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Kevin Na won the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open on Sunday for his first PGA Tour title, birdieing Nos. 15-17 to pull away for a two-stroke victory over Nick Watney.

The 28-year-old Na closed with a 6-under 65 for a tournament-record 23-under 261 total at TPC Summlerin in the Fall Series opener. Watney, a two-time winner this year, shot a 67.

Tied for the lead with Watney entering the round, Na sealed the breakthrough victory with a 42-foot birdie putt on the par-3 17th. Na and Watney both parred the par-4 18th.

JTs Shriners Open Leaderboard

“Im just very excited about my first win,” said Na, who starting playing golf a year after his family moved to the United States from South Korea when he was 8. “It wasnt easy. Nick was coming right behind me. It looked like any time he was going to make a move, and I tried the best that I could to stay one step ahead of him. I think the putt on 17 basically sealed the deal for me.”

The winner had five birdies and a bogey on the front nine to reach 21 under. He parred the first four holes on the back nine, then dropped a stroke on the par-3 14th to fall into a tie with Watney.

“I hit a terrible shot on 14,” Na said. “I should have backed off. I always back off, but I felt, Im going to hit this. And I hit a terrible shot and made bogey.

The 28-year-old Kevin Na scores a tournament-record 23-under. (AP) “To bounce I was able to relax a little bit. Then I had a great two-putt for birdie on the next hole. It gave me a one-shot lead. I told myself par, par, youre going to win this golf tournament.”

Na pulled ahead with his birdie on the par-4 15th and both players birdied the par-5 16th.

“Fifteen was definitely disappointing to not make birdie,” Watney said. “I would love to have that bunker shot back. … Sixteen, I played very nice. Seventeen, I hit a good shot then he made a 40-footer. That kind of stuff happens when you win. Its tough to beat. “One thing I relearned this week was how serious I was taking it, how badly I wanted to play well the last couple of months. That doesnt always translate into good golf, so this week I came here with no expectations. I took it very easy and played pretty nice.”

Tommy Gainey and Paul Goydos had 68s to tie for third at 18 under, and David Hearn (65), Carl Pettersson (68), Jhonattan Vegas (68), Tim Herron (69) and Spencer Levin (68) followed at 17 under.

Na and Watney broke the record by two strokes in the event that switched from 90 to 72 holes in 2004.

“This golf course you have to get off to a good start,” said Na, who earned $792,000. “The reason why is because like all the guys out here say, You have to go low, and if youre not making birdies, somebody else is. So, if youre even par through six you feel like youre two shots behind everybody, and it puts more pressure into your back nine.

“I was able to get off to a great start and stay ahead of the game, and I think that was the key for me to be cruising through to the victory. The third hole, I made it off the fringe and I said, Im 3 under through four; this is looking really good.”

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The week was testament to the very underpinnings of the global game, both ancient and contemporary.

On the Emerald Isle, two dozen of the best female players in the world were biting their manicured nails to the very end as the Solheim Cup played out near Dublin, with the Europeans swiping the trophy with a miraculous rally at the very end of singles play.

There wasnt a pound or penny on the line, either.

Five time zones away in Atlanta, after four days of stultifying statistical convulsions, 29-year-olds Hunter Mahan and Billy Haas met with not only the Tour Championship title on the line, but the entire, throat-constricting bonus for the FedEx Cup.

Thats a combined overall pot of $11.44 million to the winner.

For sheer love of country or unadulterated love of money, it doesnt get much more interesting than that on a singular Sunday, does it?

Good thing that CBSSports.com had scribes at both venues, with European correspondent John Huggan in Ireland and senior writer Steve Elling on the oppposite side of the pond in Georgia.

Needless to say, both of their heads were spinning as the final moments played out and roughly a half-dozen potential plotlines came, went or were left to dangle unanswered for an hour or so.

Raindrops and tears fell in Dublin. Haas splashed a wedge out of a lake in Atlanta.

It was a watershed week, by any definition.

Well begin with the incomprehensibly entertaining team affair, the scintillating European defeat of the USA at the Solheim Cup, perhaps the most thrilling finish in event history. The Americans have lost the Walker, Solheim and Ryder matches in the span of 12 months. Is it time to panic?

Elling: Panic would have been better utilized over the last three holes, when the European players hit some of the best shots under extreme duress that anyone has ever seen. With three holes and three matches left, the Yanks were leading two matches and tied in another, and won none of them. As for greater systemic failure, thats asinine. The Americans had won three straight Solheim Cups before last week. The Ryder Cup was lost by a single match, the thinnest of margins. And for those in Europe who are gloating, if the rules had been enforced as written, one of the GB&I wins in the Walker Cup would have been forfeited for improperly using a professional as a caddie, a violation that was waived in the spirit of sportsmanship. If not for that suspension of the rules, well, its too close to call at the end, isnt it?

Huggan: Hardly time to panic. All three contests have been so closely contested that they could all have gone the other way just as easily. That was certainly true at the weekend when, until the last hour or so, the Americans gave the Europeans a lesson in how to finish matches when the pressure is really on over the closing holes. Unfortunately for the visitors, the Euros were paying attention. The play of Pettersen and Hedwall was something to see.

Huggan: If there has been a better finish to any team event over the years, I cant think of it right now.

Elling: The Solheim ending was the most astounding 30 minutes I can recall watching. Tectonic shifts in three matches. It was hard to grasp. Then it was over. And only everything had changed. Awesome, memorable television.

Huggan: The great thing is that any and all talk of bringing in the Asian players to beef up the Solheim will now go away. I see this as just the start of a very competitive era in the biennial matches. This was the deepest European team ever and that will only improve two years from now.

Despite USA losing the Solheim Cup, it was the most astounding ending, Steve E Suzann Pettersen, who has struggled to close the deal several times in LPGA play over the years, played flawlessly coming in and was downright inspirational. The locker room must have been quite a scene with the bubbly flowing. Reminded me of new version of an old joke. “Laura Davies walks out of a bar in Dublin. [Pause for two seconds]. No, really, it could happen.”

Huggan: Plus, Annika will surely be the non-playing skipper for Europe next time. A history-making appointment if/when it happens. Never before has an American citizen led the old world into battle. Apart from Eisenhower, of course.

Elling: An American citizen, married to an American, with two American children, no less. As for the American skid, I would also note that sure, the U.S, has dropped the Solheim, Ryder and Walker in fast succession. The Presidents Cup could easily be left behind in Australia in a couple of months, too. But all three have been road matches. These things have gotten tougher and tougher to win on the road for either side. The teams are so closely matched already.

Huggan: I have no idea what went on in the locker room, but I do have it on good authority that Paula Creamer and Cristie Kerr had a bit of a ding-dong verbal joust late on Sunday night. Creamer apparently felt that the lovely Cristie could have made more of an effort to play her match on Sunday, sore wrist or not.

Huggan: Of course, the way Paula played on Sunday, Cristie could have beaten her playing one-handed considering how Scotlands Catriona Matthew finished Creamer off.

Elling: Gee, you mean Paula wasnt won over by the sling that Kerr had on her arm later Sunday? Was no full-body cast available? Kerr is a princess and has always been. Not especially surprised by her inability or unwillingness to play.

Elling: Speaking of Kerr and the rules, how is it that the Solheim doesnt have the same injury stipulation as the Ryder Cup, wherein a players name is placed in an envelope by the captains and in the event of an injury to a player on the other team, the match is deemed to have been halved? The Kerr wrist injury that resulted in a forfeiture of a full point set the tone before the day really started. I guess it was too much to hope for the Euro team to deem it a halved match. You know, in the spirit of sportsmanship and all. (See Walker Cup).

Huggan: Kerrs mistake was playing twice on Saturday if she was struggling. Which, of course, raises questions regarding the quality of Rosie Jones U.S. captaincy.

Huggan: The envelope thing wouldnt have worked in this case, anyway. By the time Cristie made it clear she was incapacitated, everyone else was already on the course.

Elling: You mean it raises questions abut Jones captaincy. The Sunday lineup was apparently chosen randomly. For instance, there was no pressure on U.S. rookie Ryann OToole there at the end, right? After all, she had a total of 10 LPGA starts to her name.

