Golf News

Phil Mickelson's name has surfaced in a federal investigation into insider trading, along with those of investor Carl Icahn and noted gambler Billy Walters. None of the three men is accused of any wrongdoing. But federal investigators are examining trades involving the men's connection to two separate companies, Clorox and Dean Foods. Specifically, the investigation is seeking to determine whether Mickelson and Walters traded based on insider information. In February 2011, Icahn acquired 9.1 percent of Clorox. In July of that  year, he made a takeover offer that sent the share price rocketing upward. Federal investigators noted an unusual increase in trading activity on Clorox stock shortly before Icahn announced his offer. One theory the government is investigating, according to the Wall Street Journal , is that Icahn gave information about the upcoming bid to Walters, who then gave information to Mickelson. There is no evidence that Icahn and Mickelson know each other. ...

Politics, attacks, claims, counter claims, media, spin, journalists themselves being spun, that's only a fraction of what makes up the House Of Cards. Until now I hadn't seen anyone take sides in the McIlroy Wozniacki breakup, what concern is it to any of us?  He's a golfer, she plays tennis, relationships happen and they end too.  The whos, whys and wherefores of how they ended is surely a private matter and not for any of us to try to fathom? But today I read a piece in The Times that stokes the embers of last weeks fire and goes in to bat for Caroline Wozniacki, attempting to portray Rory McIlroy in a poor light.  The headline "Relationship terminated in three-minute phone conversation" almost dares one side to get into a media debate with the other. An extract from the piece reads Caroline Wozniacki played tennis in a lovely old arena at Roland Garros yesterday but would rather have been in Belfast, asking Rory McIlroy to his face why he left her this way. Ex...

If there is one thing golfers love to do, it's tinker with new equipment. We are always looking for the latest driver, hottest putter and best pair of shoes to help us go low. Each Friday for the rest of the year we will be bringing you five items that we've enjoyed messing around with, no matter if it's equipment, apparel or just something random that we thought you'd enjoy. Here we go! G/Fore Socks â€" You probably know G/Fore for their colorful golf gloves, a nice addition to any outfit, but you shouldn't look past the socks. They're comfortable, they're durable and they make any golf outfit that much better. The low socks fit perfectly under your golf shoes so you can rock them with shorts, and the crew fit is great for golf and for going out. www.gfore.com $16-22 Ashworth Encinitas Golf Shoe â€" Golf shoes have leaned towards the athletic look for the last few years, so if you're a fan of traditional looks, you'll love the n...

Remember when Padraig Harrington won The Open and PGA Championship in 2008 and some smart alec tried to demean the achievement by suggesting they put an asterisk beside his name that year?  Do you remember?  Because Tiger Woods was not playing. Well it's official, the US Open at Pinehurst can have an asterisk too, Tiger has still nor recovered from his back injury.  He officially announced his withdrawal via a statement on his website.  Interesting to me however was not declaring ;in this statement whether he will play or miss The Open Championship. The statement:  Tiger Woods will not play in the 114th U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2 in Pinehurst, N.C., next month, he announced Wednesday. He is still rehabbing after undergoing microdiscectomy surgery for a pinched nerve in his back on March 31. "Unfortunately, I won't be there because I'm not yet physically able to play competitive golf," Woods said. "I'd like to convey my regrets to the USGA leadership, th...

Apparently there are a lot of ways to handle the ending of a relationship. Rory McIlroy has decided the best answer for his is to make a whole lot of birdies. Just four days removed from his final round 66 at the BMW PGA Championship to claim one of the biggest titles on the European Tour, it was back to work for McIlroy, who opened with a 9-under 63 at the Memorial to take a three-shot lead into the next three rounds. Maybe the craziest thing about Rory's opening round was what it could have been. His 9-under 63 was more than nine shots clear of the field average on Thursday at Muirfield Village, but it was one swing that really made the round go from really, really impressive to potentially historic. Rory walked off the 11th green 7-under par, and after a par on the 12th it was up to Rory to close strong if he wanted to scare that sub-60 score. McIlroy put his tee shot in the middle of the fairway on the par-4 13th, and had just over 110 yards to the pin, but he pulled his...

How does Justin Bieber still get over half a million views of his golf video in one day?  I’d like to be a fly on the wall at his marketing meeting!

