Round 4: THE PLAYERS
May 13 2012
9:44 pm
On the Mark: Get a swing trigger
THE PLAYERS Championship — a championship every player in the world game would love to add to his resume — always makes for intriguing spectating and television. Staged at the PGA TOUR headquarters, the Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass is one of tournament golf’s venerable venues. A demanding layout with a spectacular finish, the Stadium Course is one of those courses on the PGA TOUR rota that is as much of a topic of conversation and analyses by the pundits as the tournament competitors are.
An integral part of that fantastic finish is the island-green par-3 17th hole. The middle of a stretch of holes that comprise the par-5 16th, the 17th and the demanding par-4 finishing 18th hole, the 17th is only 137 yards long — a short iron for most competitors — but the capricious spring winds and the nature of the hole make it the perfect setting for both triumph and tragedy. Much like the Coliseum in Rome, galleries surround the hole and the players enter it just as the gladiators would. In reality the short par-3 should really be a doddle for the competitors and I am convinced that if the hole were not surrounded by water it would probably have an under-par tournament stroke average. But that is not the case and each and every player breathes a sigh of relief if he leaves the 17th en route to the 18th tee with a par on the card.
The 18th tee saw an event unfold on Saturday afternoon that caused a lot of chatter from the galleries, the announcers and some of the players. Clearly struggling with emotional and mental challenges, Kevin Na took more than his regular number of pre-shot waggles before he stepped out of the shot and took a violent practice swing as he chided himself with “Pull the trigger, Kevin!”
Inasmuch as it was unbearable to watch, there is a lot to learn from Kevin Na’s travails. I often see clients who struggle with the same challenge of clearing their minds and pulling the trigger and the advice I offer them is simple. Don’t fret the situation and develop a swing trigger.
Too often when one becomes concerned with starting the swing or hitting the shot, the event begins to become bigger in the individual’s mind than what it really is. In a sense, the player becomes a victim of his/her own alternate reality. So get back to the truth and remind yourself that it is fine to take a little extra time (as long as you have not dawdled en route to the shot). Remind yourself also that the shot that you are over is only as good as the next one. Indeed Ben Hogan described the “next shot” as the most important one.
Secondly, develop a swing trigger. A great example of a swing trigger is the right knee “kick-in” as used by Gary Player. Before Player swings the club back he kicks the right knee in and this move forms a brace for the backswing and creates enough flow and movement to trigger the backswing. In my opinion the knee kick is the best trigger for the golf swing. If that does not work for you other triggers that could be employed are: a turn of the head to the right (see Jack Nicklaus); a slight turn of the hips in the opposite direction of which they would turn in the backswing. Even a blink of the eyes (as if you were clicking a picture of the ball with your eyes) to start would help. Anything that makes the start rhythmical and less cerebral will go a long way to helping you to get that club swinging back smoothly.
Mark Immelman, the brother of PGA TOUR professional Trevor Immelman, is a well-respected golf instructor and head coach of the Columbus State University (Ga.) golf team. For more information about Mark and his instruction, visit his web site, markimmelman.com or follow him on Twitter @mark_immelman or “Like” Mark Immelman Golf Instruction on Facebook. He also has a golf instruction e-book called “Consistently Straight Shots – The Simple Solution available on iTunes/iBooks.
9:15 pm
Notes from inside the ropes
By Fred Albers, PGATOUR.COM Correspondent
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Matt Kuchar had not enjoyed a good putting year – until this week at THE PLAYERS Championship. In 2010 he was eighth on the PGA TOUR in Strokes Gained-Putting. In 2011 he slipped to 26th, and this season Kuchar is 132nd. This week the Kuchar of old returned with a renewed putting stroke, and rounds of 27, 26, 26 and 31 putts. He finished second this week in SGP.
Waggles: Kevin Na played poorly on Sunday, shooting 4-over 76. It happens. Na still earned the admiration of the press and his fellow competitors for the way he handled Saturday’s spotlight. When Na could not pull the trigger on shots, he did not hide his problem. Instead he apologized and tried to explain his affliction. What’s curious to me is Na having to hit only after an even number of waggles. If he doesn’t swing at two, he has to take four waggles, then six and then a back off. Why only even-numbered waggles?
Press room: One of the delights of working THE PLAYERS Championship is the array of foreign press. The tournament attracts worldwide coverage, which can make for a lively press room. Early Sunday morning, all eyes were watching the soccer match between Manchester City and Queens Park Rangers. Manchester City scored twice in stoppage time to clinch its first league title in 44 years. Oh, the excitement.
