There is a bit of a sour taste at the Byron Nelson Championship this week, as eight of the top ten golfers in the world rankings aren’t competing, including Tiger Woods. Many golf writers are calling it a slap in the face to the late Nelson, who passed away last fall. “What ‘prior arrangements’ could possibly be more important than playing for mad cash at a late legend’s tournament? Well we know what Tiger’s up to. Tonight he’s court side at the Pistons-Magic NBA Playoff game in Orlando cheering on another sports superstar. We’re all familiar with his relationship with ...

The only thing better than getting a good deal on great golf is paying nothing at all. The Gaylord Golf Mecca, a marketing partnership between many of the region’s golf resorts and courses are offering their annual Free Golf Weekend April 27-29th, helping ring in the all-too-short golf season up north. The courses included in this offer aren’t clunkers either. All the big names are here: Treetops, Otsego Tribute, Black Forest and Black Lake included. These gems are $80-130 in the peak season. Too good to be true? Well there are some tiny catches. In order to get free golf ...

In part two of my blog series, “Turning tournaments into freak shows via sponsor exemptions”, I argue it’s time for the LPGA, not PGA Tour to give teen idol/golf nut Justin Timberlake a sponsor’s exemption. Timberlake has let it be known he wants to compete in a few events on the PGA Tour someday. This goal won’t be realized at Q-School - at least as long as he and Timbaland keep dropping bombs on the pop charts. He’s going to need a helping hand from a corporate sponsor. The players (white middle-aged men) as well as fans (white, middle-aged men) ...

Just because Michelle Wie is out with a wrist injury it doesn’t mean the summer months on the PGA Tour should be void of women mixing it up a little in some events. I was just researching Natalie Gulbis on Google images and it hit me: why isn’t she getting exemptions into high-profile PGA Tour events? I’d much rather watch this cutie shoot an 82 than Corporate Robot Michelle Wie. Would you rather watch a sulking youth duff it up - or a smiling, cute and legal one instead? Getting women to compete in PGA Events isn’t about “trail-blazing” or ...

In their “outside the U.S.” rankings, Golf Digest has a new number one: Royal County Down in Northern Ireland, upsetting perennial number one, the Old Course in St. Andrews. I’ve played them both in the last few months. So which course is better in my opinion? Well, choosing between these two is like deciding whether to return Jessica Alba or Hale Berry’s phone call first. The only bad decision you could make is not making the effort at all. There are a few things the two have in common. Both are a focal point of a bustling seaside town and ...

The lifeless blokes on the PGA Tour need to take a cue from golf writers once in awhile and get into the mud pit. Larry Olmsted of the USA Today’s Golfer’s World Blog, and friend of my podcast, Sweet Spots, has ripped TravelGolf.com’s Chris Baldwin - and really our entire network - a result of Baldwin’s Top ten resorts in California piece. Baldwin was quick to return the favor, calling Olmsted’s blog, among other things, unread and uninteresting. Regarding Olmsted’s rant, his biggest diss wasn’t on Baldwin but on everyone at TG and WG: “Too many of the columnists ...

The early stages of a tournament aren’t supposed to be where Phil Mickelson struggles. It’s the back nine on Sunday that has been his problem in the past. But he can’t even get out of the gate these days, starting off +5 after seven holes at the Masters. Looks like we can scratch the world’s Number Two out of contention before anyone else. He’ll be closer to Gary Player (+7) than to Tiger Woods this year. Mickelson was reportedly, “burning up the course” in practice rounds, which was an excuse for his poor tournament play leading up to Augusta. No ...

Sergio Garcia will NOT win the Masters. You have to be a good putter to win there. Phil Mickelson will NOT win the Masters. He’s got some work to do before he wins another tournament, albeit a major. Gary Player will NOT win the Masters. Michelle Wie will NOT win the Masters. Tadd Fujikawa would no doubt win it if he was in the field. But he’s not yet. So he will NOT win the Masters. An American twenty-something will NOT win the Masters. I hate picking Tiger to win tournaments for the same reason I didn’t pick the Florida ...