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Tiger Woods ruling recalls Dow Finsterwald in 1960 Masters

Sat, 13 Apr 2013 18:20:00 GMT

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Seated near the ropes on the right side of the 10th fairway at Augusta National GC, at the bottom of the sweeping hill, rules official Bill Katz was holding court Saturday morning with a handful of patrons.

"Yes, we've been answering a few questions," Katz said with a wry smile and overt understatement. "What would you like to know?"

Actually, we only wanted to know where to find Dow Finsterwald, the 1958 PGA champion who is a member of the Masters Tournament Rules Committee and also was assigned to the 10th hole. We found him behind the green, in a tie and blue blazer, his silver hair neatly combed back exposing his tan, weathered face.

Before Tiger Woods famously escaped the guillotine in this 77th Masters, Finsterwald fell upon the mercy of the Masters Competition Committee in a similar fashion. He set the precedent that perhaps paved the way for Woods to continue on this weekend in search of his fifth green jacket despite signing for an incorrect scorecard, an infraction that traditionally results in disqualification. Instead, Woods, who took an improper drop on the 15th hole Friday, had a two-stroke penalty retroactively added to his scorecard and he plays on.

The Finsterwald incident happened 53 years ago, in the 1960 Masters. Arnold Palmer - perhaps Finsterwald's best friend in the game - birdied the final two holes and beat Ken Venturi by a stroke. Finsterwald finished third, two shots back.

Those two shots were huge.

In the second round, Finsterwald, playing with Billy Casper, had dropped his ball down on the eighth green after putting out and was preparing to hit a practice putt. Casper stopped him.

"Billy said, 'Dow I don't think you can do that. You better pick it up.' He advised me it was against the rules," Finsterwald, 83, recalls. "Upon leaving the green I saw a guy by the name of Ed Carter, who was tournament manager, I believe was his title. I said, 'Ed, I may have a problem. I practice putted in the first round. Billy tells me it's against the rules. Can you get a clarification for me?'"

Indeed, Finsterwald, who shot 69, had hit a practice putt on the fifth green in the first round. He had putted from the right side of the green toward the sixth tee.

"When I came back around, he [Carter] showed me the scorecard and flipped it around, and on the back of the scorecard were the local rules, and it definitely said no practice putting," Finsterwald said. "Now I've got a real problem."

On the 14th green, Ward Foshay, a former president of the U.S. Golf Association and rules chairman of the Masters, caught up to Finsterwald, who explained what he had done. "He asked if I was just knocking the ball off the green or was I practicing? I said I was trying to get the speed of the green. He said, 'Continue playing, but after 18 do not sign the card. We'll have a decision for you on what needs to be done.'"

Finsterwald continued on and posted 70. That tied him for the lead with Palmer, but there was the matter of signing an incorrect scorecard. However, instead of being disqualified under Rule 6-6b, the committee assessed him a two-stroke penalty and applied it to his first-round score, giving him a 71.

"My score was adjusted; strokes were added retroactively. I felt very fortunate I was not disqualified," he said. "There was no rule cited. No committee likes to deviate from the Rules of Golf [but] it was a decision of the committee."

Finsterwald went on to shoot 72 and 71 for a 284 total, 4 under par. He earned $7,000 for his best Masters finish. Palmer, just four days younger than Finsterwald, finished at 282 and completed a wire-to-wire victory for his second green jacket.

"I tried to play the best I could," said Finsterwald, who never questioned the decision. But he also has never pondered what might have been if he hadn't mistakenly breached the rules. "Heck, if I had had those two shots, I might have gagged it so bad. I gagged it enough the way it was.

"I haven't dwelled on the past very much," he added. "I've been very fortunate. Sure, there's some things I'd like to do over. Not a whole lot. There's a lot of shots I wish I'd hit better. Hey, life gets pretty sour - and I know some guys who've done that, and it's deterred them from having as happy a life as they could have."

Now about the Tiger decision: Finsterwald, a member of the Masters Rules Committee since 1978, offered no opinion on it, though he did speak with Fred Ridley, chairman of the competition committee, Saturday morning before the ruling had been issued. He shared with Ridley his own experience.

