The Tournament Of Champions on the PGA Tour may be a little misleading with no Major or WGC winners in the field and the 28 man field was another man down early when Former U.S. Open champion Lucas Glover withdrew after spraining his right knee while paddleboarding. Grizzly Glover was paddleboarding in the Pacific Ocean when his foot caught the side of the board leading to sprained ligaments.

Speaking injuries and Ryder Cups spare a thought for Paul Casey who dislocated his right shoulder while snowboarding in Colorado, and will miss the first two months of the year and severly jeopardize his chances of qualifying for Europe’s Ryder Cup team. In 2010 Casey also missed out on the Ryder Cup after missing a chunk of the season with a rib injury and then being ignored by captain Monty for a wild card. The 20th-ranked Englishman said he doesn’t need surgery and “should be back hitting balls in a few weeks.” He will however miss the Abu Dhabi Championship where he won twice previously and the generous Ryder Cup points on offer there ahead of the matches in Medinah, Ill., in September.

And those are not the only two on the treatment table at the moment. Dustin Johnson is also recovering from a recent surgery, this one golf induced.

The man mountain that is Johnson underwent arthroscopic surgery at the beginning of December to repair damaged cartilage in his right knee. Such are the demands of the modern game, and the requirement for extreme power that a guy like Johnson who excelled at several sports, is already starting to show signs of wear and tear.

Happily DJ is off his crutches, is back practicing and is due back at the Farmers Insurance Open where he will warm up before a return to the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am; the venue on which he won in 2009 and ’10 and collapsed in the US Open.

You could say that modern Tour life is “no country for old men” or even weak ones, a sentiment aired by Lee Westwood and brother in law Andrew Coltart who has decided his power no longer cuts it at the top level. Coltart told writer John Huggan in an interview “The new technology in golf has never been a help to me. I just don’t create enough clubhead speed to take advantage of the big-headed drivers and the new balls. As someone once told me, you can almost read the name of the shaft on my downswing!”

And Lee Westwood agreed saying “It’s a shame that Andrew is having to give up but the game at the top level has almost become one for bombers. You can’t survive out there if you are short by tour standards, which Andrew is, unfortunately.”

What a tale of woe it makes with power and surgery, and we managed to get through a whole piece without mention of Tiger (nearly) who could write the book on it!

The media centre at the Australian Open was buzzing last Friday night with journo’s clamouring for their Tiger stats and trying to outdo each other with clever variations of ‘Tiger’s Back For Good’ headlines. Down the back one or two of the older hacks that type with two fingers were not convinced.

If the media needs Tiger Woods to be back to his best they have had a funny way of showing it before now, but there did seem to be a shift in attitudes when Tiger re-emerged with old his game face on in Australia. Tweets and posts abounded interlaced with pics of fist pumps and leaderboards which for once did have to be expanded to include Tiger’s name.

By now however we know that things don’t run that smoothly anymore with the world’s greatest player. And as if his leg wasn’t injured enough, Tiger went and shot himself in the foot on Saturday, or moving day, with a four over 75. Funny thing is people always cite Tiger’s leg when he plays bad, but time and again it’s his putting that has been the problem, the one thing he could have been doing in the back garden every day for the last two years! We totted up 34 of them in 18 holes on Saturday.

If Woods lost the tournament on Saturday he very nearly won it back on Sunday. Suddenly even his red tee shirt seemed to be back to the right shade again as he powered his way back up the leaderboard. And you know the funny thing? For all his failings you simply don’t hear the crowd as loudly for anyone else as Woods on a charge.

Alas he was too far back to win, but in coming third, he as good as won. The media got their column inches, the Australian Open got worldwide credibility back, the sponsors were delighted and Tiger gave all his fellow pros cause for concern as they chow down on their Christmas turkeys and complete 2012.

So maybe its not Tiger knee that’s on ice for the moment, it’s the celebrations!

I’m sure by now you all know about Stevie Williams racist comments directed at Tiger Woods during the annual player/caddy awards dinner at the HSBC event last week. Traditionally the event allows players and caddies to have a good natured mutual roasting, all in the name of good fun. The rule is “what’s said in the room stays in the room.” The media are not allowed in.

