Woods ready to ‘clear air’ with Watson

World Number one Tiger Woods will welcome any move to sit down with USA Ryder Cup captain, Tom Watson and “clear the air” before next year’s Ryder Cup at Gleneagles, Scotland.

Watson was extremely critical of Woods in the months following revelations in late 2009 of Woods’ many extra-marital affairs. 

And at the recent ‘One Year to Go’ celebrations in Scotland ahead of the 2014 Ryder Cup, Watson again indicated: “I have not talked with Tiger privately and I will have to sit down and have a conversation with him.” 

Woods was questioned on the subject on Wednesday as guest of honour at a packed press conference ahead of Thursday’s start of the $7 million Turkish Airlines Open. 

The event is the third in the European Tour’s Final Series and with Woods being the only non-European Tour member competing. 

“No, we haven’t spoken yet but I am sure as we have another year plus or about a year ahead of us, so there will be a lot of time between now and then to talk,” said Woods. 

Woods also defended his decision not to contest last week’s $8.5million WGC-HSBC Champions event. 

The 14-time winner instead spent the week after his Match at Mission Hills against Rory McIlroy attending to corporate engagements as well as hosting junior clinics in Macau and Singapore. 

Giles Morgan, Head of Global Sponsorship with banking giant, HSBC last week indicated that Woods’ absence at Sheshan Golf Club is ‘something, from the tour’s point of view, that needs to be looked at. The prolific WGC winning Woods had a simple response saying: “I am an independent contractor.” And then when asked: “But what is your thinking then as an independent contractor.” 

Woods appeared on the front cover of most Turkish newspapers on Wednesday morning following yesterday’s historic occasion when the visiting American became the first ever golfer to hit a golf ball from the Bosphorus River bridge that links the European continent with Asia. 

Traffic was stopped for 30 minutes as Woods hit golf balls down three lanes of the six-lane suspension bridge. 

‘I can win more majors’ 

World number two Adam Scott said on Wednesday he was eyeing a career Grand Slam after bagging the US Masters as he prepared to tee off at the Australian PGA Championship. 

Back on home soil after a stellar breakthrough year, the 33-year-old Australian said he wants to join the five men to have won all four current majors — the Masters, US Open, British Open and US PGA Championship. 

“As long as I keep the intensity in practice and preparation I think I can win more majors, win another Masters, win (British) Opens, hopefully US Opens and PGAs,” Scott told reporters at the Royal Pines. 

“I’d love to win the career slam, the four majors, and put myself in that really small group of players who have won all four majors.” 

Agence France-Presse

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Darren Clarke returning to PGA Tour as full-time player

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – The way Northern Ireland's Darren Clarke figures it, he isn't too old to give it another go.

The European Ryder Cup hero and former British Open champion, now 45 and his best days allegedly behind him, is again taking up membership on the PGA Tour.

Last a full-time member in 2006, Clarke hasn't won anywhere in the world since lifting the Claret Jug in 2011, an 0-for-47 stretch that has called into question his desire to play.

But exempt this season because of his victory in the British Open, and coming off ties for 12th and second in his last two starts in Europe and China, Clarke looked and sounded rejuvenated after he banged balls on the range for more than two hours at the Sea Island Golf Club's Seaside Course on a windy, biting Tuesday to get ready for Thursday's start in the McGladrey Classic.

"It's almost like starting over," Clarke said. "It's good to have the opportunity to take it up again. At 45, I've almost had enough of the long hauls all over Asia and all that sort of stuff. Not that it's bad, but coming over here is certainly a lot easier for me from a scheduling point of view. The PGA Tour is the biggest investor in the world, Europe is my home turf, but it's a great opportunity to come over here and play.

"I just want to go out and enjoy myself. I've traveled all over the world for a long time and I've had a great time doing it."

With a home in the Bahamas and another base in West Palm Beach, Fla., Clarke said his travel will be easier on this side of the Atlantic instead of going to and from his other home in Northern Ireland, where his wife and two sons, ages 15 and 13, are residing. Clarke said he will play next week in the OHL Classic at Mayakoba in Mexico, then a tournament in Turkey.

Next year – after taking off the entire month of December – Clarke will try and play both the PGA Tour and the European Tour. On the PGA Tour, he said he'll start the year off in the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, play the following week in the Northern Trust Open, then play the entire Florida swing.

"It will be difficult," Clarke said of playing both tours. "But it is something I will try to do. I will see how I get on with it. But my first commitment is to the PGA Tour, and I have to get my tournaments in on the Tour since I became a member again."

Chip-ins: Brandt Snedeker is hurt again. The 2012 FedExCup champion and two-time winner in 2013 injured his left knee in China last weekend and was forced to pull out of this week's Australian PGA. Snedeker flew to the United States and confirmed to USA TODAY Sports that he got an MRI on Tuesday. Snedeker said he felt fine and was able to get around without crutches. He is scheduled to play in the Northwestern Mutual World Challenge Dec. 5-8. Snedeker missed five weeks earlier this year when he injured his ribs while winning the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. …World No. 1 Tiger Woods is playing in the Turkish Airlines Open on the European Tour this week … World No. 2 Adam Scott is playing in the Australian PGA, his first tournament in his homeland since winning the Masters in April. It is also Scott's first visit to Down Under since winning in Augusta. …

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McGladrey Classic is a home game for many golfers

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – Home is where the heart is – and where this week's McGladrey Classic is for nearly a dozen players in the field who live here or have ties to the area.

