Golf Events from the Weekend 19th May 2013

Well it was another exciting weekend on the Major Professional Golfer Tours from around the world and first I will start with the European Tour and Race to Dubai and this week it was in Bulgaria for the Volvo World Match Play Championship and it was played on the Thracian Cliffs Golf & Beach Resort, Kavarna, Bulgaria. And the final was between Graeme McDowell (NIR) verses Thongchai Jaidee (Thailand). The final was contested over 18 holes. Both players made par fours on the par four first hole to halve the hole. Thongchai Jaidee (Thailand) birdied the par three, second hole and Graeme McDowell (NIR) could only manage a par three. So Thongchai Jaidee (Thailand) went one up after two holes. They both halved the par four, third hole in par fours so Thongchai Jaidee (Thailand) remained one up after three holes. Thongchai Jaidee (Thailand) made a birdie four on the par five, fourth hole and Graeme McDowell (NIR) could only manage a par five. So Thongchai Jaidee (Thailand) went two up after four holes.

They halved the par five, fifth hole and par four, sixth hole so Thongchai Jaidee (Thailand) remained two up after six holes. Graeme McDowell (NIR) made a birdie two on the par three, seventh hole and Thongchai Jaidee (Thailand) could only manage a par three so Thongchai Jaidee (Thailand) was now only one up after seven holes. They halved the next four holes from eight to eleven so Thongchai Jaidee (Thailand) remained one up with seven holes remaining. Graeme McDowell (NIR) made a birdie four on the par five, 12th hole and Thongchai Jaidee (Thailand) could only manage a par five so the match was now all square with six holes remaining to be played. They both made solid par fours on the par four, 13th hole so the match remained all square with five holes to play. Graeme McDowell (NIR) made a par four on the par four, 14th hole and Thongchai Jaidee (Thailand) could only manage a bogey five so for the first time in the match Graeme McDowell (NIR) went one up with four holes to play.

Graeme McDowell (NIR) on the left and Thongchai Jaidee (Thailand) on the right shake hands after Graeme McDowell (NIR) had just won the Championship Match!!

 Graeme McDowell (NIR) made a birdie three on the par four, 15th hole and the best Thongchai Jaidee (Thailand) could manage was a par four so Graeme McDowell (NIR) had now gone two up with three holes remaining to be played. They both made par fives on the par five, 16th hole so Graeme McDowell (NIR) was now dormie two up with two holes remaining to be played. They both made par threes on the par three, 17th hole and that meant that Graeme McDowell (NIR) had won his first ever Volvo World Match Play Championship title with being two holes up with one hole remaining to be played margin. He celebrated with his caddie on the 17th green and later said it was amazing looking at the trophy and seeing all the famous names on it like Gary Player (RSA), Arnold Palmer (USA), Jack Nicklaus (USA), Ernie Els (RSA) and Seve Ballesteros (Spain) to name a few.

 Graeme McDowell (NIR) won € 499,999.00 for the win and moved to number one position on the current 2013 Race to Dubai Money list standings with €1,029,186 earned from the four events he has played to date this year so far. He past Brett Rumford (Australia) who is now in second position with €863,632 earned from the nine events he has played to date this year so far. From the four events he has played to date this year so far he has made three cuts and achieved three top ten finishes including the win here. He has also been playing the USPGA Tour fulltime this year and had won the RBC Heritage on that tour about a month ago as well.

It was Graeme McDowell’s (NIR) eighth European Tour International Schedule victory in his 240th European Tour event. He moves to the top of The Race to Dubai with €1,029,185. This is the sixth time during his European Tour career he has passed €1 million in a single season. He moves up to seventh in the Official World Golf Ranking from eighth. It was his first European Tour victory since the 2010 Andalucia Valderrama Masters. It is a gap of two years and 200 days. In that time he has played in 41 European Tour events between victories. This victory beats his previous best European Tour performances since his Andalucia win in 2010 of second in the 2012 Volvo World Match Play Championship and tied second in the 2012 US Open Championship. He became the first Irishman to win the Volvo World Match Play Championship. This is the fourth time an Irish player has reached the final. They are: Padraig Harrington (Ireland) in 2001, Paul McGinley (Ireland) in 2005 and Graeme McDowell (NIR) in 2012 and 2013.

This victory comes in his third appearance in the Volvo World Match Play Championship. This victory beats his previous best performance of second in 2012. (He lost in the quarter-final on his first appearance in 2011). He was the top seed for the 2013 Volvo World Match Play Championship. He is the first top seed to win since Ernie Els (RSA) in 2004. It was the first time that the runner-up has gone onto win the Championship the following season since Ian Woosnam (Wales), who was second in 1989 and winner in 1990. The other players to achieve this feat were: Bob Charles (NZL) (1968/69), Sandy Lyle (Scotland) (1987/88) and Sir Nick Faldo (England) (1988/89). He was the 47th Northern Irish win in European Tour history. He was the first Northern Irish win of the 2013 season and first since Rory McIlroy (NIR) at the 2012 DP World Tour Championship, Dubai.

He becomes the 27th different player to win the Volvo World Match Play Championship. All of his eight European Tour victories have come in different countries: They are: Sweden, Italy, South Korea, Scotland, Wales, USA, Spain and now Bulgaria. It was his 11th win as a professional. It was his second win of 2013, following the RBC Heritage on the US PGA Tour. He moves over €15 million in European Tour Official Earnings. And finally he gains a place into the 2014 Volvo Golf Champions and 2014 Volvo World Match Play Championship. 

Graeme McDowell (NIR) poses with the Volvo World Match Play Championship Trophy he won!!

His best year to date on the European Tour came in the 2010 season where he earned € 3,896,996 from the 24 events he played in which included three wins and one was his maiden Major Championship win at the US Open Championship that was played at Pebble Beach that year. He finished in second position on the final 2010 Race to Dubai Money list standings. I would look for him to be a major factor in the three remaining Major Championships in the 2013 season and wish him all the best.

Thongchai Jaidee (Thailand) won € 333,333.00 for his runner up finish and moved to seventh position on the current 2013 Race to Dubai Money list standings with € 655,430 earned from the nine events he has played to date this year so far. From those nine events he has played in he has made every cut and achieved five top ten finishes that includes this one. He has been playing on the European Tour fulltime since the 2004 season and has easily kept his full playing card for the next season every season since. He has achieved five wins in that time and here they are from the first to the most recent: 2004 Carlsberg Malaysian Open, 2005 Carlsberg Malaysian Open, 2009 Enjoy Jakarta Indonesia Open, 2009 Ballantine's Championship and the 2012 ISPS Handa Wales Open. His career year to date on the European Tour so far came in the 2009 season where he earned € 1,161,466 earned from the 27 events he played in and he finished in 19th position on the final 2009 Race to Dubai Money list standings. He will be turning 44 years old in November and I feel he still has a good few years left in him. His current Official World Golf Ranking is 49th position on the list and if he can remain inside the top 50 players on the list for the rest of the year he will gain entry to the final three Major Championships and WGC Events. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013 season.

The players that lost it the Semi – Finals were: Thomas Aiken (RSA) and Branden Grace (RSA) and they both earned € 168,900 for their efforts. The players that lost out in the quarter finals were: Nicolas Colsaerts (Belgium), Scott Jamieson (Scotland), Francesco Molinari (Italy) and Chris Wood (England) and they all earned € 99,300 for their efforts. The next eight players tied for ninth position for being knocked out at the round of 16 stage and they all earned € 51,825 for their efforts and they were: Felipe Aguilar (Chile), Gonzalo Fdez – Castano (Spain), Peter Hanson (Sweden), Shane Lowry (Ireland), Carl Pettersson (Sweden), Brett Rumford (Australia), Richard Sterne (RSA) and Bo Van Pelt (USA). The players that didn’t make it out of group stage because they finished last in their pool after round robin stage were Stephen Gallacher (Scotland), Jamie Donaldson (Wales), Thorbjørn Olesen (Denmark), Ian Poulter (England), Geoff Ogilvy (Australia), Kiradech Aphibarnrat (Thailand), Henrik Stenson (Sweden) and George Coetzee (RSA). They all earned € 35,775 for their efforts.

Next week the European Tour and Race to Dubai heads to England for the first time in the 2013 season for the BMW Championship which is the flagship event of the European Tour and it is played on the Wentworth Club, Virginia Water, Surrey, England which is also the headquarters for the European Tour. It carries a huge prize purse of €4,750,000 for the taking. Luke Donald (England) is the two time defending Champion and will be keen for a three peat. It starts on Thursday 23rd May. I will report back who won the trophy next week.

The second event I am reporting on this week was on the USPGA Tour and part of the FedEx Cup and was the HP Byron Nelson Championship and it was played on the TPC Four Seasons Resort, Irving, Texas. It was the first leg of two tournaments on the second Texas Swing leg of the season. And it was the Golfer by the name of Sang – Moon Bae (South Korea) who scored rounds of 66-4, 66-4, 66-4 and a final round of 69-1 for a 72 hole total of 267-13 and he won by two strokes for his maiden USPGA Tour win. He won US $1,206,000.00 for his efforts and moved to 17th position on the current 2013 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $1,592,794 earned from the 14 events he has played in to date this year so far. Tiger Woods (USA) still leads that list with US $5,849,600 earned from the seven events he has played to date this year so far. Sang – Moon Bae (South Korea) also earned 500 FedEx Cup points for the win and moved to 18th position on the current 2013 FedEx Cup point’s standings list with 769 points earned from the 14 events he has played to date this year so far. He is 1,571 points behind the current leader of the 2013 FedEx Cup Points list and that is Tiger Woods (USA) who has earned 2,340 points from the seven events he has played to date this year so far. He is 866 points ahead of Brandt Snedeker (USA) who has earned 1,474 points from the ten events he has played to date so far this year. From the 14 events Sang – Moon Bae (South Korea) has played to date this year so far he has made eleven cuts and withdrawn from one event. He has also achieved two top ten finishes and that includes the one here.

Sang – Moon Bae (South Korea) played a very steady final round after a brilliant start. He scored a final round 69-1 in the very challenging wind conditions and that included a front nine of 33-2 which included birdies on the par four, third hole, par three, fifth hole, par four, sixth hole and par five, seventh hole. But he made a disappointing double bogey six on the par four, ninth hole. He made the turn at minus 14 and had a two shot lead. Keegan Bradley (USA) went out in a disappointing 36+1 and made the turn at minus 12 and was two shots behind the leader. Sang – Moon Bae (South Korea) played holes 10-11 in one over par and fell back to minus 13 and was still leading by two shots. Keegan Bradley (USA) also played holes 10-11 in one over par and fell back to minus eleven and was still two strokes off the leader.

 

Sang - Moon Bae (South Korea) drives off during the final round

Sang – Moon Bae (South Korea) played holes 12-14 in even par and remained at minus 13 with four holes remaining to be played and still was leading by two shots. Keegan Bradley (USA) played holes 12-14 in even par as well and remained at minus eleven and was still two shots behind the leader with four holes to play. Sang – Moon Bae (South Korea) made a disappointing bogey five on the par four, 15th hole and fell back to minus 12 and was now tied for the lead. Keegan Bradley (USA) made a brilliant birdie on the par four, 15th hole and moved to minus 12 and was now tied for the lead with three holes remaining to be played. Sang – Moon Bae (South Korea) hit a fine chip shot for his third shot to the par five, 16th hole and left himself a ten foot putt for his birdie four that rolled straight in to the centre of the cup and he moved he back to minus 13 and was back in the lead by one shot with two holes remaining to be played. Keegan Bradley (USA) also struck a brilliant chip shot for his third shot to the par five, 16th hole and it left him with a four foot putt for his birdie four. He struck a good putt but it caught the left hand lip of the cup and spun out and he tapped in for his par five and was still minus 12 and now one stroke off the lead with two holes to play.

Sang – Moon Bae (South Korea) played a good shot to the difficult par three, 17th hole that started to leak a little bit to the right but managed to catch the right front edge of the green and had avoided going in the water hazard on the right. He had about twenty feet left for his birdie two and struck a good putt that stopped a foot to the right of the cup and he easily tapped in for his par three and remained at minus 13 and took a two stroke lead to the par four, 72nd hole. Keegan Bradley (USA) struck a conservative tee shot to the par three, 17th hole that rolled through the back of the green and down the severe down slope leaving an extremely difficult up and down for his par three. He struck his second shot, chip shot 15 feet past the cup and was unable to hole that putt for his par and fell to minus eleven and was now two strokes behind the leader heading to the par four, 72nd hole.

Sang – Moon Bae (South Korea) now was faced with his most important tee shot of his young golfing career off the par four, 72nd tee. With a water hazard down the left hand side of the fairway and trees on the right hand side only a good long straight drive was going to do and he was up to the challenge driving his ball straight down the centre of the fairway and half the battle was now over. Now faced with a mid iron to the green and if he missed it to the left he knew he would be in the water hazard. He calmed himself and struck a brilliant second shot that never left the pin and came to rest on the green about 15 feet short of the pin. His 15 foot putt for birdie rolled about five feet past the hole and he easily tapped in for his par four to finish the 72 holes at minus 13 and he won by two strokes for his maiden win on the USPGA Tour. He scored 36+1 for his back nine. His fellow South Korean Professionals came onto the 72nd green to celebrate with him. They also did the tradition of pouring water over the champion. Keegan Bradley (USA) playing in the same group as Sang – Moon Bae (South Korea) managed to get on the par four, 72nd hole in two shots but was 35 feet to the right of the cup. He now knew he had to whole that birdie putt if he was to have any chance of forcing a playoff. He struck a good putt but it missed on the right hand side and he easily tapped in for his par four and finished up at minus eleven after 72 holes and was two shots behind the winner.

Sang - Moon Bae (South Korea) poses with the HP Byron Nelson Championship Trophy he won!!

Sang – Moon Bae (South Korea) is in his second full season of playing the USPGA Tour Fulltime after gaining his 2012 USPGA Tour card at the 2011 PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament where he finished in tied for eleventh position. He had a very solid rookie season on the USPGA Tour in the 2012 season where he played in 25 events and made 17 cuts, withdrew from two events and achieved two top ten finishes that included losing in a playoff at the Transitions Championship and making the quarter finals at the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship. He finished in 83rd position on the final 2012 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $ 1,165,952 earned. He easily kept his full playing card for the 2013 USPGA Tour season. The amazing thing is that he has never even played in one single Web.com Tour event. Instead he has spent his early years as a professional learning his trade on the Korean, One Asia, Asian and Japan Golf Tours and he has so far won eleven events on those tours I mentioned and here they are from the first to the most recent: 2006 Emerson Pacific Group Open [Kor], 2007 SK Telecom Open [Asia],  2008 KEB Invitational [Kor], Fortis International Challenge [with Kim Hyung-tae], Kolon-Hana Bank Korean Open [Asia], KPGA KEB Invitational [Kor], 2009 GS Caltex Maekyung Open [OneAsia], 2010 SK Telecom Open [OneAsia], 2011 Vana H Cup KBC Augusta [Jpn], Coca-Cola Tokai Classic [Jpn], Japan Open [Jpn]. I feel this win will give other young professionals from South Korea the confidence to know that they too can play on the USPGA Tour and compete and win. I feel his second win on the USPGA Tour won’t be too far off either. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013 season.

Coming in solo second position at 269-11 after 72 holes was Keegan Bradley (USA); he earned US $723,600.00 for his efforts and moved to eighth position on the current 2013 USPGA Tour Money list with US $2,153,947 earned from the 14 events he has played to date this year so far. He also earned 300 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to eighth position on the current 2013 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 974 points earned from the 14 events he has played to date this year so far. From those 14 events he has played to date this year so far he has made eleven cuts and achieved six top ten finishes including this one which was his highest finish of the season as well. He has been playing on the USPGA Tour since the 2011 season after gaining his 2011 full USPGA Tour card by finishing in 14th position on the final 2010 Web.com Tour Money list standings with US $264,760 earned from the 28 events he played in. He had an amazing rookie season on the USPGA Tour in 2011 with earning US $3,758,600 from the 28 events he played in and that included making 18 cuts and achieving four top ten finishes and that included two wins and the first one was the HP Byron Nelson Championship which was this very tournament and the second one was his maiden Major Championship which was the PGA Championship and he also won an unofficial event which was the PGA Grand Slam of Golf. He finished in 13th position on the final 2011 USPGA Tour Money list standings which was a fine effort by a rookie. He backed up his rookie season with another awesome season in 2012 where he earned US $ 3,910,658 from the 25 events he played in and finished in tenth position on the final 2012 USPGA Tour Money list standings. That included making 21 cuts and achieving five top ten finishes which included his third win which came at the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational. He also played his first Ryder Cup for the USA against Europe. He has just had an amazing last two seasons on the USPGA Tour and is continuing it into 2013. I sure his fourth win isn’t too far off and perhaps it will come at the US Open Championship next month? I sure he will put the disappointment of not winning here behind him quickly. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013 season.

Coming in at solo third position at 270-10 after 72 holes was Charl Schwartzel (RSA); he earned US $455,600.00 for his efforts and moved to 33rd position on the current 2013 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $1,232,009 earned from the eight events he has played to date this year so far. He also earned 190 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to 30th position on the current 2013 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 587 points earned from the eight events he has played to date this year so far. From the eight events he has played to date this year so far he has made all eight cuts and achieved three top ten finishes including this one. He has been playing the USPGA Tour fulltime since the 2011 season after winning the 2011 Master Tournament for his maiden Major Championship win which gave him full playing rights on the USPGA Tour for the next few seasons. In that first full season on the USPGA Tour he earned US $2,604,558 from the 15 events he played in and he made all 15 cuts and achieved three top ten finishes that included his Master Tournament win. He finished in 24th position on the final 2011 USPGA Tour Money list standings. In the 2012 USPGA Tour season he played in 16 events and earned US $ 1,138,844 and finished in 89th position on the final 2012 USPGA Tour Money list standings. He also plays the European Tour fulltime and has already won seven events on that tour and here they are from the first to the most recent: 2005 Alfred Dunhill Championship, 2007 Open de Espana, 2008 Madrid Masters, 2010 Africa Open, 2010 Joburg Open, 2011 Joburg Open and the 2013 Alfred Dunhill Championship. I feel he will win on the USPGA Tour in 2013 at some stage. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013 season.

Coming in solo fourth position at 271-9 after 72 holes was Justin Bolli (USA); he earned US $321,600.00 for his efforts and moved to 81st position on the current 2013 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $528,207 earned from the 12 events he has played to date this year so far. He also earned 135 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to 102nd position on the current 2013 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 257 points earned from the 12 events he has played to date this year so far. From those 12 events he has played to date this year so far he has made five cuts and achieved two top ten finishes that includes the one here. He scored the lowest round in the final round which was 65-5. He has been on and off the USPGA Tour since first gaining his full USPGA Tour Card by finishing in ninth position on the final 2004 Web.com Tour Money list standings with US $273,387 earned from the 26 events he played in and that meant he had a full USPGA Tour card for the 2005 season. His rookie year on the USPGA Tour in 2005 wasn’t very good with him only earning US $207,400 from the 24 events he played in with only making nine cuts and achieving no top ten finishes. He ended up finishing in 192nd position on the final 2005 USPGA Tour Money list standings and that left him with no USPGA Tour status for the 2006 season. In the 2006 and 2007 season’s he spent them back on the Web.com Tour. In 2007 he had another very good season on the Web.com Tour with earning US $293,834 from the 26 events he played in and he finished in eighth position on the final 2007 Web.com Tour Money list and gained back his full USPGA Tour card for the 2008 season.

In his second try at playing the USPGA Tour full time in 2008 he feared slightly better with earning US $458,022 from the 28 events he played in and he made 16 cuts and achieved his first top ten finish as well. But he eventually finished in 158th position on the final 2008 USPGA Tour Money list standings and that again left him with no USPGA Tour status for the 2009 season. He went back to play the Web.com Tour in 2009 and had a very good season with earning US $284,537 from the 23 events he played in and finished in eleventh position on the final 2009 Web.com Tour Money list standings and gained back his full USPGA Tour card for the 2010 season. In his third try at playing the USPGA Tour full time in 2010 he had a shocking season with only earning US $73,990 from the 23 events he played in and that included missing 19 cuts and achieving no top ten finishes. He eventually finished up in 215th position on the final 2010 USPGA Tour Money list standings and that again left him with no USPGA Tour status for the 2011 season. He played the 2011 and 2012 seasons on the Web.com Tour and in 2012 he had a very good season where he earned US $300,924 from the 24 events he played in and finished in ninth position and gained his full 2013 USPGA Tour card and a chance to play the USPGA Tour for the fourth time is his career. He has already won more money on the USPGA Tour this season than he did in his other three previous season and the season is only just over halfway though. I feel another couple of top ten finishes in the weeks to come will secure his card for the 2013/14 season. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013 season.

Coming in tied for fifth position at 272-8 after 72 holes was Morgan Hoffmann (USA); he earned US $244,550.00 for his efforts and moved to 113th position on the current 2013 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $375,852 earned from the ten events he has played to date this year so far. He also earned 100 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to 137th position on the current 2013 FedEx Cup Points standings list with 178 points earned from the ten events he has played to date this year so far. From those ten events he has played to date this year so far he has made four cuts and this was his first top ten finish of the season so far. It was also his career best finish on the USPGA Tour in his rookie season. He gained his full 2013 USPGA Tour card by finishing in 19th position on the final 2012 Web.com Tour Money list standings with US $207,540 earned from the 13 events he played in and that included making 12 cuts and achieving seven top ten finishes. He is still very young being only 23 years old and will gain a lot of confidence out of this result. Let’s hope he can have more top ten finishes in the weeks to come. Also tied for fifth position was Martin Kaymer (Germany); he too earned US $244,550.00 for his efforts and moved to 78th position on the current 2013 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $541,530 earned from the ten events he has played to date this year so far. He also earned100 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to 98th position on the current 2013 FedEx Cup Point’s list standings with 270 points earned from the ten events he has played to date this year so far. From the ten events he has played to date this year so far he has made seven cuts and this was the second top ten finish he has achieved this year so far. This is his first season playing on the USPGA Tour fulltime. He gained his full 2013 USPGA Tour card by winning the 2010 USPGA Championship which was his maiden Major Championship. He also plays the European Tour fulltime and has achieved ten wins already on the tour and here they are from the first to the most recent: 2008 Abu Dhabi Golf Championship, 2008 BMW International Open, 2009 Open de France ALSTOM, 2009 The Barclays Scottish Open, 2010 Abu Dhabi Golf Championship, 2010 US PGA CHAMPIONSHIP, 2010 KLM Open, 2010 Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, 2011 Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship and the 2011 WGC - HSBC Champions. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013 season.  

The final player tied for fifth position was Scott Piercy (USA); he too earned US $244,550.00 for his efforts and moved to 36th position on the current 2013 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $1,131,462 earned from the 13 events he has played to date this year so far. He also earned100 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to 40th position on the current 2013 FedEx Cup Points standings list with 536 points earned from the 13 events he has played to date this year so far. From the 13 events he has played to date this year so far he has made eight cuts and achieved three top ten finishes including the one here. He has been playing the USPGA Tour fulltime since the 2009 season after gaining his 2009 USPGA Tour card by finishing in ninth position on the final 2008 Web.com Tour Money list with US $320,187 earned from the 19 events he played in. He has easily kept his card every year since for the next year. He has also achieved two wins on the USPGA Tour in his career to date so far with the first one coming at the 2011 Reno-Tahoe Open and the second coming at 2012  RBC Canadian Open. I feel his third win isn’t too far off and perhaps it will happen in the 2013 season?

Coming in tied for eighth position at 273-7 after 72 holes was Charley Hoffman (USA); he earned US $201,000.00 for his efforts and moved to 44th position on the current 2013 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $1,016,336 earned from the 12 events he has played to date this year so far. He also earned 83 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to 46th position on the current 2013 FedEx Cup Points standings list with 503 points earned from the 12 events he has played to date this year so far. From the 12 events he has played to date this year so far he has made nine cuts and achieved four top ten finishes including the one here. He has been playing on the USPGA Tour fulltime since the 2006 season after gaining his full 2006 USPGA Tour card by finishing in 19th position on the final 2005 Web.com Tour Money list standings with US $212,322 earned from the 26 events he played in. He has easily kept his card for the next season every season since. He has earned over US$1million every season so far as well except in 2008 where he only earned US $945,702. He has won two USPGA Tour events as well so far in his career with the first one coming in 2007 at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic and the second one coming in 2010 at the Deutsche Bank Championship. I feel he is ready to win for a third time very soon and it could happen in the 2013 season. Also tied for eight position was John Huh (USA); He too earned US $201,000.00 for his efforts and moved to 66th position on the current 2013 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $675,303 earned from the 15 events he has played to date this year so far. He also earned 83 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to 76th position on the current 2013 FedEx Cup Points standings list with 338 points earned from the 15 events he has played to date this year so far. From those 15 events he has played to date this year so far he has made nine cuts and this was his very first top ten finish he has achieved this season so far. He first gained his USPGA Tour card at the 2011 PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament with a birdie on his final hole on the Nicklaus Tournament Course at PGA West. He got the last available card and finished in tied for 27th position which game him full playing status on the USPGA Tour for the 2012 season. He had a brilliant rookie season on the USPGA Tour in 2012 with earning US $2,692,113 from the 28 events he played in and that included making 22 cuts and achieving four top ten finishes and one of them was his maiden USPGA Tour win at the Mayakoba Golf Classic where he defeated Robert Allenby (Australia) on the eighth playoff hole. He finished in 28th position on the final 2012 USPGA Tour Money list standings and also was the only rookie to qualify for the TOUR Championship by Coca-Cola and just the fifth rookie to qualify for the TOUR Championship since the inception of the FedEx Cup in 2007. He was also the youngest player to qualify for the TOUR Championship since Sergio Garcia did so at age 21 in 2001. He finished in 25th position on the final 2012 FedEx Cup Points list standings. He was also named the 2012 PGA TOUR Rookie of the Year over Charlie Beljan (USA), Jonas Blixt (Sweden), Bud Cauley (USA) and Ted Potter, Jr (USA). He turns 23 years old this Tuesday and his future on the USPGA Tour looks very bright for the coming years. He like Sang – Moon Bae (South Korea) has not played in one single Web.com Tour event, instead he choose to play the Korean PGA Tour and has won one event on that tour in the 2010 which was the Shinhan Donghae Open. In winning it he defeat two of his hero’s who were K.J. Choi (South Korea) by two strokes and Seung-yul Noh (South Korea) by three strokes. He is originally from South Korea but his Parents immigrated to the USA when he was young to give him the best chance at become a professional golfer and he has since gained US residency. I feel his second win on the USPGA Tour isn’t too far off and could well happen in the 2013 season. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013 season.  

Rounding out the top ten in tied for tenth position at 274-6 after 72 holes was Graham DeLaet (Canada); he earned US $174,200.00 for his efforts and moved to 56th position on the current 2013 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $811,384 earned from the 14 events he has played to date this year so far. He also earned 73 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to 54th position on the current 2013 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 459 points earned from the 14 events he has played to date this year so far. From those 14 events he has played to date so far this year he has made eleven cuts and achieved three top ten finishes that includes the one here. He gained his USPGA Tour card for the first time in his career by finishing in tied for eighth position at the 2009 PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament and that meant he had full playing status on the USPGA Tour for the 2010 season. His rookie season in 2010 on the USPGA Tour was very good with him earning US $954,011 from the 28 events he played in and that included making 15 cuts and he also achieved three top ten finishes. He finished in 100th position on the final 2010 USPGA Tour Money list standings meaning he easily kept his card for the 2011 season. But in the 2011 USPGA Tour season he sat out the majority of the campaign due to a back injury and was forced to play the 2012 USPGA Tour season out of the Major Medical Extension category. He had 26 events to earn US $657,694 in 2012. In the 2012 USPGA Tour season he earned US $1,051,951 from the 23 events he played in and easily earned the US $657,694 he required to keep his full playing status for the 2013 season. He also made 17 cuts and achieved three top ten finishes. He finished in 95th position on the final 2012 USPGA Tour Money list standings. I feel he is due for his maiden USPGA Tour win very soon and perhaps it will happen in the 2013 season?

The final player to tie for tenth position was Ryo Ishikawa (Japan); he too earned US $174,200.00 for his efforts and moved to 136th position on the current 2013 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $275,566 earned from the 13 events he has played to date this year so far. He also earned 73 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to 143rd position on the current 2013 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 167 points earned from the 13 events he has played to date this year so far. From those 13 events he has played to date this year so far he has made seven cuts and this was his first top ten finish he has achieved to date this year so far. He is in his second full season of playing the USPGA Tour fulltime. He had an average rookie season in 2012 on the USPGA Tour by his high standards with earning US $727,051 from the 18 events he played in and that included making ten cuts and achieving two top ten finishes and one of them was his career best finish to date on the USPGA Tour where he finished in second position at the Puerto Rico Open presented by seepuertorico.com. He is still very young being only 21 years of age and turns 22 in September. He is Japan’s young Golfing Superstar and has Rock Star Status whenever he plays on the Japan Golf Tour having already won 12 events on that tour and here they are from the first to the most recent: 2007 Munsingwear Open KSB Cup [Jpn], 2008 Kansai Open, Mynavi ABC Championship [Jpn], 2009 The Royal Trophy [Jpn, team], Mizuno Open [Jpn], Sun Chlorella Open [Jpn], Fujisankei Classic [Jpn], Tokai Classic [Jpn], 2010 The Crowns [Jpn], Fujisankei Classic [Jpn], Mitsui Sumitomo Visa Taiheiyo Masters [Jpn] and the 2012 Mitsui Sumitomo Visa Taiheiyo Masters [Jpn]. He seems to be taking a little bit longer to getting used to playing on the USPGA Tour but I’m sure he isn’t too far away from his maiden win, and perhaps it will come in the 2013 season? I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013 season.

Next week the USPGA Tour and FedEx Cup stay in Texas for the second and final leg of the second Texas Swing leg of the season which is the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial and it is played on the Colonial CC, Ft. Worth, Texas. It has a prize purse of US $6,400,000 for the taking. Zach Johnson (USA) is the defending Champion and will be going for back to back titles. It starts on Thursday 23rd May 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 632nd week of his career in total is the Tiger Woods (USA) who is fresh off his win at the Players Championship one week ago with 13.53 Official Golf World Ranking Points; coming in at Number Two is Rory McILroy (NIR) with 10.23 Official Golf World Ranking Points; coming in at Number Three is Adam Scott (Australia) fresh off his maiden Major Championship win at the Masters Tournament over a month ago with 7.72 Official Golf World Ranking Points; coming in at Number Four is Justin Rose (England) with 6.47 Official Golf World Ranking Points and rounding out the top 5 on the Official Golf World Ranking Points list this week is the defending FedEx Cup Champion, Brandt Snedeker (USA) with 6.33 Official Golf World Ranking Points. Michael Hendry (NZL) fresh off  his tie for 55th position at the at the Volvo China Open two weeks ago is the highest ranked New Zealander Golfer in the world for the fourteenth straight week of his career. This week he slips two places and moves to 160th position on the Official World Golf Rankings Points list with 1.08 Official Golf World Ranking Points.

Remember when you are playing match play never give up until you shake hands with your opponent!!

Source: pgatour.com, europeantour.com