U.S. Ryder Cup Team

The guessing game is over. Many were deliberating of US captain Corey Pavin and his four captain's pick for the Ryder Cup. One was way too obvious, Tiger Woods. The other three did have an air of mystery. The other three selected were Stewart Cink, Zach Johnson and Rickie Fowler. Let's take a bit of a close look at the 12 US participants.

Will it be thumbs up for Lefty?

Phil Mickelson - Appearances: 8th; World Ranking: 2nd; Ryder Cup Record: 10-14-6

Lefty has had the opportunity to unseat Tiger as the world's #1 will little success. Still, Phil will be the defending Masters champ come April. He followed that win with a 2nd at Quail Hollow. Earlier this summer, Lefty told of an arthritic condition he is battling. That does give a pause for some concern going forward. Take into consideration how the weather will be when the competition starts and things could get a little hazy. The experience factor Phil brings will serve the "newcomers" well.

Hunter Mahan - Appearances: 2nd; World Ranking: 13th; Ryder Cup Record: 2-0-3
Mahan played in all five matches in Valhalla in 2008 and that alone could serve him well in Wales. He's seen it all except for the foreign soil aspect. His record could have been 3-0-2 if not for that drive on the 18th during the singles matches.Mahan won at the WCG-Bridgestone Invitational and the Waste Management Phoenix Open. Both events draw excellent fields and knowing the he's won provides Mahan with confidence.

Bubba Watson - Appearances: 1st; World Ranking: 25th: Ryder Cup Record: none
Bubba will more recently be known for his errant tee shot and second shot on the final playoff hole of the PGA Championship. He's more known for his long (extremely long) drives. Bubba did break through in 2010 scoring his first PGA TOUR victory (an emotional one at that) at the Travelers. Watson also has three other top-3 finishes in 2010 (Bob Hope Classic - T2, Transitions Champ. - 3rd and PGA Champ. - 2nd)

Jim Furyk - Appearances: 7th; World Ranking: 5th; Ryder Cup Record: 8-13-3
It wouldn't be a Ryder Cup if Furyk weren't on the team. His record isn't the greatest, but Furyk's course demeanor always serves as a lesson for the others. He seems so even keeled. Furyk also took home two trophies in 2010, the Verizon Heritage and the Transitions Championship. The win at the Transitions put Furyk's name back on the front page and deservedly so.

Steve Stricker - Appearances: 2nd; World Ranking: 4th; Ryder Cup Record: 0-2-1
Hard to believe this will only be Strick's 2nd go around with the Ryder Cup. Two wins (John Deere Classic and Northern Trust Open) and no missed cuts shows exactly how consistent Stricker is on the course. I think we all know who he will be paired with...Tiger. The two teamed up for the President's Cup last year and won all four points possibles in their matches.

Dustin Johnson - Appearances: 1st; World Ranking: 24th; Ryder Cup Record: none
How can you not want Dustin to do well? After the two-stroke penalty on the 72nd hole of the PGA, every American will probably root for Johnson more than any other player. That being said, all the other players know of Johnson's ability. He is the two-time winner of the AT and T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am (2008 and 2009). That tourney boasts a pretty stellar field. And Johnson made the cut in all four majors this year despite the gaffe at Pebble for the US Open and the penalty at Whistling Straits (Masters - T38, US Open - T8, the Open Championship - T14, PGA - T5).

Jeff Overton - Appearances: 1st; World Ranking: 47th; Ryder Cup Record: none
The most amazing fact about Overton is that he made the team on points and did not record a single victory this year. Five top-3 finishes propelled the 27-year-old onto the team (The Greenbriar Classic - 2nd, AT and T National - 3rd, Colonial - T3, HP Byron Nelson - T2, Zurich Classic - 2nd). And he's still alive in the FedEx Cup. His tenacity will bode well in matches.

Matt Kuchar - Appearances: 1st; World Ranking: 11th; Ryder Cup Record: none
The one-time phenom has couldn't have righted the ship any better in 2010. Kuchar has also played well in the four majors (Masters - T24, US Open - T6, Open Champ. - T27 and PGA - T10). Kuchar also picked up a win at The Barclays to vault to the top of the FedEx Cup standings. He also has not missed a cut since Quail Hollow.

Has Woods found his swing?

