Wilson wins Phoenix Open in playoff

On Sunday, Mark Wilson's beloved Green Bay Packers won the Super Bowl.

On Monday, Wilson got his second win already in 2011.

Wilson birdied the second playoff hole on Monday to defeat Jason Dufner and win the Phoenix Open. He captured the Sony Open in Hawaii last month and now Wilson is on top of the golf world.

"I am ecstatic," Wilson said in a television interview. "I guess my schedule got even better. I guess I'm in all the majors now and the match play thing.

"It's crazy. I'm just riding the train as long as I can. This is the best golf I've ever played in my life."

Wilson finished off a two-under 69 on Monday to join Dufner at 18-under 266. Dufner, who had a final-round 66, and Wilson were part of a large handful of golfers who came back on Monday after frost delays set the tournament back.

After pars at the first playoff hole, Wilson hit a great seven-iron seven feet short of the flag at the par-four 10th at the TPC Scottsdale. Dufner found the rough and could do no better than 60 feet.

Dufner's birdie try came up six feet short opening the door for Wilson. He poured his putt right into the heart of the cup and is now atop the money list and FedExCup standings.

"I have a good attitude right now," Wilson said on television. "I hit bad drives on 18 and in the playoff. I don't get down on myself. I'm looking forward to next week."

For Dufner, this was his best chance at that elusive first PGA Tour win.

"It's a little disappointing, but I didn't really give myself good chances," Dufner said in a televised interview. "All in all, a good week and a good start to 2011. I've been close a couple of times. I'm kind of tired of being close, so hopefully we can get one done this year some time."

Vijay Singh finished off his five-under 66 in the darkness Sunday to get in at 16-under 268. According to reports, Singh left the course thinking he'd never get into a playoff with Wilson at 18-under par and still with six holes to complete.

Singh tied for third place with Martin Laird, who fired a six-under 65.

Nick Watney (68), J.B. Holmes (67) and Gary Woodland (66) shared fifth at minus-15.

It was a painful Monday for Tommy Gainey, who was near the top of the leaderboard throughout much of the tournament. He drove into the water at the 17th, hit it back into the water and he left with a triple-bogey seven.

Gainey finished with a three-over 74 and tied for eighth place with Brandt Snedeker, Webb Simpson, Chris Couch and former PGA Champion Y.E. Yang at 14- under 270.

Wilson and Dufner were tied for the lead at 18-under par with Gainey one behind when Gainey imploded on 17.

Wilson hit into a fairway bunker at 18, but his drive flirted with water. He hit a spectacular seven-iron to 14 feet to give himself a chance at the win in regulation.

His putt stayed above ground and it was off to 18 for the playoff.

Wilson hit into a right bunker this time off the tee, but Dufner wasn't in the fairway either. Wilson's approach landed almost 60 feet from the stick, while Dufner had 20 feet for birdie from the fringe.

Wilson lagged to five feet and Dufner's putt narrowly missed. He tapped in for par, then Wilson ran home his par putt to head to the 10th, where he finally won the tournament.

"I was trying to beat Tommy the last few holes," admitted Wilson. "I hit a bad drive on 18, but got away with it. I've had that putt before. I got it to drop."

Phil Mickelson never got anything going late and tied for 29th at minus-10.

NOTES: Dufner birdied 16 and 17 to put the heat on Wilson...It took until the Arnold Palmer Invitational last year for Ernie Els to become the first multiple winner on tour...Wilson pocketed $1,098,000 for the victory...Next week is the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, which Dustin Johnson has won the last two years.

Source http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/02/07/2055019/wilson-wins-phoenix-open-in-playoff.html

Golf World announces annual list of its "100 Best Golf Shops"

For the 26th consecutive year Golf World has published its selection of the "100 Best Golf Shops"—a collection of those private, resort, public and off-course shops that have excelled in retail operations. The list will appear in select issues of the newly redesigned January 31 issue of Golf World, and it can be viewed online at www.golfworld.com.

Of the 29 states represented on the list, California has the most shops (19). Arizona is second with 12, followed by Florida with 11.

The PGA Tour Shop has 11 shops on the list, the most of any off-course facility. Other facilities with multiple shops include the TPC properties (nine), Bandon Dunes (two), Carl's Golfland (two), Edwin Watts Golf (two), Kiawah Island Golf Resort (two), Lumpy's Golf (two), Pebble Beach (two) and Trump National (two).

Two shops have appeared on the list all 26 years: Haggin Oaks Golf Super Shop in Sacramento, Calif. and Carl's Golfland in Bloomfield Hills, Mich. This year's 100 Best includes 12 shops making the list for the first time.

