Golf Events from the Weekend 29th March 2015

Well it was another exciting weekend on the Major Professional Golf Tours from around the world and this week the USPGA Tour and FedEx Cup headed to San Antonio for the first of two events in the first Texas Swing of the USPGA Tour season and it was the Valero Texas Open and it was played on the JW Marriott TPC San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas. It carried a huge prize purse of US $6,200,000 for the taking. Steven Bowditch (Australia) was the defending champion and was keen for back to back titles. Danny Lee (NZL) and Tim Wilkinson (NZL) gained starts as well. And it was the Golfer by the name of Jimmy Walker (USA) who scored rounds of 71-1, 67-5, 69-3 and a final round of 70-2 for a 72 hole total of 277-11 and he won by four shots for his fifth win of his USPGA Tour career to date so far and his second of the season having won the Sony Open in Hawaii earlier in January and he also became the first two time winner on the 2014/15 USPGA Tour Season and also the first 54 hole leader/Co – leader to going on to win after the nine previous tournament 54 hole leaders couldn’t. Jimmy Walker (USA) earned US $1,116,000 for the win and moved to the top of the current 2014/15 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $3,469,349 earned from the ten events he has played to date this season so far. Bubba Watson (USA) is second on that list with US $2,680,950 earned from the five events he has played to date this season so far. Jimmy Walker (USA) also earned 500 FedEx Cup Points for the win and remained at the top of the current 2014/15 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 1,650 points earned from the ten events he has played to date this season so far and he leads by 486 points over Jordan Spieth (USA) who is currently in second position with 1,164 points earned from the eight events he has played to date this season so far. From the ten events Jimmy Walker (USA) has played to date this season so far he has made ten cuts and achieved five top ten finishes which includes the win this week and also his win at the Sony Open in Hawaii in January. Jimmy Walker (USA) will be extremely happy with his four rounds this week that were all under par especially his second round 67-5 which was the equal low round of the day!!

Jimmy Walker (USA) tees off during the final round

Jimmy Walker (USA) played a steady final round under the circumstances of taking the 54 hole lead of four shots into the final round and he scored 70-2 which included a front nine of 36 even par that included birdies on the par five, second hole and par five, eight hole but he had poor bogeys on the par four, fourth hole and par three, seventh hole and he made the turn at minus nine and was leading by five shots. Jordan Spieth (USA) went out in 37+1 and made the turn at minus four and was five shots behind the leader. 

Jimmy Walker (USA) played holes ten to fourteen in even par which included birding the par four, ten hole but bogeying the par four, twelfth hole and he remained at minus nine and was still leading by four shots.  Jordan Spieth (USA) played holes ten to fourteen in even par and remained at minus four and was still five shots behind the leader. Jimmy Walker (USA) played holes fifteen to seventeen in two under par which included a brilliant par save on the par four, fifteen hole and then birding the par three, sixteenth hole and par four, seventeenth hole and he moved to minus eleven and was still leading by four shots with just the par five, 72nd hole to play. Jordan Spieth (USA) played holes fifteen to seventeen in three under par in which he birdied all three of them!! He moved to minus seven and he still was four shots behind the leader heading to the par four, 72nd hole. 

 

Jimmy Walker (USA) plays a second shot during the final round

Jordan Spieth (USA) hit a very good drive at the par five, 72nd hole that drew off the right rough and landed right in the centre of the fairway. He decided to go for the green in two shots with his fairway wood and he pulled it slightly and his ball landed in the back left green side bunker. His third shot was very difficult with not much green to work with and he took two much sand and his ball came to rest in the rough just short of the green. But he managed to get up and down to save his par five and finished the 72 holes at minus seven and finished four shots behind the winner. Jimmy Walker (USA) stood on the par five, 72nd tee with a four shot lead and knew that the tournament was virtually his to win and he had survived the birdies that Jordan Spieth (USA) had thrown at him in the last few holes!! Jimmy Walker (USA) hit another one of his huge drives down the par five, 72nd hole that had a slight draw it and rolled into the first cut of rough on the left hand side. He choose to lay up with his second shot on the right hand side of the fairway because a creek separates the fairway as you get closer to the green. He left himself a 90 yard wedge shot for his third shot and played it to near perfection under the circumstances of having a four shot lead. He landed it just short of the ridge on the green and it came to rest ten feet short of the flag stick. He could now enjoy the walk up to the green in front of his home fans as he grew up in a town near San Antonio which was only thirty five minutes drive from this course and that meant he could stay in his own bed this week. He calmed his nerve and struck the ten foot putt for his birdie but it just missed on the right hand side of the cup and he had to settle for his par five. He scored 34-2 on his back nine and finished the 72 holes at minus eleven to win by four shots. He got a high five and hug from his caddie, Andy Sanders and then his wife, Erin came onto the 72nd green and gave him a huge hug and kiss with his two sons, Mclain, Beckett by his side. Then he was interviewed by the NBC Sports/Golf Channel reporter Steve Sands and he told him "You know it's at home and it's cool and you can feel the support and the love from friends and family and fans. It's cool. It just doesn't happen very often, winning in your hometown, I think." Then he said about Jordan Spieth’s charge at him over the final five holes “Holy cow. I’m going to have nightmares about that guy.” He also told him “He is very confident going into the first Major Championship of the year which is the Masters Tournament in two weeks time and he feels that course suits his eye”. 