"It would be inappropriate for a member of the Rules Committee to comment on the decision of the committee," he said, smiling broadly.

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Nicklaus and Woods share greatness, but little else

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 22:09:00 GMT

By Dave Shedloski

AUGUSTA, Ga. - When Tianlang Guan, the 14-year-old Asian Amateur champion, sought an audience with Jack Nicklaus earlier this week at Augusta National GC, the six-time Masters champion was happy to oblige. After all, it was not an unusual request.

Rory McIlroy, Luke Donald and Keegan Bradley all have solicited advice from the Golden Bear in recent months. Prior to the 2011 Masters, Nicklaus provided an Augusta tutorial to Charl Schwartzel, and six days later the lanky South African won the green jacket.

But the player with whom Nicklaus is most closely tied -- the player who since boyhood has aspired to break Nicklaus' monumental major championship record -- never once has sought his advice, never once picked his brain. They've never shared anything more substantial than a passing conversation.

Granted, Tiger Woods has done just fine relying on his own resources. Though stuck on 14 major championships since the 2008 U.S. Open -- four behind Nicklaus -- Woods has sped past the Golden Bear on the PGA Tour career victory list, having recently won his 77th at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, second all-time behind Sam Snead. Nicklaus won 73 times, his last in the 1986 Masters.

"He's never asked me about golf or anything else," Nicklaus said Thursday morning after joining Arnold Palmer and Gary Player in hitting ceremonial tee shots to start the 77th Masters. "I wouldn't tell him anything anyway. Maybe tell him he's got a great record and a great chance to make a lot of history. And I wish him well. That's all I would say to him."

The revelation proved an intriguing insight into the relationship between the two men who are separated by an era but tied at the hip historically, two golfing giants cordial and friendly to each other and complimentary of each other's accomplishments but never confidants.

And they've certainly been afforded chances to chat, be it at the Presidents Cup -- Nicklaus captained four teams in which Woods was a member -- or at the Memorial Tournament, the event Nicklaus hosts and which Woods has won a record five times, including the 2012 edition.

In contrast, a half-century ago a young Nicklaus didn't hesitate to sit down and seek advice from Palmer -- this when their rivalry was starting to blossom into one of the fiercest in the annals of golf.

Related: How Tiger's swing has changed

"I've never really had a conversation with Tiger that lasted more than a minute or two -- ever," Nicklaus, 73, said. "He's stayed away from me from a conversation standpoint. Never had a conversation on the Masters in general. I've said, 'Hello, how are you doing? Nice playing this year. You've played very well.' Thanks. End of conversation. People ask me, 'Has Tiger ever talked to you about his records?' Never one word."

Said Woods, the four-time Masters winner who on Thursday opened with a 2-under-par 70: "We've actually had more conversations in the years at the President's Cups when he was captain. We talked quite a bit then. But I see him at Memorial and we'll have chitchat here and there. We have a few conversations, but he's right, we haven't spent that much time.

"Here's a totally different week," Woods, 37, added. "When it's a major championship, we're all very busy, and we're all in our own little worlds. And he gets it; he was there himself."

The Golden Bear absolutely gets it.

"He's got his own focus and what he does, and I respect that," said Nicklaus, who along with Palmer played a practice round with Woods in his first Masters appearance in 1995. "I respect when somebody is involved in their own deal. They concentrate on what they do and not what you did -- though maybe relative to what you did. That's OK. It's not my position to go talk to him about it. I wouldn't intrude on that."

Perhaps the feeling is mutual. When Woods moved from Orlando, Fla., to Jupiter Island, Fla., last year, Nicklaus offered him the opportunity to become a member at The Bear's Club. Instead, he joined The Medalist.

"He stayed away from it," Nicklaus said. "He didn't want to intrude where I was. He never told me why, but other people told me, 'He says he didn't feel comfortable being there where I was because of my record he was trying to break.' I said, 'I don't care about that. We'd like to have you if you want to play and be part of it.' He comes out and plays quite often. I'd include him in anything. But everybody has their own personality. That's not a fault. It's not a criticism. It's just what it is.

"I get along fine with Tiger. I like Tiger," added Nicklaus, who earlier in the week reiterated that he believes Woods will break his major championship mark. "There's always pleasantries and so forth. But, look, what is Tiger, 35 years younger than I am? So, you know . . . but I'm available to him anytime he wants something."

The only thing Tiger apparently wants from Jack is his record. And that he will have to get on his own. When he reaches it, or when he's through trying, perhaps then the two men can compare notes.

What a conversation that should be.

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Masters ceremonial tee shots never get old

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 14:17:00 GMT

By Dave Shedloski

AUGUSTA, Ga. - It's an occasion that never gets old and never disappoints.

Three luminary figures cut a bright swath through a foggy and overcast morning at Augusta National Golf Club and got the 77th Masters underway at 7:50 a.m. EDT.

Arnold Palmer, Gary Player and Jack Nicklaus, who have combined to win this major championship 13 times, did their best to limber up their aging bodies and give the throng surrounding the first tee something to cheer about. But just their mere presence was enough.

Notable observers who turned out to watch the legendary trio included former Masters champion Fuzzy Zoeller and CBS Sports anchor Jim Nantz. "After all that these three gentlemen have done for me and for golf, you bet I'm going to come out here and see them," Zoeller, the 1979 winner, said.

Palmer, 83, wearing a bright red sweater over a white shirt, was the first to hit, followed by Player, 77, dressed head-to-toe in black, and then the six-time winner Nicklaus, 73, donning a brown sweater. All three men kept it in the fairway. Palmer punched the air (above) after his ball sailed down the middle.

Jock Hutchinson and Fred McLeod started in 1963 what has become one of the most special traditions in all of golf.

"That's nice. I like the thought of that," said Palmer, who played in his 50th and final Masters in 2004 and accepted his honorary starter assignment in '07. "You know, it's something we've been doing all our lives," the King added about sharing the tee with Nicklaus and Player. "It's always special."

Asked if there is pressure on the tee shot, Nicklaus said the only pressure was trying to loosen up again after a lengthy pause between the few warm-up shots on the practice range and then striking the tee ball.

"We asked how long we had, and they said nine minutes. So we stood around for nine minutes and got stiff. We can't wait nine minutes to hit a ball. That's a long time," Nicklaus joked. "The only nerves you have is to make solid contact. It doesn't matter diddly-darn where it goes."

Winner of a record 18 professional major titles, including six in the Masters, Nicklaus said he never much cared for early morning tee times - a reference to his desire to be in contention in tournaments and earn a late start. Of course, this was a little different.

"I much prefer playing, obviously," Nicklaus said. "But when you can't play anymore, you do this, and it's a nice thing to be an honorary starter. Hitting the opening tee shot at one of the biggest tournaments in the world and the first major of the year is a very nice honor."

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Watson: "If I do it again this year, yes, there should be a plaque"

Tue, 09 Apr 2013 18:04:00 GMT

By Dave Shedloski

AUGUSTA, Ga. - On Sunday, as he and his wife, Angie, were walking up the 18th hole completing a casual round at Augusta National Golf Club, Bubba Watson noticed a small group congregating near the location of his renowned recovery shot from the trees right of the 10th fairway, the shot that won him the Masters.

Bubba Watson addresses the media during a practice round prior to the start of the 2013 Masters. Photo: David Cannon/Getty Images

Watson yelled over to them that they weren't quite in the right spot. He found out later that one of the men was former Masters champion Billy Casper.

On Monday, Padraig Harrington made a stop in the trees at No. 10 to size things up. Patrons have been gathering there by the hundreds to take photos. It seems there is no shortage of interest in what is already considered one of the great strokes in Masters history.

Perhaps Watson is the only guy not interested in reliving the 52-degree wedge shot that set up the winning par over Louis Oosthuizen in last year's sudden-death playoff.

