Bob Hope Classic, Round 5
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By PGATOUR.COM Staff
HAAS FLAWLESS IN THE FINAL ROUND (5:55 p.m.) -- Bill Haas didn't have the round of the day -- Kuchar's 63 took that honor -- but Haas' 64 featured some incredible stats.
Haas played the final 54 holes with only a single bogey -- and Haas missed only one fairway in the final round despite averaging nearly 300 yards off the tee. He also missed just two greens, finishing the week ranked No. 1 in greens in regulation (83 percent).
The victory puts Haas in the 2010 Masters, where his uncle, Bob Goalby, won the Green Jacket in 1968. The win also gives Haas a two-year exemption on the PGA TOUR and a spot in the 2011 SBS Championship at Kapalua.
FATHER-SON WINNERS (5:50 p.m.) -- Haas' victory is the eighth time a father-son duo have won on the PGA TOUR:
| Father-son winners on the PGA TOUR (all-time) | ||||||||||||||||||
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HAAS CLINCHES TITLE (5:45 p.m.) -- With his father and brother in attendance, Bill Haas two-putted the final hole for birdie and a closing 64 that beat Matt Kuchar, Bubba Watson and Tim Clark by a shot.
This is Haas' first victory on TOUR, marking the third time in four years someone has made the Bib Hope Classic their first win on TOUR.
Here is a look at Haas' card:
WATSON FINISHES AT 29 UNDER (5:40 p.m.) -- Bubba Watson missed an eagle chip that would have gotten him to 30 under. He finishes with a 66 in the final round and a likely tie for second finish -- his fourth such finish on the PGA TOUR.
CLARK FINISHES AT 29 UNDER (5:35 p.m.) -- Tim Clark just parred the par-5 18th after laying up with his approach and pitching to 8 feet ... and missing the putt. Bill Haas can now win the tournament with a birdie, which would get him to 30 under.
KUCHAR FINISHES AT 29 UNDER (5:25 p.m.) -- Matt Kuchar is in the clubhouse after a disappointing three-putt par on the final hole. He finishes with 63 ... but that score could have easily been a 60 or a 61 with the trio of putts that just missed on the final nine.
"It's tough to two-putt from 70 feet," Kuchar said. "I'd like to have that first putt back."
Tim Clark and Bill Haas are also at 29 under, and an eagle on the final hole would likely win the tournament outright.
Here is a look at Kuchar's card:
CLARK, KUCHAR TIED (5:15 p.m.) -- Tim Clark rolled in a clutch 20-footer for birdie on the par-3 17th to get to 29 under ... and with Kuchar needing a solid putt to make birdie on the 18th, the door is wide open for Clark to win the tournament with a birdie on the 72nd hole.
WATSON CLOSES WITHIN ONE (5:13 p.m.) -- Bubba Watson birdied the short par-4 16th to draw within one shot of Kuchar, who will have a very long birdie try on the 18th after hitting a hybrid over the flag.
KUCHAR REGAINS THE LEAD (5:04 p.m.) -- Matt Kuchar broke a birdie drought on the 17th hole when he stuck his tee shot to 16 feet and made the putt on the 130-yard par-3. The birdie moves Kuchar to 29 under as he heads to the par-5 18th, which he should easily be able to hit in two with an iron.
IT'LL ALL COME DOWN TO THE 18TH (5 p.m.) -- The par-5 18th is playing a mere 517 yards in the final round -- and it's quite possible someone will make a three here and win the event like Pat Perez did in 2009.
The field is averaging 4.468 on the home hole today, with four eagles and 17 birdies.
HAAS CATCHES KUCHAR ... AND SO DOES CLARK (4:47 p.m.) -- Bill Haas has just birdied the par-5 14th to get to 28 under ... he laid up on the dangerous par-5, stuck a wedge to 18 feet and rolled in the putt for his 32nd birdie of the week.
Tim Clark nailed a perfect mid-iron to six feet at the par-3 15th and sank the putt to join Kuchar and Haas at 28 under.
DOUBLE BOGEY FOR WEIR (4:30 p.m.) -- Mike Weir's shot at a second Bob Hope Classic title likely ended when he drowned his drive on the dogleg par-4 13th hole.
Weir hooked his ball into the water on the 13th -- he has uncharacteristically missed four fairways so far in the final round.
The double bogey moves Weir back to 23 under, five shots behind Kuchar, who continues to lead after a strong of pars.
ALEX PRUGH UPDATE (4:30 p.m.) -- Alex Prugh started the day with a share of the lead with Bubba Watson, but the rookie quickly disappeared after a pedestrian front nine that featured a lone birdie.
Prugh, one of the longest hitters in the field, eagled the par-5 11th after holing a 20-yard chip to get to 25 under. Prugh still has two par-5s to go, and while he probably won't get that first PGA TOUR victory, a finish in the top five would be a nice result from a breakout week.
