Tag: arizona golf courses

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

The last time Jin Song went this far into the Arizona Amateur’s bracket of 64 players, he was just like his future teammate, David Lowe – an 18-year-old fresh out of high school kid just two weeks away from going to Arizona State.

But here it is three years later, and there’s Song again in the quarterfinals of this major championship sponsored by the Arizona Golf Association. And there’s Lowe, too, trying to do his best imitation of Song, who won the 2008 AZ Am.

“Yeah, it feels a little different this time around,’’ said Song after winning two tough matches on Thursday at the Country Club at DC Ranch, the toughest being a 2-and-1 win over veteran Chris Kessler of Scottsdale.

“I was just a kid when I won at Troon Country Club and I’m a little older now and, hopefully, a better player. But the one thing that stays the same is that, when you get past the first round, everybody’s playing good so you’ve got to be at your best.’’

That’s where Lowe is right now, as the Scottsdale teenager took down his two opponents with relative ease on a hot, muggy day.

“Actually both of my matches were against solid players, but thankfully my lag putting was spectacular and I didn’t beat myself,’’ said Lowe, an 18-year-old who played for Brophy Prep and already is wearing Sun Devil garb.

Asked what his secret has been this week, Lowe showed why he’ll be living in the Barrett Honors College dorm this season, although he gave all the credit to his dad, Allen, who doubles as his caddie.

“My dad and I kind of talked about it, and in match play you want to make the other guy beat you; don’t beat yourself. And that’s kind of what I’ve been able to do, play solid, don’t make bogeys, and make the other guy beat me.’’

Because they are in the same bracket, it’s possible that Song and Lowe could meet in the semifinals after a third ASU freshman, Austin Quick, was eliminated. That would be just fine with Lowe, although. . . .

“A win is never that great over a teammate,’’ he said. “At the same time, this would be a great tournament to win and maybe get some momentum going into college.’’

Certainly it would be a big bonus for his new coach, as ASU’s Tim Mickelson has been a more than casual spectator at the Amateur throughout the week.

But if you’re looking for the inside favorite, don’t look past veteran Michael Wog, who was the AGA’s player of the year in 2009 and would like nothing more than to add the Amateur to his resume after coming close on several occasions.

“So I’m the old guy, ‘the veteran,’ ‘’ chuckled the 29-year-old Scottsdale resident, who pulled off a brilliant, 2-and-1 win over Quick, to play another day.

“I guess I just keep sneakin’ them out, huh? Well, they’ve all been really tough, and (Quick) was the toughest. He’s a very good, solid player. I mean, most kids his age can’t hit a fade the way he does, and he hits it with total control.’’

How good is Quick? In his morning match, when he eliminated the sensational Peter Kyo Won Koo of Chandler, the 15-year-old who earlier this year captured the Arizona State Stroke Play Championship, Quick shot 28 on the front nine with five birdies and an eagle from the fairway at No. 9. That led to possibly the best quote of the week, and it came from Koo.

Asked how he played, Koo shrugged his shoulders: “Well, I was two-under and 5-down after nine holes. And believe it or not, that was with him making a bogey (at No. 2).’’

But that’s match play, said No. 1 seed Adam Walicki, a former pro from Scottsdale who got his amateur status back last year.

“At this stage, you can’t just play well, you have to play great,’’ said Walicki, who just slipped past another former pro, Mark Bellhorn, 1-up, to reach his next big challenge — Song.

“I mean I had to eagle the 17th hole just to win my second match, and that just got me back to even par after playing my first match 3 or 4 under.’’

Asked if being the No. 1 seed was a boon or a bane, Walicki shook his head and laughed.

“I don’t think when you get to this part of the tournament you’re really going to intimidate anybody by being the No. 1 seed,’’ he reasoned. “The only way I’m going to get an easy match is if somebody falls out of bed and gets hurt.’’

Yes, you just never know what each day will bring in mano y mano, or who will be the next big thing. Like little Zachary Sardina of Goodyear, the No. 63 seed who is alive and kicking after holding off AGA points leader Camron Howell, 1-up.

