"We have had a continual dialogue with the Tour for around six months."

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Garry Smits gets the impression that a new PGA Tour event on Sea Island is almost a done deal.

Eric Schneider, Sea Island director of golf, told the Times-Union on Tuesday that the resort is in discussions with the Tour to add the event as a replacement for the Valero Texas Open, which will move to the spring next year.

This year's Texas Open is scheduled for Oct. 9-12.

Schneider said an announcement could be made "as early as two weeks from now."

"It's under consideration," Schneider said. "We have had a continual dialogue with the Tour for around six months."

New D.C. Area Course Closes

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Kendra Marr in the Washington Post reports on the closure of The Presidential.

Billed as a boardroom with a golf course, The Presidential aimed to be an exclusive retreat for corporate businessmen to network and entertain clients. Membership was capped at 150 companies, each paying $60,000 a year for employees and clients to use the golf course and clubhouse on Waxpool Road, east of Loudoun County Parkway. It also attracted a number of big names, such as Bill Dean, president and chief executive officer of M.C. Dean, and former Washington Redskins player Darrell Green, as investors.
A second phase, with an additional nine holes and other amenities, was planned to be added by 2010 at a cost of $30 million.
Shocking that it would fail with those numbers.

According to the club website it's a Dave Heatwole design.

"Sources close to Sea Island said the PGA Tour believes the concentration of touring pros that reside on the island will help strengthen the field."

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Thanks to all of the readers who sent Jon Show's story on the PGA Tour courting Sea Island for a possible Fall Finish event. A couple of noteworthy items from the story:

Industry sources said the tour is trying to sell a $2 million annual title sponsorship, which would include rights fees, ad inventory and four rounds of live coverage on Golf Channel.
Two Fall Series tournaments are title sponsored by their host resort courses, but sources said such an option is unlikely in this case because of Sea Island’s financial position. The company, which owns two resorts and a high-end housing community on the island, recently announced massive layoffs as a result of the weakening economy and downturn in the real estate market.

And I thought this was kind of sad statement about the way you have to take tournaments to the players to get them to play. I know, I know, the Fall Series interferes with Caitlin's cotillion, etc...

The Fall Series, which starts this week at the Viking Classic in Mississippi, was created last year as a package of seven events played after the conclusion of the FedEx Cup season. The inaugural series failed to attract most top-ranked players, but sources close to Sea Island said the PGA Tour believes the concentration of touring pros that reside on the island will help strengthen the field.

"Montgomerie has vowed to ban them if he becomes captain, although he said that when he was single."

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One of the great traditions of modern Ryder Cup coverage: making fun of the wives and questioning their role.

Paul Forsyth is the first to weigh in this year:

The wives, of course, are the Ryder Cup’s biggest sideshow. Whether they are to be known as Wags or Wabs (wives and birdies), they will be lined up in front of the cameras for the opening ceremony. Faldo is reported to have asked Valerie Bercher, from whom he was divorced two years ago, to assume the role of lady captain, which is another way of saying she has helped with the wardrobes. “She’s a pretty cool, chic lady and knows how to dress them well,” he said, although Irish designer Paul Costelloe, who kitted them out at the K Club in 2006, was expected to be the guiding hand.

Quite what the wives add to the occasion is unclear. Montgomerie has vowed to ban them if he becomes captain, although he said that when he was single. Westwood insists they have a calming effect. “They are important, especially when you go to an away match. It’s always nice to see a familiar, friendly face inside the ropes. If things are going well, it’s great. If things are going badly, it gives you a lift. That’s the nice thing. You have worked so hard all year to make the team, and you can share it with your wife.”

"As the country's golf boss, he was regularly photographed with such homegrown greats of the game as Bob Charles."

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And here I was just about to add links to some of my best acting work only to find out from reader Warren via this Jonahan Marshall and Jim Mahoney story that they fire people for that kind of acting.

The recently appointed head of the New Zealand Hotel Council has resigned after his board discovered he starred in a porn movie and was pictured having sex in a six-page spread inside an X-rated Kiwi magazine.

Garth Stirrat, 40, last night quit the council as it also emerged he had featured in the porn shoots using the alias Steve Parnell when he was employed as chief executive of the New Zealand Professional Golf Association.

As the country's golf boss, he was regularly photographed with such homegrown greats of the game as Bob Charles.

I'm reallly glad the writer prefaced that sentence by noting that "as the country's golf boss."

But the more graphic images of Stirrat in R18 magazines NZX and Brass left NZHC bosses at a loss for words.

"I don't know what to say," said Southern North Island area manager Zayne Boone, who appointed Stirrat.

"Obviously we need to make sure that the way in which we conduct our business is in keeping with what we would expect our members to expect."

Boone said the spread, which featured Stirrat having sex in a number of positions, was "disappointing".
He found the positions disappointing or the sheer number of them?
The NZHC confirmed on Friday it was investigating Stirrat's secret life as a porn star but yesterday issued a statement saying he had moved on after just one week on the job.

"I've spoken to Garth and he told me that he was involved in some filming over six years ago, while he was single, living in Auckland," chairwoman Jenny Langley said in the statement.

It's Auckland's fault!

Hopkins Defends Faldo In Totally Nonsensical Manner

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How else to explain The Times' John Hopkins giving Captain Faldo a standing-O for sharing a private comment from Paul Azinger about his two geezer assistants. And why, but to deflect attention from Faldo's much criticized decision to go with one assistant? Yep, that's something to praise. If you can make sense of the reasoning, please explain in the comments link below!

Interesting, this, isn't it? A bit of subtlety from Faldo, who is not known for it. He has stuck a knife between Azinger's ribs so quietly that Azinger probably hasn't even noticed it. And he has given it a quick twist by quoting Jack Nicklaus, who believes that Stockton and Floyd have too much baggage with them. "He (Azinger] is not sure about that one," Faldo said. "Too many cooks."
It doesn't really matter whether Faldo is right in what he says. Azinger has been put firmly on the back foot. Ignore what Faldo said and Faldo's comments will assume a certain veracity. By answering them, Azinger would give them a patina of truth.
It is hard to conclude anything other than this: well done Faldo.
Wow, that's just a disturbing piece of journalism. It's one thing to savor the drama, gamesmanship and spirited antics, but quite another to encourage childish behavior.

Perhaps Hopkins should read Daniel Wexler's almost Rodney King-like plea for everyone to just get along.

"Where's the rest of the team?"

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Hard to imagine there was much to say about the Euros boarding a chartered jet to Louisville, but Giles Smith managed to file and entertaining look at the festivities and questions about the rather light load Captain Faldo had with him.

Sky Sports News had Peter Staunton on the ground at Heathrow and when Ian Payne, in the studio, with a slight yelp in his voice, asked, 'Where's the rest of the team?', Staunton was able to point out that some of the players were based in the United States and would be joining up later. It wouldn't have been worth a golfer's while, Staunton said, to fly over to London in order to fly straight back out again.