Playoffs bring out the best in great players, at least in other major sports.  With his divorce finalized, it sees that Woods is playing with a clear mind and may be reading to run the table towards the FedEx Cup.  For at least the first round, Woods seemed to be back.  He carded four birdies in the first seven holes and, after a bogey on the 12th hole, Woods rebounded with birdies on the 13th and 14th holes and added another on the 18th hole.

Taylor matched Woods in the first round.  After a bogey on the third hole, Taylor made birdies on three of the next four holes.  On the back nine, Taylor made three straight birdies from the 13th to 15th holes, adding another on the 17th hole.

Ryan Palmer, Adam Scott and Brian Gay are tied for third place at five-under par.  Fourteen players are tied at four-under par in sixth place, including Camilo Villegas, Stewart Cink and Davis Love III.  Also with rounds of 67 are Jason Day, Heath Slocum, Chris Couch, John Senden, Jonathan Byrd, D. J. Trahan, Brandt Snedeker, Scott Verplank, Ben Crane, Pat Perez and Scott Piercy.

In what was billed as the start of a new generation in golf, with mainstays Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Vijay Singh and Ernie Els out of contention.  Kaymer, Watson and Johnson pulled out from the pack as the leaders of that new generation.  Johnson could easily become the new fan favorite, replacing Mickelson.  Kaymer, who shot 70, and Watson, carded a 68, have long been solid players and may now be coming into their own.

Kaymer made three birdies in the first 10 holes to take the lead on Sunday.  A bogey on the 15th hole helped Watson grab a share of the lead.  Watson was two-under par through 12 holes before making birdies on the 13th, 14th and 16th holes.  A bogey on the 17th hole dropped him into the playoff.

Zach Johnson and Rory McIlroy finished a shot out of the playoff at 10-under par.  Johnson made five birdies on the day but three bogeys hurt.  McIlroy, who was trying to become the youngest major championship winner, shot even-par in the final round, with three bogeys and three birdies.  After the two stroke penalty, Johnson slipped into a tie for fifth place with Jason Dufner and Steve Elkington at nine-under par.  Camilo Villegas and China’s Wen-chong Liang tied for eighth place.  Matt Kuchar and Jason Day tied for 10th place at seven-under par.

Nick Watney lost his two-shot lead on the first hole of the final round.  He struggled to an 81 and finished tied for 18th place.  Mickelson shot 67 in the final round to move up into a tie for 12th place.  Mickelson’s strong finish was not good enough to make him the number one ranked golfer.  Woods retained his ranking despite finishing tied for 28th place.  Woods shot 72-73 over the weekend after promising opening rounds.

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 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…

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?

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.

Tseng shot 73 in the final round, making three bogeys and two birdies.  After shooting three rounds of 68, Tseng had a …. shot lead heading into the final round.  After her final bogey at the 10th hole, Tseng settled down and finished with eight straight pars for the win.

Hull shot 66-70 over the weekend for her best finish of the 2010 LPGA season.  Na Yeon Choi and In-Kyung Kim tied for third place at seven-under par, four shots behind Tseng.  Cristie Kerr tied for fifth place with Amy Yang and Hee Kyung Seo at six-under par.  Morgan Pressel rebounded from a tough loss at last week’s Evian Masters to finish in eighth place at four-under par.  Ai Miyazato, Inbee Park, Christina Kim, Momoko Ueda and Brittany Lincicome tied for ninth place at two-under par, nine shots behind Tseng.

Top ranked Jiyai Shin tied for 14th place with Suzann Pettersen.  Michelle Wie finished tied for 17th with Paula Creamer tied for 21st.

Appleby started the final round seven shots behind Overton and made birdies on six of the first nine holes.  He started the back nine with pars on the 10th and 11th holes before making and eagle on the 12th hole.  Overton still held a one shot lead with three holes to go after making three birdies and a bogey in his first 15 holes.

Both players made birdie on the 16th hole but Appleby pulled ahead, and into the history books, with birdies on the final two holes for a final, winning round of 59.  Overton made pars on the last two holes for a second place finish, his third runner-up this season.

