Widing, Whalen share South Beach Amateur lead

Swedish juniors and American college players packed the top of the leaderboard of the South Beach International Amateur, which began Thursday at Normandy Shores Golf Club and Miami Beach Golf Club.

At Normandy Shores, a trio of Tres Kronor players — Tim Widing (4-under-par 66), Victor Theandersson and Felix Kvarnstrom (each 2-under 68) — set the early standard. Widing’s score, matched later at Normandy by Northwestern sophomore Andrew Whalen, held up for a share of the tournament lead.

Down at Miami Beach Golf Club, Vanderbilt sophomore Carson Jacobs birdied his way across the final three holes for a 4-under 67, also putting him in a tie for the lead.

“I hit 16 greens,” Jacobs said. “The two holes I did miss, I left myself in good spots. I just didn’t get up and down, just a bad chip. Overall, I think I played the course the right way.”

SMU sophomore Bryson DeChambeau got to a 3-under 68 at Miami Beach with his own strong finish, dropping birdies on three of the last four holes.

“I knew that under par was going to be OK, you’d be right there because it’s really windy,” DeChambeau said. “It can be a tough course when it’s windy.”

Friday’s play again will be split over two courses. Those who played Normandy Shores on Thursday play Miami Beach on Friday and vice versa.

After a cut to 72 players (plus ties), the final two rounds are Saturday and Sunday at Miami Beach.

The tournament includes 23 juniors, 20 of whom are international players, including the Swedish Junior National Team and the French Junior National Team as well as those nations’ national teams.

The group at 68 also included France’s Mathieu Decottignies, who played at Miami Beach, and Ole Miss’ Blake Morris, who played at Normandy Shores.

Last year, Morris opened with a 69 at Normandy Shores before scorching Miami Beach for a course-record 63 in last year’s second round.

Aubert leads Dixie Amateur golf

After finishing the third round of the Dixie Amateur in the lead, Shannon Aubert laughingly admitted, “I don’t win a lot, but I’m in the top five a lot.”

“Hopefully, I can change that,” she said

She wouldn’t mind that change occurring in Friday’s final round.

Aubert isn’t totally without victories, capturing the Florida Class 1A high school state championship this year.

Aubert has a three-stroke lead in the tournament at Heron Bay Golf Club after shooting a 71 for a 7-under 209 total.

Simin Feng (69) and Nicole Morales (73) are three shots back at 212.

Some other notables are also lurking:

• Meghan Stasi, one of the top amateurs in U.S. history, is five strokes behind at 214 after shooting 72. Stasi has four USGA Mid-Amateur Championships to her credit.
• Isabelle Lendl, the daughter of tennis legend Ivan Lendl and a senior at the University of Florida, is six back at 215.
• Lucy Li, who is the talk of the tournament, is 10 back at 219. She’s 11 years old and stands 5-1 and weighs 90 or so pounds.

Li can hit her drives 225 yards and is playing in one of the country’s oldest and most prestigious tournaments at her young age. Earlier this year at age 10, Li became the youngest participant in the U.S. Women’s Open.

Aubert said she won’t be looking back at the people chasing her. She will be looking forward.

“I just need to keep doing what I’ve been doing,” she said. “This is such a good event with such a great field, it would be great to win it.”

While the women were playing their first round at Heron Bay, the men’s first of four rounds was going on at Woodlands Country Club. Taking the lead were Andri Bjornsson and Richard Donegan, both shooting 6-under 66.

Bjornsson was not only soaking in his good round but also the sunshine as he hails from Iceland and now plays for Nicholls State in Louisiana. Donegan plays for Florida Atlantic University.

THE PLAYERS launches Rock THE PLAYERS competition by Clear Channel, Folio Weekly

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – THE PLAYERS Championship announced today that the tournament is launching its first Rock THE PLAYERS competition, presented by Clear Channel and Folio Weekly. Bands from Northeast Florida, Georgia, Alabama and South Carolina will have the opportunity to submit a video and/or audio recording of an original song for a chance for it to be named the unofficial song of THE PLAYERS 2014.

The winner of the Rock THE PLAYERS competition will have their song featured in THE PLAYERS 2014 excitement video, win $5,000, VIP tickets to the tournament and the opportunity to perform at a venue leading up to and during THE PLAYERS.

To enter, bands must submit an original song to theplayerschampionship@pgatourhq.com with subject line Rock THE PLAYERS or at PGATOUR.COM/ROCKTHEPLAYERS. Submissions will be accepted from December 18, 2013 - February 1, 2014. Members of THE PLAYERS Championship staff will select three finalists, to be announced on February 4, 2014, on THE PLAYERS Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr accounts in addition to the website. Fans will then have the opportunity to pick the winner by voting on the official site of the contest, PGATOUR.COM/ROCKTHEPLAYERS. Fans are also encouraged to like, comment and share the post to promote their favorite song.

To be eligible for consideration, songs must be original, have an upbeat vibe and abstain from graphic language. You must be 18 or older to submit a song. For more information, contact Jen Hendrich at jenhendrich@pgatourhq.com.

THE PLAYERS Championship returns to THE PLAYERS Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass from May 6-11, 2014. Tickets for the 2014 event go on sale January 1, 2014, on PGATOUR.com/theplayers and fans are reminded that each year, youth 18 and younger are admitted free when accompanied by a ticketed adult. To stay in touch with THE PLAYERS year-round, connect with the tournament on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Tumblr for updates and behind-the-scenes tournament preparations.

Secret weapon for Olympic course: Zeon Zoysia turf grass

What do Cordillera Ranch, in the heart of the Texas Hill Country, and Rio de Janeiro, on the coast of tropical Brazil, have in common?

A revolutionary golf course turf grass known as Zeon Zoysia.

Opened in 2006, the Jack Nicklaus Signature course just north of San Antonio was one of the first layouts in Texas to feature the drought-tolerant strand. Zeon Zoysia also will be used for fairways, rough and tees on the Gil Hanse-designed course used in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. 

In fact, 88 percent of "everything approaching the greens" will be Zeon Zoysia, according to Dr. Frank Rossi, a consulting agronomist for the Olympic course.

What’s more, both courses are supplied by Bladerunner Farms in Poteet, Texas, owned by turf-grass expert David Doguet. Zeon Zoysia was developed by Doguet, and Bladerunner is the largest privately held zoysia breeding facility in the world.

"Our members love it because the ball sits up on it like a tee," said Mark Semm, Cordillera Ranch Director of Agronomy. "It is the most playable fairway turf on the market because of its blade density. We have Zeon Zoysia on our tees, fairways and practice range, and it is a perfect complement to our A-5 bentgrass greens and Bermuda rough."

One of those resident-members happens to be PGA TOUR player Jimmy Walker, winner of the Frys.com Open and currently No. 1 in the TOUR’s FedExCup standings. Walker was attracted to the tournament-caliber Nicklaus Signature Course, ranked No. 5 in the state by The Dallas Morning News, as well as the TOUR-level practice facilities turfed with Zeon Zoysia.

"Zeon Zoysia is a world-class playing surface that provides superior lies, excellent feedback on ball-striking, and excels in stressful conditions brought on by extreme drought and heat," Walker said. "The Olympic Committee made an excellent decision to use it in Rio and the players are going to love it."

Bladerunner Farms supplied the grass for the Atlanta Athletic Club, site of the 2011 PGA Championship, and that connection led to the Olympic agreement, according to the San Antonio Express-News.

Bladerunner shipped a 2 foot-by-2 foot square of Zeon Zoysia to a grower in Brazil, and now there are 40 acres of the grass being grown in Rio.

"This is huge for us," Doguet told the newspaper about the Olympic connection. "This is going to be the most talked-about golf course in the world."

