There was a bushel of tournament golf this weekend. There were 6 major professional events, accompanied by 1 notable amateur competition. Almost too much good golf for the middle of January. Yet here we are, with so much tour to rundown. If what we’ve seen thus far, in the decade known as the neo-roaring 20s, is representative of things to come, it shall be memorable and the stuff of legend. Enjoy this week’s Tour Rundown, as we travel from Singapore to Mexico, Abu Dhabi to Palm Desert. Zoom!
PGA Tour: The American Express debuts with mighty heroics
If someone, anyone, had said that Andrew Landry would make 5 birdies on the homeward nine, 8 birdies on the day, and somehow, still be uncertain of winning the TAE, would anyone have listened? That’s how things played out on day 4, in the Coachella Valley. What it took, you see, was a recent, Presidents Cup hero, 9 birdies, and a 63, paired with 3 consecutive bogeys from the leader. Abraham Ancer did his part, with 63 on Sunday, for a -24 total. Andrew Landry looked mighty good after 12 holes: 5 under on the day and and a solid lead. Bogeys on 13 … 14 … 15, and suddenly, Ancer was tied for the lead. Landry regrouped, trusted, and executed. Near tap-in birdie putts on 17 and 18 separated the pride of Port Neches from his pursuer, and gave him career win number 2.
It would be too easy to write about the guy who tied for 10th, the fellow who opened 64-65, but could only close with 70-71. He would have needed 66-67 to catch Landry, so we won’t take that easy route. Even though he seems to make every USA side for international events, even though he makes hilarious commercials, even though they speak of him as a dominant tour player, which he isn’t. We shall resist. The inaugural TAE was the story of near-misses by golfers (Ancer, Scheffler, Cauley, Straka) searching for a first PGA Tour title. They came close, were buoyed by their efforts, and will, doubtless, challenge in the coming weeks. It was
European Tour: HSBC Championship flies home with Westwood
Lee Westwood inscribed his name into Euro Tour annals this week, with a 2-shot victory at the HSBC Championship in Abu Dhabi. Since his first tour triumph in 1996, the Englishman has amassed 24 others. This week, he became the first to win in four separate decades, and reminded golf’s legion of followers that he is still worth a follow. Westwood improved each of the first three days (69-68-65) to stake himself to a 1-shot advantage over Italy’s Francesco Laporta. and Austria’s Bernd Wiesberger. While his playing partners would struggle throughout the final round (74 and 72, respectively), Westwood would go deeper below par, and he would need it
France’s Victor Perez, and England’s Tommy Fleetwood each closed with the low round of the week, 63s that were matched by Laporta in round two. Matthew Fitzpatrick joined Perez and Fleetwood at 17-below par, giving England three of the top four golfers on the week. Westwood did not falter. He was out in 32, on the strength of 4 birdies, and sandwiched his lone bogey of the day, at 16, with 2 more stroke-savers. His play on the par-five 18th was stellar: drive in the heart of the fairway, followed by hybrid to the center of the green. Two putts later, Westwood raised his arms in triumph. Although he said after the round that he’d had enough Ryder Cup pressure (10 times capped), he would certainly accept it if it came his way. Well, Lee, that’s what comes with winning!
Korn Ferry Tour: Great Exuma Classic trophy held in two gloved hands
Tommy Gainey was a fan favorite from 2007 to 2012. His wins on The Big Break and at the PGA Tour’s McGladrey Classic, along with his penchant for wearing 2 golf gloves while playing, showed him to be a talented and unique competitor. From 2012 to 2019, Gainey struggled with his tournament game, essentially falling off the radar. In late 2019, he re-entered the news cycle for the wrong reasons, but 2020 provided him new opportunities. Status on the Korn Ferry Tour saw him make the trip to the Bahammas, for the KF Tour’s unique take on tournament golf: events contested from Sunday to Wednesday. Gainey started quickly, taking the lead with 66 in round one. He faltered on Monday with 75, dropping 8 shots off Dylan Wu’s electric pace of 67-66.
Round three brought another reversal, with gaining posting 67 to Wu’s 76, and the South Carolinian once again had a slim lead. Round four showed Gainey’s composure; he played calmly over the first 15 holes, with one birdie and one bogey preserving the 1-shot advantage. With the tournament on the line, Gainey birdied his way home, reaching 11 shot below par, and winning by 4 strokes. John Oda and Wu tied for the second spot, at -7, with 4 more golfers at 6-under par. The tour revisits the Sunday-Wednesday format this week, across the Bahamma’s sea at the Great Abaco Classic.
