"Yep, we've been looking."

Alan Bastable asks Tiger a few different questions about his course design work, including this...

Q: All three of your courses will be private and ultra high-end. What about Joe Public?

A: When it's all said and done, I will have a whole portfolio of golf courses — not just high-end private courses.

Q: Are you currently looking to develop a public course?

A: Yep, we've been looking.

There are plenty of millitary courses that could use some love and care. If Tiger ever wants to do some different charity work that is consistent with his family history, he could do some really great things for our nation's servicemen and women.

Just a thought.

"We're just happy to be coming back to a great golf course."

In Leonard Shapiro's story on Tiger's tournament moving to Aronimink for two years, I couldn't help but wonder after reading this what they'll do if the players inevitably fall in love with Aronimink and dread returning to dreary Congressional.

McLaughlin said he was "thrilled" that the tournament will return to Congressional after 2011, despite the close vote. "It gives us clarity that we know we will be back in Washington at Congressional from 2012 to 2014. It's difficult to speculate on why the vote was so close this time. We're just happy to be coming back to a great golf course."

Stevie To Make Commentating Debut; Looks To Rebrand Image As Gallery-Eating, Camera-Heaving Lunatic

From our friends at Brener-Zwikel:

STEVE WILLIAMS MAKES HIS COMMENTATOR DEBUT AT INAUGURAL KIWI CHALLENGE

Famed caddie for Tiger Woods will join NBC team for Nov. 15-16 telecast of Challenge Season event featuring Kim, Scott, Snedeker and Mahan

NEW YORK (Oct. 6, 2008) – Steve Williams, who is accustomed to being in front of the camera toting Tiger Woods’ golf bag, will find himself in front of the camera toting an NBC microphone across two golf courses in his native New Zealand.

The Wellington-born Williams will make his TV commentator debut at the inaugural Kiwi Challenge, which will be televised in HDTV on NBC Saturday, Nov. 15 and Sunday, Nov. 16 in the United States.

In New Zealand, the Kiwi Challenge will air on Sky TV Thursday, Nov. 26 and Friday, Nov. 27 from 8:30-10:30 p.m. (NZ time).

One of the most famous caddies in the world, Williams will serve as an on-course commentator for the event, which features United States Ryder Cup heroes Anthony Kim and Hunter Mahan joining Adam Scott and Brandt Snedeker in a 36-hole, stroke-play event that offers one of the largest winner’s checks in golf -- $1.5 million -- out of the $2.6 million purse.

“This is my first experience at this,” Williams said. “I’m doing this because the Kiwi Challenge will bring great exposure for New Zealand and give New Zealanders the opportunity to see four of the world’s best players in one group. Seldom would we have four players of this quality at a tournament.”

Country first!

Walton plans to use Williams as a way to bring the beauty of New Zealand in general and the two courses in particular to a worldwide viewing audience. Williams will not only discuss his native land’s points of interest along with noteworthy elements of the two courses and what they mean to the players, but he’ll provide insight on what golf means to New Zealanders.

"The telecast will weave vignettes about both properties and shots of other points of interest in New Zealand in with the golf competition. And Steve will be a big part of that,” Walton said.

Boy, I can't wait for those insights.  

Tiger Tops Sports Most Powerful List; Finchem Climbs Seven Spots On Strength of Fed Ex Cup

Obviously, the list was compiled before the playoffs began.

In other news, no ESPN janitors were able to crack the list, but a new group of ESPN EVP's made the list again. Spread that wealth!

Tiger Walking Around Dubai?

Thanks to Tuco for this CNN video of Tiger Woods' Dubai project with the usual stuff from Tiger about how it'll be playable for the average man yet still challenging for him.

More interesting than that, if you can believe it, is the footage of Tiger walking. It probably was shot a good while ago, but if it's post surgery as the reporter seems to indicate, he looks to be getting around pretty well.

Second Ryder Cup Question: Did Tiger's Absence Help?

Brian Murphy makes a compelling point:

But Tiger and the Ryder Cup, no matter what he says publicly, and no matter how supportive he is in the Team Room, are a weird mix. I always flash back to the moment in ‘04 at Oakland Hills when we were pressing Tiger on whether or not he cared about the Ryder Cup, and Tiger finally had enough and asked us: “How many majors has Jack Nicklaus won?” Dutifully, we all answered “18.” Tiger then asked, “And what’s his Ryder Cup record?” When we all sat there like dumbstruck sheep, unable to produce the answer, Tiger sat back, satisfied.

