Once you’ve been to the Masters Tournament, even the practice rounds, you have memories for a lifetime. Here’s one that I vividly remember.
A couple of years ago I was at a Masters practice round and had the opportunity to follow around a very interesting grouping, Rory McIlory and Tom Watson. It was fun to watch the interaction between the two. Watson was helping McIlory out with tips on the golf course, and likely on life. He’s just that way.
Since it was a practice round, the players would often hit a few shots or several putts from one location. Most players know most of the pin placements so on their approaches they might hit a couple of shots to where they imagine the pins will be. On the greens they’ll putt to those same imaginary places, like lower right on the par-5 2nd (can you say Louis Oosthuizen?).
On the par-4 9th I got a fantastic vantage point to watch Tom and Rory approach the green. See the picture in this post of Rory. For those who have not been to Augusta in person, you have no idea how much elevation change there is. The 9th green is incredibly slanted from back to front. So much so, I think I’d fall down if I tried to walk down it. Watch the players during the tournament hit their approaches. The second they hit it they might get mad because they know they put it in the wrong place and the slope of the green will cause the ball to go to a very bad position.
One such bad position would be a shot which goes long. Chipping from the back of the 9th green would be a nightmare. I’d bet wads of cash that an amateur golfer could not chip a ball onto the 9th from above the green, and keep his chip on the green. It’s THAT steep.
During their practice round McIlroy walked right up in front of me and dropped about 8-10 golf balls off the back of the green. I watched in absolute amazement as he clipped those balls so crisply that they would land on the back fringe and actually check, before slowly moving to a tightly dispersed spacing. Imagine chipping from a downslope onto a downslope on greens that are probably running a 14+ on the stimpmeter. I could have sat there with 50 balls and never hit one that perfectly. I’d probably be hitting gap wedge back up to the surface for my next shot.
Tom Watson took notice too. He stopped his chipping practice and just watched. Rory didn’t know Tom was watching.
When Rory moved to another place to practice some chips or putts, Tom grabbed his caddie and pointed him to the back of the 9th green, right where Rory had been hitting those little crisp chips. He threw down about 8-10 balls. Tom Watson is one of the best around the greens in the history of the game. He wanted to see if he could replicate what Rory had been doing.
He couldn’t.
I watched Tom hit ball after ball. Some ended up in the middle of the green and some off the front and down the hill. The dispersion was massive. None of the balls ended up at the top of the green like Rory’s. Tom looked at the green, the balls, Rory… he then shrugged his shoulders and moved on.
There is no doubt who the #1 golfer in the world is right now, Rory McIlory. Below is the most recent official world golf ranking top 100 list. Most notably Rory McIlory moved to #1 after this past weekend’s WGC Bridgestone Invitational victory. Adam Scott dropped to #2 while surging Sergio Garcia moved up to #3.
Puzzlingly, Tiger Woods stayed at #10 after the WD at the Bridgestone. Woods is not playing top 10 or even top 100 golf right now. Also interesting to note that Tiger Woods is tied for the lowest number of competitive rounds counted for this ranking (40). What does that mean? That meaning is up for debate. For reference, McIlory’s ranking is computed based on 50 events.
