Golf Confessions

More and more people are suffering from a wide variety of allergies these days.  When you are on the golf course and you are haveing a sneezing spell or you can’t get your eyes to stop tearing, you may be suffering from an allergy.  These problems can be very aggrivating and may make your time on the course miserable.

Steve Elkington from Australia, who has had a very successful career on the PGA tour suffered for years with his allergic reaction to grass.  For a professional golfer, being allergic to grass is not something you want to hear.  Today with proper diagnosis and care most people with allergy problems are able to get proper medical treatment that can make their lives more tolerable.

This time of year most golfers are looking forward to getting back on the course and enjoying their golf game.  The tempratures are starting to rise and the beautiful Spring time of the year is blooming  all over.

All golfers should be very aware of the dangers that prolonged exposure to the sun can cause.  The threat of skin cancer is something that everyone should take serious and take the proper precautions to try and avoid any complications.  Merkel cell carcinoma, also called neuroendocrine carcinoma of the skin can be quite serious.  This form of cancer may be associated with older golfers that are constantly exposed to the sun.  Also if there is a family history of skin cancer one should be extra cautious.  Anyone that is playing in high altitudes should take care to cover up.  Some of the things that all players may want to think about when they are out for extended exposure is sun screen 15 or greater, wide brim hats and wear sunglasses. 

The money that the PGA is playing for has certainly gone up in recent years.  The top 25 players on the PGA have already topped the million dollar mark.  The thing that stands out to me about this list of top 25 is that there are 12 foreign players on this list.  The PGA is certainly turning into a world tour and the American players are not doing well relative to their dominace just a few short years ago.

The first major of the year was won by Trevor Immelman from South Africa.  Trevor has a home in Florida, but travels the world over playing golf.  With the merge of the foreign born players doing quite well on the PGA, the likely hood of another winner in the three remaining majors is very likely.

The LPGA is totally dominated by the foreign players.  The top 25 as of today shows only 5 players from the US in this group.  Most of the tournament winners come from outside the US.

The PGA and the LPGA are certainly the top places to play in the world.  These tours have the best competition and the big bucks are on these tours.  If one looks at the surge of the foreign players on both of these tours, it is very likely that the players from the US will have a very hard time finding a spot. 

Most of these players on both tours have found a spot on college golf teams to hone their skills and have gone on to claim most of the limited spots an each tour.  The US kids had better get their acts together if they have dreams of playing on the big tours. 

Unlike so many things in life you are not guaranteed a spot to play just because who you are.  It is a numbers game and you better shoot a number or you will slamming your trunk and headed down the road.  And just because you have a famous successful father that played will only open so many doors, you still have to shoot the number.  You don’t have to go very far to see what I mean, just ask Gary Nicklaus, Wayne Player or Guy Boros.

Once these players get a solid foot hold into the system it gives immense hope to the youngster in their homes over seas and these guys seem to have the internal fortitude to seize the moment.

This week the PGA tour will be in Hilton Head, S.C.  Harbour Town is the site for the PGA this week after a grinding week at the year’s first major, The Masters. 

Most of the players that will be playing this week after playing in The Masters will take a deep breath and relax.  The tour stop this week will give the players a chance to relax and get over their frustrations of the emotional strain of playing in a major.  Most players will tell you that the mental drain is far greater than any physical drain that they experience when playing in a tournament. 

Harbour Town will be much shorter, very narrow fairways and the smallest greens they will play all year.  The fewest number of putts in a tournament always come from this event because of the small greens.

Lorena Ochoa wins in her home country going away.  This victory qualifies Lorena for the World Golf Hall Of Fame.  Lorena will have to wait till the year 2012 to meet the ten year on tour rule before her induction into the Hall. 

This win was her 4th out of five events this year.

The 72nd Masters was a struggle on the final day.  Miguel Angel Jimenez shot 68 in the final round for the low score of the day.  The leaders did not fare so well as Trevor Immelman shot three over 75 to win by 3 shots and second place Brandt Snedeker,going into the final  round shot five over 77.  Tiger Woods shot a final round 72 and finished in second place.

The final day had cool temperatures and winds gusting in the 25 to 30 mile range.  With these gusting winds the players fought pulling the right clubs all day.  The extra length and tough pin placements put a premium on distance control.

It will be very intresting to see how the newest first time major winner handles his newly found fame.  Trevor did an outstanding job of staying in the moment the entire day and getting the job done.  This win could open the door for this very talented golfer to sprint up the world rankings. 

Trevor Immelman is the only player to have 3 rounds in the 60’s at The Masters up until this point.  The young man, despite the media has done an outstanding job in all phases of the game.  All the media wants to talk about in regards to Trevor is that he has never won a major and has not been playing particularly well  after an illness.  Get over it, every player that wins a major  has to win for the first time at some point.  Even the great Tiger had to win for the first time. 

