June 27 — Bubba Watson won his first PGA Tour event on the second playoff hole of the Travelers Championship in Cromwell, Conn.
Watson outlasted Scott Verplank and Ryder Cup captain Corey Pavin with a three-foot putt for par after all three finished at 14-under par in regulation at TPC River Highlands.
Watson, 31, had played in 122 tour events before notching his first victory. His win was also the biggest comeback on the PGA Tour this season. Watson overcame Justin Rose’s six-stroke lead after 54 holes.
“For me to get into a playoff after shooting four under was unreal,” Watson told reporters, “and to somehow make that par putt to win was unreal.
New No. 1. Meanwhile, on the women’s tour, it didn’t take long for Cristie Kerr to make good on her promise to become No. 1 on the LPGA Tour.
In fact, with a wire-to-wire, record 12-stroke win at the LPGA Championship, Kerr moved atop the world golf rankings a scant four days since she broached the idea of nailing down the top spot by the end of the season.
Yesterday’s best woman golfer, Ai Miyazato, must wonder what freight train ran over her and her brief flirtation with the top ranking. Miyazato was No. 1 for just a week after she won last week’s ShopRite LPGA Classic for her fourth victory of the year.
Kerr weathered a serious tear by Miyazato, who began the day tied for 24th and ended up in a share of third with a final-round 66 and 5-under for the tourney. Miyazato had to finish in second place to retain her No. 1 status.
Nothing’ but 60s. The 32-year-old Kerr also scored a 66 and shot scores in the 60s all week (68-66-69-66) to garner two tourney records: 19-under 269 for a 72-hole total, and her 12-shot victory over Song-Hee Kim.
Fellow LPGA’er Natalie Gulbis chimed in with her own superlative for Kerr. “Cristie is the First American to hold the #1 ranking since we have started world rankings,” Gulbis posted on her Twitter feed Sunday evening.
Indeed, since the LPGA began keeping tabs on world rankings, there had been only four women to grab the top rung: Annika Sorenstam (Sweden), Lorena Ochoa (Mexico), Jiyai Shin (South Korea), and Miyazato (Japan.). Kerr’s new standing will become official Monday.
Sunday’s victory cemented Kerr’s second major championship. She won her first major title with a two-shot victory at the 2007 U.S. Women’s Open at Pine Needles Country Club in Pinehurst, N.C.
Life-long dream. Kerr said she had no plans to relinquish her new standing, but keeping it would not be easy.
“Being No. 1 is] something that I’ve wanted my whole life, I worked for my whole life,” Kerr told reporters following her dominant performance. “But I said earlier in the week it’s great to be No. 1, but I just got there. To be No. 1, I feel in my heart you really have to keep proving it. So I got a lot of work ahead of me.”
U.S.A. As for being the first American to lead the tour, Kerr was proud of her accomplishment.
“I always wanted to be the No. 1 player in the world,” Kerr observed. “I take great pride in being the top American.”
Not exactly shy about her prowess on the golf course, Kerr compared her victory to Tiger Woods’ historic 15-shot win at Pebble Beach 10 years ago.
“I put up a dream performance because this is similar to what Tiger did at Pebble Beach,” Kerry said. “I can say that now.”
New England golfers. Back in Connecticut, New England golfers Tim Petrovic (Newington, Conn.) and James Driscoll (Brookline, Mass.) ended up five and six shots back of Watson, respectively, at 9-under and 8-under.
Cromwell, outside of Hartford, was a familiar stomping ground for Jay Williamson (Hartford’s Trinity College.), J.J. Henry (Fairfield, Conn.), and Jerry Kelley (University of Hartford). The three golfers finished at 6-under, 6-under, and 2-under, respectively. Kevin Johnson (Plymouth, Mass.) finished at 3-over for the tourney.
(Emily Kay is a regular contributor to New England Golf Monthly. She also writes the Boston Golf Examiner and National Golf Examiner blogs.)
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