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It started out with promise, but Tiger Woods‘ first tournament of 2011 ended a lot like his first tournament of 2010; tons of hype, some good play early, but in the end, a disappointment.

Tiger shot rounds of 74-75 on the weekend at the Farmers Insurance Open, landing in 44th place, his worst finish ever at Torrey Pines. We’ve heard for weeks that Tiger’s golf swing is back (even Phil Mickelson mentioned it before the week started), but it seemed the entire time that Tiger was searching for something that wasn’t there.

He didn’t make a bogey on Thursday, threw three bogeys at us on Friday before bouncing back for a matching 69, but things were never there on Saturday and Sunday. None of his stats were horrible from the week, but when Tiger is hitting the ball like Tiger used to hit the ball, he was always near the top of greens in regulation, a stat he’s struggled with the last couple of years.

On top of that, he just doesn’t look that comfortable. His golf swing shows signs of greatness occasionally, but it still needs major fixing. As any golfer knows, you can hit millions of golf balls on the range with a new swing, but until you can take it to the golf course, it isn’t ready.

The week was supposed to be a huge one for Woods. He was coming back to a place he has dominated in the past, and the hype was strong, but it was another golf tournament where Tiger’s play never got him in the conversation. Next week he goes to another golf course in Dubai that Woods has had a ton of success at, but with the way Tiger’s playing, it doesn’t seem to be the venue or the past wins; it’s all about how he’s hitting the ball, and right now, that just isn’t good enough. 

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It looked promising for John Daly after Friday at Torrey Pines. The 44-year-old is trying his hardest to play well so he won’t ever have to worry about getting invitations into certain events, something he lashed out about after his opening 67 on Thursday.

Daly was in the hunt, but if there is anything we’ve learned from Big John, it’s you can’t turn the movie off until the credits start rolling. Daly started the weekend at eight-under, but a Saturday 76 knocked him off the leaderboard. He made an early birdie during that third round, but couldn’t avoid the squares.

Then came Sunday. Daly was one-under after nine holes, looking to finish with a good score to keep him high enough to earn a decent payday. That was out the window quickly, as Daly closed with a 44 on his final nine holes, dropping him all the way down to a tie for 65th.

I don’t ever knock Daly personally, because I have no idea what kind of person he really is. He seems nice enough, but it is things like this that keep me wondering if he could ever contend for 72 holes again. He plays well here and there, but it just seems that blowups, and major blowups at that, happen more often now than they ever have.

If Daly plays his final nine holes at even par, he would have finished in the top-20 for the first time since the Buick Open in 2007. That would have been a pretty great feat to knock out this early in the season. Sadly, for golf fans everywhere, he couldn’t do it, and at a tournament where a year ago he said he was thinking of just quitting the game, those thoughts could easily be lingering around again. 

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If there’s one thing Hunter Mahan learned from last season, it’s that pain can be the perfect springboard for bigger things. Forget the two titles he captured last season – a first for the up-and-coming star – the Ryder Cup defeat could end up being the turning point in Mahan’s career.

Up until that point, Mahan had never suffered pain on the golf course quite like last season’s heartbreaking defeat to the European squad. But in an instant, things came unraveled for the usually calm and collected Mahan.

He chunked a chip in the deciding match, costing the Americans a chance at stealing the Ryder Cup on foreign soil. In the post-round press conference, Mahan couldn’t hold in the pain he was feeling at that time.

"I’m just proud to be a part of this team," Mahan said after the match, his voice cracking. “It’s a close team, and …"

Pain has a way of motivating those who are willing to embrace the moment and learn from the experience. If you want a prime example, take a look at Dustin Johnson.

Less than a month after a rules violation cost him a shot at the PGA Championship, Johnson won in Chicago at the BMW Championship.  Like Mahan, he found a way to move on and use the pain to his advantage.

Mahan seems to be on the exact same path as Johnson. He’s playing with a renewed purpose and striking the ball like he did when he won in Akron and Phoenix last year.

While hasn’t posted a win since Ryder Cup, he’s getting very close. A three-under 69 on Saturday vaulted him into sole possession of second place at the Farmers Insurance Open.

At this point, it’s not a matter of if Mahan wins again – it’s just a matter of when. And when he does finally break through, don’t be surprised if he mentions the heartache at Celtic Manor as an impetus for his newfound success.

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I’ll be honest; I was skeptical about Phil Mickelson this season. I thought he’d struggle for the first time in his career. I thought it was going to be tough on him with his health issues. I thought the game might have actually moved past the 40-year-old Mickelson.

After Saturday at Torrey Pines, it seems I was dead wrong. Mickelson is playing as well in his first PGA Tour start of 2011 as anyone, and he has put himself in a familiar position at the Farmers Insurance Open.

He shot a four-under 68, and is tied with Bill Haas for the lead at 12-under, looking to win at this event for the fourth time in his career. 

The thing is, if he doesn’t win, it could dash all of that. He’s hitting his irons beautifully, and seems to be in control around the greens, but if Phil doesn’t win, if he can’t close on Sunday at this marquee event, it could be one of those moments that we might look back over the next two years as the tournament that finally sidelined Lefty.

But he will probably win. He always seems to win when people don’t think he can. Nobody thought he’d ever claim a major, and he did. He got up and down to win his only PGA Championship from a nasty lie that seemed to be a moment Phil couldn’t handle. He took down Augusta National a year ago when he hadn’t had his best stuff all season.

If he does win, it could be the year we’ve been waiting for. A resurgent Phil contending against Tiger Woods, among others, who has struggled all week with his swing.

Sunday will tell us a lot about how 2011 is going to go. A Haas win would be great. A Mickelson win could be career-altering. 

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When the PGA Tour opened the 2011 season,
one of its biggest marketing focuses was on the up-and-coming twenty-somethings
playing on tour. They promoted Rickie Fowler, Hunter Mahan, Dustin Johnson
and Anthony Kim — but for some reason missed promoting the guy who’s now one of the
hottest players on tour.

Bill Haas is used to being invisible
and flying under the radar. He doesn’t have the flowing locks or the
youthful looks, but he is 28 and currently playing the best golf of
any twentysomething on the PGA Tour.

If you go back to last season’s Viking
Classic, Haas has one win, two second-place finishes, and a T8 in four
events.

"I’m 28, but bald," Haas said after
Friday’s second round. "I don’t look 20-something. I can’t really
pull off that look, so I’m happy with the regular slacks and solid colored
shirts and flying under the radar as you say. Just trying to let my
clubs do a little more talking than they’ve done in the past." 

If Haas was hoping to fly under the
radar for the rest of the season, his cover was definitely blown on
Friday with a six-under 66 — the round included eight birdies —
that vaulted him to the top of an extremely impressive Farmers Insurance
Open leaderboard.

With a two-shot lead going into the
weekend, don’t expect Haas to let off the gas one bit, not with
the players currently within striking distance. Anthony Kim followed
up his opening round 68 with a five-under 67 to take sole possession
of second place.

Only a couple shots back is a group
of elite players that includes Phil Mickelson, Rickie Fowler, Bubba Watson,
John Daly, and Hunter Mahan; Tiger Woods and Dustin Johnson are currently
six back of the lead.

It’s the sort of leaderboard that
should have Tour commissioner Tim Finchem jumping up and down with glee.
With a number of European players opting to play abroad this year, the PGA Tour needs its big names more than ever.

There are still two rounds remaining,
but the weekend at Torrey Pines is definitely shaping up to be one of
the most highly anticipated weekends in some time. Bring your A-game,
fellas.

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