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Ken Venturi, 82, dies 11 days after Hall of Fame induction

Fri, 17 May 2013 23:14:00 GMT

His was a life in two acts, neither of which he would have scripted for himself. It was not particularly easy, and often not fair, but Ken Venturi took his cues from its challenges.

"Fate," his friend and colleague Jack Whitaker once told him by way of encouragement, "has a way of bending the twig and fashioning a man to his better instincts."

Fate cast Venturi with "an incurable" stutter that had him seek the isolation of golf and he became a U.S. Open champion. Fate robbed him of the dexterity in his hands and he became the longest-running lead analyst in television sports history.

"The full body of work, spanning everything involved in golf, there's nobody in that Hall of Fame that's done what he's done," his friend and long-time pupil John Cook said. "Maybe some have better records, more tournament wins, but the whole thing? None. He transformed television. He's been the biggest philanthropist in golf history of the things he's involved in that people don't even know about. Lifetime achievement? That barely covers it."

Venturi, 82, died on Friday, little more than a week after his induction in absentia into the World Golf Hall of Fame. He had been hospitalized following surgery for infections in his back.

Related: The golf genius of Ken Venturi

When he was elected to the Hall of Fame last fall, he summed it up this way: "The greatest reward in life is to be remembered."

Venturi will be remembered on a variety of fronts. When he was 13, "the doctor told my mother that I would never be able to speak as long as I lived, because I was an incurable stammerer. And I went out and found the loneliest sport I could find and took up golf."

At 24, he took a four-stroke lead into the final round of the Masters in a bid to become the first amateur to win at Augusta National. "For three dazzling days Venturi was within reach of a prize no amateur in the history of the Masters has ever been able to seize," the legendary writer Herbert Warren Wind wrote in Sports Illustrated. "But the Masters is a drama in four acts, not three, and on the fourth day it was exit Ken Venturi and enter Jackie Burke." Venturi finished second, still the best performance by an amateur in the history of the Masters.

Venturi would turn pro and win 14 PGA Tour events, including the U.S. Open at Congressional Country Club in 1964, when against doctor's orders he played the second 18 of a 36-hole day with temperatures upwards of 100 degrees and humidity in the 90s.

"When I came in off the 18th hole in the morning, I laid down next to my locker and Doctor Everett said, 'I recommend you don't go out, because it could be fatal,'" Venturi said last year. He defied the doctor's advice, shot 70 and won his only major championship.

Related: My Shot: Ken Venturi

Carpal tunnel syndrome in both hands ended his career in 1967 and the following year, CBS Sports Producer Frank Chirkinian offered the "incurable stammerer" a job as an analyst on its golf telecasts. He would hold the job until his retirement in 2002.

Underscoring his accomplishments on the course and in the broadcast booth was the quiet philanthropy to which Cook alluded.

"Kenny was emphatic about not getting publicity for it, but his life was dedicated to philanthropy," CBS' Jim Nantz, Venturi's broadcast partner for 17 years, said recently. "He had so many different charities he was involved with, and it was under the radar. He was building a home for abused women and children in Florida. Every offseason he traveled to Ireland to throw something for the mentally-challenged kids there. He was a huge figure in bringing golf to blind people.

"He moved mountains, and people didn't know that about him. I remember there was a piece of machinery at Loma Linda (Calif.) Hospital that was one of the forerunners to really being able to treat some forms of cancer. They had that piece of equipment in large part because of money that Kenny had raised through various charitable events throughout Southern California and the Palm Springs area. That machine by the way ended up being the machine that would reach Paul Azinger when he had cancer in his shoulder."

He was only following instructions. "I was taught by Byron Nelson and I asked him one time, 'how could I ever repay you for all you've done for me?'" Venturi said. "He said, 'Ken, be good to the game and give back.'"

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[Photo: The Washington Post]

7 Things That Are Easier Than Qualifying For The U.S. Open

Fri, 17 May 2013 04:00:00 GMT

Who were the winners and losers on Sunday at Olympic Club? It's time to take a closer look with another edition of birdies and bogeys.

The Grind: Tiger tames TPC Sawgrass, Island fever spreads & "Nelsoning"?

Tue, 14 May 2013 16:08:00 GMT

By Alex Myers

Welcome to another edition of The Grind, where we've got island fever and the only prescription is... more islands! Island fairways? Fun! Island tee boxes? Pretty! Island drop areas? Cruel and fun! Imagine making a player who has already dunked a ball in the drink get into a boat and row his own way out to a solitary spot to his his next shot? Johnny Miller would have a field day! Alas, for now we'll have to settle for the excitement TPC Sawgrass' 17th hole provides us on a yearly basis. And that's not such a bad thing.

