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PGA Tour will study ban on anchored putting before adopting rule; Colonial champ Johnson dislikes ban

PGA Tour officials responded swiftly to today’s announcement that the USGA and R&A will prohibit anchored putting in golf by 2016, raising the possibility that the tour could have a different rule than amateurs in regard to how players take strokes on the greens.

In its statement, the PGA Tour said its administrators “will now begin our process to ascertain whether the various provisions of Rule 14-1b will be implemented in our competitions.” The rule, proposed in November and finalized Tuesday by the USGA and the R&A, prohibits the use of anchored putting strokes in golf by Jan. 1, 2016.

The PGA Tour can make its own rule in regard to the matter and the statement indicated that discussions will take place over the next month with members of the player advisory council and the PGA Tour policy board.

The PGA Tour’s statement also said: “We will announce our position regarding the application of Rule 14-1b to our competitors upon conclusion of our process and we will have no further comment on the matter until that time.”

Multiple touring pros have weighed in on the issue since the USGA and the R&A went together in November to propose the ban and requested feedback from golfers. After sifting through six months of feedback, the rules-making organizations announced Friday that the ban would be effective on Jan. 1, 2016, as originally proposed.

Among the PGA Tour golfers who object to the ban is Zach Johnson, reigning champion at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial. Johnson does not use an anchored stroke or a long-shafted putter and indicated he never would be tempted to do so. But he considers the rule unfair to those who have built their games around the stroke.

Included are several recent major champions, including 2013 Masters winner Adam Scott and 2011 PGA champ Keegan Bradley.

“I’m not a proponent of it (the ban). The rationale that I’ve heard and read does not warrant a change,” Johnson said in a recent interview. “I think we’re way too into it right now. It’s part of golf. It’s in the fabric of the game … If it does have an advantage (for golfers), we could all be using it. And I’m not at all tempted to do it. For some guys, it does help. I’m not denying that. Well, I switched my grip to a different grip because it helped me. There are options there. Or I changed wedges or driver loft. That’s not illegal. We’re too far into it and it’s not necessary. It’s going to hurt the game. The game is struggling also in the grass-roots area. If anything, this is going to make that even worse (for beginning golfers). That’s just my opinion. I think it’s unfortunate.”

_ Jimmy Burch

Oosthuizen withdraws from Colonial, leaving FW event without any of world's top-10 golfers

Louis Oosthuizen, the No. 8 player in the world golf rankings and top-rated player on the commitment list for this week’s Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, withdrew today because of a neck injury sustained while competing at last week’s HP Byron Nelson Championship.

He has been replaced in the Colonial field by Stuart Appleby.

Oosthuizen, the 2010 British Open champion, withdrew from the Nelson before Sunday’s final round despite being in 32^nd place after 54 holes. But Oosthuizen, who slipped from seventh to eighth in today’s updated rankings, did no officially withdraw from Colonial until today.

Ooshuizen’s departure means the Colonial field will not feature any of the world’s top 10 golfers in 2013. The highest-ranked Colonial competitor will be Matt Kuchar, No. 13 in today’s updated rankings.

Charl Schwartzel, the 2011 Masters champion who will be making his Colonial debut, climbed two spots to No. 15 in the world rankings after finishing third at the Nelson. Rounding out Colonial’s list of top-30 players from the world rankings are Jason Dufner (No. 20), Hunter Mahan (No. 21), Bo Van Pelt (No. 26), Jim Furyk (No. 27), defending champ Zach Johnson (No. 29) and Rickie Fowler (No. 30).

In another field tweak, D.A. Points withrew and was replaced by D.J. Trahan. No reason was given for Points' withdrawal.

_ Jimmy Burch

Monday tee times for Hogan Pro-Am at 2013 Colonial tournament

Officials at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial finalized tee times tonight for Monday's Hogan Pro-Am, with competitors starting their rounds at both No. 1 and No. 10.

Below is a look at the competing teams. The names of professionals are in capital letters. Amatuers' names are next to each pro:

2013 CROWNE PLAZA INVITATIONAL AT COLONIAL HOGAN PRO-AM   

 Monday, May 20  
     
Tee Time ProName Amatuer Player Names  
     
1 10:00 KEN DUKE Lyn Cantor, Mike Dainauski, Alan Magee, Tim Genovese  
1 10:10 JOHN DALY Gina LaBarre, Jen Gribble, Patty Stafford, Grace DiBenedetto  
1 10:20 BOO WEEKLEY Peter Sandore, Dean Barkman, Carroll Baynard, Ray McRae  
1 10:30 CLARK DENNIS Chris Pate, Jim Osborne, Darrin Salge, Steven Sandidge  
1 10:40 TED POTTER Tony Martin, Mike Terry, Trent Brookshire, Phil Musser  
1 10:50 LEE WILLIAMS Michael Fox, Richard Franke, Steve Pellerin, Erik Theriault  
1 11:00 FABIAN GOMEZ Franetta Savage, Bill Conley, Jeanna Camp, Keith Post  
1 11:10 VAUGHN TAYLOR Dal Folmar, Greg Palmer, Jerramy Hainline, Joe Munsch  
1 11:20 KEITH CLEARWATER John Sherwood, Keith Suddaby, John Flack, Thomas Hervey  
1 11:30 JUSTIN BOLLI Tom Bates III, Tom Bates Jr, Tim Bates, David Turbeville  
1 11:40 OMAR URESTI Jimmy Thomas, Craig Bailey, Diane Steele, Brad Tracey  
1 11:50 STEVEN BOWDITCH John Pritchett, Jon Thompson, Tony Dressell, Tim Love  
1 12:00 HENRIK NORLANDER BJ Antes, Norman Brown, Fred Maldonado, James Webb  
1 12:10 BOBBY GATES Linda Hopton-Jones, Rick Hopton-Jones, Ronald Hopton-Jones, Doug Hopton-Jones  
1 12:20 FRANKLIN CORPENING Will Gribble, Jim Robertson, Alan Stump, Tony Harber  
     
10 10:00 DEREK ERNST Aaron Grieshaber, Tony Lenhart, Jeff Horlander, Richard Mitchell  
10 10:10 COLT KNOST Kevin Lee, John Rexford, Ty Richardson, Raj Desai  
10 10:20 STEVEN FOX Russ Lowder, Daniel Kay, Paul Miller, Bill O'Neil  
10 10:30 DAVID FROST Kirk Kinsell, George Murphy, Christopher Potter, David Harvey  
10 10:40 CHAD CAMPBELL LC Martin III, Kevin McCleary, Scott Quisling, West Soward  
10 10:50 DAVID LINGMERTH John Cychol, Frank Sablone, John Underwood, Tim Niedecken  
10 11:00 GREG OWEN Monica Chamberlain, Mike Taylor, Dwayne Anderson, Ed Chitren  
10 11:10 JASON SCHULTZ Wayne McCormick, Zac Colbert, Brian Zanazanian, Tom Keel  
10 11:20 BRIAN STUARD Mark Sharkey, Michael Newbrand, Monte Morris, Rob Haiman  
10 11:30 RICHARD LEE Brent Spaeth, Bret Arriola, Jeff Rostek, Blake Doran  
10 11:40 WILLIAM MCGIRT Brandt James, Paul Slechta, John Sebastian, Curt Maddux  
10 11:50 CHEZ REAVIE Amanda Busenbark, Jeff Colbert, Ken Carmody, Scott Isacson  
10 12:00 STEVE FLESCH Brandon de la Cruz, Greg Sabella, Robb Schikner, Luke Williams  
10 12:10 TAG RIDINGS Brent Lewis, Wes Tachibana, Beau Barrows, Mike McLaughlin  
10 12:20 JOHN PETERSON Pat Hamilton, Chris Strittmatter, Mark Henderson, David Risinger  

 

_ Jimmy Burch

Oosthuizen's withdrawal at Nelson clouds Colonial availability of top-rated golfer in FW field

Louis Oosthuizen, the No. 7 player in the world golf rankings and top-rated player in next week’s field at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, withdrew before the start of today’s final round at the HP Byron Nelson Championship because of a neck injury.

Oosthuizen, the 2010 British Open champion, has not withdrawn from next week’s event in Fort Worth. But his availability has to be considered tenuous, based on his medical condition. Oosthuizen was tied for 32^nd on the Nelson leaderboard at the time of today’s withdrawal and, under PGA Tour rules, will share 71^st place money at the Nelson with fellow competitors. But his Nelson earnings will be unofficial because he withdrew during the event.

If Oosthuizen is not able to play at Colonial, the tournament will lose its only competitor ranked among the top 10 in the world rankings. Matt Kuchar, the No. 12 player in the world rankings, is the highest-rated player in the Colonial field behind Oosthuizen.

Under PGA Tour rules, Oosthuizen could receive a medical waiver that would allow him to skip Wednesday’s pro-am round and still allow him to compete in Thursday’s opening round at Colonial. Oosthuizen has been playing regularly in recent weeks because his wife in expected to deliver a child in June, clouding his availability for the 2013 U.S. Open and other summer events.

_ Jimmy Burch

Oosthuizen withdraws from Nelson with neck injury, clouding next week's avialability at Colonial for top-rated competitor in field

Louis Oosthuizen, the No. 7 player in the world golf rankings and top-rated player in next week’s field at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, withdrew before the start of today’s final round at the HP Byron Nelson Championship because of a neck injury.

Oosthuizen, the 2010 British Open champion, has not withdrawn from next week’s event in Fort Worth. But his availability has to be considered tenuous, based on his medical condition. Oosthuizen was tied for 32^nd on the Nelson leaderboard at the time of today’s withdrawal and, under PGA Tour rules, will share 71^st place money at the Nelson with fellow competitors. But his Nelson earnings will be unofficial because he withdrew during the event.

If Oosthuizen is not able to play at Colonial, the tournament will lose its only competitor ranked among the top 10 in the world rankings. Matt Kuchar, the No. 12 player in the world rankings, is the highest-rated player in the Colonial field behind Oosthuizen.

Under PGA Tour rules, Oosthuizen could receive a medical waiver that would allow him to skip Wednesday’s pro-am round and still allow him to compete in Thursday’s opening round at Colonial. Oosthuizen has been playing regularly in recent weeks because his wife in expected to deliver a child in June, clouding his availability for the 2013 U.S. Open and other summer events.

_ Jimmy Burch

A look at final commitment list, with alternates, for 2013 Colonial field

Officials at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial added several golfers to the field today for next week's PGA Tour event in Fort Worth. Among the notable late additions were Angel Cabrera, Trevor Immelman, Ryo Ishikawa, Ricky Barnes, Colt Knost, Sean O'Hair and three golfers with Tarrant County connections: Martin Flores, Tag Ridings and Greg Chalmers.

Below is a look at the full, final list of Colonial commitments:

 

 

Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial commitments

A list of golfers who have committed to compete in the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, May 20-26 in Fort Worth. Commitments became official Friday:

Robert Allenby, Aaron Baddeley, Sang-Moon Bae, Ricky Barnes, Charles Beljian, Jonas Blixt, Justin Bolli, Scott Brown, Jonathan Byrd, Angel Cabrera, Chad Campbell, Patrick Cantlay, Roberto Castro, Bud Cauley, Greg Chalmers, Kevin Chappell, Stewart Cink, Tim Clark, Keith Clearwater, Erik Compton, Franklin Corpening, Ben Crane, John Daly, Brian Davis, Brendon de Jonge, Graham DeLaet, James Driscoll, Jason Dufner, Ken Duke, Harris English, Derek Ernst, Bob Estes, Matt Every, Steve Flesch, Martin Flores, Rickie Fowler, Steven Fox, Brad Fritsch, David Frost, Jim Furyk, Tommy Gainey, Scott Gardiner, Bobby Gates, Brian Gay, Tom Gillis, Fabian Gomez, Luke Guthrie, James Hahn, Brian Harman, David Hearn, J.J. Henry, Tim Herron, Justin Hicks, Charley Hoffman, John Huh, Trevor Immelman, Ryo Ishikawa, Freddie Jacobson, Zach Johnson, Matt Jones, Robert Karlsson, Chris Kirk, Colt Knost, Ben Kohles, Jason Kokrak, Matt Kuchar, Doug LaBelle II, Martin Laird, Scott Langley, Steve LeBrun, D.H. Lee, Richard H. Lee, Tom Lehman, Marc Leishman, Justin Leonard, David Lingmerth, Luke List, Davis Love III, Hunter Mahan, Troy Matteson, William McGirt, John Merrick, Bryce Molder, Ryan Moore, Seung-Yul Nol, Henrik Norlander, Sean O’Hair, Louis Oosthuizen, Jeff Overton, Greg Owen, Ryan Palmer, Corey Pavin, Pat Perez, John Peterson, Carl Pettersson, Scott Piercy, D.A. Points, Ted Potter Jr., Dicky Pride, Patrick Reed, Kyle Reifers, Tag Ridings, John Rollins, Rory Sabbatini, Charl Schwartzel, John Senden, Vijay Singh, Jordan Spieth, Kevin Stadler, Scott Stallings, Kyle Stanley, Brendan Steele, Shawn Stefani, Henrik Stenson, Robert Streb, Kevin Streelman, Chris Stroud, Brian Stuard, Daniel Summerhays, Vaughn Taylor, Josh Teater, Michael Thompson, Nicholas Thompson, David Toms, Cameron Tringale, Bo Van Pelt, Camilo Villegas, Johnson Wagner, Boo Weekley, Charlie Wi, Casey Wittenberg, Y.E. Yang.

Alternates: Darron Stiles, Stuart Appleby, Chez Reavie, D.J. Trahan, Brandt Jobe, Andres Romero, Cameron Percy, Aaron Watkins, Steven Bowditch, Lee Williams.

 _ Jimmy Burch

Colonial officials to feature nine of world's top 30 golfers next week in FW

Officials at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial will welcome nine of the top 30 players in the world golf rankings to Fort Worth for next week’s PGA Tour stop.

Topping that list will be Louis Ooshuizen, winner of the 2010 British Open and the No. 7 player in the world rankings. Also in the Colonial mix, finalized Friday, will be five of the world’s top 30 golfers who are not competing in this week’s HP Byron Nelson Championship in Irving: Hunter Mahan (No. 21), Bo Van Pelt (No. 26), Jim Furyk (No. 27), defending champ Zach Johnson (No. 29) and Rickie Fowler (No. 30).

Among next week’s competitors in Fort Worth will be three of the top eight golfers on the PGA Tour season money list and two of the top five. Matt Kuchar, the No. 12 player in the world rankings and No. 5 player on the season money list ($2,493,387), is the only confirmed Colonial competitor who cracks the top 15 in both lists. The top season money winner headed to Colonial will be Kevin Streelman ($2,572,989).

Kuchar and Oosthuizen, the Colonial headliners, will be among the starters in Thursday’s opening round in Fort Worth. They will be joined by several fresh names who joined the field Friday, including two-time major champion Angel Cabrera, 2008 Masters champ Trevor Immelman, Ryo Ishikawa, Sean O’Hair, Ricky Barnes, Luke List, Colt Knost and Colleyville resident Greg Chalmers.

Also joining the mix was Martin Flores, a former Oklahoma and Mansfield High School golfer, and Westlake resident Tag Ridings. Dropping off the Colonial list were Lucas Glover, Russell Henley, Billy Horschel and Jimmy Walker.

_ Jimmy Burch

Colonial officials boost donation amounts for Hogan Award honorees

Officials at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial will distribute a record $60,000 to recipients at Monday’s Ben Hogan Award banquet. Tournament officials will present a $25,000 grant to the winner’s school and $12,500 grants to the universities of the other two finalists. The remaining $10,000 in donations will go to support college golf and to a charity selected by keynote speaker Corey Pavin, a two-time Colonial champ. The three finalists for the 2013 Ben Hogan Award are TCU’s Julien Brun, California’s Michael Kim and Washington’s Chris Williams.

_ Jimmy Burch

 

Colonial officials to honor Summerall during tournament week

Officials at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial will make a $30,000 donation to The First Tee of Fort Worth in the name of the late Pat Summerall, a former CBS broadcaster who worked multiple Colonial tournaments, during Saturday of their event in Fort Worth. Colonial tournament chairman Bobby Patton will make the presentation to honor Summerall, best known as a legendary NFL broadcaster, during the telecast of the third round.

Lance Barrow, a Fort Worth native and CBS’ coordinating producer for golf telecasts, applauded the move. He said Summerall, a longtime Southlake resident, “loved this golf tournament … and all the places around here. This will be a great thing that will continue his name.”

_ Jimmy Burch

Colonial officials reach sellout status for Executive Women's Day during tournament week

Officials at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial have announced a sellout for next week’s Astellas Executive Women’s Day on May 21 of tournament week.

The first-year event, part of a PGA Tour initiative to introduce golf to female decision-makers in business while promoting health and wellness issues, includes a Tuesday breakfast and luncheon during tournament week. CBS Sports reporter Lesley Visser will be the keynote speaker for the lunch, set for 12:30 p.m. on May 21 at Colonial.

Colonial is one of 17 tour stops that will feature an Executive Women’s Day this season. The goal is to expand the initiative to all tour stops by the 2015 season.

PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem said the plan is to “enhance the tournament experience for women and engage women in a meaningful and productive way in our tournament markets.”

_ Jimmy Burch