"I absolutely just spend hours, you know, just looking at plans and thinking and creating."

Tiger dodged some truly dreadful questions when the scribes convened in rustic Dubai. Thankfully, talk did veer into the course design category...

Just having so much fun with the one in High Carolina and the one here. It's been eye-opening for the detail that goes into it. I didn't really realise that, but I've also loved it, too. I absolutely just spend hours, you know, just looking at plans and thinking and creating and then that to me is fun, trying to give the developers what they want. That's my responsibility, and hopefully I can do that and deliver that.

Okay, who's going to break the news to him that you can't design a great course on paper? It's like saying you sit inside and spend hours looking at tape and creating the ideal swing in your mind.

Q. You've already touched on your golf design business interests. Can you tell us is there one hole in the world of golf that's your favourite hole, and why, and are you planning to incorporate that into the design?

TIGER WOODS: There's no one hole, no. You know, my favourite golf course is St. Andrews. Obviously it's the home of golf and the history behind it; that golf course, the nuances and the intricacies behind it and understanding how to manage your way around that golf course, that's fun.

The different wind conditions, I just think that's just a lot more cerebral than people think of how to manage your game around that golf course. I enjoy that type of golf.

Q. To pick out one hole at St. Andrews --

TIGER WOODS: There isn't one. I like them all. The only weird tee shot is obviously 17 because it doesn't fit the golf course because there's no other hole that you play that way, but that's about it.

Guess we can scratch a blind tee shot over faux railway sheds off the list. 

"Tiger isn't the TV draw he used to be."

Chris Lewis offers up an interesting analysis of television viewership numbers for the last three Buick's won by Tiger Woods.

"So long as he has incentive, he isn't likely to throttle back, consciously or subconsciously."

I vowed not to read another "can he win the Grand Slam" column until we're at least within throwing distance of the first major, but I thought John Strege raised an interesting point:

Winning is never tedious, but what of the effort required to do it consistently and dominantly over an extended period? Woods played the South Course at Torrey Pines in the summer of 1993 and finished fourth in the Junior World Championship. Another lackluster performance in a junior event later that summer convinced his father, Earl, that he was bored with junior golf, that winning had become mundane. He never played another junior tournament.

Woods is dominating professional golf as though it were junior golf, once more a man among boys. His victory in the Buick was the 62nd of his career, tying Arnold Palmer for fourth on the all-time list. It was his third straight PGA Tour win, dating to the end of last season.

At 32 and with a growing family, it's fair to ask how long he can retain the focus and dedication necessary to dominate a sport that with few exceptions has effectively repelled efforts at dominance.

It's fair to ask, but the answer is obvious. Junior golf gave way to amateur and college golf, which gave way to PGA Tour golf, which is giving way to history. So long as he has incentive, he isn't likely to throttle back, consciously or subconsciously.

"I think after what the USGA probably witnessed on 18 yesterday, that ball staying up, that will be shaved."

Tiger's post Buick final round chat with the media guys and gals who had to brave holes in the tent top (my condolences)...

Q. Freddie said you just screwed the U.S. Open up for everybody. Are you sorry about that?

TIGER WOODS: Well, I only did it on one hole. I think after what the USGA probably witnessed on 18 yesterday, that ball staying up, that will be shaved. Just like Augusta, you see Freddie's ball stayed up, next year it's all shaved.

Actually, before anyone goes scribbling about that, the plan was to shave the lake before today.

And this is downright funny...

Q. What about LA?
TIGER WOODS: What about it?

Q. Any thoughts yet, yes or no if you're in yet?
TIGER WOODS: I don't know.

Give it up! He's not coming back. Paraphrasing Taupin, I think it's going to be a long, long time. 

"Bettering the field average by almost 10 feet"

From Alex Turnbull, the PGA Tour's ShotLink guru, after Tiger's bogey-free 66 at Torrey Pines:

Leading the field in greens in regulation this week, Tiger was very accurate today with his irons. Hitting 17 of 18 greens in regulation today, he averaged 26 feet 3 inches from the hole on all approach shots bettering the field average by almost 10 feet (Rd 3 average: 35 feet 0 inches).

Tiger and Rory Not Making Eye Contact As Valentine's Day Approaches

Bob Harig at ESPN.com has all the juicy details:

Tiger Woods made his 2008 debut at Torrey Pines, predictably shooting up the leaderboard at a place where he has won the Buick Invitational five times, including three in a row.

And there alongside him in third place, two shots behind tournament leader Troy Matteson, is Tiger's 2007 punching bag, Rory Sabbatini. Safe to say, they didn't exchange New Year's greetings when they passed each other in the Buick media center.

In fact, they didn't even acknowledge one another.