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Technorati Tags: Tiger Woods Nike Covert Driver Advert Funny Pic

The European Tour is currently on a swing across China, with the BMW Masters last week and the HSBC Champions this week, and the fine folks over on the social media side of things decided to challenge the tour players in a way you probably weren't expecting. They were going to see who could pick up the most golf balls with chopsticks. The video is another entertaining one for the European Tour, and it was made even better when John Daly withdrew from the competition, an ironic moment for all involved.

There had never been a hole-in-one in the five-year history of the Mississippi Gulf Resort Classic, but that changed on Sunday thanks to Nick Price.  Price was not having his best week at the Champions Tour stop, but he came to the par-3 14th hole hoping to make one swing and one swing only. Price's ball was right on line, landed a few feet short and went in for the first ever ace at this event, helping him finish the week with a 1-over 73.  It was a very nice 9-iron from the three-time major winner and a great highlight from the tour's stop in Mississippi.   

When you go to Puerto Rico for some golf, you probably expect to do or see original things that don't pop up at a regular tour event, but a golf ball attacking iguana? That's new to us all. It happened to Andrew Loupe on the 16th hole during his final round, with the iguana going after his golf ball, but eventually getting bored of it and heading back to the wilderness, proper etiquette for an animal such as this one. Loupe would go on to make par on the 16th, post a final round 69 and finish T-12 at the other PGA Tour event that went down this weekend. 

When the leaderboard is as crowded as it is this Sunday at the Cadillac Championship, getting off to a good start is imperative if you want a chance to win. Dustin Johnson did just that on Sunday at Doral, hitting a meaty 346-yard drive on the par-5 first hole, sticking his second shot from 244 yards to just a few feet and rolling in the putt for eagle.  Johnson already has a World Golf Championships win on his resume, but a win on Sunday at Doral would really do wonders for his already great career and help jump-start his 2014 with a huge win against a leaderboard packed with big names. 

It wasn't exactly the prettiest of wins for Jimmy Walker on Sunday at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, but that is exactly why six shot leads are so nice. Walker entered the final round on Sunday with exactly six shots between him and the next closest pro, and he needed all six by the end of the day to claim his third win of the 2014 PGA Tour season. It has been an incredible run for Walker with this win being the sweetest of them all for the 35-year-old, and the highlights from his Sunday win are below.

It was a pretty unusual week at Torrey Pines, with Tiger Woods struggling as much as we've ever seen at the Farmers Insurance Open, Phil Mickelson withdrawing because of a back issue and Scott Stallings winning his third PGA Tour tournament at the ripe age of 28. While we did see some strange things happen, we also got a glimpse of just how good these PGA Tour players are, and the shots of the week highlight that. Check out Tiger's chip-in for par, Billy Horschel's eagle and Charlie Wi doing something pretty incredible to make the cut at Torrey Pines.

I know in these snowy days it's tough to think about the first major championship of the year, but this picture will probably get the goosebumps a-going. Miller Coop posted the above picture on Twitter of a snowy Augusta National, and even though we are 71 days until the big three hit their ceremonial Masters tee shot, it's great to see anything that can get us thinking about those azaleas and that back nine on Sunday. I guess with two inches of snow covering the quick Augusta greens it could be one of the few chances to not have a three-putt on the most famous golf course in the world.

This is six year old golf rapper Caleb C, who took the world (cough) by storm this year with his youtube video “I Love Golf ”. Well he’s back, just in time for Christmas with his latest video Putting 101. What can I say guys, its a slow news day!

If you've ever wondered how Bubba Watson can be so precise with such a looping, elongated golf swing, it's because of his hand-eye coordination. The guy has absolutely incredible timing, and it's one of the reasons he's able to do all the different things he does with a golf club and still produce major championship-worthy golf shots. Earlier this year, Watson filmed some "Sportscenter" commericals and during his taping, played a little ping pong in Bristol. But, it wasn't regular table tennis, as Bubba used his actual driver to return shot after shot. It's incredibly impressive, and just another example of how good Bubba's hands are and how he's able to do what he does on the golf course.

No matter if you love golf or hate it completely, you've probably watched, and laughed, at "Happy Gilmore." The 1996 film starring Adam Sandler as a hockey player-turned golfer is one of most ridiculous golf movies ever made, but it's hilarious and wonderful and it has Bob Barker in it so what isn't to love?  The fine folks over at CineFix decided to transform "Happy Gilmore" into an 8-bit video game version and while that might seem confusing at first, just watch it and enjoy. Seriously, it's one of the best things ever, and I thank my buddies over at FilmDrunk for finding this and posting it for all the world to enjoy. 