Just how playable is the grass? Last spring at a Valero corporate instruction clinic, World Golf Hall of Famer Greg Norman hit a 3-wood directly off the grass on Cordillera Ranch's practice tee. He turned around, drop-jawed, and remarked to the audience, "Wow, that zoysia is phenomenal."

But having favorable lies is only an ancillary benefit of Zeon Zoysia, says Semm.

"We selected the grass because it assimilates perfectly to the climate of this region," he adds. "It uses between 30 and 40 percent less water and fertilizer, is drought tolerant and able to persevere through extreme conditions."

The turf’s protection against cold weather and long periods without water is dormancy. Normally a translucent green, Zeon Zoysia will "dim out" to a muted green and ultimately, light brown. It only takes a few consecutive days over 75 degrees, however, to restore it to its native grandeur.

"Zeon Zoysia is very environmentally friendly," Doguet told Golf Course Industry earlier this year. "The grass needs very little water, and very low amounts of nitrogen fertilizer, while still looking and playing great. The grass will create a world-class playing surface for the Olympics, and for many years to come."

That was the key for picking Zeon Zoysia, as it will help Hanse and his team create an environmentally sustainable course.

"We have the opportunity to influence golf in a way it never has been," Rossi said. "During the Olympics, the whole world will see that it's possible to design a course that's challenging for professionals, playable for amateurs and with less environmental impact."

PGA, LPGA, and European Tour players encounter nearly every type of turf during the season -- bentgrass, Bermuda, fescue and even the invasive Poa annua. Due to its limited growing range, however, zoysia grasses aren’t as prevalent at various venues on those tours.

“Most of them have played on it at some point, but not necessarily Zeon," Semm said. "They are going to be pleasantly surprised and with the lies they’ll get, it will only make the best players in the world even better."

Doguet told the Express-News that golfers like Zeon Zoysia because "it has a stiffer leaf blade and the ball sits up in the fairway."

Zeon has the same effect on members' games. But the grass' dormant periods require an explanation, up front. 

"There’s an educational process with new members, but once we explain the environmental and playing benefits, they get it quick," Semm said. "Eventually, they get spoiled and don't even want to play on Bermuda fairways anymore."

Walker couldn't agree more.

"We’ve been to the most premier golf courses in the country and we just marvel at what an amazing facility that Cordillera is," Walker said. "There's nothing like it in the country."

Abu Dhabi ambassador seeks Capital gains

Abu Dhabi: Matteo Manassero’s stocks are certainly on the rise. Ever since the 20-year-old became the youngest player to win on the European Tour in 2010, the Italian has won a tournament every single year since then with his biggest coming this year at the BMW PGA Championship. The Abu Dhabi Global Golf ambassador is now busy preparing for the new season and he has a personal reason for putting in a great show at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship from January 16-19.

“I am certain that we are in for another fantastic event in 2014 and that all of the players participating in the tournament will help to showcase the delights of Abu Dhabi to the world of golf,” he told XPRESS in an exclusive interview.

“The weather is always great in January and the setting around the course is remarkable so I am sure that the players and fans alike will have a great time. On a personal level, I would love to perform well to thank everyone at the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority for their support over the years since giving me the opportunity to compete in the tournament for the first time in 2010.”

Manassero is understandably optimistic about his chances in Abu Dhabi following his win at Wentworth.

“It was an amazing feeling to win at Wentworth because it was a really strong field and I felt honoured to join some of the famous names on that trophy such as my idol Seve Ballesteros. When I got my European Tour card four years ago I don’t think I could have imagined that I would win a title every year but now that I am on that run, I would like to keep it going. I have played in the last four Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championships and managed to finish 6th in 2012, hopefully I can go a few places better than that this year.

The win at Wentworth catapulted Manassero into the top-30, something he considers a significant achievement.

“Moving into the top-30 when I won the BMW PGA championship at Wentworth was a big step in my career and enabled me to play in all of the biggest events around the world. Every year since turning pro I have managed to improve my ranking or finish higher on the race to Dubai than the previous year so hopefully this year I can edge my way further up the rankings and maybe finish in the top ten on the Race to Dubai, as I finished a career best 11th this year.

