Vijay Singh won The Barclays for a record fourth time Sunday, closing out his playoff opponents with birdies on the first two extra holes. After finishing regulation tied with an 8-under 276 total, one of Singh’s playoff opponents dropped a 27-foot birdie putt on the first extra hole. Singh, who wore DryJoys Traditional and a SciFlex glove on Sunday, calmly matched him with a birdie putt of his own from 26 feet and then had a tap-in birdie on the next hole for the victory, the 33rd of his career on the PGA Tour. The 45-year-old Fijian was also best at the Barclays in 1993, 1995 and 2006, although this was the first time the event was held at Ridgewood Country Club. The win moves Singh to the top of the FedEx Cup points race after one event as the Tour now moves to the TPC Boston for the Deutsche Bank Championship.
Click on the image below to hear Vijay’s post-round interview.
The suspense builds as players battle for a prestigious PGA Tour win, entry into next week’s Deutsche Bank Championship, FedEx Cup points, Ryder Cup points and more during round two of the Barclays. Defending champion Steve Stricker (right, top), with all that to play for and more, came out of the gate firing on all cylinders and followed fellow FootJoy player Hunter Mahan’s 9-under 62 yesterday with an impressive bogey-free 7-under 64 of his own to take the early lead. Inclusive of his tidy first round 3-under 68 in challenging afternoon conditions, Stricker sits at 10-under for the tournament. Wearing all-white DryJoys Traditional (available through MyJoys), he’s hit 27 of 35 greens in regulation so far, and needed only 25 putts during his round on Friday, both strengths in his game. Could we be seeing the Stricker from last year who caught fire during the Playoffs? Let’s hope so…
Another player heading into the weekend with some momentum is Ben Curtis (right, bottom). Wearing the Super Bowl Champion New York Giants colors, including DryJoys Traditional style MyJoys, Ben fired a 3-under 68 on Friday and sits near the top of the leaderboard. In the last month, Ben has finished top 10 in two majors (T7 - British Open, T2 - PGA Championship) and made his first United States Ryder Cup team. He’s another guy to keep an eye on, and not just to see how he alternates between the Giants and Jets this week while in New Jersey.
Hunter Mahan opened his round with an eagle and finished it with a birdie. All he did in between was drop seven birdies against one bogey as he flirted with 59 before posting a 9-under 62. Not a bad start for the Ryder Cup hopeful who was wearing the new black patent shield-tip Classics Dry Premiere and a StaSof glove during round one at the Barclays on Thursday. Click on the image below to hear Mahan’s post round interview.
In this wide-ranging preview interview from the Barclays, SciFlex fan Kenny Perry explains the eye injury that forced him to withdraw from the PGA Championship. The injury was apparently more severe than originally thought and even had Perry practicing with one eye closed, just in case the eye didn’t heal quick enough! Kenny also gives his initial thoughts on Ridgewood Country Club, site of this weeks tournament, where he says hitting the winding, sloping fairways will be a major factor for success.
Strick’s been quiet this year, but if you really dig into the stats, you see he’s having a pretty solid season. He’s 21st in FedEx Cup points, he’s 23rd on the season’s Money List and he’s ranked #10 in the world. So clearly he’s been playing some good golf. Granted, not as many wins as the last two season’s but that was a pace few could keep up with. Not only does our man from Wisconsin have five top ten finishes (one less than this time last year), but he’s the defending champion this week, beginning a playoff system that was very kind to him last year and anxious to earn his spot on his first United States Ryder Cup team.
Need more concrete stats? How about these from our friends at PGA Tour ShotLink, which you would consider important coming into the playoffs…4th in Final Round Scoring Avg. (ex. 5th lowest Sunday round at the PGA Championship with a 69), 2nd in GIR under 125 yards, 6th in putting from over 25 feet and 4th in Scrambling from the Rough. And after switching to the new Titleist 909 driver before the PGA Championship, he hit 69% of the tight fairways at Oakland Hills.
In conclusion, whether you consider hard stats or personal motivation a key indicator for success, Steve Stricker looks like someone to keep an eye on over the next month.
In response to one of the greatest NFL press conferences in history (thank you , Mr. Jim Mora), yes, we are talking about the playoffs as the FedEx Cup playoffs get underway this week at the Barclays at Ridgewood Country Club. Click here for an explanation on the new points system that is intended to create more movement in the rankings and, ultimately, more drama. Click here for a story on the traditional styling of Ridgewood CC, a “classic woodland course.” Click here for the updated FedEx Cup points list.
And no, you don’t win a new FedEx Cup truck for a hole-in-one, but you may need it to get your $10 million home if you win the Cup!
Zimbabwe’s Brendon de Jonge won the Xerox Classic for his first Nationwide Tour title Sunday, closing with a 1-under 69 at Irondequoit Country Club for a two-stroke victory.
De Jonge, wearing Classics Tour and a SciFlex glove, finished at 13-under 267 and earned $108,000 to jump from 12th to second on the money list with $316,056, pretty much guaranteeing him a return trip to the PGA Tour in 2009.
“This is such a tough golf course that sometimes when you hit a good shot it doesn’t end up in a good spot,” said de Jonge, tied for 29th in greens in regulation but first in putting for the week. “My short game was probably the best it’s ever been for a whole week. It was just one of those weeks.”
The 28-year old former Virginia Tech player has par-or-better scores in 26 of his last 28 rounds and is a combined 79 under in that stretch. In his last four starts, he has tied for third, tied for 18th, finished fifth and won. This week he fired four rounds in the 60’s (67-64-67-69) en route to victory.
“This is the best lengthy stretch of golf I’ve played in my life,” de Jonge said.
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Australia’s Katherine Hull came from six strokes behind Sunday to win the Canadian Women’s Open for her first LPGA Tour title. The 26-year-old Hull, a former star at Pepperdine, shot a 3-under 69 to finish at 11-under 277 for a one stroke victory.
“This is something we all dream about as kids and to have it actually happen is amazing,” Hull said. “I was thinking this might be the year I broke through and got a win, but at six shots back, I didn’t think much about it.
“I just tried to play the best I could. I honestly didn’t expect to win at all. But that’s how golf goes. It’s four rounds, 72 holes and anything can happen.”
The European Tour team is in Stockholm, Sweden this week for the SAS Masters and the field is stacked with European players hoping to make the Ryder Cup team. While the automatic spots for the U.S. team were announced last weekend, the European Tour has three more weeks to qualify.
The SAS Masters came to a dramatic conclusion last year when FootJoy player Mikko Illonen birdied the final hole to avoid a three man playoff and secure his second victory of the season. Once again, FootJoy is the #1 shoe at the SAS Masters with 60% of the players.
Tour players such as Zach Johnson, Boo Weekley and Jerry Kelly explain why they wear a golf glove and offer grip advice for consumers. Click on the image below to launch the video.
Kevin enjoys FootJoy Classics, SciFlex gloves and moonlight walks on the beach. Okay, two of those we know are true. What is also true is that Kevin has played on almost every mini Tour in the country, he earned his PGA Tour card through Q-School last year and he proved he belongs at this level by leading after the first round of this year’s U.S. Open. He’s also made nine straight cuts heading into this week’s Wyndham Championship in Greensboro, N.C.
DryJoys enthusiast J.B. Holmes posted a 2-under 68 on Friday to take the clubhouse lead late in the afternoon. Wearing a pair of all black DryJoys Tech (style #53523) and his customary RainGrip glove, the Kentucky-native was solid with five birdies, including three in a row early on the back nine. Click the image below to hear J.B.’s post-round interview and keep an eye on him this weekend as he battles for his first major championship and a spot on the USA Ryder Cup team which will be contested in his home state next month.
FootJoy player Robert Karlsson demonstrated great poise during the first round, rallying from a double bogey at the first to go on and shoot a 2-under 68. Karlsson actually rebounded with three consecutive birdies and five over his next seven holes before struggling a bit on the back nine. Click on the image below to hear the Big Swede’s thoughts on the round.
