WM Phoenix Open: Final-round notebook

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SCOTTSDALE -- Lift, clean and place was utilized for Sunday's final round after 0.64 inches of rain was recorded overnight. It is believed to be the first time since 2001 that this option was used during this event.

• Winds peaked at 47 mph overnight, causing the collapse of the temporary overhead walkway from the 18thgreen to the scoring area.

• Hunter Mahan posted his second PGA TOUR victory with a one-stroke win over Rickie Fowler. Mahan shot 68-70-65-65--268 to finish 16 under. Y.E. Yang was alone in third at 14 under. Three players, Mathew Goggin, Chris Couch and Charles Howell III, tied for fourth at 13 under.

• At 27 years, 9 months, 11 days, Mahan joins seven other United States natives under the age of 30 with multiple PGA TOUR victories (Dustin Johnson, J.B. Holmes, D.J. Trahan, Sean O'Hair, Anthony Kim, Nick Watney, Charles Howell III).

• Mahan earned 500 FedExCup points and jumped from 104th in the standings to sixth with 570 points. Dustin Johnson leads the FedExCup standings with 793 points, just 13 ahead of Steve Stricker.

• Mahan was 12 under for the weekend and is the only player in the field to go bogey-free over the final 36 holes.

• Mahan posted his second TOUR victory and 25th career top-10 in his 188th start on the PGA TOUR.

• Mahan was 3 under on the par-3 holes this week while Fowler played the par-3 holes 2 over.

• Mahan admitted he was a little disappointed with the start to his season after Saturday's third round 65 but was excited with the way his game is shaping up. Here's a look at his season to date.

• Before this week, Mahan had posted just two rounds in the 60s from three starts in stroke-play events (67/Round 2/Farmers Insurance Open, 66/Round 3/AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am).

• Six of eight tournaments have been decided by one stroke this season. The other two tournaments (Stricker at Northern Trust Open and Cameron Beckman at Mayakoba Golf Classic) were two stroke victories. There have not been any playoffs on TOUR this season in the eight stroke-play events.

• The week began with former Florida Gators Camilo Villegas and Matt Every in first and second, respectively, but ended with two former Oklahoma State Cowboys on top -- Mahan and Fowler.

• Fowler and Joe Ogilvie were attempting to become the first players since Jason Gore (2005 84 LUMBER Classic) to win while playing on a sponsor exemption.

• The runner-up finish represents the second time Fowler has been in this position after losing a three-way playoff to Troy Matteson in the 2009 Frys.com Open. Fowler also finished T5 at the 2010 Farmers Insurance Open.

• Here's a look at how the three rookies who made the cut finished.

• No rookie won on TOUR in 2009, which is the first time that happened since 1998 when Steve Flesch won Rookie of the Year honors. The last rookie to win on TOUR was Marc Turnesa at the 2008 Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open. There have been five seasons since 1970 where a rookie has not won (1998, 1986, 1981, 1978 and 1970). It has not happened in back-to-back seasons since 1970.

• Yang was attempting to join six other Waste Management Phoenix Open winners since 1970 who have also won the PGA Championship (Phil Mickelson, Vijay Singh, Paul Azinger, Hal Sutton, Lanny Wadkins, David Graham).

• Yang, who finished third, was attempting to become the sixth international winner of the Waste Management Phoenix Open in the last 30 years (Aaron Baddeley/2007, Vijay Singh/2003/1995, Jesper Parnevik/1998, Sandy Lyle/1988, David Graham/1981).

• This is Y.E. Yang's first start at the Waste Management Phoenix Open.

Outside of winning the 2009 The Honda Classic and the 2009 PGA Championship, Yang posted his next best finish on the PGA TOUR with a third at the Waste Management Phoenix Open.

• Yang has six career top-10s, including two victories, in 71 starts on the PGA TOUR (1/2009 The Honda Classic, 1/2009 PGA Championship, 3rd/2010 Waste Management Phoenix Open, 5th/2009 Buick Open, T8/2009 RBC Canadian Open, T9/2008 AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am).

• Yang recorded three 2s in the final round, including an eagle at the par-4 10th hole where he holed a 110-yard bunker shot. Yang had not recorded a single 2 in the previous three rounds. He played the par-3s 1-over for the week.

• Yang was 6 under in a six-hole stretch (Nos. 10-15) in the final round.

• Yang has four top-20 finishes in five starts this season (19th/SBS Championship, T46/Sony Open in Hawaii, T15/Northern Trust Open, T17/Accenture Match Play, 3rdWaste Management Phoenix Open).

• Scottsdale resident Mathew Goggin (T4) posted his best finish since a T5 at the 2009 British Open. His last T4 was at the 2009 Transitions Championship.

• Goggin posted 6-under 30 on the back nine of TPC Scottsdale. Only three players have scored better in tournament history, all with 29s (J.J. Henry/2006, Scott Veplank/1998, Grant Waite/1996).

• Chris Couch posted his best finish on TOUR since finishing T13 at the 2007 U.S. Bank Championship in Milwaukee. It is also Couch's only top-5 finish since winning the 2006 Zurich Classic of New Orleans -- his 60th start since victory.

• This year has begun well for Charles Howell III with top-10s in three of his first six starts (T5 - Sony Open in Hawaii, T26 -- Bob Hope Classic, T9 - Farmers Insurance Open, MC -- Northern Trust Open, T20 -- Mayakoba Golf Classic, T4 -- Waste Management Phoenix Open). Howell, an Augusta native, is looking to get back to Augusta National for The Masters after missing the tournament in 2009 for the first time since 2002.

• Third-round leader Brandt Snedeker (78) recorded his second over-par round in 21 total rounds this season (72, Round 2, Northern Trust Open). It was his first finish outside of the top-21 in his five starts this year.

• Ryan Moore made the most birdies for the week (22). He also had a double bogey in each round, except for round one.

• Camilo Villegas, who was co-leader after 36 holes, finished T8. When Villegas held the 36-hole co-lead here in 2008 he finished T34.

• Champions Tour stars Fred Couples and Tom Lehman both finished T14 at 10-under.

• Robert Allenby posted his third top-10 finish in five starts this season (Sony Open in Hawaii/2nd, Farmers Insurance Open/T9, Waste Management Phoenix Open/T8).

• Robert Allenby has made 439 career starts across five different Tour's (PGA TOUR, European, Japan, Australasian, South African) for 111 top-10 finishes -- or 25.2%.

• Robert Allenby has posted 11 of 16 rounds in the 60s this season in stroke-play events on TOUR.

• Six players posted all four rounds in the 60s this week.

• The first reshuffle of the PGA TOUR season occurred after the Waste Management Phoenix Open. The top-25 from the 2009 Nationwide Tour mixed in with the qualifiers from the 2009 PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament are reshuffled to give them new status until the next reshuffle. Rickie Fowler and Alex Prugh will be the leading two players after the reshuffle.

• Official World Golf Ranking at the beginning of the week for the top five finishers:

• Kevin Na joined nine players tied for the lead in the Kodak Challenge with a birdie at the par-3 16th hole.

• Local Arizona State University golfer Braxton Marquez posted a 7-over 78 to finish 78th in his first PGA TOUR start.

• Bogey-free rounds on Sunday: Mahan (65), Fowler (68), Vaughn Taylor (68).

• Scoring Averages at TPC Scottsdale: