ClubLink has announced it has acquired TPC Eagle Trace in Coral Springs, Florida for (US)$3.4 million. It now owns a total of 12 18-hole equivalent championship and two 18-hole equivalent academy courses in the state of Florida.

In the Fort Lauderdale area, in addition to TPC Eagle Trace, ClubLink owns the 54-hole Palm Aire Country Club, the 36-hole Woodlands Country Club and Heron Bay Golf Club. ClubLink made its initial foray into Florida in 2010, when it acquired five 18-hole equivalent championship courses and two 18-hole equivalent academy courses in Sun City Center, south of Tampa.

In total, ClubLink now owns or operates 53.5 18-hole championship and six 18-hole equivalent academy courses in Florida, Ontario and Quebec.

“The acquisition of this prestigious golf club demonstrates our commitment to providing our more than 20,000 members in Florida, Ontario and Quebec the opportunity to truly experience ‘One Membership, More Golf,’” said ClubLink President and CEO Rai Sahi. “Since our founding in 1993, that has been our unique business model and one that continues to be very successful.”

Opened in 1983 as the first member club in the PGA TOUR’s Tournament Players Club network, TPC Eagle Trace is an Arthur Hills design. Home to the PGA TOUR’s Honda Classic for nine years, TPC Eagle Trace is the centrepiece of a luxury gated community of approximately 900 homes.

Graham DeLaet swings into 2014 with Puma Golf

Canada’s top PGA TOUR golfer has signed with Puma Golf.

Graham DeLaet garnered national and international notoriety in 2013 for his steady play and ascent in the world rankings. His top performances in 2013 included a second place finish at The Barclays, taking third at the Travelers and Deutsche Bank Championships, and 12 more Top 25 finishes. DeLaet ended the 2013 year ranked 36 in the world.

The Weyburn, Sask. native will kick off the 2014 season at the Farmers Insurance Open January 23, 2014. This will mark the first tournament during which he will hit the course fully suited in PUMA Golf apparel, accessories and headwear. Showing true patriotism, DeLaet will play in Canada’s national colors – red and white – every Sunday on Tour.

“PUMA Golf is a great fit for me and I couldn’t be more excited to be part of the team,” said DeLaet. “I have always been a fan of the brand and the innovative combination of function and fashion they bring to the game.”

“Graham DeLaet is a perfect fit for the PUMA Golf team,” said Bob Philion, president of COBRA PUMA GOLF. “He is a world class performer who brings a fresh look to the course, making him the perfect representation of the style and performance blend that PUMA Golf embraces. We
are excited to support Graham as he continues his success on Tour and embodies the PUMA Golf energy on and off the course.”

DeLaet’s caddie, Julien Trudeau – a native of Montreal and runner up at Big Break Ireland – will also be sporing PUMA apparel and footwear.

Adams Golf Signs Four-Time Major Champion Ernie Els

Adams Golf has signed four-time major champion Ernie Els to a multi-year agreement where he will use a range of the company’s products and showcase the brand’s logo on his bag and headwear.

Owner of two U.S. Open and two Open Championship titles, Els was enshrined in the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2011. His 70 professional global victories include two World Golf Championships and a record seven World Match Play Championship crowns. The former world No.1 has triumphed in tournaments in South Africa, Europe, United States, Asia, Far East, Middle East and Australasia.

“’The Big Easy’ is one of the most prolific winners of his generation and a natural match for Adams, with our philosophy of creating the easiest to hit golf equipment,” said John Ward, Adams Golf President. “Ernie’s worldwide appeal and iconic status fit our international business growth as we extend our stronghold in hybrids to other categories.”

Adams recently re-introduced the legendary Tight Lies fairway wood with great fanfare. It features the classic revolutionary club design, combined with today’s technology, making it easy-to-hit from any lie. A tri-level sole design reduces the amount of turf interaction to create a larger impact area below the ball and promote crisper contact and more optimal launch.

KAPALUA, Hawaii – Brandt Snedeker starts a new year in golf with hopes of avoiding an old problem – staying healthy.

The Tournament of Champions, which starts Friday, is his first event since a freak accident in Shanghai two months ago. Snedeker was on a Segway scooter during a corporate outing at Sheshan International when he took a tumble and injured his left knee.

“I had been on one all day in this pro-am,” Snedeker said Wednesday. “I was going down the last hole, seeing how fast I could get it going. I hit a sprinkler head, lost control a little bit and jumped off. I landed on my knee and my knee popped.”

He feared he had torn his anterior cruciate ligament. Just his luck, he only suffered a small tear, along with a cracked tibia and a deep bone bruise. It was enough to keep him out of the Australian PGA, World Challenge in California and the Franklin Templeton Shootout in Florida. Harris English replaced him as Matt Kuchar’s partner in the Shootout, and they went on to win.

Snedeker said the knee feels good, though the real test starts Friday.

He spent last week playing at Hideaway in the California desert, walking 18 holes a day and carrying his own bag. The good news at Kapalua is that he has his caddie. Not so good is that the Plantation Course was built on the side of a mountain, featuring some of the steepest climbs he’ll face all year.

“I’ve had a few aches and pains of playing again, but nothing that concerns me,” Snedeker said. “The only thing I’m worried about is walking 18 holes here. Palm Springs is dead flag. Walking this golf course is a little different.”

And the last time the six-time PGA Tour winner carried his own bag?

“It’s funny, I got into this routine of doing it after injuries,” Snedeker said.

Not so funny is that it has become a routine. In his seven years on tour, Snedeker has had surgery on both hips to correct a degenerative problem. He missed the 2012 U.S. Open because of a rib injury. After one of the hottest stretches of last year – second to Tiger Woods at Torrey Pines, second to Phil Mickelson in Phoenix and then a victory at Pebble Beach – Snedeker had recurring problems with his ribs and missed the next month.

Snedeker said his rookie season was his only injury-free year.

“It’s very concerning,” he said. “I don’t consider myself that, but the evidence bears out that I am injury-prone. Over the course of your career, you’re going to have injuries. I’m hoping all mine are in a five-year stretch.”

He’s been taking medication and paying close attention to his diet to stay on top of his fitness, but just like most people, Snedeker will stray on occasion.

“You get healthy and you forget about it,” he said. “You get injured and you start worrying. I’m no different from anyone else.”

Now, he can hope that’s all behind him. Snedeker believes the best part of his career is ahead of him, and he’s excited about the major championship venues, with Pinehurst No. 2 among his favourite course in America. He was tied with Angel Cabrera going into the final round of the Masters last year, and he has come to love links golf at the British Open, with strong showings the last two years.

His biggest goal for 2014?

“I’m looking forward to playing an injury-free year,” the 2013 RBC Canadian Open champion said with a grin.

KAPALUA, Hawaii – Rory McIlroy is claiming his first win of the new year – his engagement to tennis star Caroline Wozniacki.

One of the top power couples in sports announced their engagement Tuesday night on Twitter, which was Wednesday morning in Australia. A spokesman for McIlroy confirmed he popped the question in Sydney, where Wozniacki is starting to prepare for the Australian Open in Melbourne.

“Happy New Year everyone! I have a feeling it’s going to be a great year!! My first victory of 2014,” McIlroy tweeted. He added a hash tag, “She said yes!!” Wozniacki sent out a similar tweet a few minutes earlier that said, “Happy New Year everyone! Rory and I started 2014 with a bang! … I said YES!!!!”

They included a collage of three photos – her engagement ring, a photo of them together and fireworks over the Sydney Harbor.

Happy New Year everyone! I have a feeling it’s going to be a great year!! My first victory of 2014 #shesaidyes!! pic.twitter.com/gxO7rDDyPY

— Rory Mcilroy (@McIlroyRory) December 31, 2013

That should put to rest two reports out of Ireland at different times this year that they were splitting up. One of those reports was in August, even though McIlroy and Wozniacki had dinner in New York the following night ahead of the U.S. Open in tennis.

They first began to see each other in the summer of 2011, shortly after McIlroy won his first major with a record-setting performance in the U.S. Open at Congressional. They confirmed they were dating a few months later, and they were never shy about sharing their relationship on social media.

He changed his avatar on Twitter of the couple when Wozniacki was No. 1 and McIlroy was No. 2. That changed within six months, when McIlroy first ascended to No. 1 in the world and Wozniacki began a steady decline down the WTA ranking. She now is No. 10, while McIlroy goes into the 2014 season at No. 6.

McIlroy is coming off a rough season in which he failed to meet enormous expectations while changing golf equipment. He also left his management company in a nasty split that is to be settled next year in an Irish court. The 24-year-old from Northern Ireland did not win a tournament until the Australian Open in December.

