Golf Events from the Weekend 16th February 2014

Well it was another awesome weekend on the Major Professional Golf Tours from around the world and this week the USPGA Tour and FedEx Cup stayed in the state of California for the Northern Trust Open and it was played on the Riviera CC, Pacific Palisades, California. And it was the golfer by the name of Bubba Watson (USA) who scored rounds of 70-1, 71 even par, 64-7 that was bogey free and a final round bogey free 64-7 for a 72 hole total of 269-15 to win by two shots for his fifth win on the USPGA Tour and his first since the 2012 Masters Tournament which was also his first Major Championship. He won US $1,206,000 for the win and moved to fourth position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $2,012,007 earned from the five events he has played to date this season so far. Jimmy Walker (USA) still leads that list with US $3,686,680 earned from the nine events he has played to date this season so far. Bubba Watson (USA) also earned 500 FedEx Cup points for the win and moved to fifth position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 914 points earned from the five events he has played to date this season so far. He is 869 points behind the current leader of the FedEx Cup who is Jimmy Walker (USA) who has earned 1,783 points from the nine events he has played to date this season so far. From the five events Bubba Watson (USA) has played to date this season so far he has made five cuts and achieved three top ten finishes that includes the win here. 

Bubba Watson (USA) in action during the final round

Bubba Watson (USA) played a flawless final round of 64-7 that included a front nine of 30-5 with birdies on the par five, first hole, par four, third hole, par three, fourth hole, par three, sixth hole and par four, eighth hole and he made the turn at minus 13 and was leading by one shot. Dustin Johnson (USA) went out in 32-3 and made the turn at minus eleven and was two shots behind the leader. Jason Allred (USA) who Monday qualified for this event went out in 33-2 and made the turn at minus eleven and was two shots behind the leader. Brian Harman (USA) went out in 32-3 and made the turn at minus 12 and was one shot behind the leader.

Bubba Watson (USA) played holes ten to 14 in one under par and moved to minus 14 and he was now leading by two shots. Dustin Johnson (USA) played holes ten to 14 in one under par and moved to minus 12 and was now only two shots behind the leader. Jason Allred (USA) played holes ten to 14 in even par and remained at minus eleven but now was three shots behind the leader. Brian Harman (USA) played holes ten to 14 in even par and remained at minus 12 but now was two shots behind the leader.

Bubba Watson (USA) played holes 15 to 17 in even par and remained at minus 14 with just the par four, 72nd hole to play but now was only leading by a single stroke. Dustin Johnson (USA) played holes 15 to 17 in one under par and moved to minus 13 with just the par four, 72nd hole to play and now was only one shot off the leader. Jason Allred (USA) played holes 15 to 17 in one under par and moved to minus 12 and now only two shots off the leader with just the par four, 72nd hole to play. Brian Harman (USA) played holes 15 to 17 in even par and remained at minus 12 and still was two shots off the leader with just the par four, 72nd hole to play.

 

Bubba Watson (USA) pumps his fist in the air after holing his putt on the 72nd green!!

Jason Allred (USA) playing in the group ahead of the final group made a solid par up the par four, 72nd hole and finished the 72 holes on minus 12 and was three shots behind the winner. Dustin Johnson (USA) also playing in the group ahead of the final group also had a solid par at the par four, 72nd hole and finished the 72 holes on minus 13 and finished two shots behind the winner. Brian Harman (USA) who was playing in the final group made a very solid par at the par four, 72nd hole and finished the 72 holes at minus 12 which was three shots behind the winner. Bubba Watson (USA) hit an excellent drive off the par four, 72nd hole which landed right in the centre of the fairway. He then hit his short iron into 12 feet below the flagstick. Walking up to the 72nd green he knew the win was virtually secured so he could saviour the moment. He stood over the 12 foot birdie putt knowing two putts would be good enough for the win but he went even better and holed the 12 footer for his birdie three and he scored 34-2 on his back nine and finished the 72 holes on minus 15 to win by two shots. He got a huge high five from his caddie, Ted Scott and then his wife Angie greeted him with a kiss as he was walking to the scorers hut to celebrate and when he was doing an interview for CBS Sports he got to hold his young son, Caleb. This win was sweet redemption for him as two weeks prior he took the 54 hole lead into the final round at the Waste Management Phoenix Open but was unable to get the win.

