Notes From Wednesday Practice at Torrey Pines

I went out and watched Michael practice today at the Farmers Insurance Open. He practiced on the putting green for about an hour, went to the driving range for about an hour and a half, and then went back to the putting green for some more practice. While I was there I spoke quite a bit with his caddie Damian "Victor" Velasquez and pretty much just hung out and soaked in the atmosphere. A couple of tidbits I picked up:

• Michael signed a clothing sponsorship deal today with Vineyard Vines. That means he'll be wearing their clothes while out on tour. He was happy with the style, comfort, and color of the clothes they made and was excited about his new relationship with that company. You can check out their clothes at VineyardVines.com

• Sponsorship goes even further than just the players and the hosts of the tournament. Caddies can earn a little extra money wearing shirts, hats, etc from various golf vendors as well. If their player makes the cut, they get a little bit extra.

• Victor has been a caddie for 23 years. Originally from Venezuela, his brother is Jhonatton Vegas' caddie. Vegas won the Bob Hope Classic last week in his second start on the PGA tour and we're hoping a little Velasquez family Venezuelan mojo will rub off on Michael this week.

• If you see photos of player's bags they often have logos from a golf course on them. On Michael's bag there is a Shoal Creek Golf Club logo on it. Michael was made an honorary member of the club, which is an exclusive and well thought of country club near his home in Alabama.

• Ever wonder how the "Shot Tracker" knows where the ball is when following scores on PGATour.com? Spread throughout the golf course, you'll see survey equipment in the television towers. Each tower has a surveyor sighting the ball with their equipment, which records the position of where the ball lands within a couple of inches.

We've taken tons of photos from the practice rounds that we need to sort through and post in an organized manner. We'll be trying to do that the next few days.

We're headed out Thursday through Sunday to follow Michael the whole tournament. Be sure to follow us on twitter for instant updates.