PLAYERS Championship, Round 4
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By PGATOUR.COM Staff
STENSON THE CHAMPION (6:28 p.m.): Henrik Stenson just put the finishing touches on one of the terrific final rounds by any PLAYERS champion, as he carded a bogey-free 6-under 66 to finish at 12 under. His four-stroke win is the largest at the Stadium Course since Stephen Ames won by six shots in 2006.
The win is his first in his last 27 starts on the PGA TOUR and second overall. His first TOUR win came in 2007 at the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship.
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VICTORY NOTES (6:28 p.m.): From our friends at Elias Sports Bureau ...
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• Henrik Stenson put on quite a show off the tee this weekend. Stenson found the short grass on his drives on 26 out of a possible 28 times. Since 1992, the only PLAYERS Champion to equal or better this mark was Davis Love III in 1992, who also found 26 out of 28 fairways on the weekend.
The last champion on the PGA TOUR to find as many fairways off the tee on the weekend was Kenny Perry at the 2008 the Memorial Tournament presented by Morgan Stanley. Perry also played the final two rounds missing only two fairways, going 26 out of 28. ...
• Stenson did not record a single bogey over his last 19 holes of play during his victory at The PLAYERS Championship this week. He's the third PLAYERS champion since 1983 to play his last 19 holes bogey-free. Stenson joins Davis Love III in 2003 and Fred Couples in 1996.
Stenson is the first champion in a PGA TOUR event this season to play his final 19 holes bogey free. Last season, three champions went bogey free over their final 19 holes while in 2007, four winners pulled off the feat.
SAFELY THROUGH 17 (6:15 p.m.): Henrik Stenson avoided the water on the 17th, and then two-putted for par. He goes to the 18th comfortably embracing a four-shot lead.The Swede is on his way to becoming just the third European to win THE PLAYERS (Scotland's Sandy Lyle in 1986; Spain's Sergio Garcia in 2008).
This is Stenson's first PGA TOUR win since he claimed the World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship in 2007.
STENSON STILL ROLLING (6 p.m.): Henrik Stenson just birdied the par-5 16th, giving him a four-shot lead as he goes to the island hole. He's now 6 under on his round.
FINAL-ROUND HEROICS (5:46 p.m.): Since 1986, just two PLAYERS champions have shot better than 67 in the final round on Sunday -- Fred Couples in 1996 (with a 64) and Davis Love III in 2003 (also with a 64).
But with another birdie at the 15th, Henrik Stenson is now 5 under on his round. If he can remain bogey free on his last three holes and convert at least birdie, he'll walk home with a 66.
NA ON THE 16TH (5:40 p.m): Kevin Na has played the 16th hole in 5 under with two eagles this weekend and a birdie on Friday. The 25-year-old's eagle putts came from 51 feet on Sunday and 14 feet on Saturday.
He's 7 under and in sole possession of fourth but he needs to finish strong -- he bogeyed Nos. 17 and 18 in the third round. -- Helen Ross
QUICK QUOTES FROM FURYK (5:38 p.m.): Ponte Vedra Beach resident Jim Furyk touched on several topics after Sunday's round of 3-under 69 left him at 6 under for the tournament:
• ON HIS WEEK: "This golf course is very tough and baked out. I feel like I played very well this week. I hit a lot of good golf shots. You know, I really could have got a lot more out of my Friday and Saturday round to be honest with you. That's where I feel like I might have let the tournament slip. I should have been in a little bit better position and closer today.
• ON THE FINAL ROUND: "I played my heart out today. I hit a lot of good shots and made a couple good saves on the back nine. I want to go back and play No. 9 over. Making 6 there and laying it up in the left bunker is just an absolute -- just a bad mental error and bad mistake, and I hit the wrong second shot. It might end up costing me a chance to win the tournament."
• ON THE PLAYERS: "In my opinion hands down it's the fifth biggest event in the world. That's my opinion. Obviously maybe some of the European Tour players, or this may not be that in their heart, but this being the premier event of the PGA TOUR and having the best field in golf, we go out of our way as a TOUR to make this event as good as possible. In my heart it's the fifth biggest event, and that's why I called it a championship."
FEAR THE LAST FIVE? (5:34 p.m.): Henrik Stenson may be in the driver's seat with a three-stroke lead at 10 under. He hasn't made a bogey all day and Ian Poulter and John Mallinger have been unable to gain ground.
