Golf Capsules: Kuchar wins Barclays on first playoff hole
PARAMUS, N.J. (AP) — Matt Kuchar and Tiger Woods are happy about where they're going, even if the itinerary is entirely different.
Kuchar won The Barclays with a sensational shot out of the rough to beat Martin Laird with a birdie in a playoff. The victory assures he will be at East Lake in Atlanta — which the Georgia Tech grad considers a home course — to play the Tour Championship for the first time.
Woods tied for 12th and gets to go to Boston for the second round of the FedEx Cup playoffs.
A small step for one, a giant leap for another.
"There's nothing like the feeling of winning," said Kuchar, who moved up to No. 1 in the FedEx Cup standings, No. 1 on the PGA Tour money list and a career-best No. 10 in the world ranking. "You feel like you're the best player in the world for this week."
And he was, with help from Laird, who needed only two putts from just inside 25 feet to win on the final hole.
Woods hasn't won in more than nine months, a strange sensation for a guy with 82 wins around the world. His primary goal Sunday was to do well enough to move inside the top 100 in the FedEx Cup standings to qualify for the second round of the playoffs at the TPC Boston. He shot a 67 — the first time since the Masters that he broke 70 in the final round — and moved from No. 112 to No. 65.
Better yet, he thinks a victory might not be far away.
"I haven't won all year," Woods said. "But this is a week that I was very close. I felt that if I would have putted better for all four days, I would have been right there. Looking forward to next week."
Kuchar was having his best year on the PGA Tour, missing only a victory. It didn't look as though that would change at Ridgewood.
Having closed with a 5-under 66, playing his final 24 holes in regulation without a bogey, he headed for the practice range in case it was good enough to force a playoff. Laird took the lead with a birdie on the par-5 17th, then made a terrific escape out of the rough and under the trees to just inside 25 feet above the hole.
"Once he hit that great shot just to the back fringe on 18, I was pretty much shutting down my practice sessions," Kuchar said. "I went over and was just a spectator, thinking that he's got this wrapped up."
It all changed so suddenly.
Laird ran his putt 7 feet by the hole and missed the comeback putt for par. Then came the shot that got these FedEx Cup playoffs off to a rousing start — a 7-iron from 192 yards out of the rough that scooted through the green, caught the back ramp, turned to the left toward the hole and settled 30 inches away for the winning birdie.
It changed the outcome of the tournament, and Kuchar's perspective on the year.
"I knew if I put myself in contention enough times I was going to break through," Kuchar said. "And I'm awfully excited to have it here at the Barclays. It's a great place, the start of our FedEx Cup playoffs. I don't know if I would put many events much higher on the list."
Kuchar is assured of going to East Lake, and now has a decent shot at winning the FedEx Cup and its $10 million prize.
Along the way, he got a little training for the Ryder Cup.
Winning sure helps. Kuchar and Jeff Overton are the only Americans among the eight who earned their way onto the team who have not won this year, and the 32-year-old is sure to get a shot of confidence leading up to the Oct. 1-3 matches in Wales.
The way he won can only help.
He hopped in a cart with rules official Mark Russell, the crowd chanting and cheers.
"I told him, 'This is great prep for the Ryder Cup,'" Kuchar said. "I'm in a match play situation, I've got a playoff and I've got people going crazy. Hopefully, I'll be able to put that in the memory bank and go with it come Ryder Cup time."
Plus, he was playing a European — Laird is a 27-year-old from Scotland.
Laird had a five-shot lead early on when he started with two birdies, but a double bogey on the par-5 third hole sent him tumbling back to the pack, and a half-dozen others entertained thoughts of winning. That included Dustin Johnson, who was still in the hunt until missing an 8-foot birdie on the 15th, then making bogeys on the next two holes in a desperate attempt to catch up. He shot 72.
Laird recovered, though, and he was tied with Kuchar when he had a 20-foot eagle putt on the par-5 17th, only to roll it nearly 8 feet beyond the hole. He made that birdie putt to take the lead. Faced with a similar situation — this time needing two putts for the win — Laird repeated his mistake and this time didn't escape.
"Obviously, not the finish I was looking for," said Laird, who shot a 71. "But I'm very proud of the way I played today. "I was kind of battling all day, and probably holed two or three of the biggest putts I've ever holed just to be where I was."