In 2010 the combined revenue of the 100 Best Shops was $200,155,542. In 1986, the first year of the list, total revenue was $61.8 million.

To be considered for the annual list, golf shops submitted entries to the magazine. The winning shops were then chosen based on three criteria, each weighted equally:

• Revenue per square foot and per round of golf played compared with shops in the same category.

• Appearance of layout and product displays (determined through photos submitted to the magazine).

• Evaluation of a shop's successful promotions and recent initiatives within the last year (described through a written response).

The "100 Best Golf Shops" list was previously featured in Golf World Business and Golf Shop Operations, both published by Golf Digest Publications. This is the fifth year that Golf World has published the list.

Golf World, the nation's oldest and most widely read newsweekly golf magazine, is published by Golf Digest Publications and is part of Condé Nast. Condé Nast, a division of Advance Publications, operates in 25 countries. In the United States, Condé Nast publishes 18 consumer magazines, two trade publications and 27 websites that garner international acclaim and unparalleled consumer engagement.

Source http://www.worldgolf.com/newswire/browse/66043-Golf-World-Announces-Its-100-Best-Golf-Shops

Woods Says He’s Ready to Return to Tour, and to Winning

Tiger Woods returned to familiarity on Wednesday, to the fairways and greens of Torrey Pines Golf Course, comfortable confines that are etched in his mind like the layout of his childhood home some 90 miles north in Cypress.

Whether this will be the week he returns to normalcy on the golf course where he has won seven times as a professional will depend on what happens in the Farmers Insurance Open, his first PGA Tour event of the year. But he could not have picked a better place to find out.

Relaxed, rested and seemingly at peace after a winless and tumultuous year, Woods, 35, said his game was in good shape and that he was prepared to resume his climb to the top of golf’s Mount Olympus. He said it with a smile and a self-assured tone that were absent from his public appearances last year. He left little room for doubt that, despite all the changes in his life, the audacious goal he set before his first professional tournament in 1996 — to win every tournament he enters — was intact.

“The goal’s still the same,” he said. “Try to beat all their butts. It hasn’t changed.”

Many things have changed, though, since Woods last played here, beating Rocco Mediate in a Monday playoff to win the 2008 United States Open. Among the oft-recited litany of losses, fallout from the off-course scandal in his personal life, are his ranking as the No. 1 player in the world; his marriage; multiple corporate endorsements; millions of dollars; and the on-course focus that made him the most prolific winner of golf tournaments (71) in the fewest number of years (14) in golf history.

Coming off a year in which he failed to win a tournament for the first time since he began playing competitively, Woods said he had balance in his life and that the memory from last year that was clearest in his mind was of the second shot he hit into the 72nd hole of the Chevron World Challenge.

“That was it,” he said. “All the changes I made in my swing, when I needed it the most. I needed to hit the 8-iron with that kind of shot, and I pulled it off. So under the most intense pressure I hit the shot I needed to hit when I needed to hit it.

“I needed to hit that fade. I needed to hit the 8-iron flush. I needed to get it there. I needed to hit it through the wind. And I did all those things and hit it to two and a half feet.”

Not one to rhapsodize about a shot unless it happens to meet his standards, and rarely one to recall a shot that did not lead to a victory, Woods chose to single out that one because it signaled that his work with the teacher Sean Foley had taken root and that his confidence in himself to execute under pressure was back. Graeme McDowell won the tournament by making two long putts, the first to tie and the second to win a playoff, but Woods had proved a larger truth to himself.

And now his peers see him coming back to where he was. Phil Mickelson, whose comedic timing is sometimes on a par with his short game, was asked what he expected to see from Woods this year. He started with what he had noticed toward the end of last year, at the BMW Championship and during the Ryder Cup singles.

“His speed was back up,” Mickelson said. “He was hitting it long. His touch was coming back, and I expect that he’ll be the Tiger that we’ve known for over a decade.”

Then Mickelson paused theatrically for effect before adding, “Unfortunately.”

That got a big laugh. Because what Mickelson realizes is the same as what the commissioner of the PGA Tour, Tim Finchem, knows and what television executives, fans and every tour player knows. A competitive Tiger Woods, focused on winning and not on discussions with lawyers, will help put the focus back on the sport.

And this week at Torrey Pines, there will be an intense competition that it likely to heat up again. An invigorated Woods and a golf course full of fearless young players who have been emboldened by his absence could be a recipe for entertainment that was missing last year.

Those who have written off Woods will be pulling hard against him. The fans who missed the single-minded pursuit of excellence that was absent from the distracted and somewhat wounded Woods will be pulling the other way.

