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Even Michael Allen’s daughter needs reassurance that, yes, finally, her father won a golf tournament.

Allen, a 50-year-old journeyman, had spent 12 full seasons and parts of several others on the PGA Tour but had never tasted victory. So when Allen’s wife Cynthia called soon-to-be 12-year-old Michelle on Sunday, moments after her father had won the Senior PGA Championship, Michelle wanted to make sure she understood.

“She goes, ‘Daddy won, right? He didn’t tie, he won?”’ Cynthia said. After she assured her daughter that her father had won, she asked again. “Are you sure he just didn’t tie?” she said

Nope. For a change, Michael Allen won something.

His two-shot victory over Larry Mize was his first of any kind since the 1998 Greater Austin Open on the Nationwide Tour. His only other win came in the 1989 Bell’s Scottish Open on the European Tour.

He joined the PGA Tour in 1988, although he took a three-year break in the late 1990s because he was sick of cashing checks but not winning. He dabbled in home construction and as a teaching pro but missed the life and lifestyle of a globe-trotting pro.

On his 13th trip to the Q-school finals, he regained his card and played at least 20 tournaments every year since 2002. This year he has played a dozen PGA Tour events so far, his best finish being a tie for 22nd at the AT&T Pebble Beach.

“This gives me the exact scenario I want,” he said with a laugh. “I’m going to be the first guy ever to win a senior tour event BEFORE he wins his first PGA Tour event.”

Then he smiled, lifted his champagne flute and took a long sip.

Allen was making his Champions Tour debut in the first major championship this year on the over-50 tour. He almost didn’t accept the special exemption to come to suburban Cleveland because he still has his regular tour card and considered playing in the richer Byron Nelson.

Smart move, playing with boys his own age.

After hitting close on the 18th hole, he mugged for a camera, laughed and said, “About friggin’ time!”

Allen closed with a 67 to finish at 6-under 274.

“I don’t know, had he won?” Mize wondered when he was asked about Allen, a frequent playing partner on the PGA Tour. “I can’t remember.”

No, he hadn’t. Not on the big tour, anyway.

Mize, who started the day two shots back, had a 67 and held a two-stroke lead at the turn. But he was 1 over on the back nine while Allen was going 2 under to steal the win.

“I just caught the wrong guy on the wrong week,” Mize said.

Allen became only the fourth player to win a major championship in his Champions Tour debut, joining Roberto De Vicenzo (1980 U.S. Senior Open), Arnold Palmer (1980 Senior PGA Championship) and Jack Nicklaus (1990 Tradition).

Allen drilled a long drive into the fairway on the last hole after his caddie had suggested playing it safe with a 3 iron.

“I said, ‘No, I’m smashing the driver,”’ he said.

His 55-degree wedge approach landed just short of the flag and spun back a few feet below the hole. Needing only a two-putt to win, he rolled in the birdie putt and was embraced by his caddie, family and friends.
Bruce Fleisher had a 67 to finish third. Tom Watson, who began the day seven strokes behind Allen, had the low round of the day—a 66—and was fourth.

Allen, who began the day ahead of Tom Kite and Jeff Sluman by a shot, was 9 under with just two bogeys over one 49-hole span until he made the only bogey of his final round. Long and accurate off the tee, he seldom found trouble and relied on a steady short game around the high rough and quick greens at stately old Canterbury Golf Club.

A two-shot swing at the par-4 12th hole—Allen holed a 6-foot birdie putt and Mize bogeyed after hitting into the deep rough off the tee—put Allen ahead. He quickly gave away the advantage when he was too cautious when hitting a wedge from behind the green and made bogey at the 14th.

At the par-5 15th, Allen drove into the deep hay left of the fairway and had to power a long iron underneath an overhanging tree to get back to the fairway. From there he chipped to 10 feet right of the hole and confidently rolled in the birdie putt to grab the lead for good.

He still wasn’t in the clear, however. He had to hit out of the thick rough on the upslope to the green at the 16th but salvaged par. Then he hit a clutch 3 iron to the par-3 17th to set up another par.

Mize drove down the middle at the uphill par-4 18th, but his second shot came up short and right. He elected to putt and rammed the 70-footer some 15 feet by. Then he calmly rolled in the par putt to remain within a shot.

All that was left was for Allen to not let the opportunity slip through his fingers.

