Hock Takes Playoff; Wins Back-To-Back On Champions Tour

Naples, FL (AHN) - Scott Hoch made an eight-foot birdie putt on No.18 to force a four-hole playoff, then rolled in another eight-footer on the first playoff hole to win The ACE Group Classic for his second straight Champions Tour victory on Sunday.

The 52-year-old Hoch picked up the top prize of $240,000 a week after winning the Allianze Championship in Boca Raton. He now has three Senior titles. He won 11 times over a 25-year PGA career.

Hoch, Tom Jenkins, Tom Kite and Brad Bryant all finished regulation at 14-under par 202. Jenkins, Kite and Bryant had all made pars on No. 18 before Hoch made his birdie.

On the playoff hole, Jenkins and Kite both missed chip shots after going over the green. Bryant lipped out a birdie putt.

Said Hoch, "I just said, 'Let's end it here. I don't want to play anymore. Anything else could happen."

Mickelson adds Riviera to collection of West Coast wins

LOS ANGELES (Map, News) - Phil Mickelson had played 10 tournaments at Riviera dating to his first appearance 20 years ago as a teenager. Never before had he arrived with such good vibes, mostly because of a minor change that he didn't reveal until he won.
It wasn't his close call last year, when he bogeyed the final hole and lost in a playoff.
Nor was it the playoff loss two weeks ago in Phoenix, a sign that his game was on the right track.

Rather, it was a noise only Lefty could hear.
He switched golf balls this year to a softer cover for more spin, and figured he had made all the adjustments until he struggled with his speed on the greens at Pebble Beach last week, which held him back. That's when he decided to change the insert in his putter.
"When I had putted with the insert I had, it was a quieter sound when the ball was coming off and I couldn't hear it, and I was giving it a little too much," Mickelson said. "Consequently, my speed was going well by the hole. By putting in the firmer insert, I was able to hear it, and my speed and touch came back.

"Now I hear it and it feels great."
The putter was key for Mickelson, who closed with a 1-under 70 for a two-shot victory over Jeff Quinney that gave him yet another PGA Tour title on the Left Coast.
He now has 33 career victories, with 16 of them in California and Arizona.
But as much as the putter helped Mickelson, it went from a magic wand to a ball-and-chain for Quinney.

He made four straight putts, three of them for birdie, from outside 10 feet that took him from a two-shot deficit to a brief lead and ultimately to a duel alone the final seven holes. But Quinney again had trouble down the stretch.
He bogeyed three straight holes, starting with back-to-back par putts that he missed from 7 feet, that gave Mickelson a two-shot lead and some comfort as he played the final holes. Quinney lost all hope with a three-putt from 20 feet on the par-5 17th, and his 25-foot birdie on the final hole only made it look close.
He shot a 71 for his first runner-up finish in his two years on tour.
"I had two (putts) that I'd like to have back," Quinney said. "I just put a little too much pressure on the putter on the back nine."

Mickelson, meanwhile, was solid throughout the week.
His putting kept momentum in his round of 64 on Friday to seize control, and in his 70 on Saturday to stay in the lead. And after a two-shot swing that gave Quinney the lead on the ninth hole Sunday - Quinney made a 12-foot birdie, Mickelson missed the green well to the right and made bogey - Lefty responded with clutch putts.
The first came at the 310-yard 10th hole, where Mickelson hit driver over the green and a flop shot to the skinny part of the green, the ball stopping 6 feet away. Quinney saved par with a 10-foot putt, and Mickelson made his on top of him to tie for the lead.
Mickelson pulled away when Quinney made the first of three straight bogeys, and the tournament turned on the par-3 14th.

Quinney went over the green and chipped 7 feet by the hole. Mickelson hit into a bunker and blasted out to the same distance, a few inches farther away. That meant he went first, and Mickelson poured it in for par.

Quinney missed his, the lead was two shots, the tournament effectively over.
Mickelson didn't make it a clean sweep of the West Coast Swing. He has never won in Hawaii, and only goes to Hawaii on vacation. He has never won the Accenture Match Play Championship, although he gets another shot starting Wednesday.
But he has won at every stop on the West Coast, from the ocean courses of Torrey Pines and Pebble Beach to soggy La Costa Resort to the desert tracks in Phoenix, Palm Springs and Tucson.

"I do enjoy the West Coast," Mickelson said. "I'm excited to play golf and I practice very hard on the West Coast when the season is coming around and I haven't played for awhile, I've got a lot of energy and I'm excited to get back out. I think all of these things, plus the fact that I grew up here and used to walk these fairways on the outside, I just have a great love for the West Coast.
"I've been fortunate to play well here."

It should be no surprise that Riviera took so long.
Until last year, Mickelson had missed the cut four out of eight times, including the 1995 PGA Championship. He loved the look of Riviera, but was confounded by the sticky kikuya grass that could grab the ball as it was approaching the green.
There's an art to his course off Sunset Boulevard, and he was a slow learner.
"I didn't understand the nuances of this golf course, where you can and can't hit it," he said. "And learning those nuances and how to hit the shots into some of these greens has helped me over the years. Last year was when I started to put it together, and I'm fortunate to break through this year."

