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Fairway Feherty Tells All

Evan Rothman

Golf's best-loved broadcaster, David Feherty, has long been hailed as the funniest man in the sport. He'd be the first to tell you that's damning with faint praise.

Since retiring from the game in 1997 after a successful pro career that included five European Tour wins and a spot on Europe's 1991 Ryder Cup team, Feherty, 47, has made televised golf seem more like a frat party -- OK, a lively cocktail party -- since joining "CBS Sports" as an on-course commentator.

The author of four books, this Northern Ireland native also wields a sharp pencil as the longtime back-page columnist for Golf Magazine. TheStreet.com caught up with the links legend for some insight into the game today.

TheStreet.com: Does Phil Mickelson's recent Masters win -- his third major title and second in succession -- finally make him a legitimate threat to end Tiger Woods' dominance?

David Feherty: It's really up to Tiger. If you noticed the look on his face when he put the green jacket on Phil, it was, "Don't get used to this." The gap is still huge in the world rankings. I'd like to see a rivalry, but Tiger played like a rat at the Masters, and he was still in second place with two holes to play. Nobody else who was in the top 10 played badly that week, but he did.

Has Mickelson at least separated himself from the so-called Big Five to become the clear No. 2?

In terms of being a crowd draw, absolutely, although he's been that way for awhile. But in terms of separating himself from Ernie Els, Retief Goosen and Vijay Singh, I'm not sure.

When Tiger plays well, he wins. If he plays very well, he wins by 10. That's never happened before. When [Jack] Nicklaus played well, there were still several other people who could win.

What's Mickelson's appeal? Tiger gets criticized for canned answers, but Mickelson doesn't always come across as especially sincere or spontaneous.

I think it's that he's flawed. He has a beautiful crack -- that didn't come out well, let me rephrase -- there's an obvious flaw in Phil that people can relate to because, hell, they can screw up like that, too. That's the similarity with Tiger. The people who love to see Tiger win also love to see him lose, because it reminds them every now and then that he is actually human. He does so many superhuman things, that it's almost a relief, even to his fans, to see him not do so well.

Phil is more so -- he reminds us more often. Why is he hitting a driver out of the rough?! Dear God, Ethel, somebody dart him with a blowpipe! He makes the occasional lunatic decision that makes people identify with him.

Has pro golf done enough to keep medium-length hitters competitive? Should they? Hasn't length always been valuable?

Exactly -- it's always been valuable. Nicklaus blew people away in his prime -- he hit it 20 to 30 yards past people. That's what some guys are doing now, just in relation to more distance.

Golf courses are so much harder now than they were, [but] the difficulty of golf courses has kept up with technology. Shorter hitters have always whined. The Tour just played Harbour Town a couple of weeks ago; it's only 6,900 yards, but a fabulous test of golf. There is still room for a medium-length hitter out there. You can do other things well.

Three rookies have made a name for themselves by hitting the ball a mile: J.B. Holmes, Bubba Watson and Camilo Villegas. Villegas has distinguished himself not only with his strong play but his tight, flashy clothes. Is pro golf starting to loosen up?

There have been peacocks like Doug Sanders in the past, but the difference is that these guys are in shape. Villegas looks like an underwear model. He can get away with wearing whatever he wants. Sanders looked like a sack of ... The new guys have washboard stomachs and biceps and can wear low-slung, fashionable clothes and get away with it. But overall, it's still pretty damn boring. If you don't look like a lava lamp, you look like Ben Hogan. There doesn't seem to be anything in between.

Is golf getting less uptight in general?

We've loosened up a bit, but we have a long way to go. I'm still struggling daily against The Man. The old ... stiff attitude remains pretty prevalent. I hear this all the time: "The game is too easy now."

[But] the game isn't easy, certainly not for the people that matter -- the folks at home watching the pros on television. New technology may make the game more fun for them, but it's no easier. It's just an inherently hard game. There's a really small hole in the ground, and people are useless at [getting a ball in] it.

What do most golfers do wrong?

The average hack spends too much time on the range hitting midirons and drivers. You need to go chip and putt. If I were a 12-handicap, which I probably am -- or would be if I played golf, which I don't -- I'd chip and putt all day long.

I'd hit a half a dozen shots to make sure I didn't hurt myself on the first tee, and that's it. That's how you're going to infuriate your friends. They might hit it longer and straighter, but they're going to miss greens, too.

Michelle Wie has accepted two more sponsor exemptions to compete in PGA Tour events later this year. Is it a good idea?

That's gonna get old. Michelle Wie's gonna be a star, but on the LPGA Tour. If she plays well in a men's event and makes the cut, well done. But if she'd taken the way she'd played that week and applied it to a female event, she'd have won. The novelty will wear off there. She'll end up playing on the women's tour and being a superstar.

Can she become as dominant as Woods?

It's very difficult to predict. She's 16. They're starting earlier and earlier and having more pressure on them. When you're 16, you should be a silly kid to a certain extent. I worry about kids who burn out on stuff like this. Tiger had a really sensible amateur career. His father strung that out and made sure he had matured by the time he turned pro.

I hope she does very well, and I hope she smiles a bit more. That would help, too.

What are you currently working on?

I committed years ago to a travelogue in Ireland, but I've since quit drinking, so I've avoided the place like it was leprosy. I've decided to do a book and maybe a TV show around it called "12 Steps Around Ireland," where I take three drunks with me. I'm gonna do it vicariously through them. It'll be the first time I'm sober that I've been there, so who knows -- I might notice things.