Golf This Week: Something for everyone as golf celebrates a banner year Wanting to return among the elite in golf, Graeme McDowell mapped out a plan last fall. He figured out how many ranking points he would need to get back into the top five in the world. And he went about it the right way. It started with his win at the World Challenge a year ago. He won at Hilton Head on the PGA Tour. He won the World Match Play Championship and the French Open on the European Tour. He was third at World Golf Championships in Doral and Shanghai. "I've got to say, I got pretty close to that target that I set myself," McDowell said. Little did he know how much the target would be moving in an extraordinary year for golf. McDowell ended last year at No. 15 in the world. Now he is all the way up to No. "I wasn't really factoring on how many great players around me were going to have incredible seasons," McDowell said. So making an impact in that top 10 in the world has been very difficult to do this year because you just get so many guys playing incredibly well. Call it bad timing for McDowell, and happy days for golf. Rarely has the golf season - men and women - felt so rewarding for so many players. Perhaps that explains why Tiger Woods could win five times - more than any other player in the world - capture the PGA Tour money title and the Vardon Trophy for the lowest scoring average, and then listen to people discuss the definition of player of the year and whether he is worthy without having won a major. Woods won the vote as the best player on the PGA Tour. He is used to playing under a different set of standards, a victim of his own success. Anyone else with five trophies from the courses where he won - Torrey Pines, Doral, Bay Hill, TPC Sawgrass and Firestone - and there would be a debate. But this wasn't just any other year. Adam Scott became the first Australian to win the Masters, and along the way earned redemption from blowing the British Open nearly nine months earlier. He had the outright lead on the back nine at the British Open this year before faltering. A month later, he won The Barclays during the FedEx Cup playoffs, arguably one of the strongest fields of the year with the tour's top 125 players who are all on form. When he finally went home to show off his green jacket, Scott won the Australian PGA Championship and the Australian Masters, and then teamed with Jason Day to give Australia its first World Cup title in 24 years. He was poised to capture Australia's Triple Crown until Rory McIlroy beat him on the last hole in the Australian Open. A better year than Woods? Probably not, though it depends how much weight is given a major. Perhaps a better question: Did he have a better year than Phil Mickelson? Lefty came within a cruel lip-out of shooting a 59 in the Phoenix Open, which he wound up winning. Showing off a short game like no other, his chip on the 18th hole at Castle Stuart gave him a victory in the Scottish Open. And his Sunday at Muirfield gets little debate over the best round of the year. Mickelson made four birdies on the last six holes for a 66 to capture the one major that not even he thought he could win. Who won the most meaningful major this year? Mickelson or Scott? Best to save that argument for the bar. Not to be forgotten is Henrik Stenson, who in April wasn't even eligible for the Masters. He finished one shot behind in the Shell Houston Open, which got him to Augusta National. But it was the summer when the Swede began to shine. A tie for third in the Scottish Open. Runner-up at the British Open. Runner-up at Firestone (by seven shots to Woods), third at the PGA Championship. He won two FedEx Cup playoff events to win the $10-million FedEx Cup. And for good measure, he won the final event in Europe to become the first player to win the FedEx Cup and Race to Dubai in the same season. Missing from the equation this year was the guy who started the year at No. 1 - McIlroy. He still had a good view. You've got Tiger with five wins this year. Adam breaks through for his first major. Phil wins the major he thinks he's never going to win. Henrik comes back," McIlroy said. Yeah, it's deep. You've got to play really well to win. ... But I think golf is in great shape. On the LPGA Tour, the points-based player of the year came down to the next to last week, even though Inbee Park had won three straight majors among her six titles. Suzann Pettersen and Stacy Lewis won the other majors. Lewis won the Vare Trophy for lowest scoring average. Pettersen had a chance to win the money title until she faltered in the Titleholders. That's what inspired LPGA Commissioner Mike Whan to say, "Sports are at their absolute best ... when the best athletes in that sport are having the best years of their lives." It's hard to say with certainty that Woods was at his absolute best, and not just because he didn't win a major. It used to be that when Woods was at his best, there was not enough wealth to go around. Now there is. What a year. SITE: Naples, Fla. SCHEDULE: Friday-Sunday. COURSE: Ritz-Carlton Golf Resort, Tiburon Golf Club (7,288 yards, par 72). PURSE: $3.1-million. Winners" shares: $375,000 each. TELEVISION: Golf Channel (Friday, 1-4 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday, 1-2 p.m., 6:30-9:30 p.m.) and NBC (Saturday-Sunday, 2-4 p.m.). FORMAT: Two-player teams. Friday, modified alternate shot; Saturday, better ball; Sunday, scramble. TEAMS: Greg Norman-Jonas Blixt, Sean O'Hair-Kenny Perry, Ian Poulter-Lee Westwood, Matt Kuchar-Brandt Snedeker, Jerry Kelly-Steve Stricker, Jason Dufner-Dustin Johnson, Chris DiMarco-Billy Horschel, Mark Calcavecchia-Chad Campbell, Rory Sabbatini-Scott Verplank, Graham DeLaet-Mike Weir, Charles Howell III-Justin Leonard, Retief Goosen-Fredrik Jacobson. NOTES: Greg Norman, the tournament host, designed the 36-hole Tiburon ("shark" in Spanish) facility. The tournament is in its 13th year at Tiburon after a year in Miami and 11 at Sherwood in California. ... Perry, the Champions Tour's Charles Schwab Cup winner, also won with John Huston in 2005 and Scott Hoch in 2008. SITE: Orlando, Fla. SCHEDULE: Saturday-Sunday. COURSE: Grande Lakes Orlando, Ritz-Carlton Golf Club (7,120 yards, par 72). PURSE: $1-million. Winner's share: $200,000. TELEVISION: Golf Channel (Saturday, 2-4 p.m., 9:30-11:30 p.m.; Sunday, 2-4 p.m., 9:30 p.m.-1:30 a.m.) and NBC (Saturday-Sunday, 4-6 p.m.). NOTES: Davis Love III and son Dru, a University of Alabama player, beat Larry and Josh Nelson by a stroke last year. ... Jack Nicklaus is teaming with son Jack Nicklaus II. ... Bernhard Langer and Fuzzy Zoeller are playing alongside daughters Christina Langer and Gretchen Chappo. David Duval is teaming with stepson Dean Karavites. ... Nick Price is making his first appearance in event. Son Greg took up golf this year. SITE: La Quinta, California SCHEDULE: Thursday-Tuesday COURSE: PGA West, TPC Stadium Course and Nicklaus Courses CANADIANS IN THE FIELD: Yohann Benson, Cam Burke, Devin Carrey, Albin Choi, Max Gilbert, Derek Gillespie, Justin Shin, Roger Sloan, Nick Taylor, Riley Wheeldon, Eugene Wong NOTES: The winner and any ties for first place will earn full-status on the Web.com Tour for 2014. ...Anyone outside of the winner and ties who finishes in the top 45 will earn status as well but will be subject to two or three re-shuffle periods which will determine how many tournaments they get into throughout the year. ...Anyone finishing outside the top 45 and ties will have conditional status which will limit the number of tournaments they get into throughout the year. ...Players who finished 6th through 10th on PGA Tour Canada and PGA Tour Latinoamerica money lists earned exemptions into the final stage this year. SITE: Chon Buri, Thailand. SCHEDULE: Thursday-Sunday. COURSE: Amata Spring Country Club (7,453 yards, par 72). Winner's share: $180,000. TELEVISION: Golf Channel (Wednesday, 11:30 p.m.-4:30 a.m.; Thursday, 10:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m., 11:30 p.m.-4:30 p.m.; Friday-Saturday, 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m., 11:30 p.m.-4:30 a.m.; Sunday, 7:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.). NOTES: Sweden's Henrik Stenson, the winner of the PGA Tour's FedEx Cup and European Tour's Race to Dubai, is in the field along with Charl Schwartzel, Justin Rose, Bubba Watson, Sergio Garcia, Hunter Mahan, Rickie Fowler, Ryo Ishikawa, D.A. Points, John Daly and Thai stars Thongchai Jaidee and Kiradech Aphibarnrat. ...Miguel Angel Jimenez successfully defended his Hong Kong Open title last week to extend his record as the oldest winner in European Tour history. The Spaniard won at 49 years, 337 days to break the record he set last year in the event, birdieing the first hole of a playoff with Thailand's Prom Meesawat and Wales" Stuart Manley. Jimenez won the event for the fourth time. SITE: Durban, South Africa. SCHEDULE: Wednesday-Saturday. COURSE: Mount Edgecombe Country Club, Course One (6,612 yards, par 71). PURSE: $1.38-million. Winner's share: $217,975. TELEVISION: Golf Channel (Wednesday, 7:30-10:30 a.m.; Thursday, 6:30-10:30 a.m.; Friday-Saturday, 5-9:30 a.m.). NOTES: The tournament start was moved up by one day following the death of former South African president Nelson Mandela, whose funeral is scheduled for Sunday. The tournament supports the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund. ...The European Tour will take a three week break after this event before resuming January 9th with the Volvo Golf Champions at Durban Country Club. SITE: Poste de Flacq, Mauritius SCHEDULE: Friday-Sunday COURSE: Constance Belle Mare Plage NOTES: The European Senior Tour season comes to a conclusion this week as Paul Wesselingh and Steen Tinning go head-to-head for the Tour number one. Wesselingh heads into the season finale with a €47,936 advantage over Tinning, meaning the Dane would need to finish first and hope that Wesselingh finishes outside the top seven. ...Wesselingh is the 2012 Rookie of the Year after finishing fifth on the Order of Merit a year ago. ...South African David Frost returns to try and defend his title. ...Also in the field is eight-time European Tour number one Colin Montgomerie, who is in his first season on the European Seniors Tour.