Picking Tiger Picking on Tiger

Editor’s note: As a part of the creative braintrust in the GOLF CHANNEL news department, Dena Davis thrives on uncovering compelling stories in golf for our shows, and finding unique, fresh ways to give viewers their golf news. These are her weekly thoughts, some random musings, and even a few programming notes. And she would like you to remember: It’s all said in good fun.

You Know I Dont Speak Spanish!:
Well, nows as good of time as any to clear this up, as People magazines 2006 Hottest Bachelor is back in our lives this week in prominent fashion. Yes, as our dreamy, dapper-dressed Colombian golfer returns to the sight of his coming-out party in 06, its paramount we address the pronunciation of his name right here and ahora, so as to avoid all of those unnecessary disgruntled emails akin to those weve received over the past few years. (You know who you are!)

Ca-ME-lo Be-JAY-gahs. Say it with us. Camilo Villegas. Just as our British friend Tom Abbott says the English word toe-Mah-toe differently than Americans, there are varying dialects and pronunciations also within the Spanish language. (We know you know this.)

But in case you dont know this, we (Rich Lerner) DID ask the four-time All-America from University of Florida at the beginning of his rookie year at the 2006 AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. And he clearly explained how to say his name to us on-camera. We even aired it on Golf Central. And weve been saying it that way ever since. Wont you say it with us?

Oh, Louise, Louise, oh, oh:
Louise Friberg. You know her, you love her! Wait. No, you probably dont. She had only played in three LPGA events before last weekend. Shoot, we all did double and triple-takes (and then squints) at the giant leaderboard in the newsroom on Sunday... when she came from TEN strokes back (only Mickey Wright and Annika have done that!) to capture the MasterCard Classic in Mexico. The Swede (she does have a victory in 2005 on the Swedish Tour) had posted opening rounds of 72 and 73. But on that day, she made an eagle, six birdies and a bogey and carded a Bosque Real course record 65 - the best score by three strokes in the final round, leaving everyone in her wake. ‘I guess Sundays are my day,’ Friberg said. ‘A lot of times I’ve played good in the last round and I did today. Well, one things for certain. She picked the right sport.

Out of Africa. Again:
In my first entry here I jested about unattainable 3-year plans, making light of Ernie Els goals to overtake Tiger in the world rankings. In all actuality, Ive always been a huge fan of the South African, which is probably why I give him a hard time. But I will not be giving golfchannel.com reader Ronald Mutebi a difficult time about his FIVE-year plan. No, Mr. Utebi, a Uganda native now residing in Chicago, is an avid golfer (plays to a 10 handicap) who has rather noble, admirable aspirations of which I believe he can achieve. He certainly seems to have the passion.

You see, his dream is to introduce the underprivileged youth in his homeland to our dear game. He wrote in to me after I mentioned Ugandas celebration of 100 years of golf last week. While his country does enjoy a century-long history of the game, not all inhabitants have been able to really enjoy it. Growing up in a lower middle class family there, Mr. Utebi was not afforded the opportunity to play, as it was (and is) a game strictly for the wealthy and elite. Instead, he played soccer as a child like most Ugandan kids. It wasnt until he suffered a knee injury while living in the United States as an adult that he grabbed a set of clubs, rather than a soccer ball. Now, after living in the U.S. for almost nine years, he is outlining designs to open up a youth golf school and a practice range in the capital of Uganda where he is a member of the main golf course, Kampala GC. Mr. Utebi is quickly becoming my favorite Ugandan golfer.

When His Chip Comes In?:
To borrow from (the love of my life) Stephen Colbert, in today’s ‘Better Know a WGC-CA Competitor’ segment, meet the fightin’ S.S.P. Chowrasia! He’s the 29-year-old son of an Indian greenskeeper. He picked up the game at the age of 10 at the Royal Calcutta Golf Club where his father worked. S.S.P. (Shiv Shankar Prasad. Say that three times fast!) is a self-taught golfer who recently claimed the biggest prize of his career when he defeated an elite field (which included Els) to win the EMAAR-MGF Indian Masters, a co-sanctioned event by the Asian Tour and European Tour. You can call him Chowrasia, or you can go with his nickname: ‘Chipputtsia’, given to him because of his exceptional short game. Speaking of short, aren’t nicknames traditionally supposed to save time and breath? Oh well. Here’s wishing that our friend Shiv Shankar Prasad ‘Chipputtsia’ Chowrasia’s Stateside ship will come in this weekend!

Turrrrrble Tiger:
So, Woods stinks. I dont know what all the fuss is about the man. He cant dance. He cant sing. He CANNOT hoop (Barkley said so). Hes an awkward high-fiver. He cant play a musical instrument. He cant speak Spanish (Camilo said so). He cant perform open-heart surgery (Dr. Gil Morgan said so?). He probably has no game on the dart board (which is key). When you stop and think about it, the dude really has limited skills. Trust me. Friends of mine who have hung out with him tell me these things. (Editors note: this may or may not be credible). All I know is, I can draw and paint circles around him. I can also strum a mean Take Me Home Country Roads on the guitar. Top that, Tiger! Oh, and Id like to see him blog on this Web site THREE WEEKS IN A ROW. Now, thats a streak.

The Iron Is Not Unkind!:
Okay, I promise I wont be so intertwined with college basketball hoop-twine every week. But until all those nets are cut down court to course: my sports madness knows no boundaries. Surely you can understand, given this time of year. So, marching on, here are my picks for this week at Doral and The Dance:

WINNER: