It's November 10th. Do you know what that usually means in the world of golf? Well, usually, nothing. The PGA, Nationwide and Champions Tour seasons have long winded down and the only golf potentially on the docket is the President's Cup or Ryder Cup. I suppose it is only fitting that in 2011, a year full of bizarre twists and turns and full of first-time winners, that we have a slew of equally bizarre and surprising news stories in Novmeber of all months.
First, congratulations to Tiger Woods who had his first bogey-free round in tournament play since February at the Dubai Desert Classic. He fired a 4-under 68 on Thursday at the Australian Open, as he gears up for next week's President's Cup at Royal Melbourne.
John Daly was also playing in this week's Australian Open. Was. The oft-troubled American had a very interesting Thursday afternoon on the links. Daly took a penalty on the Par 4 10th hole as he played the wrong ball, en route to a triple bogey. Then, on the very next hole, he proceeded to fire SEVEN(!!!) balls into the drink. He might have ended up losing more, but alas, he was all out of the little white spheres. Poor guy. He handed signed and handed in his scorecard and walked off the course. Obviously Daly has received negative press for his actions and some claim he simply did not want to play anymore. Trevor Herden, Golf Australia's Director of tournaments called Daly's actions "unprofessional". According to Herden, rules officials would have been able to give Daly more balls in order to continue playing, and face no penalty. Obviously, it would be easy for one to chastise Daly for his recent actions given his history of alcohol, gambling, marital and general life problems. However, I wouldn't be so quick to pass judgement. Perhaps he was unaware he could be given new golf balls by officials.
Another interesting recent story in the world of golf is one about something that WON'T happen. Yani Tseng, the LPGA phenom who has won 11 times this year on the LPGA Tour and has quickly climbed to number 1 in the women's rankings, has turned down an offer from the PGA Tour to compete in an event next season. Tseng had told reporters earlier that, if given the opportunity, she probably would not turn it down. I personally think that Tseng made the right move. It wasn't so long ago that Annika Sorenstam competed in a PGA Tour event, and we know how that turned out. PGA Tour players were outraged for the most part, and she didn't play particularly well. While I admire her courage in competing with the men, I think there's a reason the LPGA Tour exists. Women shouldn't feel the need to compete against men in golf. Men hit it further, plain and simple. Many women are exceptional players, but they should compete against other women. Tseng has excelled in her game, the game she plays on the LPGA Tour, not the PGA Tour. Not only has Yani avoided controversy, she has shown she is confident that she is the best, and doesn't need to prove to herself she is by playing with the men.
That's it for now. I'll be blogging soon about the Steve Williams comments and the Australian Open as it unfolds.
Cheers and comment if you agree or disagree with my views,
Hendo
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