Korda leads Mobile Bay, but Michaels sets course record

Korda leads Mobile Bay, but Michaels sets course record










The Sports Xchange May 17, 2013 9:40 PMThe SportsXchange


MOBILE, Ala. -- Karrie Webb was just trying to keep up during the second round of the Mobile Bay LPGA Classic on Friday.

Not necessarily with Sydnee Michaels, who broke the course record by two shots at Magnolia Grove, but with long-hitting playing partner Jessica Korda.

Webb managed to stay with them. She trails Korda, the 36-hole leader, in the Mobile Bay LPGA Classic by one shot after 36 holes. Korda, a 20-year-old from Bradenton, Fla., shot a 7-under 65 in the afternoon and was at 13-under 131.

Webb fired a 9-under 63 -- a score that would have broken the course record had not Michaels beat her to it in the morning.

"When you're playing with Jess and Brittany (Lincicome)," Webb said, "if I hit a really good one, I'm 20 yards behind them. In certain parts of the golf course where they can carry parts that I can't, I'm 40 yards behind them. So I'm the little short one out there trying to keep up with the big girls."

Michaels carded eight birdies and an eagle to eclipse the course record by two strokes with a 10-under 62. She is at 10 under for the tournament.

Michaels had missed four straight cuts. Her best previous LPGA round was 7 under.

"It feels so good to finally have a good round because I've been struggling the last few weeks and going through some swing changes," Michaels said. "And the week off last week, I just said, 'You know what? I'm just going to go back to what feels good.' So I hit a lot of balls and just kind of got back to where I was feeling good over the ball again. So it feels good to finally have a good round."

Korda got a shock on the first hole.


"We give Webby a hard time," Korda said. "She did outdrive me on the first hole today, and she's like, 'What's going on?' And I'm like, 'Did you work out last night?'"

Korda's seven-birdie round came without a missed fairway. She played the four par-5 holes in 3 under. All of her birdies have come on par-4 and par-5 holes the first two days.

Korda was playing in her first tournament since injuring her wrist in the LPGA Lotte Championship on April 20.

"Honestly, right now it's Friday," Korda said, "so I think the tournament starts on the back nine on Sunday. So right now, it's great to have the lead, and I feel good. I'm healthy, somewhat, so I'm happy just to be here and playing right now."

Webb stood at 1 over with six holes to go on Thursday. She was 4 under on the final six holes in the first round and 4 under on the final five holes on Friday.

"I'm not sure the last time I had a bogey-free round," Webb said, "so I'm really happy about that. That's sort of been my problem. I have bogeys at the wrong time, and it really kills my momentum.

"That's what happened yesterday. I turned at 2 under and then doubled (No.) 1 and bogeyed 2, and all of a sudden I'm at 1 over. I just was really happy to fight back yesterday to finish at 3 under, and I think that really carried over into today."

Six players are at 10 under or better after two rounds..

Chella Choi stands at 11 under. Two golfers from Thailand -- Pornanong Phatlum and Thidapa Suwannapura -- were tied with Michaels at 10 under.

"My shot is really good and my distance is better than last year," said Choi, a Korean who likes playing in Mobile because she can drive from her home in Jacksonville, Fla. "I tried very hard on my putting because it's 80 percent putting, 20 percent shots. My shots are the same, but my putting is much better than before.

"I don't make a lot of putts (in the previous) couple of tournaments. But today and yesterday, really good -- my putting. My confidence is better."

First-round co-leader Lexi Thompson is at 9 under after a second-round 70 that included an eagle on the par-5 16th. Also at 9 under are Azahara Munoz, Ariya Jutanugarn and Mina Harigae.

Munoz holed out from the 18th fairway for an eagle on her way to an 8-under 64.

Jutanugarn, a 17-year-old playing on a sponsor exemption, has not finished worse than fourth in her four LPGA outings and had a 6-under 66.

Nordqvist sets record, but Choi still leads Mobile Bay

Nordqvist sets record, but Choi still leads Mobile Bay










The Sports Xchange May 18, 2013 8:20 PMThe SportsXchange



MOBILE, Ala. -- For the second straight day, a golfer shot herself into contention at the Mobile Bay LPGA Classic with a tournament-record round. And for the second straight day, a record-breaking performance wasn't enough to take the lead on Magnolia Grove's Crossings Course.

