Archive for 2010
December 20, 2010
Ernie Els won the South African Open for the fifth time Sunday after beating compatriot Retief Goosen by a single shot.
The South African shot a final-round 6-under 66 at the rain-delayed tournament as he carded five birdies, an eagle and a bogey to finish with a 25-under 257 overall.
In the third round, also played Sunday, Els had three bogeys on his first five holes, but recovered with seven birdies the rest of the way to stay one shot ahead of Goosen.
Els said of Goosen: “We have played against each other since we were kids, and I know hes a very good player.”
Fellow South African and British Open champion Louis Oosthuizen finished third, four shots behind Els. Charl Schwartzel, also of South Africa, was fourth, 7 shots back, after a final-round 65.
December 18, 2010
Graeme McDowell has picked up another award.
The U.S. Open champion has been voted player of the year by the Golf Writers Association of America.
McDowell received 87 votes to beat Jim Furyk (61) and Martin Kaymer (51). The Northern Irishman won three times this year and captured the decisive match in the Ryder Cup for Europe against the United States.
McDowell also won the Golf Writers Trophy from the British-based Association of Golf Writers. He shared European Tour player of the year with Kaymer.
Yani Tseng won female player of the year from the GWAA, topping Cristie Kerr and Ai Miyazato. Bernhard Langer was the overwhelming choice as the senior player of the year.
They will be honored April 6 in Augusta, Ga.
December 17, 2010
Tiger Woods humbling return to the public eye, from his televised confession to a winless season on the golf course, was voted the sports story of the year by members of the Associated Press.
Tiger Woods admission of infidelity takes the cake in 2010. (AP) The fallout from Woods admission of infidelity edged a very different sort of story: The New Orleans Saints winning their first Super Bowl championship, giving an emotional boost to their hurricane-ravaged city.
It was late 2009 when Woods pristine image unraveled after he crashed his SUV into a tree outside his home, unleashing salacious revelations of extramarital affairs. The story was a late addition to last years voting and wound up fifth.
But the twists and turns werent over for Woods. Many more developments were still to unfold in 2010.
There were 176 ballots submitted from U.S. news organizations that make up the APs membership. The voters were asked to rank the top 10 sports stories of the year, with the first-place story getting 10 points, the second-place story receiving nine points, and so on.
The Woods saga received 1,316 points, with the Saints title getting 1,215 and the NBA free-agency frenzy coming in third with 1,085.
Major League Baseballs ongoing travails with performance-enhancing drugs was the top story last year.
Here are 2010s top 10 stories:
1. Tiger Woods: Woods returned to public view with a 13½-minute statement in February, then came back to golf at the Masters in April with a fourth-place finish. That Woods went winless on the PGA Tour for the first time in his career and lost his No. 1 ranking for the first time in years. In August, he and Elin Nordegren divorced.
2. Saints win: New Orleans residents loved their Saints for not abandoning the city after Hurricane Katrina, but it was hard to imagine the team bringing much joy on the field after 42 mostly losing seasons. Then Drew Brees and Co. upset the mighty Indianapolis Colts in their first Super Bowl, to the delight of French Quarter revelers and fans nationwide who adopted the Saints.
3. Free-agency frenzy: NBA fans were captivated by the mystery of where MVP LeBron James and other marquee free agents would land. Few would have guessed that three of them would sign with the same team: the Miami Heat, who became basketballs Evil Empire by adding James from Cleveland and Chris Bosh from Toronto to Dwyane Wade.
4. World Cup: A World Cup of firsts ended gloriously for Spain and for Africa. South Africa hosted the continents first World Cup without the pitfalls many predicted. And the Spaniards brought home the first World Cup title to the soccer-mad country with a 1-0 victory over the Netherlands in extra time.
5. Giants win: The Giants hadnt won the World and since 1954 overall. This didnt seem to be the year to end the drought when they barely squeaked into the playoffs. But with dominant pitching and clutch hitting, they beat the Texas Rangers in five games.
6. NFL concussions: New posters distributed to teams before the season warned of concussions dangers in much harsher language than before. Another sign of how big the issue had become: increased reporting of concussions by players. At midseason, the NFL cracked down on helmet hits with huge fines and threatened suspensions.