"No, I would never hit it again," he said, then paused and smiled. "Well, unless Thursday through Sunday ... I've been known to hit it in the trees, but I'll lay up so I won't look as bad. But, no, not on purpose. I would never do it. I think that for me, I have to try to get my name to keep going throughout history, so I don't want to hit it again."

Certainly Watson, an unlikely Masters winner, has nothing to prove as he prepares to defend his Masters title -- except perhaps show that he can keep his emotions in check.

That, of course, he couldn't manage during his 20-minute press conference Tuesday morning at Augusta National Golf Club. Just as he had done after sinking the winning putt a year ago, Watson sobbed openly discussing what it meant to be a Masters champion and to own a green jacket -- and how he shared the prize with his new adopted son, Caleb.

"Out of respect and honor for Augusta National, as one of greatest clubs we have, as one of greatest tournaments, out of respect for them, I didn't do any of my funny antics that I normally would do," Watson said, wiping away tears. "Only thing I did was wrap Caleb up in it."

Related: Little-Known Masters Facts.

Only three men -- Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods -- have won consecutive Masters titles. Watson, 34, admits that his game isn't as sharp as it was a year ago. In fact, he's winless since winning his first major title.

"Obviously my stats probably show that I was better last year," he said. "My mind, my physical, my preparation, is the same. I feel good, feel confident."

But he sees no reason why he can't win again. As he was reminded Tuesday, his victory was the product of four days of outstanding golf, not just one miracle shot.

"Me as a competitor, as a believer in my game, yeah, I can see pulling it off. It wouldn't shock me," Watson sad. "I would still cry, but it wouldn't shock me. But the way I look at it, I'm going out there, and I want to make the cut because, first off, I don't want to have to sit around and give somebody the green jacket. I want to be here on Sunday, playing. But it's going to be tough."

Yes, but not as tough as the first one. On a scale of 1 to 10, he rates his heroics at the 10th a nine-plus, given the circumstances. Naturally, somebody mused about the club commemorating the stroke with a plaque, given how so many people have been drawn to the area where he made history.

"Well, who wouldn't want to see a plaque that says Bubba in the middle of the pine straw?" Watson asked, drawing laughs. "I would never ask for a plaque. (But) If I do it again this year, then yes, there should be a plaque."

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Absent from Masters field, John Daly is an empty presence at Augusta

Mon, 08 Apr 2013 16:12:00 GMT

By Dave Shedloski

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- He arrived here in his custom motor home late Saturday night and parked in his now customary spot in front of the entrance to Hooters restaurant a little more than a mile away from Augusta National Golf Club.

John Daly looks on during the first round of the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines. Photo: Donald Miralle/Getty

John Daly once again is not in the Masters field, though he'll cash in on his absence, selling LoudMouth slacks, pin flags, T-shirts and other merchandise while the first major championship of the year goes on without him.

"I would love to go back there. How did it look?" Daly asked his visitor on Sunday night, sounding a bit empty. "I haven't even seen the new practice area. I bet it's awesome. It's Augusta. Everything is always done there first-rate."

Daly, the former PGA and Open champion, last competed in the Masters in 2006, missing the cut. In his 12 appearances, his best finish was T-3 in 1993, his only top-10.

As a former major champion, Daly would be among the players who receive an honorary invitation from the club, which would allow him to play the tournament course during practice rounds and compete in the Par-3 Tournament. But he doesn't go. Instead, he hocks his wares and poses for photographs with an endless stream of fans.

Business, he said, was surprisingly good on the day before Masters week officially begins. The traffic to his makeshift merchandise area is steady -- partially because the traffic into Hooters is brisk. He looks tired. A ballcap rests awkwardly on his head, shocks of unkempt blond-gray hair protruding from underneath.

Daly will be 47 later this month, on April 28. He has not been exempt on the PGA Tour since 2005, the year after he won his fifth and last tour title at Torrey Pines.

"I want to play again there in the worst way. I think I could do pretty well still with my length," he said.

It looked like he wanted to say something else, but a fan leaned across the table towards him, holding a camera, and asked for a quick photograph. Another gentleman, seeing an opening, did the same seconds later, and the thought was gone.

