David Duval is a Perky Jerky kind of cat these days

Beef jerky infused with energy drink sounds like the kind of thing you'd dream up late at night after a bit too much of a good time. But since you didn't, somebody else did, and now they've earned enough coin off their idea to sponsor David Duval. (See? Wacky ideas can pay off.)

Anyway, Duval is now the proud standard-bearing sponsor of Perky Jerky, which simply has to be the best-named company to come down the pike in quite some time. It's billed as "ultra-premium jerky," which seems like a contradiction in terms, but whatever. The Perky Jerky logo will have a prominent place on Duval's bag, which means that you'll either see it a whole lot on Sundays or it'll be gone by Friday afternoon, no middle ground.

A few golf sites have had fun with the idea of a former world No. 1 getting sponsored by a product that sounds like a Spongebob Squarepants character. And sure, there are easy jokes to make, left and right.  But hey, a brother's got to make a living. Sure, Perky Jerky is no Nike or Lexus, but they laughed when Walter Hagen got sponsored by some fizzy little syrup drink called "Coca-Cola," too.

Is Elin moving on from Tiger with a new gentleman? Could be

Disclaimer: This story has nothing to do with golf as a sport. Nothing at all. Knowing this, if you continue to read on and expect golf, you will be disappointed. Fair warning. OK? Let's roll.

In recent weeks, we've shown you Tiger Woods' shiny new $50 million bachelor pad. Woods also seems to be getting his game back, and the TV ratings show that millions are ready to forgive, forget and watch him challenge for wins in tournaments again.

Of course, Woods isn't the only one involved in all this, and he's also not the only one moving on. Reports are trickling in from various sources that Tiger's ex-wife Elin Nordegren is also putting the entire Escalade Incident in her rear-view mirror. The British newspaper The Sun has reported that Nordegren has met a new man, described as a "35-year-old South African," at the college in Florida where both are presently studying. (Nordegren revealed a few months back that she is studying psychology, and is a few dozen hours short of an undergraduate degree.)

The National Enquirer -- which demands at least a bit of credibility since, as you'll recall, it broke the initial story that set TransgressionGate in motion -- claimed that the man "suddenly and impulsively kissed her while walking her back to her car in the school parking lot." 

In fact, the Enquirer has gone a step further than that, saying that Elin wants to start a family and that Woods is "crushed that she is moving on so soon," according to one of those fabled "anonymous sources." Both stories are peppered with such sources, which means you should feel free to completely disregard any of this.

Still, Elin Nordegren is 30 years old and, thanks to a reported $100 million divorce settlement, wealthy beyond compare. Of course she's going to have gentlemen callers lining up for the pleasure of courting her. For their sake, it's probably better if they don't golf. No need to bring another set of clubs into the relationship.

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The man behind the Mick: profiling Jim Mackay, Phil's caddy

Golfers may play for decades, but it's the rare player-caddy relationship that lasts more than a few years. Players may not work their way through caddies like football teams switch coaches, but there's nonetheless a sense of impermanence in the looping ranks. Virtually every major player has rotated through at least a couple of caddies through the years.

One significant exception to that rule is Phil Mickelson, who's had Jim "Bones" Mackay on the bag for almost his entire career. Mackay, normally a modest, private person, consented to a far-reaching Golf Magazine profile that's well worth some time this offseason.

Among the revelations:

• Bones and Mickelson met when both were just starting out in professional golf, a fortunate coincidence of timing that paid untold dividends for both. In their first outing together, Phil broke the course record at a 1992 U.S. Open sectional qualifier in Memphis.

• Before meeting Mickelson, Mackay had hoped to caddy in just one Ryder Cup. He's now looped in eight, as well as eight Presidents Cups and all four of Mickelson's major wins.

• Mackay doesn't foresee Mickelson playing much, if at all, on the Champions Tour. Where does he visualize Mickelson in a few years? "In the owner's box at a

The Devil Ball 100: The most important people in golf history, 80-71

Welcome to the Devil Ball 100, our ranking of the 100 most important people in the history of golf. Over the next couple weeks, we'll be rolling them out, 10 at a time. Our list includes everyone from golfers to politicians to actors, and each one had a dramatic impact on the game as we know it today. Some names you'll recognize, some you won't. Some positions you'll agree with, and some will have you wondering if we've gone insane. Enjoy the rollout, and see where your favorites made the list! We continue with someone you probably don't know, but really should ...

80. Hord Hardin: Hardin, who passed away in 1996 at the age of 84, was the third chairman of the Masters and Augusta National Golf Club, and was a stickler for tradition. If not for Hardin, the Masters might have turned into a commercial event like so many other tournaments, but Hardin was insistent that would never happen, once telling the world he was scared of "the Pizza Hut Masters." Along with all of that, Hardin was influential with the first major of the year, putting together the agreement that Augusta would dictate the terms of the television coverage of the tournament. Hardin played in seven U.S. Amateur championships and in the 1952 U.S. Open.

79. Mary Queen of Scots: You think you're the only one that rubbed your wife the wrong way for picking golf over family time on a sunny Saturday? Well, you are far from the first to let golf ruffle feathers. Mary Queen of Scots did this all the way back in the 16th century, when she played a round of golf two days after her husband, Lord Darnley, was murdered, bringing scowls from the church for not showing proper mourning, but hey, she didn't let it disrupt her handicap!

78. Young Tom Morris: The youngest holder of a major championship to date, Young Tom Morris, the son to Old Tom Morris, was the first child prodigy in the game (move over Michelle Wie).  In 1869, Young Tom broke the course record at the Old Course at St. Andrews with a 77, a number that stood for 20 years.  Young Tom won the British Open four times in five years, and probably would have had a longer reign as top golfer but died at the age of 24, just four months after his wife and baby died during a complicated childbirth.

77. Dan Jenkins: The self-proclaimed "Ancient Twitterer" for his commitment to major championship Tweets, Jenkins is arguably the most famous golf writer ever. His novel "Dead Solid Perfect" is on every golfer's nightstand, and was turned into a movie by HBO Films in 1988. Jenkins has produced over 500 pieces for Sports Illustrated.

76. Fred Corcoran: Man, where do you begin. Corcoran's list of achievements is nearly impossible to beat: He invented the first scorecard with different colors for bogeys, pars and birdies, he managed Sam Snead, Babe Zaharias and Ken Venturi, he helped found the LPGA and Golf Writers Association of America, and famously said he has three-putted in 47 different countries. Along with that, he was influential in bringing golf matches to troops during World War II. Makes your resume look a lot less full now, doesn't it?

75. Jack Whitaker: One of the voices of golf for CBS in the '60s and '70s, Whitaker was famously banned from covering the Masters when he referred to a big group of patrons as a "mob" in 1966, paving the way for the likes of Gary McCord and his "bikini wax" joke.

74. Judge Stanley Mosk: For golf fans, we owe a lot to Stanley Mosk, who fought the PGA of America's Caucasian-only policy when he received a hand-written letter from Charlie Sifford in 1959 saying he wasn't allowed to play because the color of his skin. Mosk, the California Attorney General at the time, brought together other attorney generals from other states, and eventually got the rule changed in 1961.

73. P.J. Boatwright Jr.: When you think of the Rules of Golf, you must think of P.J. Boatwright, the man some called "the authority" on the game's rules until he passed away in 1991. Boatwright joined the USGA in 1959 and became the executive director in 1969, rewriting the Rules of Golf in 1984 and recodifying the Decisions of the Rules of Golf in 1987. He wasn't a bad golfer either, playing in four U.S. Amateurs and making the cut at the 1950 U.S. Open.

72. Jan Stephenson: The term "sex sells" on the LPGA can be attributed to one person, and that's Jan Stephenson. The Australian-born player won 16 LPGA events and two majors, and was one of the first female golfers to market her body as a selling point, pushing others to try and do the same. Maybe more famous than that was the comment she made in 2003, when she said "Asians are killing the

How did Lee Westwood become No. 1? He ain't telling

Not so long ago, Lee Westwood was an undistinguished professional golfer, a guy mired deep in the three figures of the Official World Golf Rankings. He'd spent years toiling away across Europe and the United States without distinction.

By 2000, he'd fought his way up to No. 4 only to fall all the way to 266 two years later. For most golfers, that'd be it, a good if brief run. But Westwood was only just beginning. He absolutely tore his way upward through the ranks, ending with the Halloween triumph.

Question is, how'd he do it? Technique, sure, but physical skill can only take you so far. As Westwood notes in an interview with the Guardian (visor tip: Armchair Golf Blog), it was mind over matter:

"I was very, very ruthless and honest with myself," he says, eyes wide. "And I would never, ever, tell anyone else what I did until I've finished my career. Because I'm trying to beat them every week and that's the ruthlessness coming out again. So I would never give an edge away ... I know how I turned it round but I wouldn't tell anybody. Because it's a life experience I've been through that not many people have. And why give that kind of information away? Golf is a very selfish and ruthless sport."

Love it. That's the kind of take-no-prisoners mentality that makes for a great golfer. Now, I'm sure I'd love it less if I had to deal with Westwood on a regular basis, like his kids do. As he puts it elsewhere in the article:

"I've had my son crying sometimes, he says, 'You never let me win!' But there's no point because it doesn't mean anything. The satisfaction you get when you finally beat your dad is amazing, that rush of adrenaline." 

And there's zero resentment at all from that! It's flawless! Anyway, Westwood is 37, older than the guy he displaced from the No. 1 spot. But even though there's that elusive major out there yet to be won, you get the feeling he's taking nothing for granted at this point. When you come from the depths that he did, every achievement's a bonus.

The Secret Toughness of a Natural No. 1

Stuart '59' Appleby wins PGA Tour Comeback Player of the Year

By Jay Busbee

If you're going to come back, you gotta do it in style. Witness Stuart Appleby, who followed a horrendous 2009 with a year in which he notched a victory at the Greenbrier Classic, capped by a Sunday 59, as well as a win at the Australian Masters. He's one of only two players to record a 59 in the final round. (Mr. Perky Jerky, David Duval, was the other, back in 1999.) Let's look back, shall we?

Aw, yeah. Appleby played so poorly in 2009 that he fell outside the top 125 on the money list for the first time since his first year, and used a one-time career earnings exemption to get back on tour.

No such worries this time around; he finished 38th on the PGA's money list, and beat out Rocco Mediate and Arjun Atwal for the comeback honor.  

Related: Stuart Appleby, David Duval

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Annika Sorenstam expecting second child

Good news from the camp of one of the most decorated golfers in history: Annika Sorenstam is set to be a mother once again.

"Mike and I are happy to share that our family will be a foursome by early summer," Sorenstam wrote on her blog. "Ava is ready to be a big sister."

Sorenstam, the 10-time major winner, retired in 2008, saying she wanted to focus on a family. Speculation at the time ran rampant that she'd get tired of domestic life and be back within months, but late last year she gave birth to her first child.

Since then, she's popped up occasionally, never returning to the tour or anything like that, but simply keeping in the public eye now and then. She and Jack Nicklaus have teamed up to present the marquee course bid for the 2016 Olympic Games' golf course in Rio de Janeiro, but other than that, not much.

OK, Annika, we have to admit, this is pretty convincing evidence of that whole "I'm done with golf because I want to go make babies" line you were spinning a couple years back. We didn't believe it at the time, but the evidence of two rugrats is making it tough to deny that maybe you were serious about quitting golf. Maybe.

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