Written By Emdua on Kamis, 20 September 2012 | 08.13
Chris Condon / Getty Images
Fred Couples was elected to the World Golf Hall of Fame's class of 2013.
The SI Golf Group conducted a special edition of its weekly e-mail roundtable to discuss Fred Couples's induction to the World Golf Hall of Fame. Check in every week for the unfiltered opinions of our writers and editors and join the conversation in the comments section below.
Charlie Hanger, executive editor, Golf.com: Ok, Confidentialists, pop quiz: Did Fred Couples deserve to get into the Hall of Fame? Also, if you're a voter, did you give him the nod?
David Dusek, deputy editor, Golf.com: Fred Couples did NOT deserve to be voted into the World Golf Hall of Fame. That building should be reserved for the game's all-time greats, and with 15 PGA Tour wins and one major title to his credit, Couples doesn't qualify. I have to believe his popularity, successful Presidents Cup captaincies, two Players Championships wins, and eight Champions Tour wins put him over the top. Freddie never dominated the game, even during his three-win season of 1992, and while being a member of five Presidents Cup and five Ryder Cup teams is impressive, he only appeared on 51% of the Hall of Fame ballots. Mark O'Meara has two majors and 16 PGA Tour wins. What's he thinking about now?
Alan Shipnuck, senior writer, Sports Illustrated: I agree with Deuce. The vote should be on merit, not popularity. Fred deserves a place in a Hall dedicated to potential or natural talent, but not one based on achievement. I'm a voter, and he didn't get the nod from me.
Jeff Ritter, senior producer, Golf.com: O'Meara got 36 percent of the vote, so I'd say he should be thinking about his induction speech for 2015 or '16. Can't remember where I read it, but I recall a voter for the MLB Hall once saying that when he considered his ballot, he'd ask himself, "Can I tell the story of the sport without mentioning this player?" If the answer was no, that player got his vote. In the case of Freddy and golf, you can probably still tell the story, but it'd be a much less interesting tale.
Michael Bamberger, senior writer, Sports Illustrated: The vote came before his Senior British win in July. Even after that, however, I feel like he needs at least one more real -- there are three -- senior major win. I did not vote for him even though I loved the way he fished the ball out of the creek on 12 at Augusta 20 years ago.
Charlie Hanger, executive editor, Golf.com: At this point, I think the Hall will be inducting a lot of people who have marginal victory totals but have impacted the game in other ways. Fred's been one of the most marketable and popular golfers on the planet for more than 30 years, and he's also established himself as an elder statesman with his Presidents Cup captaincy. If "merit" is only a matter of wins, then he's not quite there. If "merit" can encompass a larger impact on the game, then I think he's worthy.
Jim Herre, managing editor, SI Golf Group: Fred's like the cool guy in high school -- everything comes easy. That's the way he plays golf, effortlessly. He has a big game but his swing graceful and unique, kind of like Vijay's is. Kind of like Snead's was. The one thing that didn't come easily was putting, and Couples left a lot of titles on the table because of it. I still enjoy watching him play but didn't vote for him because the numbers could have been so much better.
Ryan Reiterman, senior producer, Golf.com: Freddie is like Joe Namath -- he didn't accomplish as much as some other hall of famers, but it would be really weird to not see him enshrined.
Cameron Morfit, senior writer, Golf Magazine: Does seem like the criteria is pretty much whatever it needs to be that day. If he had the exact same record but was not an icon of cool, he isn't in.
Stephanie Wei, contributor, SI Golf+: Yes, Freddie deserved to get in. Sure, he "only" has one major, and with his talent he could have won more in general, but his impact on golf goes far beyond that. When I was a kid, Freddie was my hero, and I know many golfing children of the 90s would say the same. He made golf look cool. I'm a little biased being from Seattle, but I took my first lessons at Jefferson Park, where Freddie played growing up. I remember the pro showing me the plaques and pictures they had on a wall honoring Freddie, which was very inspiring for my 10-year-old self -- and motivated me to take up the game.
Jim Gorant, senior editor, Sports Illustrated: Not a fan. Few have done less with more talentwise.
Mike Walker, senior editor, Golf Magazine: Let's stop pretending the World Golf Hall of Fame is Cooperstown. Without a change in the unofficial criteria -- 20 wins plus 1 major, 15 wins plus 2 majors, or multiple majors -- soon we won't be able to induct anyone, as Michael Bamberger warned earlier this year. Couples is part of the story of golf over the last 25 years. He belongs in the Hall. His resume might look marginal now, but it won't during Luke Donald's Hall of Fame weekend.
Published: Monday, September 17, 2012 | 11:45:59 AM
'Golf's Greatest Rivalry' is available now.
In this new E-book, the writers and editors of the Sports Illustrated Golf Group select the five most memorable Ryder Cups since Europe joined the fray in 1979.
The book features reprints from the pages of Sports Illustrated along with photos and an introduction from Michael Bamberger, who explains why the Cup is the most compelling rivalry in the game.
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Written By Emdua on Rabu, 19 September 2012 | 15.25
Chris Condon / Getty Images
Fred Couples was elected to the World Golf Hall of Fame's class of 2013.
The SI Golf Group conducted a special edition of its weekly e-mail roundtable to discuss Fred Couples's induction to the World Golf Hall of Fame. Check in every week for the unfiltered opinions of our writers and editors and join the conversation in the comments section below.
Charlie Hanger, executive editor, Golf.com: Ok, Confidentialists, pop quiz: Did Fred Couples deserve to get into the Hall of Fame? Also, if you're a voter, did you give him the nod?
David Dusek, deputy editor, Golf.com: Fred Couples did NOT deserve to be voted into the World Golf Hall of Fame. That building should be reserved for the game's all-time greats, and with 15 PGA Tour wins and one major title to his credit, Couples doesn't qualify. I have to believe his popularity, successful Presidents Cup captaincies, two Players Championships wins, and eight Champions Tour wins put him over the top. Freddie never dominated the game, even during his three-win season of 1992, and while being a member of five Presidents Cup and five Ryder Cup teams is impressive, he only appeared on 51% of the Hall of Fame ballots. Mark O'Meara has two majors and 16 PGA Tour wins. What's he thinking about now?
Alan Shipnuck, senior writer, Sports Illustrated: I agree with Deuce. The vote should be on merit, not popularity. Fred deserves a place in a Hall dedicated to potential or natural talent, but not one based on achievement. I'm a voter, and he didn't get the nod from me.
Jeff Ritter, senior producer, Golf.com: O'Meara got 36 percent of the vote, so I'd say he should be thinking about his induction speech for 2015 or '16. Can't remember where I read it, but I recall a voter for the MLB Hall once saying that when he considered his ballot, he'd ask himself, "Can I tell the story of the sport without mentioning this player?" If the answer was no, that player got his vote. In the case of Freddy and golf, you can probably still tell the story, but it'd be a much less interesting tale.
Michael Bamberger, senior writer, Sports Illustrated: The vote came before his Senior British win in July. Even after that, however, I feel like he needs at least one more real -- there are three -- senior major win. I did not vote for him even though I loved the way he fished the ball out of the creek on 12 at Augusta 20 years ago.
Charlie Hanger, executive editor, Golf.com: At this point, I think the Hall will be inducting a lot of people who have marginal victory totals but have impacted the game in other ways. Fred's been one of the most marketable and popular golfers on the planet for more than 30 years, and he's also established himself as an elder statesman with his Presidents Cup captaincy. If "merit" is only a matter of wins, then he's not quite there. If "merit" can encompass a larger impact on the game, then I think he's worthy.
Jim Herre, managing editor, SI Golf Group: Fred's like the cool guy in high school -- everything comes easy. That's the way he plays golf, effortlessly. He has a big game but his swing graceful and unique, kind of like Vijay's is. Kind of like Snead's was. The one thing that didn't come easily was putting, and Couples left a lot of titles on the table because of it. I still enjoy watching him play but didn't vote for him because the numbers could have been so much better.
Ryan Reiterman, senior producer, Golf.com: Freddie is like Joe Namath -- he didn't accomplish as much as some other hall of famers, but it would be really weird to not see him enshrined.
Cameron Morfit, senior writer, Golf Magazine: Does seem like the criteria is pretty much whatever it needs to be that day. If he had the exact same record but was not an icon of cool, he isn't in.
Jim Gorant, senior editor, Sports Illustrated: Not a fan. Few have done less with more talentwise.
Mike Walker, senior editor, Golf Magazine: Let's stop pretending the World Golf Hall of Fame is Cooperstown. Without a change in the unofficial criteria -- 20 wins plus 1 major, 15 wins plus 2 majors, or multiple majors -- soon we won't be able to induct anyone, as Michael Bamberger warned earlier this year. Couples is part of the story of golf over the last 25 years. He belongs in the Hall. His resume might look marginal now, but it won't during Luke Donald's Hall of Fame weekend.
Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy will play together again during the first two rounds at East Lake.
Until a month ago, the 2012 PGA Tour season had been a long year with a few nice stories but no real overriding theme. Now, though, with players getting ready for this week's 30-man Tour Championship at East Lake outside Atlanta and next week's Ryder Cup at Medinah outside Chicago, it's a sprint to the finish that will decide who goes home with $10 million, which side gets bragging rights for the next two years, and just how big Rory McIlroy-mania can get.
"I like the fact that they're back to back," said Jim Furyk, who won the 2010 FedEx Cup and comes into this week 18th on the points list, meaning he will need to win and get help from the top five players in the standings to win it again. "I think that I've always kind of played my best golf when I can play my way into shape."
If a player is ever going to peak, now's the time, and no man is hotter than McIlroy, who has won the PGA Championship, the Deutsche Bank Championship and the BMW Championship in his last four starts. He leads the FedEx standings, which have been reset for this fourth playoff event. Like the four players behind him -- Tiger Woods, Nick Watney, Phil Mickelson and Brandt Snedeker -- McIlroy controls his own destiny. He will win the Cup no matter what if he wins the Tour Championship at East Lake. That means the players are competing for $11.44 million -- $10 million for the Cup plus $1.44 million for the tournament -- which is a lot even for them. "If I win, I win; that's the mindset I'm coming in with," McIlroy said Wednesday. "I feel like I'm playing well enough to win, obviously. I've been playing well. I know if I do that, everything else takes care of itself."
