Harris English falters amid wind, slow-play warning

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Webb Simpson had just shot 64 and was packing his things in the parking lot when he and his caddie, Paul Tesori, were asked how TPC Southwind was playing. “Harder,” Simpson said. “Really windy,” Tesori added. Indeed, Sunday put the wind in Southwind. That wind, plus a slow-play warning, brought chaos to the conclusion of the World Golf Championships-FedEx St. Jude Invitational. Harris English, who had looked in control after taking a two-shot lead into the back nine, hit tee shots into the water at the par-3 11th and 14th holes, double-bogeyed both, and suddenly there was a five-way tie at the top. He had one last gasp to save the tournament, but after dropping one more shot on 16 failed to birdie the 18th hole and walked away with a 3-over 73, one shot out of a playoff. “Yeah, we were warned on the front nine (to pick up the pace),” said English, who was trying to become the first three-time PGA TOUR winner this season (Sentry Tournament of Champions, Travelers Championship) and came into the week fifth in the FedExCup. “Kind of got behind, felt like we were running pretty much the whole round and never really caught up.” The final twosome was first warned on the fifth hole, English said. Bryson DeChambeau needing a ruling at the sixth didn’t help, and poor play by both players set them back even further. A left-to-right wind exacerbated anything that leaked right on 14, and a rushed English took his hand off the club as his tee shot never came close to finding land. It was the killing shot, allowing a handful of players back into the tournament and knocking English for a loop. “You definitely start the day in one rhythm and then you kind of get out of that having to walk faster, having to do everything a little faster because you don’t want to get a bad time,” he said. “It was tough, the wind was swirling obviously coming down the stretch, there was some very important shots in there and it was tough. But I’ve got to learn to slow down, go through my routine and not really worry about being put on the clock.” He missed a birdie try from just over 12 1/2 feet on 18. English was vying to surpass Collin Morikawa at FedExCup No. 1, and to be the third wire-to-wire to winner in this event after Tiger Woods (2000) and Stewart Cink (’04), both of whom accomplished the feat at Firestone South. Now he’ll move forward knowing that 63 really good holes were wiped out by a back-nine 40. “It’s just tough to rush like that,” he said. “We were getting warned on the front nine and it’s tough to catch up. I made double on 11, Bryson made triple, and you can’t catch up doing that. From 12 on I felt like we were running. “And it’s tough out there,” he continued. “The wind’s picking up. Obviously, there’s some really good pins out here. You’re trying to win a championship and it’s hard. I don’t really like speeding up like that or feeling like I’m rushed, but I’ve got to get better at that.”

Click here to read the full article…