 

Bubba Watson (USA) on the left poses with the Northern Trust Open Trophy he won and on the right is his wife, Angie and their Son, Caleb

Bubba Watson (USA) has been playing on the USPGA Tour fulltime since the 2006 season and has easily kept his card for the following year every year since. And he has made US One Million Dollars in all of those seasons as well. He has already achieved five wins on the USPGA Tour which includes the win this past week and here they are from the first to the most recent: 2010 Travelers Championship, 2011 Farmers Insurance Open, Zurich Classic of New Orleans, 2012 Masters Tournament (Maiden Major Championship) and the 2014 Northern Trust Open. I feel his sixth win on the USPGA Tour will coming in the 2013/14 season and perhaps it could be his second Major Championship win? I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013/14 season.

Coming in solo second position at 271-13 after 72 holes was Dustin Johnson (USA); he earned US $ 723,600 for his efforts and moved to second position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $ 2,903,150 earned from the four events he has played to date so far this season. 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 list with 1,184 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 four cuts and all of them have been top ten finishes which includes his last two tournaments where he has had second place finishes and also his win at the World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions in China in early November last year. He also scored a flawless final round of 66-5.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 and 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. He has also amassed US $22,811,063 in career earnings to date from the 145 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 the second week of April 2014? I wish him all the best for the rest of 2013/14 season.

Coming in tied for third position at 272-12 after 72 holes was Jason Allred (USA); he earned US $388,600 for his efforts but because he isn’t a current member of the USPGA Tour he doesn’t get a current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list ranking on the standings. And because he isn’t a current member of the USPGA Tour doesn’t qualify to earn any FedEx Cup Points or get a ranking on the standings list. From the one event he has played to date this season so far he has made one cut and achieved one top ten finish that came at this event. The reason why he was playing in this tournament was because he Monday qualified by scoring 66 and hence got the one of the four qualifying positions for this tournament. It was an amazing performance by Jason in the last three rounds after scoring a disappointing 73+2 in the first round he came back with three straight rounds in the 60’s in the final three rounds and playing in the final group in the final round for the first time he looked like a seasoned veteran on the USPGA Tour rather than some who had to Monday qualify to just make it into the field. With this top ten finish he will get a start in the next regular USPGA Tour event and that is the Honda Classic which starts on the Thursday 27th February. And with this performance this past week many tournament directors may well give him sponsor’s exemptions to play in their tournaments in the weeks ahead on the USPGA Tour? I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013/14 USPGA Tour season.

The final player to tie for third position was Brian Harman (USA); he too earned US $388,600 for his efforts and moved to twenty sixth position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $727,992 earned from the nine events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 163 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to twenty ninth position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points standings list with 372 points earned from the nine events he has played to date this season so far. From the nine 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, this was also his best finish on the USPGA Tour this season to date. He has been playing the USPGA Tour fulltime since the 2012 season in which he earned US $1,146,448 from the 30 events he played in and he finished in 87th position on the final 2012 USPGA Tour Money list standings which meant he easily kept his card for the 2013 USPGA Tour season. In 2013 on the USPGA Tour he earned US $909,759 from the twenty nine events he played in and he finished in 92nd position on the final 2013 USPGA Tour Money list standings meaning he easily kept his full USPGA Tour card for the 2013/14 season. I am sure his maiden USPGA Tour win isn’t too far away? I wish him all the best for the events he plays in the weeks to come.

Coming in solo 5th position at 273-11 after 72 holes was Charl Schwartzel (RSA); he earned US$268,000 for his efforts and moved to 83rd  position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US$268,000 earned from the one event he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 110 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to 122nd position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points standings list with 110 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 this was also the first top ten finish he has achieved to date this season so far. It was great to see him make such a good start to the season and I feel his second Major Championship win could be just around the corner. Perhaps it could even happen this year? I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013/14 season.

Coming in tied for sixth position at 274-10 after 72 holes was Bryce Molder (USA); he earned US $216,912.50 for his efforts and moved to 35th position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $608,373 earned from the eight events he has played to date so far this season. He also earned 88 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to 45th position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 294 points earned from the eight events he has played to date this season so far. From the eight events he has played to date this season so far he has made eight cuts and achieved two top ten finishes that includes the one here. Bryce Molder (USA) joined the USPGA Tour in 2002 but his best finish was tied for 9th at the Compaq Classic of New Orleans and he only made $US 348,028 from the 22 events he had entered and failed to keep his card for the 2003 USPGA Tour Season. He spent from 2003-2006 on the Nationwide Tour. In 2006 he earned $US 205,413 from the 24 events he entered and earned his 2007 USPGA Tour card. In 2007 he earned $US 257,593 from 21 events he entered so he was back to the Nationwide Tour in 2008. In 2008 he earned $US 234,651 for the 27 events he played on the Nationwide Tour and gained back his USPGA Tour card for 2009. He had his best year on the USPGA Tour in 2009 earning $US 1,381,211 from the 21 events he entered easily keeping his card for the 2010 season. In 2010 he had an even better season than the last earning $US 1,428,438 from the 26 events he entered. In 2011 he earned his maiden USPGA Tour victory at the Frys.com Open in his 132nd start on the PGA TOUR at the age of 32 years, 8 months and 13 days. In 2012 he earned US $1,166,115 from the twenty five events he played in but was already exempt for the 2013 USPGA Tour season because of his win in 2011. In 2013 on the USPGA Tour he earned US $816,922 from the twenty four events he played in and retained his card for the 2013/14 USPGA Tour season. I wish Bryce Molder (USA) all the best for the rest of the 2013/14 USPGA Tour season.

Also tied for sixth position was Matt Every (USA); he too earned US $216,912.50 for his efforts and moved to 30th position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US$683,026 earned from the eight events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 88 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to twenty eight position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points standings list with 378 points earned from the eight events he has played to date this season so far. From the eight events he has played to date this season so far he has made seven cuts and achieved three top ten finishes that includes the one here. He has been playing the USPGA Tour on and off since the 2010 season and in the 2012 season he had his best season so far with earning US $1,972,166 from the 25 events he played in and that included making 15 cuts and achieving six top ten finishes. He finished up in 40th position on the final 2012 USPGA Tour Money list standings. I feel his maiden USPGA Tour win isn’t too far off and could well happen in the 2013/14 season? I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013/14 season.

Also tied for sixth position was William McGirt (USA); he too earned US $216,912.50 for his efforts and moved to 64th position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US$367,957 earned from the nine events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 88 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to 63rd position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 227 points earned from the nine events he has played to date this season so far. From the nine events he has played to date this season so far he has made six cuts and this was his very first top ten finish he has achieved so far this season to date. He gained his card on the USPGA Tour for the first time in his career when he finished in tied for second position at the 2010 PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament and gained his 2011 USPGA Tour card. He had a poor rookie season with only earning US $532,933 from the 32 events he played in and that placed him in 141st position on the final 2011 USPGA Tour Money list standings. He went back to the 2011 PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament and gained his card back for the 2012 season by finishing in tied for 13th position. He had a much better season in 2012 where he made over one million US dollars easily keeping his card for the 2013 season. Maybe he could achieve his maiden win on the USPGA Tour in the 2013/14 season?

The final player to tie for sixth position was George McNeill (USA); he too earned US $216,912.50 for his efforts and moved to 52nd position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $459,280 earned from the seven events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 88 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to 55th position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 249 points earned from the seven events he has played to date this season so far. From the seven 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 fulltime since the 2007 season after gaining his full USPGA Tour card by winning the 2006 PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament. He has kept his card every year since except for the 2013 season where he earned US $500,798 from the twenty one events he played in and finished in 138th position on the final 2013 USPGA Tour Money list and gained semi exempt status for 2013/14 USPGA Tour season. He has also won two events on the USPGA Tour so far in his career with the first being the 2007 Frys.com Open benefiting Shriners Hospitals for Children and the second being the 2012 Puerto Rico Open presented by seepuertorico.com. Let’s hope he can win his third event in the 2013/14 season. I wish him all the best for the rest of the season.

Rounding out the top ten in tied for tenth position at 275-9 after 72 holes was Harris English (USA); he earned US$174,200 for his efforts and remained in third position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US$2,170,397 earned from the nine events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 72 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and fell to third position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 1,048 points earned from the nine events he has played to date this season so far. From the nine events he has played to date this season so far he has made nine cuts and achieved five top ten finishes that includes the one here and also his win at the OHL Classic at Mayakoba last 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 which came at the 2013/14 OHL Classic at Mayakoba in mid November last year, 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.

The final player to tie for tenth position was Brendan Steele (USA); he too earned US$174,200 for his efforts and moved to 40th position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $570,848 earned from the nine events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 72 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to 40th position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup list points standings with 311 points earned from the nine events he has played to date this season so far. From the nine events he has played to date this season so far he has made six cuts and achieved two top ten finishes. He has been playing the USPGA Tour fulltime since the 2011 season and has kept his card for the next year every season since. His best year so far came in his rookie season in 2011 where he earned US $1,976,310 from the twenty seven events he played in with making 16 cuts and achieving three top ten finishes that included his maiden win which came at the Valero Texas Open and he finished in 38th position on the final 2011 USPGA Tour Money list standings. Maybe he win get his second USPGA Tour win this season? I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2013/14 season.

There was one New Zealand golfer in the field and he was Tim Wilkinson (NZL) who scored rounds of 71 even par, 72+1 a poor third round of 73+2 and a final round of 70-1 for a 72 hole total of 286+2 and he tied for 65th position. He earned US$13,869 for his efforts and moved to 60th position on the current 2013/14 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $ 391,092 earned from the eight events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned  4 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to 81st position on the current 2013/14 FedEx Cup points list standings with  185 points earned from the eight events he has played to date this season so far. From the eight events he has played to date this season so far he has made four cuts and achieved two top ten finishes which came at the OHL Classic at Mayakoba in mid November last year and last week at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. It was good to see him make the cut after his brilliant play the previous week and I hope he can make more cuts and achieve more top ten finishes in the weeks ahead.

Next week the USPGA Tour and FedEx Cup heads to Arizona for the very first World Golf Championship event of the 2014 season and it is the World Golf Championship – Accenture Match play Championship and is played on the Golf Club at Dove Mountain, Marana, Arizona. It is co – sanctioned with all the other Major Professional Golf Tours from around the world. It carries a huge prize purse of US $9,000,000 for the taking. It is a different form of the game this week being a match play tournament. Only the top 64 Golfers on the Official World Golf Rankings two weeks prior are eligible to play in it. So the big name golfers of the likes of Rory McILroy (NIR), Jason Day (Australia), Henrik Stenson (Sweden) and Zach Johnson (USA) will all be playing. Matt Kuchar (USA) is the defending Champion and will be keen for back to back titles. It starts a day earlier on Wednesday 19th February because there six rounds of match play to be played. I will report back who won the trophy next week.

So to the Top 5 on the Official World Golf Rankings Points this week and coming in at Number One Position for the 671st week of his career in total is Tiger Woods (USA) who is fresh off his  tied for 41st  finish at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic two weeks ago with 10.23 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 ten months ago and also won The Barclays over five months ago and also won the Australian PGA Championship just over three months ago and he also won the Talisker Masters 13 weeks ago and 12 weeks ago finished in solo third position in the individual competition at the ISPS HANDA World Cup of Golf and eleven weeks ago finished runner up in the Emirates Australian Open with 8.73 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 four months ago and won DP World Tour Championship, Dubai and the 2013 Race to Dubai Title 13 weeks ago with 8.52 Official Golf World Ranking Points; coming in at Number Four is Phil Mickelson (USA) who won the  Open Championship over six months ago and also finished in tied for 19th position at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro – Am a week ago with 6.88 Official Golf World Ranking Points and rounding out the top 5 on the Official Golf World Ranking Points list this week is Justin Rose (England) who won his maiden Major Championship at the 113th US Open Championship over seven months ago and also finished in tied for third position at the Turkish Airlines Open over two months ago with 6.39 Official Golf World Ranking Points. Michael Hendry (NZL) fresh off  his tied for 14th finish at the Oates Victorian Open this past week is the highest ranked New Zealand Golfer in the world for the fifth fourth straight week of his career. This week he slips six places and falls too tied for 217th position on the Official World Golf Rankings Points list with 0.79 Official Golf World Ranking Points.

Remember the most important thing to do in your golf swing is to keep your head still!!

Source: Pgatour.com, Official World Golf Rankings