NORTON, Mass. – With an orange ribbon on his hat and nine birdies on his card, Matt Kuchar pulled within a shot of the lead Saturday in the Deutsche Bank Championship. Not that he needed a reminder, but a message posted on the scoring table spoke to the emotions involved in this tournament.

Players were offered a chance to donate to a trust fund for the 4-year-old daughter of Lance Bennett, his caddie. Bennett’s wife, Angela, died of a seizure Wednesday. Kuchar decided to play to raise awareness and get the tour involved in helping the family.

His performance certainly helped.

Ryan Palmer overcame a rocky start for an even-par 71. Jason Day struggled at the end for a 68. They were tied for the lead on the TPC Boston going into the third round of a FedEx Cup playoff event that ends on Labor Day.

Kuchar was a shot behind after a 66 that featured six consecutive birdies around the turn.

“You never know how things will work out in the game of golf,” Kuchar said. “But it felt like there’s some fate working, as well. The funeral is coming up and some things that will be difficult. But right now, I feel like there’s some inspiration and some fate working.”

On his bag is Brian Reed, a longtime friend who introduced Kuchar to Bennett several years ago.

Kuchar was overcome by emotion Friday when he saw caddies – and even some players – wearing a black hat with the orange ribbon in honor of Bennett’s wife. There were times he had a hard time taking the club back.

Saturday was easier, which he attributes to the natural progression of grief.

“Still felt like Angela was on my mind almost every hole, every shot,” Kuchar said.

The next few days might not be easy for anyone. The TPC Boston has a history of yielding low scores. Henrik Stenson won a year ago at 22-under 262, and the worst winning score since it became a FedEx Cup playoff event was 15-under 269.

That seems far off given these conditions – swirling wind and fast greens that get bumpier in the afternoon.

Palmer, who started with a 63, made birdie on his first hole and thought he was off to the races. He followed with a double bogey, a bogey and then tried to hang. A birdie on the final hole put him at 8-under 134.

“It could have gone the other way real quick,” Palmer said. “I was glad to get that last birdie on 18 and salvage even (par).”

Day, who shared the 54-hole lead last week at The Barclays, looked as though he might pull away. Day ran off five birdies on the front nine for a 31 to build a two-shot lead, only to drop four shots coming in. He caught a flyer on No. 12 that went over the green into a hazard, played a low chip through thick rough and made a big bogey putt.

He still had the lead when he went from the green in two on the par-5 18th. The ball went long, and he hit a flop out of thick rough that ran through the green and into the bunker, leading to his third birdie of the back nine.

Even so, he was atop the leaderboard in another playoff event. He has adjusted to a weaker grip to protect from injuring his thumb again. And his confidence is growing.

So is his respect for the TPC Boston.

“You get yourself above the trees, it can be very difficult to judge how much wind there is,” he said. “And if you get too far below the trees, it doesn’t get hit by the wind at all. It played tough today. I played good on the front nine, played kind of average on the back nine. But I got it in.”

Billy Horschel had a 66 and joined Kuchar at 7-under 135.

A trio of players hopeful of a Ryder Cup pick on Tuesday – Bill Haas, Keegan Bradley and Webb Simpson – were among those at 6 under. U.S. Open champion Martin Kaymer had a 66 and joined the group at 5 under that included Jordan Spieth.

Rory McIlroy had a double bogey late in his round that slowed his momentum. He had a 69 and was five shots behind. Phil Mickelson is still playing, and looking better to play next week, too. Mickelson had a 69 and easily made the cup at 1-over 145.

The top 70 in the FedEx Cup move on to Cherry Hills in Denver next week for the third playoff event.

But Mickelson’s work is not over. Because 80 players made the cut at 3-over 145, there will be a 54-hole cut Sunday. It will be the second straight week for a secondary cut. That has happened only two previous times in six years during the playoffs, and Mickelson has missed out both times.

TURIN, Italy – Hennie Otto of South Africa shot a 1-under 71 on Saturday to take a two-stroke lead into the final round of the Italian Open, where Stephen Gallacher’s late bid to qualify for the Ryder Cup will go down to the wire.

Otto, who won this event in 2008, began the day with a three-shot lead but struggled at times, carding two bogeys and a double bogey as well as five birdies.

It is only the 38-year-old’s Otto’s second tournament since his recovery from two back operations.

