Newspapers / The Charlotte Post (Charlotte, … / Oct. 12, 2006, edition 1 / Page 20
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4C SPORTS/^l^e Cliarlette $o£t Thursday, October 12, 2006 IT’S GOOD FOR YOUR GAME Finish the way you’re built The differences in swing mechanics mirror the differences in body characteristics, and nowhere is that more evident than at the finish. The finish of your swing is a position that telfs the story about what went on during the swing. But because of the variations in body types, not all finishes are the same. The finish depends on your body type, i.e., how you’re built, your strength and, of most importance, your flexibility The Leverage player Ben Curtis, pictured here (the only American player under 30 on the PGA Tour to win twice in 2006), is a flexible Leverage player (of aver age height and buUd). His right shoulder often ends closer to the target than his left, with the chest facing left of the target. If you’re a Leverage player, you should finish with the majority of your weight on your left side, at your fuU height, with the front of your body facing the target and your back foot used as a rudder. Your upper body is upright, but tilt ed a bit to the right with the right shoulder slightly lower than the left (sideways “C” or bow). The club shaft finishes behind your head on a line that runs through the ears, but since the head is tilted slightly, the club shaft is diag onal with the ground. The Arc player . The high acceleration of an Arc player’s club head as it slams into the ball causes the body to rebound into the characteristic Arc follow- through. TaU and flexible, an Arc player’s lower body actually swings out from under his neck, creating the reverse “C” finish position so char acteristic of the Arc swing. His arms are in a high position over his left shoulder, his chest facing the target and his body is bowed, with his head over his right foot. The Width player The Width player has a stocky build and lim ited flexibility His finish is erect, in a straight- up “I” position, with his shoulders level to the ground and the club shaft horizontal to the ground, a result of the club traveling around and out during the downswing rather than down and under His head should be over his left foot with no bend in his back. To find out which swing you should use, take the LAWS test at www.tjtomasi.com. Golf(^ Insider LPGA’s Daniel moves toward retirement On the cusp of 50, golfer looks back on a ‘great’ career By CRAIG DOLCH Cox News Service West Palm Beach, Fla. H an of Fame golfer Beth Daniel turns 50 this month. If her first name was Brian or BiUy her birthday would be cause for an even greater party But because women can’t look forward to a Champions Tour with an additional chance to com pete and make more mUlions, this milestone simply moves the Delray Beach, Fla., resident ever closer to retirement. Not that she worries too much about some thing that’s not there. “It’s a waste of energy because it doesn’t exist. A good tour for senior women just isn’t out there,” Daniel said. “You can play in a few events, but there’s not much money in it.” Daniel is fueled by more than monetary reasons these days. She has earned more than $8.7 million during her 28 years on the LPGA Tour, ranking her sixth aU time, so she doesn’t need the cash. With 33 LPGA titles, including the 1991 LPGA Championship, Daniel has left little on the table. She was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2000, and three years later, she became the oldest winner (46 years, 8 months, 29 days) in LPGA Tour history when she claimed the Canadian Women’s Open. What she continues to want, however, are things you can’t buy • "I made up my mind several years ago that I would continue to play as long as I enjoy it and I’m competitive,” Daniel said. “I was going to look at my schedule and look at my stats and determine whether I will go back out and play The last two years. I’ve not been as competitive as I want, and that’s been a little frustrating.” Daniel ranks 46th on the LPGA’s money list with $252,200, despite playing 15 events. She has had five top-20 finishes, but only one in the top 10, though that came in a major (she was sixth at the Women’s British