Greatest takeaways and outcomes to disregard from a wild and longer-than-normal week on the Gamers

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Round Four p.m. ET on Monday, after rain began falling once more on the Gamers at TPC Sawgrass, Sepp Straka was the chief within the clubhouse with a 72-hole whole of seven underneath.

For a event that stopped and began greater than the visitors on State Highway A1A, and wherein a participant’s place on the tee sheet had nearly as a lot to do together with his probabilities of profitable as chipping and placing, the ultimate spherical was fairly dramatic.

When Straka walked off the 18th gap on the Stadium Course, there was a three-way tie for the lead. Greater than two dozen gamers had been inside three pictures. It was anybody’s event to lose, no matter his world rating.

Ultimately, Australia’s Cameron Smith survived 5 days of golf that had been suffering from thunderstorms, near-freezing temperatures and wind gusts of greater than 40 mph. He won for the fifth time on the PGA Tour, beating India’s Anirban Lahiri by one shot. He had 10 birdies whereas capturing 6-under 66 within the last spherical and picked up $3.6 million, the most important purse for a winner on the PGA Tour.

Smith, who now lives in Ponte Vedra Seaside, received in entrance of his mom, Sharon, and sister, Mel, whom he hadn’t seen in additional than two years due to COVID-19 journey restrictions.

“It is actually cool to have them right here,” Smith mentioned. “My foremost precedence actually was simply to hang around with them and golf was second for these few weeks. It is good to see them and good to get a win for them.”

Here is what else we discovered on the Gamers Championship:

Don’t be concerned concerning the massive names

There have been lots of not-so-familiar names close to the highest of the leaderboard going into the ultimate spherical. One of many causes gamers like Lahiri, Doug Ghim, Russell Knox, Kevin Streelman and others had been there was as a result of lots of the greatest names did not make the lower.

Amongst them: two-time main champion Collin Morikawa (73-75), reigning FedEx Cup champion Patrick Cantlay (72-77), Jordan Spieth (72-79), Xander Schauffele (73-78) and four-time main winner Brooks Koepka (72-81).

Even with the Masters lower than a month away, it could be foolish to get too involved about how the highest gamers carried out. The primary two rounds had been performed in outrageously troublesome circumstances and the whole event felt disjointed due to prolonged climate delays.

“There was lots of golf performed at occasions and little or no golf performed at occasions,” Canada’s Adam Hadwin mentioned. “I believe we’re all completely happy to be executed.”

World No. 1 Jon Rahm additionally did not play properly and by no means appeared to discover a rhythm. He shot 5-over 41 on the entrance 9 on Monday, with three birdies, three bogeys and a quintuple-bogey 9, which got here after he knocked two strategy pictures into the water on the par-Four fourth gap. It was the worst single-hole rating of his profession. Rahm shot 77 and completed in a tie for 55th.

“[On Saturday], I hit one shot and I went dwelling,” Rahm mentioned. “That is most likely the weirdest occasion we are able to probably have.”

Rory McIlroy and Justin Thomas had been by no means actually within the combine, both, and Dustin Johnson did not do a lot of something till a last spherical of 9-under 63 helped him end in a tie for ninth. He tied the course document for lowest spherical.

“It was a troublesome week,” Johnson mentioned. “I simply made too many errors, from the green, too. It wasn’t even after I obtained out of place. I hit too many dangerous iron pictures from the green. I’ve obtained a little bit work to do nonetheless on the sport, however clearly it is in there. I simply have to get it a little bit extra constant.”

Guidelines brouhaha

Daniel Berger has considerably of a popularity for being a stickler for the foundations and a protector of the sector, somebody who is not afraid to boost his voice when one thing is not proper.

The tables had been turned on Monday.

As quickly as Berger hit his strategy shot on the par-5 16th gap, he yelled, “Water ball! That is brief.” He was right. His shot flared proper and by no means had an opportunity of touchdown on the inexperienced. As a substitute, the shot went in to the pond.

That is when the controversy began. Whereas Berger and his caddie, Josh Cassell, had noticed the ball crossing the purple hazard line nearer to the inexperienced, his enjoying companions, Viktor Hovland and Joel Dahmen, had it a lot additional again.

“I do not assume it crossed up there,” Hovland informed Berger.

After Berger argued that it had, Hovland mentioned, “I am a little bit skeptical.”

Finally, a guidelines official was referred to as to the scene and informed the gamers to work it out.

“I am not going to take a drop that I do not really feel 100% right about,” Berger mentioned. “I am not saying it is all the best way up there, but it surely’s not again there. … I’ve by no means taken a foul drop in my life.”

Berger continued to argue that his drop ought to be nearer to the inexperienced, however then agreed to drop in an space between the 2 spots as a compromise.

“There’s completely no approach it crossed again there, like zero % likelihood,” Berger mentioned. “It is incorrect. That is a foul drop right here. I will drop it right here if that is the place you guys need me to drop it, but it surely’s a foul drop. It is approach too far again.”

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Berger ended up bogeying the opening. He shot 2-under 70 and completed in a tie for 14th.

“It isn’t a enjoyable dialog,” Hovland mentioned. “Daniel’s recreation is nice, and I’ve huge respect for him as a participant. However on the finish of the day, we have to guard the sector and defend all the opposite guys. It isn’t a enjoyable dialog, however while you strongly imagine in one thing, you form of have to face your floor.”

Hovland mentioned he and Berger did not discuss it after the spherical.

“We attempt to maintain it skilled,” Hovland mentioned. “It isn’t like we’re making an attempt to canine on Daniel and making an attempt to screw him over. It is simply, that is what we imagine, and he clearly felt strongly the opposite approach. It is simply what it’s. I am not accusing him of something.

“The golf ball is within the air for a pair seconds, so it is robust to precisely pinpoint the place it crossed and never. However Joel and I noticed it in a method and he noticed it in another way.”

Luck of the draw (or tee sheet)

Often, there are a lot of elements that decide which participant will win the Gamers, the PGA Tour’s premier occasion. Hitting fairways, ball placing and controlling one’s nerves on the well-known par-3 17th gap are among the many chief ones.

One other massive one this week? Luck.

A participant’s tee time within the first two rounds, as a lot as the rest, may need decided which gamers had an opportunity to win. There have been prolonged climate delays on Thursday and Friday, leaving some gamers to complete the primary spherical after which start the second on Saturday.

Gamers who had been within the early/late waves and completed the primary spherical on Thursday and Friday did not play many holes on Saturday (or any in any respect) and largely averted treacherous 40-mph winds that wreaked havoc on their rivals. It was like profitable the lottery. And with a lot at stake, specifically a $20 million purse, that is unlucky.

“You get your good ones, and also you get your dangerous ones,” McIlroy mentioned. “You must imagine that all of them even out over the course of a 12 months or a profession, I suppose. I’ve actually been on the great facet of a draw many occasions, and I have been on the dangerous facet loads, too. However on the finish of the day, I really feel prefer it all simply type of evens out. It sucks that the dangerous finish of the draw is that this event, however it’s what it’s.”

There is not any query it made a big distinction. Ghim was the one participant within the high 15 after 36 holes who performed within the late/early wave. Actually, among the many 71 gamers who made the 36-hole lower, 44 teed off within the early/late wave; 27 had been within the late/early wave. In keeping with Justin Ray of Twenty First Group, the typical rating after 36 holes for gamers within the early/late wave was 144.9; it was 147.eight for gamers within the different half of the sector.

After 54 holes, solely one of many 14 gamers who had been tied for eighth or higher — Kevin Kisner — was a part of the late/early wave. 5 of these gamers — Lahiri, Paul Casey, Sam Burns, Tom Hoge and Shane Lowry — did not must take a single swing on Saturday. Sebastián Muñoz hit only one shot.

“Yeah, you get good attracts, you get dangerous attracts,” mentioned England’s Tommy Fleetwood, the first-round chief. “I had my fair proportion of dangerous ones. Most likely had my fair proportion of fine ones, however you by no means bear in mind these, you simply complain concerning the dangerous ones.”

Kisner referred to as it “pure luck” and went so far as to counsel the event misplaced a few of its integrity as a result of it was such a determined benefit for these gamers who did not face the difficult circumstances on Saturday. He wasn’t alone.

“I am a type of who believes that if this wasn’t the Gamers Championship, we’d haven’t performed [Saturday],” Rahm mentioned. “I do not know if they need to have.”

A foolish rule and the $360,000 fallout

Keegan Bradley was proper there in rivalry to win the Gamers, which might have been his first victory in additional than three years. However he went Three over on the ultimate two holes Monday and completed solo in fifth. Bradley three-putted for a bogey on the par-3 17th and punched a ball into the water on the 18th after knocking his drive into the bushes. He made double-bogey 6.

That wasn’t the one factor Bradley was nonetheless steamed about after his last spherical. On Saturday, he was assessed a 2-stroke penalty for a hardly ever enforced guidelines violation. After knocking his second shot onto the 16th inexperienced, Bradley positioned his marker on the inexperienced. Earlier than he may choose his ball up, a wind gust moved it.

Bradley positioned the ball again at its authentic spot, which is a guidelines violation, based on rule 13.1.d (2) of the Guidelines of Golf. He may solely play from the unique spot if he had marked and lifted the ball earlier than it moved. The rule says: “If pure forces trigger a participant’s ball on the placing inexperienced to maneuver, the place the participant should play from subsequent depends upon whether or not the ball had already been lifted and changed on its authentic spot.” So, if the ball was not already lifted and changed, based on the rule, “the ball should be performed from its new spot.”

Bradley mentioned he checked together with his enjoying companions, Andrew Putnam and Cameron Young, to verify he was following the rule appropriately. On the second gap (Bradley’s group began on the again 9), he was knowledgeable of the penalty.

“It was a fluke factor,” Bradley mentioned on Monday. “I used to be saying 1,000,000 issues needed to occur suddenly for this to occur. It was good timing, it was the gust. … If I take one second longer or one second shorter, this by no means occurs. I’ve spoken to a bunch of the fellows. Not one participant is aware of this rule. All of us thought widespread sense says you set your coin down, that is the place your ball is. I did not wish to break the foundations by transferring my coin. I used to be making an attempt to do the correct factor.”

The penalty price Bradley $360,000. A tie for third with Casey would have paid him $1.18 million; he obtained $820,000 for fifth.

“I put the coin down, and as I’ll seize it, an enormous gust of wind and it went,” Bradley mentioned. “The rule truly states you must choose the ball up, so the coin means nothing for no matter cause. I would like to listen to the USGA’s rationalization for that. They appear to love to screw every little thing up.”