(Related Photos: Previous FedEx Cup champions)
But you can pretty safely narrow this Tour Championship down even further, to just three of the aforementioned five: McIlroy, Woods and Mickelson. All three are playing well, and two of the three, Mickelson and Woods, have tamed East Lake. Mickelson won in 2000 and again in 2009, when Woods finished second and captured the $10 million for winning the FedEx Cup. Mickelson, whose game disappeared for much of the summer, has used a new claw putting grip to finish T4 at the Deutsche Bank and T2 at the BMW, and he could make up for a lost summer in the majors when he tees off with Watney at 1:45 p.m. ET Thursday. (All tee times.)
Woods didn't qualify for the Tour Championship when he was rebuilding in 2010 and '11, and he elected not to play in '06, but he won it in '07 and also finished second in '04 and '05. He, too, could use a big win to make up for lost weekends at the U.S. Open, British Open and PGA. As Furyk put it, the Tour Championship is "an opportunity to turn a good year into a great year." Woods and McIlroy, Thursday's final twosome, go off at 1:55.
"It really would top it off," Woods said Wednesday. "I've had a really good season, and to win the Tour Championship, the FedEx Cup, and then have my fourth win -- all of those are positive things. These are the 30 of the hottest players this year, so you're beating a really good field. The guys are all playing well. I've done it twice, and hopefully I can do it again."
McIlroy not only hasn't won the Tour Championship, he's never played in it. As a non-PGA Tour member he wasn't eligible for the playoffs in 2011 and '09, and his FedEx run fizzled after the BMW in 2010. But based on his late-summer surge, there's little doubt the 23-year-old can win at the 7,154-yard, par-70 East Lake. He's 62 under par with three wins, a T5 and a T24 in his last five tournaments.
"It's hard to compare this to a major championship because it's a year-long thing, and it's about being consistent," McIlroy said. "It would be nice to have something to recognize that you have played the best golf the whole way throughout the year."
Others have already granted McIlroy that recognition, including Furyk, who said of McIlroy: "No matter how he plays here at the Tour Championship, he's right now the present day Tiger Woods, where everyone's eyes are on him."
Woods had eight victories at age 23, Jack Nicklaus five. McIlroy has six, and this week tries to close the gap with Woods in both tournament victories and FedEx Cups. Woods has won the FedEx Cup twice, Vijay Singh once, Furyk once, and Bill Haas once. Amazingly, no FedEx Cup champion has so much as made it back to the Tour Championship at East Lake the following year, although '07 champ Woods didn't play because he was injured for the latter half of 2008.
The 2011 edition of the Tour Championship was the least predictable, with a handful of players in contention to win the $10 million bonus until Haas saved par from the water and went on to beat Hunter Mahan on the third hole of their sudden-death playoff. At 25th on the FedEx points table to start the week, Haas was the biggest long shot winner of the Cup, followed by Furyk (11th in 2010), who says he has no idea what has to happen for him to take home the bonus this week.
It's just as well. With McIlroy, Mickelson and Woods fighting it out at East Lake, it may be a bad year for long shots, and a great year to be a fan.
Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy's budding "bromance" was in high gear at the Deutsche Bank Championship.
HOT 1. Jiyai Shin. Her win at the Women's British will go down as one of the greatest ball-striking performances in LPGA history. Period.
2. The Tour Championship. I'm already feeling a little wistful that the end of the PGA Tour season is nigh. At least this finale promises a proper send-off to what's been a very interesting year.
3. The Tiger and Rory Show. "Bromance" is being tossed around so much you'd think these two were starring in a Judd Apatow movie, not a golf tournament. But watching these two mega-talents tangle never gets old.
4. The Ryder Cup. The hype is beginning to crest, including Tuesday night's re-airing of the final day of the War By The Shore. If watching that bloodletting doesn't get you in the mood for the Ryder Cup, nothing will.
5. Steve Stricker. Great player, great guy, but his emotional acceptance of the Payne Stewart Award was the latest reminder that nobody in golf can ugly-cry like Stricks.
NOT 1. Jungle Bird. Once was funny. But after his latest civil disobedience, at the Women's British Open, it's clear this fowl-lidded interloper has jumped the shark. Note to would-be hecklers: If you get tossed around by mild-mannered Mike Davis, it's time to find another hobby.
2. Greg Norman. In one interview, golf's most famous nearly man claimed to be channeling Tiger's thoughts and called himself the heir to Jack Nicklaus's throne. Note to Shark: ever hear of Tom Freaking Watson?
3. Louis Oosthuizen. Winless all season, King Louis can still take the FedEx Cup with a runner-up finish, provided the five guys ahead of him on the points list don't play particularly well at East Lake. This would be such a disastrous scenario for the Tour that I'm actively rooting for it to happen.
4. Yani Tseng. The struggling world No. 1 made a 9 en route to finishing tied for 26th at the Women's British, ensuring she'd get skunked at the majors this season. Life at the top isn't easy. Tiger knows that. Rory will find out in due time.
5. Bill Glasson. Winless on the Senior tour, he took a four-stroke lead into the final round of the Pacific Links Hawaii Challenge but coughed it up with five bogeys on the final eight holes. On the plus side, he's still the biggest bad-ass in golf. (Which is like being the world's tallest midget, but still ...)
Written By Emdua on Selasa, 18 September 2012 | 20.34
This week's Tour Championship at Atlanta's East Lake Country Club will decide who wins the FedEx Cup title and the $10 million bonus.
So who's going to win it all? The simple answer is, most likely the player who wins the Tour Championship.
The more complicated answer is, the big prize is still theoretically up for grabs. You can take theoretical as far as you'd like thanks to the confusing and, some would say, pointless FedEx Cup points system. For example, according to pgatour.com, Scott Piercy, who enters the Tour Championship in 30th place, can win the Cup if he wins the Tour Championship; McIlroy finishes 29th or worse; Woods finishes in a three-way tie for sixth or worse; Watney finishes in a four-way tie for third or worse; Mickelson ties for third or worse; Snedeker finishes in a three-way tie for second or worse; and Louis Oosthuizen ties for second or worse. It's the longest of long shots, but it's remotely possible.
(Related photos: Previous FedEx Cup champions)
Some other things you should know about the FedEx finale:
- You know those FedEx Cup point totals that Golf Channel and CBS insisted on jamming down your throat on every telecast all season? Your reward for keeping track of that stuff, if you did, is that those totals were reset for the Tour Championship. Everyone is starting over, but it's a staggered start. McIlroy resets to 2,500, Tiger goes to 2,250, Barclays winner Nick Watney to 2,000, Phil Mickelson to 1,800 and so on. First place in the Tour Championship is worth 2,500, but the points fall off dramatically after that, to just 550 for fifth. So the emphasis is truly on winning.
- It's the equivalent of a 400-mile NASCAR race stopping after 350 miles so the racers can start over on the same lap and still have a chance to win. While that undermines the importance of the results so far in the playoffs, it makes for a closer, potentially more exciting finish. McIlroy has won two of the three FedEx Cup events so far. He's utterly dominating it. But guess what? Even if he'd won all three tournaments by a dozen shots each, he'd have the same 250-point lead he has now. No one is allowed to dominate the playoffs.
- Really, almost anyone can win. For proof of that, just look to last year's Tour Championship. Bill Haas came out of nowhere to win the tournament and the $10 million bonus despite starting 25th on the points list, the lowest any FedEx Cup winner has ever ranked. Going into the final hour of play at East Lake, eight players still had a shot at the $10 million because Webb Simpson, who was first in points, tanked and finished 22nd at East Lake.
Crunch the numbers. Here are some pertinent details, minus the math, for your consideration:
-- The top five players (McIlroy, Woods, Watney, Mickelson, Brandt Snedeker) control their own fate. If they win the Tour Championship, they win the FedEx Cup. -- With a top-5 finish, McIlroy would beat almost everyone but his top four pursuers. -- Woods can finish as low as a five-way tie for fifth and still have a mathematical chance to win. -- Mickelson needs to finish third or better. -- Snedeker must finish no worse than tied for second to have a chance to win.
Meet the favorites: Here are the five players most likely to snag the $10 million bonus:
Rory McIlroy. What's not to like? The 23-year-old has won his last two starts in the U.S., he romped to victory in the PGA Championship and is already slightly ahead of the major-winning pace of a young Tiger Woods. He's a lock for Player of the Year, he's the clear-cut best player in the world and his future, as old-time cliché-mashing announcer Curt Gowdy used to often say, is still ahead of him. McIlroy excels on long, soft courses in the American style of target golf. Rain was forecast for Tuesday in Atlanta, so that might soften the greens to his liking.
Tiger Woods. Sure, he's had difficulty playing his best golf on the weekend, but he's getting himself into contention just about every week. He has won before at East Lake, in 2007 at the inaugural FedEx Cup, in a rain-drenched week. Plus, Tiger doesn't have to win the Tour Championship to win the FedEx Cup. A second, third or fourth just might be good enough.
Phil Mickelson. It's been the usual roller-coaster, feast-or-famine year for Mickelson. He seems to be back on a roll now, wielding his putter with a claw grip and tuning up his game for next week's Ryder Cup. He, too, has history on his side at East Lake. He won the Tour Championship there twice, in 2000 and 2009.
Louis Oosthuizen. He's turning into quite the Nearly Man. He nearly won the Masters, the Bridgestone Invitational, the Barclays and the Deutsche Bank Championship. His swing is textbook, his tempo is sweet and the man can putt. He's already got a British Open on his resume. He can play, now he just needs to learn how to close.
Brandt Snedeker. Snedeker has had a great second half to his season. In addition to his game run at the British Open, where he finished third, he was second at the Barclays, sixth at the Deutsche Bank Championship and in the process played his way onto the Ryder Cup team as a wild-card selection. He ranks No. 1 in the PGA Tour's strokes-gained putting category, which should come in handy on East Lake's devious greens.
Five other notable contenders:
Dustin Johnson. He hasn't finished in the top 20 in three appearances at East Lake. This course may just not be his style.
Nick Watney. He had something of an off-year for a player of his talent, then came out of nowhere to win the Barclays. Then he cooled off again, finishing 20th and 45th in the last two playoff events, and got passed over for the Ryder Cup.
Luke Donald. It's seems to be his lot in life to be continually overlooked, even when he was the No. 1 player in the world. Now that he's not, it's easy to forget he plays East Lake pretty well. He was third last year, second in 2010. He ranks 15th on the reset points list.
