Loose Impediments

Soggy Bethpage

During the next drought on Long Island, the authorities should hastily put together a golf tournament at Bethpage Black. Any tournament.

Because Black isn't just the name of the course; the color perfectly describes the clouds that seem to descend for any event here.

The 2009 U.S. Open has seen its first weather delay just 3 hours and 16 minutes after Rickie Fowler hit the first shot.

And as I sit here listening to the rain pelting the roof of the media center, I am reminded of 2002 U.S. Open, when the second day was soaked and a delay on Sunday caused winner Tiger Woods to putt out in near darkness.

My Old School

Tim Finchem may consider the Players Championship to be golf's fifth major, but for me, that honor goes to this week's NCAA Northeast Regional at Galloway National Golf Club in New Jersey, near Atlantic City. That's because my alma mater, Columbia, is in the field.

Granted, they are the 13th seed in a 14-team field, and has as much chance of advancing to the finals at the Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio, as Cornell did of reaching the Sweet 16 in the NCAA basketball championships.

But just reaching this level is a huge achievement for a golf program at a school in the middle of the biggest city in the country, where the nearest course, Van Cortlandt, is located 14 stops away on the 1 line. (Believe me, a crowded subway car is no place for a golf bag.)