7. Jimmie Johnson: The NASCAR driver extended his record with his fifth straight Sprint Cup title. Perhaps most impressively, he did it despite not being in top form all season. Johnson became the first driver in the Chases seven-year history to overcome a points deficit in the finale.
8. Brett Favre: This comeback was nothing like last years magical run to the NFC title game for the 41-year-old quarterback. His Minnesota Vikings struggled badly, and the NFL launched an investigation into whether he sent lewd photos of himself to a Jets employee. After voting began, his record streak of 297 starts ended.
9. UConn wins: The Huskies womens basketball team extended their record winning streak to 78 games with a second straight national championship in April, becoming the first team to post consecutive unbeaten seasons. And Connecticut is a powerhouse again this season.
10. Wooden dies: The Wizard of Westwood died June 4 at the age of 99. John Wooden coached UCLAs mens basketball team to 10 NCAA championships, including seven in a row from 1967-73 and an 88-game winning streak.
December 16, 2010
Augusta Chronicle
The Silly Season fare is on the table, with 18-man cash grabs, two-man team shootouts, multi-tour gender blenders and a few other unofficial events tossed in as offseason filler. If you were a marketing guy with a sponsor in tow, what format would you like to see as a means of spicing up the offseason?
ELLING: Its been decades since the Skins Game reinvented the offseason calendar, and in many respects, the Thanksgiving staple remains a brilliant notion whose time simply passed. Why? Sending four players out to compete for a million bucks became stale and the landscape was too dotted with other events. I would revive the Skins after a fashion, but with an entirely different format. This time, players would be required to put up some of their own dinero, like that big-money gambling event staged in Las Vegas a few years ago. Who wants to merely watch rich guys get richer while feeding from a title sponsors trough? When Scott and I play for a few greenbacks, its coming out of our bank accounts. Let players shell out some of their own money to fund the pur you could get to some big big enough to play for, say, $500,000 of their own money? Maybe wed find out the answer is zero. Hard to say. But since nobody maybe this would work.
MICHAUX: Funny you should ask, because Ive had a pet idea brewing for years. There needs to be a Ryder Cup-style contest featuring only Americans. The idea would be to annually expose more young and talented American players to team match play at the highest level to give them experience for when it counts on the big stages of the Ryder and Presidents Cups. The playing captains would be the outgoing and incoming chiefs for the previous and upcoming international U.S. teams (i.e. Corey Pavin vs. Fred Couples this year; Couples vs. Davis Love III or whoever the next Ryder captain ends up being; and so on). Invite 22 more American players who are regulars or aspire to team competition. On the eve of the matches, the captains will actually choose sides like they do on a playground or at a draft party. Then you have three days of competition just like the best ball one day, alternate sh there would be a purse. If its $3 million, each player on the winning side gets $200,000 and the losers get $50,000. If its $6 million, winners take $425,000 and losers $75,000. Not only will players care about the cash, theyll care about trying to impress the next captain who will be making his picks nine months later. Tell me you wouldnt rather watch that than the Shark Shootout.
Promising teen pro Lexi Thompson has petitioned the LPGA for more sponsor exemptions, an increase from the allowable six under current rules for underage players. Is giving her more access a good idea?
ELLING: Where have I heard that term before, “promising teen pro?” Oh, right, every single LPGA season over the past decade. You wanna know the best argument for enforcing the age-minimum requirement for players under 18? Look at Mondays results from LPGA Qualifying School Finals. The medalist was Aree Song, 24, who was given a special green light for play while still a teen after contending at several majors as an amateur. She just completed her seventh full season as an LPGA player and in fact, her Q-school win was her first victory of any kind. You want some irony? Jessica Korda, a 17-year-old who entered Q-school as an amateur, also earned her card for next year on Sunday, the same day Song, a struggling former “phenom,” won the qualifier. Thompson, 15, is the most talented of the crop, it seems, and she made enough in her limited starts in 2010 to earn her LPGA card, had she been allowed membership. No question, these commissioners-dispensation issues should be reviewed on a case-by-case basis, because holding players to age restrictions when they mature at different paces seems unfair. But the pitfalls are clear. I will herewith recycle a phrase whats the big hurry?
