Medinah Highlights And Quirks

Chipmunks, a barnyard, lightning, and near-misses; Medinah CC as seen through the pages of Golf Digest and Golf World.

Medinah Memories

Chipmunks, a barnyard, lightning, near-misses, and other Medinah CC highlights and quirks as seen through the pages of Golf Digest and Golf World.

2012 Ryder Cup Survey

Would you choose a free pass to the Ryder Cup or a chance to eavesdrop on the locker room conversation?

The wink and fist bump that paid off for Snedeker

By John Strege The Rory & Tiger Show proved a dud on Sunday, but this was no one-ring circus and Brandt Snedeker was no sideshow. Snedeker is a Flying Wallenda, one wound as tight as the rope on which he seems to walk precariously when in contention, and heretofore known as much for his tumbles as he is for navigating his way to victory. This time, against a field of the best players in the world, he prevailed in style, winning the Tour Championship by three strokes and a bonus of greater import than the $10 million he received for simultaneously winning the FedEx Cup. He won one for a friend. Photo by Getty ImagesSnedeker, 31, is an emotional player, who weeped after stumbling on the back nine at Augusta National with a chance to win the Masters in 2008. The lesson that carried him to victory on Sunday was that golf was not a matter of life or death. Related: Tiger's on-course bromances On Sunday morning, Snedeker went to Shepard Center, a renowned rehabilitation center in Atlanta, to visit Tucker Anderson, the 19-year-old son of his long-time instructor Todd Anderson. On Sept. 7, Tucker was in an automobile accident that nearly cost him his life. "Tucker . . . I was thinking really hard about him," Snedeker said after his final-round 68 at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta. "It made me calm that this is not the most important thing in my world. I asked him if he thought I'd beat Rory McIlroy today. He gave me a little wink." He also gave him a fist bump, according to his father, "for good luck today," Todd wrote on Twitter. "Hope it brings Tour Championship and FedEx Cup victories!" Neither McIlroy (tying for 10th) nor Woods (tie for eighth) were a factor in the final round, not the outcome for which the carnival barkers touting the FedEx Cup were expecting. McIlroy and Woods entered the Tour Championship one-two in the FedEx Cup standings and finished two-three. Not that it mattered. McIlroy will still be the PGA Tour player of the year, which remains the more impressive and accurate yardstick by which a player's year is measured. The players' goal is winning the tournament, notwithstanding the $10 million lottery ticket the winner of the FedEx Cup receives. "Now that I've been out here for a while, I realize you don't play for money," Snedeker said Saturday. "You play to win championships and the money comes with that." Related: A closer look at the U.S. Ryder Cup team In his case, he received $1.44 million for his Tour Championship victory, giving a total haul of $11.44 million for a hard day's work. It was easy only at the last hole, after he had holed a 27-foot birdie chip at the 17th green to increase his lead to four. Earlier in his round, at No. 6, he hit his tee shot into the water, leading to a double bogey that invited all comers to join him in contention. There also is his history, which includes a four-putt from 12 feet on the last hole of the BMW Championship in 2009, a triple bogey when he needed only a bogey to qualify for the Tour Championship. "I'm a jumpy guy to say the least," he said earlier. "So my biggest thing is trying to stay patient under the gun and realizing that not every shot is a make or break shot on Sunday." Related: The best moments in FedEx Cup history Snedeker is eminently likable and a rising star, a combination worthy of his standing in for the absence of a Rory and Tiger showdown. This was Snedeker's fourth victory and one that reinforced the faith U.S. Ryder Cup captain Davis Love III had in him when he made him one of his four captain's picks. And Snedeker was not at all jumpy on Sunday, a day that began with a wink and a fist bump from an ailing friend, who was proven right. Snedeker did beat Rory McIlroy on Sunday, a feat that typically pays off big these days Follow @JohnStrege !function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs");

Ping to be featured on CNBC

By Mike StachuraFollow @MikeStachuraMany of those who are inside the game know the story of the development and long-running success of Ping, which began in 1959 under the inspiration, diligence and guidance of founder Karsten Solheim.The...

Video: Luke Donald's hole-out eagle on 14 at the Tour Championship

A bunker tip worth its salt

By Jeff PattersonHave you been told to monitor your salt intake? Even if you haven't (yet), you'd probably be glad to hear that Jim McLean says the more salt, the better . . . on...