2013 has been a cracking year for golf.  Highlights for me were Phil Mickelson’s epic final round at The Open and Jason Dufner getting his first Major, lowlights the Tiger “cheating” allegations. Thanks to everyone who has made GolfCentralDaily their daily read for everything weird and wonderful in the golf world.  The site got over 3 million hits in 2013, its best yet. So here’s wishing you all a Happy New Year and even better things in 2014. Super things even!

Each week for the remainder of the golf season we will be rolling out a mailbag, with any and all questions invited from readers and fans around the world. Have a good question you want answered? Hit me up on Twitter  at @shanebacon or e-mail me at shanebaconblogs@yahoo.com and we will try to get to it in the coming weeks. Here we go ... @shanebacon I know you're probably tired of hearing it, but what do you think about Rory's bounce back win? â€" Ty Wright (@t_wright07) May 27, 2014 Bacon : I thought the way he played on Sunday, considering what he had to do and what the leader was doing at the time, was as impressive a round as he has played to date. Sure, you can point to that final round 62 at Quail Hollow in 2010, or any of the rounds he played at Congressional, but Rory needed this. He had never won a professional event on European soil, he was struggling to put four solid rounds together, and frankly, he needed the W. Winning in that fashion will be a big ...

Middle Ireland is gripped with excitement today as Padraig Harrington announced a busy week of fashion shows  around the country to showcase his new clothing line with cut price clothing giant Dunnes Stores. The highly anticipated weeklong event is reportedly expected to draw as many as 50 people to catwalk events in Churches, prisons and farms across the country. “This week is a chance to show off the hottest looks from the new Padraig Harrington Dunnes Stores collection," said Dunnes CEO Will Dunne II. We're delighted to work with Padraig, and bring his styles to our stores. The themes are fun, roomy and colourful. We've moved away from traditional navy because let's face it, it's the seventies.” The week kicked off with an official launch in an IBIS Hotel near Dublin airport last night where Harrington strutted down the catwalk in front of four fans in conference room 14F. It's thought the Harrington twill underpants for 1.99 will be hottest ticket of th...

British Olympic diving sensation Tom Daley met up with Rory McIlroy yesterday for a high diving lesson. Here’s what they said. Technorati Tags: Rory McIlroy Funny Pic

Guys don’t ever say that GCD is not the sexiest golf site in the blogosphere.  Here are five of the PGA Tour’s sultriest babes.  They are rarely photographed together because the risk of male heart attack is so high. Enjoy! Technorati Tags: SExy LPGA Tour Players

Rickie Fowler might have cut his long locks this year, but he's added a little facial hair to his game this week at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Yes, Fowler sent out this tweet on Monday, showing his new Cobra Trusty Rusty wedge with one of the more advanced stamping I've ever seen on a golf club. Mustache on my #TourTrusty @cobragolf ... @PUMAGolf Fall '14 campaign shoot pic.twitter.com/Zpc5hyyvya â€" Rickie Fowler (@RickieFowlerPGA) March 17, 2014 Sure, we've seen funny quotes and weird messages on golf clubs, but the wedge mustache might be my favorite. Well played, Mr. Fowler, but this isn't the first time we've seen you rocking the mustache .  

Here’s my imaging of what the conversation in the bedroom this week was between Tiger Woods and Lindsey Vonn.  Just a bit of fun for your Friday! Technorati Tags: Tiger Woods Lindesy Vonn Funny Cartoon Pic

No matter how many golf tournaments Miguel Angel Jimenez wins before he decides to retire from the game of golf, the Most Interesting Man in Golf will be remembered more for what he does before a round of golf than what he does during that round. That interesting stretching maneuver that Jimenez does to warm up is now world famous, and he decided to give employees at Ping, the club company that sponsors the 50-year-old, some tips on just how to get fully stretched before swinging a club. The video is great, as the employees really embrace what Jimenez is saying, and I think we are all down to see Jimenez do that knee stretch of his as much as possible.

