Golf News

I met up up with AimPoint founder Mark Sweeney and Irish instructor Donal Scott at the 2013 PGA Show for a chat about AimPoint on the PGA Tour, AimPoint green reading teaching courses and the success of Stacy Lewis using the program. For more information on AimPoint, how it works, the theory and green reading courses available in your area check out www.aimpointgolf.com . Like Donal Scott and Gareth McShea’s Irish AimPoint facebook page here .   Technorati Tags: AimPoint Golf , Green Reading System , PGA Tour , Mark Sweeney , Donal Scott , 2013 PGA Show , Stacy Lewis

So you’ve hated Vijay for years, but could never really put your finger on why.  The laugh?  The derogatory tone to all living humans perhaps? Well now, you can go right ahead and be fully justified with your vitriol with the news that the Fijian is no better than Lance Armstrong, shooting up a tonne of banned stuff to win tournaments.  It doesn’t seem to have worked mind, but that’s not the point. And it’s not as bad as it looks, but that’s not the point either.  It’s a slow news day in America. Turns out Vijay has been taking deer antler spray which contains IGF-1, which is supposed to be a "natural, anabolic hormone that stimulates muscle growth."  It’s unclear whether Vijay rubs the spray on his balls, but it would be damn funny if he did. Here’s the full story on golf courier . The Oprah interview is next week.   Technorati Tags: Vijay Singh Funny Pic , Banned substance

Tiger Woods may be holing everything again, except Elin Nordegren according to sources. The former Swedish hand model is almost ready to move into the $12.2 million, 17,000-square-foot ocean front house she demolished and rebuilt into a three-story, 21,000-square-foot hovel with an Olympic pool. The new house does not include a chipping green or practice area; the clearest indication yet that Nordegren isn’t expecting Tiger to stay any longer than the minute it takes to pick up the kids. This picture from jeffrealty.com shows the house. That would be the Olympic swimming pool out the front about to engulf the property then. Reports that Woods and Nordegren might be getting back together are said to be merely reports from sources no more trustworthy than a pre 2007 Woods. Both parties appear to be getting on with their lives.  Nordegren is said to be pucking Swedish hockey player Douglas Murray;  while Woods is rumoured to be seeing Sean Foley by day and snowploughing into...

Disappointed by criticism that nobody in America finds his demonic alter ego the least bit scary anymore, 70’s mad bastard rocker and golf nut Alice Cooper has embarked on a fright campaign on the European Tour, starting with the Dubai Desert Classic. However the wrinkled rocker whose stage props included guillotines, electric chairs, blood, and snakes was himself stung into silence when he met the Swedish Toro, Joel Sjoholm. “That crazy motherf*cker wears more eyeliner than I ever had on my Welcome To My Nightmare Tour.  And he wears short pants. Respect!” said Cooper.  “I tried all the usual shit like carving the number 666 into my chest with a razor blade but the Toro just stared me down. He’s one sick puppy”, continued the heavy metal icon. According to onlookers Sjoholm showed absolutely no fear of the demonic satanical persona that Cooper represents. “I’ve hung upside down on a crucifix while Marcel Siem smeared me in pigs blood a couple of times for a...

also check out my Dubai Desert Classic Tips here Jason Dufner 16/1 After two top-10’s on the European Tour in Qatar and Abu Dhabi, Jason Dufner returns to the PGA Tour. I make it seven straight top-20’s now for Jason and after finishing second on his own here two years ago, he’ll famcy his chances.   Robert Garrigus 42/1 Mixed the good with the mediocre and still tied sixth last week, the sign of a solid player. His nine top-10’s in 2012 did not include a win but he came mighty close at the Children’s Network and CIMB Classics. On the negative side, he doesn’t have much form at TPC Scottsdale; nevertheless I think he will do well.   Charles Howell 32/1 The form golfer at the moment, Charles added a T9 at Torrey Pines to his T2 at The Humana and third at the Sony Open already this year. His best result here is a T4 in 2010; this week will be his 12 th start in the desert.   Brian Gay 75/1 Gay has always done reasonably well at Scottsdale clocking up f...

