PGA Tour: Players Championship final scoreboard here.
He is one of the most exciting players on tour when he gets on a roll, and with 5 birdies in his first 6 holes and 4 more in a row from the 10th and another clincher with a sensational dart to 4' at the 17th for a -6 66 -13 275 total, Aussie Cameron Smith swept the $20,000,000 Players Championship, taking the $3.6 top prize to his Florida home in Jacksonville and a long overdue reunion with his mother and sister, who he hadn't seen down under in 2 years due to COVID.
Champion Cameron Smith
His putter is reknown as his bread and butter was hot at the right time, he one putted 8 of his last nine holes and a record 42 times over 4 rounds for his 2nd win this year, 5th all together.
He also secured his next 3 years with a full exemption for all the majors, and 5 years on the PGA Tour and 600 Fed Ex points which will be very valuable as the year goes on, and he is now ranked 6th in the world.
Even with a bogey at the 18th he ended up a shot better than a very relieved Indian good guy Anirban Lahiri 69, who had lost his game over the last 2 years, dropped to 332 in the world, but now believes in himself again.
Another good guy, Paul Casey, playing with Smith, posted yet another great score in tough events, a final 69, He hit what he called his best drive of the week at the par 5 16th right down the middle while the Aussie snap hooked his drive into the trees and pine straw. However as bad luck would have it, Casey's ball rolled down into another players pitch mark forcing him to lay up.
They ended up both parring the hole, the Englishman's advantage gone. He finished 3rd, 2 shots behind.
Meanwhile the Canadians made a 4th round surge, that was impressive and as a result financially rewarding.
Adam Hadwin who I didn't see play a shot all week until late on Monday, posted 72 72 E during all the mayhem that was Thursday afternoon and Saturday, then followed that up 70 then an 8 birdie 67 T9 -7 worth $585,000, six shots behind the winner.
Taylor Pendrith battled all week long, driving the ball as well as I've seen him, sharing the lead at times, 68 71 74 69 -6 T13 worth $425,000, just one stroke worse than his countryman, that stroke worth $160,000 !!!
Corey Conners T26, 70 69 75 70 -4 worth $161,000 which is a great week's pay for the kid who used to pick balls in the snow on the driving range at Listowel GC. However if you watched him, he is as good as anyone striking the golf ball, such a relaxed swing, usually with a tight draw, dead straight if he needs to, and a very tidy short game. All of that gives him so many chances on the greens.
Consider this, if he just made 1 more putt a round and finished -8, he wins $625,000. That my friends would drive me to drink !!
There is more rain in that forecast for today and Wednesday, but not much and mid 20*c temperatures for the rest of the week, with a decent 16kph breeze on the weekend.
Nothing that will match what turned out to be a marathon week at Ponte Vedra Beach, all that soaking rain, 60mph winds, cold temperatures for Floridians, but ended up in bright sunshine with an even brighter, down to earth winner.
Bryan Angus
No comments:
Post a Comment