Anyone who spends 15 years in charge of the Royal & Ancient surely is entitled to at least one mulligan. Peter Dawson took his long before he started the job. "I was playing an American one year at Oxford Golf Club, and he introduced me to this travelling mulligan," Dawson said. "As you know, we dont have them over here. I was 2 down with four to play and on the par-3 15th, I shanked one. So I said to him, Ill have my mulligan now. And with my next shot, I had a hole-in-one. I think he was so rattled that he lost the match. I never allowed myself to take another one. I had to keep my record intact." Dawson is keeping another record rather tidy, somewhat by coincidence. He announced last month that he will retire in September 2015 as secretary of the Royal & Ancient Golf Club and chief executive of The R&A, a business division he wisely created 10 years ago. He will have served 16 years, the same tenure as the three R&A secretaries before him. What sets him apart is coping with perhaps the most challenging times in the clubs 260-year history. He is proud of a central role he played in getting golf back into the Olympics for the first time in more than a century, and Dawson will stay on as head of the International Golf Federation through the Rio Games. One of his favourite moments was gathering British Open champions at St. Andrews in 2000 to celebrate the millennium, an exhibition that brought together the likes of Sam Snead, Jack Nicklaus and Seve Ballesteros on a glorious late afternoon at the home of golf. But the Royal & Ancient game has been moving at warp speed over the last two decades, and Dawson has been in the middle of it. He took over in 1999, about the time Callaway introduced the thin-faced ERC driver with a trampoline effect that was not allowed by USGA, yet approved by the R&A standards. That three-year period of golfs ruling bodies not being on the same page is the one "working mulligan" Dawson would have wanted. Three years later, the R&A and USGA published a "Joint Statement of Principles," and pledged to work more closely together. The most recent example was the decision to publish a new rule in 2016 that will ban the anchored stroke used for long putters -- a putting stroke used to win each of the four majors over the last three years. There remains strife among leading golf organizations over the ban, though Dawson isnt budging. He also has heard plenty of criticism about changes to the Old Course at St. Andrews, seen as sacrilege by purists who believe the R&A is changing golf courses instead of reining in technology. And in September, the R&A Golf Club is to vote on a proposal to allow female members for the first time, which Dawson endorses. The vote is two years after Augusta National invited female members to join for the first time. Was it all enough to make Dawson want to retire? "That was just normal course of business," he said dismissively. "Quite often, the media perception of what is weighing heavily on us is not particularly so." What weighed heaviest on Dawson, and still does, is striking the balance between technology and skill. There is pressure from one corner to slow the golf ball and reduce the size of drivers, and pressure from another corner to make the sport easier at a time when golf participation is in decline. "Keeping the balance right has been the biggest intellectual challenge," Dawson said. He is comfortable that the R&A and USGA got it about right. That will be debated long after Dawson leaves, and it figures to confront the next R&A chief. Dawsons reputation, unlike that of predecessor Sir Michael Bonallack, was built on management more than golf, and it was the right fit for the times. The next R&A chief could be a blend of both. No obvious candidates have emerged in the last month. Asked for the best qualifications, Dawson mentioned someone steeped in the values of golf, with commercial and international experience, and two other attributes -- diplomacy and humility. "One of the things you have to do as a governing body is to treat golf as a sport, as opposed to a business," Dawson said. "Other bodies might put business first because of priorities. The commercial side of what we do is very important to allow us to fulfil the governance role, and you cant lose sight of that. But I view golf first. Business is close. If youre scrambling for finances, its difficult to maintain your principles. So the financial success is important to sport." Colorado Rockies Pro Shop . Bjoerndalen, who had failed to win any major race for two years before Sochi, writes in a Facebook entry that he is "full of energy and inspiration" after winning the 10-kilometre sprint and mixed relay at last months Olympics. Wholesale Rockies Jerseys .ca. 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At 6-2 in the Big 12, Iowa State is off to its best start in conference play since the 2000-01 season. The Cyclones, who are presently tied with West Virginia for second place, have won their last two games to improve to 16-4 overall. ISU whipped TCU at home on Saturday, 83-66, and the squad will try to climb a game over .500 in true road tests with a win tonight, and in the process earn its first regular-season sweep of the Jayhawks since 2000-01. Kansas holds down first place in the Big 12 standings, as the team has won four straight to elevate its league ledger to 7-1, and its overall record to 18-3. The Jayhawks took down visiting Kansas State on Saturday, 68-57, to improve to 11-0 at home. These two teams met in Ames on Jan. 17, with the Cyclones prevailing in an 86-81 final. Still, Kansas holds a commanding lead in the all-time series at 176-61, which includes a 90-15 mark in Lawrence. In the first meeting between the two teams, Iowa States Naz Long scored 20 points to lead six players in double figures, among them Monte Morris who logged his first career double-double with 11 points and 10 assists. The Jayhawks got 21 points from Frank Mason III, while Perry Ellis logged his own double-double with 19 points and 11 boards in defeat. Georges Niang was high man for the Cyclones in their recent win over TCU, as he tallied 23 points while grabbing eight rebounds. Morris and Bryce Dejean- Jones tacked on 16 points apiece, while Dustin Hogue added 12 points for an Iowa State squad that drained 56.4 percent of its field goal attempts. As for the Horrned Frogs, they shot just 40.dddddddddddd6 percent from the floor, and went a dreadful 1-of-8 at the free-throw line. Furthermore, ISU controlled the glass to the tune of a 44-30 rebounding advantage. All five starters are averaging double figures for the Cyclones this season, led by Niangs 15.2 ppg. As a result, the team is netting 80.3 ppg in hitting 49.1 percent of its total shots, but only 35.1 percent of its 3-point tries. Iowa States defensive stance allows the opposition 68.6 ppg, behind typical shooting efforts of .414 overall, .339 from beyond the arc, and .751 at the foul line. Kansas played exceptional defense in Saturdays win over rival Kansas State, as it held the Wildcats to 33.3 percent field goal efficiency, which included a horrific 17.1 percent (6-of-35) effort in the first half. K-State finished with five 3-pointers, but went 0-of-7 from distance during the opening 20 minutes. The Jayhawks were only 44.8 percent accurate from the floor, and they had a rough day at the charity stripe (10-of-17). Ellis produced another double-double with 16 points and 12 boards, while Wayne Selden, Jr. chipped in with 14 points, Brannen Greene 11 and Mason III 10 in the winning effort. For the season, Kansas is putting up 71.8 ppg, thanks in large part to its near-40 percent performance out on the perimeter and 70.8 percent showing at the free-throw line. Balance has been the key, as seven players average at least 6.0 ppg, including double-digit scorers Ellis (12.8 ppg) and Mason III (12.7 ppg). The Jayhawks have done well for the themselves at the defensive end by yielding 64.2 ppg, with foes shooting just 39.8 percent from the field. A +5.9 rebounding differential has also helped the team achieve some of its goals this season. ' ' '