Tag: Medalist Golf Club

Michael Jordan taunts PGA Tour player during friendly rounds: ‘That’s why you’re not playing the major this week’

Dominic Bozzelli has played about 100 rounds of golf with Michael Jordan and he says the NBA great constantly heckles and jabs him.

Dominic Bozzelli made the cut at the Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship last weekend, marking the first time he’s made a PGA Tour cut since January.

But that reminded us that during ESPN’s summer airing of the popular 10-episode documentary “The Last Dance,” viewers were taken inside the Chicago Bulls locker room for a rare glimpse into the world of Michael Jordan.

One of the most talked-about aspects of the show was the way Jordan teased and sometimes berated teammate Scott Burrell, both for his play on the court and his behavior off the court.

When Bozzelli, who hails from Rochester, N.Y., but played collegiately at Auburn, watched “The Last Dance,” he couldn’t help but smile at Jordan’s tough love tactics because he’s seen it all a hundred times before.

Literally.

Jordan is a 2-handicap golfer who frequently plays at the same club where Bozzelli is a member in Florida.

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Bozzelli has played over the past few years, by his estimation, about 100 rounds of golf with the greatest basketball player in history, and he has routinely been heckled and chided by the ultra-competitive Jordan.

“Just like you saw in the documentary, he has ways where he’s trying to make you better,” Bozzelli said.

“He’ll start jabbing at me early,” Bozzelli continued. “If I hit a bad drive he’ll say something like, ‘That’s why you’re not playing the major this week.’ Or stuff like that. He keeps ribbing me. You either sink or swim there; he makes you do something about it, makes you dig your heels in. If that’s going to rattle you then you shouldn’t be playing pro sports anyway, but that’s just his way of telling you how to go after your weaknesses. You’re either going to keep hearing it from him or you do something about it. It’s fun.”

Bozzelli first met Jordan about three years ago, shortly after he’d moved to Palm Beach Gardens and chose Medalist Golf Club to serve as his home course. Jordan is a member at Medalist and a few other clubs in the area.

The day Bozzelli was introduced, Jordan invited him to join his group for the following day’s 36-hole game at Medalist. One problem: Bozzelli was committed to going to the airport to pick up his former golf coach at Auburn who was coming to town for a visit.

“He was like, ‘We’re playing tomorrow at Medalist, you want to join us?’” Bozzelli recalled. “I told him my coach was coming in, but there’s no way I could say no. He said, ‘Perfect, we play 36, we usually start the second 18 around 12:30.”

So, Bozzelli picked up his coach, and they both joined Jordan for the afternoon round.

“I was trying to play it cool a little bit, but the first couple holes you’re pretty nervous,” he said. “The guy’s an icon, you grew up watching him, and he’s one of my favorite athletes of all time. He’s an intelligent guy; there’s no better athlete to pick his brain. You ask him a serious question and he’ll give you a thoughtful and detailed answer.”

Since then, when Bozzelli isn’t off traveling the country playing on tour, he has become a semi-regular in Jordan’s game.

“He plays all the time. He plays more golf than I do,” said Bozzelli. “He doesn’t play 18; it’s always a 36-hole day. It feels like you’re going to work when you play with him.”

Naturally, when Jordan is involved there’s always money on the line, and while he hasn’t won much from Bozzelli – “I like where we stand,” Bozzelli said with a laugh – he has become a tougher opponent.

“He’s gotten a lot better,” Bozzelli said of Jordan, who plays to a 2-handicap. “He changed his equipment, had guys come down here to fit him. The driver used to be the issue, but he’s got that all worked out. It used to be an easier win, but you’ve got to bring it.

“You can’t just show up and collect, you’ve got to play well because he competes until that last hole. It’s impressive.”

Sal Maiorana can be reached at maiorana@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @salmaiorana. (Editor’s note: This story originally ran in the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle in June.)

