Features:
(click on a headline to go to the feature)
Notes from the U.S. Open
Justin Talks About TPC Southwind
Justin Featured in Jimmy Roberts' New Book
Leonard's the Leader on 'Moving Day'
Outside The Ropes Video Capsules Justin's Balanced Perspectives
Justin Trails by One Shot for Kodak Million
Another Cup on the horizon for Justin?
Justin the Actor in Nike TV Commercial
JL’s Prep for 09 – More of the Same
Justin's 2008 Highlights
Tour Commissioner Urges Player Support; Justin Agrees
Return of the Tactician - Golf Digest features Justin Leonard's New Swing
Memphis Reprise: Leonard's 2nd St. Jude Win
Check Out Justin's Latest Statistics
Special Section! Justin at the 2008 Ryder Cup - stories, photos, and video - click here
NEW! Inside the Ropes video clips of Justin on TOUR.
Click here to view.
Notes from the U.S. Open
There is a great feeling of pride at Bethpage – site of the 2002 and 2009 USGA Open Championships. Justin Leonard couldn't help but notice. "Bethpage, being a public course, it seems like all you hear there is, 'How do you like our course?''' said Leonard, a Texan doing his best to deliver a New York accent. "They take a lot of pride in hosting the U.S. Open. It's like you've got 50,000 owners out there, all wanting to see you play on their course. It's fun.'' – Quoted in Sports Illustrated (SI.com)
“When you play well, the people tend to get behind you. When you don’t, nobody notices, and they don’t care. But at least they don’t boo you like at Yankee Stadium.’’ – Justin Leonard, on the gallery at Bethpage. – Quoted in the Chicagoland Golf Blog
“When putting for birdie, you realize that, most of the time, it’s acceptable to make par. When you’re putting for par, there’s probably a greater sense of urgency, so therefore you’re willing to be more aggressive in order not to drop a shot. It makes sense.” – Quoted in a New York Times feature.
Justin celebrated his 37th birthday on Monday of U.S. Open week.
Justin Talks About TPC Southwind
"It's nice to be back, playing a golf course that I enjoy and that I've had some success on.
"The greens are in great shape. Not much wind the last couple days. The course is a little soft. I know you've had a bunch of rain up here the last month or so. So the golf course isn't quite as fast as what it was. There's probably a little more rough than there has been the last couple years.
"You have to move the ball off both directions off the tees in order to fit it in the fairways. Probably the most difficult are the green complexes. With the Bermuda greens, they're a lot firmer than they were before and faster. So you have to be pretty precise in order to get the ball close. The last couple years have shown if the wind blows a little bit here, par is a good score. So it takes somebody who's patient. I tend to be a pretty patient player out on the golf course."
Click here to read all about Justin's dramatic playoff victory in last year's St. Jude Classic.
Justin Featured in Jimmy Roberts' New Book
“I was trying to make myself believe that I was playing okay,” Justin Leonard recalls during his dismal start to the PGA TOUR season in 2007. “Because it’s hard to go out there and play with no confidence. And sometimes you have to try and trick yourself a little bit. It doesn’t mean I thought I was playing great, but I thought, ‘My game’s pretty good on Tuesday and Wednesday; why can’t I get that to Thursday and Friday?’ I had some brutal Friday nights.”
The story of how Justin turned it around with the help of his wife, swing coach Randy Smith, and mental game specialists Dick Coop and Lanny Bassham, is chronicled in NBC and ESPN golf analyst Jimmy Roberts’ new book, Breaking The Slump.
Click here to read more about this chapter in Justin's career.
Leonard's the Leader on 'Moving Day'
Saturday is known as "Moving Day" on the PGA TOUR, and so far in 2009 Justin Leonard is the best at moving up the leaderboard to get in position for Sunday's finale. JL's scoring average is 68.14 on Saturdays, leading Zach Johnson by 0.11 and Steve Stricker by 0.26 strokes.
The sizzling Saturdays have led to three Top 10 finishes for Justin, including solo 5th at the Mercedes-Benz Championship, a tie for 5th at the Accenture Match Play Championship, and 9th at the CA Championship.
Click here for the complete Saturday Top 10 (at bottom of page)
PGATour.com Shines the Spotlight on Justin during the Texas Open - Click here for stories, stats, and videos
Outside The Ropes Video Capsules Justin's Balanced Perspectives
"I'm a fairly conservative feel player. My game is to put the ball into play, and from there try to get more aggressive."
In a PGATour.com "Outside The Ropes" video, Justin comments on memories of taking up the game of golf, when he realized he could be competitive on the TOUR, the importance of the TOUR to communities, Tiger's dominance, family fun, musical tastes, weekly goals, and more.
Click here to view Justin's reflections.
Justin Trails by One Shot for Kodak Million
Justin Leonard is currently tied for 4th, but only one shot out of the lead, in the season-long Kodak Challenge on the PGA TOUR, a first-of-its-kind competition that offers $1 million to the winning player. The Kodak Challenge celebrates beautiful holes and memorable moments on the TOUR – such as the 16th hole at the Resort Course at La Cantera, site of the Valero Texas Open which Justin has won three times.
Players must play at least 18 of the 24 Kodak Challenge holes throughout the season to compete for the Kodak Challenge title and $1 million. A player's lowest score relative to par on his best 18 Kodak Challenge holes will be counted. The player with the lowest cumulative score relative to par wins.
In eight events (through The Players Championship), JL is 5-under par. He trails leaders Steve Lowery, Will MacKenzie, and Chris DiMarco by a shot.
