He wouldn’t have been an easy pick at the start of the week but after his opening round of 61 at Sedgefield Country Club, the 2010 Wyndham Championship was Arjun Atwal’s tournament to lose.
But he didn’t, and with his victory he becomes the first PGA Tour winner born in one of the world’s most populous nations, India.
With Atwal having lost his PGA Tour status just last month it was left to Jeev Milkha Singh to carry the torch for their country but Atwal worked his way into the Wyndham field as a Monday qualifier and never looked back. It has been more than 24 years since the last Monday qualifier took down a PGA Tour title. That was Fred Wadsworth at the 1986 Southern Open.
Singh, understandably, was excited for his countryman. “I am very happy for Arjun. This is an important win for the country of India. All the children in India will be inspired by his victory and it will help grow the sport. Arjun is a fighter. He did not get down after his injury last year and losing his status on the tour.”
Seema Sadekar, the Big Break contestant from Canada with Indian heritage was just as excited, posting on her Twitter page of how Atwal had made India Proud.
Atwal, 37, looked to be in tough Sunday in Greensboro where late into the final nine as many as seven players were co-leaders.
But he did not falter and made a critical six-foot par putt on the 18th for the win and to avoid a playoff at 19 under par with David Toms who looked on with interest from the locker room.
With limited tour access and no hope of making it into next week’s FedEx Cup playoffs as a non-tour member Atwal felt that there was no need to be tentative this week, even as a qualifier. “I told my caddie, ‘We’ve got nothing to lose this week. Just go out there and try and win it,'” Atwal said. “Guys are going to be out there trying to secure their FedExCup spots or whatever. We’ve got nothing. I don’t have a card. I don’t have anything. Just go out there and free-wheel it, and that’s what I did this week.”
Although Atwal did not earn his way into the Barclay’s Championship, he did come out with a lot for his admirable efforts in Greensboro. He regained his status on tour with a 2-year exemption as well as a spot in the 2011 Masters and PGA Championship. Not to mention a very nice trip to Kapalua in January next year for the winners-only SBS Championship.
While Atwal had no concerns about the FedEx Cup, more than a few players did. Scott Piercy was the lone golfer to play his way into the field via his performance in the final week of the regular season at the Wyndham Championship. Piercy finished T8 to move up 15 positions in the FedExCup standings. At T8, Piercy matched his best finish of the 2010 season with his only other top-10 finish coming at the Waste Management Phoenix Open (T8). After bogeys on holes 6, 7 and 8, Piercy played the back nine at three-under par to finish the regular season at no. 125, two points ahead of Jeff Quinney. Chris Stroud began the week at no. 124, but missed the cut and was bumped out of the top 125 by Piercy’s performance.
This report provided to GolfWRX.com by Flagstick Golf Magazine (www.flagstick.com)
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