Golf Events from the Weekend 24th January 2016

Well it was another brilliant weekend on the Major Professional Golf Tours from around the world and this week the USPGA Tour and FedEx Cup headed to the USA mainland for the first time in 2016 and was in the State of California for the start of the West Coast Swing (which has five events in it) and the first one was CareerBuilder Challenge in partnership with the Clinton Foundation and it was played on the PGA WEST TPC Stadium Course, La Quinta, California. It carried a huge prize purse of US $5,800,000 for the taking. Bill Haas (USA) was the defending Champion and was keen to defend his title. Tim Wilkinson (NZL) got a start as well. And it was the golfer by the name of Jason Dufner (USA) who scored rounds of 64-8, 65-7, 64-8 and a final round of 70-2 for a seventy two hole total of 263-25 but he was tied on that score by David Lingmerth (Sweden) who scored rounds of 68-4, 68-4, 62-10 and a final round of 65-7 for a seventy two hole of 263-25 as well. So those two players headed back to the par four, eighteenth hole for the first playoff hole. 

Jason Dufner (USA) tees off during the final round

So to the first playoff hole which was the par four, eighteenth hole. The players were greeted on the tee by the USPGA Tour Official who explained all the holes that were going to be used in the playoff and both players choose a number from the Sponsors hand. David Lingmerth (Sweden) choose number one from the hand and teed off first. He hit a poor drive and it landed in the right hand rough. Jason Dufner (USA) choose number two and teed off second and hit a poor drive with his three wood that landed in the right hand fairway bunker and would force him to lay up short of the green. Jason Dufner (USA) played his second shot first with a lofted wedge from the fairway bunker and laid it up within a 100 yards of the green in fairway. He couldn’t go for the green because the lip was too high and he now knew he would have to get down in two shots for his par to have any chance of extending the playoff to a second hole with David Lingmerth (Sweden). David Lingmerth (Sweden) played his second shot next from the right hand rough. He struck a good seven iron that landed on the front of the green and rolled past the pin to come to rest twenty past the pin and a good chance to make his birdie. Jason Dufner (USA) played his third shot next from just over 100 yards and he struck a very good wedge shot into ten feet of the pin with an uphill putt for his par that he knew he would have to hole to have any chance of staying alive. David Lingmerth (Sweden) now putted for his birdie and the win from twenty feet and he struck a very good putt under the circumstances that took the left to right break and came up two feet short of the cup and he tapped in for his par four and put all the pressure back on Jason Dufner (USA). Jason Dufner (USA) now calmed his nerve and he put a very good stroke on his ten foot par putt and rolled it into the centre of the cup for his par and he extended the playoff to a second hole which was the par four, eighteenth hole again. 

Jason Dufner (USA) plays a chip shot during the playoff

So to the second playoff hole and this was the par four, eighteenth hole again. David Lingmerth (Sweden) teed off first again and hit his drive well to the right and into the right hand rough similar to the first playoff hole. Jason Dufner (USA) teed off next and again he put too much fade on it and it landed in the right rough just ahead of David Lingmerth’s (Sweden) golf ball. David Lingmerth (Sweden) played his second shot first and just like the first time he tried to fade it in slightly from left to right with his short iron but this time it didn’t fade enough and actually hooked and caught the rocks on the left and bounced hard left into the water hazard on the left and he left the door wide open for Jason Dufner (USA) to walk through. Jason Dufner (USA) played his second shot next and he knew now if he could just put his ball somewhere on the green and two putt the title was his. He played an excellent shot under the circumstances with his short iron that landed short right of the green and bounced to the left and rolled up onto the green leaving about twenty five feet for his birdie and the pressure was put right back on David Lingmerth (Sweden) now. David Lingmerth (Sweden) dropped his ball and played his fourth shot chip from about sixty five yards and hit a good shot that landed short of the green and rolled up to twelfth feet short of the flag stick. Now Jason Dufner (USA) knew if he two putted the title was his. Jason Dufner (USA) putted from twenty five feet for his birdie and stuck an aggressive putt and it missed on the left hand side and came to rest four feet past the cup. Now David Lingmerth (Sweden) knew if he holed his twelfth foot bogey putt he could put the pressure straight back onto Jason Dufner (USA) and maybe force the playoff to a third hole. David Lingmerth (Sweden) hit a good putt but it didn’t quite take the right to left break like he thought and it came to rest two feet past the cup and he marked it but he knew he wouldn’t have to putt again as Jason Dufner (USA) now have two putts to win the title. Jason Dufner (USA) calmed his nerve and rolled the four foot par putt right into the centre of the cup for the win!! David Lingmerth (Sweden) shook his hand to acknowledge his win. Then Jason Dufner (USA) got a high five and hug from his caddie!! 

Jason Dufner (USA) acknowledges the crowd after holing the winning putt!!

Then he was interviewed by golf channel on course reporter, Steve Stands and he said to Jason Dufner (USA) “Jason it is your first victory out here on the PGA Tour since the 2013 PGA Championship, how would describe just how difficult it is to win on the world’s grandest stage?” and Jason Dufner (USA) replied “You know it is pretty tough, um there is great players out here every week playing great golf courses, this is the best tour in the world, so for me to win this week, I feel like I was one of the best players in the world this week, so um it is not easy but it feels good when you do it, that is for sure!!”. Then golf channel on course reporter, Steve Stands said to Jason Dufner (USA) “One of the best shots we saw all week happened with you in regulation on seventeen (In the final round) we are going to show everyone what you did there (on TV), and what was going through you mind when you looked down on the ball there before you struck it?” and Jason Dufner (USA) replied “Yeah, you know I thought it was in the water, got a great break, sometimes those things happen, you need those to happen to win, you know I hit a pretty poor shot, but when I looked at it I had a pretty clean lie, it was kind of like you see at the Open Championship, it was on some hard pan, I kind of leaned the shaft a little bit with the face open, and tried to hit one you know that you kind of get a lot of grip, it was grabbing and I thought it was going to sneak in there for a minute, but ah you know those tap ins for par are easy, and I had a good look here on eighteen, but I am fortunate to be in this position and happy to be playing good golf”.  Then golf channel on course reporter, Steve Stands said to Jason Dufner (USA) “You’re a guy that seems so cool on the outside considering all the pressure you are playing with, what is going on inside when you are trying to get a win here?” and Jason Dufner (USA) replied “Yeah, it was tough today, you know I didn’t play as good on the front nine as I would of liked, I thought I played pretty good on the back nine, David (Lingmerth (Sweden)) put a run at which somebody was properly going to do today, um but I am proud of myself for hanging in there, and staying positive and you know giving my chance on the last couple of holes, and that nice par on the first playoff hole that was big for me and if I miss that putt I am going home a loser today!!”  Then golf channel on course reporter, Steve Stands said to Jason Dufner (USA) “Congratulations!!” And Jason Dufner (USA) replied “Thanks”. 

Jason Dufner (USA) earned US $1,044,000 for win and moved to eighth position on the current 2015/16 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $1,380,025 earned from the six events he has played to date this season so far. Kevin Kisner (USA) still leads that list with US $2,350,032 earned from the six events he has played today this season so far. Jason Dufner (USA) earned 500 FedEx Cup Points for the win and moved to eighth position on the current 2015/16 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 700 points earned from the six events he has played to date this season so far and he is 373 points behind the current leader of that list who is Kevin Kisner (USA) who has earned 1,073 points from the six events he has played to date this season so far. From the six events Jason Dufner (USA) has played to date this season so far he has made five cuts and achieved three top ten finishes which includes the win this week. He will be happy with his four rounds this week that were all under par especially his first round 64-8 which was blemish free and his second round 65-7 and his third round 64-8 that included a front nine of 29-7!! And he will be happy with his final round 70-2 under the circumstances of carrying the 54 hole lead into it and also happy with the two pars he made on the first two playoff holes to win the title. And of course the great break he got on the par three, seventy first hole where his ball landed in the sand near the rocks and he was still able to get up and down for his par!! He made thirty birdies this week against five bogeys. And this win will give him some real confidence moving forward. 

Jason Dufner (USA) on the left kisses the Career Builder Challenge Trophy he won with former US President, Bill Clinton watching on from the right!!

Jason Christopher Dufner (USA) (born March 24, 1977) is an American professional golfer who currently plays on the USPGA Tour where he is a four-time winner. He has won one Major Championship, the 2013 PGA Championship. He was also runner-up in the 2011 PGA Championship, losing a playoff to Keegan Bradley (USA). Jason Dufner (USA) was ranked in the top ten in the Official World Golf Ranking for fifty weeks; his career-high ranking is sixth in September 2012. Jason Dufner (USA) was born in Cleveland, Ohio. He moved to the Washington, D.C. area when he was eleven years old, and then to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, when he was fourteen. It was there that he started playing golf, and played for St. Thomas Aquinas High School during his sophomore, junior and senior years. Jason Dufner (USA) was a walk – on at Auburn University, where he won three times in his college career and was an Honorable Mention All-American in 1997. He graduated from Auburn in 2000 with a degree in economics. In 1998, Jason Dufner (USA) played in the finals of the U.S. Amateur Public Links at Torrey Pines, falling to Trevor Immelman (RSA), 3 and 2. 

