The Greenbrier is newest kid on PGA Tour's block

As expected, the PGA Tour announced today the creation of The Greenbrier Classic, a new event beginning in 2010 that will take the place of the now-departed Buick Open.

The Greenbrier event will be played on the Old White Course, the original layout at the famous West Virginia resort, which has four golf courses. The tournament will be played July 25-Aug. 1.

The tour has a six-year agreement with The Greenbrier, which has had strong ties to professional golf through the years. It's where the 1979 Ryder Cup and 1994 Solheim Cup matches were played and the resort's two golf pros emeritus have been Sam Snead and Tom Watson.

Since native West Virginian Jim Justice purchased The Greenbrier earlier this year, efforts have been underway to land a PGA Tour event at the resort. With the departure of Buick from the PGA Tour, an opening arose allowing The Greenbrier to fill the void.

It's just one piece of a changing picture on the PGA Tour schedule. Tour officials are working with San Diego golf officials about finding a new title sponsor for what had been called the Buick Invitational at Torrey Pines, a long-time fixture on the early-season schedule.

There's also on-going discussions about the future of the PGA Tour event in Milwaukee, which is seeking sponsorship, and a possible date change for the Canadian Open, which has struggled to draw a top-level field in its slot the week after the British Open championship.

For Michelle Wie, a big achievement

It may be six years since Michelle Wie has won a golf tournament but being invited to join the U.S. team for the Solheim Cup matches later this month is among her most impressive achievements.

For all Wie has -- a ton of talent, striking looks and the the potential to be an enormous star -- it hasn't been easy for her.

She brought much of it on herself, insisting on playing against the men when she hasn't been able to win on the LPGA Tour while seeming sometimes to care more about being a star than being the best player in the world. It hasn't helped that her parents have been more hands-on than they should have, particularly on the golf side of things.

Finally, though, Michelle Wie may be arriving.

She still hasn't won on the LPGA Tour and there are days when her golf game is ordinary but there seem to be more days when Wie seems on the verge of delivering on her potential. She may never be the game-changing player she imagined -- playing in the Masters, winning on the men's tour - but she's just 19.

Wie's putting has bedeviled her at times, costing her the handful of shots that make the difference in winning and finishing third. But, again, there's a tempation to fast-forward everything where Wie is concerned, in part because that's the way she's been presented to us.

When captain Beth Daniel made Wie one of her two captain's picks -- veteran Juli Inkster was the obvious other choice -- Daniel could back it up with Wie's solid resume this year. She has three top-3 finishes this year and was 13th in the points standings.

This could be a big moment off the golf course for Wie, as well. For years, she was viewed warily, a teen star jumping in and out of tour events, getting the diva treatment whether she asked for it or not. There was, it's fair to assume, some jealousy and animosity.

As a member of the American team, Wie becomes part of the circle. It will be interesting to see who Daniel pairs Wie with during the matches at Rich Harvest Farm in Illinois. Think putting Wie with Paula Creamer or Morgan Pressel would get some attention?

At a time when American women's professional golf is struggling, Michelle Wie may be just what it needs. Beth Daniel thinks so.

Moore, Florence elected to Carolinas Golf Hall of Fame

Two golfers with strong Charlotte connections -- Patty Moore and Terry Florence -- have been elected to the Carolinas Golf Hall of Fame.

Moore has been one of the area's top women's players for years, piling up victories almost routinely. In addition to dominating area tournaments, Moore has been a fine player on the national level, also.

She lives in Charlotte and plays out of Carmel Country Club but also spends a good deal of time in Pinehurst.

Florence is a Charlotte native who is among the best players the city has produced. He was instrumental in developing Wild Dunes on the Isle of Palms, S.C., into a top-level golf destination. In recent years, Florence has been director of golf at Bulls Bay in Awendaw, S.C.

Moore and Florence will be inducted during Aug. 17 ceremonies in Pinehurst.

Feherty gets it right about Tiger

Leave it to David Feherty to get it right when it comes to the ripple of controversy stirred by Tiger Woods expressing his frustrations while missing the cut at the British Open two weeks ago.

More than once, Woods was shown slamming a club or barking at himself as shots went astray at Turnberry. He was angry and it showed. It's not the first time Tiger has let his emotions show and it won't be the last.

Some critics have scolded Woods for not biting his tongue or gently putting his driver back in the bag after a lousy tee shot. They're overreacting.

In an interview this week with the Argus Leader in South Dakota, Feherty was quoted saying, "Those critical forget about what he did a couple of weeks before for the troops at the tournament he put on (the AT&T National). All the things he did at Walter Reed, all the things that tournament is about. And he bangs his club here or there?...

"I was fly fishing in Colorado - I didn't see any of it. I've read about it since then. If you play golf for a living and you don't swear or throw the occasional club, you should be disqualified.

"It's not that kind of a game - it's not meant to be played with all the hushed tones. You're supposed to show your emotions."

Tiger gets criticized for being too cold and distant by some people and flogged by others (or maybe the same ones) who prefer he channel his frustration differently. I like him the way he is.

Tucker gets another crack at U.S. Senior Open

Charlotte's Chris Tucker didn't expect to qualify for the U.S. Senior Open this year.

He'd never played TPC Sugarloaf, site of his sectional qualifying round, but it didn't matter. Tucker shot 70 to lead the field and earn a spot in the U.S. Senior Open which begins Thursday at Crooked Stick near Indianapolis.

"I had no expectations," Tucker said.

Now that he's in the field, Tucker does have some expectations. He's not putting himself among the favorites but the former PGA Tour player has some positive vibes going at the place where John Daly introduced himself to the world.

"I have a good feeling because Opens are better for me," said the 51-year old Tucker. "Most of the time par is a decent score. I'm driving it better than I did last year (when he missed the Senior Open cut by a stroke)."

Tucker has no status on the Champions Tour though he intends to make another run at qualifying for the tour later this year. He's stayed busy playing Carolinas PGA section events and has received sponsorship help from John Love of Red Rocks, NASCAR driver/owner Michael Waltrip and former driver Phil Parsons.

As Buick goes away, Tiger comes back

Two items of interest surrounding the PGA Tour's Buick Open this week (if the rain-soaked Canadian Open ever ends):

-- This is apparently the end of the Buick Open after 51 years, a victim of GM's financial problems;

-- It's the first of three straight tournaments for Tiger Woods, who will follow the Buick by playing in the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone and the PGA Championship at Hazeltine.

As for the Buick Open, it seemed inevitable that tournaments would suffer given the economic problems and now it's happening. According to reports, the PGA Tour has another sponsor waiting to take the spot on the schedule but it has to be disturbing news around the tour offices to see a long-time event expire.

The long-term question is how the tour will be impacted when it begins negotiating new television deals down the road. There have been suggestions that purses should be cut and I can see that happening, though reluctantly.

From an image standpoint, it might help the tour.

Commissioner Tim Finchem has already raised the notion of some future 'flex' scheduling with a few events, in an effort to get more players to play tournaments they might otherwise pass. It's just a concept, Finchem said, but it's an interesting one.

As for Tiger, this week immediately became more interesting when he entered (and, by the way, he no longer has ties to Buick so it's not a contractual thing). Obviously, he wasn't sharp at Turnberry and this looks like an effort to play himself back into form leading into the PGA.

It will be interesting to see how his season looks three weeks from now.

Huntersville's Harrell shows he belongs

Huntersville’s Logan Harrell went into the U.S. Junior Amateur golf championship this week with the goal of winning.

He didn’t quite reach that but Harrell’s run to the semifinals still brought plenty of satisfaction.

“My goal was to win and my other goal was to play well. I exceeded the second part because I played about as well as I ever have,” said Harrell, a rising senior at Hopewell High.

Harrell was eliminated in the semifinals Friday afternoon 1-up by his 15-year old friend Jordan Spieth of Dallas, Tex.

In the quarterfinals Friday morning at Trump National in Bedminster, N.J., Harrell defeated Cameron Wilson of Rowayton, Cal., 2-up.

Against Spieth in the afternoon, Harrell found himself 4-down after six holes but four birdies in a five-hole stretch allowed him to pull even with five holes remaining before Spieth pulled away again.

Harrell, who plays at Cowans Ford Country Club and will attend the University of South Carolina, had a top-10 finish in the prestigious Foot-Joy Invitational AJGA event earlier this summer and reached the round of 16 in the Carolinas Amateur.

“I proved I can play with the best of them,” Harrell said.

A banker comes to golf's defense

It's nice to see Seth Waugh, the CEO of Deutsche Bank Americas, standing up for the value of his company's investment in the PGA Tour event it hosts.

Golf has become a dirty word in some circles these days but Waugh defended spending company money on a golf tournament.

"You can think of the golf tournament as a silly little thing in terms of what's going on in the world but these are the bricks that can build the economy back up. Nobody in the world is going to want to take $70 million less."

Waugh was referring to studies citing the economic impact of the Deutsche Bank Championship at between $40 and $70 million annually. He was speaking to Boston business and charity leaders on Wednesday, according to The Associated Press.

Last year, the Deutsche Bank Championship donated $3.5 million to charity.

There has been no word from Wells Fargo or Quail Hollow Championship officials about any potential change in the terms of their agreement for the PGA Tour event held here each May. Wells Fargo officials have maintained they intend to honor the terms of the contract they inherited in their purchase of Wachovia, which covers the tournament through 2014.

While the furor over financial institutions, particularly those that received federal bailout money, has subsided to some degree, it's still a tender subject.

A high-ranking official from a prominent resort recently told me that no company wants to be associated with the words golf or spa when it comes to business travel or entertaining, at least not right now.

There are modest signs of improvement, the executive said, but the impact has still been immense on the hospitality industry, which in turn impacts restaurant and hotel workers, course operators and many others.

Sunrise...sunset

Some people like to play golf early in the morning when there's still dew on the ground and the greens are as good as they'll be all day. I get that, but as someone whose day gradually improves with my coffee intake, you can have the first tee time.

And the second, third, fourth and fifth, unless it's the Starbucks Open.

Tiger Woods likes to tee off just after dawn. Out of bed. Out of the car. Straight to the first tee without any practice balls. Cold shaft it.

I prefer late afternoon when the shadows are stretching, the edge is coming off the heat and the only thing you're racing is the sunset. Sure, the greens are a little scruffy by that time of the day with bunker sand splashed in your putting line and poorly repaired ball marks dotting the surface.

But there's a peace about golf late in the day, especially if you're out there alone, bag on your shoulder, hoofing it around nine holes playing two balls. You may be by yourself but you're not alone. There's always a demon's voice or two in your head when you're playing.

Even the most ordinary golf course looks pretty late in the day. You can see the contours in the fairways and on the greens. I've seen gators, fox, deer, hawks and rabbits on the course -- and that's without leaving the fairway.

I have a friend who spends his days at the golf course and one day early in his marriage, his wife asked him what time he'd be home that evening.

The man walked to the back porch, opened the door and threw a golf ball in the yard.

"See that golf ball?" he asked his wife. "When it's too dark to see that ball, I'll be home 30 minutes after that."

Theirs has been a long and happy marriage.

Like a hangover, only worse

I received an e-mail Sunday afternoon from a friend who said that watching Tom Watson lose the Open Championship the way he did was the most disappointing thing he'd ever seen in sports.

It certainly felt that way.

A day later and the disappointment is lingering like a hangover.

Nothing against Stewart Cink, obviously, who has been a very good player for a long time and, if you've ever been around him, you'd be very happy for him because he's a really good guy.

Plus, he won the championship as much as Watson lost it. Consider this: Of the players who started the final round within five strokes of the lead -- there were 13 of them -- only one broke par.

Cink.

Still, this was Watson's moment. The first three days it was a sweet story about a 59-year old guy hanging around at Turnberry, rekindling memories of his glory days. Then it became Watson's tournament to win.

When his tee shot on the 72nd hole found the fairway, I thought he would win. When he missed the green long, I still thought he would win. When he had an eight-footer to win, I thought his chance had passed.

When it went to a playoff, I confess I quit watching. I didn't want to see it end the way it did -- plus I was out of town and had a long drive home. (In the spirit of full disclosure, I did listen to it on the radio where the brilliant British announcers didn't attempt to hide their disappointment).

The fact Watson lost the playoff by six strokes to Cink doesn't matter. When it went to a playoff, the outcome seemed preordained.

It had taken so much for Watson to get there and, given the chance to finish the story, he couldn't. The emotional impact had to be immense.

In his post-game media session, Watson talked about how the loss "tears at his gut."

He wasn't alone.

Can Watson win? Never say never

Can Tom Watson win this British Open?

Logic says no.

He's 59 years old, his putting stroke gets shaky under pressure and he has 54 more holes to play at Turnberry, where the conditions aren't likely to be softer than they were Thursday when Watson surged to the top of the leader board for much of the day.

Golf, as anyone who's ever played it knows, isn't logical.

Want to hit it a long way? Swing easy.

A 300-yard drive and a six-inch putt count the same on a scorecard.

So, yes, Watson can win this weekend.

It's not likely. Last year, 53-year old Greg Norman teased us by leading after three rounds only to stumble coming in. He played beautifully but it wasn't enough.

Watson is a different case. He's won five British Opens, three Senior British Opens and comes alive in Scotland.

If the weather turns nasty, as it can quickly do, it may work in Watson's favor. He's one of the all-time great bad weather players. At 59, the larger question may be whether his old bones can hold up to the conditions, not if his game can.

Not that he needed to but Watson reminded us again Thursday of what a special player he has been through the years.

If he fades from the scene this weekend, that's okay. He's given us a thrill already.

But wouldn't it be something if Watson has a little magic left after all these years.

Ranking the majors, a personal list

For the next few days, we’ll be treated to watching the British Open from Turnberry where we’ll see dozens of images of the famous lighthouse with the Ailsa Craig in the distance.

If this Open Championship lives up to its reputation, it will give us a healthy dose of weather, a lesson in links golf and a Hall of Fame champion.

It got me thinking about the four major championships and how I’d rank them in terms of my personal favorites.

1. The Masters
It’s my favorite for so many reasons. It starts with Augusta National, the perfect stage for tournament golf. The place is beautiful and no matter how often you go there, it’s still mesmerizing.

Throw in the history, the elegance, the ghosts, the 12th hole, the 13th hole, the clubhouse, the big tree behind the clubhouse, the azaleas, Sarazen’s deuce, the spirit of Bobby Jones, even the pimento cheese sandwiches, and, in my mind, there’s nothing better in golf.

2. The Open Championship
I love that it’s called the Open Championship, though we know it more as the British Open. It’s truly the world’s golf championship and more than any other major, it brings everything into play.

It challenges players physically in the wind, rain and chill. It requires imagination to play links golf. It rewards power but it also rewards creativity and doesn’t put an undue emphasis on putting.

Its history is the story of golf and the feeling of being there (I’ve been fortunate to cover two Opens) is unlike any other event. If you’ve ever considered making the journey, take my advice – do it. You won’t regret it.

3. The U.S. Open
I’m not sure I’ve ever heard anyone say the U.S. Open is fun, not that it tries to be. It’s big, mean and unrelenting. It’s golf’s version of a marathon.

I like the U.S. Open much better now that Mike Davis has taken over the course set-up, making it fairer and more interesting. The USGA loves creating what it believes to be the ultimate test of a golfer.

Too often, the courses are too hard but the U.S. Open is about handling difficulty. The last man standing usually wins.

4. The PGA Championship

It may be fourth on the list but I really like the PGA, which isn’t so hung up on score as the Masters and U.S. Open. It’s played on an outstanding course and it’s okay if the best players make some birdies.

It may not get the same respect or adulation as the others but it’s a true major championship.

It’s no secret the folks at Quail Hollow want to host a PGA Championship sometime down the road. Don’t be surprised if it happens.

Where does the LPGA go from here?

Wanted: A new commissioner for the LPGA.

Requirements: Save a sinking tour in a bad economy without the help of many instantly recognizable American stars.

While the official announcement of the end of Carolyn Bivens' era is expected sometime this week, it's clear the LPGA has already begun looking for someone to steer a ship in peril.

The names of Judy Rankin, Nancy Lopez and Dottie Pepper have been tossed out but it may be someone from the business world who gets called in to help stabilize the process.

Former Bank of America sports marketing official Dockery Clark, who pulled off the brilliant move of getting Annika Sorenstam to play the PGA Tour stop at Colonial a few years ago, was rumored to be a candidate when Bivens was hired and with her sports background (she's worked at Miller beer most recently) she would likely have some strong ideas about how to reposition the LPGA Tour.

It's a tough job. Bivens' aggressive style was intended to secure higher rights fees for tour events. But as the economy weakened, so did the LPGA's position and Bivens' various missteps became more pronounced.

The situation is complicated by the fact the American presence -- both in events and top players -- has diminished. Several long-time tour stops have been lost and, in a worst-case scenario, there could be as few as 10 LPGA events in the U.S. next year. That's not exactly building your brand at home.

While Eun Hee Ji won the Women's Open with a dramatic birdie on the 72nd hole Sunday, the absence of top Americans in contention was a reminder the tour is lacking a compelling set of stars right now.

Just a couple of years ago, the LPGA seemed ready to soar but until Michelle Wie starts winning, Paula Creamer proves she's as good as her marketing and another couple of players emerge, the tour lacks some sizzle. There are some terrific players, Jiyai Shin could be the best down the road, but it's a tough time right now.

Lorena Ochoa is one of the best of any generation but she doesn't move the needle the way Tiger or Phil Mickleson does.

Women's professional golf is a niche sport inside a niche sport. It's a tough sell in good times and a tougher sell right now.

The top players made it clear they're ready for a change at the top. That was the first step.

Where the tour goes from here is the question.

The PGA Tour gets groovy

After much angst, deliberation, analysis, over-analysis, whining, discussion, study and a few too many pitch shots from ankle-deep rough that stuck like Velcro, the PGA Tour announced Tuesday that it will adopt new rules in 2010 about the kind of grooves allowed on wedges used by the game's best players.

Without getting too technical about U-grooves (since I'd only confuse the matter), suffice it to say, the game just got harder for the pros.

Starting next year, the pros will have to use wedges with grooves that make spinning the ball, particularly from the rough, more difficult. It's been coming for a while and there was some thought that the PGA Tour might push it back a year because of carping from some equipment companies and players. Instead, commissioner Tim Finchem announced they're moving forward in 2010.

That was the right move.

Is it a roll back on equipment advances?

Yes.

And it's a big deal.

Talking last year to Mike Davis, the man who sets up the U.S. Open courses for the USGA, he said it would be a more dramatic change than people think. Players will have less control on shots from the rough and it will force many to reconsider the golf balls they use, opting for balls that spin more than the ones they're using now.

The rule only applies to professionals next year. By 2014, it will be in effect for high-level amateurs and it goes into effect for all golfers in 2024, by which time we'll all have worn out the wedges we now have.

If you buy new wedges next year, you'll get the new grooves unless you buy this year's model of wedges.

In theory, the new rule will make it more important for players to drive the ball in the fairway. We'll see if that happens.

If nothing else, it will make the game more challenging for the pros, who are wizards around the greens.

I have no problem with them being able to save strokes from seemingly impossible positions with their wedge play. But it should be more about their skill and less about the equipment doing it for them.

That's what this is about.

Hicks, Stewart and Pinehurst -- again

Ten years later, Hicks and Stewart are together again at Pinehurst.

This time, Mike Hicks is caddying for Aaron Stewart, son of the late Payne Stewart, as he attempts to qualify Tuesday for the match-play portion of the North and South Amateur at Pinehurst No. 2. In 1999, Payne Stewart won the U.S. Open at Pinehurst.

Aaron Stewart plays college golf for SMU and is one of 97 golfers chasing 33 available spots in the 64-player bracket that begins match play on Wednesday.

The top 31 seeds are already in place with defending champion Matt Savage, a Florida State golfer, the No. 1 seed.

Charlotte's Corey Nagy is exempted into match play. He is seeded 13th.

Oklahoma State's Morgan Hoffman, ranked No. 2 in the world amateur rankings, is in the field along with 13th-ranked Erik Flores.

The story of Mudville Mick

I thought I'd pass along a poem written by my brother, Dave, this week in the aftermath of Phil Mickelson's latest U.S. Open disappointment. Nice to know somebody in the family has a way with words.

Mudville Mick
By Dave Green

The outlook was quite brilliant for the Mudville Mick that day;
The score stood four to four with but four holes more to play.
When Duval nearly died at three, and Barnes rode the bogey train,
A sickly silence had fallen upon the patrons of the game.

A straggling few got up to go in deep despair.
The rest clung to that hope which springs eternal in the human breast;
They thought if only Mickelson could but get a putt to drop
We'd put up even money now that he'd end up on top.

Mick had made a bird at twelve; at thirteen he made eagle,
and suddenly he was in the chase like a fox-hunting beagle.
He made a par at 14, then walked to fifteen tee,
The toughest hole of all with a green he couldn't see.

And now the urethane-covered sphere came hurtling through the air,
And Micky stood a-watching it in haughty grandeur there.
Not great by Micky's standards, but he had a putt for par.
Like so many prior Opens, it failed to find the jar.

From the hillside, bleak with people, there went up a muffled roar,
Like the beating of the storm waves on a worn and distant shore.
"Oh no!" shouted someone in the stands, "Not again" another cried.
But Mickey still had most of New York standing stalwart by his side.

With a smile of Christian charity great Mickey's visage shone;
He stilled the rising tumult; he bade the game go on;
He parred the easy 16th, and once more the spheroid flew;
But Mickey needed birdie at one of the last two.

They saw his face grow stern and cold, they saw his muscles strain,
And they knew that hero Mickey would let it fly again.


The sneer is gone from Mickey's lip, his jaw is clinched in hate;
He pounds with cruel violence the ball, and his cursed fate.

And now it lands softly in the long grass at the par three seventeen,
And now he needs to get it up and down from just off the green.

His second is not his best, it leaves him six feet for par.
If this one fails to find the cup, then honey start the car.

Oh! somewhere in this favored land the sun is shining bright;
The band is playing somewhere and somewhere hearts are light,
And somewhere men are laughing and somewhere children shout;
But there is no joy in Mudville -- Mickey's par putt has stayed out.

Being the U.S. Open champion won't change Glover

Lucas Glover was spending Tuesday making the rounds in New York with his new U.S. Open trophy.

He was on Regis Philbin's morning show, did some ESPN stuff and was booked to be on 'The Late Show With David Letterman,' pretty heady stuff for a guy most golf fans only had a vague awareness of before the U.S. Open.

Nothing will ever be the same for Glover, though I'm thinking he won't change. He's a solid guy, somebody you'd like to spend time with.

He'll go on being Lucas, keeping up with Clemson football, staying close with his friends, being nice to everybody he comes in contact with.

As U.S. Open champion, he's probably going to be on the President's Cup team this fall and there's a good chance he'll be on the Ryder Cup team next year in Wales. He nearly ruined his game trying to make the Ryder Cup team in 2006 but now he's older, wiser and knows better how to handle expectations, particularly his own.

Glover understands he may not have been the most popular champion Monday at Bethpage. Phil Mickelson's story was so compelling as was David Duval's retuurn to glory. Ricky Barnes, meanwhile, was the ultimate underdog.

Glover, though, emerged as a worthy champion. He played better than everyone and he earned it. When it came time for someone to win the U.S. Open, Glover grabbed it with his birdie on the 16th hole.

As people get to know more about Glover, they'll come to like him even more.

How do you not like a U.S. Open champion who plans to go back to his favorite barbecue joint for lunch when he gets back home to Greenville, S.C.?

Lucas Glover, U.S. Open champion

I understand that most of the country wanted Phil Mickelson or David Duval.

Standing behind the 17th green today at Bethpage, watching Duval birdie the 16th hole in the distance while Phil was playing the par-3 17th trying to stay even with Lucas Glover, the roars for Duval and Mickelson were enormous.

More than once, the bleacher crowd broke into a chant of "Let's go Phil, let's go Phil!."

Lucas Glover was the other guy.

And now he's the U.S. Open champion.

If you don't know much about him, trust me, you'd like him. It's tough not to.

Sure, he doesn't smile a lot and he keeps his head down while he's playing golf but he earned this moment and a lot of people are happy for him.

He's not who you may think he is. Sure, he's a son of the south, living in Greenville, S.C., but he's a man of the world. Books. Wine. Music. Those are things Glover cares about.

Not as much as he cares about Clemson athletics but he lives in a big world.

And he's funny. Quietly so.

After signing his scorecard Monday afternoon, Glover was being escorted around the back of the Bethpage clubhouse to the 18th green to receive the Open trophy. When he saw his agent, Mac Barnhardt standing on the porch, Glover smiled and stuck his tongue out at his manager.

All in good fun.

As his caddie, Don Cooper said, "We knew how good he was. He proved it.

"You'll see a lot of smiles from here on out."

It's finally a U.S. Open

It took a while -- five wet, sloppy days -- but it finally became the U.S. Open today.

Lucas Glover has a two-stroke lead with seven holes to play in the final round of the Open but they'll be the toughest seven holes he's ever played.

Tiger Woods isn't going to win but Phil Mickelson still may. So may Ross Fisher, the best player on the board you've never heard of. Hunter Mahan is right there.

They're two back on the back nine and the U.S. Open causes strange things to happen.

It's no great surprise that the leaders -- Glover and Ricky Barnes -- have backed up. It would have been a bigger surprise if they hadn't. Barnes has looked uncomfortable throughout the day. Glover, meanwhile, looks understandably nervous.

They play for moments like these. Now someone has to deliver.

Has Mickelson's moment arrived?

Phil Mickelson has 16 holes today to make it happen at the U.S. Open.

Can he still win?

Absolutely.

Will he?

That may depend more on the two players five shots in front of him -- Lucas Glover and Ricky Barnes -- than on Phil.

Mickelson resumes his final round today at 2-under par, tied with David Duval, Ross Fisher and Hunter Mahan. The attention, though, is focused squarely on Lefty, who is adored by the muddy New York crowds.

To this point, Mickelson has done what's essential to win an Open -- hang around. He hasn't been among the leaders but he's been close enough to the front to remain relevant. Making two late birdies to close out his third round Sunday was huge. It kept him in the tournament.

If Mickelson can start fast today and make the co-leaders look over their shoulders, he has a chance. He'll be playing off the emotion of the crowd, not to mention his own personal emotion with wife, Amy, home with breast cancer.

A Mickelson victory today is still a long shot. But in a tournament that has been damp, dreary and disappointing to this point, maybe his moment has arrived.

It's time to find out.

The end is in sight at the U.S. Open. Is a winner?

At the great risk of jinxing this thing, it appears the U.S. Open is going to end on Monday.

The fourth round, which once seemed as far away as Antarctica, began at 5:30 Sunday and it will resume Monday during morning rush hour. If the rain stays away as predicted, we could have a champion by early afternoon -- though there's always the chance of an 18-playoff, which seems totally likely the way this Open has gone.

Even with that, there's reason to think we'll have a champion before Tuesday.

Who will it be?

Not Tiger Woods.

Ricky Barnes?

Hard to believe a guy with 37 career PGA Tour starts can win the U.S. Open.

Lucas Glover?

He has to prove he can handle a final round unlike any he's ever played.

David Duval?

What a story that would be.

Phil Mickelson?

See David Duval.

The U.S. Open is always a grind. Few have been as grinding as this one.

And it's still anyone's guess who wins.

This U.S. Open is a major mess

This may be the worst major championship ever.

That's not me saying it (though it's what I'm thinking) but the great Dan Jenkins put this U.S. Sopping Open at No. 200 in his list of favorite majors Saturday night after we had taken cover from another downpour that assured this championship won't end before Monday -- if it ever ends.

The rain that didn't hit Saturday afternoon arrived Saturday evening and even L.L. Bean didn't have anything that could keep you dry it rained so hard.

Rather than start at 7:30 this morning as planned with the goal of finishing by dusk, third-round tee times were pushed back to noon, there's hope the fourth round could start around cocktail hour and we'll all reconvene at Bethpage early Monday in hopes of somehow, someway finishing an Open that has almost no chance of being memorable for anything other than the weather.

It's been miserable so far.

It's no one's fault, other than Mother Nature.

There were good intentions all around for this U.S. Open but the weather has ruined it, to this point anyway.

Even in ideal conditions, Bethpage Black is tougher for spectators than for players. There aren't many good viewing areas unless you're perched in the grandstands. It's been so wet, engineering officials have been checking the bleachers and hospitality tents to make sure they're still secure.

It's so muddy that many places are impassable. It's too bad. The U.S. Open is special and should be something to be celebrated.

Maybe the finish -- whenever it comes -- will somehow save it.

Or maybe, it will just finally end and we can all go dry out.

Murphy takes his star turn in the U.S. Open

The U.S. Open always finds an unlikely star.