Every player in the press room is asked constantly about Tiger winning at Augusta, I would think this is getting very old.  So far Tiger has only one round in the 60’s, he has never come from a 54 hole deficit and won a major, but reading the news and listening to the media, Tiger has this one in the bag.  I hope Tiger wins today, because if he doesn’t, then it is very likely that the rest of the season will be canceled.

Trevor Immelman will be a very strong willed individual if he can stand the pressure of today and the massive adversity of the general media as to his chances of winning.

I would like for the announcers to pretend that the fan is watching TV and not listening to radio when they are announcing.  The final round should be very exciting, especially when the leaders reach the back nine. 

In years past the job of the media was to report the news, not be the news.  The players in any sport have enough to concentrate on without having to deal with the media trying to sway the outcome of the competition.  Seems the media in sports has become very much like the media in politics. 

Just let the players do the playing and decide who should wear this year’s green jacket.

If I were a tournament sponsor of a tournament that Tiger Woods is not playing in I would have to have a heart to heart talk with the likes of the Golf Channel and other broadcasters.  It seems that most broadcasters want let each tournament stand on its own.  During these broadcast and in the newspapers we are reminded time and time again that Tiger is not in the field.  In my opinion this is not fair to the tournament, the volunteers, the other players in the field, the concession people and anyone else that has anything to do with the tournament, such as the beneficiaries of the charity money donations. 

The fact that Tiger is the number one player in the world is not the question, but the fact of the matter is that there was golf before Tiger and there will be golf after Tiger.  When Tiger chooses not to participate in an event, then those that do should be given their due credits for their abilities and not spend most of the brodcast bemoaning the fact that Tiger is not in the field.  As a sponsor I would want my tournament promoted to the fullest and have nothing done to keep anyone away from the gates.  The references are made too often that the tournament is not much if Tiger is not playing and this is wrong and can potentialy be harmful to the event.

Most of the media talk going into the weekend of The Masters is what will Tiger do.  He has had a chance to play the same course as the other contestants and he is seven shots behind going into the final two rounds, I think this should speak for its self.  The players in ront of Tiger have played better and deserve the credit up till this point.  If and when Tiger or anyone else storms ahead then their play should be recognized the most.  But, in the mean time give credit where credit is due

How many people had South African Trevor Immelman leading and American Brandt Snedeker one shot back going into the weekend of The Masters.  These are certainly two of the young guns in professional golf, but to be leading at Augusta on Saturday is a surprise.  Both players had some great vibes leaving the golf course Friday afternoon because they  birdied 17 and 18 to finish their rounds.

Trevor Immelman was given a great compliment by one of the games all time greats, Gary Player, when he said that Trevor had the greatest swing he has seen since the great Ben Hogan.  Immelman is small in stature like Hogan and has a compact swing that he used very effectively to maneuver around the difficult 7400+ layout to shoot a second round 68 to match his first round 68.  Saturday will definetely test the leaders patients, the weather is forecast to change and the course will  play longer with the cooler temperatures.

The course may be showing that it favors the left hander.  No lefty had ever won the tournament and then you have back to back lefties in Phil Mickelson and Mike Weir.  This year in the top ten you have three lefties, Phil Mickelson (-5), Steve Flesch(-5) and Mike Weir (-3).  It makes you wonder why the great Bob Charles from New Zealand, the greatest lefty until Mickelson came along did not win The Masters.  Maybe the changes in the course over the past few years has put in an advantage for the lefties.  Bob Charles  was the first lefty to win a major, the 1965 British Open.  He like Mickelson is a true righty except for golf.

Saturday will be moving day, and the leaders will have an opportunity to test their nerves from this unfamiliar postion.  There are some veterans that will not be around for the final two rounds that really needed to have a good tournament to help get some critics off their backs.  The two that missed the cut that truly needed a good showing were Ernie Els and Sergio Garcia.  Ernie is struggling with all of his game and went to Butch Harmon for some help, and Sergio can’t match his putting up with his ball striking.

For the first time in 24 years Fred Couples will not be around for the weekend.  Fred missed the cut for the first time and was trying to set a record of 24 straight and break the tie he shares with Gary Player.

The weekend should be exciting.  You have a lot of players leading the way that have not won majors and of course you have some wily veterans that will be trying to come from behind.  In the group at -1 you have Tiger Woods and Vijay Singh.  Phil Mickelson should be in the cat bird seat at -5 and only three shots behind the leader.

Lorena is once again in position to win a golf tournament.  After the first round of play in Morelia, Mexico, Lorena is tied for the lead with Song-Hee Kim.  The two players have a three shot lead over second place after the first round of play.

Lorena has three victories in four starts this year and is one tournament victory away from qualifying for the World Golf Hall Of Fame.