- It is incredibly difficult to win on the PGA Tour. People have said that before, but never was it more evident than seeing John Senden knock on the door several times since his first win in 2006. It is amazing to me that Senden has only won twice on tour with how consistently good he has been, especially in the last three years. When Senden dropped to -5, I thought for sure he would find a way to let this one slip away, as well (especially with Scott Langley looking strong), but with a chip in at 16 and a long birdie putt at 17, Senden slammed the door and finally picked up his second win.
- What a great tournament for Kevin Na, who seems to be too far into his own head at times during tournaments. Seeing him a couple years at the Players Championship, where he couldn't hit the golf ball because he was over thinking every shot, made me really worry about the future of Na's game. This week proved to me that Na can still be a top class player, and another win may not be far away.
- I am tired of hearing about the "problems with slow play." Every time Kevin Na or Ben Crane or one of the slow players are in contention, I hear the commentators and the players complain about how slow play is the biggest problem on Tour. Really? The BIGGEST problem? Slow play is bad, I know, and as a fan of the game, it is no fun to watch a player idle over a ball for far longer than they should, but let's not overplay this. Kevin Na and Ben Crane have as much of a right to try and make money the way they can as do the fast players.
- Another week, another top 10 for Will MacKenzie, who is on his way to a career year. He has had several of them this year, but this was the first time when it looked like MacKenzie looked like he had a chance to actually win the tournament. He is getting closer each week he plays, which means a victory should be right around the corner.
- Best wishes to Mark Calcavecchia, who withdrew from the Valspar Championship in the final round and needed medical attention for an undisclosed illness. Hopefully it is a minor thing and he can get right back to it.
- It is encouraging to see Luke Donald contend this week after remaining silent in 2014. He needs a few more good tournaments, because he is no longer a lock for the Ryder Cup this year, and with guys like Justin Rose and Graeme McDowell currently not on the team, those final spots are going to be incredibly competitive.
- It's weird to say "it's about time" when it comes to a 17 year old, but it's the way I felt when Charley Hull won the Ladies European Tour event in Morocco this week. When people discuss the youth movement in women's golf, they are usually referring to Lydia Ko and Ariya Jutanugarn. Hull started out her season last year incredibly strong, and lead the European Solheim Cup team to victory with an absolute thrashing of Paula Creamer on singles Sunday, but she has been relatively quiet since then, with many speculating that she was given too much attention too soon, and it stunted her development. Hull put all of that nonsense to rest, and now looks like a solid contender at the Kraft Nabisco this month.
- We hear a lot about players who would like to peak right before the Masters, and usually that refers to the players on the PGA Tour competing in events like the Valspar or the Arnold Palmer Invitational, but let us not forget about the past champions competing on the Champions Tour. Perfect example is Fred Couples, who always seems to be in the hunt at Augusta on Sunday, who just won the Toshiba Classic with a fury of birdies down the stretch. Another player who will be in the field at Augusta, Bernhard Langer, was in the lead until he struggled in the final round. Don't overlook the old guys, who always seem to have something special waiting for Augusta.
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