Sergio Garcia's Comeback

 Andalucía Masters Champ

Sergio Garcia wins for the second week in a row! There has been much talk about Garcia’s resurgence. Many were hesitant to say whether the spanish stallion would ever be the same. If you can win two weeks in a row that certainly proves something. One you can maintain a level of great play and handle the pressure of winning week after week. Garcia was able to score well on a course that was not bringing in great scores. This is evident when the cut line was 10 over par. 

This win seems to have a immense effect on Garcia’s career outlook. When Garcia first hit the professional scene everyone predicted he would become the next tiger-like star. But maybe this streak of great play is a sign of Garcia’s prime in the making. Garcia is now 31 and we have seen players in their 30s (Luke Donald and Nick Watney) suddenly rack up wins and become fan favorites not to say Garcia isn’t one already. 

With this win Garcia will move back into the top 20 in the Official World Golf Rankings, were I believe many including myself want to see  Garcia. Now we just patiently wait for Garcia’s first major championship win, solidifying his career. 

Is Sergio Garcia... Really Back?

Sergio Garcia after hitting a shot while standing in water during the 3rd round 

Has anyone else noticed what Sergio Garcia has done lately? If not, I'll let you know. First off, he's had quite a solid year on the PGA Tour, with 3 top 15s in the majors, which showed he arguably had the best season in terms of play in majors this year. This is after 2 rough, rough years in which reports indicated he might even quit golf altogether.

Now, rather than just putting in solid play all year whilst not winning, he's even returning to THAT winning form. I don't know if you heard, but he absolutely dominated at the Castello Masters last week, putting on a clinic for his hometown crowd while on cruise control to at 11 shot. I don't think I've ever seen him play that well, other than at The Players Championship in '08.

This week, El Nino has a chance to win yet again! He currently sits 2 ahead of everyone this week at the Andalucia Masters, with a nice 3rd round 67. This course has shown to be extremely tough, as he's only at 6 under par so far. He's vying for three things right now: back-to-back wins, a spot in next week's HSBC Champions, and the first Spaniard to win this event while held at the challenging Valderrama golf course.

If Sergio goes on to win this thing, then I believe people will start to definitely take notice that he's coming back stronger than ever. We all know that he's one of the most talented players in golf, and when he is confident, he's easily one of the best. Even if he weren't able to capture this title, it wouldn't be so bad. Because even then, we still have seen the best out of Sergio since 2008, where I believe he was the Player of the Year.

I really hope Sergio wins this event. When he's playing well, it's good for the game and tv ratings. His talent and polarizing figure bring more interest to the sport. If he can keep this amazing form up and take it to the PGA Tour next year, then we should be in for something special.

Photo via Getty Images

A Year In Review: 2011 PGA Tour Season

So uhh, in case you haven't heard, the PGA Tour season is pretty much over. Yes, there is still the President's Cup and Chevron World Challenge in November, but that's just icing on the cake of the golf season. 2011 is over. And now since there are no more events to do a Pick of the Week for, the dudes at Hack Till We Die are going to do something different for this Wednesday. They will be doing their synopsis of the PGA Tour season that was. Included will be: Their recap, favorite memory, Player of the Year (POY), and hopes for the 2012 season. Fore, please! HTWD now driving.


JJ: First of all, let me congratulate Bernardo for thoroughly handling me in our first ever Pick of the Week race. I'll admit, I was schooled. Bad. But I'll get him next time! Anyways, now let me say that this PGA Tour season of 2011 was absolutely ridiculous. The amount of first time winners this year was insane. I don't know the number of first time winners exactly, but if you do, let me know please. It seemed like there was a stretch where every week the tour event would go to a playoff, and every week it would produce someone who has never one before on the circuit. It just goes to show you how deep the fields are on the Tour nowadays, and that anyone has a legit shot at winning the tournament they're in.

Now, here is my...

