Kraft Nabisco Championship March 28th-April 3rd!

It is time, it is now! The LPGA's first Major of the season begins today in sunny California at the Mission Hills Country Club. The Dinah Shore tournament course will come to life with many hopes of winning the season's first major. Yani Tseng is the defending champion. She won last year at -13 and beat "the Susan Lucci of Golf" by one stroke! For those that don't know who that is, it is Suzann Pettersen. I don't say that with any disrespect however, more a reference to always being close but not taking home the trophy last season.

Unlike last week's Kia Classic, the weather should be warmer and filled with sunshine! Wish I was there!
This weeks event is a 72 hole format and the course plays 6,702 yards. You will be able to follow with live scoring via LPGA  or the tournament site itself via this link KNCGolf . The tournament will also post updates via the Twitter account @KNCGolf . To see rounds 1 & 2 pairings, follow this link Pairings by Mirassou Winery .

The first two rounds coverage via the Golf Channel, will be from 12:00-3:00 PM ET and rounds 3 & 4 will be at 4:30 - 8:30 PM ET. Four hours of coverage for rounds 3 and 4, will be awesome and long overdue! There will be replays via the Golf Channel in the later evening and wee hours of the am, for those who forget to set their DVR's.

Now, my jealousy this week is because my good friend @Ouchieee via Twitter and aka Mary Ann, is at Mission Hills to take in the sunshine. She is getting her fill of meeting several players and is posting several pictures via Twitter, for those who follow.

And here she is at the left, with @KStupples . Mary Ann was sweet enough to grab me a visor and Karen signed a nice little msg under the brim for me. Mary Ann hasn't shown a pic of the msg, so I am both excited and grateful for her kindess as well as Karen's. Mary Ann is also making time to get some golf in while there and played Mission Hills last week when she arrived. She's been great for posting photos whilst at Mission Hills, and has met up with the phenomenal Judy Rankin as well as several players and Ann Cain (Titlelist/FootJoy) aka @TFJgolfgirl on Twitter.

My week started great as well, I received by @KentWoolTour sox and then yesterday received my @PukkaHeadwear . These products are awesome to say the least! And, I couldn't believe how quickly my orders arrived. Next up will be Color Fusion golf shirts by @QuagmireGolf . You can see Quagmire golf clothing on Karen Stupples, who speaks highly of the products they have. I am set to begin a new season of golf! I have a new Nike SQ hybrid and Nike putter that I purchased after last season and have not yet gotten to use. 

Photos at Mission Hills courtesy of Mary Ann, aka @Ouchiee. Thx for sharing! 

So now you are filled with the info needed to enjoy the Kraft Nabisco Championship on TV if you are not able to be there, and also through followng via the online website or the posts via Twitter. I will end this post with another picture of Mary Ann and fan favorite, Christina Kim. 

Now, Go Hit Some Balls.................

RR Donelley Founders Cup

In it's inaugural year, the LPGA's RR Donnelley Founders Cup is taking place at Wildfire Golf Club at JW Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge Resort & Spa March 16-20th. The Wildfire Golf Club was voted one of the Top 75 Resorts in North America, Best Courses to play by Golfweek Magazine and voted America's Top Golf Courses by Zagat and so forth. The list goes on and the photos simply cannot due it justice to the beauty of being there to take it all in. 


The field is strong, with 134 players having committed. You can see the final field at this link Final Field .They will compete for a purse of $1 million that will all be donated to charity. You see, it's play money or monopoly money if you will. This week is all about "honoring the past, showcase the present and provide for the future of the LPGA and women's golf".You can see the pairings here Pairings by Mirassou . You can also visit the Mirassou Wines website here Mirassou Family Winemakers .

This is all for the LPGA foundation. They will also compete for an additional $200,000 charitable pool, to be shared by the top 5 finishers. However, with the recent tragedies in Japan, RR Donnelley will donate $100 for every birdie and $500 for every eagle made on the last four holes, 15-18. The only thing better would have been if they would've done so for all holes and not limited this. The tournament is a 54 hole format to be played the 18th-20th.


