Golf:Matt Kuchar won the Players Championship by two shots last night to secure the biggest win of his career and a €1.32 million payday. To the delight of his watching family, Kuchar shot a final round of 70 to finish 13 under par for the tournament, two clear of Martin Laird, Zach Johnson, Rickie Fowler, Ben Curtis.
Overnight leader Kevin Na had a disappointing finish, making six bogeys in a 76 that saw him slip back into a tie for seventh, a day after being heckled by spectators for his slow play and constant practice shots. Tiger Woods ended well down the field at joint 40th after shooting a 73 to finish one-under.
Luke Donald finished strongly with a 66 that elevated him to sixth, four strokes behind Kuchar, but not enough for him to regain top place in the world rankings from Rory McIlroy, who missed the cut.
Kuchar, who tied for third at the Masters, consistently avoided trouble on the final day on a course that severely punishes inaccuracy. While his challengers stumbled at various hurdles, the American kept out of water and greenside sand throughout a confident 18 holes."You think of this as one of the strongest fields in golf and to come out as champion is an amazing feeling," he said afterwards.
Kuchar, who found 10 of 14 fairways and struck 15 greens in regulation, wrapped up the tournament when he coolly sunk a 15-foot birdie putt on the 16th to surge three strokes clear. Although bogeying the 'island green' 17th, the fixed grin never left his face as he went to the final tee with a two-shot cushion.
Fowler's second place finish was the fifth of his career and followed his maiden PGA Tour win at Quail Hollow last week. The 23-year-old made a late charge with birdies on the 16th and 17th holes but missed a nine-foot birdie putt on the 18th that would have put more pressure on Kuchar.
Kuchar safely parred the last to claim his first PGA title win since the 2010 Barclays at the Ridgewood Country Club in New Jersey. "I saw Rickie's putt on 17 and I knew it got him to within two shots and he could birdie 18 to reduce it to one. That could have changed the whole scenerio of how I would play the last hole," he said. "So I was really excited to drop that birdie on 16. That was big.”
For Fowler, despite falling short, it was another reminder of his emergence in the game."It was a lot of fun to be in contention and I tried to give it a run at the end. Kuch played very well, very solid and I just fell a couple of shots short," he said."I've had a lot of confidence in my game which has given me the calm you need coming down the stretch when the nerves are supposed to be on."
For the third tournament in a row, Woods failed to mount a challenge. He also finished tied for 40th at the Masters before missing the cut at Quail Hollow."I've just got to keep working, keep working. I felt that I did it well in spurts again," Woods said. "I just need to be a little bit more consistent."
Kuchar moves up 11 places to fifth in the world thanks to his victory at Sawgrass. It means there are now six Americans to four Europeans in the top 10, although it is still McIlroy first, Donald second and Lee Westwood third.
Latest leading positions in the world golf rankings: 1 Rory McIlroy9.65pts, 2 Luke Donald 9.52, 3 Lee Westwood 8.27, 4 Bubba Watson 6.52, 5 Matt Kuchar 6.22, 6 Hunter Mahan 5.60, 7 Tiger Woods 5.29, 8 Steve Stricker 5.27, 9 Martin Kaymer 5.23, 10 Phil Mickelson 5.16 11 Webb Simpson 5.10, 12 Justin Rose 5.08, 13 Adam Scott 4.98, 14 Louis Oosthuizen 4.87, 15 Charl Schwartzel 4.80, 16 Jason Day 4.69, 17 Dustin Johnson 4.66, 18 Rickie Fowler 4.51, 19 Bill Haas 4.32, 20 Graeme McDowell4.25
Other leading Europeans:23 Sergio Garcia, 24 Peter Hanson, 28 Ian Poulter, 31 Martin Laird, 32 Francesco Molinari, 36 Carl Pettersson, 37 Thomas Bjorn, 40 Simon Dyson, 41 Paul Lawrie, 42 Alvaro Quiros, 46 Robert Karlsson, 47 Anders Hansen, 48 Fredrik Jacobson, 51 Nicolas Colsaerts, 54 Paul Casey, 56 Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano, 57 Miguel Angel Jimenez, 59 Robert Rock, 60 Matteo Manassero, 61 Rafael Cabrera Bello, 70 Darren Clarke, 76 Pablo Larrazabal, 80 Michael Hoey,81 Alexander Noren, 84 Joost Luiten, 87 Brian Davis, 91 Richie Ramsay, 95 Padraig Harrington, 96 Stephen Gallacher, 100 Bernd Wiesberger.