He waved to his visitor and then smiled weakly as the flash from the camera phone illuminated the pall in his weathered visage.

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Hole In Their Hearts

Dave Shedloski — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 04:00:00 GMT

An Illinois golf course earned notoriety recently when a man fell into a sinkhole, but that's not the hole AnnBriar Golf Course is defined by.

Rory, Tiger have very different days at Doral

Thu, 07 Mar 2013 23:43:00 GMT

By Dave Shedloski

MIAMI -- He brought with him a new attitude and a new extended waggle in his pre-shot routine, but Rory McIlroy couldn't shake the same old problems.

Tiger Woods just looked like his old self.

Photo by Getty Images

Six days after walking off the course in frustration at the Honda Classic, McIlroy, the No. 1 player in the world, was back in the spotlight at the WGC-Cadillac Championship playing alongside Woods and Luke Donald, who trail immediately behind him at No. 2 and 3 in the world, respectively.

McIlroy didn't fare well outright or by comparison Thursday, spraying the ball off the tee but eking out two late birdies to salvage a 1-over-par 73 on a relatively calm afternoon at the TPC Blue Course at Trump Doral.

Woods, meanwhile, buoyed by his putting lesson from Steve Stricker Wednesday afternoon, converted nine birdies in a 6-under 66 that gave him a share of the first-round lead with four others.

Donald recovered from two drives in the water to grind out a 2-under 70.

"Whatever [Stricker] says I'm going to do," Woods said with a smile after a round in which he needed just 23 putts. "He's one of the best putters that's ever lived.

"I think I'm going to have a contract with him," he added playfully. "He's only going to play, what, five tournaments this year? So I'll bring him out in his off weeks."

A winner in his first PGA Tour start of the season at the Farmer's Insurance Open, Woods was off his game last week at the Honda Classic, finishing T-37. But he appeared comfortable on the Blue Monster and perhaps left a shot or two on the course. His nine birdies was one shy of his personal record for 18 holes and just two fewer than he converted over 72 holes at PGA National.

"I played well. It was certainly a day that could have been a little bit lower," said Woods, tied atop the leaderboard with Bubba Watson, Graeme McDowell, Sergio Garcia and Fredrik Jacobson.

McIlroy, the reigning PGA Tour player of the Year after winning four times in 2012, probably couldn't get any lower after his struggles at PGA National that prompted a mid-round meltdown and withdrawal for which he has since apologized. In that light, his untidy 73 was a step in the right direction, especially towards the end when he hung in and birdied two of his last three holes.

"It was a bit of a struggle, to be honest," said McIlroy, 23, of Northern Ireland. "Hit some good shots, hit some not so good shots. But, yeah, as I've been saying all week, this is a work in progress, and I'm working at it and I'm staying patient."

It takes patience when you hit only three fairways and 11 greens. "It was nice to sneak in a couple birdies on the last three holes and make it look somewhat respectable, even though everyone seems to be going pretty low out there today," he said after five birdies against six bogeys.

"I don't think he's quite drawing the ball like he used to, that he wants," said Woods, who would not divulge what advice, if any, he has shared with the struggling Ulsterman. "Maybe just a little bit defensive out there. And that happens, and we have all gone through stretches like this. It happens, and it happened to him last year in the middle of the year and he ended up all right at the end of the year.

"When you play golf and you play golf for a very long time, you're going to have spells like this. You can't play well every week, even though you try. You're going to have ups and downs and just got to battle through it."

Reminded that during his long run as the No. 1 player in the world he seemed to avoid such fallow periods, Woods smiled and shrugged his shoulders.

"He's working through some stuff in his swing, obviously," said Donald, who is the midst of incorporating with his own incremental swing refinements. "You can see his pre-shot routine is a little different. He's got that little waggle trying to get the club going more on the outside, and he's thinking about it a little bit. That's the toughest time in golf when you can't concentrate on just hitting good shots. You're focusing on you swing. It's tough a tough one to deal with, to leave the range behind you. It's a game of confidence, and once he gets a little bit of that back he'll be fine."

