Why is the PGA Championship golf’s forgotten major?

The PGA Championship lacks the firepower and interest that the other three majors have. With that said, as the 92nd edition of golf’s final major rolls around this week, here are 10 reasons why it is the forgotten major:

1. This year will mark the 92nd time it’s been played. Compare that number to the 110 U.S. Opens and 137 British Opens that have been held. It lacks the history of each of these two events.
2. The PGA is older than the Masters, which has been held 73 times, but it also doesn’t have the tradition of that tournament either. The Masters is played at Augusta National every year and has timeless traditions that include the Champion’s Dinner, the green jacket ceremony, Amen Corner on Sunday and much more. Plus I don’t remember Carl Spackler hitting the flowers at Bushwood Country Club, imagining himself winning the PGA.
3. The PGA is played on easier versions of U.S. Open courses. Hazeltine, Oakland Hills, Southern Hills, Medinah, Baltusrol, Oak Hill and Winged Foot have all hosted PGA Championships in the past 13 years and each of them have hosted a U.S. Open at some point.
4. It has oftentimes been the easiest major of the year. The Masters will occasionally produce a low score but the PGA has had Tiger shoot 18-under twice in the past 10 years, while David Toms shot 15-under in 2001, the lowest aggregate score (265) in a major.
5. It used to be a match play event. From 1916-1957 the PGA Championship was sometimes a 32-man field as well as a 128-man field in a bracket format to determine the champion. Since 1958 it has been a stroke play event, making it arguably a 52-year-old golf tournament. (That’s younger than Tom Watson.)
6. The last nine years of the tournament have produced winners like David Toms, Rich Beem, Shaun Micheel and Y.E. Yang, which with all due respect were not household names at the time of their win.
7. There have been great players that haven’t won it but it hasn’t hampered their careers at all. Tom Watson (who won eight majors), Arnold Palmer (seven), Bobby Jones (seven), Nick Faldo (six) and Seve Ballesteros (five) combined for zero PGA titles but are all in the Hall of Fame. But, on the other hand, one major has eluded the careers of Sam Snead, Lee Trevino, Byron Nelson and Raymond Floyd. Snead never won the U.S. Open, Trevino never won the Masters, and Nelson and Floyd never won the British Open.
8. It has lacked the indelible moments that the other three majors have produced. Who could forget Jack winning at age 46, Tiger destroying the field at 21 or Phil breaking through for his first major win at Augusta? Who could forget Watson’s chip-in on No. 17 at Pebble Beach, Francis Ouimet beating two Goliaths or Hogan’s win after a near-fatal car accident at the U.S. Open? Who could forget Watson and Nicklaus’ Duel in the Sun at Turnberry, Jean Van de Velde’s collapse at Carnoustie or Doug Sanders’ missed two-footer at St. Andrews in the British Open? What has the PGA given us – Sergio Garcia’s scissor-kick when he lost to Tiger?
9. Golf’s “fifth major”, the PLAYERS, may be just as big of a deal. It has been deeply associated with TPC Sawgrass, with the most recognizable par 3 in golf and it has just as good of a field as a major championship.
10. In 1953, the “Hogan Slam” was completed, giving “The Hawk” wins at the Masters, U.S. Open and British Open. The reason why he didn’t play in the PGA Championship – it overlapped the same week as the British Open.

And while all of these reasons provide evidence that the PGA Championship isn’t quite as big of a deal as the other three majors, it is still a leg of the Grand Slam, and still provides every golfer in the field one last shot for glory.

