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According to AP, Lorena Ochoa, the No. 1 player in women’s golf the last three years, has just announced her retirement.  A post on her website said the following:

“Lorena Ochoa confirms her retirement from the LPGA, as news reports in some media have said today,” her statement said. “The reasons and more details on the matter will be given by Lorena personally in a press conference on Friday in Mexico City. Lorena will share this news of a new stage in her life with her sponsors, family members and friends.”

Ochoa married Andres Conesa, the chief executive of Aeromexico airline, in December.

Here’s a link to her career highlights courtesy of Golf.com.

On the LPGA website, there is a clip of Ochoa talking about what she would do if she wasn’t a professional golfer… Rumor is she wants to start a family, but the video does provide some insight into other activities she may want to pursue:

Picture this. You’re in a sudden-death playoff. You hit your approach shot into some hard-packed sand and reeds down the left side of the hole. A troubling situation for sure, but after closer inspection, you’re convinced you can pop the ball out and on to the green for a chance at par. You go for it, and are successful at extracting the ball to the green. But wait, you think you noticed a loose impediment move on your backswing. Did you hit it? Do you call a penalty on yourself?

Brian Davis waits for the ruling from on-course referee Slugger White

That’s the situation that faced the 35 year-old Brian Davis at the Verizon Heritage last night at Harbor Town. The Englishman was locked in a sudden-death playoff with Jim Furyk, when he slightly hooked his second shot into the garbage short left of the 18th green.

Brian thought he noticed his club strike a loose impediment, and IMMEDIATELY called a rules official over once the ball came to rest. After some discussion between rules officials and Brian, it was determined that if he did strike the impediment on his backswing, that a 2 shot penalty would have to be assessed. Brian took the penalty, and Furyk won the playoff.

True, Furyk probably would have won the playoff anyway (he lagged his birdie attempt to about 2 feet for par), but that’s not the point here. The point is that Brian played by the rules, he played with heart, and put any title or monetary reward down the list in terms of his priorities. To win, he wanted to do so by the rules.

Golf is a game of character, honor and integrity. Following Brian Davis’ actions on the 18th at Harbor Town yesterday evening, I think we can all agree Brian is overflowing with those traits, and more.

After Furyk drained his par putt and Davis had a chance to reflect, he had this to say:

“I want to win a PGA Tour event more than just about anything but I play by the rules and no victory would be worthwhile if it had a cloud hanging over it. I saw the grass move, called Slugger (White, the referee) over and that’s it, end of story.”

Well done, Brian. Although you didn’t win the event, you won a lot of respect and admiration from tour players, fans, and golfers worldwide.

*tip of the cap*

When I noticed the pin was tucked in its usual position on the 16th this Masters Sunday… I was hopeful for a bunch of aces (if struck to quite a large area, the green on 16 funnels down to the back-right pin). In fact, I was heard to mutter, ‘wouldn’t that be cool if either Lee or Phil drops a hole-in-one?’. That was my hope. Sadly, it didn’t happen, but Nathan Green DID ace the 16th on Sunday, followed by an encore performance from Ryan Moore.

I’ve included the videos below for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy!

Sure, Phil Mickelson’s second shot at 13 was probably one of the most amazing shots I’ve ever witnessed. He hit his tee shot through the fairway on the right, leaving him a 205 (or so) yard shot into the green for his second, from the pine straw, between two trees (not very much room). The ‘safe’ play would be to pitch the ball out into the fairway to a spot where a full wedge could be thrown at the green… But no, that’s not Phil’s style is it?

He gripped a 6-iron and let it rip. The ball flew clear through the trees, carried the creek by about 10 feet, and snuggled up to 3 feet from the cup. Brilliant. The fact that Mickelson missed the putt for eagle was surely disappointing, but Phil had still done what he needed to do. Birdie the par 5. One more par 5 was coming up at 15, and he would go on to birdie that one too.

Looking back at the shot, it was amazing… but things could have went horribly wrong. The pine straw is never easy to hit from. He could have hit it heavy and dumped the ball in the creek. The two trees he was attempting to hit between were awfully close. He could have banked the ball off one of the trunks, leaving him who knows where. The fact of the matter is, this could have been another ‘I’m so stupid’ moment for Phil… But he managed to pull this one off.

At the press conference afterward Phil was asked: ‘Phil, what’s the difference between a great shot and a good shot?’.. He answered: ‘A great shot is when you pull it off… A good shot is when you don’t have the guts to take it on…’

Great shot, Phil… great shot.

Earlier this morning, Tiger took to the course with Fred Couples, and by the looks of things both players had a very enjoyable time. Both were spotted chatting frequently, many smiles were spotted… and in some shots posted at Trailing Tiger… we’re starting to get a glimpse of what may be the ‘New Tiger’. Take a look at the shot above. A smiling Woods, arm stretched out reaching to shake a patrons hand. Have we ever seen this before?…

…And another example. After hitting his approach shot to the 11th green, Tiger hopped the ropes and walked with the patrons.

