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Huff’s Stuff AZGA Arizona Golf Blog – Arizona Golf Authority

If former major league pitcher Mark Mulder really took his golf seriously, who knows how well he’d play? But even if it’s “just for fun,’’ as Mulder likes to say, the ESPN commentator is pretty adept at golfing his ball.

Mulder had it going Monday during the opening round of qualifying for the 87th Arizona Amateur Championship. His two-under-par 68 at the Country Club at DC Ranch placed him among the leaders and gave him a great opportunity to reach the match play round of 64 for a second straight year in this major championship sponsored by the Arizona Golf Association.

“To tell the truth, I’m not exactly sure how I shot 68,’’ quipped the 33-year-old Scottsdale resident, who was an All-Star hurler for the Oakland A’s in 2003 and 2004 and also pitched for the St. Louis Cardinals.

“I mean, the first hole (No. 10), I roll in a 60-foot putt for birdie and I’m thinking: ‘Just don’t three- or four-putt.’ Then the second hole, I make another birdie to go with an eagle on my seventh or eighth hole (No. 17), where I ‘thin’ a 4-iron to three or four feet of the cup and make the putt. So things were just kind of going my way, which is good, because the reality is I’ve played so little lately I was just trying my best to break 80.’’

Such is the quirky game of golf. Instead of looking like a weekend hack, Mulder drew within three shots of the first-day leader, Arizona State junior Jin Song. In all, only five players in the 144-player field were better than Mulder, who needs another good score today if he is to make the match play portion of this tournament that starts Wednesday and runs through Saturday.

The 20-year-old Song, who at 65 is one shot better than Scottsdale’s Michael Wog and Adam Walicki, certainly is no stranger to match play despite his youth. In 2008, fresh out of Pinnacle Peak High School, Song captured the Arizona Amateur when it was played at Troon Country Club, which is just down the road in Scottsdale from DC Ranch.

Other contenders who looked like they were a “gimme’’ to move on to Wednesday’s mano y mano format included Tucson’s John Bobroski and Alec Dahlquist of Phoenix, as well as ASU-bound freshman David Lowe of Scottsdale, who also shot 68. At 1-over 71 was Chandler’s Peter Kyo Won Koo, a 15-year-old who earlier this year captured the Arizona Stroke Play Championship.

Mulder, for one, knows match play can be a fickle format.

“I play a little bit of that at Whisper Rock (in Scottsdale) and also at a club in (Jupiter) Florida called The Dye Preserve, where I’ve been the club champ the last two years,’’ Mulder noted. “Obviously, those experiences are not quite the same level of competition as the Arizona Amateur, but it is a real great time.’’

Asked what he’s expecting as the six-day tournament unfolds, Mulder laughed.

“Not much. I started playing golf to fill that competitive void I lost when I quit pitching,’’ he said. “And, seriously, it’s turned out to be a real good thing because I have a lot of fun with it and it lets me still compete.

“But I’ve got to be realistic, too. My little boys shortly will be 4 and 2 years old, and with the stuff I’m also doing for ESPN, well, those things in my life are really killing my golf game. And that’s OK, because I still manage to average a day or two a week – maybe! — and that’s good by me.’’

Huff’s Stuff AZGA Arizona Golf Blog – Arizona Golf Authority

Seldom do coaching changes in college golf merit big headlines. But that rule of thumb was bent back nicely over the weekend when Arizona State confirmed that Tim Mickelson – the younger brother of PGA Tour star Phil Mickelson – will be the new men’s coach of the Sun Devils.

Tim Mickelson, who led the University of San Diego to four West Coast Conference championships and three straight NCAA appearances in his eight years in charge of the Toreros, takes over for Randy Lein, who was fired three weeks ago after 18 years in charge of the ASU program.

“It wasn’t an easy decision to leave San Diego, a wonderful place where my roots are, where my family still lives, and where I’ve worked for most of my adult life,’’ said Mickelson, who is 33 — or eight years younger than his brother.

“But getting a chance to lead a storied program like ASU, where I went to school for three years and where Phil was an All-American (four times), that’s really a dream job for me. Without question, with everything the ASU program has going for it, including one of the best facilities in the country, it’s one of the most coveted jobs in college golf.’’

Mickelson said his new contract “is for more than one year, but I really don’t want to get into the specifics.’’ And he downplayed the idea that his brother had urged him to take the job.

“It wasn’t any one person that influenced me,’’ Mickelson said. “It was the entire Phoenix golf community, which is a big one that really does care about and support the ASU program.’’

ASU had fallen on hard times under Lein, with only one tournament win punctuated by several disappointing Pac-10 and NCAA finishes in the past two seasons. This past year, the Sun Devils finished ninth in the conference and 18th at the NCAA tournament, where they entered as the 20th seed.

Asked how he planned to turn the program around with the cupboard essentially bare (six incoming freshmen), Mickelson said he had a “three-pronged strategy.’’

“It’s kind of like the ASU pitchfork, you know,’’ he said with a laugh. “But, basically, I’ll be trying to recruit three types of players every year, the first being the No. 1 player in Arizona, the second being the No. 1 player in America, and the third being the No. 1 player in the world.

