983A9CE2: 2014

Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Luke Donald, at Nedbank, says Disney World win validates status as world No. 1

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Luke Donald believes his win in Orlando last month confirmed his place as the top golfer this season, despite the absence of a major title.

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Gerald Imray

Associated Press

Series: Other Tour

Five weeks after a stunning finish at Disney World, Luke Donald returns to competition at the Nedbank Challenge feeling refreshed and validated at No. 1.

The Englishman plays his first event this week since reeling off six straight birdies on the back nine to win the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals Classic on Oct. 23 and clinch the PGA Tour money title.

Having accomplished phase one of his mission to become the first player to top the U.S. and European money lists in the same season, Donald said the win in Orlando confirmed his place as the top golfer this season, despite the absence of a major title.

“It’s nice to come up with great shots and great putting and everything that went with that when you need it the most,” Donald said at Sun City on Wednesday. “I obviously had a pretty good amount of catching up to beat Webb.”

He added his recent break allowed him to “savor” his Disney World moment, where he came from five shots back to shoot 30 over his last nine holes. He also rested at home and celebrated the birth of his second child.

His unprecedented success on both tours can only be spoiled by Rory McIlroy, who trails Donald by a little over $1.3 million on the European Tour. The No. 2-ranked Northern Irishman could make the season-ending Dubai World Championship a race for the money title with a victory at the UBS Hong Kong Open this weekend.

While South Africa’s $5 million Nedbank Challenge has a hefty winner’s check of $1.25 million, that cash doesn’t count on the European Tour should Donald win this weekend at the Gary Player Country Club.

“We’ll see what Rory does this week and how much pressure he can put on me. I’m sure it won’t be easy. I’m sure he’ll put up a fight, and I’m looking forward to the challenge,” Donald said. “Usually after the break, I come back feeling a lot stronger about my game.

“Obviously, I would love to walk away with both money lists because that would be history.”

While Donald is certain his layoff will be a help rather than a hindrance for his final two events of the season, Sun City defending champion and No. 3-ranked Lee Westwood is still the favorite at the South African casino resort course that favors the big drivers.

Westwood also arrived at Sun City last year as a majorless top-ranked player and doubted by some as a true successor to Tiger Woods. While he had a dominant eight-shot win at the 2010 Nedbank Challenge, this has been a subdued season for Westwood.

“I’ve come here to have a good week and enjoy myself,” Westwood said after shooting a 68 in Wednesday’s pro-am. “It’s a great week, a 12-man field, at a golf course I enjoy playing. A great spot.”

Martin Kaymer joins Donald and Westwood in South Africa to give the Nedbank Challenge three of the top four ranked players.

The 12-man field also includes Masters champion Charl Schwartzel, British Open champion Darren Clarke, former U.S. Open winner Graeme McDowell, South Korea’s Kyung-tae Kim, Robert Karlsson, Simon Dyson, Anders Hansen, U.S. player Jason Dufner and Italy’s Francesco Molinari, who replaced the injured Thomas Bjorn.

Schwartzel will be backed by the boisterous home crowd at Sun City as the only South African at this year’s event. It will be his seventh tournament on consecutive weekends.

Tuesday, February 11, 2014

08/13 Notebook

Posted Aug 13, 2008

By Mike Duffy

Lorenzo Neal waited too long to be picked up, and now he's out for revenge.

When Lorenzo Neal was released by the San Diego Chargers in February, he thought it would be a short matter of time before another team came calling.

When he and the Chargers parted ways, Neal had just come back from his fourth trip to the Pro Bowl, fresh off blocking for his 11th consecutive 1,000-yard running back in LaDainian Tomlinson, who led the league with 15 rushing touchdowns and 1,474 yards on the ground.

But as the weeks turned into months, Neal grew frustrated.

Sure, the 16-year veteran had broken his right fibula in December 2007. But, didn’t he return to gut out a gritty start in the AFC Championship game? Couldn’t he still knock would-be tacklers back with the explosive force of a jackhammer?

“I’m going to play with a chip on my shoulder,” Neal said after Wednesday’s morning practice. “You get angry when you’ve been at the top of your game and you’ve been rated the No. 1 fullback and then free agency comes, and I felt a little bit like Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer because I got left out of the Reindeer Games.

“You’re 37, so teams say ‘OK, you’re aged’ and discriminate against you because of age and not because of what you can do. I think that was the toughest part of sitting out, knowing that you’re still in great shape, knowing you still can run.”