Huggan: Are you telling me that the Americans would have called the Kerr match a halved point if the situation had been reversed? What color is the sky in your world?

Elling: No way they would have. Just pointing out that in the Walker, everybody took the high road. And that, too, cost the Yanks. You know, just selectively spinning facts to best suit my point of view.

Huggan: I did wonder about the U.S. order in the singles. Kerr at the end looked like a mistake given that the whole thing was more than likely to be over before she could contribute.

Huggan: I laughed when the R&A were caught out at the Walker Cup. They sort of said, no harm done, lets move on. I bet Mark Roe, to name but one who has been royally shafted by the pedantry of the rulebook over the years, wishes they had taken the same benign, shoulder-shrugging attitude at the Open Championship back in 2003. He was DQd for something that had nothing to do with golf and had no effect on his or anyone elses score. As usual, officialdom wants it both ways.

Elling: Related to Kerr, Im surprised more Americans were not injured. Creamer had so many flags, ribbons, bows, facepaint and scarves on her head, she could have needed a neck brace. Oh, and lets not forget the sunglasses ti fil you play for the American team. Geez. She looked like a South Carolina fireworks store on July 4.

Huggan: Yeah, the face-painting and ribbons is just so lame. Throw in the narcissist that is Christina Kim and the whole thing looks more like playtime at kindergarten than it does a serious golf contest. The only thing missing is a swing-set and maybe a water slide.

Elling: So, if Annika gets the nod, who steers the boat for the USA team next time?

Huggan: Has to be the admir but she will make a terrific skipper. One of those people who commands the respect of both sides.

Huggan: The match between Juli and the equally over-the-hill Laura Davies was a comedy of errors. Thankfully, they both made the same number of mistakes and it ended in a halved point.

Elling: Excellent choice and a tremendously quotable player. She and Annika are perfect for the job. They should be captains for life. No doubt, watching Davies and Inkster was like watching Ali or Larry Holmes well past their primes. It was a merciful tie.

Huggan: Indeed, theirs was the hug of the week. And there were plenty of them to choose from.

Elling: The real hug of the week would have been you and Christina.

We will know the answers Tuesday night, but make your cases for the last three spots on the Presidents Cup rosters, to be announced by Fred Couples and Greg Norman.

Elling: Norman has to pick Robert Allenby and Aaron Baddeley, two guys with ties to Melbourne, where the matches will be played. Thats not even a question, really. Baddeley nearly made the playoff in Atlanta on Sunday night, not that current form will matter much on a tournament thats two months away. Allenby hits it on a string and has experience in the matches. Which brings us to Couples and his last pick, doesnt it?

Huggan: I will be amazed if Greg Norman does not go for Allenby and Baddeley. Given the intricacies of the venue, Royal Melbourne, the home side cant have too many Melburnians in its line-up.

Elling: Norman said he would pick the player, not the flag. Well, I hope those are empty words. Those guys deserve it. Unlike, say, the first guy Couples picked already.

Australian Robert Allenby is a no-brainer for the Presidents Cup. (Getty Images) Elling: Because of his incredible reach in taking skidding world No. 50 Tiger Woods a full month ago, Couples has to pick between two-time rookie winner Keegan Bradley and the winner in Atlanta on Sunday night, Bill Haas, who happens to be the son of his assistant captain, Jay Haas. We could argue all day over which player “deserves” the pick. In actuality, they both do and Tiger doesnt, so Couples decision to take the easy way out with Woods is coming back to bite him in the butt. He deserves all the guff hes going to get, because Haas and Bradley both should be on that team. Yeah, yeah, its an exhibition, I know, I know. But fair is fair. Woods has played on a million of these teams and neither of the other two had ever had the chance.

Huggan: It has to be Keegan Bradley for me. Or Bradley Keegan if he is unavailable. Whichever way you look at the PGA champion, he is just that: a major winner. Id have some sympathy for Haas, but not that much. Winning a small-field money-grab in no way compares with a major, even if it is the PGA.

Elling: Thats an excellent point. Bradley won a major. Haas beat 29 guys. I am not sure there is a right answer here. Oh, right, except that they deserve it.

Hug when there are two very deserving candidate vying for the one spot left over. But, as I said before, Tiger was selected by the TV companies more than Fred.

Elling: Bradley is the lone American to have won a major this year. He had one year to accumulate points and get noticed, as Phil Mickelson has repeatedly underscored. Bradley could possibly be voted the PGA Tour player of the year. Yet he might get skipped over for the Presidents Cup team because the guy driving the ship was asleep at the wheel and didnt wait a month to see how the plot played out. Couples being lazy? Yeah, shocking.

Huggan: Im not sure its going to matter that much, though. My feeling is that a collection of Americans reared on the one-dimensional PGA Tour isnt going to fare too well when faced with the strategic masterpiece that is Royal Melbourne.

Elling: Interesting anecdote on your TV theory: After the cameras were off, NBCs Dan Hicks emceed the trophy presentation and said something like, “See you in Australia” over the public-address system to Biil Haas. I turned to the PGA Tour guy standing next to me and said, “I guess we know how NBC Sports feels about the last captains pick.”

Elling: Picking Tiger brings eyeballs. It also brings scrutiny. He hasnt won in two years. If Haas gets picked over Bradley and struggles in Melbourne, Bills going to get drilled and charges of nepotism will be raised. Even if Woods goes 5-0, as he did two years ago, its going to be hard to cheer him. It should be Bradley and Haas on the team.

Huggan: Haas dad being the vice-captain is unfortunate. If Bill gets the nod some will yell “nepotism.” If he doesnt it may be concluded that their close relationship worked against him. Whatever, no one wins.

Elling: I raised that point to Haas three weeks ago and he got very, very offended. The suggestion that nepotism charges might be raised had never remotely occurred to him. Well, he understands now.

Is there any point in debating the incomprehensible FedEx Cup points system any longer?

Elling: No. But thats what we get paid to do. The PGA Tour was beyond lucky late Sunday. The statistical variables coming down the stretch were brain-numbing even for those of us with the tour computers a few feet away. Webb Simpson and Luke Donald were eliminated because Aaron Baddeley made a par on the last hole. How are fans supposed to understand all this lunacy.

Huggan: No matter how long we talk about it, we wont understand it. Neither will anyone reading this weekly nonsense either.

Elling: Heres an idea, revisited. Call it the FedEx Cup money list and use cash as your yardstick for the seasonal performance, like they have for 100 years. Then you can stage whatever final-lap showdown you want at the end. Did you know that 27 of the top 30 on the PGA Tour money list advanced to Atlanta and that two of the three in the financial top 30 finished just outside the East Lake field 31 and 32 in FedEx points? All of this brainstem-melting points nonsense, and its all the same guys from the money list anyway? Fans will continue to ignore what cannot be understood. Yawn.

Huggan: I mean, had Haas even been quoted as a possible winner until this week?

Elling: He was 25th in points. He had as much chance of winning as I did.

Huggan: I have an idea, too. Why dont they give the money and the trophy to the guy who shoots the lowest score? Revolutionary I know, but worth a shot.

Elling: Unless I miss my math, Luke Donald finished in a tie for third and missed who had the better year, Donald or Haas? The last-minute circus of having two guys battle for the whole enchillada doesnt fix the fact that the so-called playoffs are indecipherable if you ask John Huggan. (Getty Images) Huggan: Luke “T-4″ Donald has had an amazing season. He is clearly your player of the year if only because of his extraordinary consistency. I mean, who else can it be?

Elling: Thats an argument for another day. Never has the U.S. Player of the Year been awarded to a guy with one PGA Tour win, which happens to be Donald’s tally here for 2011, and his season in the States is complete.

Huggan: If you give it to anyone else, everyone is simply going to point at how much better Donald has been from first to last. Id rather talk about the Player of the Year than the FedEx thingy. In fact, Id rather talk about rugby than the FedEx. Have you been watching the World Cup? Cant believe Namibia didnt do better eh?

Elling: Bradley won twice, and won a major. I think he will get votes. So will Webb Simpson, who won twice and lost another in a playoff.

Huggan: Do you think the fact that Donald is a “furrner” (foreigner) will work against him?

