Tiger honored at being Presidents Cup pick

VERONA, N.Y. (AP) — Tiger Woods is honored to be a captain's pick for the Presidents Cup and believes he merited the selection. The former No. 1 player was at a charity event hosted by his college roommate Wednesday when he nodded yes after being asked if he thought he deserved the selection a week ago by U.S. captain Fred Couples. "I haven't played. Fred iterated that he wanted me on the Presidents Cup team and he wanted me to play," Woods said before teeing off at Notay Begay III's tournament. "He's the captain. It's his prerogative of who he picks. They wanted me on the team and I'm honored to be a part of the team. It's a wonderful mix of younger guys and older veterans. I also wanted to play and go ahead and test what I've been working on." Woods has been out of golf for much of the summer, missing two majors. He has played only eight PGA Tour events this year because of injuries to his left knee and Achilles tendon. Couples said he wanted Woods to play more before the Australian Open in November, a week before the Presidents Cup in Melbourne, and he's scheduled to play the Frys.com Open in California the first week of October. It will be his first time competing in the PGA Tour's Fall Series as he tries to get his game ready for the Presidents Cup. The Frys.com Open is Oct. 6-9 at CordeValle Golf Club, about 45 minutes south of his alma mater, Stanford. Woods went four months without completing a tournament - from the Masters in April to the Bridgestone Invitational in August - so he could make sure his injuries were fully healed. He played at Firestone and said that his leg felt as good as it had in a long time, but his results have raised questions about his game. He tied for 37th at Firestone, then missed the cut at the PGA Championship, the first time he finished outside the top 100 at a major. When he plays the Frys.com Open, it will be his first event in six weeks. "I've been hurt the majority of the year and haven't quite gotten to be able to (get) the reps that I need to do what (swing coach) Sean (Foley) wants me to do," Woods said. "We were right on track at Augusta, but unfortunately I got hurt there and then it was a huge setback. We're just trying to get back to where I was at Augusta, and it's coming around. I just need more reps."

Johnson beats the rain and the field at Barclays

EDISON, N.J. (AP) — The way Dustin Johnson began the final round of The Barclays, he figured the only thing that could keep him from winning was the rain. Needing a good start, he opened with back-to-back birdies. In a bunker for the first time all week, he holed the 85-foot shot for eagle on No. 4 to take the lead. Even a wild tee shot on the par-5 fifth landed in trampled grass with a clear shot at the green. And then it started raining. Hard. The Barclays, already reduced to 54 holes because of Hurricane Irene, would have reverted to a 36-hole tournament if the rain arrived early and kept the third round Saturday from finishing, making Matt Kuchar the winner. "The way I got started, I was hoping that we were going to keep on playing," Johnson said. The rain stopped. Johnson kept right on going. He shot 29 on the front nine for the second straight day - he played the front in 17-under par for the week - to close with a 6-under 65 and win the opening FedEx Cup playoff event by two shots over Kuchar. Johnson didn't take the lead for good until Kuchar, who won The Barclays a year ago on a different course, three-putted from long range just off the green on consecutive holes on the back nine to make bogeys. He closed with a 68. "I had the two basic three-putts and for me, that seems just very uncharacteristic," Kuchar said. "I felt like I was just giving shots away." Johnson, who moved to No. 4 in the world, finished at 19-under 194 for his first win of the year and fifth of his career. He became the first player since Tiger Woods to go straight from college and win in each of his first four years on the PGA Tour. When the season began in Kapalua, Johnson was asked what players should expect from Woods in 2011. Johnson replied that he hoped to see Woods play well, but that it "doesn't bother me. I'm still going to win." Johnson just didn't think it would take him until the first playoff event to hoist a trophy. "I was never concerned - more frustrated than anything," he said. "Because I felt like I played some really good golf this year, just have not been able to quite get it done. And it wasn't that my golf game was bad. Just the putts I needed to make, I just had not been able to make them. And this week, I didn't do anything crazy with the putter. I just made the ones I was supposed to." He became the first player since Phil Mickelson to win two 54-hole events. Mickelson won the rain-shortened BellSouth Classic in 2000 and 2005. Johnson previously won the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am in 2009 when the final round Sunday was washed out. This one was different. Johnson knew Saturday was the final round, and he could only hope the round would be completed. "We got lucky," he said. "The weather held up for us long enough." Johnson wasn't the only big winner on Saturday. Ian Poulter birdied four of his last five holes for a 64, making him one of eight players who moved inside the top 100 in the FedEx Cup standings and advance to the second playoff event next week outside Boston. William McGirt, the last of the 125 players who qualified for the playoffs, birdied the 17th hole that pushed him to No. 96. Padraig Harrington went from No. 124 to No. 80 with his tie for 13th. And then there was Ernie Els. He would have been eliminated had the tournament been cut short to 36 holes. Els had a 67 to from 118th in the standings to No. 99. "You're trying to survive. It's desperation," Els said. "It's sadistic. In a way it's fun, if you're into that (stuff)." Johnson goes atop the FedEx Cup standings as the four-tournament race begins for the $10 million prize. The course was so soft and vulnerable to low scoring that Brandt Snedeker made an early run at 59 when he birdied his opening five holes and went out in 29. He was slowed by a bogey on the 14th and wound up with a 61 to tie for third with Vijay Singh, who had a 68. Kuchar and Johnson, however, separated themselves quickly with a riveting front nine. Johnson opened with back-to-back birdies to briefly take the lead, and then the fun began. Kuchar birdied the par-3 third for a two-shot swing when Johnson missed the green. Johnson responded with a two-shot swing of his own by driving into the bunker on the 328-yard fourth and holing out for eagle, while Kuchar had to scramble for par. They matched birdies on the fifth, seventh and ninth greens, and that's where Johnson showed that extra work on his putter was paying off. He holed a 25-foot birdie on the seventh when Kuchar already was in tight, then a tricky 12-foot putt on the ninth after Kuchar had laid back and spun his approach into 4 feet. Kuchar caught Johnson with a 15-foot birdie on the 11th, but it unraveled after that. Kuchar decided to lay up on the par-5 12th - Johnson was in the rough and had no choice - figuring that his wedge game would lead to birdie. But he was on a slope in between wedge, an awkward shot to a tough pin, and his shot landed in the middle and spun back off the green. He rolled his putt some 6 feet past the hole and missed the next one for bogey to fall one shot behind. On the next hole, Kuchar again had a length putt from just off the green and rammed them past the hole and off the green on the other side to make another bogey. Just like that, he was two shots behind. Against Johnson, it was hard to make that up. "Sunday tendencies are to come up a little short, and I gave it a little extra," Kuchar said. "Very frustrating because I feel like that's the strong part of my game." Crews had removed the scoreboards before the last round because of the approaching hurricane, although it didn't matter to the guys trying to win the tournament. They knew were they stood. It was farther down the list, where players were trying to get into the top 100 to keep chasing the $10 million FedEx Cup, where it mattered. McGirt had some help from his wife, who was in the gallery. From the 17th fairway, she flashed "101" with her fingers, to indicate where he was projected to finish in the standings. He pulled 7-iron and produced the "best swing I made all week, bar none" to 5 feet for birdie. Now he gets to go through this roller coast again next week at the Deutsche Bank Championship. "Heck yeah, man," McGirt said. "It's the playoffs."

Wie tied for lead in Canadian Women's Open

MIRABEL, Quebec (AP) — Defending champion Michelle Wie shot a 4-under 68 on Saturday in the Canadian Women's Open for a share of the third-round lead with Ai Miyazato and Tiffany Joh. The winner last year at St. Charles in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Wie is trying to become the first player to win the national championship two years in a row since Pat Bradley in 1985-86. Joh had a 65, and Miyazato shot a 71 to match Wie at 12-under 204 at Hillsdale Golf Club. Angela Stanford (66) and Brittany Lincicome (69) were a stroke back, and Cristie Kerr (69), Jiyai Shin (69), Na Yeon Choi (69), Becky Morgan (70) and Song-Hee Kim (71) followed at 10 under. There was some doubt that the final round can be completed before Hurricane Irene hits the area Sunday. "It's something everyone's going to play under," Wie said. "I'm kind of expecting the worst. But whether conditions are good or bad you still have to play well and there are still players to beat and things you have to do. I don't think it really makes that much difference." In a bid to beat the storm, starting times were moved up 90 minutes to 7 a.m., the players were grouped in threesomes instead of twosomes and will go off both the first and 10th tees. If the fourth round can't be completed, a three-way playoff will be held among the 54-hole leaders. "It's a pretty quick turnaround, but I kind of like it," Wie said. "It gives me less time to think about things." Joh had the best round of the day. "It's really exciting for me because coming into this year I had conditional status and I didn't even know how many events I was going to play," Joh said. "Just having a chance to contend at one, that's what dreams are made of. I just really excited. I'm going in with no expectations because I've never been in this position anywhere. Whoever I'm paired with, I'm sure I'm going to learn loads from them." Miyazato is ready for anything. "Either way, we need to finish the tournament," she said. "So I'll just try to play my style of golf no matter what happens. I grew up in an area that was windy, so I actually like playing in windy conditions, but if it rains it will definitely be difficult. But because I'm used to those situations, I don't think there will be any problem keeping my tempo." Maude-Aimee Leblanc was the low Canadian at 8 under after a 67. "Coming into the tournament, I liked the way I was playing and hitting the ball, so I felt I had as good a chance as anyone," said Leblanc, from Sherbrooke. Jocelyne Bourassa (1973 La Canadienne) is the only Canadian to win an LPGA Tour event in Canada.

