Book Review: Tales from Q School: Inside Golf's Fifth Major

John Feinstein's "Tales from Q School: Inside Golf's Fifth Major," isn't a new book; it was published in 2007, but it was my first read - and compelling enough that I would encourage anyone to who hasn't read it to take a look. Feinstein has written a number of golf-related books and he writes like an insider, sharing small but fascinating details that perhaps only a golfer could love.

"Tales from Q School" follows the PGA Tour Qualifying Tournament (otherwise known as "Q School," where veterans and hopefuls grapple through six rounds of golf for 30 slots available on the PGA Tour. Upstarts and college stars battle it out with Tour players who have slipped backwards on the money list (the top 125 retain their cards for the following year) and must rely on sponsor exemptions to get a pass to play.

Because the book is a few years old, it's almost more fascinating to read because you know where some of these individuals are today. Steve Stricker did not qualify in 2005, yet today he's number two in the world behind Tiger Woods, who he successfully paired with in the recent President's Cup. Other stars of Q-School that year included Hunter Mahan and the winner, J.B. Holmes, who both are currently solid players on tour.

You could almost picture a movie being made from these player accounts - as for some, their dreams are realized while others are crushed. Nerves take over for many players who appear to have a lock on a spot, balls suddenly spraying into water hazards, traps, etc. There is also interesting commentary from current tour players who now seem light years away from Q-School, and names like Casey Martin, who once dominated the headlines when he challenged the PGA for the right to use a cart due to a degenerative leg condition.

The Golf Channel will cover the 2009 Q-School Finals in just a few weeks (and their coverage irks many players who feel like their golf lives are at stake in this tournament and the coverage isn't welcome). Now that I truly have a good understanding of how Q-School works, how players make it to the PGA and lose their standing on the PGA, sponsor exemptions, the Nationwide Tour, the mini tours, and so many other pieces of information that I've heard tossed around but never fully grasped, I'm really looking forward to watching it.

For a fascinating read about the many players whose names you might not recognize (along with some you definitely will) and their journey to golf's big leagues, pick up a copy of Feinstein's book. You'll be glad you did.

President's Cup Practice Round Post Mortem

You know how it feels when the course is slow and you're standing around waiting for the group in front of you to get moving...and they're waiting for the group in front of them? No way to play through; you're just stuck. You make a lot of practice swings, but still you lose your rhythm and ultimately your game suffers. Wait too long between holes and the rust settles in quickly. I'm finding it's the same when waiting too long between blog posts. It's been a month and that's way too long - so I'm making a resolution to pick up the pace. No excuses (except sometimes life gets in the way), especially when the group in front of me, in this case, is, well...me.


Best of the best from the U.S. and around the world


A U.S. team veteran in Leonard and Kim representing the new guard.

Although I've been away from here, I haven't been away from the game. I recently attended a practice round and opening ceremonies for the President's Cup here in San Francisco, at Harding Park Golf Course. I watched the final day of the World Golf Championships here a few years back (playoff between Tiger and John Daly) and it's a great place to watch and to play. Certainly, they change the degree of difficulty when the pros play, but it's a walkable course and a course you feel like you can shoot a decent score on - assuming you stay on line and out of the storied Monterey Cypress Pines that line the fairways.


Phil Mickelson and Anthony Kim on the putting green. Sensational tournament for Lefty, less so for Anthony Kim, although he prevailed in the end -- yet was at the center of a controversy involving Robert Allenby and Kim's so-called "wild ways."


Tiger playing from the trap, resplendent in the U.S. team's argyle. Outstanding play by Woods and partner Steve Stricker all week.

Practice rounds are fun to attend because you really get to see the players up close on the tees and greens as the galleries are so much smaller. Within minutes of arriving, we walked right up to the group with Phil Mickelson, Anthony Kim and Justin Leonard heading to the green. The shot making ability of all these guys is incredible. We spent a few minutes watching Anthony Kim and Y.E. Yang on the driving range and even their miscues (if you can call them that) are ridiculous.


Anthony Kim on the driving range. He's not the biggest guy on tour nor the longest hitter, but for the everyman golfer, he's a joy to watch.

Hunter Mahan and Phil Mickelson - again, a representation of the veteran of team play in Mickelson and rising star in Mahan.

I was fortunate to see most of my favorites - Phil Mickelson, who was as personable as he comes across on TV, Geoff Ogilvy, Adam Scott, really everyone, because the best of the best play here (minus the European stars). Great to see the "old timers" too - Greg Norman and Fred Couples, tooling around the course. I'm not sure we learned anything, but nothing like seeing golf played the way it's supposed to be.


Camillo Villegas had a less than stellar week in his first appearance at a President's Cup event.


Phil Mickelson recently retooled his putting stroke and he looks unbeatable at the moment. If he can keep it up, 2010 promises to be an exciting year as the top two players battle it out for supremacy!

As the days go on, my posts have evolved to my golf musings in general - but I'll always try to remember where this blog started - around fairway fashion. And with that said, I give a thumbs up to the U.S. team's sporty, argyle-heavy wear throughout the week. My sister mentioned to me that she'd never seen Tiger in argyle before, and that sounds about right, but I think the world's number one wore it well. Another nice touch on this day? All the caddies were clad in San Francisco Giants jerseys - a nice nod to the host city!


Yours truly enjoying the end of the practice round and looking forward to the next day's tourney start.


Ushering the official start of play, the Opening Ceremonies featured the members of each team, former President George H.W. Bush, players' wives and girlfriends, team captains, Mayor of San Franicsco Gavin Newsom, the Boys and Girls Choir of San Francisco and many more.