golfer sutton

ATLANTA -- The Golden Bear has become a teddy bear.
Jack Nicklaus, who captained a team of 12 U.S. golfers to victory over an International squad in the Presidents Cup two years ago, will try to repeat the feat this week in Montreal using the same strategy: Have fun.

Unlike the high-pressure competition at the Ryder Cup, in which the U.S. has lost three straight times to Europe, Nicklaus's laid-back attitude at the Presidents Cup keeps players loose and allows them to simply focus on playing golf.

"We enjoy playing together," said Phil Mickelson, whose table-tennis match with Tiger Woods during the 2005 event in Virginia still makes Nicklaus smile. "We have a lot of fun."

It's mostly because of Nicklaus, U.S. players say.

The four-day tournament at Canada's Royal Montreal Golf Club from Sept. 27-30 is match play, with the winner of each match decided by how many holes are won rather than who posts the lower score. The U.S. has won four Presidents Cup titles, with a loss and a tie, against International teams made up of golfers from around the world except Europe.

Woods, 31, just named the U.S. PGA Tour's Golfer of the Year for the ninth time in 11 seasons, likely won't be paired with Mickelson during the cup's alternate-shot or better-ball matches.

The two, golf's most high-profile duo, lost when teamed by U.S. captain Hal Sutton at the 2004 Ryder Cup.

If Mickelson gets his way, though, he'll get another shot at Woods at the Ping-Pong table.

"That's one of my favorite stories," Nicklaus said at the Deutsche Bank Championship this month
Hal Sutton was honoured Wednesday with the Payne Stewart Award, and he encouraged every golfer to find the balance in life that Stewart demonstrated before he was killed in plane crash almost eight years ago.

Sutton became the 10th player to win the award since it began in 2000, when Byron Nelson, Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus were the first recipients. It is given annually to a player who reflects Stewart's respect for golf traditions, his charitable work and presentation in dress.

His widow, Tracey, and daughter Chelsea, a senior at Clemson, were at the ceremony on the first tee at East Lake Golf Club.

Behind the grandstand was the 18th hole, where Sutton in 1998 saved par from a deep bunker to force a playoff with Vijay Singh, then beat him with a birdie on the par-3 closing hole.

Sutton, who choked up after talking about Stewart and his family, recalled searching for balance in his golf swing on the eve of the 1998 Tour Championship, and only later realizing he didn't have balance in his life.

They had a young daughter and his wife was pregnant with twins, and Sutton said all he thought about was winning the tournament.

"I had to walk away from golf on my terms to figure it all out," he said.

Sutton won 14 times in his career, including the 1983 PGA Championship in a duel against Jack Nicklaus and the 2001 Players Championship that came down to the wire against Tiger Woods. He was Ryder Cup captain in 2004, when the United States was soundly beaten by Europe and Sutton was criticized for pairing Woods and Phil Mickelson.

"To achieve at a high level, you have to lead a self-centred life," Sutton said.

He last played a PGA Tour event at Riviera in 2006, but has kept plenty busy opening a children's hospital in Shreveport, La., raising money for Hurricane Katrina victims and building a golf course. These last few years have taught Sutton that his identity does not have to come through golf.

His message to young players?

"Don't be so self-serving," he said. "Think of others as you walk through life, because sooner or later you're going to need them."

DIMARCO SURGERY: Chris DiMarco missed out on the Tour Championship for the second straight year, but he's making good use of his time off. DiMarco had arthroscopic surgery Wednesday to clean up bone spurs in his left shoulder.

"I am glad I was able to take time off to have this surgery so that when I resume playing, I can do so pain-free," DiMarco said. "I can't wait to get back out and swing without pain."

DiMarco had only one top-10 this year, at the Bridgestone Invitational, and missed the cut in his last three events.

FEDEX PAY: Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson have been the most vocal about the US$35 million in FedEx Cup bonus money being paid in cash instead of going into a retirement fund.

Some players are still trying to figure out how to pay their caddies from money they might not see for 30 years.

PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem said a solution is simple, as long as that's what everyone wants.

"If we had that unanimity, it would be an easy solution," he said Wednesday. "I do think there is a preponderance of attitude that the balance is not quite right, and we're talking about pretty good numbers here."

Over four weeks of the PGA Tour Playoffs, $28 million in prize money is paid out immediately, while the $35 million is deposited into a retirement fund.

Finchem recalled the early days of the PGA Tour when the winner was handed a large cardboard check on the 18th green to show how much he had just won. He compared that with players suggesting fans would be more excited to see players dive into a pile of cash after winning $10 million from the FedEx Cup.

"I don't know if we'll go that far," he said. "But we'll see what happens."

LEFTY'S DESIGNS: Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson might be rivals in golf course design, too.

Mickelson announced Wednesday that the first project of his new design company will be River Rock Golf Club in Cashiers, N.C., about 90 minutes away from where Woods' company is building its first U.S. golf course.