 

Jimmy Walker (USA) with his two boys, Mclain and Beckett celebrate the win with him after he holed the winning putt as his caddie, Andy looks on!!

Jimmy Walker (USA) won his maiden USPGA Tour event at the 2013 Frys.com Open, after nine years and 188 PGA Tour starts. He won by two strokes over Vijay Singh (Fiji) after shooting 62-66 over the weekend. The win gave him an exemption into the Hyundai Tournament of Champions, and earned him his first trip to The Masters Tournament and a USPGA Tour card until the end of 2016. Jimmy Walker (USA) also entered the world's top 50 for the first time. Jimmy Walker (USA) opened up 2014 finishing tied for 21st at his first visit to the Hyundai Tournament of Champions. The following week in January 2014, he earned his second USPGA Tour win at the Sony Open in Hawaii. He birdied four of the final six holes and shot a final round 63 to win by one stroke over Chris Kirk (USA). Five weeks later, in early February 2014, Jimmy Walker (USA) won the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro – Am by one stroke over Dustin Johnson (USA) and Jim Renner (USA). He had a six-stroke advantage going into the final round, but shot a two-over-par 74 on Sunday and needed to hole a five-foot par putt on the 18th for the victory. This was his third victory of the 2014 season in just eight starts, after previously going 187 events without a victory. With his win, Jimmy Walker (USA) became the leader on the 2014 money list, FedEx Cup standings, and Ryder Cup points standings. He also raised his Official World Golf Ranking to 24th. A tied for eighth finish at the 2014 Masters Tournament raised his ranking to 19th, and ensured him an invitation into the 2015 tournament. He went on to post top-ten finishes at two other majors, a tied for ninth at the 2014 U.S. Open Championship, and a tied for seventh at the 2014 PGA Championship. His highly successful season earned him a spot on the 2014 Ryder Cup, another personal first. Jimmy Walker (USA) went as high as 17th in the Official World Golf ranking during the 2014 season and now is at a career high tenth after his win at the 2015 Valero Texas Open. With three wins he had in 2014, Jimmy Walker (USA) with his fifth win at the Valero Texas Open is now fully exempt until the 2017-2018 USPGA Tour season. He also in 2014 represented the U.S. Team in the Ryder Cup against Team Europe in Scotland and this year he is a certainty for making the U.S. Presidents Cup Team that will play the International Team in South Korea in early October. He also in the 2014 season achieved three top ten finishes in the four Major Championships with his best being a tied for seventh at the PGA Championship. Let’s hope he can now win some even bigger tournaments like the WGC – Events and even his maiden Major Championship in the 2015. I wish him every continuing success for the 2015 part of the 2014/15 USPGA Tour season.

Jimmy Walker (USA) poses with the Valero Texas Open Trophy he won!!