Furyk looks Ryder Cup ready with Friday 64 at East Lake

By Jim Moriarty ATLANTA, Ga. -- For those who were concerned that, after a couple of balky finishes, most famously at the U.S. Open at Olympic Club, Jim Furyk might not have been the best of all possible captain's picks for Davis Love III's U.S. Ryder Cup side, fret not. Furyk, the 42-year-old veteran of seven previous cups (and seven more of the Presidents variety), has sent an all clear from Atlanta and the Tour Championship and it read as follows: 3-3-3-3-3-3-3. That was just on his first seven holes. He added a couple more for good measure at the ninth and the 10th, finished the round with a six-under-par 64 and a one-shot lead over Justin Rose at the halfway point at East Lake, where Furyk won the FedEx Cup two years ago. "To be able to write 3 on your card nine times in the first 11 holes was a lot of fun," said Furyk. "I've never seen a card that pretty, just all those 3s." Supremely confident in his own way of doing things, Furyk nevertheless heard the second-guessing of the chattering class. "Really, the opinions that matter to me are those of my captain and those of my teammates. There are eight guys that had a voice in saying who they got to pick. There were six, seven, eight really good choices. I'm humbled and honored that those eight individuals and the assistants and Davis chose me," he said. "As far as having to prove myself . . . look at the way I play golf, the way I swing the golf club and grip the putter, look at the way I go about my business. If I really cared what the critics thought the last 19 years, I really wouldn't be here, if that makes sense." Related: A closer look at the U.S. squad One thing Furyk will bring to Medinah next week is a lot of experience, a lot of toughness and a lot of versatility. He was, after all, the first player to successfully pair with Tiger Woods when Woods was at the height of his powers and capable of intimidating his opponents and his teammates equally. Bubba Watson, who played in his first Ryder Cup two years ago in Wales, asked Furyk how many teams he'd been on during their round Friday. "I said eight. And I know to the young guys that seems interesting. I don't want to overplay it," he says. "My job is to go out there and play as well as I can and help my team in any way I can. I think I've always been good with tough pairings. I'm a guy that the captains can move around a little bit. I can fit in with a lot of personalities. So, I'm flattered by that and, again, I think that's probably one of the reasons I was chosen, for more than just golf. But I don't' want to overplay it. We've got a bunch of really good players. Right now I'm focused on trying to play well at this event and anything I do here is going to help me get ready for the Ryder Cup. It'll be easy to get up over there. " Related: Davis Love III enjoying being captain Don't count Woods among those surprised by Love's choice either. "If you think about it, he's basically two swings away from being probably in the top five in points," said Woods after his second round 73 dropped him from a share of the Tour Championship lead to T-12. "Him being picked, it's not that controversial to us as players. Since '97 he's been on every team with Phil and myself. We've been on every team together. He's been so solid and so rock steady. He's a great team player and he's playing well. He went 5-0 last year (at the Presidents Cup). This is what he can do. As I said, he's two swings away from being in the top five in points." Follow @GWMoriarty(Photo by Getty Images) !function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs");

Peter Millar acquired by luxury goods firm Richemont

By John Strege Peter Millar has enjoyed "a meteoric ascent" in the world of golf fashion, according to Golf Digest fashion director Marty Hackel, an ascent that has culminated in the company being acquired by...

Tenuous golf connection: Keith Hernandez and facial hair

By Sam Weinman New Yorkers of a certain age consider Keith Hernandez something of a living deity, for a number of reasons:1. He was the first baseman and heart and soul of the only Mets team in our lifetime to win a championship.2. He made memorable guest appearances (as himself) on Seinfeld. 3.  He appeared, until recently, alongside another New York icon, Walt "Clyde" Frazier in the campy Just For Men hair-dyeing gel commercials.That last part, of course, is because of Hernandez's trademark mustache, which -- according to the New York TImes, who we suspect wouldn't make this up -- was voted the best ever in sports by the American Mustache Institute. Now Hernandez intends to shave off his mustache as part of a charity fundraiser for Alzheimer's disease.None of this has anything to do with golf, except it's an excuse to recall some memorable facial hair in our game in recent -- and not-so recent -- years.Start with the likes of Johnson Wagner and Geoff Ogilvy, both of whom look like they arrived at the golf course straight from the set of a Spaghetti Western. Continue with Craig Stadler, aka "The Walrus." You can even go back as far as golf's first real star, Old Tom Morris, who apparently was too busy playing, teaching, designing courses, and making clubs to break out a razor.As for facial hair in Golf Digest, it's worth noting that we're just a few months removed from featuring the rare double combination of Rickie Fowler sporting both a mustache AND shorts on our August cover. Related video: The many faces of Tiger Woods(Our September cover subject, Alvaro Quiros, also has facial hair, but in his case, it's more of a several-day old growth). Before that, you had Graeme McDowell appearing on our cover twice in a seven-month span (the latter, in March 2011, was alongside pal Rory McIlroy) with a beard. Then it gets murky. In July 2002, David Duval was on the cover, not with a beard or a mustache but a modest soul patch below his lip; and in September 1999, instructor John Elliott was on the cover with a mustache, but the mustache was slightly obscured by his shoulder.Alas, the year 1996 was an unambiguous facial hair high point, with BACK-TO-BACK COVERS in June and July featuring mustachioed players.Hernandez surely must have been proud.Follow @samweinman !function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs");