JT Shriners Hospitals for Children Open, Round 4
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By PGATOUR.COM Staff
PLAYOFF PLAY-BY-PLAY, LAIRD WINS (8:23 p.m.): Finally, we have a winner. Martin Laird's approach shot on the 18th stopped 11 feet from the hole and it took him two strokes to get down, but it was enough for his first career victory Sunday in Las Vegas.
It was enough because George McNeill barely stayed out of the water on his approach, had to lose his shoes and socks just to have a stance from in the water to hit his third, and that shot landed well away from the hole to set up a two-putt bogey.
The win for Laird moves him inside the top 125 on the money list, but that's now irrelevant since the victory also nets him a two-year exemption. Not a bad way to leave Las Vegas. -- Brian Wacker
(8:10 p.m.): This much we know: Someone is going to win for the first time in their career today. That's because we're down to Martin Laird and George McNeill in the playoff, though neither player just hit very good tee shots on the 18th hole, the third of this sudden-death showdown. Both are in the rough and par would be a good score at this point. -- Brian Wacker
(8:05 p.m.): It was the Masters all over again for Chad Campbell, who was eliminated from the playoff here when he missed a short par putt on the 17th hole at TPC Summerlin. Prior to his putt, George McNeill had a chance to win the playoff outright, but he came up empty on a 20-foot birdie putt. Meanwhile, Martin Laird managed to get up-and-down from just off the back of the green with a nifty pitch from a tight lie. Now there are two. Back to No. 18. -- Brian Wacker
(7:56 p.m.): Martin Laird and Chad Campbell hit tee shots that were right at the flag on No. 17. Unfortunately, right at the flag on that hole means the ball will run through the back of the green and that's exactly what happened. George McNeill must have been paying attention, though. His tee shot landed to the right of the flag and as a result checked up nicely, giving him a birdie putt to win. Stay tuned. -- Brian Wacker
(7:50 p.m.): You have to love Aim Point, the graphic used to show the break on putts. It showed Chad Campbell's and Martin Laird's putts tracking toward the hole on No. 18, but alas both efforts missed. Meanwhile, George McNeill did a nice job of getting up-and-down from just off the green. Three pars. Now it's on to the par-3 17th for all three men. -- Brian Wacker
(7:40 p.m.): Martin Laird and Chad Campbell both found the green on their approach shots to No. 18, but neither hit it close, setting up lengthy and probably unmakeable birdie putts. As expected, George McNeill wasn't quite able to get to the green on his approach shot, coming up just short, but he should get up-and-down to save par. -- Brian Wacker
(7:35 p.m.): Chad Campbell wasn't the longest off the tee on No. 18, but his 3-wood split the fairway, and he's in better shape than George McNeill, who found the rough and will have an obstructed view on his second shot. Martin Laird, meanwhile, launched his tee shot down the middle, a good 20 yards past Campbell's, and that puts him in position A on TPC Summerlin's finishing hole. -- Brian Wacker
HEADED TO OVERTIME (7:25 p.m.): The Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open is headed to a sudden-death playoff between Chad Campbell, Martin Laird and George McNeill, who all finished regulation tied at 19 under.
The playoff will begin on the 18th hole. For McNeill and Laird it's their first playoff. For Campbell, he's 0-2 in extra holes, the latest of which came, of course, earlier this year at the Masters. Stay tuned for play-by-play. -- Brian Wacker
DOWN THE STRETCH (7 p.m.): Martin Laird has moved to the top of the leaderboard thanks to a birdie at No. 16, but there's still a lot of golf left at TPC Summerlin with Scott Piercy and Chad Campbell just one back as the final round finishes up. Is Las Vegas ever boring? -- Brian Wacker
FOWLER IN WITH A 68 (6:35 p.m.): Rickie Fowler just carded a 4-under 68 thanks to a birdie on his final hole to get to 16 under for the week. Whether that is enough to keep the former amateur star making his pro debut this week in the top 10, we'll have to wait and see. Right now, Fowler is in a tie for 10th, but there are still a few holes to go. Should Fowler hold his spot in the top 10, it would save him from using a valuable sponsor's exemption for next week's Frys.com Open. -- Brian Wacker
THREE-WAY TIE (6:15 p.m.): What a whirlwind week for Scott Piercy. First, he opens with a 64. Next, his wife gives birth to the couple's third child. Now, he's one of three players tied for the lead, having recovered from two early bogeys with four birdies, including two in a row on Nos. 14 and 15. That brings Piercy into a tie with Jeff Klauk and Martin Laird at 19 under as the final round winds down in Las Vegas. Who will emerge from that pack is anyone's guess. Like they say, there's no such thing as a sure bet -- especially when two of those guys are rookies and all three are trying to win for the first time on the PGA TOUR. -- Brian Wacker
MORE FROM FURYK (5:45 p.m.): If this was Jim Furyk's last tournament of the year -- and indications are that it will be -- it was a heck of a way to finish, even if he'll likely end up with another top-10 instead of a win.
But for Furyk, a player who has a little bit of a football player's mentality, it still comes down to wins and losses.
"Every tournament I play well, or any time I'm at a pre tournament interview, it gets brought up," said Furyk of his last win being in 2007. "I would be lying if I said it didn't bother me. Not that it's brought up, it's only my fault. I didn't get it done.
"This week it was a bad 18 holes on Saturday. I'm just not doing enough to keep those rounds going. When you win a tournament, you always have that one day where you are not really clicking on all cylinders. But you got to find a way to scratch it out, make a key putt, still shoot 70, 69 to keep yourself in the tournament and I wasn't able to do it yesterday." -- Brian Wacker
CHANGE AT THE TOP (5:05 p.m.): Justin Bohn and Martin Laird have moved to the top of the leaderboard in Las Vegas and though both men are in vastly different positions on the money list, a win by either would be big.
