Golf Events from the Weekend 27th March

Martin Laird (Scotland) with Arnold Palmer (USA) on the 18th Green
getting the trophy

It was another exciting weekend on the Professional Golf tours around the world.

But it was 2 Scottish Golfers that stole the show on both sides of the Atlantic. First I will start with the USPGA Tour. This week it was the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard, it was the 4th and final leg of the Florida Swing. And it was played at the Bay Hill Club & Lodge, Orlando, Florida. And it was the young Scottish Professional Martin Laird (Scotland) that came up with the goods when it counted to win his 2nd USPGA Tour event.

Martin Laird (Scotland) scored rounds of 70-2, 65-7, 70-2 and 75+3 for a 72 hole total of 280-8, for a 1shot Victory. But it was nowhere near as easy as it sounds. After starting the final round with a 1shot lead. He got off to a terrible start to his final round. He had 3 bogeys on his front nine and went out in 39+3 which was terrible and had lost the lead. And when he hit his fairway bunker shot from the right of the 11th hole into the water hazard on the left and made a Double Bogey it seemed like any chance of winning had disappeared for him. On the other hand Steve Marino (USA) was having a great round and found himself -2 for the final round after 14 holes. That left him at -9 with 4holes to play and he had a 3shot lead.

It looked like if he made 4pars he would be the Champion for sure. Justin Rose (England) had set the Club House lead at -6 after he had the best final round of the leaders, 68-4 which eventually left in tied 3rd place. Steve Marino (USA) hit a great drive down the Par 4, 15th hole. He under clubbed his 2nd shot to the front left pin placement and plugged it in the Bunker. Then hit his Bunker shot out to 25 feet and 2putted for the bogey. He still had a 2 Shot lead with 3holes to play. He hit a poor drive on the Par 5 16th hole meaning he had to lay up with his 2nd Shot. And hit his 3rd to about 30feet. He managed to make par.

So with a two shot lead with 2holes to play he only needed 2pars and the title was his. Mean while, Marc Leishman (Australia) had shot 71-1 to finish at -6 and eventually finished in a tie for 3rd place. Steve Marino (USA) hit what he thought was a perfect shot to the difficult par 3 17th hole. But he came up just short and it plugged in the Bunker at the front. He hit his next shot over the green and failed to get up and down so he made a disappointing Double Bogey 5. He was now at -6 and because Martin Laird (Scotland) had birdied the 15th and 16th Holes with some great putting. Martin Laird (Scotland) now had a 2shot lead with 2 holes to play.

Steve Marino (USA) then hit a brilliant drive down the 72nd hole and hit a great short iron approach shot inside 10feet and holed the putt for birdie to post -7 after 72 holes. That meant that all Martin Laird (Scotland) had to do was to finish with 2pars and he had won the Arnold Palmer Invitational. On the 17th hole Martin Laird (Scotland) hit his ball over the green on the par 3, It landed on the green but bounced right though. Johnny Millar (USA) who was commentating for NBC Sports said “The hardness of the 17th Green was too unfair” and the Stats backed it up with only 25% of the field hitting that green on the final round. Martin Laird (Scotland) then hit a brilliant chip flop shot to 8feet and rolled the putt in for a par 3.

Martin Laird (Scotland) now knew what he had to do and that was make a par 4 on the last hole and he would win his 1st Arnold Palmer Invitational. He hit a stunning drive straight down the middle, but unfortunately if rolled just through the fairway into the rough just short of the Water. He only had a short iron to the pin, but because he was in the rough he couldn’t fire right at the pin on the far right side. He hit to the far left side of the green to make sure he didn’t go in the water. He landed it on the green about 45feet from the pin. Now all he needed to do was 2putt and the victory was his.

The 1st putt had a huge break in it from left to right; he rolled in down 6feet short of the hole. He then calmly rolled in the 6footer for his 2nd win on the USPGA Tour. It made up for the disappointments he had last year in finishing 2nd in the Barclays in August and 2nd equal in the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in October last year. The win earned him 500 FedEx Cup points which places him 4th on the points list with 937 Points from 8 events played this year. He is now just 224 points behind the leader for the past couple of months Mark Wilson (USA) who now has 1,161 points from the 9events he has played.

He also won $US 1,080,000.00, and he moves to 3rd on the USPGA Tour money list with $US 1,891,763 from the 8events he has played. Mark Wilson (USA) is leading the money list $US 2,430,825 from 9events he has played. The win also gets Martin Laird (Scotland) into the US Masters in two weeks time and he is exempt on the USPGA Tour till the end of 2013. I look for Martin Laird (Scotland) to be one of the favourites for The Masters which is the 1st Major of the year. His High ball flight will be an asset on that course.

Steve Marino (USA) who came 2nd at -7 is having a great season with two 2nd place finishes and 3top 10s in the 7events he has played, But with a golden chance to win his 1st USPGA Tour event lost, he must be bitterly disappointed. But I feel he will be better for the experience and will definitely win this year at some stage. He is too good a player not too. Also tied for 3rd was David Toms (USA) at -6, K J Choi (South Korea) was tied for 6th at -5, along with first round leader Spencer Levin (USA). Sergio Garcia (Spain) was in 8th place at -4 and got another top 10 finish. And rounding out the Top 10 in tied 9th place was the FedEx Cup point’s leader Mark Wilson (USA) on -3, Along with Fredrik Jacobson (Sweden) and Jim Furyk (USA).

1st of the 2 American Big Guns was Tiger Woods (USA) in tied 24th place on -1, he had a fine final round going when he was -3 with 2 holes to play, but he finished bogey, double bogey to shoot even par. His next start will be the Masters where he has won 4times. And Phil Mickelson (USA) finished at -1 also; he too had another poor finish to his round bogeying 3 of his last 5 holes. He too will be one to watch at the Masters having won it 3times. But the 2 Big Guns on the USPGA Tour have yet to win a tournament this year.

There was no change in the top 5 on the Official Word Rankings this week, with Martin Kaymer (Germany) still at one with 7.87 points, Lee Westwood (England) 2nd with 7.54 points, Luke Donald (England) 3rd at 6.55 points, Graeme McDowell (Northern Ireland) 4th with 6.19 points and Tiger Woods (USA) is 5th at 5.82 points. Next week the USPGA Tour heads to Texas for the Shell Houston Open, it is being played at Redstone GC Tournament Course, Humble, Texas and is the last USPGA Tour event before the 1st major of the year The Masters. With a purse of $US 5,900,000 on offer it is sure to attract another good field with a lot of Europe’s best golfers over to prepare for the Masters. Anthony Kim (USA) will be looking to defend the title he won last year. I will report back the results next week.