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Auctioned golf at Shinnecock, Medalist, more raise $100,000 for coronavirus workers

Auctioned rounds of golf at famous courses like Shinnecock, Medalist and more raised $100,000 for coronavirus workers.

You know something’s not right when you feel guilty on a golf course.

That was precisely Eric Sedransk’s predicament. You see, he left his apartment in New York City on March 16 to stay with his parents during the pandemic. While he was working on his short game in beautiful Hilton Head, South Carolina, his friends back in the city were all weathering the coronavirus storm.

The 35-year-old has a passion for not just golf, but giving back. So he asked himself an important question: What can I do?

“There’s two things I have: One is I have a relatively decent following on Instagram and through playing golf I have a pretty good network of both members and club professionals at pretty high-end golf courses,” explained Sedransk. “So I thought ‘You know what? I’m just going to reach out.’”

And that’s what he did. He explained how he wanted to auction off rounds of golf with all the proceeds going to charity, and clubs started saying yes. Over eight days from May 13-21, the @Member4aDay Auction raised more than $100,000 to provide over 10,000 meals for frontline hospital workers in New York City.

As if that isn’t impressive enough, Sedransk did it mainly by himself in just three weeks. He didn’t take a penny. In fact, he lost money.

What’s my $25,000?

Once the ball got rolling, it came time to choose the charity. Sedransk said it didn’t feel right working with one of the big organizations, and he had a reason.

“I had no idea how much money I was going to raise, so if I’m donating to a charity that raises $50 million a year, what’s my $25,000?” said Sedransk. A friend connected him to Project Frontline, whose goal is simple: Help feed healthcare workers across the country.

For two and a half weeks Sedransk hustled to get as many courses on board as possible, and he wasn’t going for the easy ones. Sedransk wanted the best-of-the-best. Courses like Shinnecock Hills, Medalist, Preswick (Scotland), Interlachen, Valhalla, etc. Ever heard of them?

When the site launched, he had 20 signed on. The only public course was Sweetens Cove, Golfweek’s top-ranked track you can play in the state of Tennessee.

Within the first 24 hours, @Member4aDay Auction raised $12,000, which was considerably above Sedransk’s target goal of $50,000, realistically thinking they’d get $25,000-$30,000.

“The most interesting part to me was the response I got from people I don’t know. All of a sudden I started getting messages from both members and club professionals wanting to pitch in and help,” said Sedransk, who was adding courses up until 24 hours before the end of the auction.

Eric Sedransk at Sea Pines. (Photo: Patrick Koenig)

When time ran out, 48 auction items were donated, more than double what he started with. More than 220 individual people submitted bids. Groups of friends were even on conference calls working together as teams to try and earn a winning bid.

“More than 50 percent of rounds donated came from people that I’ve never met out of the goodness of their heart,” said Sedransk.

One final push

With three hours to go, the total was $65,000. Sedransk put the auction site up on his parents TV and watched the total rise as time expired. With less than 10 minutes on the clock, a bid for $11,000 for a round at Shinnecock, host of the 2018 U.S. Open, came in.

“When I first set out to do this I thought the only reason people would bid would be 90 percent to play the incredible golf course and 10 percent because it’s charitable,” said Sedransk. “At the end, I think it might be more charity, less golf.”

The auction total finished right around $96,000. When time ran out, Sedransk got emails from people asking if any other rounds were available. He can’t explain why, but he reached out to one of the courses to ask for one more round. The head pro said if the bid is enough to get the total over $100,000 he’d host another foursome, and the deal was done.

“We all have this desire during times of need to give back. The first question is always ‘how?’ What I want people to know is I don’t have a magic bullet, there’s no reason it was successful. I just went out and did it,” said Sedransk. “If you really want to give back and you’re willing to put the effort in, you can do something just as well as I did and make a real difference.”

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Justin Thomas aces broadcast debut, proves he has bright future in TV after golf

Justin Thomas couldn’t have been better in his broadcast debut during The Match: Champions for Charity.

Justin Thomas shouldn’t quit his day job.

The 27-year-old is ranked No. 4 in the world, has 12 PGA Tour wins, a major championship (2017 PGA Championship), $34,419,108 in earnings on Tour and a stellar record in both the Ryder Cup (4-1) and Presidents Cup (6-2-2).

That said, whenever he decides to put down the clubs, he should immediately pick up a mic.

The former Alabama star made his broadcast debut as an on-course reporter on TNT/TBS alongside CBS Sports’ Amanda Balionis on Sunday during The Match: Champions for Charity, which saw Tiger Woods and Peyton Manning defeat Phil Mickelson and Tom Brady. Thomas received rave reviews from golf Twitter during and after the event. He was brilliant. His rapport with Woods and Mickelson allowed them to open up on a different level compared to the original The Match in 2018.

Most importantly, Thomas didn’t overdo anything. Unlike some broadcasters, he knew fans weren’t watching for him and he never once tried to steal the spotlight. He didn’t speak just to talk. When he had something to say, it was insightful or funny. Like a golfer picking out which holes he can attack and score on, Thomas picked his spots on where to interject throughout the broadcast like someone who’s been doing it for years, let alone a day.

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“It was all fun. That was the good thing about (The Match), we didn’t need to do much. The guys having mics and being good friends was a big part of it,” said Thomas after the event on the No Laying Up podcast. “It was so funny to me, I think it was honestly underrated how nervous Tom and Peyton were. They’ve competed on the biggest stages in front of so many people, yet you get them out of their comfort zone and how uncomfortable they were to start that round. It was crazy to me.”

Saturday’s rehearsal scared Thomas more than the live show. His peek behind the curtain at the life of, say, Jim “Bones” Mackay, provided perspective on just how difficult an on-course reporter’s job can be.

“The amount of voices that are going on in that headset, I now totally and completely understand why when I go up to Bones and try to talk to him and see how he’s doing why he doesn’t want to answer me,” Thomas explained. “There’s people talking to him, he’s trying to listen to players. … that part to me, I enjoyed that.”

Aside from Brady’s epic hole-out-pants-rip sequence, one of the best parts of the broadcast was the verbal haymaker Thomas threw at broadcast host Charles Barkley when he said: “Chuck, I’d love to see your fat ass try to dunk a basketball right now.”

“As soon as I said it I wondered if I maybe shouldn’t have. I have a bad tendency of saying whatever comes to my head and that was one of those times,” said Thomas with a laugh. “For some reason it’s fun talking smack to him and when he said that, he put it on a tee for me. I was going to let it go but I had to swing at it.”

Why was he so good? Because he knows what the audience wants. From his time playing and watching golf on TV, he knows how unique it is to hear players and caddies talk on the course.

“That was my number one priority, I did not want to interfere with (the players). I wanted to let them go and do their thing. This is their show. People are tuning in to this to listen to them talk, listen to what they have to say, and that’s what I wanted to have happen,” said Thomas.

“The most nerve-wracking part for me was beforehand, all the pregame. Once we got on the course and I’m getting asked to call a shot, that’s what I do,” said Thomas. “Everything I’m saying out loud calling Phil, Tom, Peyton, Tiger, whatever, that exactly what I’m thinking so that’s not hard for me. The hard part is just fitting it in a window that works for the broadcast.”

We’re more likely to see Thomas play in an event like The Match before we see him reporting on the course again. We can’t wait for either one.

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Golfweek Rewind

Golfweek’s JuliaKate Culpepper recaps the week’s top stories in golf including Tiger Woods and Peyton Manning defeating Phil Mickelson and Tom Brady in “The Match: Champions for Charity.”

Golfweek’s JuliaKate Culpepper recaps the week’s top stories in golf including Tiger Woods and Peyton Manning defeating Phil Mickelson and Tom Brady in “The Match: Champions for Charity.”

‘Match II’ delivers comedy, drama as four legends remind us what we’ve missed

Woods, Phil Mickelson, Peyton Manning and Tom Brady turned Sunday’s “The Match: Champions for Charity event into must-see TV”

Tom Brady split his pants but provided the signature moment of the telecast, Peyton Manning threw out plenty of comedic zingers and came within 17 inches of winning $25 million for charity; and Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson delivered numerous sharp needles, standout coaching and some impressive play-by-play along the way.

The golf was pretty good, too, despite Mother Nature’s soggy, grey hand that left the stars dripping wet, with astounding moments of drama still shining through and brilliant shots still being produced to remind us what we’ve missed since the global pandemic silenced live broadcasts of sports.

And the money raised – $20 million for COVID-19 relief – was stellar.

All in all, the two golf icons and legendary quarterbacks turned Sunday’s The Match: Champions for Charity event into must-see TV, with Woods and Manning storming out to a big lead before hanging on for the down-to-the-wire victory as the Mickelson-Brady team woke up and came up clutch on the back nine.

At the 18th holes’ end, Woods closed out the 1-up victory on his home course at the Medalist Golf Club in Hobe Sound, Florida, with a pure putt from 40 feet to within a few inches for the winning par.

“The fact we all came together to raise $20 million for those who have been severely affected, the fact Tom and Peyton, hats off to them for coming out here,” Woods said. “This is our arena, this is what we do. We can’t imagine going out on to their field and doing what they do. But it was a great day.”

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Woods, who hadn’t hit a shot in competition in nearly 100 days as he was forced to miss tournaments due to a stiff back after last playing in February, looked healthy and sharp as he and Manning took a 3-up lead through six holes.

Woods didn’t miss a fairway – that’s 14 for 14 on the stats sheet – and won $1.75 million for charity by winning the long-drive contest on the third hole. He won another $125,000 for charity in the closest-to-the-pin contest on the fourth.

Manning added to the early cause with a birdie of his own on the fourth and a net birdie on the eighth. Meanwhile, his QB counterpart was in all sorts of trouble the first six holes, his play so poor he even asked commentator Charles Barkley for swing tips. Barkley, if you don’t know, should never give anyone swing tips.

But then Brady became Brady, the six-time Super Bowl champ stunning one and all with one shot. His team down 3 up on the par-5 seventh hole – sort of like the Patriots trailing 28-3 to the Falcons in the Super Bowl – Brady was in the midst of another terrible hole and stood about 100 yards away in the fairway after three shots, with Barkley hassling him about his poor play.

Then TB, who played 8 holes in the morning to warm up, holed his shot, spinning the ball back into the hole for birdie. Then he calmly told Barkley to, well, take his words and, well, shove ’em.

Moments later, however, Woods capped Brady’s stunner with a birdie of his own to tie the hole. No blood despite the best shot of the day.

But the match’s momentum swung on the 11th hole when Mickelson hit one of his bombs and drove his tee shot about one yard past the green 330 yards away. From there, Brady canned about a 25-footer for eagle to win the team’s first hole, the two exchanging socially-distanced air high-fives.

That cut the lead to 2 up. Then it was 1 up when Manning missed about a two-footer on the 14th. Manning redeemed himself on the 16th when he won the closest-to-the-pin contest by coming up 17 inches short of the hole with his tee shot, a near-ace that would have won $25 million for charity. Mickelson tied the hole with a birdie of his own from short distance.

Woods and Manning held on with two gut-wrenching pars on the final two holes.

“To be in the arena with (Woods and Mickelson), it was a special experience,” Manning said. “I was not comfortable the entire time but knowing $20 million was raised and helping people that are really going through tough times was an honor for Tom and men both to be invited by Phil and Tiger to play in this match.

“It will be something I will always cherish.”

Mickelson, who won the first match – and $9 million – against Woods in Las Vegas in 2018, couldn’t muster some late-hole heroics this go-around.

“My man (Brady) hit some really great shots on this back nine and we fought hard to make up (the deficit),” he said. “I was a little nervous, a little tight on the front nine and my man kept us in there and on the back nine he really shined and hit some great shots and we made a run and we came really close.”

If there is to be a Match III, it’s going to be hard-pressed to come close to matching Match II’s competitive action and theater. Yes, there was too much rain and no spectators or caddies, but live golf was back again. And back in a big way.

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Tiger Woods grades back on scale of 1 to 10: ’10 is not what it used to be’

During The Match: Champions for Charity, Tiger Woods discussed the status of his back and what he’s been doing in quarantine during COVID-19

On a scale of 1 to 10, Tiger Woods said his back won’t ever be a true 10 again, but Sunday at Medalist Golf Club, it felt pretty good.

Woods returned to competition Sunday at his home course for The Match: Champions for Charity after being sidelined 98 days. Woods last played Feb. 13-16 at the Genesis Invitational where was the last player to make the cut. He then skipped the first three tournaments of the four-event Florida swing with back issues ahead of the PGA Tour postponing the season due to COVID-19.

When asked about his back ahead of Sunday’s match, Woods told CBS Sports reporter Amanda Balionis it’s not where it used to be due to four surgeries over his 24-year pro career.

“Well, let’s just say that 10 is not what it used to be,” Woods quipped.

“But it’s still better than most,” Balionis returned.

“Absolutely,” Woods said.

Later in the broadcast, analyst Charles Barkley asked Woods if spending the last two months in quarantine was beneficial for the 44-year-old’s body as the Tour plans to return June 11 with the Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial Country Club.

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“Well it’s been nice to be at home and be able to train every day and get some treatment on it; get into a routine basically,” Woods said on the sixth green. “You know, I didn’t have to play for a while. I was trying to peak for Augusta and trying to get ready for that and all of a sudden with this pandemic and everything that’s happened, we’ve all been very careful and I’ve had to stay and home and it’s been good in that regard.

“I’ve spent a lot of time with my kids, which has been awesome. And so we’ve had a lot of fun. This is probably the most amount of tennis I’ve played in forever so that’s been good.”

Barkley also asked Woods his thoughts on the condensed Tour schedule which puts the season’s three remaining majors within 10 weeks of each other.

“It’s going to be interesting to see what happens,” Woods said. “I think that trying to peak for the majors in April, May, June and July, that’s how it’s been forever and now this has all changed and everything’s fluid and it’s on the fly.”

Woods didn’t comment further because his playing partner, Peyton Manning, interrupted him, asking for a read on the sixth green.

Woods excused himself with a zinger aimed at Barkley, “(Manning’s) a hell of a lot more important than you are.”

“I don’t think y’all understand, he’s a player and a caddie. He’s a green reader,” Manning chirped at Barkley.

Manning won the hole with a net birdie putt to take the lead 3 up over Phil Mickelson and Tom Brady through six holes.

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Phil Mickelson says he has the winning formula for ‘The Match: Champions for Charity’

Phil Mickelson thinks he know the secret formula to defeating Tiger Woods and Peyton Manning in The Match: Champions for Charity.

At first glance, it appears Tiger Woods and Peyton Manning have the edge in The Match: Champions for Charity. Oddsmakers say so.

Think again.

Phil Mickelson touted he has the winning formula for Sunday’s charity match at Medalist Golf Club in Hobe Sound, Florida, and it’s not just hitting bombs. It’s a bit more mathematical.

C² = B + HS = I + V

What?

Mickelson, a five-time major winner and World Golf Hall of Famer who’s partnered with six-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady at Medalist, explained his formula for success in a video posted on Twitter ahead of Sunday’s match.

“Well ‘C²’ stands for ‘coffee.’ Not just any coffee wit sugar and crap. No. It’s coffee for wellness with good stuff that gets your body to function right and your brain to function right,” Mickleson explained. “You couple that with ‘calves’, you have exponential performance. That equals B + HS which is ‘bombs’ and ‘hellacious seeds’ which equals I and V, ‘intimidation’ and ‘victory.’

“And that is how Tom Brady and I are going to come home with yet again, another belt from The Match.”

No word yet on if Brady is on board with this formula.

Mickelson won the first match against Tiger Woods in 2018.

In his video, Mickelson explained a hellacious seed is a “screaming, low, hot runner” which will do well against Woods’ “cute” stingers.

“A hellacious seed is going by a stinger so fast like you can’t even really wave. Like if you were to put your hand out the window, you would blow your hand back so fast it would hurt… Hellacious seeds are so hot and long,” Mickelson explained.

The Match: Champions for Charity is expected to begin at 3 p.m. ET Sunday afternoon, but the Hobe Sound area is forecast to experience thunderstorms all afternoon.

Keep up with Golfweek for updates on the match.

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Greg Norman: Medalist tees up length, variety, difficulty for ‘Match II’

With Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and Co., ready to play it, there was joy in the Shark’s voice as he talked with Golfweek about this course.

Much has been written this week about Greg Norman’s acrimonious split from Medalist Golf Club, the private golf treasure in southern Florida he co-founded in the mid-1990s.

Earlier this week, however, there was joy in the Shark’s voice as he talked with Golfweek about the course he designed and built with Pete Dye in Hobe Sound, Florida, a sweeping stage that is home to Sunday’s The Match: Champions of Charity. The charity event pits Tiger Woods and Peyton Manning against Phil Mickelson and Tom Brady and will raise more than $10 million for COVID-19 relief efforts.

“I just admired Pete,” said Norman, whose architect arm has produced 106 courses in 34 countries on six continents – four in collaboration with Dye, who passed away at age 94 in January. “He was just one of those gentlemen who was so connected to golf. He was a genius below the surface just as much as he was above the surface. That’s where I learned most of my knowledge.

“He took me under his wing.”

The two-time major champion and member of the World Golf Hall of Fame said part of the Medalist’s mission statement at the outset was simple – build one of the hardest courses in the area that would attract low handicap golfers.

So Norman and Dye went to work. On hands and knees, the two primitively designed the course on the flat land that featured fresh marshlands and plenty of sand, their creative architectural instincts instead of blueprints leading the way.

“Pete and I were tasked to build a difficult course and that’s what we went out and did,” said Norman, who lives 15 minutes from the club. “We didn’t use a set of plans. We did it by sticks in the sand and just drawing and saying this is where we should go and this is what we should do. We’d get down on the ground and draw away. It truly was a hand-built golf course by both of us.

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“I used to joke with Pete that his golf shots were a little low, flat hook golf shots instead of a high fade like mine. So we had this constant battle about how holes should be played and not played and we loved it.

“We just joked with each other all the time.”

Seven years ago, however, Dye nor Norman, who tweaked the design over the years with new bunkers and tees, was asked for approval when the Medalist hired Bobby Weed to renovate the course. This led to the unpleasant split between the club and Norman (although he remains a member and visits from time to time).

In his restoration, Weed beefed up the revetted-stacked bunkers, widened a few fairways, touched on the greens and added six Tiger Tees in honor of Woods, which can stretch the par-72 layout to a big-boy 7,515 yards.

“The layout of the golf course is what Pete and I did originally,” Norman said. “The variety of the golf course is so good. There are long holes and drivable short holes depending on the wind conditions. I used to be able to drive the 10th hole and the 11th hole. Risky shots but you can try them. You can drive No. 14.

“The combination of the holes and the different shots that are required – that’s what Pete and I wanted to do, to challenge you to be able to hit all 14 clubs in your bag, not just a few of them.”

Especially when hitting into the greens.

“Where to hit the greens and how to hit the greens is important,” Norman said. “The greens aren’t overly big and there is a lot of runoff. The ball gets repelled away from the flagstick. Hole No. 4, with a big pushup green, is one of the classic par-3s. Very severe if you miss the green. Even for Mickelson and Woods, it will test their short games if they have to get up and down.

