Phil Signs Off On Butch's New Pupil

Brian Wacker reports on the first day of Gary Woodland's life after Randy Smith fired the lad and it seems Butch Harmon got the "OK" of his prized pupils before adding Woodland to his stable.

“He called me and asked if I would have any interest in working with him,” Harmon said.

Harmon was interested and called his other clients, starting with Phil Mickelson, to make sure they were OK with it. Harmon also works with Dustin Johnson and Nick Watney.

“[Gary] fits into the profile of the guys I work with,” said Harmon, who has also worked with Tiger Woods and Greg Norman, among others. “He has a big swing and a tremendous amount of talent and is an awful lot of fun to be around.”

Alan Shipnuck profiled Woodland for SI's Golf Plus, which returns from its self-imposed hiatus covering the game. Welcome back guys!

This was a keeper of a quote from Woodland:

He didn't hide his unease about being without a coach. "I don't really understand what I do," Woodland said with typical candor. "Until I get to that point I'm going to need someone to tell me what to do."