Brett Wetterich (USA) acknowledges the Crowd in
winning the Chitimacha Louisiana Open

So to the Nationwide Tour, this week it was the 1st event on American soil for the 2011 season. It was the Chitimacha Louisiana Open that was played at Le Triomphe CC, Broussard, Louisiana. And the winner was former USPGA Tour player Brett Wetterich (USA). He scored rounds of 67-4, 65-6, 70-1 and 69-2 for a 72 hole total of 271-13. It was the 2nd time he has won the Chitimacha Louisiana Open, having won it for the 1st time back in 2003. And it should give him a good chance of making it back to the USPGA Tour for the 2012 season, having lost his card after the 2010 season having finished 158th on the money list. So the $US 90,000 he wins for this Victory places him 3rd on the money list from 1event played. Brenden Pappas (South Africa) is 1st with $US 114,523 from 3events played.

In 2nd place was the young University of Florida senior Andres Echavarria, who is still an Amateur. He scored a 72 hole total of 272-12, and it was an Amazing performance by the young 23 year old. Bubba Dickerson (USA) got 3rd on his own at -11, but took 2nd place money because Andres Echavarria was an Amateur. John Kimbell (USA) tied 4th at -10, and he scored 61-10 in the final round. Also tied for 4th was Carl Paulson (USA) and Rich Barcelo (USA) was tied for 4th as well. Danny Lee (New Zealand) had his best ever finish on the Nationwide Tour; he finished tied 7th at -9. He scored rounds of 69-2, 68-3, 73+2, and had a brilliant final round of 65-6. He won $US 17,375.00 for his efforts. That places him 22nd on the Nationwide Tour Money List with $US 22,645 from the 3events he has played. If he is in the Top 25 at the end of the season on the money list he gains his 2012 USPGA Tour card. Steve Wheatcroft (USA) was also tied 7th on -9.

Chris Nallen (USA), Fran Quinn (USA), Michael Putnam (USA) and Charles Warren (USA) were all tied for 9th on -8. Other New Zealand Golfers that were in the field and made the cut were Tim Wilkinson (NZL) who was Tied 25th at -5, the rest of the New Zealanders missed the cut, they were Josh Geary (NZL) and Bradley Iles (NZL) on +8. The next Nationwide Tour event is Fresh Express Classic at TPC Stonebrae and is being played at TPC Stonebrae, Hayward, California. With a big purse of $US 600,000 for the taking it is sure to attract the best players on the Nationwide Tour. It starts on Thursday 14th April and I will report back who took home the spoils once the results are in.

Paul Lawrie (Scotland) with the Open de Andalucia de Golf by Turkish Airlines Trophy

So to the European Tour and the Race to Dubai. And this week it was the Open de Andalucia de Golf by Turkish Airlines and it was played at the Parador de Málaga Golf, Málaga, Spain. And it was the Scottish Golfer Paul Lawrie (Scotland) that won his first European Tour event in 9 years. He scored rounds of 66-4, 67-3, 65-5 and 70even for a 72hole total of 268-12. He won by 1shot over Johan Edfors (Sweden). He won € 166,660 for his win and that moved him to 24 on the Race to Dubai Money List with €205,939 from the 6events he has played this year to date. Luke Donald (England) still leads with €1,221,411 from the 2events he has played this year. It should put Paul Lawrie (Scotland) in good position to reach the Dubai World Championship presented by DP World that is played as the Climax to the Race to Dubai in early December with the Top 60 money earners on the list qualifying.

 Paul Lawrie (Scotland) will always be remembered as the Golfer that won the Open Championship when Jean Van de Velde (France) threw away a 3shot lead in 1999 at Carnoustie Golf Club in Scotland. The win should give him some real confidence to have a big season in 2011. 3rd was Felipe Aguilar (Chile) on -10, in tied 4th place was Mark Foster (England), Jeppe Huldahl (Demark), and Raphael Jacquelin (France) they were all on -9. Christian Nilsson (Sweden) was 7th on his own at -8, Florian Fritsch (Germany), Jose Manuel Lara (Spain) and Hennie Otto (South Africa) were all tied for 8th on -7.

Best of the New Zealanders and the only one to make the cut was Mark Brown (NZL) on +2 after 72holes. And the other New Zealander that was in the field was Michael Campbell (NZL) was +7 after 36 holes and missed the cut by 7shots. This week the European Tour is in Morocco for the Trophee Hassan II that is being played at Golf du Palais Royal and Golf de L’Océan, Agadir, Morocco. With €1,500,000 to play for it is sure to attract another great field.

I will report back who won next week. So until then, keep hitting it long and straight and make lots of putts.

Source: pgatour.com, europeantour.com

Golf Events from the Weekend 20th March

It was another exciting weekend on the major Professional Golf Tours from around the world.


Gary Woodland (USA) with the Transitions Championship trophy

I will start 1st recapping who won the Tavistock Cup that was played at the Isleworth Golf & Country Club, Windermere, Florida. It was over two days on (Monday 14th March and Tuesday 15th March). It was taken out by the Lake Nona Team that had players of the likes of Oliver Wilson (England), Henrik Stenson (Sweden), Graeme McDowell (Northern Ireland), Ross Fisher (England), Peter Hanson (Sweden) and Retief Goosen (South Africa) on their team. They finished 43 under for the 36 holes.

They won by 16 shots over the Albany Team, that had Tiger Woods (USA) in its team. 3rd was Isleworth Team, that was another 2shots back on 25 under and back in Fourth Place was Queenwood Team on -18. So Lake Nona GC has the Tavistock Cup in their trophy cabinet for 2011, and the bragging rights that go with it for the rest of the year.

So to the USPGA Tour and this week it was the 3rd leg of 4 in the Florida Swing. It was the Transitions Championship that was being played at the Innisbrook Resort - Copperhead, Palm Harbor, Florida. And this week it was the young USPGA Tour player that got his card back at the 2010 Qualifying School that prevailed. His name was Gary Woodland (USA). He scored rounds of 67-4, 68-3, 67-4 and 67-4 for a 72 hole total of 269-15. And the amazing thing was his only par on the back nine came on the 18th hole. But the win certainly didn’t come easy to him. On the back nine he was in a tassel with 3 other players.

1st to crash out  was the young USPGA Tour rookie Scott Stallings (USA) who had also got his 2011 tour card for last year’s Qualifying School. But previous to this tournament he had only made one cut this year out of 6 USPGA Tour starts and wasn’t even in the field this week until his good friend and fellow USPGA Tour player Kenny Perry (USA) persuaded the Sponsors to give him a Sponsor’s Exemption. And he made the most of it. He made the Highlights on Saturday with getting the NBC Sports shot of the day for scoring a Hole in One on the long par3, 8th hole. And on the final round on Sunday when he birdied the 14th and 15th holes he had got to -14 that was one shot out of the lead at the time. But to his disappointment he hit his drive on the 16th hole into the water on the right and went on to make double bogey. He eventually finished up at -12 after 72holes in sole 3rd position. And the $US 374,000.00 he earned will help him heaps to securing his card for the 2012 USPGA Tour season.