And Woods is ready to see if what he believes he is bringing to the course will, in fact, be what he brings.

Source http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/27/sports/golf/27tiger.html?_r=1

Travers: Harper’s changing the country more than we realize

Understanding how Stephen Harper is changing Canada is easy. Just listen closely to a national conversation that over the past five years has narrowed in content and sharpened in tone.

Federal politicians no longer debate the broad questions of justice, climate change or foreign policy. Instead, they dispute the details of law and order, ethical oil and how long to extend the Afghan mission.

Winning arguments often begins with framing the subject. This Prime Minister is remarkably successful at both.

Harper took control of the country’s agenda as soon as he stepped into office. He named five priorities and set about achieving the ones voters remember — twice trimming the GST stands out — while muddying those he prefers they forget, most notably the fingers-crossed commitment to be more open, accountable and democratic.

His clarity of purpose has faded since then but, with the exception of a few moments when his opponents coalesced around a common cause, Harper has never surrendered the microphone. He consistently commands the high political ground by tilting policy discussions to ruling party advantage.

Wrong-footing rivals is the Prime Minister’s favourite dance step. Those who criticize building super-prisons, Canada’s laissez-faire environment record or Canada’s diminished international reputation are quickly forced to defend themselves against message track charges that they don’t share Conservative concerns about victims of crime, energy jobs or principled values.

Other examples abound. All are connected by two national capital realities. One is that Liberals, the one other party remotely capable of forming a government, either can’t conceive or articulate an alternative vision. The other is that the only time Harper’s opponents found the courage to unequivocally say “no” was during the 2008 Christmas constitutional crisis when the Prime Minister’s plan to end public funding for parties directly threatened their interests.

Blowing through such limp reeds is light work for a minority Prime Minister who more often than not is able to operate as if he won a majority. Just as significantly, it allows Conservatives to uncouple their actions from results.

Rarely has that disconnect been more obvious than in current pre-election positioning. Conservatives are taking a stand on corporate tax cuts while lunging a second time at party subsidies. They’re not documenting how more breaks for already lightly taxed big business will create jobs, stimulate productivity or boost international competitiveness. They’re not explaining why a feel-good promise to cut the purse strings to federal parties isn’t a slippery-slope step backwards to the bad old days of backroom bagmen, influence pedalling and tollgating federal contracts for political donations.

Missing, too, from the national dialogue are looming challenges that dwarf the importance of topics Conservatives prefer discussing. Off the table and out of mind are, among many things, are the future of universal health care, the complex transition from hewing wood and drawing water to a post-industrial economy, and Canada’s changing place in a rapidly evolving, helter-skelter world

Some prime ministers are moulded by their times, others shape them. Harper is squarely in both categories.

Recession and the compromises required to hold power in country less conservative than his ideology recalibrated Harper’s pragmatism. Determination and the patience to alter a country’s course, one incremental pin step at a time, are core characteristics of a Prime Minister who is changing Canada more fundamentally than friends or foes often recognize.

Measuring Harper’s five-year realignment of Canada demands no more than deconstructing what the country is — and isn’t — talking about.

Source http://www.thestar.com/article/923200--travers-harper-s-changing-the-country-more-than-we-realize

Information Warfare Running For Linux

At the end of 2010, the Russian government ordered that all government computers using Microsoft Windows must move to Linux (a free operating system that is far less vulnerable to attack via the Internet) within four years. There are several reasons for this switch. First, there is security. Windows based PCs are most frequently attacked by hackers, and protecting government networks from these attacks is very expensive. There are fewer attacks on Linux PCs because there are more than 50 times as many Windows PCs out there. Second, most of the Microsoft software used by Russian government PCs is stolen. Microsoft, and the United States government, is putting increasing pressure on the Russians to pay up. The Russians hope to avoid that by simply dropping the use of Windows and other Microsoft software. Software for Linux PCs is much cheaper, and often free. But based on past experience, the Russian effort to convert to Linux will probably fail. The main reason for that can be seen what happened when China tried to convert.

For a decade now, China has been trying to get business and government users to adopt Unix (and later Linux) as their operating system. Yet most Chinese businesses, and many government departments, continue to use Microsoft operating systems. They do this because Microsoft Windows is widely pirated in China, and there's a large amount of pirated software you can use only on Windows systems. Another critical reason is that more games run on Windows machines, and that is important, even in China. Finally, the Chinese government is more resistant to complaints from Microsoft than Russia.