That said, Stenson played the final five holes on Saturday in 3 over with bogeys on Nos. 14, 16 and 17. He's gotten through the 14th unscathed so we'll see what happens. -- Helen Ross
THE LOCALS (5:20 p.m.): Mark McCumber, David Duval and Fred Funk remain the only pros who make -- or had made -- their homes in Ponte Vedra who have won THE PLAYERS Championship.
Jim Furyk made a spirited bid on Sunday, though, as the leaderboard tightened and Alex Cejka went south. He shot 69 and posted 6 under, which was the best of the local contingent. This will be his third top-10 at THE PLAYERS after a tie for third in 2006 and a share of fourth in 2003.
Vijay Singh, who finished second to Tiger Woods in 2001, closed with a 67 -- which also happened to be his lowest score of the season. He was playing in the second group of the day and after finishing at 4 under, he may have his fourth top-10 in 16 appearances.
Jeff Klauk, on the other hand., was playing in his first PLAYERS. He's no stranger to TPC Sawgrass, though -- his father was the long-time course superintendant who retired last year. The PGA TOUR rookie shot 1 under Sunday and finished at 3 under for the tournament. He fired three 71s and a 72 that could have been much lower had he not come home in 40 on Friday.
The 52-year-old Funk, who plays predominently on the Champions Tour now, made the cut on Friday but was eliminated in the 54-hole cut after shooting 78. -- Helen Ross
STENSON PULLING AWAY (5:10 p.m.): Henrik Stenson now has a three-shot lead after his birdie on the par-3 13th. He'll now go to the hardest hole on the course, the par-4 14th.
THE ENGLISH GUYS (5 p.m.): It's a Swede who currently leads THE PLAYERS, but the English lads are having a nice showing Sunday.
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Ian Poulter and Brian Davis are currently tied for second at 7 under, two shots behind leader Henrik Stenson. Both players are under par for their rounds -- Poulter is 1 under through 13; Davis, his playing partner is 2 under.
Paul Casey, meanwhile, finished with a 2-under 70, and is 3 under for the tournament. He's currently tied for 16th. Casey was T10 in his first PLAYERS start in 2004, but had missed the cut in his last three starts on the Stadium Course.
Meanwhile, Justin Rose and Luke Donald finished with 1-over 73s Rose will likely post his best showing at THE PLAYERS in six starts; he's currently sitting at T27.
TOUGH FRONT NINE (4:47 p.m.): Alex Cejka shot a 6-over 42 on the front side. It's the second highest score on the front side in the final round. Ryan Moore, whose playing with Camilo Villegas today, shot a 46 on the front side.
DAVIS LOVING THE PAR 5s (4:46 p.m.): Brian Davis is making the most of the par 5s at the Stadium Course. He just birdied the 11th, getting up and down from the left side of the green, to join the group at 7 under in second place.
Davis also holed a 44-yard chip for eagle at No. 9 and he two-putted from 55 feet on No. 2 for another birdie. The Englishman, who is looking for his first TOUR win, has played the par 5s in 11 under, the par 4s in 1 under and is 5 over on the par 3s. -- Helen Ross
PLAYOFF NUMBERS (4:43 p.m.): Although Henrik Stenson has a two-shot lead, with the way the Stadium Course is playing and a bunched-up leaderboard behing Stenson, a playoff is not out of the question.
So what's the largest ever on the PGA TOUR? The answer is six, and that has happened twice.
The first time came at the 1994 GTE Byron Nelson Classic when Neal Lancaster outlasted Tom Byrum, Mark Carnevale, David Edwards, Yoshinori Mizumaki and David Ogrin. The other time was in 2001 at the Nissan Open which was won by Robert Allenby in a playoff with Toshi Izawa, Brandel Chamblee, Bob Tway, Jeff Sluman and Dennis Paulson. -- Helen Ross
STENSON AHEAD BY TWO (4:40 p.m.): Henrik Stenson now leads by two shots after a birdie on the par-5 11th. Nice note from NBC: Stenson currently is the only player still on the course without a bogey in the final round.
STENSON'S ACCURACY (4:35 p.m.): Henrik Stenson has yet to miss a fairway in the final round, having hit his first eight fairways through 10 holes.
Stenson was perfect on the front side for the second consecutive day. In fact, after a first round in which he missed five of seven fairways on the front side, Stenson missed only one front-side fairway in the final three rounds (20 of 21).
On the back nine, Stenson was 13 of 21 on fairways hit in the first three rounds. On Saturday, he missed only one back-nine fairway, the 14th.
CURTIS MAKES A MOVE (4:25 p.m.): While many players have struggled on the weekend as the Stadium Course has toughened up, Ben Curtis has prospered.