Favorite Memory: The Masters. Yeah yeah, I know we went to the Frys.com Open and it was great and all, but this Masters Tournament was ridiculous. I still remember that day vividly- I really thought Tiger had no chance to win it after Saturday's round, but BOOM! 4 holes into his round he's charging up the leaderboard, and everyone started to text me. Especially after his awesome shot at 8. Yeah, he didn't win it (Charl Schwartzel somehow did), but still, a Tiger charge creates the biggest buzz and the greatest memories.

POY: Luke Donald. Getting to No. 1 in the world with a struggling Tiger Woods is one thing (See, Lee Westwood, Martin Kaymer), but staying there is another. And that is what Luke Donald has done this year, with a whole lot more to boot. He's won a ton of awards this year (except for the FedEx Cup, but who cares), and has been easily the most consistent golfer on the planet. Kudos, Luke.

Hope for 2012: To see great golf by great players. I'll admit it; this year was, although ridiculous, a bit boring for me. It was nice to see all the first time winners reach success, but I enjoy watching golf the most when all of the interesting names are on the first page of the leader board. You know, the Tigers, Sergios, Phils, Rorys, and Lukes of the world. These guys attract attention and create drama (the good kind). I wish to see at least one to two majors where we have some huge names dueling it out for a title, because that would make many fans happy.

So there you have it, there's my jargon about the PGA Tour in Review. Let me know what ya think in the comments. Let's see what Bernardo thinks... Hmm....

Luke Donald at the WGC-CC
(Getty Images)

Bernardo:

Recap: Well folks sadly this season has come to end. 2011 exhibited its share of up and downs, including the forging of a young and talented class of players that will one day fulfill the shoes of the current stars. Some people might say this year was a bit disappointing because the influence of big names like Phil Mickelson was close to none but, in reality they are talking about Tiger Woods. Woods just has that kind of supremacy and it is clear as the day, that the golf world wants a tiger-like player to add some excitement. 

Besides the absent of some favorites, this year’s Majors Championships certainly provided for some interesting results. First the Masters Tournament, which had so many scenarios of who could win, Charl Schwartzel would come out victorious with a great back nine that consisted of four straight birdies. The U.S Open displayed the comeback of the talented Rory Mcllroy, after a disappointing finish at the Masters, he proved to the critics that he was more than capable of winning a Major. The British Open crowned a well deserved candidate, Darren Clarke. Clarke’s major win gave Northern Ireland its third major winner in a stretch of 13 months. Finally the PGA Championship was a great twist, Keegan Bradley a PGA Tour rookie, became one of three golfers to win a major during their rookie year. Not to mention he also won the HP Byron this year.  

Overall this season was great and you can give the thanks to the rookie class of 2011, that consisted of 35 players and some notable players like Luke Donald and Nick Watney. 

Favorite Memory: There is a hand full of great memories this year but hands down I have to give it to Bill Haas. The up and down on the 17th hole from the water at the Tour Championship was just amazing. Yes we can say it was similar to playing a bunker shot but for those of us that play golf, whenever you find yourself in the water hazard, you don’t expect to get up and down for par very often. Not to mention this was during a playoff, now thats what I call clutch. Bill Haas would win the Tournament and become the 2011 FedEx Champ (year long points race). Thats a total of 11.4 million dollars in earnings!

POY: I’m gonna have to go with Luke Donald for the Player of Year. Beginning with his win at the WGC-Matchplay, Donald has been Mr.Consist throughout the season. Donald only needed 19 starts to be the money leader, compared to Webb Simpson with 26 starts, who was the nearest competitor battling for the Money Title. Donald also had to deal with the added pressure of being world #1 and maintaining that position. So with that added pressure and playing well week after week, he certainly deserves to be Player of the Year. Best of luck to world #1 Luke Donald. 

Hopes for 2012: My personal hope for the upcoming season is for my favorite golfer Sergio Garcia to rack up some wins. In the overall scope, I want to see some great golf from some of the crowd pleasers like Rickie Fowler, Camilo Villegas, Bubba Watson, Anthony Kim, Rory Mcllroy, Adam Scott, Jason Day and many more. These guys are too talented not to be in contention and winning more often. Who will step up to the plate when the world is patiently waiting for the next Tiger to emerge?  