Their relationship is as frosty as the temperature, which caused a run on scarves, mittens and sweaters. It didn't keep Woods from picking up where he left off 130 days ago, when he put the finishing touches on an outstanding 2007 season by winning the Tour Championship and the inaugural FedEx Cup.

Sounds like I left San Diego a day too early: 

Players such as Fred Couples and Mark Calcavecchia were not kind, with Couples saying, "It's just not right," and Calcavecchia adding, "Rory is Rory." Woods was none too pleased, either. "I'd like to try and get to the bottom of it when we're done here," Woods said on Dec. 16. "And we'll see what happens."

Apparently, Woods never got to the bottom of it.

"I haven't talked to him about any of it," Woods said Thursday, just minutes after walking past Sabbatini without saying a word, without making eye contact. "It is what it is."

Couples was among those who suggested that Sabbatini donate his $170,000 to the Tiger Woods Foundation, but on Wednesday Sabbatini visited a nearby naval base, where he gave the money to the United Through Reading Foundation. The organization provides a video program for military personnel to keep in touch with their families.

"It's unfortunately one of those things that we seem to forget about and we take for granted out here on the tour," Sabbatini said. "And we were just fortunate that we were able to contribute to it."

When asked if he donated the winnings from Woods' event, Sabbatini said: "That is what the situation was. Unfortunately, the media took a lot of criticism towards me after the event, and in that situation I was there, I was tired, and we thought about it and we thought we'd put it to some good use."

So does this mean if the media hadn't ragged all over Rory, that he wouldn't have made the donation? 

Watch Stevie Go Ballistic!

Check out this YouTube video of Tiger Woods caddie Stevie Williams, winner of the 2003 Nikon Hurling championship and the 2006 9-Iron Dropping Open, go balistic after crashing his race car.

"These kids now, they grow up playing big drivers. The ball doesn't move. They don't have the gear effect in the drivers like they used to."

A couple highlights from Tiger's sitdown in the Torrey Pines media center on the eve of the 2008 Buick Invitational. Starting with this question about the possibility of playing the Northern Trust Open at Riviera:

TIGER WOODS: Yeah, LA is still kind of up in the air. I've always loved playing Riviera. I've only played well I think two times. But hey, hopefully one year I'll be able to get it under my belt.

Just not this year!

And this on shotmaking, from a Craig Dolch question. Love the "These kids now" talk...

Q. You're known as one of the better shot-makers out here, which seems to be somewhat of a dying breed on TOUR. Can you talk a little bit about shot-making and why you think so few guys aren't good shot-makers and just pound the ball now?

TIGER WOODS: Well, I think the guys don't -- they didn't grow up with the ball moving all that much. I was still on -- when I grew up playing I was on that periphery of persimmon and balata balls, so the ball moved quite a bit.

These kids now, they grow up playing big drivers. The ball doesn't move. They don't have the gear effect in the drivers like they used to. A lot of big changes.

The golf courses have changed, as well. So the game is played totally different now than it used to be. So yeah, you have to make the adjustments.

What year did Vijay have that great year, four years ago? He proved just hitting driver on every hole was the best way to attack golf courses. If you're driving it well, great. If you're not, you're going to have a wedge in your hand. That's not the way the older players used to do it. They used to shape it, move it around the golf course and go about their business that way.

"Hicks teed off alone just after 6:30 a.m., but was joined by Woods and Watson on the fairway after Watson boomed a drive 80 yards over Hicks' head."

I shared an apartment for one year during my UCSB days with Buick Invitational qualifier Justin Hicks and can attest that he is one of the nicest, most genuine people you'd ever want to meet. So naturally I found this great note from Ed Zieralski in today's San Diego Union Tribune a bit surprising.

For the past eight years, Justin Hicks has arrived at Torrey Pines at daybreak on Tuesday of the Buick Invitational to videotape Tiger Woods playing a practice round. Yesterday, in a dream-becomes-reality moment, Hicks stepped inside the ropes and played a practice round with Woods and his practice partner, Bubba Watson.

“You know how Andy Warhol talked about that 15 minutes of fame? Well this is my four days of fame here,” said Hicks, who could add two more by making the cut on Friday.

Hicks, 37, qualified for a sponsor's exemption at this year's Buick Invitational by being named Player of the Year for the San Diego Chapter of the Southern California PGA. A teaching pro at Stadium Golf, Hicks has missed qualifying for the Buick Invitational by one stroke three times.

Hicks teed off alone just after 6:30 a.m., but was joined by Woods and Watson on the fairway after Watson boomed a drive 80 yards over Hicks' head. Hicks said Watson hit driver, 7-iron to the 520-yard, par-5 hole.

Classy!