“I’m a very structured coach; that’s the kind of program I built at USD and that’s the kind of program I foresee at ASU. At the same time, we’ll have some fun, like going to the football and basketball games and taking part in other school activities. So we’ll play hard and practice hard, but still allow for the guys to be college kids, too.’’

Mickelson said he was not concerned about a recent story in the local newspaper that reported that the ASU Karsten Course might be sold when its lease along the Rio Salado expires in 2012.

“Anything is possible in this economy,’’ Mickelson said of the ASU Karsten Course, which reportedly could be sold for up to $180 million as raw real estate or possibly turned into a new site for an ASU football stadium.

“But I’ve been assured that’s probably not going to happen for some time, and I’m confident it will be around for a long time, beyond (2012). If eventually that does happen, well, I’d make sure that our next facility would be even better than ASU Karsten.’’

Mickelson also dis-spelled the notion of a rift between himself and Lein, who Mickelson played under for three years before leaving in a dispute over his lack of playing time. The rift stayed in the spotlight for Mickelson’s senior season at Oregon State, where he ended up as the runner-up in the Pac-10 Championship while setting school records for the Beavers for 18, 36, 54 and 72 holes – marks that still stand.

“I have a ton of respect for Randy Lein,’’ said Mickelson, who becomes ASU’s 13th golf coach.

“I know there has been some sentiment out there that there is animosity between the two of us, but that’s really not true. I was unhappy when I left, but Randy and I resolved that a long time ago. And given the fact Randy has won a national championship at ASU (1996) as well as eight Pac-10 titles, and also was a very successful coach at USC, well, I’ve got my work cut out for me.’’

Of course, it will help that Mickelson can occasionally call on his big brother, who along with the late Pat Tillman are probably ASU’s most famous alums. Even though ASU vice president of athletics Lisa Love said in a release announcing his hiring, “Tim Mickelson possesses the qualities of what we’re looking for and not just because of his famous last name,’’ it’s all about the last name if Mickelson is going to turn around the ASU program.

Seriously, if you need a fat check to help out with an expense for the program, or a call to seal the deal with a potential recruit, why not dial up the program’s most well-known student-athlete ever? Hey, it never hurts to have the PGA Tour’s most popular player on your side, right?

“Obviously, I want to get Phil involved,’’ Tim conceded. “He helped me a lot at USD, and that was really nice of him because his loyalty has always been to ASU.

“So we’ll lean on him a little bit if it’s possible.’’

Chances are if Tim Mickelson is as clever as we think he is, he’ll lean on Lefty a lot.

Click Huff’s Stuff Arizona Golf Blog for Bill Huffman’s complete archive at the Arizona Golf Authority.

Huff’s Stuff AZGA Golf Blog – Arizona Golf Authority

If you’re looking for the winner of this week’s British Open at Royal St. George’s, don’t pick Rory McIlroy, the heavy favorite with the bookies.

First of all, Royal St. George’s is way too quirky for the favorite to prevail. Known for its bizarre bounces and hard-pan fairways and greens, who knows where the ball will end up. And then you add in the weather. . . .

As Ahwatukee’s Robert Garrigus put it recently: “If the wind blows, I might hit a few 500-yard drives and 250-yard wedges, and if the wind is coming from the other direction, a couple of drives and wedges maybe half that far.’’ He wasn’t kidding although he was laughing when he said it.

Here’s another reason that McIlroy won’t win: Of the past 11 major championships there have been 11 different winners. That, of course, is because Tiger Woods hasn’t won in the past 12 majors, a streak that will go to 13 due to his absence in Sandwich, England.

McIlroy does fit the 20-something trend, meaning the last four majors have been won by guys in their 20s, the Northern Irish superstar being 22. And even though nobody’s swing looks better, McIlroy hasn’t competed since he won the U.S. Open at Congressional Country Club in record fashion, and that rust will rear its head on a salty course like Royal St. George’s, where “the Open Championship’’ has been contested 14 times.

Luke Donald and Lee Westwood would seem to be the prime favorites, and not just because they are No. 1 and No. 2 in the world, respectively. But both are well into their 30s, Donald being the younger at 33, so they defy the trend, and more to the point, neither has proved to be a closer on the game’s biggest stages.

Martin Kaymer, the big German from Paradise Valley, is No. 3 and fading fast chiefly because he made a swing change that’s not there yet. Spain’s Sergio Garcia has had some success in the British, but he suffers from the same malady as Donald and Westwood, even though Garcia is the fifth most-popular pick by the bookies, just ahead of America’s hope, Steve Stricker.

But Stricker won last week, so he’s not going to be the guy, and Northern Ireland’s Graeme McDowell, also high on the bookies list, hasn’t sniffed it since the 2010 U.S. Open, and even more disturbing, has blown several leads in recent times.

Which brings us to the “real’’ favorite this week, Jason Day. The young Australian is 23 and has runner-up finishes in both the Masters and U.S. Open, where he kind of came out of the blue to secure second while not really threatening Charles Schwartzel at the Masters or McIlroy at the U.S. Open. Day fits the criterion – he’s never won a major and he’s in his 20s, which is good enough with us.