In his early career, Jason Dufner (USA) struggled to hold down a place on the USPGA Tour. He was a member of the USPGA Tour in 2004 and the Nationwide Tour (now Web.com Tour) in 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005 and 2006. Jason Dufner (USA) won two events during his time on the Nationwide Tour (now Web.com Tour), the BUY.COM Wichita Open in 2001 and the LaSalle Bank Open in 2006. He finished in eighth place on the Nationwide Tour (Now Web.com) money list in 2006 to earn his USPGA Tour card for 2007. He finished 127th in the FedEx Cup standings in 2007, and failed to qualify at the USPGA Tour Q-School, where he finished tied for 149th position. He retained conditional status for the 2008 USPGA Tour season, and then finished tied for eleventh at the Q-School that year to earn his card for 2009. He has been a member of the USPGA Tour every year since. In 2009, Jason Dufner (USA) finished in the top-10 on six occasions; including a third-place finish at the RBC Canadian Open, and a runner up place at the Deutsche Bank Championship, part of the FedEx Cup playoffs. As a result, Jason Dufner (USA) went on to finish the year eleventh in the FedEx Cup standings and thirty third on the year's money list. Jason Dufner (USA) had a less successful 2010 season, recording only two top-10 finishes. However, his best finish of the year came in a Major Championship, at the 2010 PGA Championship at Whistling Straits. He finished in a tie for fifth place, two strokes short of the playoff. This was the best result to date Jason Dufner (USA) had recorded in a Major Championship. He was eliminated in the third FedEx Cup playoff event and did not qualify for The Tour Championship.

Early in 2011, Jason Dufner (USA) had a chance to win his first USPGA Tour title at the Waste Management Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale when he finished tied for the lead at 18-under-par after 72 holes, before eventually losing in a playoff to Mark Wilson (USA). Mark Wilson (USA) made a birdie on the second extra hole and the best Jason Dufner (USA) could manage there was a par. He also had a good finish in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans where a final-round 66 boosted him to a tie for third place. Jason Dufner (USA) earned entry into the 2011 U.S. Open Championship after Anders Hansen (Denmark) withdrew; previously during a qualifying tournament in Georgia, Jason Dufner (USA) had lost in a playoff to Russell Henley (USA). He also played in the 2011 Open Championship as a result of Tiger Woods (USA) pulling out due to injury. He missed the cut in both the U.S. Open and the Open Championship. At the 2011 PGA Championship in Atlanta, Jason Dufner (USA) was in contention to win his first major and maiden USPGA Tour title, when he entered the final round in the last group and tied for the lead with Brendan Steele (USA) at seven under par. Jason Dufner  (USA) completed the front nine in 33, two under par, while playing partner Brendan Steele (USA) dropped four shots early on and fell out of contention. Jason Dufner (USA) held the lead for most of the final round and was bogey-free through 14 holes. After his nearest challenger, Keegan Bradley (USA), made triple bogey on the fifteenth, Jason Dufner (USA) had a five-stroke advantage with four holes to play. Jason Dufner (USA) then hit his tee shot on 15 into the water hazard right of the green on the par three. He got up and down from the drop zone to make bogey, but followed this with bogeys at sixteenth and seventeenth. Meanwhile, Kevin Bradley (USA) scored back-to-back birdies on sixteenth and seventeenth to take the clubhouse lead at eight under, wiping out Jason Dufner's (USA) advantage. Jason Dufner (USA) parred the eighteenth and the two American players went into a three-hole aggregate playoff. On the first playoff hole, both players hit their approach shots to sixteenth within a few feet. Keegan Bradley (USA) made his birdie putt, while Jason Dufner (USA) missed his birdie, allowing Keegan Bradley (USA) to take a one-stroke advantage to the seventeenth. Both players found the green from the tee, and while Keegen Bradley (USA) two-putted for his par, Jason Dufner (USA) knocked his first putt well past the hole, and three-putted the green to fall two strokes behind with one to play. At the last hole, Keegan Bradley's (USA) second shot cleared the water by a few yards; Jason Dufner (USA) then followed with a shot on the same line and made his birdie putt. Keegan Bradley (USA) only needed to two-putt for the championship, which he did. This was Jason Dufner's (USA) best major finish, winning US $865,000 of the purse, with both of his career high finishes in Majors Championships coming at the PGA Championship. With his second-place finish, he rose to thirty eighth in the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR).  

Jason Dufner (USA) continued his good form in 2012 by sharing the 36-hole lead at the Masters Tournament, but faded on the weekend to finish tied for twenty fourth. Three weeks later at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, Jason Dufner (USA) won for the first time on the USPGA Tour in his 164th start when he defeated Ernie Els (USA) on the second hole of a sudden death playoff. He entered the final round with a two stroke advantage and shot a 70 to finish at 19 under par, a tournament total record, which Ernie Els (RSA) also equalled. At the first playoff hole, the eighteenth, Ernie Els (RSA) had a chance to clinch victory with a six-foot putt, but pushed it out to the right. Replaying the eighteenth again, Jason Dufner (USA) found the green in two and when Ernie Els (USA) couldn't get up and down from 100 yards short of the green, Jason Dufner (USA) sealed the win with a two putt. Jason Dufner (USA) moved into the world's top twenty as a result of his first victory. Three weeks later Jason Dufner (USA) chalked up his second victory with a win at the HP Byron Nelson Championship by one stroke over Dicky Pride (USA), who was seeking his first win since 1994. Jason Dufner (USA) began the final round with the fifty four-hole lead, but suffered setbacks when he bogeyed two and three to surrender the lead. He recovered with birdies at four, five and seven, but remained behind playing partner JJ Henry (USA) until the seventeenth when JJ Henry (USA) made double bogey. Now tied for the lead with Dicky Pride (USA), the clubhouse leader, after 71 holes, Jason Dufner (USA) sank a twenty five -foot birdie putt on the seventy second hole for the outright victory. The win elevated Jason Dufner (USA) to fourteenth in the OWGR and first in the FedEx Cup standings. Jason Dufner (USA) became only the second multiple winner on the USPGA Tour in 2012, alongside Hunter Mahan (USA). In May 2012, Jason Dufner (USA) had an opportunity to win his third USPGA Tour title of the year at the Colonial, where he was leading after 36 and 54 holes respectively before being beaten by one stroke by former Masters champion Zach Johnson (USA). The second-place finish, however, catapulted Jason Dufner (USA) to eighth place in the Official World Golf Ranking, a career best ranking at the time. Jason Dufner's (USA) excellent season continued at the 2012 U.S. Open Championship where he finished in a tie for fourth place, two strokes behind winner Webb Simpson (USA). This is his best finish to date in the U.S. Open Championship. Jason Dufner (USA) qualified for his first Ryder Cup team in 2012, finishing with a record of 3–1 in the three day matches, including a 2-up win over Peter Hanson (Sweden) in the singles competition.

In January 2013, Jason Dufner (USA) stated an interest in taking up a membership with the European Tour. In June 2013, Jason Dufner (USA) finished fourth at the U.S. Open Championship at Merion Golf Club, the second year in a row finishing fourth at the tournament. Jason Dufner (USA) entered the final round at +8, but birdied five of the first 14 holes to pull to +3 overall. However, he triple-bogeyed the par four, fifteenth hole to move back to +6. After a birdie at sixteenth, Jason Dufner (USA) scored par on holes seventeenth and eighteenth to finish the tournament at +5, four shots behind the leader, Justin Rose (England).  At the USPGA Championship in August, Jason Dufner (USA) won his maiden Major Championship with a two-stroke victory at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, New York. After beginning the tournament with a two-under round of 68, Jason Dufner (USA) tied the record for all-time lowest round in a Major Championship and broke the course record at Oak Hill Country Club by shooting a seven-under-par 63 in the second round. He carded five birdies and an eagle, the latter achieved when he holed out from 105 yards on the par four, second hole. Jason Dufner (USA) had the chance to finish with a 62 and the outright lowest round in a Major Championship, but he left his twelve foot putt for birdie at the eighteenth hole short. The record-breaking round took Jason Dufner (USA) into a two-shot lead going into the weekend. In round three, Jason Dufner (USA) shot a one-over round of 71 to fall out of the lead, one stroke behind Jim Furyk (USA). That marked the second time in three years that Jason Dufner (USA) was in the final group of the PGA Championship on Sunday. In the final round, Jason Dufner (USA) started well by making a birdie at the fourth hole, which took him into a share of the lead alongside Jim Furyk (USA). Further birdies at the fifth and eighth holes, allied with Jim Furyk (USA) bogeying the ninth, opened up a two-stroke advantage for Jason Dufner (USA) entering the back nine. He missed a birdie putt on the tenth which would have moved him three strokes ahead and then holed a short putt on the eleventh which almost lipped out for par. Having turned into a two-man race, both Jason Dufner (USA) and Jim Furyk (USA) made four straight pars between the twelfth and fifteenth holes. On the sixteenth, Jason Dufner (USA) stiffed his approach to within eighteen inches, but Jim Furyk (USA) holed a lengthy birdie putt to stay in touch. After both players bogeyed the seventeenth, Jason Dufner (USA) held a two-stroke lead going up the final hole. Both players found the rough with their drives and approach shots and after Jim Furyk (USA) could only manage a bogey, Jason Dufner (USA) lagged his par putt down to the hole to tap in, finishing ten under par for the tournament and a two-stroke victory. Jason Dufner (USA) moved back inside the top ten, at eighteenth in the rankings, after the victory.

Without a win since the 2013 US PGA Championship,Jason Dufner (USA) secured his first title for two-and-a-half years at the 2016 CareerBuilder Challenge in Partnership with the Clinton Foundation at PGA West (Which I mentioned above). He defeated Swede David Lingmerth (Sweden) in a play-off after they both finished four shots clear of the field on 25-under-par. On May 5, 2012, Jason Dufner (USA) married his girlfriend Amanda Boyd, whom he had met in 2009 through mutual friends at Auburn. They were divorced in early 2015. Jason Dufner's (USA) laid-back mannerisms have led to the term "Dufnering," which specifically refers to a slumped sitting position with an expressionless face. The term originated in March 2013 after a photo went public of Jason Dufner (USA) slumping without expression while visiting a youth center in Irving Texas. Afterward, Keegan Bradley (USA) and several other professional golfers good-naturedly mocked Jason Dufner (USA) through Twitter and other social media, and "Dufnering" rapidly became a popular phenomenon. Jason Dufner (USA) founded Jason Dufner's Charitable Foundation, a nonprofit organization based in Auburn, Alabama, committed to ending child hunger in Lee County, Alabama.

He has won four USPGA Tour events to date so far in his career and here they are from the first to the most recent: 2012 Zurich Classic of New Orleans; 2012 HP Bryon Nelson Championship; 2013 PGA Championship and the 2016 CareerBuilder Challenge in partnership with the Clinton Foundation. He has achieved five top ten finishes in Major Championships to date so far with his best being his maiden Major Championship win at the 2013 PGA Championship. He has also achieved six top ten finishes in WGC – Events with his best to date coming in the 2012 WGC – HSBC Champions. He also represented Team USA in the 2012 Ryder Cup against Team Europe and also represented Team USA in the 2013 Presidents Cup against Team International which Team USA won. Let’s hope he can keep this form up for the rest of the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season and FedEx Cup. 

Coming in solo second position at 263-25 after seventy two holes and losing on the second playoff hole (which I mentioned above) was David Lingmerth (Sweden); he earned US $626,400 for his efforts and moved to fifteenth position on the current 2015/16 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $992,016 earned from the six events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 300 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to thirteenth position on the current 2015/16 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 469 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 six cuts and achieved one top ten finish that came this past week. He will be happy with his four rounds this week that were all in the 60s especially his 62-10 in the third round which was blemish free and the equal low round of the day and the tournament and also his final round 65-7 which was also blemish free and the equal low round of the day!! But he will be disappointed that he wasn’t able to convert his birdie putt on the first playoff hole and his second shot that went in the water on the second playoff hole and making double bogey which handed the tournament to Jason Dunfer (USA). But he still had a brilliant week with making one eagle, twenty six birdies and three bogeys!! And this will give him lots of confidence moving forward. David Lingmerth (Sweden) (born 22 July 1987) is a Swedish professional golfer who plays on the USPGA Tour. David Lingmerth (Sweden) played college golf at the University of West Florida (one year) and the University of Arkansas (three years) where he was a two-time All-American. He won one event at West Florida and another at Arkansas. David Lingmerth (Sweden) played on the Web.com Tour during the 2011 season. He had some success with two third-place finishes and five top-10s but missed out on earning his USPGA Tour card by two spots on the season-ending money list, finishing twenty seventh; the top twenty five advanced to the USPGA Tour. He also played the USPGA Tour Qualifying school in a move to try and earn playing privileges, but finished way down the field outside the top 100.

David Lingmerth (Sweden) continued on the Web.com Tour in 2012 and after losing a playoff earlier in the year, he won his first event on the tour at the Neediest Kids Championship in October, finishing a stroke ahead of Casey Wittenberg (USA). David Lingmerth (Sweden) ended the season ranked tenth on the money list, which earned him his USPGA Tour card for the 2013 season. In only his second career start on the USPGA Tour, David Lingmerth (Sweden) finished as a joint runner-up at the Humana Challenge after losing in a three-man playoff. He shot a 10-under-par round of 62 in the final round to get into the playoff alongside Brian Gay (USA) and Charles Howell III (USA). He was eliminated at the first extra hole after finding the water with his second shot to the par five, eighteenth hole. David Lingmerth (Sweden) also led the 2013 Players Championship in the third round, finishing tied for second, two strokes behind Tiger Woods (USA). He finished his rookie season in seventy fifth place, to retain his card for 2014. In 2014 however, he finished the season in 134th place, resulting in a visit to the Web.com Tour Finals. There he finished in eighth place, earning a return to the USPGA Tour. David Lingmerth (Sweden) earned his first USPGA Tour win at the 2015 Memorial Tournament. At the 2015 Quicken Loans National, David Lingmerth (Sweden) finished solo third with a final round 69, four shots behind the winner, Troy Merritt (USA). In January 2016, David Lingmerth (Sweden) lost in a sudden-death playoff to Jason Dufner (USA) at the CareerBuilder Challenge (As I mentioned above). This was the second time that David Lingmerth (Sweden) had lost in a playoff at the event, following his runner up finish to Brian Gay (USA) in 2013. He lost on the second extra hole after hooking his second shot into the water at the eighteenth and had earlier had a putt for the victory from twenty feet on the first playoff hole. Despite this, the result moved David Lingmerth (Sweden) into the top fifty in the world rankings. His uncle, Goran Lingmerth, played for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League. His best finish today in a Major Championship is tied for twelfth at the 2015 PGA Championship. Let’s hope he can continue this great form on in the next few weeks. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour and FedEx Cup.

Rounding out the top five in tied for third position at 267-21 after seventy two holes was Andrew Loupe (USA); he earned US $301,600 for his efforts and moved to twenty sixth position on the current 2015/16 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $536,771 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 eighth position on the current 2015/16 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 246 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 three cuts and achieved three top ten finishes which includes the one this past week. He will be happy with his four rounds this week that were all in the 60s especially his third round 67-5!! This finish will give him a lot of confidence moving forward in the next few tournaments. Andrew Gravolet Loupe (USA) (born November 22, 1988) is an American professional golfer who plays on the USPGA Tour. Andrew Loupe (USA) was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where he attended Episcopal High School. He was a member of the school's golf team and won the Louisiana Junior Amateur Championship in 2005. He was also a two-time all-state guard in basketball and was named The Advocate High School Athlete of the Year as a junior in 2006. He played college golf at LSU and was a two-time All-American. Andrew Loupe (USA) turned pro in 2011 and spent most of the next two seasons on the NGA Pro Golf Tour. He played his first USPGA Tour event in 2011 when he qualified for the Zurich Classic of New Orleans; he went on to miss the cut. He played on the Web.com Tour in 2013, finishing seventieth in the standings: he ranked second in driving distance with an average of 315.2 yards. He finished tied for sixth at the season-ending Web.com Tour Championship: this gave him a ranking of twenty third in the Finals rankings (excluding regular season Top 25) to earn his 2013/14 USPGA Tour card. Andrew Loupe (USA) missed his first five cuts to start the 2014 season before shooting an eight-under-par 63 at Monterey Peninsula to take the first-round lead at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. He went on to finish tied for twenty seventh. After a tied for twelfth in his next tournament, the Puerto Rico Open, he shot an opening-round 67 to lead the Valero Texas Open en route to a tied for fourth finish. He finished the 2014 season in 137th place to earn conditional status for the 2015 season; he competed in the 2014 Web.com Tour Finals but was unable to improve his category. In 2015, he finished 198th in the FedEx standings, but a win in one of the Web.com Tour Finals events earned him a return to the USPGA Tour for the 2015/16 season. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season and FedEx Cup.

