Golf Events from the Weekend 5th January 2014

It was another awesome weekend on the Major Professional Golf Tours from around the world and this week it was the first tournament of the 2014 part of the 2013/14 season on the USPGA Tour and it was the Hyundai Tournament of Champions and it was played on the Plantation Course at Kapalua, Kapalua, Maui, Hawaii. Only the winners from the 2013 USPGA Tour season and the 2013 part of the 2013/14 USPGA Tour season were eligible to play in it. And it was the Golfer by the name of Zach Johnson (USA) who scored rounds of 67-6, 66-7, 74+1 and a brilliant final round of 66-7 for a 72 hole total of 273-19 and he won by one shot for his eleventh victory on the USPGA Tour of his career. He won US $1,140,000.00 for his efforts and moved to sixth position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list with US $ 1,249,850 earned from the three events he has played to date this season so far. Ryan Moore (USA) currently leads that list with US $1,690,350 earned from the five events he has played to date this year so far. Zach Johnson (USA) also earned 500 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to seventh position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points standings list with 584 points earned from the three events he has played to date this season so far. He is currently 164 points behind the current leader of that list who is Webb Simpson (USA) who has earned 748 points from the three events he has played to date this year so far. From the three events he has played to date so far this season on the USPGA tour he has made all three cuts and this win was also his first top ten of the season. 

Zach Johnson (USA) played a brilliant bogey free final round of 66-7 which included a front nine of 33-3 with birdies on the par three, second hole, par five, fifth hole and par four, seventh hole and made the turn at minus 15 and was one shot off the lead. Jordan Spieth (USA) scored 34-2 on the front nine and made the turn at minus 16 and was leading by one shot. Kevin Streelman (USA) went out in 34-2 and made the turn at minus 13 and was three shots behind the leader. Webb Simpson (USA) went out in 37+1 and made the turn at minus 13 and was three shots behind the leader. 

Zach Johnson (USA) played holes ten to 14 in two under par and moved to minus 17 and now was only leading by a shot. Jordan Spieth (USA) played holes ten to 14 in even par and remained at minus 16 and now was one shot behind the leader. Kevin Streelman (USA) played holes ten to 14 in one under par and moved to minus 14 and was still three strokes behind the leader. Webb Simpson (USA) played holes ten to 14 in two under par and moved to minus 15 and now was only two shots behind the leader.

Zach Johnson (USA) is action during the final round

Zach Johnson (USA) played holes 15 to 17 in two under par and moved to minus 19 and was now leading by two shots. Jordan Spieth (USA) played holes 15 to 17 in one under par and moved to minus 17 but was now two shots behind the leader. Kevin Streelman (USA) played holes 15 to 17 in three under par and moved to minus 17 and was now only two shots behind the leader. Webb Simpson (USA) played holes 15 – 17 in one under par and moved to minus 16 and now was now three shots behind the leader.

Kevin Streelman (USA) who was playing a few groups a head of the leaders made a solid par up the par five, at the 72nd hole and he finished the 72 holes on minus 17 and finished two shots behind the winner. Zach Johnson (USA) who was playing in the group ahead of the final group hit an excellent drive down the par five, 72nd hole which found the middle of the fairway. He then struck his fairway wood to within 100 yards of the green. He played a very good third shot with his short wedge that came to rest about ten feet from the pin. He now knew if he could hole that ten foot birdie putt he would surely winning the tournament but it just missed on the right hand side and he had to settle for his par five. He finished on minus 19 after 72 holes and ended up winning by a single shot!! Jordan Spieth (USA) stood on the Par five, 72nd hole now knowing that he would have to make eagle to force a playoff. He struck a brilliant drive right down the middle of the fairway and was faced with over 300 yards to the green for his second shot. He hit a very solid fairway wood for his second shot and it almost made the green leaving about 90 feet to the pin for his third shot. He chose the putter for his third shot and he knew he had to hole it to force a playoff with Zach Johnson (USA) as I mentioned before. But it proved a very difficult putt to judge and he missed it ten feet to the left. But he displayed great nerve to hole the ten foot putt for his birdie and he finished the 72 holes on minus 18 which was a single shot behind the winner. Webb Simpson (USA) made a very good birdie at the par five, 72nd hole to finish the 72 holes on minus 17 and was two strokes behind the winner.