The only consolation for Laird was being safe through next month in the playoffs. He was at No. 95, hopeful of advancing to the second round, and his runner-up finish puts him at No. 3 and virtually guarantees he'll be among the top 30 at the Tour Championship.
As for Woods, he can only hope he makes it to Atlanta.
His tie for 12th — the highest for him since a tie for fourth at the U.S. Open — gives him a good chance of staying in the top 70 who go to the third round at Cog Hill outside Chicago. Only the top 30 make it to Atlanta, but Woods at least is going in the right direction.
"The next three events, the next three venues, I've won on," Woods said, referring to past victories at the TPC Boston, Cog Hill and East Lake. "So I'm going to three venues I'm very familiar with, and I'm looking forward to it."
Harrington, Donald, Molinari make Ryder Cup team
GLENEAGLES, Scotland (AP) — Edoardo Molinari of Italy came up a big winner twice on Sunday — first winning the Johnnie Walker Championship, then becoming one of three captain's picks for Europe's Ryder Cup team.
Colin Montgomerie also chose three-time major winner Padraig Harrington and Luke Donald, who is No. 10 in the world ranking.
In one of the toughest choices for any European captain, Montgomerie had three picks for five worthy candidates. He had to leave off Paul Casey, who is No. 9 in the world and played on the last three teams, and Justin Rose, who won twice on the PGA Tour this summer at the Memorial and the AT&T National.
Montgomerie suggested that he had made up his mind about Molinari before he birdied the last three holes to win at Gleneagles.
"It made our job easier that he did win," Montgomerie said. "What he achieved in three rounds was enough to tell us that this player was capable of handling the most incredible pressure so well."
Far tougher was having to leave off Rose and Casey, who has won the World Match Play Championship in England and twice was runner-up in the Match Play Championship in Arizona. Making it worse, Casey and Harrington were playing together in the final round at The Barclays. They were on the sixth hole when Harrington's wife gave him thumbs-up to signal he was on the team.
"Caroline is a great friend," Casey said. "She would have said something to me if I had been picked. So at that point, I kind of knew that I hadn't."
It led to an awkward situation the rest of the round.
"It was very, very hard to stick to your job," Harrington said. "It was never going to be easy on Monty."
Montgomerie said Molinari, who birdied the last three holes to win on Sunday, is "the type of player we need to regain this Ryder Cup."
"In my 24 years on the European Tour I have not seen a finish of that quality by anyone in such a pressure situation," Montgomerie said.
"Having to come here and having to win what he did today was incredible. And to birdie the last three holes in the way that he did — the job in selecting the wild cards (was) very, very easy for us."
Molinari joins his younger brother Francesco on Europe's team. They will be the first brothers to play in the Ryder Cup together since Bernard and Geoffrey Hunt of England in 1967.
"It's a delight that we have two thrilling players coming from an emerging country like Italy and it's no secret as to who will be partnering each other at Celtic Manor," Montgomerie said.
The Molinari brothers were a winning pair at golf's World Cup in China last year and both will make their debuts against the United States at Celtic Manor in Wales from Oct. 1-3.
"It was quite an emotional moment for me because this means I will be playing with my brother in the Ryder Cup and that (is) something that is almost unreal," Eduardo Molinari said.
"We communicate differently from best friends out on the golf course — a lot of the time we don't even have to say anything to each other, we know exactly what the other is thinking or wants to do and that's a great help."
Harrington and Donald were on the course in the final round of The Barclays in New Jersey. Donald birdied his opening six holes, playing as though he were making closing arguments, and he went out in 28 to get within two shots of the lead. He learned the news on the 10th green, then bogeyed the next two holes.
"It did throw me off a little," Donald said, relieved to make the team after what he called a "crazy" selection process. He also felt bad for Casey and Rose, particularly because Donald's brother is the caddie for Casey.
Montgomerie explained the choice of Harrington and Donald ahead of Casey and Rose.
"Padraig has won three majors in the past two years, he has great stature in the game and when his back is up against the wall he comes out and gives tremendous performances," Montgomerie said. "He is a great competitor."
Montgomerie said Rose would get a place on the team in the event that Lee Westwood failed to recover in time from his calf injury.