Matt Kuchar. It's got to feel good to be home. Kuchar, who won The Players, played his college golf at Georgia Tech. He's 16th on the points list but not exactly on his game. His last top-10 finish was T8 at the Bridgestone Invitational. After that, he missed the cut at the PGA, then finished T38, T35 and T54 in the FedEx Cup playoffs.
Steve Stricker. Good iron play and great putting work well almost anywhere, but he's only been in contention once in the last five years at East Lake. He was 15th last year, 25th in 2010 and sixth, 24th and 17th in the three years before that. It's that time of year when he's looking ahead to bow-hunting back home in Wisconsin, but with the Ryder Cup next week, he'll want to have his game sharp. Stricker is 13th on the reset points list.
This week's Tour Championship at Atlanta's East Lake Country Club will decide who wins the FedEx Cup title and the $10 million bonus.
So who's going to win it all? The simple answer is, most likely the player who wins the Tour Championship.
The more complicated answer is, the big prize is still theoretically up for grabs. You can take theoretical as far as you'd like thanks to the confusing and, some would say, pointless FedEx Cup points system. For example, Scott Piercy, who enters the Tour Championship in 30th place, can finish five points ahead of Rory McIlroy, who is currently first, if Piercy wins the Tour Championship and McIlroy finishes dead last, according to pgatour.com. Even then, Piercy would need Tiger Woods and the other top contenders to finish poorly to have a chance to win the $10 million. It's the longest of long shots, but it's remotely possible.
(Related photos: Previous FedEx Cup champions)
Some other things you should know about the FedEx finale:
- You know those FedEx Cup point totals that Golf Channel and CBS insisted on jamming down your throat on every telecast all season? Your reward for keeping track of that stuff, if you did, is that those totals were reset for the Tour Championship. Everyone is starting over, but it's a staggered start. McIlroy resets to 2,500, Tiger goes to 2,250, Barclays winner Nick Watney to 2,000, Phil Mickelson to 1,800 and so on. First place in the Tour Championship is worth 2,500, but the points fall off dramatically after that, to just 550 for fifth. So the emphasis is truly on winning.
- It's the equivalent of a 400-mile NASCAR race stopping after 350 miles so the racers can start over on the same lap and still have a chance to win. While that undermines the importance of the results so far in the playoffs, it makes for a closer, potentially more exciting finish. McIlroy has won two of the three FedEx Cup events so far. He's utterly dominating it. But guess what? Even if he'd won all three tournaments by a dozen shots each, he'd have the same 250-point lead he has now. No one is allowed to dominate the playoffs.
- Really, almost anyone can win. For proof of that, just look to last year's Tour Championship. Bill Haas came out of nowhere to win the tournament and the $10 million bonus despite starting 25th on the points list, the lowest any FedEx Cup winner has ever ranked. Going into the final hour of play at East Lake, eight players still had a shot at the $10 million because Webb Simpson, who was first in points, tanked and finished 22nd at East Lake.
Crunch the numbers. Here are some pertinent details, minus the math, for your consideration:
-- The top five players (McIlroy, Woods, Watney, Mickelson, Brandt Snedeker) control their own fate. If they win the Tour Championship, they win the FedEx Cup. -- With a top-5 finish, McIlroy would beat almost everyone but his top four pursuers. -- Woods can finish as low as a five-way tie for fifth and still have a mathematical chance to win. -- Mickelson needs to finish third or better. -- Snedeker must finish no worse than tied for second to have a chance to win.
And, just for fun, here are the details on how No. 30 Piercy could win the Cup: He wins the Tour Championship, McIlroy finishes 29th or worse; Woods finishes in a three-way tie for sixth or worse; Watney finishes in a four-way tie for third or worse; Mickelson ties for third or worse; Snedeker finishes in a three-way tie for second or worse; and Louis Oosthuizen ties for second or worse.
Actually, the path to Piercy's victory sounds reasonably plausible except for McIlroy's finishing 29th or 30th.
Meet the favorites: Here are the five players most likely to snag the $10 million bonus:
Rory McIlroy. What's not to like? The 23-year-old has won his last two starts in the U.S., he romped to victory in the PGA Championship and is already slightly ahead of the major-winning pace of a young Tiger Woods. He's a lock for Player of the Year, he's the clear-cut best player in the world and his future, as old-time cliché-mashing announcer Curt Gowdy used to often say, is still ahead of him. McIlroy excels on long, soft courses in the American style of target golf. Rain was forecast for Tuesday in Atlanta, so that might soften the greens to his liking.
Tiger Woods. Sure, he's had difficulty playing his best golf on the weekend, but he's getting himself into contention just about every week. He has won before at East Lake, in 2007 at the inaugural FedEx Cup, in a rain-drenched week. Plus, Tiger doesn't have to win the Tour Championship to win the FedEx Cup. A second, third or fourth just might be good enough.
Phil Mickelson. It's been the usual roller-coaster, feast-or-famine year for Mickelson. He seems to be back on a roll now, wielding his putter with a claw grip and tuning up his game for next week's Ryder Cup. He, too, has history on his side at East Lake. He won the Tour Championship there twice, in 2000 and 2009.
Louis Oosthuizen. He's turning into quite the Nearly Man. He nearly won the Masters, the Bridgestone Invitational, the Barclays and the Deutsche Bank Championship. His swing is textbook, his tempo is sweet and the man can putt. He's already got a British Open on his resume. He can play, now he just needs to learn how to close.
Brandt Snedeker. Snedeker has had a great second half to his season. In addition to his game run at the British Open, where he finished third, he was second at the Barclays, sixth at the Deutsche Bank Championship and in the process played his way onto the Ryder Cup team as a wild-card selection. He ranks No. 1 in the PGA Tour's strokes-gained putting category, which should come in handy on East Lake's devious greens.
Five other notable contenders:
Dustin Johnson. He hasn't finished in the top 20 in three appearances at East Lake. This course may just not be his style.
Nick Watney. He had something of an off-year for a player of his talent, then came out of nowhere to win the Barclays. Then he cooled off again, finishing 20th and 45th in the last two playoff events, and got passed over for the Ryder Cup.
Luke Donald. It's seems to be his lot in life to be continually overlooked, even when he was the No. 1 player in the world. Now that he's not, it's easy to forget he plays East Lake pretty well. He was third last year, second in 2010. He ranks 15th on the reset points list.
Matt Kuchar. It's got to feel good to be home. Kuchar, who won The Players, played his college golf at Georgia Tech. He's 16th on the points list but not exactly on his game. His last top-10 finish was T8 at the Bridgestone Invitational. After that, he missed the cut at the PGA, then finished T38, T35 and T54 in the FedEx Cup playoffs.
Steve Stricker. Good iron play and great putting work well almost anywhere, but he's only been in contention once in the last five years at East Lake. He was 15th last year, 25th in 2010 and sixth, 24th and 17th in the three years before that. It's that time of year when he's looking ahead to bow-hunting back home in Wisconsin, but with the Ryder Cup next week, he'll want to have his game sharp. Stricker is 13th on the reset points list.
Published: Monday, September 17, 2012 | 11:45:59 AM
'Golf's Greatest Rivalry' is available now.
In this new E-book, the writers and editors of the Sports Illustrated Golf Group select the five most memorable Ryder Cups since Europe joined the fray in 1979.
The book features reprints from the pages of Sports Illustrated along with photos and an introduction from Michael Bamberger, who explains why the Cup is the most compelling rivalry in the game.
Written By Emdua on Senin, 17 September 2012 | 00.00
Warren Little / Getty Images
Rory McIlroy has won two of the three events in the FedEx playoffs.
Rory McIlroy would be running away with the FedEx Cup title if the race were based on cumulative score relative to par instead of the complicated points system actually being used.
My suggested system jibes with reality because McIlroy has a big lead in the actual Cup points race. No surprise for someone who's won two of three playoff events heading into the Tour Championship.
McIlroy leads Dustin Johnson by 15 shots; Tiger Woods and Louis Oosthuizen by 17; Phil Mickelson and Lee Westwood by 20. Sound like an insurmountable lead? Not at all. Don't forget, McIlroy was 14 strokes behind Barclay's champion Nick Watney after the first leg of the FedEx Cup series. He gained 41 strokes on Watney the next two events.
Below are the current FedEx Cup standings under my cumulative-score system.
(Two caveats: 1. Playoff event winners received a five-stroke bonus, which means 10 extra shots for McIlroy, and 2. only those who played all four rounds in all three events are eligible. That eliminated players such as Jason Dufner and Sergio Garcia, who opted to rest a week, and others such as U.S. Open champion Webb Simpson, who missed a cut.)
-51 Rory McIlroy -36 Dustin Johnson -34 Tiger Woods -34 Louis Oosthuizen -31 Phil Mickelson -31 Lee Westwood -25 Brandt Snedeker -25 Adam Scott -24 Nick Watney -24 Ryan Moore -19 Bo Van Pelt -18 Tom Gillis -18 Vijay Singh -17 Steve Stricker -17 Greg Chalmers -16 Kevin Stadler -15 Luke Donald -14 Chris Kirk -13 Ian Poulter -13 Seung-yung Noh -12 Zach Johnson -11 John Senden -11 J.B. Holmes -11 Robert Garrigus -10 Bob Estes -10 Ernie Els -10 Padraig Harrington -10 Troy Matteson -10 John Huh
In honor of King of Clubs, a book about the Great Golf Marathon of 1938 and the amazing man who earned that sobriquet, you should speed-read it. The man's feat practically demands it.
I buzzed through this fun 139-pager on a flight from Pittsburgh to Charlotte, mainly because I couldn't put it down. It's about a golfing marathon, yes, but thanks to author Jim Ducibella, this unlikely tale of Depression-era America sprints all the way to the finish.
Speed golf may have been invented by J. Smith "Smitty" Ferebee, the unlikely hero of King of Clubs (Potomac Books, $24.95). Smitty didn't earn that nickname by being a champion golfer. He was perhaps only slightly better than the average country club hack of the 1930s.
But his stamina, endurance, speed and sheer power made him golf's ultimate marathon man.
What started as a semi-friendly bet between two members at Chicago's Olympia Fields Country Club ended with Ferebee earning national acclaim for playing (hustling, jogging, running) 144 holes of golf in one day, on foot -- two rounds each on the four courses at Olympia Fields, including the course that later hosted the 2003 U.S. Open. Ferebee also won the title to a piece of Virginia land -- worth $20,000, a fortune in 1938 -- with his remarkable performance.