It was his first year of serious criticism, and McIlroy said it only got to him when it involved his personal life.

“I don’t care what people say about my golf,” he said. “It’s when people start digging into my personal life, that’s where it starts to annoy you – whether it’s Caroline, whether it’s management, all that stuff shouldn’t be a consequence to how I play my golf.”

When he was asked jokingly whether they broke up five or six times this year, McIlroy gave a hearty laugh and said, “Something like that.”

Wozniacki joined him at the World Challenge in California, and then they headed to south Florida and his new home for the first part of the holidays. He later when to Northern Ireland before heading Down Under.

Tweets of congratulations about their engagement began pouring in from Graeme McDowell, Ian Poulter and Francesco Molinari.

McIlroy makes his 2014 debut on Jan. 16-19 in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship.

KAPALUA, Hawaii – Four years later, the words of Jack Nicklaus resonate even louder.

“If Tiger is going to pass my record, this is a big year for him in that regard,” Nicklaus said at the start of 2010.

Nicklaus was referring to his record 18 majors, and the major championship venues that favoured Woods – Augusta National, Pebble Beach and St. Andrews, all courses where he had won before. Woods never had a serious chance on the back nine of any major that year. His tally remains at 14.

And that makes 2014 even bigger.

Woods is facing another favourable menu of major championship sites. He already has won majors at Augusta, Royal Liverpool (British Open) and Valhalla (PGA Championship). The U.S. Open is at Pinehurst No. 2, were Woods was third in 1999 and runner-up in 2005.

“I’m trending in the right way,” Woods said recently. “I’ve finished third, second … you get the picture, right? OK.”

A new year begins Friday at the Tournament of Champions at Kapalua, and while Woods is among PGA Tour winners who chose to sit this one out, his performance in the majors this year figures to be a major topic of conversation over the next eight months.

“I always think that the Masters signals a lot with Tiger,” NBC analyst Johnny Miller said during a conference call. “If he doesn’t win the Masters, I think it gives a great, big ‘Uh-oh,’ because that course is so perfect for his game. I’ll leave it at that. But if he wants to get off on the right foot, I think he needs to get off at the Masters.”

There’s a big difference with Woods the last time he faced such a tantalizing rotation of majors.

Nicklaus spoke of a “big year” when Woods was more of a mystery than ever. No one had seen Woods in more than a month going into 2010 and didn’t even know where he was. His personal life at home, his mystique in golf and his appeal in the corporate world were crumbling in spectacular fashion.

Now, he is No. 1 in the world. He won five times last year against some of the strongest fields. He won the Vardon Trophy for the ninth time, the PGA Tour money title for the 10th time and was voted PGA Tour player of the year for the 11th time.

Still, there remains an uncertainty about Woods, mainly because he hasn’t won a major since 2008 and he hasn’t broken 70 on the weekend of any major since the 2011 Masters. That’s a startling statistic for a guy who has built a reputation as golf’s greatest closer.

“It’s getting much harder for Tiger because guys are not wilting on him,” Miller said. “So he’s got a double whammy in that he’s not able to close as well as he used to, and then the guys are more heroic against him like they never were before. … Guys are saying, ‘Yeah, you’re Tiger Woods and you’re the greatest ever, but now at your age, I can beat you.’ He needs to do it in the majors.”

Will familiar venues help?

Not necessarily.

Woods forever is linked with Augusta National because of his record score (270) and margin of victory (12 shots) in the 1997 Masters, his back-to-back wins (2001-02) and that magic moment with his chip on the 16th hole that led to his playoff win in 2005. But he has not added to his wardrobe of green jackets in eight years, his longest drought in any major. Who saw that coming?

And while he is trending in the right direction at Pinehurst No. 2, the Donald Ross design has gone through a restoration project that eliminated rough and replaced it with sandy dunes, pine straw and wire grass.

Woods won the 2006 British Open at Royal Liverpool when it was firm and fiery, a links that was more yellow than green because of a dry summer. Woods hit only one driver the entire week. It might not be the same course if England gets a wet summer – and yes, it does rain in England – and players see Hoylake green, lush and longer.

