Golf Digest Search Results

My Shot: Stacy Lewis

Stacy Lewis With Guy Yocom — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 04:00:00 GMT

The LPGA star weighs in on cellphones, 'temper freebies,' Rwanda, Lance Armstrong, perfect shots and regrowing a rib. Oh, and why you might have never heard of her if she'd had a healthy back.

July 2013 Table of Contents

Wed, 15 May 2013 04:00:00 GMT

Kraft Nabisco: Has Yani gotten her wake-up call?

Wed, 03 Apr 2013 13:03:00 GMT

By John Strege

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. -- Two weeks ago, Yani Tseng overslept, an embarrassment that has the potential to do what an alarm was supposed to have done. Could this have been her wake-up call?

Tseng will attempt to restore equilibrium to her career in the Kraft Nabisco Championship that begins here on Thursday. It is a tournament she won in 2010 to begin a reign of dominance, the first of 13 LPGA victories in a two-year span.

Related: A closer look at Yani's swing

The last of them came more than a year ago, at the Kia Classic, and it has been a trying 12 months since, indomitable giving way to inexplicable. "Yani is so good that it's just hard to believe she doesn't by accident fall into a win again," Judy Rankin, a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame and a Golf Channel analyst, said last week.

Last month, Tseng, 24, surrendered her hold on No. 1 in the Rolex Rankings to Stacy Lewis. On the eve of her first opportunity to work toward returning to the top she overslept, causing her to miss her Kia Classic pro-am tee time, resulting in an automatic disqualification from the tournament itself.

Could it get any worse? Well, actually, yes. "In the wake of the missed tee time, a local weekly speculated in its latest issue that the 24-year-old Taiwanese golfer took to late night partying after gaining fame, which has hurt her game and disrupted her regular routine," Focus Taiwan News Channel wrote last week.

Tseng responded in Chinese on her Facebook page. "Saw a news today, very disappointed and very sad!" she wrote according to a Google translation. "I work very hard every day to practice, to make myself better!"

Rankin's theory is that Tseng was so dominant that it failed to occur to her that it wasn't permanent. "As we all know, particularly with younger people, sometimes when you're rocking and rolling, you're not really thinking about it, and you certainly haven't thought about the fact that it could go the other way," Rankin said.

"She was at a point in time where it almost seemed like it wasn't a contest. And I think even if Yani's game gets to where it should be and where it can be, it is a new day and it's going to be a contest no matter what, and I think she knows that."

The Week In Golf: What has us talking

Ushering in the new day is Lewis, a gritty competitor who isn't likely to wilt in the heat that accompanies a No. 1 ranking. Two years ago, Lewis, trailing by two and playing with Tseng in the final round of the Kraft Nabisco, thoroughly outplayed her and won by three.

So that's the challenge for Tseng, who cleared the first hurdle on Monday night. "My phone is working, my alarm clock is all set for 10 times from 7-8am. Ready to go to bed for 10:55 proam time," she wrote on Twitter. She made her pro-am tee time.

Follow @JohnStrege

(Photo by Getty Images)

The Grind: Tiger "Swooshes up," DJ dresses down, & Bay Hill picks

Tue, 19 Mar 2013 13:46:00 GMT

By Alex Myers

Notice how Lindsey's Under Armour logo is tough to see? Very smart, Nike...

Welcome to another edition of The Grind, where we nominate Tiger Woods as the best company man of all time.

Is there ever a situation in which he's not wearing Nike? If "Suit up" is a popular cry for men changing into dress clothes (Thank you, Neil Patrick Harris), then "Swoosh up" may as well be Tiger's fashion motto. His new photos with girlfriend Lindsey Vonn? Nike. When he goes to a sporting event? Nike. Even in this grainy pic of him at a Las Vegas night club, Woods is wearing one of his Sunday red golf shirts. We wouldn't be surprised if the suits he wears to the Ryder Cup gala are hand stitched by Phil Knight himself. Hey, whatever makes him happy. And apparently, Vonn, despite the fact that she's sponsored by Under Armour, makes him happy as well. Or maybe he just hasn't noticed that yet. . . In any matter, here's what else we've noticed:

WE'RE BUYING

Kevin Streelman. March Madness may officially start this week, but we've already had our first major upset, as Streelman picked up his first PGA Tour title in his 153rd start. How bad were things for this journeyman? Well, from the pictures, it appears he resorted to taking a pair of Phil Mickelson's pinstripe pants.

Stacy Lewis. The new No. 1 in women's golf didn't just pick up another title, but she won after overcoming a two-stroke penalty that stemmed from a TV viewer phoning in to inform officials that her caddie had tested sand in a bunker on Saturday. Lewis thanked the person for calling in because she said it served as extra motivation. Is she from the same planet as the rest of us?

Related: Golf's Power Couples

Jordan Spieth. He's 19 and in the last two weeks he's finished T-2 and T-7 in PGA Tour events. Enough said.

Tiger and Lindsey. OK, so the whole going public on Facebook with staged photos was a little cheesy, but good for them for making it official. Maybe more than anything, a solid relationship is what Tiger needed to really get back on track. As long as he can control his competitive spirit from racing Vonn down the slopes, of course. . .

WE'RE SELLING

Innisbrook. I was disappointed when I played the resort's Copperhead Course this past summer, but I blamed that on being dumb enough to take a golf trip to Florida in late July. However, I was almost as disappointed when I watched some of the world's best players take on the track in prime conditions. PGA Tour players seem to really like this course, but other than the snake statue that marks the start of the closing three holes dubbed the "Snake Pit," I didn't find anything about it very memorable.

Related: Golf's #FirstWorldProblems

Big names. With a watered-down field, several of the game's top players were in perfect shape to pick up a PGA Tour title heading into the weekend. But by Sunday afternoon, Adam Scott, Sergio Garcia, Jason Dufner and others had let that opportunity slip away. The result was Kevin Streelman having to track down Boo Weekley, who had posted a 63 more than three hours before. Not exactly what NBC had hoped for.

Malaria. Poor Natalie Gulbis.

ON TAP

The PGA Tour concludes its Florida Swing at Bay Hill for the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard, aka one of those tournaments that Tiger always wins.

Random tournament fact: Woods' emphatic hat throw upon sinking the winning putt here in 2008 was the best cap spike in Florida since Steve Spurrier and his often-abused visor coached the Gators.

WEEKLY YAHOO! FANTASY LINEUP

Starters -- (A-List): Sergio Garcia. Garcia has six top 10s in 11 tries here. Psst. That guy we have on the bench, though, has seven wins here and has won both times this year we've put him on our bench. . .

(B-List): Jim Furyk. The Grinder is still having problems on Sundays, but he's playing fairly well in 2013 (coming off a T-7 in Tampa) and has three straight top 11s at Bay Hill.

(B-List): Webb Simpson. The Wake Forest product hasn't had much success at this Wake Forest legend's event, but we think that's due to change. He's also due for a win with six top 20s in eight starts so far in 2013.

(C-List): Ian Poulter. It's tough to pass on Poulter while he remains eligible as a C-List play -- especially when he finished third here last year.

Bench -- Tiger Woods (PLAY HIM), Justin Rose, Kevin Na and Ryan Moore.

RANDOM PROP BETS OF THE WEEK

-- Lindsey Vonn will come onto the 18th green to congratulate Tiger if he wins: 10-to-1 odds

-- Arnold Palmer will be spotted drinking an Arnold Palmer from the Bay Hill clubhouse: Even odds

-- The Arnold Palmer that Arnold Palmer is drinking will be delicious: LOCK

CELEBRITY/ATHLETE WE'D LIKE TO PLAY GOLF WITH

Steve Carell. The last three movies I've seen are Lincoln, Silver Linings Playbook, and. . . The Incredible Burt Wonderstone. Let's just say only one of these was not, um, incredible. Carell was brilliant as the clueless boss Michael Scott on the Office for seven years, but no one has had a more hit (Crazy, Stupid, Love, The 40-year-old Virgin) or miss (Evan Almighty, Date Night) run of late when it comes to movies. His latest venture falls in the latter category. Steve, let's hit the links and talk. I'm not sure your agent knows what he's doing. Ohhh, you got paid as much as $15 MILLION to be in that? Never mind. . .

PICTURE OF THE WEEK

I've been getting some complaints about my pictures (mainly of Paulina Gretzky) demonstrating some sort of gender bias, so I'm going to try to be fair here. Just check out Dustin Johnson enjoying a trip to Cabo. This guy must workout. Looking go--, sorry, I can't do this. Paulina! I miss you! Below is what the photo looked like before I cropped it:

Ahhh, much better. By the way, colleague Stina Sternberg raised a great question recently: do Paulina and DJ have someone follow them around just to take pictures? If so, where do I apply for the job?

FREE MARCH MADNESS ADVICE

It's that time of year for me to enter way too many NCAA pools and burn way too much money. Yay! But since I did correctly pick Kentucky to win it all last year (Who didn't? They had an NBA team), a lot of people have been asking for my Final Four picks. And by a lot of people, I mean my mom and my grandma. But here they are: Florida, Louisville, Indiana and Wisconsin. In the finals, I have the protege, Billy Donovan, topping the mentor, Rick Pitino. In other words, you should probably stay away from the Gators and Cardinals. Speaking of gators. . .

