Monday Movers: Mark Wilson Overcomes Weather for Second Win

February 7 2011 Last updated at 08:12 PM ET

Stock Up

Mark Wilson -- The biggest Packers fan on Tour couldn't stay up too late to celebrate the Super Bowl victory because he had to return to the course Monday morning and hold on to his two stroke lead with six holes to play. The celebration will be twice as sweet after Wilson became the first two-time winner in 2011 by holding off Jason Dufner in a playoff. The man who sported a Cheesehead at one point during play on Sunday also won a weather-affected Sony Open with a 36-hole final round. With the win, Wilson takes the lead in the FedEx Cup standings and will now get a crack at the full slate of events this season.

U.S. Open Qualifying -- The U.S. Golf Association will be making a number of changes to qualification criteria for the U.S. Open as a "direct response" to last year, when Justin Rose and Rickie Fowler both cracked the world top 50 just after the deadline. The quick fix will give players the May 23 and June 13 rankings to make it into the top 50 before this year's tournament, but the bigger changes take effect next year. The USGA will do away with the money list qualifiers and instead take the top 60 from the world rankings published three weeks before and the week of the U.S. Open.

TV ratings -- Even without the Tiger Woods effect on the PGA Tour to start the year, television ratings are up through the first month. The Golf Channel has enjoyed the biggest boost after showing the first three tournaments and the opening two rounds at Torrey Pines. While the Tournament of Champions was up 39 percent and the Bob Hope jumped 60 percent, Torrey gave both The Golf Channel and CBS the highest boost.

16th hole at TPC Scottsdale -- The loudest hole in golf didn't disappoint this week. How can you not enjoy a gallery that cheers loudly when local favorite Phil Mickelson steps on the tee at the par three and boos him when he misses the green? Where else do you see a player hand out out apparel to the fans in the middle of a tournament like Rickie Fowler did when he threw a sleeve of his patented Puma hats into the crowd on Saturday? Fans were rewarded with the first ace in nine years when Australian Jarrod Lyle rolled one in Saturday.

Thomas Bjorn -- The Dane bested a solid field and challenging conditions to take down the Qatar Masters by four strokes. The win moves him to 3rd in the Race to Dubai standings and jumps him 74 spots in the World Rankings to number 60, giving him a good chance to compete in the majors this year. Bjorn has quietly put together a very strong career that includes 11 European Tour wins, four top-3 major finishes, two Ryder Cup playing appearances and a Ryder Cup vice-captain non-playing appearance.

Back to the Range

First round in Qatar -- John Daly commented after Thursday's first round at the Qatar Masters that courses were being set up like majors nearly every week. If you took a look at the leaderboard following the opening round, you might have easily confused it with the British Open. Only 10 of the 131 players finished under par on a day when some of the best players in the game shot uncharacteristically high rounds due to windy conditions. Martin Kaymer and Steve Stricker, both top-10 players in the world, shot 77 and 76, respectively, while European Ryder Cup member Ross Fisher fired an 80

Weather in Scottsdale -- The average high for February in Scottsdale is a perfect 72 degrees, but perfect would be the last word players, fans and officials would use to describe the weather at the Phoenix Open. The event dealt with a frost or frozen turf delay every day of the tournament, which forced the first Monday finish at the event since 1979. The Tour should avoid cold, rainy conditions this week at Pebble Beach as it's expected to move in after the weekend.

Lee Westwood (right) -- The world's No. 1 didn't play like it in Qatar. A couple weeks after a 64th-place finish a couple weeks ago in Abu Dhabi, Westwood shot 73-75 and missed the cut by a stroke. The performance was chalked up to "early-season rust," which could be a probable excuse considering his last missed cut was at the start of the 2010 season. His lead might not last through February.

LPGA avoiding Mexico -- The Orlando Sentinel reported Wednesday that the LPGA would be canceling the Tres Marias Championship in Mexico due to concerns over violence. The tournament was set for April 21-24 in Morelia, which is located in the same state as one of the country's most vicious drug cartels. The report comes a week before the Tour is set to begin its season in Thailand.

Monday finish -- Everything that makes the Phoenix Open great went right out the window when the sun set on Sunday. The players took a few holes to get going on another chilly morning, and the galleries had the feel of a practice round compared to the weekend. It's hard to say how many people would have continued the party on Monday, but alcohol wasn't available even if you wanted it. Without those liquored-up supporters lining 16, it became a pretty mundane ending to the biggest party on tour.

Source: http://golf.fanhouse.com/2011/02/07/monday-movers-mark-wilson-overcomes-weather-for-second-win/

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