Vols Tie For 3rd at Hayt Invite

The No. 10 Tennessee men’s golf team shot a final round 7-over-par 295 and finished tied for third as the John Hayt Collegiate Invitational concluded Tuesday at Sawgrass Country Club in Ponte Vedra Beach. Fla. The Vols finished with a tournament scorecard of 291-300-295--886.

Sorenstam wins season-opening SBS Open for her 70th LPGA Tour title

KAHUKU, Hawaii (AP) -- Annika Sorenstam waited 17 months to collect a T-shirt from her sister and a bottle of wine from a friend with No. 70 proudly displayed on them.

"It's probably dusty," she said. "I'm ready to collect it now."

Sorenstam won the season-opening SBS Open for her 70th LPGA Tour title and first since September 2006, birdieing two of the last three holes Saturday for a 3-under 69 and two-stroke victory.

"It's great to win tournaments and there's some tournaments that mean a little bit more and they come in a special time, and I would say this is one of them," she said.

The 37-year-old Swedish star, coming off an injury-shortened season where she failed to win last year for the first time since her rookie season in 1994, finished with a 10-under 206 total. It also was her second straight win in Hawaii.

"We've talked so much about '07, it's time to talk about '08," she said. "My clubs did the talking this particular week."

Rookie Russy Gulyanamitta (68), Laura Diaz (70) and Jane Park (70) tied for second. Angela Park (69), the 2007 rookie of the year who was assessed a two-stroke penalty, and Japanese rookie Momoko Ueda (71) tied for fifth, three strokes back.

Sorenstam dropped to a knee and shook her fist as she calmly sank a 24-foot downhill putt on the par-4 17th that ended any suspense.

"That was huge," said Sorenstam, who has won 47 times when holding the lead going into the final round. "That's one of those putts I'm going to remember for a long time."

She then waved both arms in the air and hugged her caddie after putting for par on the 18th hole.

"It's been a while," caddie Terry McNamara said as they hugged.

Sorenstam was limited to 13 events last year because of neck and back injuries and had six top-10s finishes, but couldn't add to her trophy collection.

In the first event of 2008, the world's former No. 1 looked like her old self -- relaxed, focused and dominant.

"This means so much to me," she said. "Last year was not a year I wanted to remember inside the ropes. I was determined to come back."

Sorenstam smiled as she walked the fairway on the par-4 16th after hitting a wedge to 4 feet, which she dropped for the outright lead that she wouldn't lose.

Sorenstam said she was a little hesitant and trying to protect her lead until she reached the turn when she told McNamara, "Let's play some golf."

She first went up by two strokes on the par-4 10th by sinking a 14-foot birdie putt, but quickly lost a stroke when her long birdie putt whizzed 8 feet passed the cup on the next hole. She three-putted for her only bogey of the day.

Ueda and Jane Park each birdied to tie Sorenstam for the lead at 8 under. Jane Park made a long putt on No. 15. Seconds later, Ueda rolled in a 12-foot birdie putt on No. 14, drawing a roar from the sizable Japanese gallery.

However, no one could keep pace with Sorenstam.

Sorenstam was playing at Turtle Bay for the first time and beginning her season a month earlier than usual. It was her first appearance in Hawaii since winning the 2002 LPGA Takefuji Classic at Waikoloa.

Gulyanamitta, who earned just $4,411 in her previous 17 events, jumped around the 18th green after sinking a long birdie putt. She made $75,867 Saturday.

Like Sorenstam, Diaz also was hungry for a win. She hasn't hoisted a trophy since 2002. Diaz shared the lead with Sorenstam until a double bogey on No. 7 dropped her into a crowd.

Angela Park (69) was assessed a two-stroke penalty for slow play on the par-4 10th that gave her a triple bogey and cost her a shot at the lead and about $60,000. Park then birdied three of the next four holes to get back within a stroke of the lead before Sorenstam's late birdies.

Park said she wasn't holding up play. "I really don't think it's fair especially because I was in contention. I don't think it's fair at all."

Rules officials said Park's second, third and fourth shots on the hole all exceeded the time limit. Park disagreed and was visibly upset, in tears after her round.

"I was so mad out there," she said. "I was flying through the course on the back nine. I was so frustrated."

Without the penalty, Park would have finished 9 under, alone in second place for $100,458. Instead she earned $40,872.

Conditions were unusually calm on Oahu's North Shore. Even the normally roaring Pacific Ocean was peaceful. It was also balmy, forcing the players to find shade anywhere they could.

Ueda used an umbrella. Sorenstam hid under the ironwood trees.

Sorenstam and Erica Blasberg (74) were co-leaders heading into the final round at 7 under. Blasberg was playing in the final group for the first time in her career.

Her troubles started when she pulled her drive near the water hazard and had to pitch out on No. 7 for bogey. Blasberg tied for eighth with Cristie Kerr (73), In-Kyung Kim (71) and Yani Tseng (69) at 5-under 211.

Defending champion Paula Creamer closed with a 69 to finish at 4 under. She hit 18 greens in regulation but putted 34 times.

"I was grinding it out there," she said. "I saw the leaderboard and I think I got a little anxious."

Quinney makes an ace, but Mickelson keeps the Northern Trust Open lead

PACIFIC PALISADES, Calif. (AP) -- Phil Mickelson lost his cushion, but not the lead Saturday at the Northern Trust Open.

Mickelson watched Jeff Quinney make a hole-in-one on the fabled sixth hole at Riviera that erased a four-shot margin, but saved par on the 18th hole for a 1-under 70 to stay in the lead and move one step closer to adding this trophy to his West Coast collection.

Quinney made a 35-foot birdie putt on the final hole for a 67 that set up what appears to be a two-man race in the final round.

Mickelson, whose 15 victories on the West Coast Swing have come in every city but Los Angeles, was at 11-under 202. He missed the green to the right on the final hole, chipped 7 feet by and saved par.

"I thought it was a good, solid round," Mickelson said. "It should be an interesting and tough day tomorrow."

Quinney delivered the best shot, and maybe the worst.

Along with his hole-in-one that he could hear, but not see, Quinney bladed a wedge over the green on the par-5 11th that led to a two-shot swing in Mickelson's favor, then spent the rest of the gorgeous afternoon trying to catch up.

Quinney was at 203, four shots ahead of everyone else.

John Rollins fell back with consecutive bogeys and had to settle for a 69 that left him at 6-under 207. Scott Verplank, who opened his round with a four-putt from 30 feet on the fringe, shot 71 and was another shot back with Stuart Appleby (69) and Vaughn Taylor (71).

"Other than Tiger, he's probably the next best front-runner," Verplank said of Mickelson, who is 21-7 with a 54-hole lead. "He's awful good. So I'm going to have to play exceptionally well, and probably then would need a little bit of help."

Mickelson also had a one-shot lead last year going into the final round, losing in a playoff to Charles Howell. There were five players within three shots of the lead a year ago, but only Quinney, a former U.S. Amateur champion who has not won on the PGA TOUR, appears to be in his way this time.

"He's going to bring a lot to the table," Quinney said. "I have to bring my best to the table."

Quinney did not sound the least bit concerned about a four-shot deficit to Mickelson, saying after his second round that Riviera is not the type of course where one has to shoot 64 to make up ground.

Then, he looked as though he might do just that.

Quinney birdied the first hole with a long chip across the green on the par 5, then gained another shot when Lefty three-putted for bogey on No. 4. Quinney then holed a 20-foot birdie putt to reduce the lead to one-shot going into the sixth hole, famous for having a bunker in the middle of the green.

He thought that's where his 7-iron was headed. But it landed just to the side, rolled down the slope and into the cup.

Back on the tee, Quinney had already turned away and was looking over his shoulder when he heard the crowd erupt, the sure sign that he had made ace. He ran toward his caddie, unsure whether to hug or high-five, and it turned out to be a clumsy celebration.

"We need to get that organized," he said.