Montgomerie also announced that Europe will have a fourth vice captain as Sergio Garcia agreed to join his staff.
The nine players who qualified on their own for the Ryder Cup team were Westwood, U.S. Open champion Graeme McDowell, PGA champion Martin Kaymer, Ian Poulter, Ross Fisher, Francesco Molinari, Peter Hanson, Rory McIlroy and Miguel Angel Jimenez.
Six of Europe's players have never competed in the Ryder Cup — the Molinari brothers, McIlroy, Hanson, Kaymer and Ross Fisher.
Montgomerie said the selection meeting with his vice captains took five hours, adding "we had an embarrassment of riches on this occasion."
U.S. captain Corey Pavin is to announce his four picks on Sept. 7 in New York.
Casey stunned to be left off team
PARAMUS, N.J. (AP) — Paul Casey had not checked his cell phone after his final round at The Barclays to see if he had made the Ryder Cup team for Europe.
He didn't have to.
Casey was playing Sunday with Padraig Harrington, and on the seventh hole, he noticed Caroline Harrington giving the thumbs-up to her husband's caddie.
"Caroline's a great friend," Casey said. "She would have said something to me if I had been picked. So at that point, I knew that I hadn't. I was trying to keep my composure and put in a solid performance today."
It was never going to be easy for European captain Colin Montgomerie, who had three picks for five worthy candidates. It sure wasn't easy for Casey and Justin Rose, two Ryder Cup veterans who will have to watch this competition from home.
Edoardo Molinari birdied the last three holes to win the Johnnie Walker Championship, making him a realistic choice. That left two picks among Harrington, Casey, Luke Donald and Justin Rose, all of whom were in New Jersey when he announced his selections.
Montgomerie went with Harrington and Donald, who were relieved.
Casey did well to keep his composure so soon after he had finished his round of 69. When asked if it was awkward to play the last 12 holes with Harrington, who had made the team, Casey replied with a smile, "It was difficult. Can I go now?"
Even some of the American players were stunned that Casey was not selected.
He is No. 9 in the world ranking, despite coming off a rib injury that cost him the second half of the 2009 season. He tied for third at the British Open, has played in the last three Ryder Cups, won the World Match Play Championship in England and twice has been a finalist in the Match Play Championship in Arizona.
Equally disappointed was Rose, who won the Memorial and the AT&T National at Aronimink earlier this summer. Rose played in his first Ryder Cup two years ago and went 3-1-0.
"I thought I had as good as shot as anyone," Rose said. "With Paul Casey not picked as well, I think it's a very interesting selection. I don't think many people would have gone with those three."
Donald is No. 10 in the world ranking and has a 5-1-1 record in the two Ryder Cups he has played. Harrington is a three-time major championship winner, although he has not won a sanctioned event since his PGA Championship in 2008 at Oakland Hills. In the last two cups, the Irishman is 0-7-2.
"It was going to be a difficult situation," Harrington said. "As I've said all along, if you don't qualify for the team, you don't have an automatic right to be on the team. It comes down to Monty's decision."
Harrington said Montgomerie could not have gone wrong no matter whom he selected. It might have helped Harrington to have the experience of playing on five teams, because six Europeans will be Ryder Cup rookies.
"I won't normally play the age card, but this time, it obviously suits me," he said.
Montgomerie had said he was able to contact everyone except Casey, although Harrington and Donald said they did not find out until after they were on the course at Ridgewood Country Club.
Donald opened with six straight birdies and went out in 28, which put him two shots out of the lead. He learned he was on the team at the 10th hole, and it was no coincidence that he bogeyed three of the next four holes. Donald shot 28-40 for a strange round of 68.
"It did throw me off a little bit," Donald said. "I was trying to get it out of my head and just play golf. But I didn't do a very good job on the back nine."
Donald felt particularly bad for Casey because his brother is Casey's caddie.
"It was probably one of the craziest selections for a Ryder Cup ever," Donald said. "Guys in top 10 didn't know if they were going to be playing. It was very anxious moments, and obviously, there was some relief. Very excited to be back on the team and to be part of the Ryder Cup again."
Harrington said it was awkward to learn of the news in the middle of his round, especially with Casey at his side.
"I think with Edoardo doing what he did, there could never have been a happy ending in my group, because there was me, there was Paul and Christian Donald," he said. "There was only two spots left after Edoardo. No matter what, somebody in our group was going to walk away unhappy."
