Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Tiger Woods set for knee surgery

On Tuesday night, Tiger Woods announced a slight detour in his 2008 season: knee surgery.


Two days after a failed campaign to capture another green jacket, Tiger Woods announced on his website, "I made the decision to deal with the pain and schedule the surgery for after the Masters. The upside is that I have been through this process before and know how to handle it. I look forward to working through the rehabilitation process and getting back to action as quickly as I can."

Woods believes he will be back in action in 4-6 weeks, which means his next major, most likely, will be the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines, near Woods' childhood home.

The Golf Channel reports, through Woods' agent, Mark Steinberg of IMG, that “Tiger has been experiencing pain in his knee since the middle of last year, and when he had it looked at by his doctors, arthroscopic surgery was recommended." Steinberg continued, “Tiger has played through the pain in the past, but knew it would be better for him to have the procedure done as early as possible.”

Posted by Golf Champ at 4:19 PM | 0 comments  

Labels:

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

"Pretty Damn Crazy" - Immelman enjoys new fame from victory

After his first major championship, which came at the 2008 Masters, Trevor Immelman has enjoyed a new level of fame.

The Associated Press reports, "One day after becoming the Masters champion, Immelman was courtside at Madison Square Garden for the Boston Celtics’ 99-93 victory over the New York Knicks. He was invited to the Celtics’ locker room at halftime by coach Doc Rivers, who wanted his team to shake hands with a champion."

While in New York, the young South African spoke with David Letterman. TGC.com states, "The topic was 'Ways Trevor Immelman’s Life Has Changed Since Winning the Masters.' The list included:
10. I’ve been elevated from 'unknown' to 'obscure.'
6. President Bush called to congratulate me on winning Wimbledon.
5. When my caddy recommends a club I can say, 'Excuse me, how many Masters have you won?'
1. Get to put my arm around Tiger Woods and say, 'Maybe next year.'"

Posted by Golf Champ at 6:22 PM | 0 comments  

Labels: ,

Sunday, April 13, 2008

Masters Sunday: Trevor Immelman wins 2008 Masters

On the 30th annieversary of Gary Player's last Masters victory (and the last time a South African won), Player's fellow countryman took home a green jacket. Immelman was able to survive tough weather on Sunday, and defended the lead from playing partner Brandt Snedeker and a frustrated Tiger Woods.

Following a 16th hole failure (after Immelman left his tee shot on the par 3 in the water, which led to double bogey), Immelman found himself in trouble again on the 17th. With a three stroke lead in jeopardy, Immelman, called "the best bunker player" by Gary Player, was able to get up-and-down for a clutch par.

Possibly the most memorable fortune Immelman had during the 2008 Masters came on Saturday on the final hole of Amen Corner, when Immelman's ball, after backspinning off the green, miraculously stopped on a steep slope heading into water.

Posted by Golf Champ at 7:35 PM | 0 comments  

Labels:

Masters Sunday: Timeline

2:30 - Brandt Snedeker and Trevor Immelman tee off on Augusta's first hole. Immelman lands his tee shot in the woods; Snedeker slices into the crowd on his approach to the first grren. The chase is on.
2:38 - Snedeker and Immelman both complete Augusta National's first hole; bogey, bogey.
2:44 - Stewart Cink, playing with Tiger Woods, drains a short birdie putt on the second hole for two consecutive birdies. Cink is within four of leaders, Woods is five back.
4:54 - All players have finished the first 9 holes. Trevor Immelman finishes at 10 under par with 9 to play. However, Steve Flesch, one hole ahead, is at 8 under, and Immelman's Sunday partner Brandt Snedeker has struggled to 7 under. In fourth, Tiger finds himself 6 strokes behind the leader with a score of 4 under.
6:54 - Trevor Immelman, on the par 3 16th, loses his five stroke lead over Snedeker in second place after a double bogey. Snedeker also 3 putts for bogey on the 16th, which droped Snedeker from 5 under to 4 under. Almost simultaneously, a frustrated Tiger Woods drained a birdie putt on 18 to take sole possession of second place. With two holes left, Immelman has a three stroke advantage over Tiger, four over Snedeker.
7:10 - After slicing his first shot, and then dumping his approach in a bunker, Immelman finishes the 17th hole with a par. Tiger trails by three, Immelman must only survive the 18th.
7:14 - Immelman stripes his drive down the 18th fairway. No trouble in sight. However, Snedeker must navigate his approach from deep rough.
7:19 - Camera reveals Immelman's drive settled in a deep divot in the center of the fairway.
7:20 - Immelman lands his approach on the center of the 18th green from 150 yards out.
7:25 - Immelman safely rolls his first putt to within 3 feet of the hole.
7:26 - Finishes the 2008 Masters with a par, which places Immelman 3 strokes ahead of Tiger.