That gave him the lead, but only for as long as Mickelson hit 8-iron to 5 feet and made birdie, putting both at 10 under.

They matched birdies at No. 10 -- Quinney with a wedge to 2 feet, Mickelson by driving to the front of the green -- and neither showed signs of backing down. But everything changed with one swing.

Mickelson was on the par-5 11th green in two, Quinney just short of the bunker. Quinney caught two much ball, however, and it sailed over the green. He chipped back to 15 feet and did well to escape with bogey.

Even so, it was a two-shot swing after Mickelson made birdie, and Lefty kept his margin.

Mickelson had the 54-hole lead at Riviera last year, only this time the odds are even more in his favor. Five players were separated by three shots last year, while this appears to be a two-man race.

"Daylight is up front, first and second," Appleby said. "If I can shoot a good round tomorrow, 4 or 5 under, that would be a good score. Now, what's that mean for the tournament? Does that threaten the top? Probably not. It's not really an open tournament."

Divots: Pat Perez isn't any more optimistic about the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship than he was last week, when he thought he was playing Tiger Woods in the first round and didn't want to embarrass himself. He was told Saturday morning he would be playing Phil Mickelson. "Yeah, that's much better, because he's playing like (dirt) right now," Perez said with typical sarcasm. J.B. Holmes will play Woods and had a different outlook. "I'm in," he said. "That's all that matters." ... Marc Turnesa was on his way home Saturday morning until John Merrick missed a 4-foot par putt, meaning 78 players made the cut at 3 over. Turnesa then shot 67 and moved up to a tie for 29th at 1-under 212.

The Honors Course Makes Golf Magazine's Top 100

The Honors Course, TN, USA

9^th hole, 370 yards; A hole of uncommon difficulty despite its length, the green slopes from right to left toward the lake. Trying to steer his approach and avoid the water on the left, Justin Leonard missed the 9th green to the right by four yards. Upon seeing his opponent in a similar situation chip across the green and into the water, Leonard wedged his ball 90 yards back into the fairway, wedged onto the green, two putted and won the hole! The Dyes provide a generous fairway but then they make you hit this green - or else.

11^th hole, 560 yards; A favorite design feature of the authors, this three shotter rewards the golfer who can advance the ball as long down the fairway in two as possible. Such golfer has a clear look down the length of the green while his opponent, if he has strayed at all, will be forced to flirt with a pair of deep bunkers. Architects must reward the better golfer with some advantage for having played two well struck shots on a par five. Dye used a similar strategy to effect at the 7^th hole at The Medalist in Florida but the Tennessee landscape makes this a more appealing hole.

An approach from the right comes down the length of the green. An approach from
further back in the fairway must clear this pair of bunkers on the left.

12^th hole, 355 yards; The master of the short/medium length two shot hole has done it again. The prettiest hole on the course plays toward the far hillside with the green in its own pocket. It is perfectly situated on a hummock and is guarded by six bunkers. However, its real defense is the cleverly sloped left to right green which places a premium on keeping the approach beneath the hole.

The view from the 12th tee sums up the charms of The Honors Course.

The well protected 12th green.

The front right bunker must be avoided at all costs and the green contouring
allows the golfer to do just that.

14^th hole, 155 yards; Originally a waste area stretched from green to tee but that has wisely been replaced by native grasses. The horseshoe bunker that guards the front third of the long green makes any up and down unlikely. Finding such a challenging one shotter that is only 155 yards from the back markers and has no water is an infrequent delight.

The rugged, natural appearance of the teasing 14th at The Honors.

The front hole location is particularly ticklish because of the horseshoe bunker. The back
locations are made tough by the green contouring and back drop-off.

15^th hole, 445 yards; Compare this hole with the home hole at the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass and one can appreciate why The Honors Course remains a joy for its members to play on regular basis: Pete Dye provided a bail-out area for the approach shot. Off the tee, there are similarities but at TPC you must hit the green or best case, face a brutal up and down. Here, the weaker golfer can bail toward the right and has a reasonable chance of a chip and putt par. The hole still remains highly satisfying for the Tiger who must shape a perfect draw into the green. The Dyes struck a perfect balance for all golfers with this one.

Note the bailout area to the right of the 15th green and how the green
accommodates a bouncing approach.

18^th hole, 455 yards; Dye had designed the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass and Long Cove immediately before the Honors Course. Lupton repeated on numerous occasions to the Dyes that he wanted a straightforward course or as Pete Dye describes it 'a formidable golf course but one that held the line when it came to trickery.' There would be no manufactured blind shots ala the 5^th at Long Cove here. The gentle dogleg to the right 18^th characterizes the natural, honest nature of the Honors Course as well as any other hole as it flows across the rolling terrain.

Imagine playing this course when it first opened in 1983. Seeing limestone edged lakes right beside the fairway and greens ala 7, 8, 9, 15, and 16 would have been both startling and terrifying all at once. Almost twenty years later, such use of water hazards flush against the playing surfaces is more commonplace. While the 9th and 15th are among Dye's finer, the water holes are no longer what lingers the most in the golfer's mind. What truly separates The Honors Course from so many courses is the texture within the other holes that David Stone has created over a seventeen year period of closely working with nature.

The Honors is a throwback to the Pine Valleys and Oakmonts where autocrats once saw to it that things were done once and done right. Jack Lupton was friends with Bob Jones and Jones's views on amatuer golf shaped much of Lupton's thoughts on the subject. If alive today, Jones would no doubt be struck by the natural presentation of The Honors Course - and instruct his folks in Augusta to promote more of the same.

The practice field is fifty yards from the front door of the clubhouse.

Holston Hills Makes Golf Magazine's Top 100 Courses

Holston Hills Country Club, TN, USA
Greens Keeper: Ryan Blair

The timless appeal of Ross is well evidenced at Holston Hills; pictured here are bunkers that
start 60 yards shy of the thirteenth green and wrap around to the green's right.

Located just east of Knoxville near the foothills of the Smoky Mountains, Holston Hills is as well a preserved Donald Ross course as can be found. Built in 1927, Holston Hills immediately was recognized as the finest course in the state and hosted every important regional tournament, including a PGA Tour event.

Little has changed in the ensuing seventy plus years: the fairways are broad, the trees, though mature, remain back from play and once again, Ross chose to defend par at the green site. When the club engaged Tom Doak's Renaissance Design in 1997, little was required. Renaissance assisted with the restoration of a handful of grass faced bunkers, convinced the board to thin some trees, and helped determine the mowing lines, including perimeters for the new USGA greens.

Why has Holston Hills avoided the same fate as so many Ross designs that have been tampered with by lesser architects who didn't understand Ross's design philosophy? Ironically, one reason is that the club is located on the 'wrong' side of Knoxville from a social point of view, and thus it never attracted the money/big budget normally associated with such a quality course and facility. Without superfluous money, the club has left well enough alone and the golf world is lucky indeed to have such a pure example of Ross's design talent.

Students of Ross's dozen or so finest works sight his ability to route eighteen holes over a piece of property in such a manner as to maximize the property's finest natural features, all the while avoiding any forced or contrived holes. Such is most definitely the case at Holston Hills.

In fact, anyone interested in studying how Ross found the green sites and then worked backwards to find the best string of holes should come study Holston Hills. Situated on what was treeless farmland, the property features gentle movement with many natural land forms five to fifteen feet in height. By positioning the green sites on top of such hillocks, Ross created attractive targets that give the golfer plenty to think about in the fairway. Greens such as the third, sixth, eleventh, fifteenth, and sixteenth feature a fearsome amount of slope, given today's green speeds. Elsewhere, Ross benched greens into upslopes such as at the ninth, twelfth and fourteenth greens and let the flow of the land create the challenge. From a strategic point of view, the golfer can tell in the fairway (and often from the tee) where he should leave himself in relation to the hole. Far too many modern courses have segmented greens that make no sense from the fairway, thus robbing the hole of strategic merit. Not so with a Ross course in general and with Holston Hills in particular.

The sixth green is another well placed Ross green atop a hillock (the second hole
flag can be seen just to the left of the sixth's flag).

Situated along a ridge, Ross pushed up the one shot eighth green a few feet to
make an exacting target for this hole of 140 yards.

The clubhouse overlooks play of the ninth, where Ross benched the green complex into the hillside.
Again, this green follows the land, meaning putts from back to front are quite quick.

As one strolls around the 150 acres, no distractions prevent one from enjoying his game. No holes have been modernized or incongruent features added. An overforced simplicity exists that allows one to enjoy his time with nature.

While there is no such thing as a 'Ross bunker,' the genuine ones at Holston Hills demonstrate
there is more to a Ross bunker than bringing a grass face straight down.

Holston Hills isn't cluttered with trees as most Ross courses.
Here is a view of the fifteenth green complex.

Holes to Note

Second hole, 415 yards; One of Ross's few Cape holes, this one features a 'bite off as much as you dare' tee shot from one high bank across a lake to another (yes the lake was always there). The green is open in front and if the golfer has found the bermuda rough off the tee, he will have to bounce the ball onto the putting surface. Greens Keeper Ryan Blair and his crew provide uniformly excellent fim conditions throughout the course. From the fairways, to the all important but oft overlooked area directly before the greens, to the putting surfaces themselves, Blair strives to make the course play quick. Seeing approach shots from the rough on this hole hit in the middle of the green only to roll off and down the back shaved bank is a good indication of the challenges that lie ahead.

Third hole, 405 yards; The bunker complex on the inside of this gentle dogleg is the exact sort that so many clubs have either removed all together or allowed the tree line to encroach to where the bunkers are no longer the principal hazard. Such is not the case at Holston Hills were the bunkers remain true to Ross's intent.

The third fairway bends to the right past this four bunker complex.

As seen from just short of the third green, one imagines Ross spotting this location on the far side
of a gulley as one of the course's more obvious green locations. The front left hole
position shown above is one of the toughest on the course to get near.

Golfers Visit Florida for Hayt Invitational

Coming off its team championship at the PING-Arizona Intercollegiate in January, the No. 10 Tennessee men’s golf team travels this weekend to the John Hayt Collegiate Invitational in Jacksonville, Fla., at the Sawgrass Country Club, a par-72, 6,895-yard course.

The 54-hole tournament runs Sunday through Tuesday beginning at 7:45 a.m. Eastern time on Sunday, and 8 a.m. Eastern time on Monday and Tuesday.

The field for this event includes seven teams ranked in Golfweeks’ top-25: No.1 Alabama, No. 3 Charlotte, No. 5 UCLA, No. 9 Florida, No. 19 Indiana, No. 20 South Carolina and No. 24 Central Florida, along with Costal Carolina, Georgia State, Notre Dame, Pepperdine, UAB, Vanderbilt and host North Florida.

The Tennessee lineup will feature Chris Paisley, Robin Wingardh, David Holmes, Philip Pettitt, and Charlie Ford.

Paisley earned SEC Golfer of the Week honors after he tied for second place at the PING-Arizona Intercollegiate with a total score of 205. The top-10 finish was his third in his last three tournaments. He leads UT and the SEC with a 70.53 scoring average and has carded a team best nine rounds of par-or-better.

Wingardh has two top-10 finishes this year, a tie for fifth at the Turtle Bay Intercollegiate and a tie for tenth at the PING Arizona Intercollegiate.

Holmes has three appearances in the Tennessee lineup this season and over those nine rounds has complied two top-10 finishes, a 70.22 scoring average and five rounds of par-or-better.

Pettitt finished 19th at the PING-Arizona Intercollegiate with a scorecard of 69-73-72--214. The senior has carded nine rounds of par-or-better this season.

Ford has competed in every tournament for the Vols this season and ranks second on the team with a 71.67 scoring average.

Competition begins with 18 holes on Sunday followed by the same Monday and Tuesday. Live results will be available at utsports.com and golfstat.com.