“It was a rough day to be honest,” Otto said. “My back started to tighten after eight holes but I managed to get it round even though I couldn’t swing it properly. I got a little lucky at times as well but you need that in this game if you are going to win a tournament.”

Gallacher produced four birdies and one bogey in a round of 69 to move to within six shots of the lead and four behind compatriot Richie Ramsay (66) in second place.

Gallacher is the only man still capable of moving into the automatic Ryder Cup places in the final qualifying event, with a top-two finish enough to dislodge former U.S. Open Champion Graeme McDowell from Europe’s team.

“It keeps me in touching distance,” Gallacher said. “The worst thing I could have done was open up a big gap which was insurmountable. I’ve not done that so a good day on Sunday and I am still right in there. I had about four lip-outs today but they went in on Friday and I holed a couple of good putts at the end so it evens itself out.

“It’s all to play for. You never know what happens in this game and guys have won from further back than this. I’ll just go out and try and get as many birdies as possible and see what happens. This is the only time in my career that I would be happy not to win a golf tournament. Second will do me fine on Sunday.”

Austria’s Bernd Wiesberger slipped to third after following consecutive rounds of 66 with a 71. Lee Slattery and Ross Fisher were fourth, five shots behind Otto.

CALGARY – It’s packed atop the leaderboard of the Shaw Charity Classic.

Bob Tway shot Saturday’s best round of 7-under 63 to finish in a three-way tie for first spot through two rounds of the Champions Tour event at Canyon Meadows Golf and Country Club.

“I putted very well today – probably the best I’ve putted in 20-something years, so it was kind of fun,” said Tway, who’s tied for top spot at 10-under with Joe Durant and Joe Daley. “The greens are some of the nicest greens I’ve ever putted on. If you hit a good putt, they’re going in. Guys are making putts from everywhere.”

An eight-time winner on the PGA Tour, Tway has yet to finish atop the leaderboard at a Champions Tour event.

“I know I can play better than I have,” said the 55-year-old resident of Edmond, Okla., who finished tied for sixth at the Senior Open Championship earlier this season. “I haven’t done it, but I keep trying to do it. If I just keep enjoying it, then it doesn’t really matter. I fully should play a lot better than I play, but I haven’t. You either keep working at it or go home and I’m going to keep working at it.”

Durant and Daley carded identical scores of 66 on Saturday and will play in the final group with Tway during Sunday’s third and final round on the 7,086-yard, par 70 course.

“I know there’s three of us tied, but by the time we get on the first hole there might be guys who have already passed us,” Durant said. “That’s how bunched it is. It will be quite a shootout tomorrow, and if the weather’s good there will be a lot of birdies flying.”

In order to contend for top spot, Daley said he’ll have to continue to play at the top of his game.

“You have to be very much on your game and even more so than you might even think,” Daley said. “But you also have to prepare in a lot of different ways in your mind and physically for what you have to go through to compete against these guys because these guys, well, they’ve been whooping me for decades.”

Gary Hallberg, Mark McNulty and David Frost finished tied at 9 under through two rounds.

Bernhard Langer, Doug Garwood, Woody Austin and Tom Pernice Jr. are in a four-way tie for seventh spot at 8 under.

“I would rather be chased than chasing but I don’t have that option,” said Langer, who has won five times this year on the Champions Tour and is leading the Charles Schwab Cup standings. “Hopefully your swing is good enough and your putting stroke allows you to do what you need to do.”

For the second day in a row, Rod Spittle of Niagara Falls, Ont., finished as the low Canadian after carding a 1-under 69. Spittle is in an eight-way tie for 36th place at 3 under heading into the final round.

After shooting even par in the first round, Calgary’s Stephen Ames struggled on Saturday with a score of 3-over 73.

Victoria’s Jim Rutledge fared exactly the opposite of Ames as he bounced back with a round of 70 after going 3 over on the opening day of the tournament.

Meanwhile, Calgary’s Darryl James followed up a round of 74 with a 75 on Saturday to sit in second last spot at 9 over, just one shot ahead of Sandy Lyle.

PORTLAND, Ore. – I.K. Kim increased her lead to three strokes Friday in the LPGA Tour’s Portland Classic, shooting a 5-under 67 to reach 12 under.

The South Korean player had seven birdies and two bogeys in her morning round in cloudy, calm conditions at Columbia Edgewater. She won the last of her three LPGA Tour titles in 2010, and had a victory this summer in a Ladies European Tour event in England.

