Firestone a perfect venue for Tiger to regain winning ways

Firestone a perfect venue for Tiger to regain winning ways

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Mark Lamport-Stokes July 31, 2013

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Tiger Woods of the U.S. hits out of the rough on the tenth hole during the final round of the British …


By Mark Lamport-Stokes

AKRON, Ohio (Reuters) - If Tiger Woods could single out a venue most likely to inspire his game, he could do no better than Firestone Country Club which is hosting this week's WGC-Bridgestone Invitational.

Woods has piled up a record seven titles on the heavily tree-lined layout and is aiming to replicate that form over the next four days as he also aims to build momentum for next week's PGA Championship, the final major of the year.

"I've had times where I haven't played well at all coming into this event and for some reason it turns it around," the world number one told reporters on Wednesday on a damp, overcast afternoon at Firestone.

"And sometimes I've played great and it's continued. This is one of those courses where, over the years, I just have felt very comfortable."

A 14-times major champion, Woods has recorded a staggering 11 top-10 finishes in 13 appearances at the elite World Golf Championships (WGC) event, including 10 in a row.

"I've done it all different ways, that's the thing," said the 37-year-old American. "Some years I've striped it and have really played well, and other years I've hit it all over the lot and had to be creative.

"I've chipped and putted and holed out. It's been such a mixed bag, and I think that's what happens when you win that many times. You can't always do it the same way."

Though Woods has triumphed a season-high four times on the 2013 PGA Tour, he arrived at Firestone frustrated after a wasted opportunity to win the British Open 12 days ago.

He ended up in a tie for sixth at Muirfield in Scotland where his bid for a first major in five years unraveled in the final round as he closed with a three-over-par 74.

"I had it, I had a chance to win and didn't quite get it done on Sunday," Woods said. "There were so many positives to the week, how well I hit it and how well I played.

"The only difference is I just didn't get the feel of those greens the last few days, and I didn't make the adjustments.


"That's my fault for not making the adjustments. You've got to make the adjustments and I didn't do it, and consequently I didn't win the tournament."

VACATION TIME

Since that disappointing Muirfield finish, Woods enjoyed some vacation time in the Bahamas with his two children before playing a practice round on Tuesday at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, New York, venue for next week's PGA Championship.

"I was with the kids, and we were just having a great time," he said. "I got away from the game and just had a whole bunch of fun with them.

"Physically I'm good. I don't have as much energy as (his children) Sam and Charlie, but I feel pretty good."

Asked how well Firestone would serve as preparation for next week at Oak Hill, Woods replied: "It is very similar, straightforward, right in front of you.

"This golf course, I don't think, is as hard or as difficult as Oak Hill, especially with the green complexes. The green complexes are a little bit more severe at Oak Hill.

"But overall it's old-school golf. It's just right in front of you, no hidden tricks out there. You've just got to go out there and really hit the ball well."

Woods will play the first two rounds at Firestone in the company of exciting 21-year-old Japanese Hideki Matsuyama, who also tied for sixth at the British Open and has already triumphed three times on his home tour.

"It's going to be fun," said Woods. "I've never played with him. I've seen him out here hitting balls, and I just did a little interview with Rory (McIlroy) who played with him the first two days at the Open Championship.

"He (McIlroy) says he (Matsuyama) hits it great, hits it long and he's in that next generation of young kids coming up. He's 21. Rory is an old guy now," smiled Woods, referring to the 24-year-old Northern Irishman.

(Reporting by Mark Lamport-Stokes; Editing by Julian Linden)

Trevino to receive 2013 PGA Distinguished Service Award

Trevino to receive 2013 PGA Distinguished Service Award

PGA.COM August 5, 2013







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Lee Trevino is the 2013 recipient of the PGA Distinguished Service Award.(Getty Images)