Zach Johnson's commute to Sea Island Golf Club's Seaside Course is 3 minutes by bicycle if he were to so choose, for instance, while tournament host Davis Love III's needs 10 minutes to get from front door to the range.

Also among the local delegation in the field are former Players champion Matt Kuchar, former U.S. Open champ Lucas Glover, Jonathan Byrd, Harris English, Charles Howell III, Brian Harman, Chris Kirk and Hudson Swafford.

"I get to sleep in my own bed. My kids are going through the same routine day in, day out as we do when we're at home. Dad goes to work and they go to school, that sort of thing. We like maintaining routine," said Johnson, lured to the area in 2006 when he made visits to see his sports psychologist here. "I know all the guys here. I know the pros that work here, and my feet have been on that golf course a number of times. Those would be the benefits.

"And there's the food, by the way."

What's not to like here along the idyllic Georgia coast? Mild year-round temperatures, small-town feel with Mom and Pop shops and Football Friday and Soccer Saturday. And world-class golf facilities and some of the best golf teachers in the world.

But playing in your own backyard does come with its challenges as the event still seeks its first hometown winner. Ticket requests spike, as do expectations to win from your friends. The course is sped up to an unfamiliar feel. And then there is the petting zoo.

Love, who has lived in the area for 35 years and is known as Uncle Dave by his colleagues in these parts, turns his home into an epicenter of entertainment during the week. For starters, he has four house guests this week. He throws barbecues for players and their families. And this year he's added a petting zoo that will feature an assortment of creatures.

During last week's buildup to the tournament, Love, who was the 54-hole leader here in 2013 before finishing fourth, said he, his family and his team had a lot of "sleepless nights."

"Home-field advantage is good and bad," Love said. "You're comfortable with the golf course, but you've also got the pressures of playing at home and expectations. You try a little too hard."

The extracurricular activities can be taxing, too.

"There's so much going on with our event that it just grows and grows every year," said Love, who missed Tuesday night's charity Wiffle Ball game that included St. Louis Cardinals ace Adam Wainwright, 20 PGA Tour players and their significant others, and local kids. "But I'm not going to miss the petting zoo at my house because that's kind of more up my alley. I hear there's a pig, so that's going to be pretty exciting."

Johnson and his three kids will be there. He said he's more comfortable this year playing in his hometown in front of people he mingles with year-round.

"This is everything I grew up accustomed to in Iowa, except for we got an ocean instead of a cornfield," Johnson said. "It is my hometown now, so there is a little bit of added – some people would say pressure – but I would just say there's just added weight. I want to perform well here. I want to perform here because it's where I live, and I want to perform here because I love McGladrey and what they do.

"I think I've gotten over the fact that, you know, I don't have to play well here to make it a successful week. That's not the important thing. I mean that's my goal. But this is going to be a great week because of what the foundation here does, what McGladrey does and what this community has opened its arms to."

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Purse to $10 million for PGA Championship, Players

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. (AP) -- The PGA Championship and The Players Championship will share the distinction of having golf's richest tournament next year by offering $10 million in prize money.

In a new spirit of cooperation, PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem and PGA of America President Ted Bishop announced the purse increases Wednesday. That marks a 25 percent increase for the PGA Championship, making its purse the largest of the four majors. It was $8 million this year.

The Players Championship for years had the largest purse - $9.5 million this year.

The announcement at Sea Island was part of a new collaboration between two groups that once were part of the same organization. Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus were largely responsible in 1968 for tournament players breaking away from the PGA of America because they felt it was more concerned with the club pro business.

Finchem said the idea was for them to work together toward a common goal of growing the game.

He said the PGA Tour would run public service announcements during its televised events to highlight PGA of America programs such as ''Get Golf Ready.'' It also plans to feature PGA professionals in its weekly television shows and use PGA pros at tournaments to give clinics.

Bishop noted that Ryder Cup points are being awarded during the fall to honor the PGA Tour's new wraparound season.

''There's probably never been a better time of collaboration and cooperation between our two organizations since the PGA Tour and PGA of America split back in 1968,'' Bishop said. ''I think that in a lot of ways, we're just beginning to scratch the surface in ways that we can really impact the game positively when we work together.''

It also could give the two organizations a stronger voice over proposed rules changes.

Both of them were opposed to the ban on anchored putters earlier this year. The U.S. Golf Association and Royal & Ancient Golf Club eventually approved a new rule banning the way long putters are anchored starting in 2016.

''I would hope that together we combine for a powerful voice in saying that as changes are implemented in the future, they need to align with what's positive for the growth of the game and the business of the game,'' Bishop said.

Bishop argued that banning the way long putters are used will drive people away from golf.

Finchem said all golf organizations need to work together, understanding there will be disagreements.

''The fact that we didn't agree on an issue this past year-and-a-half should not temper in any way our enthusiasm for collaboration,'' Finchem said. ''So we hadn't really looked at it from that perspective of having a stronger position, because who knows? We may not agree ourselves on something like a rule.''

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PGA Tour player Jason Kokrak makes hole-in-one on 409-yard par-4 during pro-am

Sports writers toss around the cliche, "you don't see this everyday" a lot, but in the case of Jason Kokrak at the McGladrey Classic Pro-Am, we've seen this on the PGA Tour only once ... ever.

