Amen Corner offers plenty of excitementA few more prayers than normal will be offered up by players as they head into the famous Amen Corner at Augusta National, that stretch of holes from the 11th to the 13th that has heavenly appeal with a devilish sting.
The par four 11th hole has statistically played as the hardest hole on the course in recent years and it just got tougher . . . with 36 pine trees - measuring 25 to 35 feet - added to the right hand side of the fairway. In last year's championship, the hole played an average of 4.412 and should now play even harder as the new trees will stop players firing the ball down the right off the tee.
"It makes the tee shot much more difficult," agreed Brad Faxon, while Australian Stuart Appleby remarked, "it looks like you've got to basically hit a straight shot. It's now a straight drive with a little bit of a ground hook. The hole is best remembered for Larry Mize's chip-shot in sudden death in 1987 to beat Greg Norman.
High praise from the hard-working Singh
Although they've each got the reputation of being the hardest workers (on the range) in golf, Vijay Singh and Padraig Harrington aren't exactly bosom buddies . . . still, the Fijian was effusive in his praise for the Irishman ahead of the Masters.
"Every time you're on the driving range or the putting green he is there," observed Singh. "You've got to give the guy credit, he works as hard as anyone out there . . . but Harrington is a good player.
"I played with him in the third round of the Players' and his ball-striking has improved, and his pace of play has improved as well which is a big thing. He has become a much better player now than he was a few years ago."
Daly in the news again
John Daly was driving down an interstate on his way home from the Players' Championship in Sawgrass just over a week ago when he discovered he had sneaked into the field for this week's 68th US Masters, his 10th appearance in the tournament.
But Daly had other things on his mind on Monday apart from golf. His fourth wife Sherrie appeared in court and pleaded guilty - along with her parents - to charges of money laundering. Sherrie and her mother Billie Miller received five years probation and six months' house arrest while her father Alvis Miller received two years in prison.
Daly's appearances and non-appearances in the Masters tend to make news. In 1993, he was served divorce papers from his second wife, Bettye, before the tournament but finished third. He missed the Masters in 1997 because he was undergoing treatment for his alcohol addiction.
"What I love about this place is that I forget about anything when I am on this course because it is so serene, it's just awesome. There is not another place like it," he said. Daly - a two-time major winner, at the US PGA and the British Open - is currently 10th on the US Tour moneylist and playing some of the best golf of his life. "I don't even know if they have a green jacket big enough for me . . . but it sure would be great to find out," he quipped.
Verplank a good
outside bet
Of course there are "lies, damn lies and statistics," but sometimes those darn stats can be more of a help than a hindrance in working out just who should carry your few euro interest in a golf tournament. So, for what it's worth, those leading the way in the statistical stakes on the US Tour so far this season are:
Scoring average: Phil Mickelson 69.11
Driving distance: Hank Kuehne 309.9
Driving accuracy: Fred Funk 79.1%
Total driving: Jonathan Kaye 57
Greens in regulation: Adam Scott 73.6%
Putting average: Scott Verplank 1.668
Birdie average: Scott Verplank 5.24
Sand saves: Scott Verplank 70.4%
All-round ranking: Retief Goosen 196
So, what have we learned? That maybe Scott Verplank (who tops three categories) is a sneaky outsider to land the spoils at Augusta National this week?