Coming solo second position at 281-7 after 72 holes was Jordan Spieth (USA); he earned US $669,600 for his efforts and moved to fourth position on the current 2014/15 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $2,577,396 earned from the eight 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 2014/15 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 1,164 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 five top ten finishes which includes the one this week and his win two weeks ago at the Valspar Championship. He will be happy his four rounds this week that were all under par (And he was only one of two players to do this along with the winner Jimmy Walker (USA)) especially his second round 69-3. Jordan Spieth (USA) has won two USPGA Tour events with the first one being the 2013 John Deere Classic and 2015 Valspar Championship and both have come in playoffs. He also won the 2014 Emirates Australian Open and 2014 Hero World Challenge (Tiger Woods Tournament) in back to back weeks at the end of last year. Jordan Spieth (USA) opened the 2013 season by missing the cut by two strokes at the Framers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines in January. In March, Jordan Spieth (USA) made three cuts, finishing tied for second at the Puerto Rico Open and tied for seventh at the Tampa Bay Championship. He notched another top-10 finish in April at the RBC Heritage, a tie for ninth. He earned Special Temporary Member status in March, allowing him unlimited sponsor exemptions. On July 14, about two weeks before his twentieth birthday, Jordan Spieth (USA) won the John Deere Classic in a three-way, sudden-death playoff on the fifth playoff hole against defending champion Zach Johnson (USA) and David Hearn (Canada). He became the fourth youngest USPGA Tour winner and the first teenager in 82 years; last accomplished by Ralph Guldahl (USA) at the Santa Monica Open in 1931. Jordan Spieth (USA) holed out from a greenside bunker on the 72nd hole to make the playoff. With the victory, Jordan Spieth (USA) was granted full status as a USPGA Tour member and became eligible for the FedEx Cup, entering in eleventh place in the standings. It also earned him entry into the next three majors: the 2013 Open Championship, PGA Championship, and 2014 Masters Tournament. He moved to 59th in the Official World Golf Ranking. Only five weeks after his first victory, Jordan Spieth (USA) played the Wyndham Championship, where he lost in a playoff to Patrick Reed (USA). The runner-up finish moved him up to 36th in the Official World Golf Ranking. Jordan Spieth (USA) shot a final round 62 in the Deutsche Bank Championship, vaulting him into a tie for fourth and 28th in the Official World Golf Ranking. Just two days later, captain Fred Couples (USA) selected Jordan Spieth (USA) for the United States squad in the 2013 Presidents Cup. On September 27, 2013, Jordan Spieth (USA) was named USPGA Tour Rookie of the Year. He ended the 2013 season tenth on the USPGA Tour money list, and ranked twenty second in the world, after beginning the year 810th with no status.

Jordan Spieth (USA) in 2014 made his debut at the Masters Tournament and shared the 54 hole lead with Bubba Watson (USA). During the final round, Jordan Spieth (USA) at one point was the standalone leader by two strokes and, had he held on, would have become the youngest Masters Tournament champion in history (Tiger Woods (USA) holds the record at 21 years of age), but Bubba Watson (USA)  retook the lead heading into the back nine and never relinquished it. Jordan Spieth (USA) finished in a tie for second with Jonas Blixt (Sweden). Jordan Spieth (USA) thus became the youngest runner-up in Masters Tournament history and subsequently moved into the world's top ten. Jordan Spieth (USA) also ended the tournament having shot no worse than an even-par (72) in any of his rounds. In November, Jordan Spieth (USA) won his second tournament as a professional at the Emirates Australian Open on the PGA Tour of Australasia; in the final round he shot a course-record 63 to win the title by six strokes. A week later Jordan Spieth (USA) completed back-to-back victories, winning the Hero World Challenge in Florida. He won the tournament wire-to-wire and in doing so set a new tournament scoring record of 26-under-par. On March 15, Jordan Spieth (USA) won the Valspar Championship in a three-way playoff with Patrick Reed (USA) and Sean O’Hair (USA). He secured his victory on the third extra hole by sinking a twenty eight foot birdie putt. And with this solo second position this past week at the Valero Texas Open moved him to a career high position of fourth in the latest Official World Golf Rankings Still at the tender age of twenty one years old his future looks very bright and I wouldn’t be surprised at all if he wins his maiden Major Championship in the next few years and perhaps it will happen at the Masters Tournament in two weeks time. I wish him all the best for the remaining events for the 2015 part of the 2014/15 USPGA Tour season. 

