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Sponsorship
Adams Golf announces the addition of Larry Nelson to its tour staff. With 26 wins on the PGA and Senior PGA Tour, Nelson will play Adams equipment, as well as represent the company by wearing Adams' hat and carrying its bag.
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Legal
Callaway Golf Company announces that a Texas-based Wood Arts Golf, Inc., a golf club company, had agreed to pay an undisclosed amount of money to Callaway Golf to settle patent infringement claims. The settlement followed shortly after a federal court in Houston, Texas, had dismissed patent infringement claims asserted by Wood Arts against Callaway Golf.
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Events
TaylorMade Golf has chosen the ING Spring Conference as the site to introduce its new line of titanium drivers. The launch will take place on Day Two of the conference, held May 12-16 in the Pinehurst/Southern Pines area.
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Alex Cejka of Germany and England's Lee Westwood are named wild cards for the The Seve Trophy, to be played between Great Britain and Ireland and Continental Europe at Druids Glen, Ireland, from April 19-21.
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Instruction
Headed by university golf coaches and PGA professionals Don Underwood and Lori Stinson, the instructional options offered at The Meadows Golf Club at Grand Valley State University this year include individual and group instruction, a junior players' series and a school focusing entirely on the short game.
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Philips Electronics and instructor David Leadbetter team up to optimize golf lessons utilizing DVD recording. DVD recording allows golfers to maximize their lessons by offering a convenient, digital quality recording of their swing.
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Tours
ASGA enters into a sponsorship agreement with Career Worth to become event presenting sponsor of 15 ASGA Tour events between May 2002 and December 2003. Career Worth will be designated as Event Presenting Sponsor and ASGA will receive 1.3 million shares of Career Worth's common stock valued at $2.275 million.
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Players
Se Ri Pak, a four-time LPGA Tour winner in 2001, including the Weetabix Women's British Open, has commited to play in the 11th Chick-fil-A Charity Championship hosted by Nancy Lopez April 29-May 5 at Eagle's Landing Country Club in Stockbridge, Ga.
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Equipment
According to the Darrell Survey for the LPGA's Welch's-Circle K Classic, more golfers wore CHAMP golf spikes than any other brand. CHAMP golf spikes were worn by 73 golfers (50.7 percent) in the field. In terms of individual spikes, CHAMP ScorpionSpikes led the way with 70 golfers.
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People
Billy Casper Golf announces Mark Peterson as Superintendent of BCG-managed McCullough's Emerald Golf Links, the new, public golf course near Atlantic City, N.J.
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The U.S. Golf Association honors Robert A. Laubach of Scottsdale, Ariz., with the Green Section's Piper and Oakley Award. The award was established in 1998 to recognize meritorious service to the USGA Green Section and the game of golf by a volunteer.
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Public Relations
Alan Taylor Communications, an independent agency in sports and leisure public relations, announces that it has been retained by Spalding Sports Worldwide, Inc. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. ATC will support Spalding's 2002 promotional efforts through public relations initiatives for its TOP-FLITE XL 3000 and STRATA golf balls.
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Courses
The North Carolina Magazine Golf Panel names Rocky River Golf Club at Concord one of the state's best golf courses. In the survey of the top 100 courses, which covers all public and private venues, Rocky River was 89th.
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Retail
Never Compromise joins Dillard's in offering a spring retail promotion. During the promotion, Dillard's customers who purchase a Hart Schaffner & Marx suit will receive a free Never Compromise TDP 2.2 putter.
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Commentary
Pleading the Fifth

Is The Players Championship really the fifth major? If it was not before last week, then it should be now.

The argument that the field is the strongest in all of golf is a valid one. But there is an argument that there are two or three other fields stronger than even the Masters and those tournaments are not classified as potential majors.

No, what puts The Players in the major classification is the course. Just like Augusta National has a way of luring players into a false sense of security, just like the U.S. Golf Association has a way of bringing out the nastiness in its Open venues and just like the Royal and Ancient has a way of letting nature take its course.

Scott Hoch has neither won a major nor has a fond appreciation for Open Championship courses. But he does like his courses tough as an over-cooked piece of beef. That may explain why from 1982 to '96, Hoch missed seven cuts, withdrew twice and cracked the top 20 only three times.

"For years, they didn't have have much rough ... hit anywhere, putting contest, whatever," Hoch said.

He has a point. Over a span of 15 years from 1982, when the The Players moved to the TPC at Sawgrass, to 1996, the winning score was less than 10-under-par only four times. Only twice since '97 has the winning score not been lower than 10-under-par.

The reason for the trend toward scores closer to par has been a combination of the Stadium Course working its way through puberty and the PGA Tour taking the attitude that the event should be played like a major.

"They made the conditions more conducive to my game," Hoch said. "Before, you hit anywhere other than the water and you would be all right, and that's definitely not my game."

Hoch is exaggerating a bit, but not much.

Consider this year's winner, Craig Perks. He made 20 birdies and two eagles for the week, a combined total of 24-under-par. Yet he gave back 16 of those strokes in a wild give-and-take week.

The wind, the length, the rough and the firm, fast greens all conspired to humble the game's finest players.

In two weeks at Augusta, in June at Bethpage Black and a month later at Muirfield, we will hear many of the same explanations from players as they attempt to hold their own against those respective courses -- and par.

We consider the Masters and both Opens as being majors. It's about time The Players is raised to that level, as well.

 

Reader's Forum What are the LPGA's main issues? How should it go about addressing those issues? And is the LPGA Tour being realistic in thinking it can raise TV viewership by 10 percent each year and increase tournament attendance by 15 percent each year? Let us know what you think and send your responses to stuart@gpagolf.com with the subject line RE: LPGA. Also include your first name and last initial.