Hugh Grant blames golf for being single

Here's a peek at what the game of golf can do to you. Hugh Grant has blamed golf for his current single status. He said the game has overtaken him like an addiction which has left little time for pursuing the fairer sex.

“When you say to a girl ‘I play golf’ her eyes glaze over. I do feel guilty about my golf. You know you’re a sad case when you spend your spare time reading books on putting or going on YouTube to watch slow motion golf swings,” he said.

“I’ll get out of bed in the middle of the night and practise my swing in front of a mirror. I’m obsessed and it’s destroying my life. Golf is an addiction,” he added.

Golf is certainly a more respectable pursuit than some of his previous ones. Given enough time and money, I'm sure many of us would attempt to court the very same fickle muse.

Golf snippets

Here's some golf stories you may have missed this week:

• The Australian Open has finally received some good news. After news of Tim Clark and Greg Norman withdrawing from the event, they've secured former US Masters winner, Fred Couples to grace the fairways of NSW Golf Course. The Open will now feature both ends of the American golf swinging spectrum. Fred Couples on one end and John Daly on the other.
  
  
• Aussie Golfer didn't get to see any of the Channel Nine golf coverage last weekend but some guy named Leaping Larry at The Age hooks into the commentary team. I heard from enough disgruntled fans to know McGuire and company weren't great.
  
  
• Greg Norman and Tom Watson have recieved special exemptions for the British Open. After their performances over the last two years, the R&A have changed the age rule so that former champions who finish in the top 10 in the previous five Opens get a five-year exemption, regardless of age. Worth keeping in mind.
  
  
• Michelle Wie won her first professional tournament last weekend. I personally don't think this was ever in doubt. She just had too much pressure piled on her too early. A good advertisement for the Twitter and golf combination. One of her tweets after winning: "wooooOoooooooooohooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo".

BMX, skateboarding and golf

From the department of "organising random things at once" comes A Kodak Walk in the Park. Albert Park Golf Course in Melbourne will host the day of craziness on December 19 featuring a day of live music, BMX, skateboarding and golf. Yes, thats right. Live music, BMX, skateboarding.......and golf.

On the cards is a pro golf event featuring some of Australia's best men and women golfers in a 9 hole shoot out for some fairly decent prize money. Sarah Kemp, Nikki Campbell, Alistair Presnell and Cameron Percy will all be competing.

Alongside the golf the skateboarders will compete on the biggest vertical ramp in the southern hemisphere, the BMX riders will compete on 600 tonnes of dirt dumped next to the first tee and bands including You Am I, Kisschasey and Dallas Crane will perform on the main stage!

Taking golf to the kids. This could be really cool, I mean....gnarly. Go!

Reebok Pump commercial with Greg Norman

It has been all pretty serious and Tiger-ish around here of late so let's throw it all out of whack with this bit of retro craziness from the guy that used to be as big as Tiger.

Here Greg Norman stars in an advertisement for Reebok pump golf shoes from 1991. I had a pair of Reebok pumps for the basketball court but never realised they released a version for the golf course. The commercial is so corny it is hard to believe it was from the 90s and not the 80s.

Other golf commercials:
Callaway commercial
Tiger's return: Nike commercial
FedEx Cup commercial
Duelin' Drivers

Tiger wins, but what have we learned?

Photo courtesy of FoxSports and Craig Borrow

Tiger Woods won the 2009 Australian Masters today to take home the crystalware and don the gold jacket. He managed to make birdies when needed and Greg Chalmers, James Nitties and Jason Dufner couldn't match him. They join a very long list of golfers.

It was pretty amazing to see the world's number one golfer stroll Australian fairways once more a real treat to see him wear the gold jacket. A major part of the Australian golf summer for the last 20 years and won by a long list of great golfers from all over the world.

You'll find the tournament dissected and reported in many places across the Internet and you probably don't need one more tournament wrap. But what have we learned from the crazy week?

• Melbourne can put on a sporting event, any major event for that matter. I'm over the whole Sydney versus Melbourne rivalry but have to say, the city could hold the British Open without anyone realising it wasn't in the UK.
• Just because a kebab may cost $7 on Lygon Street doesn't mean it won't cost around $10 at the golf.
• Australia has just as many idiots as any other country willing to yell 'get in the hole!' to Tiger.
• Australia also has a number of golf fans who are willing to tell them to shut up.
• Tiger at his worst is even par.
• Adam Scott may soon be back to his best. See Australian Open in a few weeks.
• I have no hesitation now in saying it was $3 million well spent by the Victorian government and golf management. The atmosphere around the fully booked out city of Melbourne was extraordinary.
• James Nitties is an unashamed Tiger lover. He admits he'll never be as good as Tiger at golf but with a nickname of 'Shagger' he may well be better than Tiger at something else.