“I’m hanging in there,’’ said the 18-year-old Sardina, who is on his way to Scottsdale Community College this fall. “I think I’m handling adversity really well.’’

Asked if he’s surprised he’s made it this far, Sardina kept it real: “Honestly, I am. I knew I had some potential, but to pull it off, well, yeah, it’s surprising.’’

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

Zachary Sardina, an 18-year-old from Goodyear, was well aware of the challenge he faced Wednesday as the No. 63 seed in the 64-player bracket of the Arizona Amateur. After all, he was pitted against Sierra Vista’s Colin McCarty, the No. 2 seed and a very good player headed to Southern Illinois-Edwardsville this fall.

Then came the 18th hole at the Country Club at DC Ranch, with the match surprisingly all-square and both players putting for birdie – Sardina from 20 feet with McCarty just inside of him.

“I knew I was the underdog, but I was just trying to stay patient, hang in there and overcome my mistakes while hoping he might make a couple (of mistakes),’’ said Sardina, who didn’t take up golf until he was a sophomore at Millennium High School.

“When my putt went in for birdie, I was so excited that I did my little Tiger Woods fist pump. But I still wasn’t convinced I’d won the match because I kind of thought he might make his putt, too. When it didn’t go in, I was actually kind of shocked.’’

Sardina’s 1-up “shocker’’ over McCarty, who also is 18 years old, was the biggest upset posted among the 32 matches that unfolded in Round 1. Not only does it show the depth of this major championship sponsored by the Arizona Golf Association, it also revealed a rising talent in Sardina, who will play golf for Scottsdale Community College this fall.

“I’ve had a lot of runner-up finishes in junior golf but never a win, so this was a big step for me,’’ said Sardina, who was 2-down after three holes, evened the match after nine holes, trailed 2-down after 14 holes only to rally back and win the 15th and 17th holes with pars.

The other top seed in this event, No. 1 Adam Walicki, easily moved past his opponent Steven Ortiz, 4 and 3. Walicki, a stockbroker from Scottsdale, was medalist with a 7-under-par aggregate to earn the top spot.

In the day’s longest match, Chandler’s Peter Kyo Won Koo upended Grand Canyon University sophomore Alec Dahlquist in 23 holes. Koo, a 15-year-old who earlier in the year captured the Arizona State Stroke Championship, was 3-up after 15 holes, lost the last three holes and then prevailed on the fifth extra hole.

The shot of the day went to Mesa’s Robbie Kernagis, who made a hole-in-one from 174 yards at No. 5 that proved pivotal in his 2-and-1 win over the University of Arizona’s Tom Conran.

The most impressive victory of the opening round, in terms of score, was Juan Fernandez’s 7-and-6 drubbing of Matt McClure. Fernandez, who was the No. 1 player for Scottsdale Community College the past two seasons, never trailed in the match.

“I played pretty good and he didn’t play so well; it was a combination of both,’’ said Fernandez, 21, whose four birdies and lone bogey were good enough.

“He gave me one at the third hole, where he four-putted, then I was 2-up after six, won the seventh with a par, and birdied (Nos.) 8, 9 and 10 to go 6-up. I made a par at the 12th to win the match. I think the real key for me is I haven’t had a three-putt since Monday, so I’ve been able to figure out the speed of these greens.’’

Fernandez, who is from Mexico City but spent over half of his life in Spain, said he had wanted to play for either Arizona State or Washington this fall but couldn’t get a scholarship. So after the Arizona Amateur, he plans to turn pro.

“If I could win this, that would be a great good-bye to amateur golf,’’ he said.

Among the other notables to advance, all three Arizona State players – No. 9 Jin Song, No. 21 David Lowe and No. 43 Austin Quick – advanced. Song and Lowe each won, 3 and 2, while Quick squeaked out a 2-and-1 win.

