CA Course Reporters: Friday morning

Editor's note: The CA Course Bloggers -- Ellie Maniery, Desi Brantley, Stefano Diaz and Philip Spano -- will be taking PGATOUR.COM fans behind the scenes at the World Golf Championships-CA Championship this week. The bloggers will be filing a total of 32 entries over five days, so check back frequently to see what they have discovered.

Other blogs: Wednesday | Thursday morning | Thursday evening

Getting all technical
By Stefano Diaz

So far, still cool today at Doral! I had the privilege to take a picture while swinging a club and have it appear on the cover of Golf Digest with Retief Goosen and David Howell.

I also had the opportunity to get my golf swing analyzed in 3-D. The software they used is just like what they use to make cartoons and animations. It's so cool! They hooked up all these wires and gizmos and I got to take a golf swing. Then they compare you to pros who are playing on TOUR today. The guys there were extremely nice, and showed us a couple of exercise moves to do when you get to the gym that will help you get stronger physically and mentally. Some of the exercises I had never heard of before. One guy told me that while I am lying down and watching TV, I should get up on my elbows and tiptoes and stay like that for five minutes. Another exercise used a gizmo that moves and has a lot of resistance to work out your legs.

They also had a setup that was able to check out my putting stroke. They had a putter with some wires attached that would tell you at what angle you hit the ball, what speed you swing the putter and where you make contact with the ball. You can see if you hit the ball on the dead-center of the club face. Also it tells you what type of spin you get on the ball and if it jumps. Finally, it showed you if you had any hip movement in your golf swing.

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Excellent listening skills
By Philip Spano

Today I was interviewed by XM Radio's PGA TOUR Network. I was a little afraid about it because I thought it was live and I might say something wrong. When I sat down with Brian Katrek and John Maginnes, though, they told me that it wasn't live but it was being recorded. That made me feel a little better until Brian told me that XM Radio has more than 9 million people listening! So we talked about how I was picked to be a CA golf reporter and what I wanted to do with myself in the future. They seemed like very nice guys -- funny, too.

Then I talked to Maureen Madill, Doug Bell, and Mark Carnevale about what it takes to actually run a radio talk-show. I was really impressed. I originally thought that all you had to do was talk to be on a radio. That's not too bad. But then I found out that while the guy is talking on the radio, two to three people are talking to them on a P.L. (private line), telling them facts and information about what is happening. I found this absolutely amazing that these talk-show guys can go on the air, talk and listen to two people at the same time. Honestly, sometimes I have difficulty listening to my parents talk when I'm watching TV. I can't listen to both them and the TV so I only listen to one...

They must have excellent listening skills. I bet my mom would want me to learn from them.

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A photo blog
By Ellie Maniery

This is a shot of part of the media center and a portion of the scoreboard up front. Soon it will be covered with hole-by-hole scores as more players head out onto the course.

The maintenance crew here at Doral does a great job of keeping the course in top shape for the players, working odd hours before and after play to make sure the Blue Monster stays in tournament condition.

The players meet with their coaches on the driving range to work out kinks in their game before they start their rounds.

Me in the 18th green grandstands, ready for another day at the CA Championship.

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A photo blog
By Desi Brantley

Here are some photos from my time here so far.

This globe is near the 1st tee and represents Doral Golf Resort & Spa and the CA Championship and all the golfers coming here from all over the world.

I wonder how this got into the water. This sign lets everyone in the 18th green's grandstand know that they're at the CA Championship when you see this.

This picture was in the Welcome Pavilion. It's my pretty cousin, Dasia. This photo was taken at the CA youth golf clinic with the Boys and Girls Club of Miami last year before the CA Championship.

This is a picture of me in the skybox at the 18th green. When you're sitting in the grandstand on the 18th it's easy to see how nice the course looks and you get a clear view of what the golfers are doing.