Posted by Golf Champ at 2:32 PM | 0 comments  

Labels:

Masters Sunday: Weather Report

With several days of nearly pristine conditions for low scoring, Sunday the 2008 Masters appears to be headed in a different direction.

Dave Shedloski, PGATour.com, states, "Sunday's outlook calls for a mix of sun and clouds and cooler temperatures with a high of 63 degrees. More importantly, winds of 10-20 miles per hour and gusting up to 25 are expected, which could turn Augusta National Golf Club into a chamber of horrors."

Of course, aside from the pressure inherent to leading the Masters, gusts of up to 25 miles per hour will surely challenge players like Brandt Snedeker and Trevor Immelman, who are untested in major championship conditions.

On the other hand, Tiger Woods is showing no signs of fear. Tiger Woods said, “I’ve been around here, I played under these tough conditions here before. It’s been blustery here before.”

Posted by Golf Champ at 11:44 AM | 0 comments  

Labels: ,

Masters Sunday: Tee Times

All times are Eastern.


Posted by Golf Champ at 11:32 AM | 0 comments  

Labels:

Masters Saturday: Review

By now, you have probably seen the leaderboard for the 2008 Masters. Trevor Immelman distanced himself from the field, walking into the clubhouse after a stellar birdie on the 18th at 11 under par for 54 holes.


South African Immelman will enter Sunday with a two stroke lead over Brandt Snedeker, who started the day with the lead.

With prediction for difficult weather conditions on Sunday, Immelman and Snedeker will face a tough battle against several potential low scorers:
Steve Flesch - 8 under
Paul Casey (right)-7 under
Tiger Woods - 5 under

Tiger Woods began to finally heat up with a round of 3 under par, which leaves Tiger on the outside looking in at the leaders with only 18 holes left. Tiger faces a 6 stroke deficit, which, interestingly enough, would mark Tiger's first win in a major when not leading after 54 holes if he were to capture another green jacket.

My predictions:

Immelman - tires out after front nine; strain of leading the Masters and the noise of Tiger's crowd ahead limit his scoring.

Flesch - continues his Saturday woes; early bogies prevent from being a Sunday threat.

Casey - emerges to confront Immelman and whoever else leads with strong play through wind.

Woods - early comeback puts pressure on opponents; possible Sunday comeback to earn another major victory.

Posted by Golf Champ at 12:31 AM | 0 comments  

Labels: ,

Saturday, April 12, 2008

Masters Saturday: Tee Times

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Here are the pairings and tee times for Saturday's third round of The Masters. All times listed are Eastern:


10:50 a.m.: Miguel Angel Jimenez
11:00 a.m.: K.J. Choi and Heath Slocum
11:10 a.m.: Sandy Lyle and David Toms
11:20 a.m.: Henrik Stenson and Todd Hamilton
11:30 a.m.: Stuart Appleby and Justin Rose
11:40 a.m.: Zach Johnson and Geoff Ogilvy
11:50 a.m.: Justin Leonard and Robert Allenby
12:00 p.m.: Boo Weekley and Adam Scott
12:10 p.m.: Johnson Wagner and Ian Woosnam
12:20 p.m.: Jeev Milkha Singh and Angel Cabrera
12:30 p.m.: Nick Watney and Padraig Harrington
12:40 p.m.: Niclas Fasth and Bubba Watson
1:00 p.m.: Brian Bateman and Richard Sterne
1:10 p.m.: Tiger Woods and Andres Romero
1:20 p.m.: Robert Karlsson and Nick Dougherty
1:30 p.m.: Vijay Singh and Jim Furyk
1:40 p.m.: Sean O'Hair and J.B. Holmes
1:50 p.m.: Retief Goosen and Lee Westwood
2:00 p.m.: Arron Oberholser and Mike Weir
2:10 p.m.: Paul Casey and Stewart Cink
2:20 p.m.: Ian Poulter and Stephen Ames
2:30 p.m.: Steve Flesch and Phil Mickelson
2:40 p.m.: Trevor Immelman and Brandt Snedeker

Posted by Golf Champ at 10:00 AM | 0 comments  

Labels: ,

Farewell Fred; Couples misses the cut

While Immelman continued to go low on Thursday at the Masters, history was made for at least one golfer. Fred Couples, who won his green jacket in the 1992 Masters, missed his first cut at the event.

After 23 consecutive cuts made at Augusta National, a 36 hole score of four over par left Couples outside the cut line by one strokes. Couples beat his Thursday score of 76 with a solid Friday 72, but was not able to make it to three over.

Posted by Golf Champ at 9:58 AM | 0 comments  

Labels:

Friday, April 11, 2008

Masters Friday: Early Leaderboard

As Tiger Woods and Jerry Kelly prepare to tee off, several scores have been posted.


At this point, Trevor Immelman has claimed the lead after an astounding three under par 69 to finish at 7 under for the week.

Steve Flesch moved to third place after tearing up Augusta National and shooting 67.

Stephen Ames (Left), playing with Flesch, moved to four under par for the week after his second consecutive round of 70.

Posted by Golf Champ at 1:10 PM | 0 comments  

Labels: ,

Thursday, April 10, 2008

The New ZealousGolfer.com

As you most likely have seen, ZealousGolfer.com has taken on a new look. Additionally, ZealousGolfer.com will boast several new features, as well as some new content.

Highlights:

*New RSS Feeds through Feedburner. You may subscribe to ZealousGolfer.com through your current feed manager or even email.
*More simple, professional design. The space has been used more wisely now, and will hopefully enhance your viewing of this website.
*New product review - the Seemore m2 and the Putting Arc are both on the way, so make sure to watch out for their reviews.

Also worth noting, some helpful features that have disappeared will be returning as I continue to change the site. These include:
*Links to past equipment reviews
*Golf course reviews
*Links to major ZealousGolfer.com categories

Enjoy.

Posted by Golf Champ at 11:56 PM | 0 comments  

Labels:

Masters Friday: 2nd Round Pairings

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Tee times for the second round of the 2008 Masters Tournament.

All times are Eastern.

