Quick 18: A new No. 2, tough Pebble Beach and more

text size

Miguel Angel Jimenez hasn't given up his beloved cigars, but he'd added a new workout routine as he tries to stay competitive in his late 40s.

Editor's note: PGATOUR.COM's Melanie Hauser will be shaking out the mental lint and pulling together the "Quick 18" on Mondays this year. Here are her thoughts after the Northern Trust Open:

1. Who should be No. 2? Well, the Official World Rankings say Steve Stricker. A few chirping on the sidelines are making a case for Phil Mickelson. That camp says majors should weigh heavier in the rankings and, well, Phil's got the serious edge there. The debate will continue. Trust us.

2. Emotional Stricker. We see the tears coming before Stricker does. We have for years. No signature fist pump or poster-boy smile. Wins tug at Stricker's heart and he's not afraid to tear-up and let a few trickle down his cheek. Every moment like Sunday's is a Super Bowl-like bonus to a guy who wasn't sure he would ever get there again. His first major? Jacket, jug or trophy should come with a box of Kleenex on the side. We're just saying.

3. One last thing . . .wondering how Strick handles fame? With a chuckle. When asked if anyone recognized him at a Lakers game last week, he said yup. One person. And he had to resort to Google to find out just who some of the stars he saw courtside were.

4. If I play like this, I might even make the team! Paul Goydos closes with a 65 at Riviera and all anyone wants to talk about is his selection as one of Corey Pavin's four assistants. We love him for his humor and candor, but he can do a little playing too.

5. Expect to see tight fairways this week at Pebble Beach. Not U.S. Open tight, but seriously close since the course is prepping for the 110th Open in June. The average width is 27 yards, about 13 yards narrower than normal. And the coastline fairways are closer to the edge than normal.

6. It hurts our back just watching him. Rory McIlroy is too young to be having back problems, right? Wrong. The kid with an incredible reverse-C move is stopping by a Belfast doctor today to get his back checked out. "I've been out in the Middle East for four weeks so I think it's just a repetitive injury and comes from hitting a lot of balls, and it just niggles a little bit,'' he said.

7. The stars are out at Pebble Beach. Interesting team this week? Dallas quarterback Tony Romo and John Daly. A can't miss? Bill Murray, who's expected to be pulling people into bunkers and yucking it up, even after hobbling around the Sundance Film Festival with a bum knee he hurt skiing.

8. Cigars, wine ... cardio. At first glance, Miguel Angel Jimenez would seem more at ease in a pro-am or the 19th hole with a cigar and glass of wine. But that's just a glance. The man with the unruly ponytail is comfortable in his own skin and a world-class player. After winning in Dubai, he told reporters, "Like good wines, with age (golfers) get better and better.'' He should know. The win vaulted him 30 spots to 30th in the Official World Golf Rankings. And, this season he's working out. He said he's been in the gym almost every day for the past three weeks.

9. Hardly a one-week wonder. Not thought much about Ricky Barnes since Bethpage Black? Might want to start paying attention. Yes, he faded after tying for second at the U.S. Open, but this year, he's made all four cuts this year, tied for 22nd two weeks ago and shared ninth at the Northern Trust. "It was a good, solid week,'' he said. "Did I play good enough to probably get a top-2 today? No.''

10. Prince of Pebble Beach is back. Mark O'Meara is taking a break from the Champions Tour to play with the young kids this week. And why not? O'Meara is a five-time AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am winner. He played last week in Dubai, a tournament he won in 2004 at the age of 47, but missed the cut.

11. Kite still not 100 percent. Tom Kite is making his 2010 debut on the Champions Tour at this week's ACE Group Classic. Kite, who just turned 60, underwent shoulder surgery to repair a torn left biceps last fall and said he's about 80-85 percent healthy. His rehab included massages to break down scar tissue. "While I would prefer to head out to start the season at 100 percent, I feel confident that I will be able to play my way back to being competitive in a short time,'' he said. "The first few weeks may be a bit rugged, but I need to test the water to see how my shoulder responds to playing and the hours of practice."

12. The always candid Stewart Cink says that first major is great. But. " ... as soon as you make your first double bogey after that, you go back to feeling pretty ordinary again. I have to say, I've been feeling very ordinary lately."

13. No let down for Robert Gates. The former Texas A&M player -- in case you don't know, there is no such thing as an Aggie-ex, only a former student -- backed up his win in New Zealand by coming up one shot short of a playoff at the Moonah Classic. Gates has worked with Houston's Charlie Epps, who knows talent when he sees it. "As he matures, no telling what this kid can do,'' said Epps. He should know. He helped Angel Cabrera win the Masters last year.

14. Gotta love Charles Barkley. The Hank Haney Project alum weighed in on the upcoming Haney project with Ray Romano, noting it would be a lot nerdier this time around "because you've got two nerds working together." It won't be nearly as handsome "because you've got two ugly guys working together.'' But Sir Charles the critic did admit the golf would be a whole lot better.

15. Strong field virtually a lock in Houston. When the Shell Houston Open took the lead-in spot to the Masters, organizers decided to give the field a course setup to emulate Augusta -- minus elevation, on different grass and with hair-frizzing humidity. Last year the event drew eight of the top 10 in the world, 15 of the top 20, plus Fred Couples and Greg Norman. This year? SHO-time already has commitments from fourth-ranked Lee Westwood, seventh-ranked McIlroy and defending champ Paul Casey (No. 8).

16. New dad Jeev Milkha Singh -- his first child, a son, was born Jan. 29 -- was a little philosophical and a little funny in a recent blog Gulfnews.com. "Human mind,'' he wrote, "is definitely the 15th, and the most effective, club in your golf bag during any given round. And the best part is, it's legal.

17. From Mr. Peabody's Wayback Machine: A show of hands if you remember the moment when Forrest Fezler shook things up at the 1983 U.S. Open at Oakmont. After 17 holes, Fezler ducked into a porta-potty and swapped his blue slacks for blue shorts. Curtis Strange and Scott Hoch, playing behind him, gave him a thumbs-up, while his playing partner Robert Boyd said, "He looks like he had a $5 Nassau and lost his pants.'' Fezler helped the late Mike Strantz redo the Monterrey Penunsula CC's Shore Course, the latest addition to the AT&T rota, so he'll be in demand. Think the shorts story will come up a few times this week?

18. Australian Mark Hensby, who played on two Presidents Cup teams and was ranked as high 27th in the world, has battled shoulder and foot injuries is working his way back on the Nationwide Tour. Hensby finished fifth in New Zealand and tied for 32nd Sunday. "I must admit when I was probably 26th or 27th in the world I never thought I'd be back down on the Nationwide Tour and I hoped that I wouldn't be but things kind of happened and you've got to try and restart.''

Melanie Hauser is a columnist for PGATOUR.COM. Her views do not necessarily represent the views of the PGA TOUR.