When the PGA Tour’s star of 2022, Scottie Scheffler, took a six shot lead into the final round after birdies at four of his last six holes in a delayed third round on Sunday morning it was expected that the four time winner in 2022, including The Masters, would add yet another great title to his name.
The Tour Championship title and the accompanying US$18 million FedEx Cup bonus prizemoney appeared his for the taking as he set out on what appeared to be a stroll to glory.
Golf, however, does work in strange ways. Sometimes the greater the lead the further there is to fall and when Scheffler stumbled to the turn in 37 and was unable to birdie any hole on the back nine, a bogey from the left greenside bunker at the 16th opened a door which had been ajar since early in the round and none other than Rory McIlroy would walk right through.
Scheffler has begun his final round six shots ahead of McIlroy as a result of the lead he was given in the FedEx Cup standings and even though McIlroy had bogeyed his very first hole today and fallen seven behind, by the turn he had recorded four birdies and an outward nine of 32 and the deficit was just one.
Sungjae Im was making his presence felt also with an outward nine of 32 but a double bogey at the 14th would be a little much to overcome and he would fall just short.
The inward journey was not a lot more fruitful for Scheffler as he struggled to find a green and when McIlroy knocked in a 30 footer across the green at the 15th he had drawn level only for Scheffler to bogey the next and lose the lead for the first and last time.
Don’t feel too sorry for Scheffler however as on top of his amazing year already he earns a cheque for US$5.75 million as does Sungjae Im who shared second position one shot behind McIlroy.
For McIlroy, this would be his third win in the FedEx Cup.
“Honestly, I wasn’t really giving myself much of a chance teeing off in the fourth round,” said the winner.
“I thought silver lining was I was playing in the last group so I could at least keep an eye on what he was doing if things didn’t quite work out for him, and thankfully I was in that last group because I was able to put some pressure on him early on.
“And then that coupled with him not having his best stuff today was actually — I felt like going into the back nine, not that it was mine to lose, but I had all the momentum.
“Going out today, I was like, if I can get it within three going into the back nine, I thought that that would be a really good front nine holes. I think we were tied for the lead on the 10th tee.
“Yeah, incredible day, incredible week. 4-over through two holes, 10 shots out of the lead, at that point to claw my way back and end up winning the tournament, incredible. Just a real — really proud of my resilience and how I sort of handled that start and just sort of stuck my head down and kept going all week and took advantage of the opportunity that I was given today.”
“Look, it’s been a tumultuous time for the world of men’s professional golf in particular,” added McIlory when asked about the significance of his victory given the dynamic in world golf at present.
“I’ve been right in the middle of it. I’ve picked a great time to go on the PGA TOUR board. But yeah, I’ve been in the thick of things. I guess every chance I get, I’m trying to defend what I feel is the best place to play elite professional golf in the world. It’s in some ways fitting that I was able to get this done today to sort of round off a year that has been very, very challenging and different.
“Yeah, they’re all sort of different. It’s been nice. Back in 2019 I took down the No. 1 player in the world in Brooks Koepka. This year I took down the No. 1 player in the world in Scottie Scheffler. So I know that my best stuff is good enough to win any tournament against anybody on any golf course. That’s something I can take away from today.”
In a very pointed comment about the disruption LIV Golf is causing and whether the impact his role as a spokesperson is having on him, McIlroy would say: “No, I don’t think so, because if you believe in something I think you have to speak up, and I believe very strongly about this. I really do.
“I hate what it’s doing to the game of golf. I hate it. I really do. Like it’s going to be hard for me to stomach going to Wentworth in a couple of weeks’ time and seeing 18 of them there. That just doesn’t sit right with me.
“So yeah, I feel strongly. I believe what I’m saying are the right things, and I think when you believe that what you’re saying is the right things, you’re happy to stick your neck out on the line.”
Scheffler was asked if he had allowed the money to creep into his thoughts.
“The money is great, obviously. Playing professional golf for a living is such a gift. For me, I don’t play golf for money. I play to win tournaments and I play to have fun and do my best and see where the game can take me.
“Today the money definitely didn’t creep into my mind. I wanted to win the season-long title. I’ve had a really great year and I wanted to finish it off with a win here, and unfortunately I wasn’t able to do that.
“But at the end of the day it’s such a gift to be out here playing golf for money, and I can’t — I’m just so thankful to be out here.”
Cameron Smith was unable to build on the great season he has had and finished 20th while Adam Scott finished 25th in the 29 player field.
Smith earns US$640,000 and Scott US$550,000.
As the where the future of these two players lies especially, Smith, given the, as yet, unconfirmed rumours about him joining LIV Golf continue to bubble, remains to be seen, but if this is the last we see of him on the PGA Tour (and I certainly hope not) then he has had an extraordinary final year and made some sort of statement in 2022.
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Eisenhower Trophy the focus for amateur golf this week
Connor Mckinney carrying a lot of Australian hopes – file photo USGA
It is the men’s turn at the World Amateur Teams Championship, the highly prized Eisenhower Trophy up for grabs with Perth’s Conner McKinney and Hayden Hopewell, and NSW golfer, Harrison Crowe representing Australia in the event played over 72 holes at Le Golf National (GN), Albatros Course & Golf de Saint-Nom-la-Bretèche (SN), Red Course outside of Paris.
The New Zealand team is made up of Kazuma Kobori, James Hyde, Sam Jones.
72 three man teams take their place with the leading two scores in each of the four rounds counting towards the team total.
Denmark are the defending champions having won the event in Ireland in 2018 with Covid forcing the cancellation of the event in 2020.
The Australians have won the event on four previous occasions, the first in 1958 in its inaugural staging and New Zealand once, the last of those victories coming when the Australian team of Cameron Davis, Curtis Luck and Harrison Endycott took the trophy in Mexico in 2016.
Cameron Davis won the individual title that year.
New Zealand’s only win came in 1992 with Phil Tataurangi, Michael Campbell, Grant Moorhead and Stephen Scahill wining by seven shots over the Americans.
Following an indifferent effort by the Australian and New Zealand women’s teams at the Espirito Santo tournament also in Paris last week, both teams will be looking to better the performance of their female counterparts this week.
Both Hopewell and Crowe have won PGA Tour of Australasia events already in their careers while McKinney is the Australian Amateur Champion.
Kobori has also won an event on the PGA Tour of Australasia, winning the 2019 New Zealand PGA Championship as a 17 year old while his fellow countryman, Hydes, finished runner-up to McKinney at the Australian Amateur Championship earlier this year.
McKinney, Crowe and Hopwell are all inside the top 50 of the current world amateur rankings while Kobori is the best of the New Zealanders in 67th place.
McIlroy wins third FedEx Cup – overcoming a six shot deficit
When the PGA Tour’s star of 2022, Scottie Scheffler, took a six shot lead into the final round after birdies at four of his last six holes in a delayed third round on Sunday morning it was expected that the four time winner in 2022, including The Masters, would add yet another great title to his name.
The Tour Championship title and the accompanying US$18 million FedEx Cup bonus prizemoney appeared his for the taking as he set out on what appeared to be a stroll to glory.
Golf, however, does work in strange ways. Sometimes the greater the lead the further there is to fall and when Scheffler stumbled to the turn in 37 and was unable to birdie any hole on the back nine, a bogey from the left greenside bunker at the 16th opened a door which had been ajar since early in the round and none other than Rory McIlroy would walk right through.
Scheffler has begun his final round six shots ahead of McIlroy as a result of the lead he was given in the FedEx Cup standings and even though McIlroy had bogeyed his very first hole today and fallen seven behind, by the turn he had recorded four birdies and an outward nine of 32 and the deficit was just one.
Sungjae Im was making his presence felt also with an outward nine of 32 but a double bogey at the 14th would be a little much to overcome and he would fall just short.
The inward journey was not a lot more fruitful for Scheffler as he struggled to find a green and when McIlroy knocked in a 30 footer across the green at the 15th he had drawn level only for Scheffler to bogey the next and lose the lead for the first and last time.
Don’t feel too sorry for Scheffler however as on top of his amazing year already he earns a cheque for US$5.75 million as does Sungjae Im who shared second position one shot behind McIlroy.
For McIlroy, this would be his third win in the FedEx Cup.
“Honestly, I wasn’t really giving myself much of a chance teeing off in the fourth round,” said the winner.
“I thought silver lining was I was playing in the last group so I could at least keep an eye on what he was doing if things didn’t quite work out for him, and thankfully I was in that last group because I was able to put some pressure on him early on.
“And then that coupled with him not having his best stuff today was actually — I felt like going into the back nine, not that it was mine to lose, but I had all the momentum.
“Going out today, I was like, if I can get it within three going into the back nine, I thought that that would be a really good front nine holes. I think we were tied for the lead on the 10th tee.
“Yeah, incredible day, incredible week. 4-over through two holes, 10 shots out of the lead, at that point to claw my way back and end up winning the tournament, incredible. Just a real — really proud of my resilience and how I sort of handled that start and just sort of stuck my head down and kept going all week and took advantage of the opportunity that I was given today.”
“Look, it’s been a tumultuous time for the world of men’s professional golf in particular,” added McIlory when asked about the significance of his victory given the dynamic in world golf at present.
“I’ve been right in the middle of it. I’ve picked a great time to go on the PGA TOUR board. But yeah, I’ve been in the thick of things. I guess every chance I get, I’m trying to defend what I feel is the best place to play elite professional golf in the world. It’s in some ways fitting that I was able to get this done today to sort of round off a year that has been very, very challenging and different.
“Yeah, they’re all sort of different. It’s been nice. Back in 2019 I took down the No. 1 player in the world in Brooks Koepka. This year I took down the No. 1 player in the world in Scottie Scheffler. So I know that my best stuff is good enough to win any tournament against anybody on any golf course. That’s something I can take away from today.”
In a very pointed comment about the disruption LIV Golf is causing and whether the impact his role as a spokesperson is having on him, McIlroy would say: “No, I don’t think so, because if you believe in something I think you have to speak up, and I believe very strongly about this. I really do.
“I hate what it’s doing to the game of golf. I hate it. I really do. Like it’s going to be hard for me to stomach going to Wentworth in a couple of weeks’ time and seeing 18 of them there. That just doesn’t sit right with me.
“So yeah, I feel strongly. I believe what I’m saying are the right things, and I think when you believe that what you’re saying is the right things, you’re happy to stick your neck out on the line.”
Scheffler was asked if he had allowed the money to creep into his thoughts.
“The money is great, obviously. Playing professional golf for a living is such a gift. For me, I don’t play golf for money. I play to win tournaments and I play to have fun and do my best and see where the game can take me.
“Today the money definitely didn’t creep into my mind. I wanted to win the season-long title. I’ve had a really great year and I wanted to finish it off with a win here, and unfortunately I wasn’t able to do that.
“But at the end of the day it’s such a gift to be out here playing golf for money, and I can’t — I’m just so thankful to be out here.”
Cameron Smith was unable to build on the great season he has had and finished 20th while Adam Scott finished 25th in the 29 player field.
Smith earns US$640,000 and Scott US$550,000.
As the where the future of these two players lies especially, Smith, given the, as yet, unconfirmed rumours about him joining LIV Golf continue to bubble, remains to be seen, but if this is the last we see of him on the PGA Tour (and I certainly hope not) then he has had an extraordinary final year and made some sort of statement in 2022.
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Lydia Ko’s brilliance in Canada yields yet another top 5
Lydia Ko – file photo LPGA / Getty
New Zealand’s Lydia Ko has produced a stunning final round of 63 including a final nine of 29 and five birdies in her last six holes to finish 4th at the CP Women’s Open in Ottawa in Canada.
Beginning the final round seven shots from the joint lead, Ko’s opening hole bogey gave little indication of what was to come as she reeled off ten birdies and one more bogey for her 8 under par round to eventually finish two shots from the eventual winner Paula Reto of South Africa.
For Ko, it was her 8th top 5 finish of the season (including her win at the Gainbridge LPGA event) and moves her to 5th on the money list with US$1,850,000. Ko is now 3rd in the Race to the Globe points table behind Minjee Lee and Brooke Henderson.
“I bogeyed the first, but I think I tried to not let that rattle me and know there is a lot of opportunities,” said Ko. “So just enjoyed it, and obviously nice being back in Canada after not being here for a couple years. Yeah, it’s been a fun week.”
NSW’s Stephanie Kyriacou finished 17th, Hannah Green 22nd, Sarah Kemp 36th and Karis Davidson 56th.
Kyriacou, in her rookie season, is currently in 64th place in the Race to the Globe while fellow rookie Karis Davidson is 107th and needs a solid finish to the year if she is to retain her playing privileges.
The LPGA still have ten more events of the 2022 schedule remaining, their final tournament of the year coming in mid-November with the CME Group Tour Championship in Florida.
Australian PGA Tour hopes falter in Ohio
Aaron Baddeley needs a solid week in Indiana next week – file photo
The second of the three Korn Ferry Tour Finals to determine who might advance to the PGA Tour next season and just where they stand on the priority ranking has been completed in Columbus in Ohio and, unfortunately, for the five Australians in the field it was not a good week.
Aaron Baddeley finished as the best of them when he tied for 28th this week but he lost four positions in the race for one of the 25 full status PGA Tour cards available via the Finals and he is now ranked 30th ahead of the final event, the Korn Ferry Tour Championship beginning this Thursday.
Baddeley was the only one of the five to make the weekend this week but for Jason Scrivener, Min Woo Lee and Anthony Quayle their hopes of graduating to the PGA Tour rest on a big week in Newburg Indiana.
Baddeley actually led after a first round of 65 this week but slowly slipped down the leaderboard in what was a low scoring event
Sydney’s Harrison Endycott sealed his PGA Tour card via the regular Korn Ferry Tour season so he is just playing for priority ranking purposes only but that can still be important in terms of gaining early season starts. Endycott also missed the cut.
Lee and Scrivener are currently tied for 36th and a top ten this week may well seal the deal but for Quayle he will likely need a top five this week.
The Finals explained
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Australian team finishes well back at Espirito Santo
The Australians (middle three) Maddison Hinson Tolchard, Kirsten Rudgeley and Kelsey Bennett – photo USGA
In what can only be described as a mediocre performance at the Espirito Santo tournament, the Australian Team has finished in 14th place at the event in Paris.
West Australian Kirsten Rudgeley did best in the individual standings when she finished in a share of 21st, NSW’s Kelsey Bennett was 42nd at Perth’s Maddison Hinson-Tolchard 55th.
The team finished 16 shots behind the winning team, Sweden, who defeated the USA on a countback.
The Swedes and Americans tied at 13-under par 559 but after comparing non-counting scores, a 1-over-par 73 from Sweden’s Louise Rydqvist was one stroke better than Rachel Kuehn’s 74 giving Sweden the gold medal and the USA the silver.
One stroke behind were Germany and Japan tied for the bronze-medal position.
New Zealand’s Fiona Xu, the current Women’s Australian Amateur Champion, did best of the players from our part of the world when she tied for 16th in the individual standings, with the New Zealand team 20th.
Next week it is the turn of the men when they play for the Eisenhower Trophy at the WATC Championship at the same venues in Paris, Le Golf National and St Nom la Breteche.
Australians drop to 9th at Espirito Santo
Kirsten Rudgeley in today’s second round – photo USGA Steve Gibbons
The Australian team has dropped to a share of 9th from 6th after the second round of the World Amateur Teams Championship (Espirito Santo) in Paris.
Kirsten Rudgeley is the best placed at 1 under par and in a share of 12th in the individual while Kelsey Bennett is tied for 22nd and Maddison Hinson-Tolchard struggling back in 73rd place.
The Australians are now nine shots behind the leaders, Sweden and seven behind Germany and the USA in the 72 hole event.
The New Zealand team is currently in 26th place.
Sweden’s Meja Ortengren leads the individual at 6 under par.
Fitting finale looming at Tour Championship
The Open – One of Cameron Smith’s three wins in 2022 – perhaps another this week? photo R&A via Getty
The most tumultuous season in the history of the PGA Tour comes to an end this weekend when the leading 29 FedEx Cup eligible players (Will Zalatoris has been forced out through injury) chase the riches of the Tour Championship and the FedEx Cup.
With LIV Golf casting a shadow over the latter half of the season, the Tour gets the opportunity to reset following this week’s event but before it does there are some fairly significant FedEx Cup riches on offer.
Two of the 29 players are Australians, Cameron Smith at number 6 in the standings and Adam Scott just scraping into the field with a stunning up and down for par at the last hole of last week’s BMW Championship to ensure he would be in the field for the 12th occasion.
Smith will be playing the tournament for the 4th time having a best of 14th last year but it is fair to suggest as the number two player in the world he arrives at East Lake with a good chance to win the Tour Championship to go with his Tournament of Champions victory, his Players Championship and of course his Open Championship win in 2022.
The niggling hip injury that caused him to miss last week’s event would appear to be at a stage where he feels well enough to tackle such a big week and with so much at stake there is little wonder why he is doing so.
Smith begins the event at 4 under, handicapped six shots behind the FedEx Cup leader, Scottie Scheffler, so he is giving a man who has recorded four wins two seconds and a third, six shots in the format designed to reward the FedEx Cup points leader for his performances in a season. It is a big task but Smith has shown that when right he can outperform most.
Scott begins the event at even par, so he is yielding ten shots to Scheffler, a mammoth task, admittedly, but he does enjoy a good record in the event in his 12 starts including a win and five other top tens. Although that needs to be tempered with the fact that there are typically only 30 players in the field each year, it is a strong record and provides hope for him, especially given the manner in which he is playing right now.
There is plenty at stake for the now 29 players who advanced to the season-ending championship.
There is an 18 million bonus to the winner of this week’s event, the second-place finisher in the FedEx Cup earns a bonus of $6.5 million, $5 million going to third, $4 million to fourth and $3 million to fifth. The player who finishes 30th will earn $500,000, even Zalatoris withdrawing will still yield him US$500,000.
Whether this is Smith’s last event as a PGA Tour player remains to be seen, but if it is then he could potentially go out with a bang and add US$18 million to his huge earnings in 2022.
To do so however, he has to beat some very much in form players such as Scottie Scheffler, Patrick Cantley and Xander Schaufelle in the process, with Cantlay looking to defend his title and the FexEx Cup title also.
The heat rises in the Korn Ferry Tour Finals
Jason Scrivener – after several years in Europe a chance to make it to the bigtime – file photo Bruce Young
The Korn Ferry Tour Finals are into their second week with several Australians attempting to play their way onto the PGA Tour over the next two weeks at this week’s Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship in Ohio.
Harrison Endycott is also in this field but he has already earned the right to play in the big league next year courtesy of a fine year on the secondary tour in 2022. But, the NSW golfer can improve his priority ranking if he plays well in the Finals and last week he did just that by finishing 18th at the Boise Open to gain a place or two in the standings which will be divided between those 25 players who have already gained a card and the 25 players who will earn a card via the three final events.
Min Woo Lee and Jason Scrivener are in 17th place of those not already with tour cards via the regular season after the opening event last week and Anthony Quayle is 56th.
Aaron Baddeley who has of course been a PGA Tour member (on and off) since 2002 gets another chance and is in 26th place after last week’s event.
The volatility of the format means that one good finish in the Finals can earn a coveted PGA Tour card for next season.
Australians tied for 6th after day one of Espirito Santo
Le Golf National – Paris – photo WATC
The Australian team of Kirsten Rudgeley, Kelsey Bennett and Maddison Hinson Tolchard, find themselves in a share of 6th place after day one of the Women’s World Amateur Team Championship (Espirito Santo) in France.
Bennett and Rudgeley both recorded rounds of 70 in a format where only two of the three scores each day count, Hinson Tolchard’s round of 75 not required in today’s scoring.
The Australians, at 2 under par, are three shots behind the USA side who in turn are one ahead of Germany.
Bennett and Rudgeley are tied for 11th place in the individual standings but only two shots from the lead.
