Golf Events from the Weekend 1st March 2015

It was another excellent weekend on the Major Professional Golf Tours from around the world and this week the USPGA Tour and FedEx Cup headed to the State of Florida for the first of four straight events in the Florida Swing and it was The Honda Classic and it was played on the Jack Nicklaus designed PGA National (Champion), Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. It carried a huge prize purse of US $6,100,000 for the taking. Russell Henley (USA) was the defending Champion and was keen to defend his title. Danny Lee (NZL) and Tim Wilkinson (NZL) gained starts as well. And it was the golfer by the name of Padraig Harrington (Ireland) who scored rounds of 67-3, 66-4, 71+1 and a final round of 70 even par for a 72 hole total of 274-6 but he was tied on that score by Daniel Berger (USA) who scored rounds of 68-2, 71+1, 71+1 and an awesome final round of 64-6 which was the equal low round of the day and the tournament and he too was on 274-6 after 72 holes. So those two players headed back to the par five, eighteenth hole for the first playoff hole. 

 

Padraig Harrington (Ireland) plays an iron shot during the final round

Daniel Berger (USA) choose a piece of paper out of the USPGA Tour Officials hat and it read “Two” so that meant that Padraig Harrington (Ireland) teed off first. Padraig Harrington (Ireland) hit a good drive down the par five, eighteenth hole that had a slight fade on it and came to rest in the right centre of the fairway. Daniel Berger (USA) teed off next and he hit his drive with a slight fade on it as well and it was a bit longer than Padraig Harrington (Ireland) and it came to rest just in the first cut of rough on the right hand side. Padraig Harrington (Ireland) played his second shot first and laid up with his mid iron to about 100 yards from the green in the centre of the fairway leaving a good angle to attack the flag with his third shot to a green that was surrounded by water and bunkers. Daniel Berger (USA) after discussing it with his caddie decided to lay up as well. He was tempted to go for the green in two because in the final round a few hours earlier he got the green into two with his fairway wood. But the wind had increased and there was too much to lose if he wasn’t on the money with the shot. He laid up with a mid iron to about 110 yards from the pin in the fairway and had the same angle as Padraig Harrington (Ireland) for his third shot. Daniel Berger (USA) played his third shot first with his short wedge and landed it ten feet pin high to the left of the hole which put the pressure right back on Padraig Harrington (Ireland). Padraig Harrington (Ireland) put his third shot with his short wedge into within twenty feet of the flag stick on the left pin high. Padraig Harrington (Ireland) then putted for his birdie from twenty feet and it was a similar putt he had holed in regulation play to get into the playoff. This time it didn’t take the left to right break and it missed on the left hand side and rolled down to four feet past the cup. It meant Daniel Berger (USA) now stood over a putt to win the Honda Classic in only his twelfth start on the USPGA Tour in his rookie season. He calmed his nerve and then struck the ten footer for birdie and it just missed on the left hand side and came to rest three feet past the cup. They both tapped in their par putts and they were headed to the second playoff hole which was the par three, seventeenth hole. 

