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Tiger Woods won his own tournament for the first time with a one-stroke victory over Hunter Mahan.
Jul. 7, 2009
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What are our writers thinking about after the AT&T National? Tiger Woods' third win this season, Lucas Glover's recent play and the upcoming Presidents Cup competition.
TIGER ON TOP AGAIN: It's almost laughable to think there were questions about the state of Tiger Woods' game a few events into his return from knee surgery. That's what happens, though, when Woods sets the bar so ridiculously high by winning nearly 28 percent of the time.
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Given Woods' schedule, that adds up to about five victories a year. For some guys, that's a career. For others, it's two careers. For Michael Allen, well, he's at 337 events (and counting) without a win.
Sunday was just another example of Woods doing what he does best. He now tops the FedExCup standings, the money list and has won three times in nine PGA TOUR events. I'm not a math major, but that's more than 28 percent.
Add to that a higher-lofted driver and a choked-down swing, and Woods suddenly has an even greater ability to shape shots and control his golf ball, especially in the wind, which is something he admitted he wasn't always able to do before.
Great, the rest of the TOUR must be thinking, that's like handing Michelangelo a Black & Decker power painter.
And just in case there were any doubters, Woods says his knee and his game are back to full speed and that he can practice all day with coach Hank Haney. As if there are any doubters now. -- Brian Wacker
PLAYER OF THE YEAR?: Let's say Tiger Woods wins two or three more TOUR events this year. Let's say he wins the FedExCup (he's currently the points leader). Let's say he doesn't finish outside the top 10 in any stroke-play event (he's 8 for 8 thus far). But let's also say he goes 0-for-4 in majors this year.
Do you think he'll win Player of the Year honors at season's end?
You might think Tiger is the leader in that clubhouse, since no other player can match his three wins in 2009. But right now I'd say there are three golfers who could deny Tiger that trophy -- Masters winner Angel Cabrera, U.S. Open champ Lucas Glover ... and the possibility that someone could win the year's final two majors, just like Padraig Harrington did last year.
If Cabrera, Glover or a Harrington-like player finishes with two major wins, it'll be a tough call. Of course, if that someone is Woods, then he can start rearranging his trophy shelf sometime in August for his 10th Jack Nicklaus Award as the TOUR's top player. -- Mike McAllister
A.K.'S LESSON: Sunday marked the first time Anthony Kim and Tiger Woods had played together in a tournament and for Kim the experience was mixed. His 71 left him alone in third after a 32-putt day, but his day with the world's No. 1 only fired him up more.
"I'll learn a lot from this event, and I'm taking a lot of positives away," Kim said. "I know I can play at the highest level. I feel like I'm one of the top players in the world, I just need to go out there and take care of those careless mistakes."
The AT&T National marked the third consecutive week of improvement for Kim, who has been sidetracked by injuries most of the year -- and, not insignificantly, the demands that come with playing the worldwide schedule that Kim mapped out for 2009.
It was the kind of week that tests anyone's game. Kim shot 62 on Thursday and was near the lead all four days. That means four trips to the media center and two days of playing in difficult afternoon conditions. On Sunday, he had the new experience of playing with everything Woods deals with and his swing held up pretty well.
Sunday probably wasn't the last Tiger-A.K. final group of the year, at least according to Woods, who told Kim on their walk up 18 that there will be many more of these to come. -- Ryan Smithson
PRESIDENTIAL POWER: U.S. Presidents Cup Captain Fred Couples has to be feeling pretty good right now. Not only did the 49-year-old shoot a pair of 68s on the weekend to tie for 11th at the AT&T National, he's got to like the way his team is shaping up.
America's consensus No. 1, Tiger Woods, won for the third time of the season at the AT&T National and Couples has four other two-time winners among the top eight players in the standings. What may be most pleasing, though, is the competition for the final few spots on a team that will be finalized the Monday after the PGA Championship.
Anthony Kim, who tied for third at Congressional on Sunday, currently stands No. 10. Recent U.S. Open champion Lucas Glover posted his third straight top-11 finish to hang onto the No. 11 spot, while Hunter Mahan moved from 16th to 12th when he closed with a course-record tying 62 Sunday to finish solo second for his third straight top-six.
While the U.S. Team mainstays have certainly held up their end of the bargain, Couples looks to have an abundance of wealth as he contemplates his final two picks for the matches that will be played in September at Harding Park in San Francisco. -- Helen Ross
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| Stock up |
Vijay Singh: At one point Sunday, Singh was on a record pace, making the turn in 30. His birdie train slowed considerably on the back nine, but a final-round 66 was still good enough for his best finish in more than a month. It's only a matter of time.
FedExCup rank: 52 (71 last week) |
Hunter Mahan: Mahan birdied six of his last eight holes on Sunday en route to a record-tying 62 at Congressional, where he finished second. That's three straight weeks in the top six for Mahan and five top-10s for the year. Now he just needs a major.
FedExCup rank: 14 (23 last week) |
Lucas Glover: Perhaps Energizer should think about signing Glover to endorse its batteries. Since winning the U.S. Open, Glover hasn't taken a second off (and he won't this week). He's also tied for 11th and tied for fifth. That's tough to top.
FedExCup rank: 7 (9 last week) |
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| Stock down |
Paul Casey: The No. 3 player in the world sure isn't playing like it of late. That's two straight missed cuts and a tie for 65th since his fifth-place finish at Colonial. At the AT&T National, Casey shot 75-69 with 12 bogeys, playing the back nine in a combined 8 over.
FedExCup rank: 12 (12 last week) |
Jim Furyk: It might be a little much to say Jim Furyk's stock is down when he has seven top-10s, including two in the last three weeks, but Furyk has also failed to win on both occasions, among others, this year. At some point, you've got to close one of those out.
FedExCup rank: 15 (15 last week) |
Boo Weekley: Injuries have bothered Weekley a lot lately and I guarantee you he was bothered by his 79 on Sunday at Congressional, where he had three bogeys and three double bogeys. He just looks uncomfortable -- with his game and all that goes with it.
FedExCup rank: 72 (72 last week) |
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| A Quick 18 |
| Front Nine | Back Nine |
| Want more proof that Tiger Woods is arguably the greatest front-runner in the history of golf? He's now 46 of 49 when leading or sharing the lead after 54 holes and 32 of 38 when leading after 36 holes. That's like spotting Roger Federer a set. | Bryce Molder probably deserves a spot in Stock Up more than Vijay Singh, so he'll get his due here. Since missing the cut in 5 of his first 7 events, Molder has a T23 at the HP Byron Nelson, T2 at the St. Jude Classic, T19 at the Travelers and a solo fourth at the AT&T National. |
| Speaking of R-Fed, Tiger was on the putting green asking anyone he could for updates on the Wimbledon final. When Tiger found out while on the range that Federer had won, he sent a text message that read simply: "Great job. Now it's my turn." | Danny Lee's T7 was the best of his career on TOUR, but more importantly pushed him over the $300K mark in earnings this season, moving him to within just under $200K of temporary membership and unlimited exemptions. His top-10 also saved him from using an exemption this week. |
| When Federer won the French Open, Woods went on to win the Memorial Tournament later that day. Ditto last week with Wimbledon and the AT&T. Prediction: Federer wins the U.S. Open on Sept. 13 and Woods takes the BMW Championship. | The AT&T National was the sixth and final tournament in a series in which the top two money winners not previously exempt could earn a spot in the British Open. By virtue of their finishes at the AT&T National, Paul Goydos and Bryce Molder earned those spots. |
| It might have been the first time Woods and Kim were paired together in a tournament, but it was the 17th time they've been in the same field. Guess who has finished ahead of who every time? Hint: Not the guy whose initials are A.K.
| Speaking of the British Open, Cameron Beckman came to the final hole needing a birdie to jump into a tie for fourth and guarantee a spot in the field at Turnberry. Instead, Beckman made a bogey at No. 18 and finished in a tie for seventh.
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| Tiger played the 11th hole in a combined 5 over through four rounds at Congressional. How is that possible for a guy who hit it as well as Woods did at times? Not even Tiger had an explanation, saying that it was just one of those holes that got him last week. | Tweet of the Week, courtesy of Jon Show (@jonshow_sbj), golf writer for the Sports Business Journal: "Good day for Nike. R Fed and now onto Tiger and AK at Congressional." It was a very good day for the Swoosh, folks. AK, not so much. |
| While Woods was referring to Sunday with that quote and not 15 majors, he'll have more than a good chance to pull even with Federer at the British Open and surpass him in the future. "Our playing careers are a little bit longer than theirs," Woods joked. | Tiger Woods craziness in terms of fan and media attention is one thing. Tony Romo/Jessica Simpson craziness is another. We're talking paparazzi at the airport, security every 6 inches and an awful lot of Cowboys fans in Redskins territory.
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| You knew it was just a matter of time, but Tiger made it official Sunday, grabbing the top spot in the FedExCup for the first time this season, becoming the first player to top 2,000 points this season. He is also first on the money list. | Speaking of Romo, he couldn't have been more helpful in agreeing to a Q&A, despite said craziness, especially considering his pop star girlfriend was waiting on the other end. And her rendition of the national anthem at the AT&T was pretty spectacular. |
| Poor Michael Allen. You had a feeling Sunday's final round was coming. He didn't make a single birdie putt -- though he did hole out for eagle from 143 yards on No. 9. Saturday night his slip-up about having lost 337 times proved prophetic.
| Two of the coolest scenes of the week: Tiger giving a signed glove to Gunnery Sgt. Michael Barrett, one of the military caddies on hand for the pro-am last week, and Barrett also getting a game-used 59-degree wedge from A.K. Barrett also got to putt for them. |
| Hunter Mahan wasn't the only player to have a spectacular Sunday. A day after shooting an 80 at Congressional, Marc Turnesa turned in a bogey-free 68 -- the only bogey-free round of the day in fact. That's a pretty good 12-shot swing. | Did Tiger and President Obama spend time together while Woods was in D.C. last week? If they did, both sides were extremely mum about it. According to multiple Woods sources, though, their schedules just didn't match up. |
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| The Forward Spin |
Do you think Kenny Perry will be a popular guy in Silvis, Ill., this week? The defending champion of the John Deere Classic is coming off a victory at the Travelers Championship -- another small-town event with big-time commitment from guys like Perry -- and if he plays anything like he did in Connecticut, he won't have any trouble defending.
That said, the list of past winners there is pretty mixed, from guys like Perry and Vijay Singh, to Jonathan Byrd and John Senden. But don't be surprised if you see Lucas Glover and/or Bryce Molder play well there. They seem to be playing well just about everywhere else these days, so why not there? |
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PGATOUR.COM'S Brian Wacker wrote the Quick 18, Stock up/Stock Down and Forward Spin.
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