WE'RE BUYING

Tiger Woods. Now he's winning on courses where he's never been comfortable? The rest of the tour is really in trouble. Woods' latest win was his biggest since his return from his 2009 scandal. It also gave him four wins in a season at the earliest point of any season in his career. Of course, Woods himself has said he only characterizes a season as great if he wins a major, but he still has three more chances to make that happen in 2013. Would you bet against him?

One word, two syllables: Swagger.

TPC Sawgrass. It may not host a major, but it always seems to provide major drama. No. 17 gets most of the attention from fans, but there are plenty of other spots on the course that get the attention of the players. How exciting is the Pete Dye track? Sunday proved that even a Tiger Woods three-shot lead on its back nine isn't safe.

David Lingmerth. Where did this guy come from?! Even as he entered the final round tied for the lead, the Swedish rookie remained an afterthought to most prognosticators. Yet it was Lingmerth who remained the last man standing in the latest Tiger vs. the field competition. If he can hang in like that under those circumstances, it would probably be wise for golf analysts to start practicing pronouncing his name correctly (Hat tip to Swedish colleague, Stina Sternberg). Johnny, like in your name, the "H" is silent.

WE'RE SELLING

Sergio Garcia. This could have been a week where the Spaniard punctuated his return as one of the game's elite players. Instead, he further solidified his reputation for both whining and coming up short in the big spot. After his controversial comments towards Woods on Saturday, Garcia had a stunning meltdown over the final two holes. We feel a little bad for him, but we feel a lot worse for his caddie, whose big payday sunk with those three water balls at the end.

People complaining about TPC Sawgrass. There was a lot of talk about how there weren't a lot of drivers hit there, especially over the weekend. While that's true, guess what? It's 2013 and players can now hit 3-woods farther than they used to hit the Big Stick. Hey, no one is stopping these guys from pulling out the driver. Also, doesn't this somewhat contradict the complaints that these guys are hitting it too far off the tee?

Vijay Singh. Here are the bullet points: Singh admits to using a banned substance, the PGA Tour comes under fire for not acting quickly, Singh is eventually cleared of a doping violation on a technicality, then sues the tour for damaging his reputation. Say what? Sorry, Vijay, but A) This doesn't seem to make much sense (Or does it?) and B) What reputation?

Male Hall of Famers. None of them showed up to this year's Hall of Fame induction ceremony, which takes place a short drive from TPC Sawgrass. None. Not even for Mr. Cool, Freddie Couples? Weak effort.

ON TAP

The PGA Tour heads to Dallas for the HP Byron Nelson Championship. Last year Jason Dufner won. Of course, he became much more famous when he returned last month for media day and by accident started a craze that became known as "Dufnering."

Random tournament fact: The late, great Byron Nelson tried to start a fad called "Nelsoning"* in which he would show up to parties randomly posing like he'd just struck a perfect golf shot. Sadly, it never caught on since none of his fellow pros at the time could tweet about it.

*Not true. But maybe we could start that. . .

WEEKLY YAHOO! FANTASY LINEUP

It's great to see our jinxing power is in full effect. First, Tiger Woods made it four-for-four in 2013 when we don't pick him. Second, unbeknownst to Sergio Garcia, we picked him to win at TPC Sawgrass, just adding to the list of things working against him. In other words, he had NO chance when he stood on that 17th tee tied for the lead.

Starters -- (A-List): Jason Dufner. The defending champ also finished T-8 in 2011.

(B-List): Keegan Bradley. Coming off a disappointing week, it'll be nice for him to return to the site of his first PGA Tour title.

(B-List): Marc Leishman. The Australian has contended at the two biggest events of 2013. It's time to take notice, especially at a course where he has three top 12s in four appearances.

(C-List): Jason Day. Has finished in the top 10 all three times he's teed it up at the TPC Four Seasons, including earning his lone PGA Tour title in 2010.

Bench -- Padraig Harrington, Jimmy Walker, Matt Kuchar, and Jordan Spieth.

VIRAL VIDEO OF THE WEEK

We enjoyed this clip of journeyman PGA Tour pro Todd Fischer having fun with the fans at No. 17 during a practice round. Fisher purposely shanked multiple balls into the pond, while a stunned crowd probably wondered how the heck this guy ever got into the field. Our favorite part is when someone else on the tee says, "Give him a bad [ball]." Fischer also wins our award for "Well-Orchestrated Ruse of the Week."

