Chinese checkers then golf

The HSBC in Shanghai kicks off Thursday with Tiger and Phil together in Asia for the first time.The field has 15 of the top 20 in the world rankings and should be a great tournament.

More photos from Shanghai - AP / Eugene Hoshiko

Drugs officially enter the golf world

When the news broke about Andre Agassi doing Meth during his career, I thought of posting about when drugs would become an issue in golf. Wouldn't you know it, we now officially have our first player suspended.

Doug Barron, who I've never heard of, has been suspended one year for violating the PGA Tour's substance abuse policy by testing positive for performance enhancing drugs. Under their policy, the tour does not disclose what substance the player abused which is stupid. Not sure why it should be a big secret.


Barron, a 30 year old journeyman who has played eight full seasons on tour, had this to say about the suspension. "I would like to apologize for any negative perception of the tour of its players resulting from my suspension. I want my fellow tour members and the fans to know that I did not intend to gain an unfair competitive advantage or enhance my performance while on tour."

Not quite sure what other reasons there would be to take performance enhancers and his statement sound very similar to other athletes who have been caught such as:

Barry Bonds

Sean Merriman

Marion Jones

Floyd Landis


It will be very interesting to see if the Tour makes the drug policy even stricter with more testing now that one person has been caught. Gary Player did call it a few years ago when he said some players were using.

Happy Halloween

What is scary about golf?

Bears


Crocodiles


Black Mambas - read why

Holiday Gift Ideas - 20% Discount

It's that time of year again, so if you're looking for a holiday gift for the avid golfer, here are two options with a 20% discount provided.

Golf Record Book full description

Stat Book and Log for Golfers full description


Discount Code: 20WhoL20

Type in the code at checkout at WWW.THE20THHOLE.COM to receive the discount.

Happy Holidays!

What to look for this week

World Match Play Championships:
Anthony Kim dominates Goosen and Casey on day one and he may end up playing Allenby. That would be an interesting scenario.


Singapore Open:
Poulter leads by one over Els and three over Phil. Can Phil keep up the momentum from his Tour Championship win and his 4-0-1 record at the Presidents Cup?


Viking Classic:
One player to watch is David Duval as he's 125th on money list and needs a strong finish to secure his card. Rickie Fowler might secure his card in only his 3rd professional start. John Daly makes his return which always provides some type of story, for better or worse.

Golf in Spain

Spain is an ideal golfing destination due to the excellent weather and geographic diversity. There are a number of fantastic courses throughout the country and more continue to be developed as the popularity of golf grows there. Golf in Spain offers a tremendous variety including courses set under the 9000 foot Pyrenees as well as the consistent good weather of the southern coasts and islands.

One of the top golfing resorts to visit in Spain is the La Manga Las Lomas Village. It has been voted European golfing resort of the year many times, strongly in part to three top notch championship courses it consists of. The resort features the South, North, and West courses with the South being the premiere layout. The par 73 was redesigned by Arnold Palmer in the early 90s and frequently hosts prestigious regional and national events.

La Manga also features a golf academy which runs regular competitions that guests can enter. Once the golf is finished, the resort also has a casino for the gamblers and a nearby beach. It doesn't get much better than golf, gambling, and soaking up rays at the beach.

Read about the different golfing regions in Spain.

Sergio Garcia, Spain's most popular player, is currently playing in the World Match Play Championships in Casares, Spain. He lost his first match to Oliver Wilson of England and then halved his second match with Australian Robert Allenby.

After almost winning both the 2008 British Open and PGA Championship before losing to Padraig Harrington, Garcia has struggled since and didn't contend in any majors in 2009. He had a difficult year both on and off the golf course, and looks to rebound for a strong 2010.

Garcia photo credit - AP / Manu Fernandez

Bogey Pro Golf Gear and Apparel

Amusing website : BogeyPro.com

Frys.com Open

Cool shot of Tom Lehman at the Frys.com Open in Scottsdale, Arizona. (AP / Matt York)

Day One update and slideshow from the Frys.com Open
Day Two update and slideshow from the Frys.com Open

Barkley gives advice to Kim?

Charles Barkley seems to be pretty cool and he's definitely an entertaining personality, especially for people witnessing his golf swing. I'm just not sure why a 45 year old guy who recently got out of jail for DWI and is absolutely atrocious at golf is giving advice about drinking to a 24 year old who hasn't got in trouble (yet) and is one of the best players in the world.

From Golf.com

"I have become friends with Anthony Kim and I was talking to him the other day trying to tell him: Let this B.S. with Robert Allenby go. Nothing good is going to happen if you all are going back-and-forth. The one thing that I will say about Tiger is that when we go out, he can drink. He drinks but he never drinks when he has got a tournament. So I think you distinguish those two. If we are just going to Vegas to screw around or we are just going around, he might have a couple of beers or something. If he has got a tournament, he does not drink. .... You can have fun when you are off: Ok, I got a tournament this week. Tiger won’t even do caffeine the week of a tournament. He thought that it screwed up his putting stroke. You know how sometimes caffeine has got you jittery? I mean just simple stuff like that."


I'm sure he is just trying to help out AK and his statements are very interesting about Tiger. The part about no caffeine during tournament weeks makes a lot of sense. If you've ever drank a lot of coffee or soda on the course, or smoked cigarettes while playing, you know it can cause some jitters and shaking.

Golf and Gambling

With the Shriners Hospital for Children Open currently going on in Las Vegas, it seems to be a good time to discuss golf and gambling. For many golfers, the two go hand in hand and makes the game more fun while adding additional pressure. There are many different games that golfers can play and betting amounts can be either very small or very large.

Here are a few of the top games to play while betting on the golf course.

NASSAU
A Nassau consists of three bets in one round. You will play your opponent for low round on the front nine, low round on the back nine, and low round overall. For instance, if you are playing a $10 dollar Nassau, and you win all three bets, you win $30.

WOLF
Wolf is a game played with groups of four, and players rotate being the wolf. The Wolf tees off first. Then once the other 3 players hit their tee shots, the wolf can choose who he wants to be partner with for the hole. Or, if he wants to risk more and play against 3 players for the hole, he can do that as well. In some versions of the game, if the wolf chooses to go it alone, he will have to howl like a wolf on the tee.

SNAKE
Snake is a game played on the course that only involves putting. For instance, for any putt your opponent has on the green, especially a long putt (or snake), you can hiss like a snake to initiate the bet. Then, if your opponent 3 putts he owes you money. If he 2 putts, you owe him money. This makes putting a lot more stressful, but the hissing part makes it hilarious.


BARKIE
A barkie is a bet involving a player hitting a tree. If any player hits a tree on a hole but still makes par, the rest of the group owes him or her money.

SANDIE
A sandie is similar to a barkie. If any player gets up and down for par out of the sand, the other players owe him or her money.

There are many other ways to bet on the golf course such as skins games, match play, closest to the hole on par 3s, or paying players for birdies or eagles. Golf is already fun enough but adding games and side action raises the stakes even more.

For people who love both golf and gambling, traveling for golf in Las Vegas is the perfect choice.

For further reading, check out this casino guide.

What did we learn at the 2009 Presidents Cup?

AK feels Robert Allenby may need to practice a little more in the future. (AP / Marcio Sanchez)

• The United States has now become a very formidable threat in team events. They have a record of 6-1-1 in Presidents Cups and currently hold the Ryder Cup. It will be very interesting to see the U.S. take on the Internationals in Australia in 2011, hopefully with Fred Couples and Greg Normans as captains again.
• Tiger is Tiger
• Phil's game is in tip top shape heading into 2010. Johnny Miller called Phil "the best player in the world" and says next year could be his best year ever.
  
• Steve Stricker is becoming a ridiculous player, especially when he gets the putter rolling. Tiger called Stricker's Saturday afternoon round one of the best putting performances he'd ever seen.
• Who knows if Michael Jordan did anything to really help Sean O'Hair, but regardless, O'Hair played great and destroyed Ernie Els. Not quite sure anyway why O'Hair really needs any help as he's one of the best players in the world now.
• Ryo Ishikawa was the most exciting player to watch on the International team.
• Adam Scott's performance was, to put it mildly, not so good.
  
