PUMA athlete Rickie Fowler is showing he can play with the big boys. He fired a stellar 7-under 64 in the second round of the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open for a two-day total 11-under. This is his first PGA Tour event as a professional.

The talented 20-year-old got off to a fast start, racking up 5 birdies and an eagle on his first nine. After his round he told the Golf Channel:

I got out to a little better start on the back nine, my first nine, and turned at 30, which helped out quite a bit. From there, I had to scrape around a bit…I try not to think about expectations. I just go out on the course and do my thing and it’s been working out the past two days and hopefully I’ll have a good weekend.

Going into the final 36 holes, he’s T5. Looking good, Rickie (in those white pants, too). We’ll be rooting for you.

[Photo by Marc Feldman/Getty Images]

In the upcoming months, Rickie will be giving us a behind-the-scenes look into his life on the road — both on and off the course — as a professional golfer. Stay tuned!

Geoff Ogilvy hanging out with President Clinton in a practice round

The Presidents Cup gets underway today at Harding Park in San Francisco. Here are the pairings for Thursday’s foursome  matches:

International vs. US.

Tim Clark and Mike Weir vs. Anthony Kim and Phil Mickelson

Adam Scott and Ernie Els vs. Hunter Mahan and Sean O’Hair

Vijay Singh and Robert Allenby vs. Lucas Glover and Stewart Cink

Angel Cabrera and Camilo Villegas vs. Kenny Perry and Zach Johnson

Geoff Ogilvy and Ryo Ishikawa vs. Tiger Woods and Steve Stricker

Retief Goosen and Y.E. Yang vs. Jim Furyk and Justin Leonard

In case you’re not familiar with the “foursome” format, it’s basically just two guys playing “alternate shot” — Player A hits the drive and then Player B hits the next shot, etc. As you see, PUMA athlete Geoff Ogilvy is paired with 18-year-old phenom Ryo Ishikawa…and they’re taking on the world’s number 1 and 3 players, Tiger Woods and Steve Stricker.

This match will definitely be the one to watch. Ogilvy’s record at past Presidents Cup matches is 2-3-0. He is the top-ranked player on the International squad. And Ishikawa is probably the hottest one — last week he won on the Japanese Tour, his fourth victory since June.

Ogilvy requested to be paired with the young’n. In yesterday’s presser, Ryo said:

The first time I met Mr. Ogilvy was at the Taiheiyo Masters in Japan. He was very nice to me then and also coming into this week, he’s been really nice to me this week. I’m just really happy to be paired with him. Because I had known him in the past, I didn’t know that I would get to pair with him this week, but it was great that it worked out this way and that I get to pair with him. And the other players and caddies have come up me and said, “Geoff really wanted to play with you.” So when I heard that, I was really, really happy.

Aww, shucks! Awfully kind of Ogilvy to step up and mentor the teen! Best of luck to them tomorrow — they best be bringing their A game to beat Tiger/Stricker! But hey, crazier things have happened. Not to mention there’s more chance for underdogs to disappoint in match play. And that’s why it’s so fun to watch. Get excited!

Photo by Hunter Martin/Getty Images

Congratulations to PUMA athlete Anna Nordqvist for her brilliant play at the LET Madrid Ladies Masters tournament!

Anna shot a three-day total of 16-under. Her stellar final round 10-under 63 (her career low round) got her into a playoff with Azahara Munoz. Unfortunately, in the first extra hole, Munoz made an eagle for the win. Still, a great performance by Anna. Her finish moves her to 12th in the World Golf Rankings.

The 22-year-old Swede is a rookie on the LPGA and has made 12 cuts in as many starts. She’s placed in the top 10 three times, and only six months into the season she won a major, the LPGA Championship. Not too shabby! In August she made her debut as a member of the European Solheim Cup Team — which she says is the highlight of her fantastic season — her record was 2-2-0.

Go HERE to check out a recent interview the LET did with Anna.