Brendon de Jonge continued his solid play with a third place finish.  Five players tied for fourth place at 15-under par.  Tied were Woody Austin, Paul Stankowski, D. A. Points, Roger Tambellini and Jimmy Walker.  Seven players tied for ninth place at 14-under par, including Jim Furyk, Boo Weekley and Pat Perez.  Also finishing at 14-under were Chris Stroud, Pat Perez, Troy Matteson, Aron Price and Charles Howell III.

Appleby carded the fifth 59 in the PGA TOURs history, and second this season.  The win also is the first for Appleby in four years, since the 2006  Houston Open.  Paul Goydos shot golf’s magic number at last month’s John Deere Classic.  Other 59s were Al Geiberger (1977), Chip Beck (1991) and David Duval (1999).

Coming into the week, PGA TOUR players are gearing up for a final push to the FedEx Cup playoffs.  Jim Furyk, a two-time winner this year, can take over the top spot in the points race with a win this week.  Matt Kuchar, who is having a career year, is looking to add a win to his eight top 10s.

Furyk is the top ranked player in the field this week.  Watch for players like Charlie Wi and Brendon de Jonge, who have been knocking and could break through this week.

Shin, who won the 2008 British Open, is joined by this season’s major champions Crisie Kerr, Yani Tseng and Paula Creamer, as well as defending champion Catriona Matthew.  Royal Birkdale hosted the 2005 Women’s British Open, where Jeong Jang won for the first time in her LPGA career.  Coming off a tie for eighth place at last week’s Evian Masters, Jang comes into the week looking for another victory.

Shin looks to distance herself in the Rolex Rankings with a win this week.  But, Ai Miyazato, Kerr and fourth ranked Suzann Pettersen are all favorites this week.  Kerr leads a strong group of American golfers, including Creamer and Morgan Pressel, that could be in the mix on Sunday.  Other players to watch this week are Michelle Wie, Angela Stanford, Brittany Lincicome, In-Kyung Kim and Christina Kim.

Shin tied Pressel at 13-under par with a birdie on the 13th hole, as Pressel narrowly missed her birdie along the same line just before.  Both players made par over the next four holes to remain tied heading to the 18th hole.  With a playoff looming, Shin and Pressel walked to the 18th green with birdie putts.  Shin made hers and Pressel’s rolled over the hole but did not drop.

Pressel finished tied for second place with Na Yeon Choi and 15-year-old Alexis Thompson, who was playing on a sponsors exemption after turning professional in June.

Suzann Pettersen finished in fifth place at 12-under par, two shots behind Shin.  Mika Miyazato and Song-Hee Kim tied for sixth place, with Jeong Jang a shot behind them at eight-under par.  Yukari Baba and Yuri Fudoh round out the top 10 tied for ninth place at eight-under par.

Defending champion, and Rolex Ranking top player, Ai Miyazato finished tied for 19th place with Cristie Kerr and Michelle Wie tying for 31st.  Paula Creamer, who won the U. S. Women’s Open a couple of weeks ago, finished tied for 37th at one-under par.

Petterssen made bogeys on the fourth and seventh holes before turning things around.  He made birdies on the eighth and ninth holes and added another on the 11th before carding three straight birdies on the 13th, 14th and 15th holes.  Wilson traded bogey for birdie on the eighth and ninth holes but lost his lead with bogeys on the 12th and 14th holes.  Pettersson made a bogey on the final hole but Wilson could not convert birdie on any of the final four holes.

With Wilson taking sole possession of second place, Luke Donald moved into third with a final round 66 to get to 12-under par, two shots behind Pettersson.  Tim Clark and Bob Estes fell into a tie for fourth place after shooting 71 in the final round.  They finished at 10-under par with Matt Kuchar, Jeff Quinney, Charlie Wi, Charley Hoffman, Greg Chalmers, Michael Letzig and Bryce Molder.