So to the second playoff hole and Padraig Harrington (Ireland) teed off first and he choose a five iron in the slight head wind. He played an awesome shot that had a slight fade on it and it sat down next to the pin as the saying goes “like a butterfly with sore toes” leaving him only four feet for his birdie. It really put the pressure back on Daniel Berger (USA). Daniel Berger (USA) then hit a poor shot with his mid iron that leaked to the right and splashed in the water just short of the green!! It must have really sent a bad feeling through his body as he knew he had just handed the tournament to Padraig Harrington (Ireland). Daniel Berger (USA) dropped his ball in the drop zone and hit his short wedge shot on the green about ten feet left of the pin. Padraig Harrington (Ireland) walked up to the green with the fans chanting “Ole, Ole, Ole” like they do in the Ryder Cup. Daniel Berger (USA) then putted for his bogey from ten feet and missed on the right hand side and tapped for double bogey!! Now it was just a formality for Padraig Harrington (Ireland) to claim his sixth USPGA Tour event and his first since 2008 PGA Championship. He calmed his nerve and dibbled the putt down and it missed on the right hand side which was understandable the circumstances of having three putts to win. He tapped in the six inch putt for the win!! Then he got a huge hug from his caddie, Ronan Flood to celebrate!! Then when interviewed by golf channel reporter Steve Sands he said “He knew if he ever got himself back in contention he had the game to pull off the big shots under pressure like the second playoff hole, and he is so pleased to be exempt for the next two season on the USPGA tour and back in the Masters Tournament”. And it was ironic that for the second week running that a player ranked 297th on the Official World Golf Rankings would win a USPGA Tour event (Last week James Hahn (USA) won the Northern Trust Open ranked 297th in the Official World Golf Rankings). 

 

Padraig Harrington (Ireland) on the right shakes Daniel Berger's (USA) hand on the left just after he holed the winning putt!!

Padraig Harrington (Ireland) won US $1,098,000 for the win and moved to seventeenth position on the current 2014/15 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $1,132,282 earned from the nine events he has played to date this season so far. Jimmy Walker (USA) currently leads that list with US $2,281,349 earned from the eight events he has played to date this season so far. Padraig Harrington (Ireland) also earned 500 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to twenty first position on the current 2014/15 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 515 points earned from the nine events he has played to date this season so far and he is 598 points behind the current leader of that list who is Jimmy Walker (USA) who has earned 1,113 points from the eight 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 four cuts and achieved one top ten finish which came with the win this week. He will be happy with his first two rounds that were both in the mid 60s especially his second round 66-4 and he will also be happy with his back nine in his final round 70 even par which was 32-3 and included four straight birdies in a row from the eleventh to the fourteenth holes. He will be extremely happy with his tee shot into the second hole playoff hole to win as I mentioned earlier. But he will be just content with his third round 71+1. Padraig Harrington (Ireland) played a steady final round which had to be completed on Monday because of the storm that suspended play for most of Saturday. In the first part of his final round which he played on Sunday he was three over for seven holes with a bogey on the par four, fourth hole and a double bogey on the par four, sixth hole. Then when play resumed at 8am on Monday Morning he pared the par four, eighth and ninth holes to go out in 38+3. But he played an awesome back nine of 32-3 where he made five birdies that included making four birdies in a row as I mentioned above and birdied the par five, 72nd hole to make the play off. But he made a terrible double bogey five on the difficult par three, seventeenth hole. 

 

Ronan Flood who is Padraig Harrington's (Ireland) caddie on the left shakes and congratulates Padraig Harrington's (Ireland) hand after he just won the Honda Classic!!

Padraig Harrington (Ireland) has now won six events on the USPGA Tour in his career to date so far and here they are from the first to the most recent: 2005 Honda Classic; 2005 Barclays Classic; 2007 Open Championship (Maiden Major Championship); 2008 Open Championship (Second Major Championship); 2008 PGA Championship (Third Major Championship) and the 2015 The Honda Classic and he has also won fourteen events on the European Tour and four events on the Asian Tour and one on the Japan Golf Tour. He has also achieved fifteen top ten finishes in Major Championships to date so far that includes his three wins. Padraig Harrington (Ireland) started his 2009 season with a tied-fifth finish in the Adu Dhabi Golf Championship on the European Tour. He then went through a tough period in his career, missing the cut at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro - Am, as well as the Northern Trust Open on the USPGA Tour. He finished tied eleventh at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in what would be one of his better results in the early part of 2009. He arrived at the 2009 Masters Tournament hoping to join Ben Hogan (USA) and Tiger Woods (USA) as the only players to win three consecutive professional majors. Padraig Harrington (Ireland) started with a three under-par first round, but eventually faded over the weekend, finishing tied for 35th place. His struggles continued in the succeeding months, as he missed the cut at five of his next six events, including The 3 Irish Open and the U. S. Open. It was during this period that he announced that he was working on swing changes with Coach Bob Torrance.