BUBBA IN GOOD SHAPE (4:10 p.m.) -- Bubba Watson's length off the tee should help him as the field enters the closing holes in the Bob Hope Classic. Watson has been bogey-free in the final round, and he has two par-5s remaining on the card, both of which he can easily reach in two.
Watson is 4 under on the day and remains one shot behind Kuchar.
KUCHAR'S UNUSUAL SWING (4 p.m.) -- If you've tuned into the coverage of the GOLF Channel coverage, you're undoubtedly seen how flat Matt Kuchar's swing has become over the years.
Kuchar is among the tallest players on the PGA TOUR at 6-foot-4, but his flat swing is reminiscent of someone much shorter. Rookie Rickie Fowler is another player that employs a very flat swing, but he's seven inches shorter than Kuchar.
Kuchar's flat motion leads to deadly accuracy with his driver and irons, but he's been among the shortest hitters on the PGA TOUR. Because Kuchar is so good with hybrids and mid-irons, his lack of length off the tee hasn't hurt him much -- he won last year at the Turning Stone Resort Championship despite playing one of the TOUR's longest courses in cold weather.
"I've been doing the one-plane theory," Kuchar said in 2008. "It's been a good fit for me. I've always taken it back flat, and that's kind of what they like. It was a good fit, and I feel like I'm a believer in it and that it's helped me play more consistently. I feel like I can go out and even on bad days still turn in pretty good numbers."
HOW LOW WILL HE GO? (3:40 p.m.) -- The PGA TOUR goes on 59 watch every time they visit the Palmer Course -- David Duval was the last to shoot 59 here in 1999 -- and it appears Matt Kuchar has an outside shot at the magic number in the closing holes.
Kuchar is 8 under with seven holes remaining -- and he has two par-5s to go, including the short par-5 18th.
KUCHAR STILL ROLLING (3:23 p.m.) -- Matt Kuchar appears to be gaining control of this tournament.
Kuchar, already 7 under on the day, hit a hybrid to reach the green in two on the par-5 11th, giving him an eagle putt to get to 29 under total.
Kuchar, always one of the best putters on TOUR, has just 12 putts in his first 10 holes.
ANOTHER HAAS? (3:10 p.m.) --There is some history in the making on Monday at La Quinta. Jay Haas won this event in 1988, beating David Edwards by two shots. At the time, Bill Haas was five years old.
The younger Haas still carries a one-shot lead as the leaders approach the back nine on Monday, and Bill Haas has a shot at completing the first father-son duo to win in the long history of the Bob Hope Classic. Haas has played in the Bob Hope Classic every year since joining the PGA TOUR, with his tie for 16th in the 2008 standing as his best showing.
TOUGH DAY FOR OGILVIE, FLORES (3 p.m.) -- PGA TOUR veteran Joe Ogilvie, who had to go back to q-school to regain his card after the 2009 season, is 2 over today and he fallen from the top 10 into a tie for 16th. The same goes for q-school grad Martin Flores, who is 1 over after a double bogey on the par-4 fourth.
EAGLE FOR WEIR (2:40 p.m.) -- Mike Weir chipped in for eagle on the par-5 sixth, moving him into a tie for second at 24 under.
Weir, who opened with four consecutive 67s, finished tied for third in this event last year. He's been one of the mainstays for this tournament, playing every year since his victory here in 2003.
NEW LEADER (2:27 p.m.) -- Bill Haas has just birdied the fourth, fifth and sixth holes to become the first player to hit 26 under.
Haas stuck his approach at the short par-4 fourth to 18 inches, then followed that up with a chip-in birdie on the par-3 fifth. Haas easily birdied the short par-5 sixth after hitting the green in two, so its possible that this Wake Forest grad might have the horsepower to separate himself from the pack in the final round.
• To follow Haas with Shot Tracker, click here.
PRUGH DROPS A SHOT (2:08 p.m.) -- On a course where a string of pars causes one to lose ground, Alex Prugh lost a lot when he drilled his tee shot on the par-4 fourth hole into the water. Prugh was able to salvage a bogey, but he dropped to 22 under, two shots behind Watson, who birdied the par-5 second hole to regain sole possession of the lead.
BIG THINGS ON HORIZON FOR MOORE? (2 p.m.) -- Who is the real Ryan Moore? is he the oft-injured, inconsistent ball-striker who took nearly four years to win on TOUR, or is the machine that ranks high in almost every PGA TOUR category early in the 2010 season?
It is becoming quite evident that the real Moore is the one seen this week at the Bob Hope Classic, where he's hit 80 percent of the greens. Moore has two birdies in his first four holes in the final round, putting him just three shots behind the leaders.
Moore tied for sixth in the season-opening SBS Championship, and if he finishes in the top 10 today, it will mark his fifth consecutive top-10 on TOUR dating back to the 2009 Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open.
Moore has risen to 47th in the Official World Golf Rankings, and he seems to have an early leg up on making the Ryder Cup team, where he's 18th (and climbing) in the standings.
