Singh searches for a swing, victory
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Vijay Singh was on the far corner of the range at Bay Hill with a large bucket of balls and a swing that didn't appear as though it belonged to a three-time major champion.
That was by design.
Singh was letting his driver lag at the top of his backswing — golf gurus would say the club was laid off — then ripping shots that either sailed left or right, rarely straight. The idea was to work himself back into the proper position to the point he was no longer thinking about mechanics.
Either way, Singh is searching.
The Fijian has gone 15 consecutive PGA Tour starts without a victory, his longest drought in four years.
"I worked really hard last week and worked really hard this week, as well. And I'm making putts now," Singh said Wednesday. "I'm feeling good about my game. Hopefully, I can take it out there and just play now, and not think about what's wrong with my golf swing."
The Players Championship gets under way today, and Singh is not alone in his flaws.
Phil Mickelson failed to win on the West Coast for only the fourth time in his career, and two of those seasons ended without a victory anywhere that year.
At first, he figured it was his putting that held him back. Now he recognizes other chinks.
"I wasn't controlling my misses and shots the way I wanted, and there were a couple of other areas I wanted to improve," Mickelson said. "I wasn't chipping the ball as close as I needed to. So, I spent some quality time on trying to address those needs."
Mickelson hasn't played since a 72-73 weekend at Doral left him in a tie for 12th. He spent four days in San Diego working with Dave Pelz at the Callaway test center, mainly dialing in his practice habits.
Ernie Els continues to limp back from knee surgery that knocked him out the final half of last year. He won in South Africa and lost in a playoff to Tiger Woods at Dubai, but his PGA Tour return has been pedestrian.
Ditto for Retief Goosen, the other member of the "Big Five." One part of his game seems to desert him during tournament week, and he's working harder than ever.
Woods is the only Big Five member to have won this year, capturing PGA Tour events at Torrey Pines and Doral, and winning in Dubai. But he is coming off a tie for 20th at Bay Hill, where he couldn't seem to find the right distance or the right line on his approach shots.
Does that mean none can be considered a favorite on the TPC at Sawgrass?
Not necessarily, but only because The Players Championship doesn't seem to play favorites.
Just look at the diverse list of winners at the tournament known as the fifth major. One year it was Justin Leonard, who doesn't hit it very high or very far but makes do with his irons and putting. The next year it was David Duval, an elite power player who rose to No. 1 in the world when he won The Players Championship in 1999. Adam Scott won at age 23. Fred Funk won at age 48.
Hal Sutton conquered the TPC at Sawgrass with his accuracy. Woods won on his way to completing his own version of the Grand Slam in 2001.
About the only thing they have in common is they drive courtesy cars.
"The way the course is set up, it doesn't favor long hitters, short hitters or medium hitters," Duval said Wednesday morning on the practice range. "It favors good play."
That's largely true any week in golf, although the Pete Dye-designed Stadium Course does the trick without having to be tricked up — at least beyond what's already there, namely that island green for the par-3 17th.
