Woods, Stricker Look To Rekindle Magical 2009 Team Performance

Although Tiger Woods won’t be in the starting group at the Ryder Cup- a first since 1999, the world No.1 ranked golfer will however play with a familiar face in Steve Stricker at the Celtic Manor in Wales Friday morning.

This very same duo was the first to go 4-0 at the 2009 Presidents Cup and U.S. captain Corey Pavin hopes they will rekindle their chemistry Friday as they will be the third pairing in a fourball match against European teammates Ian Poulter and Ross Fisher.

The match-ups will go as follows: (courtesy of rydercup.com)

7:45 AM -- Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson (USA) vs. Lee Westwood and Martin Kaymer (EUR)

8:00 AM -- Stewart Cink and Matt Kuchar (USA) vs. Rory McIlroy and Graeme McDowell (EUR)

8:15 AM -- Steve Stricker and Tiger Woods (USA) vs. Ian Poulter and Ross Fisher (EUR)

8:30 AM -- Bubba Watson and Jeff Overton (USA) vs. Luke Donald and Padraig Harrington (EUR)

Sherlock Strong in Q-School Qualifier

Stephanie Sherlock of Barrie, Ont. is looking to join Ashley Smith of Calgary at the final LPGA Q-school stage in December after moving into a tie for seventh-place Thursday as she carded a 70 at the sectional qualifier in Florida.


Only the top-30 spots including ties will advance to December’s final qualifier for an LPGA Tour card and so far four Canadians are inside that mark.


Isabelle Beisiegel of St. Hilarire, Que. is T-21 with Kirby Dreher of Fort St. John, B.C.


Another golfer out of British Columbia, Sue Kim went two-over par 74 and now sits in a tie for 27th place. 
On the outside looking in is Seema Sedekar of Toronto as she bolted up 27 spots and is currently T-36 after her one-under-par 71 performance Thursday left her just two-strokes behind advancing to December’s final stage.


Ashley Scholer of Hamilton, Ont. trails the magic number by five strokes at 11-over-par.

Tour Ends Suspension For Barron

40-year-old Doug Barron’s suspension for violating the PGA Tour’s anti-doping policy was lifted by The PGA Tour Thursday and Barron was granted a Therapeutic Use Exemption for testosterone according to a report by the Associated Press.

The AP report states that PGA Tour spokesman Ty Votaw confirmed the suspension was over through an email but would not give additional information on the exemption.

Barron of Memphis, Tenn. became the first player in 2008 to be suspended for violating the PGA Tour’s anti-doping policy after testing positive at the PGA’s St. Jude Classic in his hometown for anabolic steroid testosterone and propranolol, a nerve calming beta-blocker and also failed to fulfill the requirements in his original request for the drug exemption.

Barron, who hasn’t been on the PGA Tour in three years, allegedly stated that he was under doctor’s supervision and recently submitted new information to the PGA Tour Therapeutic Use Exemption Committee which allowed his suspension to be lifted and granted his exemption.

Barron was quoted in the report as saying after now having completed his one-year suspension, he looks forward to being eligible to compete on both the PGA and Nationwide Tours. 

Azinger Healing After Motorcycle Crash

According to golfcanada.ca Paul Azinger is healing from his injuries he suffered last week in a motorcycle accident close to his Bradenton, Fla. home.

The Florida Highway Patrol said in the report that the 50-year-old Champions Tour rookie was traveling north on his 2010 BMW motorcycle when another driver attempted to make a left turn onto the street. The report states that police say Azinger laid the bike down in an attempt to avoid a collision. The driver of the car was reportedly cited by police for a violation of right of way.

According to a tweet by the 1993 PGA champion, he has been on morphine and painkillers since Friday for three broken ribs and road rash but he also tweeted that he was fine and is doing really well.  

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Lone Canadian Advances To LPGA Final Qualifying Event

Canadian Ashley Smith of Calgary was the only Canadian out of a possible six to advance through to the final LPGA qualifying tournament in Florida held later in 2010.

Smith carded a final round 74 to put herself inside the top-30 at T-25 in the first of two sectional qualifiers and will decide her own fate in December as she will play for her 2011 LPGA Tour card in Daytona Beach, Fla.

Isabelle Beisiegel of Quebec came close to the top-30 but fell short of the mark as she finished in a tie for 40th place.

Seema Sadekar of Toronto, Ont. (T-48), Sue Kim of Langley, B.C. (T-56), Ashley Sholer of Hamilton, Ont. (T-70), and Stephanie Sherlock of Barrie, Ont. (T-72), were also disappointed as they each missed the cut for December’s qualifier.

The top-30 from a second sectional qualifier scheduled Sept. 28 in Venice, Fla. will also move on to December’s final qualifier.

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Paddy Wary of Woods

Padraig Harrington understands Tiger Woods’ worth as he refuses to underestimate the current world No. 1 going into the Ryder Cup in early October according to a report from the Associated Press.

The AP report states that Harrington insists Woods retains an “intimidation factor” even though the American has struggled for most of the season.

Woods made the team only after receiving a wild card from captain Corey Pavin which was the first time he did not make the team solely based on points. The previous 14-time major winner also hasn’t won a tournament in 2010.

Harrington, who also made the European Team on a wild card and hasn’t won on tour in more then two years, was quoted Friday as saying,

“In many ways the Ryder Cup could be the pinnacle of his year. Definitely he’ll be in a fighting mood for the week – a mood to perform.”

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Back To School

According to the Shag Bag on thegolfchannel.com American Michelle Wie is going back to school at Stanford where she will begin her senior year next week.

The report outlines that the 2010 CN Canadian Women’s Open champion plans to have a good start in school and will probably not see any LPGA action until she is set to appear at the Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia event Oct. 22-24 and the LPGA Hana Bank Championship in South Korea the following week of Oct. 29-31.

The report states Wie is not considering to play the Navistar LPGA Classic on Oct. 7-10 or the CVS/Pharmacy LPGA Classic on Oct. 14-17.

Wie’s swing coach, David Leadbetter was quoted in the report as saying,

“Even with all Michelle’s talent, she’s still on a learning curve. Really, she’s a part-time student and a part-time golfer. When she’s done with school, I think she’ll have her special interests outside golf, but I believe when she focuses 100 percent on golf, that’s when we’ll really see what Michelle can do.”

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Malaysia Gets Star-Studded Player Field

Ai Miyazato of Japan, Crisite Kerr of America, South Korean Jiyai Shin, Yani Tseng of Chinese Taipei, and Norwegian Suzann Pettersen, all listed in order of rank, have each confirmed their entry into the Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia.

This is the first year for the US$1.8 million purse event on the LPGA Tour and there will be no cuts throughout the tournament which runs from October 22-24.

Miyazato recently reclaimed her world No.1 status after winning the LPGA Safeway Classic last month and leads the race for the Rolex Player of the Year award.

21-year-old Tseng is the youngest player in LPGA history to capture three major championships which includes this year’s Kraft Nabisco Championship, the RICOH Women’s British Open and her 2008 LPGA Championship she won at 18-years-old. Tseng was recently reported as saying she aims to become the world’s No. 1 golfer and with a win at Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia, she will certainly improve her chances of doing just that.

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Boise To Be Less Noisy

Commentary silence is scheduled for Golf Channel’s broadcast of the third round of the Albertsons Boise Open presented by Kraft according to pgatour.com.

This will be a first for golf broadcasting as viewers will be able to listen to golf swings and chatter between players and their caddies but there will be no host-broadcaster or analyst speaking.

On-course microphones will enhance the sounds of the environment and there’s also a reported chance of a player who’s in contention to be wired up during their play.

Viewers will also be able to use Twitter to send questions to Jerry Foltz and analyst Curt Byrum as they will answer and interact with viewers during action.

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Woods To Keep Multi-Million Dollar Isleworth Home

According to Bloomberg News, Tiger Woods will keep his US$2.4 million home in the Isleworth community in Orlando, Fla.

Bloomberg News obtained court records and reported that the settlement outlines that the property was transferred to Woods July 3-4 when Woods was in the field at the AT&T National in which he finished four-over-par. Nordegren will reportedly keep US$100 million according to unidentified sources.

Woods and Nordegren officially announced their divorce August 23 to the public and both will reportedly share the parenting duties of their two children, Sam and Charlie.

Woods has been able to keep his No.1 Official World Golf Ranking throughout his very public divorce to Nordegren but failed to reach the final stage of the FedEx Cup playoffs next week at East Lake GC.

Tseng Wants Top World Spot

Yani Tseng of Taiwan says she is going after the No. 1 spot on the Rolex Women’s World Golf Ranking list currently held by Ai Miyazato according to an Associated Press report.

Tseng has played very well this year recently winning the Northwest Arkansas Championship Sunday for her third LPGA victory this year and has five total in her career.

The AP outlines that the 21-year-old spoke to reporters in Taipei Tuesday saying her game needs to reach even higher levels if she is to improve on her current No. 4 ranking.  

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