Clark followed an opening round 66 with a bogey-free 64 to tie Wilson, who shot a second straight round of 65.  Clark started with birdies on the third and fifth holes.  He birdied three of four holes at the turn – on the ninth, 10th and 11th holes, before finishing with a final birdie on the 17th hole.  Wilson birdied the first hole but made his only bogey on the fourth.  He went on to card five birdies on the sixth, 10th, 13th, 15th and 17th holes.

Brent Delahoussaye and Steve Wheatcroft are tied for third place at nine-under par.  Hunter Mahan, J. J. Henry, Rob Grube and Brock Mackenzie are tied for fifth place.  Tim Herron’s 63 moved him up 66 spots into a tie for ninth place at seven-under par with Bob Estes, Matt Jones, Nathan Green and Vance Veazey.

Mika only made one bogey in the second round while carding six birdies for a 67.  She is looking to follow her sisters, who is the defending champion, and make this her first LPGA victory.  But, with players like Morgan Pressel, Na Yeon Choi and Suzann Pettersen lurking, Mika has a long 36 holes to go for that first win.

Jeong Jang is in third place at seven-under par with Pressel, Choi, Meena Lee and M. J. Hur a shot behind in fourth place.  Pettersen is at five-under par, tied with Jiyai Shin, Sun-Ju Ahn, Kyeong Bae and Mi-Jeong Jeon for eighth place.

Pettersen is currently ranked third in the Rolex Rankings and Shin is fourth.  Both could top Ai Miyazato in the rankings with a win this week.  Ai is tied for 16th place at three-under par, six shots behind her sister, as is Yani Tseng and 15-year-old Alexis Thompson, who turned professional in June and finished 10th at this year’s U. S. Women’s Open.

Heading into this week’s Evian Masters, Ai Miyazato has re-took the top spot on the Rolex Rankings from Cristie Kerr but the mathematical difference is miniscual.  Miyazato leads with a 10.2656 average to Kerr’s 10.2650.  The rankings are so close that Jiyai Shin, the only other player to hold the number one spot since Ochoa, Suzann Pettersen, Yani Tseng and U. S. Women’s Open champion Paula Creamer are poised to make a move to the top.

Miyazato is the defending champion this week in France.  Her win last year was her first career LPGA victory and sparked a span where Miyazato has totaled five wins in 20 events, with seven top 10 finishes.  Kerr finished a shot behind Miyazato last year and is a strong favorite heading into the week.

Oosthuizen took control of the tournament with a 67 in the second round and pulled away from the field with a third round 69.  He became an unlikely champion but, that happens in major tournaments.

After 18 holes, it seemed like this year’s Open Championship could have the mark of a classic with Rory McIlroy leading the field with a nine-under par63. Tiger Woods was in the top five through 18, as was John Daly.  But, all would fall off in the second round – McIlroy shot 80 and Woods 73.

It was Oosthuizen who was the picture of consistency.  He was only two shots off McIlroy’s early lead.  Oosthuizen did what players that win needed to do – putt well.  He was nearly perfect from 10-feet in with the short stick all week.

Lee Westwood had another strong finish and is seemingly due for a major title.  McIlroy recovered from that 80 to shoot 69-68 over the weekend to finish tied for third with Paul Casey and Henrik Stenson.  Retief  Goosen took sixth place with Sean O’Hair, Nick Watney, Martin Kaymer and Robert Rock tying for seventh place.  PGA TOUR rookie Rickie Fowler, after shooting 79 in the first round, finished the tournament at four-under par, tied for 14th place.  Woods went on to finish tied for 23rd at three-under par for the week.  Phil Mickelson tied for 48th place at one-over par with Daly and defending Open champion Stewart Cink.

Creamer, at the age of …, was starting to get the label of best player without a major.  She has struggled much of the last season and a half, primarily related to the thumb injury that was re-aggravated at the Honda PTT LPGA Thailand, the first LPGA event of 2010.  After undergoing surgery and missing most of this season, Creamer returned to finish seventh at the ShopRite LPGA Classic.  She tied for 42nd the next week at the LPGA Championship and missed the cut the following week at the Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic.