“I’m really pleased how I played the last two days,” Kim said. “There is a lot of scores out there, so I think it will be a good week for all of us.”

Kim’s best LPGA Tour finish this year is a tie for 13th in the Swinging Skirts LPGA Classic in April in California.

“I’m glad that I’ve been kind of going through all these things, and you know, it’s nice to win one,” Kim said.

Spain’s Carlota Ciganda and South Korea’s Mi Jung Hur shot 65 to join Laura Diaz at 9 under. Diaz had a 68.

Ciganda’s long-time coach, Rogelio Echeverria, died three weeks after a brief bout with stomach cancer.

“Like a month ago I was practicing with him. I can’t speak. He’s the one who taught me everything. I’m here because of him. He means everything to me,” Ciganda said. “I’m just going to play for him, and I would love to win just for him.”

South Korea’s So Yeon Ryu, the Canadian Pacific Women’s Open winner Sunday in London, Ont., was 8 under along with Mina Harigae, China’s Xi Yu Lin and South Africa’s Paula Reto. The fifth-ranked Ryu had a 66, Lin carded a 68, and Harigae and Reto shot 69.

Defending champion Suzann Pettersen was 6 under after a 67. She played her fnal nine hoiles in 5-under 41.

“I haven’t played my best the last two days. Really happy to be able to shoot 5 under on the back nine,” Pettersen said. “I don’t know if it’s just the fourth (consecutive) week that I’m tired, but grinding it out. I’m finding solutions out there.”

The fourth-ranked Norwegian player, also the 2011 winner, is trying to tie Nancy Lopez’s event record of three victories.

Juli Inkster and Sweden’s Anna Nordqvist also were in the group at 6 under. The 54-year-old Inkster, making her 28th appearance in the event, followed her opening 68 with a 70. Nordqvist, a two-time winner this year, also shot 70.

South Korea’s Jeong Jang was 3 under after a 71. The 34-year-old Jang, the 2005 Women’s British Open champion, announced her retirement this week and said the event will be her last.

Hee-Won Han, also playing her final event, had a 71 to make the cut on the number at 1 over. The 34-year-old South Korean player won the 2004 event and has six LPGA Tour victories.

Han and Jang are considered to be pioneers of the South Korean LPGA movement.

“My kids are growing up, and I thought it was perfect timing for retire. Be a mom,” Han said.

Gigi Stoll, a senior at Beaverton High School who won the Portland Classic Amateur Open last week to earn a spot in the field, had a 74 to make the cut at 1 over.

Charley Hull, the 18-year-old English player who got into the event on a sponsor exemption, missed the cut by a stroke with rounds of 70 and 76.

Paris, Ont,’s Jennifer Kirby leads the Canadians into the weekend. She’s sitting at 2-under 142 and is tied for 39th heading into weekend action.

Top-ranked Stacy Lewis, No. 2 Inbee Park and No. 3 Lydia Ko are skipping the tournament, giving them a two-week break before the Evian Championship in France.

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. – The fourth and final round of LPGA stage I qualifying ended Friday with seven Canadians landing inside the cut to advance to the next round.

The following Canadians were among the 102 players that finished inside the cut of 298 (+10) at the Mission Hills Country Club:

SooBin Kim (Coquitlam, B.C.) – 284 (71-70-66-77)

Augusta James (Bath, Ont.) – 287 (74-71-72-70)

Anne-Catherine Tanguay (Quebec City, Que.) – 288 (75-70-71-72)

Nicole Zhang (Calgary) – 290 (71-73-72-74)

Angela Buzminski (Oshawa, Ont.) – 292 (80-73-71-68)

Kirby Dreher (Fort St. John, B.C.) – 293 (73-72-74-74)

Brittany Henderson (Smiths Falls, Ont.) – 296 (74-76-70-76)

Augusta James, Team Canada member and reigning Canadian Women’s Amateur champion, was pleased with her play during the first four rounds of qualifying.

“I played pretty well,” said James, who is entering her senior year at N.C. State. “I felt like I left a few shots out there which is good because it gives me some things to work on before World Am next week, my college tournaments and then Stage II.”

James, who was recently selected as one of three women to represent Canada at the World Amateur, gives the National Team program credit for helping her succeed.

“It’s been a phenomenal experience,” James said of her time with Team Canada. “I’ve been with the program for four years and the financial support and extensive coaching, IST staff and everything it’s been an incredible experience and I couldn’t be where I am today without it. They take you to so many events that you gain so much knowledge and experience from that it’s priceless.”