The Surge is Back

Sergio Garcia
 (Getty Images)

Its about time Sergio Garcia finds himself in the winner’s circle. Garcia is coming off some not so great seasons, so winning by 11 strokes in his home country of Spain, at the Castello Masters, certainly should be the remedy for his lack of love for the game. Garcia set a tournament record of 27-under par with rounds of 67,63,64, and 63 at a par 71 course. The closest competitor was Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano at 16-under par. Besides setting a tournament record for the Castello Masters, Garcia set the the overall record on the European Tour. This is Garcia’s first worldwide win since 2008. 


Garcia has won the Castello Masters before so it is evident the guy loves playing in his home country, similar to most sports teams, that rather play in front of their home crowd for the added support. Not to mention Garcia’s father is the head pro at the course the Castello Masters is played on. 

Surprisingly Garcia’s putting was on fire. For those Sergio Garcia Fans out there, including myself, we know Garcia has come up short in many tournaments because the lack of putting confidence. We saw the switch to the belly that brought some success, but now he is back to a normal length putter and putting better than ever. 

So the question that comes to mind is, what is next for Garcia? Is this a sign of great play to come or just a random spark of greatness. Garcia certainly proved to the golf world and critics that he still is a world class player, now that he finds himself ranked in the top 50 in the world. Its great to see Garcia back because he brings a certain flare to the game of golf that is indescribable and amazing to watch. 

Garcia on 18th

The Happiest Man on Earth

Luke with Mr. Donald Duck himself

We finally have a winner for the money list title, folks. 

With a scorching hot 64 by Luke Donald, he won the 2011 Children's Miracle Network Hospitals Classic at Disney. He came back from 5 shots on the final day to take the title by 2 shots over Justin Leonard. He started the tournament trailing Webb Simpson by $363,029 - basically meaning that he had to win the darn thing to overtake him for the money lead. And that, he did. 

It came down on the latter half of his round, at one point draining 4 straight birdie putts with a nice 45 footer for birdie on the 15th. With nobody left to catch him and with Webb out of the picture to win it himself, Luke eventually got news that he was the winner as soon as Leonard was technically out of it.

Donald called this win "one of the most satisfying of my career". Nobody should blame him about this either, even if it is a Fall Series event. He came through in the clutch when he needed to, and he put on a display like the No. 1 player in the world should. This performance not only got him the money title, but also should most likely wrap up Player of the Year honors for him, and it clinched the Harry Vardon Trophy to boot (this award is given to the player with the lowest stroke average over a PGA Tour season). 

All in all, Donald had a fantastic week here with the win, and a fantastic overall year, with 2 PGA Tour wins, the Money List of both the PGA and European Tours, and earning the World No. 1 ranking earlier this year. Oh, and he and his wife are also expecting a child sometime within the next week. So now, at the culmination of the PGA Tour season at what is known as "The Happiest Place on Earth", Luke Donald can call himself "The Happiest Man on Earth".

Highlights of Donald's final round here:

Photo via Getty Images

Pick of the Week: CMNH Classic (J.J.)

Kevin Streelman (photo via zimbio)

Ahhhhhh. The final PGA Tour event in the Fall Series. The culmination of what has been a very, interesting season to say the least (more on that later on this month...). Here we are- at the Children's Miracle Network Hospital Classic at Walt Disney World. Players will be sure to bring their familes to enjoy the fun. A select two also plan to bring their "A" game, too.

Here is where Luke Donald and Webb Simpson will do battle for the No. 1 spot on the Money List year, which may in fact have Player of the Year Implications. Simpson pretty much guaranteed that Luke would be here, too, by playing last week at The McGladery. Heck, they even got paired together for the first two rounds at least, so that should make things VERY worthy to watch.

Now, onto my pick of the week. I'm going to go with Kevin Streelman. He finished in 6th place at The McGladery last week, and also placed T-6 here in 2008, so he can play this course pretty well. He may not be a household name or anything, but in my opinion he's a very good player that often flies under the radar. AND he's doing his best to get better. Recently he was part of a "mentoring" project presented by Charles Schwab, where former World No. 1 Tom Lehman gives him advice on how to become a top player in the world. It's obviously been helping him, and hopefully he snags a win here this week.

In case you're interested, here's the video:



Already used- Phil Mickelson, Geoff Ogilvy, Rickie Fowler, Aaron Baddeley, Hunter Mahan, Ricky Barnes, Luke Donald, Justin Rose, Anthony Kim, Adam Scott, Jason Day, Steve Stricker, Lee Westwood, Matt Kuchar, Bubba Watson, Nick Watney, Jonathan Byrd, Martin Kaymer, Ryan Moore, Charles Howell III, Dustin Johnson, Tiger Woods, Jim Furyk, Sergio Garcia, Brandt Snedeker, Webb Simpson, Jeff Overton, Paul Casey.

Children's Miracle Network Hospitals Classic

Gary Woodland
(Photo by Hunter Martin/Getty Images)

The Fall series concludes in Sunny Florida at the Children's Miracle Network Hospitals Classic. Players that are near the cut line on the Money list, will put up their final fight for  a shot at full status on Tour for the upcoming season.

Besides the money title on the line , this week also marks the finale of the Kodak Challenge, valued at 1 million dollars. The KC consisted of 30 different holes throughout the year but, players must play at least 18 holes to qualify. The current  leader is Bill Lunde at -19-under with 22 holes played, followed by Josh Teater and Cameron Tringale both at -17 under par. 

My pick of the week is Gary Woodland. Woodland has a win under his belt this year, the Transitions Championship, including a hand full  of top 5 finishes. This should be a good week for Woodland, without the presence of pressure to stay within the top 125, it should be cruise control to easy money. Woodland has certainly proven to be a contender not to be underestimated. 

Previous Selections-  Bubba Watson, Martin Kaymer, Tiger Woods, Matt Kuchar, Phil Mickelson, Adam Scott, Jason Day, Luke Donald, Rory Mcllroy, Stewart Cink, Dustin Johnson, Justin Rose, David Toms, Lee Westwood, Webb Simpson, Ryan Moore, Steve Stricker, Ian Poulter, Charl Schwartzel, Jeff Overton, Bo Van Pelt, Rickie Fowler, Sergio Garcia, Anthony Kim, Charles Howell lll,Camilo Villegas, Y.E. Yang, Geoff Ogilvy, Spencer Levin, Bud Cauley. 

The Crane

(Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)

Ben Crane confidently rolled in a five footer for par, leaving Web Simpson a 3-4 footer to extend the playoff to a third hole. Simpson’s short putt would lip out, revealing not every short putt is a gimme. Crane put on a show on the back nine, firing a 5-under 30, allowing to secure a spot in the playoff with Simpson. Michael Thompson’s bogey on 18, hindered him from making it a 3-man playoff. 

Crane seems to be a spotting player but the Oregon native, now has won at least once two years in a row. Even though Simpson did not win, second place allowed him to become the Money Leader, creating a gap between him and Luke Donald.   

Simpson and Donald will go head-to-head at the Fall Series final event, the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals Classic. Not to mention these guys have a chance at being Player of the Year, along with names like Keegan Bradley, Bill Haas, or Nick Watney, but there still is golf to be played. 

Bud Cauley’s top 20 finish, allows him to receive status as a Tour member in 2012. Cauley is the sixth player in the history of the PGA Tour to earn status right after college, without having to go to Q-school. His journey to the Tour included 8 starts and two top 10s. Cauley almost secured a spot into next week’s event but fell a few shots short of another top 10. 

The defending champion Heath Slocum  finished strong with a 4-under par 66, finishing  at T15. 

My pick Bud Cauley was defeated by JJ’s pick Bryce Molder. Molder finished one shot better than Cauley allowing JJ to receive a point. 

Challenge Accepted

Luke Donald will be trying to make history at Disney

Look, I'm gonna be completely honest hear and say it: although there is still some golf going on in the Fall Series, there really isn't much to talk about. El Tigre is out of competition till November. No more majors. No more Fed Ex Cup. The golfing season is starting to come to a slight close, at least here in the USA.

That's why we should be thankful for this little Luke Donald-Webb Simpson conundrum going on. As you may or may not know, these 2 are vying for one coveted prize that is still not locked up- the money title. Currently, Mr. Donald is #1 on this list, and Webb wants to catch him. In fact, the sole reason he is playing this week is to catch Luke. With a T-15 or better, Webb would vault to the top spot (all he needs is about $70,000 to catch him).

This is where Luke reacted, and made a decision to play next week at the CMN tournament at Disney next week. He even tweeted it himself, (@LukeDonald) saying that it was an obvious choice. He is trying to become the first ever person to hold the money titles from the PGA Tour AND the European Tour in the same year. Yep, first person ever. Tiger's never done it. Jack's never done it. Seve's never done it. It would be some awesome history if it went down.

But this doesn't come without caution, however. You see, Luke's wife is due for their 2nd child sometime in the next 2 weeks. That could mean that while he is playing (possibly in contention), she might be in labor, so he would have to W/D from the Tournament, which may leave Simpson a chance at the title.

This little story that's brewing really helped the PGA Tour in my opinion. It gave us fans a little more to watch over as this season comes to a halt, and heck, this money title may even help determine who becomes the PGA Tour Player of the Year.

Photo via AP

Pick of the Week: The McGladrey Classic (J.J.)

Helllooooo everyone, what is up and welcome to another posting of our picks of the week. This 3rd fall series event heads to Georgia, for The McGladrey Classic. This field is actually pretty stacked, with names like Webb Simpson, Rickie Fowler, and Paul Casey lining up to take their shot at the title. These three also do have a little storyline going on; Webb is vying for the money title, Rickie just won last week in Korea, and Paul is trying to maintain his PGA Tour card after struggling through this year with health issues.

My pick this week also has a bit of a storyline, too. I'm going with Bryce Molder. The Georgia Tech product who finally broke through with a W last week is playing some hot golf right now. He has 5 top 10s in his last nine total starts. That's some consistent golf right there. He should be rolling his momentum over to what basically should be kind of a homecoming tournament at the Seaside golf course.

If you haven't read it yet, go ahead and check out the Frys.com Open Experience blog that was put up a few days ago. Check it out, it was what we saw from the tournaments as fans and bloggers during the 3rd round of play. Till next time, see you all later.

Already used- Phil Mickelson, Geoff Ogilvy, Rickie Fowler, Aaron Baddeley, Hunter Mahan, Ricky Barnes, Luke Donald, Justin Rose, Anthony Kim, Adam Scott, Jason Day, Steve Stricker, Lee Westwood, Matt Kuchar, Bubba Watson, Nick Watney, Jonathan Byrd, Martin Kaymer, Ryan Moore, Charles Howell III, Dustin Johnson, Tiger Woods, Jim Furyk, Sergio Garcia, Brandt Snedeker, Webb Simpson, Jeff Overton, Paul Casey.

Photo via zimbio

McGladrey Classic (Pick of the Week)

Bud at the Frys.com Open
(Photo by Robert Laberge/Getty Images)

The PGA Tour heads to the East Coast after a two tournament stretch in the West Coast for the Fall Series, were players compete to secure their PGA Tour for the upcoming season. This week the players will walk the fairways of Seaside golf course in Sea Island, Georgia, for the McGladrey Classic, hosted by Dave Love III. The defending champion is Heath Slocum who defeated his closest competitor, Bill Haas, by one stroke. Not to much Bill Haas is this year’s FedEx Cup Champion, revealing some players tend to play better towards the end of year with the added pressure. 

This is only the second year that the McGladrey Classic is in existence, slowly developing its popularity within PGA Tour players, who wouldn’t mind adding a fall series event to their schedule. 

