Pitching ... and putting: Former Wildcat back in Chicago

Back home in Chicago on a recent hot, sunny, summer day, Luke Donald stood surrounded by short grass, took aim and fired away.

Fans cheered.

The former Northwestern Wildcat acknowledged the roar.

That Donald actually hit his target might have been surprising since this white ball was slightly larger than the one he normally maneuvers.

Donald spent a day at Wrigley Field recently to hold a media conference in advance of this week's BMW Championship at Cog Hill in Lemont. The third leg in the PGA Tour playoffs for the FedEx Cup begins Thursday and features 70 of the world's top professionals, including defending champion Tiger Woods.

Prior to the Cubs' game against San Diego, Donald threw out a ceremonial first pitch for the first time in his life.

"A lot of pressure," Donald said before making his mound debut while wearing a Cubs home jersey.

Donald predicted a "fastball straight down the middle at about 60 mph" and then actually delivered a hard strike on the corner to Cubs pitcher Andrew Cashner.

"It was a pretty good pitch," an impressed Cashner said. "He had good speed on it, too."

Donald also did a more-than-creditable job of singing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" during the seventh-inning stretch.

"I just heard, 'Don't do it like (Mike) Ditka did it,' " Donald said with a smile. "That was my only advice."

On the golf course, Donald needs little instruction.

On Monday, the 32-year-old came up just short of his first tour win since the 2006 Honda Classic, as he tied for second in the Deutsche Bank Championship in Boston. He finished at 17-under, 5 shots behind champion Charley Hoffman - who closed with a sizzling 62 that included 11 birdies.

Despite missing the cut in last month's PGA Championship at Whistling Straits in Wisconsin, Donald was encouraged by his play on the Pete Dye gem.

One of the best bunker players in the world, he stands fifth in the FedEx Cup standings.

"I actually hit the ball nicely (at Whistling Straits)," Donald said. "What let me down was my short game. I think I got caught a little bit with how many tournaments I've played lately. I haven't had a lot of time to really practice, practice. I probably got a little bit lazy in not putting in the time on the greens and around the greens, and that's the kind of stuff that's usually pretty strong in my game."

It's been an exciting year for Donald. A couple of weeks ago, Europe captain Colin Montgomery named Donald one of his three wild-card selections for the Ryder Cup against the United States in October. Donald's wife, Diane, gave birth to the couple's first child, Elle, earlier this year.

Elle has had a busy year, too. She and her mommy have followed daddy Luke to several tournaments, and Elle has visited, among other places, England, Scotland, Wales, France and Canada.

"She's probably been to more countries than most of you," Donald joked to reporters.