And while some players spent a long time thinking about whether they would play here, they all for the most part decided to. The issues at hand, were simply about how the tournament was shaping up and about what some felt RR Donnelley could be doing better. At any rate, Cristie Kerr and Paula Creamer just to name a couple, decided to play. It's about paying homage to the founders of the LPGA, and that's what the ladies wanted to do. 


Besides being a remarkable week to be in that presence with such remarkable ladies, it marks the first time since 2009 that the LPGA returns to Phoenix. Some of the founding ladies on hand this week are; Louise Suggs, Shirley Spork, Marilyn Smith. They were also in the company of some LPGA & World Golf Halls of Fame members such as; Betsy King, Patty Sheehan, Nancy Lopez and Pat Bradley, who will play and 18 hole exhibition match on Friday. I'm sure that in itself, will draw the fans out in numbers to be remembered! 


Televised coverage will be via the Golf Channel as follows: Friday and Saturday from 6:30 -8:30 PM ET and Sunday from 7:00 - 9:00 PM ET. As always, you can catch live scoring via LPGA.COM .


Now, Go Hit Some Balls...................

A Fist Pump Finish for Watney!

The Blue Monster at Doral this week, came in like a lion and went out like a lamb! With storms that destroyed tents and leaderboards at the start of the tourney and the suspended play that followed, it was anything but "normal". Play was suspended for more than 3 hours and the first round had to be finished on Friday before the 2nd round could begin.

Nick Watney had a final round 67 to finish at -16, two strokes ahead of Dustin Johnson to win at Doral on Sunday! Watney shot a first round 67 followed by a 70 and 3rd round 68. While Rickie Fowler had final round 66, it wasn't enough to catch the leaders. Fowler played an impressive final round that included 1 Eagle, 5 Birdies and 1 bogey. During the final round, Rickie eliminated almost all of the bogey's that haunted him the prior 3, he finished in 8th place.

Luke Donald who came off a win last week, also fired a 66 (but in his 3rd round) and a final round 72 to finish at -11 and in a tie at 6th place with Adam Scott. Kuchar finished in 5th place, after rounds of 68,69,68 and 71 to get him to -12. Another guy who tried to make a run was Francesco Molinari who finished in a tie for 3rd with Anders Hansen. Molinari who has 2 career wins under his belt, added another top 10 finish for the season to bring his total to 2. He's proven to be a player to watch.

Tiger Woods carded his Top Ten finish with a final round 66 on Sunday. All of the changes he's been working on seemed to come to fruition. Tiger holed 7 Birdies on Sunday and only 1 bogey to finish at -8 and go into 5 way tie for 10th place. While birdies were not chirping for Tiger in the first couple of rounds, he started to see some change on Saturday when he captured 4. While it wasn't enough to get near the top, it would appear that things are coming together.

Rory McIlroy played just the opposite. Rors had much better play in his first 3 rounds and spattered out on Sunday with only 2 birds and 4 bogeys. He had 15 birdies in his first 3 rounds total and only 5 bogeys combined. While he moved the opposite of Tiger, this young man is going to be a very well known name for years to come!

Unfortunately, Bubba Watson was not able to start after suffering with a flu bug for more than a week.This guy is amazing to watch off the tee box. While he uses a pink shafted driver, his drives are anything but soft! Always supported by his wife Angie and caddie J.Ted Scott; he is a man of values and devoted Christian. I am definitely for #teamBubba!

Poulter, known for his fashion style on the course, could not get the momentum going. With only 2 birdies on Sunday and 1 bogey and 1 double-bogey, he finished in a tie for 45th at +2. Look for Ian to get some practice in and contend the next time he tee's it up!