Padraig Harrington (Ireland) arrived at The Open Championship at Turnberry hoping to complete a hat-trick of Open wins, a feat that has only been achieved by Peter Thomson (Australia). He ended up finishing tied for 65th place. At the WGC – Bridgestone Invitational he was involved in a final day head-to-head between himself and World number one Tiger Woods (USA). Padraig Harrington (Ireland) led by one shot playing the 16th hole, but he racked up a triple-bogey to Tiger Woods' (USA) birdie and he finished in joint second place. The following week Padraig Harrington (Ireland), the defending champion, played the first two rounds with Tiger Woods (USA) at the PGA Championship. He shot a first round 68, ending one shot behind the leader Tiger Woods (USA). Rounds of 73 and 69 left him two shots behind Tiger Woods (USA). He was in contention in the final round, until he made an 8 at the par-3 8th hole. He ended in a tie for 10th. He finished in the top-10 in all four FedEx Cup playoff events, before further top-10s in Europe and the States before the end of the season. He ended the year winless on the European and PGA Tours for the first time since 1999. 

 

Padraig Harrington (Ireland) poses with the Honda Classic Trophy he won!!

Padraig Harrington (Ireland) missed the cut in three out of the four majors in 2010. In an inconsistent season, he had five top-10s on the USPGA Tour, but also missed six cuts. He was a controversial wild-card pick by European captain Colin Montgomerie (Scotland) for the 2010 Ryder Cup. He won two matches and lost two matches as Europe regained the Ryder Cup. It was his sixth Ryder Cup and fourth time being on the winning team. He won his first tournament in two years at the Iskandar Johor Open in Malaysia on the Asian Tour. He finished the year ranked twenty fifth in the Official World Golf Ranking. Padraig Harrington (Ireland) started his 2011 season with an opening round 65, for a first round lead at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship on the European Tour. He was later disqualified before his second round commenced, after a spectator telephoned in and pointed out an incident of his ball moving an exceptionally small distance closer to the hole on the green, while he was replacing his ball marker, during the first round; it had been shown on television. (The incident led to a rules review, and if it were to occur again, would not be a penalty.) He missed the cut at the Masters Tournament and finished tied for 45th at the U.S Open Championship. In June 2011, he dropped outside the top 50 in the Official World Golf Rankings for the first time since 1999. Padraig Harrington (Ireland) made his first start of the 2012 USPGA Tour season at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro - Am where he finished joint top of the Pro-Am leaderboard, alongside partner J.P. McManus, with Brian Harman (USA) and Greg Ontiveros. Padraig Harrington (Ireland) also enjoyed a good finish in the overall tournament with a tied for seventh finish. In March 2012, Padraig Harrington (Ireland) shot a 61 in the first round of the Transitions Championship to set a new course record at the Copperhead Course. This was also Padraig Harrington's (Ireland) lowest ever round on the USPGA Tour. He could not maintain his brilliant first day's play over the remaining three rounds though and finished in a tie for twentieth place.