PUMA announced at the 2009 Soboba Classic that twenty-year-old golfer Rickie Fowler, who just turned professional, has joined the sportlifestyle brand’s roster of world-class athletes. To celebrate, PUMA welcomed Fowler to the family by surprising him with a customized, motocross-inspired golf cart.

The video gives a behind-the-scenes look with Fowler. He chats about why he started playing golf and chose PUMA. We also see him take his first ride on the cart!

Rickie Fowler and his newly received custom PUMA golf cart, given to him to welcome him to PUMA’s roster of athletes

It’s official — 20-year-old pro Fowler has signed with PUMA to wear our stylin’ apparel, headwear and footwear with Smart Quill technology. He brings a fun, refreshing energy to the golfing world. Rickie’s style on and off the course fits the brand to a tee — “Look Better, Feel Better, Play Better.” And the kid’s got it all.

Before turning pro recently, Rickie was the top-ranked amateur and two-time member of the Walker Cup team. He made his professional debut earlier in the month at the Albertsons Boise Open in Idaho. This week he’s playing at the Soboba Classic Tournament, where PUMA welcomed him to the family and celebrated by surprising him with a tricked-out, motocross-inspired golf cart. It features a roll cage, off-road tires, a push bar and a state-of-the-art stereo system.

Rickie Fowler and Robert Philion, Global Business Unit Manager, PUMA Golf, with Rickie’s custom golf cart, gifted to him to welcome him to PUMA’s roster of athletes

Rickie is breaking in the cart today in his Pro-Am round. He’s playing with his father, Rod Fowler, and famed motocross racers, Jeremy McGrath and Brock Glover. Rickie grew up riding a dirt bike and was once a promising motocross competitor — he LOVES speed (how many MPH does the golf cart have?). He turned his full attention to golf when he was 14, and obviously he was a natural. His racing background shows up in his daredevil approach on the course.

He is excited to be part of the PUMA brand: “[It] is so fun and light-hearted but also serious when it comes to the sport. The PUMA Golf line has all of the features I need to play the game well while allowing me to express my personality with great styles and a unique look, whether I’m playing golf or just hanging out with my friends.”

Rickie makes PUMA look good. And PUMA makes Rickie look good.

Be sure to follow Rickie on Twitter, join his Facebook fan group and check out his new website — management company SFX Golf sees him as “Golf 2.0″ — he’s part of the new generation of young, appealing rising stars with an edge. He sure is! And we couldn’t be happier to have him on the PUMA team.

Good luck this week, Rickie!

The PUMA Open, the final one of the year, is coming to Miami next Friday, Oct 9. It isn’t any ordinary golf tournament. We show the game isn’t so uptight and it’s perfectly OK to have some fun on the course. The event mixes things up with unorthodox holes, casino-style games, drinks, prizes and a totally serious dose of good old-fashioned rule-breaking. Because, you know, you gotta live a little!

Here are the details: Friday, October 9th at the Doral Golf Resort (Blue Monster) and cost is $75 per person (register in teams of four).

Each player receives 4 free drinks, a gift bag stuffed with sponsor goodies, 9 holes of non-traditional golf, on-course games and prizes galore, a tasty buffet dinner, a full-on Vegas-style casino, not to mention exclusive discounts on a fully-stocked pro shop featuring the latest in PUMA Golf Gear.

For a preview of the good times, check out this video with New York Yankees Johnny Damon and LPGA pro Erica Blasberg as they get ready for the PUMA Open.

Go HERE to register: http://www.thepumaopen.com

And anyone who enters “PUMA golf blog” in the “How you heard about the event” field when they register will receive a complimentary PUMA Open flask (which always come in handy) upon check-in.

So, don’t wait to sign-up — you won’t want to miss this last event of the 2009 series!

Photo by Scott Halleran/Getty Images

Thirty of the top players in the world competed at East Lake GC, the final leg of the FedEx Cup playoffs, last week. And if you weren’t watching football, then you saw how exciting the finish was.

