Big Play
WHO HunterMahan
WHAT 136-yardpitching wedge to two feet
WHERE 444-yardpar-4 18th hole at TPC River Highlands
WHEN First playoffhole of the Travelers Championship
WHY
Mahan's swing is built to perform under pressure, as he showed by stiffingwedge shots at 18 in regulation and in the playoff, because it's perfectlybalanced going back. At the top of the backswing his elbows are level with eachother. That position means he doesn't need to resort to any funky timing orweird compensating moves in the downswing to square the clubhead at impact.
GERALD'S TIP
I Love Mahan'sBalanced Elbows
Every golfershould strive to have balanced elbows at the top, as Mahan does. To keep yourelbows balanced, your forearms should face each other and remain the samedistance apart from address to the top of the backswing, and your elbows shouldpoint down. To learn what this feels like, raise your arms to the top of yourbackswing, then have someone lay a club across your elbows. The shaft should beparallel to the ground.
...And anotherthing
"The PGA Tour shouldn't test for drugs. The Tour has no business policingplayers who are independent contractors."
For Sale
This classic course in northern Illinois is a shooter's paradise
What Hunter'sRidge
Where Princeton, Ill.
Cost $3,450,000
Hook This former private club, founded in 1911, has a plantation-styleclubhouse with men's and women's locker rooms, a bar, a hall that can hold upto 250 people, a pro shop, a screened deck and a gazebo. The course, on 250acres, is 6,337 yards long and is complemented by an outdoor pool.
Fringe benefitThere are no actual hunters, so you don't have to dress like Ian Poulter toavoid being shot.
PERFECT LIES
Commissioner TimFinchem says the PGA Tour hopes to have a drug-testing plan completed by theend of the year. Now that testing is on the horizon for the major pro tours,golfers need to wise up. Yes, they must know which prescription drugs,over-the-counter cold remedies and balms to avoid, but they also need to knowwhich semiplausible excuse to use if they test positive. Here's a guide.
Performance Enhancer | Excuse |
Beta-blockers | Mental coach told me they were for depression |
Barbiturates | Small amounts in my allergy medication |
Marijuana | Inhaled a lot of secondhand smoke during the pro-am |
Anabolic steroids | Absorbed too much liquid fertilizer |
Crack | Borrowed my caddie's water bottle |
The Cream | Trainer told me it was suntan lotion |
Human growth hormone | Overdid the Cialis |
GOLF MAGAZINE TOP 100 TEACHERS POLL
Should MichelleWie be playing in the U.S. Women's Open?
Yes ...74%
No ...26%
"Finally, atournament where she earned the exemption."
-JIM MURPHY, SUGARCREEK COUNTRY CLUB
PHOTO
COURTESY OF CBS
PHOTO
ERICK W. RASCO
THREE PHOTOS
ERICK W. RASCO
PHOTO
COURTESY OF COLDWELL BANKER
Hunter's Ridge
FOUR PHOTOS
ERICK W. RASCO
PHOTO
TODD BIGELOW/AURORA (WIE)