2010 PGA Championship Preview

On Thursday the season’s final major will tee off, giving the world’s best players one last chance for glory. Here are some prominent stories in the golfing world as the week begins at Whistling Straits:

• Tiger Woods just finished the worst four round performance of his career this past weekend, with a tied for 78th finish at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational (out of 80 players). The event didn’t have a cut, which gave Woods the chance to shoot four rounds over par in the tournament. At times on the weekend, he virtually gave up on some of the holes by taking no time between shots. What is even more ludicrous than his sheer performance this week, is how much he dominated this event in his prior visits. During his first 10 appearances at Firestone, his record was 7-3, with his worst finish being fourth. A 7-3 record at a golf tournament is ridiculous, given that he isn’t playing one-on-one with another player, instead he was beating the top 50 players in the world over that period.
• Believe it or not, there is still some good news for Tiger:

1. He is still the No. 1 player in the world.
2. He will start this week at even par.
3. Phil shot a 78 on Sunday. (Tiger shot a 77.)
4. He has performed his best at the majors this year, with two top five finishes and no missed cuts.
5. He has reached the absolute rock bottom. It can’t possibly get worse for him unless he shoots 80-80 or worse and misses the cut. So things should move in a positive direction for Tiger.

• Would you pick Tiger for the Ryder Cup team if he doesn’t make it by the point standings? At the moment Tiger is in 10th place in the U.S. Ryder Cup Rankings with this week being the last tournament before the team is set. The top eight make it automatically on the team but Corey Pavin will get two captain’s picks. If Tiger doesn’t earn a spot by points, I wouldn’t take him. Here’s why:

1. He obviously isn’t at the top of his game, or anywhere in the same atmosphere.
2. At the most recent Ryder Cup, in 2008, Tiger was out due to injury and the Americans won in decisive fashion. It may not have been because of him but in the previous three Ryder Cups, U.S.A. has lost, including two Euro beat downs.
3. He is more of an individual player than a team-oriented player.
4. His Ryder Cup record is 10-13-2. That doesn’t need any explaining.
5. He needs some time off from the game following the FedEx Cup (even though he might not make it past the first playoff event). Tiger must get his personal life back in order and spend some time away from it all, so we can all go back to seeing the Tiger that we are used to.

• On the topic of the Ryder Cup, here are some of my thoughts, from the U.S. point of view:

1. The Europeans have definitely had a successful year on the PGA Tour circuit. Five of the top 10 players in the world are from Europe, which is scary.
2. Hunter Mahan clinched a spot on the team with his impressive win at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational. I love this young gun’s game and he had a successful showing two years ago at Valhalla.
3. Phil is No. 1 in the rankings and he has had an up-and-down experience as a Ryder Cupper. He is playing very well this year, but having Tiger on the team could prove to be a distraction, like when they were paired together in 2004.
4. Jim Furyk and Steve Stricker (as well as Phil) will provide some of the veteran leadership on the team, which is always needed to succeed. But the rookies are also needed to complete the team. If the standings were to stand through next week, Jeff Overton and Matt Kuchar would make the team (and also Lucas Glover). You never know what to expect from these guys, and while Overton has had some high finishes this year, his hot head could get to him in the heat of competition.
5. The Euros have the homefield advantage this year at the new Celtic Manor Resort. It’s always a taller task to try to win on the opponent’s soil, especially when they will be angry about losing the previous Ryder Cup. I’m not sure how many Americans have seen the course but my guess is very few. More bad news: Graeme McDowell of Northern Ireland won there earlier this year with a 62, and his nerves are in check with a U.S. Open win at Pebble Beach.
6. Captain’s picks (given that the standings stay the same): Dustin Johnson is currently ninth in the standings and I love that his length could be a huge factor for the U.S. (similar to J.B. Holmes in ’08) but I don’t know how much the debacle at Pebble Beach will affect his mental game under Ryder Cup pressure. Ricky Barnes is another name I like. He has played well in major championships these past couple years and could prove to be trouble for the Euros. He is in 11th at the moment. Three more names that pop out at me are Sean O’Hair (15th), Rickie Fowler (17th) and Bubba Watson (18th). O’Hair has some great talent that could be vital for the Americans. Also Fowler is a young gun with no fear that would be a tough competitor. As for Watson, he absolutely bombs the ball and had a decent performance at Firestone. But whoever Corey Pavin chooses, here’s my advice: listen to Paul Azinger.

