Golf Talk

And by the way, who is Bryce Molder? All I know is that he went out there today and shot a 7 under 63. That and he’s ranked 374th in the world. And that 63 beats his best round this year by three strokes. Oh, and when he was born, he lacked the pectoral muscle on his left side, and his left hand is smaller than his right hand because he has Poland Syndrome. And…and…he had surgery to un-web three fingers on that left hand. Ha, seems I know quite a bit about Molder, who is playing his third non-consecutive season on the PGA Tour.

And that 63 today vaulted Molder from a tie for 36th after the first round into a tie for 2nd with Robert Allenby. However, Allenby still has three holes to finish, so it is possible for Allenby to knock Molder down from the runner-up spot. But that may be moot, as it is Brian Gay who has a firm grip on the lead in the 2009 St. Jude Classic in Memphis.

Brian Gay shot 7 birdies in his second round, but those strokes came back when he bogeyed three holes. He added to his first round score of 64 with a 66 today, going 10 under for the tournament. He sits at two strokes ahead of Allenby, but like I said, Allenby is still playing his second round, so who knows how things will lie after tomorrow morning.

This is no time to laugh...

I hate weather suspensions, as sometimes it can be a real hassle in determining whom one plays on her fantasy team for the third round. Example: I have on my A-Squad (Yahoo fantasy league) both Sergio Garcia ( I love him, therefore I play him whenever I can, much to my score’s detriment — luv u, anyway, Serg) and Justin Leonard. I know, stupid move on the both picks. And Sergio missed the cut, with a 3 over today, and Leonard has not finished his round. If I switch to him, I use a start, even if he misses the cut. What to do, what to do? Easy decision this time, as Leonard is six over with four holes to go. You suck, Leonard! Luckily, I have Brian Gay on my B-Squad. Go Gay! [Note the lack of comma]

Heath Slocum also shot a 63 today and moved up from 82nd to a tie for 7th. Woody Austin, David Toms, and Camilo Villegas are also having strong second rounds at 4 under (Toms and Villegas are still playing, but Austin carded a 66). Phil Mickelson is playing well, but not great, but hey, who can blame him? It is just great to see him out there. He is sitting at 2 under (4 under total) with three holes to go.

And then there is John Daly.

He is sitting right on the cutting edge of fashion…er, I mean, the cut line. If someone, say Allenby, makes it to 9 under, that will push Daly into something higher than the tie for 70th he is currently in at even par for the tournament. And that will be the end of Daly’s prodigal return tournament to the Tour.

If you are looking for LPGA “news”, I wrote about the LPGA Championship in a separate post today.

On the European Tour, there is no event this week. I’m sure everyone is gearing up for the…oh, what’s that tournament next week, oh yeah, the Saint-Omer Open.

I mean the US Open, of course. I’m just being silly.

golf, PGA, Bryce Molder, Poland Syndrome, Robert Allenby, Brian Gay, 2009 St. Jude Classic, Sergio Garcia, Justin Leonard, Heath Slocum, Woody Austin, David Toms, Camilo Villegas, Phil Mickelson, John Daly

Steve Stricker gives good divot...

The second round of the 2009 Crowne Plaza Invitational at (Tour favorite) Colonial in Fort Worth, Texas featured Steve Stricker following up an opening round 63 with a second round 63 to take the lead going into Saturday’s third round. That put him just ahead of Tim Clark, who shot a 64 after an opening round 63.

With the leader at 14 under after two rounds, I think it is safe to say that conditions at Colonial are near perfect for golf this week.

And that incorrigible Vijay Singh went 64-64 to sit at 12 under in 3rd place, one stroke ahead of he-who-is-having-a-great-year Sean O’Hair, who matched Singh’s second round 64 (but shot a 65 Thursday). Australian Jason Day (who did dick for me when I had him on my fantasy team back in March at the Transitions) is playing well enough to find himself at 10 under after two rounds and in solo 5th place.

First round co-leader Woody Austin faltered a bit, shooting a second round 68 to fall back into 6th place. Rounding out the top ten, we find Ryan Palmer in 7th after shooting a second round 63. And there is a four-way tie for 8th after Friday’s round: Steve Marino (66-67), Paul Casey (66-67), Luke Donald (68-65), and James Driscoll (69-64).