“It’s certainly a relief to kind of get over it and finally win,” he said. “It’s just been an awfully long time.”

Michelle also had one more question for her mother.

“How much money did he make?” she said.

For the record, the winner’s share was $360,000.

Rory Sabbatini had a perfect reprieve from golf the night before the final round of the Byron Nelson Championship. He was home with his family.

“I had the ability to go home and battle with my children and other stuff, so my focus wasn’t ever thinking about golf,” Sabbatini said. “I came out here feeling very fresh and very relaxed. … I went out there with the intent of having some fun.” GolfOrderOnline Callaway X 22 Irons,Taylor Made r7 CGB,Irons-professional dealer of golf

Relaxed, though filled with emotions for some friends fighting cancer, Sabbatini shot a closing 6-under 64 Sunday for a two-stroke victory over late-charging Brian Davis in Lord Byron’s tournament.

It was the first win for Sabbatini since 2007 at Colonial, which is even closer to his Fort Worth home. He will return to Hogan’s Alley next week as that tournament’s most recent champion.

Phil Mickelson withdrew from the Nelson and Colonial, where he won last year, suspending his playing schedule indefinitely after his wife Amy’s diagnosis of breast cancer.

Sabbatini wore a pink shirt and, like most players and caddies, a pink ribbon in a show of support for the Mickelsons.

Then after his fifth PGA Tour victory, Sabbatini went from smiles to tears welling in his eyes when talking about the rapidly deteriorating health of a buddy with Hodgkin’s lymphoma who came to the Masters last month.

“This is a guy that’s 6-foot-2, 205 pounds, and showed up at Augusta, and he looks about 85 years old and pretty much just skin and bones,” Sabbatini said. “It really puts everything we do out here into perspective.”

Despite a closing bogey, Sabbatini ended 19-under 261 at TPC Four Seasons Resort Las Colinas. That broke the tournament mark of 18 under set by Loren Roberts and playoff loser Steve Pate in 1999, when the Cottonwood Valley course also was used.

When the final putt dropped, Sabbatini’s 5-year-old son and 3-year old daughter—with “Team Sabo” inscribed on their clothing—charged to greet him with hugs and kisses.

“The beauty about it is just seeing the innocent joy in their eyes,” said Sabbatini, who then embraced his wife Amy and Peggy Nelson, the widow of Byron Nelson.

Davis shot a bogey-free 64 for his third consecutive top-five finish, including The Player’s Championship. Still looking for his first victory, the 34-year-old Englishman was a runner-up for the third time in his career.

“I’m disappointed I didn’t win. But all you can do is put yourself in position,” said Davis, whose streak of 20 consecutive rounds of par or better is the longest on the PGA Tour.

D.A. Points (65) was 16 under for his career-best finish of third. At 15 under were Dustin Johnson (66) and Scott McCarron (62), who had birdies on the final three holes to match the lowest closing round ever at the Nelson and finish one stroke off the TPC Four Seasons record.

Sabbatini earned $1.17 million for the victory, pushing his career earnings to just more than $20 million.

Sabbatini’s approach at the 431-yard No. 4 hole to 3 feet, and he had another 3-footer at the par 3 that followed. He missed the fairway at No. 6 for a bogey, but then made a 7-foot birdie at the 542-yard seventh.

“I knew I just needed to get off to a good start,” Sabbatini said. “I was absolutely ecstatic to get things rolling.”

Still, Davis was within a stroke when he made a 26-foot eagle putt at the 546-yard No. 16 to go 17 under. Sabbatini shook his head while watching from the 16th tee box.

But Sabbatini responded with a tap-in birdie on the same hole, after his 21-foot eagle try slid just past and sent him crouching in disbelief that it didn’t go in the hole.

Davis, who had four birdies in a five-hole stretch midway through the round, couldn’t get any closer. He needed a 13-footer to save par at the 198-yard 17th after his tee shot landed 56 feet away and his first putt caught up on a ridge.

That allowed Sabbatini to enjoy the champion’s walk up 18.

“Obviously this tournament is very special,” Sabbatini said. “It’s one that I wish I had have been able to win it and look up and see Byron sitting there at the 18th green. … What a wonderful name to be associated with now.”

The race is named after August Belmont who had been a leading banker and racing man of the 19th century. He was also the first President of the Jockey Club in 1867.

June 06 2009 marks the running of the final and most demanding leg of the Triple Crown, the Belmont Stakes at Belmont Park in Elmont New York.