• The most amusing aspect had to be the comments made by Robert Allenby, when he called Anthony Kim a "loose cannon" and "the new John Daly", after getting drubbed by the American 5 and 3. Even more amusing was Kim's response, when he said "If he feels that way, maybe he should practice more."Good early controversy for 2011 when the cup will be played in Australia.
  

President Cup Photos

Tiger Woods photo gallery

Stars and celebrities at the Presidents Cup

Michael Jordan Photo Gallery

Closing ceremony and final photos from Cup

Sunday singles matches photo gallery

Saturday four-ball and alternate shot photo gallery

Friday four-ball photo gallery

Thursday alternate shot photo gallery

United States team profile photo gallery

International Team profile photo gallery

Day two pairings and tee times at the Presidents Cup

Ryo Ishikawa (AP Marcio Sanchez)

Friday tee times

Four-ball matches (best ball)

1:55 p.m. ET – Mickelson-Leonard (US) vs. Goosen-Scott

2:07 p.m. ET – Furyk-Kim (US) vs. Els-Weir

2:19 p.m. ET – Perry-O'Hair (US) vs. Ishikawa-Yang

2:31 p.m. ET – Glover-Cink (US) vs. Singh-Clark

2:43 p.m. ET – Johnson-Mahan (US) vs. Allenby-Villegas

2:55 p.m. ET – Woods-Stricker (US) vs. Ogilvy-Cabrera

Day One Pairings

(AP / Eric Risberg)

Tiger looks ready to play and ready to stop answering questions.

Day One Pairings:

MATCH 1

Anthony Kim / Phil Mickelson (USA) vs. Mike Weir / Tim Clark (International)

MATCH 2

Hunter Mahan / Sean O'Hair (USA) vs. Adam Scott / Ernie Els (International)

MATCH 3

Lucas Glover / Stewart Cink (USA) vs. Vijay Singh / Robert Allenby (International)

MATCH 4

Kenny Perry / Zach Johnson (USA) vs. Angel Cabrera / Camilo Villegas (International)

MATCH 5

Tiger Woods / Steve Stricker (USA) vs. Geoff Ogilvy / Ryo Ishikawa (International)

MATCH 6

Jim Furyk / Justin Leonard (USA) vs. Y.E. Yang / Retief Goosen (International)

Questions abound at the Presidents Cup

There are many questions and great story lines for this years Presidents Cup.

Which captain style will work out better?
Laid back Fred Couples or more highly energized Greg Norman.

How will Adam Scott play?
He's had one of his worst years ever, he's been in the spotlight more for surfing and starlets, and was the most controversial selection on either team.


How will Ryo Ishikawa play?
At 18, he's the youngest to ever play in a Presidents Cup.


Will Michael Jordan help the U.S. team?
Jordan was named assistant captain, but so far has been getting more headlines for smoking too many cigars on the course.

Will Vijay look yippy with the putter?
How will the greens hold up after being damaged?
Will there be any controversial pairings or strategies?
Who will be the U.S. team ping pong champion?
Will Tiger smack Phil across the face with a ping pong paddle?
Will there be a blow out or will it come down to the singles matches Sunday?
How many players will Johnny Miller grill during the weekend?

AP Photo Credits
Norman and Couples - Jeff Chiu
Ryo Ishikawa - Eric Risberg
Adam Scott - Marcio Sanchez
Michael Jordan - Marcio Sanchez

Golf travel in South America

The 2016 Olympics are a long way off, but now that we know they will be held in Rio de Janeiro, it will be interesting to find out what course they'll be playing on.

Supposedly the top two courses in Rio are:

Gavea Golf and Country Club

Itanhanga Golf Club

As far as South America goes, the top golf destination is Argentina. Golf was introduced there around the turn of the century by the British. Not only are there several quality locations to play, there is the constant festivals, food, wine, and amazing night life. This amazingly diverse and often beautiful landscape features beaches and vast expanses of natural forests and mountains.

