods and has a Scotty Cameron Red X center shaft. MC Center plays a driver cut on EVERY par 3 to avoid the shanks, and carries 2 drivers because of that. He modestly likes to tell the story of his hole in one pre-DC3 days with a PW from 136. MC treats his ball like his ladies, preferring to work the ball at will. MC gets wood when catching a glimpse of Morgan Pressel and plans to marry her once she gets a listen of his beats. He owns Air Jordan golf shoes called Par 23's (thats GANGSTER)!!!


DJ Blade is also 29, plays Ping irons and uses either his Ben Crenshaw blade or his Scotty Cameron Studio to make putts from every code. Blade scoffs at those who dare to challenge his golf strategy - a shanker by birth and wild off the tee with duck hooks. Always wears Ashworth with a hat representing one of the top courses he has played (Medina, Kiawaa Island, Merion etc....). Raised in the game, HS golf team captain and deeply in love with The Pink Panther Paula Creamer!


Check these fella's on myspace
and stay tuned for their website opening.

Golf Fitness Handicap Test

Golf Fitness Guru Rick Miller has made his golf fitness handicap test available to you via an online PDF. Check out his website at www.thegolffitnessguru.com/

Download Here

AT&T National Super 6 Fantasy Golf Picks

UPDATE: Final Results

Although Super 6 is temporarily suspended, each week we continue to list 6 great matchups in order to keep things looking reasonably organized around here: Here we go:

Match 1: KJ Choi (T49) Vs Ryuji Imada (MC) KJ CHOI WINS

Match 2: Rocco Mediate (T18) Vs Anthony Kim (1) KIM WINS

Match 3: Fred Couples (T27) Vs Jim Furyk (T3) FURYK WINS

Match 4: Zach Johnson (WD) Vs Davis Love III (T27) LOVE WINS

Match 5: JB Holmes (T49) Vs Charles Howell III (T22) HOWELL WINS

Match 6: Paul Goydos (WD) Vs DJ Trahan (T22) TRAHAN WINS

We expect to be back up and running with Super 6 for the last two tournaments in Game 5 - The British Open and Canadian Open.