Verdi's Views: Archive page for Bob Verdi

text size

Bob Verdi, one of the most respected sports writers in the United States, is on site at Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Australia filing stories for PGATOUR.COM to give fans an inside look at the competition, teams, players and captains, as well as the unique setting of the Sand Belt courses in Victoria.

Verdi joined the Chicago Tribune in 1967 covering hockey and baseball. He gradually moved his expertise and skills as a columnist into golf and wrote full-time for the newspaper through 1997. He joined Golf Digest and Golf World as a senior writer in 1997. Currently, Verdi is a member of the Chicago Blackhawks' front office, serving as team historian.

Verdi has covered all eight previous Presidents Cup, including those in Australia (1998), South Africa (2003) and Canada (2007). Verdi will rely on his decades-long relationships with many of the players -- as well as team Captains Greg Norman and Fred Couples -- to focus on the players and personalities of The Presidents Cup and present stories from the event in his individual and iconic style.

For more on Bob Verdi, click here.

Here is a look at each of his columns from Royal Melbourne:

EXCITEMENT BUILDING IN MELBOURNE (published Nov. 13)
A Tiger Woods triumph Sunday at the Australian Open in Sydney would have provided even extra juice, but as they say around here, no worries. Woods appears ready, yet he could not be more anxious for The Presidents Cup than this world-class city, where summer is rolling in, along with two dozen of the best golfers on the planet.
Click to read the rest of the column

TAKING A RIDE WITH NORMAN AT ROYAL MELBOURNE (published Nov. 14)
It is Monday morning at Royal Melbourne, and Greg Norman is at work already. He flew in from Sydney the previous night after playing the Australian Open, and surely could have slept in, as did a number of golfers who will participate in this week's Presidents Cup. But The Great White Shark went to the course early, hopped on his cart, and surveyed a course he could navigate blindfolded. He knows no other way.
Click to read the rest of the column

A LAID BACK APPROACH (published Nov. 15)
So what's really going on behind the U.S. team's closed doors? Let's go straight to the source -- Fred Couples. If he's nervous, it's not showing. "I've got a title, but I'm just one of the guys. I'm not much for making speeches or giving orders. Besides, if I'm nervous, then I'll make everybody around me nervous, right?"
Click to read the rest of the column

AN OLDER TIGER SEES THINGS DIFFERENTLY NOW (published Nov. 16)
He was young and impressionable in 1998. He was ranked No. 1 in the world. But Tiger Woods and his fellow Americans came to Royal Melbourne and got royally bent, folded and mutilated.
Click to read the rest of the column

ALL EYES ON THE AUSSIES (published Nov. 17)
Geoff Ogilvy knows what a massive moment the Presidents Cup was to his native country in 1998. And while the Internationals didn't have a great first day, he knows they'll stick together and make Australia proud.
Click to read the rest of the column

MELBOURNE MEMORIES IN THE MAKING (published Nov. 18)
Phil Mickelson loves these team outings and the United States team loves having him on their side. Not only is he playing well at Royal Melbourne but he's also the life of the party, keeping everyone loose and relaxed.
Click to read the rest of the column

READY FOR ANYTHING (published Nov. 19)
The United States Presidents Cup team has battled wind, rain and a hostile environment to enter Sunday's singles with a 13-9 advantage. With veterans lining the back end of the U.S. lineup, Fred Couples' squad will be ready for whatever challenges they face Sunday.
Click to read the rest of the column

A TEAM UNITED (published Nov. 20)
They play an individual sport but had no trouble coming together as a team in Australia. The U.S. Presidents Cup team pulled together to hold off the Internationals on Sunday and celebrated the victory with a team ping-pong championship.
Click to read the rest of the column

FINAL MUSINGS FROM MELBOURNE (published Nov. 21)
The host nation for this year's Presidents Cup has plenty of quirks, not the least of which is taking a defeat in stride. The sun came up Monday after the United States' win, and life went on in this interesting part of the world.
Click to read the rest of the column