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Johnson and the circuitous route to stardom

Wed, 09 Jan 2013 00:30:00 GMT

(Getty Images photo)

KAPALUA, Hawaii -- Dustin Johnson seems to prefer circuitous routes, but the destination is unchanged and he is closing on it. The last remaining obstacle? Himself.

He circumvented it in the final round of the Hyundai Tournament of Champions on Tuesday and emerged (escaped?) with a four-stroke victory that was, by his own description, "nowhere near ho-hum."

He once led by five, then led by one, the result of his proclivity for not fully assessing the situation and avoiding unnavigable precincts. One of them on Tuesday was a group of shrubs and trees left of the 13th fairway on the Plantation Course.

Then talent took over and he won for the seventh time. He also extended his streak of years with at least one victory to six, second only to Phil Mickelson's nine. More impressively, perhaps, is that he became the first player since Tiger Woods to win six straight years upon leaving college.

The destination can be found among those credentials. It's called superstardom.

Golf is too fickle to reliably prognosticate, but Johnson's chest is not missing any tools and he's only 28.

"He's got that athletic build, that athletic body," Steve Stricker said. "He's got a tremendous amount of flexibility. He gets the club in positions that people can't get it into, and he can use that height to his advantage, the big arc to get that powerful hit on the ball.

"He's just going to get better. That's going to be the fun part, watching what he's going to do from here on out, because he looks unflappable out there."

The 13th and 14th holes on Tuesday were a microcosm of Johnson's game. At 13 and holding a three-stroke lead, the situation called for a 3-iron from the tee and 8-iron from the fairway. Instead he took driver and hit wayward.

The search party included Stricker. "We found a shoe, some sunglasses, about five or six other balls," Stricker said. "There might have been a guy living up in in the tree. I don't know."

A double-bogey there threatened his hold in the lead, yet he opted for driver on the next tee, too, "piped it," Stricker said, then pitched in for eagle.

"Dude, what are you doing?" Stricker asked him as they walked down the 15th fairway. "Why don't you take iron out, make me have to make birdies instead of you hitting in the trees and opening it up for me?"

"Yeah, I know," Johnson replied.

He knows, but can't seem to help himself. "I don't know what was going through my head," he said.

The fearlessness or recklessness -- take your pick -- in concert with his athleticism and skill is what makes him so entertaining. "You never know what he's going to do," Stricker said.

Related: 13 Sleepers To Watch In 2013

But it also is the obstacle standing between him and a sustained run in the World Ranking top 10. He has ranked as high as fourth, in 2011, but was 23rd entering the Hyundai.

"I still don't think I've lived up to my potential," he said. "Obviously, this week I did, but I still made some mistakes. Limiting those will help, just making some better decisions. If I keep playing golf like I'm playing right now, then obviously there is no limit."

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Golf World Monday: No pact yet for Tour officials

Tue, 08 Jan 2013 17:42:00 GMT

By John Strege

From the Jan. 8 issue of Golf World Monday:

No one was happy with the way the PGA Tour season began, including tour rules officials for reasons unrelated to the weather calamity that plagued the Hyundai Tournament of Champions. Their union, the Professional Association of Golf Officials, is working without a contract, its previous agreement having expired at the end of the 2012 season.

"As of this second there are no meetings scheduled," the officials' attorney, Christian Dennie, said. "I anticipate we'll continue to talk and meet."

Photo by Getty Images

Neither Dennie nor Ty Votaw, vice president communications and international affairs for the PGA Tour, would comment on what the issues are, though salary and benefits are believed to be the crux of the union's complaints.

The union has filed a legal malpractice suit against its previous representatives, claiming that in collective bargaining it was responsible for "lost salary and benefits, automobile and automobile insurance, first class travel and a number of other items."

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Is Paulina Gretzky Dustin Johnson's secret weapon?

Tue, 08 Jan 2013 16:25:00 GMT

By Alex Myers

Dustin Johnson had a good day on Monday. The PGA Tour star finally got to start his regular season and he looked in mid-season form, firing rounds of 69 and 66 to grab a three-shot lead heading into the final round of the weather-shortened Hyundai Tournament of Champions.

Oh yeah, he had a special guest in his gallery.

Paulina Gretzky, the daughter of hockey legend Wayne Gretzky (and 2010 Golf Digest U.S. Open Challenge contestant) and Janet Jones, followed DJ as he took apart Kapalua's Plantation Course (He would go on to win the event by four shots). Not familiar with the Instagram star? Have a look below at these photos taken on Monday:

We hate to speculate on tour players' relationship statuses, but Johnson and Gretzky have been seen together all week in Kapalua, including out at night. This also isn't the first time DJ has had company in Hawaii. Two years ago, LPGA star Natalie Gulbis followed Johnson around at the season-opening event and confirmed the two had started dating. Unfortunately, that relationship wound up lasting about as long as a Kapalua wind delay.

