Big weekend on many golf fronts
Mike Dudurich
Posted 2009-08-04
The list of accomplishments by Tiger Woods that belong in the “spectacular” category is lengthy, of course.
Winning the Buick Open last weekend, while very nice, would hardly fit into that category, but put into context, the victory was a very fitting one on what turned out to be a pretty darn special weekend in golf.
Woods became a three-time Buick Open champion in the final playing of that event. Woods had an endorsement contract with Buick that was terminated in January as the auto maker began to watch its budget more closely as the economy worsened.
As we all know, things have gotten worse and the as a result of the recent court-supervised restructuring of General Motors, all agreements between Buick and the PGA TOUR have been withdrawn.
Woods was a big factor in those events and credit goes to him for playing this past weekend in Michigan, even though he’ll now be playing three weeks in a row. He’s in Akron, Ohio this week for the World Golf Championship--Bridgestone Invitational and will play again next week at the PGA Championship in Minnesota.
Woods hasn’t done three in a row many times and he certainly didn’t need to play the Buick, but, by doing so, showed yet another touch of class.
The win was his 69th PGA Tour victory and once again proved that if the field in any event wants to have a chance, it will do whatever it can to prevent Woods from getting the lead after three rounds. He’s been in the leader/co-leader 50 times in his career and has won 47 of those times. Even more startling, when he’s the outright leader after three rounds, he’s 36-1.
But what made this past weekend so special was that there was more to it than just another milepost on Woods’ road to officially becoming the greatest golfer who’s ever played. Things like:
-- Fred Funk winning the U.S. Senior Open at Crooked Stick Golf Club in Carmel, Ind.
The Munster, playing on a knee so bad it will likely need to be replaced, shot a final-round 65 to run away from the rest of the field.
Funk’s performance was record-setting. His 20-under par total was three shots better than the previous best, set by Hale Irwin in 2000.
But the win was more than just a record for Funk. Last year at The Broad moor, Funk was hot on the heels of eventual champion Eduardo Romero for most of the final round. He triple-bogeyed the 13th, however, ending any chance he had.
And then at the Senior British Open a week ago, Funk tied Mark McNulty and Loren Roberts at the end of regulation play, only to fall out of the playoff on the first hole. Roberts eventually won on the second hole.
“I wanted to keep the pedal down,” said Funk who was the first player eliminated in a three-man playoff at the Senior British Open last week. “If I ended up winning, or if I ended up losing, by giving it a good shot, then that's fine. There was a couple of opportunities last week I know I let go and it hurt. Because you can always look back. I didn't want to look back this week and say 'woulda, coulda, shoulda.’”
In the same event, an amateur, Tim Jackson of Tennessee, established a fistful of Senior Open records: the lowest round for an amateur in a Senior Open, 66; lowest two rounds by an amateur, 133; and lowest 72-hole score by an amateur: 282. The previous best was 288, shared by Greg Reynolds and George Zahringer in 2005.
-- And how about the story of Catriona Matthew? The Scottish-born 39-year-old won the Women’s British Open Sunday, just 10 weeks after giving birth to her second daughter.
She became first-ever Scot to win an LPGA major championship. The Scot is the first British Open winner from the United Kingdom since Karen Stupples won the event in 2004. With the victory, Matthew takes home $335,000.
“Coming up the last hole was a feeling I don't think I've ever had before. Just a tear in my eye trying to hold myself together for the last two putts,” Matthew, who birdied three straight holes on the back nine, said.
-- The United States team that will battle Europe in the Solheim Cup Aug. 21-23 in Sugar Grove, Ill., also made significant news.
The final roster was announced Sunday and it features bookend members of 48-year-old Juli Inkster and 19-year-old Michelle Wie. Both were wild-card selections after not earning enough points to make the top 10 on the Solheim Cup points list.
"I am so honored, so thrilled," Wie said. "I am so excited to be wearing this jacket and this hat and to be representing my country is such a thrill for me. I am so honored that Beth (Daniel, USA captain) picked me and I will do my best not to let her down."
The rosters for the teams:
Europe: Gwladys Nocera (France), Tania Elosegui (Spain), Diana Luna (Italy), Laura Davies (England), Sophie Gustafson (Sweden), Suzann Pettersen (Norway), Helen Alfredsson (Sweden), Catriona Matthew (Scotland), Maria Hjorth (Sweden), Becky Brewerton (Wales, wild card), Janice Moodie (Scotland, wild card), Anna Nordqvist (Sweden, wild card).
United States: Paula Creamer, Cristie Kerr, Angela Stanford, Nicole Castrale, Brittany Lang, Morgan Pressel, Kristy McPherson, Christina Kim, Brittany Lincicome, Natalie Gulbis, Juli Inkster (wild card), Michelle Wie (wild card).
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As a sports writer for over 35 years, Mike Dudurich has seen a lot of great things, covered spectacular events, but his passion is, and has been golf.
He recently ended a 29-year career at the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and will now be a frequent contributor on GolfGearReview.com.
Mike hosts a weekly golf radio show on 1250 ESPN in Pittsburgh from the beginning of April through the end of August.
The show airs Saturdays from 8-9 a.m. and can be heard online at