SONOMA, Calif. -- So much for the theory that it is hard to follow a great round with another one the next day.
John Cook had a handsome encore for his second-round 62 at the Charles Schwab Cup Championship, shooting a 67 Saturday to extend his lead to six strokes with one round to play at Sonoma GC.
There doesn't look like much can go wrong with Cook's simple swing, which 1964 U.S. Open champion Ken Venturi began shaping when Cook was only 14, and nearly everything has gone right this week for the now 52-year-old.
At 19-under 197, Cook matched Jack Nicklaus' record total for the first 54 holes in a 72-hole Champions Tour event (1990 Mazda Senior Players Championship) and has the largest lead going into the final day of a four-round event since Jay Haas at the CSCC in 2005.
Cook has bludgeoned the par 5s, playing them nine under, and hit 45 of 54 greens in regulation. Dinner was going to taste better after he scrambled for a par on the 18th hole Saturday after having to pitch out of a fairway bunker.
Cook's challengers -- Russ Cochran (13 under), Tom Watson and Brad Bryant (12 under) and Larry Mize, Jeff Sluman and Phil Blackmar (11 under) -- will have to do something special to prevent Cook from claiming his second victory of 2009.
Unless one of the chasers puts up a great round, merely a good one by Cook might be enough to secure his fourth career senior win.
-- Bill Fields
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Daily Double Addenda
Last week, we reported that Scott Wood and his wife, Stephanie English, made holes-in-one on the same hole within hours of each other (see Local Knowledge post: "Daily Double"). This happened on the sixth hole at Conway Farms in Lake Forest, Ill.
It seems Conway Farms members have a knack for making aces. Wood filled us in on a previous spate of one-shotters there, "On October 30, 2003, playing in a morning round, Bill Philip made a hole-in-one on the 150-yard 11th hole. Then later that day, Kevin Jordan (pictured far right) aced the 205 yard 17th hole, and the next player in his foursome, Kirk Malcolm (near right), aced his shot so there were two balls in the cup when the foursome reached the green.
That's not all. The next day, Kevin played and made two on the hole. The following day, he rested and the next day he ACED THE 17TH HOLE AGAIN!! Kevin played the 17th hole three times and had an aggregate score of 4! We will try to now take it to the next level and have three players in the same foursome ace the same hole on the same day. I won't be holding my breath," admitted Wood.
Malcolm emailed us to clarify the playing order, "In reality, I aced it first (hitting second in the foursome) and Kevin hit third. I always told him that once I showed him how, he really got the hang of it."
Golf Digest's keeper of records par excellence, Cliff Schrock, explains the rarity, "If the odds for two average players acing the same hole are 17 million to 1, and the odds for a low-handicap golfer making two aces in the same round are 67 million to 1, one player acing the same hole a few days apart and throwing in a birdie another time must be somewhere in the middle of that.
Since we don't have any scientific background to use in this instance, I would think the golfer who went 1-2-1, with a day off, achieved something in the vicinity of 33 million to 1.
And if you really want to get complicated and throw in the odds of a playing partner acing the same hole on the same day the other one holes out, then it's probably going back up again to a 50 million or 60 million to 1.
But when you start calculating odds for things that are quite defined like that, your best guess is just pure speculation, which is where we are with the additional golfer who aced No. 11 on the same day the other two were acing the same hole. I don't think the odds change for the two who aced the same hole, but the third person would need to have odds calculated for acing a hole on the same course where two golfers earlier aced a different hole.
That is so specific that the data isn't there to calculate it, and confounding the odds are what was done for the 1989 U.S. Open at Oak Hill.
When four pros aced the sixth hole within a few hours, we calculated the odds of any four golfers acing the same hole on the same day as 332,000 to 1. That seems incredibly low to me of lightning hitting the same spot four times in one day. So to me this is a case where you acknowledge the feat and just be amazed that so much good fortune took place on the same day on the same course."
Wood accurately describes Conway Farms as, "the Holy See of high-odds shots."
-- Topsy Siderowf
It seems Conway Farms members have a knack for making aces. Wood filled us in on a previous spate of one-shotters there, "On October 30, 2003, playing in a morning round, Bill Philip made a hole-in-one on the 150-yard 11th hole. Then later that day, Kevin Jordan (pictured far right) aced the 205 yard 17th hole, and the next player in his foursome, Kirk Malcolm (near right), aced his shot so there were two balls in the cup when the foursome reached the green. That's not all. The next day, Kevin played and made two on the hole. The following day, he rested and the next day he ACED THE 17TH HOLE AGAIN!! Kevin played the 17th hole three times and had an aggregate score of 4! We will try to now take it to the next level and have three players in the same foursome ace the same hole on the same day. I won't be holding my breath," admitted Wood.