Zach Johnson (USA) poses with the Hyundai Tournament of Champions Trophy he won!!

Zach Johnson (USA) now knowing for certain he had won the tournament gave his caddie, Damon Green a huge hug and high five and then his wife and three children who were also at the tournament with him gave him a huge hug to celebrate with him. When interviewed by the golf channel reporter he said “He want to thank his lord and saviour, Jesus Christ, because he prayed to him for peace to be with him on the course today and it was”. He was one of the shortest hitters on the course this week and he beat some of the longest hitters on the USPGA Tour this week by simply keeping the ball in play and putting his wedge shots close and out putting them. Zach Johnson (USA) has been playing on the USPGA Tour fulltime since the 2004 season after gaining his card by finishing at the top of the 2003 final Web.com Tour Money list with US $ 494,882 earned from the 20 events he played in. In his rookie season on the USPGA Tour he won his maiden USPGA Tour event which was the BellSouth Classic. He has easily kept his card every year since and has won at least US$ 1million in all of those seasons. He has won eleven official events on the USPGA Tour so far in his career and here they are from the first to the most recent: 2004 BellSouth Classic, 2007 Masters Tournament (Maiden Major Championship), AT&T Classic, 2008 Valero Texas Open, 2009 Sony Open in Hawaii, Valero Texas Open, 2010 Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, 2012 Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, John Deere Classic, 2013 BMW Championship and the 2014 Hyundai Tournament of Champions. I feel his second Major Championship win isn’t too far away but it will have to wait until the Master Tournament in early April now. He has now amassed US $31,571,652 in career earnings on the USPGA Tour to date so far from the 265 events he has played in. This win proves that just because you have a shorter drive than most of the other players you can still win but hitting your wedge shots close and make all the putts that count. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2014 part of the 2013/14 season.

Coming in solo second position at 274-18 after 72 holes was Jordan Spieth (USA); he earned US $665,000.00 for his efforts and moved to eleventh position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour list standings with US $ 755,000 earned from the two events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 300 FedEx Cup points for his efforts and moved to eleventh position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Playoffs points list standings with 355 points earned from two events he has played to date this season so far. From the two events he has played to date this season so far on the USPGA Tour he has made two cuts and this was his first top ten of the season. He will be happy with this finish but at the same time he will be a little disappointed because he passed up a great chance of getting his second win on the USPGA Tour. Jordan Spieth (USA) made people really take notice of him in his first ever USPGA Tour event he played as a 16 year old Amateur at the 2010 HP Byron Nelson Championship where he scored rounds of 68-2, 69-1, 67-3 and a final round of 72+2 for a 72 hole total of 276-4 and he tied for 16th position while still attending the University of Texas. In the 2011 HP Byron Nelson Championship he played in it again as a 17 year old Amateur and this time he scored rounds of 69-1, 68-2, 72+2 and a 77+7 which was played in extremely windy conditions for a 72 hole total of 286+6 and he tied for 32nd position. In 2012 he played in five more USPGA Tour events as an Amateur and made the cut in three of them with his best finish being tied for 21st at the 112th US Open Championship and he also achieved low Amateur Honours. He decided to turn professional in December of 2012 in the midst of his sophomore year at the University of Texas. He Monday qualified and got a few sponsor’s exemptions to play on the USPGA Tour in the early part of the 2013 season. And he managed to win the John Deere Classic in a five hole playoff in mid July which gave him full membership on the USPGA Tour till the end of 2015. That win he achieved at the John Deere Classic also earned him the last invitation into The Open Championship in Muirfield, Scotland, that week. He joined 27 other players on the John Deere Classic's chartered jet from Moline, Ill., to Scotland. He also is now exempt on the USPGA Tour till the end of the 2015 season and he also gains starts in the Hyundai Tournament of Champions (Which was this past week) and the Masters Tournament next April. He won the 2013 USPGA Tour rookie of the year award. And last year he played on the winning Presidents Cup after getting selected as a Captains pick for the US Presidents Cup Team. He is just an Amazing talent and now he has got his maiden USPGA Tour win I feel he can only go from strength to strength. It is amazing to think that before the start of the 2013 USPGA Tour Season he had no status on the USPGA Tour at all. Let’s hope he can continue this fine form throughout the 2014 part of the 2013/14 USPGA Tour season? He is sure to be a Superstar in World Golf for many years to come. I wish him all the best for the rest of 2013/14 season.