In April 2012, at the first major of the year, The Masters Tournament, Padraig Harrington (Ireland) shot five under for the last six holes in his third round to close to within three shots of the lead. In the final round, he shot a level par round of 72 to finish tied for eighth. It was Padraig Harrington's (Ireland) first top ten finish in a major since the 2009 PGA Championship. At the 2012 U.S. Open Championship, Padraig Harrington (Ireland) was in contention to win a fourth major championship, when rounds of 74-70-71 on the first three days got him into contention on Sunday. After bogeying two of the first six holes, Padraig Harrington (Ireland) preceded to play the stretch from hole 7–17 in 5-under-par to find himself two behind the leader. Needing a birdie at the last to finish ahead of the clubhouse leader Michael Thompson (USA), Padraig Harrington (Ireland) took the pin on at the eighteenth and found a plugged lie in the greenside bunker, which resulted in a bogey finish at 3-over-par. Ultimately this did not cost him the championship as he finished two shots behind Webb Simpson (USA) on 1-over-par. Padraig Harrington (Ireland) later stated that he thought he had to birdie the last to get to 1-over-par as the reason for taking such an aggressive line on the eighteenth. He eventually finished in a tie for fourth place, which represented his best showing at a U.S. Open Championship. In October 2012, Padraig Harrington (Ireland) won the PGA Grand Slam of Golf despite having not won a major championship during the year, having been a late replacement for Open champion, Ernie Els (RSA). Padraig Harrington (Ireland) endured difficult 2013 and 2014 seasons finishing outside of the top 60 on the European Tour, Race to Dubai in both years and outside of the top 130 on the USPGA Tour, FedEx Cup in both years. During this period his Official World Golf Ranking fell to an 18 year low of 385 as of 1 December 2014. In December 2014 he won the Bank BRI Indonesia Open on the Asian Tour for his first official win for 4 years. And as I mentioned before in March 2015, Padraig Harrington (Ireland) won his first USPGA Tour event since the 2008 PGA Championship at the Honda Classic. Padraig Harrington (Ireland) had started the 2014–15 season out of the past champion's category after finishing 188th in the FedEx Cup. Padraig Harrington (Ireland) was the second consecutive player ranked 297th in the world to win on the USPGA Tour, after James Hahn (USA) won the Northern Trust Open the week before. Let’s hope Padraig Harrington (Ireland) can have more good finishes in the weeks ahead and maybe achieve his seventh win on the USPGA Tour in the 2015 part of the 2014/15 USPGA Tour season. I wish him all the best for the 2015 part of the 2014/15 USPGA Tour season. 

Coming in solo second position at 274-6 and losing on the second playoff hole as I mentioned above was Daniel Berger (USA); he earned US $658,800 for his efforts and moved to sixteenth position on the current 2014/15 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $1,188,405 earned from the eleven events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 300 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to fifteenth position on the current 2014/15 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 603 points earned from the eleven events he has played to date this season so far. From the eleven events he has played to date this season so far he has made eight cuts and achieved three top ten finishes which includes the one this week. He will be extremely happy with his first and final rounds this week that were both in the 60s especially his first round 68-2 which was bogey free and his final round 64-6 which was the equal low round of the day and the tournament. But he will be just content with his second and third rounds that were both 71+1s and he will be disappointed he wasn’t able to convert his ten foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole for the win and also that he put his tee shot in the water on second playoff hole and handed the tournament to Padraig Harrington (Ireland). Daniel Berger (USA) was born in Plantation, Florida to Nadia and Jay Berger. His father is a former tennis pro, coach, and head of men's tennis for the United States Tennis Association. Daniel Berger (USA) lived in Miami for about ten years before moving with his family to Jupiter, Florida, where he began taking golf seriously. He graduated William T. Dwyer High School in 2011 and went on to play golf at Florida State University, where he tied for second at the 2013 NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championships. Daniel Berger (USA) turned pro after his sophomore season. In late 2013, Daniel Berger (USA) qualified for the Web.com Tour and played four events. The following year, he finished tied for second at the TPC Stonebrae Championship and ranked fifteenth in the season-long Web.com Tour standings, which earned him a promotion to the USPGA Tour for the 2014–15 season. As I mentioned earlier on March 2, 2015 Daniel Berger (USA) shot a 6-under-par 64 in the final round of the Honda Classic and lost to Padraig Harrington (Ireland) in a playoff. Had Daniel Berger (USA) won, it would have been the second-largest final round comeback in USPGA Tour history: he began the final round nine strokes behind 54-hole leader Ian Poulter (England). He has made an awesome start to his rookie season on the USPGA Tour and he has already secured his card for next season. He can take a lot of confidence out of this week going forward and I am sure he will win his maiden USPGA Tour event in the next few years if it doesn’t come this year. Let’s hope he can have lots more top ten finishes in the weeks ahead. I wish him all the best for the 2015 part of the 2014/15 USPGA Tour season. 