Rickie: Rickie Fowler received a terrible break with a bad lie on the fifth hole, which led to double bogey, yet he persevered in the tournament. Fowler battled to the end and had a putt on 18 to finish 12 under. Just before stroking the putt, the gallery groaned when a video board showed Kuchar making bogey at 17. Fowler had to back off, go through his routine again and then pushed the putt to the right. If Kuchar plays the 18th with a one-shot lead as opposed to a two-shot margin, the hole becomes much more difficult. It takes some good luck along with good shots to win.
Double free: Playing a hard golf course in sometimes windy conditions, Kuchar went 72 holes without a single double bogey. It’s the doubles that are so debilitating in a round, sapping momentum. Kuchar never followed up a mistake with another mistake. He pounded greens in the final round, hitting 15 of 18.
Tiger: There seems to be a feeling that Tiger Woods is lost and playing terrible golf. That’s just wrong. He did not have a good week, finishing 40th at 1 under. The big picture shows Woods is ranked 13th in FedExCup standings, 13th on the money list and seventh in the world. That is a career year for most players.
Fred Albers is a course reporter for SiriusXM PGA TOUR Radio and inside the ropes this week at THE PLAYERS Championship. For more information on SiriusXM PGA TOUR Radio, click here.
8:54 pm
Johnson ends T2; happy for neighbor
By Ward Clayton, PGATOUR.COM Contributor
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – As Zach Johnson completed a 4-under 68 on Sunday, he was still in the hunt for THE PLAYERS Championship title at 11 under. He patiently waited for an NBC interview and other quick media responsibilities near the clubhouse before telling those around him he needed to get to the 18th hole. Even while holding out hope for a possible playoff, he had a sense the deal was done.
“My boy Kooch (Matt Kuchar) is tough,” Johnson said. “This golf course suits his game much like it suits mine … I’ve got to go see my boy Kooch finish.”
Johnson was in a four-way tie for second with Martin Laird, Rickie Fowler and Ben Curtis, two strokes behind Kuchar. Johnson rushed to the green, where Jonathan Byrd was also in place to see their friend hit his approach and two-putt the 18th green for par to finish his winning round. All three are St. Simons Island, Ga., residents, along with a slew of other PGA TOUR and Nationwide Tour players.
The Johnsons and Kuchars are close friends at St. Simons Island, less than two hours north of TPC Sawgrass. Johnson, a 36-year-old Iowa native, moved from Orlando, Fla., to St. Simons in early 2009 for a quieter lifestyle for a family that includes two children and a third on the way. He also wanted to be closer to his coaches and the first-class practice facility at the Sea Island Club, home of The McGladrey Classic, and another top track, Frederica Golf Club.
The Kuchars moved from Atlanta to St. Simons in October 2010 for much the same reason as Johnson and because it is the hometown of Matt’s wife, Sybi. Johnson said that longtime St. Simons resident Davis Love III, the 2012 Ryder Cup captain, is considered “Uncle Davis” by the players who reside there. Johnson’s only 2011 win came beside Kuchar when they won a two-player team event, the CVS Caremark Charity Classic in Rhode Island (not an official win on the TOUR).
“We play a lot of golf, we do a lot of things with our kids together — beach, pool, that sort of stuff,” Johnson said. “We get along with the Kuchars so, so great.”
Johnson started the final round of THE PLAYERS at 7 under, five behind third-round leader Kevin Na and four behind Kuchar. He eagled the par-5 second hole to jumpstart his round and reached 11 under with a birdie on the par-5 16th. A long two-putt par on the par-3 17th and a 28-foot par putt on the final hole after a drive in the right trees gave Johnson some hope.
“The last two months my putting has been sketchy,” said Johnson, who was second in THE PLAYERS field in Greens in Regulation. “But it’s felt much better the last week or so.”
8:41 pm
With this victory: Matt Kuchar
Matt Kuchar picked up the biggest victory of his career when he claimed THE PLAYERS Championship on Sunday at TPC Sawgrass. With this victory, Kuchar:
• Collects 600 FedExCup points to move into sixth place in the latest standings.
• Extends his fully-exempt status through the 2017 PGA TOUR season and gains three-year exemptions to the Masters, U.S. Open and British Open.
• Earns his 45th career top-10 finish and his fifth in 10 starts this year.