Johnson beats the rain and the field at Barclays

EDISON, N.J. (AP) — The way Dustin Johnson began the final round of The Barclays, he figured the only thing that could keep him from winning was the rain. Needing a good start, he opened with back-to-back birdies. In a bunker for the first time all week, he holed the 85-foot shot for eagle on No. 4 to take the lead. Even a wild tee shot on the par-5 fifth landed in trampled grass with a clear shot at the green. And then it started raining. Hard. The Barclays, already reduced to 54 holes because of Hurricane Irene, would have reverted to a 36-hole tournament if the rain arrived early and kept the third round Saturday from finishing, making Matt Kuchar the winner. "The way I got started, I was hoping that we were going to keep on playing," Johnson said. The rain stopped. Johnson kept right on going. He shot 29 on the front nine for the second straight day - he played the front in 17-under par for the week - to close with a 6-under 65 and win the opening FedEx Cup playoff event by two shots over Kuchar. Johnson didn't take the lead for good until Kuchar, who won The Barclays a year ago on a different course, three-putted from long range just off the green on consecutive holes on the back nine to make bogeys. He closed with a 68. "I had the two basic three-putts and for me, that seems just very uncharacteristic," Kuchar said. "I felt like I was just giving shots away." Johnson, who moved to No. 4 in the world, finished at 19-under 194 for his first win of the year and fifth of his career. He became the first player since Tiger Woods to go straight from college and win in each of his first four years on the PGA Tour. When the season began in Kapalua, Johnson was asked what players should expect from Woods in 2011. Johnson replied that he hoped to see Woods play well, but that it "doesn't bother me. I'm still going to win." Johnson just didn't think it would take him until the first playoff event to hoist a trophy. "I was never concerned - more frustrated than anything," he said. "Because I felt like I played some really good golf this year, just have not been able to quite get it done. And it wasn't that my golf game was bad. Just the putts I needed to make, I just had not been able to make them. And this week, I didn't do anything crazy with the putter. I just made the ones I was supposed to." He became the first player since Phil Mickelson to win two 54-hole events. Mickelson won the rain-shortened BellSouth Classic in 2000 and 2005. Johnson previously won the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am in 2009 when the final round Sunday was washed out. This one was different. Johnson knew Saturday was the final round, and he could only hope the round would be completed. "We got lucky," he said. "The weather held up for us long enough." Johnson wasn't the only big winner on Saturday. Ian Poulter birdied four of his last five holes for a 64, making him one of eight players who moved inside the top 100 in the FedEx Cup standings and advance to the second playoff event next week outside Boston. William McGirt, the last of the 125 players who qualified for the playoffs, birdied the 17th hole that pushed him to No. 96. Padraig Harrington went from No. 124 to No. 80 with his tie for 13th. And then there was Ernie Els. He would have been eliminated had the tournament been cut short to 36 holes. Els had a 67 to from 118th in the standings to No. 99. "You're trying to survive. It's desperation," Els said. "It's sadistic. In a way it's fun, if you're into that (stuff)." Johnson goes atop the FedEx Cup standings as the four-tournament race begins for the $10 million prize. The course was so soft and vulnerable to low scoring that Brandt Snedeker made an early run at 59 when he birdied his opening five holes and went out in 29. He was slowed by a bogey on the 14th and wound up with a 61 to tie for third with Vijay Singh, who had a 68. Kuchar and Johnson, however, separated themselves quickly with a riveting front nine. Johnson opened with back-to-back birdies to briefly take the lead, and then the fun began. Kuchar birdied the par-3 third for a two-shot swing when Johnson missed the green. Johnson responded with a two-shot swing of his own by driving into the bunker on the 328-yard fourth and holing out for eagle, while Kuchar had to scramble for par. They matched birdies on the fifth, seventh and ninth greens, and that's where Johnson showed that extra work on his putter was paying off. He holed a 25-foot birdie on the seventh when Kuchar already was in tight, then a tricky 12-foot putt on the ninth after Kuchar had laid back and spun his approach into 4 feet. Kuchar caught Johnson with a 15-foot birdie on the 11th, but it unraveled after that. Kuchar decided to lay up on the par-5 12th - Johnson was in the rough and had no choice - figuring that his wedge game would lead to birdie. But he was on a slope in between wedge, an awkward shot to a tough pin, and his shot landed in the middle and spun back off the green. He rolled his putt some 6 feet past the hole and missed the next one for bogey to fall one shot behind. On the next hole, Kuchar again had a length putt from just off the green and rammed them past the hole and off the green on the other side to make another bogey. Just like that, he was two shots behind. Against Johnson, it was hard to make that up. "Sunday tendencies are to come up a little short, and I gave it a little extra," Kuchar said. "Very frustrating because I feel like that's the strong part of my game." Crews had removed the scoreboards before the last round because of the approaching hurricane, although it didn't matter to the guys trying to win the tournament. They knew were they stood. It was farther down the list, where players were trying to get into the top 100 to keep chasing the $10 million FedEx Cup, where it mattered. McGirt had some help from his wife, who was in the gallery. From the 17th fairway, she flashed "101" with her fingers, to indicate where he was projected to finish in the standings. He pulled 7-iron and produced the "best swing I made all week, bar none" to 5 feet for birdie. Now he gets to go through this roller coast again next week at the Deutsche Bank Championship. "Heck yeah, man," McGirt said. "It's the playoffs."

Cantlay advances, Uihlein falls in US Amateur

ERIN, Wis. (AP) — UCLA star Patrick Cantlay won two matches Friday at Erin Hills to advance to the U.S. Amateur semifinals, while defending champion Peter Uihlein dropped out in the quarterfinals. Cantlay beat England's Tom Lewis 3 and 1 in the round of 16, then edged Max Buckley in 19 holes in the afternoon quarterfinals. Jordan Russell beat Uihlein 2 and 1 to set up a semifinal match with Cantlay. In the other quarterfinals, Kelly Kraft beat Patrick Rodgers 6 and 4, and England's Jack Senior edged Jordan Spieth 1-up. After Russell knocked off Uihlein, the Oklahoma State star told the Texas A&M player that he was the most underrated player in college golf. "That's pretty cool if he thinks that," said Russell. "I think I'm maybe a little underrated, but I kind of like it that way. I have my own motivation with that. It kind of keeps me going. So, I'm fine with that" Uihlein was trying to become the first player to successfully defend his title since Tiger Woods won three straight from 1994-96. "I made too many pars. I only birdied the first hole (as did Russell)," Uihlein said. "Jordan played too solid to beat him with pars. I didn't hit it close enough to put pressure on him and I didn't make any putts going in." Russell was 2-up after six holes, but Uihlein rallied to tie the match with a par 4 on the 12th hole. Russell won the next two holes and Uihlein never recovered. "I kind of got the momentum early," Russell said. "He kind of swung it, but I made a 60-footer on 13, so that kind of flipped it right there, and I made birdie on the next hole." Cantlay, the No. 1-ranked amateur in the world, won the final two holes to tie Lewis, then won with a par on the first extra hole. It was the second extra-hole match for Cantlay in the tournament. "I don't know if it's helping me," Cantlay said, "but I've had to do it. It's nice to know I can hit good shots coming down to the wire, but I'd love to hit good shots earlier in the match and have the lead." Senior has a chance to join Harold Hilton (1911) as the only English winners. "It would mean a lot to me," Senior said. "I'm just taking every shot as it comes. I'm not thinking too far ahead." Spieth, a two-time U.S. Junior champion from Dallas, led most of the match and was 2-up after winning the par 12th with a birdie. They traded the lead several times and were tied going into the final hole, which Senior won with a par. "He played great all day, but unfortunately made some mistakes (on the final hole)," Senior said.

Foster takes clubhouse lead at foggy Gleneagles

GLENEAGLES, Scotland (AP) — England's Mark Foster shot a 6-under 66 to lead the Johnnie Walker Championship after an incomplete first round full of fog and swarming wasps. The start was delayed by 2 hours, 40 minutes because of reduced visibility, and 51 players will have to complete their first round early Friday. Foster held a one-shot lead over Spain's Ignacio Garrido and Argentina's Tano Goya. Denmark's Thomas Bjorn, Ireland's Peter Lawrie and Chile's Felipe Aguilar were 4 under. Foster has held the lead, or a share of the lead, at various stages of three tournaments this season - the French Open, the BMW International Open and the Scottish Open - but never managed to back up his win at the 2003 Dunhill Championship in South Africa. "That could have been a special first nine holes because I three-putted the par-5 No. 16," said Foster, who is likely to make the Britain & Ireland team for next month's Vivendi Seve Trophy in Paris. "I just have a bit more belief in myself this year. It sounds strange but I have stopped trying to win. I've stopped pitching up on a Tuesday thinking about winning - I just want to be the best I can for the week." Foster was among a number of players affected by swarms of wasps and hover flies across the course. "Two of the three (in his group) backed off before every shot," he said.

Player of the year race should soon be decided as playoffs begin this week

The FedEx Cup "playoffs" are once again upon us. No use kvetching about the confusing nature of the points system — that's sooo 2008. In this post-Tiger world, the Cup assumes even more importance. A season of parity has thus far lacked definition. Four first-time major champions, two world No. 1s who are majorless, a bumper crop of rookies who have broken through with wins — it's been a fun, frantic year, but we need the Cup to tie together all the storylines. Four big-time tournaments in five weeks will, hopefully, leave us with not only some indelible highlights but also a consensus player of the year. There's a good chance the POY will come out of the featured pairing of the Barclays first two rounds, the threeball of Luke Donald, Keegan Bradley, and, in a supporting role, Phil Mickelson. Donald arrives comfortably ensconced at No. 1 in the world, with a Tour-best 10 top-10s (in a mere 14 starts) and leading in scoring average and money while sitting fourth in FedEx Cup points. Donald has three worldwide victories this year, but only one has come on the PGA Tour — his signature domination of the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship. But that was way back in February. The tidy Englishman needs a strong FedEx Cup not only to bolster his POY candidacy but also to keep alive his pursuit of history. He’s trying to become the first player to win the FedEx Cup and the European tour's Race to Dubai in the same season. Donald has a healthy lead in the Dubai standings over second-place Charl Schwartzel. Right now the fresh-faced Bradley probably has a stronger case to be voted POY by his peers. He's certainly captured the imagination of the public. "Today a kid asked me to sign his forehead," he said on Tuesday. "That was weird." En route to the Barclays, Bradley, 25 , stopped by New York City to hang with the golf team at his alma mater, St. John’s. He teed it up with the boys and even spent a night at the team's brick "golf house," kicking an undergrad out of his own bed. A large, rowdy contingent of Johnnies will be enlivening Plainfield Country Club, which is an easy drive down the New Jersey Turnpike from New York. The win at the PGA made Bradley a star — his newest text buddy is his boyhood idol Tom Brady — but even before that breakthrough he was having a very solid season, with nine other top-25 finishes , most significantly a playoff win at the Byron Nelson Classic. Among this season's multiple winners — bonus points if you can name Mark Wilson, Bubba Watson, Nick Watney, and Steve Stricker — Bradley is the only one with a major championship victory. Fifth in FedEx points, he can be golf's big story of 2011 with a rousing Cup. Bradley is also at the center of one of the season's primary subplots, the rise of the long putter. Five of the top 17 in the Cup standings use an oversized wand, and the numbers are going up seemingly by the week. Stately old Plainfield is only 6,964 yards; its primary defenses are the wicked greens, multi-tiered and very "slopey," to use Donald's term. "You have to hit it below the hole or else you could make yourself look silly," he said. With putting paramount, the bellies and the broomhandles will only get more attention. Jim Furyk, the defending FedEx Cup champion, is one of the many players who have recently resorted to a belly putter. The question of whether or not anchoring a putter against one's body confers an advantage is gaining momentum, and Furyk addressed it on Tuesday. "Ten years ago, no one ever went to the belly putter unless they couldn't putt," he said. "So I didn't really think of it as unfair. I thought of it as desperation." Now it's considered an easier way to putt under pressure, thanks in part to Bradley's heroics. Says Webb Simpson, who uses a belly putter and comes into the Cup third in the points standings after winning the Wyndham Championship last week:"Guys are talking about banning the putters. I think it's pretty crazy. Because if it was so easy, why isn't everybody using it?" If an oversized putter helps propel a player to the Cup's $10 million first prize, expect the blowback to intensify. Tweet

