Archive for February, 2010

Barry Bonds, Alex Rodriquez, Sammy Sosa, Mark McGwire, and now Phil Mickelson?  Well if you ask professional golfer Scott McCarron Phil belongs on this list of cheaters.  Being labeled a “cheater” in baseball is old news these days, but cheating in golf, a sport which exemplifies honesty, now this is interesting.  A sport which has seen its greatest player take an indefinite leave for his involvement in a sex scandal, the great comeback story in John Daly quit this week, and now slanderous comments made towards one of golf greatest players.  This is certainly not what the PGA Tour had in mind coming off one of its most successful seasons on record in 2009.

Why is Phil being labeled a cheater?  No, it’s not because he’s all juiced up on performance enhancing drugs, but simply because he used an illegal club this weekend at Torrey Pines; or did he?  If you’re not familiar with the recent rule changes in golf, let me break it down for you.  Basically this controversy stems from the design of recently made clubs, designed to improve player’s performance.  Player’s up until this year have been using clubs with square shaped grooves, allowing for better control and spin rate out of some of the most hazardous conditions the PGA Tour has to offer.  To reduce scoring, and put the emphasis back on hitting a good tee shot, the PGA Tour placed a ban on square shaped grooves; essentially forcing players to use “V” shaped grooved clubs.  Thus we have our controversy. This weekend at Torrey Pines, Mickelson was one of four golfers using a Ping-Eye 2 wedge created over 20 years ago containing, you guessed it, square shaped grooves.  How could Phil get away with using a banned club at this weekends Farmer’s Insurance Open?  Ill tell you how, Phil found a loophole.  According to USGA rules, the square-groove wedge found in Phil’s bag remains legal because of a lawsuit Ping filed back in 1990 stating the club holds precedence over any rule change.

“It’s cheating, and I’m appalled Phil has put it in play,” Scott McCarron said in The San Francisco Chronicle.  First of all, no its not we have already established that, and second who the hell is Scott McCarron.  How is a no name golfer who mind you has only 3 PGA tour victories in his 18 year career going to call out the #2 ranked golfer on the planet.  It seems to me that Mr. McCarron is slightly jealous of the success of Phil Mickelson and is looking for a little publicity.  I guess you have to label someone the dirtiest word in all of sports for people to actually realize your still on the tour.

To the Scott McCarron’s of the world I leave you with a few words of wisdom.  If your going to call out the second best player in all of professional golf for “cheating”, make sure he’s actually breaking a USGA rule.  Also, you may want to concentrate on your own game right now considering you have yet to make the cut in 2010 for all 3 events you have participated in.  Your best finish in a major since 2004 is 24^th, with those kinds of numbers I’ll take “lefty” playing with right handed clubs in any tournament of your choice.  I wish you the best sir and ill make sure to tune in each week as Phil contends for majors, and you battle to keep your PGA Tour card.

Special thanks to Tusky Toscano for his appearance in this FSV video.