In other news Tiger Woods won’t be in the field this week, which is not surprising since the guy prefers a short selective schedule. Certainly respectable with a player of this category. But Tiger will be hosting a charity event,  The Tiger Woods Invitational, in lovely Pebble Beach, benefiting  the Tiger Woods Foundation. 

My pick of the week is William “Bud” Cauley. As you know from The Frys.com Open Experience blog, the folks at HWTD attended the Frys.com Open. During our duration at the event, we got to see Bud hit a few good shots. He finished in third place at the Frys.com Open earning himself a fat-check and a spot into this week’s event, including a spot into the final stage of Q-school. If he is able to fashion another great week, he is closer to joining the list of players who joined the PGA Tour right after college. This list includes names like Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods. After finishing his junior year in college, Bud decided to turn pro.

The Frys.com Open Experience

(Frys.com Open ticket for Saturday)

This may be a prisoner of the moment statement, but the Frys.com Open was one of the best and most fun professional golf tournaments I've ever been too. Yeah, it may have been quite hot (just ask Bernardo on how hot it was), but it was a lot of fun. In my golfing life, I've been to a U.S. Open (Pebble), a WGC Event (all the way when it was the Am-Ex Championship), multiple First Tee Opens, and a few AT&T Pro-Ams. They were all amazing, including this one, which easily might be either my favorite or in my top 3.

Wondering why? Well, it's pretty simple. Although it was warm, it was definitely the best weathered event I've been too. Each other event was either too cloudy and overcast, or it wasn't very hot. Sun and warmth go hand in hand when watching a golf tournament, in my opinion at least.

The amount of golf I saw helped a lot too. We were at the amazing looking CordeValle Golf Club for at least 5 hours on Saturday, and saw all but 4-5 groups on the day. Seeing the big names of Woods, Casey, and Els was a treat for the 45 bucks it cost (a true bargain). We saw a good variety of drives, approach shots, and putts; this was a nice balance for the day. 

Finally, it wasn't overly packed on Saturday. Yeah yeah, Tiger did increase ticket sales by like 5 fold, but it's not like it was impossible to see him. We got to see him comfortably for three holes; ask any other spectator and they would gladly accept that when watching a player with the marquee name of "Woods". We also were able to snag good grandstand seats on holes 1 and 9, so we were able to see many, many shots in good areas.

Overall, it was a great day for golf. Seeing these pros up close and personal can just show you how good they all are, and seeing nearly all of them can make you appreciate them more. I would certainly hope that more moments like this can come, and that every avid golf fan can see as much as I saw that day.

Picture of TW at the 9th on Sat. (He's in the middle near the flag)

The Bryce Is Right

Well, after 5+ playoff holes that almost ran out of light, we finally have a champion at the Frys.com Open. First-time winner Bryce Molder defeated veteran Briny Baird in a sudden death playoff at the beautiful CordeValle golf course in San Martin, CA. Both players entered the playoff going low, with finishing totals of -17, and it was Bryce who closed the door on Baird as he sunk a birdie putt to claim victory.

As much drama as there was in the playoff, there was a ton of it before it went down. This week marked the return of Tiger (yet again), and he increased the audience by 5 times. It also showed its star power, with Tiger giving the crowd a bit of "Tiger Magic" with a respectable 30th place finish, and it showed the resurgence of Paul Casey and Ernie Els, who have also had disappointing years like Mr. Woods. Paul has been bothered by a toe injury, and Ernie has been having trouble with the flatstick. Heck, we even had 21 year old Bud Cauley contend, as he showed his talents and potential while trying to avoid Q-School for status on the PGA TOUR.

In the end, it was Bryce who outlasted the entirety of this good field, and claimed the $900,000 prize and exempt status for next year. It's a good win for him; he's had a lot of chances in his career before and he was finally able to breakthrough. His game is very simple and now that he has his first win, he should be able to rack up some more.

P.S.- Stay tuned for a blog coming up of HTWD's experience of being at the Frys.com Open on Saturday.