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Woods feeling confident after putting session with Stricker

Wed, 06 Mar 2013 21:57:00 GMT

By Dave Shedloski

MIAMI -- Tiger Woods worked intensively on his putting with good friend Steve Stricker for more than an hour Wednesday on the practice green at Trump Doral Resort on the eve of the WGC-Cadillac Championship.

"He just got me back to where I was in San Diego," said Woods, who won his PGA Tour season opener at the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines in January, marking his 75th tour victory. "It was a little bit of everything, really."

Stricker, one of the best putters in the game, and Woods have been friends for several years and have played a number of team matches together since the 2009 Presidents Cup. It was not the first time that Woods has sought advice from Stricker on putting mechanics.

"I help him and he helps me. It's what we do," said Stricker, who mainly changed the shaft angle on Woods' putter, moving it forward to align with his ball position at address. "The ball was forward and his hands were back, and he was missing it both ways and having trouble with distance control."

Woods ranks 43rd on the tour in strokes gained putting, and last week at the Honda Classic left numerous birdie chances on the table. The refresher from Stricker had him encouraged.

"Yeah, I feel a lot better about it than I did an hour ago," Woods said.

The No. 2 player in the world, Woods joins No. 1 Rory McIlroy and No. 3 Luke Donald at 11:53 a.m. EDT Thursday for the first round of the WGC-Cadillac Championship on the No. 10 tee.

Woods has won 16 WGC titles in his career. He won three times consecutively at Doral's Blue Course from 2005-07.

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A contrite McIlroy admits, "I should have stayed out there"

Wed, 06 Mar 2013 17:04:00 GMT

By Dave Shedloski

MIAMI -- The dichotomy was striking.

A contrite and self-deprecating Rory McIlroy exuded maturity and humility Wednesday morning at Trump Doral Resort while explaining why those seemingly innate qualities were absent last week when he quit in the middle of his second round at the Honda Classic.

"I gave myself a red card last week," McIlroy, 23, said jokingly to a standing room only crowd of reporters, appropriating a soccer term. (A red card signifies that a player has been ejected from the game.)

"No matter how bad I was playing," McIlroy continued, "I should have stayed out there. I should have tried to shoot the best score possible even though it probably wasn't going to be good enough to make the cut. At that point in time, I was just all over the place, and you know, I saw red. . . . It was a mistake and everyone makes mistakes, and I'm learning from them."

Photo by Getty Images

McIlroy, who is back in action this week in the WGC-Cadillac Championship, stood seven over par after eight holes last Friday at PGA National Resort and had just hit his approach to the 18th green into the water when he shook hands with playing partners Ernie Els and Mark Wilson and hastily walked off the Champion Course, where a year earlier he had won by two strokes and ascended to No. 1 in the world rankings for the first time.

As he departed PGA National, McIlroy admitted he "was not in a great place mentally." About an hour later he issued a statement blaming a sore wisdom tooth for affecting his concentration. McIlroy said both lower wisdom teeth are troubling him, and he had braces put on to alleviate the pressure. He intends to have them pulled when he returns home to Northern Ireland after the U.S. Open in June.

Being the No. 1 golfer in the world, living under a microscope, and playing poorly to begin the year after a total overhaul of his equipment have compounded the pressure on him and affected his amiable disposition.

"[It was both.] I wasn't in a good place with my golf game . . . my head was all over the place," he said. "But at the same time, I have been struggling with my lower right wisdom tooth for over a year. So, yeah, look, my tooth was bothering me, but it wasn't bothering me enough to probably, you know, quit, but that's just the way it is.

"I think it was a buildup of everything," he added. "I've been putting a lot of pressure on myself to perform and I've been working so hard and not really getting much out of it. That's just been the frustrating thing, and that's what happened. It was a buildup of high expectations from myself coming off, you know, the back of such a great year last year, and wanting to continue that form into this year and not being able to do it. I just sort of let it all get to me."

McIlroy felt well enough over the weekend to practice extensively at The Bear's Club near his U.S.-based home in Jupiter, Fla., and he senses progress to correct a flaw that has crept into his backswing where he picks the club up and outside the line. He clarified that he is not trying to change his swing so much as "trying to change it back to where it was.