The top two golf locations in Argentina are The Jockey Club and San Andres Golf Club. The Jockey club features both the red and blue courses. Both courses opened in 1935 and were designed by Alistair Mackenzie, who designed many famous courses throughout his life.


The course requires a great deal of accuracy of the tee and features sculpted and contoured greens that challenge any golfer. Angel Cabrera, current Masters champion, won the Argentina Open in 2001 at the red course.


San Andres is the oldest club in Argentina, was founded in 1892, and was named in honor of St. Andrews, the home of golf.


The course was designed by one of the early pioneers in golf design, Mungo Park. The par 72 course is 6772 yards, short by modern day standards, but features a difficult test of golf. This course is where golf in Argentina began and is a must play for anyone traveling to the country.

With golf officially becoming an Olympic sport, South America has now been thrust into the limelight for the event. It will be interesting to see how much bigger the game grows and how many new golf travel destinations come available throughout the continent.

Around the golf world

Tiger Woods is the first billion dollar athlete. Wow! That was fast and he's only 33. It will be crazy to see how wealthy he will be when it's all said and done.


Former NFL great Jerry Rice is trying to turn pro and will be playing in a Nationwide event in 2010. I believe he won Dancing with Stars. Why not become a pro golfer as well?

The Stars Collide - Both get wins

The top two players in the world both had important wins Sunday at The Tour Championship at East Lake.

Tiger won the season long Fed Ex Cup Championship and added another 10 million to the Bank of Tiger. There is a pattern forming. If he putts well, he wins. If he doesn't putt well, he finishes second, or at worse, in the top 10.


Phil played ridiculous golf the last three rounds firing 67, 66, and 65. His putting lesson with Dave Stockton obviously worked as he drained many long putts throughout the week. Even more amazing was the fact that he made a snowman during the opening round. Had he just made par there, he would have won the tournament by seven strokes.

Phil took home 1.35 million for the tournament victory and 3 million for finishing second overall in the Fed Ex Cup.

The Fed Ex Cup 2009 worked out pretty well, but with the crazy point system it will need to be tweaked again for next year.

More coverage:

The 2009 Tour Championship and final round slideshow

Tiger's comeback season

Phil's up and down year

(AP Photo credits / Dave Martin)

36 holes away from 11.35 million

(AP Photo / Dave Martin)

Round Two Slideshow

Third round tee times

Sean O'Hair leads after Round 1 at Tour Championship

(AP Photo / Dave Martin)


Sean O'Hair shot 66 today to take a one stroke lead over Tiger, Padraig, and Cink. Obviously, with only 30 top players in the field, it will be a great tournament, but the early leaderboard is looking very intriguing heading into round two.

Full leaderboard

Round 1 Slideshow

Round 2 tee times

Mickelson seeks advice after snowman

Phil Mickelson had a tough time on the 14th hole today on his way to a three over par 73.

Drive.
Approach shot into bunker.
Bunker shot over green.
Pitch shot over green back into original bunker.
Bunker shot left in bunker.
Bunker shot on green.
Putt.
Putt.

All in all, it equals an 8, otherwise known as the dreaded Snowman. Devastating for any golfer, especially one playing for 11.35 million.

Fed Ex Point System Whacked Out

Although this year's point system has added a lot of drama and brought more players into the mix, it will surely be changed again.

Here is an excerpt from a Golf.com article explaining a few scenarios involving Tiger which really show the system is not quite right.


Tiger Woods was jolted at the start of the playoffs to learn he could win all three playoff events, finish second at the Tour Championship and still not win the FedEx Cup.

Wednesday brought another scenario that only made him smile.

Given his five victories before the playoffs began, and a system of cumulative points until the Tour Championship, Woods could have skipped all three playoff events and still been the No. 3 seed at East Lake.

Then, all he would have had to do is win the Tour Championship.

PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem was asked if he was aware that Woods could have stayed home the last month.