UPDATE: Gretzky posted of her and Johnson on Instagram Thursday night:

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Finally, golf that counts; Fowler an early leader

Mon, 07 Jan 2013 21:27:00 GMT

By John Strege

KAPALUA, Hawaii -- The PGA Tour season finally began on Monday, three days late and on a day more represtative of the weather on this side of Maui.

"It was nice," said Rickie Fowler, an early clubhouse leader in the Hyundai Tournament of Champions. Fowler shot a three-under par 70 on the Plantation Course here. "It felt pretty calm out there actually, from the winds we've seen. The greens are a little slow, just to make it playable and keep the ball on teh green. I had a few come up short, but it was fun."

Play had begun twice in the previous three days, only to be stopped when wind gusts made the course unplayable. The intention today is to complete 36 holes on Monday, then finish the tournament as a 54-hole event wilth the final round played on Tuesday.

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An inadvertent ride from a golf pro

Mon, 07 Jan 2013 01:02:00 GMT

By Dave Shedloski

KAPALUA, Hawaii -- Winning a PGA Tour event doesn't necessarily initiate a higher degree of acclaim, even among devoted golf fans.

Just ask George McNeill, shuttle driver.

Twice a tour winner, including last year's Puerto Rico Open, McNeill is one of the 30 contestants in this week's Hyundai Tournament of Champions, the ill-fated, weather-plagued season opener that has yet to open.

On Friday, the 37-year-old tour veteran and his girlfriend were preparing to make the short drive from the Ritz-Carlton to the Plantation Course for what was supposed to be the first round of the 2013 season. Their courtesy car was brought around, and McNeill got in the driver's side, his girlfriend in the passenger seat. As McNeill buckled up, the back passenger side door opened and an elderly gentleman sat down.

"He wanted to know if this was a shuttle to the golf course. I told him no, but I was going in that direction," McNeill said with a laugh. "He was really embarrassed, but I told him it was no problem, I was going to the course anyway."

The man, who introduced himself as Steve, was from Seattle and had traveled to Maui to watch the tournament. McNeill said the man asked him if he had played in the pro-am. McNeill said he had, but in a manner that apparently tipped the man off that McNeill was a pro and not an amateur.

"Then he was really embarrassed," said McNeill, who has earned $7.5 million in his career. "He kept apologizing, but I said that it was really no big deal. I mean, he seemed nice enough."

McNeill taxied him to the Plantation Course clubhouse and to valet parking. A first-class ride all the way. When he got out of the car, the man said he couldn't wait to call his wife. "In fact," McNeill said he heard the man say, "I'm going to call everyone I know."

(Getty Images photo)

Gusting winds blow tournament into Tuesday

Mon, 07 Jan 2013 00:09:00 GMT

By John Strege

KAPALUA, Hawaii -- On two occasions, Matt Kuchar's ball was blown off the tee. Ben Curtis hit greens in regulation on his first two holes and played them in five-over par. Ian Poulter expressed remorse that he hadn't invested in Maui wind farms.

So it is that the Hyundai Tournament of Champions that was supposed to end on Monday is now set to start on Monday as a result of winds, this time gusting to 48 miles per hour.

For the second time in three days, play was suspended in mid-round on the Plantation Course at Kapalua and scores were scrapped on Sunday. The tournament will start over again at 7:10 a.m. Hawaiian time on Monday, with the goal to play 36 holes, followed by an additional 18 on Tuesday.

"We tried, and what happened was expected," Poulter said. "But what can the tournament do? It's all really unfortunate. I understand why they had to try. They had no options. To the outside world everyone sees it's blue skies, we're in Hawaii, why aren't we playing golf? Well, I think we just showcased for the last hour why we shouldn't be on the golf course. It's unplayable. What should we have done? What could we have done? I don't know. This is a complete freak of nature. There's no other way to explain it, and it's just unfortunate for everybody involved."

Andy Pazder, chief of operations for the PGA Tour, said that the players can play if the wind gusts are in the 25 to 30 mile-per-hour range. "We registered gusts up to 48 miles per hour right before we suspended play," he said.

Slugger White, vice president rules and competition for the tour, said, "You just can't play in this. You could hardly walk in it, much less play golf."

White said the forecast for Monday is modestly better. "We've got about a five-mile-an-our decrease in velocity [projected]," he said.

Keegan Bradley, meanwhile, considered the possibility that these were the strongest winds he's ever experienced.

"Maybe at the top of a ski hill a couple times," he said. "This is the worst I've ever seen on a golf course."

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Simpson's three-under start gone with the wind

Sat, 05 Jan 2013 00:14:00 GMT

(Getty Images Photo)

By John Strege

KAPALUA, Hawaii -- Good news for Scott Stallings was bad news for Webb Simpson on Friday, when the PGA Tour season got off to a false start.

Stallings was seven-over par through four holes of the Hyundai Tournament of Champions, while Simpson was three-under par through seven holes and leading. None of it counts, as first-round play was canceled as a result of wind gusts that exceeded 40 miles per hour. The tournament will re-start Saturday morning at 7:30, with 36 holes scheduled and players going off on the first and 10th tees, in pairs.

