This Week at WorldGolf.com: Feb. 13, 2008

To showcase stars like Ochoa, Creamer and Gulbis, the LPGA needs to get a jump start on the PGA Tour

The LPGA Tour is getting ready to kick off its 2008 season this week in Hawaii with the SBS Open at Turtle Bay. Paula Creamer will be looking to defend her title against the likes of Annika Sorenstam, Natalie Gulbis and Morgan Pressel.

While it will be great to see the ladies back in action, let us say one thing - it's about time.

Because while the LPGA is just getting underway, the PGA Tour is already off to a fairly rollicking start. Tiger Woods won the only tour event he entered, but backed that up with a win in Dubai helping to get both himself and the media amped for a possible Grand Slam season. Phil Mickelson and Vijay Singh both showed they're still forces to be reckoned with, though both had dramatic falls to keep from winning. The increasingly popular J.B. Holmes has a victory under his belt.

All this before the LPGA has even teed off. In fact, the best female player in the world, Lorena Ochoa, won't start her campaign until Feb. 28 at the HSBC Women's Champions in Singapore. By that time, even the picky Woods will have played - and quite possibly won - three times.

Basically, the LPGA starting its campaign so much later than the PGA Tour just seems like poor business sense, and a businessperson like LPGA Commissioner Carolyn Bivens should recognize that. Because while the LPGA has its own built-in fan base, it also is in prime position to add new fans. Ochoa's popularity, along with Julieta Granada gives the LPGA a major boost amongst Latin Americans, while the tour has long been popular in Asia. Suzann Pettersen and others keep European eyes on the LPGA.

Add to that the LPGA's fantastic group of young stars - Gulbis, Pressel, Paula Creamer, et al, to go along with established stars like Sorenstam and Karrie Webb, and you have a product that's brimming with potential.

So while it's great to see the women get back to action, here's hoping they'll get started a little earlier next year. Because the PGA Tour already has a big advantage over the LPGA - why let them get all the early attention, as well?

As always, WorldGolf.com welcomes your comments.

Golf balls, clubs, bags and more: A Valentine's Day gift guide for golfers

Valentine's Day is a natural holiday for golf gifts. Equipment Editor Kiel Christianson offers suggestions for ways to tell that special golfer in your life you care, including Nike Golf's new Platinum One Black and Karma balls, a cart bag from Keri Golf, or a new PowerBilt Citation Tour wedge.

Also: Readers review golf clubs at WorldGolf.com's Equipment Room

PGA pros visiting Disney flock to Magnolia, but regular duffers favor the Palm course

While avid fans of the PGA Tour may jump at the chance to play Walt Disney World's Magnolia golf course, host of the final rounds of the Children's Miracle Classic each fall, golfers shouldn't overlook its next door neighbor: the Palm course, Brandon Tucker writes. The Palm's mix of beauty and playability make it a favorite among resort-goers.

Also: Readers rate the Palm Course at Disney World

Greg Norman's Blue Shark Golf Club in the Bahamas not as tough as you think

The Blue Shark Golf Club could be known as Blue Easy. Norman certainly never forgot he was designing a resort course when he remolded an old Joe Lee design into a largely different longer course with its own quirks and personality.

Review: Cable Beach Golf Club in Nassau