``No, and I'm glad he didn't,'' Finchem said. ``Tiger is pretty adept at this. Tiger's view was his best chance of winning was to play them all, and make sure he was the No. 1 seed. I think the No. 1 seed has an advantage this week. Tiger usually plays to have an advantage.''

Woods is not likely to ever miss the Deutsche Bank Championship, which benefits his foundation. He has a long history with the Western Golf Association, which runs the BMW Championship at Cog Hill, where Woods has won five times.

Even so, the idea that having a big regular season allows him to miss a playoff event raises questions about whether he'll be at The Barclays next year.

Definitely needs to be fixed for next year.

The Tour Championship tee times and pairings

(AP Photo / Michael Dwyer)

Come Sunday, someone is going to be 10 million dollars richer. Sorry ladies, it's not going to be the author of this blog. Most likely, it will be the guy above.

At least there will be some drama as all 30 players have a mathematical chance to win, although, odds are someone in the top five will take it down.

Tee times and pairings

Fed Ex standings

Kerr to line up own shots - What a story!

In huge golf news, it's being reported that Kristie Kerr, the #5 LPGA player in the world, will now line up her own shots without the help of her caddy.

This is one of the most ridiculous aspects of golf anyway, and hopefully they make an official rule against allowing caddies to stand behind the player and help line them up.

These are world class players. Are they really not able to line themselves up? From 220 yards away, does a caddy say move 1 centimeter to your right and you will be perfect.

Nothing at all against Kerr and I'm glad she made this decision. Hopefully other players will follow her lead or this will be banned for good because it is absurd.

Nicklaus and Saunders at Q - School

Two very interesting names will attempt to make it to the PGA tour through Q - School this year.

Gary Nicklaus, the son of Jack, is now 40 years old and looking to make it back after losing his card in 2002. He has played in 100 tour events and has gone through Q - school several times.


Sam Saunders, the grandson of Arnold Palmer, has decided to leave Clemson a year early and attempt to make the tour.


Pre-qualifying events begin September 22-25 at The Golf Club of Dallas.

10 million up for grabs at The Tour Championship

(AP Photo / Mel Evans)


The Tour Championship kicks off this Thursday at East Lake in Atlanta and someone will be going home 10 million dollars richer. With the new system this year, the point standings have been reset, allowing more players to have a legitimate chance this week.

The top five:

Tiger Woods - 2500 points

Tiger looks for his seventh win on tour this year and his second Fed Ex Cup title in the past three seasons.

Steve Stricker - 2250 points

Stricker has been consistent all year, and has grown accustomed to playing with Woods in pressure packed situations.

Jim Furyk - 2000 points

Certainly not a flashy player, he still seems to constantly be on the leader board. We shall see if his steady play can earn him a Fed Ex title.

Zach Johnson - 1800 points

Johnson will look for his biggest win since the 2007 Masters

Heath Slocum - 1600 points

Slocum started the playoffs in 193rd place but shocked everyone by winning at the Barclays. He proved he can handle the pressure by sinking a 20 foot par putt at the eighteenth hole to win and avoid a five man playoff.

Full standings

More coverage and photo slideshow

Million dollar hole in one video

Utah golfer Jason Hargett drained a nine iron on this 150 yard hole to win a million bucks at the Mark Eaton Golf Classic.

Top PGA events remaining in 2009

What to look for the rest of 2009:

The Tour Championship - Atlanta, Georgia

Here we will find out the Fed Ex Cup Champion and the winner of 10 million.

The Presidents Cup - San Francisco, California

The United States team vs. The International team should be a great match up. This will be taking place October 8-11 at Harding Park in San Francisco. It will be interesting to see how Adam Scott performs under the scrutiny he will be sure to face. He might play great or might be more focused on surfing and dating starlets (and really, who can blame him).

The WGC - HSBC Champions - Shanghai, China

The tournament is November 5- 8 and many top players are scheduled including Tiger, Phil, Sergio, Ogilvy, and Casey among others.