Keep it rough, just rough

The Australian Masters is underway in Melbourne and James Nitties, Brandan Grace and Tiger Woods lead the way and it was a pleasure to watch. If you weren't at the course you would not have seen Tiger's round live thanks to some great pre-programming from Channel Nine and FoxSports but tomorrow's afternoon round will be shown live.

It is great to be amongst such an amazing golf atmosphere but I always get the biggest kick out of the Australian golf summer which is played on golf courses where the rough is just rough, not to some ridiculous length where Craig Parry could go missing.

The implications reveal themselves around the green. No longer can you miss a green by a metre and expect to play it onto the green from a metre. The ball bounces away and the golfers out at Kingston Heath yesterday including Tiger of course, were then forced to play longer chip shots from much tighter lies.

The sandbelt courses are always cut like this - modeled on the links golf design. We saw a lot of birdies yesterday and shots we're not used to seeing on the PGA Tour. It shows you can keep golf entertaining and challenging for the professionals without growing the rough to stupid lengths. Course designers take note.

Appleby's honour

Peter Stone's weekend golf article contains just too much juicy golf stuff not to be commented on.

He reports on Stuart Appleby who is in Australia to play in the Masters this week and attend a golf clinic for the Appleby junior golf program on Wednesday. Stone writes:

This year, Appleby has experienced his worst year on the PGA Tour since 1996 and is 134th on the money list with just next week's Children's Miracle Network Classic remaining to break into the top 125 for full exempt status next year.

But, Appleby has chosen not to play in order to honour his promise to the Masters. He will have limited exempt status on the PGA Tour next year for finishing between 126 and 150 on the money list. That will guarantee him about 15 starts.

He also comments on Jack Nicklaus' appearance at the Australian Open in 1975 when Kerry Packer took over the management of the event and paid Jack some appearance money.

Nicklaus asked Packer what prizemoney was on offer that week and, when told, Nicklaus immediately added his fee to the purse, which brought total prizemoney to $35,000.

Here is the full Peter Stone article.

Australian Masters live leaderboard

Looking for live scores for the 2009 Australian Masters at Kingston Heath? Here's a few links to live scoreboards:

Australian PGA Tour website live leaderboard

European Tour live leaderboard

Who can beat Tiger ?

The JBWere Australian Masters is now almost upon us and it is hard to recall a bigger build up to a golf tournament held in Australia. The Tiger frenzy has been so crazy even the Britney Spears fans must be wondering why their idol is not gracing the front page of the newspapers.

There are concerns over the galleries surrounding Tiger this week. The incidents in China concerning cameras has some cause for concern and subsequently all cameras and phones are banned. There is also concerns over whether the smallish Kingston Heath course can adequately cope with the large galleries. Galleries this size won't be anything new to Tiger but the course will be.

As usual he'll be short priced favourite to win. You have to stop and remind ourselves just how amazing that is in a sport such as golf.

But is there anyone else a chance to beat him? I'd like to say Mat Goggin could threaten but his end to the year hasn't been great and John Daly may again struggle on this tight layout. Here are few guys that may be a chance.

Marc Leishman
There was a barely a player on the PGA Tour who finished better than he did this year and he is favourite to be named rookie of the year. He went from battling for his tour card to playing with Tiger Woods in the final FedEx Cup playoff featuring the Top 30 players in the space of four weeks. He can bomb it big and is not afraid to attack. He looks to thrive under pressure and could be a big threat after finishing 8th here last year. Australia's next great hope #2.

Michael Sim
Sim should have won in Australia last year. He led the Masters last year after 54 holes before a final round blow outs ruined his chances and backed up well at the Australian Open before again finishing poorly. He's over any injuries he carried with him back then and his Nationwide Tour year has shown he can close out golf tournaments now. Australia's next great hope #1.

Geoff Ogilvy
This time last week I would not have mentioned the man but his performance in China was very good. His last two rounds were very good and the Victorian often plays well in his home town.

Jason Dufner
This guy made over $2 million on the PGA Tour this year with six top-10 finishes and was first choice on many occasions...no make that second choice, in my fantasy golf team. The Americans tend to struggle first time out on Australian courses but he has been out to Australia a few times when playing on the Nationwide Tour and could be one to watch.

Rod Pampling
Pamps is back to defend his golf jacket and has had a pretty good finish to the year. He'll know this course well and be familiar with positioning off the tee. He's always a threat on home soil will feature on Sunday.

Tim Clark
When doesn't this guy put himself in a position to win? Just such a solid player and this tight layout will suit him perfectly. He finished third last year with a third round 76 against his name. I can see the South African winning this and will be completely undaunted going up against Tiger on Sunday.

Also watch for: PGA Tour regular James Nitties and 2010 PGA Tour card holder, Cameron Percy.

Tiger talks

After his practice round at Kingston Heath this morning, Tiger Woods gave his first media conference to a packed house. Victorian Premier John Brumby introduced him. You would think the US President had flown in or something.

You know Woods has been here three times before right?

Here's the full press conference, bear with it, Brumby does stop talking after a while.