MONTREAL -- Tiger Woods and Charles Howell III are paired together for a foursomes match against K.J. Choi and Nick OHern, but it may not stay that way for Friday four-ball play.
In 2003, Woods and Howell defeated Choi and Stuart Appleby, 4 and 3, in foursomes and went 2-0 in foursomes with a 1-up win against Tim Clark and Retief Goosen.
Their overall record slipped to .500, however, with a couple of losses in four-ball play that year. Much has been made of OHern defeating Woods twice at the Accenture Match Play Championship, including 2005 when he followed up a victory over Howell with a win against Woods. In Presidents Cup four-ball and foursomes play, however, OHern is 2-2.
TIGER TIPS:
Not much I can say ' shoot 62 and hope for the best -- Ernie Els, who dueled Tiger Woods to a draw in a playoff in South Africa four years ago, on what advice he would offer Mike Weir if hes picked to face Woods in singles this year.
LAST RITES:
I just wanted to (play in the Presidents Cup/Ryder Cup) before I was laid out to pasture since Im the oldest guy here -- American rookie Woody Austin, who is 43.
DODGING THE BEARS NEEDLES: Maybe he hasnt watched me hit enough balls yet. Ive been staying away. I hear hes pretty brutal -- Lucas Glover, on Jack Nicklaus sense of humor.
SOGGY START:
The first two days of the Presidents Cup are likely to see scattered showers at Royal Montreal. Temperatures are expected to be in the mid-to-high 60s, with scattered showers on Thursday and Friday. The wind is expected to pick up Friday, when it will be between 10 and 15 miles per hour, with gusts to 25. The weekend is expected to be partly sunny on Saturday and mostly sunny on Sunday, with temperatures in the mid-60s.
FOUNDATION RESTRUCTURING:
The World Golf Foundation announced a restructuring of its board of directors and a collaboration among leading golf organizations at Royal Montreal. The Royal and Ancient and the European Tour have been added to bring the number of organizations involved to seven. Each will be represented by its chief executive.
The executive committee of the foundation board now includes Peter Dawson (R&A), George OGrady (European Tour), David Fay (USGA), Tim Finchem (PGA TOUR), Joe Steranka (PGA of America), Carolyn Bivens (LPGA) and Jim Armstrong (Augusta National).
The chairman of the board will rotate annually between members of the executive committee, beginning with Fay in 2008. The board of directors will also increase to as many as 25 members. The World Golf Foundation has traditionally focused on the World Golf Hall of Fame, The First Tee program and Golf 20/20, devoted to accelerating growth, participation and diversity in golf.
In addition to these initiatives, the foundation will also focus on global communication, research and public affairs, as well as new phases of golfs anti-doping policy that will see a list of banned substances developed, among other things. It was also announced that Steve Mona, currently chief executive officer of the Golf Course Superintendents Association, has been named CEO of the World Golf Foundation.
Joe Louis Barrow, who has served as executive director of The First Tee, has been named executive vice president of the foundation and CEO of The First Tee and will report directly to Mona.
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Editor’s Note: Ian Hutchinson is golf columnist for the Toronto Sun and senior writer for Pro Shop Magazine, a Canadian golf trade publication, and Canadian Golfer Magazine. He is also a frequent contributor to Golf Scene and Golf Canada Magazine, the official magazine of the Royal Canadian Golf Association.
