Houston, we have a problem
On The Tee: Phil Skips Practice
Here's the thing about the Shell Houston Open. It couldn't get Tiger Woods in the field when it was held at the end of April and it cannot get Woods when it moves to the week before the Masters. It couldn't even get Phil Mickelson to play, even though he loves to play the week before major championships. Mickelson said he never even considered playing at Redstone GC's tournament course this week even though the tournament directors have tried to set the course up to resemble the tough conditions at Augusta National. Why won't Mickelson play Houston even though they have shaved banks, shallow rough and fast greens? Because they have Bermuda greens.
The tournament also couldn't entice Vijay Singh back into town even though he has won the event three times in the last five years. Singh does sometimes play the week before the majors -- he won the Barclays Classic the week before last year's U.S. Open, but he hasn't played the week before the Masters since 2002.
Ernie Els isn't playing this week either, although the Big Easy could have used more tournament time to acclimate himself to his new Callaway clubs. Instead he'll head to the Masters content that he extended his consecutive cuts-made streak to 46 with a uninspired T-11 at Doral. Els' South African compatriot, Retief Goosen, who probably needs the work more than Els, has opted out of the Houston Open as well. The ninth-ranked player in the world, Goosen is T-23 on tour in putts per GIR. Which is a good thing because the Goose is 70th in distance, 78th in scoring, 118th in birdies, 131st in all-around rank, 136th in accuracy and 179th in greens hit. Oh, and 114th in Fed-Ex Cup points.
Sergio Garcia is not playing, although those following him on the tee sheet are probably happy that's the case, especially since the Spaniard still misses too many putts from short distances. Not having won a major by now is not what we expectorated out of Garcia when he first burst onto the scene at the 1999 PGA. He hasn't come within spitting distance of winning a major since then.
Geoff Ogilvy isn't playing in Houston. It's probably a good idea for the reigning U.S. Open champ to skip it. After a tough start to the year, Ogilvy has finished second and T-3 in the last two WGC events and has quietly gotten himself turned around for a Masters run. Houston would give him a better shot at a victory, though, as no Australian has won the Masters while several have won the Shell Houston Open, including Stuart Appleby and Robert Allenby in recent years and Bruce Crampton oh, so long ago.
Colin Montgomerie is not playing, which only makes sense when you consider the Scot attended, but never matriculated from, Houston Baptist University. I can only guess he had enough of Texas.
Roger Clemens is not even playing in Houston. For that matter neither are Andy Pettitte, Jeff Bagwell or Cesar Cedeno. But Craig Biggio, the other half of the Astros famed Killer B's, is playing. No, not the golf tournament, of course, but with the Houston Astros for his 20th year. With 3,000 hits within his reach this year (he's 70 away), Biggio has at least another year before he joins Clemens on the pro-am golf circuit.
Twenty years in Houston isn't as long as Fred Couples has played in Houston, but it's pretty close -- Couples, by the way, isn't playing this week either. And 20 years is certainly more than Jim Nantz has played there, although for the broadcaster and former college teammate of Couples at the University of Houston, calling the Super Bowl, the Final Four and the Masters in a three-month stretch is pretty impressive indeed.
K.J. Choi: Choi lives in The Woodlands, Texas, former site of the Shell Houston Open, and he plays well at Redstone, finishing T-6 a year ago.
Jose Maria Olazabal: Ollie plays well the week before the Masters -- he was T-3 at the BellSouth Classic the last two years -- and well at Houston, where he has finished T-3 the last two times he played the event. That's a pretty tough quinella to beat.
Bubba Watson: Because a lefty has won the week before the Masters the last two years. Since Mickelson is not playing, this year's lefty has to be Watson, Erix Axley or Steve Flesch. No, Nick O'Hern isn't playing, either.
John Antonini is a senior editor for Golf World magazine.
David Toms: Just to show that there are some top names in Houston this week. Toms even assisted Rees Jones with designing Redstone's 7,457-yard tournament course.