Hicks said it was “nerve-wracking” playing a practice round with Woods. “I felt like the ugly girlfriend with the hot girls next to her,” Hicks said.

The three only played 14 holes, skipping five, six, seven and eight and jumping over to No. 9. It was there that Woods and Watson hit their tee shots simultaneously.

Hicks said he felt like a “third wheel” and tried to keep out of the two friends' fun. He didn't say a word to Woods or Watson. They never said a word to him until the end, when both wished him and his caddie, Todd Howerton, well this week.

“It was still fun,” Hicks said.

How do you hit into (over?) someone and not spend the rest of the round down on your hands and knees kissing their rear end?

Let The Grand Slam Columns Begin!

John Huggan talks to Hank Haney about the state of Tiger's swing as the march toward what everyone seems to think is his best shot at a Grand Slam year, all beginning this coming week at Torrey Pines.

"Tiger is so good that he can find a way to win even when he's uncomfortable with his swing," continues the Dallas-based coach. "But he kept getting more and more comfortable with each new move we added and gained more command, which led to confidence to trust without worrying about the bad shot. He's been at that point in practice rounds for a while now, but it's a whole other mental challenge under the gun."

"But it makes a lot of sense for him to play in Dubai financially."

I know tournament directors have to say this kind of stuff, but...from an Arizona Republic piece notes that Tiger Woods is officially choosing Dubai over the FBR at TPC Scottsdale.

"I think that we will get Tiger Woods to play the FBR Open (some day)," tournament Chairman Tim Lewis said. "I'm disappointed it's not this year. I thought with the Super Bowl here in town that it might attract Tiger, but it makes a lot of sense for him to play in Dubai financially. We have a hard time competing with that."

...but wouldn't it be refreshing if just once, instead of noting that it makes a "lot of sense" for Tiger to play in Dubai "financially" when he certainly does not need the money, how about just bemoaning the fact that you can't pay his appearance fee?

I know, I know, Tiger never forgets.

"I don't know what he does for the other 35 weeks a year. It's not like he can wander off and act like a normal human being and just go bowling."

Bill Nichols pens an interesting column on what you would assume is a tired subject: big names skipping Kapalua. But he touches on some key points...

Good thing the tour will set guidelines for its drug policy this season because evidence suggests widespread use of performance-reducing agents. Top players are having trouble getting off their couches.

Kidding aside, Woods' record makes it difficult to criticize his scheduling. Still, it has become a big problem for regular Tour events.

Chances of landing the world's No. 1 player are reduced with Woods booked for four majors, three World Golf Championships and four FedEx Cup events. He also plays Jack Nicklaus' Memorial Tournament, Arnold Palmer's Bay Hill Invitational, the Wachovia Championship, the AT&T National and usually two Buick events.

The Tour initially thought the FedEx Cup would entice marquee names to play more. It has had the opposite effect. With four playoffs, a WGC event and either the Ryder Cup or Presidents Cup at season's end, top players are searching for time off.

But at least the WGC's have...well, taken us to mediocre courses.  Supported the top 50-in-the-world cocoon and alienated the rest of the world by mostly only being played in America. Other than that...

Loved this from Calc, which I didn't see until Nichols printed it:

"He only plays 16 tournaments a year, or 17, and there's got to be a point where that's going to be too many, where he's just going to say, 'OK, I'm done,' " veteran Mark Calcavecchia told reporters at the Mercedes on Tuesday.

"I don't know what he does for the other 35 weeks a year. It's not like he can wander off and act like a normal human being and just go bowling."

The Shape of Shotmaking, Vol. 1

I'm not really sure where to start with Nick Seitz's compelling look at the state of shotmaking in Golf World's season preview because there are so many points worth noting (and I haven't even gotten to Jaime Diaz's companion chat with Geoff Ogilvy yet, but can't wait.)

The first thought is this: consider how much has changed and the depth of reporting looking at the impact of these changes.

In May 2005 I sat down for an SI Golf Plus roundtable that included Brad Faxon, David Fay and Larry Dorman. They essentially teamed up to tell me that shotmaking was alive and well, the game was more interesting than ever, etc...

Anyway if you go back and read it you realize how absurd they probably sound to a majority of golf fans just two years later, which speaks volumes about how perceptions of the game have changed in a short time.

Which brings us to the Seitz piece, where the overwhelming number of folks quoted blame the golf ball above all else (we'll touch on the club, instruction and architecture blame later).

So here's the first item that leaps off the page: 

Such is his upbringing and talent level, Tiger Woods can pitch a tent in both the traditional and new-age camps, but he laments the decline in more resourceful play. "Most of today's young players never had to work the ball growing up because they were more concerned about distance," he says. "Shotmaking has changed because of the balls. They're harder to work. They go straighter."

If balata balls and persimmon heads were still in play, Woods might well win even more. "Any time a player understands how to shape a golf ball and can consistently hit the ball flush, you're going to want the ball to move more and the equipment to be less forgiving," Woods says. "It puts a premium on quality."

Tiger's custom golf balls, a version of the Nike One Platinum not available in the marketplace, spin more and are easier to maneuver. "They're the spinniest on tour," he says, showing he can coin words as well as craft shots. He doesn't mind giving up a little yardage off the tee to gain accuracy into the greens. Of course, he still averages 300 yards per drive (302.4 yards, 12th on tour in 2007, to be exact).

Now, the USGA and R&A have been running around in circles to figure out ways to restore the importance of skill and shotmaking in the game without touching the ball because the tie between PGA Tour play and average golfer consumption of products the pros play is the most holy of synergies.

Yet here have Tiger not even playing the ball they sell. The only synergy is brand-related, not product related.

I find this odd on many levels. Besides the fact it's another example that the all-vital connection between the pro and amateur games that we are told must be preserved (and which we learn more and more does not actually exist), from a business perspective it just amazes me that this ball is not for sale.

"My carbon footprint is substantially higher than the average person..."

Tony Jimenez's profile of Justin Rose includes several comments from the Englishman about aspiring to the number 1 spot in the world (but unlike Jason Day's recent remarks, they're far less audacious).

And as you're reading some of his observations of Tiger, well... 

 "When you first play him, that's definitely the case," said the Florida-based Englishman. "There is an aura, a presence about him, but that's something you have to get over quickly if you want to take him on.

"Ultimately you've got to give him the respect he deserves, I think that's all he really wants from his playing partners. He is genuinely one of the guys, if you have a laugh with him, he'll have a laugh back."

Rose has just finalised a deal with sponsor Tradition, a leading broker dealer, that will mean the globe-trotting golfer becomes one of the world's first carbon-neutral sportsmen.

The company plans to trade carbon credits based on his carbon footprint in 2008.

"My carbon footprint is substantially higher than the average person so it is even more prevalent for someone in my situation to give something back to the environment," said Rose.

Wow, we went from talking Tiger to calculating carbon footprints. Well, give him credit for taking on a noble cause.
 

Uh, have you calculated your carbon footprint today? Or were you like me and didn't know what the heck that was?

The Next OnStar Ad?

I am not a member of the striking Writer's Guild, and here is why.

It occurred to me that when Rory Sabbatini may have run off with his Buick Enclave after WD'ing from Tiger's event at Sherwood, the inability to locate his courtesy car should have been solved by GM's OnStar system. If you've seen any of Tiger's OnStar ads, you would know this.

Since I'm always looking to turn a negative into a negative, I thought it would be wise to pitch this as the next Tiger Woods OnStar commercial. Here's what I've got so far, but your suggestions are always welcome. Unless you are a member of the Writer's Guild:

FADE IN: INT. SHERWOOD COUNTRY CLUB CLUBHOUSE
Target World Challenge Tournament Director Greg McLaughlin is conferencing with Tiger Woods in the Men's Locker Room. Both men look gravely concerned, and we faintly here Woods ask, "What about OnStar?"

CUT TO: McLaughlin seated, talking to imaginary interviewer in hip, reality show format

GREG McLAUGLIN
Rory Sabbatini withdrew from the final round of our tournament and left for Los Angeles International Airport in one of course Buick Enclave. As tournament director, I didn't know what to do because we had to have the vehicle back immediately.

CUT TO: Woods seated, talking to imaginary interviewer.

TIGER WOODS
I said to Greg, "Rory Sabbatini is precisely why they invented OnStar." Their Stolen Vehicle Assistance will locate the car.

CUT TO: Woods in Sherwood Country Club parking lot, talking to female, under 30, hot sounding OnStar representative.

TIGER WOODS
Hello OnStar? We've got this moron who ran off with one of our courtesy cars.

ONSTAR REPRESENTATIVE
I have the Target World Challenge field list right here. Is it Rory Sabbatini?

TIGER WOODS
How did you know?

ONSTAR REPRESENTATIVE
We know everything. We'll get the location to you right away.

CUT TO: Ext. McLaughlin and Woods are driving in a Buick Enclave and pull into a parking lot near LAX with Woods on phone to OnStar representative. They spot Sabbatini's missing courtesy car, give each other a high five and Woods speaks.

TIGER WOODS
Thanks OnStar. We'll remember to use Stolen Vehicle Assistance next year when we invite John Daly.

CUT TO: On Screen OnStar graphic and voiceover.

FADE OUT.