SB Nation User Blog: Thomas Rooney

Harrington: It’s time to honour Seve

Thomas Rooney — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 11:20:14 -0000

Padraig Harrington has criticised golf administrators for not doing enough in recent months to honour Seve Ballesteros. The Irishman believes that the 51-year-old should be given more recognition for what he has done during his professional golf career.

Harrington believes that the Spaniard, who is currently in the process of recovering from a brain tumour, should be made an ambassador of the European Tour.

The Irish golfer believes that it is ‘a shame’ that in recent years, Ballesteros has not been leading out the European Tour as an ambassador. According to Harrington, this is something that he would be ideally suited to considering his undoubted ‘charisma’.

Harrington then went on to say that Ballesteros’ absence from the golf course in recent times helps you see ‘how much he is missed’. Therefore, upon his return, Harrington hopes that the Tour can ‘build more of a relationship with him’.

This is definitely something that should be done. Ballesteros is respected all over the world and I’m pretty sure that not one person would have a bad word to say about him. Like Harrington hints, it is wrong that he hasn’t been a dominant figure for the European Tour in recent years.

As for Harrington, well he is also a man who has his opinion respected nowadays. That is why so much has been made of these comments. He has had a fantastic 2008 and this has resulted in him being listened to all over the world. Every golf fan knows who he is and every golf fans is interested in his opinions.

The golf odds may even expect something to happen with regards to these latest comments. That’s how much Harrington is thought of in terms of European golf right now.

By Thomas Rooney – A sports writer who blogs about golf betting

Mickelson hits back at New Zealand caddy

Thomas Rooney — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 12:00:47 -0000

This isn’t the type of story that is enjoyable to write about, but it is worth noting that Phil Mickelson has responded to Steve Williams claims that he was a ‘prick’.

Speaking at a charity event, Williams made it clear that he didn’t particularly like the World number three and also hinted that he relationship between Mickelson and Tiger Woods – who Williams has worked for in the past – has always been a frosty one.

Williams went on to say that Mickelson ‘pays me no respect’ and therefore, he doesn’t pay him any either. It’s like an argument in the Big Brother house or something isn’t it?!

Anyway, unsurprisingly, like I have mentioned – Mickelson has refused to let things lie by responding to the rather offensive comments made about him. The American says that the only thing he could think of after hearing Williams’ views was how ‘lucky’ he was to have a ‘class act’ like Jim Mackay representing him as his caddie.

Mickelson then went on to label a story about him told by Williams as ‘total fabrication’. The caddy claimed that a spectator at this year's US Open continuously heckled Mickelson for his weight, but according to the golfer himself, ‘Williams was not present’ when this alleged incident took place.

Overall, this all seems ridiculous to me. What is Williams trying to achieve by being so childish? Phil Mickelson has been around long enough to not let anything like this affect him. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if it motivated him even more to have a successful 2009.

Something that would be interesting would be to get Woods views on all this. Even though it is fairly well known that Mickelson and Woods don’t see eye to eye though, I wouldn’t place a golf bet on him condoning Williams’ comments. He is more professional than that.

By Thomas Rooney - A sports writer who blogs about golf betting

Sweden pip Spain to World Cup glory

Thomas Rooney — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 09:52:52 -0000

Robert Karlsson and Henrik Stenson were the men of the moment as Sweden fought back from a three shot deficit to secure a fantastic World Cup victory at Mission Hills in China.

The Swedes manages to see off the challenge of Spain’s Miguel Angel Jimenez and Pablo Larrazabal by firing an impressive nine-under 63 in the final round of the tournament.

Before the tournament had got underway, the golf odds heavily favoured a victory for Sweden. However, going into the final day, they trailed Spain and Australia by four shots, making their win all the more dramatic.

Karlsson and Stenson recorded five early birdies to storm their way up the leader board and from this moment – they never looked back. Australia were out of the running because of a poor final round and Sweden managed a further four birdies on the back nine to see off the challenge of Spain.

Speaking about the victory, Karlsson and Stenson – who were the highest ranked players in the tournament – both admitted that winning for their country was ‘nice’.

In terms of the rest of the leader board, Japan and Australia finished tied for third, Germany settled for fifth place and England managed 6th place despite a rather frustrating final round in China.

As for the USA, well they finished 9th after Ben Curtis and Brandt Snedeker shot a final round of 73 to leave them 14 shots of the lead. Perhaps the most surprising element of the day though was that Scotland – who were the defending champions – finished tied for 19th place.

The day belonged to Sweden though and their ever impressive duo of Robert Karlsson and Henrik Stenson. They showed their quality on the final day to continue a fine season for them both.

By Thomas Rooney – A sports writer who blogs about golf betting

Singh the surprise winner in Singapore

Thomas Rooney — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 09:25:37 -0000

The presence of major winners Padraig Harrington and Ernie Els was not enough to put off India’s Jeev Milka Singh as he emerged victorious in the Singapore Open after a final round of 69.

Singh held off the pressure from Els and Harrington who eventually finished one stroke behind the Indian. The key moment in the final round was when Harrington double bogeyed the 16th, something not normally associated with the Irishman at such a crucial stage.

He and Els both then had chances to take the tournament to a play-off, but they both missed their birdie putts to hand Singh the win. Rory McIlroy and David Gleeson were the men to share 4th placed after recording impressive final rounds.

It was a completely different story at the start of the final day though as Thailand's Chapchai Nirat held a three shot lead over the rest of the field. However, he made a number of costly errors and struggled his way to a 78.

In the latter stages, it was clear that the victory was going to either Singh, Else or Harrington and in fairness, the golf odds probably favoured one of the latter. I guess that makes Singh’s victory all the more commendable - he held his own when it mattered.

