"So it's all nonsense as far as I'm concerned, and I don't want to talk about it anymore."

Brian Wacker sums up and shares some highlights from the Commish's impromptu meet and snipe session this morning outside the media center while Tim Finchem nursed a cup of green tea.

Here's the full transcript.

TIM FINCHEM: I'd be happy to try to answer anything you want to talk about.

Shortest introductory comments ever!

Q. You were on CNBC on Thursday talking about the incident with Tiger and being forced to play here.

TIM FINCHEM: I'm answering questions.

Q. I'll ask you a question.

Off to a roaring start!

It seems like irrespective of Tiger, it's not unusual for the commissioner to contact players to see if they're going to play in an event or try to tell them how important it is to play in an event, is it?

TIM FINCHEM: Well, I think the question that was put to me, and I'll answer the question that was put to me, it's been rumored that I pressured Tiger Woods to play in the tournament, and my response was no, I did not do that.

Q. Can you answer my question, then?

TIM FINCHEM: We communicate with players all the time with weak fields, weak field events, and we encourage players to move their schedule around and try to include a weak field. We never go to a player and say, would you please, please, please play this event, this event or any other event, ever, and I don't recall ever talking to any player in my tenure about whether or not they were going to play THE PLAYERS Championship unless they came to me and said, I want you to know I'm not playing THE PLAYERS Championship or I want you to know how delighted I am that I am going to play THE PLAYERS Championship. I hope that sets the record straight.

Not really.

Q. You seem to have been put off by the situation that you would twist Tiger's arm to play when he might be hurt.

TIM FINCHEM: Well, it's not about him, it's any player. It's any player. I don't twist players' arms, and as far as Tiger being hurt, guys, that's a decision he has to make, and I had no information that he wasn't ready to play golf. I don't think anybody did. I don't think he did. I was on the range with him for a half an hour on Tuesday. He was hitting it really well. He went and played nine holes, and he didn't have a problem. He played the next day, he didn't have a problem. He stayed on the range that day, he didn't have a problem. So it's all nonsense as far as I'm concerned, and I don't want to talk about it anymore.

See, he's not put off by the question!

Q. Have you been in touch with Mark Steinberg about Tiger since he left here or do you expect to be?

TIM FINCHEM: No, I sent a note to Tiger saying sorry you couldn't finish the tournament, good luck on your rehab and hopefully we'll see you soon, as you would expect. I do that with pretty much any player that has a problem.

He's been sending a lot of notes to Tiger lately. I wonder if Doug Barron ever got such a note?

Q. After five years are you happy with the date in May?

TIM FINCHEM: We like the flow of May, we like the weather. We had the storm yesterday, but it's the first rain delay we've had in the five years. You go back and look at the previous 24 years it's been irregular. We've gotten to the point, we're still working on getting this golf course ready, and this year we were helped by the weather, but we did a lot of things during the course of the year that should help us should we get another date.

Get another date? Don't you set the date? Or is that Dick Ebersol's decision?

So we like it, players like it, fans like it, and we're very pleased with it thus far.

Unless you get another date!

As for the fans, they haven't been coming out as much according to those who attended in March. Or are they coming dressed as stadium mounds and I just don't see as many? Anyway, my contribution to the proceedings:

Q. Deane Beman on has a new book out about his career. I don't know if you've read it, but in it he says that had he known that the governing bodies would have handled the equipment issues the way they did, he wouldn't have left when he did. Do you have any comment on that?

TIM FINCHEM: Well, no. We handled them the way we did. We think we've handled them quite well, but I'm not going to publicly get into a debate with Deane. Maybe over dinner one night.

I guess if it's a public debate that would ensue, it's safe to say he does not agree with Beman's take.

We did learn about the likely timing of the next television negotiations.

Q. Can you talk about the scheduling and television negotiations?

TIM FINCHEM: It isn't set. It isn't set. It's a combination of schedule, it's a combination of us finishing up some pieces of business that we would get done before we sit down with television. It's largely about schedules and time frames. Different networks have different things going on. Also NBC just came through this merger. But my guess is sometime this summer we'll get to it.

Bad news, the FedExCup format isnt changing, at least not until they get new dates.

Q. Do you envision the FedExCup Playoffs being virtually in the format we're in now, and do you expect FedEx to stay on through 2013 and beyond?

TIM FINCHEM: Yes and yes at this point. We like the flow of the schedule. I suppose that -- I suppose there are things out there that could impact that from a scheduling standpoint. There's an awful lot of speculation about where the NFL is going to land on their schedule, but that probably affects the first quarter more than our playoff schedule, although you just don't know.

I would say generally yes, but I wouldn't say -- don't hold me to that.

Oh we will!

Spain Showing Late Speed In '18 Ryder Cup Derby?

Lawrence Donegan says that's the case in this analysis of Tuesday's announcement.

The French bid boasts a great course – Le Golf National near Versailles – and has reportedly offered the greatest financial support to the European Tour over the long run. It has also been the bookies' favourite – an assignation never to be underestimated. But in the past week or so the weight of expectation has fallen behind the efforts to stage the biennial contest between Europe's best and their American counterparts in Madrid.

Financially this would make sense. Spain has long been one of the tour's strongest markets, staging more tournaments most years than any other European nation (seven in 2011, compared with two in England). To deny Madrid would be to risk losing Spanish support for the European Tour into 2018 and beyond – a prospect that will weigh heavily on tour officials.

The annoucement will be broadcast live online Tuesday.

2011 Players Final Round Open Thread

Graeme McDowell holds a one shot leading heading into the Players finale. I've just walked around and the wind is picking up, the air is dry and with a nice leaderboard, there's the potential for fireworks.

Here are the scores and the tee times. First Johnny self-reference over/under: 2:05 EST

"It looks like one of Donald Trump's homes."

That was Johnny Miller complimenting Taj Tim the TPC Sawgrass clubhouse during early morning coverage of the Players final round.

Phil's Shot Of The Early Evening

Almost a hole in one twice, first on the landing, then on the spin back. Saturday at the 2011 Players:

Battle Of The Blonds: Poulter In New War With Johnny

Two of the world's great fake blonds have issues again. As Ian Poulter rushed to play 17 and 18 today as any sane golfer would do to grab another few hours of sleep, NBC's Johnny Miller and Gary Koch both expressed mild disdain for Poulter's antics.

Alex Myers has the full report here.

When Poulter later found out that Johnny was questioning his move, the Brit took to Twitter to fire back at Johnny!

Zing!

You may recall these two went at it over Poulter's ball striking and Johnny's putting last year.

Turtle Pike Dive, 2011 Players!

Rory McIlroy Tweeted the NBC turtle dive video from today's Players, hopefully we'll get higher quality version from the PGA Tour. Besides being great fun to watch, it's a nice reminder of what an amazing wildlife course this is. Even with the blue dye in the ponds, it's generally a sign of a healthy golf course and sensitive maintenance practices when you have so many birds, reptiles and other critters around.

Update on 2011-05-15 03:46 by Geoff

**Here's the PGATour.com version.

And another version with Jean Van de Velde commentating courtesy of reader Aleid!

2011 Players, Third Round Open Thread

I'll be on the course most of the day but would love to know what you are seeing.

Also, first Johnny reference to "grain" in the greens should be noted.

Your Players coverage times:

12-7 ET Live@ coverage at PGATour.com

PGA Tour Network Sirius/XM 12-7 ET

NBC 2-7 ET

Seve's Brother Makes Plea For Spain To Get '18 Ryder Cup

The Telegraph's Ian Chadband reports that the Ballesteros family would like the European Ryder Cup committee to select Madrid next Tuesday when they announce the winner of the 2018 Ryder Cup bidding.

The golfer’s brothers Manuel, Vicente and Baldomero and sons, Javier and Miguel, want the European Tour’s Ryder Cup committee to choose Spain’s capital city over rival bids from France, Germany, Portugal and Holland when they meet at Wentworth on Tuesday.

A tearful Baldomero invoked the legend of El Cid, the 11th century nobleman who, having been strapped to his warhorse following his death in battle and placed at the front of his troops, was supposed to have inspired them to one final victory.

He said: “I wish that, like El Cid, Seve wins the last battle after his death. It would be the greatest tribute to him.

“I appeal to the sensitivity of the Ryder Cup Committee of the European Tour to agree the greatest honour that could be bestowed on Seve is to award the competition to Spain. I appeal on behalf of the family.

"The bottom line is that we don't really know what is going on with Woods."

Mike Bianchi's piece on Tiger's WD and leg issues got a lot of attention Friday for suggesting that Tiger's body is breaking down due to no longer having access to Dr. Spaceman. It's a fair question to ask but barring Dr. Spacemen announcing that he used HGH on Tiger, one that we'll never know the answer to.

