According to officials, an elderly golfer lost part of his arm recently when he leaned over to pick up his ball at a private South Carolina course. The man was said to be retrieving his ball from a pond when the 10-foot alligator bit him at Ocean Creek Golf Couse in Beaufort County.

The gator pulled the man into the pond, and ripped of his arm during the struggle. The man's golf partners were able to free him, sparing him from further harm.

Wildlife workers found and killed the alligator. They also retrieved the arm in the hopes that it might be reattached. He was being treated at Medical University of South Carolina, however officials there would not release any information about him. The man has not been identified.

Bridgestone Corp. became the fourth title sponsor of 2009 to renew its contract with the PGA Tour, agreeing to back the World Golf Championship event at Firestone Country Club through 2014. It was announced Sunday before the beginning of the event's final round by Commissioner Tim Finchem and Bridgestone offficials.

Also renewing their contracts this year with the PGA are Accenture (Match Play), Zurich (New Orleans), and Travelers (Hartford). All three also renewed contracts through 2014.

The PGA Tour signed a new sponsor, SBS for Kaplua, which replaces Mercedes-Benz through 2020. Buick has backed out of its sponsorship of tour events, and as such, the Greenbrier Classic will replace the Buick Open. US Bank has also backed out of sponsoring its namesake event, the US Bank Championship in Milwaukee. Earlier this week it was revealed that FBR, which sponsors the Phoenix Open, would not renew its sponsorship deal when it runs out in 2010.

Ben Curtis had another dazzling round at the British Open. Curtis, who won his only major in 2003 in the oldest major, shot a 65 (-5) which tied him with the legendary Tom Watson who dazzled the crowd with his excellent opening round of play.

Curtis has seen great success playing links style golf, finishing in the top ten in both 2007 and 2009 across the pond in the prestigious event. The former Kent State star and Columbus native also has a 2nd place finish at the PGA Championship on his resume.

This fall, the Berea Rotary Club will once again be hosting the 2009 Lou Groza Charity Golf Event, which will be held on September 10, 2009. The venue location has changed this year, and will be held at Coppertop at Cherokee Hills, a premier golf club located in Valley City, Ohio.

The Lou Groza Charity Golf Event benefits youth sports, mentoring programs, scholarships, and civil improvements, as well as regional and international Rotary charity causes in the Northeast Ohio area.

In 2008 and 2007, Cleveland Browns alumni players including Webster Slaughter, Felix Wright, Joe "Turkey" Jones, Jim Houston, and Don Cockroft golfed in the event to support the Berea Rotary Club's causes. This year's line-up of Browns alumni promises to be just as great.

The gala event is open to the public, and includes food, drinks, and on-course games/prizes. Shotgun start begins at 9:00 am. The pre-pay admission fee of just $95 also includes breakfast, lunch and dinner.

The event's namesake, Lou Groza, was a former member of the Berea Rotary Club who's generosity inspired the Berea Rotary Club to hold this annual event in order to honor him and support the causes he held close to his heart.

CSU Men's Basketball/Packy Hyland, Sr., Golf Outing Set For June 1
Event Renamed To Honor Longtime Booster

When the Cleveland State men's basketball program holds its annual golf outing on June 1 at the Westwood Country Club in Rocky River, they will do so with a special purpose in mind. CSU men's basketball head coach Gary Waters announced that the tournament has been renamed, the Packy Hyland, Sr. Honorary Golf Outing.

The outing, which benefits the Viking Summer School Education Fund, honors Hyland for his contributions to the program.

"When I returned to coach at Cleveland State three years ago, Packy was one of the first people to come up to me and ask me what he could do to help this program," Waters said. "Since that time, he has always been there for us whenever we needed help and he was a driving force behind this tournament being so successful last year."

With the outing less than two weeks away, space is still available to play. Persons interested in playing can download the form off of the men's basketball page at CSUVikings.com or by contacting assistant coach Larry DeSimpelare at (216) 687-4816 or via email at L.DeSimpelare@csuohio.edu.

The Cleveland area will be graced with some of the best golfers of all time in May when the likes of Greg Norman head to Beechwood to compete in the 2009 Senior PGA Championship. The field is taking shape and this years field features 25 Major Champions.

"The Senior PGA Championship typically features golf's most legendary names, but this year's field is especially distinguished," said Brett Sterba, Championship Director of the 70th Senior PGA Championship. "In addition to welcoming 25 Major champions, our field includes 13 Ryder Cup Captains and 10 World Golf Hall of Famers."

If you want to be part of the excitement on the Senior PGA takes place on Memorial Day Weekend (May 21-24). Tickets start at $15 to take in the practice rounds to a weekend pass $200 pass that is good for all weekend including access for one person to the Canterbury Clubhouse Living Room and Patio for each day of the Championship. Go to the official website for more details.

Here is a list of some notable competitors in this years tournament.

Angel Cabrera, who hails from Argetina, held off 48 year old Kenny Perry and Chad Campbell in a playoff to win the 2009 Masters Championship. Tiger Woods, who was gunning for his fifth green jacket, finished tied for sixth and his pairing with rival Phil Mickelson (who finished one stroke better than Woods and tied for fifth) provided for some of the finest golf in the afternoon.

Here is the video from the action earlier today:

Professional golfer Annika Sorenstam, who announced her plans for retirement last year, has wasted no time in finding something new to take up her time - starting a family. She announced on her blog Thursday that she and husband Mike McGee are expecting their first child this fall.

"We have had a lot of exciting changes in the past few months, and adding a new addition to our family later this fall will certainly be at the top of that list. We are absolutely thrilled and look forward to this new chapter of our lives," she wrote.

The Swedish champ retired from the LPGA tour last year after 72 victories and 10 majors, and married husband Mike McGee in January 2009. The reason she said she was retiring is that she wanted to start a business and a family.

Tiger Woods and his wife, Elin Noregren, welcomed a new baby boy - Charlie Axel - into the world on Sunday, February 8. The golfer made an official announcement on his website, declaring:

"Both Charlie and Elin are doing great and we want to thank everyone for their sincere best wishes and kind thoughts."

Given the child's middle name, I can't help but wonder if Tiger or his wife is a fan of Guns N' Roses' AXL Rose. Sure, they spelled it with an "e", but its an acceptable variation of the name. First a dog food commercial dubbed the star pooch "Axel", and now celebs are giving the name to their babies, but we were on to this trend years ago when we named our male flame point Siamaese cat Axl. Mark my words, Axel and Axl, will be quickly climbing the baby name charts.

Tiger and Elin have one other child together, 1-year-old daughter Sam. They have been married since 2004.

Tiger Woods may be injured, but he is still is powerful according to the second annual 'The Power 100' Ranking compiled BusinessWeek Magazine. Woods beat out all the likes of sports Commissioner's Roger Goodell, David Stern, and Bud Selig.

The top local athlete on the list was, not surprisingly, LeBron James. James was ranked 17th on the list.

35 panelists including leaders in the world of athletics, academics, marketers, writers, and executives made the rankings. They were giving 300 names from the sports world and they were asked to break down their top 20. Money earned and influence were among the things they were asked to consider.

"The Power 100" issue comes out in BusinessWeek's October 13th. You can read much more about their selections by go to their website which can found at the following URL http://www.businessweek.com/power100.

Here is the entire listing compiled by BusinessWeek

1 Tiger Woods Golfer
2 Roger Goodell Commissioner, NFL
3 David Stern Commissioner, NBA
4 George Bodenheimer President, ESPN
5 Dick Ebersol Chairman, NBC Sports
6 Phil Knight Chairman, Nike
7 Allan "Bud " Selig Commissioner, MLB
8 Brian France Chairman and CEO, Nascar
9 Michael Jordan NBA great; minority owner, Charlotte Bobcats
10 Sean McManus President, CBS News and Sports
11 David Hill Chairman and CEO, Fox Sports