The Golf Watch

Family values play a central theme at 2010 Masters

The week started with Tiger Woods' first unrestricted press conference since the November car crash where he, once again, took responsibility for his infidelity.  Then there was Augusta National Chairman Billy Payne, who denounced Woods' actions, and expressed hope that Tiger will be able to repair his tarnished image.

Who would have thought by week's end, the family values theme would have surfaced again.  This time, it was Phil Mickelson, whose family traveled to Augusta for the first time since Amy Mickelson underwent treatment for breast cancer. 

The Mickelson family's collective embrace was a reversal of what we had grown accustomed to the last four months.

Mickelson's shot making at this year's Masters will always be remembered, but at day's end, it was his love for his family that had everyone talking.   

2009 Bay Hill highlights a welcome addition to rainy telecast

Whenever I see 'recorded earlier' on the upper left hand side of the television screen, I, like many, am always tempted to open up the laptop and check out the live tournament leaderboard.  Sometimes, to keep my interest level up, I'll leave the laptop closed.

But with the Capitals and NCAA tournament on other networks yesterday during the final round of the Bay Hill Invitational, I couldn't mess around. 

After checking PGATour.com and realizing that play had been postponed for quite some time (Els with a 2-stroke lead), I left NBC's telecast. 

Out of curiosity, I turned back an hour later, and found Sean O'Hair and Tiger Woods on the 16th hole preparing for their approach shots. NBC executives made the decision to air 2009 highlights from Bay Hill.

Seeing Tiger on a network telecast--even if it was recorded a year ago--was exciting and eerie.  Here's an individual who had a lot to prove coming off of knee surgery, but was struggling in more ways than the audience could ever know. 

Personal life aside, I consider last year's tournament to be one of the great final rounds in PGA Tour history.  I always found Sean O'Hair's candid conversations with his caddie to be revealing. 

It made for an incredible prime time finish--a welcome addition to yesterday's rained out telecast.

Kelly Tilghman holds her own in Tiger Woods interview

I've said it before, but I have always found Tom Rinaldi to be one of the strongest sports broadcast journalists.  He always asks the tough questions and his storytelling ability shines with his packages during tournaments like the US Open.   

And then there's Kelly Tilghman.  

Some might have thought that this would have been Rich Lerner or Steve Sands' moment to shine, but Tilghman was the one who represented Golf Channel in a high exposure opportunity for the network.  And she exceeded expectations.

Tilghman touched on several points that were not mentioned in the ESPN interview. Namely what Earl Woods' reaction would be to the situation if he were still alive and the bracelet Tiger was wearing, representing his re-dedication to the religion of buddhism.

Tiger was interviewed by two people who have covered him for a long time.  Usually, Tiger guides his interviews.  This time around, it was Rinaldi and a less-experienced, but equally impressive Tilghman who were in control.  

The Tiger Woods rust factor

That's a misnomer if ever I've heard one.

But this has been a topic of discussion on some news programs. After five months off from competitive golf, will Tiger be the same Tiger at Augusta?

If history has anything to say about it...yes. Let's break down how Tiger has played in his first tournaments from 2003-2008.

2008:  Win

2007:  Win

2006:  Win

2005:  T3

2004:  T4

2003:  Win

Even after several months away from competitive golf during the off-season, Tiger is still the same Tiger.

This time around though, I expect him to have more motivation than ever.  Last year, Tiger wanted to prove that he could overcome knee surgery. 

This year, it's about proving to fans that he can turn his life around. 

Guaranteeing a win wouldn't be the right thing to do, but Tiger in contention at Augusta sounds pretty realistic.

Tiger Woods news conference odds

As we prepare for the Tiger press conference later this morning, I thought I'd share that there are in fact odds for this over-hyped event.

Would you bet on how many times Tiger will say the word "sorry?"

Tiger secures top seed in FedEx Cup

After his course record 62 on Saturday, there was little doubt that Tiger Woods would win the BMW Championship.  When all was said and done, Tiger won by eight shots over Jim Furyk and Marc Leishman.

Another storyline was the Cog Hill course.  Is it ready to host a major championship?  Many players don't think so. 

Y.E. Yang serves up historic PGA win

Ask the likes of Phil Mickelson and Aaron Baddeley what it's like to play in the final group on Sunday at a major championship with Tiger Woods. They'll tell you in a heartbeat: It's not easy.

But Y.E. Yang looked unfazed for 18 holes earlier today at the PGA Championship.  Whether it was the chip-in on 14 or putting out before Woods on 16, Yeng was clearly determined to be the first Asian born player to win a major championship.

Tiger told the media that he thought KJ Choi would be the first Asian to accomplish the feat.  But Yeng was the one who stepped up first.

Yeng will be remembered for years to come as not only a major championship winner, but also as a Tiger tamer. 

Tiger Woods continues to dominate at Firestone

With a final-round 5-under 65, Tiger Woods proved that he can come from behind and win at one of the Tour's biggest stops.  There's plenty more to this story, but the only numbers that really matter right now are 70 (career win total) and 181 (yardage left for Tiger's third at the par-5 16th which he stuck.)

Jennifer Song, who had a devastating finish at the NCAAs this year with a double-bogey on her closing hole, has emerged this summer as the top women's amateur.  Song won the U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links earlier this summer, and after an impressive performance this  week, won the U.S. Women's Amateur.  What's next for the 19-year-old phenom?

After two close calls at this year's Buick Invitational and Honda Classic, John Rollins came through with a victory at the Reno-Tahoe Open (yes, there was another PGA tournament this weekend).  This is Rollins' third career victory.

Going against tradition, Tiger throws ball into raucous Michigan crowd

Tiger Woods carded two spectacular rounds Friday and Saturday that jolted him to first place on the leaderboard...and there was no looking back.  Woods' win at the Buick Open is his 69th overall and his fourth this year.

What many viewers will take away from the tournament was Tiger's relationship with the rowdy Michigan crowd.  Aiming to please a group of fans that were likely attending their last Buick Open, Tiger threw balls into the crowd at 17 and 18. 

If you didn't know, this isn't Tiger's style.  Even at Bethpage Black, Tiger opted not to throw his ball to the 'ball hogs' behind the third green.

But this weekend was different.  Tiger said:

I don't ever do that, but this is different ... I just want to say thanks to all the people here and that's one reason I tossed it on 18 as well.

They came out and supported this event over all the years, especially this year. As I said, with the economy, how it's going on in this region, for them to come out and still support this event, it's very special to us as players.

Tiger gave the Michigan fans an excellent send-off.  He reminded us what his presence means for a tournament on its last leg.

Tiger Woods might have just saved the Buick Open

And that's the truth.  With a great deal of uncertainty over who would take over the sponsorship of the tournament after this year, Tiger Woods comes in to save the day, committing to play in next week's tournament. 

This means Tiger will play three weeks in a row.  That's right--you read that correctly--three weeks in a row.

We all wondered whether or not Tiger would increase the number of tournaments he played in a season to help the Tour out.  And he has--at a critical time.  Who wouldn't want to sponsor a tournament when Tiger has played the year before?

It looks like a PGA Tour event might stay in Michigan...for now at least.