This Week | Last week | Name | Avg Points | Total Points | Points Lost | Points Gained |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | Rory McIlroy | 9.4077 | 470.38 | -211.48 | 363.42 |
2 | 1 | Adam Scott | 9.2368 | 378.71 | -188.00 | 173.28 |
3 | 5 | Sergio Garcia | 7.7803 | 381.23 | -135.79 | 251.73 |
4 | 3 | Henrik Stenson | 7.6685 | 398.76 | -190.20 | 111.47 |
5 | 4 | Justin Rose | 7.4602 | 380.47 | -192.00 | 199.97 |
6 | 6 | Matt Kuchar | 6.7706 | 352.07 | -165.55 | 197.77 |
7 | 7 | Bubba Watson | 6.6678 | 313.38 | -115.32 | 266.39 |
8 | 8 | Jim Furyk | 6.4772 | 297.95 | -117.67 | 197.43 |
9 | 9 | Jason Day | 6.1919 | 247.68 | -109.84 | 124.86 |
10 | 10 | Tiger Woods | 5.9077 | 236.31 | -249.75 | 6.57 |
11 | 11 | Jordan Spieth | 5.6858 | 272.92 | -77.69 | 184.55 |
12 | 12 | Martin Kaymer | 5.3785 | 279.68 | -72.14 | 210.93 |
13 | 13 | Phil Mickelson | 5.1451 | 246.96 | -174.27 | 75.31 |
14 | 14 | Zach Johnson | 5.0157 | 260.82 | -144.13 | 121.73 |
15 | 17 | Graeme McDowell | 4.9048 | 240.33 | -140.36 | 120.38 |
16 | 15 | Hideki Matsuyama | 4.8810 | 209.88 | -67.47 | 122.32 |
17 | 16 | Dustin Johnson | 4.8328 | 241.64 | -126.15 | 137.25 |
18 | 18 | Rickie Fowler | 4.7877 | 248.96 | -77.88 | 193.71 |
19 | 22 | Charl Schwartzel | 4.1714 | 216.92 | -123.14 | 89.85 |
20 | 19 | Jimmy Walker | 4.1548 | 216.05 | -78.03 | 164.97 |
21 | 23 | Keegan Bradley | 4.1462 | 215.60 | -131.05 | 120.25 |
22 | 21 | Victor Dubuisson | 3.8801 | 170.72 | -57.23 | 95.75 |
23 | 20 | Steve Stricker | 3.8790 | 155.16 | -116.35 | 42.57 |
24 | 26 | Thomas Bjorn | 3.8414 | 195.91 | -77.32 | 81.29 |
25 | 29 | Patrick Reed | 3.7627 | 191.90 | -48.12 | 164.63 |
26 | 25 | Luke Donald | 3.7408 | 190.78 | -137.85 | 95.15 |
27 | 24 | Jason Dufner | 3.7255 | 193.73 | -141.39 | 76.29 |
28 | 27 | Miguel A Jimenez | 3.4786 | 160.02 | -61.94 | 91.00 |
29 | 28 | Ian Poulter | 3.4601 | 169.54 | -127.76 | 40.63 |
30 | 30 | Webb Simpson | 3.4043 | 177.02 | -117.92 | 75.84 |
31 | 31 | Stephen Gallacher | 3.3499 | 174.19 | -60.99 | 136.07 |
32 | 32 | Jamie Donaldson | 3.3319 | 173.26 | -88.96 | 82.89 |
33 | 33 | Thongchai Jaidee | 3.2370 | 168.32 | -68.07 | 104.19 |
34 | 34 | Lee Westwood | 3.1970 | 166.25 | -112.35 | 87.01 |
35 | 36 | Brandt Snedeker | 3.1779 | 165.25 | -149.98 | 61.34 |
36 | 38 | Kevin Na | 3.1517 | 126.07 | -29.78 | 123.21 |
37 | 39 | Ryan Moore | 3.0938 | 154.69 | -81.37 | 75.10 |
38 | 37 | Bill Haas | 3.0850 | 160.42 | -90.71 | 77.21 |
39 | 51 | Marc Leishman | 3.0598 | 159.11 | -57.61 | 122.10 |
40 | 35 | Graham Delaet | 3.0415 | 155.12 | -72.28 | 78.76 |
41 | 40 | Brendon Todd | 2.9901 | 146.51 | -22.95 | 121.03 |
42 | 41 | Kevin Streelman | 2.9174 | 151.71 | -66.31 | 83.32 |