Team USA has now won as many Ryder Cups without Tiger (one) as it has with Tiger in five other Cups. Tiger was part of a losing team in 1997, 2002, ‘04 and ‘06, and while there are tons of reasons other than Tiger why they lost those Cups, I had a feeling that his absence would be important two ways.

One, it would allow Team USA to operate in a Tiger-free zone, not worrying about what he thinks or says, or having to answer any questions about him. His absence allowed rookies like Hunter Mahan, Anthony Kim and J.B. Holmes to play and act more naturally.

Azinger has said that a key moment in the week was the Thursday night pep rally in front of 4,000 that was supposed to only be attended by the Captain. Then the team decided to crash it and apparently bonded. I couldn't help but think that Tiger would not have wanted to attend because of the security issues and the desire to get his rest prior to a long day one.

But there's also this key point from Mike Adamson in The Guardian:

Likewise it is hard, albeit not impossible, to imagine the debutants Anthony Kim and Boo Weekley playing with such uninhibited personality were they in Woods's shadow. Although Azinger lost the world's best player, it is not too much of a stretch to suggest that his uplifting captaincy has also benefited from the absence of such an intimidating figure in the team room.

Think Tiger's absence helped?

Update on 2008-09-23 15:29 by Geoff

Tod Leonard in the San Diego Union Tribune:

Look at how much fun the Americans had. Look at the camaraderie they shared. Compare that with the dour grinding they'd done over most of the past decade of Ryder Cup play, when Woods couldn't overpower Europe alone in three straight terrible losses.

It's not that he tries to make it hard, but Woods' presence changes everything. There's more security, more hoopla, more pressure. With Woods' aura dominating the room, the influence and power of any captain has to be shrunk.

Four-time American Ryder Cupper Stewart Cink put it most succinctly last week: “Even though everybody likes Tiger and we get along with him, we all feel like we're more similar to each other. When 12 players walk out of a clubhouse, there's one cart to take one person and the other 11 have to find their way.”

"The stroke that followed will go down as the greatest final-hole putt in the history of major-championship golf."

This passage from Jaime Diaz's definitive account of the Tiger Woods knee saga would generate some fun debate, and since the news has been so dark lately...

The stroke that followed will go down as the greatest final-hole putt in the history of major-championship golf. There are plenty of candidates: grinding mid-rangers by Bobby Jones at Winged Foot, Payne Stewart at Pinehurst, Gary Player, Mark O'Meara and Phil Mickelson at Augusta, Seve Ballesteros at St. Andrews; no-brainer bombs by Jerry Barber at Olympia Fields, Hale Irwin at Medinah and Costantino Rocca at St. Andrews. But none of them surpassed Woods for the blend of setting, situation and reaction. And only Jones, arguably, had as much disappointment to face by missing. Never in golf has such a dramatically set stage had such a fulfilling resolution. As a final validation of a true stroke at the moment of truth, a close-up, slow-motion replay revealed that the alignment line on Woods' ball never wiggled until it fell into the hole.

I'm biased because I was standing there and thought the whole thing was pretty swell, but does Jaime have it right? Greatest final hole putt?

Elin Pregnant; Media Jubilant Over Opportunity To Ask Tiger More Inane Questions About Fatherhood

Finally, a reason to wish Tiger would take more time off: the relentlessly redundant fatherhood questions will be returning...so soon. They'll make questions about the knee seem fun!

Tiger, how does it feel to be a father for the second time? 

Tiger, now that you are a father for the second time, does this allow you to relate to your father, who had two children himself, one of whom was you?

Tiger, do you see yourself cutting back your design work from two projects at a time to one now that you have two children and one bum knee?

Tiger, does this your change your perspective towards life in any way that I can write about so I don't have to write about your knee for the third time this month?

Tiger, have you reached out to anyone like Phil Mickelson or Michael Jordan or Barack Obama about the ways having a second child might impact your schedule?

Tiger, now that Elin has provided you with another child, does this make Steve Williams any less of a jerk?

Al Ruwaya Achieves Its Goals!

Tiger's press release writers need to understand that it's one thing to declare you design work a success, it's another to do it while the bulldozers are still flying around.