Coming in tied for third position at 275-17 after 72 holes was Kevin Streelman (USA); he earned US $382,000.00 for his efforts and moved to twenty second position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $461,908 earned from the three events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 163 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to twenty fourth position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 212 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 three cuts and this was his first top ten finish to date so far this season. He has been playing the USPGA Tour fulltime since the 2008 season after gaining his card at the 2007 PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament where he finished in tied for 14th position. I feel his second USPGA Tour win isn’t too far away and could very well happen in the 2013/14 season? I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013/14 season.

Also tied for third position was Webb Simpson (USA); he too earned US $382,000.00 for his efforts and moved to second position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $ 1,633,417 earned from the three events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 163 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to the top of the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 748 points earned from the three events he has played to date this season so far, he is 15 points ahead of Jimmy Walker (USA) who is currently in second position. From the three events Webb Simpson (USA) has played to date this season so far he has made all three cuts and achieved top ten finishes in all of them including a win at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open. Webb Simpson (USA) has been playing the USPGA Tour fulltime since the 2009 season after gaining his card at the 2008 PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament where he finished in tied for seventh position. He had a fine rookie season in 2009 on the USPGA Tour where he earned just over US one million dollars and easily keep his card for the 2010 season. In his second full season on the USPGA Tour in 2010 he earned just under US one million dollars and easily kept his card for the 2011 season. In his third full season on the USPGA Tour in 2011 he had a Awesome season with earning just over US 6.3 Million Dollars and finished second on the final 2011 USPGA Tour Money list with US $6,347,353 earned from the 26 events he played in. He also won two USPGA Tour events with his maiden win coming at the Wyndham Championship and his second one coming at the Deutsche Bank Championship which was the second FedEx Cup playoff event. In his fourth season on the USPGA Tour in 2012 he had another awesome season with earning just over US 3.4 million dollars and he won his third event on the USPGA Tour which was his Maiden Major Championship at the 112th US Open Championship. I’m sure his fifth win isn’t too far off either and maybe it will happen at the first Major Championship of the 2014 season which is the Masters Tournament in April 2014? I wish him all the best with the tournaments he plays in the coming weeks.

Coming in solo fifth position at 277-15 after 72 holes was Jason Dufner (USA); he earned US $276,000.00 for his efforts and moved to 31st position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $ 340,000 earned from the two events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 110 FedEx Cup points for his efforts and moved to 43rd position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 145 points earned from the two events he has played to date this season so far. From the two events he has played to date this season so far he has made two cuts and this was his first top ten finish of the season.  Jason Dufner (USA) has been playing on the USPGA Tour fulltime for the last six seasons and has easily kept his card every year for the next year every year except one. In that time he has achieved three wins with the Maiden win coming at the 2012 Zurich Classic of New Orleans and his second win coming a few weeks later at the HP Byron Nelson Championship and the third one was of course the 2013, 95th PGA Championship which was his maiden Major Championship. Now he has won his Maiden Major Championship I wouldn’t be surprised if he wins another one in the next few years. His awesome ball striking and the fact that nothing really annoys him on the golf course really helps him to perform well under the intense pressure that Major Championship Golf puts on players. He now has career earnings on USPGA Tour of US $15,642,277 earned from the 198 events he has played to date so far in his career. I wish him all the best for the rest of 2013/14 season. 

Coming in tied for sixth position at 278-14 after 72 holes was Billy Horschel (USA); he earned US $198,750.00 for his efforts and moved to twenty fifth position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $423,750 earned from the four events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 89 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to twenty eighth position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points standings list with 189 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 three cuts and this was his very first top ten finish he has achieved this season so far. Billy Horschel (USA) first gained his USPGA Tour card in 2010 by finishing in solo seventh position at the 2009 PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament. In his rookie season on the USPGA Tour in 2010 he only managed to play in four events and missed every cut because of a tendon injury to his left wrist that required surgery. The wrist started bothering him in late 2009. He was granted a major Medical Extension for 2011 USPGA Tour season, with 19 events to equal the Number 125 from the 2010 PGA TOUR money list ($786,977) he improved his status with a Tied 27th finish at the 2010 PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament. In the 2011 USPGA Tour season he only made US $533,024 from the 25 events he played in and finished in 140th position on the final 2011 USPGA Tour Money list giving him some status on the USPGA Tour for the 2012 season. He went back to the 2011 PGA Tour Qualifying Tournament but finished in tied 103rd position and got his Web.com Tour Card and that meant he had two tours to play on in the 2012 season. In the 2012 USPGA Tour season he played in 17 events and made 15 cuts and achieved one top ten finish. He earned US $486,177 from those 17 events he played in and finished up in 147th position on the final 2012 USPGA Tour Money list standings meaning he again had some status on the USPGA Tour for the 2013 season. He chose to go back to the 2012 PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament to improve his status and he did better than that by finishing tied for fourth position and gained his full USPGA Tour card for the 2013 USPGA Tour season. He had his career best season to date in 2013 with earning US $3,501,703 from the twenty six events he played in and that included winning his maiden USPGA Tour event at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans in late April. And I guess as they say the rest is history. He now will be playing in the 2014 Masters Tournament. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013/14 season. 

Also tied for sixth position was Matt Kuchar (USA); he also earned US $198,750.00 for his efforts and moved to twenty eighth position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $ 370,167 earned from the two events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 89 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to 33rd position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 174 points earned from the two events he has played to date this season so far. From the two events he has played to date this season so far he has made two cuts and achieved two top ten finishes. Matt Kuchar (USA) has been playing on the USPGA Tour full time on and off since the 2002 season and has easily kept his card for the next season every season since except for the 2005 season. He spent the 2006 season on the Web.com Tour and earned his 2007 USPGA Tour card back by earning US $300,867 from the 21 events he played in and finished in tenth position on the final 2006 Web.com Tour Money list standings. Since 2007 he has had huge success on the USPGA Tour and his current all time USPGA Tour earnings are US $26,786,194 earned from 303 events he has played to date so far in his career. The next step for him would be to win a Major Championship and maybe it will happen in the next few years? He has won six times on the USPGA Tour to date in his career so far and here they are from his first to the most recent: 2002 The Honda Classic, 2009 Turning Stone Resort Championship, 2010 The Barclays, 2012 THE PLAYERS Championship, 2013 World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship and the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance. I wish him all the best with for the rest of the 2013/14 season. 

Also tied for sixth position was Adam Scott (Australia); he also earned US $198,750.00 for his efforts and moved to sixtieth position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $ 198,750 earned from the one event he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 89 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to 78th position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 89 points earned from the one event he has played to date this season so far. From the one event he has played to date this season so far he has made one cut and achieved one top ten finish. Adam Scott (Australia) has been playing on the USPGA Tour fulltime since the 2003 season and has kept his card for the next season every season since. In that time he has career earnings of US $33,397,815 earned from the 214 events he has played to date so far in his career. He has also won ten times on the USPGA Tour to date in his career so far and here they are from the first to the most recent: 2003 Deutsche Bank Championship, 2004 THE PLAYERS Championship, Booz Allen Classic, 2006 THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola, 2007 Shell Houston Open, 2008 EDS Byron Nelson Championship, 2010 Valero Texas Open, 2011 World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational, 2013 Masters Tournament (Maiden Major Championship) and The Barclays. He had the best record of any player in the four Major Championships in 2013 with winning the Masters Tournament in April; tying for 45th position at the 113th US Open Championship in June; tying for third at the 142nd Open Championship in July and tying for fifth at the 95th PGA Championship in August. He proved over the last few years that he has one of the solid and most consistent Golf Swings on the USPGA Tour that can stand up to the intense pressures that the USPGA Tour throws at the players week in and week out. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013/14 USPGA Tour season.

The final player to tie for sixth position was Dustin Johnson (USA); he also earned US $198,750.00 for his efforts and moved to third position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $ 1,598,750 earned from the two events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 89 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to fifth position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 639 points earned from the two events he has played to date this season so far. From the two events he has played to date this season so far he has made both cuts and achieved two top ten finishes which includes a win at the World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions in China in early November. He will be extremely disappointed with his final round 73 even par because he was tied for the lead heading into the final round and he had a great chance to defend his title. Dustin Johnson (USA) has been playing on the USPGA Tour fulltime since he qualified for the USPGA Tour by finishing in tied for 14th position at the 2007 PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament he has retained his full playing status on the USPGA Tour every season since and earned at least US $1.7million every season since. He has also won eight events on the USPGA Tour to date so far in his career and here they are from the first to the most recent: 2008 Turning Stone Resort Championship, 2009 AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, 2010 AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, BMW Championship, 2011 The Barclays, 2012 FedEx St. Jude Classic, 2013 Hyundai Tournament of Champions and the 2013/14 WGC – HSBC Champions. The only thing that he is lacking now is his maiden Major Championship win but it will have to wait until the 2014 season now. He has also amassed US $21,506,663 in career earnings to date from the 143 events he has played so far in his career and he made the cut in all four Major Championships last season and here were his results: tied for 13th position at the Masters Tournament in April; solo 55th position at the 113th US Open Championship in June; tied for 32nd at the 142nd Open Championship in July and tied for eighth position at the 95th PGA Championship in August. I feel now he is ready to win a Major Championship and it may well happen at the Masters Tournament in April 2014? I wish him all the best for the rest of 2013/14 season.

Rounding out the top ten in solo tenth position was Ryan Moore (USA); he earned US $170,000.00 for his efforts and moved to number one position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $ 1,690,350 earned from the five events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 75 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to fourth position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 714 points earned from 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 three top ten finishes that includes a win at the CIMB Classic in late October. He has been playing on the USPGA Tour fulltime since the 2006 season with easily keeping his card every season since and he has achieved three wins so far in his career with the first coming at the 2009 Wyndham Championship and the second coming at the 2012 Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open and his third came at the 2013 CIMB Classic. He gained his full USPGA Tour card by earning enough money from sponsor’s exemptions in the 2005 season after he played in the 2005 Masters Tournament and US Open Championship because he won the 2004 US Amateur Championship. I’m sure his fourth win isn’t too far off as well? I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013/14 season.

Next week the USPGA Tour and FedEx Cup stay in Hawaii for the first regular season event of the 2014 part of the 2013/14 USPGA Tour season and it is the Sony Open in Hawaii and is played on the Waialae CC, Honolulu, Hawaii. It carries a large prize purse of US $5,600,000 for the taking. Russell Henley (USA) is the defending Champion and will be keen for back to back titles. Tim Wilkinson (NZL) is also certain to get a start after having a top ten in his previous start on the USPGA Tour and Danny Lee (NZL) is also very likely to get a start and he performed very well in this event last year as a Monday qualifier. It starts on Thursday 9th 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 662nd 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 four weeks ago with 11.48 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 eight months ago and also won The Barclays over three months ago and also won the Australian PGA Championship just over a month ago and he also won the Talisker Masters seven weeks ago and six weeks ago finished in solo third position in the individual competition at the ISPS HANDA World Cup of Golf and five weeks ago finished runner up in the Emirates Australian Open with 9.42 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 three months ago and won DP World Tour Championship, Dubai and the 2013 Race to Dubai Title seven weeks ago with 9.06 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 7.03 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 6.93 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 six weeks ago is the highest ranked New Zealand Golfer in the world for the Fortieth eight straight week of his career. This week he gains four places and moves to 209th position on the Official World Golf Rankings Points list with 0.83 Official Golf World Ranking Points.

Remember to always stay positive during a round of Golf!!

Source: Pgatour.com, Official World Golf Rankings