Kokrak, a 28-year-old from Ontario, Canada, was playing in the pro-am at a PGA Tour stop on Wednesday when he got to the par-4 No. 5 hole at the Seaside Course in Sea Island, Ga.

The hole measures 409 yards, but distance is king and Kokrak is about 6-foot-4, 225 pounds, so I guess he got a lot out of his tee shot. He not only reached the green, but his shot reached the pin, hit it, and disappeared for the incredible hole-in-one on a par-4.

How rare is such a feat? It has happened only once in the history of the PGA Tour, back at the 2001 Waste Management Open, and it needed assistance from someone in the group ahead to find the cup.

Yes, Kokrak's improbable shot during the pro-am allows us to look back at the Andrew Magee double-eagle on the par-4 17th hole at TPC Scottsdale, when his ball landed on the green, hit the putter of Tom Byrum and went in the hole for the ace.

The video of this shot is below, starting at the 1:13 mark, so take a look back in history and give some props to Kokrak who is in the running for shot of the season on the PGA Tour, and it didn't even happen during an official round.

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Sea Island: A meeting of young and old

Davis Love III was in the learning center at Sea Island Golf Club over the weekend when he looked out the door at four players hitting balls, including PGA Tour rookie Kevin Tway. It brought back memories of Love's early days on tour.

And he has every reason to suddenly feel much older than 49.

Love and Bob Tway were contemporaries, both PGA Championship winners. Love could recall a time some two decades ago when their wives would drop the children off at day care during a PGA Tour event. And now one of those kids is part of the field at the McGladrey Classic.

''It's just incredible that I'm playing in a tournament with Kevin Tway,'' Love said. ''Now I see how Jay Haas felt when his kids were coming along ... and then Billy Haas won on the tour. It's pretty neat to see that progression and to last that one. I was complaining one time, 'I can't believe all these kids I knew are growing up and they're coming out on tour.' And they said, 'At least you're still playing with them.'

''It's fun to be out there and see it all happen.''

The PGA Tour returns to America this week after two weeks in Asia, and Sea Island feels like a felicitous meeting of young and old.

Tway, who earned his card by finishing fifth on the Web.com Tour money list, was given a sponsor's exemption. He's staying with Love in his house at Sea Island, along with Justin Thomas, who turned pro after playing the Walker Cup in September.

For every Tway and Thomas, there is Fred Funk and Mark Calcavecchia, both regulars on the Champions Tour.

Love is more than just a tournament host at Sea Island, where he has lived since he was a teenager. A year ago, he was tied for the lead going into the final round with Jim Furyk. They were overtaken by Tommy Gainey, who two-putted for par and a 60 to win his first PGA Tour title.

David Toms, who turns 47 in January, can relate with what Love is feeling. He can still remember going duck hunting in Louisiana with 6-year-old Casey Wittenberg.

''I'm playing in Memphis and Harris English is about to win the tournament,'' Toms said. ''The first time I played that tournament, he wasn't even born.''

Toms knows who some of these young guys are, at least by name - Luke Guthrie, Hudson Swafford, Morgan Hoffmann, Russell Henley. He doesn't know much about them, except for someone like John Peterson, who went to LSU and now uses Toms' old caddie.

''You watch a Walker Cup, and they're just names,'' Toms said. ''You don't really know them until you're trying to win a tournament against them.''

Thomas was a teammate at Alabama with Love's son, Dru.

''It inspires you to see the young guys, but it also makes you award that, 'Hey, if I'm going to compete, I've got to follow them to the gym and I've got to keep working hard on my game' because there's a lot of guys that are ready to take your spot.''

With the new wraparound season, the McGladrey Classic is the second-to-last tournament of 2013 before a short winter's break until the tour resumes in Hawaii. Three players made the trip from Shanghai (HSBC Champions) to Sea Island - Boo Weekley, Scott Piercy and Brian Gay.

Being the week after the two-week Asia swing was sure to hurt the field, though the McGladrey Classic still landed Matt Kuchar and Zach Johnson, who both live in the Golden Isles. Sea Island is quickly becoming a haven for PGA Tour players, not with numbers found at Lake Nona or West Palm Beach, but growing.

Jonathan Byrd was among the first to join Love at Sea Island. The list includes Kuchar and Johnson, Lucas Glover. Johnson doesn't need a courtesy car this week. He can ride a bike to the course in under three minutes.

''It's a nice group,'' Love said. ''They tend to call me 'Uncle Davis' when they need something. Other than that, it's a great group and they're a great influence on me. We've got great guys around to play golf with, to challenge, to push you. I think it's just going to continue.''

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Hitting balls on Turkish bridge for Tiger Woods, ‘nerve-racking’

Rarely does Tiger Woods get nervous on Tuesday of a tournament week, but he was this week. Speaking in a news conference Wednesday in advance of playing the Turkish Airlines Open, Woods told reporters that hitting drives down the Bosphorus Bridge in Istanbul the day before to gain publicity for the tournament was nerve wracking. Only half of the six-lane bridge was closed while Woods literally belted drives from one continent to another (from Europe into Asia).

“I’ve never done that one before,” Woods said. “I’ve hit balls down airports before on runways but never down a bridge. The scary part was just getting off a plane having flown for 12 hours and having to hit driver down the narrowest fairway I’ve ever seen.

“The wind was coming off the left a little bit, all these cars were driving on the right, so I lose any balls to the right, there’s an international incident right there. So, that was a little bit nerve-racking, but, trust me, every ball drew. But it was pretty cool. Somebody was telling me I hit one 550 meters or something like that, which was not bad.”

Woods is playing his last tournament this year that counts as official on any tour.

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Bjorn can restore peace between Tour and players, says Rose

U.S. Open champion Justin Rose is backing Tournament Committee chairman Thomas Bjorn to act as mediator in the disagreement between the players and the European Tour over the new FedExCup-style Final Series.

Last week former world number one Ernie Els described as "farcical" the rule that members must play in two of the three events leading up to the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai in order to be eligible for the last of the four Final Series tournaments.

Els, who has been a member of the European circuit for almost two decades, said he would register his disapproval by skipping the $8 million season-ending event in Dubai.

Former U.S. Masters champion Charl Schwartzel and Ryder Cup stalwart Sergio Garcia have also said the regulations are asking too much of the players.

"This is the first time there has been this new system so I don't think anything is set in stone," world number five Rose told reporters on the eve of the inaugural $7 million Turkish Airlines Open being staged in the city of Antalya.

"Quite clearly the sweet spot has not been found. Thomas is a very good sounding board, I don't want to call him the middle man but he acts really well between the players and the top executives of the tour.

"I think he has had quite a few conversations with guys in the last couple of weeks just to try and gauge where everybody's head is at and to try and come up with a great solution."

The Final Series, which consists of Turkey, Dubai and two big-money tournaments in Shanghai, is Europe's equivalent of the U.S. PGA Tour's lucrative FedExCup playoff system.

STRONG TOURNAMENTS

Rose, ever the diplomat, said he could see both sides of the argument between the tour and the players.

"You've got to try and play a schedule you feel is going to give you the best opportunity to play well when you want to play well and if that means pacing yourself, you pace yourself," said the 33-year-old Briton.

"But I also understand the tour's point of view in trying to incentivize guys and trying to create strong tournaments. They are asking sponsors to put up a lot of money and clearly they want a return on their investment."

Rose is third in the European money-list with the two events to go, trailing leader Henrik Stenson by 325,000 euros ($436,600) and second-placed Graeme McDowell by 179,000 euros.

Swede Stenson, who picked up $11.4 million for winning the FedExCup and the season-ending U.S. Tour Championship, plays alongside Rose and world number one Tiger Woods in Thursday's opening round but McDowell is an absentee this week.

First prize at the Montgomerie Maxx Royal course in Belek is worth 848,930 euros and Rose said that emulating his 2007 order of merit triumph would represent the icing on the cake of a memorable season in which he won a major for the first time.

"Before I won the U.S. Open I would have said winning the order of merit was my career achievement and something I was very proud of," said the Englishman.

"To have the opportunity to do it for the second time, in the modern era and in the new format, would be great."

($1 = 0.7421 euros)

(Editing by Sonia Oxley)

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Canadian Women's Open back on track

Brittany Lincicome from the United States smiles after on the 18th green after finishing her championship round at the Canadi

OAKVILLE, Ontario (AP) -- The Canadian Women's Open is back on track.

Golf Canada announced a three-year sponsorship deal with Canadian Pacific railway company Wednesday after an eight-year run with Canadian National Railway Company.

The LPGA Tour tournament will be renamed the Canadian Pacific Women's Open. The 2014 event is set for Aug. 21-24 at London Hunt in London, Ontario.

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Snedeker injures knee in China

Brandt Snedeker injured his left leg when he lost his balance and landed awkwardly when he hopped off a Segway in China.

Snedeker was at a corporate outing at Sheshan International on Monday when he injured himself. He immediately withdrew from the Australian PGA Championship and returned home to Nashville. Doctors say he bruised his left tibia and strained the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.

Snedeker says surgery will not be required. He says his injuries could heal in a couple of weeks, or it might take as much as two months. He is scheduled to play the Northwestern Mutual World Challenge in California on Dec. 5-8, and the Franklin Templeton Shootout a week later in Florida.

Snedeker missed six weeks earlier this year when he cracked a rib.

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Adam Scott gets rock-star treatment back home

After being treated like a rock star for most of Wednesday's pro-am at the Australian PGA, Adam Scott left the course with the keys to the city.

It was that kind of day for Scott, who is making his first appearance back home after winning the Masters in April, the first win at Augusta by any Australian.

Scott grew up in the Gold Coast area and will begin play Thursday in the Australian PGA, the first of four consecutive weeks he'll play Down Under.

On Wednesday, his pro-am group was followed by a large gallery. Shouts of encouragement and congratulations were frequent around the Royal Pines resort course, and Scott often stopped to sign autographs and chat to locals.

''I wanted to come home straight away after winning, but thought if I come home and start celebrating I might not make it back,'' Scott said following the pro-am.

''And I don't want to waste this year just with winning the Masters and resting on my laurels a little bit and letting things slip. I wanted to take advantage of the confidence and the momentum and see how far I could push myself this year.

''It could have quite easily been a two or three major win year. I was close again at the (British) Open and I was hanging around all weekend at the PGA and just didn't quite get over the line.''