Elling: Impossible to say. I talked to a dozen pros and got a smattering of shrugs. Nobody seems sure who they will vote for. Bill Haas winning for the first time all year added z married to American, about to have two American kids, has played here for a decade. That will not work against him with his peers in the voting, I suspect.

Huggan: Heres an idea: you could have two players of the year in the same way that the World Golf Hall of Fame has a PGA Tour ballot and an International ballot. So you could have an American winner and an international winner. Then everyone is happy. Or maybe nobody.

Elling: One last, true FedEx story: After the third round, a tour employee walked up to Anthony Knight, Aaron Baddeleys caddie, and said that if the two of them had questions about how the FedEx worked, or might affect them, to ask away. The caddie looked at him blankly. The guy walked away and Knight said, “We have to win, thats all that matters. The rest, who knows?” Same for nearly everybody watching. So the fact that for the second year in a row, the tour had $11.44 million riding on a single putt at the end justifies the means? Come on.

Has the LPGA granted status to 16-year-old Lexi Thompson yet?

Elling: From all accounts, its imminent. Why its taken over a week to finalize is beyond anybodys comprehension. You know, like the FedEx points structure. Just to recap: She won a tournament at age 16, which was 1½ years sooner than any other player in tour history, and had been green-lighted to play next year if she made it through Q-school. Then she wins and jumps the line, so to speak. If I had been the commissioner, I would have moved just a … bit quicker. In fact, I would have put her on the Solheim team 10 minutes later. She had more tournament experience than OToole, the American rookie with a half-season of pro experience who ultimately unfolded on Sunday night.

Huggan: They will do it this week, I hear. Which is a no-brainer given that winning an LPGA event should guarantee anyone membership.

Elling: Hmmm. Win a tournament, earn membership. You are onto something there. Thompson will be 17 by the time the 2012 season starts. Theres nothing to discuss, really. Unlike players like Aree Song who struggled after being granted admission to the tour before age 18, Thompson has already won. Just make it end and grant her the tour card. Make it go away. Let her play.

Huggan: I think you just summed it all up perfectly. Have you been drinking?

Elling: Coffee. Long season, mate. Long season.

In a poorly timed bit of news, Tiger Woods hired Dustin Johnsons caddie on Sunday night, Joe LaCava. Will it make much difference?

Elling: Probably more to Johnson than to Woods. Although, for the life of me, its hard to envision why LaCava would dump a guy who has won every year since he turned pro for a guy with zero wins in two years? LaCava indicated he wants to work fewer events. Apparently after all those years as the bagman for Fred Couples, who was not exactly a road warhorse, Woods sparse schedule looks more attractive.

Huggan: This is such a non-story. Caddies dont make that much difference. Joe is a lovely guy and a good caddie. But really, almost anyone with half a brain could have been carrying Tigers bag over the last 15 years and he would still have 14 majors.

Elling: Caddies get poached all the time, but rarely from top-10 players, as is the case with Johnson, who won with LaCava four weeks ago. Once again, no matter how it was planned, it all leaked out prematurely, caused a stir when the Solheim and FedEx cups were being played, and made pretty much everybody involved look bad.

Will new caddie make a difference for Tiger Woods? (Getty Images) Huggan: Of course, maybe Joe just got tired of telling Dustin Johnson when he was in a bunker and when he wasnt.

Elling: Zing! I heard he got tired of trying to convince Johnson to practice his short game.

Huggan: The timing wasnt Tigers fault. Butch Harmon, who had just spoken to Johnson, blurted it out on Sky television. So the U.K. knew before the U.S. did. Butch looked pleased with himself, though. Hot-shot journo, that man. Gets all the scoops. Well, the ones not on tigerwoods.com, anyway.

Elling: Tigers website made it look like LaCava approached Tiger. That has to make D.J. feel even better, eh?

Huggan: He did, apparently. Which tells you all you need to know about what its like to caddie for D.J. Maybe Joe had it too easy for too long. Pointing Fred in the right direction has to be the easiest job in golf, given that Couples barely notices what day it is, never mind what his scoring is like.

Elling: Theres one certainty here. LaCava is a far chattier guy than Steve Williams. He will only help as it relates to rebuilding Tigers image. Not that much of anything could make it worse.

Hmmm, shocking news from the Austrian Open in Vienna and the European Tour, where John Daly was disqualified last week and acted like a clown yet again. You two must be mortified.

Elling: John Daly is a Vienna sausage.

Huggan: Daly is such a prat. Ive defended him occasionally, but not this time. This was a perfectly straightforward penalty drop that he got wrong. And when it was pointed out, he lost the head. Pathetic. Childish. And what should be the last straw. Throw him off every tour as far as Im concerned.

Elling: It wasnt just that Daly quit. He heaved a club in the water and stormed off the course after a less-than-genial conversation with a Euro Tour rules official. I would suggest that the PGA Tour suspend him, but how could anybody ever tell? Most tournaments over here stopped inviting him to play a couple of years ago.

Huggan: But wait, hes in the field here at the Dunhill. They never learn, do they? I cant believe he puts many bums on seats these days. If this is not the end, it must be near.

Elling: I didnt think the Dunhill needed to appeal to the RV-driving, compulsive, serial-philanderer crowd. Although Daly smokes cigarettes by the crate, a product the title sponsor happens to manufacture. Somewhere in Jupiter, Tiger Woods must have dropped to a knee and said to the big man upstairs, “Thank you for sending me John Daly. There but for the grace of God …” Or some such utterance for causing the spotlight to shine elsewhere. At this point, any tournament director who is hard-up enough to give the guy a sponsor exemption deserves what he gets.

Huggan: The great thing about the Dunhill is that, when entrance is free over the first three days, hardly anyone comes to watch. Then, on Sunday, when most of the amateurs are gone and the golf is “real” they get thousands through the gates even though everyone has to pay. When I hear stories like that, Im proud to be Scottish. We simply wont watch rubbish. Even when it is free.

Elling: Who is Dalys amateur celebrity partner at Dunhill? Lindsey Lohan?

Huggan: The way John plays these days, he needs a pro as a partner.

Last one, just for fun. Bill Clinton played golf over the weekend with Barack Obama. Comments, please, you witty and worldly gents.

Elling: The Twitter one-liners were flying. Before they started, Bill asked Barack if he needed any shots and the president said, “No, having Hillary on staff is enough of a handicap.”

Huggan: What was the bet?

Elling: Box of cigars?

Huggan: Maybe POTUS needed some advice on lying. Cant think of a better source.

Elling: Free dry cleaning for life?

Elling: Bill was cracking jokes all day, including one that ended, “Take my wife, please.”

Huggan: How many mulligans were involved? And conceded five-footers?

Elling: There are no longer called mulligans in the States. Its called socialized golf. All the extras you want, no charge, and the real score is tallied much later.

Huggan: We could have sent over Prince Andrew to make it a threesome. Hes useless, too.

Elling: Hopefully, Obama got something out of it, because the U.S. economy looks as broken as the FedEx points system. I sense a running and still counting. And counting.

Elling: Best line of the week came from the scribe who dubbed the tour FedEx finale the World Math Play Championship. Where every pencil needs an eraser.

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Tiger Woods has hired Joe LaCava to be his third full-time caddie.

LaCava decided to leave Dustin Johnson, one of the most talented young Americans, to go to work for the former world No. 1 who hasnt won in the last two years.

“Joe LaCava is an outstanding caddie and I have known him since I was an amateur, really looking forward to having him on the bag,” Woods posted on his Twitter account on Sunday night.

David Winkle, Johnsons agent at Hambric Sports Management, confirmed LaCava was going to work for Woods and a search for a new caddie would begin immediately.

“Needless to say, Dustin and I were completely surprised, as they have enjoyed a great relationship and have been very successful together,” Winkle said. “Nonetheless, we think highly of Joe, both as a caddie and a person, which is why he was hired in the first place. We wish him nothing but the best with his new employer.”

Joe LaCava becomes the third full-time caddie in Tiger Woods career. (Getty Images) LaCava was the longtime caddie for Fred Couples, a relationship that ended in the summer because Johnson was looking for a caddie and Couples playing schedule was being reduced because of his health.