Currently, the 2011 Tavistock Cup has begun, where Tiger will be teeing it up in Orlando at Isleworth Golf & Country Club. This will be for today and tomorrow, March 15th.Teams made up of 24 of the World's Top Ranked golfers will play on 6-man teams. You can follow the Tavistock Cup on twitter via @TheTavistockCup as well as Catch LIVE coverage via the GC right now! This tourney consists of 4 Teams as follows: Team Queenwood: T. Bjorn, D. Clarke, D. Howell, S. Kjeldsen, P. McGinley and A. Scott. Team Lake Nona: R. Fisher, R. Goosen, P. Hansen, G. McDowell, H. Stenson and O. Wilson. Team Isleworth: R. Allenby, J.B. Holmes, S. Appleby, B. Davis, L. Janzen and S. O'Hair. Team Isleworth: A. Atwal, E. Els, T. Immelman, I. Poulter, J. Rose and Tiger Woods. You can follow the live leaderboard via The Tavistock Cup .

Then, next up on Tour for the gents, is the Transitions Championship in Palm Harbor Florida at the Innisbrook Resort March 17-20th, where the Defending Champion is Jim Furyk.

Now, Go Hit Some Balls.................

TPC Blue Monster at Doral is just that! Play suspended.

The WGC Cadillac Championship playing at TPC Blue Monster Doral in Doral, Florida this week has proven to fit it's name. Play was suspended after only a few managed to get play one hole. This can be of benefit to players like Bubba Watson, who has been fighting a fever/flu bug for several days. Prayers out to Bubba to feel better!

While some experts are picking Graeme McDowell to win this week, others say he will not be able to hold up to the 2 icons he is paired with for rounds 1 & 2; Lefty and Tiger! I on the other hand,I think this is the week for a new name on the winners list thus far in 2011. I can't wait to see if the weather holds up to get the guys back out on the course today. The handfull below, are the only ones to have begun their 1st round thus far before play was suspended. Heck, not even enough to get warmed up! 

Add	Pos	Start	Player Name		Overall	Today	Thru	R1	R2	R3	R4	Total
	1.		Bjorn, Thomas		-1	-1	1	-	-	-	-
	1.		Chowrasia, S.S.P.		-1	-1	1	-	-	-	-
	1.		Hansen, Anders		-1	-1	1	-	-	-	-
	4.		Baddeley, Aaron		E	E	1*	-	-	-	-
	4.		Davies, Rhys		E	E	1	-	-	-	-
	4.		Hoffman, Charley		E	E	1*	-	-	-	-
	4.		Palmer, Ryan		E	E	1	-	-	-	-
	4.		Points, D.A.		E	E	1*	-	-	-	-
	4.		Sabbatini, Rory		E	E	1*	-	-	-	-
			Aiken, Thomas		E	12:12 PM ET		-	-	-	-

The heated words from Haney & Foley this week have left the Twitter world abuzz! While Foley had stated you "have to get to know the person" in order to be able to properly work on things, Haney was right there to rebuke any statements and to start several of the back and forth jabs. Not exactly what you would expect from professionals like Hank Haney and Sean Foley. At any rate, Tiger is working on his entire game and not just a "swing" form. He plays this week in only his 10 round of competitive golf this year, at Doral this week. Set to be grouped with Lefty (Phil Mickelson) and Graeme McDowell, it could be a quiet group. Afterall, Graeme is pretty reserved & very focused while playing and well, Lefty & Tiger just never have much to "catch up on". I think that within the next couple tournaments, Tiger will be contending right to the very end. I will go out on a limb and say quite possibly nabbing his first win in .....well let's just say "A long time"! And, might I just add.....I like the goatee & stash, it will look sharp while holding up the trophy!

Keep checking back at PGA.COM . Televised coverage is via the GC today & Friday from 2:00 - 6:00 PM ET . Saturday coverage is via NBC from 2:00 - 6:00 PM ET and again on Sunday 3:00 - 7:00 PM ET.

Now, Go Hit Some Balls......................