After the Australian PGA, he'll play two weeks in a row at Royal Melbourne, first defending his Australian Masters title, then playing with Jason Day in the World Cup, a team event using a similar format to the one being used at golf's return to the Olympics at Rio de Janeiro in 2016.

He'll then play in the Australian Open at Royal Sydney.

''That's a lot of work for me these days, as a part-time golfer,'' Scott said, smiling. ''That's how I'm known in America, as the part-time golfer.

''It was a no-brainer for all of them, especially with the PGA being here on the Gold Coast, and the World Cup's going to be fun.''

On Tuesday, he wore the Masters green jacket to a corporate function.

''It's nice to talk to people and get an idea of just how much it meant to them back here'' Scott said. ''Last night was great, to kind of share the green jacket with everybody and a couple of stories.''

One of them was letting everyone know about Augusta's apparently strict policy on laundering the green jacket, which he admitted to wearing around the house frequently.

''They send you a couple of pages of jacket etiquette they would like you to follow,'' Scott said. ''You can't just go and drop it into the dry cleaners.''

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The not-so-new but expanding world of golf

Consider a couple of scenes from the golf world this year, with emphasis on ''world.''

Inbee Park began her bid to become the first golfer to capture four straight majors in one season by teeing off at 7 a.m. in the opening round at St. Andrews. It was a strange starting time for the star attraction, except that was prime viewing in South Korea.

Luke Guthrie had just started his second PGA Tour season when he packed his bags, along with a 2-liter bottle of Mountain Dew for his caffeine fix, and flew from Las Vegas to Shanghai for a European Tour event with little more at stake than experience in a new environment. He nearly won. Hello, China.

One of the rules officials at the HSBC Champions was a Chinese woman who has a Ph.D. in golf. Tiger Woods has only a Masters (OK, four of them).

Jordan Spieth wandered down to the caddie's bar Saturday night with his Texas Longhorns cap turned backward and his eyes on a TV showing the USC-Oregon State game from Friday night that had ended eight hours earlier. He was a long way from home, but for a moment, it sure didn't feel like it.

One of the biggest celebrations of the year starts this week in Australia - Adam Scott finally returns home with his green jacket.

Americans can be found over the next month from the Pacific Rim to Down Under. Rickie Fowler went from Malaysia to Shanghai to Australia, and then he was headed to Los Angeles for intense gym work before returning to Thailand. Tiger Woods was in China, Macau and Singapore doing corporate outings and an exhibition before going to Turkey this week for his second regular European Tour event of the year. Matt Kuchar is representing his country at Royal Melbourne again, this time in the World Cup.

Graeme McDowell, who grew up in Northern Ireland and lives in Orlando, Fla., spent two weeks in Shanghai, and then flew home to Florida for a week going back across eight time zones to finish his European Tour season in Dubai. Then he goes to Australia and Los Angeles.

Now, throw out 153 years of championship history and ask yourself this question: If golf were starting from scratch and there could be only four majors, would three of them really be in America?

That's why it makes perfect sense for the PGA of America to explore the possibility of occasionally taking the PGA Championship overseas. The key words are ''explore'' and ''occasionally.''

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''I would say we're more than halfway through a serious analysis,'' PGA chief executive Pete Bevacqua said over the weekend. ''What's important is we boil down our missions to two pillars - serve our members and grow the game,'' Bevacqua said. ''The ultimate test will be can we check both boxes? Does it make sense to occasionally play the PGA Championship overseas? Would growing the brand globally help our members? Would it grow the game? Part two is easy.''

The assumption would be to look at Asia, though the HSBC Champions already bills itself as ''Asia's major'' and likely will be even further established when or if the PGA of America ever decides to start accumulating stamps in its passport.

The most obvious hindrance is television, which was driven home by a tweet from Bob Estes to Dustin Johnson. ''Just woke up to find out that you won.'' The tweet was sent Sunday at 7:30 a.m. Texas time, about five hours after Johnson completed his three-shot win in the HSBC Champions. Estes missed an extraordinary display of golf - Johnson, Ian Poulter and McDowell each closed with a 66 from the final group.

Then again, if the PGA Championship were to leave America on occasion, that's at least a decade out. It wasn't long ago when the Masters showed only three hours of the final round. Or when golf in America was only televised on the weekend. How will sports even be broadcast a decade from now?

Bevacqua has only to look at other sports to identify a trend.

The NBA is playing preseason games in China. The NFL is making London a regular part of its schedule (yes, that team from Jacksonville really is part of the NFL). The Los Angeles Dodgers and Arizona Diamondbacks will open the 2014 baseball season in Australia.

''The world is getting smaller,'' PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem said. ''Things are coming together. It's more a question of the best players in the world are going to play, and it's going to be a big deal wherever it goes. What's best for that tournament long-term? And what's good for golf globally given the options? I don't think there's any reason not to think of those things.''

It's a new world of golf. It's a big world, yet one that is shrinking.

For years, the PGA Championship has been looked upon as the ''other'' major because it lacks a clear identity the other three enjoy. The Masters and Augusta National. The Open Championship and links golf. The U.S. Open historically as the toughest test in golf.

The PGA Championship has a chance to identify itself as the only international major. It's worth exploring, because it's clear that's where golf is going.

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Golf-Masters champion Scott targets major 'slam'

Australia's Adam Scott has set a goal of winning a career grand slam of golf's four majors and says his breakthrough U.S. Masters win is yet to pay full dividend to his game.

"I'd love to win the career grand slam and put myself in that really small group of players who have won all four majors," the 33-year-old told reporters at Australia's Gold Coast on Wednesday, his first trip to his homeland since his Augusta triumph.

"I think that would be a good goal but that's a long way off for the moment. I've only got one, so there's a lot of work to do."

Only South African Gary Player and Americans Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Ben Hogan and Gene Sarazen have achieved the feat since the Masters was founded in 1934.

Having enjoyed the best year of his career with two PGA Tour titles, few would dispute the world number two has the game to win more majors.

Scott infamously blew a four-stroke lead in the last four holes of the 2012 British Open to finish runner-up. The U.S. Open is the only major tournament not to yield a top-10 finish for the Australian.

In the meantime, Scott has turned his attention to the far more achievable goal of clinching a career grand slam in the three marquee events of Australia's golfing summer.

Having won his country's national Open title in 2009 and the Australian Masters last year, Scott will bid to win the Australian PGA Championship trophy at Royal Pines starting on Thursday.

LESS PRESSURE

Like his mentor and former world number one Greg Norman, Scott has been a solid supporter of Australia's battling local tour throughout his career, but returns this time for a lap of honour and without the major milestone around his neck.

"I think all the great things that come from winning the Masters are still yet to happen for me as a golfer personally," said Scott, who showed off the green jacket at a sponsor's dinner on Tuesday.

"Knowing I'm going back there for the next, hopefully, 50 years or something, being involved with that golf club and that golf tournament for that amount of time and going to the champions' dinner, there may be a little less pressure on me to play great down here.

"I feel good with where my game is at.

"But (there's) just a little less to prove after having won a major and maybe shown the 'mongrel' or whatever it was that everyone wanted to see in me," Scott added, using the classic Australian term meaning 'toughness' or 'aggression'.

Scott was to receive the keys to the city from the Gold Coast mayor on Wednesday and tournament organisers have deemed Friday 'Green Day', asking fans to turn up in green in tribute to the Australian's Augusta win.

With world number nine American Brandt Snedeker, the tournament's second biggest drawcard, a late withdrawal due to a knee injury, Scott has a clear run to tear up the innocuous Royal Pines course where young American Rickie Fowler, ranked 43rd in the world, is among the challengers.

Scott's headlining is a boost for the tournament after it was forced to move from its long-time venue in Queensland state's Sunshine Coast after last year's edition.

Organisers fell out with Clive Palmer, the billionaire owner of the resort in Coolum and recently elected parliamentarian, after he had mammoth replica dinosaurs erected throughout the course. (Reporting by Ian Ransom; Editing by Patrick Johnston)

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Golf-Westwood says he must cut out 'silly scores' in Turkey

Former world number one Lee Westwood says he must eliminate the "silly scores" that have crept into his game recently in order to push for his first victory of the season at this week's Turkish Airlines Open.

The 40-year-old Briton has racked up 40 worldwide victories in a stellar career but decided to move to the golfers' paradise of Florida at the start of the season in an attempt to add to his tally of two wins on the U.S. PGA Tour.

Although Westwood's short game has shown distinct signs of progress, and he led the British Open after three rounds at Muirfield in July, he has been unable to translate that improvement into tangible success in 2013.

In last week's WGC-Champions Tournament in Shanghai he was stymied by the occasional lapse of concentration as he finished a distant 23 strokes behind winner Dustin Johnson of the United States.

"I always try and look at my form on how many birdies I'm making," world number 23 Westwood told reporters at the Montgomerie Maxx Royal course on Tuesday.

"I'm making a lot of birdies but I'm also making some silly scores, a triple-bogey and a couple of double-bogeys, and I made a few silly bogeys on easy holes last week."

The Turkish Open is the penultimate event of the European Tour season and money-list leader Henrik Stenson has Graeme McDowell, Justin Rose and Ian Poulter breathing down his neck as he bids to end the campaign on top of the pile.

Westwood won the order of merit in 2000 and 2009 and knows what it takes to be crowned Europe's number one golfer.

"It's consistency... you really have to play well the full year," said the Englishman who enjoyed two brief spells as world number one in 2010 and 2011.

"In 2000 I think I won something like six or seven events that year. You don't need to do that now, you can almost win the money list without winning an event (because)... there's a big difference in the size of the purses." (Editing by Clare Fallon)

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INTERVIEW-Golf-Curse of the kids hampers Tiger's Turkish countdown

World number one Tiger Woods will have to overcome the 'Curse of the Kids' if he is to challenge for the first prize of 848,930 euros ($1.14 million) at this week's Turkish Airlines Open.

The 14-times major champion is back in action at the European Tour event in Antalya on the Mediterranean coast after taking a much-needed four-week break from competitive golf.

Unfortunately, though, he picked up a bug from one of his children while he was away from the spotlight.

"My (six-year-old) daughter Sam was sick and it's just the way it goes," said a bunged-up Woods as he coughed and sniffed his way through an interview with Reuters.

"Kids get sick, you get sick and you've just got to deal with it. I've done it for years now so it's no big deal.

"I feel good though. Energy-wise I feel great, I just don't sound the same."

Woods certainly looked in tip-top shape on Tuesday as he became the first golfer to hit balls from east to west off the Bosphorus Bridge.

