In the end, the final day turned into a showdown between two of the best golfers in the world.  Only it was Ernie Els, not Tiger Woods, battling Phil Mickelson for the HSBC Champions.  Right from the get-go Tiger seemed off his game, and his score of 72 was proof of that.  On the front nine Mickelson pulled away from his old foe, pulling ahead of Woods by six strokes, and finishing with a 3-under 69 on the day, good for 17-under and the win.
But after vanquishing Woods, “Lefty” had another challenger to contend with–South African Ernie Els.  After an …read more

Phil Mickelson grabbed the lead after three rounds at the HSBC Champions, after a torrid finish to his round of 67.  “Lefty” made an outstanding three birdies over his final five holes to go from a two-stroke deficit to a two-stroke lead over Tiger Woods and Nick Watney.  Woods, the second round leader, made birdie on No. 10, but that was it for his round, finishing with a 2-under 70, leaving him at 12-under for the tourney.
Expect the photogs to be out in full force on Sunday, with the ideal final pairing of Mickelson and Woods.  The two haven’t been …read more

There may have been 70+ players teeing off in the first round of the HSBC Champions tournament, but the throngs of Chinese fans were really there to see only two players–Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson.  And even though neither of the superstars was at the top of the leaderboard, neither disappointed the fans.  But the first day, at least, belonged to Nick Watney, who fired an 8-under 64, good for a two stroke lead over a group of three golfers, including Ireland’s Shane Lowry.
Woods finds himself three strokes back after an opening round 67.  American Anthony Kim and England’s Paul …read more

Golfing legend Jack Nicklaus recently surfaced in Kuala Lumpur, and the 69-year-old gave some surprising thoughts on golf in Asia, new equipment, and Tiger Woods.  Nicklaus believes the balance of power in golf is shifting to Asia, and that one day Chinese players will come to dominate the sport.  This comes on the heels of Asia’s first major champion, Y.E. Yang of South Korea, who earlier this year defeated Tiger Woods to capture the PGA Championship.  He bases his ideas on the lessened effects of the recession in Asian countries, specifically China, and golf’s presence in the 2016 Olympics as …read more

Guess which golfer won the points-based PGA of America player of the year award.  If you didn’t say Tiger Woods, well then, shame on you, because you’re wrong.  Woods won the award going away, thanks to his six PGA tour victories worth 10 points each, lowest adjusted scoring average, worth 20 points, and his finish atop the PGA Tour money list, which was also worth 20 points.  This marks the tenth time Tiger has taken home the hardware.
And that’s not all.  Woods is also taking home the Vardon Trophy from the PGA of America and the Byron Nelson Award from …read more

The Presidents Cup played out exactly how many thought it would, as the Americans cruised to victory over the International team capture the Presidents Cup.  The margin of victory was 19 1/2 to 14 1/2, with Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson leading the charge against Greg Norman’s overmatched International team.  Woods and Mickelson were outstanding all week, and finished the tournament undefeated.  As their reward, team captain Fred Couples awarded the pair two of the four autographed Michael Jordan jerseys.  The remaining two went to Anthony Kim and Steve Stricker.
Not much went right for the International team on Sunday. …read more

On paper it looked like the American team would run away with this year’s Presidents Cup.  Fortunately for the International team, golf isn’t played on paper.  For the second straight day, the pesky International squad kept pace with the Yanks, this time in the fourballs matches, and after two days at the Presidents Cup, find themselves trailing the Americans by one point, 6 1/2 to 5 1/2.  Today it was two late rallies, one by the team of Ernie Els and Mike Weir, the other by Tim Clark and Vijay Singh, that kept Fred Couples’ American team from running away …read more

After the first day at the Presidents Cup, the U.S. team came out strong and dominated, but a gaffe by Justin Leonard on the final hole left the International team just one point behind, the score standing at 3.5 to 2.5.  Leonard missed a 3-footer on the 18th after he mistakenly thought Retief Goosen had conceded the putt.  Goosen did not, and Leonard’s putt caught the right edge of the cup and spun away.  That miss halved the match, and gave the International squad a very important half point, leaving them one point back of the Americans.
The foursome matches played …read more

The pairings for the Presidents Cup were released today, and despite having a squad boasting impressive credentials, the International team still finds themselves as the underdog.  International team member Ernie Els believes that it would be a major coup if his squad can come out of tomorrow’s play all even.  Captain Greg Norman’s squad has history going against it as well–it has never won the Presidents Cup on American soil.  Heck, the International team only has one win in the history of the Presidents Cup, and that victory came 11 years ago.
Thursday’s opening day starts with six foursome matches.  Phil …read more

It finally happened, and to be honest, I’m not surprised at all.  In this day and age of exorbitant player salaries, endorsement deals, etc., Tiger Woods has become the first athlete to achieve $1 billion in career earnings, according to Forbes magazine.  The $10 million he received for capturing the FedEx Cup title pushed him over the billion dollar mark for his career.  And he’s only 33-years-old.
Trailing Woods are NBA legend Michael Jordan, and retired Formula 1 driver Michael Schumacher.  Jordan still earns $45 million annually, and should pass the billion dollar mark in 4 or 5 years.  But no …read more