The Ravens obviously think Neal, 5-foot-11, 255 pounds, still has it. Baltimore was one of a few teams, including the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, that contacted Neal as training camps neared.

But, Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsome called him before the team’s preseason opener in New England and promised to add him following the game.

Neal took Newsome at his word, which was the main reason he chose to sign a one-year contract with the Ravens.

“Anytime a guy does that and says that, that’s encouraging,” Neal explained. “Tampa called on Sunday and wanted me to come in and do a one-year deal with them. But once you’ve already committed to someone and once you’ve had that conversation - when you’re that far and you’ve already been playing for a long time and you know you’re in the latter part of your career - it’s about standing up for what’s right and doing what you believe in.

“This is a great organization. I think they’re committed to wanting to win. I want to win, so that’s what it’s all about.”

Another big reason for Neal’s arrival in Charm City is the presence of offensive coordinator Cam Cameron, who coached Neal in San Diego from 2003-06. During that tenure, the Chargers finished in the top-10 in rushing offense every season, with Tomlinson racking up huge numbers behind Neal’s road-grading.

Cameron openly pitched the Ravens to Neal, as the fullback will be on the fast track in learning a familiar offense.

And, the coaches hope Neal can be a veteran voice in the offensive meeting rooms for many of the young Ravens still trying to wrap their heads around Cameron’s playbook.

“I talked to Cam several times,” Neal admitted. “He knows I’m going to be physical and do what I do best, and that’s hit guys in the mouth. That’s what I was brought here to do. I know my job. I don’t need to run the ball. I’m just here to hit guys and be the battering ram that I can be, and just be leadership.

“You have that on defense here. You have a lot of leaders and we have a lot of talented people on offense, but they just need a little leadership. These guys can be great. We know it’s there on defense and we know we have a lot of athletes on offense.”

Coming to a team that hasn’t experienced an abundance of offensive success like the annually explosive Chargers’ unit, Neal possesses the credentials to help Cameron change the mindset on his side of the ball.

“We’re pretty young on offense, especially in this offense,” Harbaugh said. “So here is a guy who can help teach the offense and maybe the personality of the offense, as well.”

Donning a fresh purple No. 42 jersey - he’s currently eyeing cornerback Frank Walker’s No. 41, the number he’s worn throughout his career - Neal can already see where he can be effective.

He may not have taken many snaps as the man teammates called “the new guy,” but Neal took in a lot by simply mingling with players in the background of drills.

“When you say ‘Baltimore Ravens,’ you think defense,” Neal said. “I was brought here to bring a physical attitude to the offense. We know offense entertains but defense wins games, and this defense won a lot of games.

“But our offense wants to score some points. We don’t want to score just 10 points and have our defense hold some teams up. That’s unfair. I think you’ll see this offense score some points, and we’ll surprise some people.”

Here are some more news and observations from Wednesday’s practices, the second of which was a special teams session:

The Ravens missed many players from practice, as has recently been the case. Wideout Patrick Carter (shoulder), linebacker Gary Stills (knee), cornerback Fabian Washington (neck) and tight end Aaron Walker (knee) were all limited, mainly staying off to the side.

The rest of the injured list looks like this:

Cornerbacks Chris McAlister (knee), Samari Rolle (knee), Derrick Martin (undisclosed) and David Pittman (undisclosed); linebackers Dan Cody (foot), Tavares Gooden (hip) and Robert McCune (leg); offensive tackles Adam Terry (ankle) and Jared Gaither (ankle); tight ends Daniel Wilcox (foot) and Todd Heap (calf); receiver Demetrius Williams (leg); running back Willis McGahee (knee surgery); and defensive tackled Kelly Gregg (knee) and Kelly Talavou (shoulder).

Yamon Figurs was traveling back from the birth of his child during the full-team practice, but he returned for the afternoon session.
With all the injuries, the Ravens had some fun experimenting with different positions. At one point, wideout Derrick Mason played quarterback during a skel drill in the red zone. With five receivers spread out, Mason still threw the ball in the dirt.

Defensive tackle Haloti Ngata

, who returned from a sprained MCL, played a little middle linebacker, as did fellow tackle Justin Bannan. Wideout Mark Clayton even lined up as a defensive back.
On the kicking front, rookie free agent Piotr Czech was successful on all his attempts, hitting from 23, 34, 42, 48 and just barely from 52 yards.
The pass of the day goes to Kyle Boller, who hit rookie Marcus Smith in the back left corner of the end zone with a perfectly-placed pass that just fell over Smith’s outside shoulder.