Malcolm emailed us to clarify the playing order, "In reality, I aced it first (hitting second in the foursome) and Kevin hit third. I always told him that once I showed him how, he really got the hang of it."
Golf Digest's keeper of records par excellence, Cliff Schrock, explains the rarity, "If the odds for two average players acing the same hole are 17 million to 1, and the odds for a low-handicap golfer making two aces in the same round are 67 million to 1, one player acing the same hole a few days apart and throwing in a birdie another time must be somewhere in the middle of that.
Since we don't have any scientific background to use in this instance, I would think the golfer who went 1-2-1, with a day off, achieved something in the vicinity of 33 million to 1.
And if you really want to get complicated and throw in the odds of a playing partner acing the same hole on the same day the other one holes out, then it's probably going back up again to a 50 million or 60 million to 1.
But when you start calculating odds for things that are quite defined like that, your best guess is just pure speculation, which is where we are with the additional golfer who aced No. 11 on the same day the other two were acing the same hole. I don't think the odds change for the two who aced the same hole, but the third person would need to have odds calculated for acing a hole on the same course where two golfers earlier aced a different hole.
That is so specific that the data isn't there to calculate it, and confounding the odds are what was done for the 1989 U.S. Open at Oak Hill.
When four pros aced the sixth hole within a few hours, we calculated the odds of any four golfers acing the same hole on the same day as 332,000 to 1. That seems incredibly low to me of lightning hitting the same spot four times in one day. So to me this is a case where you acknowledge the feat and just be amazed that so much good fortune took place on the same day on the same course."
Wood accurately describes Conway Farms as, "the Holy See of high-odds shots."
-- Topsy Siderowf
College coaches check out juniors at national championships
College coaches always flock to the U.S. Junior Championships. This year with the best boys and girls playing concurrently at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, N.J., record numbers of head coaches and assistants showed up. They've come to watch the kids on their wish lists, but strict NCAA rules determine how they can go about building relationships with them.
This week the coaches are mostly watching. They've done their scouting and know whom they'd like to sign. It gets pretty competitive with the hottest players pursued by a host of schools.
Take Jordan Spieth, for instance. Based on his semifinalist finish in the U.S. Junior in 2008, he is one of only five boys fully exempt in this year's tournament. Walking with him on Trump's New Course during Monday's qualifying round were the six coaches pictured below. Each would consider it a coup to sign him. A high school junior with excellent grades, Spieth has his pick of many schools, even more so after shooting an impressive opening round 66.
Back row, left to right, Mike McGraw, Oklahoma State; Chris Haack, University of Georgia; Kurt Schuette, USC and Conrad Ray, Stanford. Front row, left to right, Derek Freeman, UCLA and Chris Zambri, USC. Photo by Topsy Siderowf
The national championships are the most grueling competition juniors face each year. After getting through local qualifying, 156 boys and 156 girls play a similar format. There are two rounds of stroke play with the low 64 of each championship making it to match play. The eventual winner will be crowned on Saturday at the conclusion of a 36-hole final.
No other event carries as much prestige as the national junior championship. The winner earns assorted exemptions including into the U.S. Amateur and a place on the short list of every coach in America.
-- Topsy Siderowf
This week the coaches are mostly watching. They've done their scouting and know whom they'd like to sign. It gets pretty competitive with the hottest players pursued by a host of schools.
Take Jordan Spieth, for instance. Based on his semifinalist finish in the U.S. Junior in 2008, he is one of only five boys fully exempt in this year's tournament. Walking with him on Trump's New Course during Monday's qualifying round were the six coaches pictured below. Each would consider it a coup to sign him. A high school junior with excellent grades, Spieth has his pick of many schools, even more so after shooting an impressive opening round 66.
Back row, left to right, Mike McGraw, Oklahoma State; Chris Haack, University of Georgia; Kurt Schuette, USC and Conrad Ray, Stanford. Front row, left to right, Derek Freeman, UCLA and Chris Zambri, USC. Photo by Topsy Siderowf
The national championships are the most grueling competition juniors face each year. After getting through local qualifying, 156 boys and 156 girls play a similar format. There are two rounds of stroke play with the low 64 of each championship making it to match play. The eventual winner will be crowned on Saturday at the conclusion of a 36-hole final.
No other event carries as much prestige as the national junior championship. The winner earns assorted exemptions including into the U.S. Amateur and a place on the short list of every coach in America.
-- Topsy Siderowf
Kuboya's fast finish at Turnberry
Normally those playing in the third-to-last group of the first round of the Open Championship only battle the sun in an effort to finish before dark. What they don't do is challenge the leaders. Today, Kenichi Kuboya did both.
Kuboya helped get his group finished in the daylight with his play. By rolling in a birdie putt on the 18th green at Turnberry at 9:04 p.m., Kuboya capped an incredible closing kick that saw him go 2-3-3-3 (birdie-birdie-eagle-birdie), to move from an anonymous even par to five under, tied with Tom Watson and Ben Curtis for second place, one shot behind leader Miguel Angel Jimenez.
A stalwart on the Japan Tour where he has won four times (but not since 2002, explaining his world ranking of 125) and this year had a second- and third-place finish, this is Kuboya's second Open Championship, the first coming in 2002 when he finished T-59 at Muirfield. But today he finished fast. Even if it was getting late.
-- E. Michael Johnson
(Photo by Warren Little/Getty Images)
Kuboya helped get his group finished in the daylight with his play. By rolling in a birdie putt on the 18th green at Turnberry at 9:04 p.m., Kuboya capped an incredible closing kick that saw him go 2-3-3-3 (birdie-birdie-eagle-birdie), to move from an anonymous even par to five under, tied with Tom Watson and Ben Curtis for second place, one shot behind leader Miguel Angel Jimenez.A stalwart on the Japan Tour where he has won four times (but not since 2002, explaining his world ranking of 125) and this year had a second- and third-place finish, this is Kuboya's second Open Championship, the first coming in 2002 when he finished T-59 at Muirfield. But today he finished fast. Even if it was getting late.
-- E. Michael Johnson
(Photo by Warren Little/Getty Images)
Heather's Many Hats
Heather Daly-Donofrio is not exactly a household name in golf despite an impressive resume. She's played at the amateur level and at college as a member of the Yale women's golf team, which she then coached. She's won twice on the LPGA Tour -- in 2001 at the Betsy King Classic and in 2004 at the Mitchell Company Tournament of Champions. Besides that she was president of the LPGA Board from 2005-2006 and currently serves as Player Liaison, employed by the LPGA Tour.In her role as Player Liaison, she sees herself as a dispenser of information -- clearing up misinformation. She also mediates issues between players and between players and caddies and pays special attention to the rookies on tour. Through her LPGA involvement, she has worked with Carolyn Bivens. When asked to comment about the controversy surrounding the commissioner she declined because of the sensitivity of the issue.
Heather's at Saucon Valley this week and competing in her ninth U.S. Women's Open. She earned her place by qualifying at a regional site. But she hasn't played much competitive golf lately. Her first priority is her family -- husband Ray Howell and daughter Hannah, almost three.
With the responsibility of raising her daughter, she's shifted her focus from competitive golf to her job as Player Liaison. This involves about 18 weeks on the road, but she brings Hannah with her. And she's able to spend time at home. It's a job she truly enjoys and a lifestyle that accommodates her many interests.
-- Topsy Siderowf
(Photo credit: Melissa Farrell Paglieri)
Golf In The Olympics
HAVRE DE GRACE, MD. -- This week's McDonald's LPGA Championship is the first played since 1994 in which Annika Sorenstam is not in the field. In that stretch of 14 tournaments she won three times (2003-05) and her T-30 in 1998 was the only time she finished outside the top 16.
But while Sorenstam has stepped away from competitive golf, she is involved in a major championship effort of a different sort that will bridge the LPGA Championship and next week's U.S. Open at Bethpage -- trying to get golf into the 2016 Olympic games, an effort that could be the single most-important grow-the-game effort for golf.
Sorenstam, who has her hands full with a golf academy (photo below) and the launch this year of a fragrance and a wine, is part of the six-person delegation traveling to International Olympic Committee headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland for a June 15 presentation that will determine if golf is one of two sports added from among seven candidates.
Perhaps most remarkable is the fact that Sorenstam is also six months pregnant with her first child, a daughter due in late September. "Our sport has become a lot more global in the last decade," she told Golf Digest Digital, "but getting into the Olympics would take us to unprecedented heights through the support of governments that would not otherwise fund golf programs."
In addition to Sorenstam, the contingent making the presentation includes PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem, tour executive vice president Ty Votaw, who has coordinated the Olympic bid effort, R&A chief executive Peter Dawson, Colin Montgomerie and Chako Higuchi, the head of the Japan LPGA whose victory in the 1977 LPGA Championship is the only LPGA major won by a player from Japan.
The bid is considered to have a good chance because of the vastly changing demographics of the game. It is a much more global game that has broken out of the stereotype of a white, elitist sport. The best player in the world -- Tiger Woods -- had an African-American father, a mother from Thailand and was brought up in a career military family, hardly with a silver spoon. The best of the women -- Lorena Ochoa -- is from Mexico.
Moreover, world-class players have emerged from Japan, Korea, Thailand, China, India, South Africa, Argentina, Colombia and a host of other countries not widely represented in golf a decade or two earlier. That greater diversity, along with the PGA Tour's commitment to not stand in the way of its stars who want to compete in the Olympics, greatly increase the chances of success in Lausanne.
The last failed effort to get golf into the Olympics was for the 1996 competition at Atlanta. Golf was going to be added as a host-city prerogative but that effort collapsed when Augusta National Golf Club was suggested as the venue. The lack of female members at Augusta National and the almost complete absence of minorities triggered a rebellion joined by even American members of the IOC executive committee.
Another factor helping golf's chances to gain Olympic status is the embrace of the game by President Obama. Upon returning June 7 from his Mideast and European missions, the President went almost directly to the golf course. An avid athlete who played basketball to relax on the campaign trail, Obama is also a golfer and apparently finds comfort in the escape the game offers.
Obama, whose approval ratings outside the United States are even greater than it is within this country, could serve as one of the game's greatest promotional assets without saying a word. His acceptance of the position of honorary captain for this year's Presidents Cup was also an important embrace of the game
The IOC will vote in October on which sports to add to the 2016 Games and which city will host those Games. The finalists are Chicago, Tokyo, Madrid and Rio de Janeiro. And if golf does gain access perhaps a then-46-year-old Sorenstam will come back to compete -- with her seven-year-old daughter watching.
-- Ron Sirak
But while Sorenstam has stepped away from competitive golf, she is involved in a major championship effort of a different sort that will bridge the LPGA Championship and next week's U.S. Open at Bethpage -- trying to get golf into the 2016 Olympic games, an effort that could be the single most-important grow-the-game effort for golf.
Sorenstam, who has her hands full with a golf academy (photo below) and the launch this year of a fragrance and a wine, is part of the six-person delegation traveling to International Olympic Committee headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland for a June 15 presentation that will determine if golf is one of two sports added from among seven candidates.
Perhaps most remarkable is the fact that Sorenstam is also six months pregnant with her first child, a daughter due in late September. "Our sport has become a lot more global in the last decade," she told Golf Digest Digital, "but getting into the Olympics would take us to unprecedented heights through the support of governments that would not otherwise fund golf programs."In addition to Sorenstam, the contingent making the presentation includes PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem, tour executive vice president Ty Votaw, who has coordinated the Olympic bid effort, R&A chief executive Peter Dawson, Colin Montgomerie and Chako Higuchi, the head of the Japan LPGA whose victory in the 1977 LPGA Championship is the only LPGA major won by a player from Japan.
The bid is considered to have a good chance because of the vastly changing demographics of the game. It is a much more global game that has broken out of the stereotype of a white, elitist sport. The best player in the world -- Tiger Woods -- had an African-American father, a mother from Thailand and was brought up in a career military family, hardly with a silver spoon. The best of the women -- Lorena Ochoa -- is from Mexico.
Moreover, world-class players have emerged from Japan, Korea, Thailand, China, India, South Africa, Argentina, Colombia and a host of other countries not widely represented in golf a decade or two earlier. That greater diversity, along with the PGA Tour's commitment to not stand in the way of its stars who want to compete in the Olympics, greatly increase the chances of success in Lausanne.
The last failed effort to get golf into the Olympics was for the 1996 competition at Atlanta. Golf was going to be added as a host-city prerogative but that effort collapsed when Augusta National Golf Club was suggested as the venue. The lack of female members at Augusta National and the almost complete absence of minorities triggered a rebellion joined by even American members of the IOC executive committee.