The Australian Masters - Melbourne, Australia

Tiger will be playing down under for the first time since 1998 and is reportedly receiving a 3 million dollar appearance fee. Tournament is scheduled for November 12-15.

Chevron World Challenge - Thousand Oaks, California

The tournament features 18 of the world's top players. December 3-6.

This is tough to watch

The top 30 players in the Fed Ex Cup standings got to move on to the Tour Championship in Atlanta. Brandt Snedeker was on the bubble and needed a two-putt from 12 feet in order to make it in. Watch the video to see what happened. Got to feel for the dude.

Back on Top

Tiger put on a sick performance at the BMW Championship, reminiscent of his dominating 2000 season. He was accurate off the tee, his irons were all over the pins, and his putter finally got hot. This was the best he's played all year, and his performance may have answered some of the critics questioning whether or not the "old Tiger" will ever be back. Tiger won the tournament at 19 under par by eights shots which included a course record 62 on Saturday.

He's now regained the lead in the Fed Ex Cup playoffs which will conclude at The Tour Championship in Atlanta in two weeks.

Fed Ex Cup Standings

Photo credit (Nam Huh /AP)

The Tiger Woods of Basketball

Before Tiger, Michael Jordan was far and away the most spectacular and clutch athlete on the planet. In honor of him being inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame tonight, here is a video of a few of his top dunks.

Happy Birthday Arnold!

(One of the coolest golf photos ever featuring Arnold Palmer and Ben Hogan puffing away)

Arnold Palmer just turned 80 and is still promoting golf as much as ever. There have been a lot of articles written recently describing what a great influence he has been throughout the years.

Check out this Arnie section for a look back on his career highlights and stories.

Continue on with the club throwing theme

Top 100 teacher Charlie King presents how to throw your club.

Courtesy of Armchair Golf Blog.

At least Tiger didn't throw it this far

Tiger tosses club

Look closely at the 3 second mark and you'll see the club go flying. The messed up part is that his caddy had to go after it.

Year of the Gnat

After spending a lot of time at the golf course this summer, I'm wondering if I missed out on scientists calling for the Year of the Gnat. The Gnats have been so bad, it's difficult to concentrate on the course. They swarm your head, and seem to enjoy eyes, hears, mouths, and climbing on sunglasses. What is the deal?

Seriously, has Northern Virginia turned into the Amazon Rain Forest? What is next? Anacondas on the fairway? Piranhas in the ponds? Jaguars in the woods? I'm starting to feel like Survivorman when I play golf.


In my entire history of golfing, I've never seen the gnats this bad, and they laugh at bug spray. I know cicadas come out every 17 years, but I haven't heard about the gnat invasion. If any bug experts are out there, please shed some light on this.

Golf in Sicily

"Play golf in Sicily, or else you're gonna swim with the fishes."

For those of you who don't know, Vito Corleone was a huge golfer in his spare time. When he wasn't busy with the olive oil business, gambling, smuggling, and committing other crimes, he was constantly teeing it up with the boys.

When things got too hot to handle at his compound in New York, he would take a few weeks to get away from it all, usually at Le Madonie Golf Resort, in Collesano, Sicily.

In all seriousness though, the golf course is a par 72, measuring 6570 yards, and features many lakes and over 5000 planted trees. Set high on a cliff overlooking the sea, Le Madonie is the most prestigious course on the island. The resort has 32 private villas located throughout the golf course that offer outstanding accommodations appropriate for large groups and families.


Before heading to Le Madonie, another course called Il Picchio is considered a great warm up, and an excellent course for beginners. This course is set throughout vineyards, as well as oak and hazelnut forests. The Il Picchio resort provides a genuine Sicilian experience and lies within sight of the towering Mount Etna. The hotel itself is private, offering just 23 rooms.


I traveled to Sicily a few years ago and can say from personal experience that it's a beautiful country to visit. The countryside, hills, and beaches are an unbelievable site and the food and wine is the best I've ever had. If you're looking for a relaxing getaway in a beautiful country and want to play some golf, I'd strongly recommend planning a trip to Sicily.


Further Reading - Travel guide Sicily