Chez Reavie is reaping immediate rewards from his first PGA Tour win two weeks ago at the RBC Canadian Open. He competed in his first World Golf Championship event last week and will tee it up in his first major of the season this week at Oakland Hills. Click on the image below to watch the interview and hear what else Chez has gained from the victory as well as how he’s staying sharp while playing eight consecutive weeks.
Vijay Singh swirled in a 3-foot par putt on the last hole to win his first career World Golf Championship event Sunday at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational. Singh closed with a 2-under 68 for a one shot victory over fellow FootJoy player Lee Westwood (Classics Dry Premiere style #50672).
Singh, who wore DryJoys PODS Traditional (style #53562) and a SciFlex glove throughout the week, finished with a 10-under 270 total. The victory was the 32nd of his career on the PGA Tour and first on U.S. soil since the Arnold Palmer Invitational back in 2007. With the win, he is expected to move up to #4 in the World Golf Rankings ahead of this week’s final major - the PGA Championship at Oakland Hills.
Westwood, who could have moved up to No. 4 in the world with his first U.S. title in 10 years, rallied from a five-shot deficit with 11 holes to play to get within one of the lead. But he missed a 7-foot birdie on the 17th, and his 15-foot birdie putt from the fringe on the 18th to tie for the lead was left all the way. He closed with a 69 to tie for second.
Wearing ReelFits (style #53843) and a SciFlex, Parker McLachlin shot a 2-over 74 Sunday to claim his first PGA Tour victory in convincing fashion at the Legends Reno-Tahoe Open. The 29-year-old UCLA grad finished the week with an 18-under 270 total for a seven shot victory and, in the process, punched his ticket to this week’s PGA Championship at Oakland Hills.
“It feels like it has been a lifetime coming. It has been a dream of mine since I was about 12,” said McLachlin, who grew up in Hawaii and played at UCLA. “This is a huge stepping stone for me.”
McLachlin recovered from trouble time after time on Sunday to card 14 pars, three bogeys and a birdie on the 18th. He could afford to play conservatively on Sunday due to magnificent early round play that saw him fire a course record 10-under 62 on Friday and set the 54-hole record at 20-under on Saturday.
The suspense builds as players battle for a prestigious PGA Tour win, entry into next week’s Deutsche Bank Championship, FedEx Cup points, Ryder Cup points and more during round two of the Barclays. Defending champion Steve Stricker (right, top), with all that to play for and more, came out of the gate firing on all cylinders and followed fellow FootJoy player Hunter Mahan’s 9-under 62 yesterday with an impressive bogey-free 7-under 64 of his own to take the early lead. Inclusive of his tidy first round 3-under 68 in challenging afternoon conditions, Stricker sits at 10-under for the tournament. Wearing all-white DryJoys Traditional (available through 
Another player heading into the weekend with some momentum is Ben Curtis (right, bottom). Wearing the Super Bowl Champion New York Giants colors, including DryJoys Traditional style 
Strick’s been quiet this year, but if you really dig into the stats, you see he’s having a pretty solid season. He’s 21st in FedEx Cup points, he’s 23rd on the season’s Money List and he’s ranked #10 in the world. So clearly he’s been playing some good golf. Granted, not as many wins as the last two season’s but that was a pace few could keep up with. Not only does our man from Wisconsin have five top ten finishes (one less than this time last year), but he’s the defending champion this week, beginning a playoff system that was very kind to him last year and anxious to earn his spot on his first United States Ryder Cup team.
Zimbabwe’s Brendon de Jonge won the Xerox Classic for his first Nationwide Tour title Sunday, closing with a 1-under 69 at Irondequoit Country Club for a two-stroke victory.
Australia’s Katherine Hull came from six strokes behind Sunday to win the Canadian Women’s Open for her first LPGA Tour title. The 26-year-old Hull, a former star at Pepperdine, shot a 3-under 69 to finish at 11-under 277 for a one stroke victory.
Kevin enjoys FootJoy 
Vijay Singh swirled in a 3-foot par putt on the last hole to win his first career World Golf Championship event Sunday at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational. Singh closed with a 2-under 68 for a one shot victory over fellow FootJoy player Lee Westwood (Classics Dry Premiere 