The 37-year-old struck several shots from the iconic structure that connects Asia to Europe in a special Istanbul photoshoot.

"To be the first golfer to do this was very cool," said Woods. "To see the Bosphorus for the first time was a memorable experience."

Traffic was stopped for 20 minutes on one half of the bridge and the American had to make sure he was especially straight with his ball-striking in order to avoid the vehicles coming down the opposite side.

Woods has not played competitively since the biennial Presidents Cup match between the United States and the Internationals in Ohio at the start of October.

"I didn't touch a club for almost two weeks," he told Reuters. "I shut it down, got away from it, put the clubs in storage and just hung out with the kids.

"I trained in the gym but I didn't want to have anything to do with golf for a while. We've played so much since the British Open in July with World Golf Championship events, the U.S. PGA Championship, the FedExCup series and then the Presidents Cup.

TIRED OF GOLF

"There's been a lot of golf and I was tired of it so I put the clubs away to get refreshed and ready for my last two tournaments of the season," he added, referring to the Turkish Open and his own World Challenge event in California next month.

Woods possesses a voracious appetite for trophies, having chalked up 79 U.S. PGA Tour victories in a remarkable career, but he finds it impossible to play golf every day of the year.

"I have to take a break. Some players can play each and every day, like Arnold Palmer," he explained.

"I love practising but as far as going out there and playing every day, no.

"I think it's more important to have the mind sharp and ready and to feel fresh and excited. You see a lot of players go fishing, go on vacation, they don't take their clubs and just get away from it and take a step back and then tend to do well."

Woods has had a brilliant 2013 campaign, winning five times on the U.S. PGA Tour to earn the Player of the Year award for a record 11th time.

However, his 15th major victory has eluded him for the fifth season in a row as he strives to equal fellow countryman Jack Nicklaus's record haul of 18.

"I'd have liked five wins this year and for four to be in majors," Woods said with a broad grin. "That would have been nice.

"But I guess you're not going to win every single major you tee it up in. I've won 14 and there's only one person who has won more than me.

"It's hard to win those events. The fields are so deep now and they are played in the most demanding conditions we play in all year," Woods told Reuters.

"You need to have everything go your way at the right time. I've had everything go my way 14 times.

"I've been in contention with a chance to win on Sundays a couple of times in majors this year and just haven't got it done but hopefully it will happen again soon."

($1 = 0.7421 euros) (Editing by Ed Osmond)

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Golf-Stenson looking to keep punter Poulter at bay

Henrik Stenson is doubly determined to stay at the top of the European Tour's Race To Dubai money list especially as it would mean he avoids paying out 1,000 pounds ($1,600) in a losing bet to Florida neighbour Ian Poulter.

Swede Stenson has a lead of 145,000 euros over second-placed Graeme McDowell, with Poulter 542,000 euros adrift in fourth spot ahead of the final two events of the season, this week's Turkish Airlines Open and the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai.

"I had a bet with Poulter when he was some way behind and he still wants me to pay for a night out if he catches me," Stenson told reporters at the Montgomerie Maxx Royal course in the Turkish city of Antalya on Tuesday.

"I had a bet with Poulter when he was some way behind and he still wants me to pay for a night out if he catches me," Stenson told reporters at the Montgomerie Maxx Royal course in the Turkish city of Antalya on Tuesday.

"I'm going to try to make sure that doesn't happen. It's a tight race and most likely it's still going to be an open story in Dubai.

"The bet was a hundred bucks and he got 10-1 so it's going to be bad for me if he wins."

Stenson can certainly afford to pay out after picking up $11.4 million for winning the U.S. PGA Tour's FedExCup series and the season-ending Tour Championship in Atlanta.

"We were having a laugh at Lake Nona in Florida a couple of weeks ago," said the Swede. "He said, 'We have to have a bet, I'm going to chase you down'."

Poulter closed the gap on Stenson by finishing second to American Dustin Johnson in last week's WGC-Champions Tournament in Shanghai while the Swede could only manage a tie for 31st position.

The FedExCup winner said he had been troubled by a sore wrist in recent weeks.

"It's been bothering me a bit ... but during play it's been all right," added Stenson. "It's all about keeping it mobile, taking some pills every now and again and doing quite a lot of icing.

"I've kept my hand in the ice bucket for quite some time. There's always going to be some wear and tear over long-term golfing.

"It wasn't a thing that came on suddenly so that was a good thing. It wasn't like I hit a shot and just all of a sudden I started feeling a lot of pain."

The 78-man Turkish Open, which features world number one Tiger Woods, begins on Thursday and offers a first prize of 848,930 euros.

($1 = 0.6269 British pounds) (Editing by Justin Palmer)

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Golf-Sawgrass architects Dye Designs plan first London Venture

Dye Designs, one of the world's top golf architects, are planning to build their first British course on the outskirts of London and hope to complete the project by the end of the decade.

The company, which created the Sawgrass venue for the Players Championship in Florida and the Kiawah Island course that hosted the 1991 Ryder Cup, have submitted an application to construct The Dye London near Edgware.

The Menai-Davis family, who opened The Shire London in Barnet in 2007 featuring Britain's only Seve Ballesteros course, are behind the application.

The Dye will be an 18-hole tour-style layout measuring more than 7,000 yards from the championship tees.

