FanHouse Arnold Palmer

If you can look past, for a moment, the fact that both Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson are multi-millionaires, playing the same game and hording appearance fees most of us won't accumulate in our lifetime, the two are practically polar opposites.

Tiger was a Stanford Cardinal to Phil's Arizona State Sun Devil. Tiger's right-handed to Phil's southpaw. Tiger's black to Phi's white. Tiger is known as a closer to Phil's (sometimes misconceived) choker.

The thing we can all agree on with Tiger and Phil is what they've done for the game of golf, none more apparent than their appearance together this week at the HSBC Champions, in Shanghai, China, a event that kicked off in 2005 and is now drawing the type of talent reserved for major championships and events hosted by past legends.

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. -- Lanny Wadkins wanted to make one thing absolutely clear. "It's great to be here," he said.

Wadkins was seated on a stage at the World Golf Village on Monday, or on top of the world. Definitely one of the two, and as far as Wadkins is concerned, the views are identical.

With his name now in the Golf Hall of Fame, Wadkins has finally fulfilled something that was long overdue.

Wadkins -- along with Irishman Christy O'Connor, Sr., Spaniard Jose Maria Olazabal and former U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower -- was being inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame.

That was the good news. The bad was that it had taken Wadkins 14 years to get the call.

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SAN FRANCISCO -- Ryo Ishikawa is the baby of this week's Presidents Cup, soft features, a shy presence and a floppy mop of unkempt hair.

Having only turned 18 in September, he smiles a lot in public, seemingly happy to remain chameleon quiet. At 5-foot-9 and 140 pounds, he does not demand physical attention. He says "Mr. Norman" when talking about Greg Norman, the International Team captain who handpicked Ishikawa for the competition that starts Thursday.

Back home in Japan, where Ishikawa has been treated like a rock star since winning a pro event at age 15, such deference and respectful demeanor has earned him the nickname "Bashful Prince." But here in America, after a few days at Harding Park Golf Club, the title almost seems a bit dated. Bashful or not, Ishikawa already has the power to rule.

ATLANTA -- Tiger Woods won the FedEx Cup Sunday at East Lake Golf Club, collecting a $10 million bonus, which in anybody's world ranks as serious cha-ching.

How very nice.

Now, about Phil Mickelson.

It isn't easy upstaging golf's best player winning the season's biggest award, but standing beside Woods on the 18th green for a double trophy presentation, Mickelson drew the spotlight like the lead man in a prison break.

He shot a final-round 65 and finished 9 under to win the Tour Championship, coming from four shots out of the 54-hole lead to finish three shots in front of the second-place Woods.

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Over the next two weeks, FanHouse will be delivering any and all awards for the 2009 PGA and LPGA Tour season. It will be a collection of anything that needs to be awarded, from Player of the Year, to Best Shot of '09 to Breakthrough Twitterer. It is, simply named, The Green Jacket awards.

Thousands of shots are hit on the PGA Tour each week, so to look at the entire year and dissect the best one might seem difficult. Sure, there was that pure 5-iron someone snuggled up next to the pin at the FBR Open, or the long putt drained for an eagle, but what shot was great and influential?

It was a final round 63 last week that got Tiger Woods, yes, Tiger Woods, back into form at the Deutsche Bank Championship. Struggling with scoring, Tiger carded eight birdies and an eagle to tie his lowest score of the year, and that little spark carried over on Thursday at Cog Hill.

Sporting an umbrella on the collar of his blue Nike polo in honor of Arnold Palmer's 80th birthday, Tiger posted a 3-under 68, made a hair worse by a third shot on the par-5 18th that landed nearly in the hole, but struck the pin, ending up 12-feet away, leaving Tiger a disgusted look and a disappointing par.

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Each Wednesday during the golf season, FanHouse will list the top five names in golf and why they're important. Did Barack play 18 with Tiger? Did a certain player do something controversial off the course? Or was just playing golf enough to get the pot stirring? Join us for a weekly feature we call Making the Cut.

5. Ryo Ishikawa -- The 17-year-old (who will turn 18 on September 17) was named to the Presidents Cup, making the potential for some Tiger vs. Ryo matches all the more possible. Tiger lives for stuff like this, and even though the two were paired together at the British Open, it wasn't the same as match play. Two things will happen with Greg Norman's teenage pick -- either he comes out, shows signs of brilliance and earns a point or two for the International side, or he crashes and burns, and the Japanese media will be all over him.

No matter the outcome, it will be a bonus to see if Ryo comes out with a matching headcover of himself again.

Each Wednesday during the golf season, FanHouse will list the top five names in golf and why they're important. Did Barack play 18 with Tiger? Did a certain player do something controversial off the course? Or was just playing golf enough to get the pot stirring? Join us for a weekly feature we call Making the Cut.

5. Rick Rhoden -- Who said 50-year-old golfers can't win the occasional golf tournament? Rhoden, 56, claimed his eighth (8th!) Lake Tahoe Celebrity Championship last weekend, beating out Dan Quinn and Tony Romo. As Ryan pointed out after the victory, Rhoden has earned more in his "celebrity" golfing than he ever did during a season as a major league baseball player.

Last week, before anybody knew what Tom Watson was capable of, the 59-year-old, eight-time major winner (including five British Open titles) announced that the 2010 Open Championship at St. Andrews would be his last.

Not because 60 was a nice even number, or because Watson thinks he can't compete with players more than half his age. But because the R&A reduced the maximum age for past champions from 65 to 60.