Memorial Tournament:
Overnight co-leader William McGirt authored a bogey-free 1-under-par 35-36=71 in the final round of the Memorial Tournament to match Jon Curran on 15-under 273, and then eliminated him with par on the second hole of sudden death.
The 102nd-ranked player in the world snares his maiden TOUR title in his 165th career start as a pre-tourney 150/1 outright. His previous best was T2 three times, most recently at the 2016 Sanderson Farms.
The 36-year-old, who celebrates his birthday on June 21st, couldn’t have picked a better time to breakthrough. With the total purse increasing significantly to $8.5 million, he pocketed $1,530,000, up $414,000 over last year’s winning take of $1,116,000 for David Lingmerth.
With the win, McGirt earns a three-year exemption on TOUR and among other goodies, an invite to the 2017 Masters, where he’ll make his debut. He also jumps to a career-best 44th in the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR), thereby earning a spot in the U.S. Open in two weeks where he’ll also be making his first appearance. In fact, it will be just his second major championship appearance overall (MC, 2012 PGA Championship).
The North Carolina native began the finale in a three-way T1 after rounds of 70-68 and a week-tying-low 64. He peppered 16 greens in regulation, circling a lone birdie at the par-5 fifth from 17’9”, but it proved enough to get into a playoff after making a 3’11” par putt on the 72nd hole, the longest par putt he was faced with all day. In sudden death, the duo matched pars on the first playing of the par-4 18th before McGirt won on the second trip with a nifty up-and-down par to Curran’s bogey.
McGirt’s closing 71 (17 pars, one birdie) will not go down as an instant classic but unlike the vast majority of the other contenders, he didn’t beat himself. His third-round 64 got him into position for victory, vaulting him from T22 after 36 holes to a share of the lead.
With 500 FedExCup (FEC) points for the win, the South Carolina resident bumps 27 places to 10th in the FEC standings and improves to 1-for-2 when the 54-hole leader/co-leader. The only other time he led/co-led after 54 holes was at the 2014 Northern Trust where he finished T6.
McGirt’s victory comes in his fourth appearance at Muirfield Village Golf Club with a previous best of T37 on debut in 2013. Prior to this week, he hadn’t broken 70 in 10 career laps. McGirt is also the third straight playoff winner at the Memorial and the third straight to win their maiden TOUR title at Muirfield Village joining Lingmerth (2015) and Hideki Matsuyama (2014).
Winner’s Weekly Stats (ranking of 75 players):
Eagles: 1 (T8)
Birdies: 20 (T16)
Bogeys: 7 (T9)
Par-3 Scoring: 3.06 (T33)
Par-4 Scoring: 3.83 (T3)
Par-5 Scoring: 4.44 (T5)
Driving Accuracy: 38/56 (T39) at 67.86 percent
Greens in Regulation (GIR): 53/72 (T7) at 73.61 percent
Proximity to Hole: 26’10” (8th)
Putts per GIR: 1.736 (55th)
Total Putts: 115 (T56); by round: 29-27-26-33
Scrambling: 14/19 (6th) at 73.68 percent
Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green (SGTTG): 7.248 (7th)
Strokes Gained: Putting (SGP): 3.924 (16th)
Golf Channel Perfect Picks ($3,360,688):
Group 1: Rory McIlroy (T4): $334,688
Group 2: Dustin Johnson (3rd): $578,000
Group 3: William McGirt (P1): $1,530,000
Group 4: Jon Curran (P2): $918,000
Draw:
The draw was virtually a non-factor insofar as the 36-hole cut was concerned. In total, 75 players from a field of 120 made the cut on 2-under 142 – the lowest cut in tourney history – with 39 (of 58) EARLY/late advancing (2 WDs), versus 36 (of 60) LATE/early.
Of the four top-finishers in Golf Channel however, three emerged from the EARLY/late ranks, including the champion.
William McGirt (P1): EARLY/late
Jon Curran (P2): LATE/early
Dustin Johnson (3rd): EARLY/late
Rory McIlroy (T4): EARLY/late
Yahoo! Low Rounds:
R1: Dustin Johnson (64)
R2: Gary Woodland (65)
R3: Robert Streb, Soren Kjeldsen, William McGirt (64)
R4: Roberto Castro (66)
The Runner-up:
Jon Curran: Playing out of the penultimate threesome, the second-year man fashioned a 2-under-par 34-36=70 in the final round to post 15-under 273, and then lost to McGirt on the second playing of the par-4 18th in sudden death with an ‘all-over-the-yard’ bogey to McGirt’s par.
He began the final frame in a four-way T4 on 13-under after opening his tourney debut in 68-67-68, one shy of a trio of overnight leaders. The 29-year-old found nine (of 14) fairways and conjured 11 greens in regulation, posting 2.213 in SGP. His cumulative in the latter was 8.494, No. 1 in the field.
The Vanderbilt alum bogeyed the first but erased it with birdies at Nos. 2, 5 and 8 to turn 2-under and T3. He bogeyed the 12th just prior to the weather suspension but returned to birdie the 17th. Curran had a chance to win in regulation at the 18th but missed birdie from 15 feet.
It’s his third top 10 of the season in 22 starts and leaps 48 spots in FEC points to 36th. He also catapults from No. 193 in OWGR to a career-best 89th.
Curran, a pre-tourney 250/1 outright, settles for his second runner-up in his 55th career start having also lost in extra time at the 2015 Puerto Rico Open. However, his solo second was good for $918,000 versus $198,000 for the four-way P2 in Puerto Rico.
3rd-Place:
14-under 274
Dustin Johnson: The 31-year-old patched together a 1-under-par 33-38=71 to finish one shy of the playoff. He was the 18-hole leader after 64 (week-tying-low) and followed with rounds of 71-68 to begin the finale on 13-under, one back.
Playing out of the penultimate threesome, Johnson landed 10 (of 14) fairways and hit 13 greens in regulation, posting 1.824 SGTTG.
At the turn, he co-led on 16-under, going out in blemish-free 3-under, but squared bogeys on 10, 12 and 13 to drop back to T5 when play was suspended. When play resumed, DJ exchanged birdie at 15 with bogey at 16 – missed par putt from 6’5” – before a closing birdie from 5'1" secured solo third.
After his stellar R1, he posted three straight negatives in SGP, including -0.557 in R4. It’s his second solo third of the season in 12 events (Houston Open) and his best at the Memorial in his ninth appearance, previously solo fourth in 2011.
Biggest Surprise (besides the two playoff combatants):
Gary Woodland: Granted, the 32-year-old entered off five consecutive paydays and a season-best T12 in his last start at the Nelson that included a pair of bogey-free 64s in R2 and R3. But, he’d yet to log a top 10 in 14 starts this season and finished T57/2014 and MC/2015 in his last two Memorials that included three scores of 75 or worse.
Woodland earned his way to a share of the 54-hole lead with rounds of 68-65-69, but backed up with a 1-over-par 35-38=73 to post 13-under 275, down three spots into a four-way T4, two back of the playoff.
He birdied the first and the seventh before retreating with bogey at the ninth to turn 1-under, dropping to tied-third at the break. He wound up squaring three straight with bogeys at 10 and 11, the latter a three-jack from 17 feet, now T5 when play was suspended. When play resumed, the Kansas alum birdied the 13th from 31'4" before eating his fourth bogey at the 17th. He had a great chance for tied-third at the last but missed birdie from 8’10”.
Woodland’s first top 10 of the season (seventh top 25) came in his 15th event. He was making his sixth consecutive Memorial appearance with a previous best of solo sixth on debut in 2011. Looking for his third TOUR title in his 163rd career start, first since the 2013 Reno-Taho Open, Woodland got into position with bogey-free laps in R1 and R3. The downside is he drops to 0-4 in his career when the 54-hole leader/co-leader.
Honorable Mention:
Keegan Bradley: The 29-year-old (who turns 30 on June 7th), back-doored a three-way T8 on 12-under 276 with a closing 69 (bogey-free). It was his second straight T8 at Muirfield Village and fourth consecutive payday after missing the cut in 2011 and 2012.
The 122nd-ranked player in the world totaled 19 birdies against five bogeys and a double for just his second top 10 of the season in 18 starts (T8, OHL Classic). Surprisingly, Bradley ranked 14th for the week in SGP at 3.977 despite a -0.537 in R4.
Final-Round Debacles:
Not to take anything away from McGirt (or Curran), but the final round was as much about crash and burns as it was about someone shooting lights out to claim victory.
Of the top 18 players on the leaderboard entering the finale, TWO shot even-par rounds: Kevin Streelman (T8) and Webb Simpson (T11).
Only FOUR managed a sub-par round: McGirt (71), Curran (70), D. Johnson (71) and J.B. Holmes (69). The other 12 were varying degrees of terrible.
Adam Hadwin: Entered the final round T4 and one back. Playing out of the penultimate threesome, he shot 2-over 74 with five bogeys against three birdies to fall seven to T11.
Emiliano Grillo: More on him below.
Soren Kjeldsen: Entered the final round T8 and two back. Playing out of the third-to-last-threesome, he shot 2-over 74 with four bogeys against two birdies to drop 12 to T20.
Zac Blair: Entered the final round T8 and two back. Playing out of the third-to-last threesome, he shot 3-over 75, including a birdie-less back-nine 4-over 40, dropping 19 spots to T27.
Robert Streb: Entered the final round T11 and three back. He shot a 1-over 73 to fall to T20. Streb went out in bogey-free 4-under, climbing to T3 on 15-under total, but came home in 5-over 41, including a bogey, bogey, double-bogey start to his back nine.
John Huh: Entered the final round T11 and three back. He shot 2-over 74 to drop to T27. Huh was 1-under after birdie at the 10th, but immediately bogeyed the 11th and doubled the 12th, finishing with all pars after that.
