Golf's Biggest Breakup

Elin Nordegren and Steve Williams now have something in common: both were dumped by Tiger Woods. Williams, being the most recent victim, says he’s shocked by the news. But should he be? The Woods-Williams relationship lasted longer than most Hollywood marriages and for that matter, most marriages in general. Stevie, as he’s affectionately known, should be thankful to Tiger for bestowing him the best decade of his life. Not only did Tiger make Williams a household name, he effectively wrote him his retirement check.

Being a caddie definitely has its ups and downs. With all the travel and all the expenses, if your boss isn’t having a good week, it can be quite taxing on the body and especially the wallet. Since Tiger said, “hello world” in 1996, he’s amassed over 96 million dollars in career earnings. Today’s caddies roughly earn 5-10 percent, depending on the player. I’ll depend on Williams to do that math equation.

Stevie, who joined up with Woods in 1999, found himself a gold mine and hung on for the ride. After Tiger ran into the infamous green fire hydrant, Williams had the honor of answering relentless questions from tireless golf writers. Williams, I mused, did a pretty good job combating the questions. Stevie, however, denied ever knowing anything about Woods’ personal life. Right, and Bill Clinton never had “sexual relations with that woman.”

As bumpy as the ride was, I’m sure Stevie was still able to put food on the table. After the 18-month scandal that surrounded Woods, Williams told Tiger that he would have to earn his respect again. I’m sure Tiger didn’t take that too well after all he’d done for Williams’ career. Fast forward to the 2011 Masters where Tiger reaggravated his knee injury, putting him on the sideline for an undetermined amount of time. He would later withdraw from The Players Championship after shooting 42 on the front nine.

During that time, Williams caddied for Adam Scott. Tiger, of course, gave his blessing. Begrudgingly I’m sure. Williams was on Scott’s bag for the U.S. Open at Congressional then continuing at the AT&T National, ironically hosted by Woods himself. Not playing in the event, Woods fired Stevie that week which became public knowledge a few weeks later when Tiger made a statement on his website making the firing official. As a caddie, your job could be terminated at any point, even during a round of golf. Just ask Jay Williamson, who fired his caddie on the 15^th hole during the 2007 Canadian Open.

I’ll give Stevie one thing: he sure can keep a secret. As good a secret as it was, it was time for a change. Change is a good thing, especially in Tiger’s life. A clean slate is what Tiger needs, and if hurting Stevie’s feelings is apart of it, so be it. They’ll both be better off.

All caddies know the caddie code: show up, shut up, and keep up. Stevie nailed two out of three. Knowing his relationship with Tiger was over, Williams fired back at Woods saying he felt betrayed and hurt. Wait, what? Now, I understand Williams being hurt because he just got dumped, but Tiger betraying him might be going too far. Call me cynical, but most caddies on tour would love to have the opportunity that Williams had for the better part of his career. Not that most people would care, but Steve Williams has his own website. Yes, you read that correctly. A caddie has his own website.

Woods is currently waiting for his thank you card.

Out Sick

Due to a sickness, Eddie won't be writing for a couple of weeks. Thanks to all the devoted readers. He will continue his column the week of The Bay Hill Invitational. 

Tiger Spits Some Game, Comes Up Short in Dubai; Lego Man Wins at Pebble

Tiger Woods did it again. No, I'm not talking about that! I'm talking about Tiger putting himself into contention to win, then completely imploding in the final round. The old Tiger, being one stroke back, showed up Sunday, wore red, and just dominated. That is all. The field expected it, he expected it, and so did we. But now, what exactly can we expect from Tiger? We are still trying to figure that out. So is Tiger. 

The big question is; when will he figure that out? He needs it, we need it. Most importantly, golf needs it. We all kind of figured golf was going to be a little blase without him. Look at the TV ratings if you don't believe me. Now with 2010 behind him and a new swing, he has shown signs of the old Tiger. Still, he hasn't got the job done. He will win again. Lets hope it's sooner than later. 

Alvaro Quiros' win was somewhat overshadowed by what happened on the twelfth green during the final round. Tiger spat on the green. Yep, he hocked a loogie. It was the 'spit heard round the world.' But should we really care that much? I got news for you: all golfers spit on the golf course during a round. I'm not saying they all spit on the green, but it happens. I've done it, you've done, we've all done it.

Let's not forget about Sergio Garcia spitting into the bottom of the cup during the 2007 WGC-CA Championship. Garcia wasn't the first, Tiger wasn't the second, and they certainly won't be the last. Let's just all stop salivating about the little things and ponder who is looking good for Augusta. After all of this, I'd still watch out for Tiger. 

Across the pond, a guy sporting a Lego belt was ball striking his was to victory at Pebble Beach. D.A. Points, or as I like to call him, Lego Man, came from a couple strokes behind to rip yet another would be victory from Steve Marino. An eagle, and a couple of birdies on the back helped secure Points' first PGA Tour win. It was a great victory for him, and a fun win for the fans! How can you not root for a guy who wears a Lego belt just because he likes, well, Legos? The tour needs more guys like Points. After making his par putt on 18, he shouted out to the fans and thanked them all for coming. Can you see Tiger doing that?! Me neither. 