PGA Tour Confidential: Playoff Storylines

Every week of the 2011 PGA Tour season, the editorial staff of the SI Golf Group will conduct an e-mail roundtable. Check in on Mondays for the unfiltered opinions of our writers and editors and join the conversation in the comments section below. TIGERLESS PLAYOFFS: WHAT, IF ANYTHING, SHOULD WE LOOK FORWARD TO? Jim Herre, managing editor, SI Golf Group : Hello everyone, and welcome to the final PGA Tour Confidential of the regular PGA Tour season. Next week the FedEx Cup playoffs kick off with the Barclays. I'm really curious to see how the pros fare at one of my favorite courses, Plainfield (N.J.) Country Club, a delightful Donald Ross gem, but I'm also interested to see what the level of interest will be without Tiger Woods in the field. What's your guess? And are there other storylines we should be watching? Mark Godich, senior editor, Sports Illustrated : This is the opportunity for a young gun to separate himself from the field. Maybe Rickie Fowler breaks through. Perhaps Webb Simpson follows up with another victory. Or maybe Keegan Bradley makes a statement for Player of the Year honors. Alan Shipnuck, senior writer, Sports Illustrated : We're used to life without Tiger. Interest will be high because all the other players we care about will be there. And a lot is up for grabs, not least player of the year. Stephanie Wei, contributor, SI Golf+ : When you say "we," do you mean those of us who cover golf? Because Joe Sports Fan was planning to watch because he wanted to see Tiger, but now he'll enjoy one of the last weekends of summer. Damon Hack, senior writer, Sports Illustrated : I think it's a tough sell without Tiger. The format was designed to compel the big boys to play more. Even a diminished Tiger is still the biggest selling point in the game. The TV ratings will tell the tale. Shipnuck : Sure, having Tiger would help. But this season (and last) has helped wean golf fans. There are more guys to root for now than before. Mike Walker, senior editor, Golf Magazine : Other than player of the year — which is pretty meaningless because McIlroy's not eligible — it's hard to see many storylines for the FedEx Cup playoffs. But consecutive events with strong fields always build interest and momentum. As Shipnuck said, everyone's gotten used to the Tiger-less Tour. Gary Van Sickle, senior writer, Sports Illustrated : It's hard to gauge the interest levels. I've heard from two regular golf fans who said they have zero interest in watching golf the rest of this year. The tournaments are always interesting because they have good fields and appealing courses, but I'm not sure how fired up the average fan will be. Pretty sure the folks in N.J. will be very excited to see the pros tackle Plainfield. (Read Gary Van Sickle's mailbag and ask him a question.) David Dusek, deputy editor, Golf.com : The interest among golf fans will be high because plenty of good players will be on hand and the pros will love Plainfield, but the FedEx Cup was not created for golf fans. It was concocted by the PGA Tour in order to create buzz among “general sports fans.” With pre-season football in the air and Tiger not playing, those fans aren't going to tune in. Van Sickle : If Phil Mickelson wins or contends in any of the events, TV will be saved. Dusek : Agreed. When Tiger's controversy broke, Tim Finchem told every person holding a TV camera that the PGA Tour's ratings were always good and that when Tiger played they spiked. The FedEx Cup Playoffs without Tiger will give us a chance to see that theory put to the test. Wei : I'll be watching to see how many players tinker with a belly putter. First, Adam Scott won the Bridgestone with the broomstick putter. Then Keegan Bradley drained a bunch of clutch putts with a belly putter to capture the PGA Championship as a rookie and become the first player to win a major with a long putter. And now, Webb Simpson takes the Wyndham Championship with a belly, too. Shipnuck : Yes, the disease is spreading. Seemed like everyone in contention at Greensboro had a long wand. Godich : I went to a long putter a few months back, and though I have played little since, I absolutely love it. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Herre : You think we'll see more belly putters on the local, amateur level? Personally, I could never get the feel for one, and traveling with the thing was a hassle. Hack : It's such a bad look, isn't it? I'm waiting for someone to walk onto a practice green with a long putter anchored between his teeth. The USGA missed the boat on the long putters. Wei : It was already bad after the Masters. When I showed up to the practice green at Hilton Head two weeks later, I couldn't believe how many guys were messing around with a belly. Ernie finally put aside his ego and switched. Bill Haas and Camilo Villegas both used one that week for the first time. I can't wait to see how many there are at Plainfield! Van Sickle : These are young guys using the belly, not desperate old guys who need a putting crutch. I don't think a groundswell of ams will switch, but the topic is probably worth researching. Dusek : If weekend players get used to seeing pros winning with belly putters, they'll be more apt to try one. The tough part is getting the right fit for a belly putter because, well, there are a lot of different sized bellies out there. Van Sickle : The phenomenon is just a sign that the stigma is gone. Damon says it's a bad look, but I think the percentage of traditionalists who would agree with him is shrinking by the year. Now, if we can just get them to quit thinking rangefinders are a bad look, we can make some progress and speed up play. Dusek : Charles Howell told me in Atlanta that he's never seen someone who used a belly putter and putted poorly, which is one of the reasons he converted. Godich : Matt Kuchar was one of the top putters on Tour in 2010, and even he switched. Van Sickle : As a long-time user of The Claw grip, I can vouch for the fact that golfers do what they have to do to make putts. I wonder how many players on the AJGA circuit and junior golf are using belly putters or long putters? That would indicate a possible trend. Hack : I don't recall seeing a long wand on my trip to the junior circuit last year. Those kids were fearless and played fast, God love 'em. Godich : They played fast because they knew the rules officials would enforce the slow-play rules. Dusek : Belly putters are all over the Nationwide Tour, which makes a lot of sense. If they really are beneficial, then the guys who are trying to earn a PGA Tour card would be the most motivated to try one. Godich : The difference in ball-striking between a PGA Tour player and a Nationwide player ain't much. It's mostly the putting, along with the mental aspect, of course. Tell us what you think: Is the FedEx Cup going to be interesting despite Tiger's absence? Will you watch? Tweet

James Nitties wins Midwest Classic

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (AP) — Australia's James Nitties won the Midwest Classic on Saturday for his first Nationwide Tour title, shooting with a 6-under 65 for a five-stroke victory. Nitties earned $99,000 to jump from 53rd to 12th on the money list with $150,537, putting him in position to earn a 2012 PGA Tour card as top-25 finisher on the final list. "I've been waiting for this one for a while," said Nitties, who spent the past two seasons on the PGA Tour. "It seemed like everything went my way this week. It was my day today. There's still a lot of golf left to play this season, but this puts me in good position to get back to the tour." He opened with rounds of 65, 63 and 65 and finished at 26-under 258 at Nicklaus Golf Club at LionsGate. "Usually I'm a streaky putter," Nitties said. "I'll putt good for one round and then not hole anything the rest of the week. This week, I actually holed the putts I should hole and then made the most of my opportunities." Jonas Blixt (66) and Nick Flanagan (68) tied for second, and J.J. Killeen (70), Jason Kokrak (65) and Josh Geary (69) followed at 20 under. Killeen was trying to win for the third time in four weeks.

Simpson claims first PGA Tour win at Wyndham

GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) — Webb Simpson grew up in North Carolina, and his favorite memory of the Wyndham Championship was caddying for Neal Lancaster as a teenager during a pro-am. That might change now that he's won the tournament. Simpson claimed his first PGA Tour title Sunday, shooting a 3-under 67 to win by three strokes. The 26-year-old Raleigh native finished at 18-under 262 and collected $936,000 in the tournament about a 30-mile drive from the Wake Forest campus where he was a college star. "I really couldn't think of a better place to win than here in Greensboro," Simpson said. George McNeill (64) was at 15 under, with Tommy Gainey (69) another stroke back in the final event before the PGA Tour playoffs. Carl Pettersson (69), Vijay Singh (65), Jerry Kelly (65), Kyung-tae Kim (66) and Charles Howell III (67) finished at 13 under at Sedgefield Country Club. Simpson said his first visit to the Greensboro-based tournament came when he was 16. His father brought him to the event's former home across town at Forest Oaks Country Club to caddie for Lancaster during the Wednesday pro-am. "That was probably the most fun 18 holes I've ever been a part of," Simpson said. His final 18 of this tournament were marked by steady, bogey-free play and a strong finish marked by consecutive birdies on Nos. 15 and 16. After taking the lead during Round 3 with a late five-hole stretch of four birdies and an eagle, Simpson opened his final round with eight straight pars before moving to 16 under with a birdie on the par-4 ninth. He stayed there until late in the day. Birdies on the par-5 15th and the par-3 16th gave him a three-shot lead with two holes to go. "When I made the putt on 15, I asked my caddie for the first time all day, 'Where do we stand?' and he said, 'We're two ahead right now,'" Simpson said. "I knew I needed to play solid golf on the last three holes, and to birdie 16 was so huge. ... I knew I had a three-shot lead on 18, and as soon as I hit the ball in play, I knew it was probably over." McNeill made a late charge, with the former Florida State player moving to 15 under with a birdie on No. 17, his sixth birdie of the round. But all he could do after that was hope for a few late bogeys from Simpson. "Honestly, I thought it was going to be a lot lower," McNeill said of the winning score. "I can only control myself. I can't control what everybody else does. I'm very happy with the way I hit it, the way I played, the way I putted." Several players with strong Atlantic Coast Conference ties played pivotal roles during the fourth round at the country club where the ACC was founded in 1953 - and in a college-centric region where school ties run deep. Simpson was the ACC's player of the year for the Demon Deacons in 2008. McNeill was an all-conference player for the Seminoles in the late 1990s. And Pettersson grew up in Greensboro, played at North Carolina State, serves on this tournament's board of directors, won it in 2008 and made the daily 70-mile commute from his home in Raleigh. "I'm disappointed. I'm a competitor," Pettersson said. "I wanted to win this one badly, but Webb outplayed us all." Pettersson turned in perhaps the most remarkable birdie of the tournament on the par-4 first hole. After sending his drive well wide of the fairway and into a flower pot, he wound up chipping in from about 55 feet. Gainey, a South Carolina native known as "Tommy Two Gloves" because he wears them on both hands, led or shared the lead after each of the first two rounds. After falling off the pace with two bogeys and a double bogey midway through the round, he reeled off four consecutive birdies on Nos. 12-15 to climb back in it. The focus this week wasn't solely on the leaders, but on the names moving up and down the FedEx Cup points list. The Wyndham annually marks the last chance for players to claim spots in the playoffs, and some big names came to Greensboro hoping to play their way in. Padraig Harrington, who called off a family vacation so he could try to escape the playoff bubble, finished at 6 under and jumped from No. 130 to No. 124. The top 125 qualify for The Barclays later this week in New Jersey. Ernie Els, who entered at No. 126, made it into the playoff field despite shooting a final-round 72. His 8 under finish pushed him to 118th. "You don't know in these playoffs," Els said. "I've got to play good golf though. I played really good the first two days. I'd like to get that back." Among those who didn't make it: Justin Leonard missed a 13-foot putt on the 18th, and that left him at No. 126. "To try and wait until this week to make it through is just - you know," Leonard said. "I mean, come on. I had 25 other weeks to play like this."