The Italian was the youngest player ever to make the cut at the Masters Tournament in 2010 and while he has played all four for the first time this year, he missed three of the four cuts, including the Masters Tournament.

“Missing the cut in any tournament is frustrating but I learnt a lot from this year’s Majors and all of the other big events in 2013. This year was the first time that I qualified to play in all four Majors which was an amazing experience. I am obviously keen to change the statistics and I am confident that I will as I think I now know how to prepare better for the big tournaments where the conditions are always tricky and you are punished if you are not hitting it perfectly or your putting is slightly off,” he said.

Besides, doing well in the Majors, making the Ryder Cup team is also high on Manassero’s agenda and he hopes his stint in Abu Dhabi will help him there.

“I would love to be part of Paul McGinley’s team at Gleneagles next year, and I will put every effort in to try and make it happen. The European Tour is so competitive though and everyone knows that there are so many guys still in with a chance of qualifying, so it won’t be easy. I just need to keep playing my own game week-in-week-out and if I am in the qualification spots at the end of the campaign, I will be happy - a good week in Abu Dhabi would certainly help! I really enjoy playing match play and playing in the last two Seve trophies has given me a taste of what it might be like to play in the Ryder Cup and some invaluable experience of playing golf over the same format,” he said.

That would be representing Europe, but how would it be like representing his country at the Olympics?

“I always love representing my country and making the team that goes to Rio would be amazing, and it would mean so much if I was lucky enough to win a medal. Golf hasn’t been part of the Olympics for such a long time and with this being the first in over a hundred years, there is certainly some history to be made. I have represented my country on a number of occasions in the World Cup of golf with my good friend, Francesco Molinari, as well as playing in several amateur competitions for Italy so to play in something as prestigious as the Olympics would be incredible,” he said.

Scots to fore as Olazabal aims for upset

SCOTTISH duo Paul Lawrie and Stephen Gallacher were being sent out to try and give Europe a fast start as angry captain Jose Maria Olazabal urged his players to turn the opening session in the Royal Trophy into the “stuff of nightmares” for opponents Asia in China.

Olazabal was furious after YE Yang, the Asian captain, and Zhang Lian-wei, his vice-captain, predicted their side would dominate today’s foursomes at Dragon Lake Golf Club in Guangzhou after seeing the pairings.

They included Lawrie and Gallacher, a successful pairing for Olazabal in the Seve Trophy earlier in the year, taking on Thai duo Thongchai Jaidee and Kiradech Aphibarnrat in the top match and Marc Warren, the third Scot in the team, joining forces with Dunhill Links champion David Howell against Liang Wen-chong and Wu Ashun in the anchor game.

“I believe we may win the session 3–1, although I accept that may be wishful thinking,” declared Yang before Zhang predicted a clean sweep for Asia, winners in a play-off three years ago following an 8-8 draw.

“I don’t know if you heard that,” said Olazabal as he turned to his watching players and asked if they had understood the Asian officials’ comments. “But captain Yang says we will lose 3–1 and vice-captain Zhang says it will be 4–0. Well, I think we had better turn that wishful thinking into the stuff of nightmares.”

The exchange certainly added spice to the three-day affair, and Olazabal, Europe’s winning Ryder Cup captain at Medinah last year, was confident that Lawrie and Gallacher could give his side the perfect start.

“The partnership gelled very well at the Seve Trophy recently and they are both very experienced golfers,” said the Spaniard. “They like to play fast and they are the right men to lead the team out.”

It is Lawrie’s second appear-ance in the event and the 44-year-old’s second royal appointment this month. A fortnight ago, the former Open champion was at Buckingham Palace to collect his OBE from Prince Charles for service to golf.

Since missing out on the European Tour’s season-ending event in Dubai, Lawrie has been hitting hundreds of balls at his Golf Centre on the outskirts of Aberdeen. He has also started to do some work with Stirling-based sports psychologist John Mathers and is hoping that being back in a team environment will see him sign off 2013 on an encouraging note.