Speaking about his win, he said that he felt like a very ‘fortunate man’ because the ‘golfing gods’ were on his side during the last few holes. Harrington was full of praise for his conqueror and revealed that despite missing out on the win he was still ’delighted’ with the year he has had.

As for Singh, well the 36-year-old will be over the moon with his efforts on the last day at the Sentosa club. He did ride his luck at times, but that takes nothing away from the fact that he held off the challenge of some of the biggest names in golf.

By Thomas Rooney - A sports writer who blogs about golf betting

Harrington could ‘do more’ says Alliss

Thomas Rooney — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 20:42:52 -0000

Veteran golf pundit Peter Alliss believes that after a fantastic 2008, Irish golfer Padraig Harrington can achieve even more in the coming years. Harrington has won two majors in this calendar year and has enjoyed some of the best months of his career as a professional golfer.

Just to recap, it is worth noting the remarkable achievements of Harrington during 2008. He has cemented himself as one of the world’s finest golfers by not only retaining his British Open title, but by going on to win the US PGA Championship as well. These back-to-back wins were against many golf odds and surely mean things can’t get any better for the Irishman?

Well, Alliss is of the opinion that they can. Even though Tiger Woods will be returning to the course next year, he firmly believes that Harrington will continue to challenge for several major honours. Alliss says that due to the player’s ‘hard work, dedication and skill’ he has achieved ‘wonderous things' in the last year and that because of these attributes he can undoubtedly go on and ‘do more’.

Something Alliss touched upon and I would like to emphasise is the change of attitude as far as Harrington is concerned. For the first time in his career, he believes in his own ability and is going out onto the course knowing that he is the man to beat. In the past this was something he wouldn’t have enjoyed, but now – I think he is loving every second.

As much as 2008 will be a year that Harrington will remember for a long time, he needs to use it as a platform for greater things rather than settling for it as the highlight of his career. At 37 years of age, he still has many years of professional golf ahead of him and there is no doubt he can win plenty more trophies.

Perhaps in years to come he will look back on 2008 as they year where he really started playing like the respected, world-class golfer we all know he can be.

By Thomas Rooney – A sports writer who blogs about golf betting

Quiros dedicates victory to Ballesteros

Thomas Rooney — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 10:23:31 -0000

After winning the Portuguese masters yesterday, Alvaro Quiros only had one thing on his mind. It wasn’t how much money he had won and it wasn’t how he fired an impressive 68 in the final round to seal victory. Instead, he had words of encouragement for Seve Ballesteros who is in the process of recovering from surgery on a brain tumour.

Quiros has dedicated his victory to his fellow Spaniard and like everyone associated with the game of golf, is wishing Ballesteros well. For many people he has been an inspiration. Ballesteros is a legend and Qurios, of course, knows this. It was very obvious about how much Qurios admires Ballesteros and it goes without saying that he wishes him a speedy recovery.

It has to be said that the whole weekend in Portugal was slightly overshadowed by the news surrounding Ballesteros. The golf had to take a back seat as people waited for news about the health of the Spaniard. Several golfers during the tournament were constantly in searching for updates, with Jean van de Velde describing the situation as ‘terrible’.

I have mentioned this before, but the word most used to describe Ballesteros is ‘inspiration’. It is a word banded about too often these days, but for Ballesteros it is very appropriate.

The fact that the European tour heads to Spain next for the final event of the year is very significant. It will bring the whole situation even closer to home and I’m pretty sure that whoever emerges victorious will have some words of praise for Seve Ballesteros.

By Thomas Rooney – A sports writer who blogs about golf betting

Woods determined to return stronger than ever

Thomas Rooney — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 10:26:09 -0000

Despite not hitting a golf ball in anger since his famous US Open victory in June, Tiger Woods believes that when he does return to professional golf, he will do so playing 'better than ever'. His performance, while clearly injured, to defeat Rocco Mediate in the US Open will take some topping, but Woods is certain that this break from the game will work in his favour.

In terms of when this eagerly anticipated return happens - well, he's not too sure. It has already been confirmed that he will miss the remainder of 2008 after having reconstructive anterior cruciate ligament surgery on his knee. However, according to the man himself, the rehabilitation is going well and he wil 'hit a few balls in January' to see how that feels.

Woods admits that he couldn't put a date on a return though, claiming that if he attempted a golf shot now - it would be one of the 'worst shots you'd ever seen'. I guess, it is a case of waiting for everything to fall in to place. Woods has to be physically and mentally ready to return. Something I would place a lot of my golf betting money on is the fact that he won't come back into competitive action until he is 100% ready.

After claiming that he will be better than ever, he wouldn't want to come back and disappoint. There is bound to be large media interest surrounding the tournament which he returns in and Tiger Woods being Tiger Woods - he will want to put on a show. He can't afford to come back only to get injured again as this wouldn't do him any good at all.

Being patient will be difficult for Woods though as he admits that he is missing the game very much. He is not a fan of watching golf on the television and because he is 'addicted to playing golf', he can't wait to get back in the thick of things. This is something we already knew though. No-one goes through the pain he went through to win the US Open unless they are committed to being successful.

Of course, in Woods' absence, Padraig Harrington has been the success story of the major tournaments. The Irishman won the British Open at Royal Birkdale and the PGA Championship at Bloomfield Hills and Woods praised him by saying that he is a player with 'so much talent'.

Woods would rather be competing against Harrington than praising him from the sidelines though - we all know that. However, with 14 major tournament titles to his name, I remain convinced that he will significantly add to this total. We may all have to be patient, but Tiger Woods will be back and he will be as good as he was before - maybe even better. He is one of the greatest sportsmen that has ever lived and I imagine the golf odds will be backing him to win his first tournament back. That's how it works in the world of Tiger Woods.

Thomas Rooney - A sports writer who blogs about golf betting