Jason Day: The World No. 1 and Muirfield Village member began the final round T11 and three back. He shot 2-over 74, falling 16 places to T27, ironically matching his personal best at the Memorial (T27/2009).
For the week, the 28-year-old and pre-tourney co-fave at 13/2, totaled 23 birdies and one eagle-3, but squared 12 bogeys and TWO doubles, including a double bogey-6 on the 18th to end his otherwise spectacular third round – a precursor of things to come on Sunday.
Biggest Disappointment:
Hideki Matsuyama: The 2014 Memorial winner missed the cut by FIVE strokes at 3-over 74-73=147. With ideal scoring conditions the first two rounds, a total of 75 players made the cut of 2-under 142 (again, the lowest cut in tournament history).
For his part, Matsuyama, a pre-tourney 16/1 outright, didn’t participate in the fun. He kicked off fine with a first-nine 2-under 34 on Thursday, but came home in 4-over 40, including a double bogey-5 and back-to-back bogeys to finish.
Things didn’t get better for the 24-year-old in R2, with four bogeys overshadowing three birdies. As would be expected, his stats suffered across the board, most notably a -2.976 in SGP.
What We Learned:
The pre-tourney odds-favorites have won just TWICE this season thru 30 events and Jordan Spieth has both of them, winning the DEAN & DELUCA and the Hyundai TOC.
In total, 14 of the Top 25 OWGR were in the field with five finishing in the Top 10:
No. 3: Rory McIlroy (T4); more below
No. 8: Patrick Reed (T8); TOUR-leading NINTH top 10 this season (17 events)
No. 18: Matt Kuchar (T4); more below
No. 21: J.B. Holmes (T4); tied season best (Masters)
THREE missed the cut:
No. 5: Rickie Fowler; third straight MC at Memorial; second straight on TOUR
No. 15: Hideki Matsuyama
No. 24: Kevin Kisner
THREE finished OUTSIDE the top 50 on the leaderboard:
No. 2: Jordan Spieth (T57)
No. 4: Bubba Watson (T65)
No. 25: Russell Knox (64th)
Rory McIlroy: The World No. 3 back-doored a T4 with a closing 68, up 17 spots on the day. He birdied three of his final four holes to post 13-under 275 (70-66-70-68) and notch a personal best at the Memorial in his sixth appearance – previously solo fifth in 2011.
The 27-year-old ranked FIRST for the week in Putting from - > 10’ at 35.90 percent (14/39), none more important than an 11’4” one-putt on the 72nd hole. He was third-ranked in SGP at 7.306 after dumping his cross-handed putting grip.
Matt Kuchar: The past Memorial champ and overnight co-leader back-pedaled to a 1-over-par 34-39=73 in the final round to wrap his 11th appearance on 13-under 275, down three places into a four-way T4, two adrift of the playoff.
The 37-year-old was chasing his eighth TOUR title in his 366th career start -- first since the 2014 Heritage. This was his sixth career 54-hole lead/co-lead and he drops to 2-for-6, though one of those was his last conversion here in 2013.
Kuchar began the finale in a three-way T1 with McGirt and Woodland, who rounded out the final threesome. He split 12 (of 14) fairways and hit 12 greens in regulation. The Georgia Tech alum birdied Nos. 3, 5 and 7 to outpace bogey on 6 to turn 2-under and still T1. He squared the 12th but was still T1 when play was suspended.
When play resumed, Kuchar doubled the 13th (from a fairway bunker) and bogeyed the 15th before a final birdie at the 16th. He settles for his seventh top 10 of the season (fourth straight) in 16 starts, and SIXTH top 10 at Muirfield Village in 11 attempts.
There were 22 first-timers in the field of 120, including six (of 17) TOUR rookies.
Curran was the best debutant by far with P2 on 15-under 273. The next best was rookie Emiliano Grillo with T11 on 11-under 277 (67-66-70-74).
Emiliano Grillo: The 23-year-old is the top rookie for the second week in a row after T55 at the DEAN & DELUCA on 2-over 282. This week, he was chasing his second TOUR title in his 23rd career start and second of the season after winning the Frys.com Open in his first start as a member.
The Argentine began the final round on 13-under in a four-way T4, one back. He moved into a three-way tie for the lead on 16-under after going out in bogey-free 3-under 33, circling birdies on Nos. 1, 3 and 5.
Like several others mentioned above, Grillo’s back nine was a disaster. He kicked off with FOUR straight bogeys on holes 10-13 before birdieing the 14th just prior to the suspension. When play resumed, he was just two off the pace but ate a double bogey-6 at the 17th to limp home in 5-over 41.
Up Next:
The TOUR heads to Memphis, Tennessee, for this week’s FedEx St. Jude Classic at TPC Southwind. Fabian Gomez is the defending champion, winning his first TOUR title in his 70th career start by four strokes over runner-up Greg Owen.
Stay tuned to this space for all the latest player news and opinions as the TOUR readies for its 31st tournament of the season.
