Kuchar consistency too much for Mahan

Matt Kuchar’s metronomic consistency proved too much for Hunter Mahan as he chiseled out a 2 and 1 victory over his former Ryder Cup team mate to win the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship at a bitterly cold Dove Mountain last night.

Bringing to an end a week that began with freak snowstorms at the remote Arizona resort, the 34-year-old defied icy winds gusting over 30 mph to defeat the defending champion and claim his fifth PGA Tour victory and a cheque for $1.5m.

Kuchar beat Jason Day 4 and 3 in the morning semi-finals as Mahan stretched his unbeaten run at the Tucson resort to 11 matches by taking down Ryder Cup hero Ian Poulter 4 and 3 in one of the surprises of the week.

In the final, Kuchar cruised into a four up led through the turn as Mahan dropped four shots in five holes from the fourth.

But while Mahan fought back with birdies to win three of the next five holes to be just two down with four to play, Kuchar closed out an impressive victory. Wielding a long putter braced against his left forearm, Kuchar is not considered to be using an anchored stroke, which golf’s governing bodies are proposing to ban this spring.

The RA and the United States Golf Association (USGA) proposed the rule change last November with a 90-day comment period coming to end this Thursday.

The PGA of America is against the ban and the PGA Tour has followed suit, officially announcing last night it has notified golf’s governing bodies that its members have told them to express their opposition.

Speaking at Dover Mountain, PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem said: “Our view is that it’s (anchoring) been around for a generation, and the game of golf has done quite well.

“So unless you have a compelling reason to change it, you shouldn’t, and the USGA has indicated there is no performance advantage to using anchoring.” Whether this leads to a stand off between the governing bodies and the PGA Tour and the implementation of two sets of rules — one for amateurs and another for the PGA Tour — remains to be seen.

Asked if the PGA Tour might go its own way, leading to a chaotic situation, Finchem said: “Well, maybe. But first of all, our rules say we’re going to follow the USGA rules, provided that we maintain the right to differ.