Also tied for third position was Phil Mickelson (USA); he too earned US $301,600 for his efforts and moved to fifty fifth position on the current 2015/16 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $301,600 earned from the one event has played to date this season so far. He also earned 145 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to seventy third position on the current 2015/16 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 145 points earned from the one event he has played to date this season so far. From the one event he has played to date this season so far he has made one cut and achieved one top ten finish that came this past week. He will be happy with his four rounds this week that were all in the 60s especially his 65-7 in the second round and his third round 66-6 which was blemish free and his final round 68-4 which was blemish free also!! And it was great to see him have such a good week in his first event of the season after changing coaches to Andrew Getson late last year. This finish will give him a huge confidence boost that he is on the right track with his swing now!! Philip Alfred Mickelson (USA) (born June 16, 1970) is an American professional golfer. He has won forty two events on the USPGA Tour, including five Major Championships: three Masters Tournament titles (2004, 2006, 2010), a PGA Championship (2005), and an Open Championship (2013). Phil Mickelson (USA) is one of sixteen golfers in the history of the sport to win at least three of the four professional majors. The only major that has eluded him is the U.S. Open Championship. Phil Mickelson (USA) has finished runner-up in the U.S. Open Championship a record six times. Phil Mickelson (USA) has spent over 700 weeks in the top-10 of the Official World Golf Ranking, has reached a career-high world ranking of second several times and has a lifetime exemption on the USPGA Tour. Phil Mickelson (USA) is nicknamed "Lefty" for his left-handed swing, even though he is otherwise right-handed. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in May 2012. As I mentioned above he has won forty two USPGA Tour events with his most recent being the 2013 Open Championship. As well as his five wins in professional Major Championships he has also recorded thirty two other top ten finishes to date so far. He has also won two WGC – Events with his most recent being the 2009 WGC – HSBC Champions and has also recorded thirteen top ten finishes to date so far. He has also played on every Presidents Cup Team for Team USA verse Team International since the competition began in 1994: 1994 (winners), 1996 (winners), 1998, 2000 (winners), 2003 (tie), 2005 (winners), 2007 (winners), 2009 (winners), 2011 (winners), 2013 (winners), 2015 (winners). And he has played on ten Ryder Cup Team’s for Team USA against Team Europe: 1995, 1997, 1999 (winners), 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008 (winners), 2010, 2012, 2014. Let’s hope he can win the 2016 US Open Championship at Oakmont Country Club in June to complete the career Grand Slam? I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season and FedEx Cup. 

The final player to tie for third position was Kevin Na (USA); he too earned US $301,600 for his efforts and moved to third position on the current 2015/16 USPGA Tour Money list with US $1,797,273 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 third position on the current 2015/16 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 817 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 six cuts and achieved four top ten finishes which includes the one this past week. He will be happy with his second, third and final rounds that were all in the 60s especially his 66-6 in the second round which was blemish free and also his amazing 62-10 in the third round that was blemish free and the equal low round of the day and the tournament. But he will be just content with his third round 71-1 which prevented him from challenging for the title. But he has made a brilliant start to the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season and he must be due to win his second USPGA Tour event soon. Kevin Sangwook Na (USA) (born September 15, 1983) is a Korean American professional golfer currently playing on the USPGA Tour. Born in Seoul, South Korea, Kevin Na (USA) emigrated with his family to the United States when he was eight years old, settling in southern California. He left Diamond Bar High School after his junior year to play professional golf at age seventeen. Kevin Na (USA) has played on the Asian Tour (with a win at the 2002 Volvo Masters of Asia), European Tour and USPGA Tour. Kevin Na (USA) got his USPGA Tour card for the 2004 season. He finished third at the Southern Farm Bureau Classic and fourth at the Honda Classic. In 2005 he finished second at the FBR Open and Chrysler Classic of Tucson. He missed six months with a hand injury in 2006. In his first start back, a rehab start on the Nationwide Tour (now Web.com Tour), he won the Mark Christopher Charity Classic. Kevin Na (USA) played on the USPGA Tour in 2007 via a medical extension, and finished fourth at the Verizon Heritage. In 2008 he was fourth at the FBR Open and Sony Open in Hawaii. He finished third at the 2009 Players Championship and the FBR Open, fifth at the Sony Open in Hawaii, Mayakoba Golf Classic and Reno-Tahoe Open. With nine top-10 finishes and 14 top-25 finishes, he ranked in nineteenth place on the money list, securing his entry to the Masters Tournament and the U.S. Open Championship in 2010 for the first time. In the 2010 season, Kevin Na (USA) finished second at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and third at the BMW Championship. He placed thirty seventh in season earnings.

In February 2011, Kevin Na (USA) was in contention to win his first USPGA Tour title at the Northern Trust Open. He entered the final round in a tie for second at minus nine, one stroke behind Aaron Baddeley (Australia). However a run of four bogeys in the first ten holes ended Kevin Na's (USA) chances of victory. He would eventually fight back on the back nine and a vital birdie on the par-five, seventeenth sealed a third-place finish, behind eventual winner Aaron Baddeley (Australia) and Vijay Singh (Fiji). On April 14, 2011, Kevin Na (USA) played the worst ever par four hole on the USPGA Tour since the tour began recording hole-by-hole scores in 1983, making a sixteen on the ninth hole at the Valero Texas Open. Kevin Na (USA) needed extra shots after an unplayable lie from his tee shot and was then given a two-stroke penalty after his ball hit a tree and rebounded back onto him. It was initially scored as a 15 but changed to 16 on review. Kevin Na (USA) ended up shooting an eight-over-par round of 80, which saw him shoot four-under for his other seventeen holes. In August 2011, Kevin Na (USA) finished tenth at the PGA Championship with a 72-69-70-67 score card. He also finished fifth at the Bob Hope Classic and Wells Fargo Championship. On October 1, 2011, Kevin Na (USA) apparently whiffed his tee shot on the par four,  fifteenth hole in the third round of the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open at TPC Summerlin in Las Vegas, missing high and to the outside of the ball. Tour officials, though, ruled Kevin Na (USA) was not intending to hit the ball and did not count the swing as a stroke, and Kevin Na (USA) finished with a 5-under 66 to remain tied for the tournament lead. The following day, Kevin Na (USA) earned his first USPGA Tour victory at the 211th attempt, having been on tour for eight years. He shot a final round 65 with birdies at 15, 16 and 17 to win by two strokes from Nick Watney (USA) and earn US $792,000 in prize money. Kevin Na (USA) also broke the tournament scoring record of twenty one under par when he finished the week at twenty three under par. This victory earned Kevin Na (USA) a two-year exemption on tour.  He ranked thirtieth in season earnings. During the 2012 USPGA Tour season, Kevin Na (USA) finished fourth at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, fifth at the Phoenix Open and AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, seventh at the Players Championship and twelfth at Masters Tournament. A back injury limited Kevin Na (USA) to eight starts in early 2013. After rehabbing, he made a comeback in October in his first USPGA Tour start since April with a third-place finish at the Frys.com Open. Kevin Na (USA) was given eighteen starts on a medical extension, but needed only seven to remain on the USPGA Tour. In 2014 he finished second at the Memorial Tournament and Valspar Championship, third at the Frys.com Open, fourth at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, ninth at The Barclays and twelfth at the U.S. Open. He finished twentieth in season earnings. Kevin Na (USA) lost in a sudden-death playoff to Emiliano Grillo (Argentina) at the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season opening Frys.com Open. After both players finished at 15-under-par, Emiliano Grillo (Argentina) won the event with a birdie on the second extra hole. Kevin Na (USA) hit his second shot to the par-five eighteenth off-line and was trapped behind a tree, which resulted in a bogey. This allowed Emiliano Grillo (Argentina) to two-putt out for the victory. Kevin Na (USA) is now 0 for 3 in USPGA Tour sudden-death playoffs. Kevin Na (USA) is a naturalized American citizen, and lives in Las Vegas, Nevada. Let’s hope he can finally get that second USPGA Tour win in the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season because it is long overdue. And I feel you could say although he has had lots of top five finishes in his career he could be classed as under achieved so far with only the one win to date on the USPGA Tour. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour and FedEx Cup.