Valhalla is where Woods made what he considers the biggest putt of his career, a 6-footer on the final hole for birdie to force a playoff that he won over Bob May in the PGA Championship. It gave Woods his third straight major in that amazing summer of 2000.

If that seems like a long time ago, it was. Woods will not have seen Valhalla in 14 years when he returns this summer.

The best gauge of Woods and his pursuit of Nicklaus is more about him than the course he is playing. More than St. Andrews or Pebble Beach, more than Hoylake or Valhalla, it’s best to consider Southern Hills. That’s the course that supposedly gave Woods fits because of its tight, bending, tree-lined fairways. Woods won the 2007 PGA Championship that year, proof that when he’s on his game and in the right frame of mind, he can win any major on any course.

More significant than where the majors are played in 2014 is the fact Woods turned 38 on Monday.

By age alone, Woods has been ahead of Nicklaus’ pace in the majors since winning his seventh major in 2002 Masters at age 26. They are tied now. Nicklaus also had 14 majors when he turned 38, and then he added his 15th major that summer in the British Open.

That’s what makes this a big year for Woods.

KAPALUA, Hawaii – The Tournament of Champions has all the PGA Tour winners from the previous year, but that doesn’t translate into the strongest field. Only six of the top 20 at are Kapalua to start the new year, led by Masters champion Adam Scott at No. 2.

Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson are sitting this one out, as they have for years now. Henrik Stenson, Justin Rose and Graeme McDowell also stayed home because they are members of the PGA and European tours and played deep into 2013.

The field is a better reflection of just how hard it is getting to win on the PGA Tour.

The list of those who failed to qualify is nearly as impressive as those who did – Rory McIlroy, Steve Stricker and Sergio Garcia from the top 10 in the world, along with Jason Day, Ian Poulter, Luke Donald, Charl Schwartzel, Jim Furyk and Keegan Bradley to round out the top 20.

Also missing is Hunter Mahan, Bubba Watson and Nick Watney.

Only nine players who were in the field at Kapalua have returned this year, starting with defending champion Dustin Johnson.

This is worth keeping in mind going into a Ryder Cup year.

The strength of a team is not always who’s playing, but who is not. Europe was at its strongest in the mid-2000s when players like Rose, Poulter, Casey and Garcia were not locks to make the team. That led Colin Montgomerie to suggest that Europe was deep enough to field two teams.

To consider the strength of the Americans right now, consider the Presidents Cup three months ago. The team featured the usual suspects of Woods, Mickelson and Stricker. But look at who didn’t make that team – Furyk, Watson, Dustin Johnson.

That could shape up as one of the top story lines for 2014 as players try to make their respective Ryder Cup teams. It won’t be easy.

“You’ve got to look at 10 guys vying for seven spots,” McDowell said of Europe’s team. “There’s going to be two or three guys who miss – good players, quality players. I would assume (Captain Paul) McGinley’s wild cards are going to be very hotly contested. No doubt it’s going to be a tough team to get on.”
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THE KING PAYS TRIBUTE: In his final “State of the Game” published on Golf Channel’s website, Arnold Palmer offered poignant tributes to some of the golf personalities who died in 2013. He also wanted to set the record straight that Frank Stranahan had as much to do with invigorating the British Open as Palmer did.

The British Open didn’t always get the best players, mainly because it cost more money to get there than players made in the tournament. Palmer went over in 1960, having won the first two majors that year, and he won the claret jug in 1961 and 1962.

“I am often given credit for ”salvaging“ the British Open in the early 1960s,” Palmer wrote. “We can argue whether or not the game’s most historic championship really was in danger of sinking, but it is safe to say that after World War II, many American competitors simply found it easy and more profitable to compete here in the United States. Frank never quit on the Open. He continued to compete there on a regular basis, and finished second in 1947 and 1953.

“His devotion to the Open Championship is what inspired me to go over in 1960. I won the following year, and I’ve been credited ever since with ”saving“ the Open, but it was Frank who paved the way.”
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MILLER TIME: No other golf announcer gets under a player’s skin like Johnny Miller, who has developed his own style – and vocabulary – in his 20 years with NBC Sports. Could the two-time major champion take it as well as he can dish it out?

Miller will never know.

He said on a conference call leading to the Tournament of Champions that he played in a different era of TV commentary.

“In my era, nobody said anything but namby-pamby stuff,” Miller said. “Nobody ever said anything that would make you upset. As Dave Marr said, we were just gilding the road back then, just making everybody look good.”