Lundberg takes lead midway through Czech Open

CELADNA, Czech Republic (AP) — Sweden's Mikael Lundberg completed a 4-under 68 on Saturday in the Czech Open to take a one-stroke lead after the rain-delayed second round. Lundberg birdied the final hole to reach 8 under at Prosper Golf Resort. Spain's Jose Manuel Lara was second. He shot a 68 on Friday. Englishmen Oliver Fisher and Gary Boyd and Ireland's Damien McGrane were 6 under.

Gainey takes 3-shot lead at Wyndham Championship

GREENSBORO, N.C. (AP) — For all that Tommy Gainey says has gone wrong in the Wyndham Championship, he must be doing something right. His tee shots have been rocky, his irons have given him trouble, he's fighting a nagging wrist injury - and the South Carolina player called Tommy Two Gloves has one of the best two-round scores in the history of the tournament. Gainey shot a 5-under 65 on Friday to reach 12-under 128 and take a three-stroke lead in the final event before the start of the PGA Tour's postseason. He shared the first-round lead with Jeff Quinney, then had six birdies in polishing off the second-best 36-hole score in tournament history. Ernie Els (66), Webb Simpson (65), Stuart Appleby (67) and Daniel Summerhays (65) were 9 under, and Jim Furyk (67), Alexandre Rocha (66), Paul Casey (67) and Retief Goosen (65) were another stroke back. After making five birdies and an eagle a day earlier to match his career best with a 63, Gainey said he was "going to light it up" against the fresh greens he would face Friday morning. It didn't happen quite like that, but he did turn in another solid round that kept him in contention for his first PGA Tour victory. Starting on the back nine, Gainey had his first bogey of the tournament on the par-4 11th. Then, he warmed up. He birdied four of his final nine holes and closed his round with consecutive birdies, rolling in a 13-foot putt on No. 9 to finish. A sprained left wrist he sustained hitting out of the rough last month in the Canadian Open has made it tougher to keep his tee shots in the fairways and hampered his work with the irons. "It's just hard to make birdies when you keep putting yourself ... in the rough," Gainey said. "It's not high, but it's thick. Just settles straight down, and you've just got to go after it, and the harder you swing at it to get it out, just the more shock that goes into the wrist." Still, only Carl Pettersson, at 125 in 2008, has been better than Gainey through 36 holes at Donald Ross-designed Sedgefield Country Club. "I haven't really accomplished anything in two days," Gainey said. "The only thing I've accomplished is, I've set myself up in good shape going into the weekend. But, still, there's a lot that can happen in one day ... but two days, that's like an eternity in a golf tournament. I'm trying to do the same thing I did these first two days tomorrow." Will MacKenzie began the day four strokes off the pace, but moved up the leaderboard with eagles on both of the course's par-5 holes, Nos. 5 and 15, during his 65. The one-time prodigy from Greenville, N.C., is trying to reclaim his PGA Tour card after losing it last year, and the Wyndham represents one of his last chances to do that. "For me to get my tour card back some possible way, through (the) Nationwide Tour or just have a freak week, obviously I'm going to have to have a humongous week," MacKenzie said. "I can't be that top 25 guy and string it together. I've only got here and maybe another event, if I'm lucky, so I'm going to have to win or come in second." Quinney, who has conditional status on the tour, is facing a similarly desperate situation, playing for both his card and a spot in the FedEx Cup playoffs. He arrived at No. 215 in the standings and needed a high finish to crack the top 125 and make the playoffs, but he slipped off the pace after his triple bogey on the par-4 11th. Numerous others are playing for their more immediate futures. The field is littered with players trying to play their way off the bubble and into golf's postseason, which begins next week at The Barclays in New Jersey. Among those who made it to the weekend: Padraig Harrington, No. 130 on the points list, birdied two of the final four holes for a 68 to make the cut of 3 under. No. 121 Heath Slocum and No. 125 Camilo Villegas shot 64s, with Slocum's round highlighted by streaks of three and four birdies. "Look at the order of names, everybody around me seems to be in the same position with me," Harrington said. "Obviously, I'm going to (need to) have a good weekend in order to get through." Els, at No. 126, charged up the leaderboard with three birdies in a late five-hole span. "I've got quite a large goal for me this week, and you know, I'm feeling like, fine, my game is turning around a little bit," Els said. And while Derek Lamely didn't make the cut and won't make the playoffs, the 31-year-old is leaving Sedgefield with quite the parting gift: a lifetime of vacations at Wyndham properties for his hole-in-one on the 165-yard 16th. Tweet

A college degree may up your starting salary, but it won't take strokes off your score

The current thinking in America suggests that acquiring a college education is critical to success, but the truth is that the young superstars of golf are coming from everywhere in the world except the United States college golf programs. There are two major problems with college golf: The NCAA restricts how much golf student-athletes can play, and with a few exceptions, college coaching is just not as good as the instruction that these players would get as touring pros. Look at some of the top golfers from around the world: Rory McIlroy, Charl Schwartzel, Ryo Ishikawa, Matteo Manassero, Jason Day. What do they have in common? None of them played college golf. While their American counterparts are playing an NCAA-restricted schedule, these international players are focusing on their games 24/7/365. Jordan Spieth, the 18-year-old who's already made the cut twice at the Byron Nelson, is going to the University of Texas in the fall, but you can't tell me he'll be a better golfer in four years than if he turned pro now. Rickie Fowler left college after two years and his game is immeasurably better than it would have been if he had stayed in school. Phil Mickelson and Matt Kuchar have had excellent pro careers after college golf, but that era is over. The game is global now, and the competition is more intense than ever. If we want Americans to stay at the elite level of the game, we need to look at how other countries produce championship-caliber golfers. Many have national programs to get kids started, but none of them has a college golf system that prevents their best players from playing as much as they need to become great players. Professional sports are getting younger, and golf is no exception. The American college system creates players who join the Tour at age 22 and finally acquire the experience and know-how to win in their late 20s. At that point, they are 10 years behind the competition. The need to have a fallback plan B (a diploma) in case of failure is holding players back from developing a game based on the intense need to succeed. Instead, their game is based on hoping and wishing and trying to play well. Tweet

Villegas, Els, Harrington among names on the bubble for playoffs

Camilo Villegas won the last two playoff events of 2008, the BMW and the Tour Championship, but golf's onetime Next Big Thing is the Bubble Boy at this week's Wyndham Championship at Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro, N.C. At 125th in FedEx Cup points, Villegas can't afford to slip even one spot or he won't qualify for the mega-bucks, four-week FedEx Cup playoff series, which begins with the Barclays in Edison, N.J., next week. At least Villegas has plenty of company. Tiger Woods is already out of the playoffs; he's 129th and not playing this week. Others find themselves in need of a good finish in Greensboro, lest their season end earlier than they'd hoped. Ernie Els is 126th, and will tee off No. 10 at Sedgefield with Villegas and Cameron Beckman at 7:40 ET Thursday morning. Padraig Harrington was one of the giants of golf heading into the 2008 FedEx playoffs, having won three majors in just over a year. But he's put off a vacation to play the Wyndham in hopes of climbing from 130th on the FedEx points list. He must finish 12th or better to crack the top 125 and get to the Barclays. Others who need a big week at this Donald Ross classic, where the scoring is usually low, include Angel Cabrera (150th) and Paul Casey (147th). Even those in good shape to make it to the Barclays will be keeping an eye on their numbers. Vijay Singh, the 2008 Cup winner, is 42nd in FedEx Cup points. Defending FedEx Cup champion Jim Furyk is 70th. Only the top 30 players will advance to the season-ending Tour Championship at Atlanta's East Lake. The featured attraction at Sedgefield is expected to be Jason Dufner, who is coming off a three-hole playoff loss to Keegan Bradley at the PGA. "It's been kind of a weird experience," Dufner said Tuesday. "Everybody that's kind of come up to me, I almost feel like it's a funeral or something tragic happened. I don't feel that way at all. It was a great experience. Unfortunately I wasn't able to win that event, but I had a great chance, best opportunity probably to win a Tour event, so I feel good." That's easier to believe when you consider the aftermath of Dufner's defeat included a visit to his alma mater, Auburn University (he still lives in town). He was summoned to an auditorium on campus, where he was thrilled at being given a standing ovation by the football team. He's trying to approach the Wyndham as if it's just another tournament, and as if he's still the same golfer he always was, even if he gave up a five-shot lead with four holes remaining at the season's final major. "I made contact with the golf ball on the first tee [in a practice round at Sedgefield], so that was nice," Dufner said. "Didn't whiff any putts or didn't lose my golf game overnight because of what happened on Sunday. I think maybe the media plays into that a little bit. And maybe some guys are different; maybe some guys would feel like it was a tragedy. But I don't really look at it that way. I'm disappointed with not being able to finish that tournament off with a W, but I'm a professional golfer, I'm going to continue to be a professional golfer." Westchester C.C. back in the mix — for seniors Westchester Country Club was a 41-year fixture on the PGA Tour, from 1967 to 2007. The club is back in the spotlight as host of this week's Constellation Energy Senior Players Championship. Five players in the field won at Westchester as PGA Tour pros: Bob Gilder (1982, when he made a double-eagle on 18), Scott Simpson ('84), Bob Tway ('86), Hale Irwin ('90) and David Frost ('92). Mark O'Meara is the defending champion, but he won the title last year at TPC Potomac at Avenel Farm in Maryland. Tom Lehman's lead in the Charles Schwab Cup points race has dwindled to 291 points, over second-place Olin Browne. Fred Couples will play Westchester after a recent trip to Germany to get treatment for his chronically ailing back. Apparently it was a success. Said Couples, "I haven't felt like this in 10 years, health-wise." Nationwide pros head into home stretch The end of the PGA Championship brings closure of sorts to the PGA Tour just as the Nationwide gets serious. Ten events remain for players to earn enough cash on that tour to graduate to the PGA Tour in 2012, starting with this week's Midwest Classic at Nicklaus Golf Club at Lions Gate in Overland Park, Kan. The best recent reminder of Nationwide relevance is that Keegan Bradley was 25th on the money list and on the bubble for advancing to the PGA Tour exactly one year ago. Then he went T3, T3, T5 and T4 to finish 14th in earnings and secure his Tour card for 2011. The rest is current events. Short game Yani Tseng headlines a field that also includes Paula Creamer, Alexis Thompson and Michelle Wie at the Safeway Classic Presented by Coca-Cola at the Ghost Creek Course at Pumpkin Ridge in North Plains, Ore. This week marks the 40th anniversary of the LPGA in Portland. ... Miguel Angel Jimenez, who designed both the Old and New Courses at Prosper Golf Resort in Celadna, Czech Republic, will seek his first victory of 2011 at the European Tour's Czech Open at Prosper. The tournament will use a composite course for the first time. ... The U.S. Amateur will begin with stroke-play qualifying at Erin Hills next Monday. Tweet