Swing coach Butch Harmon recommended LaCava to Johnson, and said Sunday night he was “shocked” by the change.

“The thing that bothered me the most was T.W. not calling Dustin and asking if he could talk to Joe,” said Harmon, who used to work with Woods. “Thats the way its done. Im a little disappointed with the way Tiger handled it. But Im not surprised.”

Woods fired Steve Williams after nearly 13 years this summer after Williams worked for Adam Scott while Woods was recovering from a knee injury. One person said LaCava informed Johnson of his decision after the final round of the Tour Championship.

LaCava was flying home and could not be immediately reached. Johnson left for a corporate photo shoot in Georgia, and then was headed for Scotland for the Dunhill Links Championship.

LaCava waited for him at his courtesy car to load up his clubs, and their farewell in the parking lot was routine. Johnson had planned to take a couple of friends to Scotland to caddie for him and his brother, Austin, his amateur partner.

Johnson won The Barclays last month with LaCava on the bag, and the news was a surprise. However, LaCava has two children, ages 12 and 14, and as long as he has been a caddie, wants to be spending more time at home. Johnson also is leaning toward taking up European Tour membership next year, which would mean about four additional tournaments overseas.

Woods, even when fully healthy, plays a limited schedule.

The question is whether Woods can make this a profitable move for LaCava. Woods hasnt won in more than two years on the PGA Tour, and he did not qualify for the FedEx Cup playoffs this year, mainly because he missed nearly four months with an injury.

Woods has said his left leg is stronger than it has been in years. Woods next plays at the Frys.com Open in two weeks at CordeValle, about an hour south of San Francisco. Woods also is playing the Australian Open and the Presidents Cup, a Mike Cowan (now with Jim Furyk) and Williams, who works for Scott.

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Aaron Baddeley notches four birdies on the back nine Saturday at E Aaron Baddeley wanted to make a good impression on Greg Norman with hopes of being picked for the Presidents Cup.

He wound up impressing a lot of people Saturday in the Tour Championship.

Baddeley holed out for eagle on the fourth hole, and then lit up the back nine of East Lake with four straight birdies on his way to a 6-under 64 that put him atop the leaderboard with Hunter Mahan.

Mahan holed a birdie putt just over 20 feet on the par-3 18th for a 66.

They were at 9-u even if it isnt the same one.

Mahan is No. 21 in the FedEx Cup and didnt think he had a chance at the $10 million prize at the start of the week.

Of the top five players in the standings, however, only Luke Donald remains in serious contention, and Mahan learned when he finished his round that he was projected to win golfs richest prize.

“I honestly didnt think that was a possibility,” Mahan said.

The Tour Championship suddenly is loaded with possibilities.

Jason Day recovered from a ragged start and had a 69, leaving him only two shots back. The 23-year-old Australian was tied with K.J. Choi, who also started poorly and shot 70.

Donald, the world No. 1 who still can add his name to the prestigious list of players to have captured the FedEx Cup, had a 70 and was only three shots behind.

More on Tour Championship Column Steve Elling
Winning a lot of money is cool, but Aaron Baddeley is playing for this tourney win and a lot more. Read >> Related links Leaderboard | FedEx Cup standings Elling: Stricker iffy for Presidents Cup Elling: Baddeley eyes Normans bid Steve Ellings Blog | Follow on Twitter

Bill Haas, who had a chance to make the Presidents Cup team last week until a 42 on the back nine at Cog Hill, was among those tied for the lead until the final two holes. He went bunker-to-bunker on the 17th and had to scramble for bogey, and then hit his tee shot on the 18th into the crowd, missed a 4-foot putt and made double bogey.

Haas was followed by his father, Jay Haas, an assistant captain for the Presidents Cup. He had to settle for a 69 and was so steamed that he refused requests for interviews. the margin by and the group includes Phil Mickelson, who won this event two years ago. He had a 67 and was only four shots behind.

“I feel like the first three rounds, I had three possibilities of 63, 64 that I turned into 68, 69,” Mickelson said. “If I can just not do that and keep it where I feel the round should be, I think I can make a run tomorrow.”

The pressure is building on so many fronts going into Sunday, and while its easy to focus on th for some its a cup that doesnt pay anything.

Baddeley, a winner at Riviera early in the year, grew up in Melbourne and desperately wants to be part of his first Presidents Cup team under consideration for two of Normans picks. They will be announced Tuesday.

Baddeley spoke to Norman at the start of the week and knew the Shark would be watching. It didnt make Baddeley nervous, it made him determined.

“For me, its a motivator,” Baddeley said. “I want to play good. I want to be on that team, so I knew I had to play well this week. Its time to bear down. I got some good work done on Tuesday and Wednesday, so I was ready for Thursday.”

Most of that practice time was spent on putting. Baddeley is among the best in golf, though he felt something was missing. He worked on getting the club more balanced, paying particular attention to his right hand on the putter. He seems to have figured it out, making a 35-foot putt on No. 7, and a pair of 20-footers on the 14th and 15th.

The rest of his game was sharp, too. From 176 yards in a fairway bunker on the 13th, he stuffed a 7-iron to inside 10 feet for yet another birdie.

Mahan also got in some late practice, mainly trying to get the club more square at impact because of a change in his release since working with Sean Foley. He got into the picture by hitting his approach on the eighth to inside a foot, then drilled a fairway metal from 274 yards to 20 feet for an eagle on No. 9.

Throughout the day, the projections for who might win the FedEx Cup were like watching the stock market. As many as five players moved to the top, although nothing really matters until Sunday.

Webb Simpson is No. 1 on the list, and he finished with a birdie on the 18th to get into a tie for 15th. If he were to finish in the top 12, he could still claim the $10 million even if Mahan wins the Tour Championship.

“It and finish fifth in FedEx Cup points. I could finish 10th in FedEx Cup points. Its one of those things where you cant even worry about it just because you cant do the math that fast.”

Adam Scott remains hopeful, at least of the Tour Championship. He was in the lead until a 39 on the back nine, compounded by a three-putt double bogey on the 14th. He wound up with a 74 and was five shots behind.

“Very disappointing,” Scott said. “Going to come tomorrow and have the round of my life, hopefully.”

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John Daly walked off the course during the second round of the Austrian Open on Friday after a dispute with officials over a ball drop and two-shot penalty.

Told hed dropped his ball in the wrong place on No. 15, John Daly quits during the Austrian Opens second round. (Getty Images) After completing the 15th hole, Daly was told by referee Andy McFee he had dropped his ball in the wrong place after it landed in an unplayable position under a TV tower. Instead of accepting the two-shot penalty, Daly decided to quit. He was 4-over before the penalty.

The 45-year-old Daly, a two-time major champion nicknamed “Wild Thing,” had thrown a club into the water after a mishit on the same hole.

Robert Coles of England shot a 7-under 65 for the best round of the day to share the lead with Joost Luiten of the Netherlands, Thomas Norret of Denmark and Gaganjeet Bhullar of India.

Daly was told of the problem when he was already at the next hole with playing partners Miguel Angel Jimenez of Spain and Martin Wiegele of Austria.

McFee came on the course and asked Daly to go back to the 15th and show him exactly what he had done. After Daly explained it to him, the referee ruled that the drop was too close to the position where the ball initially landed and penalized the American.

“When I knew it was not a serious breach, I said, You can carry on, John. But John did not want to do that,” McFee told . “He said, Whats the penalty? I told him it was a two-shot penalty, at which point he said, Im done. ”

Daly shook hands with Jimenez and Wiegele before walking off the course and leaving the Diamond Country Club with his wife and son.

Austrian Open Leaderboard

“I had tried to help him with the drop, so I thought for a moment that maybe I had done something wrong,” said Jimenez, who shot a 69, five shots off the lead. “It definitely put me off for the remaining holes.”

Daly, who shot a 74 in the opening round Thursday, had three birdies and was 1 under after 13 holes on Friday. At both the 14th and 15th, he hit shots into the water.

Wiegele finished five shots off the lead.

“Thank God I was able to stay focused,” the Austrian player said. “[Daly] played some brilliant stuff today, but unfortunately it ended in a negative way. These two situations made him explode.”