Zach Johnson helped us get our first win of 2014 at The Tournament Of Champions.  Odds setters had Zach out at a generous 14/1 pre tournament given his fantastic end to 2013. He’s still out at 40/1 for the Masters, which he has won before in 2007, so that might be worth a fiver each way from your winnings. Here was our pre tournament tip. Technorati Tags: Top PGA Tour Tipster

Well, it's basically come to this. With all the weather delays and the dominance from the United States, Sunday at the Presidents Cup has become a bit of a snoozer. That said, we still can have a little fun at the expense of muddy Muirfield Village. During the Sunday matches, Lindsey Vonn and Amy Mickelson were sharing a golf cart that seemed to get stuck in the mud. No worries at all, as Amy Mickelson, the wife of Phil, got out and helped push the cart to dry land. It isn't pictured, but apparently Keegan Bradley immediately ran over and gave Amy a high five and fist bump for her help. GIF h/t to Adam Sarson

Exclusive picture from South Africa of Rory McIlroy unveiling Nike’s first ever driver specifically designed for blind golfers.  He was helped at the launch by official ANC sign language expert Thami Jantijie.   Technorati Tags: Rory McIlroy Funny Nike Pic , Thami Jantijie funny pic

The champion of the Accenture Match Play on Sunday was Jason Day, but he wasn't the only winner of the week. That went to runner-up Victor Dubuisson, a man that many didn't even know existed before the week began in Arizona but played himself past some hefty competition to make it to the finals in the World Golf Championships match play event. Dubuission might not have been a star before Sunday, but these two recovery shots he hit out of the desert at Dove Mountain were reason for any golf fan to stand up and cheer. The Frenchman couldn't hold off Day, a man many believed would have a huge year in 2014, but it was Dubuission who really left Marana with plenty of new fans and some nifty chip shots that we won't soon forget.

Nice little touch by pokerfaced trickster Jason Dufner who plants a rock he has just picked out of a bunker in Keegan Bradley’s bag. Then Bradley’s caddie Pepsi picks up the bag including rock and heads away, seemingly totally oblivious of the extra weight. The typically American commentary sucks every bit of fun out of the prank, which strangely adds to its comic effect. Technorati Tags: Jason Dufner Funny Prank Video , Keegan Bradley

There are plenty of ways to make hole-in-ones, but not many are called shots. That happened on Thursday in Morocco when Alexander Levy politely asked his ball to go in the hole and it obliged, dropping for the rare ace at the second hole at the Golf du Palais Royal.  Levy's ball landed just a foot short of the hole, rolled in for the hole-in-one and a highlight for the 24-year-old Frenchman who went on to post a 2-under 70 in his opening round despite the double bogey he made on the hole immediately following his ace.  It was a good shot, a good call and a fun hole-in-one for the fans at this week's European Tour event. 

This video has been doing the rounds on facebook and though its only three seconds long, it’s comedy gold. Watch the alignment stick! Thanks Andrew Rice on facebook for highlighting! Technorati Tags: Funny Golf Video

Arsenal and Malaga supporter Miguel Angel Jimenez salutes fans as he is carried to his seat in the Royal Box by his man servants at The Emirates stadium on Saturday where he was guest of honour. The crowd observed a one minute applause prior to kickoff in appreciation of The Mechanic.   Technorati Tags: Miguel Angel Jimenez Funny Pic

Thanks to an anonymous reader for getting in touch with this video after watching the Rory McIlroy versus Wayne Rooney crossbar challenge . This is Sean Flanagan from the golfing stronghold of County Sligo in Ireland, hitting the crossbar from outside the halfway line. Good tekkers! Related Post: Jake Reeves Driver Lesson Funny Video For much more follow Doc on Twitter

It’s Friday funny time and here’s a video the Jackass crew would be proud of. Get your hands over your crown jewels guys. Apparently they are called Rocky and Tony. This one is painful in the extreme! Technorati Tags: Funny Golf Video

Zach Johnson may be the Champion Of Champions but it was straight back to fathering duties after winning in Hawaii. Sniff sniff, what’s that unholy stench!?!? Sorry Doug, I couldn’t resist.   Technorati Tags: Zach Johnson funny pic Pic thanks: Alex Micelli twitter

I'm not exactly sure who is running themasters Instagram account , but it posted a picture on Saturday of the Eisenhower Tree on the 17th hole standing in a snow storm. As you know, Augusta National lost the famous tree in February dedicated to the late president during some nasty storms, leaving the 17th without its most famous landmark.  This picture was snapped by some lucky fellow out at Augusta and shows the tree in all its glory still standing, and is a great reminder of what the hole used to look like before the tournament kicks off this coming Thursday.  We are just a few days away from the Masters. I hope you all are as excited as we are!  h/t Scott Michaux