MICHAUX: Girls mature faster than boys, and there has been a wealth of teen talent that has been competitive at the highest levels on the LPGA. They need to foster that and not stifle it. It doesnt seem unreasonable to me that teens who are as skilled and mature as Thompson should be all eight events per year. Thats summer vacation and its a lot less than many of them would be traveling on the AJGA circuit. The LPGA needs to showcase dynamic new talent as much as possible, and if Thompson draws fans, then they should play that card as much as is reasonably possible. These young women understand what they are getting into. Its not an easy career path, but if they are qualified to handle it they should be allowed. In fact, someone like Thompson, who made enough to earn a card, should be granted some kind of designation such as “junior member” that gives her the ability to enter any eight tournaments she wants and not have to rely on sponsor exemptions all the time. The LPGA needs to be in a bigger hurry to get its best players onto the market as often as possible.
Six days after a player with African-American heritage became the first in 25 years to earn a PGA Tour card via the Q-school route, a female has done likewise on the LPGA. Is it a coincidence or the beginning of something big?
ELLING: Its somewhere in between, no doubt. Despite some admittedly raw nerves, Shasta Averyhardt next year will be the first black player with LPGA status in exactly one decade. That in itself is more surprising than the drought on the male side, where the global talent pool is much deeper. Simply put, its easier for females to get a foot in the professional door. Averyhardt, 24, closed with a 79 and was absolutely aware of what she was doing and what was at stake, culturally and professionally. “Its pressure, and sometimes people succumb to pressure,” she told . “Im playing for myself, but Im also playing for sponsors and the African-American community.” So, 15 years after Tiger Woods won his first major, there will be black players on both major U.S. tours. While it might not represent the beginning of a tidal change, at least its a heartening start. Diversity is crucial to the games survival, both at home and abroad. By the way, Averyhardt played at Jackson State, in the program of cultural trailblazer Eddie Payton.
MICHAUX: I dont know what to add other than congratulations. Its great to see that many of the initiatives to make the game more representative of the population as a whole might be starting to take root at the highest levels. But one person on each tour seems more of a coincidence than a trend. Only when we start seeing multiple players on both tours can we believe a sustainable movement is afoot. What I really hope is that both Averyhardt and Joseph Bramlett are able to take advantage of their opportunities and maintain their status as regular card-carrying competitors on their respective tours. Its one thing to finally get there. Its another to stay there against the best competition in the world. Best of luck to them both.
December 15, 2010
U.S. Champions Tour regular Peter Senior beat Geoff Ogilvy with a par on the second hole of a playoff to win the Australian PGA title on Monday.
Ogilvy, who won last weeks Australian Open, finished with a 6-under-par 66 while Senior birdied the 18th for a 71, both finishing with 12-under-par totals of 276.
Both players parred the 18th hole on the first hole of the playoff but Ogilvy three-putted the hole his second time around, giving the 51-year-old Senior his third Australian PGA title. He became the oldest player to win a professional tournament in Australia.
Senior and Ogilvy were two of 24 golfers who had to finish their rounds Monday after heavy rain Nick OHern (69), Peter Fow finished level in third place, one stroke back of Ogilvy and Senior. Stolz bogeyed the 18th after hitting his tee shot in the water.
American Bobby Gates, who led by a stroke after Saturdays third round, bogeyed two of his final nine holes Monday and finished with a 74 in a group tied for sixth, two strokes behind the leaders.
“What a great way to finish the year,” Senior said. “Geoff hit a pretty indifferent iron shot into 18, and we all know how difficult it is to get down from that area. But I would have rather made my [birdie] putt instead of Geoff three-putting, but thats what happens.”
Ogilvy said he was disappointed with the three-putt finish but not with his play overall in the past two weeks.
“Thats the best way Ive finished a year in a long time,” Ogilvy said. “But to be honest, I never really felt that I was in this tournament until Sunday. And I never thought my 12-under would hold up for a playo between his finish and Senior completing his round in the final pairing with Gates.
Ogilvy resumed on the 14th hole on Monday and birdied that hole and 16. Senior, who led by one on the resumption of play Monday, bogeyed his first hole - the 10th - after his tee shot in pouring rain Sunday left him in the trees when play was stopped.
Senior forced the playoff Monday when he made a curling 10-foot birdie putt on 18, where up to several thousand spectators had gathered despite the 6 a.m. start.
Defending champion Robert Allenby, who had four holes to play Monday, finished with a 70 and a 280, four strokes back.