That, it turned out, was just the beginning. After news of Ferebee's feat spread across the astonished (and naïve) pre-World War II American landscape, stories of other men and even women and teenagers matching or surpassing his marathon feat began to arise.
One thing led to another and ultimately, the man who lost the land to Ferebee wanted a rematch. Eventually, Ferebee was goaded into boasting that he could repeat his Olympia Fields feat -- four days in a row!
That wasn't good enough for his so-called friend. That would be 576 holes over four days, the man said. Why not just round up to a nice even number like 600? Ferebee agreed.
But not just in Chicago on his home course. In eight different cities, starting in Los Angeles and ending in New York, over four days. Just traveling on an eight-city tour in those days was difficult enough, let alone squeezing in eight rounds of golf each day. The stops included Phoenix (Encanto Golf Course); Kansas City (Blue Hills); St. Louis (Norwood Hills); Milwaukee (the original Tuckaway CC); and Chicago (Olympia Fields).
It sounded unlikely, if not impossible, but Ferebee agreed. Thus the wager snowballed into a stunt of national proportions that the media pounced on and sensationalized.
This is where the story gets complicated and Ducibella dug up all kinds of Hollywood script-like pieces. Trane, a company that was just getting started in the newfangled air-conditioning business, signed on as a kind of sponsor. It finagled a new American Airlines Skysleeper liner, a plane that had sleeping accommodations and was ceremoniously dubbed "The TRANE of the Air." The event took on a circus-like atmosphere, mixed with commercialism.
The complications included a closed airport; an airport whose runway was too short to handle the big skyliner; a lost dog; a stowaway; fog; darkness; blisters; a fall and a badly sprained ankle; illicit wagering; and drugs, as a syndicate of gamblers who'd bet heavily against Ferebee tried to sabotage his attempt. If it sounds like a Disney movie, I can only wonder why it isn't already?
The Great Golf Marathon ended in New York at the Salisbury Golf Links, now known as the Eisenhower Park Red Course. Think of the final scene in "The Spirit of St. Louis," with Jimmy Stewart playing aviator Charles Lindbergh and the Paris airport lined with torches so Lindy could see to land. Ferebee finished his last round at 10:30 at night, thanks to fans lining the fairway with lit flares, a helper holding a light near his ball so he could have enough depth perception to hit it, and a brilliant shining spotlight on a fire truck.
The final numbers seem preposterous. Ferebee played 32 rounds in 96 hours in eight cities. He needed 2,858 shots and averaged 85.7 per round. He covered 182 miles on foot. He lost 21 pounds and weighed a mere 139 pounds by the time he returned to Chicago. One New York paper dubbed him "the Hercules of golf." The most remarkable stat? Ferebee didn't lose a ball in 600 holes.
He was something of a celebrity for years after. He took golf seriously and got better at it. Ferebee said he broke par only twice at Olympia Fields, shooting 68 and 67 on the same Sunday -- Dec. 7, 1941. The Pearl Harbor attack inspired Ferebee, then 35, to enlist in the Navy, and even though he was nine years too old to be a Navy pilot, he became one, anyway, and was called to active duty in 1942. He served on an aircraft carrier in 1945 at the end of the war, and was badly injured when a plane he co-piloted crashed. Ferebee died in 1988 from cancer.
The King of Clubs is part Seabiscuit and part Around the World in 80 Days and part The Match. You have to read his story to believe it. Thanks to Mr. Ducibella's inspired research, you can.
Rory McIlroy has won three of his last four starts on the PGA Tour.
Every Sunday night, the editorial staff of the SI Golf Group conducts an e-mail roundtable. Check in every week for the unfiltered opinions of our writers and editors and join the conversation in the comments section below.
RORY OR BUST? Ryan Reiterman, senior producer, Golf.com: Let's get to this week's main event -- The Tour Championship. The first three playoff events have been awesome. Rory McIlroy has won two straight titles, and three of his last four events. But because of the revamped FedEx points system, he's not a lock to win the FedEx Cup. Will it be a letdown if McIlroy doesn't win the FedEx Cup this week?
Charlie Hanger, executive editor, Golf.com: I'm torn on this one. It does seem crazy that Rory's points are reset and he's got a relatively small lead after everything he's done in the playoffs. But that's also the thing that makes this the most like a real playoff. If the Patriots go 16-0 and lose their first playoff game, they're out. If the Yankees win the division by 20 games and lose in their first series, they're out. Your great season isn't complete until you win the last thing, and that's what this system is forcing Rory to do.
Mike Walker, senior editor, Golf Magazine: Absolutely not. It's a playoff. Each event has to count, and the last event needs to be the most dynamic in terms of giving the 30 who made it this far a chance.
Stephanie Wei, contributor, SI Golf+: It obviously isn't a playoff! As we've seen, you can miss an entire "playoff" event and still win the FedEx Cup. And can anyone read the scenarios? It's way too complicated. Match play at the Tour Championship would lend it more credence.
Michael Bamberger, senior writer, Sports Illustrated: It will be more weirdness for, all together now, A POINT SYSTEM THAT MAKES NO BLOODY SENSE.
Mark Godich, senior editor, Sports Illustrated: I've got no problem with it, and I bet Rory doesn't either. He's probably relishing the opportunity to complete the hat trick.
Jim Herre, managing editor, SI Golf Group: The playoffs have breathed some life into the Tour Championship, which had been a pretty dead event prior. I don't think it matters who wins.
David Dusek, deputy editor, Golf.com: If Nick Watney wins the Tour Championship, at least he would have won two of the four playoff events to earn the Cup. But if Brandt Snedeker were to win the Tour Championship, he'd take the Cup with just one playoff win. I understand that he would've won the "right" tournament, but it would still seem pretty odd for his one win to trump Rory's two.
Tell us what you think in the comments section below: Do you like the FedEx Cup points system?
CUP PREDICTIONS Reiterman: Let's hear your picks. Who wins the Tour Championship, and who wins the $10 million?
Bamberger: Rory, and he wins a lot more than $10 million. Which is nice.
Herre: I'm going to take Tiger to sweep. He's been in the picture throughout and is playing well. Plus, it'd be good for the U.S. Ryder Cup effort if he goes in with a big win.
Reiterman: I'll also take Tiger for the sweep.
Hanger: Of course none of us has any idea, but if we're ever going to get one right, this week the odds are in our favor with only 30 guys to choose from. I think Dufner wins the tourney and Tiger takes the Cup.
Godich: And if that happens, Bamberger will really be scratching his head. Rory loses the $10 million to a guy who didn't win a playoff event?
Wei: Wake me when it gets down to the last few holes on Sunday, but only if it's going to be a close call (which it usually is). It's just millionaires trying to pad their bank accounts with another $10 million plus. But I'll pick safe and say Rory and Rory.
Dusek: Phil Mickelson will win both.
Walker: I think Mickelson will take the $10 million, and he'll need every cent to rebuild the Padres.
Tell us what you think in the comments section below: Who will win the Tour Championship and the FedEx Cup?
TEACHER AND STUDENT Reiterman: In an article in the October issue of Golf Magazine, guest editor Johnny Miller says Tiger Woods's people once approached him about helping Woods with his short irons. But Miller says he turned down the offer because he didn't feel like he could give Woods his full attention. A lot of our readers cried foul on Miller. Do you believe Johnny? And if they ever did happen to work together, do you think Miller could really help Woods?
Herre: Early in his career, Woods did have an issue with distance control with his wedges (the problem cropped up again recently). And Miller was one of the best short-iron players ever. You have to take Johnny at his word. He's never been one to make false statements.
Godich: I don't know why Miller would have said it if it wasn't true. Could he have helped Tiger? Probably, but with the whole thing about Tiger's owning his own swing, Johnny would've eventually met the same fate as Tiger's other former swing coaches.
Hanger: I believe it's true. Would Johnny have been a good coach for Tiger? I'm sure Johnny thinks so, but I'm not sure those two egos could've coexisted peacefully.
Walker: The Johnny Miller Project starring Tiger Woods? I'd DVR that, but I'm not sure Miller could help. It seems now like Tiger's issue is GOLF.com Tours and News RSS Feed http://rss.golf.com/rss/tours_news.xml Latest Tours and News Articles from GOLF.comPGA Tour Confidential: Can Rory McIlroy capture the Tour Championship? http://rss.golf.com/tour-and-news/pga-tour-confidential-can-rory-mcilroy-capture-tour-championship http://rss.golf.com/tour-and-news/pga-tour-confidential-can-rory-mcilroy-capture-tour-championship
Stan Badz/Getty Images
Rory McIlroy has won three of his last four starts on the PGA Tour.
Every Sunday night, the editorial staff of the SI Golf Group conducts an e-mail roundtable. Check in every week for the unfiltered opinions of our writers and editors and join the conversation in the comments section below.
RORY OR BUST? Ryan Reiterman, senior producer, Golf.com: Let's get to this week's main event -- The Tour Championship. The first three playoff events have been awesome. Rory McIlroy has won two straight titles, and three of his last four events. But because of the revamped FedEx points system, he's not a lock to win the FedEx Cup. Will it be a letdown if McIlroy doesn't win the FedEx Cup this week?
Charlie Hanger, executive editor, Golf.com: I'm torn on this one. It does seem crazy that Rory's points are reset and he's got a relatively small lead after everything he's done in the playoffs. But that's also the thing that makes this the most like a real playoff. If the Patriots go 16-0 and lose their first playoff game, they're out. If the Yankees win the division by 20 games and lose in their first series, they're out. Your great season isn't complete until you win the last thing, and that's what this system is forcing Rory to do.
Mike Walker, senior editor, Golf Magazine: Absolutely not. It's a playoff. Each event has to count, and the last event needs to be the most dynamic in terms of giving the 30 who made it this far a chance.
Stephanie Wei, contributor, SI Golf+: It obviously isn't a playoff! As we've seen, you can miss an entire "playoff" event and still win the FedEx Cup. And can anyone read the scenarios? It's way too complicated. Match play at the Tour Championship would lend it more credence.
Michael Bamberger, senior writer, Sports Illustrated: It will be more weirdness for, all together now, A POINT SYSTEM THAT MAKES NO BLOODY SENSE.
Mark Godich, senior editor, Sports Illustrated: I've got no problem with it, and I bet Rory doesn't either. He's probably relishing the opportunity to complete the hat trick.
Jim Herre, managing editor, SI Golf Group: The playoffs have breathed some life into the Tour Championship, which had been a pretty dead event prior. I don't think it matters who wins.