"The course will feature a Dye-signature island green similar to the famous 17th at TPC Sawgrass," the company said in a news release on Tuesday.

"Dye-designed courses have hosted over 50 championships worldwide and our team is looking forward to creating our first course in the United Kingdom."

The firm is named after celebrated American golf course architect Pete Dye.

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Golf-Mickelson will launch 2014 campaign in Abu Dhabi

British Open winner Phil Mickelson will launch his campaign next year by returning to the Abu Dhabi Championship for the first time since 2011.

The world number four, who said last week that he would be making unspecified cuts to his schedule in 2014, is to join Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose and Luke Donald in a strong field at the $2.7 million European Tour event in the Gulf between Jan. 16-19.

"To play Abu Dhabi in the early part of the year is a great opportunity," Mickelson said in a news release on Tuesday.

"I've wanted to return since my first time there in 2011. The golf course and facilities are outstanding and the quality of the field and the good weather make it a great place to start my season."

Five-times major winner Mickelson plans to play the week before each of the big four championships next year.

The 43-year-old American said last week that he would compete in Houston before the U.S. Masters, in Memphis ahead of the U.S. Open, in Scotland before the British Open and in Akron ahead of the U.S. PGA Championship.

Mickelson has clearly given particular thought to his preparations for the U.S. Open, the only major missing from his collection and a tournament where he has been runner-up six times.

Victory at the Pinehurst No. 2 course in June would make him only the sixth player to complete the modern grand slam.

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Golf-Snedeker withdraws from Australian PGA with knee injury

World number nine Brandt Snedeker has pulled out of this week's Australian PGA Championship because of a knee injury he sustained in China, the OneAsia Tour said on Tuesday.

The 32-year-old American was one of the main drawcards at the A$1.25 million ($1.19 million) tournament but injured his knee on Monday in China, where he played in the WGC-HSBC Champions last week.

World number two Adam Scott, playing his first event on home soil since winning the U.S. Masters in April, remains in the field at the Royal Pines Resort in Queensland, where the action begins on Thursday.

Scott, the first Australian to win the famous green jacket, will also play at next week's Australian Masters, the World Cup of Golf and the Australian Open in a four-week swing through his home country. ($1 = 1.0530 Australian dollars)

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Golf-Woods heralds return with spectacular Turkey photoshoot

Tiger Woods features in a strokeplay event for the first time in six weeks at the Turkish Airlines Open starting on Thursday and will herald his return by taking part in a spectacular Bosphorus Bridge photoshoot.

The world number one is due to arrive in Istanbul by helicopter on Tuesday before becoming the first golfer to hit balls from East to West on the iconic bridge that separates the continents of Europe and Asia.

Woods will then travel down to the south-western city of Antalya on the Mediterranean coast to take on Europe's finest in the $7 million tournament at the Montgomerie Maxx Royal course.

The 14-times major winner also played in last year's invitational eight-man World Golf Final inTurkey but this season marks the first time the country has hosted an official European Tour event.

"I had a great time during my first visit to Turkey... and I'm looking forward to playing there once again," Woods said in a news release.

He has not played a strokeplay competition since finishing tied for 22nd place at the Tour Championship in Atlanta in September, the final event of the U.S. PGA Tour's money-spinning FedExCup series.

Among the 37-year-old American's title rivals this week will be U.S. Open champion and World Golf Final winner Justin Rose.

"It's going to be fun to play in Turkey again," said the 33-year-old Briton. "It's great for Turkey to have an event in the Final Series."

This week's tournament is the penultimate event in the inaugural Final Series, the European Tour's new FedExCup equivalent.

Rose is third in the Race To Dubai money list on 1.87 million euros ($2.53 million), behind Graeme McDowell (2.05 million) and FedExCup winner Henrik Stenson (2.20 million) with just the Turkish Open and DP World Tour Championship in Dubai to come.

Ian Poulter, fourth on the list with earnings of 1.66 million euros, will look to go one better in Antalya than his second-place finish to American Dustin Johnson in last week's WGC-Champions Tournament in Shanghai.

Former world number one Lee Westwood also features in the 78-man lineup this week but Rory McIlroy, Luke Donald and Sergio Garcia are absentees.

First prize is worth 848,930 euros.

($1 = 0.7402 euros)

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Golf-World rankings

World rankings on Monday (U.S. unless
stated, last week's positions in brackets):
1	(1) Tiger Woods	12.34 average points
2	(2) Adam Scott (Australia)	8.82
3	(4) Henrik Stenson (Sweden)	8
4	(3) Phil Mickelson	7.91
5	(5) Justin Rose (England)	7.51
6	(6) Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland)	6.77
7	(7) Steve Stricker	6.39
8	(8) Matt Kuchar	6.3
9	(9) Brandt Snedeker	6.06
10	(10) Jason Dufner	5.68
11	(12) Graeme McDowell (Northern Ireland)	5.44
12	(23) Dustin Johnson	5.31
13	(11) Zach Johnson	5.15
14	(13) Jim Furyk	4.95
15	(15) Keegan Bradley	4.93
16	(14) Luke Donald (England)	4.76
17	(22) Ian Poulter (England)	4.72
18	(19) Sergio Garcia (Spain)	4.67
19	(16) Webb Simpson	4.64
20	(17) Jason Day (Australia)	4.64

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