Davis And His Co-Captain Begin Arduous Task Of Selecting Just The Right Golf Bag

Edgar Thompson reports on Davis Love's visit to Palm Beach Gardens and PGA headquarters to kick off his Ryder Cup captaincy. Or, his and hers captaincy.

Love and his wife, Robin, met with PGA officials to begin the exhaustive planning process that will lead all the way up to the 2012 matches at Chicago's Medinah Country Club.

"I'm really excited about this day because this really launches Robin's and my captaincy," Love said.

"We have to start making decisions on what the bags are going to look like."

Just keep an eye out for any extra stitching.

Brandel Expands On His Tiger Critique

I've never thought Brandel Chamblee's critiques were anything but well thought out and carefully considered, so I'm a little surprised he had to pen this defense of his comments during the Golf Channel Powered By Dick Ebersol "State of the Game" criticism of Tiger's swing changes.

As for the negativity, in some cases I’m guilty as charged. I cannot as an analyst find reason to compliment a player who abandons proven methods for more pedestrian ones. What if he is ultimately successful in his endeavors to change his swing and win majors? He would end up right where he started, at the cost of time, which is every athlete’s most valuable commodity. Furthermore, it would have cost him considerable wear on a body that has not aged well. All of this makes me question whether it is one of the most confusing things we have seen in golf.

Clearly he hasn't watched the homeless golfer wrist-slasher of a reality show on his own network!

Rory Riffs On Tiger; Where Was Chubby's Red Pen?

Okay, we're not in Stephen Ames territory quite yet, but you do have to wonder what Rory McIlroy thinks there is to gain from these comments about Tiger in a self-bylined golf.com item that appears in this week's SI Golf Plus special issue.

I wasn't playing against Tiger Woods when he had that aura. I was watching on TV! I remember getting nervous when I first met him. I was 15. There was a presence about him. There still is to some extent, but when you're on the golf course you simply block it out. But Tiger is not playing as well as he was even a couple of years ago, never mind going back to the late 1990s and early 2000s, when he was at his best. I'm not sure we are going to see him dominate again the way he did. He never seemed like he would make a mistake.

Okay, that was edgy but at least that's the...oh there's more.

It's not that he's playing badly. He's simply playing badly by Tiger's standards. He's playing like an ordinary golfer. People expect more of him because of what he has achieved. As much as I would love to have the success that Tiger has had on the golf course, I wouldn't want to live his life. He has made the same mistakes as any footballer, or NBA or NFL player. Tiger is obviously different from the rest of us because he is a bit of a rock star. But he can't really take his kids to the cinema. It's a tough life because of what he has done and what he represents, being the first African-American golfer to break down the barriers.

Why didn't Rory's ten-percenter, Chubby Chandler, turn into Ben Bradlee on this one? Or do they just not ever anticipate having to face Tiger in contention anymore and enjoy beating the lad while he's down?

Or...maybe this was just a ploy to bury the real lede: Rory writing that The Players has lost its luster moving to May!

"I’ve played a lot of great golf courses in a lot of different places and I’ve never played one like this."

That's Howard Ward's reaction to seeing the revitalized Pinehurst No. 2. And that reaction is precisely what had been lost over the decades.

Heritage Classic Status Moves To DEFCON Three

Is this any way to treat an old, loyal friend?

PGA Tour vice president Ty Votaw says it is “imperative” for the tournament to secure a replacement sponsor to keep the tournament at Harbour Town Golf Links for 2012 and beyond.

"The WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship is leaving Tucson. What do the French say? Fait accompli? Yes, in any language, it is terminal here."

That's the Arizona Daily Star's Greg Hansen on the prospects of the match play's return to Tucson after next year's event.

Wade Dunagan, the executive director of the last three Match Play events, will be the first to go. The PGA will appoint new leadership soon, and the tournament itself will follow, probably after the last putt drops in February 2012.

If it doesn't make it for another year, it will be a surprise, but pro golf is full of surprises. Who could have ever predicted that Tiger Woods would be eliminated at Dove Mountain by the likes of Thomas Bjorn, Nick O'Hern and Tim Clark?

At this stage, it's fluid. Anything goes.

This would be a good place to insert some perspective, some damage control, from Finchem and the tour, but he was not made available for comment in the days he spent at the Ritz-Carlton. You pick the appropriate term: This type of treatment for a city that has played host to the PGA Tour since 1945 is (a) insulting, (b) arrogant or (c) bad business.

Yes. Yes. Yes.

Hansen was kind to not point out that Dove Mountain was a Finchem/Nicklaus vision that was doomed from the start because of its location and the always fatal awarding of a tournament to a course that hasn't been played yet.

Donald Wins Golf's Fifth Major!

Yep, this week was that good in terms of quality play, compelling match-ups and result. The new world No. 1 lost to a consistent, if sometimes frustratingly talented Englishman. But Donald played superior golf all five days, eliminating the supposed fluky nature of running into a buzzsaw. (And it's worth noting that the other two semi-finalists have been playing at an elite level over the last year.)

Sure, the course is dreadful in terms of producing atmosphere and risk-reward situations, but it's not so horrid that it gets in the way of quality play.

From a fan's perspective, the match play has never been better. In terms of daily must-see golf with an interactive twist for fans (nice going Golfweek!), every day was must-see TV. It didn't hurt that there was a fun mix of storylines and a little controversy. Shoot, the match play is my fifth major! Check that, the PGA Championship is in serious decline. The match play's better!

More importantly, how did you do in your Golfweek bracket? I had Kaymer, but my dismal early week performance would not have been enough to overcome had he won.