By PGA of America PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. -- Six-time major champion Lee Trevino, arguably golf's most engaging personality as a competitor while quietly conducting a tireless philanthropic life, will receive the 2013 recipient of the PGA Distinguished Service Award, Wednesday, Aug. 7, at the Rochester Riverside Convention Center. The ceremony begins at 8 p.m. A member of the World Golf Hall of Fame, Trevino, 73, will receive the Association's highest annual honor in conjunction with the 95th PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, N.Y., the site of his first Tour triumph, the 1968 U.S. Open. The PGA Distinguished Service Award, inaugurated in 1988, honors outstanding individuals who display leadership and humanitarian qualities, including integrity, sportsmanship and enthusiasm for the game of golf. "Lee Trevino is the classic rags-to-riches story in golf. Throughout his life, Lee has never lost sight of his roots and his humble beginnings," said PGA of America President Ted Bishop. "He was a self-made player who persevered and won championships because he owned his golf swing. He has spent countless hours during his life helping others. In the history of The PGA of America, no one has appreciated or valued membership in our Association more than Lee. He is the quintessential PGA Professional - player, teacher, and humanitarian. "It is only fitting that we honor Lee Trevino with The PGA's highest award this year, a season where major championships will be conducted at Merion, Muirfield, and Oak Hill - venues where he won majors. I can't wait to give Lee this prestigious award." Born Lee Buck Trevino in Dallas, Texas, he was raised by his mother and grandfather, a gravedigger. Trevino began picking cotton when he was 5, and advanced to picking up golf balls before he joined the caddie yard. He left school at age 14, helping raise money for his family. Trevino lived nearGlen Lakes Country Club in Dallas, across from the seventh hole, in a little house with his grandfather, mother, uncle and two sisters. There was no running water or electricity. Before he would become a major force in golf, Trevino defeated all comers on a par-3 course with a taped-up Dr Pepper bottle, and went on to spend four years in the U.S. Marine Corps. Turning professional in 1960, Trevino's golf talent was spotted by PGA Life Member Bill Eschenbrenner of El Paso, Texas, who was among a group playing Mondays at the former Horizon Hills Country Club. It was there that Trevino stayed in a small motel on the property, worked behind the golf shop counter and managed the practice range. "When I saw what a great talent he was, I told Lee that I would help him get his PGA card, which was the requirement at that time to play on the Tour," said Eschenbrenner, the 2005 PGA Golf Professional of the Year, who ultimately signed the documents verifying that Trevino was eligibly employed. "The PGA meant everything to Lee then, and it does now. Lee has been a giver all his life. He had those who helped him get his start in life, and he has not forgotten that. He gives back in so many ways." Joining the PGA Tour at 27, Trevino captured the first of his two U.S. Open Championships in 1968 at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, N.Y., the first of four times when legendaryJack Nicklaus finished second to him in a major. Trevino went on to win 29 times, including six majors - the 1968 and 1971 U.S. Open; the 1974 and '84 PGA Championship; and the 1971 and '72 Open Championship. He competed on six U.S. Ryder Cup Teams in three separate decades (1969, '71, '73, '75, '79, '81), posting a 17-7-6 record, and went on to serve as U.S. Captain in 1985. He was the 1971 PGA of America Player of the Year and won five Vardon Trophies for season scoring excellence (1970, '71, '72,'74, and '80). In a remarkable four-week period in 1971, Trevino won in succession - the U.S. Open, Canadian Open and the Open Championship. At the height of his career, he was one of three players struck by lightning on June 27, 1975, at the Western Open. Though it severely hindered his game, he battled back through a series of operations and won 29 more titles on the Champions Tour, a run that included the 1992 and 1994 Senior PGA Championships. "I can't tell you how much I have cherished The PGA, and what it meant to have the start I had by having that card in 1967," said Trevino. "I'm as loyal as any individual to The PGA, an organization whose members are called upon to do everything that you can think of - whether it's growing the game, building courses, working behind the counter or playing." Trevino has maintained a passionate, yet behind-the-scenes philanthropic life, led by his affection for the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, sparked through donations from winning three former Danny Thomas Memphis Classic (now St. Jude Classic) titles. On July 30, 2001, Trevino recorded a hole-in-one in the Par-3 Shootout in Gaylord, Mich., and donated $500,000 to the hospital. He was the 1971 National Christmas Seal Sports Ambassador, a member of the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports and the National Multiple Sclerosis Society Sports Committee. He supported the Boy Scouts of America and its Circle 10 initiative in Dallas. For more than 25 years, Trevino has been virtually on call for countless charities, agreeing to be "auctioned" to a donor, then playing golf with groups throughout the country. Those charities assist underprivileged children, shelters for abused women, and disease prevention and research. Trevino also is an avid supporter of the military, appearing in recruiting announcements for the U.S. Marines, and participating in the Stater Bros. Heroes Challenge in Riverside, Calif., which benefits families of Congressional Medal of Honor recipients.Lee and Claudia Trevino live in Dallas, Texas. They are parents of a daughter, Olivia, a University of Southern California graduate, now employed at Southern Methodist University, and a son, Daniel, a junior-to-be at USC. Trevino also has a son, Richard, who is a businessman in Pensacola, Fla.; a son Tony, a PGAgeneral manager at Heritage Ranch in Fairview, Texas; and a daughter Troy Liana, a fitness field project manager in Lewisville, Texas. Trevino has eight grandchildren and one great grandchild. PGA Distinguished Service Award Recipients: 1988 -- Herb Graffis 1989 -- Bob Hope 1990 -- No recipient 1991 -- The Hon. Gerald Ford 1992 -- Gene Sarazen 1993 -- Byron Nelson 1994 -- Arnold Palmer 1995 -- Patty Berg 1996 -- Frank Chirkinian 1997 -- The Hon. George H.W. Bush 1998 -- Paul Runyan 1999 -- Bill Dickey 2000 -- Jack Nicklaus 2001 -- Mark McCormack 2002 -- Tim Finchem 2003 -- Vince Gill 2004 -- Pete Dye 2005 -- Wally Uihlein 2006 -- Fred Ridley 2007 -- Jack Burke Jr. 2008 -- Dennis Walters 2009 -- William Powell 2010 --Billy Casper 2011 -- Larry Nelson 2012 -- Dave Stockton 2013 -- Lee Trevino About The PGA of AmericaSince its founding in 1916, The PGA of America has maintained a twofold mission: to establish and elevate the standards of the profession and to grow interest and participation in the game of golf. By establishing and elevating the standards of the golf profession through world-class education, career services, marketing and research programs, The PGA enables its professionals to maximize their performance in their respective career paths and showcases them as experts in the game and in the multi-billion dollar golf industry. By creating and delivering world-class championships and innovative programs, The PGA of America elevates the public's interest in the game, the desire to play more golf, and ensures accessibility to the game for everyone, everywhere. As The PGA nears its centennial, the PGA brand represents the very best in golf.