Coming in solo third position at 284-4 after 72 holes was Billy Horschel (USA); he earned US $421,600 for his efforts and moved to fifty fifth position on the current 2014/15 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $721,696 earned from the twelve events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 190 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to forty eighth position on the current 2014/15 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 409 points earned from the twelve events he has played to date this season so far. From the twelve events he has played to date this season so far he has made nine cuts and this was his very first top ten finish of the season to date so far. He will be happy with his four rounds this week that were all at par or under par. It was good to see him return to form because after he won the 2014 Tour Championship and 2013/14 FedEx Cup in late September last year his form had really dropped off. Billy Horschel (USA) turned professional in 2009 and gained his 2010 USPGA Tour card at the 2009 USPGA Tour Qualifying School. Billy Horschel (USA) won his maiden USPGA Tour event at the 2013 Zurich Classic of New Orleans in late April. Billy Horschel (USA) earned his second win at the 2014 BMW Championship and moved to 23rd in the world rankings. The next week, he won The Tour Championship and with it the 2014 FedEx Cup. The win also moved Billy Horschel (USA) to 14th in the Official World Golf Ranking. Two days after winning the Tour Championship and FedEx Cup, Billy Horschel (USA) became a father for the first time. I feel he can win his fourth event in 2015 and I wish him all the best for the 2015 part of the 2014/15 USPGA Tour season. 

Coming in tied for fourth position at 285-3 after 72 holes was Chesson Hadley (USA); he earned US $272,800 for his efforts and moved to sixty fourth position on the current 2014/15 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $626,523 earned from the fourteen events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 123 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to sixty fifth position on the current 2014/15 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 343 points earned from the fourteen events he has played to date this season so far. From the fourteen events he has played to date this season so far he has made nine 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 and under par. He also displayed this week he is quite the showman with kicking his legs and arms when he struck a good shot!! Chesson Hadley (USA) turned professional in 2010. He played on the Web.com Tour in 2013 and won his first tour event in June at the Rex Hospital Open. He finished third on the 2013 Web.com Tour regular season money list to earn his 2014 USPGA Tour card. Chesson Hadley (USA) captured his first USPGA Tour win on March 9, 2014 with a two-shot victory in the Puerto Rico Open played at the Trump International course. Chesson Hadley (USA) shot a tournament record 21-under and earned US $630,000. He also earned a two-year tour exemption and spots in The Players Championship, PGA Championship, and Hyundai Tournament of Champions. Since the Puerto Rico Open is an alternate event, Chesson Hadley (USA) did not earn a trip to the Masters Tournament and he did not finish high enough in the world ranking to merit an invitation. Chesson Hadley (USA) ranked 49th in the 2014 FedEx Cup Playoffs including finishing ninth at the Deutsche Bank Championship. He also won the USPGA Tour Rookie of the Year. Let’s hope this finish can give him the confidence to achieve more top ten finishes in the weeks ahead. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2015 part of the 2014/15 USPGA Tour season. 

The final player to tie for fourth position was Daniel Summerhays (USA); he too earned US $272,800 for his efforts and moved to fifty third position on the current 2014/15 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $747,056 earned from the fourteen events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 123 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to thirty sixth position on the current 2014/15 USPGA Tour Money list standings with 497 points earned from the fourteen events he has played to date this season so far. From the fourteen events he has played to date this season so far he has made twelve cuts and achieved two top ten finishes that includes the one at this event.  He will be happy with his first and final rounds that were both under par especially his final round 69-3. But he will be just content with his second and third rounds that were in the mid 70s. Daniel Summerhays (USA) began playing on the Nationwide Tour full-time in 2007 after winning the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Invitational. In 2007, he played in 12 events and made 10 cuts while recording a top ten finish and four top 25 finishes. He earned US $46,926 and finished 113th on the money list. 2008 was Daniel Summerhays (USA) first full year on tour. He made 16 of 28 cuts while recording four top tens and 10 top 25s. His best performances came at the Preferred Health Systems Wichita Open where he finished in a tie for second. He earned US $177,845 and finished 35th on the money list. Daniel Summerhays (USA) struggled in 2009, making only 12 of 26 cuts while recording two top-10 finishes. He earned US $70,540 and finished 81st on the money list. Daniel Summerhays (USA) had a breakthrough year in 2010, recording seven top-10 finishes including three runner-up finishes while earning US $391,742 en route to a fifth place finish on the money list, good enough for a USPGA Tour card for 2011. Daniel Summerhays (USA) struggled during his rookie year on USPGA Tour, making only 8 cuts in 29 events. He finished 171st on the money list and had to go through qualifying school to earn his card for 2012. Daniel Summerhays (USA) began to find success in 2012. In February at the Mayakoba Golf Classic he finished in a tie for fifth and two weeks later, he finished in a tie for seventh at the Puerto Rico Open. He recorded his best USPGA Tour finish to date in June at the Memorial Tournament, finishing in a tie for fourth. In July he lost a sudden-death playoff to Woody Austin (USA) at the Sanderson Farms Championship. Let’s hope he can have more top ten finishes in the weeks ahead and perhaps 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 2015 part of the 2014/15 USPGA Tour season. 

