Golf news, commentary and opinion

Kuchar coming into his own at PGA Championship

After two rounds of play, Matt Kuchar seems to be in control of his game and the Whistling Straits golf course in Kohler, Wisconson.  Kuchar leads the 92nd PGA Championship by one shot over Nick Watney.  Play was suspended due to darkness with 78 players remaining on the course.

Kuchar is at eight-under par through two rounds.  After firing 67, five-under par, in the first round, Kuchar started the second round with an early birdie on the second hole.  He finished the front side even-par after a bogey at the sixth hole. Kuchar started the back nine with a par on the 10th and then made three straight birdies from the 11th to 13th holes, before finishing with pars.

Watney is in second place with rounds of 69 and 68.  Dustin Johnson is in contention at a major again, sitting at five-under par and tied for third place with Rory McIlroy, Zach Johnson, Jason Dufner, Bryce Molder, Seung Yul Noh and Simon Khan.  In 10th place at four-under par are Carl Pettersson, Martin Laird, Chad Campbell and Francesco Molinari.

Tiger Woods is tied for 37th place at one-under par through six holes of the second round.  Phil Mickelson improved on his first round 73 with a 69 on Friday to move into a tie for 18th place.  Jim Furyk continues to make his bid for Player of the Year as he is tied for 13th place at three-under par through nine holes of the second round.  Ernie Els slipped in the second round into a tie for 18th place after following an opening round 68 with 74 in the second round.

Players will finish the second round on Saturday morning.

Mahan wins Bridgestone Invitational; Tiger and Phil struggle

Hunter Mahan was the man of the week at the World Golf Championship-Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone Country Club but you wouldn’t know it.  Mahan won by five shots, dominating with a final round 64.  But, Tiger Woods shot 77 on Sunday to finish second…to last, while Phil Mickelson finished tied for 46th after rounds of 71 and 78.

Mahan got better ever round at Firestone.  After a first round 71, he shot 67 and 66 before a bogey-free final round 64.  He started the round three shots behind leaders Ryan Palmer and Sean O’Hair.  After two pars to start, made three straight birdies to get into contention.  He added birdies on the eighth and ninth holes before adding another on the 13th.

Palmer made pars on the final six holes and was unable to catch Mahan.  Palmer finished in second place.  Retief Goosen moved up 13 spots to toe Bo Van Pelt for third place at nine-under par.  O’Hair fell to sixth place with a final round 71.  Jim Furyk and Jeff Overton, two of the best players in the game right now, tied for sixth place at seven-under par.  Peter Hanson finished in eighth place with six players tied for ninth a shot behind him.  In ninth place at five-under par were British Open champion Louis Oosthuizen, Rory McIlroy, Padraig Harrington, Matt Kuchar, Adam Scott and Steve Stricker.

As for Woods and Mickelson…

Mickelson looked poised to take over the top spot on the Official World Golf Rankings after starting the tournament 66-68.  But, a rough final round that featured seven bogeys, a double-bogey and one birdie put the stamp on his number two ranking.  Will Phil ever move into the top spot?  Or, does he really want it?

Woods all but handed Mickelson the reigns to the PGA TOUR with another lackluster performance.  It is obvious that the off-course issues have made their way inside the ropes.  We were blinded by the tie for fourth at the Masters, his first tournament of the season.  Woods may miss the PGA TOUR Playoffs but, more importantly, he may not play in the Ryder Cup.  With two tournaments left to qualify for the Ryder Cup, Woods is on the outside looking in and would, more likely than not, have to rely on Captain Corey Pavin to select him as one of his two picks.  Admittedly, Woods knows he is not playing well enough for the Ryder Cup.  But, maybe…

Big stakes for Tiger Woods at Bridgestone Invitational

The PGA TOUR has a split schedule this week with top players at Firestone Country Club for the World Golf Championship-Bridgestone Invitational.  Tiger Woods is the defending champion this week and boasts an impressive seven wins in 11 tries at this event.

Woods, once the measure of consistency, has failed to put four solid – Tiger-esque – rounds at any event this year.  He was impressive at the Masters, finishing fourth after not playing for nearly four months.  But, after an uneventful British Open for Woods, he comes into this week with skeptics saying that this will be a window into the PGA Championship.  For Woods, it will be another event which he will try to improve on earlier 2010 performances.  But, for fans, it is another week to see if the “real” Tiger will show.

As for the field, it is filled with the top players in the world.  Phil Mickelson enters the week with yet another chance to take over the top rank in golf.  Anthony Kim returns to action following surgery on his left thumb and hopes to pick up where he left off.  In Kim’s last three events he won the Shell Houston Open, finished third at the Masters and tied for seventh at Quail Hollow Championship.  Lee Westwood is another favorite as the Englishmen has played his way into a position where he could become the top ranked golfer in the world.

Players to watch

Outside of the four players mentioned, look for Rory McIlroy, who plays with Mickelson in the opening round, to continue his run for a player of the year nod.  Also, Rickie Fowler could make a statement on his rookie season with a win at Firestone.  Or, can Jeff Overton break free from second place finishes and finally raise a PGA trophy?

Turning Stone Resort Championship Preview

The Turning Stone Resort Championship has been the big event in the Fall Series and now move up on the rotation.  Matt Kuchar won last year and he has enjoyed his best season this year, as Dustin Johnson did the year before.  This year’s field hope to enjoy the same successes as Kuchar and Johnson this week in Verona, New York.

Brendon de Jonge comes into Turning Stone on a roll, with four top 15s in his last five events.  Another player to watch at Atunyote Golf Club this week is Vaughn Taylor, who finished second to Kuchar last year.  Looking to still break through on the PGA TOUR, India’s Jeev Mikha Singh comes to Turning Stone with his only top 10 coming at the World Golf Championship-CA Championship (t-9).  A win would propel Singh into the PGA TOUR Playoffs.

Other names to watch in Upstate New York this week are Jerry Kelly, Andres Romero, D. J. Trahan and David Toms.