Camilo Villegas has landed one of the top caddies in all of golf for the US Open.  Villegas found himself in need of a caddy after Gary Matthews left him for part-time work with Sergio Garcia.  But he was not without a caddy for very long.

At a charity event shortly after his caddy left, Villegas was teamed up with Fred Couples.  Since Couples will not be at Bethpage, he offered up the services of his caddy, Joe LaCava, who is considered one of the best in the business.  LaCava also works with Davis Love III.  He’ll work the St Jude Invitational and the US Open with Villegas.

When asked why he parted with Matthews, Villegas stated the Matthews wanted to start a family and work a little less.

The HSBC Champions in China has been added as a World Golf Championship this year, with a new qualifying criteria and a $7 million purse.  This will be the largest purse ever for a golf tournament in Asia.

The HSBC Champions began in 2005 and has been sanctioned by every major golf tour with the exception of the PGA Tour.  That now changes with its status as the 4th World Golf Championship and the only one not staged in America.

Tiger Woods and defending champion Sergio Garcia have both committed to playing in this years tournament.  It will not be know exactly how many American players will play until the fall.  The event is played after their official season is over and any money earned will not count towards the PGA Tour money list.

Stewart Cink urged pro golfers to show more support for the sponsors of tournaments by participating in them, especially in these tough economic times.  Cink made his comments from Connecticut on Monday as he was there to promote June’s Travelers Championship at the TPC River Highlands.  The insurance company recently committed to sponsoring the tournament through 2014.

Cink, who is a member of the PGA’s Policy Board thinks not all players understand the importance of participating in tournaments like the Travelers.  Without participation from the top players in the world, tournaments like the Travelers could face being dropped from the schedule (like the Corning Classic).  When top players don’t participate, the tournaments lose revenue in the form of lost ticket and merchandise sales.

This years Travelers tournament wil be played the week after the U.S. Open and already has commitments from Sergio Garcia, Vijay Singh, Anthony Kim, Stuart Appleby and defending champion Stewart Cink.

Tiger Woods will play in his first tournament since the Masters when he enters the Quail Hollow Championship.  Woods committed to the event (formerly called the Wachovia Championship) on Friday.  The last time Tiger was here, he won the event in 2007.  He missed last years event due to knee surgery.

Joining Tiger at Quail Hollow are 9 more of the world’s tp 14 golfers.  Phil Mickelson, Sergio Garcia, Padraig Harrington, Vijay Singh, Jim Furyk, Masters Champion Angel Cabrera and defending champion Anthony Kim have all committed to the tournament.

Looks like belt buckles are the new big thing on the PGA tour.  Specifically buckles made by Bob Bettinardi.  Bettinardi is know for his hand crafted putters but more an more golfers are now coming to him for custom belt buckles.  Angel Cabrera wore one at the Masters two weeks ago.  Other customers include Sergio Garcia (who ha been wearing them for a long time), Padraig Harrington and Kevin Streelman, who has an endorsement deal with Bettinardi.

While Bettinardi makes some nice looking buckles, none of them will match the awesomeness of the buckles worn by Rory Sabatini.

In case you missed it, after shooting 3-over par (75) on Saturday and a 2-over par (74) Sunday at the Master, a very bitter Sergio Garcia took out his frustrations on the Augusta National Golf Course.

“I don’t like it, to tell you the truth. I don’t think it is fair. Even when it’s dry you still get mud balls in the middle of the fairway. It’s too much of a guessing game.”  When asked when he would do to fix it, Sergio said, “They can do whatever they want. It’s not my problem. I just come here and play and then go home.”

Tuesday, Garcia issued an apology.  He apologized for blaming the course instead of rightfully blaming himself.

It would be nice if Sergio just kept quiet and worked on his game and worked on dealing with the pressure of majors better (0 major wins).  What do y’all think?

After Sergio Garcia won the Players Championship last week, he had a funny little quip after it was over.

“First of all, I want to thank Tiger for not being here.  That always makes things a little bit easier.”

I love that for two reasons.  First, he acknowledges that Tiger is better than him.  To suggest otherwise would be crazy and arrogant.  Second, it’s just plain funny.

As strange as it may be, I think a little higher of Sergio because of that small comment.