Smith was blanketed by cornerback Ronnie Prude, who was on an island because safety Dawan Landry had to come up and cover running back Allen Patrick split wide.
The starting offensive line Wednesday was Chad Slaughter at left tackle, Ben Grubbs at left guard, Jason Brown at center, Marshal Yanda

at right guard and Mike Kracalik at right tackle.

Thursday, January 2, 2014

Golf-Tiger motivated by Snead, Nicklaus and kids

December 4, 2013 9:06 PM

By Mark Lamport-Stokes

THOUSAND OAKS, California, Dec 4 (Reuters) - As Tiger Woods eyes the twilight of a remarkable career, he has his sights on records posted by Jack Nicklaus and Sam Snead and a growing pleasure that his children are starting to understand what he does on the course.

World number one Woods, comfortably the greatest player of his generation, has long targeted the 18 major titles claimed by fellow American Nicklaus and the 82 career victories piled up on the PGA Tour by the sweet-swinging Snead.

Woods, who celebrates his 38th birthday at the end of this month, trails Nicklaus's record mark by four and Snead's milestone by three.

Yet just as significant for Woods as he contemplates his 'bucket list' of future golfing achievements is the burgeoning knowledge of his two children, daughter Sam and son Charlie, for what he does for a living.

"It's exciting for me to have my two kids now starting to understand what Daddy does," Woods told Reuters on Wednesday as he prepared for Thursday's opening round of the Northwestern Mutual World Challenge, which he hosts.

"It was cool for me this year for the first time to have Charlie there to watch me win. He understood it for the first time, that Daddy is always in the gym lifting weights to be able to get the ball out of the rough and out the trees.

"Or that's how he explains it," Woods added with a flash of his trademark smile.

Charlie was on site at Firestone Country Club in August when his father eased to a seven-shot victory at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, earning his 79th win on the PGA Tour.

"He gets it now," Woods said of his son. "He is excited about the game and he has even told me he wants to caddie for me one day. But that was never a reality until that event (at Firestone).

"So that gives me a little extra incentive to continue playing and continue working because they get so much enjoyment out of watching me on TV and playing."

While Snead's target is well within reach, the four majors Woods needs to draw level with Nicklaus represent a tally achieved by very few golfers in an entire career.

"Certainly the easier goal is going to be to get to Sam's record," Woods said, speaking on the balcony of the imposing clubhouse at Sherwood Country Club which hosts the World Challenge this week for a 14th and final time.

SIGNIFICANT MILESTONES

"You can get there basically from playing your first three events of the year and winning three in a row. But major championships, they're spread out a little bit. It's certainly much harder to get to Jack's number than Sam's.

"But both of them I regard as significant milestones and hopefully one day in my career I will surpass both of them. Certainly I'd like to continue winning for a long period of time. That's important to me."

Winning was a familiar habit for Woods during 2013 as he racked up a season-high five titles on the PGA Tour on the way to being voted Player of the Year, though he was unable to add to his career tally of 14 majors.

"I think it was a fantastic year, unfortunately I didn't win a major championship," said the 37-year-old who has come up empty in golf's blue riband events since his remarkable playoff victory at the 2008 U.S. Open.

"I was close at the Masters (tied for fourth) and the British (Open where he shared sixth place). A couple of little swings here and there and it might have been a different story.

"But I won the Players (Championship) at a venue where I have struggled over the years, so to be able to put that together there was quite a good feeling. To win five times, and get Player of the Year again, that feels pretty good."

This week, Woods is especially excited to be back at the World Challenge, an event he has won five times and which raises money for Tiger Woods Foundation projects and the six learning centers he has set up in the United States.

More than 100,000 scholars have gone through the various learning centers since the first of them was opened in Anaheim, California in 2006.

"It's so important, what we have been to do and how we have been able to transform kids' lives and allow them the opportunity to go to college and provide them with mentors and internships," Woods said.

"And it's all because of this event, starting 15 years ago at Grayhawk (Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona) and now here.

"Sherwood has been an incredible venue over the years and without this event we quite frankly wouldn't have a learning center here in Orange County, we wouldn't have had the ability to create other learning centers around the country."