Saturday afternoon, former Charlotte 49ers golfer Trevor Murphy became that star.

It looked as if where Murphy finished might determine where the 36-hole cut score fell. Then he birdied the 16th, 17th and 18th holes -- with Johnny Miller providing the commentary -- and he had brightened up a gray Saturday afternoon.

Murphy's second-round 69 left him at even-par through two rounds and tied for 16th place, three strokes ahead of Tiger Woods.

Murphy wasn't aware of the television time he'd received but he was riding a high while waiting for his third round to begin.

"I'm still kinda taking it all in," Murphy said.

After graduating from Charlotte in 2008, Murphy considered staying in the area but decided to live in Scottsdale, Az., where he plays the Gateway Tour, a developmental circuit.

"It was a tough decision," Murphy said.

On Saturday afternoon, though, Bethpage Black felt like home.

Glover has time to enjoy his good play

Lucas Glover is reading a Clive Cussler novel in his down time at the U.S. Open, in part, because he says he's already memorized all the preseason football magazines and what they're saying about his Clemson Tigers.

Glover sits one shot behind leader Ricky Barnes in the second round of this weather-challenged Open, which is expected to be given another thorough soaking this afternoon if forecasters and Doppler radars can be believed.

This is new territory for the former Clemson All-American, who has never finished better than a tie for 20th in his 12 major championship starts.

Catching a break with his tee times, which allowed him to play in the best weather Friday and Saturday, Glover had a 20-foot putt on the ninth green Saturday (his 18th) to shoot 63, which would have added his name to an impressive list of players sharing the record for lowest score ever in a major.

"But I weenied out and left it short," Glover said.

Still, a 69-64 start has put Glover in position to do something special this weekend. He's driving the ball beautifully, which is an essential building block for U.S. Open success. He's also holing the five and six-foot putts that turn solid rounds into exceptional rounds.

Glover was finished by 9 a.m. Saturday and if the forecasted bad weather arrives later, he won't play again until sometime Sunday.

After lights out at 11:30 Friday night, Glover was up at 4:50 Saturday morning. He planned to make a stop by the grocery store to get some food to stuff in his golf bag and carve out time for an afternoon nap.

Whenever his third round starts, Glover -- who lives in Greenville, S.C. -- doesn't plan to change anything.

"I'm just going to keep doing the same stuff I've been doing," he said. "I'm only halfway through.

Tiger's feeling the squeeze in this Open

This time, Tiger Woods is on the wrong side of the U.S. Open.

It's all a matter of luck but Woods -- and every other player who drew early-late pairings for the first and second rounds at Bethpage Black -- is getting the worst conditions in which to play.

It was miserable Thursday morning when Woods and the other players in the morning started and it only got worse. When they returned to the course Friday morning, it was still soaking wet.

The players with late tee times in the first round played in ideal conditions Friday afternoon and the scores showed it. Mike Weir shot 66 with a double bogey, Peter Hanson shot 66 and the ghost of David Duval shot 67.

Then, those guys got to go right back out and continue playing in good conditions until dark, while Woods and others faced a rainy Saturday.

If the forecast is correct, there should three or four hours of golf time Saturday morning before the bad stuff moves in -- while Woods is on the course.

Seven years ago here, Sergio Garcia complained that Tiger got all the breaks, even with the weather.

Not this time.

Wow, the sun's out at the U.S. Open -- temporarily

Perhaps it's coincidence but the sun made its first appearance in several days at Bethpage Black Friday just about the time crowd favorite Phil Mickelson was teeing off in his first round, a full day later than scheduled.

The good news is this water-soaked U.S. Open is moving along nicely today. The bad news they're still playing the first round, hoping to get the second round started around 4 p.m. and facing a weather forecast that looks worse than the spectator walkways around Bethpage Black.

A Monday finish -- typically dreaded at U.S. Opens -- is now an optimistic alternative.

Among the early finishers, High Point resident Drew Weaver, recently graduated from Virginia Tech, posted a 1-under par 69 to be among the leaders while Clemson golfer Ben Martin held the outright lead for a time before a series of three-putts left him with a 2-over 72.

Former Charlotte 49ers golfer Trevor Murphy shot 1-over par 71, finishing with a birdie on the ninth hole (his 18th) and he'll be in very good shape whenever he begins his second round.

Tiger Woods was kicking himself after playing his last four holes 4-over par to shoot 74. He made two double bogeys in the first round though the encouraging thing is he also made two doubles in the first round of the Open at Torrey Pines last year and we all know how that turned out.

High Point's Weaver states his case

High Point's Drew Weaver wants to make a point to the committee choosing the United States Walker Cup team this fall.

He got its attention -- and everyone else's -- when he was among the U.S. Open's early leaders after posting a 1-under 69 at rain-soaked Bethpage Black.

Weaver won the 2007 British Amateur championship but was not included on the prestigious Walker Cup team that fall. After graduating Virginia Tech this spring, Weaver said he's remaining amateur this summer in an effort to make the team, which will play the Great Britain and Ireland team at Merion in September.

"It's a huge motivation," Weaver said.

After playing almost 11 holes before play was called due to heavy rain Thursday, Weaver started well Friday, holing a 12-foot par putt at the 12th. From there, he birdied three of his last six holes.

"I'm feeling like everything is finally coming together," said Weaver, who has been working with putting expert Mike Shannon in recent months to solve his struggles on the greens.

Weaver was among the early finishers in the second round. Ben Martin, a rising senior at Clemson, was leading the tournament at 2-under par through 13 holes while Tiger Woods was struggling at 3-over through 17 holes.

Tournament officials expect to complete the first round this afternoon and begin the second round. The weather forecast, however, continues to worsen with an 80 percent chance of heavy rain expected to further delay the event on Saturday.

Can this Open still finish on Sunday?

Now what?

After continued heavy rains forced the weather-stalled first round of the U.S. Open to be suspended until Friday, the increasingly ominous question is whether this championship can be completed as scheduled on Sunday.

The forecast calls for decent conditions on Friday but a return to potentially heavy rain on Saturday with showers again on Sunday.

Asked if the tournament can still conclude on schedule if the forecast is correct, USGA director of competition Mike Davis said, "Finishing Sunday would be borderline impossible."

After play was suspended at 10:16 a.m. Thursday, on-site forecasters expected the rain to subside by 1:30 p.m. However, showers continued to persist and the decision was made to suspend play because water had ponded around the course, making it unplayable.

The plan, weather-permitting, is to resume the first round at 7:30 a.m. Friday. If there are no delays, the second round could begin by approximately 4 p.m.

With another one inch of rain predicted Saturday, officials are hopeful getting the first 36 holes completed by Saturday night then try to finish with a 36-hole day on Sunday.

It is possible, chairman of the championship committee Jim Hyler said, that some players could play more than 36 holes in a day in an effort to finish on time.

"We will not determine the national championship until we have played 72 holes," Davis said. "If that takes us into Monday or Tuesday...well, a Women's Open went to Wednesday in the 1980s."

Soaked Open may resume later today

First-round play in the U.S. Open was suspended for the day at 1:45 p.m. Thursday after less than half the field had begun play.

Play is scheduled to resume at 7:30 a.m. on Friday.

Even as the rain continued to pour down outside, Jim Hyler -- championship director for the USGA -- said he is optimistic there will be more golf played today at Bethpage Black in the U.S. Open.

Hyler met with the media around noon -- his navy rain suit still wet -- to update the status of this weather-stalled Open.

Hyler said it would take just over one hour for the course to be readied for play once the heavy rain that has dropped .6 inches of rain on Bethpage today subsides.

An army of maintenance workers will spring into action -- squeegies in hand -- and officials are hopeful they can get in three to five hours of golf later today.

It's unlikely that all the players scheduled to play in the afternoon will tee off and Hyler acknowledged there's little chance -- even if predicted good weather on Friday -- that the second round can be finished before sometime Saturday.

Golfers were on the course for more than three hours this morning before the rain finally outpaced the ability to squeegie the greens dry. Eventually, there were ponds and small streams on fairways and greens around the course.

Once play resumes today -- if it does -- Hyler said USGA rules allow for players to have their putting lines squeegied before they putt. Their lines will be squeegied three feet past the hole, as well.

The low-lying 18th fairway will be a problem. Balls are expected to embed in the wet fairway and players will be allowed a free drop. However, they may have to play from casual water because their nearest relief might be 50 yards away in heavy rough.

"There's nothing we can do about the weather," Hyler said. "This is the first suspension we've had in the Open since 2004. It's a outdoor game. You react to it."

That didn't take long -- rain stops the Open

Well, they made it a little over three hours before rain stopped the U.S. Open.

As I write this, it's pouring and it has been for a while. That explains the ponds and streams on greens around Bethpage Black.

It's eventually going to stop. It may not be today, sadly. A check of the local radar right now looks like the Green Bay Packers uniform -- all green and yellow.

There's an army of workers on the course, pushing squeegies and other gizmos designed to push the water away. Right now, they're losing the battle.

The larger problem is the 18th fairway, which is built on an old swamp and may be reverting to its original form right now.

Keeping it playable is going to be a challenge when and if the rain stops.

At the moment, the quartet of Jeff Brehaut, Johan Edfors, Adam Parr and Ryan Spears are leading the Open at 1-under par. Tiger Woods has already made a double bogey but he's only 1-over par with rain dripping off him.

Phil Mickelson is someplace warm and dry.

Thankfully, so am I.

This Open could end up all wet

It's going to rain on this U.S. Open.

The only question, it seems, is how much.

Weather forecasters tend to be no more trustworthy than John Daly's comebacks but they sound convinced that Thursday is going to be nasty out here in the mid-section of Long Island. They're not talking about a gentle rain. This is expected to be a serious rain, the kind that leaves you wet for a while.

And the wind's expected to blow.

Forget The Golf Channel. We may need The Weather Channel.

The USGA, being the official rulemakers of American golf, isn't about to let players use lift, clean and place procedures when it gets squishy. There's a reason it's also called lift, clean and cheat.

If the rain stays steady, this Open could take a while. The 18th hole is already an issue because it was built on a swamp and continues to drain like one. If it gets much more rain, players may have to go to the hospitality tents to find relief from casual water.

They're intent on getting this thing started and grinding through the rain. It's part of the golf challenge.

There's always the threat of the U.S. Open finishing on Monday because of the 18-hole playoff. I'm hoping that's the only reason is might finish on Monday.

Amy's message to Phil: She wants a trophy

Phil Mickelson didn't come all the way to Long Island just to play golf.

His wife, Amy, back home in San Diego waiting to begin treatment for breast cancer July 1, has playfully prodded her husband about what she wants from this U.S. Open.

"She's left me a number of little notes, texts, cards, hints, that she would like to have a silver trophy in her hospital room. So I'm going to try to accommodate that," Mickelson said during his 8 a.m. press conference at Bethpage.

Mickelson flew into New York late Tuesday after spending two days at home with his family. They celebrated his daughter Amanda's birthday on Monday then celebrated Phil's 39th birthday Tuesday.

His three kids brought him breakfast in bed which preceded a family trip to Mickelson's "favorite little breakfast joint" later on.

It was hard for Amy to top the birthday present she gave her husband last year -- a real dinosaur head.

This year, Mickelson got some fashionable sunglasses ("Which is good because my fashion sense isn't the best," he said) and a small video camera that shoots 30 frames a second, allowing him to easier study his golf swing.

Mickelson said the U.S. Open will likely be his last competitive golf until August, essentially taking the British Open off his schedule while Amy deals with her treatments.

There will be a family vacation next week before the treatment starts.

Mickelson reiterated what he said last week in Memphis that the public and private response has been overwhelming.

"We don't feel like we're alone in this," he said.

Mickelson seemed upbeat Wednesday morning, smiling and chatting in the media room and on the putting green before going out to play a practice round with Justin Leonard.

Unlike last week at Memphis when he got choked up talking about his wife's condition, Mickelson didn't get overly emotional.

"We're optimmistic about the end result but the process won't be easy," Mickelson said.

No surprise here -- Tiger likes his chances

The question to Tiger Woods Tuesday morning was straightforward:

If the wet conditions persist this week at Bethpage Black, making a long golf course play even longer, does Woods think it helps his chance of winning?

"I like my chances in any major," Woods said.

Two weeks ago, Woods' status as the pre-tournament favorite was shakier than it is today. He answered most questions when he shot a near-perfect final-round 65 to win The Memorial Tournament in his last start before the Open, making it easier to brush off his Sunday struggles at Quail Hollow and The Players Championship

Now the question is who might be his likely challengers. Jim Furyk comes to mind. Geoff Ogilvy comes to mind. It's probably too much to ask of Phil Mickelson given what he and his wife, Amy, are dealing with. Otherwise, the list of challengers is murky.

When 19-year old Rory McIlroy was asked Tuesday if he felt ready to challenge Woods this week, the teenager said not if he plays like he did at the Memorial. Makes him sound wise beyond his years.

It's not 200 but 50 majors isn't bad

Reading and jealously chuckling through the highlights from Dan Jenkins’ work covering 200 of golf’s major championships sent me to counting recently.

I’ve never been good with numbers as my checkbook and score cards will verify but I discovered that this week at the U.S. Open at Bethpage I am covering my 50th major championship.

At four majors a year (which won’t be happening), I’m still almost 40 years from catching the Ben Hogan of golf writers but, still, 50 is a nice round number.

I should at this point say something nice about editors whom I’ve convinced to keep sending to places most people dream of going on their vacations.

Augusta (28 times). Pebble Beach. St. Andrews. Pinehurst. Shinnecock Hills.

(Note to editors: Want a Bethpage visor?)

Okay, I did cover a PGA Championship at Shoal Creek in Birmingham one August years ago but it’s the price one pays.

I’ve covered majors won by Jack Nicklaus, Seve Ballesteros, Ben Crenshaw, Nick Faldo, Phil Mickelson and that Tiger Woods fellow.

I’ve also covered majors won by Wayne Grady, Rich Beem and Shaun Micheel.

That’s golf.

Just when you think you’ve got it figured out, Larry Mize chips in to beat Greg Norman.

The first major championship I ever covered was the 1979 Masters when Ed Sneed bogeyed the last three holes and Fuzzy Zoeller won on his – and my – first trip to Augusta National.

I’m guessing Sneed doesn’t remember it as fondly as I do.

I saw Arnie play his final Masters – a couple of times. I also saw Nicklaus play his final Masters, U.S. Open, British Open and PGA Championship.

As fate would have it, I found a spot directly behind the tee on the 17th hole at St. Andrews – the famous Road Hole – when Nicklaus was playing the last two holes of his major championship career.

Waiting to hit his tee shot, Nicklaus walked back to the water cooler where I was standing, smiled and nodded hello. Maybe he could have said something in that moment. I couldn’t.

I saw Tiger change golf forever when he won the 1997 Masters and I saw him destroy the U.S. Open record book in 2000 at Pebble Beach when he won by 15 strokes – and had a triple bogey.

I remember the queasy feeling of watching Norman squander a six-shot lead in the final round of the 1996 Masters and the muted celebration when Faldo won a tournament the Shark lost.

I’ve seen Tiger win at Augusta, Pebble Beach and St. Andrews among other places.

So, of the 50 majors I’ve covered (I’ve been to a handful of others but not in a working capacity), which are my five favorites?

These are:
5. 2000 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach

Just being at Pebble Beach makes almost any top-five list but watching Tiger shatter the U.S. Open scoring record in what may be the best 72-hole performance ever made it spectacular.

And, oh yeah, Nicklaus owned the place for the first two days, playing his final U.S. Open.

4. 2005 British Open at St. Andrews

Few places live up to our expectations and it seemed there was no way St. Andrews could match what I wanted it to be. It didn’t. It was even better.

While Nicklaus was playing his final Open Championship, Tiger was winning the claret jug in the coolest place in golf.

3. 1997 Masters

The things I’ll remember about that Sunday when Tiger changed everything:
-- Seeing dozens of Augusta National staff members come out to watch him tee off on the first hole;

-- Lee Elder, the first African-American to play in the Masters, standing under the big tree behind the clubhouse watching;

-- And, the feeling that golf would never be quite the same.

2. 1999 U.S. Open at Pinehurst

I admit to a special fondness for Pinehurst and to see the U.S. Open finally played there just
felt right.

Everything worked that week and Sunday was as good as it gets – Vijay, Tiger, Phil and Payne Stewart giving us something to remember him by.

1. 1986 Masters

You know it by heart – Jack birdies 9, 10 and 11. Bogeys 12. Birdies 13. Asks son Jack II how far a three would go at No. 15 then makes one. Nearly aces 16. Holes the clincher at 17 as Verne Lundquist says, “Yes sir!” Jack hugs Jack II when they finish.

Seve chokes. Tom Kite can’t finish. Neither can Greg Norman.

Even now, when the video from the ’86 Masters is on TV, I stop and watch at least a little bit.
Just like when I come across ‘The Godfather.’

It’s impossible to resist.

Who knows, maybe No. 50 will be change my list. Tiger's here. So's Phil. You may have heard.

Mickelson at home, coming late to Bethpage

The Lefty love-in at Bethpage will have to a wait a while.

Mickelson flew home to San Diego to be with his wife, Amy, after he finished the final round at the St. Jude Classic in Memphis on Sunday. He isn't scheduled to return to New York until sometime Tuesday, likely late.

He will meet with the media at 8 a.m. Wednesday in what has the potential to be an interesting and emotional interview session.

Mickelson did his serious prep work at Bethpage a week ago when he flew in on Monday and spent seven hours on the course. He hit three or four tee shots on every hole, played a similar number of approach shots and spent extra time chipping and putting around the greens.

It was at Bethpage in 2002 that Mickelson's popularity with the New York galleries nearly upstaged Tiger Woods' victory.

This year, with his wife fighting breast cancer, could be a Mickelson pep rally

Pinehurst is perfect for a doubleheader

One of the surprising things about the announcement that Pinehurst will host both the men's and women's U.S. Opens in 201 4 is that it hasn't happened -- there or someplac else -- before.

From a variety of angles, it makes perfect sense.

If you can play the two events at the same course, why not? It saves on construction, travel and, theoretically anyway, should increase interest in the Women's Open because it will have a natural lead-in.

Pinehurst is ideal for it because it has the space to handle what's required from a infrastructure standpoint and the resort can afford giving up Course No. 2 for the block of time necessary to stage the events. The resort will lose all of those big-ticket greens fees at No. 2 but it's during a relatively slow time on the golf calendar there and it's being offset by a nice fat check that comes from hostng the Open.

And, since Pinehurst is a resort, the exposure is priceless.

The course set-up won't have to vary significantly between the events because Pinehurst's challenge is handling the turtle-back greens that reject all the but the most accurate shots.

The rough was too high for the 2005 U.S. Open, the most significant set-up mistake. Mike Davis will see to it that No. 2 has shorter rough, encouraging players to fire at the greens. A week later, when the Women's Open is played, it won't be necessary to take a hatchet to the rough.

(One very early suggestion to Open and Pinehurst officials about 2014: Don't sell as many tickets to the men's event as in 2005. The one complaint I've heard over and over about the most recent Open was how crowded it was. I don't know how many more spectators were there than in 1999 but it felt like a lot and I've had people tell me they weren't likely to go back because it felt so overcrowded).