Still, chances are great that it’s somebody further down the form chart, like a Nick Watney, Dustin Johnson or Hunter Mahan, who all fit the first major/in their 20s criterion. Either that, or maybe this could get really crazy (again), like when long shot Ben Curtis won in 2003, the last time they played the Open at Royal St. Georges.

If that’s the case, we like Garrigus, a guy playing in his first British with a driver that is capable of traveling 500 yards.

“I’ll just bomb it and go find it,’’ Garrigus said of his strategy, which might work as well as any when it comes to Royal St. George’s.

Huff’s Stuff AZGA Golf Blog – Arizona Golf Authority

Even though there will be 11 residents playing in this week’s 111th edition of the U.S. Open, the guy from Arizona who might know famed Congressional Country Club the best is not in the 156-man field.

That’s because Tom Weiskopf, who captured the 1995 U.S. Senior Open at Congressional, builds golf courses these days rather winning scores. But in every way, the Scottsdale architect is the perfect source to handicap this national championship.

“It’s a shot-maker’s golf course, where you have to maneuver around corners and really move the ball in order to score,’’ reported Weiskopf of the 7,574-yard, par-70 layout that is essentially the work of the late Robert Trent Jones and his son, Rees Jones, who has rearranged it twice in the last five years while rebuilding every green.

“Congressional is such a neat course, a long hitter’s course, with a lot of elevated tees that favors the high-ball hitter. ’’

Whether or not those specs fit any of Arizona’s finest, remains to be seen. That list from the land of tall cacti includes Scottsdale’s Aaron Baddeley, Paul Casey, Martin Laird, Ryan Moore, Geoff Ogilvy, Chez Reavie, Kevin Streelman, Kirk Triplett and Bubba Watson; Robert Garrigus of Ahwatukee; and Arizona State senior/amateur Scott Pinckney of Tempe

When Weiskopf won at Congressional, the golf course ended exactly like it will this week, with a rugged, 523-yard, par 4 that plays down the hill and slopes towards the water. By comparison, when Ernie Els captured the U.S. Open in 1997 at Congressional, the course ended on a par 3, which Rees Jones made the 10th hole, a move that is certain to make Congressional more difficult as players come down the stretch.

But as Weiskopf pointed out, the course can take its toll thanks to eight par 4s that play between 466 and 523 yards, as well as the par-5 ninth hole that rambles on for 636 yards. Ironically, the ninth hole isn’t the most demanding; that would be the 579-yard 16th that plays straight up the hill.

He also noted that his winning score at Congressional of 5-under par is a testament to the course’s toughness. By comparison, Els had a 4-under total.

“There really isn’t any let-up at Congressional, in that you’ve got to be focused on every hole,’’ said Weiskopf, who posted three consecutive rounds of 69 there and then polished his four-shot victory over Jack Nicklaus with a 68 to join Gary Player as the only players in Senior Open history to shoot all four rounds in the 60s.

“That’s really what I remember most about what was one of my biggest moments in golf: I was so focused. About the only other thing I remember is I was in one of those really great moods, and those didn’t come along often enough.”

“The only other time I probably played as well, at least when it came to hitting fairways and greens and really controlling my ball and my patience, was a couple of those runner-up finishes at Augusta (National).’’

Ah, yes, Weiskopf, who has mellowed considerably since turning 68, won 16 times on the PGA Tour and five times on the Champions. His biggest thrill came in 1973 when he captured the British Open at Troon. But he is probably best known for his dubious distinction of just missing the green jacket a record four times, with two of those runner-up finishes being to Nicklaus. He also was a runner-up in the 1976 U.S. Open to Jerry Pate at the Atlanta Athletic Club.

Weiskopf, who like Nicklaus grew up in Ohio and was an All-American for the Buckeyes, said beating Nicklaus in the U.S. Senior Open was special. But he also didn’t attach a lot of significance to the win affecting their rivalry.

“I think the thing I remember most about the Senior Open at Congressional is that I kind of knew I was going to win it right from the get-go. I was playing good,’’ said Weiskopf, who splits his time these days between Arizona and Bozeman, Montana. “Plus, I had practiced prior to the tournament, and I NEVER practiced for most of my senior career.

“I guess I remember Jack finished second, but I don’t remember by how many strokes. Considering it was Jack that I beat, heck that was good enough because it didn’t happen very often.’’

So who is Weiskopf’s pick to win the national championship at Congressional this week?

“Oh, probably somebody like an Ernie Els,’’ he said of the guy who edged Colin Montgomerie by a stroke in ’97 after Scottsdale’s Tom Lehman had self-destructed on the 71st hole with a 7-iron into the water.

“A player who hits it long and high and can really work the ball around the corners. That’s your winner.’’

In other words, a player who has the skills that Tom Weiskopf once did.

Read Bill’s other posts at Huff’s Stuff AZGA Arizona Golf Blog at the Arizona Golf Authority