Gates, playing the Coolum course for the first time, tried to be diplomatic Sunday when play was called despite a tough officiating decision that had forced him to hit an awkward shot out of a bunker that was nearly flooded by rain. He ended up bogeying the hole.
“Ive never played where its gotten to this point before, but I understand they want to try to get it in,” Gates said.
Senior, who said he felt Gates got a bad decision on his bunker shot, said the last three holes that he and Gates played were extremely difficult, and “the 10th tee was actually underwater when we got there.”
“Poor old Bobby Gates,” Senior added. “The bunker was just riddled with water on the ninth hole there and had to play his shot and he could have made 4 if he just putted the hole. But when the course is unplayable, the day should be called and thats it.”
December 15, 2010
Pablo Martin successfully defended his Alfred Dunhill Championship title on Sunday as he recovered from a late stutter for a final-round 2-under 70 and a two-shot win.
The Spaniard made a triple-bogey 7 at No. 17, but then birdied the final hole for an 11-under 277 at Leopard Creek Country Club, two clear of Denmarks Thorbjorn Olesen and South African pair Charl Schwartzel and Anthony Michael.
Martin had surged ahead with an eagle-birdie start, and opened a five-shot lead through 11 holes following two more birdies on Nos. 7 and 9. With a three-shot lead on the tee at No. 17, the disastrous 7 then cut his advantage over playing partner Michael to one stroke with one hole to play.
But the 24-year-old defending champion recovered to send his second on the par-5 No. 18 on to the middle of the green, and Michael found the water to end his chances.
Martin finished with a birdie four for successive victories at the European Tours season-opening tournament, winning a $210,000 check. He is the first winner on the 2010-11 Race to Dubai and the first player to retain a European Tour title since Padraig Harrington won a second straight British Open in 2008.
“I played really well for nine holes, then I got myself into trouble,” Martin said. “It was a good start and it gave me a little bit of a cushion, and I needed it.
“I was able to hit a couple of good shots coming in, especially the one on 18. On 17 I made a big mess but I was really lucky that everything went well.”
Newcomer Michael, 25, had led since Thursday afternoon at Leopard Creek but had two bogeys and a double-bogey Sunday and couldnt match the attacking strokeplay of Martin.
He will have to wait for his first tourna dropped him to a tie for second on 9 under alongside Olesen and the No. 39-ranked Schwartzel.
Olesen fired a superb 66, with six birdies, to jump 10 places. Schwartzel mixed four birdies with two bogeys to finish with a 70.
South Africas Thomas Aiken (70) was alone in fifth on 7-under 281, while Englands Robert Dinwiddie (70) and another South African, Alex Haindl (73), shared sixth with 282 totals.
December 9, 2010
With the season complete on all three major tours, Q-school finals in the books on the PGA Tour and Silly Season underway, you probably thought golf would settle into a short winters nap, right? Not even close. The controversy and newsworthy items are piling up as fast as ever and Golfom senior writer Steve Elling and columnist and golf writer Scott Michaux are here to eyeball and argue the pros and cons of it all.
In a first, the European Tour on Tuesday morning named Graeme McDowell and Martin Kaymer as co-Players of the Year for 2010. If youd been asked to vote, who would you have picked?
ELLING: Last week, the Golf Writers Association of America e-mailed to its members its ballot for awards for both the mens and womens players, which annoyed me because the LPGA season hadnt been completed. Little did anybody know what McDowell had in store for us at the Chevron event on Sunday, when he erased a four-shot lead by tournament host Tiger Woods and made two unforgettable putts on the 18th hole to force, and eventually win, a playoff with the former world No. 1. Coupled with three official worldwide wins, including a U.S. Open title in which he outlasted multiple major championship winners Woods, Ernie Els and Phil Mickelson on a brutal Pebble Beach venue, I am hereby voting for the Northern Irishman. Kaymer had a great year, and yes, McDowells handiwork at the Ryder Cup and Chevron events were not in full-blown tournaments, per se, but voting is a subjective matter, isnt it? McDowell shot down Woods on his home turf, in his backyard tournament, and it was as riveting as anything we have seen all year. Yeah, it was a veritable exhibition, with only 18 guys in the field, but if you saw the look on Woods mug on Sunday, he was playing for blood in his last chance to win anything in 2010. McDowell finished off his breakthrough season in eye-p Graeme gets the nod.
