The 2012 Players Championship

Here we are about a week away from The Players Championship and the competition is already starting to heat up. In a surprising turn, Masters winner, Bubba Watson announced that he’s going to take some more time off to spend with his family.

Bubba’s right though, The Players is still going to have a great field without him. Here are some of the major “players” (... get it?) expected to compete in this year’s tournament:

-       Tiger Woods will be there, looking to bounce back after a

disappointing Masters

-       Masters runner-up Charl Schwartzel

-       Lefty, Phil Mickelson

-       Rory McIlroy

-       World #1 Luke Donald

            For a full list check out the PGA tour website

K.J. Choi will be there looking to repeat as Players Champion. If you remember last year, he won after beating David Toms in a playoff late on Sunday. We should be in for an exciting 4 days of golf this weekend at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. Stay tuned…

Golf Practice - There’s An App for That

The Rope It – the ultimate backyard golf practice tool just got a little bit better. There is now a Rope It Golf app available for your Apple iPhone. Get it for FREE here.

The brand new Shot Counter Backyard Golf Practice Range app helps track the golf shots you take during practice. Using a simple 1-5 scale you can keep track of your shots and see your results. Simply take a shot then rate that shot using the app. After you’re done practice for the day, you can graph your results and e-mail them to whomever you wish - You can even share them on Facebook so your friends can see your progress!

*For you Android users out there, the Android version is still in the works, but you can expect it VERY soon

 There are lots of golf apps out there, but this one is at the top of the leader board. It’s very simple to use and lets you easily see your results and progress. It’s also a great addition to the Rope It Backyard Practice Range, if that is your training aid of choice. There’s no reason not to go download this app and get to practicing!

The Masters Is Over… Now What?

Golf’s greatest tournament, The Masters, is over and there are still over 5 months of pro-golf left this year, so we were wondering what there is to look forward to in the coming weeks/months. Here’s a quick breakdown of some of the highlights:

Check out the ESPN golf schedule for the full list of this year’s golf tournaments.

As you can see, there is still a lot of golf to be played. In May we have The Players, the U.S. Open and Tiger’s Tournament (AT&T National) will follow in June. In July, The Open Championship will be played in England. The season will come to and end in August and September with the PGA Championship and Ryder Cup, respectively, with other tournaments scattered in between and after.

Will Bubba pick up his second major win? Will Tiger get back on track and play like the Tiger of old? How will Lefty and Rory finish up their seasons? Will we see any newcomers join the list of elite in today’s game? Only time will tell…

The Golf Bucket List

We all have a list of thing’s we’d like to do before we kick the bucket… go skydiving, see the pyramids in Egypt, or go to the Super Bowl. But do you have a list of “golf” bucket list items? Here’s a list of some our “golf” bucket list items:

#1. Visit the old course at St. Andrews

• Location: St. Andrews, Scotland
• Established: 1552
• Length: 7,305 yards
• Par: 72
• Host to The Open Championship

The Old Course at St. Andrews is easily the most beautiful golf course in the world – definitely at the top of our “golf” bucket list.

#2. See The Masters at Augusta National

• Location: Augusta, Georgia
• Established: 1933
• Length: 7,435 yards
• Par: 72
• Host to The Masters Tournament

After seeing the Masters just a few weeks ago, it’s easy to remember why this one is at #2 – it’s one of the greatest tournaments every year.

#3. Play a round of golf in at least 5 states

There are thousands of golf courses in America, and it’d definitely be a neat accomplishment to play a round in as many of the 50 states as possible. Five is definitely an attainable goal, not too many that it’s impossible. Check out this map that Golf Digest put together. It’ll give you suggestions on some of the best courses to play in the country.

So there’s the top 3 experiences from our bucket list. What’s on your list of golf things to before you kick the bucket?