43 | 42 | Francesco Molinari | 2.8516 | 148.28 | -81.24 | 84.19 |
44 | 43 | Chris Kirk | 2.7513 | 143.07 | -58.13 | 93.82 |
45 | 44 | Hunter Mahan | 2.7322 | 142.07 | -94.97 | 68.51 |
46 | 45 | Jonas Blixt | 2.6236 | 136.43 | -68.42 | 72.32 |
47 | 46 | Joost Luiten | 2.5943 | 132.31 | -56.66 | 68.88 |
48 | 47 | Gary Woodland | 2.5741 | 133.85 | -47.92 | 68.51 |
49 | 49 | Harris English | 2.5669 | 133.48 | -58.06 | 73.31 |
50 | 48 | Matt Every | 2.5567 | 132.95 | -43.26 | 109.05 |
51 | 53 | Matt Jones | 2.5047 | 130.25 | -37.86 | 88.97 |
52 | 54 | Kevin Stadler | 2.5042 | 130.22 | -49.21 | 105.98 |
53 | 52 | Angel Cabrera | 2.4718 | 121.12 | -44.04 | 70.42 |
54 | 50 | Mikko Ilonen | 2.4295 | 111.76 | -40.64 | 78.30 |
55 | 57 | John Senden | 2.3938 | 124.48 | -50.93 | 97.26 |
56 | 54 | Louis Oosthuizen | 2.3696 | 120.85 | -116.89 | 83.67 |
57 | 56 | Billy Horschel | 2.3340 | 121.37 | -65.69 | 50.40 |
58 | 58 | Shane Lowry | 2.2586 | 112.93 | -48.83 | 72.11 |
59 | 59 | Russell Henley | 2.2441 | 116.69 | -54.12 | 88.77 |
60 | 62 | Ernie Els | 2.2034 | 114.58 | -115.69 | 46.31 |
61 | 65 | J.B. Holmes | 2.1722 | 86.89 | -14.69 | 88.41 |
62 | 60 | Koumei Oda | 2.1691 | 108.46 | -41.37 | 51.39 |
63 | 61 | Ryan Palmer | 2.1583 | 103.60 | -45.94 | 84.64 |
64 | 63 | Pablo Larrazabal | 2.1294 | 110.73 | -50.05 | 82.39 |
65 | 64 | Gonzalo Fdez-Castano | 2.1065 | 109.54 | -73.49 | 32.76 |
66 | 66 | Brian Harman | 2.0450 | 106.34 | -32.85 | 86.34 |
67 | 67 | Matteo Manassero | 2.0306 | 105.59 | -74.78 | 45.21 |
68 | 68 | Charley Hoffman | 2.0212 | 101.06 | -43.45 | 65.92 |
69 | 69 | George Coetzee | 1.9876 | 99.38 | -54.23 | 75.51 |
70 | 71 | Bernd Wiesberger | 1.9622 | 102.03 | -61.71 | 44.87 |
71 | 70 | Richard Sterne | 1.9446 | 85.56 | -58.98 | 27.59 |
72 | 72 | K.J. Choi | 1.9082 | 97.32 | -40.81 | 72.14 |
73 | 73 | Rafael Cabrera Bello | 1.8619 | 96.82 | -44.80 | 74.03 |
74 | 74 | Erik Compton | 1.8336 | 95.35 | -16.03 | 86.24 |
75 | 77 | Brooks Koepka | 1.8194 | 87.33 | -31.78 | 54.42 |
76 | 75 | Tim Clark | 1.8164 | 89.00 | -48.17 | 52.67 |
77 | 76 | Ben Martin | 1.7965 | 93.42 | -24.95 | 62.96 |
78 | 80 | Nick Watney | 1.7909 | 93.13 | -100.53 | 25.16 |
79 | 83 | Fredrik Jacobson | 1.7677 | 77.78 | -36.61 | 50.43 |
80 | 78 | Charles Howell-III | 1.7617 | 91.61 | -48.65 | 48.77 |
81 | 79 | Ryo Ishikawa | 1.7516 | 91.08 | -47.88 | 50.33 |
82 | 82 | George McNeill | 1.7396 | 81.76 | -20.43 | 70.11 |
83 | 85 | Brendon de Jonge | 1.7348 | 90.21 | -57.46 | 43.71 |
84 | 81 | Chris Stroud | 1.7311 | 90.02 | -39.27 | 39.55 |
85 | 84 | Paul Casey | 1.7059 | 88.71 | -37.07 | 45.74 |
86 | 86 | Boo Weekley | 1.6746 | 87.08 | -53.93 | 23.65 |
87 | 87 | Anirban Lahiri | 1.6587 | 69.67 | -27.48 | 34.76 |