Tim Wilkinson (NZL) who recently regained his 2015/16 USPGA Tour card at the Web.com Tour Finals was the other New Zealand Golfer in the field and he scored a good first round of  69-3 which included a good front nine of 34-1 with birdies coming on the par five, fourth hole and par five, seventh hole and a poor lone bogey coming on the par three, third hole and a good back nine of 34-2 with birdies on the par four, tenth hole, par five, eleventh hole, par four, fourteenth hole and par five, fifteenth hole but he had a shocking double bogey on the par four, sixteenth hole and a very good second round of 67-5 which included a good front nine of 35-1 which included birdies on the par four, second hole, par three, fourth hole and par five, eighth hole but he had poor bogeys on the par three, sixth hole and par four, seventh hole and then he scored a brilliant back nine of 32-4 with birdies on the par four, tenth hole, par five, eleventh hole, par four, twelfth hole and par five, sixteenth hole and a very good third round of 69-3 which was blemish free and included a good front nine of 35-1 with a lone birdie coming on the par five, sixth hole and then a very good back nine of 34-2 with birdies coming on the par five, thirteenth hole and par four, eighteenth hole and he scored a poor final round of 74+2 which included a poor front nine of 37+1 which included a poor lone bogey on the par four, first hole and then he scored a poor back nine of  37+1 with birdies coming on the par four, fourteenth hole and par three, seventeenth hole and a poor lone bogey on the par four, eighteenth hole and a shocking double bogey on the par three, thirteenth hole for a seventy two hole total of  279-9 and he finished in tied for sixty second position and he earned US $12,354 for his efforts. He moved to 135th position on the current 2015/16 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $97,127 earned from the five events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned eight FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to 105th position on the current 2015/16 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 104 points earned from the five events he has played in to date so far. From the five events he has played to date this season so far he has made five cuts and achieved no top ten finishes. He will be happy with his first, second and third rounds this week that were all in the 60s especially his second round that was 67-5!! But disappointed with his final round 74+2!! And if he had done another mid 60s round he could have finished inside the top twenty and won a lot more money. But it is good to see him make all five cuts in his five events of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season. Let’s hope he can continue this form on in the early 2016 part of 2015/16 USPGA Tour season. His next event will likely be the Farmers Insurance Open next week. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season. 

Next week the USPGA Tour and FedEx Cup remain in the State of California for the Farmers Insurance Open (which is the second of five events in the west coast swing) and it is played on the Torrey Pines GC (South), San Diego, California. It carries a huge prize purse of US $6,500,000 for the taking. Jason Day (Australia) is the defending champion and will be keen to defend his title. Danny Lee (NZL) will gain a start if he chooses to play and Tim Wilkinson (NZL) will be hopeful for a start. It starts on Thursday 28th January and I will report back who won the trophy next week.

So to the Top 5 on the Official World Golf Rankings Points list standings this week coming in at Number One Position for the eighteenth week of his career is Jordan Spieth (USA) who is fresh off  his tied for fifth position this past week at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship and also his win two weeks ago at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions with 11.97 Official World Ranking Points; coming in at Number Two is Jason Day (Australia) who is fresh off his tied for tenth position two weeks ago at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions and also being part of the 2015 Team Internationals Presidents Cup narrow loss to Team USA fifteen weeks ago in South Korea with 10.38 Official World Ranking Points; coming in at Number Three is Rory McILroy (NIR) who is fresh off his tied for third position this past week at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship and also his  win nine weeks ago at the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai and the Race to Dubai title for a third time in his career with 10.30 Official Golf World Ranking Points; coming in at Number Four is Rickie Fowler (USA) who is fresh off his win at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship this past week and also his solo fifth position at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions two weeks ago with 7.87 Official World Ranking Points and rounding out the top five on the Official World Ranking Points list standings this week is Bubba Watson (USA) who is fresh off his tied for tenth position two weeks ago at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions and also his tied for fifteenth position at the Thailand Golf Championship six weeks ago with 7.48 Official World Ranking Points. Danny Lee (NZL) this week is in his fortieth fifth week of another spell of being the highest ranked New Zealand Golfer in the world after finishing in tied for thirty third position at the Sony Open in Hawaii one week ago. This week he drops three places and falls to fortieth sixth position on the Official World Golf Rankings Points list standings with 2.59 Official Golf World Ranking Points.

Remember to always play the course to the conditions that are presented to you for that day!!

Source: Pgatour.com, Official World Golf Rankings, wikipedia.org, Google search engine, europeantour.com, golfchannel.com, ladieseuropeantour.com, asiantour.com, pgatourlive.co.nz

Golf Events from the Weekend 17th January 2016

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 had its second and final event in the State of Hawaii for the 2015/16 season and it was the first regular season event for the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season and was the Sony Open in Hawaii and was played on the Waialae CC, Honolulu, Hawaii. It carried a huge prize purse of US $5,800,000 for the taking. Jimmy Walker (USA) was the two time defending champion having won it in 2014 and 2015 and was trying for a three peat. Danny Lee (NZL) and Tim Wilkinson (NZL) got starts as well. And it was the golfer by the name of Fabian Gomez (Argentina) who scored rounds of 69-1, 64-6, 65-5 and a brilliant final round 62-8 for a seventy two hole total of 260-20 but he was tied on that score with Brandt Snedeker (USA) who scored rounds of 63-7, 65-5, 66-4 and a final round of 66-4 for a seventy two hole total of 260-20 also. So those two players headed back to the par five, eighteenth hole for the first playoff hole. 

 

Fabian Gomez (Argentina) hits an iron shot during the final round

So to the first playoff hole and both players chose a number from the USPGA Tour Official, Mark Russell’s hat and Fabian Gomez (Argentina) because he posted his minus twenty scored first got to choose first from the hat and pulled out number two so Brandt Snedeker (USA) had the honour and teed off first. He struck a good drive on the sharp dog leg left with a draw from right to left but it rolled through the fairway and finished in the right hand rough leaving a difficult shot for his second. Fabian Gomez (Argentina) teed off next and struck a poor tee shot that that didn’t draw enough and landed in the grass to the right of the fairway in front of the fairway bunker. Fabian Gomez (Argentina) played his second shot first with his fairway wood and it came out with plenty of over spin and rolled out to the right behind the right greenside fairway bunker. Brandt Snedeker (USA) played his second shot next from the right rough with his mid iron and it caught the tree but got a friendly bounce and landed back in the fairway with just a short pitch to the green. Brandt Snedeker (USA) played his third shot, pitch shot first from sixty yards and struck a good one that came to rest ten feet to the left of the flag stick. Fabian Gomez (Argentina) played his third shot, chip shot and chipped it up over the right hand green side bunker and it landed in the fringe and rolled out to fifteen feet short of the cup. Fabian Gomez (Argentina) putted for his birdie first from fifteen feet and it was a well struck putt that just missed on the right hand side and he tapped in for his par five and was now at the mercy of Brandt Snedeker (USA) who had a ten foot putt to win the title. Brandt Snedeker (USA) calmed himself and then struck a very good putt that was tracking right for the hole but just rolled to the right when it got to the hole and he too tapped in for his par five and those two players headed back to the par five, eighteenth hole for the second playoff hole. 

So to the second playoff hole which was the par five, eighteenth hole again. Brandt Snedeker (USA) teed off first and this time put too much left to right fade on his tee shot and it rolled into the right hand fairway bunker. Fabian Gomez (Argentina) teed off next and he chose his rescue fairway wood so he wouldn’t roll through the fairway on the right hand side. He struck a very good shot that had a strong right to left draw on it and it stayed in the fairway leaving just a long iron to the green. Brandt Snedeker (USA) played his second shot first and he was in two minds whether to try and hit a rescue wood or long iron to reach the green in two shots but if he tried it he would run the risk of hitting the lip in bunker or just play a short iron and leave a short pitch to the green for his third shot. He chose the second option and just laid his ball up 100 yards short of the green. Fabian Gomez (Argentina) played his second shot next from the middle of the fairway. He chose a three iron and struck it brilliantly, it landed twenty yards short of the green and rolled forward onto the green to come to rest thirty feet right of the pin virtually pin high almost guaranteeing a certain birdie for him and putting the pressure right back on Brandt Snedeker (USA) to get up and down for his birdie. Brandt Snedeker (USA) played a good pitch for his third shot and it came to rest ten feet past the pin and he knew he would have to make that putt to force the playoff to a third hole. Fabian Gomez (Argentina) now stood over his thirty foot eagle putt and he knew if he holed it he would win the title. He struck a good putt but it came up a foot short and he tapped in for his birdie four and would have to wait and see if it was going to be good enough for the win? Brandt Snedeker (USA) now stood over his ten foot birdie putt to force the playoff to a third hole. He steadied himself and struck a good putt that looked like it was going in but when the ball got to the hole it veered to the right and just missed and that meant Fabian Gomez (Argentina) had won the 2016 Sony Open in Hawaii!! It was his second USPGA Tour win having won the 2015 FedEx St. Jude Classic last June as his maiden win. 

 

Fabian Gomez (Argentina) pumps his fist after holing the winning putt!!

