Well it was
another exciting weekend on the Major Professional Golf Tours from around the
world. First I will start with the USPGA Tour and FedEx Cup and the European
Tour and Race to Dubai and this week it was a co – sanctioned event between
both tours and many more. It was the first World Golf Championship event of the
year and was the WGC – Accenture Match Play Championship and it was played on
the Ritz-Carlton
GC, Dove Mountain, Marana, Arizona, USA. Only the top 64 Golfers on the current
Official World Golf Rankings were eligible to play. And it was the Golfer by
the name of Matt Kuchar (USA) who ended up the winner after the very long week.
He played Hiroyuki Fujita (Japan) in the first round that had to be completed
on the Thursday instead of the scheduled day of Wednesday because of heavy
snowfall that made the course unplayable on the Wednesday. He defeated Hiroyuki
Fujita (Japan) 3 & 2 to advance to round two. Some big surprises happened
in round one with the World Number One Golfer, Rory McILroy (NIR) and World
Number Two Golfer, Tiger Woods (USA) both making early exits.
In the second round that was
played on Friday instead of Thursday because of the weather delay on Wednesday,
Matt Kuchar (USA) played Sergio Garcia (Spain) and defeated him 2 & 1 to
advance to the third round. In the third round on Saturday morning, Matt Kuchar
(USA) played the extremely long hitting Nicolas Colsaerts (Belgium) and easily
defeated him 4 & 3 to advance to the quarter finals. In the quarter finals on
Saturday Afternoon, Matt Kuchar (USA) played another extremely long hitter who
was Robert Garrigus (USA), he defeated him 3 & 2 to advance to the Semi –
Finals. In the Semi – Finals on Sunday morning Matt Kuchar (USA) played Jason
Day (Australia) who was in fine form leading up to this match. But Matt Kuchar
(USA) won the game easily 4 & 3 to advance to the Final. So Matt Kuchar
(USA) had made his first Final in this event.
Hunter Mahan (USA) who was the
other player in the final defeated Matteo Manassero (Italy) easily in the first
round that was completed on Thursday; he won the match 5 & 4 to advance to
the second round. In the second round that was played on Friday, Hunter Mahan
(USA) defeated the inform Richard Sterne (RSA) 4 & 3. In the third round
that was played on Saturday morning, Hunter Mahan (USA) defeated the former
World Number One Golfer, Martin Kaymer (Germany) 5 & 4. Then in the quarter
finals on Saturday afternoon, Hunter Mahan (USA) defeated the current US Open
Champion, Webb Simpson (USA) 1up in a very close fought match. In the Semi –
Final on Sunday morning, Hunter Mahan (USA) defeated the very tough Englishman,
Ian Poulter (England) 4 & 3.
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| Matt Kuchar (USA) plays a bunker shot during the final round |
So to the Championship Match to
decide the Accenture Match play Champion for 2013 on Sunday afternoon. It was
contested between the reigning WGC – Accenture Match play Champion, Hunter
Mahan (USA) and the reigning Players Championship Champion, Matt Kuchar (USA). The
match was played in very trying conditions with a very strong 30mph winding
blowing across the course and the wind chill factor was only about six degrees
Celsius. The match started very even with the first hole being halved in Par
four’s, the second hole being halved in Par five’s and the third hole being
halved in bogey fours on the par three. Matt Kuchar (USA) made a solid par four
on the par four, fourth hole and the best Hunter Mahan (USA) could manage was a
bogey five so Matt Kuchar (USA) was one up after four holes. Matt Kuchar (USA)
made a Par four on the Par four, fifth hole and Hunter Mahan (USA) could only
manage a bogey five so Matt Kuchar (USA) went to two up after five holes.
Matt Kuchar (USA) made a fine
birdie two at the Par three, sixth hole and Hunter Mahan (USA) could only
manage a bogey four so Matt Kuchar (USA) was now three up and in firm control
of the match after six holes. Both players made par fours at the Par four,
seventh hole so Matt Kuchar (USA) remained three up after seven holes. Matt
Kuchar (USA) made a solid birdie four at the Par five, eight hole and Hunter
Mahan (USA) could only manage a Par five so Matt Kuchar (USA) moved to four up.