“I would far rather do less well individually and be part of a winning team,” said the Aberdonian, a member of Olazabal’s triumphant team in Chicago, where he delivered one of the decisive last-day singles wins over Brandt Snedeker. “But I want both this week – to do my bit in full, and to get my hands on the trophy. That would be the ideal scenario.”

Gallacher, who is making his debut in an event that involved Seve Ballesteros as the European captain at the outset, added: “It would be marvellous to end the year on a high after my win in the Dubai Desert Classic and take the confidence a win would give me into such an important year as 2014 with the Ryder Cup at Gleneagles and all that means to the home players.”

Japanese pair Ryo Ishikawa and Hiroyuki Fujita face Belgian Nicolas Colsaerts and Austrian Bernd Wiesberger of Austria in the second match out while Korea’s KT Kim and HS Kim take on Spaniard Alvaro Quiros and Dane Thorbjorn Olesen.

“We are ready, and we are here to win,” declared Olazabal, though Yang insisted that was going to be difficult.

“I think we have one of the strongest and best balanced teams Asia has fielded so far,” Yang said. “There were so many players in contention that I decided I could not pick myself, and I think we are formidable opponents for any team. I think we have our best chance so far.”

Lee Westwood, 40, vows to rebound after a tough year of immense changes

This has been a season of big change for Lee Westwood, and his debut last week in the Shark Shootout was an example.

He typically is on the other side of the world this time of the year, having won the Nedbank Challenge in South Africa in 2011 and 2012, and the Thailand Golf Championship two years ago. But this marks one year since Westwood moved his family from England to Florida to take it easy on the jet lag and allow for more practice in warm weather.

He ended the year without a win anywhere in the world.

Westwood, a two-time Order of Merit winner on the European Tour, attributed his results to change, though that entails more than location. He also began working with Sean Foley. He had a new caddie for most of the year until reuniting this month with Billy Foster.

Asked what held him back this year, Westwood chalked it up to the “lack of continuity.”

“So many changes, really,” he said as he headed into the final month of his season. “It’s impossible to quantify the effect that has. Starting with a new coach, changing tours, changing caddies the end of last year, all of it has an effect.”

He also said there were struggles with consistency in his swing. Westwood had a close call at Quail Hollow, and he had the lead going into the final round of the British Open, which was won by Phil Mickelson more than anyone lost it.

“I haven’t been settled in a swing all year,” Westwood said. “When you’re a professional, you can have good results without hitting it well. I haven’t had a week where I hit it properly. I didn’t even hit it well in the Open. I just know how to get around and I putted well.”

Westwood turned 40 this year, and while he dropped to No. 25 in the world after starting at No. 7, he believes that will turn. More changes are planned for 2014, but only as it relates to his travel schedule. Instead of starting in Middle East, he doesn’t expect to play regular European Tour events until May.

He is thinking of playing Torrey Pines, the Phoenix Open and Riviera on the West Coast swing.

Father and son

Except for having the 54-hole lead and contending at the British Open, one of the best moments for Westwood this year was playing with his father in the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am.

Graeme McDowell will experience that in February.

McDowell and his father, Kenny, will be partners at Pebble Beach. It’s the first time they have been there since 2010, when McDowell won the U.S. Open and his father said to him on the 18th green that Sunday, “You’re something, kid.”

Asked for his favorite memory of his father, McDowell went back to his roots in Northern Ireland when he was too young to play the Dunluce course at Royal Portrush.

“Until you’re 15 years old or have a 15-handicap, you play the Valley Course,” he said. “I remember sneaking out with my dad on a summer’s evening on the Dunluce course when I was not eligible to be out there, sneaking out there for a few holes one summer evening and feeling like I was literally at Augusta National. Those are special times.”