Brendon De Jonge (Zimbabwe) was 2shots off the lead at -13 after 14holes. But he finished Bogey, Bogey, Par, and Bogey to end up at -10 after 72 holes and was in tied 5th place. So it was down to two players with 4holes to play. Gary Woodland (USA) and Webb Simpson (USA) were tied at -14. Gary Woodland (USA) play poor approach shots into 15th and 16th holes and that led to bogeys on both of them. And it looked like he may have blown his chance of winning. Webb Simpson (USA) scrambled pars on 15th and 16th holes. So Webb Simpson (USA) held a one shot lead over Gary Woodland (USA) with 2holes to play. Gary Woodland (USA) hit a fine tee shot into the long par 3, 17th hole that left him with a 12foot birdie putt. He read the putt that had a tricky break in it perfectly and it went straight in the middle of the cup. That meant Gary Woodland (USA) was -15 playing the 72nd hole. He hit a long iron off the tee for accuracy to put the ball in the fairway which he did. That left him 148yards to the pin. He was so pumped up that he flew the wedge shot he had onto the back fringe, and that left a tricky up and down to the front pin placement. He chose the putter and rolled it down and it was close to going in for birdie, but rolled 10feet past the hole. That meant he had to hole that putt to more than likely force a play-off. And that is just what he did. He cool and calmly rolled it in for par and to post -15.

Webb Simpson (USA) stood on the 17th tee and made a nervous swing that landed the ball in the bunker short right. But then he hit a brilliant bunker shot to a couple of feet, and tapped in for an easy par. He came to the 72nd hole at -15, and knew a birdie would giving him his 1st USPGA Tour win of his career, and a par would force a playoff. But again he put a poor swing on it and missed the fairway, it landed in the Fairway bunker on the left. He hit a good fairway bunker shot out, but in trying to make sure he didn’t come up short he caught it too well and it landed near to the spot that Gary Woodland (USA) was in moments before. He chose the putter just like Gary Woodland (USA) had before him. But wasn’t so lucky and rolled it 20feet past the hole. And he knew now the only chance he had to force a playoff was to hole that putt. He made a good effort at it. But it just missed on the left hand side of the cup. And the disappointment of not winning showed on his face. But with earning $US 594,000.00 for coming 2nd it can’t be all bad. And his 1st USPGA Tour win can’t be too far off. He has now earned $US 902,158 from the 6 events he has played this year. And has already secured his card for the 2012 USPGA Tour season.

But it was Gary Woodland’s (USA) day and it made up for the disappointment he suffered early in the year, when he was beaten at the Bob Hope Classic by Jhonattan Vegas (Venezuela) in a playoff. Gary Woodland (USA) earned 500 FedEx Cup points for the win which takes his total for the year to date to 945 Points from the 7 events he has played this year. He is 141 points behind the leader Mark Wilson (USA) who is still on top with 1,086 points from the 8events he has played this year to date. Nick Watney (USA) is 2nd on 960 points from 6 events. Gary Woodland (USA) also gains a start in the US Masters the 1st Major of the year in 3weeks time, and he gets into the Players Championship in May and the US PGA Championship in Mid August. Plus many more spoils from the win. He won $US 990,000 for the win as well. He moves to 3rd on the USPGA Tour money list with $US 1,850,064 from the 7events he has played. 1st is Nick Watney (USA) with $US 2,278,000 from 6events.

The win just reinforces what a talent Gary Woodland (USA) really has for golf, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he won again this year, or even finished strong in the Majors. After qualifying for the USPGA Tour in 2009 he had a poor rookie season finishing 207th on the money list. He spent 2010 playing the Nationwide Tour, and once he gained his card at qualifying school last year, he wasn’t going to let his 2nd time round go to waste. I wish him all the best with continued success in this season. In 4th place was Brandt Snedeker  (USA) on  -11, tied for 5th was Marc Turnesa (USA) on -10 he also had the best round of the day which was 66-5, also tied 5th was Martin Laird (Scotland), Roland Thatcher (USA), Chris Couch (USA), Justin Rose (England) who was leading at -13 at the start of the day by 1shot. But 4straight bogeys from the 7th to the 10th holes ruined his chance, and he too tied for 5th at -10. And Brendon De Jonge (Zimbabwe) as I mentioned earlier tied for 5th. Defending Champion Jim Furyk (USA) had a solid defence on his title, tying for 13th at -8, along with low Australian John Senden (Australia).

Next week the USPGA Tour has the 4th and final leg of the Florida Swing. They play the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard and it is being played at the Bay Hill Club & Lodge, Orlando, Florida. It starts on Thursday (24th March). The two big American Guns are playing, and they are of course Phil Mickelson (USA) and Tiger Woods (USA). With $US 6,000,000 up for grabs it is going to be a real shootout. And Arnold Palmer (USA) is always there on Sunday to present the Trophy to the champion. Maybe this will be the week that Tiger Woods (USA) finally wins again? I will report back who took home the spoils next week.

Raphael Jacquelin (France) with the
Sicilian Open trophy

So to the European Tour and the Race to Dubai. And this week it was a brand new tournament called the Sicilian Open and was played at the Donnafugata Golf Resort & SPA, Sicily, Italy. The tournament was forced into a 5th day because thunder storms early on Sunday morning meant there wasn’t enough light to finish the tournament in the scheduled 4days. So nine players had to come back on Monday morning to complete their final rounds.  The leader when play was suspended due to darkness on Sunday evening was Rapheal Jacquelin (France) on -11, He had a 1shot lead over Anthony Wall (England) who was on -10. They both have 6holes left to play when play resumed early on Monday morning. So to the last 6holes the leaders had to play.

When play resumed early on Monday morning it was Rapheal Jacquelin (France) who played the last 6holes in -1 and he finished 72holes on -12. He scored rounds of 66-5, 69-2, 69-2 and 68-3 for a 72hole Total of 272 -12. He won by 1shot and earned € 166,660 euro’s for the win. The win was his 3rd win on the European Tour and his 1st since the BMW Asian Open in 2007. With the win he moves to 22nd place on the Race to Dubai money list with €221,935 Euros from the 6events he has played this year. Luke Donald (England) is on top with €1,221,411 euro’s from the 2events he has played this year.

The win also give’s Rapheal Jacquelin (France) an exemption on the European Tour till the end of 2013. The win should also give him a lot of confidence to go on to bigger and better things in 2011 season. And in my opinion he has always been one of Frances leading Golfers. And I wish him well for the rest of the 2011 season, and hope he will be in the Top 60 on the Race to Dubai Money list at the end of the season so he can play in the Dubai World Championship presented by DP World that is being played at Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai, United Arab Emirates in early December.

Anthony Wall (England) came in 2nd at -11 after 72holes. It was a fine tournament for him and his best finish since winning the Alfred Dunhill Championship in 2000. Tied for 3rd were Jose Manuel Lara (Spain) and Joel Sjoholm (Sweden) on -7, in tied 5th place were Nicolas Colsaerts (Belgium), Carlos Del Moral (Spain), Simon Dyson (England), Jamie Elson (England), Oscar Floren (Sweden), Lorenzo Gagli (Italy), Scott Jamieson (Scotland) and Peter Whiteford (Scotland), they all finished at -5. The only New Zealander in the field was Michael Campbell (New Zealand) and he made his 1st cut of the year. He scored rounds of 73+2, 71even, 69-2 and 74+3 for a 72 hole Total of 287+3 that left him in a tie for 58th place and earned him € 2,900 euro’s. He is now on the Race to Dubai money list with €2,900 euro’s from 5events that he has played this year, which places him in 237th place. He will need some good finishes to improve his position. But at least making a cut is a positive move in the right direction.

Next week the European heads to Spain. It is the Open de Andalucia de Golf by Turkish Airline and it is being played at Parador de Málaga Golf, Málaga, Spain. With €1,000,000 euro’s on offer it is sure to attract another good field. And with defending champion Louis Oosthuizen (South Africa) ruled out due to an eye infection, there is guaranteed to be a new Champion. I will report back who won the trophy next week.

So until then remember drive it straight, hit the greens in regulation and make the putts is the recipe to a good score.

 

Source: pgatour.com, europeantour.com

Golf Events from the Weekend 13th March

Well it was another exciting weekend in Professional Golf.

First I will start with the USPGA Tour. This week there was two tournaments. The 1st one was the World Golf Championship – Cadillac Championship. It was played at TPC Blue Monster at Doral, Miami, Florida. And it was the 2nd World Golf Championship of four to be played this year. And it brought together the best Golfers in the world.

With the top 69 Golfers in the world there to compete for the $US 8, 500, 000 in prize money, competition was going to be very fierce. 3 players did not start for various reasons; they were Ben Crane (USA), Bubba Watson (USA) and Tim Clark (RSA). Being a World Golf Championship it meant there was no cut. So all 66 players got to play the 4 rounds. And when all was said and done come late Sunday afternoon in was the young American Professional Nick Watney (USA) who had prevailed to win. He scored rounds of 67-5, 70-2, 68-4 and 67-5, for a 72hole Total of 272-16. He won by 2shots, but it wasn’t as easy as it sounded.

He was in a dog fight with Dustin Johnson (USA) on the back nine. Nick Watney (USA) missed a makeable birdie putt on the par 4, 14th hole. But Dustin Johnson (USA) on the same hole hit his drive into the fairway bunker on the left hand side. But he then hit a brilliant 2nd shot that nearly went in the hole, and he made an easy birdie. And they were both tied for the lead at -15 with 4holes to play. On the Par 3, 15th hole, Nick Watney (USA) hit what he thought was a good tee shot, but only to find it sail over the green into the back bunker. And when he left his bunker shot on the fringe about 30feet short of the hole it looked like he was certain to make bogey and fall out of the lead. But he sank his long putt to remain -15 with 3holes to play.

Nick Watney (USA) got up and down again for par on the par 4, 16th hole, but Dustin Johnson (USA) tried to go for the green on the short par 4, but he pulled it left into the Fairway Bunker, then he put his 2nd shot into the front bunker, and splashed his 3rd shot out to 15feet and was unable to convert the par putt meaning Nick Watney (USA) had a 1shot lead again. Nick Watney (USA) hit his 2nd shot just through the green on the par 4, 17th hole, and had a tricky 3rd shot chip from the 1st cut of rough. He played it brilliantly and it came up inches short of the cup for a tap in par 4. Dustin Johnson (USA) hit a huge drive down the middle of the fairway on the par 4, 17th hole, and hit a fine approach shot to 15feet, and only just missed his birdie putt as he had been doing all day.

Nick Watney (USA) with the Gene Sarazen Trophy he won

So to the 72nd hole on the Blue Monster course and Nick Watney (USA) playing in the group ahead of Dustin Johnson (USA) had 1shot lead, and basically all he had to do is make a solid par and the title was his. He hit a splendid drive down the centre of the fairway, and a fine approach shot to 20 feet right of the hole, avoiding the water on the left that many players had found before him. Only needing to 2putt, but Nick Watney (USA) has other ideas. He calmly rolled his birdie putt in the hole for only the 3rd birdie of the day on that very tough hole out of the 66 players that played it. So he now had a 2shot lead at -16, and Dustin Johnson (USA) had to do what Craig Parry (Australia) had done to win the tournament in 2004, 7years earlier, and that was make an eagle 2. Dustin Johnson (USA) hit the biggest drive of the day; it carried well over 300yards into the centre of the fairway. It left him with a short iron to the green that he needed to hole out to tie and force a playoff. He made an excellent attempt, with the shot almost landing in the hole on the full. And rolled 10feet away. But again he was unable to convert the putt. And when he missed, he said to his playing partner Luke Donald (England) “That sums up my day!!”.  But 2nd was not too bad at -14 after 72 holes. And should do the world of good for his confidence, as he had not had a top 10 placing in the last 4 tournaments that he had played.

And Nick Watney (USA) waiting by the 18th green got a hug from his Girl Friend to celebrate his win. It was Nick Watney’s (USA) 3rd win of his USPGA Tour career and his 1st ever World Golf Championship title. After he came so close in 2009, when he finished 1shot behind Phil Mickelson (USA). He got 550 FedEx Cup points for the win, and he moves to 2nd on the list with 902 FedEx Cup points from the 5events he has played this year. He is 173 behind Mark Wilson (USA) who has 1,075 points from the 7events he has played this year. He has been on top of the FedEx Cup Points list for over a month now.

Nick Watney (USA) won $US 1,400,000.00 for his win that moves him to 2nd on the money list with $US 2,168,000. Number 1 on the list is Mark Wilson (USA) with $US 2,256,615. And it also improves his World Golf Ranking to 15th up 16place on last week. The top 5 remain the same for the 2nd week running with Martin Kaymer (Germany) at 1, Lee Westwood (England) at 2, Luke Donald (England) at 3, Graeme McDowell (Northern Ireland) at 4, and Tiger Woods (USA) at 5. This win should give Nick Watney (USA) the confidence to contend in the Majors again this year, just like he did at the 2010 USPGA Championship last year.