Coming in tied for third position at 275-5 after 72 holes was Paul Casey (England); he earned US $317,200 for his efforts and moved to twenty third position on the current 2014/15 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $973,680 earned from the six events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 145 FedEx Cup points for his efforts and moved to twenty sixth position on the current 2014/15 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 462 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 four cuts and achieved two top ten finishes which includes the one this past week. He will be happy with his four rounds this week that were all at par or under par especially his first, third and final rounds that were all in the 60s. But he would be slightly disappointed that he wasn’t able to have one shot less and make the playoff as he had done the week previous. Paul Casey (England) earned his first USPGA Tour win on 5 April 2009 by defeating J. B. Holmes (USA) in a one-hole playoff at the Shell Houston Open. This win took him to No. 6 in the Official World Golf Ranking. Paul Casey (England) won his milestone tenth event on the European Tour at the 2009 BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth Golf Club in Surrey, where he won by one stroke over Wentworth resident and fellow Englishman Ross Fisher (England). This win vaulted Paul Casey (England) to a career high of third in the Official World Golf Ranking. He had been ranked at No. 41 at the beginning of 2009. Paul Casey (England) suffered a rib injury at the 2009 Open Championship, and it limited the amount of golf he could play in the second half of 2009.

In January 2011, Paul Casey (England) won the Volvo Golf Champions tournament in Bahrain, which was his first win for 20 months. Paul Casey (England) won the 2012 Telus World Skins Game in Canada, having defeated Jhonattan Vegas (Venezuela) in a tiebreaker during the event in July. In June 2013, Paul Casey (England) won his 12th European Tour title at The Irish Open to end a two and half-year winless drought due to form and fitness problems. He captured the title with a final round 67 in changeable conditions, to win by three strokes over Joost Luiten (Netherlands) and Robert Rock (England). He had begun the day four shots behind the leader Joost Luiten (Netherlands), but a run of five birdies in six holes in the middle of the round opened up a three shot lead. It was reduced to one stroke, when Paul Casey (England) bogeyed the 15th and 16th, but a closing eagle on the par five 18th sealed the victory. In September 2014, Paul Casey (England) won his 13th European Tour title at the KLM Open in the Netherlands, his first victory of the 2014 season. He took victory after posting a final round 66, putting him one shot ahead of runner up, and fellow Englishman Simon Dyson (England). He started the final round four strokes off the lead of Romain Wattel (France). The victory was especially emotional and gratifying as Paul Casey's (England) wife Pollyanna had given birth to the couple's first child two week prior to the event. In 2014, Paul Casey (England) finished 95th in the FedEx Cup despite no top ten finishes in 16 starts playing out of the Past Champions category. For 2015, Paul Casey (England) chose to give up his European Tour exemption and focus solely on the USPGA Tour, citing a need to lessen his travel. Let’s hope he can keep this fine form up in the weeks to come and perhaps achieve his second USPGA Tour win in 2015. I wish him all the best for the 2015 part of the 2014/15 USPGA Tour season.