88 | 88 | Chesson Hadley | 1.6488 | 79.14 | -26.49 | 45.27 |
89 | 89 | Scott Stallings | 1.6446 | 85.52 | -50.97 | 60.19 |
90 | 90 | Chris Wood | 1.5639 | 75.07 | -49.47 | 34.43 |
91 | 98 | Branden Grace | 1.5589 | 81.06 | -76.57 | 39.38 |
92 | 91 | Kim Hyung-sung | 1.5395 | 80.05 | -48.95 | 24.54 |
93 | 100 | Fabrizio Zanotti | 1.5377 | 78.42 | -11.50 | 75.12 |
94 | 93 | David Hearn | 1.5246 | 79.28 | -33.49 | 47.91 |
95 | 92 | Tommy Fleetwood | 1.5230 | 79.20 | -32.54 | 40.18 |
96 | 94 | Ross Fisher | 1.5110 | 78.57 | -47.16 | 30.99 |
97 | 96 | Edoardo Molinari | 1.5070 | 61.79 | -15.44 | 52.24 |
98 | 95 | Thorbjorn Olesen | 1.5016 | 78.08 | -67.59 | 41.35 |
99 | 102 | Danny Willett | 1.4990 | 70.45 | -41.22 | 43.87 |
100 | 97 | Daniel Summerhays | 1.4967 | 77.83 | -34.96 | 47.05 |
PGA TOUR
Wells Fargo Championship
Dates: May 1-4
Venue: Quail Hollow Club, Charlotte, N.C.
Tournament Airtimes On Golf Channel (Eastern):
Thursday 3-7 p.m. (Live) / 7:30-11:30 p.m. (Replay)
Friday 3-7 p.m. (Live) / 9:30 p.m.-1:30 a.m. (Replay)
Saturday 1-2:30 p.m. (Live) / 9:30 p.m.-2 a.m. (Replay)
Sunday 1-2:30 p.m. (Live) / 9:30 p.m.-2 a.m. (Replay)
In the field: Phil Mickelson, Rory McIlroy, Zach Johnson, Justin Rose, Jimmy Walker, Rickie Fowler, Lee Westwood, Webb Simpson, Jonas Blixt and Derek Ernst.
LPGA TOUR
North Texas LPGA Shootout presented by JTBC
Dates: May 1-4
Venue: Las Colinas Country Club, Irving, Texas
Tournament Airtimes On Golf Channel (Eastern):
Thursday 12:30-2:30 p.m. (Live)
Friday 12:30-2:30 p.m. (Live)
Saturday 3-6 p.m. (Live)
Sunday 3-6 p.m. (Live)
In the field: Inbee Park, Suzann Pettersen, Michelle Wie, Lexi Thompson, Stacy Lewis, Na Yeon Choi, Cristie Kerr, Jessica Korda and Angela Stanford.
CHAMPIONS TOUR
Insperity Championship
Dates: May 2-4
Venue: The Woodlands Country Club (Tournament Course), The Woodlands, Texas
Tournament Airtimes On Golf Channel (Eastern):
Friday 7:30-9:30 p.m. (Tape Delay)
Saturday 6:30-9:30 p.m. (Tape Delay)
Sunday 7-9:30 p.m. (Tape Delay)
In the field: Fred Couples, Bernhard Langer, Tom Lehman, Nick Price, Kenny Perry, Mark O’Meara, Rocco Mediate, Mark Calcavecchia, Jay Haas, Fred Funk and Colin Montgomerie.
EUROPEAN TOUR
The Championship at Laguna National
Dates: May 1-4
Venue: Laguna National Golf and Country Club (Masters Course), Changi, Singapore
Tournament Airtimes On Golf Channel (Eastern):
Thursday 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m. (Tape Delay)
Friday 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m. (Tape Delay)
Saturday 6:30-10:30 a.m. (Tape Delay)
Sunday 6:30-10:30 a.m. (Tape Delay)
In the field: Peter Uihlein, Rafael Cabrera-Bello, Kiradech Aphibarnrat, Ross Fisher, Chris Wood, Simon Dyson, Thomas Levet, Bernd Wiesberger and Brett Rumford.