“When I set out to design Al Ruwaya, I wanted the course to reflect what I truly love about golf – a stern mental and physical test that rewards smart thinking. I believe we’ve achieved that goal with a course that will be fun and rewarding for all skill levels to play.”

Currently, shaping is in progress on the 18 hole, 7,800 yard, par 72 championship-quality course, which includes dramatic elevations, stunning water features and an overall design that will challenge and entertain golfers of all skill levels.

"Where does the "w" go in awkward?"

I prefer Michael Bamberger's reasons for Tiger's Ryder Cup assistant captain invite rejection over the rationale Tiger offered. Especially the last two:

6) In the team room, I'd have to act like I feel we have a better team than the Euros. My acting's pretty good, but there are limits.

7) I have more good friends on the Euro team than the American team -- where does the "w" go in awkward?

"Athletes screening their urine for steroids are more than likely doing so to monitor their use of steroids."

Thanks to reader Tony for this Andy Martino story from the New York Daily News that takes a much tougher look at the PGA Tour's testing procedure than any I've read.

A couple of highlights, starting with this from the PGA Tour's Ty Votaw.

Asked why golfers would be less prone to temptation than athletes in other sports, Votaw cites etiquette. "We think the culture of our sport is such that if a rule exists it is adhered to," he says. "It is a culture that has served us very well - athletes who call penalties on themselves, etc. Other sports don't have that same sort of cultural value system."

And that's why the product delivers such value. A core values and skill set mention would have been nice Ty.

Okay, here's the part that's going to ruffle some feathers.

While some players are applying for exemptions, one big name seems eager to prove he is clean. Tiger Woods said Monday that he had himself tested twice in the last six months to make sure that his nutritional supplements were free of banned substances. Woods did not say when or in what lab the testing took place. But BALCO founder Victor Conte is skeptical that an athlete would feel concerned enough about his or her nutritional program to conduct a self-test.

Hey, the man does know a thing or two about cheating! Sorry, continue...

"Most nutritional supplements have a two-year expiration date," says Conte, who says he has no knowledge of Woods' nutritional program or his self-tests and is speaking in general terms, "so there are far less contaminated supplements on the market at this time. It seems that it is now more likely that athletes screening their urine samples for steroids ... would be doing so to confirm that the steroids they previously used had cleared their system. Athletes screening their urine for steroids are more than likely doing so to monitor their use of steroids."

And there's this from Dr. Gary Wadler of the WADA:

For example, the drug salbutamol, found in asthma inhalers, is anabolic and can build muscle. Salbutamol is banned in the Olympics, but allowed in golf. Also, though human growth hormone is prohibited, neither tour administers the blood tests that would possibly detect it. All 33 WADA labs worldwide test for HGH, although the efficacy of the tests are in question.

Wadler also takes issue with the language used to describe the testing process. The PGA Tour manual says: "Once notified, you should report to the designated testing area as soon as possible. The collector may allow you to delay reporting ... however, you may be monitored."

"What do you mean, 'should' and 'may?'" asks Wadler. "These things have to be required. What if the player goes to the bathroom after being told to report? That's no good."

The soft language continues in the manual's section on penalties. The PGA Tour policy states: "Sanctions may include disqualification, forfeiture of prize money/points and other awards, ineligibility, and fines. Sanctions for drugs of abuse (marijuana, cocaine, etc.) ... may include rehabilitation or medical treatment."

In other words, the word "may" - rather than the more definitive "will" - opens a window for Finchem to exercise his own judgment about sanctions if a player tests positive. The policy later defines specific penalties for first, second and third violations, though once again under the heading "sanctions on the players may include."

Hey, just looking out for the product!

In terms of public disclosure, the policy states that "the PGA Tour will, at a minimum, publish the name of the player, the anti-doping rule violation, and the sanction imposed" - a statement that is contingent on Finchem having sanctioned a player in the first place. Clearly, if a star player were to test positive for steroids, that player "may" face a punishment and public embarrassment - or he may not. Wadler also points out that amphetamines, commonly used as performance enhancers, are classified under the tour's policy as drugs of abuse, meaning that players, if caught using these PEDs, could be quietly sent to rehab. All of these shortcomings, Wadler says, could be cleared up if both professional golf tours would cede control of their programs to WADA.