Condoleezza Rice Tees Off in Birmingham

FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE Condoleezza Rice wasted no time on the first tee at Shoal Creek during the pro-am at the Regions Tradition, the year’s first major on the Champions Tour. Forgoing a practice swing, Rice teed the ball and smacked it outside of the ropes. And off she went with Hall of Famer Tom Watson and her other playing partners.

Jon Solomon of The Birmingham News reported that Rice “looked nervous early.” Nervous or not, Rice appeared at times to be as serious and resolute about her golf game as she was about shaping the foreign policy of the George W. Bush administration.

Rice ignored Watson’s suggestion to tee off closer on the 2nd hole, later saying it’s harder to get the ball as high in the air from the shorter tees. She is her own person, off and on the golf course.

“I know at Stanford we used logic,” Rice said to Watson, a Stanford alum. “Today we’re going to use brute strength.”

It was the Birmingham native’s second pro-am at a golf course where she would not have been welcomed two decades ago. Rice became a Shoal Creek member in 2009. On Wednesday she marveled that the girl who couldn’t enter a Birmingham movie theater later became secretary of state.

Rice caught the golf bug in 2005 while vacationing in Atlanta. She likes to keep track of fairways hit, number of shots to the green and total putts to analyze how she can improve her scores.

On the 3rd hole, Rice took Watson’s advice to hit from the front tees. “It’s about time,” Tom kidded. The Shoal Creek member sent her drive right down the middle.

−The Armchair Golfer

(Photo credit: NewsOne.com)

2011 Wells Fargo Championship TV Schedule and Tournament Notes

THE 2011 WELLS FARGO CHAMPIONSHIP is underway at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, North Carolina. Hyundai Tournament of Champions winner Jonathan Byrd and David Toms are the early leaders with 66s. The first round is still in progress.

Purse: $6.5 million
Winner’s share: $1.152 million
Defending champion: Rory McIlroy

2011 Wells Fargo Championship Leaderboard

Inside the field
Inside the course
Tee times
Interviews
Tournament overview
Tournament news
Tour report
Wells Fargo Championship website


TV SCHEDULE

TV coverage of the 2011 Wells Fargo Championship is on Golf Channel and CBS.

Thu, 5/5:
GOLF 3p - 6p ET

Fri, 5/6:
GOLF 3p - 6p ET

Sat, 5/7:
CBS 3p - 6p ET

Sun, 5/8:
CBS 3p - 6p ET

SIRIUS-XM broadcast times


−The Armchair Golfer

Drop Dead Gorgeous Golf Swings

JAIME DIAZ OF GOLF DIGEST pens a “My Five” series that ranks golf topics such as “Greatest Masters Performances,” “Best PGA Tour Courses,” “Golf’s Greatest Athletes” and “Best Match Players.” His most recent “My Five” edition caught my eye: “Golf’s Prettiest Swings.”

What players, past and present, possess the prettiest swings on the planet? (My apologies for the excessive alliteration.) Here’s Diaz’s list:

1. Sam Snead
No argument here. Snead would make everyone’s list. As quoted by Diaz, John Schlee summed it up: “Watching Sam Snead practice hitting golf balls is like watching a fish practice swimming.”

2. Al Geiberger
Mr. 59 focused on tempo.

3. Jerry Pate
1976 U.S. Open winner whose career was cut short by shoulder problems.

4. Payne Stewart
Yes, a pretty golf swing, but I’m surprised to see Payne in the top 5.

5. Steve Elkington
An exquisite swing. Elkington’s original teacher said, “Steve has the ability to swing the club in an almost musical way.”

Who Else?

So that’s Diaz’s top-5 list of pretty swings. It got me thinking about others. Legendary golf teacher Bob Toski said that Geiberger had the best tall-man swing. Maybe. But another tall man, Tom Weiskopf, also had an enviable golf swing. If Weiskopf could have putted better, he would have won at least one Green Jacket. (He finished as runner-up at the Masters four times.) And how about “The Big Easy,” Ernie Els?

Gene Littler rates a mention. Adam Scott. Mickey Wright. Tom Purtzer. Old-timey, Robert Tyre “Bobby” Jones Jr. And Tommy “Two Gloves” Gainey. Wait—scratch that last one.

−The Armchair Golfer