Both players missed the green at the Par four, ninth hole to the right leaving
extremely difficult chip shots for their thirds. They both hit fine chip shots
and got their par fours. So Matt Kuchar (USA) made the turn four up over Hunter
Mahan (USA).
Hunter Mahan (USA) pared the Par
four, tenth hole to a Matt Kuchar (USA) bogey five and was now only three down
with eight holes to play. Hunter Mahan (USA) made a birdie four at the Par
five, eleventh hole and Matt Kuchar (USA) could only manage a Par five so
Hunter Mahan (USA) was now only two down with eleven holes to play. Hunter
Mahan (USA) hit a fine tee shot into the difficult par three, 12th hole and it
came to rest about eight feet from the pin. Matt Kuchar (USA) now with the
pressure firmly on him calmed himself and came up with an excellent reply. He
struck his mid iron into about 15 feet from the pin. Matt Kuchar (USA) putted
for his birdie first rolled it in the cup for his birdie two and it put the
pressure right back on Hunter Mahan (USA) but he was up to the task and rolled
his eight foot birdie putt in to remain two down with seven holes to play.
Matt Kuchar (USA) birdied the Par
five, 13th hole and Hunter Mahan (USA) could only manage a Par five so Matt
Kuchar (USA) went to three up with five holes to play and still had control of
the match. Hunter Mahan (USA) hit a stunning second shot into the Par four,
14th hole that came to rest three feet from the cup and Matt Kuchar (USA)
having put his second shot in the green side bunker and blasted his third shot
out to four feet from the pin conceded Hunter Mahan (USA) his birdie putt. Matt
Kuchar (USA) was now only two up with four holes to play. Both players birdied
the short Par four, 15th hole so Matt Kuchar (USA) remained two up with three
holes to play. Hunter Mahan (USA) teed off first at the Par three, 16th hole
that was right in to the teeth of the wind. He struck a fine tee shot that flew
right over the flag stick and came to rest on the green 30 feet past the pin. Matt
Kuchar (USA) missed judged his tee shot and it flew right over the green into
the grandstand at the back. It bounced into the rough at the right of the
grandstand leaving a slim chance to get up and down for his par three. He hit a
good chip shot but it rolled just past the pin and rolled into the front
fringe. Hunter Mahan (USA) putted for his birdie two and rolled it up to within
a couple of feet from the cup and was conceded his par three. Matt Kuchar (USA)
putted for his par three from just off the fringe and missed on the right hand
side. Hunter Mahan (USA) was now only one down with two holes to play.
Both players hit poor drives at
the Par four, 17th hole and rolled into the right hand fairway bunker. Hunter
Mahan (USA) played his second shot first with his ball sitting down in the sand
and he played a poor shot that leaked to the right and found one of the desert
plants leaving an impossible third shot. Matt Kuchar (USA) now knowing if he
could just put his second shot somewhere on or around the green that he would
more than likely win the match. He did better than that he struck a brilliant
fairway bunker shot with his short iron that came to rest five feet from the
pin. The pressure was now firmly on Hunter Mahan (USA) and he had to try and
get his ball from the desert plant somewhere on the green. But all he could
manage to do was advance it about a foot in front of him. He chipped his fourth
shot to about 10 feet from the hole then took his cap off and conceded the hole
and shock Matt Kuchar’s (USA) hand in acknowledgement for winning the match.
Matt Kuchar (USA) had won his first ever WGC – Accenture Match play
Championship title. He hugged his caddie to celebrate and then his wife Sybi
and their two children came on to the green to celebrate the moment with him.
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| Hunter Mahan (USA) runner up on left and Matt Kuchar (USA) on right pose with the WGC - Accenture Match play Championship Trophy he won |
It was his first European Tour
International Schedule victory in his 46th European Tour event. He moves back
into the top ten of the Official World Golf Ranking from 23rd. It was his first
WGC title in his 12th WGC appearance. This victory in the WGC – Accenture Match
Play Championship comes in his fourth appearance. This victory beats his
previous best performance in this event of third in 2011. This victory beats
his previous best WGC finish of third in the 2011 WGC – Accenture Match Play
Championship. It continues with his excellent record in the WGC – Accenture
Match Play Championship. He lost in round two in 2010, third in 2011,
quarter-finalist in 2012, and winner in 2013.
