Golf Digest Search Results

13 Horribly-Timed Water Balls

Luke Kerr-Dineen — Mon, 13 May 2013 04:00:00 GMT

Recounting shots that found the drink at inopportune moments

Get to know Roberto Castro, your early Players leader

Thu, 09 May 2013 18:14:00 GMT

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- He's an engineer and a writer. In other words, Roberto Castro isn't your average PGA Tour pro. And on Thursday, he did anything but shoot your average round of golf.

Playing in the Players for the first time, Castro fired a bogey-free 63 to tie the TPC Sawgrass Stadium Course record shared by Greg Norman and Fred Couples -- a pair of big names he's never even met. Golf's "fifth major" has produced some surprises over the years, but a win this week by Castro might top them all.

The 27-year-old earned $755,095 in his rookie season on the PGA Tour in 2012 to narrowly keep his card for this year, and has only made seven of 14 cuts in 2013. Then again, a guy ranked No. 1,207 won at Quail Hollow last week, a fact not lost on Castro.

"It gets proven out here every week. Derek Ernst won last week in his eighth event and no one ever heard of him," said Castro, the nephew of Jenny Lidback, a Peruvian-born former LPGA star. "There are a lot of good players out here."

This was Castro's first competitive round at TPC Sawgrass, but he said he learned a lot playing a Wednesday practice round with Geoff Ogilvy and Matt Kuchar, the defending champion and a fellow Georgia Tech product. On Thursday, he put forth what playing partner Jimmy Walker called "the best iron round I've ever seen." Castro didn't seem too surprised by his 63, but he knows just how far he's come already in his career as a pro. On Tuesday, the man with a degree in industrial engineering tweeted this from his account, @cicioCASTRO:

"By my estimate the total purse of all the mini-tour events I played in 3 yrs wouldn't add up to what we're playing for this week. #Players"

When he's not shooting 63s in one of golf's biggest events, Castro is also a contributor to allthingsthataregood.org, a website covering music, books, travel and more. Here's a post where he reviews a courtesy car during the Waste Management Phoenix Open. His love of music is obvious in his PGA Tour profile, where he lists John Lennon, Bobby Jones and Tiger Woods as the three people he'd select to round out his dream foursome.

In that same bio, Castro lists Merion as the course he'd like to play. Three more days like this and he'll get that wish at next month's U.S. Open.

Follow @AlexMyers3

Adam Scott's win is twice redeeming

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 18:12:00 GMT

By Tim Rosaforte

From the April 15 edition of Golf World Monday:

Greg Norman was home on Jupiter Island in Florida last night, living and dying and ultimately crying joyous tears as his apprentice attempted to win the Masters and break a 77-year-old spell.

"Blank me," Norman typed at 7:05 p.m. "The golfing gods can't be this mean to Australia."

Related: Sundays winners & losers

This message came through just as Angel Cabrera stuck his approach shot on the 72nd hole of the Masters to two feet, soon matching Adam Scott's closing birdie. It looked like the same sad old story for the Land Down Under. If Norman didn't beat himself at Augusta, somebody else beat him.

"Now I know how everyone felt when he was there," was the next message at 7:17 as Scott and Angel Cabrera went down the 10th hole for the first playoff hole. When I texted back: "Hold on, you're still alive," Norman responded instantaneously. "I am, and I am believing so hard. All my energy and belief is with him."

Scott stayed home from school and watched Norman lose a six-shot lead to Nick Faldo in 1996. He visited Norman's compound shortly after that and stayed in Greg's beach house. In the midst of a slump, he was Norman's Presidents Cup pick in 2009. When he experimented with the long putter in early 2011, it was on Norman's putting green. When he bogeyed the last four holes of last year's British Open, one of the first people to reach out was Norman.

So when Scott birdied the 10th hole for the jacket at 7:46 p.m., a text came through almost instantaneously. "Finally SO happy for him...I have a few tears in my eyes...now I have a lot of tears in my eyes!!!"

Norman made it a point not to reach out to Scott and countrymen Jason Day and Marc Leishman as they stacked up on the Augusta National leader boards. He didn't want to put added pressure on them.

The jinx was on Scott's mind, but so was the T-2 he recorded at Augusta in 2011, and the productive run in major championships he has produced since then, including the sad runner-up at Royal Lytham that was reminiscent of Norman's heartbreaks.

In the Butler Cabin, Scott acknowledged that by singling out Norman as his idol. "There was one guy who inspired a nation of golfers, and that's Greg Norman," Scott said. "He's been incredible to me and a generation of golfers in Australia. Part of this goes out to him."

Earlier in the week I sat down with Scott for a Q&A that was part of a function hosted by Mercedes-Benz. Scott acknowledged that losing the British Open nine months ago was softened by losing to one of his close mates, Ernie Els.

He talked in reverential tones about Norman. In one of the closing questions, I asked, "Who is going to win the Masters this week?"

After a pause, Scott showed the bravado he showed in the playoff against Cabrera, the type of self-confidence he supposedly lacked.

"I would be kidding myself if I was sitting here telling myself I couldn't win this week," he said. "Absolutely, I could win this week."

Turns out, the Golf Gods weren't so mean to Australia after all.

Follow @TimRosaforte

Celebrity caddies in the Masters Par 3

Wed, 10 Apr 2013 20:03:00 GMT

By Sam Weinman

The Masters Par 3 is the rare tournament players aren't overly keen on winning. Or so goes the superstition since no one has ever won the Par 3 and the Masters in the same year.

But what the tournament lacks in cutthroat competition, it makes up for in surprise cameos. Take, for instance, the presence of Caroline Wozniacki, who caddied for boyfriend Rory McIlroy on Wednesday. The sight of a former world No. 1 tennis player in a caddie jumpsuit might be groundbreaking material if not for the fact that by Par 3 standards, celebrity caddies are nothing new.

Below our list of noteworthies:

Andy Roddick: The now-retired tennis star, himself an avid golfer, looped for Zach Johnson in the Par 3 in 2011. The two hadn't met prior to that day, but they got along well enough for Johnson to let Roddick get in a swing himself, which he summarily dunked in the water.

Matt Ryan: The Atlanta Falcons quarterback got the nod from Stewart Cink in 2012. Ryan, who had played a few rounds with Cink in the past, got in a swing as well, which he said drifted "way too far to the right."

Chris Evert: Are you picking up on the tennis player theme? Evert had married Greg Norman the previous summer when she caddied for the Shark in Par 3. In fact, Norman even made a hole in one on the sixth hole that day. It wasn't enough to save their marriage, however. They divorced later that year.

Kelly Tilghman: The Golf Channel anchor had a chance to caddie for Arnold Palmer in a group that also included Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player in 2008. Palmer allowed the former college golfer a swing of her own, which Tilghman barely cleared the water with.

David Robinson: The 7-foot-2 NBA All-Star center comprised one half of an odd couple when he looped for 5-foot-9 Corey Pavin in 1997. Robinson wasn't the only boldfaced name in a jumpsuit that week. Eagles lead singer Glen Frey caddied for Brad Faxon.

Follow @samweinman

The Grind: #Dufnering spreads, Holly Sonders poses, & Valero picks

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 14:37:00 GMT

By Alex Myers

Welcome to another edition of The Grind, where we treat every week with the same excitement that "Opening Day" gets in baseball. And now, the Masters is here! Woo! Wait, that's next week? Dagger. OK, OK, we said we treat every week like it's special so we'll stick to our promise. Here's what has us buzzing at the moment.

WE'RE BUYING

D.A. Points. The 36-year-old was previously best known as the golfer who danced with Bill Murray at Pebble Beach. Now, he'll also be known as the guy who won with a putter he stole from his mother while wearing a Lego belt buckle. Congrats, Darren Andrew. With a second PGA Tour win, you are no longer a "journeyman" in our book.

Henrik Stenson. The Swede who once rose as high as fourth in the Official World Golf Ranking needed a strong performance in Houston to qualify for the Masters and he came up clutch. A final-round 66 earned him a T-2 and an invite to Augusta, where he was a surprise first-round leader last year. That is, until he made a snowman on the 18th hole. You sure you want to go back, Henrik?

Holly Sonders. The holiday weekend was fun, but the "Hollyday" on Monday, when GolfDigest.com released this slideshow of the Golf Channel "Morning Drive" host, was even better. Let's just say the magazine's May (The Fitness Issue) cover girl created some decent website traffic. Guys, it's for a good cause. Fitness is important.

WE'RE SELLING

Bill Haas. I hate to criticize my Wake Forest classmate, but Haas has not been getting the job done in final rounds. Sure, the five top-10 finishes have him tied with Keegan Bradley for the most on the PGA Tour, but he's failed to break par in the final round in the past three of them, and in two of those, he had the 54-hole lead. Bill, it might be time to change up your Sunday routine.

Drivers. As Hank Haney recently pointed out, many of today's top players aren't hitting driver much anymore, in large part to the technological advancements that have made 3-woods almost as long. How much does Phil Mickelson love his new 3-wood? The man once famous for putting two drivers in his bag for certain tournaments was carrying two 3-woods and no drivers in Houston.

Rory McIlroy. Another mediocre performance prompted McIlroy to add this week's event to his schedule so he could have more preparation for the Masters. We like that he cares about playing better, but we wish it didn't come at the expense of cancelling a planned trip to Haiti. How bad have things been for Rory in 2013? He went to the much-hyped Spurs-Heat game the other night only to see LeBron and Dwyane Wade sit out.