Tiger Woods (captain's pick) - Appearances: 6th; World Ranking: 1st; Ryder Cup Record: 10-13-2

Woods RC record isn't anything to boast about, but Tiger still has an aura. Granted, not like it was a year ago, but having Tiger here still plants a seed. After a horrendous showing at the WGC-Bridgestone, Woods has managed a T11 last week at the Deutsche Bank and a T12 at The Barclays. Working with Sean Foley a bit has improved Woods' swing and it shows. That should provide some confidence for not only Tiger, but the rest of the team as well.

Zach Johnson (captain's pick) - Appearances: 2nd; World Ranking: 17th; Ryder Cup record: 1-2-1
Every year since his big win at The Masters, Johnson wins a tourney every year. This year provided another big win as he scored top honors at Colonial. Most people thought Johnson's selection was imminent, but he's only posted one top-ten since Colonial (T3 at the PGA). Regardless, just like Jeff Overton has tenacity, Johnson exudes it. He will scrap for every hole and every point.

Stewart Cink (captain's pick) - Appearances: 5th; World Ranking: 35th; Ryder Cup Record: 4-7-4
Since capturing the Open Championship last year, Cink has struggled logging only one top-5 finish in 2010, but that was at the WGC-Accenture Match Play. He RC record isn't impressive either, but Cink clawed is way from behind during last year's win at the Open and that may be all captain Corey Pavin needed to see.

Rickie Fowler (captain's pick) - Appearances: 1st; World Ranking: 33rd; Ryder Cup Record: none
This pick is not a surprise at all. Consider Fowler's Walker Cup record in the equation. Out of four possible points Fowler could receive in last year's competition, Fowler netted...four. His closest match was a 1-up win in the Saturday foursomes match. In his singles matches, Fowler was completely dominant in a 7-and-6 win on Saturday and followed with a 2-and-1 win on his Sunday match.

There are a couple that were left off the team and have you maybe scratching your head. Anthony Kim, J.B. Holmes, Lucas Glover, Ben Crane, Nick Watney and Bo Van Pelt all made Pavin's choices difficult.

Holmes and Kim played during the 2008 win at Valhalla and both posted winning records (Holmes: 2-0-1, Kim: 2-1-1). Kim paired with Lefty for the first three sessions and went 1-1-1 before lifting the hammer for the US on a 5&4 win over Sergio Garcia in the first singles match out on Sunday. Kim does struggle in coming back from a wrist ailment and has missed four consecutive cuts.

Holmes, a big hitter in his own right, also scored a singles win over Soren Hansen to go along with a victory in a pairing with Boo Weekley during the Saturday fourball matches. He has failed to register a win over the last two years on tour.

Are these the right guys to select? Considering their RC records, I'm inclined to say no. But we all know how crafty Pavin is. He already has a plan laid out.

Were You Duped?

After the opening round of The Barclays at Ridgewood Country Club, we all looked at the top of the leaderboard and saw a surprising name...Tiger Woods.

Woods shared the opening round lead for the first time this season after posting a 6-under-par 65. I bet PGA Commissioner Tim Finchem and all the other PGA TOUR officials were jumping up and down endlessly. The money man had returned. Seven birdies and only one bogey were on Woods' scorecard. He's back. Isn't he?

Not...so...fast.

Overnight, the transformation back to the Tiger we've seen all year emerged. Tiger needed 73 strokes to make his way through the second carding four bogeys with only two birdies.

Saturday could have been even worse. Woods birdied three of his last six holes to close with a 72, 1-over-par. Actually, not a bad score at all consider Tiger began with day with a triple-bogey 7 on the first hole. For the remainder of his round, he was 2-under. He began today T28 at -3, nine shots behind the leader, Martin Laird.

One thing Woods addressed his his presser after his first round bears a significant reason for his play. He fired a 31 on the front nine, 4-under-par.

“With fresh greens, everybody in our group was making putts on the front nine,” Woods said. “You had to get it today.”

Need anyone say more. He was in the first group out on the front nine. Plus, the area had received four inches of rain during the week leading up to the event. The greens were in pristine condition as no one had been on those first nine and you could aim at pins when the situation was available. The only thing that may have been a distraction was, of all things, mudballs. The TOUR officials took that into consideration and made the appropriate actions.

Granted, Woods has not been himself all year, but the media was making this single round out as being his comeback. One round? Really? Woods has played (going into today's final round) 36 rounds this season. He has manged only seven rounds in the 60's. As far as the number of strokes taken, Thursday's 65 was his best round of the year. His 6-under was equal to the 66 he posted at Pebble.