• Moves to No. 3 in the United States Ryder Cup standings.
• Becomes the first American to win THE PLAYERS since Phil Mickelson in 2007 and the sixth since 2000 (Phil Mickelson, 2007; Fred Funk, 2005; Davis Love III, 2003; Tiger Woods, 2001; Hal Sutton, 2000).
• Wins in his eighth start at THE PLAYERS (WD – 2002, MC – 2003, T16 – 2004, MC – 2008, T14 – 2009, T13 – 2010, T54 – 2011, 1st – 2012).
This victory is Kuchar’s 4th in 266 career starts on the PGA TOUR. Here’s a list of all of Kuchar’s TOUR victories:
2002 The Honda Classic
2009 Turning Stone Resort Championship
2010 The Barclays
2012 THE PLAYERS Championship
8:36 pm
Tidbits from the final round
From Elias Sports Bureau
Matt Kuchar won the 2012 PLAYERS Championship, becoming the 20th different player to win the tournament in the last 20 years. Over the last 20 years, the only other tournament on the PGA TOUR that has seen 20 different winners is The Honda Classic. Next week’s HP Byron Nelson Championship had a different winner in each of the past 19 years. …
David Toms again had a good showing again at THE PLAYERS. Toms was 5 under over a four-hole span from the sixth through the ninth holes. The last time Toms was 5 under over a four-hole span was in the final round of the 2001 Compaq Classic of New Orleans. In the last 10 years at THE PLAYERS Championship, the only other player to be 5 under through any span of four holes was Sergio Garcia last year in the final round. …
Tiger Woods didn’t have many bright spots this week, but he was able to birdie the famous 17th hole twice. It is the first time in Woods’ career that he birdied the 17th hole at the TPC Sawgrass twice in one week. …
Luke Donald dominated the back nine in the final round with a 30. It matched the second-lowest score on either the front or back nine in Donald’s career on the PGA TOUR. In the final round of The Barclays in 2010, Donald shot a 28 on the front nine. …
Donald had 16 birdies and two eagles at THE PLAYERS. It was the second time in his career on the PGA TOUR that Donald had 16 or more birdies and two eagles. The other time was at the 2011 Deutsche Bank Championship.
7:12 pm
Kuchar wins PLAYERS by two shots
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Normally all smiles, Matt Kuchar wore a serious face for most of Sunday’s final round of THE PLAYERS Championship. That intensity and focus paid off in the biggest win of his PGA TOUR career.
Kuchar shot a 2-under 70 to finish at 13 under and hold off a bevy of contenders at TPC Sawgrass. The win is the fourth in Kuchar’s career. With the 600 FedExCup points that comes with the victory, Kuchar now ranks sixth in the FedExCup standings.
Kuchar’s last win on TOUR came at the 2010 Barclays. Since then, he’s produced a steady supply of top-10 finishes — 13 since the start of the 2011 season — but no wins. Until Sunday.
Although Kuchar lives in Sea Island, Ga., he once lived within miles of TPC Sawgrass and is a native Floridian. His parents still live in the area, and his wife and kids were in attendance. He becomes the first American to win THE PLAYERS since Phil Mickelson in 2007.
“Such an amazing feeling,” Kuchar said. “It really is magical.”
Kuchar won by two strokes over Rickie Fowler, Zach Johnson, Martin Laird and Ben Curtis, who each finished at 11 under. Luke Donald was another shot back.
Kevin Na, the 54-hole leader who started the day one stroke ahead of Kuchar, shot a 4-over 76 to fall into a tie for seventh with Bo Van Pelt and Jhonattan Vegas.
“It was a big disappointment,” Na said, “but I’m happy for Matt. He played very well today, played solid all day.”
When Kuchar teed off to start his back nine, the championship had appeared to become a two-man race between him and Laird, who was four groups ahead. Both were at 12 under, and the next closest pursuers were three shots behind.
But after Laird suffered his first bogey of the day at the par-4 14th, Kuchar held the lead alone at 12 under. Meanwhile, Johnson had birdied the 11th to close to within two shots. And Fowler was starting to make noise, as was Curtis.
Kuchar held steady, though, then rolled in his biggest putt of the day, a 15-footer for birdie at the 16th to extend his lead to three shots going into the island-green 17th — where he had found the water during the third round.
Although he landed safely on the green with his tee shot this time, Kuchar three-putted from 44 feet for bogey to drop to 13 under. Meanwhile, Fowler was standing over a makeable birdie putt on the 18th that would’ve moved him to 12 under.
But Fowler missed the putt, allowing Kuchar to take a two-shot lead going into the dangerous 18. Kuchar hit a perfect drive, found the green with his approach and two-putted from there.
Of the top five players on the leaderboard, Laird produced the lowest round, a 5-under 67. But he also started the day the farthest off the lead, at six shots. Ultimately, it was too much to overcome.
“One of the best rounds I’ve ever played under the circumstances and the conditions,” said Laird, who lost to Kuchar in a playoff at that 2010 Barclays.
Early on, it appeared Na was in control. After a birdie at the par-5 second, Na was at 13 under and holding a three-shot lead. But an errant approach shot at the fifth left him in trouble, and he eventually bogeyed for the first time in 26 holes. It only got worse from there, as he bogeyed three of the next four holes to drop out of the lead.
Fowler started strong with two birdies in his first four holes. But like Na, his round took a turn for the worse at the fifth. A poor second shot left him with an awkward lie, his ball on the edge of the bunker, his left foot in the bunker and his right foot in the rough. His chip came up up short of the green, and he had to settle for double bogey, and suffered another bogey two holes later.
Still, he rallied on the back nine, making four birdies with one bogey on the back side.
"It’s a rush out there," said Fowler, who was vying for his second straight win after claiming last week’s Wells Fargo Championship. "Get yourself in contention on Sunday at THE PLAYERS, it’s a lot of fun."
Donald, the reigning PGA TOUR Player of the Year and world’s No. 2-ranked player, shot a back-nine 30 that was only one shot off the tournament record. That left him with a 66 and 9 under for the tournament.
The low rounds of the day were posted by David Toms and Bob Estes with 7-under 65s, just one off the final-round record low at TPC Sawgrass. Toms, who lost in a playoff here last year to K.J. Choi, eagled the par-4 sixth from 123 yards, playing his final 13 holes in a bogey-free 8 under.
"I was so far back and I was just trying to have a decent finish," said Toms, who will defend his title next week at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial. "No reason why I shouldn’t shoot at a flag."
The good news for Tiger Woods this week is that he played all 72 holes, something he was unable to do the previous two years due to injuries. The bad news is that he was never in contention. He shot a final-round 73 to finish at 1 under for the tournament.
Woods said he played well in spurts but that he just needs "to be a little bit more consistent."
7:00 pm
Congratulate Kuchar on his victory
Matt Kuchar conquered golf’s greatest stadium — the TPC Sawgrass Stadium Course — to win THE PLAYERS Championship on Sunday. Kuchar’s fourth career victory pushes him to No. 6 in the latest FedExCup standings. Want to congratulate the Kuchar on his big victory? Leave a message in the comments below and we’ll send it to him!
6:59 pm
Live updates: News, notes and more
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – Sunday’s final round of THE PLAYERS Championship is under way from TPC Sawgrass, where we’ll have updates from throughout the day. Get the latest news, notes and more, and leave your comments below.
THE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP: Leaderboard | Watch LIVE@ | Projected FedExCup points
FINAL-ROUND UPDATES (all times ET)
6:59 p.m. — Matt Kuchar has won THE PLAYERS Championship, firing a final-round 70 to hold off charges by Rickie Fowler, Martin Laird, Zach Johnson and Ben Curtis by two strokes. Kuchar, who parred the final hole, moved to No. 6 in the FedExCup with the victory.
6:42 p.m. – Matt Kuchar three-putted the 17th hole from 45 feet and came back to the field at 13 under — he’s still ahead by two, though, after Rickie Fowler was unable to convert his 8-footer for birdie at the 18th hole. Fowler finished at 11 under with Martin Laird, Zach Johnson and Ben Curtis, who made the fourth birdie of the day on No. 18.
6:28 p.m. — Rickie Fowler drained a 21-foot birdie putt at the 17th hole to get back to 11 under and within two shots of Matt Kuchar’s lead. Minutes later, in clear site of the island green, Matt Kuchar poured in a 15-footer to give himself more breathing room at 14 under.
6:15 p.m. — Ben Curtis just made another bounce-back birdie. After a bogey on the 15th, Curtis laid up on the par-5 16th then hit his approach to 18 feet and made the putt to get to 10 under and within three of Kuchar. Ditto Rickie Fowler, who also birdied the 16th to get to 10 under.
6:05 p.m. – Trailing by just one, Martin Laird made a crucial mistake on the final hole, pulling his approach shot left of the greenside bunker and nearly into the water. He pitched to just over 6 feet, but the Scot missed his 6-footer for par and finished with a 67 to get in the clubhouse at 11 under. The bogey was the second in the last five holes for Laird and leaves him two shots back.
6 p.m. — Rickie Fowler got too aggressive with his putt from off the green at the 15th hole and paid for it. He rolled it 10 feet past, couldn’t make the par putt coming back and dropped back to 9 under. Fowler is four strokes back of Matt Kuchar now, who has four holes to play.
5:40 p.m. — With a half-dozen holes to go, Matt Kuchar leads by one at 13 under with Martin Laird right behind him and Zach Johnson another stroke back. Rickie Fowler and Ben Curtis are one more back from there at 10 under. Keep this in mind, only once has someone won THE PLAYERS with a birdie on the 18th: Steve Elkington in 1991.
5:24 p.m. — Talk about a bounce back. After Ben Curtis double-bogeyed the par-3 eighth, where his tee shot found the water, he’s rolled off four straight birdies to get to 10 under and within two of the lead. Rickie Fowler has also recovered from a couple of front-nine mistakes with birdies on each of his last two holes, Nos. 11 and 12.
5:05 p.m. — The back-and-forth atop the leaderboard continues with Martin Laird dropping a shot after a bogey on No. 14. Laird missed the green right on his approach then failed to get up-and-down after hitting to 28 feet. That leaves Matt Kuchar alone in the lead at 12 under.
4:54 p.m. — Martin Laird continues to apply pressure, rolling in an 8-footer at the 13th hole for his third straight birdie to rejoin Matt Kuchar at the top of the leaderboard.
4:51 p.m. – The two players in the final group had very different results at the par-5 ninth hole. Kevin Na made his fourth bogey in his last five holes from a nasty lie in the rough beside the green and fell back to 9 under. Matt Kuchar, on the other hand, chipped to 26 inches and made the putt to move to 12 under.
4:45 p.m. — Martin Laird has pulled even with Matt Kuchar at 11 under after consecutive birdies at Nos. 11 and 12. He got up and down from the left side of the green at the par-5 12th, sinking a 5-footer for the birdie, and made a 14-footer at the next.
4:30 p.m. — Add Carl Pettersson and Bo Van Pelt to the mix. They’re 4 and 3 under, respectively, today and both are within three of the lead at 8 under. Meanwhile, Rickie Fowler is still stuck on 1 over for his round as he plays the par-5 ninth.
4:10 p.m. — Kevin Na just missed his first putt from inside 5 feet all week and it resulted in a bogey on the sixth hole, dropping Na into a tie for the lead with Matt Kuchar. Meanwhile, Ben Curtis just picked up a stroke with a birdie on No. 7 to get within three of the lead.
4:05 p.m. — The final groups are through the first handful of holes at TPC Sawgrass and Kevin Na is still in the lead with Matt Kuchar a shot back after both played the first five holes in even. Martin Laird, meanwhile, just turned in 3 under and is three back.
3:55 p.m. – Tiger Woods on his final-round 73 to finish his week at 1-under 287: “I felt that I played well in spurts again,” he said. “Just need to be a little bit more consistent.” On what strides he’s made since the Masters: “I’m starting to hit the ball up in the air again, and doing it correctly. Some of the way I used to do it, how I used to add the loft through impact on the way down.”
3:45 p.m. — Luke Donald is running out of holes but he’s certainly gaining ground. He just made an 11-footer at the 16th hole for his fifth birdie on the back nine. He’s 8 under and five strokes off the pace — tied for fifth right now. If he finishes solo fourth or better, Donald will be back atop the Official World Golf Ranking after a one-week absence.
3:40 p.m. — A double bogey at the fifth hole has dropped Rickie Fowler back into a tie for third at 9 under, four strokes off the pace being set by Kevin Na. Fowler’s troubles began when his second shot landed in the thick grass above a greenside bunker. Standing with one foot in the sand, he advanced the ball to the fringe, then chipped 9 feet short and missed the putt for bogey.
3:21 p.m. — Rickie Fowler is back to within two after pouring in a 29-footer for birdie par-4 fourth. Fowler has been impressive on the front nine here the last two rounds with six birdies and zero bogeys in 13 holes.
3:15 p.m. – Kevin Na leads by three after a birdie on the par-5 second, where he chipped to inside 3 feet and made the putt. Na and Luke Donald, by the way, are the only players since the start of last season who are perfect on putts from inside that distance.
2:55 p.m. — There seem to be some good scores out there at TPC Sawgrass. Already a couple of 65s have been recorded, and Spencer Levin is now 5 under through 14 holes after birdies on five of his last six holes. That gets Levin to 7 under with four holes to play.
2:40 p.m. — It didn’t take Rickie Fowler to make his first birdie of the day. Fowler split the first fairway then stuck his approach from 136 yards to 4 feet to get to 10 under ad within two of the lead.
2:28 p.m. – David Toms finished his round with a par for a 7-under 65, which is one shot off the final-round low at THE PLAYERS. At 7 under for the tournament, Toms walked off the 18th green in a tie for fourth.
2:18 p.m. – Phil Mickelson has gotten off to a good start with a 3-footer for birdie at the par-5 second hole and an 18-inch putt at No. 4. He’s now 6 under and six shots behind Kevin Na, who tees off in a half hour.
2:13 p.m. – David Toms has just birdied the first two holes of The Gauntlet – Nos. 16 and 17 – and has moved to 7 under for the day and the tournament. Toms, who lost in a playoff a year ago, has made an eagle, seven birdies and two bogeys.
1:40 p.m. — Bob Estes is in with the low round of the day, a 7-under 65, which also matches the low round of the week (Ian Poulter and Martin Laird also shot 65 Thursday). At one point, Estes made seven birdies in a nine-hole stretch before closing in 32. The 65 by Estes is his best score here by three shots.
1:25 p.m. — More Tiger: He just made the turn in 40 after hitting just three fairways and three greens in regulation. Meanwhile, Bob Estes is now 7 under with two holes to play. He has seven birdies and one bogey over his last nine holes and is now 5 under for the week. The last time Woods shot a 40 for nine holes, by the way, was his first nine holes of the 2011 PGA Championship at Atlantic Athletic Club, where he went on to miss the cut.
1:10 p.m. — The bogeys are piling up for Tiger Woods, who missed the green left on the par-3 eighth then failed to get up-and-down for par. He’s now 4 over on the day. In case you’re wondering, Woods’ worst career score here is a 75, which he has shot a number of times (most recently in the first round in 2007).
12:50 p.m. — Tiger Woods continues to struggle here at TPC Sawgrass, where he just dropped to 3 over after a bogey on the sixth hole after he missed the green short and failed to get up-and-down from the sand. It was the second bogey of the round for Woods — he also has a double bogey on the card — and he’s now 1 over for the tournament.
12:45 p.m. — Bob Estes continues to make birdies, adding two more on Nos. 12 and 13 thanks to approach shots that landed inside 7 feet on both holes. Estes is now 6 under through 13 holes and 4 under for the week.
12:20 p.m. – Justin Rose put himself behind the 8-ball this week with an opening 76. He had a memorable shot on Sunday, though, when he holed a wedge from 67 yards at the par-4 12th for eagle. Rose, who is now 3 over for the tournament, is the third player to hole a shot from the fairway already on Sunday.
12:13 p.m. – Tiger Woods hit his second shot into the water that fronts the fourth green. He took his drop and found the green with his fourth, then two-putted from 8 feet for the double bogey.
12:07 p.m. – Bob Estes has birdied three straight holes as he made the turn to get to 4 under for the day and 2 under for the tournament. He drained a 38-footer at the par-3 eighth, a 9-footer at No. 9 and a 16-footer at the 10th.
11:57 a.m. – Tiger Woods has gotten the shot he squandered at the first hole back at the par-5 second. He got up-and-down from the pot bunker to the left of the green, making a 12-footer for the birdie.
11:50 a.m. – These guys really are good. We’ve already had two shots holed for eagle from the fairway. David Toms made his from 123 yards at the sixth hole to get to 1 under for the day while Graham DeLaet holed one from 140 yards at No. 10 to take the sting out of a 40 on the front nine.
11:37 a.m. – Tiger Woods didn’t get off to the best of starts. He missed the fairway left and the green right, then chipped to 17 feet and missed the putt for par. He’s now 1 under for the tournament.
11:30 a.m. – You’ll see a lot of pink inside and outside the ropes at TPC Sawgrass today in celebration of Mother’s Day and to promote breast cancer awareness. For every fan in attendance on Sunday, THE PLAYERS is donating $1 to The Donna Foundation, which helps local women battling the disease.