“But the great players like Mickelson and Woods won’t have much problem with it because the fairways are much wider now. A lot of the underbrush has been removed. It looks less intimidating today. Having said that, with Peyton Manning and Tom Brady, if you stray offline you are going to pay the price big time.”

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Norman was approached to be a part of the broadcast team for the match but things didn’t work out. But Norman will hit the airwaves May 26 on SiriusXM radio for his second live call-in show named Attack Life Radio at 3 p.m. ET.

For an hour Norman takes calls, answers questions, reminisces and has a blast.

“If people want to ask me a question, I’ve always enjoyed giving them my honest answer. So on the show I engage with them and they engage with me. It’s truly a 360 view on my life,” Norman said. “Most of the questions are about golf, but there are questions about life. And I’ve had broad experiences traveling the world and meeting and seeing and understanding and hearing a lot of things that are etched into my mind. I think it’s very valuable if I can hand that information on to people who are willing to ask questions about it.”

The broadcast team for Match II will feature Justin Thomas, one of many PGA Tour stars who are Medalist members; others include Woods, Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson and Rickie Fowler. Thomas has logged more than 100 rounds at the Medalist and recently played 18-hole matches against Fowler when both played left-handed and another time when both played using persimmon woods, old irons and balata golf balls.

This week he’s played a few rounds with Woods and on Friday went 18 with Mickelson and Brady. Like Norman, Thomas, who will be making his on-course analyst debut, said the Medalist won’t present too many problems for Woods and Mickelson. Now, for Brady and Manning, that’s a different story.

“It’s generous off the tee in terms of fairway size but if you get off the fairway it’s trouble. It’s a lost ball type of situation,” Thomas said. “Given the setup and the wind direction, I think it’s one of the hardest courses in this area just because of the length. I hit more long irons out there than any course down here. It’s a great test for the times we get a course a little bit longer on the PGA Tour because I can go out there and hit a lot of long and mid-irons.

“It plays tough along the greens because of the lies – they can be tight and grainy. It can be a very difficult course. Phil and Tiger, they’ll be OK. But Tom and Peyton might get a little exposed.”

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Dolch on ‘Match II’: Take Peyton over Brady because it’s ‘all he has to worry about’

Longtime golf writer Craig Dolch said he’d pick Peyton Manning over Tom Brady as a playing partner because “he’s got nothing else to do.”

We all know about the golf greatness that Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson can produce, but what about Peyton Manning and Tom Brady, who will also strut their stuff as part of “The Match: Champions for Charity” on Sunday?

Craig Dolch, longtime golf writer who now contributes to the Palm Beach Post, said the two wildcards — Brady and Manning — are fairly even on the course, but he sees one major difference between the two, heading into the event at Medalist Golf Club.

“I would probably have to go with Peyton Manning,” Dolch said on a Golfweek Instagram Live with JuliaKate Culpepper on Friday. “The one thing with Tom Brady, he’s still playing. And as we saw this past week, he’s been doing some informal workouts with his new teammates, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. I don’t think Tom is too concerned about what happens on Sunday.

“He’s obviously trying to make a run at his seventh Super Bowl, his first without the New England Patriots.”

Focus aside, Dolch insisted the two are a good matchup on the course, just as they were on the gridiron.

“They’re very comparable. Tom, his handicap is around 8, Peyton is a 6.4,” Dolch said. “But Peyton, all he has to worry about these days is playing golf. Tom has a little bit more on his shoulders these days.

“Either one of them is going to be able to produce that one or two shots during the round that might be able to win the match.”

As for watching the pros, Dolch said he won’t be too concerned with Tiger Woods’ overall performance, but he is curious to see what the layoff has done for the aging superstar’s ailing back.

“That’s what everybody wants to know. It will be 98 days on Sunday when we tees it up and we finally see him swing a golf club and we all wonder what it’s been like for him,” Dolch said.

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Phil Mickelson getting plenty of reps as he gets back to the game he loves

After not touching a golf club for six weeks as he adhered to strict stay-at-home measures in California Phil Mickelson is now back to golf.

Phil Mickelson didn’t take long to make up for lost time.

After not touching a golf club for six weeks as he adhered to strict stay-at-home measures in California due to the COVID-19 pandemic that shut down the PGA Tour March 13, Mickelson gradually got back into hitting balls in his backyard.

But chips and pitches and putts quenched his thirst for the game he’s loved since he started mirroring his father’s swing – thus the natural right-hander started to become Lefty before turning 2 – only so much. He was like Spielberg without a camera, Bobby Flay without a kitchen.

But once the Golden State eased sheltering measures and golf courses were allowed to reopen a week or so later, Phil got his golf fix in a hurry.

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Mickelson, a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame and winner of 44 PGA Tour titles (including five major), started playing 36 holes either on foot or in a cart most every day at Rancho Santa Fe Golf Club, The Farms Golf Club or Bear Creek Golf Club.

“When you haven’t played for a while you get to know why you love it so much and miss it,” Mickelson told Golfweek earlier this week. “The courses are in great shape and I think it’s one of the safest places to be outside with socially-distanced standards and with sunlight on your back.

“The last two weeks I’ve been practicing and playing 36 holes a day a lot and I’ve been having a blast playing golf.”

Mickelson has ramped up his work with a golf club in hand to get ready for Sunday’s “The Match: Champions for Charity,” where he’ll team with Tom Brady and face Tiger Woods and Peyton Manning at Medalist Golf Club in Hobe Sound, Florida, Woods’ home course. The event will raise at least $10 million for coronavirus relief efforts.

Mickelson said he’s playing well and is confident – no surprise there – that he and Brady will emerge victorious and make sure that whenever Woods shows up at his home course, “he’ll have a bad memory.” Raising millions for a good cause will make his cross-country trip that much better.

“I’m proud to be with Tiger and Peyton and Tom and raise money for relief efforts,” Mickelson said. “That’s what’s most important.  And I’m just glad I’m playing golf again. It’s been incredible to get back outside and playing.

“Golf has an opportunity to gain a much bigger following right now because it’s one of the few sports where you can play safely during this pandemic and it gives you the opportunity to spend time with friends, to be outside and get some exercise and do it safely.

“So I’m hopeful that golf really takes off this summer and we’re able to play the PGA Tour safely and people will be watching and they will get inspired to go play because it’s so much fun to get outside and be with your buddies and play this great game in a safe environment.”

Mickelson is planning to play the first two tournaments when the PGA Tour season resumes. That would be June 11-14 at the Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial Golf Club in Texas. Mickelson also wants to play the following week in the RBC Heritage at Harbour Town Golf Links in South Carolina.

He’s played Colonial 15 times, winning in 2000 and 2008. This year’s Colonial already boasts an impressive commitment list that includes Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm and Brooks Koepka. Mickelson has played Harbour Town seven times, most recently in 2002, with two thirds his best finishes.

“If nothing unforeseen comes up, I’m looking forward to playing again,” Mickelson said. “I’m excited to get out there and play and compete. We’ve all missed it. Golf is one of the few sports we can compete safely in this environment and provide entertainment.

“I’ve missed everything about the game. I’ve missed being with friends, I’ve missed the competition. I’ve missed the competitiveness.

“And I’ve just missed playing.”

Which doesn’t surprise four-time PGA Tour winner Charley Hoffman, who has played with Mickelson this week in the San Diego area.

“He’s been around town playing way more golf than me,” Hoffman said in a conference call. “He’s a grinder. He loves to play golf and he loves to compete. The guy’s nearly 50 years old and he’s out there playing and walking 36 holes a day and playing with anybody and everybody.

“Phil will be ready for the match.”

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