Volunteers plant trees for PGA Championship

Volunteers plant trees for PGA Championship

PGA.COM August 5, 2013







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30 volunteers helped plant 33 trees in a project that offset paper usage at the 95th PGA Championship, …


By Bob Denney, The PGA of America

PENFIELD, N.Y. - John Gagel of Lexington, Ky., and Tony LaFountain of Penfield, N.Y., had never met before this week, but they share a bond for what happens when corporate America strikes the right chord with a small town.

Gagel, the Sustainability Manager for Lexmark International Inc., and LaFountain, the Penfield Town Supervisor, gathered at Rothfuss Park, grabbed a shovel and dug a little deeper on a cool, windy Sunday to help give back more than a token offering for generations to come.

Volunteers from the community of Penfield, The PGA of America, Lexmark and Nature Conservancy planted 33 trees - 18 American Elm and 15 White Swamp Oak - on the 70-acre property that was once farmland. The planting did more than offset the impact of printing and paper products generated over the course of the 95th PGA Championship, Aug. 5-11, at nearby Oak Hill Country Club.

The project, the third collaborative effort between The PGA of America and Lexmark in conjunction with a PGA-sanctioned spectator championship, also restores shade to recreational participants at the park, increases native habitat, and improves storm water management by helping the soil absorb moisture during heavy rains.


"The Town of Penfield is grateful for this partnership," said LaFountain, who was instrumental in the late 1990s in helping the town of 36,000 purchase the acquisition rights to the land from the Rothfuss family, which had farmed the property near a 1,000-acre swamp for decades. "There are similar efforts around the country where a town or city council wants to go it alone. We are proud of teaming years ago to preserve this land, building a great park for everyone and today celebrating what can be done by building relationships with organizations like The PGA of America, Lexmark and The Nature Conservancy."

The event follows the PGA of America's commitment to benefit the host communities that support its Championships. The PGA and Lexmark partnered for a similar event prior to the 2012 Ryder Cup and last May near St. Louis, prior to the 75th Senior PGA Championship presented by KitchenAid.

PGA Secretary Paul Levy of Indian Wells, Calif., said "as a PGA member, days like today are so special for me. The oaks and elms that we plant offset the paper use this week during the PGA Championship. The bigger message is that these trees are going to be beneficial for the well-being of this community, well beyond this major golf championship.

"The fact is that we're doing some real good here, and I know that for The PGA of America, it means a lot to leave a lasting legacy wherever we go."

Lexmark International, headquartered in Lexington, Ky., is the Official Printing Technology Provider of The PGA of America, is a founding member of The Nature Conservancy's Corporate Sustainability Council.

"The fact that The PGA of America is supporting these events is indeed a special legacy that can be repeated around the country," said Gagel. "This partnership takes our efforts to a new level."

