Golf News May 27th, 2008

A look at this week's tournaments around the world:

PGA TOUR

Memorial

Site: Dublin, Ohio.

Schedule: Thursday-Sunday.

Course: Muirfield Village Golf Club (7,265 yards, par 72).

Purse: $6 million. Winner's share: $1.08 million.

FedExCup points: 25,000. Winner's share: 4,500.

Last year: South Korea's K.J. Choi won the first of his two 2007 PGA Tour titles, closing with a 7-under 65 for a one-stroke victory over Ryan Moore.

Last week: Phil Mickelson won the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, holing a 9-foot birdie putt on the final hole for a one-stroke victory over Tim Clark and Rod Pampling. Mickelson also won the 2000 tournament. He has 34 PGA Tour victories.

Notes: Tiger Woods is skipping the tournament as he recovers from knee surgery, meaning he likely will go to the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines in two weeks without having played a tournament in two months. The 1999-01 Memorial winner had arthroscopic surgery April 15. ... Jack Nicklaus founded the event in 1976 and won the 1977 and 1984 titles. He made his last competitive appearance in the tournament in 2005. ... Vijay Singh withdrew Monday because of a rib injury sustained last week, and Ernie Els said on his Web site that he won't be playing until next week. ... The Stanford St. Jude Championship is next week in Memphis, Tenn.

On the Net: www.pgatour.com

LPGA TOUR

Ginn Tribute

Site: Mount Pleasant, S.C.

Schedule: Thursday-Sunday.

Course: RiverTowne Country Club (6,588 yards, par 72).

Purse: $2.6 million. Winner's share: $390,000.

Last year: Nicole Castrale won the inaugural event for her first LPGA Tour title, beating Lorena Ochoa with a par on the first hole of a playoff.

Last week: Leta Lindley won the Corning Classic for her first win in 295 LPGA Tour starts as a pro, edging Jeong Jang with a birdie on the first extra hole.

Notes: The McDonald's LPGA Championship, the second major of the season, is next week at Bulle Rock in Havre de Grace, Md. ... Tournament host Annika Sorenstam, retiring at the end of the season, has three victories this year for a career LPGA Tour total of 72. ... Ochoa is coming off a victory two weeks ago in the Sybase Classic, her third straight title in the event and sixth win of the season. ... Suzann Pettersen, preparing for her Bulle Rock title defense, won the Ladies European Tour's rain-shortened Swiss Open on Sunday.

On the Net: www.lpga.com

U.S. GOLF ASSOCIATION/LADIES' GOLF UNION

Curtis Cup

Site: St. Andrews, Scotland.

Schedule: Friday-Sunday.

Course: St. Andrews, Old Course (6,638 yards, par 72).

Format: United States vs. Britain and Ireland in team match play. Friday and Saturday, three morning alternate-shot matches and three afternoon better-ball matches; Sunday, eight singles matches.

United States: Amanda Blumenherst, Scottsdale, Ariz.; Meghan Bolger, Haddonfield, N.J.; Mina Harigae, Monterey, Calif.; Tiffany Joh, San Diego; Kimberly Kim, Hilo, Hawaii; Jennie Lee, Henderson, Nev.; Stacy Lewis, The Woodlands, Texas; Alison Walshe, Westford, Mass. Captain: Carol Semple Thompson, Sewickley, Pa.

Britain and Ireland: Liz Bennett, England; Carly Booth, Scotland; Krystle Caithness, Scotland; Jodi Ewart, England; Breanne Loucks, Wales; Florentyna Parker, England; Michele Thomson, Scotland; Sally Watson, Scotland. Captain: Mary McKenna, Ireland.

Last matches: In 2006, Duke's Jennie Lee beat Melissa Reid 3 and 2 to clinch the United States' fifth straight victory - an 11 1/2-6 1/2 decision at Bandon Dunes in Oregon.

Notes: The United States leads the biennial series 25-6-3. Britain and Ireland is winless since 1996 at Killarney. ... The competition has been expanded to three days, with better-ball matches being played for the first time. ... Kim won the 2006 U.S. Women's Amateur at 14 to become the youngest champion in the event. ... Thompson competed on a record 12 U.S. Curtis Cup teams. ... At 15, Booth is the youngest player ever to represent Britain and Ireland. ... The 2010 event will be played at Essex in Manchester-by-the-Sea, Mass. The 2012 matches are set for Nairn in Scotland.

