This Week at WorldGolf.com: June 29, 2005

It's all Retief Goosen,
all the time at Blog Central

The usually rational folks at Blog Central became a little obsessive last week. Given the breathless dialogue, you would've thought Retief Goosen had gone Paul Casey on us during the U.S. Open. Instead, the classy South African merely filed an 11-over 81 on Sunday, dropping far out of contention. Not a proud moment, to be sure, but hardly criminal.

Credit for the dustup goes to blogger Chris Baldwin, who teed things up hours after Goosen's meltdown with this dramatic headline: "Retief Goosen done as a major player after his U.S. Open meltdown at Pinehurst No. 2." If Baldwin was looking to generate a little controversy, he succeeded. "Obviously you haven't a clue nor do you know anything about golf, pro golfers, or playing golf in a major," writes reader Andy Vasily. "What an insane prediction."

One day later, National Golf Editor Tim McDonald decided to join the blog fray: "Goosen will win again for his many fans and admirers who would love to have his psychology to go with his impeccable game." Agreed. In fact, many experts picked Goosen to win his third Open specifically because of his mental approach. No less an authority than Pinehurst No. 2 Superintendent Paul Jett made Goosen his pre-tournament choice. "His temperament suits the Open," he told Golfweek.

If anything, Goosen's reaction to his loss Sunday leads me to think he'll rebound just fine. Lesser golfers might have blamed the course conditions and broken down in the press room. With the media ready to turn Goosen's 81 into this year's most tragic sports story, Goosen provided a much-needed dose of perspective. "It happened to Ernie Els last year and it was my turn this year," he told the AP. "This is nothing serious, nobody has died." And remember, it's not as if Goosen was the only contender to struggle on Sunday. We really should be talking about Michael Campbell, who won his first major in impressive fashion. Instead, we're still talking about the 11th-place finisher one week later.

To be fair, though, we'll let Baldwin have the last word: "Retief can only carry these demons himself, and no one recovers from that kind of historic collapse with a lead in a major. Not when you were all but being handed the trophy on Saturday night." Fortunately, we won't have to wait long to find out how Goosen responds. The British Open is just three weeks away.

As always, WorldGolf.com welcomes your comments.

Golf in Spring Break Mecca
Cancun full of promise, pitfalls

Don't look now, but Cancun is selling itself as a golf destination, writes Chris Baldwin in his latest On The Spot column. The area's big resorts are tired of having to cater to college kids who, unlike golfers, balk at high rates and are hell on the cleaning crews. The question is whether the Riviera Maya-Cancun corridor lives up to the standards those higher rates demand. So far the answer is as mixed up as Michael Jackson.
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Golf at Nevis Four Seasons:
Where green monkeys lurk
and putts break 'uphill'

Inhabitants of the small Caribbean island of Nevis swear the mountain that towers over their home is a "she." Nevis Peak, a dormant volcano wrapped in tropical vegetation, is usually shrouded by mysterious, swirling clouds. The Four Seasons Resort golf course that lies at its base may not have a gender, but it definitely has teeth. And it’s full of island mysteries, like Green Vervet monkeys that can sometimes be seen scuttling around in the deep foliage.
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David Breslow on how to
be an imperfect winner

At times, golfers fall into the perfection "trap." They try to be so perfect that they wind up trying too hard and scoring poorly. After a while, if they are smart, they realize that perfection is not the goal. Golfers playing imperfect rounds have won many championships. The key is being "perfect" within your "imperfection!" Here are some important things to know about "imperfection" and "perfection" that can help you work with imperfection more effectively.
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