Phil Mickelson Design was launched in January. Its first golf course, built along the Blue Ridge Mountains, is scheduled to open in 2010. Among its features are a 305-yard par 3 with a 65-foot drop to the green and a 180-degree view of the mountains; a par 4 at 343 yards that drops 100 feet to the green; and two fairways that cross one another.

"My commitment to golf is creating the highest quality golf courses that are challenging, engaging and always provide a truly enjoyable experience each time they are played," Mickelson said. "To do that, you need to find the most beautiful landscapes available. We've done that in the mountains of North Carolina."

DALLAS CHARITY: The Byron Nelson Championship usually leads all PGA Tour events in charitable giving, but the $6.4 million it raised this year was substantial for other reasons.

It didn't finish No. 1 among tour events - that went to the FBR Open, which raised $7.8 million.

But the Byron Nelson Championship went over $100 million in career charity, which was enough of a milestone for tournament officials to show up at East Lake to celebrate the news.

"Byron Nelson left a legacy of giving, and it it's wonderful to see this continue," PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem said.
To this day, the look remains priceless. It was subtle, but still more telling than any kind of facial expression Tiger Woods would ever indulge us with under the knowing public glare.

The ball had sailed some 40 yards left of its intended target, and the incredulousness that enveloped Woods said it all. He just watched his partner at the 2004 Ryder Cup, Phil Mickelson, send his tee shot left of left on the 18th hole. In a few moments, Woods would have to play the ball from that precarious position in an alternate shot match that had just become hopeless.

And soon, the great pairing of Woods and Mickelson had suffered two defeats to the Europeans in one day, the grand experiment of captain Hal Sutton to be torched in infamy.

Three years later, that pairing remains the most high-profile among Woods' inglorious list of partners in international team competition. But Mickelson is far from alone. Heading into the Presidents Cup this week at Royal Montreal Golf Club, the world's best golfer has a losing record with a partner in a combined nine Presidents Cup and Ryder Cup appearances.

And it leaves even the great Jack Nicklaus grasping for explanations.

Scott Halleran/Getty Images

Woods is a combined 14-20-2 with a partner in Ryder and Presidents Cup matches.

"I think Tiger is an intimidating player," said Nicklaus, the U.S. Presidents Cup captain. "I'm not sure that the intimidation doesn't even go to his partners. ... I think when you get the top players in the world, I don't think anybody is going to be too intimidated by somebody else. [But] I think it's probably harder for a U.S. player to play with Tiger than it is for someone on [the International] team to play against him. The partner feels the pressure of Tiger, wanting to play well."

For all of his success as in individual -- 61 PGA Tour victories, 13 major championships, the first FedEx Cup title two weeks ago -- Woods has been rather ordinary in these team deals.

He's been particularly bad in fourball (best-ball), posting a 6-12-0 overall record, while going 8-8-2 in foursomes (alternate shot). The four-ball record is particularly puzzling, in that he gets to play his own ball and can go about his business. Maybe he alters his game in case his partner gets in trouble. Who knows?

But the bottom line is this: a 14-20-2 record for Woods with a partner at the Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup.

"We've tried all different things throughout the years, from personalities to like distances off the tees to same golf balls," Woods said. "Basically what it boils down to is two guys playing well. That's ultimately what it boils down to. You have personalities that are exactly alike, golf balls that are exactly the same. [But] you go out and play poorly, you get whacked.

"The whole idea is to go out there, no matter who you're playing with, and get it done."

Woods has had 15 different partners combined in the Presidents Cup and Ryder Cup. Jim Furyk leads with seven, followed by Charles Howell III and Notah Begay with four each.

Furyk appears a good bet to be paired with Woods because they have found recent success, going 2-2-0 last year at the Ryder Cup and 2-0-1 two years ago at the Presidents Cup. Howell, in his only Presidents Cup appearance in 2003, played with Woods four times, going 2-2.

"Maybe I see Tiger in a little different light," said Howell, who is friends with Woods and lives in the same Orlando neighborhood. "I see him around home. I see him a little bit away from the golf course. As far as me playing with Tiger, he's a great partner to have because we are friends. I feel comfortable playing with him. And let's face it, it's not always easy playing a team event because you've got more than just your expectations riding on your shoulders. I feel comfortable playing with the guy but I'm sure everyone else on this team would, as well."

Furyk also appears to be a good match, given their fairly successful play of late and his experience. Furyk has been a part of every U.S. team since the 1997 Ryder Cup.

"We tend to think our way around the golf course similarly and we read putts very much alike," Furyk said. "And our attitudes are very much alike. I enjoy the banter and the talk. He's a friend, actually very witty and funny. But there's not many people who get the opportunity to get close to him."

If Woods has a preference, he was not saying Tuesday.

"I could care less, as long as we get a point," he said. "I've played with a bunch of different partners over the years, and the goal is still the same: to go out there and beat your opponent and put a point up on your side."

Nicklaus did acknowledge that he asked all 12 of his players for their playing partner preferences. Woods gave him three names.

Although he did not disclose them on Tuesday, you have to figure that Furyk and Howell are on the list.

And that Mickelson is not.