"I've worked my ass off over the last four or five days to really try and get this right," he said. "Still, it's a workâ¿¿inâ¿¿progress. There's no quick fixes in golf, but I'm going to go out there this week and all I care about is my swing, and I know if I can get my swing back on track, that the results will follow."

Having not played a tournament round on the weekend this year, McIlroy is looking forward to four rounds in this week's WGC-Cadillac Championship. There is no cut in the $8.5 million event that features 65 of the top players in the world.

McIlroy is paired with No. 2 Tiger Woods and No. 3 Luke Donald for the first two rounds at the TPC Blue Monster at Trump Doral, with their opening tee time at 11:53 a.m. off No. 10. That marquee group already figured to be the most watched, but the critics will undoubtedly pick apart whatever McIlroy does after his premature exit from PGA National. He was OK with that and doesn't believe his actions will affect his popularity.

"Yeah, I actually think in the long run, Friday will be a blessing in disguise," he said. "It was like it just sort of released a valve and all that sort of pressure that I've been putting on myself just went away. And I was like, [let's] just go out and have fun. It's not life or death out there. It's only a game. I had sort of forgotten that this year."

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Whatever the size putter, Els still showing plenty of fire

Tue, 05 Mar 2013 19:40:00 GMT

By Dave Shedloski

MIAMI -- He'd faced longer putts with more on the line, that were more consequential and lucrative, but he desperately wanted to make this 10-footer, even though it wasn't in a tournament. Heck, he wasn't even on the golf course.

He was on the practice green Monday afternoon at Seminole GC, in the midst of completing his standard putting drill, with five 10-footers encircling the cup.

But he'd been challenged, and he still loves a challenge. He'd made the first four and was about to pull the trigger on the fifth when a familiar voice got in his ear.

"I've got $100 you don't make it," Michael Jordan said to him from behind as he stood over the ball.

"Make it $150," Ernie Els said.

He buried the putt.

It makes sense that Els would express his opposition to the recent rule change that would prohibit a player from anchoring a club to his body during a stroke. Except Els wasn't using the belly putter with which he won the Open Championship last year. He was wielding a conventional putter, an Odyssey Black #1, that he's been giving a workout the last few weeks, though he has yet to insert it into the lineup for a tournament round.

That could change this week at Trump Doral when the WGC-Cadillac Championship begins Thursday on the Blue Course where 65 of the top players in the world have gathered for the year's second World Golf Championship event.

"Yeah, you just might see it soon," Els said Tuesday at Doral, where he has won twice.

"I think he putts better with the short putter," said Els' caddie, Ricci Roberts. "He's got a beautiful stroke, much better than with the long putter, much more natural. I think he thinks so, too."

Still, Els has been sticking with the longer putter, and in his press conference he offered a salient observation against the ban the USGA and R&A proposed in November.

"Obviously winning a major with a belly putter, you're going to have to support that cause," the Big Easy said. "When it's been allowed for such a long time, I just feel, why ban it? You had the chance to do that . . . They allow certain things, and then they want to pull back on it. There was a square groove rule, the golf ball, the big and the small golf ball, there's the driver and the sand iron from a 56 to a 60, and we can talk about hybrid clubs. All these changes have come through in the game

"If a guy can't drive the ball really well, there's a driver that he can get made. If you can't hit an iron up in the air, you're going to get a hybrid made up for you. That's legal. If you're not a good chipper, you can go to 64, 62, 60, whatever degree. There used to be a rule where 56 degrees was the limit, so they changed that. The game's evolved that way."

Els, 43, is still evolving, too. The four-time major champion from South Africa has added to his stable of advisers. That would be Jordan, the NBA great with whom he has become friends.

"I've been picking his brain a little bit," Els said. "You talk about someone who understands competition, he's about the best you can talk to. What a competitor."

And he pays up, too. Els got the cash right there. "That wasn't the thing. Just making the putt with him standing there over me was good. I enjoyed that a lot," he said.

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(Photo by Getty Images)