Sites like Bodog Sportsbook are already offering opinions.

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On Monday, Paul Casey became the highest ranked player in the field of this week's Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial.

Casey moved to No. 3 in the World Golf Ranking, up four places from last week, on the strength of Sunday's victory at the European PGA Championship in Virginia Water, England.

Casey, 31, moved past fellow Colonial competitor Geoff Ogilvy, who took the week off and dropped from fifth to sixth.

The reshuffled rankings show Colonial with commitments from four of the world's top 10 golfers, 15 of the top 29.

Fort Worth resident Rory Sabbatini climbed to No. 27 – up 16 places – with his victory at the HP Byron Nelson Championship. Sabbatini also climbed to seventh on the PGA Tour's season money list ($2,388,973), giving Colonial six of the season's top eight money winners.

Scott excited: Among this week's competitors, few are more motivated than Adam Scott, who missed the cut at the Nelson, where he was the defending champion. It marked Scott's sixth consecutive missed cut at a PGA Tour event.

Scott said a desire to squeeze in more rounds before the U.S. Open (June 18-21), as well as the opportunity to play both D-FW events, contributed to his decision to compete at Colonial for the first time.

"I like the fact that we're here for two weeks. But I need to play some rounds," Scott said. "If I can play a few weeks in a row here and get into a rhythm, I can get myself back to where I think I should be going into the U.S. Open. I'm feeling pretty good about my game [despite recent scores]."

Scott, No. 40 in the World Ranking, said he has received good scouting reports about the Colonial layout from Ogilvy, a longtime friend and fellow Australian.

"Everyone kind of likes the course, I think," Scott said. "I'm excited that it fits in really well to my schedule this year and I finally get a chance to have a look at it."

Busy week: Colleyville resident Chad Campbell and his wife, Amy, are staying busy off the course during Colonial week. Campbell, a runner-up at the 2009 Masters, will throw out the first pitch at tonight's Rangers game against the New York Yankees. Amy and her childhood friend Andrea DeSpain sing in a band called The Jennies. They performed Monday night at Billy Bob's Texas as the opening act in a private concert headlined by Darius Rucker. The show was part of tournament week activities at Colonial.

Mahan moving: Plano resident Hunter Mahan, one of the stars on the victorious 2008 U.S. Ryder Cup team, said he is in the process of moving to Colleyville. Once Mahan is moved in, Colleyville will be home to three of the top 44 golfers on the season money list: No. 20 John Rollins ($1,438,313), No. 40 Campbell ($991,043) and Mahan, who is 44th ($888,076).

That was the word Georgia men's golf coach Chris Haack used to describe his team's opening round Thursday at the NCAA Championship - a round in which the Bulldogs grabbed the first-day lead.

Top-ranked Georgia shot a 4-over-par 288 on the Inverness Club's challenging par-71, 7,155-yard layout. The Bulldogs were matched by Oklahoma State, and they share a four-shot advantage over Chattanooga.

Inverness has played host to four U.S. Opens, two PGA Championships, a U.S. Amateur and a U.S. Senior Open. Weather also was a factor as the Toledo area was hit by early morning rain and windy conditions throughout the day.

"This is a golf course that tests all aspects of your game," Haack said. "We are fortunate that we have five guys with experience, and that experience paid off today. It was tough out there. Judging by the scores for some very good teams, it's obvious this course can jump up and bite you. Fortunately, we had our guys play some good, solid golf - and that's what you've got to have here."

The NCAAs has a different format this season in that all 30 teams will play 54 holes Tuesday through Thursday, with the low eight teams then advancing to match play on Friday. According to Georgia's players, having a strong opening round should pay dividends if the Bulldogs are one of those eight teams.

"I'm happy that we got our confidence up on the first day," said sophomore Russell Henley, who posted an even-par 71. "It's a tough golf course, but we know now that we can make it through successfully. We just need to keep it going."

"We knew the better we did today, the higher our confidence would be," said junior Hudson Swafford, who signed for a 2-over 73. "This is like qualifying to get to match play, but we still hoped to make a statement by playing well. We want to be No. 1 for the match play tournament."

Henley and senior Brian Harman led the Bulldogs with even-par 71s, two shots behind Jonathan Bowers of Northwestern, Scott Langley of Illinois and Matt Hill of North Carolina State. Swafford and sophomore Harris English each had 2-over 73s, while senior Adam Mitchell had the Bulldogs' non-counting score of 8-over 79.