Rank | Player Name | Winnings |
---|---|---|
1 | Henrik Stenson | 10,000,000 |
2 | Tiger Woods | 3,000,000 |
3 | Steve Stricker | 2,000,000 |
4 | Adam Scott | 1,500,000 |
5 | Zach Johnson | 1,000,000 |
6 | Matt Kuchar | 800,000 |
7 | Jordan Spieth | 700,000 |
8 | Graham DeLaet | 600,000 |
9 | Phil Mickelson | 550,000 |
10 | Justin Rose | 500,000 |
11 | Webb Simpson | 300,000 |
12 | Brandt Snedeker | 290,000 |
13 | Dustin Johnson | 280,000 |
14 | Jim Furyk | 270,000 |
15 | Nick Watney | 250,000 |
16 | Billy Horschel | 245,000 |
17 | Jason Day | 240,000 |
18 | Keegan Bradley | 235,000 |
19 | Jason Dufner | 230,000 |
20 | Hunter Mahan | 225,000 |
21 | Roberto Castro | 220,000 |
22 | Sergio Garcia | 215,000 |
23 | Gary Woodland | 210,000 |
24 | Bill Haas | 205,000 |
25 | Kevin Streelman | 200,000 |
26 | Brendon de Jonge | 195,000 |
27 | Charl Schwartzel | 190,000 |
28 | Luke Donald | 185,000 |
29 | Boo Weekley | 180,000 |
30 | D.A. Points | 175,000 |
31 | Harris English | 165,000 |
32 | Matt Jones | 155,000 |
33 | Kevin Stadler | 150,000 |
34 | Chris Kirk | 145,000 |
35 | Charles Howell III | 142,000 |
36 | Jimmy Walker | 140,000 |
37 | Bubba Watson | 138,000 |
38 | Rickie Fowler | 137,000 |
39 | John Merrick | 136,000 |
40 | Daniel Summerhays | 135,000 |
41 | Lee Westwood | 134,000 |
42 | John Huh | 133,000 |
43 | Chris Stroud | 132,000 |
44 | Russell Henley | 131,000 |
45 | Kevin Chappell | 130,000 |
46 | Rory Sabbatini | 129,000 |
47 | Brian Davis | 128,000 |
48 | David Lynn | 127,000 |
49 | Scott Piercy | 126,000 |
50 | Rory McIlroy | 125,000 |
51 | Ryan Moore | 120,000 |
52 | Jonas Blixt | 115,000 |
53 | Ian Poulter | 114,000 |
54 | Patrick Reed | 113,000 |
55 | Graeme McDowell | 110,000 |
56 | David Hearn | 110,000 |
57 | Brian Gay | 110,000 |
58 | Matt Every | 110,000 |
59 | Marc Leishman | 110,000 |
60 | Nicholas Thompson | 110,000 |
61 | Charley Hoffman | 110,000 |
62 | Jason Kokrak | 110,000 |
63 | Scott Stallings | 110,000 |
64 | Bryce Molder | 110,000 |
65 | Angel Cabrera | 110,000 |
66 | Michael Thompson | 110,000 |
67 | Ken Duke | 110,000 |
68 | Ernie Els | 110,000 |
69 | Sang-Moon Bae | 110,000 |
70 | Brendan Steele | 110,000 |
71 | Ryan Palmer | 80,000 |
72 | Freddie Jacobson | 80,000 |
73 | K.J. Choi | 80,000 |
74 | Martin Laird | 80,000 |
75 | David Lingmerth | 80,000 |
76 | Stewart Cink | 80,000 |
77 | Kyle Stanley | 80,000 |
78 | Josh Teater | 80,000 |
79 | Cameron Tringale | 80,000 |
80 | Tim Clark | 80,000 |
81 | John Rollins | 75,000 |
82 | Camilo Villegas | 75,000 |
83 | Bob Estes | 75,000 |
84 | Martin Kaymer | 75,000 |
85 | Jerry Kelly | 75,000 |
86 | Justin Leonard | 75,000 |
87 | Martin Flores | 75,000 |
88 | Scott Brown | 75,000 |
89 | Bo Van Pelt | 75,000 |
90 | Luke Guthrie | 75,000 |
91 | Robert Garrigus | 75,000 |
92 | Brian Stuard | 75,000 |
93 | Derek Ernst | 75,000 |
94 | Brian Harman | 75,000 |