Who is this guy? As each passing day goes by we’re getting a clearer picture of the ‘New’ Tiger… and I have to admit… I like him. As horrible as the past few months have been for Woods and his family, one has to think the change in demeanor and attitude may never have occurred if it weren’t for his ‘transgressions’. He’s turning a negative into a positive as best he can, and you have to respect that.

I think The Masters fever has officially hit. As each passing day goes by, I find myself thinking more and more about the event, one that I hold dear to my heart for so many reasons. During Masters week I’ll be doing nothing else but taking in the golf, making commentary and (hopefully) providing you all with great reads every day on the goings on at Augusta. To get started, I thought it would be fun to jot down my Top 5 picks to win the 2010 Masters. Read on to discover who I’ve picked, and why.

1. Ernie Els
No one is striking the ball better than Ernie Els these days. Having come off back-to-back wins, Ernie is in top form and heading into The Masters he’s playing some world-class golf. A new putting stance and setup has proven beneficial, as he looks more comfortable and relaxed over the ball, and the results on the green speak for themself. In the 2010 season thus far, he’s played 7 events, and won 2 of them. He’s up to 7th in the official world golf rankings, and 1st in Fedex Cup points. Perhaps the key stat on his work so far this year is his scoring average. He’s ranked 1st at 68.88. If he can manage to plot around Augusta National with a handful of 68’s, me thinks the ‘Big Easy’ will be looking just fine come Sunday afternoon.

2. Fred Couples
‘Freddy’ has seen a resurgance in his game this year. Perhaps it’s due to the fact that he’s a rookie on the Champions Tour… He’s back with a bunch of his buddies, and when you look at things from afar, he’s the new guy, the young guy… the guy that can bomb it down the middle and hit that short spinning wedge into the green while some of the others are hitting mid-irons to the same target. Sure, the PGA Tour is a different cup of tea altogether, but Fred is a Masters champion, and he knows how to play the course. He knows how to handle the pressure, and most importantly, he knows how to win. With his recent successes on the Champions Tour look for Fred to come into the Masters with a raised level of confidence. Freddy could be this years Tom Watson… Watson almost got it done at the British last year… there’s no reason Freddy can’t do the same.

3. Steve Stricker
One of the best putters on tour for many years now, Steve Stricker should very well be a force to reckon with if he’s able to stick to his game plan. A native of Edgerton, Wisconsin, Stricker has been hard at work on the course for many years now… In fact, I recall following Steve years and years ago on the Canadian Tour. Followed him around for 18 at the Pine Ridge club just outside of Winnipeg, Manitoba Canada. He was great then, and he’s even better now. Stricker is sitting in 2nd place in the Official World Golf Rankings AND Fedex Cup points, but most importantly he’s ranked 23rd in putting average and 7th in putts per round. If Steve can keep his head and sink those tricky 5 to 10 footers around Augusta National… look for him to raise that ‘White Hot’ Odyssey putter in victory on the 18th on Sunday.

4. Ian Poulter
Looking cool on the course isn’t the only thing Ian Poulter is good at. These days he’s backing up the dress with solid results. Earlier this year Poulter took down the Accenture Match Play Championship with some solid ball striking. While not a stroke play event, his efforts were duly noted by the golf world, letting all know that he could very well be among the money leaders for the 2010 season. Ranked 8th in the world, 24th in putting average and 13th in putts per round, Poulter looks to be on the cusp of some bigger things this year. One of the more important stats, putting from inside 5 feet… Pouter ranks second, where he holes over 99% of his putts. Impressive. If he can keep the ball in the short grass, and get the putter working from 5 feet and out (stats not as impressive outside of 5 feet), you never know… The Englishman could pull it off.

5. Tiger Woods
You simply can’t count out the world’s #1. To do so would be foolish. Sure, he’s got a lot going against him. Personal turmoil has turned his world upside down. His marriage is in shambles… and on top of that he hasn’t hit a single shot on the 2010 PGA tour to date. That said, for the past few weeks Woods has been spotted practicing like a madman at his home in Isleworth, and he has been spending more and more time at Augusta National prepping for the event. Woods has won The Masters 4 times (1997, 2001, 2002 and 2005), and to write him off could be a mistake. If he can grind it out and make the cut… Look for Woods to go low over the weekend.

Note: If you’re eager to hear more from Tiger Woods, he’s going to be the first to speak at Augusta, slated for the first press conference on April 5th.

Sleeper Pick: Retief Goosen
The goose is loose. At least that’s what it seems like so far in 2010. Having gained back some fine form so far this year, Goosen is up to 12th on the official money list, and has posted 5 top 10’s out of 7 events played thus far. Not too shabby wouldn’t you say? Goosen is a proven major performer, having won the US Open in 2001 and 2004. His recent return-to-form makes him a solid sleeper pick for this years Masters. If he can keep his driver in play (currently ranked 48th in driving accuracy) and hole some putts (ranked 37th in putting) we could see the Goose in the butler cabin with the green jacket planted firmly on his shoulders.

So, what do you think of my picks? Agree? Disagree? Let me know in the comments!