Ishikawa devoted to golf to inspire a nation (AP)

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP)—Ryo Ishikawa understands that whatever pressure he faces
this week at the Masters doesn’t even compare with what his people in Japan are
facing as they try to recover from the earthquake and tsunami that destroyed so
many lives.

Even so, the 19-year-old has been around long enough to appreciate the role
sports can play.

That was one reason Ishikawa decided last week to donate all of his 2011
earnings on the golf course to relief efforts. The money itself, which could be
in the range of $2.2 million if he has the kind of season he did in 2010, is a
small amount in the big picture.

He hopes the message is what comes across.

“I would like to emphasize the power and energy that sports can create for
those people to encourage them, and also it’s my intention to play really
well,” he said Monday. “It will be the best way to encourage people in
Japan.”

Ishikawa has not been home since the March 11 devastation. He played three
straight PGA Tour event in Florida, then drove up to Augusta. His family flew in
from Japan to meet him.

He had said during the Florida swing that his mind was on golf, yet his
heart was at home as the Japanese try to recover. But he made clear Monday that
he would not be distracted by anything except golf while at Augusta National.

Besides, the better he players, the more money for the relief efforts. Along
with donating his entire earnings, Ishikawa has pledged about $1,200 for each
birdie in competition.

“Right now, since my big decision, I’m 100 percent for playing golf,” he
said. “I believe that as I play, I’m connected with the people that are
affected by the disaster through the donation, whatever I earn for this year.
And that’s why I am fully devoting myself to golf.”

Now comes the hard part.

Ishikawa is a nine-time winner in Japan, once as a 15-year-old amateur, once
by shooting 58 in the final round. That hasn’t translated in America, where he
has made only nine cuts in 19 events, his best finish a tie for ninth in the
Match Play Championship last year.

“I haven’t been producing the results, but at the same time, I know that I
am playing well,” he said. “I know what I’m doing is right at this point. And
I would like to show to the American people how well I can play.”

MASTERS TICKETS: Daily tickets for the Masters will be available for the
first time starting in 2012.

Augusta National chairman Billy Payne said Tuesday that a small number of
daily tickets would be available, although the club does not disclose how many.
The price for a daily ticket is $75, while a practice round ticket costs $50.

Until now, a weekly badge was the only ticket for tournament rounds.

Meantime, the Masters has moved its application process online for tickets.
Applications are being accepted at www.masters.com with a June 30 deadline for
daily tournament tickets and a July 30 deadline for practice round tickets. The
limit is two tournament tickets for any one day and four practice round tickets
for any one day.

Applicants will be notified by e-mail within several weeks after the
deadline.

The Masters also said the waiting list for a weekly badge, which reopened
briefly in 2000, has been exhausted.

BO AND BOB: Among the questions being asked of players on Monday under the
oak tree was what makes the Masters special.

The answer was on the other side of the clubhouse.

Mark Chaney, the caddie for Bo Van Pelt, was sitting alone on the bench when
an 82-year-old man in a pink shirt asked if he could join him. It was Bob
Goalby, who won the Masters in 1968. This was his 53rd consecutive trip to the
Masters.

The stories began to flow.

Goalby talked about the practice routine at the Masters back in his day, how
everyone came over from Greensboro because prize money was so low that no one
could afford to skip many events.

Van Pelt showed up a few minutes later and he was introduced to Goalby. Van
Pelt knew the name well. Meeting the man was a treat. With more stories—the
Ryder Cup, practicing with Ben Hogan, the rivalry of Hogan and Sam Snead—Van
Pelt listened and laughed.

This doesn’t happen at any other major.

Goalby held court for close to an hour when he realized he was running late
for a lunch appointment. Van Pelt finally headed off to the practice range and
then to play the course. It was a good start to his day.

NICKLAUS REVISITED: CBS Sports is planning another Sunday special that looks
back at the Masters, this one involving Jack Nicklaus. Only it’s not the Masters
victory everyone is talking about this year.

Some might argue it’s even better.

Jim Nantz will revisit the 1975 Masters, featuring the dramatic back nine
battle involving Nicklaus, Tom Weiskopf and Johnny Miller. The signature moment
was Nicklaus holing a 40-foot birdie putt on the 16th hole, raising his putter
and running off in celebration as Weiskopf and Miller watched from the tee.

“This is a rare mulligan for people to look back and experience this
historic tournament,” Nantz said. “It is a privilege to bring back the 1975
Masters, considered by many golf purists to have been the most dramatic final
round in the history of this storied event.”

Most Nicklaus memories this year are from his 1986 victory, when he shot 30
on the back nine to win a sixth green jacket at age 46. This is the 25-year
anniversary of that win, which has been well-documented. Nantz did a special on
that in 2006.

Nantz also produced a color version of Arnold Palmer’s 1960 win.