Wiegele said he thought Daly might leave without shaking hands.

“But then he came to me and said that [we] were playing well and that he did not want to slow us down,” Wiegele said. “He wished us both good luck for the weekend and left.”

Leaders Coles, Luiten, Norret and Bhullar havent won a European Tour title. They were tied at 7-under 137 after two rounds. Overnight leader Liam Bond of Wales had a 74 to sit three shots back.

Three-time major champion Padraig Harrington shot 70 to make the cut, but defending champion Jose Manuel Lara of Spain went home early after a 74, finishing at 5 over for two rounds.

Tom Lewis, who had 70, and Andy Sullivan, who finished 3 over, made the cut in their professional debuts.

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Suzann Pettersen sank an eight-foot putt on the last hole to give Europe a win in the final foursome and even the score at 2-2 against the United States after the opening session of the Solheim Cup.

The U.S. had trailed in three of the four matches on a windy morning at the Killeen Castle course, but took a 2-1 lead after Paula Creamer and Brittany Lincicome came back from two down with four holes to play to beat Karen Stupples and Melissa Reid.

Pettersen and Sophie Gustafson lost the 17th hole to be all square with Americans Juli Inkster and Brittany Lang going into the 18th. But Inkster missed a 10-foot birdie putt and the second-ranked Pettersen made hers to pull even.

While the hosts had looked set to take an early lead, European captain Alison Nicholas was happy to come away tied.

“It looked like we were going to go 3-1 ahead and then we lost the second match, and the bottom match lost the 17th to go all square and I thought, This is getting tight,” Nicholas said. “But Suzann holed an unbelievable putt on the last and thats what world champions are made of.”

The Americans are looking for their fourth straight victory in the biennial match-play series, and Michelle Wie and Cristie Kerr gave the visitors an ideal start by beating Swedish duo Maria Hjorth and Anna Nordqvist 2 and 1 in the opening match.

But Europes Catriona Matthew and Azahara Munoz responded with a convincing 3 and 2 win over Stacy Lewis and Angela Stanford, before the late drama in the last two matches.

Creamer and Lincicome began their comeback with a birdie to win the 15th and the Europeans then collapsed with double bogeys on the last two holes.

“It was a crazy last couple of holes, but we just told ourselves even if we get a half thats all were trying to do is get back,” Creamer said. “We watched it go to one [down], then all square, and to walk away with a win, well take it any day.”

U.S. captain Rosie Jones seemed as pleased as her counterpart with the split result.

“I think we had a good showing this morning, we had a little scary board there for a little while,” Jones said. “But our girls hung tough and came back on one match and almost won that last match, which we ended up losing, but it was pretty good. Really good. Showed a lot of heart there, so thats a good sign.”

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Like in any good stage presentation, at some point, the various plotlines all intersect.

It usually happens in the final act of the play.

Except on the PGA Tour, where the not-so-harmonious convergence of points lists, tournament winners and seasonal pink slips created so many layers of tension and chaos, it was hard to track the final hours of the BMW Championship at Cog Hill without getting a biz dizzy.

This was only the third of four FedEx Cup events, designed to winnow down the field for this weeks big-money finale, the Tour Championship at East Lake in Atlanta.

Picture this: Sunday night, a slew of media member hunkered around the scoring trailer, watching a PGA Tour computer that had been positioned outside for our perusal, trying to fathom the evolving permutations of what was happening not only with the tournament leaderboard, but the FedEx Cup points list and two Presidents Cup teams.

With respect to the latter, Golf Channel producer Scott Rude was doing running points calculations with a pen and piece of paper, which sounds pretty simple, except that it was raining and the ink kept running. At one point, a nearby tent lost power, sending the PGA Tours XM Radio broadcast off line, just as the serious numbers crunching was happening.

Tracking the trio of simultaneous competitions was like trying to juggle a bowling ball, chainsaw and ink pen at the same time, because some guys were getting knocked down, cut off at the knees or redlined and sent home.

In the midst of it all, eventual winner Justin Rose was all but blowing a four-shot lead before he made a clutch chip-in on the 71st hole to restore order.

“Its the playoffs,” Martin Laird said with a smile. “Its supposed to be like this.”

That was before he formally finished 31st in FedEx Cup points, missing his chance to play in Atlanta by one spot. Like 40 others Sunday, he was sent packing. With the various plot points swirling, it must have been great viewing for those with raging ADHD and big-screen HDTVs.

European correspondent John Huggan and CBSSports.com senior writer Steve Elling try to make some sense of it all in this weeks particularly rollicking installment of Pond Scrum, while jointly eyeballing the other notable developments of the week, including a record-setting win on the LPGA by a 16-year-old.

Gents, we implore you, please begin sorting through the confusion, forthwith.

The automatic qualifiers for the two Presidents Cup teams have been finalized, and as it turned out, nothing happened last week in terms of a last-minute shakeup. What do you boys make of the teams and who gets the nod as the three remaining captains picks?

Elling: Sunday was a careening day of ups and downs for a slew of guys. Hunter Mahan thought he was a dead man walking when he finished, convinced that he would not be picked if he fell out of the team USA top 10. Then everybody else faltered, and he made the side after all. Same for Jim Furyk, who was on pins and needles after a brutal start that included four straight bogeys. If the Yanks are as wobbly at Royal Melbourne as they were at Cog Hill, the Aussies will be partying in the streets after the International teams wins. I hear the Aussies like to party in the streets, good reason notwithstanding.

Huggan: If Im Greg Norman Im hugely relieved. Not only did Geoff Ogilvy confirm his place with a welcome return to what should be his normal form, Ryo Ishikawa clung onto the last automatic place. As Ive pointed out before, had young Ryo dropped out, there would have been much outside pressure on the Shark to pick Japanese televisions biggest draw. Now Greg is free to pick the two guys he really wants. I suspect he will go for Robert Allenby and Aaron Baddeley, two Melbourne boys.

Elling: Exactly right. Normans picks are easy, now. Melbourne homeboys Baddeley (13th in points) and Allenby (14th) are completely defensible selections. Only Louis Oosthuizen at No. 11 would be passed over, and hes had a forgettable season. (Tim Clark at No. 12 is injured and cannot play.) Pencil em in now. Its all over but the fitting of the team shirts for Badds and Rob, who bring two different and potent skill sets to the shop. Badds makes every putt, and Allenby is a ball-striking whiz.

Elling: Who does U.S. captain Fred Couples pick with his last at-large selection? With this knucklehead, who knows? He said Sunday night that if Zach Johnson won in Atlanta, he would consider him for the team. Well, Zach didnt even make it to the Tour Championship this week. Fred Couples is like the kid in class that the teacher wouldnt trust to do anything more complicated than cleaning the chalkboard erasers.

Huggan: As for the American side, it actually looks pretty good on paper. Apart from the form of Tiger, of course. If I was Fred, Id be asking the world No. 49 to play more than once before he gets to Oz. I mean, is that really much to ask? One Tee Dub is set to play a Fall Series event in California next month and the Aussie event the week before the PrezCup. Who knows, though, he could miss the cut.

Elling: I told a fellow scribe this yesterday: If Couples does not pick Keegan Bradley, I will be inserting a rotisserie spit in his mouth and out a different orifice, lighting the coals and basting him over a hot fire until the event is over. Bradley was 20th in points despite only having one season to compile points. Hes the only Yank to have won a major this year. Sorry, Rickie Fowler, Brandt Snedeker and other supposed candidates, but Bradley gets picked unless Snedeker wins in Atlanta. Otherwise, the New Englander goes Down Under.

Huggan: Im and Johnson isnt a bad shout. I like good putters in match play and Zach is certainly that. Then again, as we are talking about an event that is nothing more than an exhibition, so maybe he will go for young Fowler.

Elling: Its got to be Bradley, if for no other reason than to make you cringe about the belly putter thing.

A 16-year-old won on the LPGA on Sunday, Lexi Thompson, who still does not have full tour status. Is there something were missing here?