MICHAUX: First of all, I ended up voting for Martin Kaymer to be the GWAAs Male Golfer of the Year (there is no tour delineation). And all of the reasons for it are very solid. After finishing T8 and T7 in the U.S. and British Opens, Kaymer played spectacularly in winning a very hotly contested PGA Championship. That kicked off a Tiger-like stretch of dominance on the Euro Tour with two more wins in succession wrapped around a stout Ryder Cup performance. He had four real tour victories on the year, tops in the world. Im not taking that vote back just because McDowell beat Tiger in a glorified exhibition. That said, I happen to think the European POY indecision deserves a wisdom of Solomon shoutout. This was a European Tour award, and there is no arguing the impact those two players had on that circuit this year. Kaymer won the most events and the overall money thingy. McDowell prevailed over a marquee leaderboard (Woods, Mickelson and Els all in his dust) to end a Euro drought in the U.S. Open and he was an absolute rock at the decisive moment in the Ryder Cup, the tours most important event. If Lee Westwood had won the Masters on his way to No. 1, they would p which would have been a fitting tribute to 2010, dont you think? This was a very big year for the Euro Tour, and there was a lot of praise to be passed around.
Theres been plenty of critical blowback over the PGA Tours Rookie of the Year Award, which was given to Rickie Fowler over Rory McIlroy. Again, you guys, make the call.
ELLING: I can probably end this discussion before it begins with the simple disclosure that Rory McIlroy voted for Rickie Fowler and said he didnt want to win the PGA Tours top-rookie award because, as a third-year pro, he doesnt consider himself a rookie. Sure, Rory Mac was a first-timer on the U.S. tour this year and was absolutely eligible for the honor, but the PGA Tour regulars who voted decided Fowler, who turned pro in mid-2009 after leaving college, deserved t from going nuts on his Twitter account, accusing the tour of protectionism by giving the award to a Yank who didnt win an event over McIlroy, an Irishman who won in Charlotte. Thats a tough charge to substantiate, frankly. The vibe I got from tour players at Q-school last week is that some voted for Fowler for three reasons. First, because he played more often (28 starts to 16 for McIlroy) and was thus a better-known quantity, personally. Second, because Fowler outplayed McIlroy at the Ryder Cup and made a couple of huge putts on the final green in Wales. Third, because not everybody was crazy about McIlroys decision to drop his membership on the PGA Tour after one season. You want to know the real idiocy here? That the PGA Tour does not rele just like with Kaymer and McDowell overseas.
MICHAUX: I have to agree with the critics on this one. It was a travesty to not give that award to McIlroy. No contest. Fowler had a nice season as a rookie in the truest sense, but he won nothing. Even his most enduring moment – the late comeback to give the U.S. life in the Ryder Cup singles – got trumped that day by the Northern Irishman, who also rallied for a tie against Stewart Cink in what proved to be a pivotal boost for the European cause. It really was an inexcusable vote considering the fashion in which McIlory won at Quail Hollow (closing 62) and how he finished third in two majors (British and PGA) and tied the all-time major-championship scoring record (63) in the first round at St. Andrews. There is simply no measurable way that Rickie topped Rory in 2010, except on the player ballots and possibly in a who-has-the-worst-haircut contest (Id like to have their problem). To that point, I think Lee Westwood was spot on with his extended Twitter rant: “Is this yet another case of protectionism by the pga tour or are they so desperate to win something! Wouldnt have something to do with Rory not joining the tour next year? Maybe the PGA tour just employs the same voting process as FIFA!” This decision came down to pure politics, which is too bad. As Steve Spurrier would say, you cant spell Rory without ROY. The PGA Tour failed on this count.
For the first time in exactly a quarter-century, a player of African-American heritage has earned his PGA Tour card via the Q-school route. What took so long?
ELLING: Joseph Bramletts 2011 season as a rookie on the PGA Tour is going to be a frenetic one. First, he h courtesy cars, direct-deposit banks accounts, paying the IRS, dealing with agents and caddies, grasping insanely co while playing courses he has never before seen. Its the media part thats going to prove most difficult, I suspect, because Bramlett on Monday became the first player with African-American blood since 1985 to earn his card via Q-school. For all the right reasons, he is going to be a big story at every tour stop and the genial Stanford graduate seems up to the task. Its quite a responsibility he will be shouldering. No question, throughout his junior years, Bramlett had benefits not enjoyed by many black players in that his family had a country club membership in San Jose. Theres not a scintilla of doubt in my mind that if you can play, theres a s the Q-school finals Monday produced Korean, Canadian and Brazilian players who earned cards and another of Hispanic descent. But that doesnt mean the game doesnt discriminate in other ways. It can cost a fortune to play, especially for those hoping to compete at the highest levels, like for the parents of juniors on the prestigious AJGA circuit who travel the country. Many have coaches, sports psychologists and trainers already. For most of the folks I know, be they hues of white, black or green, thats a financial deal-breaker. Hopefully, Bramlett opens some doors as well as some eyes, and prompts more kids of various colors to take up the game. Middle- look no further than Tiger Woods or Rickie Fowler as proof. Like Bramlett said after his round as it relates to bridging this particular cultural gap, “its been too long.” Amen to that.
MICHAUX: Since implementing the all-exempt PGA Tour in 1983, only two African-American golfers had ever gained first-time entry into the fraternity. The first was former South Carolina State golfer Adrian Stills, who lasted one season after making it through qualifying school in 1985. The second was Tiger Woods, who avoided Q-school altogether. Now Joseph Bramlett makes it three. It seems strange that during a more exclusionary era in our nations social history, the PGA Tour was filled with more black faces. But the tour is completely different now, and the competition from all over the world is greater and economics still play an immense part. Woods said 10 years into his reign in 2006 that he was disappointed to still be alone on tour. But he was not surprised. “At the junior level there are some (black) players with some talent,” he said. “But as you continue throughout golf and continue to move up in levels, the process of screening kind of weeds them out. Its hard to make it out here.” It took generations to turn racial inequality around and in the right directi the pyramid effect,” Woods said of what it will take to ultimately change the face of the PGA Tour with more black pros. “You need to have a bigger base. Yes, Ive seen a bunch of junior golfers that have a lot of skill. But as you grow up through the ranks from local junior golf to state and national and college and amateur golf, at each level you think this guy is a cant-miss, and he doesnt make it. Then you go on the mini-tours and progress up to the elite level to our tour. That process, you need to have a bigger base. If you only have 10 guys, what are the chances of those 10 guys versus a million?” Thankfully, Bramlett is one in a million.
December 9, 2010
Franklin American Mortgage Co. has agreed to a three-year, $1.5 million sponsorship deal with the Bob Hope Classic, whose 52nd edition will be played Jan. 17-23.
The mortgage company based in Franklin, Tenn., first participated in the PGA tournament this year.
Franklin American will receive a variety of benefits, including pro-am playing opportunities, tickets, hospitality and signage at the event. The company will underwrite the tournaments celebrity dinner and be the official sponsor of the events Celebrity Jam Session.
December 8, 2010
With the season complete on all three major tours, Q-school finals in the books on the PGA Tour and Silly Season underway, you probably thought golf would settle into a short winters nap, right? Not even close. The controversy and newsworthy items are piling up as fast as ever and Golfom senior writer Steve Elling and columnist and golf writer Scott Michaux are here to eyeball and argue the pros and cons of it all.
In a first, the European Tour on Tuesday morning named Graeme McDowell and Martin Kaymer as co-Players of the Year for 2010. If youd been asked to vote, who would you have picked?
ELLING: Last week, the Golf Writers Association of America e-mailed to its members its ballot for awards for both the mens and womens players, which annoyed me because the LPGA season hadnt been completed. Little did anybody know what McDowell had in store for us at the Chevron event on Sunday, when he erased a four-shot lead by tournament host Tiger Woods and made two unforgettable putts on the 18th hole to force, and eventually win, a playoff with the former world No. 1. Coupled with three official worldwide wins, including a U.S. Open title in which he outlasted multiple major championship winners Woods, Ernie Els and Phil Mickelson on a brutal Pebble Beach venue, I am hereby voting for the Northern Irishman. Kaymer had a great year, and yes, McDowells handiwork at the Ryder Cup and Chevron events were not in full-blown tournaments, per se, but voting is a subjective matter, isnt it? McDowell shot down Woods on his home turf, in his backyard tournament, and it was as riveting as anything we have seen all year. Yeah, it was a veritable exhibition, with only 18 guys in the field, but if you saw the look on Woods mug on Sunday, he was playing for blood in his last chance to win anything in 2010. McDowell finished off his breakthrough season in eye-p Graeme gets the nod.