The tournament moves to Florida next year. (Reporting by Mark Lamport-Stokes; Editing by Nick Mulvenney)

For Els, golf now losing out to family

By GERALD IMRAY (AP Sports Writer)December 5, 2013 7:56 AMAP - Sports

File - in this Sunday, March 14, 2010 file photo. Ernie Els and his wife Lieztl pose for photographers during the trophy ceremony at the CA Championship golf tournament in Doral, Fla. Els says he is considering cutting his golf schedule even more to spend time with his family, it was announced on Thursday, Dec. 5, 2103. The four-time major winner has already slowed down over the past few years, playing 19 tournaments on the PGA Tour and only seven European Tour events last season. (AP Photo/Alan Diaz, File)

SUN CITY, South Africa (AP) -- Ernie Els is considering cutting his golf schedule even more to spend time with his family, saying life on the road after 25 seasons as a pro is getting ''tougher and tougher.''

The four-time major winner has already slowed down over the past few years, playing 19 tournaments on the PGA Tour and only seven European Tour events last season.

The 44-year-old Els expects to trim that again, he said at the Nedbank Golf Challenge, his first tournament in a month.

The South African, who turned professional in 1989, said that with his daughter Samantha now 14 and son Ben now 11 ''there are other things that come into play.''

''It's always been difficult leaving the house, but now you really see your kids growing up and it gets more difficult,'' Els said.

He almost skipped the Nedbank to stay on vacation with his family, and had to send Samantha back home to Florida on her own for school while he set off in search of a fourth title at Sun City.

''I feel a little bit guilty about that,'' he said.

Els is recognizing the trend with a couple of other players on tour.

''Family life is important and you don't want to miss out on their best years before they leave the house,'' he said. ''A lot of us are in that boat now. Phil (Mickelson) has kids the same age as mine, so does (Steve) Stricker. Guys get to my age and your kids get to teenage years and it becomes a bit of a difficult scenario. It's getting tougher and tougher. The younger guys don't have too many hassles travelling ... but things change.

''I haven't really got a game plan for next year yet, but I definitely have to play a slightly different schedule. I've got to look at my schedule and see where I'm going to.''

One thing that will remain is his commitment to trying to win another major - maybe two. His British Open title in 2012, a decade after his first Claret Jug, bolstered Els' hopes of another big win before he eases off completely.

''I'm 44 and with the equipment I can really stay with the longer hitters,'' Els said. ''I feel I have a chance. I just need to sharpen up some things, get the right venue and get the right mojo. Then I think we can pull something off again. It's not going to be easy, but I believe there are one or two left, so I'll keep searching.''

Golf-Fatigued McIlroy aims to end year on high note

December 4, 2013 10:07 PM

By Mark Lamport-Stokes

THOUSAND OAKS, California, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Just three days after winning his first title of the year in Australia, a jet-lagged Rory McIlroy is looking forward to one last tournament before he puts his clubs away for a well-earned rest.

The Northern Irishman has ended a largely frustrating 2013 campaign by producing good form in recent events and would dearly love to sign off on a triumphant note at this week's Northwestern Mutual World Challenge hosted by Tiger Woods.

"I'm happy this is the last event of the year," world number six McIlroy told reporters at Sherwood Country Club on Wednesday. "It will be nice to have a few weeks off.

"This last part of the season was all about trying to build momentum going into 2014, and I feel like for the most part I've done that.

"A couple of good finishes in Asia and I got a win in Australia. I'd love to get myself in the mix this week and finish the season off on a really high note."

TITLE DROUGHT

McIlroy was delighted to end his title drought with a one-shot victory over local favourite Adam Scott at the Australian Open on Sunday, but felt he did not need that win for any form of validation.

"Did I need the win? Probably not," McIlroy said. "Was it nice to get the win? Of course. But I felt like I saw enough good golf in there to know that it was very close, and it wasn't going to be long before I did win.

"Regardless of the results, I knew that my game was coming around, and that was the most important thing. What I was happy with the most was the limited amount of times that I have gotten in contention this year, I have played well.

"I have played well down the stretch. I've played well under pressure, and that is something that I really have improved on the last few years."

Probably the biggest test for McIlroy this year has been with his mental approach to the game as he continued to battle poor form after ruling the golfing roost in 2012.

"I'm very hard on myself," said the 24-year-old, who clinched his second major title by a record eight shots at last year's PGA Championship.

"I feel like I'm emotionally connected to my golf game in terms of, if I play bad, I'll be in a bad mood. If I play well, I'll be in a good mood. The way I play golf shouldn't determine who I am as a person.