THIS WEEK IN DUSTIN JOHNSON-PAULINA GRETZKY DISPLAYS OF PUBLIC AFFECTION

A sore subject this week. I was hoping to see the two in person, but after missing them on Day 1, what did DJ do? He withdrew for a second straight week (this time for his back, last week it was his wrist) and took off before I had a chance to stalk..um, make that follow them.

THIS WEEK IN TIGER WOODS-LINDSEY VONN DISPLAYS OF PUBLIC AFFECTION

That didn't look awkward or anything. . . Hey, don't feel bad, Lindsey. Tiger's post-victory celebration with caddie Joe LaCava wasn't very smooth, either.

RANDOM PROP BETS OF THE WEEK

-- Sergio Garcia will ever willingly watch a replay of Sunday's finish: Million-to-1 odds

-- Official odds Tiger Woods will win the U.S. Open: 3.5-1

-- Unofficial odds everyone is giving Woods to win at Merion: LOCK

THIS AND THAT

For a second straight tournament, Tiger Woods is having a drop he took questioned. Weird. Controversy never seems to follow this guy. . . . Billy Horschel's PGA-Tour best cut streak of 23 came to an end when he didn't make it to the weekend at the Players. However, I ran one of the great (disturbing?) streaks in the world to 15. I ate at the same Chili's all FIVE nights for a THIRD year in a row during my stay in Ponte Vedra Beach. Top that, Cal Ripken! Pictured are the tasty "Wings over Buffalo," which only have 68 grams of fat.

RANDOM QUESTIONS TO PONDER

Why isn't there a Chili's within an hour of me?

Why aren't there more island greens?

Where can I place a bet on Tiger?

-- 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.

Trending: Car drives onto golf course during U.S. Open qualifier

Sat, 11 May 2013 17:42:00 GMT

By Derek Evers

I've actually witnessed something very similar to this when I was a kid. I was playing on a course where one of the cart paths led to a landscaping garage that was adjacent to a parking lot. Sure enough, one day an old lady who thought the path went through came rolling down the 17th fairway. That's what I assume happened to this poor woman at Emerald Hills in Hollywood, Fla. yesterday during a U.S. Open qualifier.

As Deadspin points out, this path isn't anywhere near a driveway or a street or a parking lot, so like my childhood experience, she must've driven quite a ways before realizing her blunder and pulling a u-turn in the 11th hole bunker.

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Get to know Kevin Chappell, Players contender

Fri, 10 May 2013 18:11:00 GMT

By Alex Myers

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- If you follow professional golf, you should know who Kevin Chappell is. The 26-year-old is no stranger to being high on the leader board at a big tournament having finished T-3 at the 2011 U.S. Open. Remember?

OK, so maybe you don't remember that. After all, he finished 10 shots behind winner Rory McIlroy. But now this Swoosh-wearing golfer has ensured himself the most pressure-packed Saturday tee time of his young career after a second-round 66 at TPC Sawgrass.

"The course is in great condition," Chappell said. "The greens are rolling as pure as anything we've played all year, so you get the ball on line it's going to go in the hole. That's going to lead to good scores, and there hasn't been any wind. The more wind and the firmer the greens get, the tougher it's going to be."

The biggest putt Chappell rolled in was his first of the day, a 20-footer for par on No. 10. He then went eagle-birdie-birdie on the next three holes to shoot up the leader board, and finished with a birdie on No. 9 to lock up a spot in one of the third round's final pairings.

This year Chappell has a pair of top 10s at the Humana Challenge and the Shell Houston Open, but he's also missed more cuts than he's made. At the Players, he's had an equally-rocky history having missed out on playing the weekend here last year and finishing T-69 in his only other appearance in 2011.

During those two years he had to deal with the flu (2012) and food poisoning (2011). This year? He's sick again, but it's just some congestion.

"I've been trying to get a lot of rest and eat the right things and take the right drugs out there to keep me somewhat sane," he said.

Chappell became the first UCLA player to win an individual NCAA title in 2008 when he led the Bruins to the team title as well. On Wednesday, fellow Bruin and Jacksonville Jaguars' star Maurice Jones-Drew took one crack at TPC's 17th hole and stuck his shot to 10 feet. Maybe it was an omen.

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The 10 Best Golfers Without A Major

Alex Myers — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 04:00:00 GMT

Now that Adam Scott has broken through, who is the best remaining golfer without a major championship? Our formula finds out.

June 2013 Table of Contents

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 04:00:00 GMT

At a place where Tiger Woods has known so much success, disappointment is becoming par for the course

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 00:59:00 GMT

By Ron Sirak

AUGUSTA, GA. -- This is where it all started for Tiger Woods, the place where he first took over the No. 1 spot in the golf world, winning the 1997 Masters by a record 12 strokes at the age of 21.