Here’s what’s in Tiger Woods winning bag at the 2013 Farmers Insurance Open. DRIVER: Nike VR Tour (8.5°) with a Graphite Design Tour AD DI 6 shaft FAIRWAY WOODS: Nike  VR Pro Limited Editon (15°), SQ II (19°) with Mitsubishi Diamana Blue Board 103X   shafts IRONS: Nike VR Pro Blades (3-PW) with True Temper Dynamic Gold X100 shafts WEDGES: Nike VR (56°), VR Pro (60°) with True Temper Dynamic Gold S400 shafts PUTTER: Nike Method 001 BALL: Nike Tour D All Tiger Woods clubs are available both new and pre-owned at unbeatable prices from Golfbidder . Follow golfcentraldaily on twitter. Technorati Tags: what's in the bag Tiger Woods , Tiger Woods witb , Tiger Woods Golf Bag , what's in the bag 2013 Tiger Woods

Emirates GC, Dubai, United Arab Emirates 31 Jan 2013 - 03 Feb 2013 Henrik Stenson 16/1 I really like the chances of Henrik adding to his 2012 win in South Africa this week. His return to form has been nothing short of remarkable; he hasn’t been outside the top 30 in his last eight events and picked up a cheque for the guts of a quarter of a million euro at the DP World Championship. Statistically the longest driver in the field at 305.4 yards in Qatar last week, you wouldn’t have dreamed that during the lean years. Henrik is a past champion here too, winning in 2007 before adding three more top 10’s since. Great each way odds. Thongchai Jaidee 33/1 Parachuting into my tips this week is Thongchai. Tied ninth last week in Qatar to bring his top 10 streak to five consecutive events on three different continents. Played great on his last visit to Dubai to tie seventh on the Earth Course at the DP World Championship and he also has a best of solo third on this Majlis course in 20...

  Technorati Tags: Shane lowry funny pic

This kid is 17 months old (and still technically one year old, I checked).  His parents are so poor they cannot afford any furniture in their home.  But judging by how their son is able to hit the ball it looks like as if they might be able to cash in with him.  If, of course, they manage to survive financially for the next 15 or so years while the kid grows.  And, assuming of course, he doesn’t divorce them like Sean O’Hair. You know what would be the biggest shame?  If he turned out to be a rubbish putter.   Technorati Tags: golfing baby video

The media centre at the 2013 PGA Show was buzzing yesterday.  Not because of anything that happened at the show.  God forbid! When I rocked in, several men (and one woman) were gathered around an iphone ogling and sharing  two pics of who they claimed were Holly Sonders naked. Now I have to hold my hands up and say, I had to google her to find out she’s from The Golf Channel. I don’t watch the Golf Channel because I don’t have an erectile dysfunction problem or need to rent a car from National.  I’m told adverts for both are all that’s on that channel. How they knew for certain it was her, I dont know.  Unless the cheeks of her ass were on her passport photo and they recognized them from there, but I doubt it. The First Pic The first pic is taken from behind. No pun intended.  The media guys say it was taken by her fiancee (?) and shows Holly in a white thong which has disappeared a dangerously long ways into the bummage.  I’m talking t...

At the 2013 Irish Golf Day in Reunion Resort in Florida, I had the great pleasure of playing with trick shot expert Dave Edwards.  Afterwards he gave us a impromptu show on the range!  It was absolutely brilliant. To find out more about Dave and his show check him out on www.david-edwards.co.uk   Technorati Tags: David Edwards Golf Trick Shot

What a mental day we had at the PGA Show yesterday. First up we had the GMac interview on the Kartel stand.  A big crowd  gathered and we had great fun with the 60 second beer mat challenge and getting Graeme to pick his all time fantasy Ryder Cup team.  The footage has been sent in to the back9network so hopefully we’ll have a link or an embed code for the video by the end of the day. With Alan and Karl Swan afterwards. Then we did a lap or two of the hall.  Man is it big.  So easy to get lost. The PGA Show is immense. Next up was an interview with Karen Stupples about her new Lynx Boom Boom driver.  Filled with Argon, I’m told on the robotic comparison testing, it’s the longest driver out there. There was an Irish drinks reception after work in the Peabody.  On the way out John Casey, Patrick Aiken and me bumped into Butch.  What a nice guy considering all the times I’ve extracted the wee wee out of him over the years. The day end...