Also tied for third position was Russell Knox (Scotland) who lost in a playoff in this same tournament in 2014; he too earned US $317,200 for his efforts and moved to twentieth position on the current 2014/15 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $1,017,175 earned from the ten events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 145 FedEx Cup points for his efforts and moved to twenty second position on the current 2014/15 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 499 points earned from the ten events he has played to date this season so far. From the ten events he has played to date this season so far he has made seven cuts and achieved two top ten finishes which includes the one here this week. He will be happy with his first, second and final rounds that were all in the 60s especially his 68-2s in the second and final rounds. But he will just be content with his third round 70 even par and disappointed he couldn’t have been one shot lower to make the playoff. Russell Knox (Scotland) played on the NGA Hooters Tour from 2008 to 2010, picking up two victories in the process. He joined the Nationwide Tour in 2011 and picked up his first victory on tour in July at the Chiquita Classic. He eventually finished 12th on the Nationwide Tour money list and gained his full USPGA Tour card. His first USPGA Tour event was the 2011 Transitions Championship but he failed to make the cut. His first USPGA Tour event as a full member was the 2012 Sony Open in Hawaii where he missed the cut by a single stroke. He made only 12 cuts in 23 events in 2012 and finished in 143rd position on the money list to remain conditionally exempt on the USPGA Tour for 2013. He split time between the USPGA Tour and Web.com Tours in 2013. He played in the Web.com Tour Finals and finished 20th to earn his USPGA Tour card for 2014. On July 26, 2013, Russell Knox (Scotland) shot a 59 in the second round of the Albertsons Boise Open on the Web.com Tour. After an impressive start to his 2014 season, Russell Knox (Scotland) came close to winning his maiden USPGA Tour title at the Honda Classic, eventually losing to Russell Henley (USA) in a four-man playoff that also included Rory McIlroy (NIR) and Ryan Palmer (USA). This to date is his best career finish on the USPGA Tour. Let’s hope he can finish in the top ten in the next events he plays in and perhaps achieve his maiden USPGA Tour win. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2015 part of 2014/15 USPGA Tour season. 

The final player to tie for third position was Ian Poulter (England); he too earned US $317,200 for his efforts and moved to forty sixth position on the current 2014/15 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $607,223 earned from the four events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 145 FedEx Cup points for his efforts and moved to fifty fifth position on the current 2014/15 FedEx Cup Points standings with 291 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 achieved two top ten finishes which includes the one this past week. He will be extremely happy with his second round 64-6 which was the equal low round of the day and the tournament and his 66-4 in the third round which was the low third round!! But he will only be content with his first round 71+1 and will be bitterly disappointed with his final round 74+4 which saw him put five balls in the water and cost him his chance of winning!! Ian Poulter (England) has achieved two wins on the USPGA Tour to date so far and they both have come at WGC Events with the first one coming at the 2010 WCG- Accenture Match Play Championship and the second coming at the 2012 WGC – HSBC Champions in China. Let’s hope he can achieve more top ten finishes in the 2015 part of the 2014/15 USPGA Tour season and perhaps his third win? I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2014/15 season. 

Rounding out the top six in solo six position at 276-4 after 72 holes was Jamie Donaldson (Wales); he earned US $219,600 for his efforts and moved to seventy ninth position on the current 2014/15 USPGA Tour money list standing with US $387,114 earned from the four events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 100 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to eighty fifth position on the current 2014/15 FedEx Cup Points standings list with 218 points earned for 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 achieved one top ten finish that came this past week. He will be happy with his first and final rounds that were both in the 60s especially his 66-4 in the final round. But he will just be content with his second and third rounds which were consecutive 71+1s. Jamie Donaldson (Wales) is yet to win on the USPGA Tour but he does have three wins on the European Tour to his name with the most recent being the 2014 D+D Real Czech Masters. In his second start of the 2013 season and thirteen events after his maiden victory, Jamie Donaldson (Wales) won his second European Tour title at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship. Starting the final round two back of Justin Rose (England), Jamie Donaldson (Wales) made five birdies in seventeen holes to move two clear of the field, but a late bogey at the par five 18th hole meant a nervous wait to watch the final group come home. First Thorbjorn Olesen (Denmark), then Justin Rose (England) had putts to force a playoff but both missed narrowly to see Jamie Donaldson (Wales) to victory by one stroke. With the win, Jamie Donaldson (Wales) became only the seventh Welshman to win multiple titles on the European Tour and it moved him inside the top 30 of the Official World Golf Ranking for the first time in his career. On 11 April, he became the fifth man in history to record a hole-in-one on the 6th hole at Augusta National Golf Club during the 2013 Masters Tournament. He finished the 2013 season ranked fifth on the Race to Dubai. Jamie Donaldson (Wales) played well enough on the 2014 USPGA Tour as a non-member to earn a USPGA Tour card for the 2014–15 season which he took his membership up and is playing a full schedule. Jamie Donaldson (Wales) secured the winning point for Europe in the 2014 Ryder Cup, with a wedge shot onto the fifteenth green, beating Keegan Bradley (USA) 4 & 3. Let’s hope he can continue this fine form in the weeks to come and achieve more top ten finishes and perhaps his maiden USPGA Tour win in the 2015 part of the 2014/15 USPGA Tour season. I wish him all the best for the 2015 part of the 2014/15 USPGA Tour season. 