"That's sort of carried through not just in my golf game, it's just how I am, my demeanour and everything. That's something I feel like I've gotten better at and something I need to continue to get better at."

Asked if he was in a good mood this week as he prepared for Thursday's opening round at Sherwood, McIlroy smiled: "Yeah, I'm in a great mood. I'm happy." (Reporting by Mark Lamport-Stokes; Editing by Nick

A farewell to Sherwood at World Challenge

By DOUG FERGUSON (AP Golf Writer)December 5, 2013 3:57 AMAP - Sports

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (AP) -- Graeme McDowell is going to miss Sherwood Country Club.

The World Challenge that Tiger Woods hosts each December begins Thursday, played for the last time at this Jack Nicklaus course in the foothills of the Santa Monica mountains. It will move next year to Isleworth Country Club outside Orlando, Fla.

McDowell's good vibe from this event dates to 2009, the year Woods withdrew in the midst of his personal life collapsing around him. McDowell was a last-minute alternate and was runner-up. That was the first year the tournament was awarded world ranking points, and McDowell moved up to No. 38.

That put him into the Masters the next year, and those ranking points enabled him to be exempt from U.S. Open qualifying. McDowell won the U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, a victory that assured him a spot on the Ryder Cup team. And in the Ryder Cup, he won the final match on the course in Wales to clinch the cup for Europe.

And then he won at Sherwood two months later. And he won again last year, which could well have been a springboard of confidence to his three-win season this year.

So, yes, he's sorry to see it go.

''It's always been a week I've enjoyed, win, lose or draw,'' McDowell said. ''I've always enjoyed the hospitality here. It's always been a great place to end the year.''

He's not opposed to Isleworth, which is only a short drive across Orlando from his place at Lake Nona. Then again, McDowell has three wins in California and has often joked about buying a second home in the Golden State.

''California has been pretty good to me,'' he said. ''Maybe not as good to me as it has been to the host of the tournament. Tiger Woods has had a Hall of Fame career here in the state of California. I've had an OK run.''

Woods has 19 wins in his home state - eight at Torrey Pines (including a U.S. Open), two at Pebble Beach (including a U.S. Open), three at La Costa Resort (two at the Match Play, one at the Tournament of Champions), one at Harding Park (World Golf Championship) and five at Sherwood.

This will be the 14th straight year at Sherwood, which Woods said was a good run. He attributed the move to a combination of players' global schedule, a central location and sponsorship dollars ''not exactly easy to come by in these economic times.''

''It was certainly not an easy decision, but there are a lot of players that are based there in Florida,'' Woods said. ''It will be a little easier for the guys ... instead of coming all the way out here, to stay right there in Florida.''

Half of the 18-man field Woods assembled this week live in Florida.

And this is quite a field. The World Challenge has 12 of the top 20 in the world, and the lowest-ranked player is Hunter Mahan at No. 30. It's a reminder to Woods how difficult it is to win these days, and why his five PGA Tour wins - even without a major - was a strong effort.

A generation ago, golf was top-heavy with Woods, David Duval, Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els and Vijay Singh.

''I think it's deeper now than it ever has been,'' Woods said. ''There is more young talent. There are more guys winning golf tournaments for the first time. If you look at the major championships, how long did we go from basically Phil winning and Phil winning?''

He was referring to the 13 majors played between Mickelson winning the 2010 Masters and the British Open this year. Eleven of those champions had never won a major, the exceptions being Els and Rory McIlroy.

Of those 11 first-time major champions, only Darren Clarke has fallen lower than No. 40 in the world.

''It's more difficult to win events now,'' Woods said.

He pointed to advancements in equipment, particularly from wood drivers and wound golf balls. Woods says the younger players who hit the ball high ''are shocked to see the ball get moved by the wind.''

''For a lot of us who grew up playing balata balls, you wanted to get that thing down. You didn't want it up in that wind because it got pushed around like you wouldn't believe,'' he said. ''It's a totally different game. Guys have evolved, and I think they've become much more aggressive now than they ever used to be because of equipment.''

Separating the best players is getting more difficult.

McDowell set a target to get back into the top five in the world at the start of the season. He wanted a certain amount of world ranking points that he figured would do the trick, and he about reached that level. Little did he know that so many other players also raised the level of their games.

''It's fun to be part of it,'' McDowell said.