Jan Miller, a senior philanthropy officer for The Nature Conservancy said the tree planting "is what can take place through the power of collaboration. We hope that it will continue to make all our mutual projects as successful."

Tom LaMarre, The Sports Xchange August 5, 2013The SportsXchange

Golf glance
Tom LaMarre, The Sports Xchange August 5, 2013The SportsXchange









PGA TOUR: 95th PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, N.Y., Thursday through Sunday.

TV: Thursday and Friday, 1-7 p.m. EDT on TNT; Saturday and Sunday, 11 a.m.-2 p.m. EDT on TNT, 2-7 p.m. EDT on CBS.

LAST YEAR: Rory McIlroy took a three-stroke lead into the final round and pulled away with a 6-under-par 66 on the Ocean Course at Kiawah Island to claim his second major title by a record eight strokes over David Lynn of England. McIlroy, who also captured the 2011 U.S. Open by eight shots at Congressional, did not card a bogey over his last 23 holes at Kiawah Island and finished with an exclamation point, holing a 25-foot birdie putt on the final hole. The 23-year-old Irishman became the youngest player to claim two major titles since the late Seve Ballesteros, who won the 1979 Open Championship at Royal Lytham & St. Annes followed by the 1980 Masters, four days after he turned 23. McIlroy opened with a 67. He posted a second-round 75 in extremely windy conditions when 71 was the best score, and he took command with another 67 in round three.



CHAMPIONS TOUR: Dick's Sporting Goods Open at En-Joie Golf Club in Endicott, N.Y., August 16-18.

TV: Friday, 11 p.m.-1 a.m. EDT; Saturday and Sunday, 9-11 p.m. EDT, on the Golf Channel all three days.

LAST YEAR: Willie Wood sank a 35-foot birdie putt on the final hole of regulation to close out a 4-under-par 68 and force a playoff, which he won with a par on the first extra hole when Michael Allen hit his tee shot into the water. Wood, whose only victory on the PGA Tour came in the 1996 Deposit Guaranty Golf Classic, earned his first title on the Champions Tour and added another later in the year, when he captured the Pacific Links Hawaii Championship. Allen recorded bookend 66s, taking the clubhouse lead with birdies on two of the last three holes before Wood caught him. John Huston took a one-stroke lead into the final round after starting with 65-67, but he stumbled to 77 in the final round and plummeted to a tie for 20th.



LPGA TOUR: The 13th Solheim Cup at Colorado Golf Club in Parker, Colo., August 16-18.

TV: Friday, 9:30 a.m.-3 p.m. and 5-9 p.m. EDT; Saturday, 9:30 a.m.-9 p.m EDT, and Sunday, 2:30-8:30 p.m. EDT, on the Golf Channel all three days.

2011: The Europeans claimed a 7-5 margin in Sunday singles at Killeen Castle Golf Club in Dunsany, County Meath, Ireland, to take a 15-13 victory and end a streak of three consecutive defeats to the United States. The Americans lead the series 8-4. Catriona Matthew of Scotland got the Euros going on the final day by routing Paula Creamer, 6 and 5, and Sophie Gustafson of Sweden followed with a 2-up victory over Stacy Lewis after Cristie Kerr was forced to default to Karen Stupples of England because of a right wrist injury. Victories by Morgan Pressel, Vicky Hurst, Brittany Lang and Christina Kim put the U.S. back ahead, but the Europeans took control by going 2-0-1 in the last three matches, with victories by Suzann Pettersen of Norway and Azahara Munoz of Spain. Munoz supplied the winning point with a 1-up victory over Angela Stanford.

Rose in special company for title bid at Oak Hill

Rose in special company for title bid at Oak Hill

Mark Lamport-Stokes August 7, 2013







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England's Justin Rose hits from the sixth tee during a practice round for the 2013 PGA Championship golf …


By Mark Lamport-Stokes

ROCHESTER, New York (Reuters) - U.S. Open winner Justin Rose will tee off at this week's PGA Championship in very special company as he bids to transform what has already been "a fantastic year" for him into an "incredible" one.

In keeping with tradition, the season's first three major champions are grouped together for the opening two rounds so Rose will play alongside Australian Adam Scott (Masters) and American Phil Mickelson (British Open) at Oak Hill Country Club.

"I'm in the fortunate position of playing in that group that everyone wants to be in," English world number four Rose told reporters on Wednesday about starting the year's final major on Thursday in illustrious company.

"I'm really looking forward to the experience for the first time and looking to really turn a fantastic year into an incredible one.