On the Net: www.curtiscup.org

Ladies' Golf Union site: www.lgu.org

CHAMPIONS TOUR

Principal Charity Classic

Site: West Des Moines, Iowa.

Schedule: Friday-Sunday.

Course: Glen Oaks Country Club (6,877 yards, par 71).

Purse: $1,725,000. Winner's share: $258,750.

Last year: Jay Haas won the third of his four 2007 titles, leading wire-to-wire en route a three-stroke victory over Brad Bryant and R.W. Eaks.

Last week: Haas won the Senior PGA Championship for the second time in three years, closing with a 4-over 74 at difficult Oak Hill for a one-stroke victory over Bernhard Langer. Haas finished at 7 over. Langer shot a 76.

Notes: Haas and Langer top the field. ... The tour is off the next two weeks. Play will resume June 20-22 with the Bank of America Championship in Concord, Mass.

On the Net: www.pgatour.com

PGA EUROPEAN TOUR

Celtic Manor Wales Open

Site: Newport, Wales.

Schedule: Thursday-Sunday.

Course: The Celtic Manor Resort, The Twenty Ten (7,352 yards, par 71).

Purse: $3.57 million. Winner's share: $594,600.

Last year: South Africa's Richard Sterne won on the Roman Road course, birdieing the final hole for a one-stroke victory over Welshman Bradley Dredge, Mardan Mamat, Soren Kjeldsen and Mads Vibe-Hastrup.

Last week: Spain's Miguel Angel Jimenez won the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, beating England's Oliver Wilson with a birdie on the second hole of a playoff. Jimenez had a hole-in-one in the final round en route to his 15th tour victory.

Notes: The Twenty Ten course, designed for the 2010 Ryder Cup, opened in July 2007. ... The field includes Padraig Harrington, David Howell, Darren Clarke, Colin Montgomerie, Niclas Fasth, Robert Karlsson, Paul McGinley and Nick Dougherty. ... The Bank Austria Open is next week at Fontana in Vienna.

On the Net: www.europeantour.com

NATIONWIDE TOUR

Bank of America Open

Site: Glenview, Ill.

Schedule: Thursday-Sunday.

Course: The Glen Club (7,149 yards, par 71).

Purse: $750,000. Winner's share: $135,000.

Last year: John Riegger won his first Nationwide Tour title, birdieing the final hole for one-stroke victory over B.J. Staten.

Last week: Jeff Klauk won the Melwood Prince George's County Open, holing a 12-foot birdie putt on the final hole for a one-stroke victory over Jeff Brehaut and David Mathis. Klauk also won the tour's 2003 Wichita Open.

Notes: The Tom Fazio-designed course was built on the former Glenview Naval Air Base. ... The Rex Hospital Open is next week in Raleigh, N.C.

On the Net: www.pgatour.com

OTHER TOURNAMENTS

Men

COLLEGE: NCAA Men's Golf Championships, Wednesday-Saturday, Purdue University, Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex, Kampen Course, West Lafayette, Ind. On the Net: www.ncaa.com/golf-mens

JAPAN GOLF TOUR: Mitsubishi Diamond Cup, Thursday-Sunday, Higashi Hirono Golf Club, Hyogo, Japan. On the Net: www.jgto.org

SUNSHINE TOUR: Vodacom Origins of Golf KwaZulu Natal, Wednesday-Saturday, Selborne Hotel Spa and Golf Estate, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. On the Net: www.sunshinetour.com

PGA EUROPEAN SENIORS TOUR: Parkridge Polish Seniors Championship, Friday-Sunday, Krakow Valley Golf and Country Club, Krakow, Poland. On the Net: www.europeantour.com

PGA EUROPEAN CHALLENGE TOUR: Oceanico Group Pro-Am Challenge, Thursday-Sunday, Marriott Worsley Park Hotel and Country Club, Manchester, England. On the Net: www.europeantour.com

Women

DURAMED FUTURES TOUR: Aurora Health Care Championship, Friday-Sunday, Geneva National Golf Club, Lake Geneva, Wis. On the Net: www.duramedfuturestour.com

LADIES EUROPEAN TOUR: Ladies German Open, Thursday-Sunday, Golfpark Gut Hausern, Munich, Germany. On the Net: www.ladieseuropeantour.com

JAPAN LPGA TOUR: Kosaido Ladies Cup, Friday-Sunday, Kosaido Chiba Golf Club, Chiba, Japan. On the Net: www.lpga.or.jp

One Response to “Golf News May 27th, 2008”

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