Medalist honours were awarded to Burbank Calif. native, Emily Tubert, who finished with a five stroke lead at 12-under par.

The second stage of the LPGA Qualifying Tournament will commence at Plantation Golf and Country Club in Venice, Fla., from Sept. 30 – Oct. 4. A minimum of the top 80 and ties from Stage II will advance into the Final Qualifying Tournament.

Stage III of LPGA Q-School will be contested over 90 holes Dec. 3-7, at the LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Fla. Top finishers in the final stage will earn 2015 LPGA membership.

Click here for full scoring.

CALGARY – Tom Pernice Jr. and Bart Bryant both tied the course record at Canyon Meadows Golf and Country Club to sit atop the leaderboard after the opening round of the Shaw Charity Classic.

Pernice and Bryant both carded scores of 8-under 62 on the 7,086-yard, par-70 course to tie Bill Glasson for the course record. Glasson also shot 62 in the final round of the inaugural Shaw Charity Classic one year earlier to finish in a tie for 10th spot with Bryant at the Champions Tour event.

David Frost fired a 63 to end up alone in third spot, while Joe Durant and Joe Daley shot 64 to finish in a tie for fourth spot.

Rod Spittle of Niagara Falls, Ont., finished as the top Canadian after shooting a 2-under 68 to finish in a tie for 34th spot.

Calgary’s Stephen Ames shot even par to finish in a tie for 57th in just his second Champions Tour event.

Meanwhile, Jim Rutledge of Victoria, B.C., and Calgary’s Darryl James finished well back after shooting scores of 73 and 74, respectively.

NORTON, Mass. – Ryan Palmer has felt all year that something special was going to happen. For now, he’ll take his lowest round of the season.

Palmer took only 21 putts and made birdie on half of his holes Friday on the TPC Boston, giving him an 8-under 63 and a two-shot lead over Keegan Bradley after the opening round of the Deutsche Bank Championship.

“It was one of my best ones of the year, for sure,” Palmer said.

He didn’t miss a putt inside 15 feet and closed out his round with a pitching wedge to 18 feet, making the downhill putt for his ninth birdie.

Bradley matched his low round of the season, though what meant more was the timing. This is the final week before U.S. captain Tom Watson decides which three players he will pick to fill out his Ryder Cup team. Bradley always seemed like a logical choice, though he wants to leave nothing to chance.

He played bogey-free in a gentle breeze, and it was just the start he needed.

“I’m not going to sit up here and say any cliches that I’m not thinking about the Ryder Cup or any of that,” Bradley said. “I am very aware every second of the day that I’m being watched by the captain. And I’m just trying to embrace that be aware of it and enjoy it if I can.”

Webb Simpson, who also needs a pick to return to the Ryder Cup, and Jason Day of Australia were among those at 66.

Jordan Spieth recovered from a double bogey to start his round and, with his entire family in tow, turned it around with four birdies and an eagle for a 67. Also at 67 was Ian Poulter, who seems certain to be a Ryder Cup pick for Europe on Tuesday considering how much damage he’s done to the Americans in the competition. Poulter was thinking only about his golf, which hasn’t been very good this year.

“I just want to play golf,” Poulter said. “It’s been a (bad) year, and I want to turn it around right now.”

Rory McIlroy was brilliant at times and sloppy at other times in his round of 70.

Brantford, Ont.’s David Hearn opened with a 1-under 70 and is tied for 26th, while Weyburn, Sask.’s Graham DeLaet is tied for 29th after an even-par 71 Friday.

Phil Mickelson had a 74. He wasn’t sure what to expect and even Lefty had to be surprised by his card that featured six pars, six birdies, four bogeys, a double bogey and a triple bogey.

“I said it would be feast or famine,” Mickelson said. “I was hoping it would be Stableford. If it was Stableford, I’d be right in it.”

Instead, he needs a good round Saturday to make sure he stays in the top 70 in the FedEx Cup to advance next week to the third playoff event in Denver.

For two weeks – especially this one – the FedEx Cup shares the stage for that other cup. So many players are thinking less about the chase for a $10 million bonus, and more about a chance to play a tournament where they don’t get paid at all.

Watson and European captain Paul McGinley announce their three picks Tuesday. This is the final qualifying week for Europe, though only the players competing in Italy this week can affect the standings.