While the Chinese government continues to push the adoption of Linux, they are finding more success mandating that government servers use a Unix variant operating system, developed in China, called Kylin. Meanwhile, the government is increasingly eager to force all Chinese businesses to adopt a Chinese version of Linux or Unix for their desktop and laptop PCs. All this is nothing new, but there is a growing sense of urgency to it.

The Chinese know that, while their own Cyber War forces were capable of launching attacks over the Internet, their own computers are already overrun with viruses and worms. While the United States is regarded as the one nation most dependant on the Internet, it is also the country with the largest amount of effort dedicated to protecting it’s PCs from infection by “malware” (viruses, worms, Trojans and the like.) China, on the other hand, had developed an outlaw mentality when it came to software. So most users have pirated operating systems and applications on their machines. While there are pirated versions of anti-virus software available, using this kind of protection is not popular. China is hoping to get around this by using Linux,. But Linux does not have as much software available for it, and users are reluctant to abandon Windows, and all the neat games and other software that only runs on Windows powered computers. The Windows based games, it turns out, are a major obstacle in getting many users, even business users, to switch. It seems that playing games on company computers after hours is a valuable fringe benefit for workers, and costs the company little. No one likes to talk about this form of compensation, but there it is.

The Chinese government has found that switching to Linux is difficult for other reasons. For example, there are not enough computer experts to carry this out. Microsoft Windows is much easier to install, and maintain, than Linux. Many more Chinese computer manufacturers are shipping PCs with Linux installed, but the demand is just not there. Microsoft has a huge head start, and only less than five percent of Chinese PCs use Unix or Linux, and the government represents a third of those non-Windows users.

China has tried to get around this by subsidizing Linux training for Chinese engineers and computer technicians. The government also subsidized the development of the Kylin Unix based server software. Kylin is shareware, and anyone can download it. Kylin is also designed to be very secure, much more secure than Microsoft server software, and most other similar products. China has had more success in getting users to adopt non-Microsoft server software, but the real battleground is PCs.

Russia believes they can force the adoption of Linux. But Russia has a long history of government that order grand things be done, and eventually settling for a compromise. Like declaring that the problem has gone away and everything is fine.

Source http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htiw/articles/20110109.aspx

Canada negotiating perimeter security deal with U.S.

Stephen Harper’s Conservatives are negotiating a perimeter security agreement with the United States – a deal designed to ensure the vital trade flow between Canada and its largest trading partner is not choked off by the aggressive U.S. security bureaucracy. 

“We intend to work together to defend and protect the land, maritime, air and cyberspace domains of both the United States and Canada and to enhance the security of our integrated transportation and communication networks,” says a draft version of a declaration on a possible deal obtained by The Globe and Mail. 

“We intend to pursue a perimeter approach to security, working together within, at and away from the borders of our two countries in a way that supports economic competitiveness, job creation and prosperity, and in a partnership to enhance our security and accelerate the legitimate flow of people and goods between our two countries.” 

Since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorism attacks in the United States, Canada has fought a constant battle to convince the Americans that bilateral commerce needs to be protected from the ever-expanding U.S. security clampdown that is clogging trade with new rules and procedures. Increasing border controls, for instance, in recent years have forced companies to abandon just-in-time shipping and stockpile goods to reduce the risks of transaction delays in cross-border trade. 

It’s not clear how close Canada and the United States are to signing a deal that would more closely intermesh Canadian and U.S. security bureaucracies. The Prime Minister’s Office refused to comment on the matter on Wednesday evening, and Canadian officials denied an announcement is imminent. 

The draft statement says the two countries intend to establish a “Beyond the Border Working Group” of officials to implement and oversee the agreement. In Canada, the Privy Council Office would take the lead, while in the United States it would be national security staff within the White House. 

“We intend for the BBWG to report to their respective leaders within 120 days of the signing of this declaration with a joint plan of action to realize the goals of this declaration,” it says. 

The deal could trigger concerns over privacy and sharing of information with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, but the statement says a deal would respect sovereignty, privacy and civil liberties.

Envisioned aspects of the deal include: 

-An integrated cargo security strategy that ensures compatible screening methods for goods and cargo before they depart foreign ports for the U.S. or Canada. 

-Closer co-operation between law enforcement agencies in both countries. 

-A joint approaching to screening people seeking to enter the United States or Canada, including new security investment in the top 10 publicly owned ports of entry. “In order to promote mobility between our two countries, we expect to work towards an integrated United States-Canada entry-exit system by identifying and screening at the earliest opportunity – including through the use of biometrics,” the draft statement says. “At the land border, we intend to work towards exchanging entry information on foreign nationals so that documented entry into one country serves to verify exits from the other country.” 

