Decade’s most memorable majors, take two
Closing out what I consider to be the top ten most memorable majors from the 2000s.
Happy New Year, everyone!
5. 2006 U.S. Open (Winged Foot)
“I am such an idiot,” Phil Mickelson lamented afterwards, and he isn’t going to get much of an argument from us. Just when it seemed Geoff Ogilvy, with a little help from Colin Montgomerie, had gift-wrapped Lefty a major at Winged Foot, Mickelson, needing just a par to win and bogey to get into a playoff as he stood on the 18th tee, brainlessly pulled a driver out of his bag and hit a shot so far left that it looked like it would land in Connecticut. Following a few minutes that were just painful to watch, it was over. The news wasn’t all bad, however – Mickelson may have given away his own national championship, but this was the day he finally made Geoff Ogilvy’s Christmas card list.
4. 2005 Masters (Augusta National)
For pure Sunday afternoon entertainment value, this one will be tough to beat. Chris DiMarco hunted down Tiger all afternoon long and while Tiger’s miraculous chip on 16 will go down in the annals of Masters history, what most forget is that DiMarco jarred a 10-foot knee-knocker on the final hole to force a playoff, before bowing out on the first extra hole when Woods sank a 15-footer.
3. 2008 U.S. Open (Torrey Pines)
You know that saying “I can beat you with one arm tied behind my back?” Well, Tiger threw down the gauntlet to Rocco at Torrey Pines, except it was with one leg virtually useless. We’re probably the only ones on the planet that don’t have one-legged Tiger’s memorable performance on the top of their lists, but really, with all due respect to Mediate, it wasn’t exactly Mickelson Woods beat on one stilt. When he does that, give us a call and we’ll gladly move the ’08 Open a notch or two up the ladder.
2. 2009 Open Championship (Turnberry)
If Tom Watson didn’t have you sitting on the edge of your seat as he withstood Father Time, making those hairs stand up on the back of your neck, you may want to check your pulse. Nice guy Stewart Cink became the most hated man in golf shortly after knocking off Watson in a playoff. Well, for a few minutes anyway.
1. 2004 Masters (Augusta National)
That victory leap by Mickelson is etched in our minds forever. Not only did Lefty defy the laws of gravity and get that airborne but presumably did it without ripping out a hole in his crotch. OK, in all seriousness, Mickelson’s career may not have been defined by that tricky downhill, right-to-left birdie putt on the 72nd hole of Augusts National, but it’s pretty darned close.
Decade’s most memorable majors, take one
Looking back at what I consider the ten best majors of the decade, running down #10 through #6 today and closing out with the final five on New Years Eve.
Drum roll, please…
10. 2000 US Open (Pebble Beach)
This was memorable in many ways, not the least of which was the emotional tributes paid to the late Payne Stewart, who had passed away suddenly the previous autumn. The tournament itself was pretty much over by Friday night as Tiger built a six-shot lead at the halfway pole and ended up 15 shots clear of the field. Not only was he the only player under par, but Woods was 12 strokes in the red in one of the most dominating major performances ever.
9. 2009 Masters (Augusta National)
OK, so the much-anticipated Tiger-Lefty pairing didn’t materialize as the final group on Sunday, but the two dazzled early in the final round, with Lefty making an unlikely charge with a blistering 30 on Augusta’s front nine. But the day won’t be remembered for Tiger, Phil or even eventual champ Angel Cabrera, but for Kenny Perry’s late-afternoon bogey-bogey finish and Chad Campbell’s miss in the playoff on what was pretty darn close to a gimme. Well, four feet anyway - and when you miss a four-foot putt in a playoff at a major, you’re going under the microscope.
8. 2009 PGA Championship (Hazeltine)
Yeah, we know, there were other tournaments in this decade, but we’re going back-to-back in ’09 because, well, that final round was the day Y.E. Yang proved to the world that Tiger is indeed mortal. And we’re thankful because we never again have to hear that Woods has never lost a major when taking the lead into the final round.