Miller does believe in compliments. He’s not afraid to praise. But he believes golf is much bigger than it was in the 1970s, and viewership expects more.

“It’s not just a cute little sport, or an awesome game,” he said. “Now it’s sort of a world sport, and in the public view, they want more than, ‘That was a fantastic wedge shot 30 feet right of the hole.’ That’s not what they want to hear.

“I hate to say it, but I’m probably the guy that got announcing a little bit more real, sort of an ‘X Games’ type of announcer,” he said. “And sometimes I wish I wasn’t the way I am, but that’s the way I talk about my own game, so it’s just the way I viewed it. I wasn’t trying to rip anybody, but I have a high standard, and I feel like the best players in the world should perform. And if they don’t, I’m not going to just say, ‘Oh, that was a bad break’ or something.”
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GOLF CHANNEL ON RADIO: Golf Channel no longer will just be seen. Starting this year, it also will be heard.

Golf Channel is expanding to radio for the first time in a broadcast agreement with SiriusXM. Programming will start Monday on SiriusXM PGA Tour Radio (XM channel 93, Sirius channel 208).

The programming that will be featured on radio includes “Morning Drive” hosted by Gary Williams, which is a natural fit. When “Morning Drive” began, its studio looked like it was built for a radio talk show. The only problem was it could only be seen on television.

“Radio is a natural extension as Golf Channel continues to expand,” said Mike McCarley, president of Golf Channel.

SiriusXM already has beefed up its programming this year with shows hosted by the likes of Ian Poulter, Henrik Stenson and Ben Crenshaw.
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MR. CLUTCH: Jack Nicklaus is regarded as golf’s most clutch putter during his generation. That apparently included playing against his sons.

Jack Nicklaus II was asked recently if he could recall the first time he beat his father.

“I had a putt to beat him or Dad had a putt to miss or whatever, he seemed to always make it, and I seemed to always miss,” Jackie Nicklaus said. “Honestly, I don’t know if I recall the first time I beat him. It doesn’t happen very often. It still doesn’t happen very often.”

Nicklaus said all four of his sons have beaten him in casual games. But he never let them win.

“If I had a 30-foot putt to keep one of them from beating me, I probably made it,” Nicklaus said. “And the reason for that is that I’ve always felt like I don’t want to ever give them anything. If they’re going to beat me, they’ve got to beat me, and I think when you do that, then they feel like they’ve really earned it.”
___

DIVOTS: More than just PGA Tour winners are at Kapalua this week. In the days before tournament week starts, the Plantation Course featured Rory Sabbatini, Scott Piercy and Scott Verplank, all of whom are on Maui for vacation. Verplank is taking an exemption for career money and will make his first start next week in the Sony Open. He said he last played Waialae in 1987. … Ryo Ishikawa, who earned his PGA Tour card back through the Web.com Tour Finals, moved to the top of the priority ranking in the first reshuffle on the strength of a runner-up finish in Las Vegas. … The 30-man field at Kapalua includes 13 first-time winners.

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STAT OF THE WEEK: Tiger Woods is the only player to win the Tournament of Champions and a major in the same year since it moved to Kapalua in 1999.

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FINAL WORD: “It’s hard to predict golf. It was pretty easy to predict Tiger there for a while.” –  Johnny Miller.

ST. CATHARINES, Ontario – Former Golf Canada governor and Golf Association of Ontario past-president Harry J. Daniel passed away peacefully at his home Tuesday December 24 at the age of 82.

Daniel, who was actively involved with Golf Canada – formerly the Royal Canadian Golf Association – between 2007 and 2010, served as president of the Golf Association of Ontario in 2006 after a number of years as an active volunteer and board member. He was also a past president of the St Catharines Golf and Country Club.  He will be missed by the golf community in Ontario and across Canada.

Daniel was the loving husband of the late Dorothy Anne (2012), and beloved father of Scott and Janet, Glen and Michele, Blair and Meri Elen and Heather and Andrew Mitchell. Much loved Grandpa of Michael, Jason, Ryan, Alexa, Ava, Brooke and Jack. Dear brother of Bob and Sylvia Daniel. Harry practiced civil litigation in St. Catharines from 1960 to his retirement. He was bestowed the Queen’s Council and was a member of the American College of Trial Lawyers as well as being called to the New York State Bar.

