"I did my good deed for the day"

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Robbyn Brooks reports on a pretty amazing bit of heroism by Reggata Bay superintendent Doug Higgins, who pulled a woman to safety after her car plunged into water near the 16th hole.

"I was on the 16th hole and I could hear tires squealing," said Doug Higgins who had been making his morning rounds on a golf cart.

Higgins continued to drive toward U.S. Highway 98 where he thought the wreck was when he noticed a black Toyota Camry in the water.

"She was in the middle of the water," Higgins said. "She had her window down, but she was elderly and kind of out of it. She didn't try to get out."

Higgins had called 9-1-1 and could hear sirens in the distance, but the car was sinking rapidly. The woman rolled up her window instead of climbing out. That's when Higgins said he ditched his shoes and wallet and jumped in the water.

"The front door was too far in the water. I couldn't get it open," Higgins recalled. "I was beating on the glass saying, ‘Unlock your doors. Unlock your doors.' "

Higgins watched until the lock moved and then began to force the back door of the car open. The pressure was so great that water rushed in as he pried it.

"I got her seatbelt off and pulled her over the seat and to shore," Higgins said.

"The LPGA has long been fan-friendly."

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Alan Shipnuck on the LPGA event at Papago last week:

At Papago an autograph booth was set up behind the 18th green, and even the most high-profile players signed until their fingers were numb, repeatedly thanking fans for waiting in line. Throw in reasonable pricing — a one-day pass in Phoenix cost $16 — and it's no accident that attendance was up by 24% through the first four tournaments of this year. Michelle Wie's presence had given the LPGA more than a little box-office appeal. Last Saturday, Wie had dew-sweeping duty as the third time off, at 7:56 a.m., but about 300 fans turned up to follow her, and the Wie group was chaperoned by four armed Phoenix cops.

Tiger Deserves 4.9 Million Shares In NBC/Universal For Single Handedly Saving Them Sunday

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Not that those shares would get his attention, but hey, it's a gesture for making the putt and averting a disastrous Monday playoff.

From the PR folks at NBC/Universal/GE/Sheinhardt Wigs (that's for all 3 of you fellow 30 Rock watchers).

Woods Sixth Title at Bay Hill Scores Highest Event Rating in 7 Years & 23% Increase Over Last Year

NEW YORK – March 30, 2009 - NBC Sports' final round coverage of the Arnold Palmer Invitational yesterday (2:30-8 p.m. ET), which stretched into primetime, earned the best overnight rating for a golf event since the 2008 U.S. Open and the highest for any PGA TOUR event (excludes major championships) in more than two years (Jan. 28, 2007, Buick Invitational) according to Nielsen Media Research. The 4.9 overnight rating and 10 share was the best for the final round of Bay Hill in seven years (2002 - 5.7/11, Woods victory) and an increase of 23 percent over last year (4.0/9) which Woods also won with a birdie putt on the final hole.

The rating peaked at a 7.8/13 from 7:30-8 p.m. ET as Tiger Woods secured the one-shot victory with a birdie putt on the 18th hole as the sun was setting, his sixth Bay Hill title and first since last year’s historic U.S. Open victory.

The Bay Hill rating outperformed two of last year’s major championships: 48 percent higher than the final round of the British Open (3.3) and 75 percent greater than the final round of the PGA Championship (2.8).

Saturday’s third round coverage on NBC delivered a 2.7/6, 17% higher than last year (2.3/6).

Top metered markets for Sunday’s final round coverage of the Arnold Palmer Invitational on NBC are as follows:
1. Fort Myers, 11.6/20
2. Orlando, 10.6/20
3. West Palm Beach, 8.8/15
4. Tampa, 7.6/15
5. Providence, 7.4/12
6. Buffalo, 7.1/13
7 Milwaukee, 6.9/13
T8. Minneapolis, 6.4/14
T8. Baltimore, 6.4/11
10. Cleveland, 6.1/11