So there I was talking to PGA touring pro J.J. Henry on the phone Wednesday morning during a conference call. Only half-jokingly he wanted to know if was still raining up there. This was of course, in reference to the often rain delayed RBC Canadian Open and its soggy Monday finish. I replied that of course it was raining outside my door at that moment. What else!
Henry who has two Top 10 finishes this year and was the winner of the Buick Championship in his home state of Connecticut in 2006 will join Ernie Els in the third annual Golf Town Invititational at the Magna Golf Club in Aurora, ON, at the end of August. This year's charity is the McEwen Centre for Regenerative Medicine and will raise funds for its groundbreaking research toward the treatment and cure of diabetes. Charity work is nothing new for Henry who decided in 2006 that once he had finally won on the PGA Tour he became comfortable enough to start his own foundation. He also made note over the phone that the PGA Tour raises more money for local charities than all the other pro sports combined. The Golf Town event will feature a nine-hole exhibition between Henry and Els, as well as a clinic conducted by the two of them.
Along with the cursing, club throwing, ground slamming Tiger Woods, Henry is at the Buick Open at Warwick Hills in Grand Blanc Michigan this week, and although he didn't make it to the messy Canadian Open this year, he already has it pencilled in for next year at St. George's. That will make it four Canadian Opens for him. Henry is one of those who believes the big boys on Tour should vary their schedule from year to year so they end up playing all the tournaments on the circuit at least once in a while.
He contends that too many of them simply play the same events year after year, falling into a routine, and denying some tournaments their presence. That's not a good thing when events are starting to disappear because of the ailing economy. In fact, the Buick Open itself could dry up after the final putt Sunday if the beleagured General Motors pulls out, as is the rumour.
There's a certain irony in that one since Woods, a former Buick client plays this event every year. He might have taken a pass this year however if not for his poor performance at the Open Championship. Missing the cut, he wound up at Warwick Hills this week to fix his game. So here's the campaign: If the Buick falls by the wayside, let's get the RBC Canadian Open moved back a week in to that slot. Then cheer for Tiger to miss the cut at St. Andrews next year, and maybe the RCGA has a Tiger by the tail at St. George's in 2010. I know, I know, it's too late for that and it'll never happen. Besides, St. George's is not exactly the type of course to prepare for next year's PGA Championship at Whistling Straits. That track is more like St. Andrews than anything else.
But wouldn't it be nice ...