Elling: Its simple. Its complicated. Take your pick. Thompson was cleared by the tour earlier this year to try her hand at Q-school, even though she is below the tours minimum age for membership. The rule is in place to keep players from losing their childhood and turning pro too early, and I have no issue with that in principle. But if she was cleared for Q-school, a win should give her instant eligibility. She got there six months earlier than expected, no?

Huggan: This is just another example in a long line of examples of how the LPGA manages to shoot itself in its pedicured foot. Here we have the next big star in the womens game. She wins an LPGA event. And she is still denied membership? I know Im not the brightest star in the sky, but youve got to explain this to me somehow. Use small words if you can.

Elling: At the risk of sounding like a raving Scot, bloody hell, why does she still need to attend Q-school when she just beat a field of some of the best players in the game, including Yani Tseng? She still has to advance through two more stages of qualifying. I am all for protecting the sanctity of somebodys childhood, but shes been a part-time professional tour player for a year already. She is home-schooled. The training wheels are off. At some point, like right now, dispensation needs to happen.

Huggan: Eligibility should be performance-related, not tied to some subjective measure of age. There must always be leeway for the truly exceptional, once-in-a-generation superstar type. Thompson is that person, one who could resurrect a tour that is currently dying on its feet.

Huggan: Its a no-brainer. Of course, that is a pretty accurate description of those in charge if she is denied a tour card.

Elling: Careful. She be that person. See: Michelle Wie, Aree Song, Morgan Pressel. But I get your point, for sure. And I … agree. That hurt to write.

Elling: Thompson, a Florida phenom that everybody saw coming, has already won more events this year than, oh, Cristie Kerr, Morgan Pressel, Paula Creamer and Michelle Wie combined, yet she has to go prove herself against a bunch of second-tier wannabes? Ridiculous. Thompson, by the way, is the youngest winner in LPGA history by nearly 1.5 years. So, yeah, some special consideration might be prudent.

Huggan: Pressel, in my limited experience, is a spoiled wee madam. I reckon Thompson will be giving her 70 yards off the tee.

Huggan: And maybe three shots a side.

Elling: You forgot overrated. Two wins, one of them handed to her as Pressel stood on the practice tee awaiting a possible playoff. As for Lexi, is it too late to get her on the Solheim Cup side this week?

Huggan: Amazingly, Thompson is ineligible. Despite the fact that we will be treated to endless chants of USA! this week in Ireland, the side is not representing your proud nation. They are merely agents for the LPGA Tour, a very different thing. Of course, the same can be said of “Europe.” Non-tour members need not apply. If it really were “USA,” being American would be enough to be eligible. Thompson is American, yet she is not eligible. Like I said, laughable.

Elling: The LPGA is starved for American stars, whether they are the real deal or disposable novelties. Thompson looks to be the former. Her status needs to be r it needs to be upgraded to first class.

Hey, speaking of Americans who havent won anything all year, isnt the Solheim Cup this week in Ireland? Rumor has it, Huggan will be attending and hoping for fireworks?

Elling: The scheduling of these LPGA-sanctioned events continues to baffle one and all. Why have this event the same week as the PGA Tours bazillion-dollar finale? With the choice between watching the Solheim or the East Lake event, most Americans will, of course, choose … football. Hey, at least I am honest.

Huggan: I hear you. That noise you can hear is the LPGA taking another shot at its foot.

Elling: They must be running low on bullets.

Elling: John, you penned a colorful tale in the about the rancor that has marked this event over the years. Its actually worse than the gamesmanship at the Ryder Cup. Someday, one of the Solheim players is going to have a nervous breakdown on the course and bust out in tears. It has been vicious at times.

Huggan: It has been disappointing over the years, with most of the nonsense emanating from the American side. Like their male counterparts, a lack of match play golf growing up does nothing for their knowledge of rules and etiquette later on.

Elling: Yeah, decorum has been spotty. Like when the U.S. made Annika Sorenstam replay a chip shot she holed, but played out of turn. She almost cried, and shes colder than Christmas in Stockholm generally.

Huggan: Dottie Pepper was the worst example with her scream of “Yes!” just after her opponent missed a short putt. But Meg Mallon wasnt far behind when she knowingly tramped all over Sorenstams line. Ignorance isnt always bliss.

Elling: Meg Mallon? That had to leave some footprints.

Elling: I mean, anytime the Euro that ought to tell you about the levels of rancor at times.

Huggan: And lets not even mention the dreadful Christina Kim, who made the team this year without scoring one qualifying point. That tells you everything you need to know about the lack of depth in the visiting side.

Elling: But she has team spirit. I think that is a song by Nirvana.

Elling: Who do you like? The 12 on the American team have combined to win three tournaments, two of them by long-hitting Brittany Lincicome. The U.S. roster is so thin, they took a rookie with virtually zero pro experience.

Huggan: The top half of the U.S. side is strong, but the bottom half is weak, so very, very weak. Reminds me a bit of European Ryder Cup sides back in the days of Faldo, Woosie, Seve, Sandy and Bernhard.

Elling: Maybe we shouldnt complain. The histrionics at least show that players seem to care. We have ripped their male counterparts over the years for going through the motions at the Ryder.

Elling: I hope the Irish fans keep those Americans in line. They have resorted to some eye-rolling high-school cheerleader theatrics at times. Team spirit is about more than face paint and red, white and blue fingernails. Geez, I am having Christina Kim flashbacks already. Not good. Use some decorum, girls, please.

Huggan: I do like who I watched is a real player. The face painting, flag waving stuff is so lame.

Elling: Lewis is also a class act. And unlike the vast majority of her mates, she has won a tournament this year.

Huggan: Juli Inkster is a star performer, both on and off the course. Hard not to like her, even if this may be one match too far for her at age 51. As for the home side, the same can be said of Laura Davies. She is so far past her best, its hard to recall what her best looked like.

Elling: They should make Laura the captain. She kills me. No political correctness there. Tee it high, let it fly, feet off the ground. Same as when she plays.

Huggan: Laura is, by all accounts, a complete pain in the you-know-what in a team environment. Successive captains have found her unplayable. She does whatever she wants, whenever she wants, the team be hanged.

Elling: In that case, can we make the maverick Davies the commissioner of the LPGA?

The FedEx Cup finale has been set. The “purty 30″ are headed toward Atlanta, having survived a wet, wild Sunday at Cog Hill. What should we look for this week with all that money on the table?

Elling: Interestingly, three guys from outside the top 30 when the the guys who went 1-2-3 on the leaderboard in Justin Rose, John Senden and Geoff Ogilvy. Three guys got kicked to the curb, obviously, including Masters champ Charl Schwartzel, who made a calculated risk and skipped the FedEx series opener and it cost him. Huggans man from Scotland, Martin Laird, finished 31st on the points list and missed by a single spot. Entertaining day, yet again.

Huggan: I have to say I get a bit bamboozled by all the “projecting” that goes on during this month-long festival of money-grabbing. But I suppose it does have some sort of low-brow appeal. I just cant get that excited about multimillionaires playing for multimillion-dollar purses. Historic it isnt.

Elling: I understand the sentiment. But in the face of a 45-tournament season, it adds some zest. There were guys gagging, to be sure.

Huggan: I was far more interested in the Prez Cup implications. It may be an exhibition, but at least it means a bit more than just another big payday.

Elling: Yeah, same here. Justin Rose won and was the third-best storyline. I mean, when guys are trying to make Atlanta so they can secure spots in the majors next year, like Baddeley and Senden, thats pressure too.

Elling: As for this week, the money is great and there surely will be some constriction of various body parts as the tension ratchets up, but to me, the bigger picture is at least as interesting. For the second straight year, the Player of the Year has not remotely been decided. Six guys have two wins apiece. Somebody needs to break the logjam or were looking at ballot gridlock for the top-player award. It could go to Keegan Bradley, a rookie with two wins, including a major. To me, thats as big as the money on the table.

Huggan: Luke Donald is the player of the year, worldwide.

Elling: Interestingly, the players I have talked to have often mentioned Luke as POY, even though he only has one U.S. win. Hes so ridiculously consistent, he deserves consideration for sure.