7. 2001 Masters (Augusta National)
Tiger and David Duval – yes, that David Duval and yes, it was that long ago – battled on Sunday at Augusta, with Woods prevailing by two. Oh, and this also marked the final piece of the original Tiger Slam, another phrase we could do without.
6. 2007 Open Championship (Carnoustie)
Padraig Harrington looked to hand Garcia his first major with a double-bogey on the closing hole but, then again, this is Sergio we are talking about. El Nino couldn’t can a 10-footer for par and lost the four-hole playoff. Sergio and another choke job in a major. Surprise, surprise.
Tiger owes us nothing
Contrary to what some think, Tiger Woods owes us nothing.
As could almost be expected as the vultures continue to circle, some in the media are now calling out Woods to come clean in public, as if it is his duty to air his dirty laundry in the papers. As if it is our business.
Gee, seems to me an awful lot of people need to get a life.
For the record, I wasn’t Tiger’s biggest fan even before this whole thing blew up. But as a fan of the game, I appreciate just how dominating the guy is and realize I will probably never see another like him in my life. We are witnessing greatness in the prime of his career. Who – or how many - he is sleeping with doesn’t change that.
Yes, he made some extremely bad decisions in his personal life. I get it. I can also assure you, when you see Tiger’s name in the record books, there won’t be an asterisk.
But I digress. Tiger does owe us something – to get back out there and tee it up again. When talking Eldrick, that is all that matters. Golf, and his place among the legends.
If there was a golf story in this entire mess, it came last week when Woods announced he was walking away from the PGA Tour for a while. Yet, if you visit some of the most well-known golf sites around, you’ll see more smut than actual golf talk.
It’s time Tiger made this a golf story again. On the course.
Tiger should do this his way, on his terms. It’s no one else’s business.
Those who think it is need to find something else to do with their time.
All I want for Christmas…
Taking a look at what Santa may or may not be leaving under the trees of a few from the golf world later this week:
SERGIO GARCIA – True love and a major title. Hey Kringle, quit laughing. How ‘bout just the true love?
PHIL MICKELSON: Successful cancer treatment for his wife and mother, and the number-one ranking in the world. Well, temporarily anyway.
MIKE WEIR: A return to the winner’s circle in 2010, making him the all-time winningest Canadian on the PGA Tour.
NATALIE GULBIS – My phone number. And an explanation to my wife it is just a business call. Honest.
RICK JANES AND THE CANADIAN TOUR – A gift from the PGA Tour – promotion to the Nationwide Tour for its top performers in 2010.
CHARLES WARREN AND BEN CRANE - Subscriptions to Life and Style magazine. OK, maybe not.
MICHELLE WIE – Complete LPGA domination in 2010.
TOM WATSON – One more magical week.
MICHAEL WHAN – A clean slate and the ability to clean up the mess created by Carolyn Bivens.
FBR OPEN – An extended last call.
ROBERT ALLENBY – ANTHONY KIM – Boxing gloves and a pay-per-view.
SEVE BALLESTEROS – A clean bill of health.
DAVID FEHERTY – With Tiger gone for a little while, someone else to step in and play his juvenile breaking wind game. And the ability to think before he opens his mouth.
BILL PAUL AND SCOTT SIMMONS - Somehow, a better date for the RBC Canadian Open and a little cooperation from Mother Nature next summer.
CAMILO VILLEGAS – A lighter schedule. Oh, and a box of Kleenex.
THE FED EX CUP PLAYOFFS – Is extinction too much to ask for?
BEATRIZ RICARI – International stardom and a whole lot of air time. Not for her. For us.
JOHN DALY – Darker colours.
HENRIK STENSON – Darker colours. And a shirt.
TIGER WOODS – Geez, where do we start?
Mickelson set to take torch
No, just because you’ll see his name in the first dozen words, this isn’t about Tiger. Honestly.
