Golf Events from the Weekend 12th January 2014

Well it was another brilliant weekend on the Major Professional Golf Tours from around the world and this week the USPGA Tour and FedEx Cup stayed in Hawaii for the first regular season event of the 2014 part of the 2013/14 USPGA Tour season and it was the Sony Open in Hawaii and was played on the Waialae CC, Honolulu, Hawaii. And it was the golfer by the name of Jimmy Walker (USA) who scored rounds of 66-4, 67-3, 67-3 and a brilliant bogey free final round of 63-7 for a 72 hole total of 263-17 to win by a single shot for his second win on the USPGA Tour of his career. He won US $1,008,000 for his efforts and moved to the top of the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $2,417,833 earned from the six events he has played to date this season so far. Harris English is currently in second position with US $1,785,617 earned from the six events he has played to date this season so far. Jimmy Walker (USA) also earned 500 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to the top of the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points standings list with 1,233 points earned from the six events he has played to date this season so far. He is 302 points ahead of Chris Kirk (USA) who is currently in second position with 931 points earned from the five events he has played to date this season so far. From the six events Jimmy Walker (USA) has played to date this season so far he has made six cuts and achieved three top ten finishes that includes the win here and also his maiden win at the Frys.com Open in mid October last year.

Jimmy Walker (USA) played a brilliant final round of 63-7 that included a front nine of 33-2 which included birdies on the par four, second hole and the par five, ninth hole to make the turn at minus 12 and he was one shot behind the leader. Chris Kirk (USA) scored 35 even par on the front nine and made the turn at minus 12 and was one shot behind the leader. Jerry Kelly (USA) scored 33-2 on the front nine and made the turn at minus 12 and was one shot behind the leader. Harris English (USA) scored 33-2 on the front nine and made the turn at minus 13 and was leading by one shot. 

Jimmy Walker (USA) in action during the final round

Jimmy Walker (USA) played holes ten to 14 in two under par and moved to minus 14 and was still one shot behind the leader. Chris Kirk (USA) played holes ten to 14 in one under par and moved to minus 13 and now was two strokes behind the leader. Jerry Kelly (USA) played holes ten to 14 in one under par and moved to minus 13 and but now was two shots behind the leader. Harris English (USA) played holes ten to 14 in two under par and moved to minus 15 and was still leading by one shot.

Jimmy Walker (USA) played holes 15 – 17 in three under par and moved to minus 17 with just the par five, 72nd hole to play and was now leading by two shots. Chris Kirk (USA) played holes 15 – 17 in two under par and moved to minus 15 and was now two shots behind the leader. Jerry Kelly (USA) played holes 15 – 17 in one under par and moved to minus 14 and now was three shots behind the leader. Harris English (USA) played holes 15 – 17 in one over par and fell back to minus 14 and was now three shots behind the leader.

Jimmy Walker (USA) playing in the group ahead of the final group hit a poor drive down the par five, 72nd hole and it landed in the left rough. He chose to go for the green and pulled it to the left again coming up short of the green side bunker. He struck a very good chip with his lofted wedge and it came to rest about seven feet above the pin. He left his seven foot birdie putt one foot to the right of the cup and easily tapped it in for his par five. He scored an amazing back nine of 30-5 and finished the 72 holes on minus 17 to win by a single stroke. Jerry Kelly (USA) made a solid birdie four up the par five, 72nd hole and finished the 72 holes on minus 15 after 72 holes and was two shots behind the winner. Harris English (USA) made a disappointing par at the par five, 72nd hole and finished the 72 holes on minus 14 and was three shots behind the winner. Chris Kirk (USA) was the only golfer left on the course that could now catch Jimmy Walker (USA) if he could make an eagle three at the Par five, 72nd hole. After two shots he was just short of the green and had a chip for eagle, but he was unable to make it and had to settle for a birdie four and he finished the 72 holes at minus 16 and was one shot behind the winner. 

Jimmy Walker (USA) on the right poses with the Sony Open in Hawaii Trophy he won, and his wife Erin on the left holds one of their sons while he holds the other one

Jimmy Walker (USA) now realising it was official he had won got a huge high five from his caddie and then his wife, Erin and two young boys who were there with him in Hawaii came to give him a hug and kiss to celebrate the win with him. Jimmy Walker (USA) is just having a dream start to the 2013/14 USPGA Tour season with getting two wins already in his first six starts. Jimmy Walker (USA) has been playing on the USPGA Tour fulltime for the last five seasons easily keeping his card each season. In his last two seasons on the USPGA Tour he has made at least one million US dollars in each. Through this win he now gets to play in Masters Tournament in early April, Players Championship in early May and PGA Championship in mid August. This win will also give him heaps of confidence to know now he truly belongs out here and it shows that all the perseverance and hard work he has put in during his career to date has paid off. I hope he can have many more top five finishes before the season is over and perhaps even have his third win? I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013/14 season.

Coming in solo second position at 264-16 after 72 holes was Chris Kirk (USA); he earned US $604,800.00 for his efforts and moved to third position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $ 1,777,358 earned from the five events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 300 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to second position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 931 points earned from the five events he has played to date this season so far. From the five events he has played to date this season so far he has made five cuts and achieved two top ten finishes which includes the one here and also his win in early November last year at the McGladrey Classic.

Chris Kirk (USA) has been playing on the USPGA Tour fulltime since the 2011 season. In his three previous seasons on the USPGA Tour he has won at least US $1million and in his rookie season in 2011 he won his maiden USPGA Tour title at the Viking Classic. It is great to see him achieve his second USPGA Tour win back in November last year and now he will get a chance to play in a few of the bigger Tournaments in 2014. Those tournaments will be the 2014 World Golf Championship Events, 2014 Masters Tournament in mid April, PGA Championship in August and the Players Championship in early May. Let’s hope he can get his third win very soon? I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013/14 season.

Coming in solo third position at 265-15 after 72 holes was Jerry Kelly (USA); he earned US $380,800.00 for his efforts and moved to twenty fifth position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $ 474,000 earned from the five events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 190 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to twenty second position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 254 points earned from the five events he has played to date this season so far. From the five events he has played to date this season so far he has made three cuts and withdrawn from one. This was also his first top ten of the season. Jerry Kelly (USA) has been playing on the USPGA Tour fulltime since the 1996 season and has kept his card for the next year every year since. In 2012 he finished in 126th position on the final USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $ 645,701 earned from the 26 events he played in and that meant he missed out on gaining his full status on the USPGA Tour for the 2013 season by one place. In the 2013 season he finished in 99th position on the final 2013 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $ 832,407 earned from the twenty two events he played in. In his USPGA Tour Career to date so far he has achieved three USPGA Tour wins and here they are from the first to the most recent: 2002 Sony Open in Hawaii, Advil Western Open and the 2009 Zurich Classic of New Orleans. He turns 48 in November and no doubt will be eying the Champions Tour in just over two and a half year’s time. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013/14 USPGA Tour season.

Coming in solo fourth position at 266-14 after 72 holes was Harris English (USA); he earned US $268,800.00 for his efforts and moved to second position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $1,785,617 earned from the six events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 135 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and remained in third position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 860 points earned from the six events he has played to date this year so far. From the six events he has played to date this season so far he has made six cuts and achieved three top ten finishes that includes the one here and also his second win on the USPGA Tour that came at the OHL Classic at Mayakoba in mid November. Harris English (USA) has been playing on the USPGA Tour for the past three seasons and that includes this one. He gained his USPGA Tour card by finishing in tied for 13th position at the 2011 PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament and he gained his full USPGA Tour Card for the 2012 season. He had a brilliant rookie season in 2012 with playing in 27 events and making 22 cuts that included three top ten finishes with his best being a tied for fifth position at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial. He finished in 79th position on the final 2012 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $1,186,003 earned and he easily kept his card for the 2013 season. In the 2013 season he had his career best season to date so far in his career with finishing in 27th position on the final 2013 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $ 2,201,167 earned from the 26 events he played in and achieved his maiden USPGA Tour win at the FedEx St. Jude Classic in early June. I feel now he has got his second win he will now aim higher and try to win a WGC Event and perhaps even contend for the first Major Championship in 2014 which is the Masters Tournament and it  is played in his home state of Georgia. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013/14 season.

Coming in solo fifth position at 267-13 after 72 holes was Marc Leishman (Australia); he earned US $224,000.00 for his efforts and moved to fiftieth position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $ 247,100 earned from the three events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 110 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to 56th position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points list standings with  136 points earned from the three events he has played to date this season so far. From the three events he has played to date this season so far he has made two cuts and this was his first top ten finish he has achieved so far this season. He has played the USPGA Tour fulltime since the 2009 season and has easily kept his card for the next season every year since. And in the 2012 season he achieved his maiden win on the USPGA Tour at the 2012 Travelers Championship. I sure his second win isn’t too far off and maybe it will happen in the 2013/14 season?

Coming in solo sixth position at 268-12 after 72 holes was the 36 hole leader, Brian Stuard (USA); he earned US $201,600.00 for his efforts and moved to eighth position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Money list standings with US $ 947,800 earned from the five events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 100 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to eighth position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 464 points earned from the five events he has played to date this season so far. From the five events he has played to date this season so far he has made four cuts and achieved two top ten finishes so far with both of them coming in the last two events he has played. He will be disappointed with his third round 71+1 because it properly ruined any chance he had of achieving his maiden win on the USPGA Tour. He is in his second time at playing the USPGA Tour full time having had his rookie season in 2010 where he earned US $536,497 from the 28 events he played in and finished in 154th position on the final 2010 USPGA Tour Money list. He earned his 2013 USPGA Tour card by finishing in 20th position on the final 2012 Web.com Tour Money list with US $ 205,711 earned from the 26 events he played in. In the 2013 season he earned US $1,032,028 from the twenty five events he played in and finished in 79th position on the final 2013 USPGA Tour Money list standings. He has made a very solid start to the 2013/14 USPGA Tour season and I feel his maiden win on the USPGA Tour could well happen in 2014? I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013/14 season.

Rounding out the top seven in solo seventh position at 269-11 after 72 holes was Jeff Overton (USA); he earned US $187,600.00 for his efforts and moved to 18th position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $ 585,950 earned from the six events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 90 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to 17th position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 317 points earned from the six events he has played to date this season so far. From the six events he has played to date this season so far he has made five cuts and achieved two top ten finishes that includes the one here. He has been playing the USPGA Tour now full time since the 2006 season and is still yet to achieve his maiden USPGA Tour win. He has finished in second position four times though and three of those came in his career year to date on the USPGA Tour which was 2010 where he earned US $3,456,356 from the 26 events he played in and finished up in 12th position on the final 2010 USPGA Tour Money list standings. He also made his Ryder Cup debut in 2010 for Team USA. I’m sure he will achieve his maiden USPGA Tour win very soon, perhaps it will happen in the 2013/14 season? I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013/14 season.   

There were two New Zealand Golfers in the field and the best of them was Tim Wilkinson (NZL), who scored 71 + 1, 67-3, 67-3 and a final round of 70 even par for a 72 hole total of 275-5 and he tied for 46th position. He earned US $15,523 for his efforts and move to 71st position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $ 171,523 earned from the four events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned  23 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to 85th position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 96 points earned from the four events he has played to date this season so far. From the four events he has played to date this season so far he has made two cuts and achieved one top ten finish that came at the OHL Classic at Mayakoba in mid November last year. He will be very disappointed with his first and final rounds but happy with his second and third rounds. I wish him all the best in the weeks ahead on the USPGA Tour.   

Danny Lee (NZL) was the other New Zealand Golfer in the field and he scored rounds of 73+3 and 68-2 for a 36 hole total of 141+1 and he missed the cut by two shots. He current lies in 148th position of the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $45,657 earned from the five events he has played to date this season so far. He also currently lies in 123rd position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup points list standings with 63 points earned from the five events he has played to date this season so far. From the five events he has played to date this season so far he has made two cuts and achieved no top ten finishes. He will be very disappointed at missing the cut here but at the same time he be encouraged by his 68-2 in the second round. I wish all the best in his next few tournaments.

Next week the USPGA Tour and FedEx Cup heads to the USA Mainland for the first time in 2014 for the Humana Challenge in partnership with the Clinton Foundation and it is played on the PGA West (Palmer), La Quinta, California. It carries a large prize purse of US $5,700,000 for the taking. Brian Gay (USA) is the defending Champion and will be keen to defend his title. Tim Wilkinson (NZL) and Danny Lee (NZL) will get starts as well. It starts on Thursday 16th January and I will report back who won the trophy next week. 

So to the Top 5 on the Official World Golf Rankings Points list for the first time in 2014 and coming in at Number One Position for the 666th week of his career in total is Tiger Woods (USA) who is fresh off his solo second position at the Northwestern Mutual World Challenge a tournament he hosted over a month ago with 11.26 Official Golf World Ranking Points; coming in at Number Two is Adam Scott (Australia) who won his maiden Major Championship at the Masters Tournament over nine months ago and also won The Barclays over three months ago and also won the Australian PGA Championship just over two months ago and he also won the Talisker Masters eight weeks ago and seven weeks ago finished in solo third position in the individual competition at the ISPS HANDA World Cup of Golf and six weeks ago finished runner up in the Emirates Australian Open with 9.19 Official Golf World Ranking Points; coming in at Number Three is Henrik Stenson (Sweden) who won the Tour Championship by Coca – Cola and also the 2013 FedEx Cup over three months ago and won DP World Tour Championship, Dubai and the 2013 Race to Dubai Title eight weeks ago with 8.96 Official Golf World Ranking Points; coming in at Number Four is and Justin Rose (England) who won his maiden Major Championship at the 113th US Open Championship just over six months ago and also finished in tied for third position at the Turkish Airlines Open over two months ago with 6.90 Official Golf World Ranking Points and rounding out the top 5 on the Official Golf World Ranking Points list this week is Phil Mickelson (USA) who won the Open Championship over five months ago with 6.80 Official Golf World Ranking Points. Michael Hendry (NZL) fresh off  his tie for 38th position in the individual competition at the ISPS HANDA World Cup of Golf seven weeks ago is the highest ranked New Zealand Golfer in the world for the Fortieth ninth straight week of his career. This week he slips one place and moves to 210th position on the Official World Golf Rankings Points list with 0.81 Official Golf World Ranking Points.

Remember if you believe in yourself you will have a great chance of achieving success!!

Source: Pgatour.com, Official World Golf Rankings