• To follow Moore with Shot Tracker, click here.
BIG-HITTING FINAL GROUP (1:45 p.m.) -- The last group of the day has just teed off on the Palmer Course, and all three have no problem moving it 320 yards on a consistent basis.
Bubba Watson and Bill Haas are always near the top in driving distance on TOUR, and Prugh ranks fifth on TOUR in driving distance early in his rookie season.
• To follow the Watson-Prugh-Haas group with Shot Tracker, click here.
BIRDIE, BIRDIE START FOR KUCHAR (1:25 p.m.) -- Matt Kuchar has birdied his first two holes to move within a shot of the overnight leaders. Kuchar bunkered his opening drive on the par-4 first hole but hit a brilliant recovery to 10 feet, which he sank. He then birdied the par-5 second hole after getting up-and-down from a greenside bunker.
GOYDOS' WATER ADVENTURE (1:05 p.m.) -- Paul Goydos just fell to last on the leaderboard after posting a nine on the par-3 fifth hole at the Palmer Course.
The fifth hole is playing at 190 yards, but the hole is bordered down the left side by a large pond. Goydos smacked his first tee shot into the water ... and his next ... and his next. His fourth attempt finished 10 feet from the pin, and he two-putted for the nine, which put him at 8 over on the day.
SOME OF BUBBA'S TWEETS (12:55 p.m.) -- Bubba Watson is about to hit the course for his final round ... here are a few of the Tweets he's posted this week:
• "Can't wait for the battle tommorrow! Night All!" -- Sunday night
• Just got my neck and shoulders worked on by my trainer! Now watching [wife, playing in pro-am] on TV! -- Sunday afternoon
• Thanks for all the support again! 2 more days of hard golf, but 1 shot at a time -- Saturday night
SOLID WEEK CONTINUES FOR Q-SCHOOL GRADS (12:35 p.m.) -- Canada's Graham DeLaet, a q-school grad, is already 3 under on the Palmer Course to move into a tie for 11th. DeLaet opened the year with a solid tie for 25th at the Sony Open, and and he's played the last 41 holes at the Bob Hope Classic without a bogey:
| Q-school grads at the Bob Hope Classic | ||||||||||||||||||
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A FIRST-TIME WINNER? HIGHLY LIKELY (12:15 p.m.) -- The Bob Hope Classic has been kind to first-time winners on the PGA TOUR -- both Pat Perez (2009) and Charley Hoffman (2007) have broken through in recent years in this 90-hole event.
Judging by the leaderboard, it looks like the 2010 winner will also be cerebrating for the first time. Aside from Alex Prugh and Bubba Watson, the top 10 also includes Bill Haas, Tim Clark, Kevin Streelman and q-school graduate Martin Flores.
Haas, Clark and Streelman have a combined 401 starts without a victory. Clark's near-misses on TOUR have been well-documented -- he's finished second on TOUR seven times, including three times in 2007.
Clark is only a shot back heading into the final round, and he has to be raring to return to the Palmer Course, where he shot 63 in the second round.
BUBBA BEEN CLOSE, VERY CLOSE (11:50 a.m.) -- Bubba Watson starts the final round with a share of the lead at 23 under, and the big hitter from the Florida Panhandle has to start wondering when he joins the ranks of PGA TOUR winners.
Watson has made only 110 PGA TOUR starts, but he's already racked up a handful of close calls. He's finished second three times on TOUR, but the one that hurts the most arguably remains the 2009 Quail Hollow Champion, where he finished bogey-par-par to miss a playoff with Sean O'Hair by a shot.
"This is what we live for," Watson said. "The more chances I get to win, maybe I'll get one to luckily fall in and win one."
| Bubba's runner-up finishes on TOUR | ||||||||||||||||
| Bubba Watson has finished tied for second three times on the PGA TOUR: | ||||||||||||||||
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ALEX PRUGH, YOUR CO-LEADER (11:40 a.m.) -- Alex Prugh is trying to become the first rookie on on the PGA TOUR win to win since Marc Turnesa won the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in Oct. 2008.
Prugh easily earned his PGA TOUR card for the 2010 season with his win in the Michael Hill New Zealand Open, where he shot 64 in the final round. Prugh shot 65 or better four times in the final round on the Nationwide Tour in 2009.
It's not a huge surprise that Prugh has done so well this week at the Bob Hope Classic. The tournament's desert scene is friendly to the bombers, and Prugh is second in the field this week (298 yards) in driving distance, trailing only (no surprise) Bubba Watson, who leads the field with a 303-yard average per pop.
• For more on Prugh, check out this Outside the Ropes
video feature.
SPLIT TEES FOR THE FINAL ROUND (11:30 a.m.) -- Because the tournament has extended into Monday, PGA TOUR officials are sending the field off split tees on the Palmer Course.
Expect birdies to fly in the final round, and a run at 59 (just ask David Duval) is always possible at the short Palmer Course, which measures just shy of 7,000 yards.
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