Fairway Feherty Tells All

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.

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