Creamer regrouped for the U. S. Women’s Open and, after shooting 72 in the first round, shot 70-70-69 to land the elusive major title.  In doing so, Creamer also moved up six spots on the Rolex Rankings to number seven.  In the year of new number one’s on the LPGA, Creamer has added her name to the mix as the top of the rankings are closer than ever.  Cristie Kerr still holds the top spot with Ai Miyazato, Suzann Pettersen, Jiyai Shin, Yani Tseng and Na Yeon Choi filling out the top six spots.  Anna Nordqvist, Song-Hee Kim and Karrie Webb round out the top 10.

The PGA heads to England for The Open Championship

Tiger Woods has continued his struggles in 2010 but will a trip overseas help get the PGA TOUR’s top player back in the winner’s circle?  Or, will Phil Mickelson finally overtake Woods atop the Official World Golf Rankings?

The top players in golf are at the Old Course in St. Andrews for The Open Championship, the PGA TOUR’s third major championship.  Woods is still the top player in the men’s game but the field has caught up.  Mickelson has missed a few chances this year to overtake Woods and become the number one ranked player this season and don’t expect that to change this week.  Mickelson has not played well at the British Open in the past while Woods has won three times at St. Andrews.  But, neither player may win as “the field” has outplayed both players this year.  Lee Westwood and Justin Rose are two of the hottest golfers in the game and would love to win their home country’s championship.  Steve Stricker is coming off a win last week at the John Deere Classic and Ernie Els, Jim Fuyrk and Ian Poulter could all be considered top contenders this week.

Major championships bring out the best players in golf and some that could steal headlines are Ryo Ishikawa, Rory McIlroy, Camilo Villegas, Dustin Johnson, Hunter Mahan or PGA TOUR rookie Rickie Fowler.

Jiyai Shin is the top ranked player in Ohio this week, along with former Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic champion Paula Creamer, who won in 2008.   Morgan Pressel is in the field this week after losing in a playoff to Yi last year.  Other notables this week are Natalie Gulbis, Mika Miyazato, Brittany Lincicome, Angela Stanford and Christina Kim.

Highland Meadows Golf Club has hosted this tournament for fourteen years.  It is a traditional course with narrow fairways and small greens protected by bunkers.  The course plays to a par 71 measuring 6,428 yards.

Woods is joined by fifth ranked Jim Furyk, Robert Allenby and last year’s runner up Hunter Mahan.  Dustin Johnson is in the field this week looking to erase the U. S. Open from his mind with another win.  As is Justin Rose, who lost last week at the Travelers Championship after holding a three shot lead in the final round.  Other notable players at this week’s AT&T National are Vijay Singh, rookie Rickie Fowler, Jason Day, Davis Love III, Ryan Moore and J. B. Holmes.

Aronimik GC was originally designed by Donald Ross in 1928 and was remodeled by Ron Pritchard in 2000.  It has played host to the 1962 PGA Championship, 1977 Men’s U.S. Amateur, 1997 Junior Amateur and the 2003 Senior PGA Championship.  The course measures 6,995 years, playing to a par 70.

The race for the top spot has been closer than ever since the retirement of Lorena Ochoa, who was only the second player to hold the number one spot after Annika Sorenstam retired.  The rankings started in 2006.  At the start of the LPGA Championship, any one of the top six players could have overtaken Miyazato with a win.  Miyazato had to finish in third place or better to retain the ranking she earned with her fourth win of the 2010 LPGA season at the ShopRite LPGA Classic.

The new rankings can be viewed here.

Kerr finished the tournament with a birdie, her sixth of the day, to bring home her second career major championship.  She led from the start and, after breaking a tie in the second round, Kerr continued to extend her lead after each round.  It was a runaway tournament and a display of true golf from one of the best players in the game.

Kerr is one of the more consistent players on the LPGA.  She has finished with at least a win in each year, except 2003 where her best finish was second place, twice, since 2004.  She is currently ranked third on the Rolex Rankings behind Ai Miyazato and Jiyai Shin.  In nine events this year, Kerr has five top 10 finishes and is averaging 69.73 per round.