ON TAP

The PGA Tour stays in the Lone Star State for the Valero Texas Open. Usually, this tournament is played at some point after the Masters, but the decision to hold the Masters a week later than usual this year (Boo!) opened up an earlier date.

Random tournament fact: The Greg Norman-designed TPC San Antonio will play host to this event for a fourth time. It is NOT a favorite of players. . .

WEEKLY YAHOO! FANTASY LINEUP

OK, so last week was rough. But Tiger Woods not playing makes things a lot harder to predict. Here's who we're going with this week:

Starters -- (A-List): Rory McIlroy. Do you think Rory will be a big part of the TV coverage this week? It seems silly to play him despite his rough stretch, but we haven't started him yet this year and this field isn't exactly stacked with the guys leading the current FedEx Cup standings.

(B-List): Charley Hoffman. Hoffman has finished in the top 13 all three times TPC San Antonio has hosted this event, including a T-2 in 2011.

(B-List): Cameron Tringale. Still riding high from a career-best third-place finish in Tampa last month, Tringale has finished T-8 and T-5 here the past two years.

(C-List): Charl Schwartzel. As with the McIlroy pick, it's tough to overlook a major champion in this spot.

Bench -- Kevin Chappell, Matt Kuchar, Fredrik Jacobson and Jordan Spieth.

FREE FINAL FOUR ADVICE

Just enjoy the games, especially watching Chris Paul-clone Trey Burke and Michigan. There's no need to take any action on any of the action.

(Side note: I already won my NCAA Tournament auction pool. Woo!)

PICTURE OF THE WEEK (NOT INVOLVING HOLLY SONDERS)

An unflattering photo of Jason Dufner moping at a Youth Center in Dallas wound up enhancing the golfer's popularity, as #Dufnering became a trend on Twitter. Ah, the magic of social media. Of course, we've seen this face before from Jason. . .

RANDOM PROP BETS OF THE WEEK

-- Last year's Valero winner, Ben Curtis, will repeat this year: LOCK*
*April Fools! He's probably about a 1,000-to-1 shot.

-- Whoever wins this week will follow Points' lead and take a picture #Dufnering with the trophy: 2-to-1 odds

-- That "tradition" will stop at next week's Masters: LOCK

VIRAL VIDEO OF THE WEEK

Henrik Stenson, move over. Andreas Harto became the latest pro golfer to hit a shot in his underwear at the Trophee Hassan II event in Morocco. On the par-3 14th hole, Harto took his pants off to blast his golf ball out of a water hazard. Kudos to the broadcaster for his "not quite Hasselhoff" line.

Like our inclusion of a photo of a shirtless Dustin Johnson a couple weeks back, we're just trying to be fair to both genders when it comes to provocative images.

THIS AND THAT

Johnny Miller said he thinks Rory McIlroy's new clubs will cost him at the majors this year. Way to go out on a limb, Johnny, after McIlroy's rough start to the season. . . . I played my first round of the season over the weekend. Not surprisingly, I was NOT sharp. Must be the equipment's fault. . . . The year's first major takes place this week with the LPGA's Kraft Nabisco Championship. We hear Yani Tseng will travel to Mission Hills with two alarm clocks. . . . Did we mention we have some great pictures of Holly Sonders?

RANDOM QUESTIONS TO PONDER

What percentage of people wear their Easter dinner outfits to work on Monday?

How did my boss not realize why I was so dressed up?

Can we just fast forward to Masters week?

-- Alex Myers is an Associate Editor for GolfDigest.com. Feel free to email him and please follow him on Twitter since he has self-esteem issues.

Golf's Highest-Profile Couples

Alex Myers — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 04:00:00 GMT

Our list of the golf couples with the most star power, both past and present.

Loomis Golf: An old, familiar shaft brand is back

John Strege — Wed, 13 Feb 2013 16:30:00 GMT

By John Strege Gary Loomis and his G. Loomis brand are legendary in fishing circles, but the company also once made a graphite iron shaft ithat was popular in the '90s, even among PGA Tour...

An indignant Norman cuts ties with course he founded

Sun, 23 Dec 2012 00:04:00 GMT

By Tim Rosaforte

HOBE SOUND, Fla. -- The Medalist GC has always been Greg Norman's GC, but no more.

The Shark has demanded his name and that of co-designer Pete Dye be taken off the course he founded and wants his memorabilia returned, including the signature shark above the bar in the men's locker room.

Norman's issue is the club's hiring of former Dye disciple Bobby Weed to do a restoration of the original Norman-Dye design that opened in 1995.