Sweeter still is having his name on the roll call of a champions, a list that includes Ben Hogan, Byron Nelson and Sam Snead. And it's a list that doesn't include Tiger Woods, or even Jack Nicklaus.
And now that another victory is in the bag, he's hungry for more.

"It's not quite to where I believe I can get it, but I feel like it's been much better than in the past, so I feel like I'm getting better," Mickelson said of his game. "I can taste where I want to get to. But I'm not quite there yet."

Bayside, DE, Opens One-of-a-Kind Playground with Help of Local Artists

Bayside, DE: Award-winning golf & now a new playground.

Bayside, the Delaware resort golf community being
developed by Carl M. Freeman Companies, is a place
especially for families and now it is is home to a
newly installed coastal-themed playground thanks in
part to the efforts of local artists, Bayside homeowners,
and Freeman employees.

The 6,500-square-foot facility, which is part of Bayside’s
Carousel Park, shines with bright colors and whimsical art
providing the backdrop for such features as a rock
climbing wall, an osprey tower, a lighthouse, a maze, and
a puppet theater.

Local artists Aubre Duncan, John Donato, and Laura
Hickman donated their time and talents to creating the
original artwork throughout the playground while Bayside
homeowners and Freeman employees helped with the
painting and some of the construction.

The design of Bayside’s playground is the work of Leathers
& Associates, a leader in the field of community-built
playgrounds. The Ithaca, New York-based company designs
one-of-a-kind playgrounds that are built on site, usually
within 5 days, using volunteer labor.

Its playgrounds are built with environmentally friendly
materials and are known for their safety features as well
as for providing opportunities to children of all abilities
to play.

To request immediate information about Bayside, please
click here.

University of Delaware Golf Team Announces Three Recruits To Join Program

University of Delaware golf head coach Mike Keogh (at right) has announced that three high school senior standouts will enroll at UD and begin playing for the Blue Hens in the 2008-09 season.

Bobby Arthur, a native of Marlton, NJ, was the 2007 Junior Golfer Sportsmanship of the Year Award winner by the Golf Association of Philadelphia. Arthur, a member of the 2006 and 2007 Golf Association of Philadelphia Williamson Cup Team, was a medalist and semifinalist at the 2006 Philadelphia Junior AM.

Greg Matthias, a local product from Wilmington, DE who attends Salesianum, was named to the 2006 All-State First Team. Matthias finished second at the 2007 Rehoboth Junior Open, fifth at the DIAA State Championship, and fifth at the 2007 DSGA Junior Amateur.

Stephen Scialo, a native of New City, NY, was named HP Scholastic AJGA All-American last year. Scialo was the 2007 Journal News Player of the Year and was the Dellwood Country Club Men’s Club champion.

“As our program improves, we are attracting solid players who will enhance the quality of the Delaware golf program,” Keogh said. “We are fortunate to have many excellent young players in the tri-state area like Bobby, Greg and Stephen who will enable our program to continue to improve.”

Best Delaware Golf Courses

Rank	Golf Course	Location
1	Bayside Resort Golf Club - Bayside Course	Selbyville, DE
2	Baywood Greens - BayWood Greens Course	Long Neck, DE
3	Deerfield Golf & Tennis Club - Deerfield Course	Newark, DE
4	Rehoboth Beach Country Club - Rehoboth Beach Course	Rehoboth Beach, DE
5	Marsh Island Golf Club - Marsh Island Course	Lewes, DE
6	White Clay Creek Country Club - White Clay Creek Course	Wilmington, DE
7	Old Landing Golf Course - Old Landing Course	Rehoboth Beach, DE
8	Three Little Bakers Country Club - Three Little Bakers Count Course	Wilmington, DE
9	Salt Pond Golf Club - Salt Pond Course	Bethany Beach, DE
10	Back Creek Golf Course - Back Creek Course	Middletown, DE
11	The Rookery Golf Club - Rookery Course	Milton, DE
12	Cripple Creek Golf & Country Club - Cripple Creek Course	Dagsboro, DE
13	Delcastle Golf Club - Del Castle Course	Wilmington, DE
14	Bear Trap Dunes Golf Club - Black Bear Course	Ocean View, DE
15	The Peninsula Golf and Country Club - Peninsula Course	Millsboro, DE
16	Bidermann Golf Club - Bidermann Course	Wilmington, DE
17	Kings Creek Country Club - Kings Creek Course	Rehoboth Beach, DE
18	Cavaliers Country Club - Cavaliers Course	Newark, DE
19	Eagle Creek Golf Club - Eagle Creek Course	Dover Afb, DE
20	Fieldstone Golf Club - Fieldstone Course	Wilmington, DE
21	Ed Oliver Golf Club - Ed Oliver Course	Wilmington, DE
22	Frog Hollow Golf Club - Frog Hollow Course	Middletown, DE
23	Newark Country Club - Newark Course	Newark, DE
24	Vince's Sports Center Par 3 Golf Course - Vince's Course	Newark, DE
25	Golf Academy of Delaware - Vandegift Course	Middletown, DE