Ah, that 66 at Pebble during the U.S. Open. We've been teased before by Tiger. Remember Woods' third round at the U.S. Open? He followed that up with a final round 75.

We know he's been through a lot this year and for anyone to expect Woods to return to his former self this soon is asking way too much.

There's no doubt that the PGA TOUR needs Woods to make the cut into the next round of The PGA TOUR Playoffs. And the next and son on. The top 100 after this week will advance. Woods is in position to do that

However, no Tiger doesn't necessarily translate into bad golf. We've seen young stars emerge this year. Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy, Rickie Fowler, Jason Day.

The issue concerning the TOUR is that no Tiger only translates into lower gates.

Reflecting on The Open Championship

McIlroy receives congrats from Lucas
Glover after Rory fires a 63.

Day 1

The biggest news from the opening round was the amazing 63 carded by Rory McIlroy. That was 2 strokes better than eventual champ Louis Oosthuizen. Another shocking development was John Daly. No, not because of his apparel, but because he fired a 6-under-par 66. All would agree that it was refreshing to see Daly go low.

And some felt the Same about Tiger as Woods took a 67 (-5) for his first round. The Old Course had to be taken today. Friday would produce a bizarre set of circumstances.

Really? Can it be?

Day 2

The biggest news from the second round was the catastrophic 80 carded by McIlroy. Well, the real news for the second round was the 1 hour, 6 minute wind delay. Balls were oscillating (how many times had you heard that word before this day?) in the fairways and on the greens. Really? A wind delay at The Open Championship? Really and those that were still playing paid a severe penalty (like McIlroy). Oosthuizen, Mark Calcavecchia, Rickie Fowler and Miguel Angel Jimenez managed to have their rounds completed by then and all shot 67. Oosthuizen stood at -12 and assumed the lead.

Don't try this at home.

Day 3

Everyone was waiting for Oosthuizen to wilt. It wouldn't happen on Saturday as he fired a 69 placing him (again) at the top of the leaderboard with a 15-under-par heading into the final round. McIlroy rebounded from his 80 to post a 69 and leaving him at -4. England's Paul Casey joined Oosthuizen in being double digits below par at -11 after he shot 67. That would set up Oosthuizen and Casey as the final game for Sunday. And they had the chance to run and hide from the rest of the field. Miguel Angel Jimenez provided the shot of the Open at the Road Hole. With his ball mere inches from the wall behind the green, Jimenez wedges his shot onto the green...by hitting his ball off the wall!

Casey looks for his line of sight after
driving his tee shot in the bushes at 12.

Day 4

Again, we wondered if Oosthuizen wilt under the pressure of winning a major. The first hole had Oosthuizen aiming for the middle of the green while Casey was well within birdie distance. One word would sum up Casey's putt...fail. But the tide would change on two holes. Following a bogey at #8, Oosthuizen drove the par-4 #9 green leaving him within eagle range, but it was a long putt of over 30 feet. Well, that didn't deter Louis as he drilled his putt into the heart of the hole. His fortunes would change for the better on #12. Pounding a drive to the middle of the fairway, Oosthuizen was only a wedge from the green. Maybe the pressure built on Casey as he aired his tee shot into the bushes and had to take an unplayable lie. Casey would claw his way for a triple bogey. Oosthuizen? He sent a wedge to about 18 feet from the hole and promptly drained his birdie putt. Game, set, match.

Can Louis avoid the "fluke" label?

Oosthuizen was deadly accurate from tee to green for all four days. His worst round, if he really had a worst round, was the 71 he shot in the final round. Considering the others had to go low and have Louis stumble on a hole or two, those chances were greatly diminished as the round played out. Tom Watson, Andy North and Paul Azinger all called Oosthuizen's performance "surgical". That might be understating how the South African played at the home of golf. This will serve as a tremendous boost in his confidence and I believe this is no fluke. This guy has game and all in golf should keep an eye on Oosthuizen.

He is very worthy of being called Champion Golfer of the Year.

The "Ol' Girl" will miss Watson, too.

Speaking of Watson, we may have seen him play his last round at St. Andrews. If this is Watson's final bow at The Old Course, we thank you, Tom. We thank you for all your great play and wonderful memories. You've handled yourself with amazing class and character. All the best for you on the Champions Tour.