The 2003 British Open champion bogeyed Nos. 1 and 3 on Saturday but hasn't made one since. Instead, Curtis has made seven birdies over his last 28 holes and stands 6 under for the tournament, tied for fourth and two strokes off the lead. -- Helen Ross
STENSON NOW LEADS (4:04 p.m.): Henrik Stenson, who always seems to play on the Stadium Course, now has a one-shot lead as he prepares for his back nine. Stenson just birdied the ninth hole and is now 8 under for the tournament, and 2 under for his round.
In three previous PLAYERS starts, Stenson has finished T3 (2006), T23 (2007) and T10 (2008).
ANOTHER EAGLE AT 15 (4:02 p.m.): Michael Letzig holed a 133-yard shot from the fairway for the third eagle of the week at the 15th hole.
Since 1982 when THE PLAYERS moved to the TPC Sawgrass until this week, there had been just two other eagles at the 15th, a 431-yard par 4.
Now there are a total of five.
Scott Verplank made one on Thursday when he holed a shot from 141 yards. It was the first of two eagles for Verplank, who only had two eagles in all of 2008. Jason Bohn made his in the third round, holing out from 148 yards. -- Helen Ross
MICKELSON PUZZLED (4 p.m.): Phil Mickelson closed with a 76 to finish 3 over for the tournament, but couldn't put his finger on what went wrong.
"I just didn't score well," Mickelson said. "I didn't putt well. I don't know what the reason is right now."
Mickelson doesn't consider THE PLAYERS part of his run-up to the U.S. Open at Bethpage -- a course he likes in a city he loves. But after a week at home, the run-up will begin with the HP Byron Nelson Championship and the Crowne Plaza at Colonial, where he is defending champ. He plans to take off Memorial Tournament week, then play on to the Open.
"From next week on, there's no break," he said. -- Melanie Hauser
TOUGH WEEK FOR FEDEXCUP LEADER (3:56 p.m.): Geoff Ogilvy's week in one word? Frustrating.
The former U.S. Open champ didn't play badly, but didn't make anything happen either. He finished at 2-under 286, but, he said, if you took away the three-putts this week ... "I might have been 8 or 9 under and that would have been alright.''
Problem is, the man who leads the FedExCup can't quite figure out the Bermuda greens even though he's won on that surface at the World Golf Championships-CA Championship at Doral and at the Mercedes Championship at Kapalua.
"I can play those, but this stuff has me confused a little," he said. "I can't bump it up the hills." Among other things. "There are just certain places where i don't feel it," he said. "Maybe I'll have to come a week early next year and figure it out."
And, he said, he much prefers the March date to May because the course plays more like a major in March.
"It feels less like a major to me (now)," he said. "In March, it was overseeded. And even though we don't play many majors on Bermuda, you had those long slope-y putts like you get at majors." -- Melanie Hauser
FOUR-WAY TIE (3:53 p.m.): Ian Poulter, Ben Crane, Henrik Stenson and Retief Goosen are now tied for the lead at 7 under. Poulter is now on the back nine, with the other three approaching the turn. None of those four have ever won THE PLAYERS Championship, although Goosen was second in 2006 to Stephen Ames.
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CRANE NOW LEADS (3:30 p.m.): Ben Crane has now assumed the lead of THE PLAYERS Championship thanks to another bogey by Alex Cejka, who is now one stroke behind.
CEJKA FALLS INTO TIE FOR LEAD (3:18 p.m.): Alex Cejka teed off at 2:35 p.m. with a five-shot lead. It took 43 minutes for him to lose it. Cejka is 3 over for his round through the first four holes, and Ben Crane is 2 under. Those two are now tied for the lead, two shots clear of Woody Austin, Ian Poulter and Henrik Stenson.
WOODS ON THE PAR 5s (3:13 p.m.): Tiger Woods' water-logged bogey at the second hole was just his second bogey on the par 5s this week. In fact, it ended a string of three straight birdies on the 531-yard hole.
Woods has played the par 5s in 7 under this week. He's made seven birdies, two bogeys and one eagle.
For his career, Woods has played the par 5s at the Stadium Course in 92 under coming into Sunday's round. That compares to 36 over on the par 4s and 26 over on the par 3s. -- Helen Ross
BOO WITHDRAWS (3:09 p.m.): After clutching his left shoulder after hitting his second shot into the bunker at the par-5 11th, Boo Weekley withdrew. He was 5 over on his round and 8 over for the tournament.
Weekley, wincing in pain, immediately grabbed his shoulder after hitting his shot. He eventually went over to shake playing partner Justin Rose's hand before leaving the course.
