Golf Notebook
Presidents Cup site won't affect well-traveled U.S. team
Posted: Tuesday December 08, 1998 07:01 PM
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Studying abroad: O'Meara won both the British Open and World Match Play titles on international soil AP |
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) -- Jack Nicklaus isn't giving too much credence to the United States being at a disadvantage from playing so far away from home in the Presidents Cup.
Five Americans were in the Million Dollar Challenge in South Africa, while Fred Couples and John Huston tuned up in the Australian Open. Lee Janzen was playing in Taiwan when he was summoned as an alternate after the death of Hal Sutton's father-in-law. Only Davis Love III, Scott Hoch, Phil Mickelson and Mark Calcavecchia came straight from the States to the land Down Under.
"I don't really think that ... where you play makes a whole lot of difference," Nicklaus said. "All our fellows play all over the world, and all the fellows internationally play all over the world, and we're treated nicely wherever we go."
The biggest globetrotter on the U.S. team is Mark O'Meara, who has played a handful of worldwide events throughout his 18-year career.
At the Skins Game, O'Meara was asked if his whirlwind schedule might affect his play in the Presidents Cup.
"If you look at my record internationally, and if you look at the miles I travel and the way I play and compete, for some reason I don't have a major difficulty with jet lag," O'Meara said. "A lot of times, I fly in and I usually finish in the top 10 or the top five when I play internationally."
After the Skins Game in California, O'Meara went to Sun City for the Million Dollar Challenge and finished in a tie for fourth.
Father to be
Assuming everything goes according to schedule, Phil Mickelson will be a first-time father just in time for Father's Day.
Mickelson announced that he and wife Amy are expecting in June.
"Obviously, we're both very excited," Mickelson said. "We've always known that we wanted children and a family of our own, and it's the right time."
The couple has been married two years. In just five years on the PGA Tour, Mickelson has won 12 times -- he also won once as an amateur. Lacking only a major championship to cement his status as one of the best in the world, maybe the U.S. Open wouldn't be a bad place to get his first. After all, it traditionally ends on Father's Day.
Surgery for Lehman
Winning $420,000 in the Skins Game didn't change Tom Lehman's mind about his injured right shoulder. He had surgery to remove bone spurs the next day and will be out until at least late January.
"Hopefully, I'll be back for the end of the West Coast swing," Lehman said.
Lehman, the 1996 player of the year on the PGA Tour, suffered a slight tear of his rotator cuff on an amusement park ride two days before the British Open. He somehow made the cut, but wasn't the same the rest of the year and even took two months off to give himself a chance at making the Presidents Cup.
He made a good run in the Tour Championship, but faltered on the weekend.
"I can play good rounds, but I can't play good tournaments," Lehman said.
Just how quickly his shoulder recovers from surgery will be critical. Missing most of the West Coast tournaments is one thing, but at the end is the Match Play Championship with a $5 million purse.
Master historian Remembered
Bill Inglish, the former golf writer for The Daily Oklahoman who kept just about every record at the Masters for nearly 35 years, died December 2 of a heart attack at age 82.
Inglish, a member of the Golf Writers Association of America for 50 years, was regarded as the official recordkeeper of the Masters. He started keeping the records in 1964 and didn't miss a tournament until this year, when he was sidelined with prostate problems.
Golf Digest, in an effort to repay Inglish for all his statistical work, took Inglish to the 1995 British Open as its guest.
Divots
Arnold Palmer will receive the 1999 Donald Ross Award in March from the American Society of Golf Course Architects. The award is given to an individual who has made significant contributions to the game of golf and the profession of golf course architecture. ... Se Ri Pak has signed on as a playing editor for Golf Digest. ... The Golf Channel plans to televise more than 70 live tournaments in 1999, including early-round coverage of 10 PGA Tour events. ... James Criagie has been appointed president and chief executive officer of Spalding Sports Worldwide, replacing Kevin Martin.
Stat of the week
Lee Janzen is the first reigning U.S. Open champion to play in the Presidents Cup.
Reminiscing
"I can remember when the total purse for the tournament was $100,000. Now, we couldn't get the caddies to come for that much." -- Byron Nelson, on the purse of GTE Byron Nelson Classic increasing to $3 million.
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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