"I think this rough might even be a little too juicy for some of the older guys like myself''

Normally I would find the idea of harvesting thick rough for a Champions Tour event to be ridiculous, but somehow hearing Johnny Miller complain about it makes it a bit more tolerable. After all, he celebrates the USGA's mindless approach, so it's nice that Johnny gets to experience it.

Tim Guidera quotes him:

"I think this rough might even be a little too juicy for some of the older guys like myself,'' added Johnny Miller, who is playing his first event on any tour in nearly 10 years this week. The NBC commentator is teaming with longtime friend Mike Reid in the Raphael Division. "It's major championship rough.''

Daly To Unveil First Non-Signature Signature Design

Thanks to reader Scott for this historic moment in player-architect lore, courtesy of the (where else) Branson Daily News: 

John Daly’s Murder Rock Golf & Country Club, which will host opening ceremonies this fall, will have the distinction of being a Daly signature course.

“John is very close friends with (Branson entertainer) Johnny Lee, who was instrumental is getting John and (Murder Rock owner) Glenn Patch together,” said Chris Meade, director of golf and general manager of the club.

Meade thinks Daly’s association with the club is a natural, considering the PGA and British Open winner’s Missouri and Arkansas roots. ‘The Lion’ was born in California, but went to high school at Jefferson City Helias and attended college at Arkansas.

“We feel in this part of the country he’s a big draw,” Meade said.

Murder Rock is the third Daly signature course, the others being Thundering Waters Golf Course in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada, and Wicked Stick Golf Club in Myrtle Beach, S.C..

He also designed Wicked Stick.

Daly has no ownership in Murder Rock and wasn’t part of the course’s design group.

Yes, it's a signature design and he was not part of the design group! Take that Jack and Arnold! 

Did Nike Golf Borrow Someone Else's Idea?

David Dawsey on his Golf Patent blog looks at a possible case of theft by Nike Golf.

Say It Ain't So, Vol. 2,599

No. 9 at Maidstone (click to enlarge)The East Hampton Star reports on Maidstone's plan to irrigate fairways, but even more depressing is Golfweek's Forecaddie reporting that USGA officials and Tom Fazio are going to soften three greens at Merion, including the 12th. (If the magnificent 5th is included in that group, it's a sad, sad day for golf but certainly not the first or last time the USGA will have had a hand in selfish and short-sighted architectural changes.)  

Nice to see the Forecaddie (oh come on, this has Dr. Klein written all over it!) blasting away:

The forecaddie remembers that the course performed famously well during the 2005 US Amateur and figures that USGA officials just can't help tinkering with old courses, even when it means permanently compromising their character for the sake of one four-day event.

Doctored Image?

Someone at the GolfDigest editors blog answers a reader question about the possibility of a doctored photo.

Well, the question is never actually answered except that yes, it seems they ran a doctored image of Pine Valley that came from the club. It's not exactly going to rank up there with questions about say, the Lee Harvey Oswald rifle photo (oh boy, probably a bad example), but it's nonetheless an interesting issue in media circles and admirable that Golf Digest confronted it head on.

"This saga vividly illustrates why few big-time golf events are held on municipal courses."

Ron Kroichick does no hide his disgust for the Board of Supervisors in reporting that a lousy $140,000 hang up could cost the city several PGA Tour events, including the President's

Say what you want about Harding Park and San Francisco's latest deal with the PGA Tour. Maybe you consider the Board of Supervisors short-sighted for fretting about $140,000. Or maybe you lament the legacy of Harding's budget-busting renovation, which will keep greens fees high whether or not Tiger Woods returns to the shores of Lake Merced.

Either way, know this: If the supervisors reject the revised agreement, the PGA Tour will stage a tournament on Mars before it comes back to Harding.

This saga vividly illustrates why few big-time golf events are held on municipal courses. In order to do so, tour officials are forced to wade through the thicket of local politics, seldom a pleasant exercise and an especially daunting journey in such a fractious city as San Francisco.

And that is perhaps the saddest bit in all of this, assuming the city blows this.

“Odessa could be the new Bulgaria"

Kevin Brass files one of those strange New York Times pieces that tries so hard to be "balanced" that you come away wondering what the point of the whole affair was.

Apparently in this case, it's an elaborate attempt to say that most new courses are being built outside the U.S. and that some people think a name architect helps, others do not.

Glad the paper of record is so ahead of the curve.

"Odessa could be the new Bulgaria,” Mr. Hemstock said, referring to southwest Ukraine’s potential as a sunny second-home market.

Today, three-quarters of all golf courses planned or under construction are outside the United States, Britain and other traditional golf centers, according to industry estimates. With 17,000 courses already functioning in the United States, for example, the number of new 18-hole courses opening in the States fell to 119 in 2006 from a peak of 398 in 2000, according to the National Golf Foundation. Britain and Ireland are “among the most mature golf markets in Europe,” with more than 3,100 courses, according to a recent report by the Budapest office of KPMG Advisory, a consulting company.

This would actually be funny if it were true...

This continuing growth of luxury residential and resort development around the world is feeding a high-stakes competition in the traditionally staid community of golf course designers, people in the industry say. Architects are increasingly trying to top one another with elaborate layouts and spectacular water elements, to woo homebuyers to international projects.

Somehow I don't think that's all the architect's doing.

And industry executives say that a well-known course architect can add more than 20 percent to the value of a development’s houses and jump-start a project.

“The name gives credibility to a development,” said Alan Mishkin, president of Abigail Properties, which is based in Phoenix and is building Las Palomas, a residential and golf project in Puerto Peñasco, Mex.. “Golf courses are not moneymakers,” he said. “They’re the sizzle on the steak” of residential developments.