On Saturday, Anna Nordqvist fired an 11-under-par 61. ButChella Choi is the third-round leader, coming in at 17-under 199.

Nordqvist is one stroke back, tied for second with second-round leader Jessica Korda.

Sydnee Michaels' 10-under-par 62 of the second round lasted one day as the tournament record. Before this year, the tournament record had been 8-under, accomplished three times.

Choi got to 17 under for the tournament with her second straight 66 Saturday. Last year, Stacy Lewis won the tournament at 17 under. This is the first time that Choi has led entering the final round of an LPGA tournament.

Hall of Famer Karrie Webb is alone in fourth place at 15 under after a 3-under 69. Jennifer Johnson is another stroke back after turning in a 65, making her one of five players to shoot 7 under or better on Saturday.

Lewis gave herself a chance to repeat as the tournament champ with a 9-under 63 on Saturday to get to 13-under, where she's tied with Michaels.

The group at 12 under includes first-round leaders Lexi Thompson and Eun-Hee Ji, Nicole Castrale and Ariya Jutanungarn, a 17-year-old playing on a sponsor exemption.

In the third round, Nordqvist made 10 birdies, including holing out from the greenside bunker on No. 12, an eagle on the par-5 13th and a three-putt bogey on the par-3 14th. She birdied the third through seventh holes.

"It's just one of those days where you just feel like you can't miss," she said. "Today was a lot of fun. I started out with a couple birdies, hit a lot of good shots, and I think I missed one green. And then I made that bunker shot, and it was just like I couldn't stop smiling, couldn't stop laughing."

Korda had a bumpy 3-under 69 in the third round. After shooting 3 under on the front nine, she bogeyed 11, where hitting her ball out of a divot aggravated the wrist injury she suffered in the LPGA LOTTE Championships on April 20.

This is her first outing since that injury.

She followed the bogey with a double-bogey. But she bounced back with a birdie on the 13th and rolled in a 33-foot eagle putt on the 16th hole to get back to 16 under.

Lewis had six birdies in each of the first two rounds of the Mobile Bay LPGA Classic, but the 2012 Rolex Player of the Year was only 4 under for the tournament, thanks to four bogeys and two double-bogeys.

In the third round, Lewis didn't have any bogeys. But she did have nine birdies.

Nordqvist seizes opportunity to have chance at Mobile Bay win

Nordqvist seizes opportunity to have chance at Mobile Bay win










The Sports Xchange May 18, 2013 9:20 PMThe SportsXchange


MOBILE, Ala. -- Anna Nordqvist wore a necklace on Saturday that read: Carpe Diem.

Did she ever.

Nordqvist fired a tournament record 11-under-par 61 in the third round of the Mobile Bay LPGA Classic on to launch herself into contention for her first victory since 2010.

The Swedish golfer will enter the final round one shot behind leader Chella Choi, who is at 17-under 199 for the tournament after her second straight 66 on Saturday.

Nordqvist is tied for second with Jessica Korda, the second-round leader who shot a 3-under 69.

Sydnee Michaels' 10-under-par 62 of the second round lasted one day as the tournament record. Before this year, the tournament record had been 8-under, accomplished three times.

In the third round, Nordqvist made 10 birdies, including holing out from the greenside bunker on No. 12, an eagle on the par-5 13th and a three-putt bogey on the par-3 14th.

"It's just one of those days where you just feel like you can't miss," she said. "Today was a lot of fun. I started out with a couple birdies, hit a lot of good shots, and I think I missed one green. And then I made that bunker shot, and it was just like I couldn't stop smiling, couldn't stop laughing."

Nordqvist was 1 over in the first round and shot a 6-under 66 in the second. On Saturday, she hit all 14 fairways, was on all but one green in regulation -- and holed out from the bunker on the one miss -- and used 26 putts to get through the round.


"It's one of those days where you feel like all your hard work, and your patience is paying off," she said. "You look back in the day, you see yourself with a lot of confidence and know you can do it and believe in yourself."