Anders Hansen (Denmark) was 3rd equal after a fine final round of 67-5 to finish at -13, he is now virtually guaranteed a place in the 1st major of the year the US Masters, because he has moved to 43rd in the world golf rankings. And the top 50 gain entry to the US Masters. Also 3rd equal was Francesco Molinari (Italy), it was another great showing for him. In 5th place all on his own was Matt Kuchar (USA) on -12, Tied 6th was the much improved Adam Scott (Australia) who is now using the Broom Stick Putter. He finished on -11, same as the world number 3 golfer Luke Donald (England), in 8th place was young Richie Fowler (USA) who had the equal best final round of 66-6 to finish at -12. In 9th place was Hunter Mahan (USA) on -9. In tied for 10th place and having his best round of the year so far 66-6 was the former World Number 1, Tiger Woods (USA) at -8; it was also his 1st Top 10 of the year. It should give him a boost of confidence leading into the US Masters. Also tied 10th was Jonathan Byrd (USA), Padraig Harrington (Ireland), Martin Laird (Scotland), and Rory McIRory (Northern Ireland).

So to the 2nd USPGA Event this week, it was the Puerto Rico Open presented by seepuertorico.com and it was played at the Trump Intrntl GC - Puerto Rico, Rio Grande, Puerto. It gave the players that had not qualified for the WGC – Cadillac Championship a chance to play. And a field of 132 golfers were in the field to compete for the $US 3, 500, 000 on offer. But it was the US Golfer Michael Bradley (USA) who prevailed to win on the 1st playoff hole against Troy Matteson (USA). They both finished the 72 holes of regulation play at -16. Michael Bradley (USA) scored rounds of 68-4, 68-4, 68-4, and 68-4 for 272-16, as did Troy Matteson (USA) who scored rounds of 67-5, 67-5, 66-6 and 72even for 272-16 as well. Michael Bradley (USA) should have really won the tournament on the 72nd hole. But he missed his 3foot par putt.

Michael Bradley (USA) with the Puerto Rico Open
Trophy

So it was back to the 18th hole for the 1st playoff hole. Both players reached the green in 3shots. Michael Bradley (USA) 2putted for an easy par, and it looked like they were heading to a 2nd playoff hole. But Troy Matteson (USA) who only had a 3foot putt for his par missed!! So Michael Bradley (USA) won this tournament for the 2nd time in 3years having won it back in 2009 as well. It was also his 4th win on the USPGA Tour. His 1st came back in 1996. He got 250 FedEx Cup Points for his win and now moves to 33rd place on the points list with 298 from 6events he has played this year. He is 777 points behind Mark Wilson (USA) who has 1,075 points from the 7events he has played this year.

He also earns $US 630,000 for the win, which puts him in 25 place on the Money list with $US 682,000. The win doesn’t earn him a place in the US Masters because only events that carry 500 FedEx Cup points for a win or more earn that. But it should be a good confidence boost for him. And at age 44 he may well have a few more wins in him yet? And it proves to me that these events that are opposite the WGC events in the same week can give the lesser names on the USPGA Tour a chance to shine.

Tied 3rd were Stephen Ames (Canada) and Hunter Haas (USA) on -14, 5th was George McNeill (USA) on -13, 6th was Bobby Gates (USA) who is having a fine start to his rookie season on the USPGA Tour. Tied 7th were Fabian Gomez (Argentina), Chris Tidland (USA), Brandt Jobe (USA) and Angel Cabrera (Argentina) which were all on -11. Next week the USPGA Tour starts off the week early with the Tavistock Cup which is a fun event from the Exclusive Golf Clubs in Florida, and players like Tiger Woods (USA), Ernie Els (RSA) representing those clubs in a team’s competition. It is being played at the Lake Nona Golf & Country Club, Orlando, Florida and there is $US 2,550,000 up for grabs. I can report that TEAM ISLEWORTH is leading on -30 after the 1st of two rounds. I will report back full results next week.

And the next event on the USPGA Tour is the Transitions Championship that is played on the Innisbrook Resort - Copperhead, Palm Harbor, Florida. Defending Champion is Jim Furyk (USA) and it starts on Thursday. With $US 5,500,000 to play for there is sure to be a strong field with Martin Kaymer (Germany) world number 1 confirmed to play. I will look forward to reporting who won next week. And now to the final tournament I am reporting on this week. It is on the Champions Tour and is the Toshiba Classic and was played at the Newport Beach CC, Newport Beach, California.

Nick Price (Zimbabwe) in action at the
Tosiba Classic

And it was Nick Price (Zimbabwe) who prevailed to win his 4th Champions Tour title of his career. He carded rounds of 60-11 in the 1st round which was tied for a tournament single round record on the Champions Tour. Then he scored 68-3 in his 2nd round and another 68-3 in the final round to win by 1shot with a 54 hole total of 196-17.  Mark Wiebe (USA) had a 12foot birdie putt on the final hole to force a playoff, but it just missed, leaving Nick Price (Zimbabwe) with his 1st Champions Tour win of 2011.  He earned $US 255,000.00 for his win and moves to 2nd on the Charles Schwab Cup Points list with 361 points from 4 events played, 93 points behind the Charles Schwab Cup Points list early leader Tom Lehman (USA) with 454 points from 3event played.

I can remember watching Nick Price (Zimbabwe) when he came out to play the Air NZ/Shell Open in 1992 at the Grange GC in Auckland; he was number one in the world at the time and had just won his 1st major that very year, with winning the USPGA Championship. He went on the win the Air NZ/Shell Open that year with a fine 63-7 in the final round that got him into a playoff with Australian Golfer Lucas Parsons (Australia) which he won. It shows what a great Guy he was to come to New Zealand and show us his skills when he could have gone to any Tournament in the world. So it is great to see in his twilight years he is still on top of his game.

Tied 3rd was Michael Allen (USA), Joe Ozaki (Japan) on -14, Tied 5th were Bart Bryant (USA), Fred Couples (USA) the crowd favourite, and Robert Thompson (USA) which were all on -13. Tied 8th were Jeff Sluman (USA), Olin Browne (USA), Mark O’Meara (USA) and Tom Pernice Jnr (USA) which were all on -12. The next tournament on the Champions Tour is the Mississippi Gulf Resort Classic that is played on the Fallen Oak, Biloxi, Mississippi. It starts on April fool’s Day and David Eger (USA) is the Defending Champion. With a purse of $US 1,600,000 to play for it is sure to attract the best of the 50years and over stars.  I will report back who won the trophy for you all.

So until then remember to keep the ball in the fairway, hit the greens and make all your putts, and that will make you a Happy Golfer.

Source: pgatour.com

Golf Events from the Weekend 6th March

It was another great weekend on the professional golf scene in the USA.

I will start with the USPGA Tour and the FedEx Cup. This week it was the 1st event of the Florida Swing. It was the Honda Classic that was played on the Jack Nicklaus design course, PGA National Champion Course, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. It was played in extremely windy conditions with the cut being the highest of the year so far. It fell at +6.