The putt that Adam Scott thinks about most wasn’t the one that won him the Masters. The best shot Justin Rose hit at the U.S. Open didn’t even stay on the green.

The majors were filled with great shots, even if they didn’t produce the obvious outcome.

Scott’s putt on the 18th at Augusta National ultimately got him into a playoff when Angel Cabrera answered with a great birdie of his own. Rose’s 4-iron into the 18th at Merion ran off the back of the green into a collar. It was a relatively simple up-and-down from there, though such a great shot deserved better.

Every major has a signature shot. Some are easier to define than others.

And with every major champion, there is another shot that is just as pleasing to them, even if it doesn’t get as much attention:

THE MASTERS

The putt that made Scott the first Australian in a green jacket was a 12-footer for birdie on the second playoff hole at No. 10. Scott, however, believes the defining moment of this Masters was the 20-foot birdie putt he made on the 18th in regulation.

Adding to the significance of the putt was his reaction. Scott, the image of GQ, transformed into WWF as he screamed with all his might, “C’mon, Aussie!”

“No matter what I do in my career from now on, I think it’s going to be the one I’m remembered for,” Scott said. “Even if I do happen to win other big tournaments or majors, it might not quite be everything that Augusta was.

“There’s no doubt, as I look back in my career, that’s going to be the one moment I’ll think of first as a far as a signature moment.”

He won’t forget the 6-iron, either, as good as any shot he struck all week.

On the second playoff hole, Scott had 191 yards from a hook lie in the 10th fairway. Cabrera already was on the green with a reasonable look at birdie.

“I didn’t want to sling a 7-iron in there,” Scott said. “It wasn’t the right shot. The atmosphere was heavy and I was jacked up, but I had to hold a 6-iron. Somehow, I managed to hit such a beautiful shot. If you asked me to do it right now, I couldn’t. But I had it at that moment. Absolutely, it’s the best shot of my life right now.”

U.S. OPEN

Rose had a one-shot lead on the 18th hole at Merion. He was 229 yards from the pin, and just 15 feet behind the plaque that commemorates Hogan’s 1-iron into the 18th during his 1950 U.S. Open victory. While it was not as historic as Hogan’s moment, it was the signature shot of his first major.

“It has to be the 4-iron into 18, given the poignancy of the hole, the iconic photograph we’ve all grown up with and the 18th hole of a major,” Rose said. “That was the one that put it away.”

Adding to the pressure was the wait. Luke Donald was taking a penalty drop, leaving more time for Rose to contemplate the consequences of the shot.

“I appreciated the situation I was in and relished it,” Rose said. “And luckily, the shot came off. I drilled it. It came off perfectly.”

He believes the 18th hole played a big role earlier in the week. Rain kept the second round from being completed on Friday, and Rose was in the last group that managed to finish without having to return Saturday morning. He watched Phil Mickelson ahead of him make birdie to share the 36-hole lead. Rose missed the fairway, hacked it out of rough and had 115 yards to a pin that was just over the false front, a shot that required close to perfection.

He delivered, hitting wedge to 7 feet.

“It was pretty dark by this time,” he said. “But I wanted to hit the putt. Even if I missed, the advantage was there to sleep in. It was a slippery, downhill, left-to-righter for a 69 to stay even par. From a momentum point of view, just finishing and giving myself time in bed for the rhythm of the week … that was big.”

BRITISH OPEN

Mickelson didn’t hesitate when asked for the signature shot of his British Open victory _ the 3-wood on the par-5 17th that set up a two-putt birdie.

“Very simply put, there was no margin for error,” he said. “If I miss it a little bit to the right, it goes in a bunker and I have a very difficult par. I have to go out sideways and try to get up-and-down for par. If I miss it left, it’s the worst rough on the golf course and I could lose my ball or have an unplayable lie. But if I hit it perfectly, there’s a good chance I could have a two-putt birdie. And that’s what happened.

“I hit it dead perfect at the time I needed it most,” he said. “If I made birdie, I felt like I would win.”

Mickelson’s closing 66 at Muirfield is considered the best round of the year, and one of the best final rounds in any major. He made birdie on four of the last six holes. As much attention as that 3-wood receives, Lefty was equally pleased with a 5-iron into 8 feet for birdie that started his big run.

It was on the 13th hole, 190 yards and dead into a strong wind to a narrow green.

