News: AT&T National
February 8 2012
3:01 pm
Paddy: Tiger will break Jack’s record
By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — Will Tiger Woods break Jack Nicklaus’ record of 18 career major championships? Padraig Harrington certainly thinks so.
“I’d be still backing him, absolutely,” Harrington said Wednesday. “If he turns up and plays well, he’s going to win. There are other guys out there, their best game ain’t going to win them. His is still a winning game.”
If there is a difference in Woods’ game, Harrington added, it’s that he doesn’t quite have the same aura that he used to. But he also thinks Woods can still be a dominant player.
“When he plays well, he’ll win majors, no doubt about it. He’ll win plenty of tournaments. There’s no question he will win plenty going forward.
Harrington can of course appreciate what Woods is going through, at least in terms of a swing change. He’s undergone plenty of scrutiny since undergoing major swing changes following his victory at the 2008 PGA Championship, which was his third major win in a year.
”He’s going to win plenty more tournaments,” Harrington said of Woods. “I’ve played with him, and the way he hits the golf ball, there wouldn’t be very many players who wouldn’t want to hit the golf ball like him."
Round 4: AT&T National
July 3 2011
6:49 pm
Watney uses past experience in win
By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM
NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. — Thanks to his final-round 4-under 66 Nick Watney not only won for the second time this year, joining Bubba Watson and Mark Wilson as the only multiple winners on the PGA TOUR this season, he moved to the top of the FedExCup standings.
The win is the fourth of Watney’s career and also gives him eight top-10s this year, which ties for the most on TOUR with Matt Kuchar and Luke Donald.
“With 27 holes to go in the tournament, I was really just trying to play my way back in and then for some reason the hole just got bigger for me,” said Watney, who catapulted into contention with a course-record 62 in the third round that included a 27 over his final nine holes. “I’m overjoyed to be in here as the winner. It was a very difficult, long day.”
It was also one in which Watney got the lead early and never lost it, at one point making six straight pars on the back nine while others faltered.
K.J. Choi did briefly tie Watney for the lead after a birdie on No. 14 however.
“I was just kind of like, well, game on,” Watney said.
But Choi double bogeyed the next hole and never recovered.
At last year’s PGA Championship it was Watney who never recovered from an early triple bogey on his way to a final-round 81.
He filed that experience away, though, and put to use earlier this season at the World Golf Championships-Cadillac Championship and again on Sunday.
”Definitely the moment got the best of me, and I performed very badly,” Watney said of the PGA. “But I really feel like I learned a lot that week, especially Sunday.
“I knew it was going to be a long, hard day. Even if you come out of the gate, make three birdies, it’s going to be a long day. I just really tried to keep my head down. Even on the last green, if K.J. makes that, then my four‑footer gets a lot longer. So it was a very rewarding day.”
6:25 pm
Scott has confidence going to Open
By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM
NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. — The second time around with Steve Williams on the bag went a lot better than the first for Adam Scott, who tied for third at the AT&T National after missing the cut at the U.S. Open two weeks ago.
With Williams’ regular employer, Tiger Woods, still on the shelf, it’s likely Williams will remains on Scott’s bag for the British Open in two weeks if Woods doesn’t play.
“If he plays, then Steve will go back to work for him,” Scott said. “If he doesn’t, I’m going to have to try and coax him over to the British Open. It would be good to have him on the bag again.”
In any event, Scott heads to the British Open with plenty of confidence.
”The purpose of coming here was to get a good result and just build up a little confidence,” said Scott, who shot a final-round 68. “Some weeks you just can’t get a result, and it’s important to have a good run before the Open and get a good indication of where everything is at so I can prepare nicely next week.”
6:18 pm
Congratulate Watney on his win
Nick Watney won the AT&T National by two shots on Sunday for his second victory of the 2011 season. Watney, who set the Aronimink course record during Saturday’s third round, now has four career victories and sits atop the FedExCup standings. Share your note of congratulations here and we’ll pass it along to Watney.
6:00 pm
Overton charge comes up short
By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM
NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. — The eighth and 10th holes at Aronimink resembled a traffic jam at times on Sunday with players getting backed up there. Among them was Jeff Overton, who played with Bryce Molder and Charlie Wi.