8:00 a.m. -- Todd Hamilton, Brian Bateman
8:11 a.m. -- Craig Stadler, Johnson Wagner, Steve Flesch
8:22 a.m. -- Ian Woosnam, Richard Green, Stephen Ames
8:33 a.m. -- Boo Weekley, Trevor Immelman, Sean O'Hair
8:44 a.m. -- Sandy Lyle, John Rollins, J.B. Holmes
8:55 a.m. -- Soren Hansen, Daniel Chopra, Richard Sterne
9:06 a.m. -- Tom Watson, Brandt Snedeker, John Senden
9:17 a.m. -- Tim Clark, David Toms, Niclas Fasth
9:28 a.m. -- Raymond Floyd, a-Drew Weaver, Jonathan Boyd
9:39 a.m. -- Bernhard Langer, Prayad Marksaeng, Woody Austin
9:50 a.m. -- Bubba Watson, Sergio Garcia, Mark Calcavecchia
10:12 a.m. -- Adam Scott, Paul Casey, Retief Goosen
10:23 a.m. -- Vijay Singh, Steve Stricker, Stewart Cink
10:34 a.m. -- Phil Mickelson, Andres Romero, K.J. Choi
10:45 a.m. -- Ernie Els, Shingo Katayama, Jim Furyk
10:56 a.m. -- Aaron Baddeley, Camilo Villegas, Lee Westwood
11:07 a.m. -- Ben Curtis, Shaun Micheel
11:18 a.m. -- Fuzzy Zoeller, Brett Wetterich, Heath Slocum
11:29 a.m. -- Mark O'Meara, a-Trip Kuehne, Ian Poulter
11:40 a.m. -- Larry Mize, Peter Lonard, Hunter Mahan
11:51 a.m. -- Gary Player, Miguel Angel Jimenez, D.J. Trahan
12:02 p.m. -- Justin Leonard, Charles Howell III, Nick Watney
12:24 p.m. -- Scott Verplank, Robert Allenby, Michael Campbell
12:35 p.m. -- Ben Crenshaw, a-Michael Thompson, Nick O'Hern
12:46 p.m. -- Steve Lowery, Robert Karlsson, Nick Dougherty
12:57 p.m. -- Fred Couples, Jerry Kelly, Anders Hansen
1:08 p.m. -- Vaughn Taylor, Martin Kaymer, Arron Oberholser
1:19 p.m. -- Jose Maria Olazabal, Liang Wen-chong, Rory Sabbatini
1:30 p.m. -- Zach Johnson, Luke Donald, Geoff Ogilvy
1:41 p.m. -- Mike Weir, Padraig Harrington, Jeev Milkha Singh
1:52 p.m. -- Tiger Woods, Angel Cabrera, Stuart Appleby
2:03 p.m. -- Justin Rose, Henrik Stenson, Toru Taniguchi

Posted by Golf Champ at 10:53 PM | 0 comments  

Labels: ,

Masters Thursday: Review

After the first day of play at Augusta National, which began with an opening shot by legend Arnold Palmer (Right), the leaderboard has been left crowded. Despite difficult weather conditions in the morning (which led to a fog delay), two international players have found themselves tied for the lead at four under par: South African Trevor Immelman and Englishman Justin Rose (Left).

Surprsingly, many of the PGA Tour's heavy hitters are looking up at a group of less successful, but extremely talented young leaders. In addition to the four under lead of Rose and Immelman, Brian Bateman, Brandt Snedeker, and Lee Westwood trail by one with rounds of 69.

Defending champion Zach Johnson is within striking distance after the first day of play following a two under 70 to place Johnson in a tie for sixth place. Fellow American Jim Furyk is also tied at two under as he seeks his first green jacket.

Tiger Woods finished a "sluggish" round of 70, which, of course, places Tiger four behind the leaders. However, as Tiger has done in the past, an early deficit often does not continue into the weekend.

Also worth noting, the field's top amateur after the Thursday is American Michael Thomson, who is currently in a tie for 33rd place and in position to play on the weekend at one over par. Fellow amateur Drew Weaver is also on the bubble after a four over par first round, which has placed him in a tie for 65th.

Posted by Golf Champ at 9:59 PM | 0 comments  

Labels: , ,

Thursday at the Masters: Tiger Woods is four back

After a heavy fog delay on Thursday at the 2008 Masters, Tiger Woods opened with a slightly slow start.

The four time Masters champions shot even par, 72, which put him four behind the tournament leaders on the opening day of play.

Posted by Golf Champ at 6:04 PM | 0 comments  

Labels: , ,

Wednesday, April 09, 2008

Sabbatini wins Masters Par 3 Championship

South African Rory Sabbatini claimed the 2008 Masters Par 3 Championship (the first time the event has been televised). Sabbatini, who played the course in 5 under par, will now face the challenge of becoming the first Par 3 Champion to win the actual tournament.

Of course, players enjoyed this event while allowing their children or friends to loop during the day.

Also a highlight of Wednesday's play, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, and Gary Player were together in a dream threesome for Augusta National's Patrons.

Posted by Golf Champ at 5:54 PM | 0 comments  

Labels: ,

Older Posts

Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)

Blogger Template by Blogcrowds