• Phil Mickelson had yet another chance to become the No. 1 player in the world slip away from him on the weekend, ballooning to a 78 on Sunday. He says that it isn’t a big deal to him but he is playing so good this year, that 78s aren’t normal. I think the reporters asking him about it at every tournament is getting to his head about how close he is to taking over Tiger’s spot. Despite this, I expect a solid performance from Lefty this week at Whistling Straits.
• Lee Westwood withdrew from the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational on Friday with an ankle injury and dropped out of this week’s PGA Championship. Arguably the best player without a major, Westwood had runner-up finishes at the Masters and British Open. I don’t know if he will heal in time for the Ryder Cup but he’ll have to wait until 2011 for another crack at a major.
• Anthony Kim made his return after a three-month absence from thumb surgery at Firestone last week. He had a disappointing tied for 76th finish but still beat Tiger. I think it will take Kim some time before he gets back to where he was when he left, but eventually (maybe at the Ryder Cup or FedEx Cup) he will get it back.
• 2010 has truly been the year of the 59. Twice in four weeks, players have shot 59. (Not to mention Ryo Ishikawa fired a 58 in Japan earlier this season.) Paul Goydos finished his gem at the John Deere Classic, in the first round, before falling to Steve Stricker, who shot an opening round 60. Then at the Greenbrier Classic, Stuart Appleby birdied his way to 11-under on Sunday to surge for a one-shot victory. Only five 59s have ever been recorded on the PGA Tour and two have been from this season. (The previous one was shot by David Duval in 1999.) I guess the new grooves aren’t bothering them that bad. But are these sub-60 rounds as well as other low scores bad for the game? I think it’s fun to watch players get in the zone and play well but I think 59s should be rare occurrences. Similar to the perfect game in baseball, it was a rare happening until this year which has made them less special. The PGA Tour is the major league of golf and the players should play in the most difficult setups, leading to higher scores. Congrats to Goydos and Appleby (and Ishikawa) but next year the Tour needs to take some lessons from the USGA.
• Last time the PGA Championship was at Whistling Straits was in 2004. A lot has changed since then, when Vijay Singh won in a playoff over Chris DiMarco and Justin Leonard. The PGA is supposed to be the easiest major of the year but 8-under won that year, which is no walk in the park. In this year’s edition, I expect the young guns to play well. I don’t think there is an absolute favorite heading into this week but I also like the Americans’ chances and a player that can hit the ball far. I’ll release my picks on Wednesday for the 92nd PGA Championship.

SportsCenter needs to reevaluate

I love ESPN. I love SportsCenter. I always have and probably always will. But I’m getting pretty tired of it at the moment. A few days ago an unnamed source heard that Brett Favre was planning on retiring. And what did ESPN do? They talked about Favre all day long for the rest of that day as well as the following day.

At least 80 percent of SportsCenter was devoted to Favre as opposed to highlights of professionals, and he didn’t even say anything! (Not that he is the most trustworthy person when it comes to this subject.) ESPN2 showed highlights of him throughout his career, giving people reminders of the good old days. When Alex Rodriguez hit his 600th home run the other day (although we had already gotten tired of waiting), ESPN wouldn’t even show a mere 30-second clip of a historic milestone; instead it was Favremania.

Vikings fans called into their local radio station saying their season and their chances of winning the Super Bowl were ruined. The betting odds in Vegas for the NFL champion had Minnesota go from NFC favorites on one day to only 10-1 odds. Attention everyone: They have other great players that got them to the NFC Championship last season, like Adrian Peterson and Jared Allen.

Even though ESPN has been making me impatient recently, some of the guys there get it that we are bored of hearing about football’s most famous ankle. I was watching The Scott Van Pelt Show on ESPN2 and after he briefly talked about Favre he admitted their network was going too far on the subject. There’s only so much coverage you can provide on nothing but a rumor.

Then Favre came out an said he hadn’t made a decision yet. Good job, ESPN, now you all look like idiots.

I understand that people want to hear about the superstars. When Tiger Woods hit a fire hydrant last fall, that’s all that SportsCenter covered. When George Steinbrenner passed away, same thing. When LeBron James’ contract had expired with the Cleveland Cavaliers, yet again it happened.

Although, there are only a handful of stars that can gain this much attention by doing something, depending on what they do. It’s only the really big names. If the starting quarterback for a mid-major team was charged for dogfighting or raping someone, they would mention it but not cover it until the program is over.

I speak for the people when I say that I can handle it to a point. It was breaking news at the time and a little information about it will suffice during the show, but don’t devote over 30 percent of SportsCenter to one man and a lot of speculation. Get SportsCenter back to what we all want to watch – highlights of the greatest athletes in the world, using their extraordinary talents.

Major League Baseball Thoughts

As the calendar turns to August, that means two more months of baseball before the playoffs begin. The pennant races are taking form and here are my thoughts on the baseball season up to this point:

• It has truly been the year of the pitcher. There have been five no-hitters, two of which were perfect games (as well as one that should’ve been). The leader in wins is Ubaldo Jimenez with 16 and the ERA leader is Josh Johnson with 1.96. The Cy Young Award is up for grabs in each league, and another pitcher I admire is Roy Halladay of the Phillies. And while I believe that Stephen Strasburg of the Nationals is an extremely talented player, I think it is too early after only nine games to say that he is the best pitcher in baseball.
• AL East – The two best teams in the majors wrapped up a three game series in which the Yankees came away with a one game lead over the Rays. This is no doubt the toughest division in baseball with the Red Sox looming six and a half games back. I think New York will win the division although the young Rays will take the wild card and be tough to beat down the stretch.
• AL Central - The White Sox and Twins are in a tight race with two months left. Chicago has a half game lead as of Sunday but injury-plaged Detroit cannot be counted out of the race at seven games back. Minnesota is on an eight game win streak and they are my choice to win the division thanks to Joe Mauer.
• AL West – The Texas Rangers have taken a stranglehold on the AL West with an eight game lead over the Angels and eight and a half over Oakland. The Angels will make a run late but Texas has too big of a lead to give it up now.
• NL East - As Bobby Cox finishes up his final season, his Braves have a two and a half game lead over defending NL champ Philadelphia. The Marlins and Mets are each six and a half back, making it possible for any of these teams to win it. I think the Phillies’ experience will be the difference coming down the stretch as they will take the division title.
• NL Central – This is a two-team chase between St. Louis (who currently leads by a half game) and Cincinnati. Obviously the Cardinals are more used to this situation so I’m picking them, but that doesn’t mean that the Reds won’t be pesky in August and September.
• NL West – The Padres, one of the surprise teams of the year, leads their division thanks to a strong bullpen by one and a half games over the Giants. The Rockies are seven back and the Dodgers are eight. I’ll go with San Diego to hold on and win the division and although the Giants have the current wild card lead, I think the Braves will earn it.
• In the American League playoffs, it will come down to the two AL East teams, New York and Tampa, to win the pennant. Each team has made it to the World Series in the past two years and I think the Yankees will take it yet again this year.
• In the National League playoffs, I like the Cardinals emerging victorious for a World Series matchup with the Yankees.
• In the World Series, the Yankees will defend their title and win their 28th championship for George Steinbrenner in five games over the Cardinals.

Thoughts on the British Open

Yesterday Louis Oosthuizen won the 139th British Open by seven shots. Here are my thoughts on the championship:

• First of all congratulations to Louis Oosthuizen. Nobody knew how to pronounce his last name and nobody gave him a chance on the weekend. But the South African displayed one of the greatest driving performances in championship history, winning by seven.
• Nelson Mandela celebrated his 92nd birthday yesterday as South Africa witnessed its newest major champion. This has been a memorable summer for their country, which just got done hosting the World Cup.
• Turning point in the championship: 12th hole, final round: Standing on the tee, Oosthuizen had a four-shot lead over Paul Casey. Oosthuizen made birdie and Casey made triple bogey, giving Louis an eight-shot lead.
• Shot of the tournament: Miguel Angel Jimenez was nestled up against the wall on the “Road Hole”, No. 17, when he played a bank shot off the wall.
• Oosthuizen was very entertaining in the press room and seemed very comfortable. He said that people call him Shrek because of the gap in his teeth. That must mean his caddie is Donkey.
• Lee Westwood is no doubt the best player without a major, finishing second in the Open. He has placed in the top-3 in each major at some point in the last three years.
• Rory McIlroy had an up and down week, but finished tied for third. His scores: 63-80-69-68 – nice consistency.
• Tiger Woods didn’t perform up to the level of his past two trips to St. Andrews, finishing tied for 23rd. He switched back to his old putter for the final round but found too many bunkers. A win looked promising after a first day 67 but the world’s No.1 will have to wait for his 15th major.
• Phil Mickelson played the way he always does in British Opens, finishing a disappointing week at 1-over par.
• Tom Watson didn’t repeat his inspiring performance of last year at Turnberry by missing the cut. But he did provide helpful insight for the ESPN telecast on the weekend.
• John Daly shot 66 on the first day on a course he won on in 1995 but faded for the last three rounds. He may have finished at 1-over but the bigger story was his ridiculous pants.
• Ian Poulter made some comments about the Americans not being as good as they used to and that the Europeans are the new power in golf. Here’s the scoreboard for the last six majors: USA 3, Europe 1. But if that’s not enough convincing, wait until the Ryder Cup in October.
• On day two, they had a delay for too much wind which was absolutely idiotic. It’s a major championship and if you want to win, you have to play in tough conditions. I played high school golf in Nebraska and in one tournament we had, 50 mile per hour winds were present throughout the round, with gusts of 60. We didn’t get a suspension of play and yet the world’s best players were complaining about 35 miles per hour.
• The “Road Hole” played unbelievably difficult for the best players in the world. The 495-yard par four, lengthened by 30 yards from ’05 played more than 0.5 over par for the field.
• No. 18 was a feast for the long hitters, when each day the hole was driveable. I thought it was a good idea for the R&A to give players a chance to end the round with a birdie or eagle. It could’ve set up for a dramatic finish had the scoring been closer.
• ESPN covered all four rounds, which was the first time I had seen a cable channel cover a major. I think this is the only golf tournament that ESPN covers the weekend for on the PGA Tour and they did a decent job. The graphics were interesting, with the putting line they used occasionally with a line directly where the ball needed to go. I loved the Ball Track (more well-known as the ProTracer) they used (primarily on No. 17) showing the ball flight. But unlike other networks, they showed the ball coming down from a different view (coming towards the hole) and that was fun to see.
• ESPN switched who was talking so much that it was confusing knowing who was talking. Mike Tirico was the main play-by-play with Paul Azinger, who irritated me when he carelessly mispronounced the leader’s name and constantly gave him no chance to win. They occasionally switched to a Scottish man, who provided play-by-play for too long. ESPN also had Terry Gannon with Tom Watson and I’m glad that they had Watson helping with the coverage. He had been out on the course for two days and knew things about the course that the guys in the booth did not. I got tired of listening to Curtis Strange and Andy North talk about when they played back in the day because no one really cares. I do, however, like Scott Van Pelt and his line “useful shot” as well as the fact that they added Rocco Mediate to the telecast because he is entertaining to listen to. But all in all, give us back Johnny Miller and Jim Nantz.
• It may be a little early to be talking about the player of the year but I think up to this point, people can argue the case for Phil Mickelson, Graeme McDowell, Justin Rose, Lee Westwood and my pick, Ernie Els. If Oosthuizen, McDowell or Mickelson wins the PGA Championship next month I think they are nearly a shoo-in for player of the year, unless something crazy happens.

2010 British Open Predictions

Tomorrow the 139th Open Championship will tee off as it returns to the home of golf, St. Andrews. Tiger Woods will look to get his swagger back on a course that he has dominated like no other as a slew of great players look to add their name to the Claret Jug. Here are my predictions for the third major of the year:

Champion Golfer of the Year: Tiger Woods – Despite his recent struggles and his switch to a new putter, there is something mystical about him and the Old Course.

Contenders: Lee Westwood – After a disappointing U.S. Open, I look for the Englishman to lead a European charge on this championship.

Rory McIlroy – I still can’t forget about the Irishman’s 62 in the final round of the Quail Hollow Championship. I think that will give him confidence this week for his best major finish.