He got a huge hug and high five from his caddie,  Adrián Monteros and also got congratulated by Brandt Snedeker (USA) and his caddie. Then his wife, Luciana came running on to the eighteenth green with his two children to give him a hug and kiss to celebrate!! Then the golf channel on course reporter, Jerry Foltz interviewed Fabian Gomez (Argentina) though Emiliano Grillo (Argentina’s) caddie, Jose Luis Campra who was the interrupter because Fabian Gomez (Argentina) doesn’t know English and he asked him “And a bit of an emotionally victory for Fabian Gomez (Argentina), how much were the nerves a factor today?” and Fabian Gomez (Argentina) replied “I felt good during the round generally but those two bogeys on holes thirteen and fourteen I lost my momentum, and sorter felt some nerves for the end but the birdie I made on the par three, seventeenth hole gave me the confidence to make the playoff and win on the second playoff hole”. Then golf channel on course reporter, Jerry Foltz asked him “How proud are you of overcome those nerves and doing what you did on seventeen and eighteen?” And Fabian Gomez (Argentina) replied “I am very proud of myself and my caddie, Adrian walking next to me because his caddie Adrian’s father has not got long to live and he won this tournament and dedicates this win to him”. Then golf channel on course reporter, Jerry Foltz said to Fabian Gomez (Argentina) “Congratulations in both English and Spanish” and Fabian Gomez (Argentina) replied “Thank you very much and smiled at him!!”. 

 

Fabian Gomez (Argentina) and his caddie, Adrian Monteros embrace as his wife, Luciana and children looking on after the win was confirmed!!

Fabian Gomez (Argentina) won US $1,044,000 for the win and moved to seventh position on the current 2015/16 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US$1,420,193 earned from the five events he has played to date this season so far. Kevin Kisner (USA) still leads that list with US $2,350,032 earned from the six events he has played to date this season so far. Fabian Gomez (Argentina) also earned 500 FedEx Cup Points for the win and move to fifth position on the current 2015/16 FedEx Cup Points standings list with 716 points earned from the five events he has played to date this season so far and he is 357 points behind the current leader of that list who is Kevin Kisner (USA) who has earned 1,073 points from the six events he has played to date this season so far. From the five events Fabian Gomez (Argentina) has played to date this season so far he has made every cut and achieved two top ten finishes which includes the win this past week. He will be happy with his four rounds this week that were all in the 60s especially his last three rounds that were all in the mid to low 60s and his final round 62-8 was the low round of the day by two shots and the equal low round of the tournament and his round included seven birdies in a row from holes sixth to twelfth holes and he recorded ten birdies in total in his final round!! And he will be especially happy with his birdie putt from off the fringe on the final hole which he holed to get into the playoff!! He will also happy with the birdie he made on the second playoff hole to win which was the par five, eighteenth hole!!

Fabián Gómez (Argentina) (born 27 October 1978) is an Argentine professional golfer who has played on a number of the world's golf tours including the USPGA Tour, Nationwide Tour, PGA Tour Latinoamérica and the Tour de las Americas. Fabian Gómez (Argentina) was born in Chaco, Argentina. He has had three wins on the Tour de las Americas, in addition to three other wins on the Argentine TPG Tour. He placed second at the Chaco Open in 2006, the TLA Players Championship in 2006 and the Venezuela Open in 2007. He won TPG Tour Ranking in 2009. Fabian Gómez (Argentina) won his first Nationwide Tour event at the 2010 Chitimacha Louisiana Open with a six stoke victory over the field which culminated in a final round 64. He finished the year twelfth on the money list to earn his 2011 USPGA Tour card. In 2011, Fabian Gomez (Argentina) played in twenty sixth events with his best finish being a tied for seventh at the Puerto Rico Open, his only top ten that year. His other best results included a tied for fifteen at the St. Jude Classic and a tied for eighteenth at the Viking Classic on his way to finishing the year 157th on the money list, hence failing to retain his playing privileges. 

 

Fabian Gomez (Argentina) poses with the Sony Open in Hawaii Trophy he won with Miss Hawaii by his side!!

In 2012, Fabian Gomez (Argentina) returned to the Nationwide Tour, where his most notable results were a tied for second at the Chitimacha Louisiana Open, tied for seventh at the South Georgia Classic and tied for tenth at the Winn-Dixie Jacksonville Open. He finished the year fifty fifth on the Nationwide Tour money list. At the end of the season, he competed in the USPGA Tour Qualifying Tournament where he placed tied for tenth at twenty one under par, which was enough to regain his USPGA Tour card for the 2013 season. In 2013, Fabian Gómez (Argentina) finished tied for second at the Puerto Rico Open, tied for sixteenth at the RBC Canadian Open and tied for twenty first at the AT&T National, but made only ten cuts out of twenty three events on the year. He finished 133rd on the FedEx Cup standings, so he lost his full USPGA Tour card and only maintained conditional status. On the 2014 Web.com Tour, Fabian Gómez (Argentina) finished tied for second at the Stonebrae Classic, tied for fourth at the United Leasing Championship and tied for tenth at the Albertsons Boise Open. He finished twenty third in the regular season earnings, which earned him a USPGA Tour card for the 2014/15 USPGA season. 

On 14 June 2015, Fabian Gómez (Argentina) broke through and won his first USPGA Tour title in his seventieth event, at the FedEx St. Jude Classic, winning by four strokes over Greg Owen (England). He started the final round with the co-lead, alongside Greg Owen (England), but shot a final round 66, which included five birdies and only one bogey to pull clear of the chasing pack and take the victory. The win moved Fabian Gomez (Argentina) up over 150 places in the world rankings to 131st and ensured that he played in his first ever major championship at the 2015 PGA Championship. In January 2016, Fabian Gomez (Argentina) won his second USPGA Tour title at the Sony Open in Hawaii. He prevailed in a sudden death playoff over Brandt Snedeker (USA). Fabian Gómez (Argentina) also plays occasionally on the USPGA Tour Latinoamérica when the Tour is in Argentina, where he won the Personal Classic from 2013 to 2015. He has only ever played in one Major Championship in his career to date so far where he missed the cut at the 2015 PGA Championship. But will more than likely will get to play in all four this season and he could be a dark horse to win the Masters Tournament in April as Argentine players have won there in the past. He also represented Argentina at the 2013 World Cup of Golf and is a good chance to represent Argentina at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil in August. Let’s hope he can continue this form on for the rest of the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season. 

Coming in solo second position at 260-20 after seventy two holes and losing on the second playoff hole was Brandt Snedeker (USA); he earned US $626,400 for his efforts and moved to twelfth position on the current 2015/16 USPGA Tour money list standings with US $1,080,733 earned from the five events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 300 FedEx Cup points for his efforts and moved to eleventh position on the current 2015/16 FedEx  Points list standings with 513 points earned from the five events he has played to date this season so far. From the five events he has played to date this season so far he has made three cuts and 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 in the mid to low 60s especially his first round 63-7 which saw him tied for the lead and his 65-5 in the second round and 66-4 in the third round where both rounds were blemish free!! But he will be angry that he putted poorly all week. A couple more holed putts and he could easily be holding the trophy a loft. He will also be disappointed he couldn’t birdie the first playoff to win or birdie the second playoff hole to extend the playoff to the third hole!! But he has made an excellent start to the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season with recording two straight top five finishes in Hawaii!! Brandt Newell Snedeker (USA) (born December 8, 1980) is an American professional golfer who plays on the USPGA Tour. He won the 2012 FedEx Cup with a victory in the season-ending Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club. After this victory, he moved into the top ten of the Official World Golf Ranking for the first time in his career. In February 2013, after winning the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, he moved to a career high of number four in the world. After a winless and disappointing 2014 including lots of missed cuts and rare top-ten, Brandt Snedeker (USA) worked in the off-season with his coach Butch Harmon to find new sensation in his swing and especially new mental strength. This hard work finally paid off at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, where Brandt Snedeker (USA) won for the second time in three years with the score of −22, three strokes ahead of Nick Watney (USA). This was the seventh USPGA Tour title for Brandt Snedeker (USA) and the victory lifted him back in the top 50 in the World Ranking. Brandt Snedeker (USA) was back to his consistent ways in the 2015 USPGA Tour season with frequent places in the top-10 of events. Three ties for tenth occurred early in the season at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, WGC-HSBC Champions, and the Waste Management Phoenix Open. After missing the cut at both the 2015 Masters Tournament and The Players Championship, Brandt Snedeker (USA), finished tied for second at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, tied for sixth at the AT&T Byron Nelson and solo eighth at the U.S. Open at Chambers Bay. Brandt Snedeker (USA) resides in Nashville with his wife Mandy and his children Lily and Austin who were born in 2011 and 2012. He currently works with instructor Butch Harmon. His brother, Haymes Snedeker, won The Big Break X: Michigan, and earned a shot at qualifying school and the USPGA Tour. Brandt Snedeker (USA) has won seven USPGA Tour events to date so far in his career and here they are from the first to the most recent: 2007 Wyndham Championship; 2011 The Heritage; 2012 Farmers Insurance Open; 2012 Tour Championship by Coca – Cola and 2012 FedEx Cup; 2013 AT&T National Pebble Beach Pro – Am; 2013 RBC Canadian Open and 2015 AT&T National Pebble Beach Pro – Am. He has also achieved seven top ten finishes in Major Championships to date so far with his best being tied for third at the 2008 Masters Tournament and tied for third at the 2012 Open Championship. He also represented Team USA in the 2012 Ryder Cup against Team Europe and he represented Team USA against Team International in the 2013 Presidents Cup which Team USA won. Let’s hope he can achieve his eight win in the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season and perhaps win his maiden Major Championship. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season and FedEx Cup.