David Dusek, deputy editor, Golf.com: If Nick Watney wins the Tour Championship, at least he would have won two of the four playoff events to earn the Cup. But if Brandt Snedeker were to win the Tour Championship, he'd take the Cup with just one playoff win. I understand that he would've won the "right" tournament, but it would still seem pretty odd for his one win to trump Rory's two.
Tell us what you think in the comments section below: Do you like the FedEx Cup points system?
CUP PREDICTIONS Reiterman: Let's hear your picks. Who wins the Tour Championship, and who wins the $10 million?
Bamberger: Rory, and he wins a lot more than $10 million. Which is nice.
Herre: I'm going to take Tiger to sweep. He's been in the picture throughout and is playing well. Plus, it'd be good for the U.S. Ryder Cup effort if he goes in with a big win.
Reiterman: I'll also take Tiger for the sweep.
Hanger: Of course none of us has any idea, but if we're ever going to get one right, this week the odds are in our favor with only 30 guys to choose from. I think Dufner wins the tourney and Tiger takes the Cup.
Godich: And if that happens, Bamberger will really be scratching his head. Rory loses the $10 million to a guy who didn't win a playoff event?
Wei: Wake me when it gets down to the last few holes on Sunday, but only if it's going to be a close call (which it usually is). It's just millionaires trying to pad their bank accounts with another $10 million plus. But I'll pick safe and say Rory and Rory.
Dusek: Phil Mickelson will win both.
Walker: I think Mickelson will take the $10 million, and he'll need every cent to rebuild the Padres.
Tell us what you think in the comments section below: Who will win the Tour Championship and the FedEx Cup?
TEACHER AND STUDENT Reiterman: In an article in the October issue of Golf Magazine, guest editor Johnny Miller says Tiger Woods's people once approached him about helping Woods with his short irons. But Miller says he turned down the offer because he didn't feel like he could give Woods his full attention. A lot of our readers cried foul on Miller. Do you believe Johnny? And if they ever did happen to work together, do you think Miller could really help Woods?
Herre: Early in his career, Woods did have an issue with distance control with his wedges (the problem cropped up again recently). And Miller was one of the best short-iron players ever. You have to take Johnny at his word. He's never been one to make false statements.
Godich: I don't know why Miller would have said it if it wasn't true. Could he have helped Tiger? Probably, but with the whole thing about Tiger's owning his own swing, Johnny would've eventually met the same fate as Tiger's other former swing coaches.
Hanger: I believe it's true. Would Johnny have been a good coach for Tiger? I'm sure Johnny thinks so, but I'm not sure those two egos could've coexisted peacefully.
Walker: The Johnny Miller Project starring Tiger Woods? I'd DVR that, but I'm not sure Miller could help. It seems now like Tiger's issue is confidence, not technique.
Wei: I like Johnny, but I can't see him and Tiger mixing well. I feel second-hand awkwardness just thinking about those two having a conversation.
Bamberger: I believe him, but I'm guessing he conflated it. Tiger's people? It would have been Earl or Butch, and more than likely they were just looking for an afternoon, not a long commitment. I think it looks ungracious, to bring it up now. It's vain. But it's typical of Johnny. He just says ... whatever. And I like him for that.
Godich: The only thing that would've made it better is if Johnny had said, "It's a process, and I just didn't have the time to watch Tiger hit a million balls ... or more."
Dusek: I would not be surprised if it were true, and I don't doubt that Miller could have helped Woods improve his iron play early in his career. Miller was one of the greatest iron players of all time, and that doesn't happen by accident. The real question is whether or not Miller could have "taught" Tiger (or anyone else) rather than simply explained and hoped that Woods could put into practice what Johnny knows.
Tell us what you think in the comments section below: Would you like to see Johnny Miller work with Tiger Woods?
Go to Page 2
Sun, 16 Sep 2012 22:12:29 -0400rreitermanMerritt is back in Boise and hoping to turn his career around http://rss.golf.com/tour-and-news/troy-merritt-hoping-comeback-starts-boise-open http://rss.golf.com/tour-and-news/troy-merritt-hoping-comeback-starts-boise-open
BOISE, Idaho -- Troy Merritt has not fallen off the face of the earth. He played in a charity shootout on Monday at Hillcrest Country Club, site of this week's Albertsons Boise Open, the Web.com Tour's first of seven straight tournaments that will put the wraps on the 2012 season. Merritt, languishing at 104th on the money list (the top 25 advance to the PGA Tour, 26-60 retain full Web.com privileges), was followed by his wife, Courtney, and their 15-month-old son on Monday afternoon. They're in the process of buying a house in nearby Meridian, and they're hoping that moving from Phoenix back to Idaho will change their luck.
Two years ago, Merritt, 26, was considered a potential future star. He started the 2010 season with an opening-round 65 at the Sony Open, which opened eyes considering it was his first start on Tour. (He would eventually tie for 20th place at Waialae.) He ended that year with a pressure-filled, bogey-free 67 at Disney to finish 125th on the money list, barely retaining his playing privileges for 2011. He then made birdie on the first hole of a pressure-filled, sudden-death playoff with Aaron Baddeley and Rickie Fowler to win the $1 million Kodak Challenge.
Merritt, who had won the 2009 Mexico Open before going wire-to-wire to take medalist honors at '09 Q school, was well on his way -- and then he wasn't.
"You never know what's going to happen in this game," Merritt said. "One week can change everything. You've just got to roll with it and do your best, and unfortunately for me that means trying to keep my job for next year."
The trouble started in 2011, when Merritt made only eight cuts and $150,000 in 23 starts. Top-25 finishes: zero. That dropped him to the Web.com Tour, where he has continued to struggle this season. He says he's not injured, but his game has suffered extended periods of sickness, including seven straight missed cuts from March 25 to June 3. His caddie, Robbie Richards, a former Boise State teammate, noticed what Merritt describes as a "major swing flaw" on Wednesday of the Nationwide Children's Hospital Invitational in late July, and Merritt began trying to make the necessary changes the next day. He hasn't made a cut since, four straight MCs and counting.
"I got off to a nice start south of the border this year," Merritt said. "Three top-25s to start the year, and had another top-25 down in Mexico, where I won. So I think I just need to play outside the country, somewhere where they don't speak English. But no, I've struggled a little bit, although I've played a lot better than you'd think, missing as many cuts as I have. I tell a lot of people I hit 64, 65 good shots a round, and I hit a few poor ones that lead to three or four more."
In perfect fall-like weather, a few hundred fans, the Boise State cheerleaders and even the Bronco mascot followed Monday's skins game, in which Merritt and Graeme DeLaet represented BSU; Casey Martin and Andres Gonzales represented Oregon (Martin coaches the Oregon men's golf team); and Sam Saunders, Arnold Palmer's grandson, and long-drive champion Jamie Sadlowski represented the University of Idaho. Merritt played well enough, but he and DeLaet, who had shaved his FedEx Cup playoffs beard, couldn't get much going and were finally given a few skins by a gracious Martin when all three teams birdied the short, par-4 ninth hole and were headed for a chip-off.
The last 18 months have brought a complete reversal for DeLaet, who was laid up after early-season back surgery in 2011, and Merritt. While Merritt, who looks much younger than 26, was floundering on the developmental Web.com Tour, DeLaet was making a run through the mega-bucks FedEx Cup playoffs. He faded at the BMW last weekend to miss out on the Tour Championship, but he has earned more than $1 million on the PGA Tour in this comeback season.
"I follow him on Twitter, and he follows me, so there's some banter back and forth," DeLaet said of Merritt. "I'm hoping for a big week for him this week. I've played a lot of golf with him, and he's super-talented, and I know it's only a matter of time before something good happens for him."
Having a baby has disrupted Merritt's routine, as he expected it would, but as he reflects on what went wrong he cites living in Phoenix, where he moved shortly after he turned pro in 2008.
"We have no family, and pretty much no friends there," Merritt said. "We're up away from the city and we didn't know anybody when we moved down there. So it's been tough for my wife; when I've had to leave, she has to do everything on her own. It's been tough for her and it's been tough for me. And it's tough to travel with a little one. We're still in that process of figuring it out."
Hence the impending move back to Boise, where Troy's aunt and uncle live, and where he and Courtney have friends from college. (She was a gymnast at Boise State.)
As it stands now, Merritt, who is meticulous right down to the way he ties his shoes, would be headed back to the first stage of Q school. Having been to Q school three times already, he admits it is an endeavor "you want to avoid as much as possible." But seven more tournaments is a lot, and golfers come out of slumps all the time. Tiger Woods did it this year, as did Phil Mickelson. Lee Westwood's mid-career death spiral was a lot worse than Merritt's, and now Westwood is making millions on the PGA Tour and moving to sunny South Florida.
"I've got a lot of work to do," said Merritt, his young son in the crook of his arm, "but one or two good weeks and you're right back in the thick of things."
Short game: Martin Kaymer looks for his first top-10 finish since April at the BMW Italian Open in Turin. He'll play with Nicolas Colsaerts and Francesco Molinari. The three will be Ryder Cup teammates at Medinah in two weeks. … Five tournaments remain in the Champions Tour season, starting with this week's Pacific Links Hawai'i Championship at Kapolei Golf Course. … Of the top three players in the Charles Schwab Cup race, only points-leader Tom Lehman (2,043) is playing Pacific Links, which will be absent Bernhard Langer (1,893) and Roger Chapman (1,796). … Rick Fehr, who became a player-agent after his career on the PGA Tour, makes his Champions Tour debut. … Ricoh extended title sponsorship of the Ricoh Women's British Open through at least 2016. The LPGA's final major starts Thursday at Royal Liverpool, with Yani Tseng going for a three-peat. … Juli Inkster, who received an exemption, is coming back from elbow surgery.
Wed, 12 Sep 2012 15:57:31 -0400jritterHot this week? Rory, Shin and Arnie. Not? Paula, Phil ... and Borat http://rss.golf.com/tour-and-news/hot-list-rory-mcilroy-jiyai-shin-arnold-palmer-paula-creamer http://rss.golf.com/tour-and-news/hot-list-rory-mcilroy-jiyai-shin-arnold-palmer-paula-creamer
Angus Murray
Arnold Palmer, photographed outside his home in Latrobe, Pa., in June 2011.
HOT 1. Rory. Even complicated geo-politics can't slow his roll. It's one thing go to No. 1 -- shoot, Martin Kaymer managed that. But to stare down Tiger Woods week after week is how you signal the start of a whole new era.