Open). She said she may play in next month’s Tournament of Champions in Mobile, Ala., giving her a final, thread-thin hope to qualify for the season-ending ADT Championship at Trump International in West Palm Beach, Cox News Service World Hall of Fame golfer Beth Daniel doesn’t see herself ever retiring completely from golf. “You still can play with your friends or in corporate outings,’’ she said. Daniel, shown above in the 2001 Chick-fil-A Charity Championship in Stockbridge, Ga., turns 50 this month. Fla. Then again, she may just keep the clubs stored away for the rest of the year. “I’ve known for five years the time is coming; it’s just a matter of when,” Daniel said of competitive retirement. “But I don’t think you ever retire from golf. You still can play with your friends or in corpo rate outings.” Daniel started making the tran sition when she accepted an offer from Betsy King to be her assis tant captain in next year’s Solheim Cup in Sweden. Daniel recently went to Sweden to help do a site visit for the matches. She officially says she’s “semi-re- tired.” “I’ve had a great career, and I’ve played a lot longer than a lot of people have,” Daniel said. “I’ve been really lucky to do something I love and make a liv ing out of it for 28 years. It may be time.” Nicklaus, Wiren among those headed to Hall Five-time PGA champion Jack Nicklaus and North Palm Beach master professional Dr. Gary Wiren are among seven inductees to be en shrined in the PGA Golf Professional HaU of Fame this year. Besides Nicklaus’ 18 professional major championships and 73 PGA Tour titles, his philanthropic ef forts include teaming up with his wife, Barbara, to establish the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation and the Barbara & Jack Nicklaus Junior Golf Endowment Fund, while also ele vating the role of PGA profession als through First Tee teaching grants. “I have always had an enormous amoimt of respect for the role of the PGA golf professional,” Nicklaus said. “They shoulder the responsibility of teaching the game, growing it and protecting it for future generations. “It is no secret how the role of a PGA professional has touched my life and my career.” Wiren, file PGA Teacher of the Year in 1987, is a PGA teaching pro fessional at Trump International Golf Club in West Pahn Beach, Fla., and heads instruction at all of Trump’s golf properties. NicMaus and "Wiren will be joined in the Hall of Fame class by PGA of America President Roger Warren of Kiawah Island, S.C.; 1958 PGA champion Dow Fii^terw^d of Colorado Springs, Colo.; 2005 PGA Golf Professional of the Year Bill Eschenbrenner of El Paso, Texas; 1986 PGA Teacher of the Year Manuel de la Torre of Milwaukee, Wis.; and PGA Master Professional WiUiam Heald of Westchester, Ell. The induction ceremonies wUl be Dec. 8 at the PGA ELearning Center at PGA Village in Port St. Lucie, Fla. — Craig Dolch, Cox News Service ‘Golden Bear’ heads to OSU to ‘dot the i’ Jack Nicklaus gets to experi ence a different kind of thrOl -png- « when he’ll j “dot the i” as the Ohio State University Marching Band per forms its sig nature NICKLAUS “Script Ohio” formation during the Buckeyes’ homecoming game against Minnesota on Oct. 28. The honor traditionally goes to fourth-year sousaphone play ers. Nicklaus joins a short list of non-band members to enjoy the privilege, including Woody Hayes and Bob Hope. SCHEDULE All Times EDT LPGA TOUR Samsung World Championship • Site: Palm Desert, Calif • Schedule: Thursday-Sunday. • Course: Bighorn Golf Club, Canyons Course (6,462 yards, par 72). • Purse: $875,000. Winner’s share; $218,750. • TV: The Golf Channel (Thursday 4:30-7 p.m.; Friday, 2-4 a.m., 3:30-6 p.m.; Saturday, 2-4 a.m.) and NBC (Saturday, 2-4 p.m.; Sunday, 4-6 p.m.). PGA TOUR Frys.com Open • Site: Las Vegas. • Schedule: Thursday-Sunday • Courses: TPC Summerlin (7,243 yards, par 72) and TPC The Canyons (7,193 yards, par 71). • Ehuse: $4 million. Winner’s share: $720,000. • TV: USA (Thursday-Friday 4-6 p.m.; Saturday, 3-6 p.m.) and ABC (Sunday 3-6 p.m.). CHAMPIONS TOUR Administaff Small Business Classic • Site: Spring, Texas. • Schedule: FYiday-Sunday • Course: Augusta Pines Golf Club (7,003 yards, par 72). • Ihuse: $1.6 million. Winner’s share: $240,000. • TV: The Golf Channel (Friday-Simday 6-8:30 p.m., 10 p.m.