Notebook: An unlikely birdie puts Senden on the bubble

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ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) -- Stewart Cink already had in effect lost the PODS Championship when he rolled in a 50-foot birdie putt that allowed him to join six players at second place, which was worth about $130,000.

Senden (WireImage)

But that putt on Sunday was very significant to John Senden.

The lanky Australian was on the cusp of moving into the top 50 in the world rankings, and a five-way tie for second would have made him eligible for the World Golf Championships-CA Championship at Doral next week, an event Senden has never played.

With a six-way tie at Innisbrook, Senden moved up to only No. 51, missing out by one-hundredth of a point. He still has one more chance at Bay Hill this week to crack the top 50.

"Same scenario as last year," he said on Tuesday. "I've got to play well."

At least this year, Senden appears to have a fighting chance.

He was at No. 52 last year when he arrived at the Arnold Palmer Invitational Presented by MasterCard, desperate to get into the top 50 for two reasons. It would make him eligible for Doral, and give him one more week to qualify for the Masters. But he started feeling sick early in the week, and was so ill on Thursday morning that he couldn't make it to the first tee.

"I've always been just on the outside," Senden said. "It would be exciting to get Doral with lots of world points. My goal is to play all four majors this year. I'm in two right now."

One of those is the Masters. He qualified by tying for fourth in the PGA Championship last year.

EASY DOES IT: Ernie Els has had some peculiar travel habits this year. He flew 10 hours from London to Arizona to play in the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship after saying he would not compete, then he decided against a 15-minute drive down Apopka-Vineland Road to play in the Arnold Palmer Invitational this week.

"As far as I'm concerned, Arnold Palmer is the King and I will always be appreciative of the start that he gave me in America when I first played here in 1993," said Els, who won 10 years ago at Bay Hill. "I will personally be speaking to Arnie to explain why I have taken the difficult decision to pull out after supporting his tournament for the last 15 years."

So why did he take this week off?

"The bottom line is that I have to ensure that my body and game are in perfect shape in the run-up to the Masters," Els said in a statement. "There are things I need to take care of this week, which means that Bay Hill does not fit into my new schedule as I would have liked it to."

POULTER POTENTIAL: Ian Poulter says his comments were taken out of context by a British golf magazine, but that hasn't let him off the hook with his peers -- not only players, but caddies.

Some quick background, if needed.

Poulter told U.K.-based Golf World that while he respects every golfer, "I know I haven't played to my full potential and when that happens, it will be just me and Tiger."

John Wood, the looper for Hunter Mahan, arrived at Riviera early Sunday with his game face on.

"I think this is the day that I reach my full potential as a caddie," Wood said. "And when I do, it will be just me and Stevie."

That would be Steve Williams, caddie for Tiger Woods.

DOUBLE DIPPING: The PGA TOUR scored a small victory last month when the U.S. Golf Association recognized the FedExCup while handing out exemptions to the U.S. Open. Along with giving a free pass to the top 30 on the PGA TOUR money list, those in the top 30 in the final FedExCup standings don't have to qualify, either.

It was thought the USGA would pick one or the other, but officials recognized it would affect only a couple of players. By also taking the field from THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola, Jonathan Byrd and Camilo Villegas are exempt for the U.S. Open.

"Doing the numbers, I am very confident that the majority of the U.S. Open field will still come via qualifying," USGA executive director David Fay said on Tuesday. "Adding THE TOUR Championship field will not tilt that."

And that was important to the USGA, since 54 percent of the field last year came from qualifying.

"Not to bring politics into this in an election year, but we like to think the U.S. Open is the most democratic golf championship," Fay said.

DIVOTS: David Toms is not eligible for the CA Championship at Doral next month, the first time he has missed a World Golf Championships since Firestone in 2000. ... Tiger Woods again will play the Tavistock Cup, matches between touring pros from Isleworth and Lake Nona in the Orlando area. Newcomers to the Isleworth team include J.B. Holmes, Daniel Chopra and Paula Creamer.