Rory Sabbatini (South Africa) with
the Honda Classic Trophy

And it was Rory Sabbatini (South Africa) that took home the spoils and his 1st win in 2 years on the USPGA Tour. He scored rounds of 71+1, 64-6, 66-4 and a final round of 70 even par to finish at 271-9 for 72holes. Early stages in the final round he was cruising to victory. He had a four shot lead heading into the back nine. But when Y. E. Yang (South Korea) birdied the 13th and 15th holes and when Rory Sabbatini (South Africa) bogeyed the 14th hole the lead was cut to two shots. But a brilliant birdie by Rory Sabbatini (South Africa) on the extremely difficult par 4 16th hole virtually assured Rory Sabbatini (South Africa) of the win.

But in saying that, Y. E. Yang (South Korea) hit the par 5 18th hole in two shots and 2putted to post 66-4 for his final round and 272-8 for 72holes. That meant Rory Sabbatini (South Africa) had too two putt from 20feet for the win. He rolled the 1st putt about 2feet by. And Johnny Millar (USA) who was commentating for NBC Sports said “sometimes the hardest thing to do is to two putt when you need to do it”. But Rory Sabbatini (South Africa) calmly rolled in the two footer and the victory was his. His wife had flown in the night before to be by his side with his youngest child that was born last year. She gave him a congratulations kiss. And then he burst in to tears of joy when interviewed by Dottie Pepper (USA) from NBC Sports.

It was Rory Sabbatini's (South Africa) 6th win on the USPGA Tour, and his 1st this year. He earned 500 FedEx Cup for his win and now has 724 FedEx Cup points from the 8events he has played this season. He is tied with Bubba Watson (USA) for 3rd on the list. They are 28points behind Jhonattan Vegas (Venezuela) who is 2nd on the list with 752 Points from the 7events he has played. He is 303 points behind Mark Wilson (USA) who has 1,055 from the 6events he has played. He is the early front runner this year in the FedEx Cup.

Rory Sabbatini (South Africa) is now 6th on the money list with $US 1,412,194 and is in the WGC – Cadillac Championship that is the 2nd World Golf Championship of the year starting on Thursday. This win could give Rory Sabbatini (South Africa) the confidence to have a really big year. And it seems he has now lost the bad temper he displayed early in his professional career and is now content and happy with his life and his golf game.

Y. E. Yang (South Korea) did well to come 2nd at -8, and is showing the form he displayed in 2009 when he won this same tournament and his 1st Major, the PGA Championship when he was the 1st player to beat Tiger Woods (USA) in a Major when he held the 54 lead in a Major. I also expect Y. E. Yang (South Korea) could do well in the majors again this year. 3rd was Jerry Kelly (USA) was on -7, after 4solid rounds in very tough conditions. 4th was Ricky Barnes (USA) on -4, 5th was Tommy (Two Gloves) Gainey (USA) on -3, it was a great showing by Tommy after he nearly won the Waste Management Phoenix Open in early February, but blew the 17th hole and finished tied 8 th in that Tournament. And now with the $US 482,485 he has won from the 8 events he has played this year puts him 34th on the money list and is well on his way to making the $US 786,977 that it took to keep your card on the USPGA Tour in 2010.

Tied for 6th was Graeme McDowell (North Ireland) who shot the best final round of 64-6, Jeff Overton (USA), Matt Bettencourt (USA), and the rookie USPGA Tour player Gary Woodland (USA), they were all on -2, Luke Donald (England) last week’s winner was tied 10th on -1 after a great final round of 66-4, so was Hiroyuki Fujita (Japan), Stuart Appleby (Australia) and Charles Howell III (USA).

It will be remembered as the tournament that the Elements beat the players. And with players like Adam Scott (Australia) and Mike Weir (Canada) each scoring rounds in the 80’s, and defending Champion, Camilo Villegas (Colombia) scoring rounds of 78+8, 79+9 to miss the cut by 11shots, it just shows how difficult it was. But it was mainly holes 15, 16, and 17 that were causing the problems. Jack Nicklaus (USA) the designer of the course named those 3holes the Bear Trap. In the wind those holes can become unplayable with water surrounding the greens as well as bunkers. It is has proved over the years that it can intimidate even the world’s best players.

This is situated just as you reach the 15th tee known as the Bear Trap caption

Next week the USPGA Tour has the 2nd of the 4 tournaments in the Florida Swing with the World Golf Championships - Cadillac Championship that is played at the Raymond Floyd designed TPC Blue Monster at Doral, Miami, Florida and is the 2nd of 4 World Golf Championships this year to be played. With 80 of the best players in the world turning up to play for a Purse of $US8, 500,000, it is sure to be great viewing. Ernie Els (South Africa) will be looking to defend the title he won last year. It starts on Thursday 10th March.

For the players that aren’t in that tournament they play the Puerto Rico Open presented by seepuertorico.com on the Trump Intrntl GC - Puerto Rico, Rio Grande, Puerto Rico. With $US 3,500,000 up for grabs, Derek Lamely (USA) will be looking to defend his title he won last year. That tournament as well starts on Thursday 10th March.

Brenden Pappas (South Africa) with the
Pacific Rubiales Bogota Open trophy

The Top 5 Golfers in the world remain the same as last week. But look for some changes this week in the Top 10 World rankings with all the players turning up to play. So to the Nationwide Tour, and this week it was the 2nd tournament of the year. It was the Pacific Rubiales Bogota Open Presented by Samsung and it was played at Country Club de Bogota, Bogota, Columbia. Weather played havoc with the tournament and they were only able to complete 36holes after 4days causing the tournament officials to shorten the tournament to 36holes and declare Brenden Pappas (South Africa) the winner on 133-9 after 36holes. He scored rounds of 67-4, 66-5 and was 1shot ahead of Matt Every (USA).

It was Brenden Pappas (South Africa) who had his 2nd win on the Nationwide Tour, and he wins $US 108,000.00 for the Victory. That moves him to 1st on the Nationwide Tour money list with $US 110,585 from the 1st two tournaments he has played this year. It will give him a lot of confidence to gain his USPGA Tour Status back which he lost last year. And who knows two more wins could see him gain a battlefield Promotion to the USPGA Tour later in the year. Won Joon Lee (Australia) was tied 3rd on -7, long hitting America Bubba Dickerson (USA) was tied for 8th, Best New Zealander was Danny Lee (NZL) in only his 2nd Nationwide Tour start of his career. He scored rounds of 69-2 and 73+2 for a 36 hole total of 142even, and was in tied 49 th at even. He earned $US1,920.00 for his efforts and has earned $US 4,505 from the 2 tournaments. Which I would say was a slow start to his Nationwide Tour Career.

He is placed 50th on the Nationwide Tour money list, but is the top New Zealander at the moment. The rest of the New Zealanders missed the cut including Tim Wilkinson (NZL), Brad Iles (NZL), Steve Alker (NZL) and Josh Geary (NZL). They all shot 144+2 to miss the cut 2shots.