The best New Zealand golfer in the field was Tim Wilkinson (NZL) and he scored an average first round of 73+3 in the very windy conditions, then a good second round of 71+1, and a brilliant third round of 68-2 and a poor final round of 74+4 for a 72 hole total of 286+6 and he finished in tied for fifty first position. He earned US $14,274 for his efforts and currently lies in 170th  position on the current 2014/15 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $80,303 earned from the eleven events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 17 FedEx Cup points for his efforts and is currently in 162nd  position on the current 2014/15 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 78 points earned from the eleven events he has played to date this season so far. From the eleven events he has played to date this season so far he has made four cuts and achieved no top ten finishes. He will be very happy with his third round 68-2 in very tough conditions but just content with his first, second and final rounds that were all in the mid to low 70s. At least this week he managed to make the cut after missing his previous five straight cuts. Let’s hope he can make some more cuts in the 2015 part of the 2014/15 USPGA Tour season and have some top ten finishes as well. 

The next best New Zealand Golfer in the field was Danny Lee (NZL) and he scored rounds of 72+2 in the first round which was good in the very strong winds, then he scored a poor second round of 75+5 for a 36 hole total of 147+7 and he missed the cut by three shots. He moved to fifty first position on the current 2014/15 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $560,818 earned from the thirteen events he has played to date this season so far. He also moved to fifty fourth position on the current 2014/15 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 293 points earned from the thirteen events he has played to date this season so far. From the thirteen events he has played to date this season so far he has made seven cuts and achieved one top ten finish. He will be disappointed with his first and second rounds that were both in the low to mid 70s especially his second round 75+5. Let’s hope he can make some more cuts in the coming weeks and perhaps achieve his maiden USPGA Tour win in the 2015 part of the 2014/15 USPGA Tour season. Danny has been playing the USPGA Tour on and off fulltime since the 2012 season. Danny Lee (NZL) entered the 2012 USPGA Tour season with USPGA Tour and European Tour cards. He said he was still keen to play a two-tour schedule, however his main focus would be on America. He made only 13 cuts in 26 events on the USPGA Tour and lost his tour card. He did not play on the European Tour. After striking up a successful partnership late in the Nationwide Tour season, Danny Lee (NZL) said he would have Australian, Graeme Courts, a former long-time caddy of Loren Roberts (USA), working for him on the USPGA Tour. K.J. Choi (South Korea) introduced Danny Lee (NZL) to another Australian, Steve Bann, as a potential coach. "I am close with K.J. Choi (South Korea) and he said I was thinking too much about my swing," Danny Lee (NZL) said. "I was always working on something and I am too technical sometimes so K.J. Choi (South Korea) introduced me to Steve. Steve is a simple guy who is teaching me how to practise with better routine and how to trust my own game and not think too much. Danny Lee (NZL) played on the Web.com Tour in 2013, finishing 15th on the regular season money list to regain his USPGA Tour card for 2014/15 Season. His best finish was second at the Rex Hospital Open. In 2014 on the back of six straight missed cuts, Danny Lee (USA) adopted a claw putting grip for the Puerto Rico Open in March. He credited the change of putting style for yielding him an instant result; a runner-up finish, two shots behind winner Chesson Hadley (USA). Let’s hope he can make some more cuts in the weeks ahead and maybe achieve his maiden USPGA Tour win in the 2015 part of the 2014/15 USPGA Tour season. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2014/15 USPGA Tour season. 

Next week the USPGA Tour and FedEx Cup along with the European Tour and Race to Dubai and many of the other tours from around the world head to Miami, Florida for the first World Golf Championship Event for the 2015 season and it is the WGC – Cadillac Championship and it is played on the Trump National Doral, Miami, Florida. It carries a huge prize purse of US $9,250,000 for the taking and only the top fifty golfers on the Official World Golf rankings the week prior to the event will be exempt to play in it as well as other golfers who have won the money list of the minor tours around the world like the Japan Tour, Sunshine Tour and PGA Tour of Australasia, etc. Also many other big tournament winners of various events on those tours I just mentioned with get an invitation to play as well. Patrick Reed (USA) is the defending Champion and will be keen to defend his title. All the big name players in the world with be there as well including Rory McILroy (NIR), Henrik Stenson (Sweden), Bubba Watson (USA), Jason Day (Australia) and Adam Scott (Australia) to name a few. It starts on Thursday 5th March. I will report back who won the trophy next week. The other event on the USPGA Tour and part of the FedEx Cup next week is for the players who aren’t eligible to play in the WGC – Cadillac Championship. It is the Puerto Rico Open and it is played on the Trump International GC (PR), Rio Grande, Puerto. It carries a smaller prize purse of US $3,000,000 for the taking. Chesson Hadley (USA) is the defending champion and will be keen for back to back titles. Danny Lee (NZL) will be looking to go one better this year and win after finishing solo second last year. Steve Alker (NZL) and Tim Wilkinson (NZL) will also have a good chance to earn a good pay cheque. It starts on Thursday 5th March 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 thirtieth week of his fifth spell of his career and for the 70th week of his career in total is Rory McILroy (NIR) fresh off his missed cut at the Honda Classic this past week and four weeks ago he had his tenth win on the European Tour at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic with 11.27 Official Golf World Ranking Points; coming in at Number Two is Bubba Watson (USA) who is fresh off his tied for fourteen position one week ago at the Northern Trust Open and his tied for second position at the Waste Management Phoenix Open four weeks ago with 7.21 Official World Ranking Points; coming in at Number Three is Henrik Stenson (Sweden) who is fresh off his tied for thirteenth position at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic four weeks ago and also he tied for 13th position at the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters five weeks ago with 7.05 Official World Ranking Points; coming in at Number Four is Jason Day (Australia) who is fresh off his tied for fourth finish two weeks ago at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro – Am and three weeks ago he won the Farmers Insurance Open with 6.75 Official World Ranking Points and rounding out the top 5 on the Official Golf World Ranking Points list standings this week is Adam Scott (Australia) fresh off his tied for second position at the Australian PGA Championship eleven weeks ago and he also finished in solo fifth position at the Emirates Australian Open thirteen weeks ago with 6.65 Official World Ranking Points. Ryan Fox (NZL) this week is in his second week of his first spell of being the highest ranked New Zealand Golfer in the world after his win at the Coca – Cola QLD PGA Championship one week ago on the PGA Tour of Australasia. This week he slips one place and falls to 204th position on the Official World Golf Rankings Points list standings with 0.85 Official Golf World Ranking Points. 

Remember the most important fundamental in the golf swing is to keep the head still!!

Source: Pgatour.com, Official World Golf Rankings, wikipedia.org, Google search engine, europeantour.com, golfchannel.com