Among the veterans (translated: not kids) who made the match play, Tucson’s Patrick Geare emerged from a hard-fought, 2-and-1 win over Mesa’s Steve Dallas; Phoenix’s Jeff Johnson ousted Paul Welle of Scottsdale, 2 and 1; and AGA points leader Camron Howell of Queen Creek beat Anthem’s Gary Quinn, 4 and 2.

The 87th Arizona Amateur continues Thursday with two rounds of play before getting down to the quarterfinals and semifinals on Friday. The championship match is set for Saturday at 7:30 a.m.

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

In recent times the Arizona Amateur has been ruled by college players, with the past seven champions falling into that age-group category.

This year’s version is so heavy with collegians that even a coach from a major university showed up for the first two rounds of qualifying at the Country Club at DC Ranch. Yes, Tim Mickelson, the new guy at Arizona State who just moved into his office on Tuesday, has been “a very interested spectator.’’

“It’s been great to have the opportunity to watch a few of my future ASU players and all of this young talent,’’ said Mickelson, the former University of San Diego coach who just got the Sun Devils’ job last month.

“I’ve been pleasantly surprised the way Jin Song is playing in this tournament along with several of my incoming freshmen. And if they keep going like they’re going, I plan to show up later in the week, too.’’

For the moment, Scottsdale’s Adam Walicki, a former pro who got his amateur status back just last year, is the No. 1 seed for the match play portion of this major championship, which starts Wednesday and concludes Saturday morning. Walicki, who played college golf for Michigan State and the University of Detroit, shot rounds of 66-67 to finish all alone at 7-under par.

“I guess with all these kids, I’m now officially the old fart in all of this,’’ quipped the 31-year-old stockbroker, whose only bad swing in Round 2 cost him a double bogey that he offset with five birdies.

Asked if he liked match play, Walicki, who played on the Gateway Tour in 2005, never missed a beat.

“No, and I have the record to back me up on that. But I’m willing to take a different approach if that’s what it takes. Most people I know who have had success in that format ignored their opponent and played the course, and I guess that’s what I’ll try to do when we get going tomorrow.’’

Being a wily veteran, Walicki knows that he’ll have to go through a bunch of kids if he’s going to make Saturday’s championship match. That list starts with Colin McCarty, an 18-year-old from Sierra Vista who is bound for Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville. McCarty was at 6 under following a 66.

In a group tied for third place at 5 under were Juan Fernandez, the No. 1 player at Scottsdale Community College the past two years who also shot 66, and Nevada Reno’s Andrew Augustyniak, a sophomore who soon will turn pro as evidenced by his day’s best score of 65.

Song, who Mickelson alluded to, is in a group at 4 under after following his opening 65 with a 71. Other Sun Devils to make the match play included two freshman from Scottsdale — David Lowe (even par, 72) and Austin Quick (3 over, 70). A fourth incoming freshman from Scottsdale, Cameron Palmer, was 3 over for the tournament with nine holes to play before self-destructing with a 42 on his last nine holes.

The Sun Devils weren’t the only team that earned spots in the match-play bracket of 64 players. Two out of five Wildcats entered here also advanced, including Tom Conran (2 under, 68) and Dylan Kornberg (1 over, 70).

Other notables in the match play included Scottsdale’s Michael Wog, the 2009 AGA Player of the Year, who was tied for third at 5 under after a 69; Phoenix’s Paul Welle, the 2008 AGA Player of the Year with a 73 that left him 1 over; and Peter Kyo Won Koo, the 15-year-old from Chandler who earlier this year captured the Arizona State Stroke Play title and was 4 over after a 73.

It took an aggregate of 5 over to make the match-play bracket, with nine players going after seven spots. The final four days of the 87th Arizona Amateur include 32 matches on Wednesday, two rounds on Thursday, the quarterfinals and semifinals on Friday with the championship set for a 7:30 a.m. start on Saturday.

Click Huff’s Stuff Golf Blog at the Arizona Golf Authority and check out Bill Huffman’s complete golf articles archive.

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