Click here to read more about the Kodak Challenge
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Justin is in a solid position for the 2009 US Presidents Cup team.
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Another Cup on the horizon for Justin?
Following Justin Leonard’s triumphant return to the Ryder Cup last fall, is another Presidents Cup next?
Justin has been on four previous US Presidents Cup squads – winning in 2005 and 1996 (both at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Virginia), losing to the International team at Royal Melbourne in Australia in 2000, and the famous tie at Fancourt in South Africa in 2003.
The 2009 Presidents Cup will be played October 6-11 at Harding Park Golf Course in San Francisco, California.
The top 10 point-earners for the Americans will automatically qualify, and will be joined by two selections from captain Fred Couples.
Click here to see the current Top 10 for the US team.
Click here to see the current Top 10 for the International team.
Justin the Actor in Nike TV Commercial
Justin Leonard may have a career in acting if his performance in a new Nike TV commercial is any indication.
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Justin Leonard is swarmed by autograph seekers in a new TV commercial for Nike Golf.
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Justin and other Nike Golf representatives are featured in a new television commercial titled, "The Good Life."
Against the 1965 Lesley Gore song, "Sunshine, Lollipops and Rainbows," 2008 season victories by JL, Stewart Cink, and other PGA Tour stars are featured.
But then the locker room party atmosphere changes when Tiger Woods walks in. (Watch closely for Justin's facial expression shift.)
Click here to watch the Nike Golf "Good Life" spot.
JL’s Prep for 09 – More of the Same
Justin Leonard prepared to improve on his very successful 2007 PGA TOUR campaign in much the same way as a year ago – with some intense off-season sessions with longtime friend and swing coach Randy Smith at Royal Oaks Country Club in Dallas.
“Justin was swinging so good in the latter part of the season. We haven’t been working on anything new. It’s just a matter of rehearsal, rehearsal, rehearsal,” says Smith.
Click here to read Randy Smith's insight into Justin's off-season workouts and his 2009 focus.
Justin's 2008 Highlights
A triumphant return to the Ryder Cup
PGA Tour Victory #12 in Memphis
8 Top 10 finishes
24 of 25 cuts
Nearly $4 million in official earnings
8th in FedExCup points
2nd in Par 4 performance (5th in Par 4 birdies)
4th in Proximity to the Hole (all approach shots)
2nd in Approaches from 125-150 yards
3rd in Approaches from 100-125 yards
3rd in Approaches from 50-125 yards
3rd in Scrambling from the Rough
8th in Putting Average
10th in Scoring Average
Tour Commissioner Urges Player Support; Justin Agrees
PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem wants his players to pitch in during a tough economy to help give sponsors their money's worth, and Justin Leonard believes they will.
Finchem has sent a video to players and their agents asking them to consider adding tournaments they don't typically play and to reach out to the sponsors when they are at tournaments, the Sports Business Journal reported.
"They've got a list of events that need help to varying degrees," Leonard. "I'm sensitive to that. I'm going to play a couple of events that they asked me to play. Bigger than that is doing more at tournaments."
"We're asking every player to add a tournament or two to their historical schedule to assist the tournaments that historically have weak fields," Finchem said in the video. "We have a lot of title sponsors this year that are up for renewal. We have to put our best foot forward in terms of presenting our competitions."
Leonard said he would add the Travelers Championship in Cromwell, Connecticut, a tournament he has played only once in the last eight years.
Jim Furyk has not seen the video, but he could figure out the message — support what they have. "My guess is they're going to ask some more of the players to do some meet-and-greets, rub some elbows, thank people, make people aware of the fact that we appreciate what they're doing," Furyk said. "And I think they will. I think the players will respond positively to that. They should realize how fortunate we are."
Return of the Tactician
Golf Digest features Justin Leonard's New Swing
"I changed my grip and my setup with the help of my teacher, Randy Smith, and I started hitting the ball solid again. Once I was in control of my distance and trajectory, I could shape shots off the tee and into greens, like I always have. It's been the difference between hanging on to make cuts and playing late on Sunday with a chance to win." -- Justin Leonard
"He had to re-access that old Justin attitude -- that he wanted to chew your leg off," says Smith. "It was still in there. And he can hit more shots now than ever before. He's a big fish. Now he's swimming with them again." -- Randy Smith
Click here to watch the action sequence of Justin's new swing and to read Randy Smith's analysis.
Memphis Reprise: Leonard's 2nd St. Jude Win
Justin Leonard’s playoff victory in the Stanford St. Jude Championship was as stylish as the sleek seersucker jacket he was presented at the awards ceremony. He was elegant and focused all week -- right down to his winning 19-foot birdie putt on the second playoff hole with Trevor Immelman and Robert Allenby.
But within minutes of wrapping up his second victory at TPC Southwind, his mindset was locked in on another primary goal -- this year's Ryder Cup.
The victory propelled Leonard, who'll turn 36 on Sunday, into solid standing for the Ryder Cup matches in September at Vahalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky. It's been too long, in his mind, since he's been on the American squad and he's fired up.
"This (win) puts me in great position to make the team, which is something I've been wanting. For the last nine years, I've been looking forward to one."
To read all about Justin's 2nd Memphis title, click here
Check out Justin's latest statistics:
Justin's PGA TOUR player profile
Justin's PGA TOUR results
Justin's PGA TOUR statistics
FedEx Cup Point Standings - Playoffs
Ryder Cup Point Standings
2009 President's Cup Point Standings
Official World Golf Ranking
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