An interesting side note to The Players Championship (or as we call it, “Tha Playas”) golf tournament this weekend. It turns out that GOLF CHANNEL’s Inga Hammond had a personal interest in the tournament’s outcome:
The winner of THE PLAYERS Championship will receive over $1.4 million, a five-year PGA TOUR exemption and the honor of being the namesake of GOLF CHANNEL’s Inga Hammond’s newest dog. Hammond said last week on The Approach by Callaway Golf – the GOLF CHANNEL’s point-counterpoint show she hosts with PGA TOUR professional Andrew Magee and journalist Alex Miceli – that she would name her dog after the winner of THE PLAYERS. Hammond currently has a 12-year-old greyhound named Jack, after Jack Nicklaus, and had Ben, honoring Ben Hogan, until he recently passed away. His death led her to adopt the newest dog from a Greyhound rescue group two months ago. Having tried names like Arnie and Sam, neither seemed to work and she finally reverted to merely calling the canine “puppy.” An animal lover, Hammond has adopted several greyhounds because she says, “There is no Champions Tour for greyhounds.”
Of course, I’m incredibly disappointed that Sean O’Hair collapsed and lost to Phil Mickelson. O’Hair would’ve been a great dog name. I suppose Hammond will go with Lefty, though I do like the idea of a greyhound named Phil. Other names we would’ve enjoyed: Brandt Snedeker, Boo Weekley and my guy Arron Oberholser.
[Update: Hammond has named her dog Phil, but will call him Philly:
Love having a Phil in the family! My other retired racing greyhound Jack (after Jack Nicklaus) is 12 years old … and Phil (I’ll call him Philly for fun) is just 3 years old and fresh off the track – so now I have two generations of dogs, named after two generations of golfers. (Was quite glad Jeev Milka Singh wasn’t in the field last week – now that would have been a tough name for a dog!)]