-Cross-border sharing of information on serious offenders, criminals and suspects. “We intend to improve the sharing of relevant law enforcement information to identify known and suspected serious offenders and violent criminals on both sides of the border,” the statement reads. 

-A joint approach to port and border security. “By planning together, organizing bi-national port of entry committees to co-ordinate planning and funding, building, expanding or modernizing shared border management facilities and border infrastructure where appropriate, and using information technology solutions, we intend to enhance our risk-management practices and accelerate the legitimate movement of people and goods between our countries.” 

It would also include a closer working relationship for the Canadian and U.S. militaries in emergencies, building on a 2008 agreement that sets out rules for how each country can call for the other’s assistance.

Liberal transport critic John McCallum said he’s surprised the Harper government has been engaged in such a potentially big trade and security deal with the United States without informing Canadians or discussing it in advance with Parliament. 

He said his party is concerned a deal could impinge on Canadian sovereignty, including refugee and immigration policy. “If someone is inadmissible to the U.S., does this mean they’re not allowed in Canada either?” 

Mr. McCallum said it’s also surprising that Canada is devoting so much energy to enhancing trade with the United States when there is a good argument to diversify trade beyond a market where consumers and government are heavily indebted. 

“The political energy of a government is finite. There’s a risk if we put all our eggs in the U.S. basket we will have less energy to diversify elsewhere.” 

The draft statement suggests the Canadian government is acceding to American security demands in order to protect the flow of cross-border trade. 

"An increasingly integrated and globalized world, with new and emerging security and economic risks, requires us to be innovative. As the threats and challenges we face are increasingly sophisticated and global, our responses must be as well," it says. 

This will mean closer collaboration on law enforcement. "We intend to work together to uncover and disrupt threats that endanger the security of both the United States and Canada and to establish those agreements or policies necessary to ensure timely sharing of information for combined efforts to counter the threats," the draft statement says. 

"To increase security, counter fraud and improve efficiency, we intend to work together to establish and verify the identities of travelers and conduct screenings at the earliest possible opportunity." 

The agreement would also combine efforts to fight terror threats and computer hackers. 

"We intend to work together to prevent, respond to, and recover from physical and cyber disruptions of critical infrastructure and to implement a comprehensive cross-border approach to strengthen the resilience of our critical and cyber infrastructure." 

Source  http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/canada-negotiating-perimeter-security-deal-with-us/article1830782/

Obama bans offshore oil drilling in Atlantic waters

In a policy reversal, President Obama's administration announced Wednesday that it will not allow offshore oil drilling in the eastern Gulf of Mexico or off the Atlantic coast for at least seven more years.

 

"The changes we're making are based on the lessons we have learned," Interior Secretary Ken Salazar told reporters, citing the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion that killed 11 workers and caused the release of an estimated 5 million barrels of oil into the Gulf. He said drilling possibilities in the Arctic will proceed "with utmost caution."

In March, less than a month before the spill began April 20, Obama and Salazar said they would open up the eastern Gulf and parts of the Atlantic coast to offshore oil and gas exploration. They kept the ban on drilling off the Pacific coast, which will remain until at least 2017.

The worst oil spill in U.S. history has repeatedly upended the administration's oil drilling policy. In July, Salazar announced a six-month moratorium on deepwater drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, which he lifted in October, one month after BP permanently killed its busted Macondo well.

He said the new decision should not cause undue economic harm, noting there are 29 million acres under lease in the Gulf that have yet to be developed but still could be.

Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., who has campaigned to restrict drilling in the eastern Gulf, said he was glad "the president is listening to the people of Florida."

Environmental groups generally welcomed the news. "This decision is a wise and sensible step to protect Florida, the Atlantic coast and the Pacific coast from an inevitable disaster from expanded drilling," said Oceana's Andrew Sharpless said.

Yet the decision triggered criticism, even from environmental activists. The administration "did not go far enough," said Peter Lehner of the Natural Resources Defense Council.

The oil industry, business groups and congressional Republicans said the decision could hurt the U.S. economy.

"The administration is sending a message to America's oil and gas industry: Take your capital, technology and jobs somewhere else," said Karen Harbert, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Institute for 21st Century Energy.

Jack Gerard, president and CEO of the American Petroleum Institute, said Obama's decision would increase U.S. dependence on foreign oil.

Rep. Doc Hastings, R-Wash., said the administration should instead "find out what went wrong and make effective, timely reforms."

Source  http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/environment/2010-12-02-oildrill02_ST_N.htm?csp=34news