Hey everybody, thanks for supporting GolfCentralDaily and for regularly checking out what’s on the site. Please bear with me if I don’t post for a couple of days as I find my way over to the USA for the annual PGA Show. One I get there I’ll post plenty of banter from the exhibition centre and the pubs. And hey, it’s work, I wont be having any fun. Trust me. Cheers, The Doc.

We arrived in Orlando last Saturday for the 2013 PGA Show which kicks off in earnest today.  I’m meeting GMac at the Kartel booth to have a bit of fun on camera. In the best traditions of being Irish I had nothing prepared so asked 30 people in the Bahama Breeze bar last night for a question they would like to ask Graeme and wrote them on a beer mat. So I’m going with the 60 second beer mat challenge this morning; wish me luck! Last Sunday we played Old Memorial Golf Club down near Tampa.  I teamed up with John Farren from Ballyliffin and Aine Mangan from East Coast Golf Alliance had head professional Marc Carter on her side. I’ve never seen anyone drive the ball as good as Marc, 300 yards plus every time but alas it was to be our day.  Johnny cannned four birdies and I had seven one-putts which earned us the cash! One of the highlights of the day was at the tenth green where a bronze of two men stand alongside the green; Tim Coughlan and Billy Minardi. Both were ...

I’m told from my source inside the ropes that the 2014 Ryder Cup captaincy is a done deal. Rory McIlroy has even tweeted an endorsement of Paul McGinley. Technorati Tags: Rory McIlroy Ryder Cup Tweet

Check out the Tiger Woods PGA Tour ‘14 preview below.  The new edition features legends of the game like Jack, Arnie, Seve and Bobby Jones and what appears to be Peter Lawrie attempting to take them down. Not so sure about EA Sports representation of some of the legends though.  Seve looks he’s wearing a gumshield, Jack Nicklaus has got Keegan Bradley’s body and Bobby Jones looks like he’s a candidate for laser eye surgery!   Technorati Tags: Tiger Woods PGA Tour ‘14 Preview

here it is, the first pic of Rors in his Nike gear.  Probably not the one Nike really wanted!  Take down under on Oz where Caroline is batting in the first grand slam event of the tennis season. Technorati Tags: Rory McIlroy Nike Clothing 2013 , what's in the bag Rory McIlroy

Rory McIlroy outlined details of his new Nike Covert Driver specifications and settings. He will use a Nike Covert set at 10.5 degrees in the Neutral position with the same Mitsubishi Diamana 70X shaft he used in the second half of last season. See my full Rory McIlroy bag post here .   Technorati Tags: what's in the bag Rory McIlroy

Congrats to Paul McGinley on being named as the next European Team Captain.  Tommy Bjorn revealed the committee also discussed the credentials of Paul Lawrie, Sandy Lyle, Colin Montgomerie and Miguel Angel JImenez before voting McGinley in as Captain. “This is a position that I’m really thrilled to be in”, said McGinley afterwards. Technorati Tags: Paul McGinley , Ryder Cup

In case you were wondering who was on the committee who will choose the 2014 Ryder Cup Captain tomorrow night, here are the names: Thomas Bjorn (chairman), Paul Casey, Darren Clarke, Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano, , David Howell, Raphael Jacquelin, Peter Lawrie, Paul McGinley, Francesco Molinari, Colin Montgomerie, Felipe Aguilar and Henrik Stenson.  Joakim Haeggman, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Robert Karlsson will not be at the meeting.   Technorati Tags: 2014 Ryder Cup

He’s my big tip to have a great first season on the European Tour.  Here’s what’s in the bag of Andy Sullivan. Thanks as always to friend of GCD Dominic Griffiths in the Ping van for Andy’s bag pic and specs. Technorati Tags: what's in the bag 2013 Andy Sullivan , dominic Griffiths , Ping

I like Bubba; he’s a character no doubt but he has some strange phobias. He’s afraid of the dark, get’s anxiety attacks in a crowd and is scared to death of heights.  He can only sit in certain parts of a restaurant and is barred from France! Yesterday a GolfCentralDaily reader and PGA Tour caddie who plays at the same club as Bubba overheard him making a strange request of the head pro.   Apparently Bubba asked the head pro to spread the word to members to QUIT asking for his autograph whenever he goes there. So if you see Bubba at the club today, you know what to do.  Ask him for his autograph!