The Gulbis prank

In the January issue of “Golf Digest,” Michelle Wie writes a series of tales that includes her first Kraft Nabisco Championship at age 13. And it shows why there’s always more to Natalie Gulbis than might appear.

Wie said that on the fifth hole she put a new golf ball into play. She mentioned this to Gulbis on the sixth fairway.

“She stops me and gives me a look of shock,” Wie wrote. “’You can’t do that out here,’ she says. ‘That’s a two-stroke penalty. You need to go back to the tee.’ I was speechless, on the verge of tears.

“Just as I turned to start walking back to the tee, Natalie said, ‘Just kidding.’”

Oh, brother

Dustin Johnson took his younger brother, Austin, to Scotland twice as his partner in the Dunhill Links Championship. He brought him to China last month for the HSBC Champions as his caddie, and Johnson won his first World Golf Championship.

Now they’ll be spending a lot more time together.

Johnson has decided to keep his little brother on the bag for next year, replacing Bobby Brown. Austin Johnson played basketball at Charleston Southern before transferring to the College of Charleston to finish his degree.

“I was getting my resume together,” Austin said.

Stat of the week

Tiger Woods, Adam Scott, Justin Rose and Rory McIlroy were the only players who stayed in the top 10 in the world ranking the entire year.

Olazabal ready for a fight

EUROPE v ASIA: Spaniard determined to end Royal Trophy pain

GUANGZHOU: FORMER Ryder Cup captain Jose Maria Olazabal is aiming to fill a void in his trophy cabinet by leading Europe to victory in this week's Royal Trophy against an Asian team led by Y.E. Yang.

Twice previously the Spaniard has been a losing captain in the matchplay contest that was founded by the late Seve Ballesteros.

It is a record Olazabal hopes to put straight when the seventh edition of the annual event tees off today at the Dragon Lake Golf Club in the southern province of Guangdong.

The two-time US Masters champion, who masterminded Europe's stunning Ryder Cup triumph at Medinah last year, admitted the lack of a Royal Trophy win was a "blot on his record as a captain".

"I serve notice to Asian captain Y.E. Yang and his players that I do not intend to allow this state of affairs to continue," he said.

"I take the captaincy very seriously and the Royal Trophy is very special to me because my dear friend Seve Ballesteros asked me to take over from him as the team leader in 2009.

"We all still mourn Seve's passing two years ago. Wanting to fulfil his faith in me adds another dimension to my determination to emerge as a winner in the competition he dreamed up, and then brought to glorious fruition."

However, Olazabal acknowledges it will not be easy to wrestle back the trophy, which Asia won for only the second time in Brunei last year.

"We are aware that this is a very strong Asian team -- but I think you will see that so is ours," said Olazabal.

The eight-man European line-up is Bernd Wiesberger of Austria, Danish player Thorbjorn Olesen, Belgium's Nicolas Colsaerts, Englishman David Howell, Spaniard Alvaro Quiros and the Scottish trio of Paul Lawrie, Stephen Gallacher and Marc Warren.

"We have world-class players, Ryder Cup winners and players who have won tournaments all over the world. We have respect for our opponents, but it is our intention to go out and kick butts," said Olazabal.

Five of the European team are ranked in the world's top 100. The highest-placed player in the Asian team is 46th-ranked Thai Thongchai Jaidee, who will spearhead Yang's team.

Yang, Asia's sole major winner following his victory at the 2009 PGA Championship, is confident Asia can retain the Royal Trophy for the first time, although he conceded that the late withdrawal of Japan's Hideki Matsuyama through injury was a blow.

"I think we have one of the strongest and best balanced teams Asia has fielded so far," he said. "There were so many players in contention that I decided I could not pick myself. I think we are formidable opponents for any team."

In addition to Thongchai and his compatriot Kiradech Aphibarnrat, Yang is relying on his South Korean compatriots K.T. Kim and Kim Hyung-Sung, China's Liang Wenchong and Wu Ashun and the Japanese duo of Ryo Ishikawa and Hiroyuki Fujita. AFP