I was so sad to hear about phil's wife had cancer. She is young and can really fight this.

It’s been speculated that the reason that Barney Frank’s new bill to legalize and regulate online gambling apparently leave out Internet sports betting is because that's more likely to appease staunchly pro-UIGEA American professional sports organizations like the NFL, which tend to view online wagering as a direct threat to their profit stream.

:dirol

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Bast wishes for both of them.

A time will come when the University of Washington men's golf team can reflect on its Pac 10 championship, its four other tournament titles, the gaudy national rankings, and everything else that went into arguably the most successful season in program history.

But that time was not Friday, as a tough loss in the NCAA quarterfinals to Arkansas made it impossible for proper perspective. Under the new match-play format, the Huskies fell 3-2 to the fourth-seed Razorbacks at Inverness Club.

"It doesn't take anything away from all of the great things, but we still fell short from where we expected us to be, so all I feel right now is disappointment," UW coach Matt Thurmond said.

Washington, seeded fifth in the eight-team tournament, received dominating wins by Nick Taylor and Darren Wallace. The match was tied at 2-2 when Arkansas' David Lingmerth beat Richard Lee 3 and 1 on the 17th hole. A match play is stopped when one player leads by more points than there are holes remaining.

Arkansas later advanced to today's finals with a 3-1-1 semifinal victory over Georgia. The Razorbacks will play Texas A&M for the title.

"We had a great season, but obviously this is the one where you want to go all the way," Lee said. "This year was special, but it just hurts to end this way. We'll learn from this, get better next year, and try to do it again."

Lee's one-point lead after 12 holes evaporated quickly when he bogeyed No. 13 and double bogeyed No. 14, giving Lingmerth a lead he would later extend.

"I hit it in the rough a couple of times, and I felt like I lost it," Lee said. "It would have been a little better if he actually earned it, but I felt like I gave it away, so it hurts a little bit more right now."

Taylor, who earned All-America honors by finishing ninth in the individual tournament, romped past Andrew Landry, 4 and 3. Wallace's match with Ethan Tracy ended when Wallace built a six-point lead after 13 holes. Washington's other two players, Chris Killmer and Tze Huang Choo, each fell 3 and 2. Taylor called the week "disappointing" as neither his personal or team goals were obtained.

"Individuals was kind of disappointing because I didn't play my best and I made a lot of dumb mistakes which probably cost me being in contention the last few holes," Taylor said. "But that really didn't matter because the team tournament [was the focus] and we didn't make it."

Despite his team's woes Friday, Thurmond said he is "100 percent" in favor of the match play format, which this year replaced stroke play in determining the team championship.

"I think it's awesome," he said. "We need to do more and more and more of it. There's golf and there's competing. There are a lot of golfers out here, but real competitors come out in match-play format."

Thurmond should be confident entering next season as the top five players from this year's team that was ranked No. 4 in the latest Golfweek poll are expected to return. All but the sophomore Choo will be seniors.

"We're going to be scary next year for a lot of teams," Lee said.

Overnight leader Jeev Milkha Singh of India was still at the top of the leaderboard in the European Open after windy conditions took a toll of scores at the London Club in Kent on Saturday.

Singh shot a one under par 71 to leave him in the joint lead with France's Christian Cevaer who went one better with a round of 70.

But hot on their heels was 20-year-old rising star Rory McIlroy who caught the eye with a four-under-par 68 that saw the Northern Irishman close to within three shots of the leading duo after he'd been in 25th place overnight.

Alongside McIlroy in joint third place were England's Chris Wood and Spain's Alvaro Quiros.

Singh, the world number 39, defied the conditions to cover the final six holes in a superb four under par on a day where Spain's Sergio Garcia was one of several players to finish with a triple bogey seven.

Before his round Singh said it was vital for the progress of golf in India that it became an Olympic sport.

"Golf not being an Olympic sport we have not been getting any funding from the government," Singh said.

"Hopefully in October it does and I think what happens after that is the government is going to allocate land in each and every city to have a public driving range so that a normal human being can go there and try a hand at it.

"That's when it's going to be really big in our country. It's the fastest-growing sport in our country, but it's the only way this game is going to get famous and close to cricket.

"Our population is more than a billion and I'm sure there's going to be a lot of talent out there.

"I don't think there's a public driving range in our country and there's only one public golf course right now. Everything is private.

"I remember there were a lot of good players when I was growing up who just didn't take it up - they just went back to the parents' business."

Last week McIlroy shot 65 at Wentworth before falling back in the final round and it appears injury may have been a factor, although it seems as if he is getting close to finding a cure.

McIlroy, who revealed he'd been struggling with a "little niggle" in his back, said: "I had a really nice bath last night, got into bed and watched the golf in the States. I'm a bit of a golf geek to be honest."

Hands on his hips, Texas A&M's Bronson Burgoon stood over a ball nestled deep in the rough and 120 yards from the hole.
Nothing much was riding on his next shot — just a national championship.

With one mighty hack, Burgoon gave Texas A&M its first national title in men's golf. His gap wedge soared into the wind, landed on the green and tracked toward the hole before coming to rest just 3 inches away.

"I couldn't have drawn it up any better," the senior said, a wide grin plastered across his tanned face. "This is better than any dream I ever had in my life."

Burgoon, the Aggies' No. 1 player, had lost the previous four holes to Arkansas' Andrew Landry before hitting from the deep rough far to the right of the 18th fairway.

Landry conceded the tap-in for birdie, then missed a 35-footer that finalized A&M's 3-and-2 victory

The former Newcastle and Liverpool midfielder, a free agent after his Manchester City contract ran out, is facing legal action after spread betting firm Sporting Index served papers to the High Court over arrears accumulated over the past three years.

Both parties are negotiating a compromise and the former Germany star said: ‘We will find a solution. There won’t be any court hearing.’

The 35-year-old is reported to have racked up debts of £706,000 by December, before repaying £100,000.

When he missed a January 3 deadline for clearing the debt, Sporting Index decided to take action.

:dirol

A congressional bill lifting Internet gambling restrictions could help the ailing horse racing industry attract the new and younger bettors it craves, industry representatives say.

The legislation, introduced May 6 by Rep. Barney Frank, a Massachusetts Democrat, would legalize Internet gambling on the federal level and authorize the Treasury Department to regulate it. The legislation would not allow betting on professional sports games the way Las Vegas does.

:dirol

AUSTIN, Texas -- A week before his return to the PGA Tour after a six-month suspension, John Daly has signed an endorsement deal with a sports drink company.

Daly agreed to a multiyear deal with All Sport and will display its Big Red brand on his golf bag.

"Corporate America believes in his comeback," agent Bud Martin said Thursday.

The PGA Tour suspended Daly for a series of off-course events that brought negative publicity, including an overnight stay in a North Carolina jail to get sober last fall.

He is to play in a U.S. Open qualifier on Monday in Memphis, Tenn., then compete in the St. Jude Championship.

A congressional bill lifting Internet gambling restrictions could help the ailing horse racing industry attract the new and younger bettors it craves, industry representatives say.

The legislation, introduced May 6 by Rep. Barney Frank, a Massachusetts Democrat, would legalize Internet gambling on the federal level and authorize the Treasury Department to regulate it. The legislation would not allow betting on professional sports games the way Las Vegas does.

Frank's bill has aligned conservative Christian organizations, the NFL and groups focusing on gambling addictions in opposition.

Supporters say millions of dollars are being wagered on sports - some of the money through unregulated, offshore sites - and that it's time to bring the practice into the open and allow it to be regulated and taxed.

:dirol

Does it a joke of golf?

Sports betting is really the last taboo when it comes to gambling. Casinos are popping up all across the US, and the gambling opposition groups seem to be shrinking by the day. Sports gambling, however, still remains a delicate issue.

Lawmakers are constantly watching what other states do to increase revenue for budget help. If the Delaware sports betting laws work, other states will scramble to increase their revenue as well.

These type of movements rarely go backwards, instead they progress. Years from now, it will be a wonder why sports gambling was ever illegal, and that way of thinking could come sooner, rather than later.

:dirol

New Jersey's push to legalize sports betting is starting to gain some steam — enough that Gov. Jon S. Corzine is jumping on board.

There seems little point anymore in the Internet age to restrain states from legalizing sports betting. The gambling's being done regardless. Let the states get their cut of the tax-revenue pie.

Jon S. Corzine ......We support legalization, and the steps being taken to make it happen.

:dirol

All support is needed :thumbsup