Poof! He's Gone: A struggling Tiger Woods is likely done for remainder of season

Holy drudgery. The golfing trinity of Padraig Harrington, Davis Love III and Tiger Woods took five sweaty hours just to reach the 18th tee during their second round at the PGA Championship. Paddy was playing to make the cut. Davis was playing to climb higher up the leader board. Tiger was playing for... you'd have to be a mind reader to know what. Woods was already nine over par through 35 holes. One more hole and he'd be done. Certainly for the week. Possibly, on his home tour, for the year. It was Aug. 12. The only thing left in his workweek was to play the final hole, shake hands with his playmates and address the reporter herd, and then he'd be free, if freedom is a concept Woods even knows anymore. It had been clear for most of the afternoon — at least since his double bogey on the 12th, an easy par-5 — that Tiger's midsummer return to golf after a three-month rest-and-rehab break would comprise only six rounds, four at the Bridgestone Invitational and two at the PGA. Not what the doctor, Sean Foley, Mark Steinberg, Tim Finchem or the marketing departments at Nike, CBS and FedEx had ordered. Not what Woods had wanted, either. He is discovering, painfully and at age 35, Mick's deep truth: You can't always get what you want. Some of the things Sean and I are working on are starting to click and now I am starting to really understand what he's trying to get me to do. ­ — Woods on Aug. 2 in Akron, before the Bridgestone Invitational Woods gives a mass group interview before every tournament and generally after every round he plays. He has 43 listed interviews for 2011 on the ASAP Sports website, a company that transcribes formal group press conferences at various sporting events, and eight of them are from August, when Woods played in Akron and Atlanta. During those sessions he seldom tells stories and rarely talks about himself in a personal way. His main thing is to report on the state of his game. The herd picks up the tea leaves and tries to read them. As Woods played his final hole at the PGA last week, he knew what was coming, another media session in which he would try to explain the inexplicable: Where does it go when it goes? I was hitting proper shots out there. — Woods on Aug. 4, after a first-round 68 at the Bridgestone For last week's PGA the 18th hole at Atlanta Athletic Club was played as a 480-yard par-4 and was almost comically difficult. If you missed left, you were in a lake. If you missed right, you were in a trap. Most balls that finished in the Tifton 10 bermuda rough required a U.S. Open–style hack-out. The fairway was a rumor. The welcome mat to the thin green was a murky pond. Woods, most atypically, had the honor at 18 on Friday, and he hit his three-wood into the right bunker. His swing has always featured a head dip, but now he's more of a head-dipper than ever before. If that's good or bad, only Sean Foley, Johnny Miller or Brandel Chamblee can say. Harrington followed Woods and smoked a three-wood down the middle. Love, after bogeys on 16 and 17, had the red ass (sorry, Mrs. Penta Love) and nutted a two-iron past both of them. Paddy knocked his second onto the green. Tiger thought Davis was away and waited for him to play first. In the meantime Tiger made ­repeated practice swings before descend­ing into the sand, which he did with some care. (His legs have been through the wars of modern medicine.) He took a mighty swipe with a long iron. It was deeply impressive but not nearly enough. The pond swallowed up his swooshed ball. I'm hitting the ball so much farther. — Woods on Aug. 5, after a second-round 71 at the Bridgestone I hit the ball so much straighter than I used to. — Woods on Aug. 6, after a third-round 72 at the Bridgestone With his friend Bryon Bell on his bag, and his own yardage book in his pocket, Tiger dropped a new ball in front of the pond. He made a beautiful pitch shot and holed a five-footer for a closing bogey. His rounds were 77 and 73, 10 over par, six over the cut line. He has played in 56 majors as a pro, won 14 of them and missed the cut in only three. He took off his hat and approached his two buddies, Paddy and Davis. He smiled briefly. Woods and Love didn't talk much in the second round, but they did during the first. Woods asked Love, who will be next year's U.S. Ryder Cup captain, who his assistants will be. He asked Davis how his daughter, Lexie, an accomplished equestrienne, was doing. He asked several questions about Davis's son, Dru, a good junior golfer: “Is he taller than you? Can he hit it farther than you? Where's he looking to go?” (Yes, yes, possibly North Carolina.) Tiger wants to play on this year's Presidents Cup team. He wants to play on next year's Ryder Cup team. He wants his old life back. Playing money games with my buddies, it's just not quite the same. Being out here and being forced to post a score, hit shots, that's a different deal. — Woods on Aug. 7 after a closing 70 and 37th-place finish at the Bridgestone As he walked to the scorer's hut at the end of his two-day PGA week, fans were calling out Tiger's name. He didn't acknowledge them. He seldom does. But then he did a rare thing. He flipped his game ball to a charming little girl standing along the rope, a girl maybe slightly younger than Tiger's daughter, Sam, who is four, two years older than Woods's son, Charlie. Tiger was in and out of the scorer's trailer in a minute. I'm not down. I'm really angry right now. — Woods last Thursday, after his 77 at the PGA Woods did not leave the Atlanta Athletic Club angry, not that you could tell, anyway. He had to be confused, disappointed and weirded out. After all, for nearly all of his 15 years on Tour he could play in virtually any event he wanted. He 73'd his way out of that luxury. Tommy Gainey is in the FedEx Cup playoffs, but Woods is not. He said goodbye to the herd with this: “Now I'll have nothing to do but work on my game.” Maybe the answer to what ails him lies in those words. Or not. In the end, golf's not about words spoken. It's about numbers written. Woods has known that forever. Tweet

Family resemblance puts Bradley in winner's circle

JOHNS CREEK, Ga. (AP) — Saying newly crowned PGA champion Keegan Bradley was practically born to play golf is like saying Barry Bonds got a headstart by being Bobby's son. His father, Mark, is currently the head pro at Jackson Hole Golf & Tennis Club in Wyoming after stints in Boston and Vermont. Bradley got plenty of lessons and all the time he needed at the practice range, free of charge. Turns out he was schooled, as well, by one of his aunts, who knew plenty about the game and even more about the tenacity it takes to play golf at the highest levels. That would be LPGA Hall of Famer Pat Bradley, whom renowned sports psychologist Bob Rotella once called the toughest player he ever saw. "I grew up going to Pat's tournaments, totally idolizing her and wanting to be like her out there," he said, with the Wanamaker Trophy perched nearby. "I remember as a kid going out to her tournaments and literally staring her in the face, and I'm her nephew, but she was so into it, she wouldn't even recognize me. And I thought that was cool," said Bradley, now 25. Some of that coolness apparently made it into Bradley's DNA. The last time a golfer won a major in his first try was Ben Curtis in 2003, and before him, Francis Ouimet in 1913. And until late Sunday afternoon, it looked possible another century might even slip by before it happened again. Bradley began the day trailing third-round co-leaders Jason Dufner and Brendan Steele, a good pal, by only a stroke; by the time he stood on the 16th tee, though, he was down five shots with only three holes to make up the differential. Yet some of that familial toughness revealed itself as he walked toward No. 16 after dumping a ball in a pond at the 15th and carding a disastrous triple-bogey. "I remember walking off that green thinking, 'You know, the last four holes are so tough here that somebody could have a five-shot lead. It doesn't matter," Bradley recalled. The gap closed when Dufner, who played the final four holes at 3-under through the first three rounds, made three bogeys over that same stretch in the last one. Bradley sealed the deal in the three-hole playoff with two straight birdies, closing with a very workmanlike par. "I kept thinking about the playoff I won at the Byron Nelson, and the same thing happened to me in that. As soon as I realized I was going into a playoff, I completely calmed down," he said. During the family's time in Vermont, Bradley did a fair share of ski racing as a youngster, but didn't need long to decide between the two sports. He was 12 years old and looking down the barrel of a tough slalom run in Killington when the decision was practically made for him. "It was raining, cold, sleeting and I'm at the top of this mountain going, 'This is not as much fun as golf. I love golf so much more.'" As Bradley recalled that moment, his mother, Kaye, sat in the back of the interview room, alternately nodding or chuckling at the memory and crying tears of joy. "He always said he was going to do this," she said. "I still have a letter he wrote in the first grade saying he was going to be a PGA pro. I've got pictures of him on the range at four. Grandma Bradley sent over his first set of clubs - plastic, of course - for Christmas, and Keegan almost wore those out. He was so devoted. He wanted this so badly. I used to worry what would happen if it didn't come to pass." She often looked to her husband to be the detached voice of reason any time the discussions turned to Keegan's career. "But he wasn't much help that way," Kaye Bradley said. "He used to say all the time, 'He's the real deal.' But I didn't want it to be this or nothing. I made sure he got his college degree." Yet it was Kaye who was unabashedly proud to revive a Bradley tradition. When Pat won her first tournament, in Australia, it was the middle of the night back at the family home in Westford, Mass. Determined to celebrate, Pat's mother ran up and down the streets ringing a cowbell and waking up plenty of her neighbors. "The bell is actually in the Hall of Fame now," Keegan Bradley said. "My mom has started her own, new tradition, a takeoff on that. She runs up and down the street like a crazy woman with wind chimes. "Might have to get that bell out of retirement," Bradley mused a moment later. "I'd like to hear it ring at least once."

Great years for Donald and Westwood, but still no major victories

JOHNS CREEK, Ga. — So the World's No. 1 and No. 2 golfers still haven't won a major between them. Another championship gone, another missed opportunity for Luke Donald and Lee Westwood. It must be driving them potty that world ranking points simply don't translate into major victories. Both fought hard to get their big-time names in among the little-known names of Jason Dufner and Keegan Bradley. But the very English challenge ran out of gas at Atlanta Athletic Club. Donald got to five under at the 12th but couldn't push on to put pressure on those playing behind him. He was the architect of his own undoing for the second day in a row. On Saturday he threw away two shots by hitting his approach into water at 18. Sunday he got wet at 15 after slapping his tee shot at the par 3 into the pond. Game over. He bogeyed 18, too, to finish the week at a disappointing three under par. "Again, bittersweet. It's another major gone, another year gone without winning a major," Donald said. "The positives I see is I didn't have my best this week and I still came reasonably close. I know I've got the game to compete and win majors. I've got to take that as a positive." It has nevertheless been a remarkable year for Donald. The new steely Donald will surely challenge at the majors next year. He has had a breakthrough season that saw him climb to No. 1 in May by beating Westwood in a playoff at the BMW PGA Championship in Wentworth, England, the flagship event on the European Tour. He had two other victories — the WGC-Accenture Match Play in February and the Scottish Open in June — and has posted 10 more worldwide top 10s. He finished tied for fourth at the Masters, tied for 45th at the US Open and missed the cut at the British Open. Donald proved that old adage that "form is temporary; class is permanent," by finishing tied eighth at the PGA Championship. Such form means he has all but won the Race to Dubai as the top money-winner on the European Tour. He will tee it up at the Barclays Championship at the start of the FedEx Cup Series in two weeks with a real chance to become the first player ever to take the big money title on both sides of the Atlantic. "That's certainly a goal. That would be a great accomplishment," Donald said. "No one's ever done it, and to be the first would be very special." Westwood finished at tied for eighth with Donald at three under par, which ended a frustrating year at the majors, where he finished tied for 11th at the Masters and T3 at the U.S. Open and missed the cut at the British Open. He is now 0-for-55 at the majors, and appeared close to tears with frustration and exhaustion after his round. "I played lovely again. Just one of those things," Westwood said before heading off for a two-week holiday. He added that he will play big fall tournaments on the European Tour, including events in Switzerland, Holland, Scotland and finally Dubai. "I have enjoyed playing great for a long time now," he said, "but unfortunately when I turn up to majors, when I don't win one, then it's a disappointing week." It can't help the sanity of either Westwood or Donald to watch a golfer with a nervous waggle called Dufner, and another in a red shirt with a fist pump not called Tiger Woods in a playoff in the last major of the year. Oh the irony. Tweet