And rounding out the top seven in tied for sixth position at 286-2 after 72 holes was Dustin Johnson (USA); he earned US $215,450 for his efforts and moved to third position on the current 2014/15 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $2,656,117 earned from the six events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 95 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to fifth position on the current 2014/15 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 1,005 points earned from the six events he has played to date this season so far. From the six events Dustin Johnson (USA) has played to date this season so far he has made four cuts and achieved four top ten finishes which includes the one here and also his win at the WGC – Cadillac Championship three weeks ago. He will be happy with his third and fourth rounds that were consecutive 68-4s and they both were the equal low rounds of the days. But he will be unhappy with his first and second rounds especially his first 78+6 which he fell victim of having to play in the morning wave in which the average score was just over 78+6 when winds blew over 35 miles per hour!! He will be very pleased how he was able to come back from his poor start and post a top ten finish. Dustin Johnson (USA) has won nine USPGA Tour events 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; 2010 BMW Championship; 2011 The Barclays; 2012 FedEx St. Jude Classic; 2013 Hyundai Tournament of Champions; 2013 WGC – HSBC Champions and the 2015 WGC – Cadillac Championship. He has also recorded seven top ten finishes to date so far in Major Championships and I wouldn’t be surprised at all if he won his maiden Major Championship in 2015. Perhaps it will come at the Masters Tournament in two weeks time? He also has achieved five top ten finishes to date so far in WGC – Events which includes winning the 2013 WGC – HSBC Championship and the 2015 WGC – Cadillac Championship. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2015 part of the 2014/15 USPGA Tour season.

The final player to tie for sixth position was Ryan Palmer (USA); he too earned US $215,450 for his efforts and moved to twenty sixth position on the current 2014/15 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $1,137,658 earned from the eight events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 95 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to twenty ninth position on the current 2014/15 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 575 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 which includes the one this week. He will be happy with his first and final rounds that were both under par especially his final round 68-4 which was the equal low round of the day. But he will be disappointed with his second and third rounds that were both over par especially his second round 75+3. Ryan Palmer’s (USA) first career USPGA win came at the 2004 FUNAI Classic at the Walt Disney World Resort, with a three stroke victory over Briny Baird (USA) and Vijay Singh (Fiji). Four years later, he earned his second career win during the USPGA Tour Fall Series, at the 2008 Ginn sur Mer Classic where wet, rainy conditions made the course play tough all week. He won by making a ten foot putt for birdie on the final hole on Sunday to finish seven under par and win by one stroke over five players. He was 143rd on the money list entering the week, but this win secured his playing status on Tour for 2009 and 2010. In January 2010, Ryan Palmer (USA) won his third career USPGA Tour title at the Sony Open in Hawaii. A final round 66 secured his victory by one stroke over Robert Allenby (Australia). Ryan Palmer (USA) came close to winning a fourth career title at his hometown event the HP Byron Nelson Championship in Texas in May 2011. Ryan Palmer (USA) entered the final round leading by one stroke, but as the final round progressed in windy conditions he had to hole a birdie putt on the last to enter a playoff with Keegan Bradley (USA). On the first playoff hole, the 18th, both players hit their tee shots out to the right amongst the trees. Keegan Bradley (USA) played his approach to just short of the green whereas Ryan Palmer (USA) hooked his approach shot into the water. Ryan Palmer (USA) pitched up close to the hole and made bogey but Keegan Bradley USA) was able to win with a pitch and putt par. In March 2014, Ryan Palmer (USA) lost another sudden-death playoff at the Honda Classic, after missing a five footer for what would have been the win on the 18th green in regulation play. He entered the four-man playoff, having been the only one to shoot an under-par final round. However, in the playoff, after missing the green in two, he could not get up and down, leaving Russell Henley (USA) to hole from three feet for victory. This was Ryan Palmer's (USA) second runner-up finish of the year, after finishing two shots behind Patrick Reed (USA) at the Humana Challenge in January 2014. I am sure his fourth win is not too far off and perhaps it will come 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 a shocking first round of 79+7 which was played in extremely difficult conditions where the wind gusted in excess of thirty five miles an hour!! Then an average second round of 74+2 for a 36 hole total of 153+9 and he missed the cut by three shots. He currently lies in 185th   position on the current 2014/15 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $80,303 earned from the thirteen events he has played to date this season so far. He also is currently in 177th position on the current 2014/15 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 78 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 four cuts and achieved no top ten finishes. He will be content with his second round 74+2 and he was just unlucky he teed off in the morning wave on Thursday and had to deal with the extremely strong winds which caused him to score 79+7 when the scoring average was just above 78. In the last eight events he has played on the USPGA Tour he has only made one cut. 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 80+8 in the first round which was shocking because he played in the afternoon wave when the strong winds had eased, then he withdrew in the second round after twelve holes when he was three over for the round and eleven over for the tournament with some sources saying that he was suffering from vertigo. He moved to forty first position on the current 2014/15 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $836,052 earned from the sixteen events he has played to date this season so far. He also moved to forty fourth position on the current 2014/15 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 430 points earned from the sixteen events he has played to date this season so far. From the sixteen events he has played to date this season so far he has made nine cuts and achieved two top ten finishes which includes the one two weeks ago at the Valspar Championship and also his tied for third finish at the OHL Classic at Mayakoba in mid November last year. He will be extremely angry with his first round 80+8 when the wind had eased and being three over par in his second round when he withdrew from the tournament due to symptoms of Vertigo because he had played his first nine holes which was the back nine in 35-1. This finish will slightly dent Danny Lee’s (NZL) confidence going forward after he had just come off two prosperous weeks with a top twenty finish at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard last week and his second top ten finish of the season two weeks ago at the Valspar Championship. Let’s hope he can have some more top ten finishes in the coming weeks and perhaps achieve his maiden USPGA Tour win in the 2015 part of the 2014/15 USPGA Tour season. Danny Lee (NZL) 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). I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2014/15 USPGA Tour season. 