Related: Greg Norman's My Shot

In a letter sent to Medalist President De Mudd following a board meeting in early December, Norman demanded that the club stop using his name and Dye's in reference to the design of the course. Saturday morning he called the club to arrange an evening to pick up his belongings. His name will remain on the locker room wall as winner of both the gross and net divisions of the club's member-guest.

"It's really a slap in the face at the end of the day," Norman said via email. "It's the end of a legacy by the board doing what the board is doing now. It hurts a lot to tell the truth. It's a shame."

Weed already began work on some of Medalist's bunkers this summer and was under contract when Norman offered his design company's services for free in May. Norman, who resigned as club president in 2008, points out in the letter to Mudd, "The design integrity of the original designed course has been compromised by your alterations without consultation or discussion with neither Pete Dye nor me."

Related: Greg Norman takes jab at Tiger Woods

Mudd took over in 2010 and is past president at Conway Farms in suburban Chicago. He adopted a dues-only program to tour pros living in the area that has attracted Tiger Woods, Dustin Johnson and Rickie Fowler. As for the situation with Norman, Mudd said based on club policy he was not allowed to discuss member issues.

Follow @TimRosaforte

Golf's Biggest Breakups

Alex Myers and Sam Weinman — Wed, 31 Oct 2012 04:00:00 GMT

Breaking up is hard to do, even in golf. From husbands and wives to players and caddies to players and putters, we rank the highest-profile splits in golf.

Rory and Tiger are enjoying the familiar ride

Fri, 21 Sep 2012 00:27:00 GMT

By Jim Moriarty

ATLANTA, Ga. -- Despite the comedic offerings of the baton-passing Greg Norman -- who, unencumbered by excessive knowledge, was able to divine like Carnac the Magnificent that 36-year-old Tiger Woods was, in reality, intimidated by 23-year-old Rory McIlroy -- what seems to be increasingly clear is that Woods is neither envious or afraid of the youth and skill of the young Irishman; nor is McIlroy in any way awed by the elder statesman who has won 12 more major championships than he has. If anything, they seem to share a mutual respect and actually enjoy playing together, which is something they've done a lot of lately.

Woods and McIlroy have kicked off three of the four FedEx Cup Playoff events paired together. Tiger was one shot better in the opening round at the Barclays while McIlroy nipped Woods by a shot the first day at BMW. Tiger put a little distance between them with a four-under-par 66 to McIlroy's 69 in the opening round of the Tour Championship at East Lake CC. It was also good enough for a share of the lead with Justin Rose. Of course, McIlroy won two of the three previous playoff events, so opening round results, like a financial prospectus, aren't necessarily indicative of future returns.

Related: Like Tiger, like Rory

By now, neither Woods nor McIlroy can dodge the questions about one another, with or without the help of Norman. "I enjoy playing with Rory," said Woods. "He's a great kid. Over the years there are certain pairings for me that I've enjoyed and Rory is one of them. You probably don't believe this, but I get along really well with a lot of guys out here. Rory is no different. I give it, they dish it, and we have a great time. This is a fraternity out here."

McIlroy agreed. "It was great. I always say groupings like that, it's a great atmosphere, it's a great buzz. I wish I could have shot a couple shots better," he said.

Woods birdied two of the first three holes, both of East Lake's par fives and hit it close on the 12th and 16th holes against a bogey on the fourth when he didn't get up and down from a greenside bunker and another on the 14th when he lost his driver right into the deep Bermuda rough. "It's long enough but it's also thin enough that every ball is going down to the bottom," said Woods. "It's tough to get out of there. I mean, I saw Rory at 13, he missed the first cut by less than a yard and had no shot."

Related: Tiger Woods vs. Rory McIlory

Rose, who along with McIlroy will be facing Woods and the rest of Davis Love III's American squad in the Ryder Cup next week at Medinah CC, rolled in a downhill 52-footer for birdie at the last to cap off his four-under-par 68.

While Woods and McIlroy are among the Fab Five who win the FedEx Cup automatically if they win the Tour Championship -- and thus control their own fate, as it were -- Rose, not so much. The scenario for the Englishman taking the $10 million goes something like this: McIlroy finishes 17th or worse; Woods in a three-way tie for fifth or worse; Nick Watney in a three-way tie for third or worse; Phil Mickelson T3 or worse; Brandt Snedeker a three-way tie for second or worse; Louis Oosthuizen T2 or worse; Sean Foley's digital video camera implodes; the entire state of Georgia runs out of barbecue sauce; and the Atlanta Falcons are flexed into prime time. Or something like that.

"From a FedEx Cup point of view, it's a position of having nothing to lose, really," said Rose. "I've only got this tournament on my mind. A lot of other guys have two trophies on their minds." And, lest we forget, Samuel Ryder makes three.

Follow @GWMoriarty