Gove looking to turn it around

After the hype of kicking off a brand new PGA Tour effort in Hawaii, Jeff Gove quickly found that it takes more than getting through Q-School to find success on the PGA Tour (not that he didn't know it already). Gove missed the cut at the Sony Open in Hawaii and the Humana Challenge, and is off to an 0-for-2 start.

At the Sony Open, Gove got off to a respectable start with an even-par 70, putting him in position to make the cut with a solid second round. But rather than moving forward, Gove went backwards, bogeying three of his first five holes and never recovering. His 2-over 72 left him four shots outside the cut line in his season debut.

With a chance to quickly rebound in California under more conducive scoring conditions, Gove started weakly and wasn't able to make the necessary push to get inside the three-day cut line of 10-under. An opening 73 put him immediately ten strokes behind the lead and severely behind the eight-ball. He would have needed to go 11-under on Friday and Saturday (there was a three-day cut) to stick around for Sunday and cash a check. His 7-under effort (69-68) was respectable but not nearly enough.

The road doesn't get much easier for Gove, as the stars get ready to jump into the meat of their schedules and fields become tougher to enter. He is in the field this week in San Diego, though, alongside the likes of Woods and Mickelson.

We'll see if he can get things turned around.

Gove, others getting season underway

For 2012's Web.com Tour graduating class, and graduates of 2012's final edition of PGA Tour Q-School, the journey to the big time commences today. After last week's rain-altered, season-opening Hyundai Tournament of Champions, the Tour opens its doors for this week's Sony Open in Hawaii, the first full-field event of 2013.

Jeff Gove gets his season underway at 1:20 p.m. (8:20 a.m. Hawaiian time), off the 10th tee with fellow veterans Jason Bohn and Jeff Maggert. Other notables from last year's Web.com coverage to get started at Waialae CC today are Andres Gonzales (6:20 p.m.), Jim Herman (6 p.m.), Luke List (1:30 p.m.) and Ben Kohles (2 p.m.).

The mix of young and old PGA Tour newcomers is complemented by an equally diverse range of 2012 PGA Tour members - from longtime standbys Vijay Singh and Robert Allenby, to young guns John Huh and Jonas Blixt. Today marks the start of the full-range 2013 season, where the full mix of players joins together to make its mark on the new age of golf history.

How will last year's Web.com members fare on the PGA Tour this year? Will their experience and training allow them to jump in and shine right away, or will the lack of severe difficulty on many Web.com courses prove to hinder quick adjustment? The PGA Tour carries larger crowds, faster greens, and thicker rough - along with much more money at stake. The feel and the pressure of events is different, and the adjustment may come quicker for some.

One player to keep an eye on is Robert Streb, who shined throughout much of the Web.com season, notching several top-ten finishes and a win in Pittsburgh on his way to attaining his PGA Tour card in his first full Web.com season. After a T2 finish in Greenville, I accurately predicted that Streb would be on the PGA Tour sooner rather than later, and that we could see big things from him down the line. His game is solid and seems built for the big tour, and it will be interesting to see how he fares.

In the end, it's all speculation until they actually tee it up. That's what they're doing today.

Gove in field at Sony

While talking to newly minted PGA Tour pro Jeff Gove a couple of weeks ago, the veteran expressed confidence that his Q-School number would be good enough to get into the field at the Sony Open in Hawaii, the Tour's first full-field event of 2013.

Gove was correct. When the field was released Friday, Gove's name was on the list, and the 41-year old will get his season started on Thursday at Waialae Country Club in Honolulu. Joining Gove in the field are plenty of players who played the Web.com Tour in 2012 - including Paul Haley, Andres Gonzales, Jim Herman and Steve LeBrun.

The Waialae track is a short yet testy one, with narrow fairways and thick rough to test players looking to shake off the early-season rust. The nature of the course attracts players like 56-year old Fred Funk, who appeared confident enough in his potential at Waialae to enter the field. The course measures under 7100 yards, and plays to a par of 70.

Should be fun to see how the new wave of PGA Tour pros fares at Waialae, and throughout the whole season.