Obviously Stevie Williams thought he was among friends when he said his aim in an interview with David Feherty after winning with Adam Scott “was to shove it right up that b*ack as*hole,” referring to former boss Tiger Woods. The truth however is Williams has precious few friends inside the ropes, especially so in the circle of caddies and it wasn’t long before one of them told reporters what Williams had said.

As is by now customary in sport, everyone comes out the statement saying there’s no room for racism in the game, least of all one played by gentlemen such as golf. As if those words are some form of magic fire extinguisher designed to snuff out the Williams inferno.

If Stevie were a soccer player he would have entered last week’s tournament on a yellow card. His barbed wire relationship with fans, the bile between he and Tiger, his misguided impression that it’s he who wins golf tournaments when he said “I’m a great front runner” are not exactly the most endearing of qualities.

However rather than discipline Williams, golf’s two High Priests Finchem and O’Grady have done absolutely nothing to reprimand the New Zealander other than wheel out the exact same trite statement about racism I referred to earlier. Rather than slap him on the wrists, they closed ranks and as good as clapped him on the back.

Imagine how Marcus Fraser felt when he got slapped with a €10000 fine for remarking on facebook when his playing started using his phone to rearrange a flight mid round. Then Williams gets away scot free. There’s one rule for some and one for all others. The punishment certainly didn’t fit the crime in either case.

This story is not going to go away anytime soon, especially as Kiwi Williams heads to Sydney for the Australian Open where Tiger Woods is in the field. Organizers had long since planned to pair Scott, Woods and Jason Day for the opening rounds but have had to rethink this given the furore.

The battle is set to intensify the following week at the Presidents Cup at Royal Melbourne, where Williams Scott and Woods could face each other again, this time in matchplay where fist pumping is par for the course.

Methinks this is one fire that words will not be able to extinguish.

Remember the couple in Father Ted that were all sweetness and light on the outside, then fit to murder each other behind closed doors? You think Rory and Chubby were like that? Or is it more a case of ‘far away hills are greener’ that caused the split, with GMac, Ridgey and the lads having a way more fun over at the Horizon table?

My personal guess, and it is a guess, on the whole Rory McIlroy ISM split is that there may have been two reasons. For me GMac’s influence was the main factor, the whole Horizon camp is tighter, more friendly and the sportsman undoubtedly gets a better cut. You just know GMac and Rors will have sat down over a beer and compared a few percentages! Watching Chubby give TV interviews talking about a possible “Chubby Slam” for ISM in the Majors this year probably annoyed him too. Hey who’s on the make here? Me or Chubby?

Another reason is that Rory has grown up a lot over the past 12 months. He moves in different circles now. He knows his stock has risen, he’s heard the businessmen talking at the dinner table. He may even have learned a little about endorsements and contracts in the tennis and rugby world and figured he wasn’t getting the attention or the deal he deserved.

Whatever happened behind closed doors between Rory and Chubby Chandler, the sickly sweet press releases in the immediate aftermath were quickly followed by some more honest words. Or tweets even.

First Lee Westwood rowed in with a tweet, “bizarre decision,” which Rory rewarded with an ‘Unfollow’, the equivalent of a red card on Twitter. Then Chubby Chandler said in an interview that he thought Caroline Wozniacki could have had something to do with the decision and that Rory wasn’t happy with his current sponsor deals. Queue a second straight red for Chandler!

Imagine how the likes of Oakley feel now, having forked out huge sums of cash to retain the US Open Champion a little longer. Whatever happens the Rory signing will be a slow burner for Conor Ridge and Colin Morrissey at Horizon Sports as most of the McIlroy endorsement contracts are already locked in until 2014. You could say that Chandler’s wallet is set to become a lot more chubby before he’s finished with Rory.

A few weeks a ago we posted about how Luke Donald had the opportunity to become the first player in the history of the game to top both the PGA and European Tour money lists. Last week Luke Donald was tired, exhausted and looking forward to a well deserved rest. One week later he’s got the clubs back out of the garage and is on his way to Disney.