As a result, the group was put on the clock on No. 12.
“It kind of messes with your round a little bit,” Overton said of the backup. “Then we all kind of struggled after the wait on 9 and 10 and 11.”
Well, Overton birdied Nos. 11 and 12 for his fourth and fifth birdies of the day as he got within one of the lead, but he gave them back with back-to-back bogeys on 14 and 15. He finished with a 67.
”It was unfortunate, but it happens, and that’s the nature of the game,” Overton said of being put on the clock. “You’ve got to be tougher than that, and I just wasn’t able to stay in rhythm.”
Still, Overton was relatively pleased with his performance as he tied for third. He also ranked second in the field in putting.
“I can’t remember [the last time I putted this well],” Overton said. “It seems like I missed everything I looked at from outside 5 to 15 feet over the course of the last year, and today and all week it seemed like I played really well, so it was a lot of fun.”
5:30 pm
Fowler flames out in final round
By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM
NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. — It didn’t take long for Rickie Fowler’s round to get away — two holes to be exact.
It was on No. 2 where Fowler hit it in the squirrely rough at Aronimink, missing the fairway right. His next shot didn’t come out like he expected and landed in a greenside bunker. Four shots later Fowler’s ball finally found the hole and with it went any chance of winning his first career title.
“I played really well all week but today couldn’t get anything going,” said Fowler, who shot a 4-over 74 to tumble from a share of the lead to a tie for 13th.
“The ball was going where I was looking for the most part, but I didn’t make much today [on the greens]. I got stuck behind the eight-ball early.”
For Fowler, it was another opportunity that slipped by. He was in contention in Phoenix last year and again at the Memorial tournament. He failed to win both times.
“It is frustrating,” Fowler said. “Just a tough day, but I learned a lot. It was great to be in that position. It’s good to see what other guys do in the same situation and how they handle themselves.”
4:39 pm
Watney wins the AT&T National
Nick Watney fired a bogey-free 66 Sunday and held off K.J. Choi to win the AT&T National by two shots and move to No. 1 in the FedExCup standings.
Watney, who won the World Golf Championships-Cadillac Championship earlier this year, now has four career PGA TOUR victories. Much like it was earlier this year at TPC Blue Monster, Watney’s putter was shining Sunday at Aronimink. The 30-year-old made three par putts of 12 feet or longer on his opening nine.
3:50 pm
Choi makes costly double bogey
NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. — K.J. Choi’s share of the lead was short-lived.
After pulling even with Nick Watney at 11 under with a birdie on the par-3 14th hole, Choi gave it right back with a double bogey one hole later.
Choi found the left rough off the tee then landed in a bunker short of the green on his approach before hitting his third shot over the green. He failed to get up-and-down.
that gives Watney a two-shot lead with just three holes to play. If Watney can hang on it will be his second victory of the season.
3:30 pm
Choi, Watney tied for lead
NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. — With Nick Watney going five straight holes without a birdie to open the back nine, it was only a matter of time before someone caught him. K.J. Choi did just that with a birdie on No. 14 — the third in the last four holes for Choi.
Over Choi’s last nine holes, he is 5 under, and remember, he’s 5-for-7 in his career in converting 36-hole leads into victories.
3:07 pm
Cantlay finishes on high note
NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. — Amateur Patrick Cantlay had another good week in what will likely be his last PGA TOUR event, at least for a while anyway.
The 19-year-old amateur closed with a 3-under 67 Sunday to finish his week at the AT&T National at 3 under.
Twice Cantlay broke par this week — he shot a 69 Friday — and only once did he go over par.
This was Cantlay’s fifth straight week of playing after participating in the NCAA Championships, Palmer Cup, U.S. Open and the Travelers Championship, where he set a course record with a 60 in the second round.
Cantlay will now get to go home, but he won’t rest for long. The Southern California Amateur starts later this week and then he’ll play the Western Amateur a couple weeks after that before the Walker Cup, eventually going back to UCLA at the end of September for the fall semester.
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