The P.G.A. Tour completed the West Coast swing with Tiger Woods' thrilling victory, at the Accenture World Match Play Championship. Now the Tour moves to East for the next month of golf which is called the Florida Swing.
In years gone past before the advent of the World Golf Championship and the emergence of King Woods, the Florida Swing was often the seasonal debut for P.G.A. Tour professionals. Nick Price, Greg Norman, Seve Ballesteroes, and Ernie Els would skip the West Coast, stay home for the holidays on their respective continents and rejoin the Tour in Florida. In the days pre-Tiger, European pros would often stay home to play and get guaranteed money for appearing in local tournaments on various tours. Now with the big $$ that is paid out weekly in the Tiger era, the European, South African and Austrailian touring pros are playing on the West Coast and are ready to compete when the Tour hits PGA National for the Honda Classic.
I am going to analyze the Florida swing discuss the golf courses and throw in some obscure facts that I have somehow managed to remember. The Honda Classic is the first stop in sunny Palm Beach. PGA National is a par 70, designed by George Fazio and measuring 7,241 yards. Redesigned by Jack Nicklaus in 1990, the track has hosted some big events in the past. The Ryder Cup was played here in 1983 and hard to believe it now, but the U.S. team was victorious. The 1987 P.G.A featured Larry Nelson outlasting fellow veteran Lanny Wadkins in a playoff. The event was won last year by journeymen Mark Wilson, the former Tar Heel who ended 11 years of frustration with his first win.
Next up is the Pods Championship slated at the Resort Copperhead at Innisbrook. The course is designed by Larry Packard, an accomplished architects with credits all over the Midwest. Mark Calcavecchia revived his stagnant career with a 1 shot victory over Heath Slocum and Austrailian John Senden.
The following week the Tour returns to Bay Hill for the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Bay Hill, created by genius Dick Wilson in 1961, is a classic design which is a relatively long par 70, measuring 7,239 yards. Robert Gamez holing out from 176 yards with a 7 iron, to take the victory is the tournament's greatest moment. For me, I vividly remember Dan Forsman taking down Ray Floyd in a playoff at the 1986 event, which inspired me to copy Forsman's swing. Unfortunately the swing did not work and soon disappeared as so lamentably has Dan from the tour these days.
The big news at Bay Hill is the return of the chosen one, Mr Woods who will make his Florida debut at Bay Hill. Tiger, who won this invitational 4 times in a row, was a member of Bay Hill in his early days in Florida until he became bourgeoisie and moved into the gated Islesworth community. The final stop in the Florida swing is the World Golf Championship, played at the famed Doral Resort & Spa on the aptly named Blue Monster. Par 72 and featuring 7,125 yards of perfection created by the aforementioned genius Dick Wilson, Doral is a stern test for the playing elite. Last year's tournament was won by Tiger, who was paired with Phil Mickelson for the first two rounds. I love the moment when lefty handed a spectator a couple $100 bills after breaking his watch with a errant tee shot. This was a first in broadcast history.
So golf fans sit back and enjoy the Florida Swing and remember that all roads lead North to Augusta!
In years gone past before the advent of the World Golf Championship and the emergence of King Woods, the Florida Swing was often the seasonal debut for P.G.A. Tour professionals. Nick Price, Greg Norman, Seve Ballesteroes, and Ernie Els would skip the West Coast, stay home for the holidays on their respective continents and rejoin the Tour in Florida. In the days pre-Tiger, European pros would often stay home to play and get guaranteed money for appearing in local tournaments on various tours. Now with the big $$ that is paid out weekly in the Tiger era, the European, South African and Austrailian touring pros are playing on the West Coast and are ready to compete when the Tour hits PGA National for the Honda Classic.
I am going to analyze the Florida swing discuss the golf courses and throw in some obscure facts that I have somehow managed to remember. The Honda Classic is the first stop in sunny Palm Beach. PGA National is a par 70, designed by George Fazio and measuring 7,241 yards. Redesigned by Jack Nicklaus in 1990, the track has hosted some big events in the past. The Ryder Cup was played here in 1983 and hard to believe it now, but the U.S. team was victorious. The 1987 P.G.A featured Larry Nelson outlasting fellow veteran Lanny Wadkins in a playoff. The event was won last year by journeymen Mark Wilson, the former Tar Heel who ended 11 years of frustration with his first win.
Next up is the Pods Championship slated at the Resort Copperhead at Innisbrook. The course is designed by Larry Packard, an accomplished architects with credits all over the Midwest. Mark Calcavecchia revived his stagnant career with a 1 shot victory over Heath Slocum and Austrailian John Senden.
The following week the Tour returns to Bay Hill for the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Bay Hill, created by genius Dick Wilson in 1961, is a classic design which is a relatively long par 70, measuring 7,239 yards. Robert Gamez holing out from 176 yards with a 7 iron, to take the victory is the tournament's greatest moment. For me, I vividly remember Dan Forsman taking down Ray Floyd in a playoff at the 1986 event, which inspired me to copy Forsman's swing. Unfortunately the swing did not work and soon disappeared as so lamentably has Dan from the tour these days.
The big news at Bay Hill is the return of the chosen one, Mr Woods who will make his Florida debut at Bay Hill. Tiger, who won this invitational 4 times in a row, was a member of Bay Hill in his early days in Florida until he became bourgeoisie and moved into the gated Islesworth community. The final stop in the Florida swing is the World Golf Championship, played at the famed Doral Resort & Spa on the aptly named Blue Monster. Par 72 and featuring 7,125 yards of perfection created by the aforementioned genius Dick Wilson, Doral is a stern test for the playing elite. Last year's tournament was won by Tiger, who was paired with Phil Mickelson for the first two rounds. I love the moment when lefty handed a spectator a couple $100 bills after breaking his watch with a errant tee shot. This was a first in broadcast history.
So golf fans sit back and enjoy the Florida Swing and remember that all roads lead North to Augusta!
1 comment:
I am not very good at golf. I was thinking of quitting my job, selling my house and live a monklike existance learning and studying the sport, untill i become the master. Tiger will fear my name. How long do you think this will take? Do you have advice for me?
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