Hats off to Sports News IRELAND for the bonehead of the week award.
No, Tiger will not break the major record of Jack “Nicholas”
Not only did they regurgitate the most over-asked and tired question in golf history, they didn’t even spell the greatest golfer in history’s name correctly.
I can safely say that Tiger Woods will in fact NOT break the major championship record of Jack “Nicholas.”
Actually the title itself in this awful piece is quite puzzling. Are they asking if Tiger will break Mr. “Nicholas’s” record of six Masters wins or the “Nicholas” record of 18 major championships?
Today is the par-3 tournament day at the Masters Tournament. This tournament has been going since 1960. The par-3 is a fun tournament where players interact closely with fans. Some players who are not in the Masters Tournament are allowed to play the par-3 tournament. Prior to the par-3 tournament there used to be a driving contest.
The par-3 tournament takes place at Augusta National’s par-3 course, possibly the most beautiful par-3 course in the world, though the folks at Three Tops located at Treetops Resort might argue that point. As you will likely hear, no player who has won the par-3 contest has gone on to win the Masters Tournament.
I walked every hole of Augusta National’s par-3 course a couple of years ago and shot a ton of photos. For one shot I even snuck onto a little boat I found in the lake. The skies were a little gray the day I shot them but they still look great. I put together a gallery of 77 images of the course, the largest and most complete online photo gallery of the course that I’m aware of. All for you HOG “patrons.” Click the photos or the link below to view the gallery.
Augusta National Par-3 Course Photo Gallery
Thursday’s Masters pairings are below. There are a couple of very interesting groupings, which I’ve put in bold type.
Interesting also to note that of the 33 groupings, only 11 feature two american players, and none have three. They like to mix up the nationalities.
7:45 a.m.: Stewart Cink, Tim Clark
7:56: Ian Woosnam, John Huh, Kevin Stadler
8:07: Ben Crenshaw, Y.E. Yang, Jonas Blixt
8:18: Mark O’Meara, Steven Bowditch, Jordan Niebrugge
8:29: John Senden, Boo Weekley, David Lynn
8:40: Craig Stadler, Scott Stallings, Martin Kaymer
8:51: Tom Watson, Billy Horschel, Brendon de Jonge
9:02: Mike Weir, Matt Every, Roberto Castro
9:13: Angel Cabrera, Gary Woodland, Ian Poulter
9:24: Fred Couples, Webb Simpson, Chang-woo Lee
9:35: Graeme McDowell, Rickie Fowler, Jimmy Walker
9:57: Zach Johnson, K.J. Choi, Steve Stricker
10:08: Miguel Angel Jimenez, Bill Haas, Matteo Manassero
10:19: Hideki Matsuyama, Brandt Snedeker, Jamie Donaldson
10:30: Charl Schwartzel, Jim Furyk, Thorbjorn Olesen
10:41: Adam Scott, Jason Dufner, Matt Fitzpatrick
10:52: Jordan Spieth, Patrick Reed, Rory McIlroy
11:03: Kevin Streelman, D.A. Points
11:14: Larry Mize, Branden Grace, Michael McCoy
11:25: Sandy Lyle, Matt Jones, Ken Duke
11:36: Jose Maria Olazabal, Lucas Glover, Garrick Porteous
11:47: Nick Watney, Stephen Gallacher, Darren Clarke
12:09 p.m.: Vijay Singh, Thomas Bjorn, Ryan Moore
12:20: Matt Kuchar, Louis Oosthuizen, Thongchai Jaidee
12:31: Trevor Immelman, Graham DeLaet, Oliver Goss
12:42: Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano, Derek Ernst, Sang-moon Bae
12:53: Bernhard Langer, Francesco Molinari, Chris Kirk
1:04: Jason Day, Dustin Johnson, Henrik Stenson
1:15: Bubba Watson, Luke Donald, Sergio Garcia
1:26: Joost Luiten, Marc Leishman, Hunter Mahan
1:37: Keegan Bradley, Victor Dubuisson, Peter Hanson
1:48: Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els, Justin Rose
1:59: Harris English, Lee Westwood, Russell Henley
We’ve all seen the par-3 12th hole at Augusta National and the Masters a million times. Same with the par-5 13th’s green complex, 18th green, Magnolia Lane, the Clubhouse… The times I’ve been there I’ve had fun finding things the average person does NOT see on TV. Here are a few highlights.
Collecting Data
The guy above was sitting in the bushes right of the 10th hole. When I asked him what he was doing, he said “collecting data.” The machine he was using to collect that data is below:
Data collecting device…
Not sure what that device is below, but I presume these gentlemen are measuring the moisture level of the green (15th green if I recall).
Green testing?
Testing greens and setting pins below.
Mini stimpmeter to test green speed and set pins?
I poke a lot of fun at golf PR and apparel companies for their “apparel scripts.” Here’s my 2013 Masters apparel script. My 2014 Masters apparel script is coming soon. I’m still finalizing some of the items. I think Nike Golf got wind of that, and decided to send along some suggestions for my 2014 script. Their suggestions are based on what some of their athletes will be wearing in the 2014 Masters. Lets take a look, first at the incredible box the suggestions samples arrived in.
What’s in this beautiful box?
Amazing box…
What’s in this beautiful box?
What’s inside is even better…
What’s in this beautiful box?
Beauty…
What’s in this beautiful box?
There you have it. Looks like I may have my 2014 Masters apparel shoe selection done, and a couple of items for the upper bod as well.
Seriously though, this apparel is amazing. The engineering, design, and style are all fantastic.