First, Bohn hasn't won since 2005 and a victory here would vault him from 81st on the money list to a projected 43rd. Laird, on the other hand, is still looking for his first career win and he comes in a much more precarious 134th on the money list.
Second, both have shown the ability to make a bunch of birdies on the back at TPC Summerlin and with 12 players within three shots of the lead they'll need to do that again today. -- Brian Wacker
FURYK ON FIRE (4:30 p.m.): Jim Furyk said it himself. The reason why he hasn't won in two years is because he's had a bad hole, or a bad nine, or a bad round. This week was another example of that. Though he's the clubhouse leader at 18 under after a sizzling 62 (more on that below), his third-round 73 will likely prevent him from becoming a four-time champion of this event.
As for that 62, it's a final-round career-low for Furyk, who cranked it up over his final nine holes (the front at TPC Summerlin) with five birdies over his last six holes. Not surprisingly, Furyk hit most of his greens and fairways today and that led to needing just 26 putts. The downside, if there is one, is that Furyk will likely end up with another top 10 -- he has 10 already this year -- instead of a win. -- Brian Wacker
Below is a look at Furyk's scorecard from today (click here to replay his round with Shot Tracker):
NO HANGING CHAD (3:45 p.m.): Chad Campbell had just his third missed green in regulation in his last 41 holes when he bogeyed the fourth hole earlier today, but he continues to hit his irons extremely well, not to mention make a lot of putts. As a result, he's still atop the leaderboard after his first six holes today. Looking at the below numbers -- especially his play on the par-3s -- it's easy to see why Campbell is where he is. Campbell can be streaky good and he's been on one of those streaks all week in Las Vegas. -- Brian Wacker
| Chad Campbell - This Week vs. 2009 Season vs. The Field | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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ROMERO MAKING A MOVE (3:22 p.m.): Sometimes you have to take a step back to take two steps forward, at least that's what Andres Romero is hoping.
After missing three straight cuts, the young Argentine was on the bubble for the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup. Instead of playing in the Wyndham Championship in late August, however, he decided to go home and work on his game. Sure enough, he missed the Playoffs and didn't return until the Turning Stone Resort Championship.
Judging by his play this week, though -- especially today -- it might not have been such a bad idea after all. Romero birdied three of his first four holes today and is 6 under through 15 holes. He's also moved from a tie for 32nd at the start of the day to a tie for seventh. He might not win this week -- he's still three strokes behind leader Chad Campbell -- but for a guy like Romero, the Fall Series is all about positive momentum. -- Brian Wacker
PLAYING FOR POSITION (2:50 p.m.): The 1a story of today is guys who are trying to improve their position on the money list. Case in point: Dean Wilson came into the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open ranked 154th on the money list. Right now, Wilson is just three shots off the lead after making the turn in 30 with five birdies on the front nine at TPC Summerlin.
Similarly, Bob Heintz, 182nd on the money list at the start of the week, is three shots back, though he's only even par through his first five holes today. Martin Laird, a second-year player who's 134th on the money list, is also three off the lead, though he's 1 over.
The good news is all three players are in the top 10. The bad news is unless they climb into the top two or three, the fate of their TOUR card will have to wait another week. -- Brian Wacker
CAMPBELL IN FRONT (2:10 p.m.): It took all of one hole for Chad Campbell to move to the top of the leaderboard by himself after he birdied No. 1 at TPC Summerlin, where he still has missed just two greens in regulation over his last 38 holes. For the week, Campbell ranks second in the field in greens in regulation at 89 percent and sixth in proximity to the hole at 31 feet, 4 inches (before today).
Remember when Campbell shot an opening-round 65 at the Masters? This week and this day have that sort of feel to it for Campbell. -- Brian Wacker
PIERCY IN FAMILIAR POSITION (1:50 p.m.): It was only two weeks ago, in his last start, that Scott Piercy entered the final round with a share of the 54-hole lead. Fast forward to today and Piercy is in that position again, this time hoping to avoid the 1-over 73 he shot at Turning Stone, where he tumbled into a tie for 12th.
If he continues putting like he has all week, though, that shouldn't be a problem. Piercy is a perfect 43-for-43 from inside 7 feet and even when he's missed the green, he's done a nice job of scrambling, going 8-for-11.
We'll find out if Piercy can keep up the kind of numbers he's put up so far (see below) as he tees off in the day's final group right now. -- Brian Wacker
| Scott Piercy - This Week vs. 2009 Season vs. The Field | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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BILLY BALL (1:30 p.m.): Billy Mayfair came to the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in unfamiliar territory. In his 20 years on the PGA TOUR, he has never finished outside the top 150 on the money list. In fact, he's finished outside the top 125 just once in those two decades. But in 26 starts this year, Mayfair has made just a dozen cuts and finds himself 159th on the money list.
The five-time winner has struggled with the flat stick this year, ranking 186th in total putting, so he made some adjustments and picked up veteran caddie Josh Dickenson for the remainder of the season. Dickenson, who speaks with a quick wit and a southern drawl, said of the rest of the year, "We need to make $400,000 in the next month like Custer needed an air strike."
It is hardly Little Big Horn time for Mayfair, but if he is going to go down this year he is going to do it laughing, that is for sure. Mayfair has been unspectacular, but solid this week, playing the first three rounds in a combined 10 under. Today, he's even through his first three holes. A strong finish would obviously go a long way toward earning the money he needs. -- John Maginnes
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