Missing the cut were Davis Love, JB Holmes, Trevor Immelman, Paul Goydos, and Ryan Moore (who I keep thinking is going to start playing well for more than one round, but just doesn’t).

...(Ross Kinnaird/Getty Images)

On the European Tour, the European Open is hosting some big names from both the non-European and European PGA Tour this week, including that other Singh, Jeev Milkha Singh, who is in a tie for first with Michael Lorenzo-Vera at 8 under after two rounds. Sergio Garcia had a rough second round, shooting 3 over to fall back into a tie for 40-something. Also shooting a 75 was Lee Westwood. Rory McIlroy shot a 73 to find himself back in a tie for 25th with Shaun Micheel (71-71).

Oh, yeah, and John Daly did not make the cut. Shooting a 71-76 will do that. However, he did win the best-dressed consolation prize.

golf, PGA, European Tour, Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, Colonial, Steve Stricker, Tim Clark, Vijay Singh, Sean O’Hair, Paul Casey, Luke Donald, European Open, Jeev Milkha Singh, Sergio Garcia, Rory McIlroy, Lee Westwood, John Daly

Maybe I predicted it earlier this week. Vijay Singh, last year’s Fed Ex Cup winner, seems to have come this week to contend, rather than hang back in the middle of the field. Singh shot a 6 under 64 to end the first round of the 2009 Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial in a tie for 4th with Kenny Perry.

But the real stars of the first round were Woody Austin, Tim Clark and that upstart Steve Stricker. These golfers went low for the day, each shooting impressive 63’s to share the lead going into the second round. Austin and Clark did it early, and Stricker did it later on in the afternoon, but really, the conditions were beautiful, if not a bit hot, so weather should not have been much of a factor in round one.

Tim Clark is taking his cues from the NHL playoffs...

But being Texas, and at the start of hurricane season, who knows what the weekend will have in store…although, checking the weather channel’s website, it looks like Fort Worth is not expecting rain (isolated thunderstorms, actually) until Tuesday. So play on, gentleman.

The ladies of the LPGA have the week off.

And the European Tour finds itself again in England this week for the European Open at the London Golf Club in Kent. There are a lot more bigger name (US) PGA players in the tournament this week, so I don’t have to just focus on the continuing saga of John Daly. But I will start with him — Daly shot a 1 under 71 in the first round to end his day in a tie for 53rd. Also in that tie is Shaun Micheel. Lee Westwood and Colin Montgomerie did it one stroke better at 70. Even better than that, Rory McIlroy and Sergio Garcia shot 3 under. American Ben Curtis went 4 under. And Jeev Milkha Singh did it one better than Curtis. But it was Anders Hansen that took the lead after shooting a 65 in the first round.

golf, PGA, European Tour, 2009 Crowne Plaza Invitational, European Open, London Golf Club, Vijay Singh, Kenny Perry, Woody Austin, Tim Clark, Steve Stricker, John Daly, Shaun Micheel, Lee Westwood, Colin Montgomerie, Rory McIlroy, Sergio Garcia, Ben Curtis, Jeev Milkha Singh, Anders Hansen

First off, sorry for the delay in these results — it was simply too nice outside for me to sit inside, bent over my computer. Hope everyone had as fun a weekend as me…

And I don’t know why he drives me crazy, but no matter, Rory Sabbatini won the 2009 HP Bryon Nelson Championship. He did it quite decisively, too; winning by 2 strokes (should have been three but he kind of flubbed a short-ish putt at the end) over Brian Davis. He who shared the lead with Rory going into the final round, John Mallinger, faltered a bit on Sunday, shooting par, which dropped him to a solo 6th place finish.

Round of the day goes to Scott McCarron, who shot a 62. That 8 under helped McCarron jump up to a tie for 4th (with Dustin Johnson) from 17th. Also making a big move was John Senden, who turned in a 64 to jump up from a tie for 23rd into a solo 7th.

Not that there were many big names in the tournament this week, but among the few that played, Freddy Couples had a great tournament, finishing at 11 under and tied for 8th. It’s not a tie for 3rd like he got at the Northern Trust or the Shell Houston Open, but it’s great to see Couples doing well. If only Davis Love could get something going on…

Also, last year’s Fed Ex cup winner Vijay Singh went low on Sunday with a 66 to move on up the leaderboard into a tie for 16th (from a tie for 40th) with Justin Leonard and Mike Weir. Is Vijay finally going to start playing real golf again? I mean, the man is currently in 88th place in the Fed Ex cup points race; if he even hopes to make the playoffs, he’s better start making some birdies, or better yet, those eagles for St. Jude’s.

On the LPGA tour, Yani Tseng took over the top spot in the LPGA Corning Classic with a final score of 21 under. She followed up her 62 on Saturday with a 67 on Sunday to creep ahead of Saturday’s co-leaders Mika Miyazato and Soo-Yun Kang (who placed in 4th and a tie for 2nd, respectively). And check this out, sharing that runner-up spot is Paula Creamer, who shot a final round 65 to earn about 4 times the money she would have if she had remained back in 11th.

Despite John Daly rallying to make the cut in the 2009 BMW PGA Championship, he blew up over the weekend with a 77 and a 75. He finished the tournament at 8 over. Way to go, JD. Hope this isn’t a bad omen for your illustrious return to the PGA Tour.

Meanwhile, Paul Casey held on to his lead and walked away with the trophy and just shy of a million dollars for his efforts. He won by one stroke over Ross Fisher. Oh, and as for the other Rory, as in McIlroy, he finished in 5th.

PGA, LPGA, European Tour, golf, 2009 HP Bryon Nelson Championship, Byron Nelson, Rory Sabbatini, Brian Davis, John Mallinger, Scott McCarron, John Senden, Vijay Singh, Fred Couples, Davis Love, Justin Leonard, Mike Weir, Yani Tseng, Mika Miyazato, Soo-Yun Kang, Paula Creamer, John Daly, Paul Casey, Ross Fisher, Rory McIlroy, BMW PGA Championship, LPGA Corning Classic

Today was an interesting day for big moves to avoid the cut for such names as Justin Leonard, Davis Love III, and to a lesser extent Vijay Singh. Leonard came out swinging today, going 7 under to improve his chances of playing this weekend. He began the day at 5 over, so to come back from that kind of self-defeating deficit makes me wish I had played him instead of the do-nothing-but-so-cute Ryan Moore on my fantasy team.

What is it about Sabbatini that makes me want to punch him in the face? (photo: M. Feldman)

However, the real glory of round two of the 2009 HP Bryon Nelson Championship goes to Rory Sabbatini and John Mallinger. I had written off Sabbatini after Quail Hollow, but who knew, the boy came to play. Sabbatini shot a 64 today (6 under –70 is par in this tournament) to move up from a tie for 19th to share the lead at 8 under with John Mallinger. Mallinger on his part went 5 under to move up from 7th.

In fact, 7 out of the top ten spots at the top of the leaderboard shot 4 under or better today. The exceptions were yesterday’s leaders James Nitties (68) and Ken Duke (69). Robert Allenby went 3 under.

Davis Love shot 6 under, Vijay Singh turned in a 67, and Freddy Couples is beating both of them so far by shooting 66 today. Those who lost their way today include Bat-Boy Charles Howell III, Scott McCarron, Brad Adamonis and that hockey-lovin’ Mike Weir. The biggest screw-up today goes to some guy names Spencer Levin, who parred himself out of making the cut. He began the day in a tie for 7th. Way to go…home.

And talk about screwing up a good tournament, Hee Young Park shot a 1 over 73 to fall from a share of the lead in the LPGA Corning Classic to a tie for 20th. The other co-leader from yesterday, however, did not falter; in fact, Karine Icher is kicking *ss. Icher shot a 66 after a 64 in the first round to take the solo-lead at 14 under — after two days. Very impressive,ladies. Icher’s nearest challenger, Hee-Won Han is 2 strokes back at 12 under.

...Wie's picture was better than Icher's, I swear. (ap photo: Kevin Rivoli)

Also impressive today — Michelle Wie shot 5 under to make the cut. Insert Lucas slow clap.

Englishman Paul Casey took the lead in Surrey, England at the BMW PGA Championship. Casey’s 5 under today put him two strokes ahead of yesterday’s co-leader David Horsey, who could only muster a 1 under. And despite the lead being at 8 under, John Daly’s 1 under today cancels out his 1 over yesterday, and par is good enough to make the cut this week. Guess I made the wrong call yesterday.

PGA, LPGA, European Tour, golf, HP Bryon Nelson Championship, Corning Classic, BMW PGA Championship, Justin Leonard, Davis Love III, Vijay Singh, Ryan Moore, Rory Sabbatini, John Mallinger, James Nitties, Ken Duke, Robert Allenby, Fred Couples, Charles Howell III, Scott McCarron, Brad Adamonis, Mike Weir, Hee Young Park, Karine Icher, Hee-Won Han, Paul Casey, John Daly

Duke missed a birdie putt on the 18th...

Ken Duke did it early. James Nitties did it later. But both golfers went low today to take a share of the lead after 18 holes in the 2009 HP Byron Nelson Championship — a down-home affair at the TPC Four Seasons Resort Las Colinas in Texas. Too bad you have to go back to 1993 before you find a first round leader that went on to win the tournament.

Ken Duke started slowly, but picked up a series of birdies around the turn to shoot a 65 today. The wind picked up by the afternoon, but James Nitties matched Duke’s 65 with birdies on the last four holes. For most of the day, it was Mike Weir that held second place by shooting a 66, but as it sits going into the second round; Brad Adamonis, Scott McCarron, and a sneaky Charles Howell III joined Weir in the tie for 3rd.

And this is interesting…Nearly every one of the golfers at the top of the field had only one bogey during their round and all before hole #5. Howell is the only exception.

Defending champ Adam Scott shot 1 over and may not make the put unless he can get something going on tomorrow. Vijay Singh shot par, and Anthony Kim is at 1 under. Chris DiMarco went bogey-free and shot a 3 under. Who woulda thunk it?

Park at the 2007 Kraft Nabisco

It’s the LPGA Corning Classic for the ladies of the green this week. Hee Young Park and Karine Icher share the lead at 8 under. Nice job, ladies. Five others sit in a tie for 3rd at 7 under: Sarah Lee, Minea Blomqvist, Soo-Yun Kang, Hee-Won Han, and Sandra Gal. Paula Creamer and Morgan Pressel are at 6 under. Michelle Wie is in a tie for 103rd, so yeah, not sure if we’ll be seeing her this weekend.

On the European Tour, it’s a Horsey (groan from the gallery) race at the BMW PGA Championship with a three-way tie for first after round one: Englishmen David Horsey and Anthony Wall share the lead at 5 under with Spaniard Gonzalo Fdez-Castano. Sideshow John Daly shot a 1 over 73 to put himself in a very good position to miss the cut tomorrow.

PGA, LPGA, European Tour, golf, HP Byron Nelson Championship, Ken Duke, James Nitties, Mike Weir, Brad Adamonis, Scott McCarron, Charles Howell III, Vijay Singh, Anthony Kim, Chris DiMarco, LPGA Corning Classic, Hee Young Park, Karine Icher, Paula Creamer, Morgan Pressel, Michelle Wie, John Daly

Well, heck, if that Paul Goydos (right) didn’t follow up at first round 63 with a second round 65 today at the 2009 Valero Texas Open. Sitting at 12 under, Goydos leads the pack by 3 strokes, and doesn’t look at though he wants to give those strokes up. Too bad, he still has two more days to fend off his challengers.

And if you think that 63 is a good score (and it is), but check it out, the round of the day went to J.P. Hayes, (at left in those sweet glasses) who shot a 62. Now, that’s a spicy meatball.

Yesterday’s co-leader Justin Leonard is hanging in there with a 2 under today, in a tie for second at 9 under. Joining him in that runner-up spot are John Mallinger, who went 6 under (64); Mathias Gronberg (65); Scott Sterling (63); and Ted Purdy (67).

Too bad, I switched from Mallinger to Leonard on my fantasy team for today’s round…

Over in Jersey, the Ladies of the LPGA are duking it out at the Sybase Classic. Yesterday’s low-rounder Helen Alfredsson went from Birdie City to Bogey Town, shooting a frustrating 76. However, she only fell to a tie for 4th, but that is five strokes behind new leader Brittany Lincicome.

Lincicome (right) shot a 69 to follow her 64 in the opening round to lead at 11 under, two strokes ahead of her nearest competitors Suzann Petterson and Ji Young Oh. Song-Hee Kim had the best day, shooting 5 under. Michelle Wie and Paula Creamer each shot 3 under to move into a tie for 6th, but they are five strokes off the lead.

And in the 3 Irish Open on the European Tour, the incredible journey of John Daly has come to an end. JD shot a 75 and missed the cut. Don’t feel bad, John; the most well-known Irish player, Padraig Harrington, also missed the cut. Guess the British Open is his thing…wanker.

And check it out, an amateur is leading the Irish Open at 15 under after only two rounds. 22-year-old Irishman Shane Lowry (he’s adorable, at left) shot an impressive 62 to follow up an opening round 67. Lowry has set a new record for a two-day score for an amateur. And get this, his 62 was not the low round of the day — Graeme McDowell shot a 61.

PGA, LPGA, European Tour, Paul Goydos, Justin Leonard, John Mallinger, Scott Sterling, Mathias Gronberg, Ted Purdy, Brittany Lincicome, Suzann Petterson, Ji Young Oh, Song-Hee Kim, Helen Alfredsson, Michelle Wie, Paula Creamer, John Daly, Padraig Harrington, Shane Lowry, Graeme McDowell, Valero Texas Open, Sybase Classic, Irish Open

Maybe slimming down, going blonder, and possibly practicing is doing the body of John Daly good…

Fooled ya…this is from the 1994 Irish Open.

Starting with the European Tour today…

The formerly drunk and disorderly John Daly went 4 under today in the first round of the 3 Irish Open. Buoyed by his second place finish last week at the BMW Italian Open, JD has given all of his fans (myself included, of course — you can’t help but love him and all of his foilables) hope that perhaps he will someday regain his standing on the PGA Tour. When his suspension is up, that is.

At the Valero Texas Open, the witty Paul Goydos went 7 under early, holding the lead for most of the day until Justin Leonard matched his impressive 63 to take a share of the lead after the first round.

As this is a week after a (quasi)major, the field is not exactly household names here, so it’s little surprise that Leonard is atop the leaderboard. Goydos is more of a surprise, but not really. The man that everyone loves to interview has one or two strong showings a year, and this might be one of those showings. Of course, it is only the first round, so no use etching his name in the trophy. But still, it’s nice to see the older guys playing well.

And speaking of the older guys, and the possible has-beens on the Tour, David Duval shot a 4 under 66 to situate himself into a tie for 8th. Interesting…

The Ladies are playing in New Jersey this week for the Sybase Classic. Last year’s US Open runner-up Helen Alfredsson shot an incredible 62 to go 10 under and take the lead by 2 strokes over Brittany Lincicome. The 62 marks a career best for Alfredsson (who’s been playing since 1992 by the way) as well as setting a new tourney record. Defending champ Lorena Ochoa is sitting at 1 under. Michelle Wie, Natalie Gulbis and Paula Creamer are all at 2 under.

PGA, LPGA, European Tour, John Daly, Justin Leonard, Paul Goydos, David Duval, Helen Alfredsson, Brittany Lincicome, Lorena Ochoa, Michelle Wie, Natalie Gulbis, Paula Creamer, golf, Valero Texas Open, Irish Open, Sybase Classic

Maybe those glasses are kind of lame, but it didn’t matter in the end with a final round 66 at TPC Sawgrass. Henrik Stenson finally came up a winner in the 2009 Players Championship. Of course, all the talk (and coverage) was about Alex Cejka’s young escape from behind the iron curtain in Czechoslovakia, and about how Tiger Woods was in the final pairing and could possibly play the spoiler in Cejka’s historic bid for a Players’ trophy going to a German national.

But in the end, it was not Tiger, nor Ian Poulter, that overcame Cejka’s 5 stroke lead, as really Cejka overcame his own lead. It was all about going low on Sunday, and Stenson went lowest at 6 under. Even if Cejka had shot even, Stenson still would have won.

I should have seen this outcome, to be honest. Stenson is one of those guys that has become a bit of a contender in the majors lately. Last season, he placed in a tie for 3rd and 4th in the US Open and PGA Championshiop, respectively. He also has a knack of placing in the top 20 (and better) in World Golf Championship events.

And it was nice that last year’s champ, Sergio Garcia, was able to pass on the Players Crystal Vase (or whatever it is) to his Ryder Cup teammate…

Hey, did anyone else catch the PGA Tour Commish, Timothy Finchem mispronounce Stenson’s name at the trophy presentation? He called him Heinrik…twice. This is not the first time that Stevenson…er, I mean, Stenson has dealt with his name being mangled. It is one of the easier names out there, sounding just like it written. How do you think he was have pronounced Cejka’s name?

On the LPGA Tour, at the Michelob Ultra Open at Kingsmill, Cristie Kerr held off all challengers to win by two strokes (16 under) over the pair of Kims.

And holy cow! John Daly shot an impressive final round 66 to take 2nd place at the BMW Italian Open. Maybe Daly should stay with the European Tour even after his suspension is up. Maybe it’s the liberal attitude toward nudity and beer.

PGA, Players Championship, TPC Sawgrass, Henrik Stenson, Tiger Woods, Alex Cejka, Ian Poulter, Sergio Garcia, Cristie Kerr, John Daly, LPGA, European Tour, golf

It’s almost like we all just expect Tiger Woods to be out there dominating every day he plays golf. If he only shoots a 2 under, then we all ask, what went wrong? But as anyone watching the 2009 Players Championship will notice that sometimes slow and steady wins the race.

photo: Heathcote

Alex Cejka, who fled Czechoslovakia at the age of nine with his father, and isn’t afraid of the color pink is keeping his cool, and this might just be his tournament to win tomorrow. But when you have someone like Tiger Woods stalking you ( and right beside you — Cejka and Woods are the final pairing tomorrow), it could be anyone’s tournament to win, and when I say anyone’s, I mean Tiger’s.

Then again, Cejka does have a five stroke lead, and that just by shooting par today. Luckily for Cejka, just about everyone else fell apart around him and

...Poulter showing us which way his score is going.

nary a challenger was to be seen, once Ian Poulter ran into trouble around the turn with three bogeys on 8, 9, and 11. His 75 still has him in second, but along with Tiger, there are four other guys sitting 5 strokes behind Cejka, all at 6 under: Retief Goosen, Ben Crane, Jonathan Byrd and Henrik Stenson.

Judging by the utterly brutal way TPC Sawgrass played today, Cejka would have to blow up tomorrow or someone (Tiger, for example) in that tie for 2nd is going to really have to turn on some Daniel Chopra-in-Round-Two-minus-the-last-2-holes magic to take the Championship. The low round today was only 4 under (Kenny Perry and Woody Austin, thank you), so a 5 stroke lead may not only be historic, but it may be enough, if Cejka can shoot around par on Sunday.

And oh my gosh, Lorena Ochoa shot a 75 today to tumble from her two-day lead at the Michelob Ultra Open at Kingsmill. Lindsey Wright and Cristie Kerr shot a 64 and a 66, respectively, to go into Sunday’s final round co-leading at 15 under. In-Kyung Kim is 14 under, and the other Kim, Song-Hee is 13 under. Ochoa fell back into a tie for 5th with Wendy Ward and Natalie Gulbis.

And in Italy, at the BMW Italian Open, check it…John Daly shot yet another 69, which moves him from a tie for 16th into a tie for 11th. That’s a whole lotta Miller Light.

Alex Cejka, that’s who. If you want a little insight into the mind of this crazy German, you can check out his website, and its translation by clicking here. The translation issues alone are enough reason to check it out. That and his photo. Priceless.

Cejka has yet to win on the PGA Tour, but it having a good year and seems poised to take his first title. He has been really good at finishing in ties for 13th this year, which may be a bad omen to some, but don’t tell Alex that. Cejka followed up his 66 yesterday with a 67 today, to lead the 2009 Players Championship at -11 at the half-way point.

Poulter went low alright...(photo: Heathcote)

However, don’t count out the rest of the field quite yet. Sure, Cejka was holding a lead of up to 4 strokes during the day, Ian Poulter made a big move today, shooting 67-68 to move into second place at 9 under. And check it out, recent Master’s winner Angel Cabrera shot a 65 today to move up to a tie for 3rd. He shot par yesterday, so he wins in terms of biggest mover today.

Kevin Na also went low today, shooting 6 under. He is sitting in that same tie for 3rd at 7 under. Others in that tie include David Toms (67-70), Jason Dufner (67-70), John Mallinger (66-71), and Henrik Stenson (68-69).

Tiger Woods started out rather sluggishly, but came to life later in his round. Could he be poised to make a run at the top tomorrow? If I had him on my fantasy, I’d be playing him tomorrow just in case. However, my A-team is Camilo and Phil, and I have yet to play Phil. Will I tomorrow? Maybe…Mickelson shot a paltry even today, but it’s not like the man is entirely capable of going something crazy like 9 under tomorrow, tying the course record.

At theLPGA’s Michelob Ultra Open at Kingsmill, Lorena Ochoa is putting some distance between her and the two Kims, In-Kyung and Song-Hee. Ochoa leads by three strokes going into the weekend.

And in John Daly-on-the-European-Tour news, JD shot another 69 today in the BMW Italian Open to sit at 4 under going into money spots. He is 5 behind the leader, who is some guy I’ve never heard of, but not the same guy as yesterday, who I also had never heard of.

Players Championship, Alex Cejka, Ian Poulter, Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, David Toms, PGA Tour, golf, Angel Cabrera, John Mallinger, Henrik Stenson, Jason Dufner, Kevin Na, Michelob Ultra Open, Kingsmill, Lorena Ochoa, John Daly, BMW Italian Open

Sorry, I cannot help but have fun at Tiger’s expense. The guy can afford it. However, it is strange to see Tiger Woods struggle at TPC Sawgrass. I’m sure he’ll have one or two killer rounds before all is said and done at the 2009 Players Championship.

photo: Greenwood

Meanwhile, the snail-like Ben Crane (at left) is leading after the first round at 7 under. Crane had a later tee-time, and he also started on the back nine, which seems to have been the right combination for him (and possibly others) today. 13 of the top 20 players today started on the back — maybe it’s getting past 17 early that gives them confidence.

Looking at the big boys, Phil Mickelson also had a rough day (a groan from the gallery). Phil shot a 1 over. [I have him on my bench, and if today is any indication, I may not have to play Phil at all. Go Villegas!] My boyfriend Sergio Garcia, the defending Players Champ, had an okay start to his tournament, shooting a 1 under. I kind of felt guilty not playing Sergio this week on my fantasy team, but I just don’t see him taking this trophy home again — at least not this year. Prove me wrong, Serg, prove me wrong.

A lot of big names shot around par today, and we’ll wait to see who has legs over the next three days. But let’s give a hand to those lesser known players that started out strong. John Mallinger held the lead at 6 under for most of the time I was able to watch today. Also in at 6 under was Richard s. Johnson and Alex Cejka. Who? Yeah, I know.

A ton of guys came in at 5 and 4 under, including Camilo Villegas, Retief Goosen, Ian Poulter, David Toms, and Scott Verplank (all 5 unders); and Jim Furyk, Nick Watney and Henrik Stenson, at 4 under.

A cool, artsy shot of Hole 17’s island green…just because. (photo: Halleran)

Meanwhile, in Virginia, at the Michelob Ultra Open at Kingsmill, Lorena Ochoa pulled a Ben Crane and went 7 under to take the lead over Lindsey Wright and a lot of Koreans.

And son of a b*tch, John Daly is en feugo on the European Tour, kinda. Daly shot a 2 under in the opening round of the BMW Italian Open, and that puts him in a tie for 17th, just five strokes behind leader Gareth Maybin (?). Go JD!

This is how Tiger started his round...(photo: Heathcote)

Today’s final round at Quail Hollow was pretty much what golf is all about…hoping that someone can turn it on one minute and not muck it all up the next. At one point, we had a four way tie for first, only to see one by one the contender’s fall away on that last stretch.

There was a brief moment when I had three of my four fantasy players in that four-way, with my fourth (Ian Poulter) lurking just behind by a stroke. Then that all fell apart for me as Bubba Watson and Sean O’Hair got hot, pushing out my boys — including that “loser” Tiger Woods (great post-round interview, Faherty). Lucas Glover stayed in there, but the intimidating three hole stretch of 16, 17, and 18 were too much for him to stay at 11 under.

Sean O’Hair may have bogeyed out 17 and 18, but it was just enough to not go into a playoff, as Glover could only muster a par on 18. This is O’Hair third win on the PGA Tour, and a nice comeback from his melt-down at Bay Hill in the Arnold Palmer Invitational when he squandered a five stroke lead to a certain Mr. Tiger Woods.

And speaking of squandering a lead, what the hell happened with Zach Johnson? Dude, you have a Masters under your belt, and you let this little tournament get to you…a disappointing 4 over and a precipitous drop from 1st going into the final round to a tie for 11th is how Johnson will remember the day.

In Phil-Watch, Mickelson redeemed his lousy round yesterday by shooting an impressive 5 under today. He spent the rest of the day on the first page of the standings, but his 8 under left his tied for 5th with Johnathan Byrd, who shot an even more impressive 6 under, and Tim Petrovic, who shot a 4 under today.

Finally, way to go, John Daly. JD shot a 3 under in the final round of the Spanish Open to move up into a tie for 31st. That has got to be his best showing since…his tie for 17th last November in the UBS Hong Kong Open. JD won almost $20,000 for his efforts this weekend. That’s more than enough for another bottle or two of peroxide.

Quail Hollow, Tiger Woods, PGA, golf, Sean O’Hair, Lucas Glover, Zach Johnson, Phil Mickelson, John Daly, Bubba Watson, Spanish Open

Since I didn’t get to watch much of what happened yesterday in the 2009 Quail Hollow Championship, and as not much that happened yesterday seemed to have a significant impact on the awesome fun-ness of Saturday, I have decided to skip Friday’s round and focus on today. And not to be braggin’ or anything, but at one point today I had three players on my fantasy team tied for the lead — Tiger Woods, Lucas Glover and Zach Johnson.

But there can be only one…

The 17th and 18th holes were not kind to Tiger Woods or that upstart George McNeill. Both players, who had been trading off the lone leader position for a few holes there at the end, fell prey to back-to-back bogeys. Lucas Glover had trouble on 18, but Zach Johnson had Jesus on his side and made an impressive birdie putt on 17 to take over the leader spot going into Sunday.

Zach Johnson (R) and George McNeill (L) walk off the course after play was suspended due to lightening in the area during the third round of the Quail Hollow Championship at the Quail Hollow Club on May 2, 2009 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo: Keane)

The round had been suspended for a short time due to inclement weather, but after I tuned out, it must have picked back up because by the time I checked out the PGA.com leaderboard, all the golfers had completed their third rounds. And I’ll be getting a cool 60 points today for the aforementioned top-trio and Ian Poulter’s 2 under. Kind of makes up for my team’s dismal showing last week, kind of…

And hello, that dapper John Daly made the cut in Spain in the Open de España. He shot an even par in the third round to sit nicely in a tie for 36th, but seemed to struggle today in the third round, shooting a 74 and dropping down in to a tie for 51st.

Quail Hollow, Tiger Woods, PGA, golf, Zach Johnson, Lucas Glover, George McNeill, John Daly, Open de Espana

First, was I way off on Rory Sabbatini, or what? Geez, this guy is stinking up the course and my fantasy team. I switched from him last night, and I see today that his second round was not an all-out attempt to try and make the cut. Nope, he stunk up his second round, same as the first. Have fun on your weekend off, Rory.

Back to the real news…Tiger is not effing around this week, is he? The crazy-good Tiger Woods came out swinging and went 7 under the first day to basically taunt Phil Mickelson, if you ask me. Phil took up the challenge, posting an impressive 5 under to place himself in second place along other such notables and not-so-notables as Robert Allenby, Steve Marino, and Jason Dufner.

Coming in at 4 under and also worth mentioning were Retief Goosen, who has suddenly become a contender again, and the unlikely trio of Hunter Mahan, Lucas Glover and Jeff Maggert. I have Glover on my fantasy, but of course, I had him on the bench in favor of Rory Sabba-tage.

Defending champ, Anthony Kim recorded a 2 under for his opening round. Good, sure, but hardly helping in the face of the Tiger Onslaught.

Of course, it’s only the first day. Kinda like a NBA game…it’s not interesting until the last quarter.

The LPGA is off this week. And on the European Tour, John Daly is playing in the Open de España in his 09 European Tour starter. He shot a 2 under, which is like awesome for JD. I guess he has been able to lose some weight…and from the looks of it, he’s also gone crazy.

PGA, Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Quail Hollow, Anthony Kim, John Daly, golf, European Tour