Kaymer Wins, Johnson Screwed Out Of Playoff

The PGA Championship turned out to be as exciting a finish as we've had at a Major all year. Phil was special down the stretch at Augusta, but that was way back in April. This tournament had 4 or 5 guys in contention on the back nine on Sunday, and watching it you felt anyone could take it.

Bubba Watson, Rory McIlroy, Dustin Johnson and Martin Kaymer were all neck and neck, and playing musical chairs with the lead in the last few holes. Old man Steve Elkington was also in the thick of it for the better part of Sunday.

Watson absolutely crushes the ball and found himself hitting short wedge shots into just about every green. McIlroy couldn't buy a birdie putt for a good stretch in the final round. It seemed like every putt he hit either lipped out or rolled right over the edge. Kaymer displayed a great all-around game making clutch putts and hitting fairways and greens with ease. Johnson looked like the guy that took the lead into Sunday at the U.S. Open except much more cool and collected.

In the end, Bubba Watson and Martin Kaymer wound up in a playoff for the Championship. On the 18th hole Watson made double and Kaymer a bogey to win. Johnson, whom many believe should have been in the playoff, missed out due to a strange ruling. On the final hole Johnson drove his ball down the right side and into a huge crowd of people gathered off the fairway. Walking up to his ball Johnson saw that his ball lied in an area that had been trampled down by the crowds over the four days and had turned into a sandy patch. Well apparently the PGA rules officials decided that Johnson was in affect lying in a sand trap or bunker, one of about 1,200 located at Whistling Straits. In my opinion, this is kinda bullshit. Obviously, you can't ground your club in a bunker. Every golfer knows that. But because of the gallery that was there it was really pretty impossible to tell that he was in a sand trap. It really looks like he is just hitting from a sandy area. I mean have you ever seen fans standing around a player IN the bunker with him? No.

The PGA, in their defense, apparently went out of their way this week to make the players aware of this ruling possibility and posted notices all over the place explaining that all questionable areas should be treated cautiously. Whatever. Kind of lame. I'm pretty sure that no one would have noticed this if they'd have just let it slide. In the end, Johnson got screwed, and he is a great young golfer. I hope he doesn't let this effect him, as I think he could eventually be a multiple major winner.

My Top 5 finishers recap:

O'Hair - CUT (whomp whomp)

Stricker - Tied for 18th

Johnson - Tied for 5th (screwed)

Overton - +10. Ouch!

Mahan - Tied for 39th.

Damn. Johnson was my one legit shot and he got fucked. Oh well. See you at the Ryder Cup, golf fans!

PGA Championship Round One Wrap

Round one is in the books following a lengthy fog delay. Who knew there was fog in Wisconsin? I guess it is along Lake Michigan, so that can happen.
Things are not looking too good for most of my top 5 predictions after 1 round, but they're certainly not out of it.

Bubba Watson sits atop the leader board heading in to round two at -4. Francisco Molinari, Ernie Els, Matt Kuchar and Nick Watney also share that lead.

I kinda feel bad for Bubba, because after his excellent round he went in to do his press conference and all the media wanted to talk about was the struggles this guy has had in dealing with his cancer-stricken father and his wife whom they believed had cancer (turned out to be false) in the past year. The poor guy is trying to think about golf and winning a major and here he is breaking down in tears after a round one leading performance. My bet is that he falls on his face today, but I hope not. He did have a great one-liner though. "I hope you all don't think I'm a sissy. I do hit the ball a long ways!"

41 other players managed a sub-par round, including Tiger Woods who sits at -1. He had a nice start to his round but missed a few scoring opportunities as the day wore on.

Tiger has been working closely the last few weeks with Sean Foley, a young swing coach. This is something to keep an eye on as many think Tiger will soon make him his official swing coach. El Tigre has been ridin' solo since firing Hank Heaney.