95 | Stuart Appleby | 75,000 |
96 | Richard Lee | 75,000 |
97 | Greg Chalmers | 75,000 |
98 | Pat Perez | 75,000 |
99 | Erik Compton | 75,000 |
100 | William McGirt | 75,000 |
101 | Aaron Baddeley | 70,000 |
102 | George McNeill | 70,000 |
103 | James Driscoll | 70,000 |
104 | Geoff Ogilvy | 70,000 |
105 | Ted Potter, Jr. | 70,000 |
106 | J.J. Henry | 70,000 |
107 | Carl Pettersson | 70,000 |
108 | Jeff Overton | 70,000 |
109 | John Senden | 70,000 |
110 | James Hahn | 70,000 |
111 | Mark Wilson | 70,000 |
112 | Charlie Beljan | 70,000 |
113 | Jason Bohn | 70,000 |
114 | Lucas Glover | 70,000 |
115 | Jeff Maggert | 70,000 |
116 | Justin Hicks | 70,000 |
117 | Morgan Hoffmann | 70,000 |
118 | Chez Reavie | 70,000 |
119 | D.H. Lee | 70,000 |
120 | Andres Romero | 70,000 |
121 | Johnson Wagner | 70,000 |
122 | Scott Langley | 70,000 |
123 | Charlie Wi | 70,000 |
124 | Steven Bowditch | 70,000 |
125 | Ben Crane | 70,000 |
126 | Robert Streb | 32,000 |
127 | Peter Hanson | 32,000 |
128 | Nicolas Colsaerts | 32,000 |
129 | Brad Fritsch | 32,000 |
130 | Padraig Harrington | 32,000 |
131 | Bud Cauley | 32,000 |
132 | Ricky Barnes | 32,000 |
133 | Fabian Gomez | 32,000 |
134 | Greg Owen | 32,000 |
135 | Shawn Stefani | 32,000 |
136 | Chad Campbell | 32,000 |
137 | Woody Austin | 32,000 |
138 | David Toms | 32,000 |
139 | Jim Herman | 32,000 |
140 | Tommy Gainey | 32,000 |
141 | Ryo Ishikawa | 32,000 |
142 | Tag Ridings | 32,000 |
143 | Trevor Immelman | 32,000 |
144 | Dicky Pride | 32,000 |
145 | Brendon Todd | 32,000 |
146 | Vijay Singh | 32,000 |
147 | Doug LaBelle II | 32,000 |
148 | Ben Kohles | 32,000 |
149 | Brandt Jobe | 32,000 |
150 | Justin Bolli | 32,000 |
The 2013 Tour Championship field is set. The top 30 players listed below make it to the Tour Championship at East Lake this week. Despite the penalty controversy, Tiger Woods managed to overtake Henrik Stenson and comes in with the lead. Notably absent from this list is Rory McIlory.
The table below shows the current FedEx Cup standings on the left, player name in the middle and current points on the right.
1 | Tiger Woods | 2500 |
2 | Henrik Stenson | 2250 |
3 | Adam Scott | 2000 |
4 | Zach Johnson | 1800 |
5 | Matt Kuchar | 1600 |
6 | Steve Stricker | 1400 |
7 | Graham DeLaet | 1200 |
8 | Phil Mickelson | 1000 |
9 | Justin Rose | 800 |
10 | Brandt Snedeker | 600 |
11 | Jim Furyk | 480 |
12 | Nick Watney | 460 |
13 | Jordan Spieth | 440 |
14 | Jason Day | 420 |
15 | Hunter Mahan | 400 |
16 | Keegan Bradley | 380 |
17 | Gary Woodland | 360 |
18 | Bill Haas | 340 |
19 | Kevin Streelman | 320 |
20 | Jason Dufner | 310 |
21 | Webb Simpson | 300 |
22 | Billy Horschel | 290 |
23 | Charl Schwartzel | 280 |
24 | Roberto Castro | 270 |
25 | Sergio Garcia | 260 |
26 | Boo Weekley | 250 |
27 | Brendon de Jonge | 240 |
28 | D.A. Points | 230 |
29 | Luke Donald | 220 |
30 | Dustin Johnson | 210 |