2. Jiyai Shin. One of the Hot List's favorite players won for the first time in two years by defeating Paula Creamer in an epic nine-hole playoff. That endless string of pressure-proof pars is a monument to Shin's grittiness.
3. Eugene Wong. The 22-year-old Vancouver native and former Oregon Duck is the second hottest player on the planet, having won his first two pro starts on the Canadian tour. If he wins one more, does he get a battlefield promotion to the PGA Tour Latinoamerica?
4. Arnold Palmer. On Monday the King turned 83. And he still has more swag than any other golfer alive.
5. Tim Finchem. This has already been the best FedEx Cup, and we haven't even gotten to the denouement. Commish, I take back every mean thing I've ever said about the Cup. (Well, almost.)
NOT 1. Paula. Three-putting the final hole to fall into a playoff is brutal, especially when you haven't won in two years. Three-putting to lose said playoff could lead to early onset of the yips.
2. The Ryder Cup's dignity. At Medinah there will be a Tuesday celebrity shootout with the likes of Richard Dent, Stan Mikita and Scottie Pippen. I'd rather gouge my eyeballs out with a 1-iron than watch this nonsense.
3. Bill Haas. After a shaky Sunday at the BMW, the defending FedEx Cup champ fell out of the top 30 in points and will now miss out on more free money at the Tour Championship. Somehow I think he'll be able to weather the financial storm.
4. Phil. It's nice that he's pieced his game back together, but this Hall of Famer needs to remember how to win, not score another moral victory. Two back-nine bogeys on Sunday -- including a gagged three-footer on the 71st hole -- doomed his latest bid.
5. Borat. This week brings the Kazakhstan Open on Europe's Challenge Tour, and despite what you may have heard, it's a niiiiiiice place to hold a tournament, at least according to the players. What could make it better? How about Ali G providing color commentary on the telecast?
Tue, 11 Sep 2012 09:59:37 -0400jritterJohnny Miller: Tiger Woods asked me to coach him http://rss.golf.com/tour-and-news/tiger-woods-asked-johnny-miller-coach-him http://rss.golf.com/tour-and-news/tiger-woods-asked-johnny-miller-coach-him
Fred Vuich/SI
Johnny Miller, center, following Tiger Woods at the 2010 Masters.
Johnny Miller was once asked to coach Tiger Woods and turned the job down, Miller revealed in the October issue of Golf Magazine.
"Not many people know this, but when Tiger had been on Tour for two or three years, his people called and asked if I would give him lessons on short irons," Miller said. "Jack Nicklaus told him I was the best short iron play ever—a pretty great compliment."
Miller said he declined the offer because of his NBC announcing work and his desire to spend time with his children and grandchildren,
"I was tired," Miller said. "I didn't think I could give him the time he'd need, so I turned him down, which I don't think many people have done."
However, Miller said he'd be interested in the job now if Woods offered him another chance.
"He's the guy I'd like to help most," Miller said. "I've been watching him since he was in junior golf. I know all the swings he's had. I think I could help him get back to his natural swing, not the swing someone else wants him to make. I'm open to helping him."
Miller is the guest editor of the October issue of Golf Magazine, which includes "Johnny Miller: My Number 1s" (a list of Miller's choices for all-time greatest ball-striker, putter and pressure player), Miller's "Seven Lessons for a Lifetime," and an exclusive interview with Jack Nicklaus, whom Golf Magazine readers selected as the No. 1 Player of All Time.
The October issue of Golf Magazine is on newsstands now; it is also available free for subscribers on tablets at golf.com/allaccess.
McIlroy, shown here at the 2011 U.S. Open at Congressional, which he won, can't escape the question surrounding his national identity.
There's a morbid old joke in Northern Ireland about a Protestant man who on his deathbed summons a priest and announces his conversion to Catholicism. When his shocked family members demand to know why he is forsaking his faith at the end, the old man announces: "It's better one of theirs die than one of ours."
From cradle to grave, religion has long been the defining identity trait in Northern Ireland, a reality that has metastasized into every aspect of cultural and political existence. And that's what this week's Rory McIlroy story is really about.
On Monday McIlroy issued an open letter rejecting a newspaper report claiming that he has decided to play for Great Britain when golf returns to the Olympics in 2016. This is no small matter in Northern Ireland, where Catholics are presumed to be nationalists and supporters of reunification with the Republic of Ireland and Protestants are assumed to be loyal to the existing union with Britain.
(Related Photos: McIlroy's Career In Pictures)
McIlroy is Catholic by birth, but is neither religious nor political by disposition. It's safe to say he remembers nothing of the most violent phase of the Northern Irish conflict over this issue, which mostly ended with ceasefires when McIlroy was 5 years old. But almost two decades on, he finds himself still having to dance through this tedious political and religious minefield. Declaring for Ireland or Britain in the Olympics is about much more than the colors on his shirt, and he knows it. Competing for a gold medal is a dream for most athletes, but Rory McIlroy must look to Rio with at least a little dread.
This open letter was McIlroy's effort to shake off those parochial shackles, a claim to be all things to all men, a declaration that he won't neatly fit into any of the narrow boxes favored in a society that seems incapable of thinking outside of them.
"Having just won three out of my last four tournaments, including a second Major Championship, I was hoping that my success on the golf course would be the more popular topic of golfing conversation today," he wrote in his letter. "However the issue of my cultural identity has reemerged and with it the matter of my national allegiance ahead of the Rio Olympics."
After acknowledging the "extremely sensitive and difficult position" he is in, McIlroy went on to point out that he is a product of the Golfing Union of Ireland, which administers the game in both Ireland and Northern Ireland without regard to borders or religious and political identity. He then affirmed his pride in being from Northern Ireland, and emphasized his love of America and his role as an international sportsman and role model.
Ah yes, but is he an Irish sportsman and role model or a British sportsman and role model? Like all stupid questions, it has no answer. But that doesn't stop stupid people from asking it.
The reality is that McIlroy is hostage to this peculiarly Northern Irish dilemma, expected to choose between two abusive custodians who want to brandish him as a spoil of a war he isn't fighting.
Even in his greatest moment, he couldn't avoid it. As he walked off the 18th green at Congressional last year after a dominating win in the U.S. Open, someone in the crowd threw an Irish tricolor flag around his shoulders. Within seconds it was gone. Almost immediately a Facebook group sprung up in which pro-British loyalists gleefully celebrated McIlroy's apparent rejection of a symbol of Ireland. It got 7,000 "likes."
Of course, the only thing McIlroy was rejecting were attempts by others to define him on their terms. In this Sisyphean task he is aided by his ever-watchful team at Horizon Sports. He was pointedly refusing to become another pawn in Northern Ireland's tiresome game of sanctimonious sectarianism. Just last week there were more riots between rival religious factions in Belfast over who can or can't parade their ignorance down certain streets. And therein lies the crux of Rory's world: he aspires to be a positive symbol of post-conflict Northern Ireland, yet he is fought over by people for whom the conflict is still very much extant.
If only his identity could be encapsulated as easily as Tiger Woods did his multicultural heritage with that "Cablinasian" label.
Rory McIlroy and I grew up about 50 miles and 17 years apart, but the similarities between us really end with our Northern Irish provenance. He probably doesn't remember much at all of our country's violent conflict, whereas it was the defining event in my formative years. His inclination seems to be to accommodate differing faiths, mine is opposition to all. He loves Caroline Wozniacki, I think her brother is kind of cute. He can hit a towering 5-iron… well, you get the picture.
But perhaps there is one thing we both understand, though McIlroy can't ever say so publicly. The island of Ireland -- Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland -- has spent much of the past 200 years exporting three things: Guinness, its people and cheap nationalism. Guinness has ruined many an Irish sportsman, but it is the latter that causes most headaches for McIlroy.
The Olympics is still four years away but already some commentators have suggested that McIlroy not compete in Rio as a means of defusing the more unpleasant aspects of this Irish-British identity row. Nonsense. He shouldn't seek to defuse this choice but to disown it entirely. So do us a favor, Rory: marry Caroline and announce that you're playing for Denmark.
Tue, 11 Sep 2012 13:56:29 -0400jritterRory McIlroy's Olympic dilemma doesn't matter to fans in his hometown http://rss.golf.com/tour-and-news/rory-mcilroy-olympic-dilemma-doesnt-matter-fans-northern-ireland http://rss.golf.com/tour-and-news/rory-mcilroy-olympic-dilemma-doesnt-matter-fans-northern-ireland
Richard Heathcote/Getty Images
Graeme McDowell, left, and Rory McIlroy held up the Northern Ireland flag after winning the 2010 Ryder Cup.
HOLYWOOD, Northern Ireland -- Long before anyone had ever heard of Rory McIlroy, a young Northern Irish boxer named Barry McGuigan became a national hero by not choosing sides. McGuigan grew up in a very different Northern Ireland from McIlroy, one rife with tension between Protestants loyal to Great Britain and Catholics loyal to Ireland. McGuigan was a Roman Catholic, but as he rose to prominence in the late 1970s and early '80s -- McGuigan eventually became the world featherweight champion -- he declined to join the political fray. He cast himself neither as British nor Irish, but rather as a neutral sporting ambassador who both Catholics and Protestants could rally around.
"The fact that I wouldn't wear green, white, or gold, or put on a sign that said, 'This is who I represent,' was powerful," McGuigan later said. "Both sides would say, 'Leave the fighting to McGuigan.'"
That was three decades ago, and though "the Troubles" are now mostly resigned to the history books, Northern Irish athletes competing on the international stage are still forced to make the sometimes-awkward decision of whether to represent Great Britain or the Republic of Ireland. Northern Ireland is not an option.
The issue made news this week when McIlroy told the Daily Mail that he "felt more British than Irish," which seemed to suggest that when the 2016 Olympic Games roll around, he will compete under the Union Jack. In a follow-up statement to the media, McIlroy stressed that he hasn't decided his Olympic plans and won't for some time. But the clarification seemed to fall on deaf ears. The front page of Tuesday's Belfast Telegraph blared, "Rory: I feel more British than Irish." The News Letter, another national broadsheet, went with: "McIlroy defends national identity." The enterprising Irish Daily Star spoke with McIlroy's ex-girlfriend, Holly Sweeney, resulting in the bizarre headline: "I always knew Rory was British."