Dufner has lead all to himself at PGA Championship

JOHNS CREEK, Ga. (AP) — Jason Dufner has never won a tour event. He's trying to hang on at the PGA Championship. Dufner has a one-stroke lead over Keegan Bradley with six holes to play Sunday, rolling in a 15-foot birdie putt at the 12th to reclaim the outright lead at Atlanta Athletic Club. The 34-year-old Dufner, who lives two hours away in Auburn, Ala., heard chants of "War Eagle" as he kept up his steady play. He started with five straight pars before a birdie at the sixth, a short par-4. He rolled in a 20-footer at No. 8 for another birdie and made the turn with a two-stroke lead. Bradley briefly claimed a share of the lead at the 12th, sticking a 7-iron to 2 feet and tapping in for eagle. Robert Karlsson also made an eagle at the 12th and was two shots off the lead.

McIlroy returns, shoots 73 in the 2nd round of PGA

JOHNS CREEK, Ga. (AP) — Just about any other week, Rory McIlroy would've already been heading for home. Not this one. Even with an aching right wrist, he's not giving up on chasing down Steve Stricker. McIlroy struggled through the second round of the PGA Championship on Friday with his injured wrist all taped up. A 3-over 73 - which included a triple bogey - left a daunting deficit heading to the weekend. Stricker had not even teed off by the time McIlroy finished, having extended his advantage on the U.S. Open champion without hitting a shot. But sweltering Atlanta Athletic Club was showing its teeth Friday. Stricker, who opened with a bogey-free 63 and just missed the lowest score in major championship history, bogeyed two of the first six holes in the second round. He was still at 6 under, but D.A. Points, Adam Scott, Jerry Kelly and Scott Verplank were all within two strokes of the lead. The 44-year-old Stricker was bidding for his first major title. He's 0-for-52 in his career but keeps making a run at it, having finished in the top 10 at all four of golf's biggest events. Stricker had a shot at the first 62 in major championship history on Thursday. A 10-foot birdie putt at his final hole skidded by the right edge of the cup. In the second round, Points posted the best round from the morning starters, a 67 that pushed him to 4-under 136 at the midway point. Scott, coming off a win at Firestone with Tiger Woods' former caddie Steve Williams on the bag, was 3 under through 11 holes. "It feels great," Points said, "but it's only Friday. It's going to feel a lot better when it's Sunday." What about Woods? He was trying desperately to make the cut. His score climbed to 9 over when he plugged a wedge in the bunker at the par-5 fifth, leading to bogey, and took another with an ugly three-putt at the seventh. But Woods closed the front side with back-to-back birdies, moving within three strokes of the projected cut line. He's failed to make it to the weekend in a major only twice in his professional career: The 2006 U.S. Open and the British Open two years ago. Just making it through the first two days was an accomplishment for McIlroy, given what he did on his third hole of the tournament. The 22-year-old from Northern Ireland strained a tendon when he foolishly took a swing with his ball sitting against a thick tree root. He considered quitting a couple of times Thursday, but felt comfortable about carrying on after getting an MRI and being told by the medical staff that he couldn't do any more damage. "If it wasn't a major," he said, "I probably would've stopped." McIlroy blew away the field at Congressional two months ago with a record-setting 16-under score. He's become the new face of the game with Woods struggling, arriving at Atlanta Athletic Club as the favorite. One ill-advised swing might have ruined his chances. McIlroy said his wrist didn't hurt as much in the second round. Actually, a shaky putter was his main problem. "I feel like I'm hitting the ball OK," he said. "I gave myself a few chances but I just didn't putt very well at all. I'm struggling on the greens this week." There was also a misjudged tee shot at the par-3 17th. Torn between clubs, he actually went for a little more distance with a 6-iron. But he took a little bit off his swing, got the ball a little too high and watched in disbelief as a slight breeze carried it into the water. He had to take a drop, then three-putted. Coming off a 40-foot birdie putt at the 16th that got him into the red, the triple bogey was a momentum killer. "It was tough to come back from that," McIlroy said. But he's not conceding the Wanamaker Trophy to Stricker or anyone else. "I hope to make a good run at it the next couple of days," McIlroy said. "I feel as if I can still make birdies out there. If I didn't think I could contend, I probably wouldn't be playing." Anders Hansen was at 137 after posting a 69, his second straight round in the 60s. Davis Love III also was at 3 under midway through his round. Former PGA champion Shaun Micheel, who opened with a surprising 66, tumbled off the leaderboard. He played his first 11 holes at 9 over and finished with a 78, leaving him more concerned about making the cut than winning the tournament. So many wacky things happened on the first day at this course in Atlanta's sprawling northern suburbs, Stricker's brilliance and McIlroy's injury were only part of the story. Woods opened with a 77, his worst score ever in the PGA. Japanese star Ryo Ishikawa put six - yes, SIX! - balls in the water and wound up with an 85, the highest score of his professional career. The groundskeepers had to contend with mowers gone wild, hastily repairing two greens that were damaged while being clipped. The craziness extended into Friday, when Brandt Snedeker showed up about 2 minutes late for his 8:10 a.m. tee time and was assessed a two-stroke penalty. Snedeker thought he was teeing off at 8:20 and sprinted from the putting green to the tee when he realized his mistake. He didn't get there quick enough to avoid the penalty. "It's embarrassing," said Snedeker, who shot 73 with the extra strokes and was likely to miss the cut. "I feel like I'm 2 years old."

J.B. Holmes withdraws from PGA with illness

JOHNS CREEK, Ga. (AP) — J.B. Holmes has withdrawn from the PGA Championship because of an illness. Holmes shot a 10-over 80 in the opening round and was unlikely to make the cut.

One year after his bunker blunder, Dustin Johnson eyes his first major title

JOHNS CREEK, Ga. — It's been one year since Dustin Johnson suffered one of the most crushing final-hole penalties in major championship history. But don't expect him to sulk about it. Don't expect him to read a rules sheet, either. Clinging to a one-shot lead at the 2010 PGA Championship at Whistling Straits, Johnson illegally and unknowingly grounded his club in a scruffy fairway bunker on the 72nd hole. He was popped with a two-shot penalty when he completed the hole, and the gaffe cost him a spot in the Bubba Watson-Martin Kaymer playoff, which Kaymer eventually won. Johnson told reporters here Wednesday afternoon that despite that expensive mistake, he still doesn't read the rules sheet that's provided to all players when they first arrive at a course for an event. "No, I've never looked at one and probably never will," he said with a laugh. "I know the rules." Johnson, who tees off Thursday with Rickie Fowler and Sergio Garcia at 1:25 p.m , said he never got too angry at the ruling and blames himself for the mistake. He's also never watched a video replay of that final hole, but said he's still often reminded of it. "I've just seen the pictures," he said. "It seems like all the pictures that people want me to sign are me hitting that shot. It's like, 'Thank you.'" Johnson, and the room, cracked up. The pro also added that he doesn't expect identifying bunkers here at Atlanta Athletic Club to be a problem. "Here the bunkers are all defined — it's not going to be an issue." In addition to last year's PGA, Johnson has been in contention in other majors. At the 2010 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, he took a three-shot lead into the final round before detonating with an 82 , and Graeme McDowell took the title. Last month at the British Open, Johnson's weekend surge was halted when he pushed a long iron O.B. on the 14th hole on Sunday and finished tied for second with Phil Mickelson. Couple those results with "Bunkergate," and it's a troubling trend. Still, Johnson is upbeat this week, and said that he has taken some positives away from the near-misses. "I've played well in the final rounds of the last two majors where I've really been in contention," he said. "There's one shot here or one shot there and I've probably got a victory. You know, just got to keep working on it and putting myself in position to win." Johnson played a relaxed nine holes Wednesday alongside Cameron Tringale. On Tuesday, the entertainment value — and the stakes — were higher when D.J. partnered with Steve Marino and took on Phil Mickelson and Jeff Overton in a money game. He said the practice-round competitions aren't just about the cash, but an opportunity to hone his game for tournament play. "We have a lot of fun. That's the main thing when we're out there playing," he said. "It helps you, especially on Tuesday, to put a little pressure on yourself when you know you need to hit a good shot or you need to make a putt, to kind of see where your game is at, to see what's going on. "But I enjoy playing with Phil. You know, we talk smack to each other, it's fun." And which team won Tuesday's match? "We pushed," Johnson said with a smile. To win his first career major this week, he'll need to be one shot better. Tweet

Swiss watchmaker Tag Heuer drops Tiger Woods

GENEVA (AP) — Swiss watchmaker Tag Heuer says it's ended its 10-year commercial relationship with Tiger Woods and hopes he can "overcome his difficulties." Tag Heuer chief executive Jean-Christophe Babin says in a statement the company is "confident that Tiger will eventually regain full trust with the public." Woods has "huge talent and mental strength (which) will help him overcome his difficulties," Babin says. Tag Heuer stopped promoting Woods' image in the United States in December 2009, weeks after revelations about his marital problems began to emerge. Babin said then Tag Heuer had to "take account of the sensitivity of some consumers." Tag Heuer will continue to support Woods's charitable foundation through sales of a watch he designed.

