RANKING RAMIFICATIONS: Ben Crane had to withdraw from the AT&T Classic before it began, an insignificant development except that it could affect the travel plans and bank account of Ryuji Imada later this summer.
Crane was at No. 99 in the world ranking last week, meaning his presence was worth two points toward the strength of field. When he did not start the tournament, that dropped the AT&T Classic to 113 points. That number is meaningful because tournaments must have a field strength of at least 115 points for its winner to be eligible for the $8 million Bridgestone Invitational.
The World Golf Championship also takes the top 50 in the world ranking, and Imada moved up to No. 49 with his victory on the TPC Sugarloaf. He can qualify for his first trip to Firestone if he stays in the top 50 through July.
Meantime, Richard Finch won the Irish Open by two shots over Felipe Aguilar of Chile and earned a spot at Firestone, as the European Tour event had a stronger field, according to the world ranking. Finch moved up 84 places to No. 134 in the world.
COSTLY BREAK: Lorena Ochoa earned $300,000 for her sixth victory of the year at the Sybase Classic, which should help her pay a $25,000 fine for skipping the Corning Classic this week.
The LPGA Tour has a "1-in-4" rule, meaning players must compete in every full-field event on the schedule at least once every four years. Ochoa has not played Corning since 2004, when she tied for 19th.
The Mexican star felt she had no choice. She is defending champion at eight tournaments this year, the LPGA Tour added another tournament in Mexico and Corning is right before a buildup into the majors.
MASTERS CHARITY: Augusta National is giving $3.4 million to charities this year, and the club's employees had a small role deciding where some of the donations were directed.
Under a new program, each employee was allowed to designate $1,000 to the charity of their choice as part of the $1.25 million Augusta National donated to The Community Foundation for the CSRA.
"Our employees are an integral part of this organization and they are committed to this community," Masters chairman Billy Payne said. "This new initiative recognizes their hard work and dedication, and I'm certain the money will be donated wisely."
STAT OF THE WEEK: Lorena Ochoa, Annika Sorenstam and Paula Creamer have combined to win 11 of 12 tournaments on the LPGA Tour this year. The exception was Louise Friberg, who won the MasterCard Classic in Mexico.
FINAL WORD: "I have lived the life I always wanted to, working for a newspaper I always wanted to, going to lovely places around the world, populated in the main by people I would have chosen to be with. Surely, no journalist could ask for more." — Dai Davies, former golf correspondent of The Guardian, who died Monday.