Phil and Tiger both made the winner’s circle. Phil won the Tour Championship, but Tiger walked away with the extra fatty $10 million bonus for winning the FedEx Cup. Not a bad payday, huh? Though I think he would have gladly traded the paycheck for Phil’s trophy — we know he doesn’t like finishing second at anything! And it’s not like he needs the money or plays for it.

Phil played a flawless final round and shot 5-under 65 to best Tiger by 3 strokes. His short game deserves the most credit for the excellent victory. He had been struggling around the greens over the past few months, but a short putting tutorial from Dave Stockton last week got him back on track. Phil’s shot of the day came at the 16th hole, where he chipped in for birdie!

As Tiger so often does, he contributed to the excitement toward the end of the day. He was having a ho-hum round until he (finally) made his first birdie on the 15th. Then he followed it with another on the 16th, draining a long putt.

Meanwhile, PUMA athlete Geoff Ogilvy finished T16. After a terrible start (he was DFL after the first round!), he fired an excellent 6-under 64 on Saturday and then even-par on Sunday. Way to come back and great job!

The tournament and playoffs were a success because of the results, but the FedEx Cup hasn’t escaped further scrutiny. No one gets the uber-complicated points system. (I’m beginning to think that the PGA just wants to confuse us.) Even Phil doesn’t get it. After his round he quipped, “I want to see if I understand this right. I shot 65 and Tiger shot 70. He gets a check for $10 million.” He said he was “joking,” but…

So, there you have it — the world’s number one and two winning on the same day — I can’t think of a better way to close the official ‘09 season.

Photo by Scott Halleran/Getty Images

The Tour Championship, the final leg of the FedEx Cup playoffs, begins tomorrow at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, Georgia. The top 30 players in the points standings are playing for a big, fat $10 million check.

And how did they get to the oh-so-coveted finale? Well, the idea of playoffs still seems contrived to most, not to mention the points system that no one quite understands other than the powers-that-be at the PGA Tour. But that’s another matter. The Tour revamped the points system this season to create more drama and parity. Last year when Vijay Singh won the first two legs, he had insomuch secured the Cup before he teed off at East Lake.

Anyway, players accumulate points throughout the regular season as a reward for consistent play. When the playoffs roll around, the points double to heighten the importance of those events. After the third leg, they’re reset, but the standings remain the same. But really, those in the top 5 are the only ones that have a good shot at winning the Cup. If a player wins the Tour Championship, it doesn’t mean he also wins the FEC. Weird, huh? As it stands, Tiger Woods (surprise!) is leading the race. Following him are Steve Stricker, Jim Furyk, Zach Johnson and Heath Slocum.

Now where does PUMA athlete Geoff Ogilvy stand? He’s ranked 13th in the standings. He started the year hot with two wins in his first five starts and took the early lead in the FEC. In two previous appearances at the Tour Championship, he placed in the Top 20 — not too shabby.

Barring some sort of complete anomaly, Tiger will probably win. And few would mind seeing that happen. But here at PUMA, we’ll be hoping for a strong showing by Ogilvy. Be sure to follow him on Twitter as he’ll likely be keeping us updated. Despite the controversy surrounding the playoff system, we’re still pumped for the Tour Championship and looking for an exciting tourney. That said, let the sprint to the finish begin!

It’s Memorial Day weekend in the U.S. and we here at PUMA Golf are looking forward to a few days of beaches and BBQ to kick off the summer. We’ll be back next week with new guest bloggers and some on the ground thoughts from the European Open at The London Golf Club.

We leave you today with this story from our friends in the UK.

A GOLFER has claimed he spotted a “puma” on a course near St Neots. The 62-year-old from Fen Stanton said: “I have never seen anything like this before. The animal that passed me – at great speed – was definitely a puma. It looked like it was chasing something and was bigger than a dog.”

Mythical creature? or PR stunt gone wrong?

Happy Friday all…