"We'll try to play 36 holes and catch up [on Saturday], but the forecast isn't real good," Slugger White, vice president rules and competition for the PGA Tour, said. "Maybe we'll get lucky."

It blew so hard, Rickie Fowler said, that "I hit a good drive on three and it went 215."

"It stinks for me," Simpson said. "I got off to a great start, but that's the way it goes. I'm sure they made the decision that's best for all the guys."

Carl Pettersson hit a putt on the second green that seemed to have run its course about a foot from the pin, when a wind gust blew it off the green.

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Poulter in fighting trim on eve of tour opener

Fri, 04 Jan 2013 00:32:00 GMT

(Getty Images photo)

By John Strege

KAPALUA, Hawaii -- The Ryder Cup has come to define Ian Poulter, who would rather define himself and adamantly would do so in broader terms.

"Ryder Cup, that's the first thing in their mind," he said, of how others would identify him. "But my golf over the years has been good enough -- two WGC [World Golf Championship] victories, 13, 14 others. I tweeted somewhat this morning when there was an article put out there that Ian Poulter has two PGA Tour wins and no majors. They seem to forget 14 other tournaments won around the world. That's a little frustrating."

His Tweet referenced a slight that wasn't. It came in a story by Shane Bacon on Yahoo! Sports, headlined, "What to expect in 2013." Poulter was among those about whom Bacon wrote, in a flattering manner at that. Bacon concluded with this: "I like Poulter to win multiple times in '13 and I see him contending at both Augusta National and the Open Championship."

For each of the players cited, Bacon listed identical brief biographical information: Age, number of PGA Tour victories and number of major championships. Poulter, who will turn 37 next week, has two PGA Tour victories, including the WGC-HSBC Champions late last year that earned him an invitation here. He has not won a major.

"[Bleep] report apparently 14 wins everywhere else around the world don't count. Just 2 on PGATour," he wrote on Twitter.

It all counts, of course, his two WGC, 10 European Tour, two Asian Tour, one Japan Golf Tour and one PGA Tour of Australasia victories (and his stirring role in European Ryder Cup victories). But the fact he felt slighted seems to reflect to a degree his own career analysis, that his resume is incomplete, notwithstanding his saying that "I'm really happy with it.

"I would like to win a major. That's the next big thing," he said. "Am I just perceived as a Ryder Cup goliath? I don't know. It was pretty good is what it was...I've underachieved, in my eyes. I don't think I've done enough. I definitely think there's a lot of room for improvement. I started late in golf so I've got a few good years left."

That would be to golf's benefit, for what Poulter ought to be defined by, in addition to the Ryder Cup, is his ability to entertain. There's never a dull moment, as the slight that wasn't demonstrates.

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Golf World Monday: Hawaiian fields remain sparse

Mon, 26 Nov 2012 15:34:00 GMT

From the November 26 issue of Golf World Monday:

By Dave Shedloski

European players might be signing up for PGA Tour membership in increasing numbers, but some U.S. events aren't in a position to benefit. Case in point are the two Hawaii stops, the Hyundai Tournament of Champions and the Sony Open.

The 2013 season opener at Kapalua Resort, in particular, has struggled for several years to attract top international players, and with the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship scheduled to begin Jan. 17, there are indications there won't be many more players in Maui than the 27 who showed up in 2012.

Photo by Getty Images

We're told that the world's top two players, Rory McIlroy and Luke Donald, won't be going. Neither are Ernie Els and Sergio Garcia -- and that's surprising since each has won at Kapalua's Plantation Course.

It doesn't help when the top two American draws, Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson, have been long-time Maui no-shows. Hyundai's sponsorship expires with the completion of the 2013 edition, though secondary sponsor SBS is still on the hook for an additional six years.

What's a sponsor getting for its money? Good U.S. players but not the full complement of qualifiers. What a shame.

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Show off your creativity: Your chance to be published in Golf World

Fri, 20 Jan 2012 15:49:00 GMT

Are you a fan of Golf World's weekly "Front 9" magazine feature? If so, we're offering you a shot to help write it.

Inspired by The New Yorker's cartoon-caption writing contest, Golf World is featuring the "Front 9 Punchline Contest" in each issue. Here's how it works: Every Sunday around noon, Golf World's editors will post a Front 9 setup line to our magazine's Facebook page. We'll give you until 3 p.m. on Monday to enter their best punchlines to that setup.

(An example from a recent Front 9: The Senior Skins Game, the last surviving iteration of the original Silly Season event, calls it quits. Sad to say, but playing holes for $30,000 doesn't get players' attentions anymore.)

Golf World editors will then select the winning entry, which will appear (along with the writer's name and hometown) in that week's issue of Golf World. In addition to having their entry published in the magazine, winners will receive an official Golf World logo hat.

Our last winner was Steve Roeland of Milwaukee, whose winning entry appeared in the Jan. 16 issue of the magazine:

The set-up line: Lucas Glover WDs before Hyundai TOC after spraining his knee in the Hawaii surf.

The winning punchline: "Giving new meaning to the item 'water hazard'."

-- Geoff Russell, Golf World Editor-In-Chief