A man of color wearing the champion's green jacket a mere half-dozen years after Augusta National GC first opened its doors to a non-white member made Woods more than a golfer and more than a sports star.

He became an instant international cultural phenomena.

What Woods accomplished here that week was about far more than golf, yet it also cannot be viewed solely as a cultural event. It was as if Jackie Robinson had integrated baseball in 1947 AND broken Babe Ruth's home run record in the same year.

This is also where Woods chose to restart his career after the scandal that rocked his life and ended his marriage. His first tournament after the Thanksgiving 2009 car crash was the 2010 Masters, and remarkably a rusty Woods finished T-4.

And he was hoping that it would be here, this week, that he would get his quest to break the record of 18 professional major held by Jack Nicklaus back on track.

But the drought continues. I thought coming into this Masters that it was the most important major championship Woods had yet to play in his career. A fifth green jacket would have placed Tiger within four majors of passing Jack and make it all seem doable.

To come away empty-handed from a course where he has had such great success in the first half of his career -- four wins in his first nine Masters as a pro -- is a huge setback for Woods.

The mountain got higher for Woods and now the questions will get harder after finishing T-4 at five-under-par 283, four strokes out of the playoffs between Angel Cabrera,Adam Scott and Steve Williams, the seriously disgruntled former caddie for Woods.

Now, Woods goes into the U.S. Open at Merion in June exactly five years removed from his last major -- the 2008 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines -- and winless in his last nine Masters.

Woods was never really in contention on Sunday, starting the day four back and never getting closer than three, although in his mind -- the mind of a guy with 77 PGA Tour wins and 14 major championships -- Tiger always thinks he had a chance to win.

"For the first eight holes, I think I left every putt short," Woods said after his two-under-par 70 played mostly in what ranged from a steady drizzle to a flat-our rain. "I thought 65 would win it outright today," Tiger said, and it turns out he was correct.

A 65 and Woods finishes at 10-under-par and wins by a stroke. But that triple-bogey 8 on the par-5 15th hole Friday -- a birdie or eagle hole -- was the real killer. First he had the bad luck of hitting the flagstick with his third shot and having it carom into the water.

Then he was hit with a two-stroke penalty the next morning after rules officials, who initially deemed his drop to be legal, were informed of Woods' comments to the media that he had dropped his ball two yards behind the original spot he hit from in order to get a better yardage into the green.

"Well, we could do that in every tournament we lose and we lose more tournaments than we win out here on tour, so that's just part of the process," Woods said when asked if he has replayed the incident on No. 15 in his mind.

Asked about photos in a local newspaper that appeared to show that he hit both shots from about the same spot and thus should not have been penalized, Woods was adamant.

"No, I saw the photos," Woods said. "I was behind it."

Woods who won four of his first nine Masters as a professional and 14 of his first 46 major championships, has now gone 0-for-9 in the Masters and has not won in his last 15 majors, dating back to the 2008 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines.

The truly disturbing number in all this is that in those 15 winless majors, Woods has finished in the top-six eight times. A couple of those were like Sunday -- backdoor chargeswhen he really wasn't in contention -- but he's also had a chance to win a half-dozen times and has been unable to get it done.

"I played well," Woods said of this Masters. "I certainly missed my share of putts today, actually this week. Mentally, I'm hungry," he said. "I always give you that hunger, but seriously, I'm like hungry. I certainly had a chance," Woods said.

"If I had posted a number today, I was right there," Woods said with the determined regret of a champion.

He wasn't thinking of the hit flagstick or the belated penalty. He was thinking of the things he could control -- the missed putts and a few wayward drives.

The next major, the next chance for Tiger to gain on Jack, comes at Merion, the place where Ben Hogan restarted his career after the 1949 car crash almost took his life. Hogan won the 1950 U.S. Open there -- and six of the next nine majors he played.

Maybe Merion is where the magic will start again for Woods. Maybe not. In either case, he remains what he became that day at Augusta 16 years ago -- one of the most watched athletes in all of sports.

That Woods leaves the Masters empty-handed only increases anticipation for the U.S Open. The first chapter of this remarkable story was written at the 1997 Masters. The ending is a longways away.

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Golf's Greatest Streaks

Alex Myers — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 04:00:00 GMT

In honor of the NBA's Miami Heat's recent run of 27 straight wins, we examine the best consecutive performances in golf.

"Jack's Majors": 18 paintings in one portfolio book

John Strege — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 19:50:00 GMT

By John Strege Tiger Woods' resurgence with the Masters on the horizon again brings Jack Nicklaus' 18 major championship victories into focus, the perfect time to introduce a portfolio of paintings showcasing each of...