Coming in solo third position at 261-19 after seventy two holes was Zac Blair (USA); he earned US $394,400 for his efforts and moved to eighteenth position on the current 2015/16 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $582,682 earned from the six events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 190 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to seventeenth position on the current 2015/16 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 312 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 week and the finish this week was also his best of his USPGA Tour career to date so far. He will be happy with his four rounds this week that were all in the mid to low 60s especially his second round 65-5 and his third round 64-6 that were both blemish free!! But he will be a little disappointed with his final round and how he wasn’t able to make his eagle putt on the seventy second hole and join the playoff with Fabian Gomez (Argentina) and Brandt Snedeker (USA). But this finish must be a huge confidence boost moving forward in his career and I look for more high finishes in the weeks ahead. Zac Blair (USA) (born August 20, 1990) is an American professional golfer who plays on the USPGA Tour. Zac Blair (USA) was born in Salt Lake City, Utah. He was on the Brigham Young University's golf team from 2009 to 2013. He was an All-American in 2012 and won four college events. His father, James, played golf at Brigham Young University from 1974 to 1977. Zac Blair (USA) also won the 2011 Pacific Northwest Amateur. Zac Blair (USA) competed in the 2013 Web.com Tour Qualifying School as an amateur, reaching the Final Stage and earning limited status on the Web.com Tour. After turning professional, Zac Blair (USA) began playing on the PGA Tour Latinoamérica in March 2014. He played in seven events, making the cut six times and finishing in the top-10 three times. He played eight events on the Web.com Tour, making seven cuts including a tied for second finish at the Price Cutter Charity Championship and qualifying for the Web.com Tour Final. After missing the cut in the first three events, he finished second at the Web.com Tour Championship and earned his USPGA Tour card for the 2014–15 season. On the USPGA Tour, his best finish to date so far is a solo third at the 2016 Sony Open in Hawaii. He has played in one Major Championship, the 2014 U.S. Open Championship, where he placed tied for fortieth. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour and FedEx Cup.

Coming in solo fourth position at 264-16 after seventy two holes was Kim Si-Woo (South Korea); he earned US $278,400 for his efforts and moved to twenty fifth position on the current 2015/16 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $476,774 earned from the six events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 135 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to twentieth position on the current 2015/16 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 277 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 one top ten finish that came this week. He will be happy with his four rounds this week that were all in the 60s especially his first round 64-6!! But will be disappointed with his back nine 35 even par in the final round that prevented him from challenging the leaders. But this finish will give him a lot of confidence moving forward. Kim Si-woo (South Korea) (born 28 June 1995), also known as Si Woo Kim (South Korea), is a South Korean professional golfer. Si-woo Kim (South Korea) finished tied for twentieth at the 2012 PGA Tour Qualifying School. He was only 17 years, 5 months, 6 days old at the time, the youngest player to graduate from the USPGA Tour's qualifying school. Due to USPGA Tour rules, he could not become a USPGA Tour member until he turned 18, mid-way through the 2013 season. In eight USPGA Tour starts in 2013, Si-woo Kim (South Korea) missed the cut in seven tournaments and withdrew from the eighth. He also played in seven Web.com Tour events in 2013, making four cuts. Si-woo Kim (South Korea) played on the Web.com Tour in 2014, making 15 of 19 cuts including a third-place finish at the Cleveland Open. In 2015, he won his first Web.com Tour event, the Stonebrae Classic, in July. He is the second youngest winner in Web.com Tour history, after Jason Day (Australia). Let’s hope he can keep this form up for the rest of the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season and FedEx Cup.

Rounding out the top six in tied for fifth position at 265-15 after seventy two holes was Kevin Kisner (USA); he earned US $220,400 for his efforts and remained at the top of the current 2015/16 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $2,350,032 earned from the six events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 105 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and remained at the top of the current 2015/16 FedEx Cup Points list standings with 1,073 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 six cuts and achieved four top ten finishes which includes his last four starts and also the one this week and also his maiden USPGA Tour win at the RSM Classic last November. He will be happy with his first, second and third rounds that were all in the mid to low 60s especially his first round 63-7 which saw him tied for the lead!! But he will be mad with his final round 70 even par that cost him his chance of winning. But has just had an amazing start to his 2015/16 USPGA Tour season. Kevin Kisner (USA) (born February 15, 1984) is an American professional golfer who plays on the USPGA Tour. Kevin Kisner (USA) was born in Aiken, South Carolina. He played college golf at the University of Georgia and was a member of their 2005 NCAA Division I Championship team along with Chris Kirk (USA), Richard Scott (Canada) and Brendon Todd (USA). After graduating in 2006, he turned professional. Kevin Kisner (USA) played on the mini-tours (NGA Hooters Tour and Tarheel Tour) from 2007 to 2009, winning three times. He also played in six Nationwide Tour events in 2009. He played the Nationwide Tour full-time in 2010, winning once at the Mylan Classic. He finished the year eleventh on the money list and earned his 2011 USPGA Tour card. Kevin Kisner (USA) failed to earn enough money on the USPGA Tour in 2011 to retain his card (181st on money list), but finished tied for eleventh at qualifying school to earn his card for 2012. He again failed to retain his card, finishing 167th on the money list, and missed earning a card in qualifying school by one stroke. He returned to (the now renamed) Web.com Tour in 2013 and won the Chile Classic in March. He finished thirteenth on the 2013 Web.com Tour regular season money list to earn his 2014 PGA Tour card. In 2014, Kevin Kisner (USA) finished sixth at the Wells Fargo Championship, eighth at the Wyndham Championship and ninth at the RBC Canadian Open. During the 2015 USPGA Tour, Kevin Kisner (USA) finished runner-up three times, losing all three in sudden-death playoffs. He was defeated at the 2015 RBC Heritage after losing on the second hole of the playoff to Jim Furyk (USA).Kevin Kisner (USA) would go on to finish tied with Sergio García (Spain) and Rickie Fowler (USA) at The Players Championship event in May after seventy two holes, losing to Rickie Fowler (USA) on the first hole of sudden-death after the two remained tied following a three-hole aggregate playoff. At the Greenbrier Classic he again tied for second after losing a sudden-death playoff, which was eventually won by Danny Lee (NZL). Kevin Kisner (USA) was eliminated on the first extra hole with birdie. Other notable results were finishes for fourth at the McGladrey Classic, fifth at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, and eighth at the Memorial Tournament.

Kevin Kisner (USA) finished as runner-up at the WGC-HSBC Champions event in Shanghai in November 2015, two strokes behind Russell Knox (Scotland) despite holding the 36-hole lead. This was Kevin Kisner's (USA) fourth runner-up finish of the 2015 calendar year. On November 22, 2015, after a number of near misses, Kevin Kisner (USA) earned his first PGA Tour victory by winning the RSM Classic, in his 109th USPGA Tour start. He won by six strokes over Kevin Chappell (USA) as he dominated the tournament over the weekend. He began the final round with a three stroke advantage and shot a final round of 64 to storm to his first victory. The win moved him into the Top twenty in the world rankings and put him at the top of the early FedEx Cup standings moving into 2016 (And he still remains there). I feel his second win can’t be too far away and I feel it will come this year. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season.

