Tiger Woods briefly burst into a share of the lead with three birdies in his first seven holes in the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill today.

Phil Mickelson remains on track to record back-to-back titles after maintaining his lead at the Northern Trust Open in California.

US OPEN champion Rory McIlroy was last night named RTÉ Sports Person of the Year for 2011.

THE Chinese government has a history of detaining dissidents, but putting the US Open golf trophy under lock and key sounds too bizarre to be true.

UNLIKE the majority of his contemporaries, Pádraig Harrington’s main rival is neither Tiger Woods nor Phil Mickelson or Ernie Els or even young Rory McIlory but still himself.

Padraig Harrington feels he will have to produce some of his very best golf to defend his Iskandar Johor Open title in Malaysia this week.

Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano and Juvic Pagunsan will battle it out for the Singapore Open title tomorrow morning after bad weather forced the suspension of their sudden-death play-off at Sentosa Golf Club.

James Morrison held the clubhouse lead on 12 under par at the Singapore Open after following up yesterday’s 62 with a second-round 68 to pull two strokes clear at Sentosa Golf Club.

Rory McIlroy says he remains “very close” to the man he dropped as his manager last month and insists there was “nothing personal at all” in the move that stunned golf.

RORY McILROY is gunning for Luke Donald.

GOLF’s two million dollar man, Rory McIlroy, believes his new management team will help inspire him to more victories.

Rory McIlroy claimed golf’s biggest first prize of £1.25m (€1.42m) today – but only after losing a three-shot lead for the second event in a row and being forced into a play-off.

Rory McIlroy fired a third round 65 today to open up a three-stroke lead over American Anthony Kim at the Lake Malaren Shanghai Masters.

Rory McIlroy still leads the race for golf's biggest first prize of €1.4m after the second round of the Lake Malaren Shanghai Masters.

RORY McILROY made a superb start to his bid to land a record €1.4 million jackpot at the Lake Malaren Shanghai Masters as he fired an eight-under-par 64 yesterday.

Rory McIlroy made a superb start to his bid for a record £1.25m (€1.41m) jackpot at the Lake Malaren Shanghai Masters as he fired an eight-under-par 64 today.

AS curiosities go, there are many when we concern ourselves with the level of golf that is on display here at the Atlanta Athletic Club.

ENGLAND’S Simon Dyson will play in next week’s British Open after American David Toms yesterday became the fourth player to withdraw this week.

American former Ryder Cup player Anthony Kim has confirmed he will be at Sandwich for the Open next week.

Thomas Levet has followed Tiger Woods in withdrawing from next week’s Open after fracturing his shin jumping in a lake on Sunday.

Bill Haas fired an eight-under 64 to claim a two-shot lead at the end of day one of the Wells Fargo Championship at Quail Hollow in Charlotte.

Masters champion Phil Mickelson will head back to Augusta as the man to beat after sealing a superb victory today at the Shell Houston Open.

PÁDRAIG HARRINGTON produced a mixed second round at the Shell Houston Open in Texas, but his three-under-par 69 ensured he remains in the hunt for victory.

Ernie Els is expected to be back in action at the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship in Tucson on Wednesday after a sore neck kept him out of last week’s Northern Trust Open in Los Angeles.

Ian Poulter is set to start the defence of his WGC-Accenture Match Play title against 2009 Open champion Stewart Cink if all the world’s top 64 show up in Tucson next week.

Tiger Woods admitted he could not force his way into contention for the Farmers Insurance Open title as Phil Mickelson grabbed a share of the lead with Bill Haas at Torrey Pines.

Overnight leader Stuart Appleby was tied with Shigeki Maruyama as the pair finished the second round of the Sony Open in Hawaii with a two-shot lead.

SUNDAY’S confirmation by the European Tour that the July 28-31 date has been reserved for the 2011 Irish Open and chief executive George O’Grady’s comment that Killarney is the preferred venue had been well flagged but there is still no guarantee the tournament will take place in 2011.

The United States press have come out in support of Hunter Mahan after his defeat to Graeme McDowell ultimately decided the Ryder Cup.

Lee Westwood had something to celebrate today even before he teed off in his Ryder Cup singles against Steve Stricker at Celtic Manor.

Jim Furyk’s win at the Tour Championship – by a shot from England’s Luke Donald - sees America go into their defence of the Ryder Cup this week with four of the world’s top five players.

Ireland's Padraig Harrington, who was given a Ryder Cup wild card for Europe, falls out of the top 20 in the world rankings for the first time in more than four years.

COREY PAVIN yesterday handed Tiger Woods the chance to go into the Ryder Cup record books – as the American with more defeats than any other.

Corey Pavin today handed Tiger Woods the chance to go into the Ryder Cup record books – as the American with more defeats than any other.

American Charley Hoffman’s runaway five-shot win at the Deutsche Bank Championship in Boston – the second event of the FedEx Cup play-offs – lifts him from 132nd to 51st in the world.

DESPITE all that is read into the fact America won the last Ryder Cup without Tiger Woods and lost the previous three with him, there seems no way Corey Pavin will choose to bring a Tiger-less team to Celtic Manor in three weeks’ time.

COREY PAVIN, the US Ryder Cup captain, today announces his four wild cards for Celtic Manor next month well satisfied with the form of most of those who have already qualified were performing in the Deutsche Bank Championship in Boston over the weekend.

Despite all that is read into the fact America won the last Ryder Cup without Tiger Woods and lost the previous three with him, there seems no way Corey Pavin will choose to bring a Tiger-less team to Celtic Manor in three weeks’ time.

Only four weeks until the Ryder Cup and still golf fans do not know for sure whether Tiger Woods is going to be there.

Paul Casey may feel down in the dumps, but he has moved up in the world.

Sweden’s Peter Hanson is up to 40th in the world, a rise of nine places, with his victory at the Czech Open.

ANTHONY KIM continues his return from thumb surgery this week knowing that American Ryder Cup captain Corey Pavin is keeping a close eye on him.

AMERICAN Ryder Cup captain Corey Pavin has praised the way Dustin Johnson handled the two-shot penalty which cost him a chance of a first major title.

American Ryder Cup captain Corey Pavin has praised the way Dustin Johnson handled the two-shot penalty which cost him a chance of a first Major title.