Choi put her second shot on the par-5 16th hole into the greenside bunker, but she got out for a birdie to get to 17 under and will take the lead into the final round for the first time in her LPGA career.

Choi has a different approach this week -- she is scoreboard watching for the first time as she tries to match the top scorers throughout her rounds.

The Korean golfer explained that before this week, watching as scores were posted made her nervous and would erode her confidence.

"So like this week, I start watching the leaderboard. ... Starting Thursday, every hole watching the leading score. So I think much better, mentally better, than before."

Hall of Famer Karrie Webb is alone in fourth place at 15 under after a 3-under 69. Jennifer Johnson is another stroke back after turning in a 65, making her one of five players to shoot 7 under or better on Saturday.

Stacy Lewis won the tournament last year with a record 17-under score. She gave herself a chance to repeat with a 9-under 63 on Saturday to get to 13-under, where she's tied with Michaels.

The group at 12 under includes first-round leaders Lexi Thompson and Eun-Hee Ji, Nicole Castrale and Ariya Jutanungarn, a 17-year-old playing on a sponsor exemption.

Korda had a bumpy third round. After shooting 3 under on the front nine, she bogeyed 11, where hitting her ball out of a divot aggravated the wrist injury she suffered in the LPGA LOTTE Championships on April 20.

This is her first outing since that injury.

She followed the bogey with a double-bogey on No. 12. But she bounced back with a birdie on the 13th, and she set up an eagle on the 16th with a massive tee shot to get back to 16 under.

"I think they said I hit it 325 (yards)," she said. "And then I had a 6-iron in and I was 33 feet past the pin. (The putt) just went straight in the hole. I mean it was a left-to-right putt, and it was pretty."

Lewis had six birdies in each of the first two rounds, but the 2012 Rolex Player of the Year was only 4 under for the tournament because of four bogeys and two double-bogeys.

In the third round, Lewis didn't have any bogeys. But she did have nine birdies.

Fifty-four golfers are at 5 under or better. Korda said they're all in contention.

"What did Anna shoot today -- 11 under?" the 20-year-old from Bradenton, Fla., asked. "Anybody within 12 shots, I think, is still close."

Plan executed, Spittle eyes first major crown

Plan executed, Spittle eyes first major crown











PGA.COM May 25, 2013 10:42 PM

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Rod Spittle has overcome a rough start to his week to put himself in contention to win.(Montana Pritchard/The …


By T.J. Auclair, PGA.com Interactive Producer

ST. LOUIS - Back in 2004, at age 49, Rod Spittle and his wife, Ann, made a life-changing decision.

After 25 years selling health insurance, Rod quit his job, Ann quit hers, they sold their house in Columbus, Ohio, and decided to try something new - professional golf.

That's right, at age 49, Spittle - who starred as a collegiate golfer at Ohio State, where he was a teammate of John Cook and Joey Sindelar - decided all those years later to finally take a crack at the pros.

"My dream was always to play again," Spittle said. "I played at Ohio State with John Cook and Joey Sindelar, who are great guys and great gentlemen. I just thought I could always play. I won my two Canadian Amateurs when I was in school. I just chose not to chase the lifestyle of being away from my family. My hat continues to go off to John and Joey because of that. I turned pro at 49. Our kids are grown. We have three kids - our daughter is 34, and we have two boys who are 32 and 29, as well as two granddaughters. That was when we figured it was OK to do this."

It might sound crazy, but the Spittles put together a five-year plan. If it worked out, great. If it didn't, it was back to the drawing board.

Fast forward to this week at Bellerive Country Club, site of the 74th Senior PGA Championship presented by KitchenAid. With just 18 holes left to play, the 57-year-old, nine-year professional is alone in fourth place, just four shots behind leader Kenny Perry at 6-under-par 207. Spittle shot a 4-under 67 on Saturday to go along with Friday's 71 and Thursday's 69.

The nutty thing about all this is that if it weren't for burning the midnight oil on that five-year plan, Spittle wouldn't even be here this week.

So let's go back to 2010 for a minute. Spittle's five-year plan was coming to an end and it wasn't exactly the end he had in mind. Bluntly, it was getting to "dust off the resume" time.

"Having not played the regular tour, our plan was to work our way on to the Champions Tour," he said. "And I did that for a couple of years playing the Monday qualifiers. I basically learned again how to play at this level."

In the last event on the 2010 Champions Tour schedule - the AT&T Championship in San Antonio - and with perhaps a final trip to qualifying school looming in the fall, Spittle changed everything: He won.


Talk about cashing in on a five-year plan.

Spittle defeated Jeff Sluman in a playoff, earned his full status on the Champions Tour and didn't miss a single start in 2011 or 2012.

"Everybody wants to play as well as they can - no matter what level that might be," Spittle said. "That win at the end of 2010 was huge. It changed everything. Like I've told my buddies and all my kids - I played golf for 40 years and made a 3 1/2-foot putt in 2010 to win a professional golf tournament.

"I still get goose bumps [thinking about it]. That's what's so great about this sport we play. I postponed my stuff a little bit later than John and Joey. They won their tournaments at 25 and I won mine at 55."

Adding to the legend of Rod Spittle is the perseverance he showed early on this week. With a 2:30 p.m. tee time in Thursday's first round starting on the back nine, Spittle began this journey at Bellerive in the worst of the week's conditions - howling wind, sideways rain.

Through his first three holes Spittle was 3 over par - a bogey, par, double bogey start.

Simply put, it was ugly.

"You just simmer down," Spittle said. "And I think I made three birdies on the back nine to get back to even par before the turn. I got back to even par and we've been playing well ever since. I guess I had my bad holes in that first hour instead of stretching them out over the four days. The first day it was just long, wet and cold. And I'm old, so it was just a brutal start.

"That's what the last few years have taught me. You've got to be patient. You just have to ride it out and simmer down. It dried out. The rain and the wind stopped and I was fortunate to make some birdies."

Now, Spittle - sitting where he's always dreamed of eventually being - has an opportunity to do something on Sunday that he's never before even given himself the time to imagine: the chance to win a major championship.

"If it so happened that I won tomorrow night, we'd have to break out the handkerchiefs," he said. "I can't even think about what that would be like. The classic answer is tomorrow is just like any other day. You hit it in the fairway, you hit it on the greens. We'll try not to watch the scoreboard too much. You get yourself in position come tomorrow afternoon about 3-4 o'clock and we'll see what happens. I have a brilliant strategy - just try to make more birdies than bogeys. Either way, we're in a pretty neat spot."

Neat and unbelievable.

Overton DQ Suggests Golf Rules Need a Facelift

Overton DQ Suggests Golf Rules Need a Facelift
Jeff Overton was Disqualified from the Crowne Plaza Colonial Invitational for a Mild Offense. Would Tiger Woods Have Also Been DQ'd?











Adam Fonseca May 25, 2013 11:13 PM





> COMMENTARY | Jeff Overton was disqualified from the Crowne Plaza Colonial Invitational Saturday in one of the most peculiar ways you'll ever see. As a result, it may be time to update the rule book.



While waiting to tee off at hole no. 10 due to a traffic jam of players, Overton walked over to a nearby practice putting green to work on his putter alignment. Overton used a plastic rod to help him with his alignment, which is apparently a huge no-no in the Rules of Golf. He was informed of the disqualification while playing the next hole.

According to PGA Tour officials, Overton violated rule 14-3, which states that "a player is disqualified under Rule 14-3 as [an alignment rod] is unusual equipment and such use, during the stipulated round, is not permitted". A "stipulated round" consists of playing the holes of the course in their correct sequence unless otherwise authorized by tournament officials.

For the sake of clarity, a player is prohibited from using any training aid or device during a competitive round. Furthermore, it is not against the rules for Overton to carry the alignment aid rod in his bag during competition. Surely a practice green that has no bearing on the completion of a golf round would be fair game, right?

According to Mark Russell, PGA Tour vice president of rules and competition, the answer is a resounding no.

"You can go to a designated practice area and chip and putt if you'd like while you are waiting to play," Russell stated. "But you cannot use an artificial device. That's what he did. The penalty for that is disqualification."

So you can literally hit a small bucket of pitches and chips on a practice green in the middle of your round, but as soon as you lay down an object to help with alignment, you break the rules. Not only that, you don't just get penalized; you get disqualified. Don't let the door hit you on the way out.

Just for the sake of comparison, other rule violations that result in player disqualification include:
Misrepresenting your handicap under USGA Rule 6 (which will never be an issue on the PGA Tour);


Missing your starting time, a la Jim Furyk at the 2010 Barclays (prior to a pro-am round, at that);


Starting your round too early, as Ed Oliver discovered at the 1940 US Open;


Turning in an incorrect or unsigned scorecard;


Playing with nonconforming equipment, which includes the presence of a foreign substance on your clubs or using balls that do not conform to USGA standards. The Rules can even regulate your golf glove design.



As many golf fans learned during Tiger Woods's illegal drop debacle at the 2013 Masters, the USGA and Royal & Ancient Golf Club added an addendum in 2011 to offer tournament officials the option of waiving disqualification under certain circumstances. Despite the fact Woods was deemed to have taken an illegal drop - and since a television viewer whistle blower identified the violation after the fact - Augusta National officials decided to penalize Woods two strokes instead of disqualifying him.

Why didn't Colonial officials opt to simply penalize Overton instead of disqualifying him in this case? Rolling a few putts on a practice green that has no impact on his competitive round seems pretty mild in comparison to taking an illegal drop.

Where's the addendum on enforcing the Rules of Golf consistently?



Adam Fonseca has covered professional golf since 2005. His work can be found on numerous digital outlets including the Back9Network and SB Nation. Follow Adam on Twitter at @chicagoduffer.

Perry leads Haas by two shots after third round

Perry leads Haas by two shots after third round











PGA.COM May 26, 2013 6:23 PM

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Kenny Perry had an eagle, five birdies and four bogeys in his 68 on Saturday.(Getty Images)


ST. LOUIS -- Kenny Perry has been here before, and been crushed by disappointment. Whatever happens in the final round of the Senior PGA Championship, he plans on leaving with his head held high.

If his two-stroke lead over two-time champion Jay Haasdoesn't hold up Sunday, Perry said, "It's not going to be the end of the world."

"I played beautifully for three rounds," Perry said. "I'm just going to go out there and play like I did, and point and shoot."

The 52-year-old Perry is close to an elusive first major championship in a career known more for near-misses in the 2008 Masters and 1996 PGA Championship than his 16 total tournament victories. He was at 10 under overall at Bellerive Country Club, which held up fine after a rain delay of more than two hours before the last twosome of Perry and Russ Cochran teed off.

Perry is the lone player in the field to break 70 all three rounds, capitalizing on booming drives and finesse. On Saturday, he chipped in from about 30 feet from an awkward lie for an eagle on No. 4.

"I couldn't stand there all day and do that again," Perry said. "That was a one in a million shot."

The odds did not help Perry when he faltered and lost in a playoff to Mark Brooks in the PGA Championship. When it happened again in the Masters, it hurt a lot more. Perry led by two strokes with two holes to go but finished with a pair of bogeys, ending a streak of 22 holes without one. Then he bogeyed the second playoff hole and lost in a playoff to Angel Cabrera.

"That Masters loss put a big dent in my life," Perry said. "So this right here, this is awesome. I'm just going to try to do my best and hopefully the cards will fall my way this time."

Perry had the eagle, five birdies and four bogeys in the third round, mixing spectacular shots with some stumbles and doing enough of the right things for a 3-under 68. Though Perry had just one bogey the first two rounds, his closest pursuer doesn't see any weaknesses in his game.


"It was nice to stay within a few of Kenny," Haas said. "It looks like he's really going to be tough to beat."

Haas finished with a pair of birdies for a 67. Cochran was three strokes back after rallying for two birdies on the back nine for an even-par 71, and Rod Spittle was four shots back after a 67.

The 59-year-old Haas, who won the championship in 2006 and `08, shot 66 in the first round to share the lead and credited a telephone tip from coach Billy Harmon about keeping his right shoulder down for helping to steady his game.

"I think I missed maybe one or two fairways and just hit some real quality shots," Haas said. "So, that was a lot of fun."

Haas has played Bellerive a couple dozen times, but doesn't consider it much of an advantage.

"Golf is such a different game than playing at your home court or something with the fans," Haas said. "I don't know what it makes a big deal of a difference."

Perry had a three-stroke lead after the chip for eagle from an awkward lie on No. 4, with both feet in a greenside bunker and the ball on the lip. He was aiming at the gallery and just hoping to get it on the green.

"When I hit it, man, it went straight toward the flag," Perry said. "And it hit and checked a little bit and rolled right in there like a putt."

The lead was down to one after he followed up with consecutive bogeys, but he was back up by four over Cochran and Haas after birdies on Nos. 7 and 8, and no one got closer than two strokes on the back nine.

Defending champion Roger Chapman shot 66 for the second time, matching the tournament's best round, and was 1 under. Bernhard Langer shot a bogey-free 67 for the second straight day to climb back to even par for the tourney after opening with a 79.

Donald focused more on win than being No. 1

Donald focused more on win than being No. 1












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Luke Donald, ranked sixth at the U.S. Open, says the pressure to win his first major hasn't gone away just because No. 1 has slipped away.(Getty Images)

PGA.COM June 11, 2013 6:44 PM


By Dan Gelston, Associated Press

ARDMORE, Pa. - Luke Donald enters the U.S. Open more focused on a different No. 1 than reclaiming his old ranking.

Like winning major No. 1.

Donald heads into his 10th U.S. Open, starting on Thursday at Merion Golf Club.

He's had big wins over an 11-year pro career. He's even been No. 1 for a total of 56 weeks until the run ended late last year. Tiger Woods, Greg Norman, Nick Faldo and Seve Ballesteros are the only other players who have been No. 1 longer since the ranking began in 1986.

Some viewed Donald's top spot without a major as a flaw in the system. That wasn't his concern. Hoisting that U.S. Open trophy on Sunday is his lone goal this week.

"It always crosses your mind when it's going to happen," he said. "You always go back to the successes you had. The fact I was able to get to No. 1, win seven times the last couple of years, you just keep going back to those things and try and focus on that. You try and focus not on, if I can, but, when is it going to happen. Just be comfortable that what I'm doing is the right thing."

Ranked sixth, Donald said the pressure to win his first major hasn't gone away just because No. 1 has slipped away.


"There's always more attention, more requests of your time and that takes management, and that's tough," Donald said. "But within myself, the pressures are just the same. I want to win a major championship just as badly this year as when I was No. 1. It's about managing those expectations, managing those feelings and knowing what you have is good enough."

Donald played two practice rounds last week at Merion. He arrived for the tournament late Monday and skipped the day of rain that soaked the course.

"It's a real shame that we've had so much rain," he said. "I think that most people would really like to see this course play firm and fast. And I don't think we're going to get that this week. But it's a good challenge, this course. I think if it was firm and fast, this course, even despite the length, would hold up just as well as any other U.S. Open course."

The 35-year-old Donald failed to make the cut at last year's U.S. Open at the Olympic Club in San Francisco because of putting failures. He has never finished better than 12th in an Open (2006) and missed the cut three times since his 2002 debut. He was 45th in 2011 and 47th in 2010.

"I think in U.S. Opens, usually success comes from hitting a lot of fairways and hitting a lot of greens. And I think my game is more from the hole backward," he said. "I've always kind of worked that way. This year I've made a little bit more of a conscious effort to try and change that, to get a little bit more control, to work some things around, spending a little bit more time on the range working on really solidifying a few things. And it hasn't happened yet, but statistics will show I've improved in those areas."

Donald and Lee Westwood are the only players to be No. 1 without having won a major. Donald was No. 1 entering the 2011 U.S. Open and held it going into the 2012 PGA Championship. He lost the ranking after Rory McIlroy won last year's PGA Championship title.

Regarded as a mild-mannered Englishman, Donald is ready to show some ruthlessness at Merion as he chases that elusive win.

"It has a lot of tradition, this course, and I'm excited to see what it has to offer," he said.