Palmer finished No. 18 in the Ryder Cup standings. His name hasn’t been mentioned as prominently as others bidding for captain’s pick. But he looked plenty good Friday.

“I keep telling myself something is going to happen. I don’t know where or when,” Palmer said. “My game has been in good shape. It was a matter of getting it all together.”

His regular caddie, James Edmondson, didn’t make the trip. Edmondson is close friends with Lance Bennett, who works for Matt Kuchar. Bennett’s wife died of a seizure Tuesday in Dallas, and caddies and some players wore a black hat with an orange ribbon as a tribute to Angela Bennett. The couple has a 4-year-old daughter.

“When he said, `I may need to stay home,’ I said, `Done. Don’t worry about. We’re just playing golf,'” Palmer said.

Bradley won all three of his matches with Mickelson in the last Ryder Cup at Medinah and is desperate to be on the American team that will try to win the cup back on Sept. 26-28 at Gleneagles in Scotland. And he’s not shy about saying so.

“When I wake up, I’m thinking about it. When I’m on the course, I’m thinking about it,” he said.

Bradley was never in big trouble. He drove it long and straight, and that goes a long way on the TPC Boston. Bradley played with Mickelson in three matches at Medinah in the last Ryder Cup, and they never lost. Bradley also played a practice round at Gleneagles with Watson before the British Open.

“I think if I go out and shoot good scores, yeah, I think I’m in good shape,” Bradley said. “But there’s so many great players that aren’t on this team. I don’t take anything for granted. I don’t think I’m a lock by any means.”

West Vancouver, B.C. (Golf Canada) – Vancouver’s Doug Roxburgh shot a 2-under par 69 Friday to claim a wire-to-wire victory at the 2014 Canadian Men’s Senior Championship.

Roxburgh, 62, finished at 7-under 277 (69-69-70-69), three-shots clear of runner-up Brady Exber (74-71-67-68—280) of Las Vegas. Exber, 58, is the reigning (British) Seniors Amateur Champion. Steven Hudson of Birmingham, Ala. finished third at 1-over par 285 (71-71-76-67).

The win today at Capilano Golf and Country Club marks the sixth national golf title for Roxburgh, who won the Canadian Junior Boy’s Championship in 1970 and Canadian Amateur titles in 1972, 1974, 1982 and 1988.

The Canadian Golf Hall of Fame honoured member and 13-time British Columbia Amateur champion was ecstatic with the win, perhaps even more so because it came so close to home.

“It feels outstanding,” Roxburgh explained. “I had a good week here. It was fun, I had great playing partners and the course was outstanding. Each national championship is special, but it’s nice to win in Vancouver in front of my family, friends and clubmates from Marine Drive (Golf Club) who came out to support me.”

With the win, Roxburgh earns an exemption into the 2014 U.S. Senior Amateur Championship taking place September 13-18 at Big Canyon Country Club in Newport Beach, Calif. Surprisingly, the career amateur has played just one previous United States Golf Association (USGA) event during his 40 plus years in competitive golf. Roxburgh was tentative to confirm he’d be taking advantage of the exemption and head south to challenge for the Frederick L. Dold Trophy.

“I still need to talk it over with my wife,” added Roxburgh. “I did try about 10 days ago to qualify for it (US Senior Amateur) in Portland, but I didn’t make it. I’ve only played one other USGA event and it was many years ago – the U.S. Amateur – so it might be sort of fun. And, I hear the golf course is just outstanding. So, you’ll probably see another Canadian flag on the leaderboard… somewhere.”

Final results and a full field list can be found online here.

FIANO, Italy – Hennie Otto of South Africa shot a 10-under 62 to take a three-stroke lead after the second round of the Italian Open on Friday, while Stephen Gallacher’s late bid to qualify for the Ryder Cup also gained momentum.

Otto, who won this event in 2008, carded nine birdies, one eagle and one bogey to move to 15-under at the Circolo Golf Torino. He was three shots ahead of Austria’s Bernd Wiesberger.

After opening with a 72, Gallacher shot a 65 to move within eight strokes of the lead at 7-under.

Gallacher is the only man still capable of moving into the automatic Ryder Cup places in the final qualifying event, with a top-two finish enough to dislodge former U.S. Open Champion Graeme McDowell from Europe’s team.

Italy’s Francesco Molinari, who shared the overnight lead on his home course with Wiesberger, could only manage a 72 to lie nine strokes back.