Four Things to Take from The Players

Golf's "Fifth Major" provided us with a few things take going forward. Here's four items on my list.

Woods' future? Who knows.

1. Tiger Withdraws
Before television coverage begin, news alerts were all over the place as Tiger Woods had to withdraw from the tourney due to what has been deemed as a possible bulging disc in Wooods' upper back or lower neck area. Not something to fool around with and Tiger sought attention.

Here's my issue. We've been hearing from Tiger that things are okay, but when pressed after his round abruptly ended on the 7th hole, Tiger revealed that he'd been dealing with this for quite a while. If everything (physically) with Tiger has been okay, why has this not previously been a concern? We're arriving to the point where I think we're being fed a built-in excuse for poor play. If I suck, tell them about an injury.

I'm not doubting the injury, I'm doubting the timing of its revelation.

His schedule for the remainder of 2010 is "up in the air". An MRI will be done, and Tiger can only go on from there...and so can we.

Will Mickelson ever be #1?

2. Lefty's Still #2.
Phil Mickelson had an opportunity to take over as the world's top golfer. He needed two things to happen. First, Tiger had to finish outside the top 5. Check. Second, win The Players. Not a check. Lefty did manage to put himself in a decent position to make a Sunday run, but a 2-over-par 74 spelled doom.

For now, it may be best if Lefty stays at that #2 ranking. When he was asked about the potential of attaining that #1 ranking, he bristled at the question. He does have other more pressing needs in his life, and that's where his efforts will be aimed for the time being. Phil did inch closer, and do not dismiss the possibility of his status changing this year. With Tiger's current injury woes, Phil may be #1 sooner that we think.

The driver let Westwood down on Sunday.

3. Lee Westwood
You cannot help but feel sorry for Westwood. For the second time this year, Westwood owned the overnight lead heading into the final round...only to come up short. At The Masters, Westwood had to deal with Mickelson. That was a bit easier to do since they were in the same pairing. Yesterday wasn't the case. All Westwood could do was watch the leader board and sometimes, that's not the best thing to do.

A final round 74 proved costly (especially when his tee shot went in the drink at #17) after posting rounds of 67-65-70. His driving was once again the main culprit as it was at Augusta.

All Westwood has to do is seal the deal. Until he performs in a final round when there's pressure, don't be shocked if people affix the "choke" tag to the world's #4 player.

A well earned victory (and trophy).

4. Tim Clark's First Win on US Soil
Start #206 in the US proved to be Clark's best. After scoring 68 and 71 in his first two rounds (-5), Clark seemed poised to merely collect a check. The check he ended up with was far greater than anyone has thought going into the weekend. A Saturday 66 followed by a bogey-free 67 on Sunday proved too much for the rest of the field. His 67 on Sunday was one of only two rounds in the 60's (Davis Love III had the other).

Clark's check? A cool $1.7 million. Plus, Clark was the only one that really played like he wanted the win. No more questions about getting a win on the PGA TOUR anymore.

One last thing (BONUS!)
I'm revisiting Lee Westwood here. After in what can only be termed as a major disappointment for him, Westwood took all questions from the media. He's always been that way, too. Ask him a question, good or bad, you get an answer that's straight and to the point. He doesn't give you a run around. He never dodges a questions either.

Someone should learn from this.

Spotlight on Woods

I know a lot of us are tiring of all the Tiger talk, but there's more to come.

On Monday, April 5 at 2 P.M., Woods will have his special day at Augusta National. Why? His very own press conference. Makes me wonder if this was hastily put together due to Arnold Palmer recently saying that Woods needs to be a bit more open with the press. Some viewed Arnie's comments as bitter since Tiger would not be playing this week at Bay Hill.

Will we all be totally captivated by this presser? Will we all hinge on every word uttered from Tiger? Will we all wonder exactly what questions the media will ask? The answer, unfortunately to all, is yes. Shouldn't be that way, though.

Look at this situation closely. What do you really see?

I see this:

The NCAA Championship game is that evening. Not a big deal, but it deserves mentioning due to the fact that CBS will also be covering The Masters. You know that every time during the game a promo for the tourney is aired, his "comeback" will be part of that promo. And who's the anchor covering both? Jim Nantz. Nothing against Nantz here. Just merely an observation.

Also, it's the first full day of the MLB baseball season. Funny how most games start somewhere between 1 P.M. and 2 P.M. that day. What time is Tiger's "parade"? That's right. 2 P.M.

All the other player's press conferences will be held on Tuesday.  Those will be short since it will be compacted. Add this. The press will have an entire day to digest what Tiger said the previous day and every player will field numerous Woods questions...if Augusta will allow that. Nice move by all involved to put the other players behind Tiger. They should be used to it. All that is important is to keep Tiger front and center. It's a eerie feeling that the PGA feels compelled to thrust Woods into the spotlight. It's almost a form of thievery.

I do understand that Tiger is the sport's biggest draw. I also understand that all of this is totally unnecessary. Put Tiger last. Allow the other player's to field questions pertaining to only their game. Does he actually need his own day for a press conference? A big no from me.

Have you ever wondered why Tiger said a few weeks ago in his "statement" that he felt entitled? Wouldn't you? Golf is expressing this very notion. We're being told that "Golf needs Tiger more than Tiger needs golf". It's that simple. Is Tiger bigger than the game? It's evident that many feel he is.

One last question. Who knew that Jim Furyk won last week for the first time since the Canadian Open in 2007? Not many at first. It was more important to air Tiger's little five minute interviews.

Poo on all of them, Arnie. Same goes for you, Ernie Els and Jim Furyk, too. You have all the right in the world to feel slighted (if you really do) and if others can't see that, it's their loss.

This is merely another display of how the world of golf continues to openly pander to Tiger and that will never change.

PGA Player of the Year, FedEx Cup up for grabs this weekend

Golf will crown potentially three different winners this weekend: The TOUR Championship winner, FedEx Cup winner, and Player of the Year. The PGA tour will conclude its "regular" season with the TOUR Championship, the final event in the PGA's "playoffs", from East Lake Golf Club from Atlanta.

The PGA amended its playoff scoring system from the past two years, and the beneficiary is any of the top five players in the FedEx Cup standings. For those five (we'll cover them), it's simple. If you win this week, you win the FedEx Cup. Those five are:

1. Tiger Woods
The fact the Tiger is contending should surprise absolutely no one. He's won six times this year (including the at the BMW Championship at Cog Hill 2 weeks ago) while only entering 16 events.
2. Steve Stricker
Stricker has three victories this season. He'd could still be atop the FedEx Cup standings if not for a final round 77 at the BMW. That poor finish allowed Woods to overtake him in the overall standings.
3. Jim Furyk
Of the top 5 players, Furyk's the only one without a tourney win in 2009. He's made 19 cuts in the 21 tournaments he's entered and his consistency has gotten him to this point. Finishing 2nd last week didn't hurt either. He's a steady as they come and it always a threat to win a tournament.
4. Zach Johnson
Johnson has a couple of wins this year under his belt. He's not the longest hitter on tour, but his short game more than makes up for his lack of length. Pressure is a non issue as he's won a major, The Masters in 2007.
5. Heath Slocum
Heath has one win this year and it couldn't have come at a better time...the first event of the playoffs at the Barclays. The revamped playoff system has benefitted Slocum the most. It will be interesting to see how he performs with the pressure.

There are hundreds of scenarios where the 25 others competing at East Lake can win the Cup, but these five golfers hold their own fate. To check out these scenarios, go here at pgatour.com.

The Player of the Year debate is pretty much a two horse race, Woods and Stricker. Although Tiger leads the tour with 6 wins this year, some feel he must win this week in order to win Player of the Year. I'm not in total agreement. I think as long as Tiger finishes ahead of Stricker, Woods will get the nod. Of course, if Tiger wins, it really is a done deal and all the conversation that goes along with it is dead.

On the other hand, if Stricker pulls out a win this week and Woods struggles, it could be close. Stricker will have won the FedEx Cup and possess 4 wins. Two of those wins will have occurred in the playoffs and Tiger will have been in the field. Stricker will will have more victories in the playoffs (2) than Tiger (1). It could be hard pressed for anyone not to vote for Stricker under those circumstances.

Despite what events transpire at East Lake this weekend, it should create the most excitement outside of the majors.

I'm going totally outside the top 5 for my winner this week. I'm looking at Kenny Perry. He's made the cut in every tournament this year and a win at the TOUR Championship may make up for the disappointment of not winning the Masters. Here's one of those crazy scenarios. Perry can win the FedEx Cup if he wins and Woods finishes fourth or worse, Stricker finishes third or worse, and Furyk finishes third or worse.

Golf just got a bit crazier.