Bubba Watson Wins the 76th Masters Tournament At Augusta

And we have a winner! Bubba Watson is the winner of the 76th Masters Tournament. After an exciting Round 4 at Augusta, Bubba Watson beat Louis Oosthuizen on the second hole of a Sudden Death Playoff late on Sunday. The day began with a handful of players in the hunt (including Hanson, Oosthuizen, Mickelson, Kuchar, and Westwood), but it was Watson who prevailed. The win yesterday was Watson’s first major - and from what we saw yesterday, looks to be the first of many more.Gerry “Bubba” Watson, a member of the “Golf Boys” (along with Hunter Mahan, Rickie Fowler, and Ben Crane) can now add Masters Champion to his list of accomplishments. Since turning pro in 2003, Watson had 3 PGA Tour wins, but never a major event. With the win yesterday he earned both his 4th PGA Tour win and first major... as well as a nice payday ($1,440,000).

Watson and Oosthuizen proved to be the best two at Augusta yesterday, both finishing 10 under par after 18 holes. After the conclusion of all other play by the rest of the field, Watson and Oosthuizen proceeded to play the 18th hole again. After both made par, they moved to the 10th hole which ended up being the final hole of the day. An emotional Watson, was greated by his mother and fellow golfers on the 10th green after he hit an amazing hook to set up a two-putt for the win over Oosthuizen. His wife Angie was at home with their newly adopted son, Caleb. The University of Georgia alumni, was given a warm round of applause as he received his first green jacket from last year’s champion Charl Schwartzel. Watch his speech here:

Although Watson was the victor of this year’s Masters, his Sudden Death competitor Louis Oosthuizen made a double eagle on the 2nd hole.. a shot that you HAVE to see.

Yesterday’s conclusion of the Masters confirms many of the reasons why it is the greatest tournament of the year. From the beautiful course, to the decades of tradition, to the incredible play this will be one Masters that we remember for a long time.

Three Way Tie At The Masters: Lefty, Louis, or Kuchar?

Late on day three at the Masters, the competition is heating up. There is a three-way tie for first place with Phil Mickelson, Louis Oosthuizen, and Matt Kuchar – all at six under.

Phil Mickelson is making quite the run on day three and is in the hunt for his fourth green jacket. If he won this year, he would join Tiger Woods (4), Arnold Palmer (4), and Jack Nicklaus (6) as the only golfers to win four or more Masters Tournaments – that’s some club to be in. Lefty shot a 74 on day one, and a 68 yesterday on day two.

Mickelson eagled 13 and you could tell by the eruption of the crowd, that they’re pulling for him. With that eagle he took a share of the lead with Kuchar and Oosthuizen.

Louis Oosthuizen, last year’s Masters champion is atop the leaderboard again this year and looks to enter Sunday with a very good chance of repeating. If Oosthuizen were to repeat, he would become only the fourth player to win back-to-back Masters, joining Jack Nicklaus (’65-’66), Nick Faldo (’89-’90), and Tiger Woods (’01-’02). Louis has played very well thus far, shooting a 68 on Thursday and a 72 on Friday.

Matt Kuchar is a lesser-known name to most, but is playing just as well today. Kuchar’s best finish at Augusta was when he tied for 21^st in 1998. After turning pro in 2000 he has accumulated 6 wins (including 3 on the PGA Tour). He’s looking for his first green jacket this weekend, and will be facing intense competition on Sunday.

Kuchar may be the surprises of this year’s Masters Tournament, but it’ll be interesting to see who takes hold of the lead on Sunday evening. Will it be one of these three who take home the green jacket? Who’s your pick – Lefty, Louis, Kuchar, or the field?

The Battle for Augusta: Young vs. Old

It’s turning out to be another exciting year at the Masters. Last year at Augusta it was youngster Rory McIlroy who took the lead late into the tournament, but this year its seasoned veteran Fred Couples who is taking charge of the pack. Through two days of play, Couples is at the top of the board and is not showing signs of slowing down – shooting a 72 on day one and a 67 yesterday in Round 2.

Golf is one of the few competitive sports that can be won by newcomers and old-timers alike. Tiger Woods became the youngest person to win the Masters, winning his first green jacket at the age of 22 in 1997. Jack Nicklaus is the oldest golfer to ever win The Masters, winning the tournament in 1986 at the age of 46…… 46! What other major sporting event can be won by a 46 year old? You don’t see NFL quarterbacks winning Super Bowls at 46, and you sure don’t see 46 year old professional basketball players leading their teams to the NBA Finals.

If Fred Couples were to win The Masters this year, he would break Jack’s record of oldest person to win a green jacket – Couples is 52 this year and already has one green jacket of his own. He won The Masters back in April of 1992. Let’s take a minute to put that into perspective: in 1992 Rory McIlroy was 2 years old. It’s amazing that 20 years later these two are competing against each other in this year’s Masters; both Couples and McIlroy are in the hunt heading into the final two days at Augusta.

One of the things that make golf so great is the competition of the young versus the old. There is great respect and tough competitive mindset shared between the generations. Masters Week was kicked off with the Par 3 Competition where both the current pro’s and old-timers compete, and on Thursday, the first round was opened with honorary tee shots by three of the all-time greats: Nicklaus, Palmer, and Player.

The game of golf has something that no other game has or probably ever will: The great competition of the young and the old.

Perfect Golf Practice Makes Perfect

Every golfer knows the importance of practicing their swing. Getting into good practice habits is just the first step in helping you improve your game. When practicing, it is necessary to practice “correctly” (using a proper stance, correct ball positioning, etc.); perfect practice makes perfect. You don’t have to spend extra money at the driving range though; all of your practice can be done right in your backyard.

When practicing your swing at home, one of the best ways to improve your shot is by making sure that you address the ball properly and you are using the correct stance. Here’s a scene from the classic television show The Honeymooners showing you what not to do:

Ball Positioning is crucially important and directly affects the flight of the ball. You can have the perfect swing and still end up with a poor shot if you do not correctly position the ball first. It will take some time to figure out just how to align the ball, but once you do it will definitely take your game to the next level!

When adjusting your positioning and alignment keep these three points in mind:

1. Mid Ball Placement: this is the ideal placement and will most likely produce a straight shot
2. Front Ball Placement: placement near the front of your stance will be more likely to result in a hook
3. Back Ball Placement: placement near the rear of your stance will be more likely to result in a slice or fade

The Rope It will help you see how your positioning and alignment is now, and allow you to make adjustments when necessary – fixing your slice and/or hook shots. To get some tips on how to improve your positioning using the Rope It check out this video:

For more info on the Rope It and to find out where you can get yours, visit www.TheRopeIt.com

Tiger Woods Is Winning!

Tiger Woods on his long awaited 72nd win, has broken the longest drought of his golf career at the Arnold Palmer Invitational Presented By MasterCard! His first win since September 2009, Tiger shot a 70 on Sunday's final round, claiming a five shot win over playing competitor Graeme McDowell.

Tiger is now one behind Jack Nicklaus and ten behind Sam Snead on the all-time wins list. His latest victory has brought his career tournament winnings to $109,596,678, according to Darren Rovell. With a fresh victory under his belt, perhaps a win at The Masters Tournament is next.

For now, fans revel in watching Woods win, enjoying every bit of his first victory. It has been 923 days on the PGA Tour since he won, back to his triumph at the 2009 BMW Championship, where Woods won for the sixth time that year and seemed on top of the golf world. Much has happened since then, from a serious knee injury to personal turmoil and endless negative press over his adulterous ways, many wondered if this day would ever come.

This victory seemed to bring the Tiger a sense of relief rather than elation. With a fresh win under his belt and a taste for victory perhaps the composed and confident Tiger we know and love is back. As the season progresses we will look to see if Tiger can carry this momentum into another age of Woods dominance and ignite the crowds as he did just a few years earlier.