Why Todd might be the prohibitive favorite at the Sony Open

AUSTIN, Texas –  For a moment there it looked as if Stephen Ames was going to have company in the unwanted record books at the World Golf Championships – Dell Technologies Match Play. Bubba Watson’s dominance early in the final at Austin Country Club over fellow University of Georgia alum Kevin Kisner – where he won the opening five holes – had everyone scrambling for the record books for largest wins. To be fair, most remember Tiger Woods giving Ames a 9 and 8 belting in the opening round of the 2006 tournament … but could Watson reach the almost mythical 10 and 8? The short answer is no – instead he settled for a 7 and 6 result – but it could have quite easily been more. Watson had legitimate chances to win the first 10 straight holes – and did win seven of them. It was a Bubba blitz of epic proportions – a combination of good golf and a tired opponent. It stands as a new record for a winning margin in an 18-hole final – with Woods’ 8-and-6 win over Stewart Cink in 2008 coming when the final was played over 36 holes. “I really don’t think it was pressure,â€� Watson said of Kisner’s performance. “I think it was just energy. I don’t think I scared him on the first tee. I think it was just his energy was gone after a couple of holes. And he was fighting, but just didn’t have the fight that he really wanted and needed.â€� Kisner had gone 19 holes in his semifinal against Alex Noren, a grinding match he probably should have lost, but showed great guts to win. Watson needed just 16 holes to oust Justin Thomas and had a comfortable lead for most of that match, expending much less physical and mental energy. “I don’t know what was going on. It was just pitiful. I couldn’t hit anywhere close to where I was trying,â€� Kisner lamented. “Long week. A little tired, probably. Lose some legs, and just didn’t have it. And finally made a few good swings coming in, but those were too little, too late.â€� In the final, Watson opened with five straight wins – the first player to do so all week. It all began with a birdie for him on the opening hole, setting the tone for the match. He even had a short putt to make it six in a row but proved human by missing on the low side. Another win on the seventh hole had him firing again and the now 11-time PGA TOUR winner had looks from 18 and 14 feet on the eighth and ninth, respectively, to win those holes only to let them slip. Another birdie on 10 followed before Kisner slightly delayed the inevitable with a long-range birdie and win on the 11th. Another Watson birdie on the 12th hole secured his second career WGC title and second TOUR win this season. “It’s absolutely amazing,â€� Watson said after moving to fourth in the FedExCup. “You don’t think about lists or anything, you just think about trophies and trying to win. And having two majors, and now having two World Golf Championships … the closest things to majors … what an honor and a privilege, overwhelming sensation to know that I have another trophy at the house.â€� CALL OF THE DAY SUPERLATIVES Best Match: The semifinal between Kevin Kisner and Alex Noren needed an extra hole to decide it. After the two traded some stunning golf early in the match it became a grind late. At one stage, Noren made five straight birdies but won just one hole. On the back nine, Kisner won the 12th, and then won it again in overtime to claim the win. Noren had multiple short putts to win holes, including on 18 in regulation, but couldn’t get it done. Read all match recaps here. Most Dominant Performance: Clearly it was the 7-and-6 rout Watson handed Kisner in the championship final. Most Holes Won: The eight holes won by Watson in the final was the pick of the four Sunday matches. Least Holes Won: Kisner at least got on the board with his long birdie bomb on the 11th hole in the final … the only hole he won. Best Learning Experience: FedExCup leader Justin Thomas had the chance to get to world No. 1 if he could beat Watson in their semifinal on Sunday morning but instead struggled to bring his best. Thomas admitted it got to him – an experience he can certainly learn from. “I haven’t had such a hard time not thinking about something so much. And that really sucked. I couldn’t stop thinking about it, to be perfectly honest,â€� Thomas said. QUOTABLES Well, yeah, there’s only two of us. Jell-O.If we do our job well, we think we’re good enough to beat the other guys. In the end it might be a good thing going to Augusta without that. I get to go do what I was going to do and let DJ have all that pressure. It was one of the hardest losses probably ever for me.

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NOTE: For the next three events, Rob will focus only on golfers needing a good performance to advance in the FedExCup Playoffs. In this first edition, all five below enter the Wyndham Championship outside the top 125 in points. Kyle Stanley … This is almost too easy except for the fact that he’s missed 11 of 19 cuts this season and has been flirting with the top-125 bubble since before the hiatus. The 32-year-old ball-striker is fourth on TOUR in fairways hit, second in greens in regulation and T29 in both proximity to the hole and par-4 scoring. (Sedgefield is a par 70 with just two par 5s.) In two of his last three starts at the Wyndham, he recorded a top 15 and his scoring average in his last 11 rounds on the course is 67.09. Currently 130th in the FedExCup and 19.630 points outside the top 125, he’s targeting no worse than a 36th-place finish to have a chance to play on. Zach Johnson … After making headway in late June and in two starts in July to climb inside the top 115 of the FedExCup, he was an early contender at the PGA Championship with a nifty 66 in the opening round. Alas, he followed with 76 to miss the cut by one. Now 129th in points, he needs at least a solo 39th-place finish at the Wyndham to consider returning to the Playoffs after falling short for the first time last season. While he’s made only three appearances at Sedgefield, he cashed in each and even rose to a T5 way back in 2013. Josh Teater … Gained entry as an alternate on Monday. It could be serendipitous since he placed T6 in last year’s edition with a balanced attack that showcased his muscle and strength on approach. Overall, he’s 5-for-7 at Sedgefield with a scoring average of 67.92 in 24 rounds. Sits 19th on the PGA TOUR in fairways hit, eighth in GIR and third in proximity, so the 41-year-old likely will be leaning on his experience in reading the consistent greens. At 139th in the FedExCup and 53.355 points to crack the top 125 without any other movement, he’ll need no worse than a two-way T15 to begin serious consideration of getting back to the Playoffs for the first time in seven years. Brandon Hagy … Just witnessed fellow Cal-Berkeley product Collin Morikawa bust through at the PGA Championship, so there’s an additional and unexpected motivational factor upon arrival at Sedgefield. Not that he needs it, however. He’s 150th in FedExCup points and chasing no worse than a solo sixth-place finish to give himself a mathematical shot of getting back to the Playoffs since going one-and-out in his debut in 2017. Hagy is long off the tee and a little better than average over the long haul with the rest of his game. Inconsistency defines his career thus far, in part due to missing most of the 2017-18 season with lingering tendonitis and a hairline fracture in his left wrist. But he’s also proven to be streaky with his back against the wall. Case in point, he went T5-T2 in the 2019 Korn Ferry Tour Finals to lock up his PGA TOUR card in the event that he couldn’t fulfill the terms of his medical. (He didn’t.) Now, he’s fresh off a T12 at the Barracuda Championship. Kristoffer Ventura … He’s not quite the chip-and-a-chair guy in the field, but he can see him from his position at 159th in the FedExCup standings. He was a Sleeper for the 3M Open and missed the cut, but it’s his only stumble since play resumed. Looping in three starts on the Korn Ferry Tour, he’s a combined 5-for-6 with two top 10s and another two top 25s, including two weeks ago at the Barracuda Championship. The scorer unafraid to take it deep will need to floor it right out of the gate at Sedgefield where no worse than a solo fourth can send the rookie into the Playoffs.

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MEMPHIS, Tenn. — We caught up with some of the biggest names in golf at the 2019 World Golf Championships-FedEx St. Jude Invitational to see what clubs and shafts are in their golf bags, and a number of them are making changes to their setups. Most notably, Jordan Spieth has new irons, Sergio Garcia has new irons, Dustin Johnson has new wedges and a new driving iron, and Hideki Matsuyama is using a new putter. Also, we take a look at a few new products that have been unveiled on TOUR. Enjoy the photos below!

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