Whoever says it’s not all about the money needs to “hould his whisht”. Outwardly Luke might be all smiles on the course but deep down he craves the Benjamins.

Webb Simpson, who overtook Donald in the PGA Tour money list by simply turning up at the second rate McGladrey Classic calls this week’s showdown a “fun” tussle, while it’s more ‘snuffing out a threat’ that the Englishman has on his mind.

Luke Donald is not only the World #1 but he stands on the brink of history as he bids to become the first man to win the money list on the PGA and European Tours in the same season. He may be miles ahead this side of the pond, but Stateside Webb Simpson has won twice, lost a playoff last week and seems determined to play every event and it’s beginning to annoy Donald.

Before last week $67,980 divided them, now Simpson has forged ahead in the final furlong. “I think he’s kind of thinking the same thing I’m thinking,” Simpson said. “If one of us was going to play, the other one really needed to.”

Donald, who thought his next few weeks would be spent assembling his new cot in preparation for the arrival of his second child, tweeted last week “There was never really a decision to be made, I have a chance of making history.” “See you all at Disney next week #bringiton.”

Meanwhile down at number 115 and lower on the European Tour money list, it’s all about the money too. Those finishing below that number who haven’t any sort of exemption face a trip to the dreaded Tour School in PGA de Catalunya in mid December. So how much do you think you need to earn in a season to be in that magic 115? As of last week €220,000 would have been just shy.

Watch over the coming weeks to see how the guys that are teetering on the brink really front up. Such is the strength in depth of the Tour these days that household names like Soren Hansen, Oliver Wilson, Thongchai Jaidee and so many more are in the scramble. Former PGA winner Simon Khan went into last week’s Portugal Masters in 112th but dug and muscled out a tied 16th place finish to climb out of the relegation zone to 104th.

So as the season ends, much like the Premiership, as many eyes will be on the bottom of the table as the top as the Pro’s battle literally for their livelihood.

It was almost like the dark clouds over Knock airport were forming some kind of barrier to keep us in Ireland but when the nose of the Boeing 737 burst out through the grey our trip to the inaugural “Catalonia International Festival Of Golf” was one the highlights of the golfing year.

Now I don’t now about you but the daily grind of putting on base layers, doing school runs and bleeding radiators can take its toll. Thus landing in Reus just two hours later was a shock to the system. There’s that strange other worldly feel when a blast of hot air hits you as you step on the tarmac. Base layers? They’ve never even heard of them in Barcelona!

The Catalonia International Festival Of Golf is the brainchild of Dubliner Dermot Synnott of Destination Golf and colleague Ian Denham. The festival showcases the delights of golfing in this proud region. From the mature trees on the Stadium Course at Irish owned PGA de Catalunya, which is familiar to us all as the venue for European Tour School, to the tight and tricky Real Club de Golf El Prat, venue of the Open de Espana, the province is just teaming with top courses.

It’s not just golf either. If you, like me, are a sports fan first and foremost, then this is the place for you. Just one hour south of Reus airport is the home of La Liga team Villarreal. The whole town shuts down two hours before every home game to rush into the 25,000
seated El Madrigal Stadium to watch their heroes. Tickets are cheap, always available and the atmosphere is electric.

Golfers flying from the UK and Ireland will most likely fly into and base themselves around Barcelona. There you can hop from the tee box to Las Ramblas, or Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia or if you’re a sports fan like me, a visit to the Camp Nou is a must. Unfortunately Messi, Iniesta and company were away from home last week but the Stadium Tour for just €22 is unmissable. It brings you around the fascinating 99,000 plus
seated ground, from the pitch to the press boxes and just about everywhere in between. Would you believe that during the ’92 World Cup, the Camp Nou held 112,000 fans, all seated, but reduced its capacity after for safety reasons?

So if the sudden drop off in temperatures has caught you out and you want to extend your summer even further then ‘Sunny Spain’ is
exactly that.