Commissioner Whan Commands The Attention Of Everyone


Carlsbad (March 25): If there’s an over-riding theme of Mike Whan’s stint as LPGA commissioner thus far, it’s transparency - at least from the players’ perspective. Whan ran his first players’ meeting on Tuesday evening, and he wanted to make sure every player understood every word. Four interpreters were in place – Korean, Mandarin, Japanese and Spanish – to help get his '90 Days' message across. The interpreters definitely had the toughest job in the room. Whan talks as fast as his nickname, 'Flash', suggests. Whan told players they were going to have a 'locker-room mentality'. In other words, talk to each other like they’re on the same team.

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Augusta-Bound Woods Sticking Rigidly To The Script


Orlando (March 23): As confession seems to be the order of the day, I must confess that I didn’t hear about the Tiger Woods interviews on ESPN and Golf Channel until 15 hours after the fact. Must be a sign of Tiger Fatigue. Rather, I was preoccupied with the NCAA fate of Michigan State and Pitt, and whether Jim Furyk could shank his second shot at the 72nd hole and still win the Transitions Championship. After all that was resolved, I was summoned to dinner (venison burgundy); I dozed off watching 007 seduce three women and still manage to avert World War III in 'You Only Live Twice'; and I neglected to make a Web surf before trudging off to bed. Only after an early morning session with the chiropractor and a visit to Staples for printer ink, did I discover that Tiger had taken his next two steps of rehab. Turns out I didn’t really miss that much.

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From Red Carpet To Green Fairways For A-List Celebrities


Haikou (March 19): Major A-list celebrities, including Hollywood actors Hugh Grant and Matthew McConaughey, are to take part in what is being billed as Asia's entertainment event of the year – the Mission Hills Star Trophy. Joining the Hollywood superstars at the Mission Hills Star Trophy from October 28-31 will be Japanese comedian and talk show host Akashiya Sanma, two-time Open Championship winner Greg Norman and China’s multiple Olympic gold medal-winning gymnast Li Ning – who will serve as Host Ambassadors for the landmark event. The stars will take on top golfing professionals during the four-day tournament which will be held on the new 18-hole courses at Mission Hills Hainan.

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Chang Thailand Senior Masters: Boonchu's Record-Breaking Master Class


Bangkok (March 14): Boonchu Ruangkit rewrote the European Senior Tour history books when he romped to a stunning 11-shot victory in the Chang Thailand Senior Masters presented by ISPS. The 53-year-old Thai was simply in a different class to the rest of the field at the picturesque Royal Gems Golf Club in Nakhonpathom, rounds of 64, 66 and 65 giving the host nation favourite a whopping 21-under-par winning total of 195. Fellow countryman Jamnian Chitprasong, Frankie Minoza of the Philippines and Japan’s Katsuyoshi Tomori shared a distant second place on 10-under 206. But, as with the rest of the field in the third European Senior Tour event of the 2010 season, they were all merely bit part players in the Boonchu master class.

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Norman And Dawson Join Hainan's Golfing Tourism Drive


Haikou (March 10): International golfing industry heavyweights Greg Norman, Peter Dawson and Peter Walton will headline the inaugural Boao Golf & Tourism Forum, which will be held at the newly-completed Mission Hills Resort Hainan next week. The first-time gathering, which leads into the Boao International Tourism Forum over the weekend of March 20-21 in Sanya, will welcome hundreds of delegates and media representatives to the Mission Hills Group’s new flagship resort property located in Hainan’s north. Attendees will have the chance to hear thoughts on the future of Hainan as a golfing destination from two-time Major champion Greg Norman, chief executive of The R&A Peter Dawson and Peter Walton, chief executive officer of the International Association of Golf Tour Operators, the global trade organisation for the golf tourism industry.

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Choi Predicts Sparkling Future For Teen Titan Noh


Kuala Lumpur (March 8): The sky is the limit for Korean teen titan and newly crowned Maybank Malaysian Open winner Noh Seung-yul, says countryman KJ Choi. Noh showed composure beyond his 18 years to claim his second Asian Tour title and can now be regarded amongst the emerging group of young stars taking the world by storm. Noh’s success was even sweeter as he defeated his idol and mentor Choi, a seven-time US PGA Tour winner, thanks to an exceptional birdie on the final hole to bag the winner’s prize purse of US$333,330 at the Kuala Lumpur Golf and Country Club.

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