As for my top 5 predictions

O'Hair - +2
Stricker - -1
Johnson - -1
Overton - +2
Mahan - +1

I feel good that I didn't pick guys that went out there and stunk up the joint, but they all need nice second rounds in order to really get into contention.

PGA Championship Preview - Can Tiger turn around his year?

Thursday marks the beginning of the PGA Championship, the final Major and last leg of golf's grand slam events. The PGA Championship has always been a distant relative of the other big three tournaments, unless a player is chasing the Grand Slam which hasn't happened in quite a while. Last year we saw, Y.E. Yang take his 15 minutes of fame beating Tiger Woods down the stretch on Sunday at Hazeltine. (This was pre-Thanksgiving Tiger...my how things have changed.)

The PGA Championship has always been a favorite of mine, often showcasing some of America's great, more unheralded golf courses. The aforementioned Hazeltine is a beauty, as are Medinah, Oak Hill and Valhalla. Let's not forget Winged Foot either.

This year is no different with Whistling Straits, located along Lake Michigan in Wisconsin. If you've never seen the course before, check it out. It is a real treat. It is a course designed by Pete Dye, of TPC Sawgrass fame, among many other gems. The Straits course, where the tournament will be played, very much resembles a course you might find in the U.K. or Ireland, nestled along a two mile stretch of the coast along Lake Michigan. It features, grassy dunes, DEEP bunkers and contoured greens. At 7,514 yards it is the 2nd longest course to ever host a major championship. Only an all-around golfer will do well here.

Which brings us to Tiger Woods, the lightning rod of golf. He came up during a recent chat I was having with DP, and I mentioned that I've begun to lose confidence in the guy. DP believes he will be fine, but I'm not so sure. The man's whole persona is gone. He used to be such an intimidating force. Other players used to fear him - even 10 strokes back heading into a weekend. As far as chasing down Jack Nicklaus, I don't think it is possible any more. He as much as intimated last week that golf isn't as important to him anymore. Take that with a grain of salt, but it did come out of his mouth. This season was a big one for him, as far as the record goes. Both Open Championships were at two of his favorite courses, in Pebble Beach and St. Andrew's, and he didn't perform to expectation. You factor in the disaster that was his 18+ finish last week, at a course where he ALWAYS plays very well, and it is safe to say that 2010 is probably a huge wash. Some have even gone as far as to suggest that he suffers from Ian Baker-Finch syndrome. Baker-Finch was a golfer who enjoyed great success, winning a major and then fell on his face... Knoblauch style. Let's get one thing straight. Woods is no Baker-Finch. 14 majors make that argument. But, I don't think we're looking at the same guy any more, and I'm seriously having doubts about him winning many more majors. But, I'm curious to know what others think. Feel free to leave comments.
P.S. I don't think he'll help the Ryder Cup team, unless he proves to be his old self this week. Mr. Pavin...leave him off the team!

PGA predictions:

The sexy pick heading into the week is Rory McIlroy who played well enough to win at St Andrew's, outside of a terrible round 2. He's got the game suited to this style of course but I just don't think he's ready this year. Next year I think he'll bag a major. Not yet, though.

I'm going with Sean O'Hair, a young golfer who is experiencing a bit of a break out this year, even if it is past due. This is the player you'll remember who was supposed to be the next Tiger quite a few years back. He had an ugly relationship with his father who made him sign a contract promising a portion of his future earnings on tour...Joe Jackson style. O'Hair - who doesn't speak with his father - has found a new lease on life and has found his golf game again as well. He had a share of the lead heading into Sunday at the Bridgestone, and finished Top 12 at both Pebble and St Andrew's. I think he's ready, and he's definitely got the game.

Rounding out my top 5 will be...

Sean O'Hair (ready to take the next step?)
Steve Stricker (hometown boy)
Dustin Johnson (long bomber, but also shows accuracy)
Jeff Overton (3rd in all-around ranking on tour)
Hunter Mahan (my new favorite golfer now that Tiger sucks, winner last week)