The final player to tie for fifth position was Greg Owen (England); he too earned US $220,400 for his efforts and moved to fifty fifth position on the current 2015/16 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $267,068 earned from the six events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned 105 FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to sixty third position on the current 2015/16 FedEx Cup Points standings list with 143 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 one top ten finish that came this past week. He will be happy with his four rounds this week that were all in the mid 60s especially his 64-6 in the final round and his excellent back nine of 30-5 which included an eagle on the par five, eighteenth with helped him get this top ten finish!! Let’s hope he can gain a lot of confidence out of this finish and keep on improving. Gregory Clive Owen (England) (born 19 February 1972) is an English professional golfer. Greg Owen (England) was born in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire. He turned professional in 1992 and gained his European Tour card at the 1997 qualifying school. He finished in the top 100 of the Order of Merit every year from 1998 to 2004, and won for the first time on tour at the 2003 Daily Telegraph Damovo British Masters at his 158th tournament. At the 2001 Open Championship, Greg Owen (England) notably became only the sixth golfer in the history of the competition to score a rare albatross (double eagle), on the par-5 eleventh hole at Royal Lytham. Since 2005, Greg Owen (England) has played mainly in the United States being a full member of the USPGA Tour in 2005–07, 2009–10 and 2012. His best finish in the United States was second at the 2006 Bay Hill Invitational, where he finished one shot behind Rod Pampling (Australia) after playing the last two holes in three over par. Having lost his USPGA Tour card at the end of 2007, he bounced back the following season, to graduate directly from the second tier Nationwide Tour (Now Web.com Tour) by finishing in tenth place on the money list. In 2010 he finished 183rd on the USPGA Tour money list and lost his card for the second time. In 2011 he played again on the Nationwide Tour, finishing fifty second on the money list. However he finished tied for eighteenth in the 2011 USPGA Q School to regain his full USPGA Tour card for 2012. He finished eighty fifth in earnings in 2012, but was less successful in 2013, finishing 134th in the FedEx Cup. In 2014 he split time between the USPGA Tour and Web.com Tour; after winning the United Leasing Championship he finished twenty seventh on the regular-season Web.com money list, missing out on a USPGA Tour card by only US $3,205. He went on to earn his card by finishing tenth on the Web.com Tour Finals money list. Greg Owen (England) has featured in the top fifty of the Official World Golf Rankings. His best finish in a Major Championship was where he tied for twentieth at the 2015 Open Championship at St. Andrews in Scotland. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season and FedEx Cup.

Danny Lee (NZL) was the best New Zealand Golfer in the field and he scored a very good first round of  66-4 in the second event of the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season and the first regular season event in 2016 which included a good front nine of 34-1 which included a brilliant eagle on the par five, ninth hole and a lone bogey on the par three, fourth hole and then he played a very good back nine of 32-3 with birdies coming on the par four, tenth hole, par four, twelfth hole and par five, eighteenth hole and then a very good second round of 66-4 which included a good front nine of 34-1 with birdies on the par four, third hole, par four, fifth hole and par five, ninth hole and poor bogeys on the par four, first hole and par four, eighth hole and a very good back nine of 32-3 with birdies on the par four, twelfth hole, par four, sixteenth hole and par five, eighteenth hole and a good third round of  68-2 where he scored a average front nine of  35 even par with a birdies on the par four, second hole and par five, ninth hole and bogeys on the par four, sixth hole and par three, seventh hole and then a good back nine of  33-2 with birdies on the par four, tenth hole and par five, eighteenth hole and an average final round of 70 even par which included a poor front nine of 36+1 which included a poor lone bogey on the par three, fourth hole and then he scored a good back nine of 34-1 which included a birdies on the par four, tenth hole, par four, twelfth hole, par five, eighteenth hole and poor bogeys on the par four, thirteenth hole and par three, seventeenth hole for a seventy two hole total of 270-10 and he finished in tied for thirty third position. He earned US $28,742.22 for his efforts and remained in eighty fourth  position on the current 2015/16 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $182,201 earned from the four events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned thirty four FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to ninety second position on the current 2015/16 FedEx Cup Points list standings with one hundred 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 withdrawn from one event and achieved no top ten finishes. He will be happy with his first, second and third rounds that were all in the 60s especially his first and second rounds which were both 66-4s!! But he will be just content with his final round that was 70 even par and also angry with his front nine 36+1 in the final round which was disappointing!!  But he will be happier his back nine of his final round which was 34-1!! It was a good start to the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season in the two Hawaiian Swing events he played in and he did make decent pay cheques in both of them and he will be looking to have some top ten finishes in the next few events he plays in and his next start will likely be at the CareerBuilder Challenge in partnership with the Clinton Foundation next week. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season. 

Tim Wilkinson (NZL) who recently regained his 2015/16 USPGA Tour card at the Web.com Tour Finals was the other New Zealand Golfer in the field and was keen to have a good tournament to start his 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season to back up his good performances in the first three events of the 2015 part of the season which he played in last year where he made all three cuts. He scored a good first round of  67-3 which included a very good front nine of 31-4 with a brilliant eagle on the par five, ninth hole and birdies coming on the par four, second hole, par four, third hole and par four, fifth hole with a lone bogey coming on the par four, first hole and a poor back nine of 36+1 with a lone birdie on the par four, twelfth hole but he had a shocking double bogey on the par three, seventeenth hole and a good second round of 69-1which included a very good front nine of 33-2 which included birdies on the par four, eighth hole and par five, ninth hole and then he scored a poor back nine of 36+1 with a lone birdie on the par four, tenth hole and poor bogeys on the par four, fourteenth hole and par three seventeenth hole and an excellent third round of 65-5  which included a very good front nine of 32-3 with birdies coming on the par four, second hole, par four, fifth hole, par four, eighth hole and par five, ninth hole but he had a poor lone bogey on the par three, fourth hole and then a good back nine of 33-2 with birdies coming on the par four, twelfth hole and par four, sixteenth hole and a poor final round of 71+1 which included a poor front nine of 36+1 which included birdies on the par four, second hole and par five, ninth hole but he had poor bogeys on the par four, first hole, par four, third hole and par four, sixth hole and then he scored a good back nine of 35 even with a lone birdie coming on the par five, eighteenth hole and a poor lone bogey on the par four, thirteenth hole for a seventy two hole total of 272-8 and finished in tied for fiftieth position and he earned US $13,881.33 for his efforts. He moved to 129th position on the current 2015/16 USPGA Tour Money list standings with US $84,773 earned from the four events he has played to date this season so far. He also earned nineteen FedEx Cup Points for his efforts and moved to ninety ninth  position on the current 2015/16 FedEx Cup Points list standings with ninety seven points earned from the four events he has played in to date so far. From the four events he has played to date this season so far he has made fours cuts and achieved no top ten finishes. He will be happy with his first, second and third rounds this week that were all in the 60s especially his third round that was 65-5!! But disappointed with his final round 71+1!! And if he had done another mid 60s round he could have finished inside the top twenty and won a lot more money. But it is good to see him make all four cuts in his four events of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season. Let’s hope he can continue this form on in the early 2016 part of 2015/16 USPGA Tour season. His next event will likely be the CareerBuilder Challenge in partnership with the Clinton Foundation which is the second regular season event of the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour and FedEx Cup. I wish him all the best for the rest of the 2016 part of the 2015/16 USPGA Tour season. 

Next week the USPGA Tour and FedEx Cup heads to the USA mainland and the State of California for the start of the West Coast Swing (which has five events in it) and the first one is CareerBuilder Challenge in partnership with the Clinton Foundation and it is played on the PGA WEST TPC Stadium Course, La Quinta, California. It carries a huge prize purse of US $5,800,000 for the taking. Bill Haas (USA) is the defending Champion and will be keen to defend his title. Danny Lee (NZL) will get a start if he chooses to play and Tim Wilkinson (NZL) will be hopeful to gain a start. It starts on Thursday 21st January and I will report back who won the trophy next week. 

So to the Top 5 on the Official World Golf Rankings Points list standings this week coming in at Number One Position for the seventeenth week of his career is Jordan Spieth (USA) who is fresh off  his win one week ago at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions and also his solo fourth position at the Hero World Challenge six weeks ago with 11.97 Official World Ranking Points; coming in at Number Two is Jason Day (Australia) who is fresh off his tied for tenth position one week ago at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions and also being part of the 2015 Team Internationals Presidents Cup narrow loss to Team USA fourteen weeks ago in South Korea with 10.56 Official World Ranking Points; coming in at Number Three is Rory McILroy (NIR) who is fresh off his win eight weeks ago at the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai and the Race to Dubai title for a third time in his career and also his tied for eleventh position at the WGC – HSBC Champions ten weeks ago with 10.33 Official Golf World Ranking Points; coming in at Number Four is Bubba Watson (USA) who is fresh off his tied for tenth position one week ago at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions and also his tied for fifteenth position at the Thailand Golf Championship five weeks ago with 7.47 Official World Ranking Points and rounding out the top five on the Official World Ranking Points list standings this week is Henrik Stenson (Sweden) who is fresh off his solo second position at the Nedbank Golf Challenge six weeks ago and also his tied for fifty ninth position at the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai eight weeks ago with 7.13 Official World Ranking Points. Danny Lee (NZL) this week is in his fortieth fourth week of another spell of being the highest ranked New Zealand Golfer in the world after finishing in tied for thirty third position at the Sony Open in Hawaii this past week. This week he gains two places and rises to fortieth third position on the Official World Golf Rankings Points list standings with 2.62 Official Golf World Ranking Points.

Remember when playing golf in extreme heat you must drink lots of fluids!!

Source: Pgatour.com, Official World Golf Rankings, wikipedia.org, Google search engine, europeantour.com, golfchannel.com, ladieseuropeantour.com, asiantour.com, pgatourlive.co.nz