Another factor helping golf's chances to gain Olympic status is the embrace of the game by President Obama. Upon returning June 7 from his Mideast and European missions, the President went almost directly to the golf course. An avid athlete who played basketball to relax on the campaign trail, Obama is also a golfer and apparently finds comfort in the escape the game offers.
Obama, whose approval ratings outside the United States are even greater than it is within this country, could serve as one of the game's greatest promotional assets without saying a word. His acceptance of the position of honorary captain for this year's Presidents Cup was also an important embrace of the game
The IOC will vote in October on which sports to add to the 2016 Games and which city will host those Games. The finalists are Chicago, Tokyo, Madrid and Rio de Janeiro. And if golf does gain access perhaps a then-46-year-old Sorenstam will come back to compete -- with her seven-year-old daughter watching.
-- Ron Sirak
Wie signs with IMG
Michelle Wie, who recently ended her association with the William Morris Agency, has signed with IMG to represent her, to the surprise of virtually no one. Golf World's Ron Sirak last week speculated that IMG was on deck.
Wie's statement: "I'm very excited about this season which represents a fresh new start for me. There is such great talent and competition on the LPGA Tour and my focus is on building the foundation for a long and successful career, and of course, getting that first tournament win. I believe that IMG, with all of their resources worldwide and achievements in professional golf, will help me reach those goals."
Here's a statement from IMG's Clarke Jones, senior vice president global director of golf clients: "We have all watched the rise in popularity of women's golf, and Michelle Wie certainly is a prime example of the outstanding talent on the LPGA Tour and the bright future of the sport. Michelle is an amazing talent and IMG is delighted to be working with her and her family to provide the best management and marketing support in the world, allowing her to focus on her top priority - competing week in and week out on the golf course."
IMG has a challenge if it intends to maintain or exceed Wie's $12.5 million in annual endorsement earnings. As Sirak pointed out, her five-year contracts with Nike, Sony and Omega watches expire next year.
UPDATE: Sirak spoke with Jones, who added this: "I think Michelle Wie is an important figure in golf, period. But the focus now is on women's golf. The focus now needs to be on Michelle winning golf tournaments. She is a true talent. She enjoys being at Stanford and she is seeking balance in her life. But I think she is going to play a lot of golf the next few months. This represents a fresh start for her."
-- John Strege
Wie's statement: "I'm very excited about this season which represents a fresh new start for me. There is such great talent and competition on the LPGA Tour and my focus is on building the foundation for a long and successful career, and of course, getting that first tournament win. I believe that IMG, with all of their resources worldwide and achievements in professional golf, will help me reach those goals."
Here's a statement from IMG's Clarke Jones, senior vice president global director of golf clients: "We have all watched the rise in popularity of women's golf, and Michelle Wie certainly is a prime example of the outstanding talent on the LPGA Tour and the bright future of the sport. Michelle is an amazing talent and IMG is delighted to be working with her and her family to provide the best management and marketing support in the world, allowing her to focus on her top priority - competing week in and week out on the golf course."
IMG has a challenge if it intends to maintain or exceed Wie's $12.5 million in annual endorsement earnings. As Sirak pointed out, her five-year contracts with Nike, Sony and Omega watches expire next year.
UPDATE: Sirak spoke with Jones, who added this: "I think Michelle Wie is an important figure in golf, period. But the focus now is on women's golf. The focus now needs to be on Michelle winning golf tournaments. She is a true talent. She enjoys being at Stanford and she is seeking balance in her life. But I think she is going to play a lot of golf the next few months. This represents a fresh start for her."
-- John Strege
Who says Tiger doesn't commit early?
Australian newspaper the Herald Sun is reporting in tomorrow's edition that Tiger Woods will play in the Australian Masters (an IMG-owned event) in November, for which he will receive a $3 million appearance fee.
The paper also is reporting that half his appearance fee will be covered by taxpayers."We are delighted Tiger Woods has chosen to come to Melbourne, further cementing our position as the major events capital of the world," John Brumby, premier of Victoria, told the paper. Brumby predicts that Woods' presence would result in an economic boost to the state that would far surpass the taxpayers' outlay.It seems unlikely, however, that Brumby will be able to sell that point to his constituents. The Herald Sun, in fact, is conducting an online poll that asks: Are you happy that taxpayers' money has been used to lure Tiger Woods to Melbourne? Early returns aren't favorable, with 77 percent voting no.-- John Strege
