Teenage Japanese star gets words of advice

from Jumbo Ozaki: Beware of women!

Teenage Japanese golf star Ryo Ishikawa, the country’s youngest-ever top earner, has been advised by senior players not to follow the example of scandal-hit Tiger Woods.
Masashi “Jumbo” Ozaki, who holds the Japan Tour record of 94 wins, played a round with Ishikawa today in a celebrity charity tournament in Chiba, outside Tokyo, as Woods’ affairs continued to dominate world news.
“He (Ishikawa) is the top money earner and he is just 18. There may be little possibility that we will see someone like him in the future,” Ozaki, 62, told a news conference with the youngster after the event.
“I have nothing much left to tell him. But, well, there is one thing I want to tell Ryo: ‘Beware of women,’” Ozaki said, drawing laughter from the floor and Ishikawa.
The high school student replied with a coy smile: “Mr (Tsuneyuki) Nakajima said the same thing to me.”
Ishikawa played in an event on Sunday with “Tommy” Nakajima, 55, who finished third in the 1988 US PGA Championship and who has 48 Japan Tour wins to his name.
Ishikawa has described Woods, 33, as his idol since childhood and expressed his desire to win the US Masters by the age of 20.
Ishikawa has played three majors this year, missing the cut at the Masters and the British Open and finishing tied for 56th spot at the US PGA Championship. He was partnered with Woods at the British Open at Turnberry where both bowed out at the halfway stage.
“I am shocked,” Ishikawa told Japanese media on Saturday when he learned Woods was taking an “indefinite” break from the game.
“He had a stoic image and I was among those who knew nothing about his private life. Like everybody else, I am surprised as a fan,” he added.
Ishikawa has kept the Japanese domestic men’s game alive with his powerful drives and aggressive short game, drawing high television ratings and huge galleries.
He won four domestic tournaments this year and finished on top of the tour’s earnings list for the first time with 184 million yen (two million dollars).
He is said to be the youngest money leader in any of the world’s six major tours.
Woods became the US PGA leader for the first time in 1997 when he was 21. Spaniard Seve Ballesteros was 19 when he dominated the European Tour in 1976.

Nike chairman says it's a 'minor blip' in Tiger's career ...
Meanwhile, Nike Chairman and co-founder Phil Knight said the current scandal surrounding Tiger Woods is "part of the game" in signing endorsement deals with athletes and would not affect the athletic shoe and clothing maker's relationship with the golfer.
Knight told Street & Smith's SportsBusiness Journal that Nike checked out Woods' background before signing its deal with the golfer and "he came out clean."
Knight said companies cannot get such background checks right all the time and "there's always a risk." However, he signalled no move to distance Woods from Nike, which has founded its global golf business on Woods' reputation and play.
"I think he's been really great," Knight said in the interview published today. "When his career is over, you'll look back on these indiscretions as a minor blip, but the media is making a big deal out of it right now."
Woods, the world's first billionaire athlete, is estimated to earn about $100 million a year in endorsement deals.

US RYDER CUP STAR KENNY PERRY TO DEBUT

AT COMMERCIALBANK QATAR MASTERS

NEWS RELEASE ISSUED BY ALAN EWENS
Doha ( QATAR ): Popular US Ryder Cup star and world number nine Kenny Perry will play for the first time in the Middle East next month with an exclusive appearance at the 2010 Commercialbank Qatar Masters, Presented by Dolphin Energy.
Next year will mark the thirteenth staging of the tournament, which will take place at Doha Golf Club from January 28-31.
“I am extremely excited about competing in next year’s Commercialbank Qatar Masters,” Perry said. “I know it is going to be a great experience for me and my family.”
Perry, the 2009 Masters runner-up, comes to Doha following two of the best years of his career – two years that saw him win five tournaments and climb into the world’s top ten achieving a career high of world number four. He also won an army of new followers thanks to his sportsmanship and dignity following a play-off defeat to Angel Cabrera at the Masters earlier this year.
“Kenny Perry is widely recognised not only as a great golfer but also as a true gentleman and a great golfing ambassador,” said Hassan Al Nuami, President of the Qatar Golf Association (QGA), hosts of the tournament in association with the Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) and title sponsors Commercialbank.
“We are delighted he has decided to follow in the footsteps of many other great American players who have played at Doha Golf Club, players such as Chris DiMarco, Brandt Snedeker and Boo Weekley who all agreed that golf in Qatar is a memorable experience.”
Although the Commercialbank Qatar Masters, Presented by Dolphin Energy, has a reputation for attracting the world’s best golfers, no US player has ever lifted the stunning Mother of Pearl trophy. It certainly would not be surprising, however, if Perry becomes the first American to leave Qatar with a victory. He has amassed fourteen PGA Tour victories and is currently eighth on the PGA Tour career money list.
In addition to Perry’s achievements on the course, he has also won the Charles Bartlett Award, given each year to a professional golfer for his unselfish contributions to the betterment of society, and was this year’s recipient of the Payne Stewart Award.
Perry has donated five percent of his career PGA Tour earnings to a scholarship fund for David Lipscomb University , and he took out a loan in 1996 to build Kenny Perry’s Country Creek Golf Course, an 18-hole public course in his hometown of Franklin , Kentucky . Perry built the course just so people in his hometown could have an affordable place to play golf - green fees remain just $28 for eighteen holes.
“Kenny Perry is yet another player in the world’s top ten committed to playing in Qatar next year,” said Commercialbank Group CEO Andrew Stevens.
“Part of the excitement for golf fans in this part of the world is seeing which big name player will be next to discover why the game is flourishing in the region. I am proud that Kenny has chosen Doha to make his only Gulf appearance in 2010 at the Commercialbank Qatar Masters, Presented by Dolphin Energy.”
LATER NEWS
Colombian superstar golfer Camilo Villegas, one of the sport’s hottest young players, is the latest big name to confirm his appearance at the 2010 Commercialbank Qatar Masters,
Known as ‘Spiderman’ for his signature pre-putting routine, the world No. 22 is one of the most charismatic players in the world and fans in Qatar can find out why he has become Colombia’s biggest sports star when he makes his Doha debut at Doha Golf Club next month.
Villegas’ confirmation that he will tee it up in the thirteenth staging of Qatar’s premier sporting event is a major boost for the organisers and comes quickly after the news that world number nine Kenny Perry of the US will also join a field that includes defending champion Alvaro Quiros and fellow Spaniard Sergio Garcia.

McIlroy breaks back into world top ten

FROM THE IRISHTIMES.COM WEBSITE
Rory McIlroy has reached a higher position on the world professional rankings than any other 20-year-old before him. Even though he did not play last week, the Co Down youngster moves up from 11th to ninth in the latest standings.
It is the second time McIlroy, who finished second in the Race to Dubai in just his second season on tour, has broken into the top 10 in the rankings.
His third place finish at the recent Dubai World Championship saw him reach 10th in the world, joining Sergio Garcia as the only 20-year-olds ever to make the top 10.
Tiger Woods, who was 21 when he first entered the world's top 10 in 1997, holds a 6.66 points lead over Phil Mickelson three days after he announced he was taking an indefinite break from golf to tackle his personal problems.
When he started his eight-month lay-off after knee surgery last year the American’s lead was over 11 points. He was never caught then, but it could be different is his new hiatus proves another lengthy one.
Latest world rankings:
1 Tiger Woods 15.20pts, 2 Phil Mickelson 8.54, 3 Steve Stricker 6.89, 4 Lee Westwood 6.76, 5 Padraig Harrington 5.75, 6 Jim Furyk 5.70, 7 Paul Casey 5.55, 8 Henrik Stenson 5.54, 9 Rory McIlroy 4.97, 10 Kenny Perry 4.91
11 Sergio Garcia 4.88, 12 Ian Poulter 4.75, 13 Martin Kaymer 4.64, 14 Geoff Ogilvy 4.63, 15 Stewart Cink 4.38, 16 Sean O’Hair 4.36, 17 Ernie Els 4.27, 18 Ross Fisher 4.14, 19 Retief Goosen 4.06, 20 Lucas Glover 3.95
Other leading Europeans :
27 Robert Karlsson, 28 Luke Donald, 35 Soren Kjeldsen, 38 Graeme McDowell , 39 Oliver Wilson, 40 Francesco Molinari, 43 Simon Dyson, 46 Anders Hansen, 47 Miguel Angel Jimenez, 48 Soren Hansen, 50 Alvaro Quiros, 53 Peter Hanson, 54 Alexander Noren, 55 Edoardo Molinari, 63 Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano, 67 Ross McGowan, 70 Justin Rose, 72 Chris Wood, 82 Anthony Wall, 88 Gregory Bourdy