Points has been pretty quiet since his rookie year in 2008. Last year, his clubs started making some noise. With three top tens and seven top twenty-fives, he looks to be a contender to win in 2011. He played well in San Diego with a fifth place finish, following that up with a top twenty finish in Phoenix. Needless to say, he had a lot of mojo coming into Monterey. Oh, he also had Bill Murray on his team. If Bill doesn't calm your nerves, I don't know who can! Think they were good for each other? I'd say so. They just really need to work on their chest pump.  

The Monterey Peninsula always leaves us with a lot of memories, picturesque views, and a look at unbelievable real estate. The greens seem like they are the size of, well, pebbles, and are as hard as rocks, to boot. A perennial favorite stop on tour, Pebble Beach and the surrounding golf courses always deliver a great tournament. If not for golf, just go there. You'll thank me later. You're welcome. 

Bubba's Pink Driver & Johnny Vegas

Everyone knows he can hit it far. Really far. But no one knew he could make clutch putts. Well, no one except him. And when it comes to golf, where the mind plays such a big part in success, the only thing that matters is that you know what you're capable of doing. Bubba Watson sure knows himself. If you couldn't tell, rewind your DVR of The Farmers Insurance Open and watch how far right he aims. It's one of the most unique swings on tour. Never really receiving a formal golf lesson, Bubba owned his swing, and owned Torrey Pines.

As a perennial bomber of the golf ball, Watson was primarily known as just a big hitter. Now he's known as a big hitter that can win on the PGA Tour. Twice to be exact. They all say the first win is the toughest, and the second is even tougher because you want to validate the first win. Well, Watson proved his wacky swing, pink driver, and crazy long distance can win on tour. 

Speaking of crazy, have you seen the play of Jhonattan Vegas? The rookie is the hottest kid on tour right now and don't think it's just beginners luck. The kid can play. A win and a tie for third in his first three starts will make noise on any professional tour. He has charisma to boot and a very sound golf swing. I don't see Vegas falling off the map any time soon. Eat your heart out Venezuela.

The fashion statement of the week at Torrey Pines goes to the crew of TaylorMade and Adidas. Coming out with their R11 driver, all the boys on staff with TaylorMade/Adidas had a whiteout for Thursday's opening round. Yes, a whiteout. Players dressed head to toe in all white clothing. I'm sure their drivers stuck out like sore thumbs. 

After all the moments that Torrey Pines produced for us, what exactly did we learn? On Thursday we learned that TaylorMade and Adidas are the leaders in the clubhouse for on and off course marketing. Just look at all their staff players and their success. On Friday we learned that Bubba made the North course look easy, again. Over the weekend we learned that Johnny Vegas, as he's affectionately called, is here to stay and make noise on the PGA Tour. Late Sunday afternoon we learned that it actually does rain in southern California. 

Phil Mickelson still loves the dramatic finish, when he walked off his yardage and literally thought he could slam dunk it from 81 yards to force a playoff. Or was it, fly it 83 yards and spin it back in? Ask Bones. Finally, as Bubba was lining up his winning birdie putt, the clouds parted and the sun broke through as if Bubba's father was just saying, "hello son, I got your back on this one."

The PGA Revs Up & McDowell Stays Hot

Thirty-four players entered, one withdrew, one got DQ'd and the rest got paid. Sounds like Wrestle mania forty-seven. I might touch on that on a different day but I'm talking about the Hyundai Tournament of Champions, the PGA Tour's opening party to the season. Memo to all golfers: win this year, and you get the invite back to Maui next year. Now I bet Dustin Johnson would have read that memo. All kidding aside, Dustin looked very well in his season debut and I feel another strong year coming from the young gun.

Speaking of young guns, which dominated the PGA Tour in 2010 with over ten wins by twenty-somethings, look to keep their dominance intact. Although there were only two twenty-somethings that finished in the top ten, they got off to a great start. Do we have a new age group to dominate the tour in 2011? Six of the top ten finishers in Maui are in their 30's. One man in particular continues to be the hottest man on tour carrying over from late last year. That man is Greame McDowell. Scrutinized heavily for switching equipment from Callaway to Srixon, he quieted all critics with a blistering 62 on Sunday, tying the course record. I think those Srixon irons are going to suit him just fine. He'll get over the fact he missed the playoff by one stroke and just continue to throw darts at flag sticks and contend in all the big tournaments.

Fashion statements continue to write their way into the conversation during the telecasts. Ian Poulter opened up his 2011 campaign looking quite dapper in a classy black and pink ensemble. Did you expect anything different from him? Dustin Johnson and Anthony Kim kept it simple, yet sharp in their solid colors. Jim Furyk and Steve Stricker represented the "khaki pants and polo look," quite well. The only thing missing was Brian Gay and his green shoes. He'll appear sooner than later.

So, what did we learn this past weekend? During the first round, we learned that Bubba Watson is still freakishly long, fearless and can still hit driver off the deck from 305 yards to ten feet for eagle. Thank you very much. During the second round, we learned that the shortest drive on tour this year will go to Jason Day after he chunked a drive that only went 107 yards. Thanks to Day, all of the weekend duffers feel better about themselves. During the weekend, we learned that you must birdie almost every other hole at Kapalua to keep yourself in contention. In the end, Jonathan Byrd made more birdies and edged out Robert Garrigus in a playoff to get the first invite back to Maui for 2012. The tour stays on the Hawaiian Islands for the first full field event of 2011, the Sony Open. Aloha!