If anything, the firmness and speed of No. 2's greens may slow down slightly for the Women's Open and, obviously, the course will be shorter.

Putting both Opens together may be a one-time thing, maybe not. Most private clubs wouldn't want to surrender their course for such a large chunk of the summer but a resort or public course might.

Bethpage Black doesn't seem suited to host a Women's Open but Pebble Beach would work as a doubleheader site.

Maybe this is a one-time thing. Maybe not.

This time, Jack honors Ron Sr.

This time, Jack Nicklaus is paying tribute to Ron Green Sr.

Ron Sr., as we tend to call him, was named today as the 2010 recipient of the Memorial Tournament Journalism Award.

He will be honored during pre-tournament ceremonies at Muirfield Village in Dublin, Ohio, next May.

Among the special touches of Nicklaus' Memorial Tournament is the annual recognition of people who have made significant contributions to golf, either through their play, their leadership or their coverage of the sport.

Previous recipients of the honor include Bernard Darwin, Grantland Rice, Herbert Warren Wind, Henry Longhurst, Dick Taylor, Dan Jenkins, Jim Murray, Furman Bisher and Dave Anderson.

Ron Sr., who has covered 54 consecutive Masters tournaments, has also received the PGA of America Lifetime Achievement in Journalism award, is a member of the Carolinas Golf Hall of Fame, the United States Basketball Writers Hall of Fame and the North Carolina Journalism Hall of Fame.

And he's been great father, too.

Ken Green involved in deadly accident

Ken Green has always been an iconoclast and he's battled his share of demons through a professional golf career that has seen great highs and sobering lows.

Now, however, Green is struggling to recover after being involved in an auto accident Monday in Mississippi that killed his long-time girlfriend, Jeannie Hodgin of Greensboro, his brother, Billy, and his German Shepherd Nip, whom he once jumped into a canal to save from an alligator attack.

According to reports, Green (no relation to me) was driving his RV back from Texas where he'd played in a Champions Tour event last week when a tire blew out. The RV ran off the road, down an embankment and struck a tree.

Green suffered a broken left eye orbital and a serious right leg injury that could lead to amputation.

In 1988, Green won two of his five PGA Tour victories, finished fourth on the money list and earned a spot on the 1989 Ryder Cup team. At his best, Green could be spectacular.

Always quick to voice his opinion, Green's career tailed off due to a variety of factors, including injuries and divorce.

He had been playing the Champions Tour this year with some success and seemed on the verge of getting his game back.

Now this terrible thing. So sad.

Any more questions for Tiger?

A letter arrived last week asking a simple question:

"Tiger Who?"

It wasn't signed by an individual but by a golf course. The golf business being as tough as it is these days, I'll spare the place the embarrassment of naming it.

Any more questions?

If so, they'll probably be answered late next week when the U.S. Open unfolds at Bethpage Black on Long Island.

In shooting 65 to win The Memorial on Sunday with his own blend of golf pyrotechnics, Woods reminded us that he's going to be just fine. If you don't believe having ACL surgery requires an extended recovery period, you've never had the pleasure of having your knee rebuilt.

With Tiger, everything is magnified.

He's now won two of his seven starts this year and in six stroke-play events, hasn't finished lower than eighth. And we've been wondering what's wrong.

At The Memorial, he looked like Tiger again. The swing kinks that were evident at Quail Hollow and The Players Championship had vanished and he was as solid as an anvil.

When Tiger hits 49 of 56 fairways -- and all 14 fairways on Sunday -- only Merlin the Magician is going to beat him unless he putts blind-folded.

After his victory, Woods gently chided the media for overreacting to his flat final rounds at Quail Hollow and The Players. Ditto suggestions that swing coach and friend Hank Haney would be dismissed.

Tiger said he still in the process of getting back to where he was and The Memorial was a huge step.

Jim Furyk may have said it best after Sunday's finish when he told the media, "(I)
wsh you'd just quit chapping him so much and make him come back and keep proving stuff.

"Tiger Woods is always Tiger Woods. He can't be 100% every week, but I'm sure he answered a lot of questions today."

Yes, he did.

Two stokes of magic and $25,000

Jeff Masilun's buddies have always given him a hard time about his putting.

But not anymore.

On Monday, Masilun won $25,000 by holing two long putts during a special putting contest that was part of a charity tournament held at Ballantyne Country Club to raise money for the Morrison YMCA.

"It's shocking more than anything," Masilun said.

This was the third year Masilun has played in the event with a foursome from Ballantyne Chiropractic Group. In addition to the tournament and raffle, there's a putting contest.

It starts with a 25-foot putt and anyone who holes it gets to advance to the finals.

That's where Masilun's magic kicked in.

He holed the first putt -- something only three golfers out of 96 did that day -- and advanced to the finals.

"I figured it was going to be some kind of circus putt so I had that in my mind before I got there," Masilun said.

He was right.

The challenge was to hole a 50-foot putt that was relatively flat for the first 35 feet before breaking over a ridge and turning three to four feet to the left.

To make it more challenging, Masilun was not allowed to watch the player putting before his turn arrived.

No worries.

"When I got over it, I could just see the line," Masilun said. "I walked up to the ridge to look at the rest of it. I picked my spot, hit my mark, had the right speed and it dropped in.

"I got lucky."

Now Masilun is $25,000 richer.

"I have no idea where to go from here," Masilun said, "but I do not need a new putter."

What do golfers want?

If we could give you more golf on our website, what you want to see and read?

We're planning to enhance our golf presence online in the coming days, offering fresh content each day, more articles from top teachers and professionals in our area, a course directory, various lists, equipment updates, links to area organizatoins and opportunities for readers to comment on various subjects.

Some of the stories and features will also appear in the Observer but enhancing our online presence allows us to give golfers more than we can in the paper.

It's a work in progress but we're hopeful of building it into something golfers will return to regularly for information, instruction and fun.

I can't fix your putting but we might be able to connect you to someone who can.

Let us know what you'd like to see and read.

Thanks.

N.C. State's Hill in rare company

It would be enough that N.C. State sophomore Matt Hill won the NCAA men's golf championship Thursday in Toledo, Ohio, adding his name to a list that includes Jack Nicklaus, Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods, Curtis Strange, Jay Haas, Ben Crenshaw and Justin Leonard.

But that's just part of what Hill did at Inverness.

Hill won seven of the last eight tournaments he played, a remarkable run by any standards. He finished tied for fifth in his other start this spring, an event in which he was the defending champion.

"It seems like a fairy tale," said Richard Sykes, the N.C. State coach.

Hill became just the second player to win his conference championship, a regional championship and the NCAA championship in the same year, joining Woods who did it in 1996.

Sykes said he sensed he had a special player when he signed Hill but didn't expect him to be so consistently dominant. Like almost every college player, Hill is exceptionally long but he also plays with a style Sykes calls "cautiously aggressive."

In other words, he doesn't try to do too much.

"Since he walked on our campus, he's played great," Sykes said. "He's so steady that eventually he at the top of the leader board at the end. Everyone else seems to fall away. He doesn't."

Hill has said he intends to get his degree, which suggests he'll be around Raleigh for another two years. His next major challenge is trying to play his way into the U.S. Open, something he'll do in two weeks in Columbus, Ohio.

The broken-hearted Sergio

Maybe the reason Sergio Garcia’s golf game has gone missing is the simple fact that his heart hasn’t been in it.

Garcia suggested as much this week when he told reporters at Turnberry that his March break-up with Morgan-Leigh Norman, daughter of Greg Norman, has been at the, uh, heart of his problems.

Sergio said it was the first time he’s ever been in love and when Norman called it quits – it was her decision not his, he said – the hurt stayed with him.

He said the two haven’t talked since their break-up, which he’s finally getting over.

It wouldn’t be the first time relationship problems have scuttled a golf game. Nor the last.

Reading through Garcia’s comments at Turnberry, he was surprisingly open about his private life. Maybe he was looking for pity. He’s unfortunately played that card before.

But this time, it seems, he’s just a guy talking about having his heart broken.

Baker-Finch gives it another go

When last anyone noticed Ian Baker-Finch playing golf -- not announcing it -- his game was a mess.

And that's being kind.

By his own admission, the former British Open champion lost his confidence back in the 1990s and it showed in his scores. It bottomed out with a 92 in the British Open at Royal Troon in 1997, which propelled him into competitive retirement.

It was a wicked fall for a genuinely nice man.

He handled it with grace and moved on to become an outstanding golf commentator.

This week, however, Baker-Finch has decided to play the PGA Tour one more time, teeing it up in the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial 20 years after he won the title there.

In interviews, Baker-Finch has made it clear this is not a comeback. He wants no part of that. But he enjoys playing again and wants to put himself and his game under the gun again.

Few players have fallen so far so fast as Baker-Finch did. David Duval comes to mind, of course.

I can't imagine Baker-Finch playing a PGA Tour event if he weren't comfortable with his game. No one's expecting a miracle.

It would be nice to see him play well. His playing career didn't end well but for an extended period of time, he was among the best players in the game. That's what people should remember about him.

This week is about fun for him. That's a victory in itself.

Lancaster Golf Club comes up aces

Aces were wild Thursday at Lancaster Golf Club.

It started in the morning when Richard Harris, a club employee, made a hole-in-one with a pitching wedge on the 100-yard fourth hole.

About the same time, Joe Swift of Charlotte aced the 155-yard, par-3 13th hole with a 4-iron.

Clyde Adams, the club’s general manager, was in the pro shop congratulating Harris on his ace when Swift walked in and broke the news he’d made one, too.

It wasn’t long afterward that Carl Bradford from Santee, playing in a seniors’ golf match, made the second ace of the day at the 13th hole, using a 5-iron.

“All of it happened by about 2:30 in the afternoon,” Adams said. “I kept saying wouldn’t it be nice if someone made another one.”

