The Clubhouse

FOOL ME ONCE: Rory McIlroy and one of his sponsors, Spanish banking giant Santander, have come up with a new promotion - The Santander Trick Shot Challenge. The goal is to try and mimic Rory’s rather unique over-the-head trick shot or upload one of your own for the chance to win prizes which include meeting McIlroy himself.

While McIlroy is shown hitting the ball to within 10-feet of the hole, it was only through the “magic of television” that the shot was made possible.

“I did hit it back over my head, just not so close to the pin," he told the Daily Mail’s Derek Lawrenson with a chuckle.

The trick shot is reminiscent of one attempted by Phil Mickelson, which was featured in this advert for his first (and only) golf instructional video, "Secrets of the Short Game”.

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HEY BIG SPENDER: It’s been two months since Bill Haas cashed a cheque for $11-million for winning the FedEx Cup title and the Tour Championship. But he admits winning such a large sum of money hasn’t changed him or his lifestyle.

“I can't wrap my arms around that figure,” he said. “It's not something that you ever plan on happening. It's an attempt at winning the lottery.”

“I haven't bought anything fun since. I have all these ideas, but I'm going to try not to make a dumb, quick purchase I guess.”

Haas added that he and his wife had already begun building a new house but says the extra money hasn’t altered those plans.

“We were going to do it whether I won that or not. And we hadn't changed the plan since. I don't need a big house. I don't need anything extravagant.”

One thing he will do is finally take his wife on a honeymoon. The couple were married in June but golf, the FedEx playoffs, a trip to China, the Presidents Cup and this week’s Chevron Challenge all played a part in delaying the romantic getaway.

“Seems the better you play the less off season you have,” Haas said. “You get in the Presidents Cup and going to play in Australia and China and playing [Chevron]. These are all good problems to have.”

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ON THE COMEBACK: Six years ago, Michael Campbell held off a late charge from Tiger Woods to win the U.S. Open. Duuring his charge to the championship, politicians in his native New Zealand suspended partliament just so they could watch on television. Recently, his feat was ranked No. 14 on a list of Top 100 New Zealand sporting moments.

Since that time, Campbell’s fall from the top has been meteoric - 71 missed cuts or more than half of the tournaments he’s played on the European Tour since his Open victory and no top 10 resutls since September of 2008. It’s no wonder then that Campbell recently admitted he came close to quitting golf a year ago.

However, the personable New Zealander says he’s found fresh confidence under a new coach Gary Edwin of Australia.

“I can't imagine not playing golf,” said Campbell, who has seen his world rankings slump to 731 since his 2005 U.S. Open win. “I considered giving up and asked myself if I still wanted to win? I slept on it and the answer was yes I do.”

“I love it so much. I love competing. I love winning golf tournaments. If I felt I could not compete or win again, I would throw it away. Deep down inside I am not a quitter. For me personally I am not ready yet.”

Campbell said Edwin had helped to change his outlook over the past year, reviving his self belief after a long period of high scores and missed cuts.

“Changing coaches to Gary Edwin has made a big difference,” he said. “It has been a year with him now. It's been a roller-coaster year but I'm patient.

“At one stage before my time with Gary I couldn't see myself winning. There was no way I could visualize myself holding a trophy a year ago but now I can.”

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THE WINNER IS...: Congratulations to Fox Harb’r Golf Resort and Spa which picked up the Business of the Year Award from the Tourism Industry Association of Nova Scotia. Last month, the resort was ranked the top Canadian resort and No. 16 on Golf Digest’s Top 75 Best Golf Resorts in North America and the Caribbean.

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LEAST LIKED: GQ magazine has come out with its list of “The 25 Least Influential People Alive” and making the grade at No. 8 was caddie Steve Williams.

“Tiger Woods's ex-caddie, a man who makes a living by carrying another man's golf bag, took a moment after a tournament won by his new boss to steal the limelight, blast his former boss, and act as if anyone anywhere gives a s**t about caddies,” wrote Drew Magary, the author of the piece. “YOU WON NOTHING, YOU BAG APE. There's nothing worse than a profoundly inessential person who's deluded himself into thinking he's the opposite.”

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FINAL WORD

"The stage is a marathon [six rounds]. You have to realize that you can't win it on the first day or the fourth day. The keys will be to avoid making big numbers and then taking advantage of the birdie opportunities. With 108 holes to be played, there will be plenty of opportunities to make birdies.'' - Canadian Stuart Anderson, attending his first PGA Tour Q-school final stage this week.

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Files from the Associated Press were used in this report