Next week the USPGA Tour and FedEx Cup stays in the State of Texas for the second event in the first of two Texas Swings of the season and it is the Shell Houston Open and it is played on the GC of Houston, Humble, Texas. It is set up to play in similar conditions to the Augusta National Golf Club which hosts the Masters Tournament (First Major of the Year) the following week and because of this it will attract some of the best players in the World!! It carries a huge prize purse of US $6,600,000 for the taking. Matt Jones (Australia) is the defending champion and will be keen to defend his title. Danny Lee (NZL), Tim Wilkinson (NZL) and Steve Alker (NZL) are likely to gain starts as well. It starts on Thursday 2nd April 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 fourth week of his fifth spell of his career and for the 74th week of his career in total is Rory McILroy (NIR) fresh off his tied for eleventh position one week ago at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard and three weeks ago he tied for ninth position at the WGC – Cadillac Championship with 11.00 Official Golf World Ranking Points; coming in at Number Two is Henrik Stenson (Sweden) who is fresh off his solo second position one week ago at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard and two weeks ago he finished in solo fourth position at the Valspar Championship with 7.81 Official World Ranking Points; coming in at Number Three is Bubba Watson (USA) who is fresh off his solo third position three weeks ago at the WGC – Cadillac Championship and five weeks ago he tied for fourteen position at the Northern Trust Open with 7.57 Official World Ranking Points; coming in at Number Four is Jordan Spieth (USA) who is fresh off his solo second position at the Valero Texas Open this past week and two weeks ago he won the Valspar Championship with 6.90 Official World Ranking Points and rounding out the top five on the Official Golf World Ranking Points list standings this week is Jason Day (Australia) who is fresh off his tie for seventeenth position at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by MasterCard one week ago and three weeks ago he tied for thirty first position at the WGC – Cadillac Championship with 6.50 Official World Ranking Points. Danny Lee (NZL) this week is in his second week of another spell of being the highest ranked New Zealand Golfer in the world after he withdrew this past week in the second round at the Valero Texas Open on the USPGA Tour. This week he falls three places and drops to 193rd position on the Official World Golf Rankings Points list standings with 0.92 Official Golf World Ranking Points. 

Remember to never give up in match play because anything can happen!!

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