As always, when it comes to the sordid details, GolfCentralDaily has every single one of them.  Here’s what happened when Paul McGinley met Colin Montgomerie spoke ahead of tonight’s European Ryder Cup Captaincy vote.   Technorati Tags: Paul McGinley , Colin Montgomerie , Ryder Cup Funny

I’ve been asked by people to list the players who have changed equipment brands for the upcoming season.  It’s not an exhaustive list but should see you right when it comes to figuring where the top players have gone. Nike In: Rory McIlroy, Nick Watney, Thorbjorn Olesen, Seung Yul Noh and Kyle Stanley. Callaway In: Nicolas Colsaerts, Gary Woodland, Ryo Ishikawa, Chris Kirk, Andres Gonzales and Jamie Sadlowski. TaylorMade In: John Huh, Stewart Cink, Ryan Moore, J.J. Henry, David Higgins and Brian Davis. Cobra/Puma In: Jesper Parnevik. Staying Put Titleist: Lost 8 but retains: Steve Stricker, Adam Scott. Ping: Retains Louis Ooshuizen, Hunter Mahan and Bubba Watson. Cleveland/Srixon: Retains Keegan Bradley and Graeme McDowell. Mizuno: Retains Luke Donald. Technorati Tags: Golf Players Changing brands

Rory McIlroy didn’t have the best driving day during his first round in Abu Dhabi but he was quick to take the focus away from his equipment after the round.  In an interview with Tim Barter Rory did admit that the new Nike Covert driver may still need some tweaking and that he’s in an “experimental period” but the problem today was that he just didn’t swing it that well. Rory did also allude to the fact that he has four weeks off after this tournament during which he intends to fine tune the new gear. Write Rory off AT YOUR PERIL! Technorati Tags: Rory McIlroy Nike Funny Pic , shotlink stats

I know there’s a lot of people that like to know the Major Dates so they can plan holidays/vacations. Here is the Major fixture list for 2013. The Masters 2013: April 11-14, Augusta National Golf Club, Augusta, Ga. U.S. Open 2013: June 13-16, Merion Golf Club, Ardmore, Pa. British Open 2013: July 18-21, Muirfield, Gullane, East Lothian, Scotland PGA Championship 2013: Aug. 8-11, Oak Hill Country Club (East Course), Rochester, N.Y. The dates of all the European Tour events are here The Irish Open takes place from 27-30 June. Technorati Tags: Important Golf Dates 2013 , Major Golf Championship Dates 2013

Nice one by Geoff Shackleford who whilst trawling the papers found evidence that former great Poker face David Duval is still alive somewhere in America.  Yes you might still get the opportunity to ask him how he managed to hit the ball without looking at it. Pic: Duval has been living as a recluse with a racoon and big bear for the last 10 years. Apparently Duval (or someone impersonating him, though who would do that?) is on twitter and intends to use it to complain about not getting into tournaments.  He tweeted about next week.  So it's official. I will not get a spot at the Humana.â€" David Duval (@david59duval) Then sent golf historians scrambling for old VHS video tapes. I guess having the defining moment in the history if the event doesn't matter.â€" David Duval (@david59duval What was that then?!   Technorati Tags: David Duval Funny story

Hi everyone, David Higgins here.  I’ve got my European Tour card for 2013 and I just cannot wait to get going.  My season will kick off in South Africa in February. I am all booked to go down there on the 1st of February and will be staying there until March 6th. The weather at home in Waterville is pretty atrocious at the moment and though it’s a beautiful part of the world, if I want to practice six to eight hours a day I need good weather.  So I took myself to Barbados!  In for a penny in a pound as they say! The weather here is really smashing and I’m getting good work done. If I’m to retain my card on the Tour this year with the exemptions I have, I’m going to have to hit the ground running.  I’m going to play two pro-ams here before going home to Waterville for five days.  Then it’s all systems go for one more spin on the rollercoaster that is the European Tour.  Only this time I know where all the bad turns are. Pic: Hard at wo...