Song-Hee Kim won the battle for second place with a final round 69.  Kim finished the LPGA Championship at seven-under par.  Miyazato shot six-under par, 66, in the final round to get to five-under for the tournament and finish in third place with Shin.  In-Kyung Kim and Karrie Webb tied for fifth place.  Rounding out the top 10 were Morgan Pressel, Inbee Park, Meaghan Francella and Jimin Kang, who tied for seventh place at three-under par.

Watson started the day three shots behind leader Justin Rose.  Rose played the front side at one-over par but could not keep pace as the Englishman made three bogeys, a double bogey and one birdie on the back nine to shoot 75 and fall into a tie for ninth place.

Watson made two birdies on the front nine.  After a bogey on the 11th hole, he made birdies on four of the next five holes.  A double bogey on the 17th hole brought him back to the field before he finished with a birdie on the final hole.  Pavin, who will captain the United States Ryder Cup team, made five birdies and one bogey in his round of 66 to move into the playoff.  Verplank climbed 11 spots on the final day with two birdies on the front side and two eagles on the back nine for a round of 64.

Pavin was eliminated on the first sudden death playoff hole with Verplank sinking an 8-foot birdie putt to match Watson.  Verplank was not so lucky on the next hole as he missed an 8-foot par putt that would have forced a third playoff hole.  Watson two-putted from 48-feet to make par and land the win.

Chris Riley finished in fourth place after shooting 65 to fall one shot short of the playoff at 13-under par.  Padraig Harrington shot 64 on Sunday to move into a tie for fifth place with Chad Campbell, Retief Goosen and Ricky Barnes.  Rose tied for ninth place with Vaughn Taylor, Brendon de Jonge and Kris Blanks.

Kerr started with a bogey on the second hole, followed by birdies on the next two holes.  After a bogey on the 10th, Kerr made three straight birdies before carding another bogey on the 14th hole.  She made a final birdie on the 15th hole before finishing with pars.

As Kerr keeps pulling away, it seems the fight will be for second place.  Mika Miyazato, Jimin Kang and Azahara Munoz are tied for second at five-under par.  Jiyai Shin and Song-Hee Kim are a shot behind them in fifth place.  Karrie Webb is in seventh place at three-under par with five players tied for eighth place at two-under par.  Catriona Matthew, In-Kyung Kim, Inbee Park, Meaghan Francella and Sarah Jane Smith are at two-under par.

Rose struggled with the putter but made two birdies on the front nine, at the fifth and sixth holes.  After the turn, Rose made three pars before a bogey on the 13th hole.  He recovered with a birdie on the 15th hole before finishing with pars.

Curtis moved up eight spots into the final group on Sunday with a bogey-free round of 64, carding six birdies with five coming on the back nine.  Vaughn Taylor is in third place at 11-under par, five shots behind Rose.  Seven players are tied for fourth place at 10-under par, including Ricky Barnes, Bubba Watson and Corey Pavin.  Also at 10-under are Scott McCarron, Brendon de Jonge, Matt Jones and Bill Lunde.

Rose started on the back nine and, after a par on the 10th hole, made five straight birdies from the 11th to 15th holes.  He added birdies on the second and third holes before finishing with another birdie on the ninth hole.

Kevin Sutherland is in second place at 10-under par, four shots behind Rose.  Vijay Singh is tied for third place at nine-under with Corey Pavin, Charlie Wi and Bill Lunde, who shot 63 in the second round.  Vaughn Taylor, Matt Jones and Greg Chalmers are tied for seventh place.  Seven players are tied for 10th place at seven-under par, including Bubba Watson and Steve Elkington.  Also at seven-under par are Joe Durant, Chris Riley, Ben Curtis, Brendon de Jonge and Tim Herron.

Moving Day

It is nice to see Singh near the top of the leaderboard but, can anyone stop Rose?  Padraig Harrington disappeared after sharing the lead after the first round.  Can he rebound?  Wi was with Rose and Harrington after the first round and is five shots back.  Also, watch for rookie Rickie Fowler to make a move.  Fowler regrouped to shoot 65 in the second round, following 71, to move up to a tie for 34th place at four-under par.