Well, sort of.
It’s about the man whose fortunes are sure to change thanks to the immense misfortune of another.
Phil Mickelson, take a bow. At last, in the most unlikely of ways, Lefty has the upper-hand in this battle of an era.
Granted, this isn’t Jack vs. Arnie, Magic vs. Bird, Gretzky vs. Lemieux. For the most part, this battle has been too one-sided to be called a true rivalry, but it is as close as we’ve got these days.
It seems just a matter of time before Mickelson takes over top perch in the world rankings, not as much for anything he will do on the course rather than what the other guy won’t be doing. The stay at the top will likely be very temporary – as in just a few weeks after you-know-who returns – but a changing of the guard seems inevitable.
Lefty has been dubbed The People’s Champion, which is a nice way of saying he is second-best. If you are a fan of Tiger’s, you probably despise Mickelson. Should you root for Lefty, you’re hoping Woods hits it into the trees off the tee. Mickelson’s fan club grew this past season when it was revealed his wife, and later his mother, were both diagnosed with breast cancer.
Given the events that have captured the headlines since U.S. turkey day, it’s safe to say Mickelson’s bandwagon is overflowing right about now. That isn’t about to change anytime soon.
As the 2009 season faded to black, many were already looking forward to the new year when Mickelson took a serious run at Woods.
It’s just that none of us could have imagined it would happen this way.
Leaving isn’t going to make story go away for Tiger
Really, this was never about golf.
Well, until Friday night.
Now, as much as they don’t want to admit it, the PGA Tour, along with the rest of the planet, is about to realize what life going to be like post-Tiger.
And it’s not going to be pretty. TV ratings are sure to nosedive, sponsors are likely to think twice before re-upping until it is known, for a fact, how long the striped one is going to be gone. It may be a month, six months, a year, forever. Who really knows? This isn’t like waiting for Tiger to return for knee surgery; this time around, there is much more uncertainty.
But the tour’s well-being is the least of Tiger’s concerns, as it should be. Golf, the chase for Nicklaus’ major record, the endorsements, all of it is on the back burner right now – and who would have thought we would ever be saying that when it comes to Woods? – as the world’s best tries to repair a marriage, a career, an image. And that is why this chapter of the drama is now, at last, a golf story. Tiger may not be bigger than the game, but he’s pretty darn close.
That said, if Tiger and his handlers wanted this thing to go away sooner rather than later, the decision should have been not to walk away, but continue playing. And play more. Win, and win big. From a pure golf standpoint, taking a hiatus isn’t going to make all this garbage disappear.
Seeing how he probably wasn’t going to play until late January anyway, Tiger would have had a month and a half to start mending his personal life, behind closed doors, without the cameras and microphones. None of that is anyone else’s business.
And then it could be back to work, back to doing what he does best.
Back to doing the talking with his clubs.
Winning a tournament by ten shots – particularly with Elin and the kids at his side, which you can bet will be the case for at least the first few weeks after his return – will attract the attention back to where it should be: Tiger’s precision between the first tee box and the 18th hole.
I, and no doubt most golf fans, really don’t give a damn who Tiger has been meeting behind the clubhouse, so to speak. Hey, I’m sure the guy trying to pick up the Hooters girl inside the nightclub doesn’t wonder if she can hit it 340 off the tee, either.
Tiger Woods is a golfer. That’s about the extent of it. Sure, the best the world will probably ever see, but a golfer nonetheless. And last we checked, being a cheater, being a jerk, is not a crime.
Tiger has always prided himself on being a family man, an image that is surely taking a hit these days. He is going to do this on his terms, but perhaps the only way to take the focus off his family, off his kids, is to get back to dominating the sport like very few, if any, before him.
Only then will the attention be back where it should be.
In order for this story, this trash, to go away, people need to start talking about what really matters when it comes to Tiger. If you need further proof, just ask Kobe Bryant.