The next Nationwide Tour event is in 3weeks time and is the 1st on USA soil this year. It is Chitimacha Louisiana Open that is being played at Le Triomphe CC, Broussard, Louisiana it starts on Thursday 24th March and Fabian Gomez (Argentina) will be looking to defend his title he won last year.

There was no event on the European Tour last week, and this week the only event is the Co-Sanctioned with the USPGA Tour at the World Golf Championships - Cadillac Championship that is being played at TPC Blue Monster at Doral, Miami, Florida. So for the players not in that tournament they have another week off. The next tournament on the European Tour is the Sicilian Open that is being played at Donnafugata Golf Resort & SPA,Sicily,Italy, and with €1,000,000 to play for it will no doubt attract a good field of European Tour Professionals. That starts on Thursday 17th March.

So until next week when I bring you all the results of what happened in the Professional Tournaments from around the world. Remember keep in on the short grass and hole all your putts.

Source: pgatour.com

Golf Events from the Weekend 27th February

It was another exciting weekend on the Professional Golf Tours from around the world.

First, I will start with the Australasian PGA Tour. This week it was the Cellarbrations QLD PGA Championship and it was played at the City Golf Club in Toowoomba, QLD. And for once we had a New Zealand player win on the tour. Gareth Paddison (New Zealand) scored rounds of 67-3, 67-3, 62-8, and 66-4 for a 72 hole total of 262-18.

Gareth Paddison (NZL) with the Cellarbrations QLD PGA
Championship trophy

He won by 2 shots and it was his 3rd win on the Australasian Tour after 10 years of playing that tour on and off between the times he has spent time on the Challenge and European Tours and in recent times One AsiaTour and the Charles Tour back home. He has worked very hard on his game throughout his career and in my opinion really deserves this win and I hope it gives him a lot of confidence to go on this year and win some tournaments on the One Asia Tour. He took home the $AU17,250 first prize cheque, plus he earns an exemption onto the PGA Tour of Australasia until the end of 2012. And he will bring some good news to New Zealand after all the destruction that has going on in Christchurch with the devastating Earthquake that Struck last Tuesday.

Tied for 2nd on -16 were Kieran Pratt (Australia) and Terry Pilkadaris (Australia). In 4th place was Peter Wilson (Australia) on -15, Michael Hendry (New Zealand) was the next best New Zealander with 4 rounds in the 60’s to finish at 5th at -14 which is another good finish for him. He is heading to Columbia next week to play in his 1st nationwide tour event as a member of that tour. Next best New Zealander was Douglas Holloway (New Zealand), he finished tied 29th at -7, Hamish Robertson (New Zealand) was in 51st place at -1, and David Klein (New Zealand) was tied 57th at +8.

Andrew Buckle (Australia) leads the PGA Tour of Australasia Order of Merit with $AU26, 600.00. Gareth Paddison (New Zealand) with the win moves to 6th on the list with $AU 17,899.00. The PGA Tour of Australasia now takes a break until next summer, and I look forward to bringing you all the results when it recommences. So now to the USPGA Tour and this week they played 2 tournaments. The 1st one was the WGC – Accenture Match play Championship that was played at Ritz-Carlton GC, Dove Mountain, Marana, Arizona. It had the Top 64 ranked golfers in the world playing 18 hole knockout matches.

There were some major upsets in the 1st round. The main one being Tiger Woods (USA), who was one of the Top Seeds. He was beaten by Thomas Bjorn (Denmark) on the 19th hole in the 1st round. It will be just another disappointment to him, but I am sure he will be back winning soon. Also in the 2nd round Rickie Fowler (USA) thrashed Phil Mickelson 6&5, and the World Number 1, Lee Westwood (England) was beaten by Nick Watney (USA) 1up. And he lost his number 1 world ranking. So to the Quarter Finals.

The 1st one was between Ryan Moore (USA) verses Luke Donald (England), Luke Donald (England) prevailed 5&4 to Advance to Semi – Finals. The 2nd one was between Matt Kuchar (USA) and Y. E. Yang (South Korea), Matt Kuchar (USA) prevailed 2&1 to Advance to the Semi – Finals. The 3rd one was between Martin Kaymer (Germany) verse Miguel Angel Jimenez (Spain), and Martin Kaymer (Germany) prevailed 1up to advance to the Semi – Finals. And the 4th one was between J B Holmes (USA) verse Bubba Watson (USA), and Bubba Watson (USA), prevailed on the 19 hole after nearly blowing his big lead of 5up after 10holes. So to the Semi – Finals.

They were meant to be played on the Sunday with the Semi – final in the morning and the 18 hole final in the afternoon. But Snow was forecast for Sunday, so they moved the Semi – Final matches to Saturday Afternoon. The first match was between Luke Donald (England) verse Matt Kuchar (USA), and Luke Donald (England) thrashed him 6&5 to advance to the final. And the 2nd match was between Martin Kaymer (Germany) verses Bubba Watson (USA), Martin Kaymer (Germany) prevailed in a very close match 1up.

So to the final and as predicted the snow arrived early Sunday Morning causing a bit of a delay. But as the Sun came up, it quickly melted away. This was the 1st Final ever to be played over 18 holes instead of the usual 36 holes in previous years. So the Final was between Martin Kaymer (Germany) who is the new Number 1 in the world, verse Luke Donald (England). Luke Donald (England) took the early lead. He was 3up after 5holes, But Martin Kaymer (Germany) though back well to have the match all square after 9 holes. When Luke Donald (England) hit his 2nd shot fat to the 10th hole and it landed in the desert, it looked like Martin Kaymer (Germany) would go 1up for the 1st time in the match. But Luke Donald (England) hit an awesome 3rd shot chip to 6 feet and holed the putt and when Martin Kaymer (Germany) missed his putt for birdie that match was still all square.

The both hit close 3rd shots into the par 5, 11th hole, Luke Donald (England) was 10feet and Martin Kaymer (Germany) 8feet. Luke Donald (England) holed his birdie putt 1st. And when Martin Kaymer (Germany) missed his, Luke Donald (USA) went back to 1up. Luke Donald (England) won the Par 3, 12th hole with a par 3 to go to 2up. The 13th hole was a par 5, both players hit good drives right in the centre of the fairway. Luke Donald (England) hit a fine 2nd shot with his 3wood about 5yards short of the green. Martin Kaymer (Germany) who hit a much longer drive, hit a long iron, on the green pin high and had a putt for an eagle. Luke Donald (England) chipped his 3shot within 5feet of the hole. Martin Kaymer (Germany) left his putt for eagle 5feet short and Luke Doanld (England) conceded the birdie putt. Luke Donald (England) then calmly rolled in his birdie putt. So Luke Donald (England) was 2up with 5holes to play.

Luke Donald (England) hit a poor drive down the Par 4, 14th hole in the left rough, and Martin Kaymer (Germany) hit a brilliant drive down the middle of the fairway. Luke Donald (England) then hit a great 2nd to just short of the green. Martin Kaymer (Germany) hit his 2nd to 15feet from the hole. Luke Donald (England) chipped stone dead and was conceded his putt. Martin Kaymer (Germany) just missed his birdie putt. So Luke Donald (England) was 2up with 4 holes to play. The then came to the short driveable par 5, 15th hole. Luke Donald (England) teed off 1st and went for the green, landing his ball 5yards short. Martin Kaymer (Germany) went for the green as well and land about the same distance short, just to the right of Luke Donald (England) ball slightly closer. Luke Donald (England) hit his 2nd shot 1st and landed about 4feet from the hole. Martin Kaymer (Germany) hit his 2nd shot chip shot to about 6feet from the hole. When Martin Kaymer (Germany) missed his birdie putt, he conceded Luke Donald (England) his birdie. So Luke Donald (England) was 3up with 3holes to play. Luke Donald (England) hit a great shot in the short par 3, 16th hole. It landed 12feet right of the hole. Martin Kaymer (Germany) hit his shot 30feet past the pin on the green. The match was basically Luke Donald ‘s (England) from there. Martin Kaymer (Germany) had a good run at his birdie putt, but missed to the right. He was conceded his par putt meaning Luke Donald (England) had 2putts to win. He hit his 1st putt to within 2feet of the hole. And was conceded the next. So Luke Donald (England) won his 1st WGC – Accenture World Match Play Championship.

Luke Donald (England) with
WGC Accenture Matchplay Trophy

He was never down in any of his 6matches all week. He won $US1,400,000.00 for his win and got 550 FedEx Cup points and is in 9th place on the list with 550 points from the 2 events he has played this year. 505 points behind running away early leader Mark Wilson (USA). It was his 3rd win on the USPGA Tour and his 1st since 2006. He also moved to 1st on the Race to Dubai Money List with €1,027,923 from the only event he has played on the European Tour this year. I feel this win may lead to big things for Luke Donald (England) in 2011. And with his improved world ranking of 3rd, it will really boost his confidence. Tigers Woods (USA) has slipped down to number 5 in the world now. That would be his lowest ranking in some time.

The consolation match between Matt Kuchar (USA) and Bubba Watson (USA) went to Matt Kuchar (USA) 2&1. The other tournament on the USPGA Tour this week was the Mayakoba Golf Classic at Riviera Maya – Cancun that was played at El Camaleon, Riviera Maya, Mexico. There was 132 players in the field and they were playing for half of the usual FedEx Cup points. Johnson Wagner (USA) and Spencer Levin (USA) finished 72 holes at 267-17. Spencer Levin (USA) had a final round 65-6 to Johnson Wagner’s (USA) 67-4. So they both headed back to the 18th hole for the 1st Sudden Death playoff hole. With Johnson Wagner (USA) making par to a Spencer Levin (USA) bogey. That meant Johnson Wagner (USA) had won his 2nd USPGA Tour event, and his 1st since 2008 where he won the Shell Houston Open. The win earns him $US 666,000.00 and he also gets 250 FedEx Cup points, which puts him 31st on the list.



Johnson Wagner (USA) winner
on the Mayakoba Golf Classic
 at Riviera Maya-Cancun

 It should give him a lot of confidence to win again this year. And he is now exempt on the USPGA Tour till the end of 2013. In 3rd place was the Champions Tour player John Cook (USA) on -14, a great performance by the over 50 year old. Chris Stroud (USA) was 4th on -13. Rory Sabbatini (USA), David Toms (USA), Brian Gay (USA),  Briny Baird (USA), Jarrod Lyle (Australia), and Bobby Gates (USA) were all tied for 5th on -12. It was another great tournament that meant the players not in the WGC – Accenture Match play could still play another event, and gave a lesser name player a chance to win.

The USPGA Tour heads this week to the East Coast, and leaves the West Coast swing behind it. The 1st event on the Florida Swing is the Honda Classic which is played at the PGA National Champion Course, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. Camilo Villegas (Columbia) is the defending Champion. And with $US5,700,000 up for grabs it is sure to attract a good quality field. And just a note, I was checking the World Golf Rankings that came out on Monday and for the 1st time in a long time, there are 4 European Tour players in the Top 4, Martin Kaymer (Germany) at Number 1, Lee Westwood (England) Number 2, Luke Donald (England) Number 3 and Graeme McDowell (Northern Ireland) at Number 4.

So to my final event I am reporting on this week. And it is the 1st Nationwide Tour event of the year, Panama CLARO Championship that was played at Panama GC, Panama City, PAN. And it was the Australian Golfer Mathew Goggin (Australia) who took away the spoils. He scored rounds of 68-2, 66-4, 67-3 and 68-2 for a 72 hole total of 269-11. He won by 2shot’s over Darron Stiles (USA) and Alistair Presnell (Australia) were both tied for 2nd on -9. It was Mathew Goggin’s (Australia) 2nd win in the USA have won a Nationwide Tour Event 11 years ago in 1999. After being on the USPGA Tour for many years, he lost his status on that tour last year and is having a season on the Natonwide Tour to try and get back his USPGA Tour Status. And with this win he leads the Nationwide Tour Money list after 1event with $US 99,000. And is well on his way to make it back to the USPGA Tour in 2012.


Mathew Goggin (Australia) Winner of the
Panama Claro Championship


Erik Compton (USA) the 2time heart replacement man was leading after 54 holes at -13, had a poor final round of 75+5, but I feel he will gain alot of confidence from this performance and could well win on the Nationwide Tour this year. Best of the New Zealanders was Josh Geary (New Zealand), +1 and that left in 37th place. Danny Lee (New Zealand) finished +2 after a shocking final round of 79+9 that left him in tied 38th place when he started the final round at tied for 8th. And the final New Zealander to make the cut was Brad Iles (New Zealand) at +4, and he tied for 49th. Other New Zealanders in the Field that didn’t make the cut were, Steve Alker (New Zealand) at 143+3 after 36 holes to miss the cut by 2shots. And Tim Wilkinson (New Zealand) at 144+4 to miss the cut by 3shots. He is looking to gain back his USPGA Tour Status this year that he lost last year.

Next week the Nationwide Tour heads to Columbia for the Pacific Rubiales Bogota Open Presented by Samsung and it is being played at the Country Club de Bogota, Bogota, COL and it is in its 2nd year. It owes alot to Camilo Villegas (Columbia) that is the founder of this tournament. He wanted to give something back to Columbia after all that Golf has given to him and his Family. It starts on Thursday (3rd March). Steve Pate (USA) is the defending Champion, and with $US 600,000 on offer it will attract all the leading players on that tour that are eager to get their seasons off to a fast start. I will report back who won next week. So until then, keep hitting fairways and greens, and of course making those putts.

Source: pgatour.org.au, europeantour.com, pgatour.com