Sports Then and Now

Andy North won only three PGA Tour events, but two of them were U.S. Open Championships.

If you need any other illustration of how crazy the world of sports can be, all you need to look at is the history of the U.S. Open golf tournament. It is a tournament where two of the greatest champions of all-time, Phil Mickelson and Sam Snead, have a combined total of 10 runner-up finishes without never hoisting the tournament trophy, while there are 5 players over the last 50 years who have won the U.S. Open multiple times without winning any of the other three major titles.

Here is a look at the careers of those five champions who “got lucky” multiple times:

Hale Irwin – 1974, 1979, 1990 – Of the players whose only grand slam championships are at the U.S. Open, Irwin was the most successful in the other tournaments. He had at least one top five finish in each of the other three major championships, including a tie for second place at the British Open in 1983, and a total of 10 top 5 finishes and 20 top 10 finishes in majors. After winning his first U.S. Open in 1974, Irwin finished in the top 10 in each of the four majors in 1975. However, it would not be until 1979 when he claimed his second U.S. Open at the Iverness Club in Toledo, Ohio. Between 1980 and 1984, Irwin had four top 8 finishes at majors. However, he finished no higher than 14^th in a major for the remainder of the decade. So, it was quite a surprise when at the age of 45, he defeated Mike Donald in a playoff to become the oldest U.S. Open Champion. His final run at a major title was in 1993 when he finished tied for 6^th at the PGA Championship at the age of 48.

Andy North – 1978, 1985 – Anyone who watches golf analysis on ESPN is familiar with Andy North. He has been part of their golf coverage for more than two decades. North played college golf at the University of Florida before turning pro in 1972. In 1975 he registered his first top 5 finish at a major with a fourth place showing at the PGA Championship. In 1977 he won his first PGA Tour title capturing the American Express Westchester Classic. The following year he claimed the U.S. Open title by a single stroke over J.C. Snead and Dave Stockton. Though he finished in the top 10 at the U.S. Open in 1980 and 1983, he had very little success in other major tournaments prior to the 1985 U.S. Open. He overcame a four-shot deficit during the final round to win the tournament by a single stroke and claim his second U.S. Open title. He made only a handful of cuts at major championships over the remainder of his career. Read the rest of this entry →

As enamoring as the game of golf is, it has quickly evolved and drawn a lot of players, especially young ones. As the challenges and competition on the course grow, the technology has been raging ahead to meet them. In every field of golf, the latest technology offers unbelievable resources to improve your game and substantiate your effort.  Little technological marvels go on the club, gloves, your wrists, your pockets, golf balls and even in the spikes under golf shoes. So in this post, we just want to give you a whiff of what to look forward to in golf tech this year.

The TaylorMade R15 460 driver doesn’t just look glorious, it is speed and control embodied. By simply adjusting the movable split weights at the back, you can pull a draw or a fade as the situation demands. The Callaway Epic driver is another amazing driver that adds 21 yards of shot-shape correction. This could literally annihilate strokes out of our scoreboard. Paired with these clubs is the similarly enhanced TaylorMade TP5 golf ball. This 5-layer wonder has 10 years of research behind it to provide excellent performance with every club. The premium feel and the burst of energy upon impact cleaves off strokes from your scores. Read the rest of this entry →

Most of us are constantly looking for ways to improve our lifestyles. It can be very easy to develop poor lifestyle habits, such as drinking too much or eating too much fast food. Due to the addictive nature of such habits, we tend to persist with them for some time, with more beneficial habits taking longer to form and to commit to. There does, however, come a time where most of us are keen to shun such habits and embrace a more positive lifestyle. You may not immediately think it, but one way to seriously upgrade your lifestyle is by taking up a sport such as golf. Here are few reasons why.

Discipline

It’s pretty well-accepted that golf is a game of skill, rather than of brawn. The game can teach you some important things, such as how precision can be imperative in succeeding at the game, and why taking things slowly could benefit you. When you play a sport like this, you will notice that you start bringing these aspects into your daily life, which can result in you leading a much more focused existence. With all the many distractions that we face on a daily basis, and procrastination being a real issue for so many people, the kind of discipline golf can teach you can be a huge benefit in all aspects of your life.

Socializing

Thanks to its steady nature, golf is one of the more social sports around today. You can easily treat a game as a social event just as much as you would go the pub for a round of drinks – except, of course, the game of golf is much better for your health! If you, like so many other people, struggle to find the time to meet up with your friends to catch up, a weekly round of golf can be a great way to rebuild those relationships. Read the rest of this entry →

Arnold Palmer’s fame and success transcended golf.

In recent years, golf has become increasingly popular, mainly in countries such as America, Australia and Great Britain. In this article, we are going to talk about the richest golfers and how they have accumulated their net worth. Moreover, you will learn more about their achievements in professional career.

10. Sir Nick Faldo

This charming Brit has had a fascinating career which saw him win six major tournaments. The knighted gentleman is worth $60 million. Nowadays, He generates his money covering the sport news for CBS Sports.

9. Ernie Els

His estimated net worth is $75 million and was acquired through golfing, designing golf courses and a winery he owns, the Ernie Els Wines. The Big Easy, as he is known in the golfing community, has held the #1 spot for 788 weeks during his career. He also holds the record for most weeks in the top 10.

8. Vijay Singh

When you hear the country Fiji, people usually link it with rugby and Fiji’s national team. One Fiji native, however, chose a different sport and in his career he has won three major tournaments.Moreover, he was ranked #1 for two consecutive years in the 2014 & 2015 seasons. Vijay Singh’s net worth is $75 million and this ranks him #8 on out list.

7. Fred Couples

The American has 63 professional wins, including the 1992 Masters Tournament. His great career has managed to accumulate $105 million in the Fred Couples’s bank account. Currently, Fred spends his time playing on the senior’s circuit or in designing golf courses.

6. Phil Mickelson

Mikelson’s stellar career saw him win 5 majors and ranks him second on the PGA Tour’s list of all-time career earnings. Interestingly enough, he actually makes more money from endorsements and in 2011, he was the second-highest paid athlete in the US. His estimated net worth is $180 millions

5. Gary Player

Gary Player is the International Ambassador of Golf, and in his tremendous career, that spreads over 6 decades, he has won 165 professional tournaments including the Grand Slam. The South African has also made money from writing books about golf, designing golf courses and other business ventures. His astonishing career has left him well-off with a net worth of $200 million. Read the rest of this entry →

There’s a common misconception among golfers. A lot of people go to the driving range and just power through a bucket of 100 balls. The idea is to develop muscle memory — the idea that you can simply train your muscles to swing correctly through repetition. This idea, however popular, has been disproved time and time again. In fact, it’s more likely that you’re just reinforcing bad habits with this kind of ineffective training. There are, however, some techniques that can make a day at the driving range a very effective way to perfect your swing and improve your game.

1. Stretch

It isn’t very exciting, but the first thing you should do when you get to the range is stretch. When your muscles are cold and tight, they won’t perform nearly as well. More importantly, you’re much more likely to injure yourself if you don’t stretch.

2. Focus on one aspect of your swing

There’s no point in just randomly smacking away at a bucket of balls. With each swing, you should be working on one particular aspect of your swing. Don’t get frustrated if it doesn’t work right away — it may take some time before it clicks and you see improvement. Read the rest of this entry →

Journeyman golfer Rob Oppenheim made a crucial putt at the 72nd hole of the Pebble Beach Pro-Am to earn the highest finish of his PGA career.

With Jordan Spieth holding a three or more shot lead throughout the final round, the final outcome of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am was generally anti-climactic. However, for one golfer the final holes of the tournament were quite dramatic and significant.

Unless you are a die-hard golf fan, the name Rob Oppenheim is likely not significantly familiar. However, Oppenheim is the embodiment of what life is like for all except the top few professional golfers.

After playing the best golf of his 15 year professional career during the first three and a half rounds of the Pebble Beach Pro-Am, Oppenheim found himself near the top of the leaderboard reaching as high as fourth place with just seven holes left to play.

Considering that Oppenheim entered the weekend with only one career top 10 finish on the PGA Tour (tie for 10th at the 2016 Quicken Loans National), it was very new territory and had the potential to provide a payday matching his entire career earnings.

Though like all professional golfers Oppenheim is no stranger to pressure, you have to wonder if looking up and seeing his name listed on the same leaderboard as golf superstars Jordan Spieth, Dustin Johnson, Brandt Snedeker and Jason Day eventually started to get to him.

After a birdie on the 11th hole put him at 12 under par, Oppenheim then got a tough bounce on his tee shot at the par-3 12th hole and he eventually made his first bogey of the day. Given that Oppenheim had only one bogey per round through the first three days, it seemed possible that the 12th would just be a blimp as he finished the best performance of his career. Read the rest of this entry →