Once Tiger starts winning again – and he will - all this other garbage will go away.
Crane, Warren offer a take on Tiger…well, maybe
It’s funny what passes for news these days.
Sometimes, it isn’t news at all. No, sometimes, it could be just made up.
According to Life & Style Magazine – further proof that everyone this side of National Geographic is on the Tiger bandwagon these days – Ben Crane told their reporter that Woods is a “phony and a fake.” The rag also says Charles Warren says Tiger’s wife “had stars in her eyes and maybe dollar signs too.”
The first question, of course, is who really cares what Ben Crane or Charles Warren thinks? Give me Lefty or Sergio, I’ll call it a scandal.
That said, Crane and Warren are not amused, so they could be looking at some dollar signs as well, courtesy Life & Style.
“This is unbelievable,” Crane told AP. “I never said a word about anything. They print this and put my name next to it.”
From the magazine:
“We sent an experienced freelance reporter to a golf tournament attended by several PGA pros,” the magazine said in a statement. “Our reporter spoke with two golfers who presented themselves as Ben Crane and Charles Warren. We are taking these claims very seriously and investigating further.”
Experienced, perhaps. Golf savvy? Not quite. We’re guessing the reporter in question has covered their last golf assignment.
Hmmmm. Interesting to note, seeing how Crane finished 51st on the money list, which is to say if he was at Q-School, his GPS system wasn’t working. He was lost.
If magazines and websites are going to put a rival player’s name on a piece slamming arguably the best golfer ever, they might want to make sure they’ve got the right guy.
Or, more importantly, the right quote.
DeLaet, Baryla ready to take the torch
For the second time in the past few years, thanks to the Canadian and Nationwide Tours, there will once again be a Canadian youth movement on the PGA Tour.
And like Jon Mills and David Hearn before them, the 2010 rookie season will likely be a long, at times painful learning curve for Graham DeLaet and Chris Baryla.
Nothing like raining on the parade before Baryla and DeLaet have marched their first steps to the PGA Tour beat, huh?
That said, it would be wise to bet against either of them.
There’s no doubt both have the game to stick around the PGA Tour. If you’ve ever seen either hit a golf ball, that much is obvious. But now, the stakes are raised.
Mills, who has been to the dance twice, and Hearn couldn’t keep their PGA Tour cards and are working to get back. That is the challenge facing both Baryla and DeLaet: to make this stay more than a one-and-out.
It will be easier said than done. Whoever said getting there is half the battle hasn’t checked out the starting field at a PGA Tour event.
Eventually, a player or two is going to have to take the torch from Mike Weir and Stephen Ames. So, to the two newest members of the PGA Tour, in the words of Simon and Garfunkel, “a nation turns its lonely eyes to you.” Coo, coo, ca-choo.
No one should be expecting a Masters championship from either Baryla or DeLaet in the near future, but managing to hold on to playing status following their freshman seasons would have to be seen as a major accomplishment. Don’t forget, this is unfamiliar territory for both. Sure, there have been RBC Canadian Open exemptions – in fact, Baryla was eighth, DeLaet 46th, at Canada’s national championship this past summer – but they will be playing courses they’ve never seen before, at the same time contending with the best players on the planet.
But this is the chance both have waited for. And don’t be mistaken: both could have extended stays on the PGA Tour. Like Mills and Hearn, these two are studs, and have been since their amateur days.
Now they’re where many thought they would be. The trick is to make it a lengthy stay.
Canadians, for the most part, have wondered when the youngsters were going to break through and get to the PGA Tour.
Now, at least for the time being, we have our answer.
And don’t be surprised if both DeLaet and Baryla stick around for awhile.
J.P. Hayes may get what’s coming to him
If the big course marshal in the sky is paying attention at all, J.P. Hayes will get what is coming to him sometime Monday.
This game played by gentlemen and built around honesty and integrity needs a guy like Hayes back on the PGA Tour. He’s paid his dues, so to speak.
