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Divots

DEVIL RAY INSPIRES PHIL: He didn't win the Masters on Sunday, but Phil Mickelson wasn't all that upset about it. He tried to enjoy the moment, he said, changing his outlook after watching the movie The Rookie, a story based on high school teacher-turned Rays pitcher Jim Morris. Actor Dennis Quaid plays Morris. "He said one line that hit home with me about how he was excited about how today he's very lucky to play baseball," Mickelson said. "And (Sunday) I thought I was very lucky to be able to play the final round of the Masters here at Augusta, play the back nine and be on the leaderboard and play this game for a living."

DON'T ASK: Tiger Woods isn't talking -- at least not much -- when it comes to his girlfriend, Sweden's Elin Nordegren, who accompanied him to a Golf Writers Association of America awards dinner last week and was at Augusta National, where she sat near Woods' parents during the green jacket ceremony. Woods was introduced to Nordegren by Jesper Parnevik. Asked how he planned to thank Parnevik for the introduction, Woods said: "I tell you one thing, I'm not going to throw a tournament down the stretch for him."

CAN'T WAIT TO SEE IT ON TV: It is always one of the more amusing sights at Augusta National, patrons with the most cherished tickets in sports leaving the course before play is completed. It happened again Sunday, when Woods made the turn with a commanding lead. Hundreds, if not thousands, left the course to watch on television. But a good number gathered in front of a high-definition TV in an open-air museum area near the course exit. They sat around a television while Woods made more history several hundred yards away.

FEELING FORTUNATE: All you need to do is look around at the economic landscape to see how lucky the Tampa Bay Classic is to have Chrysler as a sponsor beginning in 2003 -- after losing Buick. This week, Genuity dropped out as sponsor of the Doral tour stop after just two years. According to Golf World, eight other tournaments are without title sponsors for the 2003-06 PGA Tour television contract, while seven sponsorships are pending.

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