Lee Westwood wins 2009 Golf Writers Trophy,

Catriona Matthew runner-up in annual poll

European No 1 Lee Westwood has won the Golf Writers’ Trophy for a third time and joined the legendary Seve Ballesteros as the only three-time recipients.
Catriona Matthew, who won the Ricoh Women’s British Open just 11 weeks after giving birth to her second daughter Sophie, was the clear runner-up in the annual poll (of members of the Association of Golf Writers) which saw Northern Ireland’s emerging star Rory McIlroy finish in third place and Sweden’s Anna Nordqvist fourth.
After narrowly missing out at the Open Championship at Turnberry, the 36-year-old Westwood won twice in the closing weeks of the season, including the inaugural Dubai World Championship, to pip McIlroy for the Race to Dubai title. It was the second time Westwood had won the order of merit on the European Tour, although his triumph in 2000 was followed by a slump in form that saw the Worksop golfer fall out of the world’s top-250.
Westwood, who also claimed the Golf Writers’ Trophy in 1998 and 2000, said: “I am delighted to receive the award once again. It is a particular honour to have been chosen for the third time and to become one of only two players, alongside Seve, to have won it three times.
"That means an awful lot to me, especially when I consider the great players we have had on the European Tour. It is Seve who stands out in my mind for his record and his charisma and to be linked with such a great champion makes the award all the more special.
“I would also like to mention Catriona Matthew. She would have been worthy of the award considering what she achieved this year. To have won the Women’s British Open just weeks after giving birth to her second child was a spectacular achievement. I have no idea how she managed it.”
Westwood, who will receive the trophy at the Association’s annual dinner prior to the Open Championship at St Andrews in July, added: “It will be good to pick up the trophy on the week of the Open. Hopefully that will be a good omen, especially as it is at the home of golf. My priorities next year will once again be to challenge strongly for the majors. I came close this year and hope to do well in all four in 2010. Hopefully, this time I’ll win one.
“To have come through a bad patch and to have returned to the top of my game is really pleasing. I shall fine tune my game over the winter and return for the Middle East swing in January before heading for the States to prepare my run-in to the Masters.”
Catriona Matthew became the first Scot and only the fourth British player to win a major championship in the women’s game following a superb performance at Royal Lytham, which included a course record inward half of 30 in the second round. The 40-year-old North Berwick golfer had only returned to the tour the week previously at the Evian Masters, where on the eve of the tournament she and her husband had to flee a burning hotel. On Saturday Matthew was named as the Players’ Player of the Year on the Ladies European Tour.
Matthew said: “It is fantastic to be honoured in this way, alongside great players like Lee Westwood, Rory McIlroy and Anna Nordqvist who have all had fantastic seasons. My season has obviously been a short one, not starting until July, but very successful and certainly above my expectations. I think Sophie changed my life quite a lot! A few sleepless nights but we’re getting into a routine now. I’m looking forward to spending Christmas at home with the family in Scotland.”
McIlroy, 20, won his maiden title in Dubai early in the season and narrowly missed out on being the youngest winner of the order of merit since Ballesteros in 1976, while Nordqvist, 22, won her first major, the LPGA Championship, in only her fifth start as a rookie professional.
Matteo Manassero, who at 16 became the youngest ever winner of the Amateur Championship and was then the leading amateur at the Open at Turnberry, finished fifth in the voting, alongside compatriots Francesco and Edoardo Molinari, who won the World Cup for Italy for the first time. Both enjoyed their finest seasons to date, with Edoardo claiming the Challenge Tour title and winning the Dunlop Phoenix tournament in Japan.
Also featuring in the annual poll of members of the Association of Golf Writers, which dates back to 1951, were Paul Casey, winner of three titles including the BMW PGA Championship, Players champion Henrik Stenson, Martin Kaymer, Ross Fisher and Shane Lowry, who won the Irish Open as an amateur.
Lewine Mair, chairman of the Association of Golf Writers, said: “The breadth of accomplishment represented in this poll is remarkable and shows that European golf is blessed with a wealth of talent. While we can expect to hear much more from youngsters such as Rory McIlroy, Anna Nordqvist and Matteo Manassero, the same applies to Lee Westwood and Catriona Matthew.
"Both have shown how long-term dedication and experience can be very effective weapons when it comes to having the upper hand on their more youthful rivals. At the same time, both serve as great role models.”