A better analysis of the situation came from Ron Sirak in a follow up to yesterday's reporting.

The latest injury was announced April 26 in a statement on TigerWoods.com that said he was withdrawing from the Wells Fargo Championship because of a "Grade 1 mild medial collateral ligament (MCL) sprain to his left knee and a mild strain to his left Achilles tendon," which Woods said happened hitting a shot out from under the Eisenhower tree during the third round of the Masters.

"There is no minor injury in a 35-year-old person who has already had four operations," said Dr. Ronald Grelsamer, an associate professor of orthopedic surgery at New York's Mount Sinai Hospital. "A highly trained and toned athlete doesn't suffer a debilitating MCL strain and an Achilles strain playing golf. No other golfer in memory has suffered so many lower extremity injuries while golfing."

After Woods withdrew Thursday, many were wondering why he even tried to play if his knee was bothering him that much. He says it's because the Players is an important tournament and because he is trying to prepare for the event he really cares about -- the U.S. Open. There is certainly disagreement among those who follow the game for a living on whether Woods' poor play has more to do with swing issues, knee issues or desire issues. Strong arguments can be made for all three.

L.A. Open Presented By Northern Trust To Continue Through 2016

Nothing says big news like a Friday afternoon For Immediate Release...

Northern Trust extends sponsorship of Northern Trust Open 
New agreement carries Northern Trust Open through 2016

CHICAGO and PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – The PGA TOUR and Northern Trust (Nasdaq: NTRS) today announced a four-year sponsorship extension for the Northern Trust Open at Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles through 2016. Northern Trust’s original five-year agreement expires after the 2012 tournament.

That Nasdaq symbol helped. Much appreciated, even though we all had it memorized.

"When Northern Trust first came on board as title sponsor in 2008, its executive team clearly was committed to invigorating this historic tournament and reestablishing its profile as a premier event," said PGA TOUR Commissioner Tim Finchem. "Over the past four years, we have seen tremendous strides and a renewed energy surrounding the Northern Trust Open,

Renewed energy!

particularly with the addition and leadership of Jerry West as Executive Director. With today’s announcement of Northern Trust’s four-year extension, the tournament undoubtedly is going to continue to grow and have a positive influence on the Los Angeles area."

While the charitable impact of the 2011 tournament has yet to be announced, last year’s Northern Trust Open generated nearly $1.5 million. Since Northern Trust’s title sponsorship began, the tournament has raised more than $5 million.

"We are proud to renew our commitment to the Northern Trust Open," said Northern Trust Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Frederick H. Waddell. "This is a terrific event that attracts the world’s best professional golfers while supporting our business goals. The Northern Trust Open provides a premiere event for clients, improves brand awareness, and helps the community by generating substantial charitable donations and economic activity."

Yes, for The Golf Channel.

A study commissioned last year by the PGA TOUR with Beacon Economics showed the Northern Trust Open is responsible for an economic impact of more than $21 million on Los Angeles County. The impact includes the equivalent of 201 full-time jobs for a year created by the event, with earnings of approximately $7.4 million and local tax revenues of $350,000.

And now for Jerry West's quote, in the voice of David Pillsbury.

"Northern Trust is an engaged, committed, passionate title sponsor, and the organization’s leadership has helped reestablish the tournament as a major sporting event in Los Angeles," said Jerry West, Northern Trust Open executive director. "Northern Trust's continued commitment will help the tournament continue to grow and make a bigger difference in the lives of our neighbors in need."

"The idea that we would pressure him to play is ludicrous."

It's not really newsworthy that Tim Finchem went on CNBC this morning to talk business and golf, but that he was asked about the suggestion that the tour encouraged/pressured Tiger to show up. Finchem was apparently not pleased that the insinuation that was made on CNBC sister network Golf Channel Thursday, so miracle of all miracles, the Commissioner was asked about it off the top of the interview:

It's always important for Tiger to be part of the tour, because he's Tiger Woods. But the idea that we would pressure him to play is ludicrous. We don't pressure any player to play the tournament. In this case the suggestion is somehow he was hurt and we got him to play anyway. Tiger doesn't enter a tournament unless he thinks he can win. I was on the range with him tuesday, I watched him hit balls. He practiced that day, he practiced wednesday hard. And he tweaked it yesterday. So, nonissue.

Thanks to reader Jim for the video tip...