This victory beats his previous
best European Tour finishes of third at the 2011 WGC – Accenture Match Play
Championship and tied third at the 2012 Masters Tournament. He becomes the
third first-time winner of the 2013 season, following Scott Jamieson (Scotland)
(Nelson Mandela Championship presented ISPS Handa) and Chris Wood (England) (Commercial
Bank Qatar Masters). This victory sees him join Jeff Maggert (USA) (1999),
Steve Stricker (USA) (2001), Kevin Sutherland (USA) (2002) and Geoff Ogilvy
(Australia) (2006) as players making the WGC – Accenture Match Play
Championship their first European Tour victory. Has now won 15 career matches
in the WGC – Accenture Match Play Championship. He becomes the seventh
different American to win the WGC – Accenture Match Play Championship. He
follows: Jeff Maggert (USA) (1999), Steve Stricker (USA) (2001), Kevin
Sutherland (USA) (2002), Tiger Woods (USA) (2003-2004 and 2008), David Toms (USA)
(2005) and Hunter Mahan (USA) (2012).
He becomes the 27th American
victory in European Tour history. He becomes the 58th different American to win
in European Tour history. He becomes the first American to win a European Tour
event since Bo Van Pelt (USA) at the 2012 ISPS HANDA Perth International. He becomes
the ninth American victory in the WGC – Accenture Match Play Championship. He becomes
the 28th American victory in a WGC event overall. He becomes the 11th different
American to win a WGC event overall. He becomes the 25th different player to
win a WGC event overall. He becomes the 12th different player to win the WGC –
Accenture Match Play Championship. It was his seventh victory as a
professional. And finally he gains a place in the 2013 WGC – Bridgestone
Invitational, 2013 WGC – HSBC Champions and 2014 Volvo Golf Champions.
Matt Kuchar (USA) won US $1,500,000.00
for the win and moved to second position on the current 2013 USPGA Tour Money
list standings with US $1,987,000 earned from the five events he has played to
date this year so far. Brandt Snedeker (USA) still leads that list with US $ 2,859,920
earned from the five events he has played to date this year to date so far. Matt
Kuchar (USA) also earned 550 FedEx Cup points for the win and moved to second
position on the current 2013 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 811 points
earned from the five events he has played to date this year so far. He is 471
points behind the current leader who is Brandt Snedeker (USA) who has earned
1,282 points from the five events he has played to date this year so far.
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| Matt Kuchar (USA) poses with the WGC - Accenture match play Championship Trophy he won |
It was Matt Kuchar (USA) third
top ten finish of the season from the five events he has played to date so far
and he has made all five of those cuts as well. He now has five wins on the
USPGA Tour and here are his other four from the first to the most recent: 2002
The Honda Classic, 2009 Turning Stone Resort Championship, 2010 The
Barclays and 2012 THE PLAYERS Championship. The next step for him would be
to win a Major Championship and maybe it will happen at the 2013 Masters
Tournament? I wish him all the best with for the rest of the 2013 season.
For Hunter Mahan (USA) he will
feel disappointed that he played so poorly on the front nine but he will be
proud he put up such a great defence of his title that he won in 2012. He won
US $875,000.00 for coming runner up and moved to third position on the current
2013 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $1,412,965 earned from the six
events he has played to date this year so far. He also earned 315 FedEx Cup
points for his weeks work and moved to fourth position on the current 2013
FedEx Cup Points standing list with 600 points earned from the six events he
has played to date this year so far. It was Hunter Mahan (USA) second top ten finish
of the season from the six events he has played in to date so far. His next
goal in my opinion would be to win a Major Championship. I wish him all the
best for the rest of the 2013 season.
In the third place match Jason
Day (Australia) won a very close match against Ian Poulter (England) one up. It
will do Jason Day (Australia) confidence the world of good. He won US $615,000.00
for coming third and moved to eleventh position on the current 2013 USPGA Tour
Money list standings with US $1,009,164 earned from the four events he has
played to date so far this year. He also earned 200 FedEx Cup points for his
efforts and moved to 16th position on the current 2013 FedEx Cup points
standings list with 380 points earned from the four events he has played to
date this year so far. In the four events he has played to date this year so
far he has already achieved three top ten finishes and made every cut. I feel
his second USPGA Tour win isn’t too far away.
Ian Poulter (England) will be
disappointed with how he played in both matches on the Sunday because he is
known as one of the best Match players in the game if you look at his Ryder Cup
record. It would be a slight dent to his confidence but I am sure he will
bounce back strong. He earned US $500,000.00 for coming fourth and moved to 24th
position on the current 2013 USPGA Tour Money list with US $675,000 earned from
the two events he has played to date so far. He also earned 140 FedEx Cup
points for his efforts and moved to 32nd position on the current 2013 FedEx Cup
points list standings with 218 points earned from the two events he has played
to date this year so far. He has also achieved two top ten finishes from the
two events he has played to date this year so far. I feel he will win at some
stage this year on the USPGA Tour.
Next week the USPGA Tour and
FedEx Cup head to Florida for the first event of four in the Florida Swing. It
is the Honda Classic and is played on the PGA National Champion
Course, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. It has a huge prize purse of US $6,000,000
for the taking. The current World Number One Golfer, Rory McILroy (NIR) is the
defending Champion and will be keen to defend his title. It starts on Thursday
28th February. I will report back who won the trophy next week. And the
European Tour and Race to Dubai heads back to South Africa for the third and
final event of the South African Swing and it is the Tshwane Open and it is
played at the Copperleaf Golf & Country Estate, Centurion, South Africa. It
carries a prize purse of €1,500,000 for the taking. It is a brand new
tournament so there will be a new Champion. It starts on Thursday 28th February
and I will report back who won the trophy next week.
The second event I am reporting
on this week was on the Web.com Tour and was the Opening event of the season
and was the first event of three in the South American Swing. It was the Panama
Claro Championship and was played on the Panama GC, Panama City. And it
was the Golfer by the name of Kevin Foley (USA) who scored rounds of 66-4,
69-1, 70 even par and a final round of 67-3 for a 72 hole total of 272-8 to win
by one stroke for his maiden win on the Web.com Tour. He won US $ 108,000 for
the win and moved to the top of the current 2013 Web.com Tour Money list with
US $ 108,000 earned from the one event he has played to date this year so far. Second
on the list is Mathew Goggin (Australia) who has earned US $ 64,800 from the
one event he has played to date this year so far.
Kevin Foley (USA) played a great
final round of 67-3 which included a front nine 33-2 that included birdies on
the Par five, fourth hole and Par four, seventh hole. He made the turn at minus
seven and was trailing the 54 hole leader, Mathew Goggin (Australia) by one
stroke. Mathew Goggin (Australia) had gone out in 34-1 and was minus eight. Scott
Brown (USA) had gone out in 33-2 and was minus four and four shots behind with
nine holes to play. Kevin Foley (USA) played holes 10 -14 in even par and was
still minus seven with four holes to play and had a one stroke lead. Mathew
Goggin (Australia) played those same holes in two over par and was minus six
with four holes to play now trailing by one shot. Scott Brown (USA) played
those same holes in one under par and was now minus five with just four holes
to play and only two shots back.
Kevin Foley (USA) played holes 15
-17 in even par and was still minus seven with just the 72nd hole to play and was
tied for the lead. Mathew Goggin (Australia) played those same holes in one
under par to move to minus seven and was also tied for the lead with just the
final hole to play. Scott Brown (USA) played those same holes in one under par
and moved to minus six and just one stroke off the lead with just the last hole
to play. Kevin Foley (USA) made a fine birdie three on the Par four, 72nd hole
and moved to minus eight. He scored 34-1 on the back nine and won by one stroke.
Mathew Goggin (Australia) could only manage a Par four, up the 72nd hole and
remained at minus seven to fall one shot shy. Scott Brown (USA) made a par
four, at the 72nd hole and remained at minus six to fall two shots shy of the
winner.
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| Kevin Foley (USA) in action during the final round |
It was a fine win by Kevin Foley
(USA) and will give him a lot of confidence with a full season in 2013 ahead of
him on the Web.com Tour. He now has got a good chance of making the USPGA Tour
for the 2013/14 season with the top 50 Money earners on the final money list
gaining USPGA Tour cards. I wish all the best for the rest of the 2013 season.
Coming in solo second position at
273-7 after 72 holes was Mathew Goggin (Australia); he won US $64,800 for his
efforts and moved into second position on the current 2013 Web.com Tour Money
list with US $64,800 earned from the one event he has played to date this year
so far. He has been on and off the USPGA Tour for most of his career with two
second place finishes on the USPGA Tour in his career to date so far. With such
a good start to his 2013 Web.com Tour season he is well on his way to regaining
his card for the 2013/14 USPGA Tour season. I would have to think before his
career is over he would win a USPGA Tour event.
Coming in solo third position at
274-6 after 72 holes was Scott Brown (USA); he earned US $40,800 for his
efforts and moved to third position on the current 2013 Web.com Tour Money list
with US $40,800 earned from the one event he has played to date this year so
far. After his rookie year on the USPGA Tour in 2012 where he failed to keep
his full playing status he finds himself back on the Web.com Tour. But after a
great start like this he is well on his way to heading back to the USPGA Tour
for the 2013/14 season. And he has already achieved three top ten finishes on
the USPGA Tour in his rookie season last year. I wish him all the best with the
rest of his 2013 season.
Coming in tied for fourth
position at 276-4 after 72 holes was Scott Dunlap (USA); he earned US $24,800
for his weeks work and moved to fourth equal position on the current 2013
Web.com Tour Money list with US $24,800 earned from the one event he has played
to date this year so far. He will be 50 years old on the 16th August this year
and will be keen to get his Champions Tour Career off to a fast start in mid
August. The Web.com Tour should harden him up for that. He has been on and off
the USPGA Tour for a lot of his career. I feel as though a USPGA Tour maiden
win has passed him by now, but he has still had a great career winning all over
the world. I wish him all the best for the rest of the season on the Web.com
Tour and later on the Champions Tour. Also tied for fourth position was Len
Mattiace (USA); he too earned $24,800 for his weeks work and moved to fourth
equal position on the current 2013 Web.com Tour Money list with US $24,800
earned from the one event he has played to date this year so far. He has
suffered a poor run of form over the last few years on both the USPGA Tour and
Web.com Tour and this great result so early on the Web.com Tour will give him a
lot of confidence with a whole 2013 season in front of him. He is a two time
winner on the USPGA Tour with having won the 2002 Nissan Open and 2002 FedEx
St. Jude Classic. And in 2003 came runner in the Masters Tournament to
Mike Weir (Canada) where he lost in a playoff, it was his best career finish in
a Major Championship. And in 1998 he lead the Players Championship heading to
the 71st hole only to make a terrible eight on the Par three Island green hole that
is notorious for ruining players rounds on the TPC Sawgrass Course and he
handed the Championship to Justin Leonard (USA). He is turning 46 in October
this year so his eyes with be on the Champions Tour in a few years time. I wish
him all the best for the rest of the 2013 season. The final player to tie for
fourth position was Roland Thatcher (USA); he too earned $24,800 for his weeks
work and moved to fourth equal position on the current 2013 Web.com Tour Money
list with US $24,800 earned from the one event he has played to date this year
so far. He too is a player that has been on and off the USPGA Tour and Web.com
Tour over the last ten years. Last year he missed 13 cuts out of the 21 events
he played in on the USPGA Tour and lost his full playing status hence why he is
back on the Web.com Tour in 2013. I feel this tied for fourth placing with give
him a lot of confidence to keep on going forward in his career and wouldn’t be
surprised if he is inside the top 50 Web.com Tour Money earners on the Final
2013 Web.com Tour Money list that gain their 2013/14 USPGA Tour cards.
Coming in tied for seventh
position at 277-3 after 72 holes was Jordan Spieth (USA); he won US $19,350.00
for his efforts and moved to seventh equal position on the current 2013 Web.com
Tour Money list with US $19,350.00 earned from the one event he has played to
date this year so far. He is a young emerging talent that has now turned
professional after having had an amazing collage career at University of Texas and
last December (2012) he decided to turn professional after having some good
results in some USPGA Tour events as an Amateur. His best result on the USPGA
Tour as an Amateur was in the 2010 HP Byron Nelson Championship where he tied
for 16th position at the tender age of 16, where he became the sixth-youngest
player to make the cut in a USPGA Tour event and was tied for seventh heading
into the final round. And just last year at the US Open Championship he
achieved the low Amateur honours where he tied for 21st position at the Olympic
Club. I feel he is heading for a very good year on the Web.com Tour in 2013 and
have no doubt he will finish inside the top 50 Web.com Tour Money earners on
the Final 2013 Web.com Tour Money list that gain their 2013/14 USPGA Tour
cards. The other player to tie for seventh position was Bobby Gates (USA); he
too won US $19,350.00 for his efforts and moved to seventh equal position on
the current 2013 Web.com Tour Money list with US $19,350.00 earned from the one
event he has played to date this year so far. After playing the last two
seasons on the USPGA Tour he again has full playing status on the USPGA Tour
for the 2013 season having finished in tied for 22 nd position at
the 2012 PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament to regain his USPGA Tour card for 2013. He was only playing in this Web.com Tour
event because he was unable to get a start in the WGC – Accenture World Match
play Championship event which was played on the same week. Prior to this first
Web.com Tour event he has played in four USPGA Tour events in 2013 with missing
the cut in all of them. This finish will give him confidence to keep on
improving when he returns to the USPGA Tour. But he is going to stay on the
Web.com Tour next week to play Colombia Championship because his position in
the USPGA Tour re – rank of 2012 Web.com Tour Graduates and 2012 Qualifying
School Graduates was too low to get a start in the next USPGA Tour event which
is the Honda Classic. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013 season
on both tours.
Rounding out the top ten in tied
for ninth position at 278-2 after 72 holes was Aaron Goldberg (USA); he won US $15,600
for his efforts and moved to ninth equal position on the current 2013 Web.com
Tour Money list with US $15,600 earned from the one event he has played to date
this year so far. He is in his third full season on the Web.com Tour with
earning at least US $100,000 the previous two seasons. Maybe this year will be
the year he finishes inside the top 50 money earners on the final 2013 Web.com
Tour Money list and makes it to the USPGA Tour for the first time for the
2013/14 season? Also tied for ninth position was Nick Flanagan (Australia); he too
won US $15,600 for his efforts and moved to ninth equal position on the current
2013 Web.com Tour Money list with US $15,600 earned from the one event he has
played to date this year so far. After winning the US Amateur Championship in
2003, he turned professional in 2004 after the Open Championship and got to
play in five USPGA Tour events which he only made the cut in one of them. In
2005 he went to the PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament where he finished in tied
for 79th position and got his Full Web.com Tour card for the 2006 season. He
finished in 32nd position on the final 2006 Web.com Tour Money list standings
and failed to get one of the 25 USPGA Tour cards for the 2007 season. He went
back to the 2006 PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament but failed to get one of the 25
USPGA Tour cards for the 2007 season on offer. But he still had fully exempt
status on the Web.com Tour for the 2007 season. He had an awesome season in
2007 where he won three tournaments on the Web.com Tour and they were the: 2007 Heroic
County Open, BMW Charity Pro-Am at the Cliffs and the Xerox Classic. That
earned him a Battlefield promotion straight onto the 2007 USPGA Tour for the
remaining events, which he made the cut in two out of four of them. He
eventually finished up in third position on the final 2007 Web.com tour Money
list which gave him full playing status on the USPGA Tour in 2008. But he had a
poor season in his rookie season on the USPGA Tour in 2008 where he played 29
events and only made 16 cuts with only recording one top ten finish which came
at the Mayakoba Golf Classic at Riviera Maya-Cancun where he tied for ninth
position. He eventually finished in 169th position on the final 2008 USPGA Tour
Money list. He was back on the Web.com Tour in 2009 where he had a poor season
with only making four cuts from 13 events and finished in 147th position on the
final 2009 Web.com Tour Money list. In 2010 he played in 24 events on the
Web.com Tour and made eleven cuts including two top ten finishes. He finished in
74th position on the final 2010 Web.com Tour Money list. In 2011 he had another
poor year on the Web.com Tour and with only making nine cuts in the twenty
events he played in but had one top ten finish where he finished in tied for
second position. He finished in 81st position on the final 2011 Web.com Tour
Money list. In 2012 he had a much better season on the Web.com Tour Money list
with gaining his fourth victory on that tour at the BMW Charity Pro-Am
presented by SYNNEX Corporation. But he still had a rather poor season except
for the win with only making nine cuts from the 19 events he played in. He
finished outside the top 25 money earners that gained their 2013 USPGA Tour
cards hence why he is on the Web.com Tour again this year. I wish him all the
best for the rest of the 2013 season.
Also tied for ninth position was Vaughn
Taylor (USA); he too won US $15,600 for his efforts and moved to ninth equal
position on the current 2013 Web.com Tour Money list with US $15,600 earned
from the one event he has played to date this year so far. He has been playing
the USPGA Tour full time since 2004 and still has some partially exempt status
on the 2013 USPGA Tour after finishing in 139th position on the final 2012 USPGA
Tour Money list standings with US $ 547,129 earned from the 26 events he played
in. He has won twice on the USPGA Tour and both wins have been at the same
tournament which was the 2004 Reno-Tahoe Open and 2005 Reno-Tahoe Open. This
latest finish on the Web.com Tour will give him some good confidence to keep on
improving. The final player to tie for ninth position was Chris Wilson (USA);
he too won US $15,600 for his efforts and moved to ninth equal position on the
current 2013 Web.com Tour Money list with US $15,600 earned from the one event
he has played to date this year so far. He qualified for the 2010 USPGA Tour by
earning his card at the 2009 PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament where he finished
in tied for ninth position. But he had a horror rookie season in 2010 where he
only made seven cuts from the 26 events he entered and earned a miserable US $76,481
for his efforts that left him in 213th position on the final 2010 USPGA Tour
money list standings. In 2011 he didn’t even have a Web.com Tour card but did
qualify for the US Open Championship where he missed the cut. He went back to
the 2011 PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament where he finished in tied for 51st
position and got his Web.com Tour card back for the 2012 season. In 2012 on the
Web.com Tour he played in 24 events with only making the cut in eight of them.
But he did have two top ten finishes and one of them was a win at the Price
Cutter Charity Championship Presented by Dr Pepper which was his maiden win on
the Web.com Tour. His final earnings for 2012 were US $157,856 but he was
outside the top 25 Money earners that earned USPGA Tour cards for the 2013
season. He went to the 2012 PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament where he finished in
tied for 114th position and earned some status on the 2013 Web.com Tour. This
latest finish on the Web.com Tour should give him some confidence and with a
few more top ten finishes he may well find himself inside the top 50 money
earners on the final 2013 Web.com Tour Money list standings that gain their
2013/14 USPGA Tours cards?
Danny Lee (NZL) was the only New
Zealand Golfer in the field. He scored rounds of 74+4 and 71+1 for a 36 hole
total of 145+5 and he missed the cut by three strokes. It was a disappointing
start to his 2013 Web.com Tour season. It is very important for him to do very
well on that tour this year because the Top 50 Money earners on the final 2013
Web.com Tour Money list gain their full status on the USPGA Tour for the
2013/14 season. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013 Web.com Tour
season.
Next week the Web.com Tour heads
to Colombia for the second event of three in the South American Swing and it is
the Colombia Championship and it is played on the Country Club de
Bogota, Bogota. It carries a prize purse of US $650,000 for the taking.
Skip Kendall (USA) is the defending Champion and will be keen to defend his
title. It starts on Thursday 28th February and I will report back who won the
trophy next week.
So to the Top 5 on the Official
World Golf Rankings Points list this week and coming in at Number One Position
for the 29th week of a 4th spell of his career and the 36th week of his career
in total is the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai Winner and 2012 Race to Dubai
Money list winner, Rory McILroy (NIR) with 11.66 Official Golf World Ranking
Points; coming in at Number Two is Tiger Woods (USA) with 8.83 Official Golf World
Ranking Points; coming in at Number Three is Luke Donald (England) with 7.25
Official Golf World Ranking Points; coming in at Number Four is Brandt Snedeker
(USA) fresh off his win at the AT&T National Pebble Beach Pro – Am three
weeks ago with 6.74 Official Golf World Ranking Points and rounding out the top
5 on the Official Golf World Ranking Points list this week is Louis Oosthuizen
(RSA) with 6.35 Official Golf World Ranking Points. Michael Hendry (NZL) fresh
off his second place finish at the Coca – Cola QLD PGA Championship two weeks
ago is the highest ranked New Zealander Golfer in the world for the second week
of his career. This week he remains at 225th position on the Official World Golf
Rankings Points list with 0.76 Official Golf World Ranking Points.
Remember you
“Drive for show and Putt for dough” but if you can’t get off the tee it will be
very frustrating!!
Source:
pgatour.com, europeantour.com