VIRAL VIDEO OF THE WEEK

This is an old video, but considering it happened on a Tampa golf course, it seems appropriate. Oh yeah, it's always an appropriate time to watch awesome footage of two alligators wrestling:

THIS AND THAT

What's the good news about a guy falling down an 18-foot sinkhole in a fairway? It got Dave Shedloski to write this fantastic piece on the course. . . . Tiger Woods had a funny new commercial come out. Take a wild guess what company it was for. . . . My college buddy Jim lives in Austin, Tex., and recorded his first hole-in-one over the weekend in 80-degree weather. Congrats, Jim, but yes, I'm extremely jealous. Not only do I not have an ace, but it's still SNOWING here in the Northeast.

RANDOM QUESTIONS TO PONDER

Why do salads taste so much better when they're chopped?

Will I ever have a hole-in-one?

Will Golf Digest's headquarters ever move to a warmer location?

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

Finding Comfort In Stardom

Tim Rosaforte — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 05:00:00 GMT

Stacy Lewis' game isn't the only thing that emerged in 2012. So did her self-confidence.

Video: Stacy Lewis discusses Golf Digest Power Balance bands

Sam Weinman — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 18:13:00 GMT

By GolfDigest.com StaffGolf Digest is partnering with Power Balance wristbands for a new charitable endeavor. With every purchase of a special Golf Digest "Golfers Who Give Back" band, $15 will be donated to The First...

Golf World's 2012 Newsmakers of The Year

GolfDigest.com — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 17:00:00 GMT

Taking stock of 2012 by counting down the year's 25 biggest headliners.

Golf World Monday: Lewis poised to end U.S. drought

Mon, 05 Nov 2012 14:27:00 GMT

By Ron Sirak

From the November 5 issue of Golf World Monday:

The long wait appears to be over. With her fourth victory of the year yesterday at the Mizuno Classic in Japan, Stacy Lewis virtually wrapped up the points race for LPGA Rolex Player of the Year.

If her 58-point lead over Inbee Park holds, Lewis would become the first American since Beth Daniel in 1994 to capture the honor. The tour plays the Lorena Ochoa Invitational in Mexico this week and concludes with the CME Group Titleholders in Naples, Fla., next week.

Photo by Getty Images

Since Daniel, the POY has come from Sweden (Annika Sorenstam, eight times), Mexico (Lorena Ochoa, four), Australia and Taiwan (Karrie Webb and Yani Tseng, twice each) and England (Laura Davies, once).

Park, of South Korea, would need to win both of the last two events while Lewis finishes no better than 10th in either. Oddly, given their recent domination of the LPGA, no Korean has ever been LPGA Player of the Year.

From 1966, when Kathy Whitworth won the first LPGA POY, until Daniel in 1994, the only non-American to capture the award was Japan's Ayako Okamoto in 1987.

Follow @ronsirak

Golf World Monday: Lewis no longer a lock for LPGA POY

Mon, 29 Oct 2012 14:27:00 GMT

From the October 29 issue of Golf World Monday:

By Ron Sirak

What seemed like a lock only a few weeks ago--that Stacy Lewis would become the first American since Beth Daniel in 1994 to be LPGA Rolex Player of the Year -- is now a race.

Photo by Getty Images

Inbee Park's (above) second-place finish Sunday at the Sunrise LPGA Taiwan Championship moved the Korean within 28 points of Lewis with three events left. Thirty points are awarded to a tournament winner, 12 for second place and nine for third with seven for fourth place down to one for 10th. Since finishing T-9 at the Wegmans LPGA Championship in June, Park has earned POY points in 11 of the 12 events she has played.

During that run, Park has two victories and five runner-up finishes. Meanwhile, Lewis, who skipped the Taiwan event, has not earned points in five of her last 11 tournaments.

"I think I have a good chance because I'm playing good, and I have confidence," Park said about winning the POY race.

Next up is this week's Mizuno Classic in Japan, then the Lorena Ochoa Invitational in Mexico and the season-ending CME Group Titleholders in Naples, Fla. Both Park and Lewis are scheduled to play all three.

Follow @ronsirak

Are the greens aerated? You can still make a bunch of putts

Sam Weinman — Sat, 15 Sep 2012 11:09:00 GMT

By Jeff PattersonAfter Labor Day passes, it seems course superintendents across the northern states are given free passes to aerate their greens. Never is it as important for your score (and your sanity) to have...