Momma's Boys

Digest's Jaime Diaz proudly declares himself a momma's boy and talks to various players about the influence of mom's.

Charisma and Charm Lift Green, Strange To Hall of Fame

Hey, if Vijay can get in, the voters figured these two charmers were overdue. Ryan Herrington reports...

Name That Course

Thanks to reader Scott for this story about an interesting conversion of a lousy piece of ground into an affordable muni.

And also the weird online naming contest that was held, resulting in, well, a weird name.

It's All Rick's Fault!

Instructor Tom Patri in this week's SI Golf Plus can't understand what's taking Phil so long to blame his post U.S. Open inconsistency on his buddy/teacher and actually makes some great points.

First, I can't fathom why Smith, who's worked with Mickelson for a decade, has never shortened Mickelson's swing, which is sometimes as long and loose as John Daly's and routinely causes Mickelson to hit wildly off-line drives and long-iron shots. Second, Smith and Mickelson just seem too close. They are not only good friends but also partners in business ventures, and their families are close as well. Such a deep friendship is almost always the kiss of death to a teacher-player relationship because it prevents the instructor from being sufficiently blunt and critical.

The third-and biggest-problem is Smith's personality. He's simply too nice, which I think has caused him to be more or less a yes-man to Mickelson. Phil seems to be surrounded by people who too often have told him whatever he wants to hear rather than what he should hear. For that reason alone Mickelson dearly needs Harmon, who is an authority figure in the mold of Bob Knight.

"How do you charge $155 for a weekend round...without saying this is where Tiger has played and where Tiger is going to play?"

Buried in Ron Kroichick's story about the San Francisco City Council's supposed concern over having lost $140,000 during the WGC-Amex is this:

This issue arises at a time when city officials are grappling with how to reverse steady losses at their six municipal courses. They had hoped Harding's increased visibility would help pay for the course's extensive renovation in 2002 and 2003, which was projected to cost $16 million but ran more than $7 million over budget.

"A lot of people feel burned from 2002 and the way (the) whole Harding rebuild went down," Elsbernd said. "All sorts of promises were made, many of which didn't come true. I think there's a feeling of 'We don't want to touch anything to do with golf.'

"But no matter where we go with golf as a whole, we don't survive without the PGA Tour's presence. Honestly, how do you charge $155 for a weekend round (for out-of-towners) without saying this is where Tiger has played and where Tiger is going to play?"

Separation of Church and Links?

Several writers have written about or noted Zach Johnson's faith in trying to find something interesting to say about the Masters Champion. Craig Dolch did it here and of course Dan Jenkins of all people celebrated it in his Golf Digest letter from Augusta.

Well Tom Witosky in the Des Moines Register files a thoughtful piece that starts out sounding like an extended version of the Zach-loves-Jesus theme, but then takes an intriguing turn by pointing out that there is only so much preaching some can take before it could backfire.

Johnson's mention of his Christian faith after winning the Masters on Easter Sunday has stirred discomfort among some believing the separation between church and sport should be as strong as between church and state.

"Religion and sport today has become a mutual exploitation society," said Ray Higgs, professor emeritus of English at East Tennessee State University.

At the same time, Johnson's profession sparked the imagination of those who believe sport and religion can be a positive, powerful combination.

And those who know Johnson, 31, say his faith is as much a part of him as is the ability to hit a five-iron within 10 feet of the cup.

"There is no pretense, no hidden agenda, no proselytizing" with Johnson, said Kay Bloom, his former theology teacher at Cedar Rapids Regis High School. "Ultimately, he is owning his faith and he simply shared it with everyone."

And...

"It is really a fine line and you have to be careful from a marketing point of view," said Rick Horrow, a nationally known expert on sports marketing and professional athletics.

"Zach Johnson genuinely has to be himself, and that includes his strong faith," Horrow said. "But he has to watch out that people don't think he is preaching to them."

Chapman Clark, a professor at the Fuller Theological Seminary in California, said Johnson and those surrounding him will have to adjust to that reality quickly.

"My suggestion is that he get himself some sharp people to help him develop his message so that it doesn't come across as exploitative," Clark said.

Paging the LPGA's brand coach!

Higgs, the East Tennessee State professor emeritus, has written several books and articles on religion and sport, including "God in the Stadium: Sports and Religion in America."

He believes the potential tension involved in tying religion to sport has grown as American culture fixated on sports success - as opposed to sports excellence. The emphasis on winning, he said, has turned people away from the value of athletics to focus on victory and money.

"The truth of the matter is there is no correlation between victory and virtue," Higgs said.

"It's Not About the Ball"

Thanks to reader Chuck for noticing this note from Marty Parkes on the USGA blog plugging their new book of photographs from the archive:

And make sure you take the time to give a careful read to the book's final essay called "It's Not About the Ball" by our friend, Tom Friedman.

Yes, that Tom Friedman of “The New York Times,” who writes such great columns and books about humanity's most pressing problem.  Fortunately for us, Tom is a golf nut who willingly shared some personal thoughts about what makes the game so special and how it has had an enduring impact upon his life. Let this book become a part of your life as well.

"It's Not About the Ball"?

Let's hope it's not what it sounds like it could be.

Bivens' Salary

A wire story from reader Nick and LPGA Fan:

SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL’s Daniel Kaplan cites an LPGA tax return as showing that Commissioner Carolyn Bivens earned $238,872 in the last six months of ’05, her first months on the job, which means her pay “would come to almost $478,000 annually.” Bivens’ predecessor, Ty Votaw, earned $459,677 in ’04 and $300,000 in ’03 (SBJ, 4/9 issue)....