Ian Poulter – Another great golfer (with great pants) has home field advantage and proves himself time and time again in the majors.

Ernie Els – He’s my choice for player of the year up to this point and the South African will continue his stellar year at St. Andrews.

Tom Watson – I can’t go without considering the 60-year-old a contender, especially after one of the most inspirational performances in golf history at last year’s British Open.

Phil Mickelson – Once again Lefty has a chance to take over Tiger’s No. 1 World Ranking and while that might not be the first thing on his mind, St. Andrews fits his game the best of all the British Open courses.

Darkhorse: Justin Rose – He’s arguably the hottest player on the planet right now with two victories in his last three starts (and a 54-hole lead in the other) as he enters the biggest tournament of the year.

Others to watch: Padraig Harrington – The Irishman knows how to win in bad weather, a factor that will be present this week.

Graeme McDowell – How will the U.S. Open champ react in the first major since his breakthrough win?

Ricky Barnes – His name keeps showing up on leaderboards and although his swing is quirky, he is one of the best young players on tour.

Of note: The last two third round leaders of the Open have had an average age of 56. Tom Watson held it last year at 59 and Greg Norman the year before at 53.

Is Tiger back?

This week the British Open returns to the hallowed grounds of St. Andrews, a place where Tiger Woods has won in dominating fashion the previous two times its been held here. In 2000, on his way to the “Tiger Slam”, he won by eight shots; and more recently, in 2005, he won by five shots.

It seems that this venue has a bond with the best players in the history of the game. But as Tiger tees it up on Thursday for the 139th British Open, the Old Course at St. Andrews will be playing host to an entirely different Tiger.

First of all, Tiger has switched putters this week. The Scotty Cameron putter that he has used to win 13 majors with since 1999 will be out of the bag for a Nike putter. He said that this heavier putter will help him on the slow greens at St. Andrews, ones he claims to have trouble with the speed on.

Nevertheless, the Nike putter has grooves on it that will most likely help Tiger roll the ball better this week. It will be interesting seeing Tiger putt this week, to say the least. Whether or not he chooses to stay with this one or go back to his trusty Scotty Cameron after the Open is still up in the air.

Other changes since last time he played at St. Andrews, where do we start?

His personal life seems to still be in his head while battling on the golf course. It must be incredibly difficult to deal with the media day-after-day as well as trying to stay focused on his round.

The problems in his neck seem to be no problem up to this point following his early exit at the PLAYERS. He also is without a swing coach. Hank Haney resigned two months ago, so Tiger is having to teach himself how to properly swing the club. On top of that there has been speculation about his relationship with caddie Stevie Williams following a poor fourth round at the U.S. Open. If Williams left him, that might be the final domino in a terrible tragedy.

But despite all this negativity, Tiger could win his 15th major this week and reclaim himself as the best player in the world. Then all this speculation would end about whether he is back or not. Up to this point, is he back?

If you look at strictly major results in 2010 compared to last year, he has fared better. This year at the Masters, he finished tied for fourth. Last year he was tied for sixth. In the U.S. Open, he tied for fourth again. And in ’09 tied for sixth again. You know where this is heading: he missed the cut at last year’s British Open at Turnberry therefore making it impossible for his year to be worse in terms of majors this year compared to last, no matter how bad he plays at the British.

As for the non-majors that has been a different story. Last year to this point, Tiger had won three tournaments, with top-10s in the rest of his stroke play starts. This year his best finish has been a tie for 19th at the Memorial, but his year has been overshadowed by a missed cut at Quail Hollow and a withdrawal at the PLAYERS.

So depending on which way you look at it, Tiger is better or worse than he was in ’09. I know that he judges himself solely on major championships, which is why this year hasn’t been a total disaster. With that said, the only two rounds where I’ve seen the Tiger of old was his first round back after the fire hydrant incident (a 68 in the first round of the Masters) and his third round at the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach (a 66 with a thrilling back nine highlighted by his electric 3-wood to the 18th green).

All this talk of him not being as good as he used to be could all go away with a victory at St. Andrews this week, an accomplishment that isn’t too inconceivable.