"Obviously the more accomplished you become as a player, the more you really single out the major championships. And the more times you get to the U.S. PGA, the more you realize it's your last chance of the season to make it a fantastic year."

Making Rose's draw at Oak Hill even tastier is the fact that he and Scott are good friends while the Englishman and Mickelson have competed against one another more than once in recent years on some of golf's biggest stages.

"Adam is a great friend of mine, and I couldn't have been happier when he won the Masters," Rose said of Scott's victory in April at Augusta National where he became the first Australian to claim the year's first major.

"And to follow him as a major champion was sort of icing on the cake really.

"Beating Phil at the U.S. Open, obviously with his record there, I was delighted to win, but you have to feel for Phil in that situation, too. So I was also happy for him to win the (British) Open championship."


SECOND AGAIN

American left-hander Mickelson had to settle for a record sixth runner-up spot in the U.S. Open, finishing two strokes behind Rose at Merion after bogeying three of the last six holes.

"Phil and I have had some good golf over the last eight or nine months, if you include the Ryder Cup," said Rose, referring to his one-up victory over the American in the Cup singles at Medinah last year.

"We've had some nice head-to-head battles and had some fun out on the golf course. So for me, it's a really, really fun pairing the next couple of days."

Long regarded as one of the game's top players, Rose believes he is well equipped to avoid the lengthy dip in form experienced by several first-time major winners in recent years.

"I haven't particularly gotten any advice from the other guys or anything like that, but I'm aware of that not being the case for me," he said. "I feel like I've made those adjustments myself.

"I felt uncomfortable talking about Merion and just keep celebrating that win, I just didn't feel right. I feel like it's something to look back on at the end of my career.

"All of us at this point in our careers need to have our heads down, need to play as hard as you can, need to amass as much success as you can.

"And you look back at it in 10, 15 years time and think, 'That was good, that was bad, I could have done more, I should have done this, should have done that.' But only at that point are you really going to know what you can achieve."

Rose, Mickelson and Scott are scheduled to tee off at 1:45 p.m. (1745 GMT) in Thursday's opening round at Oak Hill.

(Editing by Frank Pingue)

Eighteen isn't only number Tiger Woods is chasing

Eighteen isn't only number Tiger Woods is chasing

Eric Adelson August 7, 2013Yahoo! Sports











ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Eighteen, eighteen, eighteen.

That number is so tied up in Tiger Woods talk that it might as well be embroidered on the back of his Sunday red shirts. The legacy of the No. 1 golfer in the world is inextricably tied to whether he can matchJack Nicklaus with 18 major championships. Woods has 14 now.

But there is another number looming out there:

100.

With his win last weekend, Woods now has 79 career PGA Tour wins, three shy of Sam Snead's all-time record of 82. With 21 more, Woods would become the first player in history to win 100. Woods has plenty of time to do it. And three players asked on Wednesday – Tom Watson, Rory McIlroy and Justin Rose – all think he can get there.

[Related: Scary moment when autograph seekers surge toward Tiger Woods]

"What's that, 21 more to get to 100?" Rose said. "And how old is he? 37? Yeah, I think he'll probably get to 100."

Woods has won five tournaments this year already. If he averages five per year going forward, he'll get to 100 well before he's Phil Mickelson's age (43). Five tournaments a year is not a reasonable pace, but it's not like Woods is going to retire in his early 40s. If he plays for another decade – remember Nicklaus won a major at 46 – he can get to 100 averaging 2.1 wins a year. Snead won his 79th tournament at age 47. Woods is actually closer to 100 wins (he's 79-percent of the way there) than he is to 18 majors (77 percent).

Now the question is: What would be more impressive? Eighteen majors or 100 tournament wins?

It might be the latter.

"How many players on Tour have won five tournaments in a season?" Watson asked Wednesday. "Count 'em up."




Tiger Woods celebrates his win in the WGC Invitational, the 79th victory of his career. (REUTERS)Since 1990, only Nick Price and Vijay Singh have done it. Woods has done it 10 times. No one else has ever done it more than eight times. That's not just getting into contention; it's winning. In his career, Woods has held at least a share of the lead going into the final round of 57 tournaments – a feat in itself – and he's won 53 of them.



"It did strike me once," Rose said, "where the PGA Toursent out a tweet and it was a simple tweet with WWWWW, so on, and I looked at this sea of Ws and I looked at the first five Ws and thought, 'That's my career.' Made it look somewhat, you know, less impressive."