Three turned out to be the magic number Thursday at Lancaster Golf Club.

“If you come to Lancaster and play golf, the hole will just get in your way,” Adams said.

Nagy leads Open qualifier, one more step to go

Charlotte 49ers golfer Corey Nagy continued his roll of good play Thursday by leading the local U.S. Open qualifying event at the Carolina Country Club in Spartanburg.

Nagy, who will play in the NCAA championship next week at Inverness in Toledo, Ohio,
shot 68 Thursday to lead six players who advanced to sectional qualifying next month.

For Nagy to earn a spot in the U.S. Open at Bethpage, he will have to be among the top finishers in the sectional event, which typically include a number of PGA Tour and professional mini-tour players.

Also advancing were Daniel Carver of Spartanburg, S.C.; Ben Martin of Greenwood, S.C.; Daniel Obremsky of Conway, S.C.; Jarrett Grimes of Columbia, S.C.; and Paul Butler of Gaffney, S.C.

Amy Mickelson diagnosed with breast cancer

Amy Mickelson, wife of Phil Mickelson, has been diagnosed with breast cancer.

The news was released this morning after Mickelson had undergone extensive testing. According to the release, more testing is scheduled but major surgery is expected, perhaps within the next two weeks.

Phil Mickelson has suspended his PGA Tour schedule indefinitely.

Amy Mickelson, who married Phil in 1996, has been a huge part of her husband's career. Whether watching a tournament with their three children or taking an active role in a variety of charitable causes she and Phil have been involved with, Amy Mickelson brings an uncommon charm with her.

A former Phoenix Suns cheerleader, Amy can light up a room. Whether it's been a day, a month or a year since she's seen someone she knows, Amy makes a point of reconnecting with friends and acquaintances.

In the same way her husband draws fans to him, Amy has her own legion of fans.

And we're all wishing her well though this.

Lookabill gets a well-deserved honor

If you've been around Charlotte long enough, you know the name Gene Lookabill.

For decades, he's been one of the top players in the area and he'll receive a nice honor this weekend when he's presented the Jess Sweetser award at Biltmore Forest Country Club in Asheville.

Lookabill's list of accomplishments runs on and on. He won or finished second in more than 100 events, not bad for a self-taught player who took up the game as a 13-year old and got his first set of clubs from Johnny Palmer.

Lookabill won the prestigious Biltmore Forest Country Club Invitational in 1957 and 1958, one of the events in the region. He won the Carolinas Golf Classic three times, the Clayton Heafner Memorial, the Carolinas Four-Ball, the Mecklenburg Four-Ball and many other events.

A former University of North Carolina golfer, Lookabill won 15 individual championships over the years at Carolina Golf Club and he played in two U.S. Amateurs.

The honor is well deserved.

Haas takes an encouraging step forward

Wrapping up the golf weekend:

-- It’s nice to see Bill Haas have a good finish again. He’d like to have the 17th hole over, no doubt, but a tie for third is his best finish in too long a time.

Haas had the can’t-miss look about him when he came out on tour but it hasn’t come easily to him. He’s struggled with the putter, which can be a drain on anyone’s psyche and definitely affected him.

He’s put some good rounds together this year – enough to make you think he’s on the right path – but hadn’t strung four together. Maybe this is the start of something big for him.

-- As of right now, Zach Johnson is the PGA Tour’s player of the year.

He’s won twice, threatened a handful of other times and looks as comfortable on the golf course as anyone these days.

Had he had made a terrible mess of the relatively routine par-3 second hole at Quail Hollow in the final round, Johnson might have another victory to his credit.

Obviously, he didn’t let it affect him too long.

In a day when bombers seem to rule, Johnson proves that you can still win the old-fashioned way – but hitting good shots and putting the lights out.

-- Michelle Wie tied for third at the Sybase Classic over the weekend, another encouraging finish, though she was never a serious threat to win.

Will she win on the LPGA Tour this year?

Not until she becomes a better putter. Now that she’s worked through the swing issues that nearly scuttled her career a couple of years ago, Wie needs to solve the mystery of putting.

If and when she does that, watch out.

Remember, she’s still a teenager. She just seems older.

Forget the pants, has Big John found his game?

Checking out the golf scene:

-- There’s always been a clown quality to John Daly but now he’s wearing the pants to prove it.

In case you haven’t seen the new duds Big John is wearing while he tours Europe, they apparently come from the Ringling Brothers collection. They are as bright and outrageous as Big John’s career has been.

What’s more interesting is the possibility that Daly has relocated his lost game. When he finished tied for second at the Italian Open last week, it was like a blast from the past. Granted, the field wasn’t very strong – the best players were at The Players Championship – but it was a big step for Big John.

He got off to a good start in the Irish Open this week and there’s reason to think Daly may be serious about his golf again. He’s been working with swing coach Rick Smith, who may have more success with them than Butch Harmon did.

Daly has lost weight with the help of surgery and says he’s intent on being a player again. We’ve heard it before. Maybe this time it’s true.

He intends to play a full schedule in Europe until he can return to the PGA Tour in June. That’s a long time in Big John’s world.

-- When Rory McIlroy said this week that making the European Ryder Cup team is “not a huge goal for me” and he considers the matches to be “an exhibition at the end of the day,” it naturally stirred a pot that’s never far from a boil.

McIlroy was making the point that his emphasis is on winning tournaments, not the Ryder Cup. He did add that if he makes the team – he’ll make it, no doubt – he’ll enjoy it.

Two things about what McIlroy said:

He’s right about where he puts his emphasis. It’s the same for every other player who plays the Ryder Cup;

And, when he plays in a Ryder Cup, he’ll feel differently about it. Just ask Hunter Mahan and David Duval, both of whom made similar remarks then found themselves swept up in the emotional tide the matches create.

-- Bob Rosburg, a familiar voice for years on golf telecasts, died on Thursday after a fall in California.

Rosburg, 82, had been battling cancer.

A former PGA champion, ‘Rossie’ was among the first on-course reporters during golf telecasts and he wasn’t shy about finding a player’s golf ball in the rough and saying, “He’s got no shot” or “that’s the worst lie I’ve ever seen.”

It became part of Rosburg’s gig.

The best may have come in 1976 when Rosburg said Jerry Pate was laying up on the 72nd hole of the U.S. Open at Atlanta Athletic Club only to see Pate rifle a famous Open-winning 5-iron shot to within three feet of the hole.

Golf lost a classic on Thursday.

Don't forget to say thanks once in a while

The next time you find your golf ball sitting with a nice lie in the fairway remember to say thanks to the course superintendent.

They’re the ones who catch all the grief when the greens are splotchy or they’ve been aerated. It’s their fault if the bunker sand isn’t just right or there are bare spots on the tees.

They get blamed for more things than the liberal media.

And when it’s good, they probably don’t get enough thanks.

There’s an art and a science to growing grass and course superintendents do a lot more than that.

Course conditions are so much better than they used to be and with the abundance of rain around here recently, this may be a big year for thick rough.

Don’t blame them for the rough. Learn to hit it straighter.

Recently, more than $55,000 was raised for turfgrass research at N.C. State and Clemson through an on-line auction called Rounds4Research sponsored by members of the Carolinas Golf Course Superintendents Association.

These are the people who give us the greens we putt on. It’s not their fault if we 3-putt.

Feherty made a bad joke -- and he's sorry

CBS golf commentator David Feherty went too far with his humor in an article that appeared recently in a Dallas magazine in which he wrote of soldiers’ support for former president George W. Bush “if you gave any U.S. soldier a gun with two bullets in it, and he found himself in an elevator with Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid and Osama bin Laden, there’s a good chance that Nancy Pelosi would get shot twice and Harry Reid and bin Laden would be strangled to death.”

Feherty has apologized for the comment, which was part of a story he wrote for D Magazine about the former president moving back to Dallas near where Feherty lives.

It was a mistake – a wisecrack gone wrong -- but it shouldn’t be career-threatening. CBS Sports and the PGA Tour quickly issued statements distancing themselves from the comment and Feherty’s image has been dented.

Feherty, a native of Northern Ireland who is now an American citizen, has spent the past two Thanksgivings in Iraq entertaining U.S. troops and he’s been active in fund-raising for the Troops First Foundation which aids soldiers returning home, many without limbs.

When he talks about what living here and becoming a citizen of the United States means to him, it’s powerful and genuine. I’ve talked to him about it more than once.

He’s inspiring.

And, no doubt, sorry for what he wrote.

Will Tiger be ready for the U.S. Open?

The question now isn’t what’s happened to Tiger Woods’ golf game, particularly on Sunday afternoons. Obviously, it’s frayed around the edges.

The larger question is whether his game will be ready for the U.S. Open at Bethpage next month.

You didn’t need to watch the final round of the Quail Hollow Championship or Sunday’s closing 18 holes at The Players Championship to know something’s not right. Just look at the scores.

A 72 at Quail Hollow ending with 10 straight pars? A choppy 73 at The Players that seemed worse than that?

He’s become mortal.

And that’s what bothers us.

We want Tiger to be, well, Tiger.

We want fist-pumps and four birdies in a row. We want to see him saving par from places Special Forces couldn’t help you. We want shock and awe, not aw, shucks…or something that sounds like that.

We’re getting Tiger talking about hitting “spinners,” which is a fancy word for heel/neck cut shots that are prone to producing bogeys.

There’s speculation about whether he’s going to split with teacher Hank Haney (I seriously, seriously doubt it); whether he’s gotten too big (his biceps didn’t seem to bother him at Bay Hill); and whether the doctor fixed his knee but messed up his golf game.

Oh, by the way, Sunday was his 17th consecutive top-10 finish worldwide.

And we’re asking what’s wrong.

Nothing against Henrik Stenson, who’s probably among the 10 best players in the world, but his nearly perfect final-round 66 won that him The Players Championship couldn’t quite overshadow the questions surrounding Tiger.

We’ve come to expect Tiger to deliver every time he’s in position to do so. When he beat Sean O’Hair with a birdie on the 72nd hole at Bay Hill, everybody knew he was going to make it. He’s trained us to believe it just like he’s trained himself.

Now that it’s gone a little sideways on Tiger, we’re left to wonder if he can fix what’s wrong.

Of course he can.

Unless you’re at Tiger Jam this weekend, you won’t see Tiger again until he plays The Memorial in a month. It’s fair to assume he’ll play Jack’s tournament two weeks before going to Bethpage and we should have an idea then if Tiger’s worked through his issues.

He said Sunday that he knows what’s wrong. If you play golf, you understand. You can know what you’re doing wrong but fixing it, especially on the course, can be tougher than trigonometry.

The U.S. Open is where Tiger’s focus is now and Bethpage is no place for a guy spraying his tee shots. It’s a beast and as unforgiving as the New York crowd that will be there.

Watching Tiger chasing his golf swing around the Stadium Course with its baked-out greens was a reminder of how tough the game can be – even for him.

How weird was it to see Tiger in the final pairing on Sunday afternoon and the tour suits waiting for him and Alex Cejka to finish so they could get on with presenting Stenson his trophy?

It was different, no doubt.

O'Hair the best of twentysomethings

There are three regulars on the PGA Tour under the age of 30 with at least three wins on their resume – Sergio Garcia, Adam Scott and Sean O’Hair.

Of those three, the one mostly likely to win a major championship is O’Hair.

Not only does that say something about the sagging state of both Garcia and Scott’s golf games, it speaks to how good O’Hair is and is likely to become.

Garcia has a semi-major to his credit with his win at The Players Championship last year and he’s flirted with the real thing several times. His playoff loss to Padraig Harrington at Carnoustie in 2007 and another loss to Harrington at the PGA Championship last August have earned him the distinction of BPNTHWAM – best player never to have won a major.

But Garcia’s disposition, especially with a putter in his hands, makes me wonder if he has too many demons running around in his head. When he lashed out after the Masters about how he doesn’t care for Augusta National, it was a blend of frustration and immaturity.

Sergio believes the golf gods – and the media – are against him. Neither is true but if he believes it, he’s looking in the wrong places.

Scott also has a Players win to his credit but he’s typically a shadow in majors. He’s played 32 of them and has just four top-10 finishes, the best being a quiet tie for third at the 2006 PGA.

He seems to have it all – including a new $40-million jet – but his game has left him. Scott has missed four straight cuts while working on a swing adjustment in hopes it will click in by the U.S. Open.

Whereas Garcia has proven he can consistently challenge in majors, Scott has not. That’s his next step.

That leaves us with O’Hair, whose toughness and resiliency are as impressive as his golf swing. At this moment, he’s easily the best of the twentysomethings.

He’s a guy who could be paralyzed by scar tissue but he’s not. Instead, he’s emerging as America’s brightest young player. Just 26 but a pro for nearly a decade, O’Hair has steadily climbed the golf ladder to the point he’s now among the top players on tour.

There was nothing flukey about O’Hair’s victory at Quail Hollow last week.

He’s here to stay.

Five reasons to love the Players Championship

Forget that The Players Championship isn’t officially a major championship.

It doesn’t need to be.

The Players (that’s what the PGA Tour wants us to call it) has its own special place in the game.

Here are five reasons to love The Players:

1. It’s Part Two of the best two-week stretch on the PGA Tour schedule.

Putting the Quail Hollow Championship and The Players back to back on the schedule makes May a big month on the tour schedule. Playing Quail and the Stadium course on consecutive weeks is like having steak and lobster.

2. Everybody Plays

The tour loves to trumpet the fact that The Players annually has the best field in golf but it ain’t bragging if you can back it up. John Daly’s not there but if you’ve seen those clown pants he’s wearing these days, that’s a good thing.

3. Paul Goydos

The tour’s ultimate everyman nearly won The Players last year, losing in a playoff to Sergio Garcia.

Goydos may never be a big star but he’s as real as it gets on the tour. Other players get paid to wear corporate logos on their cap. Goydos wears a Long Beach State cap.

4. It’s Familiar

Because it’s played across the same reclaimed swamp land every year, The Players has a history.

It’s where Jerry Pate jumped in the water after winning and took commissioner Deane Beman with him. It’s where Hal Sutton said, “Be the right club, today,” where Fuzzy Zoeller toweled off a record-setting Greg Norman and where Craig Perks pulled off a stunning upset.

That’s what you want.

5. The 17th Hole

I know it’s contrived and gimmicky. I know it’s unfair when the wind is howling and there’s an artificial feel to it.

But I know it’s great fun to watch, whether you’re parked on one of the viewing areas around the hole or on your couch at home. Mention The Players Championship and it’s the first thing that comes to mind.

Play the golf course and the first question anyone asks is ‘What’d you do on No. 17?”

They’ll be asking the same question to players this weekend.

Are you good enough to play Quail?

Do you want a shot at playing Quail Hollow?

The best players in Mecklenburg County will get that opportunity later this summer if they can advance to the final round of the Charlotte City Amateur championship.

On-line registration has opened for the 2009 event at www.charlottecityam.com.

The tournament is open to any legal resident of Mecklenburg County with a handicap index of 6.4 or less.

This year's 54-hole event will begin Aug. 14 at Carolina Golf Club. The second round will be played Aug. 15 at Myers Park Country Club and the final round will be played Aug. 16 at the Quail Hollow Club. The field will be narrowed after each round with only the low 24 advancing to the final round.

First, you have to qualify. There are two opportunities -- July 13 and July 24 at Pine Island Country Club.

Ogilvy: It's better to make pros think a little bit

Count Geoff Ogilvy, one of the most thoughtful players on tour, as a fan of the course set-up at Quail Hollow last week.

“It’s much better. It’s more interesting to play and I’m sure it’s much more interesting to watch. It’s not about the length of the (two-inch) rough. It just needs to be unpredictable," Ogilvy said.

“When it’s always a good lie it’s not good and when it’s always a bad lie it’s not good. It makes a guy have to make smart decisions. Anything that makes us think is good. Less rough and firm greens makes us think more.

“It’s got to be better for golf to try to get pros to use their brains a little bit.

“Normally, it’s just pull out whatever club and wail it straight at the pin. Golf is better when you have to think about where you miss it. That knocks back to the tee shot. You have to put your tee shot in the right spot to make the second shot easier to get under the hole. It just makes it a more interesting game.”

Asked if Quail Hollow was good enough to host a major championship, Ogilvy said, “It’s a lot better than some courses we play majors on.”


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A few post-Quail Hollow thoughts

A few thoughts as the 2009 Quail Hollow Championship comes to an end:

-- Overall, it was one of the best events in the seven-year history at Quail Hollow. Maybe 2007 when Tiger and Michael Jordan played in the pro-am and Tiger won the event gets slightly higher marks but not by much.

From the way the golf course played to the quality of the field to the ease of operation, it was exceptional. For all the pre-tournament angst about the title sponsor issue, it was a non-factor during the week.

The tournament reinforced its place among the elite events in golf. That's not just me saying it. From players to agents to visiting media, the same thing is being said.

-- We're just now seeing how good Sean O'Hair can be. So much of what we've known about him is from his backstory with his father but O'Hair is superb talent. He's long, plays smart and can handle tough greens.

He was nearly flawless tee to green, proving that putting doesn't always win tournaments. In what may be a first, O'Hair did not make a putt longer than 10 feet in the tournament. As it turned out, he didn't have to.

-- David Feherty proved again Sunday why he's brilliant. He was able to kid with Tiger -- calling him a loser -- and get away with it.

Woods had to be running a little hot after his round but Feherty disarmed him with his humor. Woods was great with the media afterward on Sunday, taking plenty of time to talk about his game and what did and didn't work last week.

He's still too streaky, he said, and it showed. He played great shooting 65 on Thursday but closed with 10 pars on Sunday when he needed something more to win.

Maybe next year.

-- For all the talk about the tournament possibly ending in 2014, it's worth remembering that's just when the current contract runs out. There's only one PGA Tour event with a contract that goes past 2014 so it's not as if Quail Hollow is any different than other events.

It's conceivable that Quail Hollow could continue to host a PGA Tour event and a major championship in the future. They are not mutually exclusive. Nothing has been decided and it's not likely to be determined any time soon.

A peek inside the Quail Hollow locker room

If you've wondered what it's like in the Quail Hollow locker room during tournament week, here's a glimpse:

It's a great locker room, filled with tall wood lockers with cushioned bench seating in front. Each player uses one of the member's lockers during the week with their own brass nameplate afixed.

Tiger Woods has a corner locker. Of course, he does.

The first thing players see when they come in is the big bar that's like the control center of the locker room.

There's a scoring computer at one end and almost every player stops to check what's happening in the tournament.

On the bar, there are at least four different daily newspapers -- the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, USA Today and the Charlotte Observer. There's also a small medicine cabinet with pain-killers, sunscreen, etc, if the players need it.

In the middle of the room, there are a couple of leather sofas and card tables positioned around a television.

Players come and go through the locker room, changing into their workout clothes before or after their rounds but barely spending much time there.

Their hang-out place is the lunch room in the back of the locker room. That's where they had a chef preparing made-to-order pasta today plus a sandwich and salad bar.

There are several tables where players sit together and talk or watch one of the three televisions mounted side by side. They're usually tuned to ESPN, a financial station and a local station.

If they want, there's an ice cream cooler stocked with Ben & Jerry's treats. Some guys can't resist.

It's a nice place to hang out for a week.

And even better place to hang out the rest of the year.