nathan jara

If you’re not a golf fan, well, you just won’t understand. This past weekend’s 93rd PGA Championship was just awesome. Keegan Bradley took the Wannamaker Trophy in epic fashion. Jason Dufner had the lead going in to the finishing holes, but after some faltering holes and Bradley’s birdies, the two went to a three-hole playoff. I admit, I was cheering at the television when both of them hit stone cold shots into 17 green. Yeah, I was cheering at the TV for golf! Forgetaboutit : ) So cool to see another young rookie win a major event! All those old guys better watch out!

I love golf. And I love Pittsburgh Penguins hockey. Today, thanks to my friends at American Eagle Outfitters, I was fortunate enough to combine these two things as I attended and participated in the 13th Annual Pittsburgh Penguins Alumni Golf Classic. The event took place at Valley Brook Country Club, located near Canonsburg, PA. This year, the Pens Alumni brought together a great group of past Penguin goaltenders. The elite group included players such as Les Binkley, the first Penguins goalie from 1967, Ken Wregget, from the Pens second Stanley Cup year, and Gilles Meloche, who tended the net from 1985 – 1988 and currently is the goaltending coach for the Penguins. I was actually able to play golf with Mr. Meloche today. What a great guy! He was a lot of fun and also is a great golfer. There were many times today during the scramble format of play that we didn’t think we’d have to even hit our shots after Gilles because he put it close just about every time. It was great to visit and talk with Gilles about golf, life, and hockey of course. He said he has a good feeling about the upcoming season, which was great news. He also gave me a few swing tips :) After our round we headed to the clubhouse for dinner and awards. I was able to mingle with some more great names like Dan Bylsma, the Pens’ head coach, Todd Rierden, the new assistant coach, Bob Errey, Dave Hanson of the Hanson Brothers, Paul Alexander from FSN Pittsburgh, Ed Johnston, Francois Leroux, Troy Loney, Joey Mullen, Bryan Trottier, and Ken Wregget. Check out some photos below to see some of my favorites. It was a super awesome day and one I will never forget. And I didn’t hit the golf ball half bad today either :)

Yesterday, the fourth and final major of the professional golf year came to an end, but not without a bang. This year’s PGA Championship at Whistling Straits in Wisconsin was probably the most exciting major of the whole year. With only an hour left in the tournament, there were at least 6 players still within contention to win. Martin Kaymer of Germany ended up lifting the Wanamaker trophy and taking hold of “glory’s last shot,” but unfortunately the bigger story of the final day was the disappointing ending to Dustin Johnson’s day, which is recapped here. While I most definitely wish it would’ve turned out better for Johnson, as I would’ve been rooting for him in the playoff, I can’t say I don’t agree with the ruling. Golf’s rules are clear. You can’t ground your club in a bunker. Period. The fact that the crowd had trampled, danced, and more or less destroyed the bunker he landed in makes it tough though. I mean, I can’t say I wouldn’t have done the same thing if I was on the 18th whole of the PGA Championship with a one stroke lead. But, then again, rules are rules. And as this article on Fanhouse states, that’s one thing that separates golf from every other sport. There’s no official staring into a video camera watching over and over to see if a toe is out of bounds, or a player lead with his helmet, made a distinct throwing or kicking motion, or deserves a red card or not; there’s just the rules, plain and clear. And Johson respected them ultimately. He’ll be back.

This past weekend, I attended for the third year in a row the World Golf Championships Bridgestone Invitational in Akron, Ohio. The PGA Tour event takes place at Firestone Country Club every year. This year, Hunter Mahan was awarded the cup with his twelve under par championship performance. I walked the course during the Saturday round of competition. The tournament was a great time once again this year. It’s so cool to go and see the pros in person. Every time I get the chance to see a live event, I’m continually impressed with how easy these guys make it look. Driving the ball, irons, chipping and putting look so effortless, then I go out on the course and find a different result :P Just seeing the golf course is fun too. The fairways and greens are so well manicured and maintained providing a beautiful backdrop to the golfing. Now I know that there aren’t too many people that get excited about watching golf, but I really think that if you haven’t been to a golf tournament in person, you’d enjoy it more than you think.

While being stuck in the house over this past weekend wouldn’t have been my number one choice for spending my days off, it did grant me the opportunity to watch the 2010 British Open at Saint Andrews. Being one of my favorite tournaments to watch, it was great to be able to catch finest golfers of today battling it out on the grounds where golf was born hundreds of years ago. I’d love to play the course someday. I’m sure it would tear me apart, but I’d enjoy every minute. Tight fairways rolling onto tighter greens. Pot bunkers so big you could live in them. And wind ripping across the grass so hard it’d knock you and your golf ball into the fescue. There was plenty of wind at this year’s Open. The Royal & Ancient had to suspend play for over an hour on Friday’s round because of the wind. Yes, they had to stop golfing because it was too windy. At the British Open! Crazy. Mr. Louis Oosthuizen, who nobody knew of until this past weekend, didn’t seem to let the wind bother him. He ran away with the Claret Jug on Sunday and didn’t look back. It’s cool to see the little guy win every now and then.