Photo via ymig

Tiger + Math = Fun

Via Bleacherreport

Based on the title of this post, you already know what this article is about. But lemme break it down for you in some simple math:

6 Birdies+3 Bogies= 68= Tiger Woods

For the 2nd round of the 2011 Frys.com Open at the awesome Cordevalle Golf Course in San Martin, CA, that's not too bad. His putting improved by A LOT, even though his ball striking didn't. But, we'll take that. Especially since he ended his second round with some flare, by showing off a few "Tiger twirls" on his drive and approach shots on his final hole of the day. 

73+68=-1=41st place

This is where Woods stands as the 2nd round winds down. Let's take the good with the bad, now. The goods are: he made the cut, moved up 45 spots on the leader board, and is slowly gaining momentum. The bads are: he is still 7 shots back, and we've seen "these" kind of results for over 2 years now. Hopefully Tiger can make a run at it this weekend, but then again, we've said that a lot for a while now, and until he does it, the doubters will still keep coming. Tomorrow, we'll just have to wait and see.

Final equation:

Tiger Woods+San Martin, CA+ Made Cut= HTWD coming out to see him!

Yeah guys, Bernardo and I are totally going to go see him tomorrow now that he's made the cut! (HOORAY!) We'll be able to give our input on what we see in the flesh from him after tomorrow, so stick around with our blog to get some updates on how El Tigre looks in the flesh! 

Pick of the Week: Frys.com Open

My pick this week, is in form of a video. Check it out: (Photo of Paul Casey courtesy of the guardian.uk)

Frys.com Open (Pick of the Week)

 Trevor Immelman at the PGA
(Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

The Fall series continues in San Martin,CA for the Frys.com Open. The tournament is held at the beautiful and challenging CordeValle golf course. Surprisingly this tournament is bringing in a herd of big names. The list includes Tiger Woods, Ernie Els, Paul Casey, and Angel Cabrera. These players will certainly bring in large crowds during the weekend. 

The golf world is ready for Tiger Woods to return to his normal condition of play, meaning we want to see Tiger in the winner’s circle. It will be interesting to see how Tiger will perform, including his partnership with his new caddie Joe LaCava, the former caddie of Dustin Johnson. Tiger is ready to prove that he still is a fierce competitor and still has a bright career ahead of him. 

My pick of the week is South African, Trevor Immelman. Immelman is coming off  a hot week at the JT Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, with four straight rounds in the 60s. 

Relying on his great play last week, Immelman should be able to fashion a great finish. 

Immelman has not won since the 2009 Masters, were he defeated Tiger Woods by 3 strokes. 

Previous Selections-  Bubba Watson, Martin Kaymer, Tiger Woods, Matt Kuchar, Phil Mickelson, Adam Scott, Jason Day, Luke Donald, Rory Mcllroy, Stewart Cink, Dustin Johnson, Justin Rose, David Toms, Lee Westwood, Webb Simpson, Ryan Moore, Steve Stricker, Ian Poulter, Charl Schwartzel, Jeff Overton, Bo Van Pelt, Rickie Fowler, Sergio Garcia, Anthony Kim, Charles Howell lll,Camilo Villegas, Y.E. Yang, Geoff Ogilvy, and Spencer Levin

The Na effect.

JT and Na 

Kevin Na is the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open 2011 champion. This certainly was Na’s week with 27 birdies made in four rounds, averaging about 7 birdies per day. Na seems to have recovered from the mind-staining 16 on the par 4th 9th hole during the first round of the Valero Texas Open, carding only 4 bogies for the tournament this week, now thats a comeback. Not to mention Na was in need of win. 

Right behind Na was Nick Watney, who is a Las Vegas resident, so he if was able to win , that would have been a plus. Watney was two shots short of the man on top. Either way it was a great week for the former Fresno State Bulldog. Hopefully he gets some good practice sessions with his swing coach, Butch Harmon, for the Presidents Cup.

Players continue to strive for their PGA Tour Card, if not the race for exemptions and broken dreams continues. In other news, my pick of the week Spencer Levi  defeated JJ’s pick, Jeff Overton, allowing me to receive another point. 

The folks at HWTD will be heading to the Frys.com Open, hopefully we get to see Tiger Woods.