MICHAUX: First of all, I ended up voting for Martin Kaymer to be the GWAAs Male Golfer of the Year (there is no tour delineation). And all of the reasons for it are very solid. After finishing T8 and T7 in the U.S. and British Opens, Kaymer played spectacularly in winning a very hotly contested PGA Championship. That kicked off a Tiger-like stretch of dominance on the Euro Tour with two more wins in succession wrapped around a stout Ryder Cup performance. He had four real tour victories on the year, tops in the world. Im not taking that vote back just because McDowell beat Tiger in a glorified exhibition. That said, I happen to think the European POY indecision deserves a wisdom of Solomon shoutout. This was a European Tour award, and there is no arguing the impact those two players had on that circuit this year. Kaymer won the most events and the overall money thingy. McDowell prevailed over a marquee leaderboard (Woods, Mickelson and Els all in his dust) to end a Euro drought in the U.S. Open and he was an absolute rock at the decisive moment in the Ryder Cup, the tours most important event. If Lee Westwood had won the Masters on his way to No. 1, they would p which would have been a fitting tribute to 2010, dont you think? This was a very big year for the Euro Tour, and there was a lot of praise to be passed around.
Theres been plenty of critical blowback over the PGA Tours Rookie of the Year Award, which was given to Rickie Fowler over Rory McIlroy. Again, you guys, make the call.
ELLING: I can probably end this discussion before it begins with the simple disclosure that Rory McIlroy voted for Rickie Fowler and said he didnt want to win the PGA Tours top-rookie award because, as a third-year pro, he doesnt consider himself a rookie. Sure, Rory Mac was a first-timer on the U.S. tour this year and was absolutely eligible for the honor, but the PGA Tour regulars who voted decided Fowler, who turned pro in mid-2009 after leaving college, deserved t from going nuts on his Twitter account, accusing the tour of protectionism by giving the award to a Yank who didnt win an event over McIlroy, an Irishman who won in Charlotte. Thats a tough charge to substantiate, frankly. The vibe I got from tour players at Q-school last week is that some voted for Fowler for three reasons. First, because he played more often (28 starts to 16 for McIlroy) and was thus a better-known quantity, personally. Second, because Fowler outplayed McIlroy at the Ryder Cup and made a couple of huge putts on the final green in Wales. Third, because not everybody was crazy about McIlroys decision to drop his membership on the PGA Tour after one season. You want to know the real idiocy here? That the PGA Tour does not rele just like with Kaymer and McDowell overseas.
MICHAUX: I have to agree with the critics on this one. It was a travesty to not give that award to McIlroy. No contest. Fowler had a nice season as a rookie in the truest sense, but he won nothing. Even his most enduring moment – the late comeback to give the U.S. life in the Ryder Cup singles – got trumped that day by the Northern Irishman, who also rallied for a tie against Stewart Cink in what proved to be a pivotal boost for the European cause. It really was an inexcusable vote considering the fashion in which McIlory won at Quail Hollow (closing 62) and how he finished third in two majors (British and PGA) and tied the all-time major-championship scoring record (63) in the first round at St. Andrews. There is simply no measurable way that Rickie topped Rory in 2010, except on the player ballots and possibly in a who-has-the-worst-haircut contest (Id like to have their problem). To that point, I think Lee Westwood was spot on with his extended Twitter rant: “Is this yet another case of protectionism by the pga tour or are they so desperate to win something! Wouldnt have something to do with Rory not joining the tour next year? Maybe the PGA tour just employs the same voting process as FIFA!” This decision came down to pure politics, which is too bad. As Steve Spurrier would say, you cant spell Rory without ROY. The PGA Tour failed on this count.
For the first time in exactly a quarter-century, a player of African-American heritage has earned his PGA Tour card via the Q-school route. What took so long?
