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TIGER WOODS AND PHIL MICKELSON are not shoo-ins for the 2014 U.S. Ryder Cup team, although Mickelson is a lot closer to the promised land than Woods. Lefty is 11th in the standings. Tiger is 70th.

The top nine players will automatically qualify for the U.S. Ryder Cup team. Captain Tom Watson has three discretionary picks.

Woods would appear to need a minor miracle to make the team on points. Tiger needs at least a third-place finish at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational and PGA Championship, according to Doug Ferguson of the Associated Press. Or he would need to be one of Captain Watson's three picks.

After completing the British Open, Tiger more or less said he felt he would be ready for the Ryder Cup and would pick himself. "I hope I'm on that team," he said.

Would you burn a pick on Tiger?


U.S. Ryder Cup...

I asked John Coyne why he called Bobby Locke a "bad boy." Coyne said, "Locke wasn't liked on the PGA Tour. They blackballed him. Also, he was fired from his first pro job in Johannesburg." In this series, read how the South African golf legend made enemies by beating America's best. Read Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 and Part 4.

By John Coyne

Copyright © John Coyne. All...

By Brian Keogh

Brian Keogh is a golf correspondent for The Irish Sun and a contributor to The Irish Times, Golf Digest Ireland and other golf publications. The following excerpt from Brian’s Irish Golf Desk is used with permission.

RORY MCILROY DEDICATED THE OPEN to his mum Rosie but set his sights on the daddy of them all--completing the career Grand Slam at the Masters next year.

By carding a 71 to win by two shots from Sergio Garcia and Rickie Fowler at Hoylake, the Holywood star became only the third player after legends Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods to win three of the four majors by the age of 25. He also ended all speculation about his ability to prepare well and execute on a links course.

Now the...

EXCEPT FOR A SLIGHT MISSTEP out of the gate on Friday, 36-hole Open leader Rory McIlory has played near-flawless golf.

McIlroy bogeyed the 1st hole of his second round. The Northern Irishman then played the next 17 holes in 7 under par to card his second consecutive 66 and open a 4-shot lead on American Dustin Johnson at the halfway point of the major championship at Hoylake.

So much for the Friday curse.

"My second rounds this year have been terrible and there isn't really any explanation," McIlroy said."Hopefully I put it to bed today. It was just another solid a round of golf."

Rory by the numbers through two rounds:

• 66-66-132 (-12)

• 13 birdies (T1)

• 16 fairways hit (57.14%)

• 27 greens in regulation (75%)

• 19 one putts (T2)

...

USING ARNOLD PALMER'S CADDIE AND PUTTER, and after playing just one full practice round, Tony Lema won the 1964 British Open at the Old Course in St. Andrews, Scotland. It was his first appearance in golf's oldest major championship. Lema's 279 total was five shots better than runner-up Jack Nicklaus. He famously served champagne to the press after his victories, thus becoming "Champagne Tony."

Lema's career and life were cut short in the summer of 1966 when he and his wife died in a small plane crash on the way to an exhibition near Chicago. Lema had planned to give his fee to a charity that benefited kids. He was 32.

A native of Oakland, California, Tony Lema won 12 times on the PGA Tour, including the one major. According to the above Golf Channel profile, George Clooney is considering a movie project about Lema.


Source:...

By Brian Keogh

Brian Keogh is a golf correspondent for The Irish Sun and a contributor to The Irish Times, Golf Digest Ireland and other golf publications. The following excerpt from Brian’s Irish Golf Desk is used with permission.

Rory McIlroy has never felt more prepared for The Open Championship but he admits his freaky Friday form is getting into his head. The former world No 1 has had seven nightmares this season when he’s shot 40 or more for nine holes.

But with six of those seven disasters coming on Friday--the most recent of them just last week when he followed an opening 64 in the Scottish Open with a horrific 78--he admits he’s got a major mental problem to tackle. Asked if his Friday scoring trend is starting to mess with his head, he said: “Yes, I think...

TIGER WOODS IS NOT FAVORED to win a major in which he is entered for the first time since, well, eons ago. And yet, as you might expect, he is playing to win.

When asked today about his goal this week at Hoylake, Tiger replied, "First," adding, "That's always the case."

We've heard that many times before. Speaking of "first," I'd say first Tiger needs to make the cut. I expect he will unless the rust is still thick like it was at Congressional.

Here are the 2014 Open Championship odds courtesy of Bovada.

The Open Championship 2014 -
Outright Winner

THEY CALL HER "MIGHTY MO." American Mo Martin was the 99th ranked women's golfer who had never won on the LPGA Tour. Nor had she ever led an LPGA event. But that dramatically changed on a windy Sunday afternoon at Royal Birkdale in northwest England.

On the 72nd hole, Martin smashed a 3 wood that rode the wind to the 18th green. The ball bounded onto the putting surface and struck the flagstick, stopping six feet from the hole. In the dream, you make the eagle putt, and that's exactly what Mighty Mo did.

Martin finished 1 under for the tournament and was the clubhouse leader, a new role for the 31-year-old. She would have to wait 75 minutes as heralded players such as Inbee Park, Suzann Pettersen and Shanshan Feng played the closing holes. With birdie...