There are few par-3s in the United States that are as popular, and as quirky, as the sixth at Riviera. Known for the bunker in the middle of the green, No. 6 is the site of plenty of strange golf shots, pitch shots from the putting surface and creativity at its finest. Jim Furyk was out of position on No. 6 during his third round at the Northern Trust Open, having to throw his chip shot up on a bank and hope it would come back down towards the hole. He pulled the shot off perfectly, giving it just enough to get up high on the bank and really come back down the hill towards the hole. His ball slammed into the stick and dropped for the unexpected birdie, and his reaction says it all. We've seen some great shots pulled off this year, but none have been as creative as this one from Furyk.

We've all seen the videos of Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy as kids hitting golf balls better than most of us ever will as adults, and we may have a new kid to watch grow up and win major championships. This video of  3-year-old Michael Patton of Dublin, Ireland hitting golf ball after golf ball into what looks like a clothes hamper not only is your adorable video of the day, but shows that this kid is pretty incredible at golf. Sure, a couple of those shots didn't go directly into the hole, but Patton just keeps hitting shot after shot nearly perfect and makes it look effortless (a couple of times the ball had barely stopped rolling before he banged it at his target). I guess as winter is fast approaching we can all thank this kid for showing us a new way to practice our short game when the snow starts to fall on our local country club.

Bubba Watson openly admitted before the Players Championship kicked off on Thursday that he didn't exactly like his chances at this golf tournament . The Masters champion said he didn't see "eye to eye" with TPC Sawgrass, and that it was tough for him to really "see" his way around this golf course. So in typical Bubba fashion, he went out on Thursday and shot a nifty little 3-under 69, highlighted by this second shot into the par-5 16th. Watson, who has obviously used his length to his advantage this season , hit a shot that was made even better by the work of this cameraman, who followed the shot from the sky perfectly as it never left the flag. Bubba went on to make the putt for his eagle, made par on the tricky 17th and was in first his first sub-70 round at TPC Sawgrass since the final round in 2011.

Life isn't bad for Adam Scott. A year ago he became the first Australian to ever win the Masters, and he's continued his ridiculous play into the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Scott came in with a PGA Tour-best 30 straight cuts made and it looks like he will easily make it 31 straight after an opening 62 at Bay Hill. His round of 10-under tied the course record at Bay Hill and has Scott in a very good spot to possibly win his third PGA Tour event in less than a year, and it all came thanks to this insane scorecard from Scott.  Starting on the back nine, Scott made four birdies and an eagle on his way out, offset by a single bogey on the par-4 18th, but he made up for the one blemish with an inward 31 that included another eagle and three birdies.  The highlights from Scott's round are below, so prepare yourself to see a lot of lengthy putts dropped from the No. 2 player in the world. 

The LPGA has a new version of Ben Crane.  It’s LPGA Q-school graduate Tiffany Joh, who used her performing powers to poke fun at Lexi Thompson. Joh posted her version  of Ylvis’ song of the year “What Does The Fox Say?”, called “What’s Up With Lexi?” Very impressive! Technorati Tags: Tiffany Joh Funny Video

In golf, there is one golf shot that every person wants, and it's the ace. You step up to the tee, hit that perfect golf shot and the only worry in the world is if you have enough money in the old bank account to cover the drinks you'll be buying, and while professionals are known to hit great shots, even they get fired up for a hole-in-one. The PGA Tour people put together a fun video of the best aces of 2013, so sit back, relax and enjoy some of the better golf shots you'll ever see. My favorite? Definitely the Shawn Stefani hole-in-one at Merion , but the Hunter Mahan ace at the BMW Championship is still one of the better executed shots you'll ever see, and definitely the best swing of this entire group.

The win on Sunday by Bubba Watson, his second Masters victory in the last three years, was incredibly impressive, and it puts him in some very, very accomplished company. Many people have finished their careers with only one Masters win, but only a select few have been able to win this tournament a second time. Check out the list that Bubba joined on Sunday with his second green jacket: Jack Nicklaus ('63, 65, 66, 72, 75, 86) Arnold Palmer (58, 60, 62, 64) Tiger Woods (97, 01, 02, 05) Jimmy Demaret (40, 47, 50) Sam Snead (49, 52, 54) Gary Player (61, 74, 78) Nick Faldo (89, 90, 96) Phil Mickelson (04, 06, 10) Horton Smith (34, 36) Byron Nelson (37, 42) Ben Hogan (51, 53) Tom Watson (77, 81) Seve Ballesteros (80, 83) Bernhard Langer (85, 93) Ben Crenshaw (84, 95) Jose Maria Olazabal (94, 99) Bubba Watson (12, 14)   Now that is a group you want to be included in. What an incredible two year run for Bubba Watson at Augusta National. Â...