LPGA: Tournament of Champions to Gaby Lopez
While we’re waiting for the playoff to end, let’s tell you about the golfers who almost won the LPGA’s TOC this weekend. To begin, MJ Hur had 10 birdies in her Sunday 63. She also had 2 bogeys. 1 less or 1 more, and she would have reached -13, and joined the extra-hole squad. Brooke Henderson made a pair of bogeys early, at holes 2 and 3. She piled on 5 birdies after; as with Hur, 1 less or 1 more. She and Hur tied for 4th at -12. Annie Park reached -11, with Lexi Thompson and Sei Young Kim at -10. Nelly Korda played some of the best golf over the final 54 holes, but saddled herself with an opening 73. She remains the player to watch, at least from the USA, in 2020.
Ok, playoff’s over. It began yesterday, with 3 contestants in the mix: Inbee Park (the great one!), Gaby Lopez, and Nasa Hataoka. Advantage: Park … right? Wrong. The ladies played the par-three 18th hole over … and over … and over. Mind-numbing stuff, I’ll admit. Park dunked her tee shot on the 3rd go-round, and she was gone. Lopez and Hataoka got 2 more revolutions in before darkness hit. With a combined 10 pars between them, they hugged, slept, awakened, and got back to business on Monday morning. Understand, for a moment, that the 18th at Diamond Resorts is no pitch-and-putt short hole. The Lopez, Park and Hataoka bashed hybrid after hybrid, over water, to this oddly-angled shell of a green. To make 12 of 13 pars, after 18 holes of golf, was stellar.
On Monday morning, Hataoka and Lopez arrived dressed for a snowball fight. Stocking caps, leggings, ear warmers … that was missing were the softly-floating flakes. Both reached the green in regulation, and Lopez struck first, draining a 20-feet putt for the first deuce of the playoff. Hataoka was half that distance, but with a curving, downhill putt. When it broke twice the amount she read, Lopez was the first 2020 champion on the LPGA Tour.
Champions Tour: Mitsubishi Electric playoff features interesting playoff triumph
When last we followed The Big Easy, Ernie Els nearly captained his International Squad to a victory over the American side, in the 2019 Presidents Cup. Returning to the course as a competitor, Els made his debut at the Mitsubishi in Hawaii with a single goal: join the ranks of Champions Tour players to win their inaugural competition. He nearly pulled it off, but was thwarted by the most interesting man in golf. Els, Fred Couples, and Miguel-Ángel Jiménez separated themselves from a field of 38, with a total of 14-under par. Wes Short and Retief Goosen made especial effort to join them, but came up two putts shy. The trio went off to the par-four 18th hole to decide matters, and Couples was quickly eliminated with bogey. In truth, Jiménez might have settled matters then and there, but his birdie try faltered at hole’s edge. The duo returned to the tee once again, and this time, Jiménez was deadly. He staked his approach to 12 feet and rolled the putt in for 3. Els could not match his effort, and would have to wait a bit longer for victory number one. As for the Spaniard, victory number nine on the geriatric circuit was his 2nd at Hualalei, and a proper portent for 2020.
Two Quick Exit Takes
-Matt Kuchar survived a whiff and a bounce off the cart path, to defeat Justin Rose by 3 at the Singapore Open. Rose and Kuchar were the two highest-profile players in the field, and they did not disappoint. Rose has struggled mightily, since switching to Honma a few years back. Kuchar has struggled since … well … Each player was due a break, but it could only go to one of them. The win will certainly buoy the big Georgian’s spirits as he heads into the California swing on the American PGA Tour circuit.
-Abel Gallegos became the first Argentine winner of the Latin America Amateur Championship, with a 4-stroke victory over Aaron Terrazas, of host country Mexico. The tournament was played on annual PGA Tour course El Camaleón, on the Yucatán peninsula. Gallegos overcame 54-hole leader José Vega, a sales representative for Trackman, and held off Terrazas, to earn invitations to the 2020 Masters and Open championships.
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19th Hole2 weeks ago
19th Hole2 weeks ago