Steve Williams' victory dance draws mixed reaction

JOHNS CREEK, Ga. (AP) — Tiger Woods' former caddie drew a mixed reaction to the way he gloated over his new boss' first victory with him on the bag. Some understood Steve Williams' frustration after being dumped by Woods. Others thought the caddie went overboard in his comments to the media, taking attention away from the guy who actually won the World Golf Championship at Firestone, Adam Scott. The crowd chanted Williams' name as he walked up to the 18th green with Scott, who pulled away for a four-stroke victory. Afterward, Williams gave an interview that was nearly twice as long as the Aussie's, calling it "the best win I've ever had" - remember, he caddied for 13 of Woods' major titles - and making it clear he felt his ex-boss had treated him unfairly. Steve Stricker said Monday that Williams was clearly upset and eager to let his feelings out after the acrimonious split. "I'm not going to say if he went overboard or not," Stricker said after a practice round for the final major of the year, the PGA Championship at Atlanta Athletic Club. "It's just too bad their relationship had to end like that." A pair of English golfers, who weren't at Firestone but watched the tournament on television, both went on Twitter to take shots at Williams. "Cannot believe they have interviewed Steve Williams. Nice of him to take away from Scotty's win. Says it all," Chris Wood wrote. Oliver Wilson chimed in, "Steve Williams taken all the attention off Adam scotts fantastic win! Played great and nobody is talking about him this morning!!!" He added a hash tag to his tweet with the word "shameful." Stricker was more diplomatic. "This is all media driven. The media is looking for a story here," he said. "I don't know the whole situation. I've heard two different stories, and I don't know which one is the real story. But, obviously, he was upset to the point that he said what he did in front of everybody. That's his right." Woods also played at Firestone, his first tournament in three months, and finished 18 shots behind Scott. That only added to Williams' glee. "Stevie was obviously hurt. He gave his all to Tiger for 13 years," said Nick Faldo, who will be an analyst on CBS' broadcast of the PGA Championship. "I'm sure there was an element to that where he was saying, 'Hey, look what I've just done, mate.' I know Stevie is getting praise and criticism, both ways. That's kind of normal for him. That's Stevie." PLAYING UP: Some players were griping about the length of the Highlands Course - listed at 7,467 yards for a par-70 layout - but the PGA of America could make things interesting at a couple of holes. Start with the 13th, the shortest par 4 at 372 yards but also the tightest, with tall pines lining both sides of the fairway and a sharp dogleg to the right. There were markers at both the front and back tee boxes during Monday's practice round, setting up two totally different tee shots. From the closer position, the players have a shot at going for the green, if they can frame a shot around the trees and avoid a bunker on the right. The 425-yard sixth also sets up plenty of intrigue. The PGA could move the tee forward to play 295 yards, which brings a pond into play for anyone that tries to go for the green with his tee shots. There's also bunkers in front and behind the putting surface. "It's always nice to have a bit of a change, especially on a course like this. It's so long," Scotland's Martin Laird said. "Giving the guys a little bit of a surprise never hurts." TV COVERAGE: Golf fans won't have to be at the course to catch a glimpse of the practice range and putting green during the PGA Championship. The 360-degree camera on PGA.com will be streaming a live feed from each spot at Atlanta Athletic Club, allowing users to rotate the view to any direction from where the camera is placed. For the first two rounds, the camera will be at the practice range from 8:30-10 a.m. EDT, the putting green from 11 a.m.-1 p.m.; the tee box at No. 1 from 2-4 p.m.; and the 15th green from 5-7 p.m. TNT says it's the first time the camera has been used at a professional golf tournament. DIVOTS: Foreign-born players have won the past three PGA Championships: Padraig Harrington of Ireland in 2008, Y.E. Yang of South Korea in 2009, and Martin Kaymer of Germany last year. ... Atlanta Athletic Club is among 15 clubs that have hosted the year's final major more than once. This is the third PGA Championship in Atlanta, which also hosted in 1981 and 2001. ... If the PGA Championship produces a fourth first-time major winner this year, it will be the first time that's happened since 2003. ... The Highlands Course is 254 yards longer than it was when it hosted the PGA a decade ago.

New Golf Books Index

Throughout the year, we'll be keeping you up to date on the golf books of 2011 — what's out, what's coming out, and what they're all about. Check below for 2010's books. 2011 AUGUST The 40 Toughest Shots in Golf: A Pro's Guide To Better Shot Making and Lower Scoring Authors: Todd Sones with John Montelone Publisher: Skyhorse Publishing OK, raise your hands if you look forward to deep rough, fried eggs, uneven lies, hardpan and threading the needle through the trees. Didn't think so. Still, they're the sorts of predicaments we find ourselves in all too often. By effectively assembling a bagful of well-illustrated plans for escaping from dozens of these situations, Sones, a Top 100 Teacher, may not change your outlook about getting into trouble, but he'll certainly bolster your confidence — and technique — for getting out. The Scratch Golfer's Ultimate Trivia Book Author: Don Wade Publisher: Sterling With its hundreds and hundreds of multiple-choice teasers clumped into categories from Bobby Jones to Tools of the Trade, if "Trivia's" not the most mind-numbing golf book of the year, it may well be the most addictive. What other volume reveals that Mark Rolfing was Dan Quayle's college roommate, that Frank Connor and Ellsworth Vines were the only gents to have competed in U.S. Opens in both golf and tennis, and that the 1930 greens fee for hotel guests at Pebble Beach was — get the defibrillator ready — $1.50? And there's more where that came from. Lots more. JULY The Swinger: A Novel Authors: Michael Bamberger and Alan Shipnuck Publisher: Simon & Schuster Consider the set-up: His real name is Herbert, but all call him Tree, and he's the greatest golfer in the history of the solar system. He's rich, he's famous, he's got a spectacular wife, adorable kids, and a yacht almost as big as his ... libido. You can guess the rest, right? Not so fast. With SI's own Bamberger and Shipnuck at the keyboards, the obvious isn't so obvious and it's ha-ha funnier than real life. Sure, the scandal's a hoot, the fall's titanic, and the players -- on and off the course -- identifiable without a scorecard, but this is still a novel, which means after the fall, there's even hope for redemption. Golf Course of Rhymes: Links Between Golf and Poetry Through the Ages Author: Leon S. White, Ph.D. Publisher: Golfiana Press Now for something completely different. White, a retired MIT professor, lets the big doggerel eat in an appealing collection that covers the fairways with reasonable rhymes from Poets Laureate (Britain's John Betjman and America's Billy Collins) to more familiarly versed in other genres, among them Rudyard Kipling, Arthur Conan Doyle, Grantland Rice, Ring Lardner, E.C. (as in Clerihew) Bentley, Robert Trent Jones, Jr., Chick Evans -- yes, that Chick Evans -- and the ubiqiutuos and always reliable Unknown. White seasons his mix with contributions from his own pen, and enjoyable commentary from end to end. Golf Fitness Author: Karen Palacios-Jansen and the editors of Golf Fitness Magazine Publisher: Taylor Trade There's not a swing tip in its pages, but "Fitness" can only improve your game -- and overall health. Filled with stretches, exercises, and full routines (including those of Masters champ Trevor Immelman and LPGA titleist Suzanne Peterson), "Fitness" extends itself to address nutrition, weight, pain and mental outlook. Gary Player pens the foreward. How fitting. Putter Perfection: The Groundbreaking Guide to Finding the Right Fit For Your Game Author: Sean Weir Publisher: Overspin Media So, which putter is hurting your game more, the one holding the stick or the flat stick itself? Weir contends the inanimate one is as organic to success on the greens as the one with DNA, and devotes just under 100 informative pages to what you need to know to assure that the putter and the putter holding it can coexist in peace and harmony. JUNE Wonder Girl: The Magnificent Sporting Life of Babe Didrickson Zaharias Author: Don Van Natta Jr. Publisher: Little, Brown and Company Like that other Babe, this one also casts a mighty shadow. Talented, audacious, and full of pizzazz, she was one of a kind, a tower of sporting achievement, and golf is forever fortunate she chose to embrace the game after mastering so many others. She didn't just promote golf, she barnstormed for it, making the cuts in several PGA events. Her presence alone jumpstarted the fledgeling LPGA, then her courageous return from colon cancer to win the 1954 Women's Open jumpstarted the national imagination. She was so Bunyonesque a character that it's easy to overlook the reality: like that other Babe, her life was just that, a life -- as fragile and flawed as it was fabulous. Van Natta rectifies the oversight. In his sweeping bio, her heart beats loudly on every page. Deane Beman: Golf's Driving Force Author: Adam Schupak Publisher: East Cottage Press In his 20 years as PGA commissioner, Beman's vision changed the face of tournament golf. He steered a collection of events into a juggernaut, built the charity base, lassoed sponsors, sowed the seeds of the Players Championship and the TPCs, shepherded the separation of the Tour from the PGA, fought insurrections, forged alliances, battled equipment makers, raised profiles, and made a lot of people a lot of money. Schupak's scrupulously researched chronicle does more than give Beman his overdue due; by telling Beman's story, he compellingly charts the behind-the-scenes maneuverings that transformed a not-so-simple game into billion-dollar enterprise. Let There Be Pebble: A Middle Handicapper's Year in America's Garden of Golf Author: Zachary Michael Jack Publisher: University of Nebraska Press Every golfer goes through some variation of the mid-life crisis. Not everyone gets to do it on the Monterrey Peninsula. Once the obvious envy is removed from the equation, what's left is an inviting escapade into discovering -- through a diverse cast from Michael Murphy and Clint Eastwood to the caddie corps and the author himself -- why Pebble and its high-rent environs are always so absorbing, especially in an Open season. MAY Four Days in July: Tom Watson, the 2009 Open Championship and a Tournament for the Ages Author: Jim Huber Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books The drama was heart-stoppingly rich in the moment, and remains heart-breakingly rich in retrospect. Watson. 59 years old. Turnberry. The Open. Huber, whose sterling commentaries grace CNN and TNT, carefully reconstructs the unforgettable week in a lively narrative filled with the recollections of those who lived it -- from participants like Watson, his caddie Neil Oxman, and eventual winner Stewart Cink to such interested and interesting parties as Nicklaus, Trevino, and Player. Huber's chronicle is elegant and detailed. It just doesn't change the ending. Championship Golf Courses of Great Britain and Ireland: The Essential Guide to 43 Major Courses Publisher: AA Publishing The British Automobile Association has always had a knack with drivers. In this lavishly illustrated tour guide fit for any golfer's coffee table, the venerable AA displays its mastery of several other parts of the game, not the least of which is inspiring golf dreams. The nearly four dozen included courses cover the waterfront, the parkland, and the heathland from Royals -- like St. George's, Dornoch, Porthcawl and County Down -- to the peerless: St. Andrews, Aberdovey, Ballybunion and Sunningdale. Each has its own pictorial spread and brief write-up. Even better, each arrives with 18 hole-by-hole drawings that amount to a set of tantalizing yardage books. Which should come as no surprise. If the AA can't map a journey, who can? The World Atlas of Golf: The Greatest Courses and How They Are Played Editor: Mark Rowlinson Publisher: Hamlyn When first published in 1976, the "Atlas," now in its sixth incarnation, was a revelation, an instant cornerstone to any golf library. Focusing on the course itself -- as a cunning piece of craftsmanship, not just a destination or a battlefield -- it was big. It was brash. It was smart. It was colorful. It still is, thankfully. It still covers every continent. It's still full of analysis, insight, history, architecture, and advice. And it still comes with its marvelous defining feature: detailed overhead drawings of each of the 80 included courses (though, alas, given satellite photography not every routing is hand painted anymore.) But the original arrived with a murders' row of wordsmiths behind it -- the cosmopolitan foursome of Herbert Warren Wind, Pat Ward-Thomas, Charles Price and Peter Thomson -- and time has sadly erased their contributions and replaced their presence with lesser pens. Mesmerizing and addictive as the "Atlas" remains, nothing can replace the backbone and style of its Founding Fathers. The Art of the Swing: Short Game Swing-Sequencing Secrets That Will Improve Your Total Game in 30 Days Author: Stan Utley with Matthew Rudy Publisher: Gotham Short game guru Utley uses his sequencing concepts to -- well, the book's subtitle tells the story. What it doesn't tell is this: "Art" is the first instructional to incorporate Smartphone TagReader technology. So, in addition to photographs interspersed through the text, tags are sprinkled throughout; point your iPhone or Blackberry and click, and a video appropriate to the point Utley's making magically appears. If only sorting out the swing were that easy. Golf List Mania!: The Most Authoritative and Opinionated Rankings of the Best and Worst in the Game Authors: Leonard Shapiro and Ed Sherman Publisher: Running Press Nicklaus's own list of his five favorite victories? Certainly authoritative. Shapiro on the 10 Greatest Golf Traditions and Sherman on the 11 Greatest Shots of All Time? Opinionated, to be sure. There's much to digest and argue with in "Mania," but, then, what else are lists for? Guest lists contributed by Ian-Baker Finch, Gary Player, Arnold Palmer, Dan Jenkins, and even Errie Ball, the last survivor of the original Masters, add to the entertainment. Driving Lessons: A Father, Son, and the Healing Power of Golf Author: Steve Friedman Publisher: Rodale You can always tell when Father's Day's on the horizon; squint and you'll see subtitles like this one's. Though Friedman's short, mid-life memoir of reconnection hits the requisite shots of the genre -- lives in flux, father-son loose ends, renewal on the links -- Friedman's a skilled enough writer not to let the conventions sink him. When he was growing up, golf stood between him and his father. In middle-age, he finally ask his father to teach him how to play. Instead of spooning out the treacle, Friedman lets his story resonate with a deprecating wit he directs at himself. Golfing With Dad: The Game's Greatest Players Reflect on Their Fathers and the Game They Love Author: David Barrett Publisher: Skyhorse Publishing You can always tell when Father's Day's on the horizon ... but why sound like a broken record? When a gaggle of tour pros -- from Arnie, Jack and Phil to Peter Jacobson, Christina Kim, and J.J. Henry -- look back on the moments they shared on course with their fathers, expect the expected, and for the most part, that's what "Dad" delivers. There are a few different strokes here and there -- like Brittany Lincicome's dad, a scratch player, sacrifices his own Jones for the game to foster his daughter's -- just not enough to cut the sugar high. Science and Golf: Proceedings of the First World Scientific Congress of Golf Editor: A.J. Cochran Publisher: Routledge In 1990, golf-savvy scientists from around the globe convened for a conference at -- where else? -- the University of St. Andrews to present their research to other golf-savvy scientists. With titles such as "The Analysis of Time Series Decomposition Techniques to the Analysis of Golf Performance" and "The Effect of Sand Type on Ball Impacts, Angle of Repose and Stability of Footing in Golf Bunkers," this collection may not find its way to the bedside table, but some of the presenters have become household names in the game: Gary Wiren, Bob Rotella, and Dave Pelz. Even a quick delve into Rotella's co-written "A Closer Look at the Mind in Golf" can find the seed of several best-sellers planted within.

Woods struggles again and falls far behind

AKRON, Ohio (AP) — Tiger Woods has discovered something about his game that he never imagined could be a problem. He's hitting it too straight. In another pedestrian round Saturday that caused him to lose more ground in the Bridgestone Invitational, Woods didn't hit a fairway until the 11th hole and struggled so much with his putting that one of his associates brought a different putter out to the practice green after a round of 72. Woods was at 1-over 211, which left him 13 shots behind Adam Scott going into Sunday. What he noticed at Firestone, however, was the shape of his tee shots. Instead of playing a fade or a draw off the tee, depending on the shape of the flight he wanted, Woods is hitting it straighter. He said the trouble was still aiming right or left. "Still struggling a little bit with my setup and alignments off of tee shots because I used to curve the ball a lot more," he said. "I don't curve the ball as much anymore, and it's kind of hard to trust when I'm out there in tournament play. And most of my shots are missing right on the edges of fairways, so I've just got to get more committed to that. "I'm hitting the ball straighter," he said. "It's a nice change. But it's still a change." That was the scouting report out of Atlanta Athletic Club when Woods played a practice round Monday ahead of next week's PGA Championship. He was having a hard time picking out the right target, instinctively aiming farther outside the fairway lines because for years he was used to more movement on his shots. He missed every fairway on the front nine, and some of them weren't that close. His shot on No. 6 went into the gallery, plunked a fan in the back and bounced into the rough on the other side of the ropes. Brady Klotz, the college kid he struck, was so excited about being hit that he posed with the glove that Woods signed for him. Woods picked up two birdies to offset some early mistakes, but finished poorly. A sand wedge for his third shot to the par-5 16th went over the green and into a bunker for a bogey, and he three-putted the 18th for a 72. The putter is the biggest concern, as it has been since he first returned from the calamity in his personal life at the 2010 Masters. Woods went back to his Scotty Cameron, the model that he has used in 13 of his major championships. But after his round, the Nike putter was being delivered to him on the practice green. Woods played with Bubba Watson, who believes Woods is closer than the scores indicated. Watson was particularly impressed with the final hole, when Woods carved a shot out of the rough and around the trees to get on the green. "You've got to think he's just rusty," Watson said. "Like if we have a winter break, we've got a three-month winter break, the first tournament you're a little rusty. But 18 just showed how great he is. He hit some kind of a pitching wedge that sliced over that tree. That just proves he's close, and he's coming back and he's ready." About all that Woods can get out of this World Golf Championship now is four rounds, and hopes of a good Sunday to improve on his standing with the FedEx Cup playoffs at the end of the month. Woods is at No. 135, although he has two weeks to get into the top 125 and appears he can at least do that. "I've just got to put together a good round and let it build," Woods said. "That's something I haven't done yet. I've only played three rounds. Unfortunately, I'm not there battling with a chance to win, but I can still post a good round tomorrow."

Scott takes a 1-shot lead at Firestone

AKRON, Ohio (AP) — Ryo Ishikawa amazed even his peers in a charity-driven sport when he pledged in March to donate his entire earnings on the golf course to the tsunami relief fund in his native Japan. He could double the donation Sunday in a World Golf Championship that is surprising even him. Coming off a missed cut in Japan, never better than 20th in stroke play in America, the 19-year-old sensation made six birdies and twice escaped trouble in the trees Saturday for a 6-under 64 that put him in the final group and only one shot behind Adam Scott in the Bridgestone Invitational. Along with a $1.4 million payoff, Ishikawa could become the youngest winner of a PGA Tour event in 100 years. "I think it's a little too early to think about winning this whole thing as of now," Ishikawa said. "But I do feel that I was able to play at a pretty good level, a pretty high level today. Actually, I'm a little surprised of how I performed out there." Scott turned his fortunes around when decided to stick what was working, going to a fade off the tee. He poured in four birdies on the back nine for a 4-under 66, giving the 31-year-old Australian a shot at his first World Golf Championship. Scott was at 12-under 198, the lowest 54-hole score at Firestone in 10 years. He will play in the last group with Ishikawa. In front of them will be Jason Day, whose 66 put him one shot behind. Day and Scott tied for second in the Masters this year. About the only thing Tiger Woods can now get out of this week are four rounds and some points to help him qualify for the FedEx Cup playoffs at the end of the month. Woods, a seven-time winner at Firestone who hasn't played in nearly three months, struggled again with his putting and had a 72. He was 13 shots behind in a tie for 38th in the 76-man field. "I've just got to put together a good round and let it build," Woods said. Scott in the lead should be compelling enough, especially with Woods back to golf. It was only two weeks ago when Woods announced he had fired his caddie, Steve Williams, and Scott then hired him on a full-time basis. But that's became old news because of one of the youngest players in the field. Ishikawa might be the only other player in golf to appreciate what it's like to get attention like Woods. He has been a star in Japan since he won his first tournament as a 15-year-old amateur, and his 10 wins on the Japan Golf Tour include shooting a 58 in the final round to win The Crowns. He has earned so much respect from his peers that Scott, even though he was leading, was not the least bit bothered to spend most of his interview talking about the kid once known as the "Shy Prince." "I first saw him in Japan when he was 15, and he had already won an even over there. I mean, this kid is really amazing," Scott said. "I think this week is really big for him. It's great that he's playing well over here probably for the first time, if I'm not mistaken, first time he's really challenging at a world event. "He's only 19. He's got everything in front of him." Ishikawa doesn't get much attention in these parts because he has struggled in America, with only one top 10 in 2010 when Ishikawa reached the third round of the Match Play Championship. This is his 22nd tournament in America, and he started feeling comfortable only when he tied for 20th at the Masters this year. The spotlight? He's been coping with that for a long time. He gets the kind of media coverage in Japan that Woods gets around the world. It's not unusual to see Ishikawa sit in a folding chair after every round to accommodate dozens of Japanese media. Now comes the hard part. A win would make him the youngest winner of a PGA Tour event since John McDermott at the 1911 U.S. Open at 19, who was one week younger than Ishikawa. As for the money? He already has donated about $740,000 this year from his earnings, which include a pair of runner-up finishes in Japan. Along with his money pledges for making birdies and eagles, the total donation is pushing $1 million. "There are people that have no homes right now, and we actually don't know how long it's going to take for Japan to recover," Ishikawa said through a translator. "So I would just like to give my support to Japan." Ishikawa opened with three birdies on the front nine and never eased back, making enough escapes out of the trees and a few more birdies. It was his best round since he opened with a 65 at Doral, right after he learned of the tsunami. His expectations are limited for Sunday. "I think the golf I'm playing now is unstable in a sense," Ishikawa said, noting he went from a runner-up finish to qualify for this event to a missed cut. "And so considering that, I'm not really sure as to how I will perform tomorrow, to be honest with you." Day took an early lead with an eagle on the par-5 second hole, gave it back with consecutive bogeys to start the back nine and finished with a flourish, three birdies over his last five holes for a 66. It wasn't enough to put Day in the final group with Scott. They played together in the final round of the Masters, and both looked as though they might win until Charl Schwartzel birdied the last four holes for a two-shot victory. "He really impressed me at Augusta on Sunday when I think back to how he played," Scott said. The third round was played early to avoid a forecast of thunderstorms. Sunday returns to regular twosomes, and Scott doesn't expect a duel at the top. If conditions stay dry, and the fairways get faster, it puts a premium on just about everything. Nine players were within five shots of the lead. PGA Tour rookie Keegan Bradley had a 68 and was two shots behind, along with Martin Laird (67). The group another shot behind included world No. 1 Luke Donald, who had a 64 despite a bogey on the last hole, and Rickie Fowler, who holed out from the fairway for eagle for the second straight day. He needed that for a 69, although he is still only three shots behind as he goes for his first win. Woods opened with a bogey that started with shots to the right and left of the fairway, and he didn't hit a single fairway on the front nine. He attributed that to hitting the ball straighter, which is something he's not used to doing. Tweet