AUSTIN MOVES UP (3:01 p.m.): Woody Austin has just birdied the sixth and seventh holes to move into the logjam at 6 under. His approach shots were deadly -- setting up birdie putts of 7 and 8 feet.
Austin, who opened with consecutive 72s but finally got untracked Saturday in shooting 68, is playing in his 11 PLAYERS. He has never had a top-10 finish and a tie for 16th in 2004 is his best performance. -- Helen Ross
IF IT COMES DOWN TO LAST THREE HOLES (2:47 p.m.): The final three holes at TPC Sawgrass feature a risk-reward par 5 at No. 16, the famous pa-3 17th and the 18th finishing hole, a par 4 that is traditionally one of the most difficult closing holes in golf.
The winners of THE PLAYERS Championship have both dominated these holes -- as Fred Couples did in 1996 when he was 7 under for the week -- and struggled. Hal Sutton was 4 over there in 2000.
Alex Cejka, who goes into the final round of the 2009 PLAYERS with the lead, is a combined 3 under on the holes in his first three rounds. Of those near the top of the leaderboard, Tiger Woods and Jonathan Byrd have the most success on the holes. They are a cumulative 4 under this week.
CRANE GOES LONG DISTANCE (2:42 p.m.): In his first two holes, Ben Crane has made putts of 43 feet, 7 inches (on No. 1) and 27 feet, 10 inches (on No. 2). Both were for birdies, as he moved into second place on the leaderboard at 8 under.
Crane was the first-round leader after shooting a 7-under 65 but he failed to break par in the middle two rounds.
WHY NO RED SHIRT? (2:32 p.m.): In a pre-round interview, tournament leader Alex Cejka explained to NBC's Jimmy Roberts why he isn't wearing a red shirt in the final round after saying he would do so following Saturday's third round.
"I was going to wear a red shirt but I couldn't find one," Cejka said. "I was sure I had packed one."
Instead, he opted to wear a black shirt, despite temperatures that will hover in the 90s today. Cejka joked that he's "got to suffer a little bit out there."
FEDEXCUP NOTES (2:15 p.m.): A few FedExCup quick facts as the leaders prepare to tee off:
Alex Cejka, currently 119th in the FedExCup standings, could move as high as 14th in the standings with a victory.
Tiger Woods, currently 10th, can move to the top of the standings with a win and could move as high as sixth with a solo third or better finish.
Retief Goosen is only three points behind Woods for the 10th spot in the standings. He could move to first in the standings with a victory and a solo third could move him as high as sixth.
Ben Crane, 48th in the standings, could move as high as sixth with a victory this week.
Jonathan Byrd, currently 69th in the standings, could move to 10th with a victory this week, and a solo second could move him in to the top 25.
POWER TABLE (2:08 p.m.): Current PGA TOUR commissioner Tim Finchem and his predecessor, Deane Beman, spent some time in Commissioner's Hospitality room in the clubhouse before the leaders teed off. -- Melanie Hauser
SINGH SEEING THE LIGHT (2 p.m.): Vijay Singh climbed the leaderboard with a 67 on Sunday, which was his low round of an injury-plagued year and marked only the third time he'd broken 70. More importantly, the man who won the FedExCup last year may see the light at the end of the tunnel.
"I came here this week thinking I was a member and I played like a guest -- until today," said Singh, who makes his home in Ponte Vedra and practices at the TPC Sawgrass.
"I hit the ball pretty good. I'm still trying to feel my game. It's coming around. Last week was the first week I played kind of healthy This week I thought I was going to do better. But I'm happy I've got one good round under my belt.
"That's a start and I'm looking for to the next few events to come."
Singh finished with a flourish -- making birdie at the 16th and 17th holes. The highlight, though, may have been the world-class par at the 18th where Singh hit his tee shot in the water, a brilliant 3-iron on the green and sank the 13-footer for the save.
"(I hit) 3-iron and I aimed it way right and let the slope take it in," Singh said of the recovery shot. "Pulled it a little bit, I must admit, but it came out really well. That's the best par I've made in ... forever." -- Helen Ross
HOW THE COURSE IS PLAYING (1:45 p.m.): Expect the course to be firmer and faster than its been all week. That's the word from course superintendent Tom Vlach, who said his crew only put a little water on certain spots to keep the greens alive and that the greens are rolling a full inch faster today on the Stimp meter at 13.6. -- Brian Wacker
CHECKING IN WITH CEJKA (1:20 p.m.): If Alex Cejka has any nervousness kicking around in his stomach, he isn't showing it. In his his usual spot at the far end of the range, away from the bulk of the fans that are lining the fence, Cejka was hitting balls and looking relaxed. He got out there about two hours before his scheduled start time and as his caddie Tom Janis told me, he's feeling completely confident. There was no sign of Tiger Woods yet, by the way.