ELLING: Joseph Bramletts 2011 season as a rookie on the PGA Tour is going to be a frenetic one. First, he h courtesy cars, direct-deposit banks accounts, paying the IRS, dealing with agents and caddies, grasping insanely co while playing courses he has never before seen. Its the media part thats going to prove most difficult, I suspect, because Bramlett on Monday became the first player with African-American blood since 1985 to earn his card via Q-school. For all the right reasons, he is going to be a big story at every tour stop and the genial Stanford graduate seems up to the task. Its quite a responsibility he will be shouldering. No question, throughout his junior years, Bramlett had benefits not enjoyed by many black players in that his family had a country club membership in San Jose. Theres not a scintilla of doubt in my mind that if you can play, theres a s the Q-school finals Monday produced Korean, Canadian and Brazilian players who earned cards and another of Hispanic descent. But that doesnt mean the game doesnt discriminate in other ways. It can cost a fortune to play, especially for those hoping to compete at the highest levels, like for the parents of juniors on the prestigious AJGA circuit who travel the country. Many have coaches, sports psychologists and trainers already. For most of the folks I know, be they hues of white, black or green, thats a financial deal-breaker. Hopefully, Bramlett opens some doors as well as some eyes, and prompts more kids of various colors to take up the game. Middle- look no further than Tiger Woods or Rickie Fowler as proof. Like Bramlett said after his round as it relates to bridging this particular cultural gap, “its been too long.” Amen to that.
MICHAUX: Since implementing the all-exempt PGA Tour in 1983, only two African-American golfers had ever gained first-time entry into the fraternity. The first was former South Carolina State golfer Adrian Stills, who lasted one season after making it through qualifying school in 1985. The second was Tiger Woods, who avoided Q-school altogether. Now Joseph Bramlett makes it three. It seems strange that during a more exclusionary era in our nations social history, the PGA Tour was filled with more black faces. But the tour is completely different now, and the competition from all over the world is greater and economics still play an immense part. Woods said 10 years into his reign in 2006 that he was disappointed to still be alone on tour. But he was not surprised. “At the junior level there are some (black) players with some talent,” he said. “But as you continue throughout golf and continue to move up in levels, the process of screening kind of weeds them out. Its hard to make it out here.” It took generations to turn racial inequality around and in the right directi the pyramid effect,” Woods said of what it will take to ultimately change the face of the PGA Tour with more black pros. “You need to have a bigger base. Yes, Ive seen a bunch of junior golfers that have a lot of skill. But as you grow up through the ranks from local junior golf to state and national and college and amateur golf, at each level you think this guy is a cant-miss, and he doesnt make it. Then you go on the mini-tours and progress up to the elite level to our tour. That process, you need to have a bigger base. If you only have 10 guys, what are the chances of those 10 guys versus a million?” Thankfully, Bramlett is one in a million.
December 8, 2010
Northern Irelands Graeme McDowell and Martin Kaymer of Germany were named joint winners of the 2010 European Tour Golfer of the Year award on Tuesday.
The award will be shared for the first time in its 26-year history after the two Ryder Cup stars tied in the voting by a judging panel of writers and commentators.
McDowell won the U.S. Open to claim his first major title and holed the putt to secure Europes Ryder Cup win over the United States at Celtic Manor in October. He climbed to No. 7 after his playoff victory over Tiger Woods at the Chevron World Challenge on Sunday.
The 25-year-old Kaymer also won his first major, the PGA, after a three-hole playoff against American Bubba Watson and beat McDowell to finish top of the money list in the “Race to Dubai.”
Both players won four events in 2010.
“It is the icing on the cake on what has been a very special year for myself, Martin and everyone involved in European golf,” McDowell said.
“It is an honor to share this award with a player of Martins caliber. He is one of the best players of our generation and I am sure will enjoy many more successes in the years to come.”
Germanys Bernhard Langer, the two-time Masters champion, was the winner of the European Tours inaugural end-of-year award and No. 3-ranked Kaymer is proud to match his countrymans achievement.
“I am always trying to follow in Bernhard Langers footsteps and to see that I have now won an award that he was the first to win back in 1985 is very satisfying indeed,” Kaymer said. “But he is still many steps ahead of me.”
It was a groundbreaking year for members of the European Tour.
South Africas Louis Oosthuizen became Open champion at St. Andrews, Englands Lee Westwood displaced Woods as No. 1 and Ian Poulter, Ernie Els and Francesco Molinari all won World Golf Championship events.
