Overton heating up, could be preparing to boom again
By Craig Dolch, PGATOUR.COM Contributor
Fittingly, the guy who brought the phrase "Boom, baby!" to professional golf used the Fourth of July weekend to make his loudest noise of the season.
Jeff Overton, who many thought was poised to become a consistent winner on the PGA TOUR after five top-three finishes last year, finally got into the Sunday hunt at the AT&T National. He played his first 12 holes in five-under to move within a shot of Nick Watney's lead before three late bogeys left Overton settling for a third-place tie, four shots back.
His charge might have fizzled at the end, but Mr. Boom Baby believes Sunday's performance might ignite him for some more eye-popping finishes.
"I hope this is the beginning of a good stretch for me," Overton said.
A little more than a year ago, not many golf fans knew much about Overton. Then he hired a new caddie, Eric Larson, who had previously worked for TOUR winners Mark Calcavecchia and Anthony Kim, and Overton's career took off. He finished second in the first event he and Larson worked together, the Zurich Classic of New Orleans.
A month later, Overton was T2 at the HP Byron Nelson Championship and T3 at the Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial in successive weeks. He then finished third at the AT&T, T11 at the British Open, second at the Greenbrier Classic when Stuart Appleby nipped him with a 59 and T6 at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational. During that 11-tournament stretch, Overton earned more than $3.1 million -- or almost half his career earnings entering this year.
He continued his stellar play last fall as a rookie on the U.S. Ryder Cup team. His amped-up celebration of "Boom, Baby" when he holed out from 140 yards on the eighth fairway at Celtic Manor had Johnny Miller chuckling at Overton's energy level. "I've seen more than 100 hole-in-ones, and I've never seen anyone react like that," Miller said.
It appears Overton is about to go on another hot streak. After posting just one top-10 finish in his first 13 starts this year, he has two in his last four. Sunday's T3 moved him from 78th to 54th in the FedExCup standings. He admits his confidence is at a season high because he's feeling very comfortable with two of the most important clubs in bag -- the driver and the putter.
"I'm really excited to see this new driver got a lot straighter this week," said Overton, who cracked his favorite driver earlier this year. "This is the best I've driven it all week, all year, and not to mention (it's the) first time I've actually started making putts. Any time you play a golf course with long rough and fast greens, if you can hit it straight and putt it well, you'll have a good chance."
Overton is hitting just three of five fairways to rank 109th on the PGA TOUR. His inability to find the short grass explains why he's 122nd in greens in regulation at 62.8 percent.
Overton's wobbly finish Sunday wasn't helped when his group was put on the clock at the 14th hole. But Overton wasn't complaining too loudly afterward.
"It was unfortunate, but it happens, and that's the nature of the game," he said. "You've got to be tougher than that, and I just wasn't able to stay in rhythm."
Overton knows he's overdue to get that first victory. He's made a nice living with the three seconds and three thirds in the last 14 months. But the former two-time Big Ten Player of the Year from Indiana has made 151 career starts on the PGA TOUR without a win.
He's ready for an even louder boom, baby.
Craig Dolch is a freelance columnist for PGATOUR.COM. His views do not necessarily represent the views of the PGA TOUR.Hope those trophy kids are patient.
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