Adam Scott defended caddie Steve Williams on Tuesday at the PGA Championship, two days after Williams' comments caused a stir in Ohio.
Williams, formerly the caddie for Tiger Woods for 13 of his 14 major victories, said Scott's win last week at the Bridgestone Invitational was the best of his career. His comments created a bit of brouhaha with other golfers. Former Ryder Cup captain Curtis Strange said caddies should be seen and not heard. Others defended Williams, saying he was caught up in an emotional week. Woods announced three weeks ago that he had fired Williams.
“I think it’s been blown out of proportion, unsurprisingly kind of, but you know, it’s ... I guess it’s newsworthy stuff,” Scott said. “You know, Steve was obviously delighted to win, as was I. And you know, speaking with a bit of emotion probably.”
Williams was seen having a long conversation on Tuesday with Woods' agent, Mark Steinberg. Williams would not speak on camera to TNT's Craig Sager, who caught up with him in the practice area at the Atlanta Athletic Club, but he did issue a statement:
“I had a lot of emotion inside, it had built up and I just let it out; I didn’t mean to offend anybody. It was an incredible experience to be caddying for one of my close friends and to have him play so well.”
Woods was scheduled to practice late Tuesday afternoon and meet with the media at 10:30 a.m. Wednesday.
Par 3s too long
Although Webb Simpson hit a hole-in-one on Tuesday on No. 15 -- the same hole David Toms aced in the PGA Championship 10 years ago -- some golfers said the par 3s at the Highlands Course were too long.
Simpson used a 21-degree hybrid at 264 yards for his ace; the hole will play as long as 260 during the event, depending upon pins and tee box placement. The course also features par 3s that are 219, 184 and 207 yards long. The 207-yarder, No. 17, is fronted by a lake. The 15th has a pond running up the right. The fourth, at 219 yards, has a pond that guards the front and wraps around the left and back; it can play as long as 230 yards if the pin is in the back. The seventh, at 184 yards, features a large bunker in the front. CBS analyst Peter Kostis said the par 3s could decide the championship.
Masters champ Charl Schwartzel joked that he thought 15 was a par 4. He hit a 3-iron "out of my shoes" and he said it just flew to the front edge of the green.
“It’s going to be a tough hole,” he said. “I don’t think you’re going to be too disappointed if you walk off with a four.”
Even long hitters such as former Georgia golfer Bubba Watson said the par 3s, and courses in general, are growing too long.
“We’re the only people changing our fields,” he said. “The football field is not changing. The basketball court is not changing. Just make tighter fairways and higher rough, you know.”
Westwood ready to go
Lee Westwood has reported to the PGA Championship sporting a leaner frame and an uncluttered mind, a combination he hopes will lead to his long awaited first major title.
The 38-year-old Englishman seems to be as svelte as ever, reportedly having dropped about 10 pounds with a combination of diet -- “Just cut out all the stuff that tastes nice,” he said -- and a five-day-a-week workout regimen.
His game is in good shape from the appearances of the 65 he shot Sunday at the World Golf Championship. Golf talk on Tuesday turned to how much he was dead-lifting these days. More than 350 pounds was the claim. That's "a Chubby and a quarter," Westwood said, referring to his extra-large manager, Chubby Chandler.
The brain is tuned up, too, after consulting with a sports psychologist for the first time in his career, one of golf's main head doctors, Bob Rotella.
The new carefree attitude he will try to carry onto the course was apparent, when asked Tuesday how he felt about owning the title of best player never to win a major?
“It’s good to be the best at something I suppose,” Westwood wisecracked.
Bubba name lives on
Last week's death of Bubba Smith, an NFL standout most notably with the Baltimore Colts, inspired an outpouring of reminiscences and condolences.
Among those was a Tweet from Watson in which he mentioned he actually was named after the hulking lineman.
He explained Tuesday: “It was 1978, Bubba Smith was playing football [actually, he had just retired before then]. So, when I was born, I was real chubby in the face. My dad wanted a baseball player and I came out looking like a big football player. He said I was a Bubba, not a baseball player. So 10 seconds after I was born, he just called me Bubba.”
Watson has much to learn about the Bubba who preceded him. For instance, he said he never has seen the “Police Academy” movies from which Smith built his post-football reputation.
Tringale hopeful
Cameron Tringale hopes his familiarity with the Highlands Course will help him this week.
Experience is working well for him this season, his second on the PGA Tour. Tringale, one of four former Georgia Tech golfers in the field, played the course many times while in college. He said that experience may be worth a half-shot to a shot each round.
“I think it fits my game really well,” he said. “You have to drive the ball really nicely out there.”
His goal is to play on another course that he’s familiar with from his days at Tech: East Lake, home of the Tour Championship. The top 30 players will compete there in mid-September.
Staff writer Steve Hummer contributed to this article.
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