If you've ever spent longer than 90 seconds on Twitter and you're a golf fan, you probably know that Jason Dufner and Keegan Bradley like to mess with each other. Both are always sending stuff to one other poking fun like buddies tend to do. During the opening round of the Northwestern Mutual World Challenge, Dufner and Bradley were paired together and it was the Auburn fan that got the best of Bradley. After avoiding a rock in the bunker, Dufner was handed it by his caddie to toss out of the trap, but instead of doing it, he just put the rock in Bradley's golf bag. While this event has big names in the field, it is still a fun golf tournament and stuff like this shows just that. If I was Bradley, I would definitely focus my prank revenge on the television Dufner is watching when the SEC Championship comes down to the end.

Absolutely brilliant spot by pro Enda McLoughlin who had this official Nike poster of Simon Dyson in his shop this year. How prophetic yet horrifically unfortunate marketing is that? Dyson was all day in his European Tour rules hearing regarding his DQ at the BMW Masters. He was found guilty of a serious breach of the rules, got a 2 month ban suspended for 18 months, a £30,000 fine and ordered to pay the £7,500 legal bill. Technorati Tags: Simon Dyson Funny Pic

Regular GCD readers will know I enjoy a bit of Jimmy Fallon humour so when he covered the video about 78 year Chi Chi Rodriguez getting hit square in the nut sack with his own golf ball. In case you missed the hilarious yet tear inducing original you can watch it here . In the meantime here’s Jimmy and gang explaining what happened.

Many of us dream of walking on those hallowed grounds of Augusta National, taking in the views, the smells and the history at the most exclusive, and most famous, course in the United States. A few lucky kids not only got that on Sunday morning, but they were able to compete in the Drive, Chip and Putt Championship at the home of the Masters. Augusta National hosted the finals of this event, an incredibly cool move by the club that has done a ton in the last few years to further the game of golf. The opening tee shots from the event are below, courtesy of Golf Channel, so check them out and appreciate the beauty, and history, of a new event at Augusta National.

Sometimes we forget just how good these PGA Tour players really are. Week in and week out we see so many holed out iron shots and 300 yard drives that land in the middle of the fairway that we get immune to the talent that makes it on our televisions at each event. Rickie Fowler and Peter Uihlein are here to remind us just how good they really are. The former Oklahoma State teammates had a little fun over the weekend, hitting flop shots just a couple of feet back of a range net that soar nearly 30 feet high and clear the net. Both guys pull off these ridiculous shots with full golf swings and a touch that should remind us that there is a whole other level of golf that most of us will never achieve.

Video of the top 10 holes-in-one on the PGA TOUR, Champions Tour and Web.com Tour in 2013, featuring aces from Hunter Mahan and Jordan Spieth. My favourite is Shawn Stefani's hole in one from the round of the US Open at Merion. Technorati Tags: PGA Tour Hole in ONe countdown 2013 video

This is an absolutely wonderful retro instructional video by Seve Ballesteros in which he demonstrates the pitching techniques that made him an absolute wizard of the short game. Watch out too for his reference to the shot he played against Arnold Palmer in the Suntory World Matchplay. Never forget the genius of Seve! Technorati Tags: SEve Ballesteros Chipping Lesson Video

I'm always highly sceptical when I see an in depth interview regarding clubs with a player such as Rory McIlroy the day after he wins.  The chance that Rory sat down Monday morning and waxed lyrical about his equipment has to be remote. More likely it's coming from some marketing department or other trying to flog a club. Nevertheless there is some info on his 59 degree Nike VR X3X Toe Sweep wedge and why it worked so well for him at Wentworth. The Toe Sweep is something I've been messing around with for a while and I felt like last week was a good time to put it in play. The one thing I really like about it is how well it goes through the rough. Some of those shots on the way in Sunday were key up and downs. The chip-in on 10 and the flop shot that I played on 14, those two were out of the rough. The way the club is designed it feels that it slides through that longer grass really easily and the ball comes out that much better for me. If there was one area of my game that...

Great to see Peter Alliss in such good form and full of conversation in Dubai.  Listening to Peter’s views on armchair referees and Tiger’s drop at The Masters is fascinating. “With a lesser unknown assistant pro from Rochdale, he’d probably have been banned for life!” Alliss goes on to say that most mistake are through ignorance of the rules and that if the top 100 players were asked to sit a rules exam, just 5% might pass! Technorati Tags: Peter Alliss Video

Billy Foster, legendary caddie, storyteller and all round good guy is back with Lee Westwood at the Tiger Woods World Challenge this week and he got straight down to business with a spot of Dufnering. According to friend of GCD Ricky Elliot who took this pic,  Billy managed to knock more conversation out of Jason’s cardboard cut out than the real thing. Cheers Ricky and welcome back Billy, or as Seve during calmer moments called him, “Beelie.” Technorati Tags: Billy Foster Funny Pic , Ricky Elliot

Jonathan Byrd has been a staple on the PGA Tour over the years, winning five tournaments since 2002 and being near the lead in plenty of others. But the thing that will follow Byrd his entire career was what happened at the 2010 Shriners Hospitals for Children Open. Byrd needed to close just to get in the playoff, and as the sun was setting in Las Vegas it was up to the players if they wanted to go another hole in the playoff before calling it quits for the day. Byrd was up against Martin Laird and Cameron Percy in the playoff, and standing the par-3 17th, their fourth playoff hole, it was one of the best final swings in the history of the PGA Tour. The ball never left the flag, landing soft and rolling dead center for the hole-in-one. It was an incredible shot for Byrd, but as you can see in the video, it was so dark outside that he didn't even know it went in for a few seconds.

There will be plenty of single people around the world that will spend their Friday night disappointed after Adam Scott let the news drop that he got hitched last month in the Bahamas. Scott, the 33-year-old former Masters winner, has been a favorite amongst the female golf contingent for some time, and gave Ben Everill of the Australian Associated Press the details of how it went down. "We just decided to get on with it, we've known each other long enough, let's go and jump right in the deep end. "It was just our family and a few friends and obviously there are a lot of people we would have liked to have had there who weren't but we decided to have a very low key affair." Scott married Marie Kojzar, a 32-year-old Swede, who he dated in the past before reuniting before his Masters win in '13, and the No. 2 player in the world has seemed as happy as he ever has over the past couple of years. So congrats to Mr. Scott and his new wife, and hop...

Some bad news for golf fans, even though most suspected this would be the case, as Tiger Woods officially announced he will not be at the U.S. Open as he continues to recover from back surgery. Woods made it officially on his website on Wednesday, citing continued health issues and recovery from the back surgery he underwent on March 31 . "Unfortunately, I won't be there because I'm not yet physically able to play competitive golf," Woods said. "I'd like to convey my regrets to the USGA leadership, the volunteers and the fans that I won't be at Pinehurst. The U.S. Open is very important to me, and I know it's going to be a great week. Despite missing the first two majors, and several other important tournaments, I remain very optimistic about this year and my future." Woods, who turns 39 in December, will miss a second straight major championship for the third time in his career after having to pull out of the Masters for the same back...

If you're confused at what exactly you're looking at above, it is the famed 17th hole at Augusta National just without her most famous addition. Yes, the above photo is courtesy of Mark Immelman , brother of former Masters champion Trevor Immelman, who shot the 17th without the Eisenhower Tree to the left. As you know, the Eisenhower was taken down by brutal storms that wrecked havoc across Georgia, really going after the city of Augusta and the famous golf course in the middle of town. Some thought the tree would be replaced before the Masters, but with such little time and with such drastic measures, the left side of 17 might be bare for the 2014 tournament. It's emotional for me to view this picture of the famed 17th hole, Nandina, sans The Eisenhower Tree. pic.twitter.com/1xjxu4YWGY â€" Mark Immelman (@mark_immelman) February 26, 2014

The top 10 golfing moments of 2013 by the PGA Tour are hard to disagree with. They include The Sergio Garcia Tree Shot The Justin Rose Hogan Shot At Merion Jordan Spieth’s Bunker Shot Par Stenson’s Fed Ex Cup winning performance Furyk’s 59 Phil Mickelson’s Open Performance Adam Scott’s Masters Win Technorati Tags: Video Top 10 Golfing Moments Of 2013