11:15 a.m. – There are 30 players on the golf course right now and only 10 are under par right now. George McNeill is 2 under through 13 holes while Rod Pampling and Bob Estes are the same through 11 and eight holes, respectively.
11 a.m. – The skies will be mostly cloudy on Sunday but it looks like the rain will hold off until Monday. The high will hit 80 and the winds will be in the 10-20 mph range as the leaders tee off at 2:45 p.m.
6:27 pm
Busy week complete for Mickelson
By Ward Clayton, PGATOUR.COM Contributor
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Sunday was the completion of an eventful week at THE PLAYERS Championship for Phil Mickelson. Wearing pink pants, a pink belt, a pink ribbon and a Mother’s Day pin on his hat, Mickelson celebrated the “Pink Out” with the thousands in attendance for the final round. His wife and his mother are both breast cancer survivors.
“It’s a cool day, a really cool day, and the Pink Out is really neat,” Mickelson said. “I remember how special it was in 2009 with the Colonial (and its Pink Out celebration) and how good it felt to feel that support, and hopefully the 200,000-plus women every year that get diagnosed will feel the support and know that they’ve been thought of in their fight.”
Mickelson’s week began last Monday in St. Augustine, Fla., when he was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame. On Tuesday, the Mickelsons announced that they will host a Birdies for the Brave military fundraiser Nov. 30-Dec. 1 at TPC Sawgrass.
The only downer for Mickelson was that he didn’t get closer to the lead in the tournament. He shot rounds of 71-71-70-73.
“I really enjoy this tournament, but my record here isn’t really that great,” said Mickelson, the 2007 PLAYERS champion who has two other top-10 finishes (T8 in 1998 and T3 in 2004). “I played OK this week. The course is in great shape. I just didn’t post quite the scores I wanted to.
“But the game doesn’t feel far off, just a little click here or there and hopefully I’ll get it turned around.”
Mickelson begins his run-up to the U.S. Open next week at the HP Byron Nelson Championship in Dallas and continues two weeks later at the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance. The U.S. Open is June 14-17 at The Olympic Club in San Francisco.
5:45 pm
Tiger has pace of play solution
Watch: Tiger on his final round
Tiger Woods answers questions following Sunday's final round at THE PLAYERS Championship.
By Bill Cooney, PGATOUR.COM
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Tiger Woods thinks he has a solution for slow play in golf.
Penalty strokes.
"Strokes is money," Woods said after his final round at THE PLAYERS Championship.
Currently, PGA TOUR players lose a stroke if they receive two bad times in a round. On Saturday, Kevin Na received one bad time but not a second one. Woods said he would issue a stroke for the first bad time.
"What people don’t realize is that one shot is so valuable out here," Woods noted.
Woods said pace of play is not a TOUR issue but a golf issue.
"We have gotten slower on TOUR," Woods said. "College has gotten just incredibly slow. It’s so bad that now we are giving the guys the ability to use lasers to try to speed up play, and they are still in, you know, 5:45, 6:00 plus."
As far as Woods’ performance is concerned, this week was hardly one he’ll remember. He finished at 1 under for the tournament after shooting a 1-over 73 on Sunday in which he rallied after shooting 40 on the front side.
After opening bogey-birdie-par, Woods took a double-bogey 6 on the 384-yard fourth hole when his second shot found the hazard guarding the front of the green. He also bogeyed Nos. 6 and 8 on the front side.
“(Caddie Joe LaCava and I) were looking back on it,” Woods said. “Didn’t hit any bad shots and here you are at 2 over for the day. Just one of those deals.”
Woods bounced back with a 33 on the back side, making birdies on Nos. 12, 16 and on the island 17th when he knocked his tee shot to 6 feet.
Ultimately, Woods said judging the wind and getting a beat on his distance control prevented a better finish. He also pointed to his par-5 performance as an area for improvement. For the week, Woods was 7 under on the par 5s with seven birdies, no bogeys and no eagles.
The good news is Woods has seen progress in his golf game since the Masters, specifically his ability to correctly hit the ball on a high trajectory “and sending it with confidence.”
“I felt that I did it well in spurts again,” said Woods, who entered ranked 13th in the FedExCup standings. “Just need to be a little bit more consistent, and as I said earlier in the week, just got to play the par 5s better than I did. That’s something I didn’t do. I had a lot of irons into the par 5s and didn’t take care of them.”
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