To refresh your memory, a year has passed since Hayes penalized himself for playing a non-conforming ball for one hole during second stage of PGA Tour Q-School. At the time, it seemed like no big deal. Two-stroke penalty, still finish high enough to move on to finals. Pretty simple math, right?
Well, almost.
Going through his bag that night, Hayes realized the ball in question was a Titleist prototype and not even approved for tour play. But hey, he’s alone, no one else knows and this is a career we are talking about, right?
So, with potentially millions of dollars on the line, Hayes did what he knew was right. He picked up the phone, blew the whistle on himself and, in the process, got disqualified, leaving him essentially without a place to play full-time in 2009. Hayes said anyone else would have done the same thing. So, we know JP is as honest as they come. And a little naïve.
Pro golfers, for the most part, take this honesty thing quite seriously. Remember what Bobby Jones once uttered when he called a penalty on himself that no one saw, or would ever have noticed:
“You might as well praise a man for not robbing a bank,” said Jones.
Hayes, who held limited status in the Past Champion category, still got into 15 events on the PGA Tour this year, five via unsolicited sponsor’s exemptions, but made just six cuts.
So he’s back at Q-School. And so far, he’s played a correct ball.
If there is any justice for honesty – well, as much justice as there can be playing a game for millions each week – then J.P. Hayes will once again be a full-fledged member on tour Monday.
Anything else just doesn’t seem fair.
Tiger’s legacy tarnished? Not a chance…
No matter how much your personal opinion of him may have changed over the past week or so, Tiger Woods is right about one thing.
None of this is our business.
I shied away from even offering an opinion on this entire Tiger-gate thing, mainly because, much like a belly button, everyone seems to have one. But really, while this may be news – and we use that term very loosely – it is certainly not the camp-outside-the-door-trying-to-get-a-quote material that these cheesy gossip rags are making it out to be.
Maybe Tiger got a little too cozy with a few ladies he shouldn’t have. That may make him a lot of things, but it changes nothing when it comes to his standing as the best golfer on the planet. The most oft-used phrase in the past few days as it relates to Tiger seems to be that his “legacy is tarnished.”
The heck it is.
This isn’t some Barry Bonds fiasco. If any of this turns out to be true, Woods may have cheated, but it wasn’t in some stick-a-needle-in-the-butt-to-hit-it-350-off-the-tee manner. Of course, in a moral scale, his cheating is likely worse than Bonds, Clemens, Giambi or any other baseball player named in the Mitchell Report. But on a professional scale, it’s not even close.
Woods’ legacy is not tarnished. His reputation will not be as fortunate.
Gossip magazines and websites, many of whom have never posted a picture of Woods in their pages, are now looking to scoop everyone else, all in the name of beating the other ones to the punch. It’s just the age in which we live.
The fact is Tiger doesn’t owe it to anyone – not his friends, not his fans, certainly not the media – to tell his story. The bimbos looking to get their 15 minutes of fame are telling it for him. The world shouldn’t hold its breath for a David Letterman-esque apology because there won’t be one coming. About the closest thing you’ll get to a confession is on Tiger’s website right now. As for the details, you’ll hear about them, but not from his mouth.
Right now, Tiger is doing the right thing, trying to repair his marriage behind closed doors, in the privacy of his home, for his wife and his children.
Tiger Woods may be a player (and by that we don’t mean the golf sense), a cheater, a liar, a dog. But he is known for being arguably the best golfer that ever lived. Until he tests positive for drugs, bets on golf or cheats on his scorecard, it really does nothing to tarnish his legacy as a golfer.
Even if these allegations are ever proven, the record books will not have an asterisk beside his name for being a jerk.
Fairways Web Editor Marty Henwood spent more than six years as the Media Relations Director with the Canadian Tour and has been involved in sports journalism for more than a decade, including stints in newspaper, radio, new media and media relations. He will offer his unique take on the world of golf, with nothing and no one off limits.