Elling: I know its easy to laugh at the FedEx formula, because nobody has had more fun with it that I have over the years, but if you had watched Camilo Villegas walk straight to the computer after he finished Sunday, seen that he had finished one spot too low on the leaderboard to advance to Atlanta, then slam his hand down on the table, its pretty obvious that it means plenty to these guys. Of course, making a guaranteed $120,000 for finishing dead last is a big incentive to get there.

Huggan: It should mean something. They are professionals and professionals play for money. Well, the ones who dont play for history, anyway.

We talked about the Presidents Cup already. What about the European version of the same? Teams from continental Europe and the U.K. played last week, and from reports received in the States, the Seve Trophy was a pretty compelling affair. Will it ever catch on with fans?

Elling: Well, there certainly seemed to be more top players attending, perhaps because namesake Seve Ballesteros had recently passed on. I tip my cap to guys like Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter for playing. Not that they had much else to do. Poulter washed out of the FedEx Cup already, and Westy isnt a U.S. tour member.

Huggan: The Seve Trophy was brilliant. Its just a shame hardly anyone in the U.S. seems to care about it. I wasnt there sadly, but I watched nearly all of the final day live on Sky. There was some great stuff from players you guys may not have heard of. Scott Jamieson for example. And the match between Manassero and Poulter was a cracker. The young Italian was 1 up with three to play, finished par-birdie-par, and lost.

Elling: If every day was match play, Poulter might rule the world. Does the event have a future? Will it ever get all the eligible players to tee it up?

Huggan: They didnt all play, sadly. The likes of Graeme McDowell and Rory McIlroy sat at home and watched, like I did. Disappointing that they did not see the need to pay an appropriate tribute to the great Seve.

Elling: A fair point. But as others have noted, Seve would have done was what singularly best for himself when put in the same position.

Huggan: It has struggled on almost from the outset and has never commanded what you might call a “full field.”

Elling: It seems to have advanced a good bit since the early years, when the gallery could be counted on two hands. And no, thats not really an editorial exaggeration.

Huggan: Ive been to a few of them. The one held in the middle of Ireland flopped badly when up against the World Ploughing Championship up the road. I kid you not.

Elling: Wow, the potential punch lines boggle the mind. Just the Monty one-liners alone. But we need to stay on point. For once.

Huggan: We do? A first.

Elling: We ought to just rename this space “Delusions and Digressions.”

Huggan: Perhaps the biggest thing to emerge from this latest Seve Trophy was the likelihood of Paul McGinley being Ryder Cup captain in 2014. He is certainly the leader in the clubhouse.

Elling: McGinley seems to be a terrific, energetic guy. He would be almost completely unknown in the States, however, to the degree that it would matter.

Huggan: You dont recall young Paul holing the winning putt at the Belfry back in 2002? Then jumping fully clothed into the lake?

Elling: I have blocked out images from all past U.S. Ryder Cup losses. Which means my memory for about a 20-year span is gone.

Last one before we leave the Chicago area for two years. Were you guys taken aback at the Cog Hill criticism and did the players cross the line?

Elling: No and yes. A PGA Tour player griped about a golf course? Yeah, shocking. Let me call the editors and tell them to clear a hole on the home page. Move over, NFL. Mickelson ragged on Rees Jones, Part XVI.

Huggan: I dont know Cog Hill other than what I have seen on the box. But I can understand when players get upset with Rees Jones. In my experience, his re-jigging of courses has made them all worse, not better, harder, not more interesting. Worse and more boring is not a good combination.

Elling: Well, unless you are running the LPGA.

Huggan: Much of what Phil has to say regarding Rees rings true to me. But doesnt Lefty have an ax to grind after what Jones did to his beloved Torrey Pines? That diminishes his argument a little.

Elling: Yep. It wasnt remotely surprising that Mickelson took Rees Jones to task for his redesign, since he has been taking shots at the guy for years. What really made the locals cringe was when mild-mannered sorts like world No. 1 Luke Donald and No. 5 Steve Stricker effectively backed Phils play. Cog Hill has hosted the event for two decades. Now its anybodys bet whether the PGA Tour will ever return.

Huggan: Indeed, when Stricker starts sounding off, you know there is a problem. Then again, he does like to go out and shoot defenseless animals, so no one is perfect.

Elling: Feral hogs are not defenseless. They can gore and seriously hurt a guy. Like Phil when he sees Rees Jones.

Huggan: Uh-huh, and these hogs are a real threat to civilization as we know it, right?

Elling: I am not sure how civilized the rural parts of Wisconsin really are. I think they still have bears, badgers, elk and stuff like that. What do I know? I spent half my life in Los Angeles, where the most dangerous denizens shoot back.

Elling: There was a semi-poignant moment Sunday night that made me grimace. Frank Jemsek, the mostly beloved old guy who owns Cog Hill, was standing near one of the exits after play had concluded, and was personally thanking fans and media for attending. I felt a bit guilty. I only reported what the players said, but boy, it was an awkward moment. Yeah, Huggan, I have a conscience. Its buried down pretty deep, somewhere.

Huggan: What do you look like when you are feeling sheepish? Id like to see that one day. Not holding my breath, though.

Elling: I dredged up one of my most ironic notes ever last week. Of Mickelsons four best finishes over parts of two seasons, three were at venues where Rees Jones built or redesigned the course, including his win earlier this season at Houston. Sorry, but that is hilarious.

Elling: To your earlier question: A slew of readers have asked why Mickelson has Jones in his crosshairs. I think the answer is twofold. First, Mickelson practically owned his hometown Torrey Pines track before the Jones redesign in 2002, but hasnt won since. Second, Mickelson dabbles in course design, too, and he is competing for contracts in Asia and other locales against Jones, who gets plenty of work. So to me, its not a zero-sum game here, is it? Lets not be naive. But when nearly every player gripes about Cog Hill, theres gotta be something amiss.

Huggan: True. If it had just been Phil, Id have been casting aspersions. But this was damned close to unanimity. As you said, it is the owner I feel sorry for.

Elling: Interestingly, losing landing a U.S. Open. It could still happen, perhaps a decade down the road, because the USGA wants to play in the Chicago area and once access points are widened, Cog Hill has all the space the USGA could need. By then, the Jemseks might have saved up enough dinero to let Phil redesign the course again himself. An Open aint completely out of the picture, people. Not having a PGA Tour event there works in Cog Hills favor.

Elling: The next time I see Jemsek, I really hope he is smiling. He spent $5.2 million to have Jones fix up his course, and because of PGA Tour player complaints, the local public golfers have been scared off in droves. Its been incredibly hurtful.

Huggan: I can only imagine. Thank goodness Phil likes the Old Course.

Elling: Forget Davies, maybe Phil should be LPGA commissioner. I think that would fix every topic weve otherwise picked apart this week.

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Geoff Ogilvy was the big winner at the BMW Championships.

Not THE winner, mind you, that was Justin Rose. By finishing third, however, Ogilvy not only played his way into next weeks Tour Championship, he locked up a spot for the Presidents Cup in his home town of Melbourne, Australia.

“Its nice. I mean, you come here with the hopes of playing well enough to do that,” Ogilvy said Sunday. “All in all, quite satisfied, really.”

He should be. After all the projections and number crunching and arro moved into the top 30 of the FedEx Cup standings to earn spots at East Lake, where a victory could be worth $10 million.

Ogilvy plays his way into next weeks Tour Championship and also earns a spot in the Presidents Cup. (Getty Images) Thats a lot of money, even for professional athletes. Which might explain why, after finding he was on the wrong side of the cutoff, Camilo Villegas pounded a table so hard it shook the computer sitting on top of it.

In the race for the U.S. Presidents Cup team, the only change in the standings was the order, with Jim Furyk, David Toms and Hunter Mahan all qualifying.

Bill Haas, whose father, Jay, is the teams assistant captain, cost himself an automatic spot with a horrid back nine. Needing to shoot 75 or better, Bill Haas played his last seven holes in 6 over and finished with a 78.

“I was on the phone with Jay Haas a lot today and hoping for the best for Billy,” U.S. captain Fred Couples said in a teleconference Sunday night. “Its a struggle. Ive been on these places where you want to make these teams so bad that you actually forget youre trying to win a golf tournament and I think thats what Bill was foremost trying to do today and let everything take care of itself.”