“If you miss it at all, the ball gets blown off sideways, and you saw it with just about every player behind me,” Mickelson said. “I hit it so solid and perfect through the wind the ball just soared. It was the prettiest shot.”

PGA CHAMPIONSHIP

Jason Dufner had a two-shot lead with three holes to play. Leads like that can disappear quickly at a major, especially with the tough, two closing holes at Oak Hill.

Jim Furyk hit his approach to 10 feet on the 16th, easily birdie range. Dufner followed with a sand wedge from 105 yards that spun back to a foot, which stands out as his signature moment at the PGA Championship (though a case could be made for the love tap he gave his wife when it was over).

“I was trying to take it a little bit past the pin on the right,” Dufner said. “Obviously, with a wedge in hand, I was thinking it could be a makeable birdie effort. Inside a foot is great for me because I struggle with the putter.”

Not so obvious – except to Dufner – was how he played the par-3 11th hole for the week. At 226 yards, it was the sixth-toughest hole at Oak Hill. Dufner never had a birdie putt outside 20 feet in all four rounds, and he played the hole in 1-under par for the week.

“It was one of the tougher holes, and I made it easy for me,” he said. “The 16th is the shot people are going to remember. The one people will forget about is to play that hole (No. 11) in 1 under and never sweat a bogey. That’s a pretty good deal.”

LONDON – Henrik Stenson has been selected European golfer of the year after winning the money title and the U.S. PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup.

The 37-year-old Stenson, who succeeded Rory McIlroy, is the first player from Sweden to win the award.

In addition to his six-shot victory in the season-ending World Tour Championship to clinch the Race to Dubai, Stenson also won the Deutsche Bank Championship and the Tour Championship in Atlanta to seal the FedEx Cup.

Another highlight was his third in the U.S. PGA Championship.

Stenson’s most consistent year started at the end of last season, when he won the South African championship.

He says the latest honor reflected “the stellar year I have had. You can call it a dream season, year of my life, whatever you want.”

CJGA Year in Review

The Canadian Junior Golf Association has released a document recapping their 2013 Year in Review. You can check it out here.

Nevada man gets probation for shooting golfer who broke his window

RENO, Nev. – A Reno man has been placed on probation and fined $1,000 for shooting a golfer whose errant ball broke a bedroom window at his home.

Jeff Fleming, 53, was put on probation for up to five years in Washoe County District Court. He had faced as much as 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine after he earlier pleaded guilty to a felony charge of battery with a deadly weapon.

The unidentified golfer who struck Fleming’s house took a drop and was attempting to play his next shot on the Lakeridge Golf Course in September 2012 when Fleming fired a shotgun at him. The golfer, who was playing with a friend, was treated at a hospital for minor injuries to an arm and both legs.

Fleming’s attorney, Larry Dunn, said Friday his client was just waking up when the stray golf ball shattered his bedroom window and sprayed him with glass shards. Fleming shot at the golfer from some 50 yards away in an attempt to scare him, not injure him, Dunn said.

The ball “came crashing through the bedroom window and it startled him, and he thought he was being shot at,” Dunn told The Associated Press. “He anticipated the ball coming through might have been intentional, and thought there was potential harm.

“There’s no question the single shot he fired was a warning or to scare him. There was no intention to hit him,” he added.

Police said the golfer and his partner ran away after the shot was fired, and it wasn’t until they were safe that the golfer realized he had been hit. One or two shotgun pellets had to be removed from his body at the hospital.

Fleming expressed remorse, telling the judge Thursday he was shocked at his own behaviour.

While his house is located along the golf course, Dunn said, it was the first time it had been hit by a golf ball in the 10 years he has lived there. The house is positioned away from the flight path of golf balls, he said.

The area around the 16th hole was evacuated after the shooting. Fleming drove to Dunn’s office, where he surrendered without incident.

Fleming had no previous criminal record.

“He’s an outstanding citizen and it (shooting) is just an aberration,” Dunn said.

London excited for LPGA’s return

Morris Dalla Costa of the London Free Press compiled a list of the Top 10 most exciting things that happened in London Sports for 2013. Included on the list, coming in at No. 8, is the return of the LPGA Tour to the London area – the London Hunt and Country Club will host the Canadian Pacific Women’s Open in 2014. You can check out Dalla Costa’s full list here.