More impressive: There have been only 10 golfers in history with 40 Tour wins, and Woods has nearly twice that amount. Nicklaus won 73 in 25 seasons, while Woods has won 79 in 18 – and that includes his recent three-year drought.

No offense to Snead or Nicklaus, but the game has changed. A lot of the courses have been lengthened, club technology has been improved, the science of the swing has been perfected, and training has intensified. Many of the top golfers today work out like elite athletes. That's part of why the last 20 majors have had 18 different winners.

"The depths of the game, everyone is so much closer," said McIlroy. "You line up the top 100 guys on the range, and you can't tell the difference."

And Woods keeps winning, even now, even after several surgeries and swing alterations.

"The level of consistency that he's had throughout his career," McIlroy said, "even with a couple of swing changes, having a couple of periods where he didn't play much, to win the amount he has and to wintournaments with three completely different golf swings, it's incredible."

And it's not like Woods hasn't won majors. As we all know, he has more of those than all but one other golfer in history. If he gets to 100 without getting to 18, he'll still have a healthy portion of his wins coming at the top events. Only three golfers in history have won 10 or more majors, and Arnold Palmer, Ben Hogan and Sam Snead are not among them. If Woods gets to 100 total, he'll have 18 more wins than the next winningest golfer, and fewer than 50 golfers in PGA Tour history have won 18 tournaments total.

One hundred is still far in the future, though. For now, the obsession is with 18. And rightfully so, since Woods himself is obsessed with 18.

Just keep in mind that even if Woods doesn't get to that magic number by the end of his career, he can still be the player of the century.

Rose ready to put US Open in rearview mirror

Rose ready to put US Open in rearview mirror


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PAUL NEWBERRY (AP National Writer) August 7, 2013AP - Sports








PITTSFORD, N.Y. (AP) -- Justin Rose started the week at Oak Hill with an errant drive.

Literally.

The U.S. Open champion was involved in a fender-bender near the course, though no one was hurt.

''I guess accidents are accidents,'' he said Wednesday. ''You can never know exactly quite why they happened. I figured I looked left, I looked right, (had) the gap to cross the road to turn left, and a car essentially came out of nowhere. So it was one of those situations where, unfortunately, hit the front left and a bit of a dink. Obviously, it's embarrassing.''

Wreck aside, Rose feels more at ease coming into the PGA Championship.

He's ready to start competing for another major title, rather than just savoring his first.


''I feel like it's something to look back on at the end of my career,'' Rose said Wednesday, one day before the start of the year's final major. ''All of us at this point in our career need to have our heads down, need to play as hard as you can, need to amass as much success as you can. And you look back at it in 10, 15 years' time and think, 'That was good, that was bad, I could have done more, I should have done this, should have done that.' Only at that point are you really going to know what you can achieve.''

Sure, he's still relishing the idea of being a major champion. It was a big relief to remove that hole in his resume. And, used properly, it should give him a sense of confidence coming into the PGA, proving he can hit all the right shots on a pressure-filled Sunday at one of golf's biggest events.

But he's got to use it the right way.

Clearly, Rose had not moved past his triumph at Merion when he played in the British Open three weeks ago. He was in no shape to handle the rigors of Muirfield, failing to even make the cut.

''I wasn't ready with my body,'' he conceded. ''I wasn't ready with my game.''

Rose spent extensive time back home in England after winning the U.S. Open, which cut into his normal workouts and practice time. While it was a joyous time, catching up with family and friends who were there for much of his journey, it also was an experience that left him a bit uncomfortable.
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Justin Rose, of England, tees off on the eighth hole during a practice round for the PGA Championshi …

''I think it's the back-slapping you get from everybody, which is obviously very nice,'' he said. ''But it also in some ways can prevent you from staying fully focused on what's ahead. People want to keep talking about Merion.''

Coming into Oak Hill, he's been able to get back into his regular routine. The trophy is stashed away at home, where it should be. Rose can certainly reflect on his accomplishment in the quiet times, but his main focus is on winning another major.

He doesn't want to be a player who was one-and-done.

''I feel like I'm back to being disciplined,'' Rose said. ''I feel like I'm back to being really in the present and motivated for the rest of the year.''

Per custom at the PGA, Rose will get the honor of playing the first two days in a group with the other major champions from this year, British Open winner Phil Mickelson and Masters winner Adam Scott.

''I'm really looking forward to that experience for the first time,'' Rose said, ''and looking to really turn a fantastic year into an incredible one.''

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Follow Paul Newberry on Twitter at www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963