Australia last won the Espirito Santo in 2014 when Minjee Lee, Su Oh and Shelley Shin, teamed to win 12 years after winning in Malaysia.
New Zealand’s Fiona Xu, the current Australian Women’s Amateur Champion has started slowly and finds herself in a share of 50th place with a round of 73. New Zealand is in 28th place in the team standings.
Le Golf National (Albatross Course) and Golf De Saint Nom La Breteche are the two venues being used this week where three players from 56 countries battle it out for the most significant teams title in women’s amateur golf.
The event is played over 72 holes, finishing this Sunday with the men’s equivalent the Eisenhower trophy being played next week.
GOLF
DE SAINT-NOM-LA-BRETÈCHE
Scott’s brilliant shotmaking under pressure gets him to Atlanta
Adam Scott – on his way to Atlanta – file photo
The volatility and the range of permutations of the FedEx Cup Playoffs were no better illustrated than this weekend when, after leading the BMW Championship though 36 holes and moving into 3rd place in the projected FedEx Cup standings, Adam Scott was forced to fight to the end to ensure he would be in Atlanta next week for the Tour Championship.
Scott’s third round of 69 yesterday dropped him to 28th in the standings and he needed a round of even par or better today if he was to maintain his place inside the top 30 players who earned the right to play at East Lake next week.
The 42-year-old Australian’s final round got off to a shaky start when he reached the turn in 2 over 37 and by then he had slipped outside the top 30 in FedEx Cup standings.
Three shots however, and perhaps two in particular, would determine his fate. A stunning approach from just over 200 yards with a mid-iron to 15 feet at the 12th set up an eagle chance which was converted and, all of a sudden, he was back inside the top 30.
Scott then proceeded to bogey the very next hole to be right on the cusp but a fine bunker shot to 6 feet at the 14th set up a birdie and needing to par his way in he managed to do that at the next three holes before, from an awkward lie at the last, he pulled his approach into the left hand greenside bunker.
Needing to get up and down from 30 yards for the all-important par, Scott hit a brilliant bunker shot to 2 feet (see below) and when he converted he was safely inside the top 30 and on his way to Atlanta.
Scott finished in a share of 5th in this week’s event but he gets another opportunity to advance his cause at next week’s Tour Championship which he has won previously (2006).
“Yeah, it’s really good,” said Scott. “I guess that’s the beauty of the FedExCup Playoffs the way they are. You can scratch it around a lot for the year and have a couple good weeks and get heavily rewarded by getting to East Lake and being in that top 30 and all the perks that come with it.
“This week was a great event, and I felt like I played some really good golf. Today was a bit of a struggle, but still managed to have a decent score.
“This week I felt like I played really high-quality golf. I was out there with Scottie Scheffler yesterday who’s obviously played incredible this year, and I felt like I was playing at that high, high level again, and I haven’t been in so many of those situations this year. But I felt like my game stacked up, and I felt like a top player.
“Hopefully stuff to build on this week, and go for it next week with really nothing to lose and head into the next season full of confidence and hopefully keep my head in this place where I feel like I’m one of the best players out here.”
Of the other Australians in the field at the BMW Championship, Lucas Herbert put together a very good week with rounds of 68 and 69 to finish in a share of 15th this week but fell short of making it to the top 30, finishing 43rd in the FedEx Cup standings.
Despite this, it has been an impressive first full season on the PGA Tour for the Victorian with a win and two other top ten finishes.
Marc Leishman finished 28th this week but misses out on a trip to Atlanta by finishing 58th in the race to Atlanta as does Cameron Davis who finished 35th this week but ends the year in 55th place in the FedEx Cup standings.
Cameron Smith who was forced to withdraw this week due to injury issues is now in 6th place on the FedEx Cup table.
The event was won by Patrick Cantlay who successfully defended the title he won last year, albeit on a different layout.
Cantlay goes to 2nd on the Fed Ex Cup standings while Scottie Scheffler who finished third this week is back on top of the FedEx Cup after being overtaken briefly by Will Zalatoris last week. Zalatoris was forced to withdraw with injury this week and is now 3rd on the FedEx Cup table.
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