“It’s always special to shoot a 62 but a 59 never even crossed my mind,” said Otto, who was 10-under par on his round after 15 holes and needed to birdie the last three to record the first sub-60 round on the European Tour.

However, a bogey on the 17th hole marked the only shot that Otto dropped in two days.

“I really played well, hit some good shots and the greens were running well so you were able to make some putts,” he said. “Something about courses in Italy suits my eye and it would be great to win the tournament. Hopefully I can keep it up and keep going over the weekend.”

Molinari believes he has to win to earn a wild card spot for the Ryder Cup team.

“It’s a step back but there are two more days so let’s see what happens at the weekend,” Molinari said.

There’s a hoary old saying: “Build a better mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door.” It is, opines Wikipedia, the font of all modern knowledge, “a metaphor for the power of innovation.”

Yet you can innovate your butt off and, if no one knows about your better mousetrap, you are—to quote a biblical passage—“hiding your light under a bushel.”

That’s why golf equipment companies spend millions on marketing their newest mousetraps … er … innovations and not hiding them under the proverbial bushel. The increasing frequency of these new clubs and balls can, understandably, lead the cynical among us to question whether they are really better, or just different.

Sure, they look cool and you know that Tour pro XYZ plays them, but you think that’s only because the company is paying him or her handsomely to use them in competition. And a Tour pro just plays what they are given, cashes the cheque and shuts up, right? What they do has no bearing on what ends up in our golf bags, correct?

To prove that theory wrong, think about this the next time you get into your car. Things like air bags, disc brakes, crushable body structures, independent suspension, radial tires, and significant engine and transmission advancements in your car were developed by brilliant engineers at the automobile companies and then tested by the best drivers on the planet in competition.

It’s the same thing with golf equipment. “There is no way these companies would put millions and millions into research and development and not come out of that process with something better,” says Rick Young, equipment and business analyst for SCOREGolf. “Their biggest spend is on R&D and they work four to five years ahead. Then, when they have a new product, they hand it over to the pros to validate the technology.”

Along with Young and some other Canadian golf writers, I had a chance to witness that first-hand on the Tuesday preceding The Barclays. NIKE was unveiling their new Vapor line of irons in New York City with the help of Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy. Tech sessions covered every aspect of the new line’s technology. I admit my eyes glazed over when hearing phrases like “Precision Power” and “Modern Muscle.” But I quickly regained focus when Tiger and Mike Taylor, NIKE’s resident club design genius, retraced the development of the irons and Tiger’s role in that process. Trust me, Tiger was integrally involved. And believe me when I tell you the technology behind the new irons is solid. Or don’t trust or believe me. Young, one of the most respected equipment writers in the business, agrees with me. So there.

I use NIKE as an example only because I was witness to this latest demonstration of what all leading golf equipment companies are after. They are after not just your dollars, but your loyalty and your increased enjoyment of the game. They desperately want you to enjoy the game of golf.

“If we don’t have new technology coming out all the time, I guarantee golf would be less popular than it is,” says Young. “Do the new clubs and balls automatically make you better? Not necessarily. That is up to you. Get the right equipment for you and get it custom fitted.”

When Young got into writing about equipment, back about the year 2000, the Titleist Pro V1 had just revolutionized the golf ball world. Standard driver size, which had been around 190 cubic centimetres, had exploded to 340-350cc with Callaway’s Great Big Bertha II, King Cobra and TaylorMade Burner. Wedges were the flavour of the week, with the standard pitching and sand wedges enhanced with versions ranging from 52 to 64 degrees of loft.

Then came the technology explosion.

Less than 15 years later, drivers are limited to 460cc. Woods and irons and balls must have reached their limits.

Nope, says Young.

“We are on the cusp of something dramatic material-wise that will show itself in the next two or three years. I’m sure of it.”

He is also sure that right now, in some lab somewhere, mad boffins in the employ of golf equipment companies are toiling away over those new materials. Bunsen burners are boiling. Electricity crackles across the lab. Sweat drips from their nerdy brows. They haven’t seen the light of day for months.

Suddenly, a cry echoes across the room. (With apologies to the original Frankenstein movie of 1931.)

“Look! It’s moving. It’s alive. It’s alive… It’s alive, it’s moving, it’s alive, it’s alive, it’s alive, it’s alive, IT’S ALIVE!”

“In the name of God!”

“Oh, in the name of God! Now I know what it feels like to be God!”

Stay tuned!