The Memorial Tournament presented by Morgan Stanley

The result last week was probably as good as we could have hoped for. Mike's short game was as good as I have ever seen, but his ball striking wasn't quite up to par. We're going to be looking to turn things around this week. Colonial Country Club played about as tame as it can play last week. I live in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area and it seems like the wind has been blowing every day this year, but somehow we got four days with no wind last week. We also had some hot temperatures so they were constantly having to water the greens so they wouldn't die.

This week there is a very strong field for Jack's tournament, with both Tiger and Phil playing which doesn't happen very often. Muirfield Village is the same as it has been for the past few years, but the greens this year are some of the fastest I have ever seen. If the wind happens to be blowing it could be scary. Mike was chatting with Jack and he told him that the greens were rolling at 14 on the stimp metre and he was hoping to get them going even quicker! In cases like this, I'm not sure that there is such a term as ‘putting', it's more like just touching the ball slightly to get it rolling. With the speed of the greens this year, I don't think the winning score will be as low as it has been the past few years. Players will be forced to play more defensively.

It is going to be even more important to get the ball on the right side of the hole this week so you're not leaving any downhill putts. Chances are that anybody who leaves it on the wrong side of the hole will look like regular weekend golfers!

The great thing about Muirfield Village is that it is challenging, but you can also make some birdies on the back nine if you hit some good shots. The fairways are quite wide, and with the greens playing like they are, the approach shots are the key. Holes 11, 13, 14 and 15 should all give you a good look at birdie.

One of the highlights of The Memorial is a ten person Skins Game on the Wednesday instead of the traditional pro-am. Jack, Tiger, Phil and a few others play which drew a great crowd and is a lot of fun for both fans and the other players alike. It's not very often you to see a group of players like that on the course together.

Ok, enough golf for the moment. It's one of my favourite times of the year with the Stanley Cup finals on! I am not a big fan of either team, but I especially don't like the Flyers so I'll really be pulling for the Blackhawks!

Enjoy watching The Memorial this week. I am really looking forward to having a great week and getting things rolling for the U.S. Open. It's about time all the hard work that Mike has put into his game begins to pay off!

Brennan