I’ll probably never understand the obsession with those cockamamie contraptions, but I thought I’d give all you GolfEtailers a heads up on the new “Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10.” Mrs. Spooner and I just bought it for our son for his 30th birthday (I don’t think that boy will ever grow up!) and before we could slip out the door to hit the real-life links, he roped me into a couple of rounds. I may not be well-versed in the world of Wii sports – whoever came up with that name needs a stern talking to, by the way – but this old man’s still got a little power in his swing – digital or not. That’s right – I showed my boy who’s still the boss; he’s not too old learn a lesson or two!
Anyway, the reviews are in on “Tiger 10.” Here’s what unbiased folks are sayin’:
“‘Tiger 10′ is the definitive golf game, but it is by no means a revolution.” -Matt Casamassina, IGN.com
“Digital duffers, you’re in for some nice upgrades: real-time weather conditions, a fancy precision putter, and tournament modes that let you battle other gamers or try to best the pros in live competitions. So even if you didn’t make the cut for the real U.S. Open, you can still tee off against Tiger Woods. Best of luck with that.” -Entertainment Weekly
“You wanna go? I’ll put a pixelated hurtin’ on you that’ll make you run home to momma. Rain or shine.” -Brassie Spooner, GolfEtail.com
Apparently – and my son made me write this down – “Tiger 10″ is available on PS2, PS3, PSP, Wii and XBox 360. All those numbers and letters … It’s like an algebra equation.
Ironic. Because if my boy was half as good at math as he is swinging an imaginary golf club in front of the TV… well, he probably wouldn’t be living above our garage.
OK … so I was at The Open on Friday. I arrived at the course around 10:30AM and left about 5PM. A few thoughts and observations:
First, the weather. It was overcast when we got there and appeared it would be another rainy day, but around Noon the sun came out and stayed that way for the duration. So there were no weather issues on Friday.
The course is wet and muddy! In the spectator areas the trails are very muddy. At times we were ankle deep in slop. When you cross the fairways (eg, 15 or 16) those brown areas where the spectators walk is just mud … they are not roads! There were many spectators wearing hiking boots & those knee high rubber ‘fireman-like boots’ — I must say they were appropriately dressed. While we were waiting to cross I was talking to a marshall and asked him what it was like in between the ropes and he said it was really wet. While there I heard some (unsubstantiated) horror stories where many of the parking lots at course had flooded and cars were having to be towed.
With that out of the way let me give you some observations about the play and course. We sat on the hill behind the green for quite some time on Friday. Some of the better shots I saw including Phil making a great, long putt for birdie, David Duval making a nice shot onto the green and good birdie, Goosen hitting a fabulous shot to within 5 feet (but missing his birdie), and Rory putting his ball into the primary rough to the right of the green (just missing the fescue) but followed up with a unbelievable flop shot to save par. It was one of the few places on the course to sit and watch (other than the grandstands).
We also watched several 3-somes come through on #2. I really like this hole … in fact the combination of #2 & #3 really appealed to me. While there Rory put one in the trees on the left and ball came to rest about 5 feet from me. He showed his inexperience by trying to hit through the trees to the green and putting only advancing it about 30 yards and still stayed in the rough. He should have taken his medicine and punched straight out. Phil also put one in the left rough, but made a great recovery with his 2nd shot and snatched a birdie.
I really liked the course and would love to play it; although the course is not a good spectator venue. The majority of the greens are above the spectators so it is difficult to see. I can’t imagine the USGA coming back to Bethpage anytime soon for it does not handle water well and does not layout well for spectators. Conversely, I had the good fortune to go to the 2004 Open at Shinnecock and thought that was a fabulous venue!
So I could ramble on, but won’t. However, if you get a chance to go to a US Open, go! I have been to two and look forward to my third, but first I want to get to Augusta.
In less than 24 hours, the U.S. Open kicks off at Bethpage Black. What can we expect? Here are just a few of the anticipated highlights:
20-year-old Rory McIlroy will make his first start in the U.S. Open. The Northern Ireland native is fresh off his professional debut at The Masters where he achieved the third-highest average driving distance of all the players to make the cut.
As we mentioned in an earlier post, Phil Mickelson will play in the tournament after receiving encouraging news regarding his wife’s breast cancer diagnosis. Mickelson met with the media to discuss his return before heading out for practice rounds with Jim Furyk, Justin Leonard and Darron Stiles.
Andrew Svoboda also will play. He replaces Robert Karlsson, who withdrew after suffering an eye injuring during the first week of the St. Jude Classic.
Two words: Tiger Woods. He’s been practicing the course for several days now, which may have its advantage. The last time the U.S. Open was held at Bethpage Black – back in 2002 – Woods won.
So who will be the victor this year – will it be Woods, Mickelson, or maybe rookie McIlroy? Nobody knows for sure, but we’ll be glued to our sets all weekend to find out!
All I can say is “WOW! … what a great finish”. It should be clear to all Tiger is back … and back in a big way. In case you missed The Memorial, coming into the final holes on Sunday there was a 4-way tie on top of leaderboard, until Tiger went Birdie-Birdie on 17 & 18. Then suddenly, there was no doubt who was going to win! We all know how good he is with those NIKE Victory Red Blade Irons and how deadly he is with those putts to nail the coffin shut. But It is amazing how low he can go when he gets off the tee, and in fact Tiger hit 14 of 14 fairways on Sunday and only missed 5 fairways all week!
Tiger needs to keep that NIKE Dymo Driver in the bag for The Open come June 18th when he will be tackling that monster at BethPage Black. At the Memorial, Tiger was 2nd in driving accuracy and 12th in driving distance, and given BethPage Black will be playing a lengthy 7,426 and will impose severe penalties for not hitting the fairways, he will need both accuracy and distance.
FYI… NewsDay.com and several other medial outlets are reporting Tiger played a practice round today (Monday, June 8th) at BethPage Black, teeing off around 9:30AM and finished up around 1PM.
I will have the pleasure of being at The Open on Friday and will report in.
Good news for Phil Mickelson fans: The two-time Masters winner (2004 & 2006) will return to golf this month as he vies for his fourth title (he won the PGA Championship in 2005) at the U.S. Open at Bethpage from June 18 to 21.
Just a couple weeks ago, Mickelson announced that he was taking a hiatus from the Tour to be by his wife’s side as she battles breast cancer. But after encouraging news from doctors regarding her condition, “Lefty” is back in business.
In anticipation of the Open, Mickelson will “warm up” at the St. Jude’s Classic, which kicks off Monday, June 8, in Memphis.
The DealTeam is elated to hear the good news, and we’re sending positive thoughts to Mickelson and his family.