It turned out that the red shirt/black pants combination Cejka joked about yesterday was just that, only a joke. Instead, he's going all black and hoping to feed off the energy from the sun. Joining Cejka and Janis on the range was Stack and Tilt instructor Chris Gustin, who flew in on the red eye from San Diego last night.
Cejka was doing the same thing he has been all week, however, laying an umbrealla down along his swing path while he hit one mid-iron after another. Janis thinks that if Cejka can shoot even par -- and he certainly thinks he can -- that he will win the tournament. That's not exactly going out on a limb, but we'll know in a few hours if he was able to actually do it. -- Brian Wacker
ANOTHER TOUGH DAY? (1:10 p.m.): Aaron Baddeley may have gone out alone in the first group of the day and shot 66, but if Saturday was any indication, look for the TPC Sawgrass' Stadium Course to show its teeth as the day progresses.
No one who teed off after 10:50 a.m. in the third round was able to break 70 as the ball sped across those fast fairways and putting on the greens was like playing in the cart path, in Retief Goosen's words. It was a big change from the first two rounds.
Wednesday's overnight rain had softened the course, and the scoring average for the first two rounds was barely over par. But as the blazing sun baked the greens to a crisp over the last three days, the Stadium Course toughened and Saturday's average was 73.614.
"It's exactly where we want it," PGA TOUR Rules Official Mark Russell said. "We've been out there putting and looking at a lot of things. We did put a little water on them tonight -- just hand water. I think it's going to be great.
"We just want to set it up where it's difficult but fair. If you can hit the shots, you can shoot a low score. But if you miss the greens, it's a difficult up and down." -- Helen Ross
HEATING UP (1:05 p.m.): You know it's hot when Jeev Milkha Singh thinks it's hot. Singh, who lives in India and plays in tournaments on some of the hottest places on the planet, finished his round about a half-hour ago and immediately sought cover in the shade. "It's not as bad as Malyasia or Singapore, it's more humid there," Singh said. "But it's just as hot here right now."
As a result, the course is already playing incredibly fast and firm and Singh expects that it's only going to get worse as the day goes on.
Padraig Harrington, who finished just after Singh, echoed the same sentiments. "The greens are getting really firm," Harrington said. "It's hard to get the ball close to the hole." -- Brian Wacker
SO MUCH FOR THAT IDEA (12:25 p.m.): On Saturday night, Alex Cejka quipped that he might wear a red shirt and black pants for his final-round pairing with Tiger Woods.
Looks like he thought better of it. Cejka, the 54-hole leader by five shots, just arrived on the range at TPC Sawgrass sporting a Gary Player-like, all-black outfit. With temperatures in the 90s today, it's hard to imagine that Cejka will be keeping cool out there.
Then again, he's probably less concerned with his black shirt and more concerned about the guy in the red shirt he'll be teeing it up with. -- Brian Wacker
MORE LOW NUMBERS (12:05 p.m.): It's hard to imagine that anyone, including Tiger Woods, is going to shoot a super-low number today, but there are some good scores being shot so far. In addition to Aaron Baddeley's 66 earlier this morning, Matt Kuchar and Mike Weir, both of whom are a couple holes into their back nine, are each at 4 under on their rounds today. Given how hot it is, however, it's hard to imagine it's not going to be baked out, hard and fast again this afternoon. -- Brian Wacker
FINAL ROUND UNDER WAY (11:45 a.m.): The final round of THE PLAYERS Championship is under way, though the final group won't go off until 2:25 p.m. ET today. By the time Alex Cejka and Tiger Woods do, those here should know what it feels like to be walking around in a furnace. According to weather.com, it's only 81 degrees outside, and feels like 83, but it certainly feels much, much hotter. By the time Woods and Cejka te it up, it's supposed to be 90 degrees, though it feels like we're already there.
When Cejka and Woods do tee off, by the way, we'll be blogging live from the course for the Live Report, following their entire round. To track each shot with Shot Tracker, click here.
As for the players currently on the course, Aaron Baddeley took advantage of an early tee time, shooting a 66 to move into a tie for 11th. That was Baddeley's first score in the 60s and brings him to 4 under for the week. More importantly, it shows that it actually is possible for someone to shoot a lower number today. -- Brian Wacker
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