Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson’s back-to-back wins have the golf world buzzing with excitement for 2013. Mickelson continues his run this week at Pebble Beach, where we’ll see celebrities and professionals share Mother Nature’s stage on Stillwater Cove. Here’s a roundup of the hottest topics being putted around this week.
1. Phil Mickelson: Welcome back to the top 10 in the Official World Golf Ranking for the first time since May 2012. He had us on the edge of our seats last Thursday, staring down 59 and ultimately settling for 60. His consistent play for the next three rounds solidified the unthinkable at rowdy TPC Scottsdale: an anticlimactic Lefty victory.
2. TPC Scottsdale’s 16th hole: The fans at the stadium hole this year on Saturday reached 179,022, while the attendance at the Super Bowl on Sunday was more than 100,000 less coming in at 71,024.
3. Brandt Snedeker: No FedEx Cup-champion slump for Snedeker. In addition to his runner-up finish in Phoenix, he also has a third-place showing at Kapalua and a T-2 at Torrey Pines. Where does he currently sit in his FedEx Cup title defense? First. Give him some love.
4. Pebble Beach: While the PGA Tour season starts the first week of January and majors kick off in April, seeing the ethereal beauty of Pebble Beach and the history of the tournament on the majestic landscape, spurs the inner golfer in all of us. Mother Nature and golf purity reign on high this week on Tour.
5. Vijay Singh: Timing couldn’t have been more advantageous for the Fijian when the news broke about his use of deer-antler spray and its banned properties. The professional golf world went from a Tiger high to a Vijay low that was quickly trumped by Phil gunning for history. A Christmas card should be in the mail early to the Mickelson household.
6. World’s Largest Golf Tee: And now for the funny, absurd and corky! Brolin Enterprises broke the Guinness World Record with a tee that is 30-feet long and weighs more than 6,000 lbs. It took half a year to build this gigantic tee which resides in Casey, Ill., and will be put in the ground at a local golf course to help bring attention to the town.
7. James Hahn goes Gangnam Style: The more outrageous the better when it comes to entertaining fans at No. 16 at TPC Scottsdale. Hahn thrilled the beer-fueled crazies Sunday after his birdie putt dropped inside the stadium with his best rendition of Psy’s one-hit wonder on his way to get the ball out of the hole. Hahn had moves, and he has game. He finished T-16 in Phoenix and also has a T-4 earlier this season at the Humana Challenge.