Tiger Woods: E-mail from reader Danny Wightman:

There is too much publicity about the Tiger Woods' business but I really feel sorry for him. I hope he will be very strong and come back playing golf as it is his priority passion, no matter what the money is worth.
I think he should be getting out, doing public apologies to fans, media, sponsors, and other people.
I am sure he will get it all sorted and I hate the papers for stirring it up.
It would be sad to see more sponsors drop out. The number of tournaments could also drop if Tiger is not playing.
I argee with Chubby (golfers' agent) who says that he believe that Tiger will come back strongly as No 1. I hope fellow pros on the US PGA and European Tours will support Tiger in future as well the fans.
I was watching the news tonight and saw Tiger 's caddie Steve Willams speaking out about Tiger. I take my hat off' to Steve for saying that he is standing by him, vowing never to caddie for anyone until Tiger comes back.
Good luck, Tiger. Hope to see you playing at St Andrews in the Open.
Danny Wightman

Response from Neil Pirie

I think Mr Wightman is missing more than one point. Tiger may well continue to be a great golfer and one that the game needs but he is evidently not the great man that had been previously thought.
To come out against the papers for 'stirring it up' is really beyond naïve. Tiger brought everything upon himself and to blame the press is more misdirected than an Ian Baker-Finch tee shot.
As for being impressed by Steve Williams standing by his man, well that sticks in the craw. Steve Williams knows that he is where he is because of who he caddies for. He is an obnoxious boor and I find it impossible to believe he had no idea what was going on. If he had any gumption he would resign and, if not, he should be fired along with most of Tiger's sycophantic hangers-on.
The game will miss Tiger, but I don't doubt he will be back. Hopefully he will start to rebuild his reputation by putting more into the grass roots of the game than he has done hitherto.
Neil Pirie

*Neil Pirie, ex-Abertay University golf captain, wishes to make it clear he is not the "Neil Pirie" who has not written the above comments.

Editor's Note: The two Neil Piries have different E-mail addresses.

THONGCHAI VOTED ASIAN TOUR

PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Sentosa: Thai star Thongchai Jaidee has been voted by his peers as the 2009 Asian Tour Players’ Player of the Year, capping a truly memorable season which set him apart from his rivals.
Through his mastery on the golf course, Thongchai won twice during the year, finished top-10 on three other occasions and did not miss a single cut - his lowest finish was tied 30th ­­- en route to an unprecedented third Order of Merit crown.
Victories at the Enjoy Jakarta Indonesia O pen and Ballantine’s Championship in Korea took his career tally to 12 titles, the most wins by a player in Asia , and saw him earn a career-high US$981,931 in 10 tournaments.
The popular Thai earned further accolades by sweeping the Lowest Stroke Average category with 69.06. It was yet another wonderful reflection of his continued rise in the game as his stroke average was 69.59 and 69.58 when he won the 2001 and 2004 Merit titles respectively.
Unheralded C. Muniyappa of India , whose classic rags to riches tale inspired many when he won the Hero Honda Indian O pen , took home a deserving Rookie of the Year title.
The 32-year-old wrapped up his season in 10th place on the Order of Merit with US$223,269 through one win and three other top-25s.
Asian Tour Executive Chairman Kyi Hla Han said: “Thongchai has raised the benchmark higher on the Asian Tour through his terrific performances in 2009. He is a great ambassador of the game for the Asian Tour and will no doubt inspire many young players to achieve success.
“We are also extremely proud of the rise of Muniyappa, whose humble background will serve as an inspiration to many players in India and across Asia to shoot for the stars.”
Big-hitting Australian Scott Hend earned bragging rights when he finished atop the Driving Distance category with an average of 318 yards while Korea ’s Lee Sung hit the most fairways throughout the season with a 75% fairway hit rate.
Thai veteran Thaworn Wiratchant, who won his 11th Asian Tour title at the Macau O pen , claimed the Birdie Leader award after snaring a total of 255 birdies throughout the 2009 season.
South Africa’s Jbe Kruger hit the most Greens in Regulation (GIR) with a strike rate of 79.98% to top the category while Thammanoon Srirot of Thailand took the Lowest Putting Average award with 1.691 putts per GIR (greens hit in regulation figures).
The Sentosa Golf Club, venue of this year's Barclays Singapore O pen , was voted by the players as the Host Venue of the Year for the fourth successive year, reinforcing its position as a premier club in Asia .
Along with the other stat category winners, Thongchai will be honoured at the Asian Tour Awards Gala in Malaysia in March.