Couples already has said he will use one of his picks on Tiger Woods. Couples will announce his final pick after the Tour Championship, with the younger Haas, Brandt Snedeker and Keegan Bradley among the favorites.

“Theres Presidents Cup stories, FedEx Cup stories, and just this golf tournament … so theres stories everywhere,” said Martin Laird, who found himself outside looking in after finishing 31st in the FedEx standings. “It just makes for a great week, and thats what the playoffs are all about.”

Ogilvy has had a rough year, missing three months with a shoulder injury and then getting a parasite that affected his stomach. He needed a birdie on his last hole at the TPC Boston just to squeak into the top 70 and get to Cog Hill; he came in 69th. As if that wasnt pressure enough, the 2006 U.S. Open champion was clinging to the last spot in the international Presidents Cup standings.

Play well, and hed secure his spot on the team. Finish outside the top 25, and he could slip behind 2010 British Open champion Louis Oosthuizen, who didnt qualify for the playoffs.

“Obviously I was trying really hard to get on the Presidents Cup team. That was there,” said Ogilvy, who has a house off a fairway at Royal Melbourne. “But I dont think it would have been beneficial to my golf to dwell on that too much. So I was just trying to go around with its a win-win situation for me.

“I get an extra week [to play in Atlanta], or I get an extra week at home.”

And as it turns out, Ogilvys status was never really in jeopardy. He was the only player to shoot in the 60s all four rounds, and jumped all the way up to 24th in the FedEx Cup standings.

“Each tournament in the FedEx Cup has been better for me,” Ogilvy said. “As I said, its always nice to get to Atlanta. Its always a feather in your cap to be top 30. So if the year ended after next week, at least I can look and Ive gotten something out of a poor year, which is nice.”

A lot better than the alternative.

Villegas barely made it into the playoffs, starting at No. 109, but steadily made up ground each week and looked as if he might just make it all the way to Atlanta. He holed out from a bunker on 14 for the first of three straight birdies. He made an 8-footer on 16 to climb to 29th in the projected standings, giving a huge fist before the ball even dropped into the cup.

But he had to save par on 17 after his second shot went into a bunker, then missed a 4-footer for par on 18.

“I had four bogeys. That killed me,” said Villegas, who wound up 33rd in the standings. “It is what it is.”

At least Villegas knew where he stood. Masters champion Charl Schwartzel, Bo Van Pelt and Y.E. Yang all were inside the top 30 when they finished, only to be knocked out later in the day.

“What can you do?” asked Schwartzel, who started the week in 27th place but dropped out after three bogeys in his last four holes. “I gave it my best, and I suppose thats all you can do. Its going to be difficult.”

Not nearly as difficult as it will be when Bill Haas looks back at Sunday.

Haas has never played in a Presidents or Ryder Cup, and wanted nothing more than to join his father in Australia. Looked to be in good shape to do it, too, beginning the day just five shots off the lead after shooting under par the first three rounds.

Despite a double bogey on the par-4 No. 4 and a bogey on No. 7, he was just 1 over when he made the turn. But he bogeyed the 12th and made another double on the par-4 13th.

“That was the beginning of the demolition there,” Haas said.

He played his last four holes in 3 over.

Haas collapse help not a bad consolation for missing the Tour Championship, which Furyk won last year.

“Im disappointed I wont be at the Tour Championship,” Furyk said. “[But] everyone knows I value Presidents Cup and Ryder Cup teams a lot. I take a lot of pride in making those teams, and I really want to be on the team.”

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Lexi Thompson is poised for an historic victory.

Thompson shot a 5-under 67 in the Navistar LPGA Classic on Saturday and is in position to become the youngest player to win an LPGA tournament.

Thompson, who turned 16 in February, is at 15-under 201 and has a five-stroke lead heading into the final round at the Robert Trent Jones Trails Capitol Hill complex.

“I always go into every tournament wanting to win,” Thompson said. “Im at 15, so my goal is to take it one shot at a time and try to get it to 20.”

Navistar LPGA Classic Leaderboard

Paula Creamer set the age record for a multiple-round tournament when she won the Sybase Classic in 2005 at 18 years, 9 months and 17 days. Marlene Hagge was 18 years and 14 days old when she won the single-round Sarasota Open in 1952.

Thompson, who led by two after the second round, had four consecutive birdies on Nos. 6-9 and recorded six overall Saturday. She bogeyed the par-4 18th.

“Its incredible,” said Juli Inkster, a Hall of Famer with 31 career victories who said she started playing when she was 15. “Theyre just starting younger and theyre just so much better.”

South Koreas Meena Lee is second, and Tiffany Joh, Karen Stupples and Becky Morgan are tied for third at 8-under 208.

If Thompson wins, she will not receive automatic LPGA Tour membership because of her age. Thompson would have to petition the LPGA for an exemption of its 18-year-old age requirement.

The LPGA already granted her petition for qualifying school, and she won the first stage by 10 strikes in July.

“Its definitely going to change my life and my career, but you just have to take it one shot at a time,” Thompson said.

Joh made the biggest move in the third round with a 65. She had nine birdies, including her final two holes, and two bogeys.

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Jack Nicklaus says Tiger Woods is not going to go away. (AP Jack Nicklaus said Tiger Woods ca provided he can stay in control of his mental game.

Nicklaus said Woods can achieve the feat “if he gets the five inches between his ears squared out.”

“I mean Tiger has a great work ethic, hes a great competitor, the most talented kid on the planet right now,” Nicklaus told The Associated Press in an interview Friday. “Hes not going to go away.”

Woods has 14 major titles, but has not won any tournament since revelations of infidelities in 2009 led to the collapse of his marriage and a break from the sport. This season has been partly derailed by injuries, but Nicklaus also praised the decision by U.S. captain Fred Couples to include Woods in the 12-member Presidents Cup team that will take on non-European players in Australia in November.

“How could you not pick him,” Nicklaus said. “I mean hes Tiger Woods, hes the best player in the game. He may not be playing his best today, but hes still Tiger Woods.”

Nicklaus made the comments while in South Korea to attend a Champions Tour event played on a course he designed.

He also said it is crucial for golf to stage a successful tournament at the 2016 Olympics in Rio De Janeiro to help the game grow internationally.

“Golf is now an Olympic sport,” Nicklaus said. “And weve got to keep it in the Olympics. Weve got one shot in 2016.”

However, Nicklaus expressed concern about the slow progress in constructing the facilities for the event, but remained hopeful that he will be awarded the task of designing the course with former womens great Annika Sorenstam.

Golf is returning to the Olympics as a sport for the first time since 1904, with the tournament held in the seaside region of Barra.

A course needs to be built by 2015 for test events.

“Ive led my game and (Sorenstam) has led the womens game, and I think we both have the ability more so than anybody else to put something together that would fit what they need,” he said.

Others who have expressed interest in designing the course include Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, Nick Faldo and Greg Norman, who would team up with Lorena Ochoa.

Nicklaus stressed that the Olympics will be the biggest sports event organized in Brazil, and officials must realize theyre facing a tight deadline.

“Youve got to get ready for it, prepare for it. And to get people to understand the sense of urgency is very difficult,” he said. “And the sense of urgency needs to be there, otherwise the success of an event is in jeopardy.”

Regarding the state of the game in the United States, Nicklaus said the economic slump has taken a harsh toll.

“Its absolutely just murdered the game in the United States,” he said. “Clubs are all having trouble, people dont have spendable income, too many people are out of work, we have all of the problems you have with a bad economy.”

Nicklaus said much needs to be done to help grow the sport in the U.S. That includes making it more attractive to youngsters, who in the age of video games tend to have shorter attention spans.

“The game of golf takes a long time and thats part of the problem,” he said, referring to the four or five hours needed to play.

Nicklaus advocates making the game easier for young people at an early stage. Other sports allow children to play with modified equipment and rules, such as smaller balls and lower baskets.

“Kids have gotta have some success, they have success early in these other sports, but they dont get this success early in golf,” he said.

Nicklaus many course designs around the world are part of the legacy hes leaving to the sport. He added hes working on developing equipment to help make it easier for young people to play in public parks.

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