Here's the thing, though: It's not 1982 anymore. Northern Ireland has moved on from its tumultuous past; its younger generations don't even remember it. McIlroy doesn't need to be the next Barry McGuigan, nor does he want to be. McIlroy comes from a mixed background. He is Catholic, but he grew up in a predominantly Protestant neighborhood and became a star at Holywood Golf Club, a historically Protestant club. In his professional career, he has continued to straddle the cultural divide. After his win at the 2011 U.S. Open at Congressional, someone tossed him the tricolored Irish flag. The camera momentarily cut away. When it returned to McIlroy, the flag had vanished.
I just happen to be in McIlroy's hometown this week, on a different assignment. A local club soccer team, the Bangor Rangers, is staying at my hotel, and on Monday night I met three of the players: Andy Railes and Dan McCracken, both 26 and from up the road in Bangor, and Rabb McKee, 36, of Belfast. They're all Protestants, and if forced to choose a side, they all said they would play for Great Britain. They also said that they don't care where McIlroy's loyalty ultimately lies.
"There shouldn't even be a story written on it -- it's that irrelevant," said McCracken, who, when he's not traveling with the Rangers, is a classroom assistant. "It's just like in rugby. There's the Ulster rugby team, which is perceived to be a Protestant team. But the fans, the players, they don't give a s---. The vast majority don't care about that stuff anymore."
Railes, a self-described golf nut who's a member at Bangor Golf Club and whose father plays at Holywood, said that the same goes for the country's elite golfers. They can "appeal to the masses," he said, because Northern Irish sports fans are generally apathetic about which flag their golfers play under.
McKee went on to allege that McIlroy's professed "British-ness" might be motivated more by money than political pride. "I think it's because when you represent Britain in the Olympics -- if you win something for Britain, it's far, far bigger than if you win for Ireland," he said. "McIlroy would get far more sponsorships, TV coverage, everything else by representing Britain."
Conversely, the group agreed that McIlroy's countryman, Graeme McDowell, would be wise to suit up for Ireland in 2016 (assuming, of course, he qualifies). "If he plays on the same G.B. squad as McIlroy, he's going to be picking up the scraps," McKee said. "If he plays for Ireland, he's going to be their poster boy. He can make money out of it."
McDowell, who was raised Protestant but whose mother is Catholic, told me in an interview a couple of years ago that he, like McIlroy, has never felt the need to pick sides. "I wasn't brought up with that us-against-them kind of vibe," he said. "I was very sheltered from it all." But when it comes to golf, he added, his allegiance does lean toward Ireland, a result of his playing junior golf for the Golfing Union of Ireland.
"We only have one team in Ireland; there's no North and South," McDowell said. "So I grew up wanting to wear the Irish blazer -- the green and the gold. It didn't matter to me what religion I was, or what religion my teammates were. I wanted to play golf for Ireland. To me, though, sport has no religious boundaries. It has no political boundaries. Sport is just sport."
Back at my hotel, as the Rangers downed a final pint before retiring for the night (they had a game against Luxembourg on Tuesday, but cut them some slack -- they're just amateurs), the conversation turned to Barry McGuigan.
"He was a hero," McKee began.
"Yeah, he was certainly a hero to me," Railes interjected. "Barry McGuigan fought in white because he didn't want to be on either side of the divide."
"I think McIlroy's pretty similar to that," McCracken said.
"No doubt," Railes said, as he pulled on a cigarette. "I think McIlroy is dead on that. I think he doesn't want to be seen as British or Irish. Rory McIlroy would just want to be seen as Northern Irish."
Tue, 11 Sep 2012 17:05:26 -0400rreiterman'King of Clubs' book might be the best golf story you've never heard http://rss.golf.com/tour-and-news/king-clubs-book-might-be-best-golf-story-you-never-heard-0 http://rss.golf.com/tour-and-news/king-clubs-book-might-be-best-golf-story-you-never-heard-0
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King of Clubs by Jim Ducibella.
In honor of King of Clubs, a book about the Great Golf Marathon of 1938 and the amazing man who earned that sobriquet, you should speed-read it. The man's feat practically demands it.
I buzzed through this fun 139-pager on a flight from Pittsburgh to Charlotte, mainly because I couldn't put it down. It's about a golfing marathon, yes, but thanks to author Jim Ducibella, this unlikely tale of Depression-era America sprints all the way to the finish.
Speed golf may have been invented by J. Smith "Smitty" Ferebee, the unlikely hero of King of Clubs (Potomac Books, $24.95). Smitty didn't earn that nickname by being a champion golfer. He was perhaps only slightly better than the average country club hack of the 1930s.
But his stamina, endurance, speed and sheer power made him golf's ultimate marathon man.
What started as a semi-friendly bet between two members at Chicago's Olympia Fields Country Club ended with Ferebee earning national acclaim for playing (hustling, jogging, running) 144 holes of golf in one day, on foot -- two rounds each on the four courses at Olympia Fields, including the course that later hosted the 2003 U.S. Open. Ferebee also won the title to a piece of Virginia land -- worth $20,000, a fortune in 1938 -- with his remarkable performance.
That, it turned out, was just the beginning. After news of Ferebee's feat spread across the astonished (and naïve) pre-World War II American landscape, stories of other men and even women and teenagers matching or surpassing his marathon feat began to arise.
One thing led to another and ultimately, the man who lost the land to Ferebee wanted a rematch. Eventually, Ferebee was goaded into boasting that he could repeat his Olympia Fields feat -- four days in a row!
That wasn't good enough for his so-called friend. That would be 576 holes over four days, the man said. Why not just round up to a nice even number like 600? Ferebee agreed.
But not just in Chicago on his home course. In eight different cities, starting in Los Angeles and ending in New York, over four days. Just traveling on an eight-city tour in those days was difficult enough, let alone squeezing in eight rounds of golf each day. The stops included Phoenix (Encanto Golf Course); Kansas City (Blue Hills); St. Louis (Norwood Hills); Milwaukee (the original Tuckaway CC); and Chicago (Olympia Fields).
It sounded unlikely, if not impossible, but Ferebee agreed. Thus the wager snowballed into a stunt of national proportions that the media pounced on and sensationalized.
This is where the story gets complicated and Ducibella dug up all kinds of Hollywood script-like pieces. Trane, a company that was just getting started in the newfangled air-conditioning business, signed on as a kind of sponsor. It finagled a new American Airlines Skysleeper liner, a plane that had sleeping accommodations and was ceremoniously dubbed "The TRANE of the Air." The event took on a circus-like atmosphere, mixed with commercialism.
The complications included a closed airport; an airport whose runway was too short to handle the big skyliner; a lost dog; a stowaway; fog; darkness; blisters; a fall and a badly sprained ankle; illicit wagering; and drugs, as a syndicate of gamblers who'd bet heavily against Ferebee tried to sabotage his attempt. If it sounds like a Disney movie, I can only wonder why it isn't already?
The Great Golf Marathon ended in New York at the Salisbury Golf Links, now known as the Eisenhower Park Red Course. Think of the final scene in "The Spirit of St. Louis," with Jimmy Stewart playing aviator Charles Lindbergh and the Paris airport lined with torches so Lindy could see to land. Ferebee finished his last round at 10:30 at night, thanks to fans lining the fairway with lit flares, a helper holding a light near his ball so he could have enough depth perception to hit it, and a brilliant shining spotlight on a fire truck.
The final numbers seem preposterous. Ferebee played 32 rounds in 96 hours in eight cities. He needed 2,858 shots and averaged 85.7 per round. He covered 182 miles on foot. He lost 21 pounds and weighed a mere 139 pounds by the time he returned to Chicago. One New York paper dubbed him "the Hercules of golf." The most remarkable stat? Ferebee didn't lose a ball in 600 holes.
He was something of a celebrity for years after. He took golf seriously and got better at it. Ferebee said he broke par only twice at Olympia Fields, shooting 68 and 67 on the same Sunday -- Dec. 7, 1941. The Pearl Harbor attack inspired Ferebee, then 35, to enlist in the Navy, and even though he was nine years too old to be a Navy pilot, he became one, anyway, and was called to active duty in 1942. He served on an aircraft carrier in 1945 at the end of the war, and was badly injured when a plane he co-piloted crashed. Ferebee died in 1988 from cancer.
The King of Clubs is part Seabiscuit and part Around the World in 80 Days and part The Match. You have to read his story to believe it. Thanks to Mr. Ducibella's inspired research, you can.
Mon, 10 Sep 2012 12:58:31 -0400kcunninghamMcIlroy solidifies status at best player in the world by winning BMW Championship http://rss.golf.com/tour-and-news/rory-mcilroy-best-player-world-after-winning-bmw-championship http://rss.golf.com/tour-and-news/rory-mcilroy-best-player-world-after-winning-bmw-championship
Johnny Miller called it a "perfect storm," while PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem termed it a "dream leaderboard," but it was real. As morning broke for the final round at Crooked Stick Golf Club in Carmel, Ind., it was clear that the BMW Championship had become the ultimate star vehicle.
So accomplished were the top 11 players on the leaderboard that they had racked up 181 PGA Tour victories, including 25 majors.
In a conclusion that spanned generations and included seemingly every great player in golf, No. 1-ranked Rory McIlroy solidified his status at the top. The 23-year-old from Northern Ireland shot a final-round 67 for a two-stroke win over playing partner Lee Westwood (69) and 54-hole co-leader Phil Mickelson (70).
The victory was McIlroy's second in a row, his fourth on Tour in 2012 and the sixth of his career, and it made him the odds-on favorite to claim the $10 million FedEx Cup bonus when the four-tournament playoff series concludes at the Tour Championship at East Lake in Atlanta, Sept. 19-23. He won in back-to-back starts for the first time and became the fifth player since 2003 to win four or more tournaments in a season.
(Related Photos: McIlroy's Career in Pictures)
"The thing about the last two weeks, I've just played with complete trust and complete confidence in my ability," McIlroy said.
Tiger Woods, who shot 68 to finish three back in a tie for fourth place with Robert Garrigus, said: "Rory's putting on a show out there."
Players were allowed to lift, clean and place their balls in the fairways for the fourth day in a row due to wet, muddy conditions at Crooked Stick.
McIlroy did not make a bogey until the par-4 18th, where he pulled his approach way left, steering clear of the water to protect his three-shot lead, and failed to get up and down. Crooked Stick architect Pete Dye shook McIlroy's hand behind the green, no doubt wanting to get an up-close view of the game's can't-miss kid.
