Hot stuff: Last month, I wrote that long-hitting Bubba Watson would break out as a Jason Gore-style star in 2006. His immense, showy drives got him lots of weekend air-time at Sony and a top-10 finish. Look out, Bubba is already loose.

Cold case: The U.S. Bank Championship, the artist formerly known as the Greater Milwaukee Open, got bumped to the week of the British Open. The ex-GMO has been stuck on the schedule in the week before the British, a date on which it's nearly impossible to draw a strong field. Now it's up against a major, which means that favorite cheesehead star Jerry Kelly will probably miss the U.S. Bank, along with the annual defending champion. On the bright side, the tourney could be off the schedule completely. This awkward date is a stay of execution.

Hot stuff: The Players Championship moves to May after last year's ridiculous Monday finish. There's no guarantee it won't be just as rainy in May but at least it'll be warmer and, even better, it'll escape the shadow of Masters previews, the NCAA basketball tournament and those insidious bracket pools.

Cold case: The B.C. Open, always the tour's little-tournament-that-could, is now the tour's little-tournament-that's-gone. It's probably taking Hartford, Reno-Tahoe and Las Vegas with it. Buick dropped sponsorship of the old Greater Hartford Open once the event was officially relegated to post-season irrelevance. Reno-Tahoe and Vegas have been struggling to find sponsors for a few years so if, and when, they finally fold up, it will be no big surprise. Hartford, however, has always drawn huge crowds. Its death knell was first sounded when Tiger's minions at IMG got the Deutsche Bank Championship in nearby Boston on the tour schedule on Labor Day weekend. A tourney in Boston with Tiger versus a tourney in Hartford without Tiger is a mismatch on the order of double-bacon cheeseburger versus fat-free yogurt. A Hartford Courant columnist wrote last week, "Thanks Tiger. Thanks Tim. Thanks for nothing."

Hot stuff: The Chrysler event in Tampa and the 84 Lumber Classic near Pittsburgh got first-class upgrades. Tampa moves to March, takes over the Players Championship's date and becomes a big deal in the Florida Swing. The 84 Lumber, at least in '07, goes from must-skip status in September to prime-time, the week after the U.S. Open at Oakmont. Just so you know, the 84 Lumber Classic isn't really in Pittsburgh. It's out in the countryside as a swank resort in the middle of nowhere. I live in Pittsburgh's northwest suburbs, and it's exactly 100 miles from my door to the tournament parking lot. And if I claimed it was actually 200 miles on my last tax return, well, that was simply a clerical error.

Cold case: Anybody remember the Champions Tour?

Hot stuff: David Duval put up a 63 in the Sony Open's final round. I don't know how important that is or what it really means ... but it can't be bad.

Cold case: It doesn't matter that Michelle Wie is only 16 and still in high school. The hype about her has gone on so long without her winning anything that it's becoming tiresome. That opening 79 at Sony hurt her image more than the seven-birdie 68 in the second round helped. She's going to be an amazing pro at 22 but only if the media, the expectations and the big money don't ruin her in the next six years. Paula Creamer and Morgan Pressel seem much better positioned to succeed in women's golf.

Hot stuff: Once upon a time, the Doral Open was big deal and kind of the unofficial start of the real golf season. Then, stuck on the schedule the week after the almost-mandatory World Match Play Championship at LaCosta, it devolved into good week to miss, prodded by an unpopular course remodeling by Raymond Floyd. Ford signed on as sponsor, poured in some money and reaped the benefits of a classic Tiger versus Phil Mickelson duel last year. Ford is pulling out next year but Doral lands a World Golf Championship event, the former American Express Championship (held at Harding Park last year). That guarantees Doral a monster field.

Cold case: The Mercedes Championships. What could go wrong with an elite winners-only field in Hawaii? Well, Tiger, Phil and Retief Goosen bagged it in favor of vacation. If I was the head of Mercedes, I'd be reconsidering my commitment to the millionaire golf pros. I'd also be driving a Mercedes. And be in Hawaii. On vacation.