golfrewind.com

On his way to the Buick, Tiger stopped in Chicago to play Medinah yesterday...

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports...ck=1&cset=true

I saw a different article on the young man who had the opportunity to be his caddy for the day...what a thrill that musta been. Good to see Tiger got over to see the course and I can only hope he hits it as straight when the PGA starts!

Go Tiger........He is the man!

But Link isnt working.

I HATE when newspapers make you register to read it.

Sorry, the link was working yesterday, but I think once it becomes yesterday's news, you have to register.

Basically, Tiger said he loved the course, and says he will hit the driver quite a bit. The assistant pro at Medinah caddied for him, and the head pro was there as well. They said Tiger shot 67.

BY LEN ZIEHM Staff Reporter of Chicago Sun Times

Brad Conklin was sitting at home Sunday night when the assistant pro at Medinah Country Club got a call from head pro Mike Scully, asking him if he would take on a special caddie assignment Monday morning.

While Conklin had a suspicion what that assignment was, ''when he learned it was Tiger, he nearly fell over,'' Scully said.

Yes, that special guest was none other than Tiger Woods -- or, as Scully called him, ''just a guy who hits it 360 off the tee.''

Woods was getting his first look at the renovated No. 3 course at Medinah, which will host the 88th PGA Championship the week of Aug. 14.

The recently crowned British Open champion played with his agent, Mark Steinberg, on his way to the Buick Open outside Flint, Mich. -- Woods' last tournament before the PGA.

''I've known Mike since I was 12 years old, and he knows I'm one of the biggest fans Tiger's got,'' said Conklin, an assistant under Scully at a club in Fort Myers, Fla., before following him to Medinah. ''It was, honest to God, the best day of my life.

''Tiger is unbelievable. It was a perfect day. It couldn't have been better. He treated me so nice. My feet haven't touched the ground yet.''

Woods shot a 5-under-par 67 in the casual round -- one stroke more than Phil Mickelson needed in his first look at Medinah No. 3 on July 4. Mickelson played with Scully that day, but Scully couldn't play with Woods because of a prior commitment to give CBS broadcaster Lanny Wadkins a tour of the facility.

Scully did walk the back nine with Woods.

''He hit some unbelievable shots,'' Scully said. ''He used the driver a couple of times, hit a few 3-woods and some 5-woods. He can hit his 5-wood 250 to 260 yards.''

Scully learned of Woods' intention to slip into town late Sunday. That meant putting security measures into place quickly.

''We were able to keep his coming pretty much under wraps,'' Scully said. ''He didn't have 50 to 60 carts following him around like Phil did.''

Only PGA of America tournament chairman Michael Belot, Medinah tournament chairman Art Frigo and a few of Scully's staffers knew Woods was coming ahead of time.

Scully was impressed with Woods' fitness.

''He would have played 36 holes, but he had run eight miles on Sunday and he also ran in Orlando before flying here,'' Scully said. ''But if Steinberg hadn't had a bad back, they probably still would have played 36. Tiger's as fit as a fiddle.''

Steinberg, a Peoria native and a walk-on on Illinois' 1989 Final Four basketball team, developed the ailment while playing in a member-guest over the weekend in Cleveland. He and Woods planned to fly to Michigan together after the round.

They had a nearly-empty golf course. Tom Pernice, another member of the PGA field, started a practice round in front of them, but Woods and Steinberg played through him on the 14th hole.

The 605-yard, par-5 14th was the highlight of Woods' round.

''He hit a drive into the wind and was left with 287 to the pin,'' Conklin said. ''He hit a 4-wood to four feet and made eagle. It was pretty cool, and Pernice told him that was the most awesome ball-striking he'd ever seen.''

Woods missed only two fairways, and according to Scully and Conklin, he repeatedly praised the course that was changed drastically by architect Rees Jones since Woods won the 1999 PGA at Medinah.

''He must have said seven or eight times that he wished he could play a course like this all the time,'' Conklin said.

Said Scully: ''He thought the golf course was in great shape and that he's anxious to get back.''

Woods and Steinberg teed off at about 10:15 a.m., and Scully's security measures enabled them to play quickly. He had security personnel at several locations on the course with orders to check out anyone who looked suspicious.

''Unless they had my approval to be there, they had the right to shoot them,'' Scully said, apparently in jest.

Woods did encounter some fans after the round who had been playing in an outing on Medinah's No. 2 course. He signed a few autographs and was off the premises by 3 p.m.

Mike Scully: A Pro's Pro
August 02, 2006

Busy day at Medinah Monday. Tiger Woods showed up with his agent to play a round of golf on his way to the Buick Open that begins Thursday in Michigan.

Woods shot a 67 that included an eagle on the 605-yard 14th hole which was playing into the wind. His second shot was a fairway wood from approximately 280 yards that, according to Medinah head pro Mike Scully, landed like a “feather.”

It was an especially busy day for Scully. But then they’re all busy days right now for the former NFL offensive lineman. This is because the PGA Championship comes to Medinah the week after next.

When I asked Scully Tuesday when his next day off was, he answered quickly. “December,” he said.

But there was no whine in his voice. Scully is one of those people who strikes you immediately as the “can do” type. He also strikes you as the kind of guy you’d like to have your money riding on if the place was a tavern and the event was arm-wrestling.

Anyway, when Woods showed up without regular caddie Steve Williams, Scully was ready. He assigned one his assistant professionals to loop for Woods. And he stopped out and spent some time with Woods and Steinberg as well.

“We talked about local knowledge on the greens and about some of the grasses,” Scully said. But, he added, most of what Tiger wanted to talk about had nothing to do with golf.

Part of that is because that’s the way Tiger is. And part of that is because Woods knows Medinah. He won his second major there when the PGA Championship last convened there in 1999.

When Phil Mickelson visited Medinah the Monday before the Western Open a month ago, Scully played with him. Mickelson shot 66. Mickelson, Scully told me, is due for another visit sometime in the next week to 10 days.

Already this year Luke Donald and Zach Johnson have visited and played Medinah. Steve Stricker was there Tuesday; Tom Pernice Monday.

“I don’t tell these guys they have to play with me,” Scully said. “But if they ask, I go. What I won’t do is try to tell Tiger Woods something about his swing.”

Smart guy, Scully.

Last year Mickelson spent more than seven hours at Baltusrol with that club’s pro, Doug Steffen, prior to the PGA Championship that Mickelson would eventually win. The rest of the golf world took notice.

But obviously Scully can’t spend seven hours with everybody in the field at the PGA. “Is it a trend?” Scully said of Mickelson modus operandi. “Maybe a little bit more.”

Scully was most proud of the security for Woods’ visit. He set up several check points. And the golf course stayed amazingly empty during Woods’ round.

That, of course, will all change two weeks from Thursday. Woods and Mickelson will be playing in the same grouping Thursday and Friday. The preparation will have been completed.

What a great story for the caddie. It also shows that Tiger is more than ready.

The PGA Championship is typically at a course that is slightly harder than the average Tour stop, and Medinah certainly will be, but it is more open to anyone winning it (than the other majors because of setup). I look for Tiger and Phil to be around the top at the end of the week. The odds and momentum are in Tiger's favor, but I am hoping someone makes him earn it like Sergio did last time at Medinah.

I have tickets to wednesday and sunday next week and can't wait.

I'm jealous.