Woods, who began the day three strokes off the lead held by Mickelson and Vijay Singh, played well but again never heated up on the greens. Despite getting a read from Dustin Johnson, Woods blasted his 20-foot birdie try five feet past the hole on the par-3 sixth, then missed the come-backer, typifying his day. Although he fought back with birdies at 8, 12 and 14, hanging in at three shots off the lead, his eight-foot birdie try at the par-5 15th hole horseshoed around the cup and out.
"I figured it had to be a 63 or 64," Woods said of his target number Sunday. "It's so soft out there, and they gave us some accessible pins."
Mickelson was sticking with McIlroy until the left-hander failed to birdie the par-5 11th hole, then airmailed the par-4 12th hole from the middle of the fairway, leading to a bogey. Although his putting has improved with his new claw grip, he couldn't make enough down the stretch and remains winless since February.
"I'm really pleased with the way my game has come around the last two weeks," said Mickelson, who tied for fourth at the Deutsche Bank Championship in Boston last week. "It puts me in a position where if I can improve just a little bit more for the Tour Championship and win, I'll be able to win the FedExCup."
Westwood matched McIlroy with a succession of great irons shots and tied his Ryder Cup teammate at 19 under with a birdie on the 13th hole. Only McIlroy, though, could salvage par on 14, and he was back in the lead by himself. His length further separated him from Westwood on the par-5 15th hole, where Westwood went through the green with a 3-wood second shot, and McIlroy watched his second shot come out of the clouds and settle 20 feet left of the hole.
Needing to make a birdie at worst to keep up with his younger, longer foe, Westwood watched forlornly as his chip zoomed past the pin, leading to a deflating par. McIlroy two-putted for birdie and was two up with three holes remaining.
While the big names fought for the BMW trophy, others were trying to play well enough to stay inside the top 30 in the FedEx Cup standings and advance to the Tour Championship. Among the casualties was defending Tour Championship and FedEx Cup winner Bill Haas, who fired a final-round 78 to plummet down the board and finish three under, the result leaving him on the outside looking in at 32nd in the FedEx standings.
"When there's some pressure and there's a pressure situation, I've got to be able to bear down and shoot a good number and not just blow up," Haas said. "I seem to do it often. It's frustrating."
No defending FedEx Cup champion has made it back to the Tour Championship the next year in the six years of the FedEx Cup playoffs.
Kyle Stanley made a triple-bogey on the par-3 sixth hole and shot 75, falling to 31st; like Haas, he missed advancing to East Lake by one shot. Third-round co-leader Singh, who is almost eligible for the Champions tour at 49, bogeyed three of his last five holes to finish 33rd.
Ryan Moore, who began the week at 35th in the standings, was fading with three back-nine bogeys on Sunday but made a clutch birdie on the 18th hole to tie for 10th at the BMW and claim 28th in the standings.
Garrigus birdied four straight holes on the back nine (13-16) in his tie for fourth, moving from 31st all the way up to 20th. One rookie made it to East Lake: John Huh (T16 at BMW, up to 26th in the standings).
Despite going six over for his last six holes, John Senden shot 73 and hung onto the 29th spot, and Scott Piercy (68) claimed the 30th and last spot in the Tour Championship field.
At East Lake, McIlroy will try to make it three victories in a row and four in his last five starts -- with an extra $10 million on the line. McIlroy, Woods, Nick Watney, Mickelson and Brandt Snedeker, the top 5 in the FedEx Cup standings, control their destiny -- each would win the $10 million with a victory at East Lake.
"I don't think I'm quite there yet, but I'm getting to that stage where I'm thinking, this is what I should be doing, I should be lifting a trophy at the end of the week," McIlroy said. "The last four weeks, five weeks have been incredible, some of the best golf that I've ever played. I'm going to try and keep the run going for as long as possible."
Sun, 09 Sep 2012 18:34:36 -0400jritterPGA Tour Confidential: Rory McIlroy wins BMW Championship http://rss.golf.com/tour-and-news/pga-tour-confidential-rory-mcilroy-wins-bmw-championship http://rss.golf.com/tour-and-news/pga-tour-confidential-rory-mcilroy-wins-bmw-championship
Warren Little / Getty Images
Rory McIlroy shot a 67 to earn his third win in his last four starts.
Every Sunday night, the editorial staff of the SI Golf Group conducts an e-mail roundtable. Check in every week for the unfiltered opinions of our writers and editors and join the conversation in the comments section below.
ANOTHER COMMAND PERFORMANCE Mike Walker, senior editor, Golf Magazine: On a day when the leader board looked like golf's version of The Avengers (Phil Mickelson! Vijay Singh! Dustin Johnson! Lee Westwood! Tiger Woods!), Rory McIlroy pulled away for a two-shot victory. He's won three of the last four events he's played in, including the PGA Championship, and he's more than a decade younger than his closest rivals. How good can McIlroy get? Are we witnessing the beginning of a Tiger-like run of dominance on the PGA Tour?
Jim Herre, managing editor, SI Golf Group: Geez, I've been saying no, but now it's time to reconsider. Very impressive. He didn't look a bit fazed by the scary leader board this week. Seems like he gets extra energy playing with Tiger, and the dynamic of their relationship -- at least on the course -- is really interesting.
Mark Godich, senior editor, Sports Illustrated: We'll never see another run like Tiger had, but based on the way he attacked the par-5s at Crooked Stick, Rory is my slam-dunk favorite for Augusta next April. Everyone else can have the field.
Cameron Morfit, senior writer, Golf Magazine: I think it depends on whether Rory's putting remains this good, as it has for his victories in three of his last four starts. Then again, he's not playing too bad tee-to-green, either. For all the big names chasing him, Rory never looked very flustered.
Herre: That's what impressed me, Cam. Rory had to get up and down a few times today, and even though some of his chips and pitches were just OK, he only made one bogey. Cool as a cucumber.
Morfit: And I almost don't even count that bogey, since it was over by then.
Stephanie Wei, contributor, SI Golf+: Yeah, he kept attacking and playing his game, which of course is made for a soft course, but that bogey came on the 72nd hole when he knew he could double and still win. No big deal.
Alan Shipnuck, senior writer, Sports Illustrated: I'm not sure Rory can summon Tiger-like intensity every time he pegs it, but he's clearly a big-game hunter who peaks for the majors and other important tournaments. He's going to own this sport for the next couple of decades.
Gary Van Sickle, senior writer, Sports Illustrated: Every time the tour goes to a big, long golf course that plays wet and soft with no wind, Rory is the guy to beat. The hang time on his shots is remarkable. Players always look great when they win. Let's not forget Rory was missing in action this summer for a couple of months. But he's clearly the No. 1 player in the world, and I don't think anyone is going to take that away from him for years. Not even Tiger.
Michael Bamberger, senior writer, Sports Illustrated: Who knows? My guess he's on a roll, an incredible roll, but it would be unlikely that he's going to go Tiger-like here. For one thing, you need the cooperation of others for that to happen, and that's not likely to happen.
Charlie Hanger, executive editor, Golf.com: I don't think anyone will ever have a run like Tiger had, with, for instance, four consecutive majors, but this is certainly as close as anyone is going to come. Rory is pretty much untouchable right now. The Euros appear to have a few points locked up later this month.
Jim Gorant, senior editor, Sports Illustrated: What's amazing about him is not how good he can get, but how good he already is. So much of his game is already so polished. It'll be all about desire for him going forward.
Van Sickle: The putting help Rory got from Dave Stockton was the last piece of the puzzle. He looks pretty good with the putter now. That's the key club for him. For everyone.
Jeff Ritter, senior producer, Golf.com: He's the man of the moment. Not sure if this will turn into a Tiger 2000 type of run, but he's the guy to beat every time he plays until further notice.
Wei: I've been on the Rory bandwagon from day 1, and no one can keep up with him right now, but I'll put away my pom-poms for a minute to agree with Gary. Rory's been winning on soft courses. I'd like to see him do it on a firm and fast track.
David Dusek, deputy editor, Golf.com: It's impossible to say whether or not we are seeing the next Tiger-like run, but there's no denying that he is playing at an incredibly high level right now. Everyone cools off, but the truly great players are still exceptionally good on their normal days. That's what separates them from everyone else.
Tell us what you think in the comments section below: Is McIlroy about to go on a Tiger-like run?
Go to Page 2
Sun, 09 Sep 2012 19:15:03 -0400jritterIn my scoring system, McIlroy has big FedEx Cup lead at -51 http://rss.golf.com/tour-and-news/rory-mcilroy-running-away-fedex-cup-under-any-scoring-system http://rss.golf.com/tour-and-news/rory-mcilroy-running-away-fedex-cup-under-any-scoring-system
Warren Little / Getty Images
Rory McIlroy has won two of the three events in the FedEx playoffs.
Rory McIlroy would be running away with the FedEx Cup title if the race were based on cumulative score relative to par instead of the complicated points system actually being used.
My suggested system jibes with reality because McIlroy has a big lead in the actual Cup points race. No surprise for someone who's won two of three playoff events heading into the Tour Championship.
McIlroy leads Dustin Johnson by 15 shots; Tiger Woods and Louis Oosthuizen by 17; Phil Mickelson and Lee Westwood by 20. Sound like an insurmountable lead? Not at all. Don't forget, McIlroy was 14 strokes behind Barclay's champion Nick Watney after the first leg of the FedEx Cup series. He gained 41 strokes on Watney the next two events.
Below are the current FedEx Cup standings under my cumulative-score system.
(Two caveats: 1. Playoff event winners received a five-stroke bonus, which means 10 extra shots for McIlroy, and 2. only those who played all four rounds in all three events are eligible. That eliminated players such as Jason Dufner and Sergio Garcia, who opted to rest a week, and others such as U.S. Open champion Webb Simpson, who missed a cut.)
-51 Rory McIlroy -36 Dustin Johnson -34 Tiger Woods -34 Louis Oosthuizen -31 Phil Mickelson -31 Lee Westwood -25 Brandt Snedeker -25 Adam Scott -24 Nick Watney -24 Ryan Moore -19 Bo Van Pelt -18 Tom Gillis -18 Vijay Singh -17 Steve Stricker -17 Greg Chalmers -16 Kevin Stadler -15 Luke Donald -14 Chris Kirk -13 Ian Poulter -13 Seung-yung Noh -12 Zach Johnson -11 John Senden -11 J.B. Holmes -11 Robert Garrigus -10 Bob Estes -10 Ernie Els -10 Padraig Harrington -10 Troy Matteson -10 John Huh
