Here is the golf news of the weekend on a Monday morning wrought from sunshine.
$$$~Webb Simpson won with a long putter on the PGA Tour. That shouldn’t be the biggest news, but it is. He and Keegan Bradley, both mid-20s of age, eschewed the short and flat stick for the broom. The traditionalists who view the game as changing ever again are surely gathered around the fiber cooler with much to debate this morning. By the by, Simpson was a last-minute drop from my fantasy line-up this week, dropping me 20 points behind the leader. Note to self: go with your gut feelings!
$$$~Suzanne Pettersen has been one of my favorite female touring professionals. She shouldered the weight of the murders in her home country (Norway) with as much dignity and grace as one could hope to summon. Her years of near-miss, second-place finishes may have come to an end. She stormed back on Na-Yeon Choi, who may not know what happened, with a 7-under par 64 in the final round, followed by a routine par on the first playoff hole. Added to her Sybase Match Play and Irish Open championships in 2011, Pettersen may build on these victories as the year progresses. She will be fun to watch in the Solheim Cup, which leads us to …
$$$~Rosie Jones announced her twelve USA players for the 2011 edition of the match play team event between Europe and USA. Automatic qualifiers are Cristie Kerr, Stacy Lewis, Morgan Pressel, Angela Stanford, Paula Creamer, Michelle Wie, Brittany Lincicome, Brittany Lang, Juli Inkster, and Christina Kim. Captain’s picks are Vicky Hurst and Ryan O’Toole. The event will be played in September in Ireland at Killeen Castle.
$$$~Fred Couples led by example at the Senior Players Championship, holding on for a playoff victory versus wonder boy John Cook. Couples returned from Germany for a mysterious back treatment and seems to have found a way to hold up over four rounds.