-midnight). NATIONWIDE TOUR Permian Basin Charity Classic • Site: Midland, Texas. • Schedule: Thursday-Sruiday • Course: Midland Country Club (7,354 yards, par 72). • Purse: $475,000. Winner’s share: $85,500. • TV: None. LEADERS WORLD RANKINGS 1. Tiger Woods 23.46 2. Jim Furyk 8.77 3. Phil Mickelson 8.17 4. Adam Scott 7.20 5. VijaySingh 6.69 6. Ernie Els 6.26 7. Relief Goosen 6.14 8. Luke Donald 5.67 9. Sergio Garcia 5.52 10. Geoff Ogiivy 5.34 11. Henrik Stenaon 4.83 12. P. Harrington 4.74 13. T. Immelman 4.56 14. David Howell 4.45 15. Chris DiMarco 4.34 le.DavidToms 4.30 17. Paul Casey 4.21 18. C. Montgomerie 4.19 19. Davis Love III 4.07 20. J. Olazabal 3.88 MONEY LEADERS PGATOUR Player Money 1. Tiger Woods $9,941,563 2. Jim Furyk $6,429,016 3. Phil Mickelson $4,256,505 4. Geott Ogiivy $4,228,869.; 5. VijaySingh $4,163,831 6. Adam Scott $3,808,^8 ; 7. T. Immelman $3,479,746 8. Stuart Appleby $3,230,297 9. Luke Donald $2,91^408 10. David Toms $2,764,287 LPGATOUR Player Money 1. Lorena Ochoa $2,124,122 2. KarrteWebb $1,873,753 3. A. Sorenstam $1,769,408 4. Crlstie Kerr $1,472,112 5. MiHyunKim $1,272,318 CHAMPIONSTOUR Player Money 1. Loren Roberts $2,105,764 2. Jay Haas $2,026,427 3. Brad Bryant $1,640,625 4. G. Morgan $1,458,005 5. Tom Kite $1,360,285 THE GOLF DOCTOR Use the correct club in autumn winds Blustery fall weather adds an extra challenge to your game, and you’U have to take the wind into account as you make your club selections. Here are some things to keep in mind. Only when the wind blows more than 5 mph will it affect your club se lection — anything less, ignore it. If the wind is blowing hard enough to ruffle your clothes and the flag is straight out, it’s at least a 10-yard wind, meaning you add or subtract 10 yards. If the flagstick is bowing and you can’t keep your hat on, it’s a 20- yard-plus wind. First check the direction and speed of the clouds, the flag and, most im portant, the movement of the tree- tops. The wind will have its greatest effect while your ball is above the tree' line, so the higher the shot, the more it’s influenced by the breeze. A side wind won’t hurt you until the ball gets to its apex and begins to blow sideways. Thus, a side wind is usually not a helping wind because the ball will be going into the wind for most of its flight. Figure that only about one- third of your shot’s flight wUl be aided in a crosswind; during two- thirds of its flight, the wind wiU be against you. — T.J. Tomasi ASK THE PRO Q: Now that we’ve been poimded again in the Ryder Cup, I’m wondering what your take is on why we keep losing. And why is Tiger Woods getting beat when he’s the best player? I think oxu: team is a bunch of spoiled millionaires who really don’t care about the cup or the coimtry — Randall, from Port St. Lucie, Fla. A: You’re right about them being millionaires, but dead wrong about them not caring. They care, big time, so apathy is not the problem. Woods’ entire golf battle plan is based on stroke play where he relies on only one person — himseE His emotion^ system WOODS “loner” mentality, and like the tough cop on the beat, he does n’t want a “snot-nosed rookie” tagging along as a partner while he goes about his busi ness. Woods has a me-against-them persona and there’s no “we” in “me.” Better-baU and alternate- shot isn’t Tiger goE. Superman never had a partner, and Achilles didn’t do the tag-team thing on Hector. Researchers at the University of Tokyo confirm that the mere presence of a partner alleviated the stress response in rats, re ducing stress-induced behav iors such as “freezing” and helping them to literally keep theE cool, while minimizing high levels of stress-related brain chemicals. The point; E there is a Tiger rat somewhere, he doesn’t need a partner to keep from freezing. To answer your question about how we could lose to the Europeans, I’U be brief: They’re better. Distributed by Universal Press Syndicate for Cox News Service. (800) 255-6734. *For release the week of October 9, 2006.
The Charlotte Post (Charlotte, N.C.)
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Oct. 12, 2006, edition 1
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