-- Doug Ferguson
LPGA
Wie wins CN Canadian Open for second LPGA victory
WINNIPEG, Manitoba (AP) — Michelle Wie closed with a 2-under 70 Sunday for a three-shot win at the CN Canadian Women's Open, her second career victory on the LPGA Tour.
Wie, who was 12 under for the tournament, earned the winner's check of $337,500 in the $2.25-million event at the St. Charles Country Club — the LPGA's only stop in Canada.
Wie had five birdies, including on the 13th, 14th and 15th holes.
"I made a lot of crucial putts today," said Wie, who at 10 years old was the youngest player to qualify for the U.S. Amateur Championship.
Jiyai Shin of South Korea shot a 73 and tied for second with Kristy McPherson (66), defending champion Suzann Pettersen of Norway (69) and South Korea's Jee Lee Young (69).
Wie led wire-to-wire after an opening 65 and was tied with Shin for the lead entering the final round at 10 under.
"My shot was really good, but my putting was so bad," said Shin, who has four victories since joining the LPGA Tour last season.
"I (had) lots of chances for birdies, but I couldn't make it just a couple times."
Ai Miyazato (69) of Japan, the No. 1-ranked player heading into the Open, finished tied for 15th, while No. 2 Cristie Kerr (69) tied for eighth.
After the 20-year-old Wie ended her round on the 18th green, her longtime friend and fellow American player Christina Kim sprayed her with champagne.
"I was trying to run away from her," Wie said with a laugh. "All I was thinking in my mind was I'm wearing white pants, please be nice Tina."
Wie's first career win came in November at the Lorena Ochoa Invitational during her rookie season. Her opening round this week featured the second hole-in-one of her pro career.
Wie said she's heading back to school at Stanford after the LPGA's next event — the P&G NW Arkansas Championship beginning Sept. 10.
Next year's tournament will be held in Montreal and then Vancouver in 2012.
Champions
Langer has final-round 69 for three-shot win
SNOQUALMIE, Wash. (AP) — Bernhard Langer might want to start campaigning for more Champions Tour events in the Pacific Northwest.
Langer pulled off a Seattle sweep with a final-round 69 as he pulled away from Nick Price down the stretch to win the Boeing Classic on Sunday.
Langer finished at 18-under 198 to earn his fifth Champions Tour victory this season, and the second in the greater Seattle area this year after winning the U.S. Senior Open at Sahalee Country Club in Sammamish, Wash., a month ago.
In his last three events in Washington state, he's won twice and finished tied for third at the Boeing Classic last year. His score under par matched Loren Roberts' tournament record from last year.
"I think right now I'm playing almost as good as I've ever played," Langer said. "I think my golf swing improved. The technique is better. My caddy said he hadn't seen me drive the ball as well as the last few weeks ever."
Leading by two shots after a bogey at No. 11, Langer made consecutive birdies at Nos. 15 and 16 to stretch his lead to four strokes with just two to play at the TPC at Snoqualmie Ridge.
"My lead was only two at that point with seven holes to go, so we still had a lot of golf left," Langer said. "My caddy came over and gave me a pep talk and said 'let's play 2-under here the last five holes,' and I was able to go 3-under on the last few and increase my lead and have a (three-shot) lead coming into 18, which is a nice lead to have."
Price (71) wasn't able to find enough birdies on Sunday to keep up with the Charles Schwab Cup leader.
"In retrospect, I'm really happy with the way I played this week cause I played so poorly last week," Price said. "He's tough. I needed my 'A' game to beat him today and I didn't have it."
Langer gave Price opportunities early as Langer missed the first three fairways of the day. Langer drove his tee shot into a bunker on the uphill 439-yard third hole, opening the door for Price to apply some pressure trailing by just a stroke. But Price's drive found the same bunker as Langer.
Langer was able to clear the lip easily and put his second shot just through the green while Price was forced to layup. Price couldn't save par and made bogey.
Price found the sand again off the tee on the fourth hole and his second shot caught the lip upon contact and landed in a greenside bunker. Price couldn't get up and down and made bogey, leaving a 6-footer short to save par.
"It was strange today actually because it was probably the best I drove the ball all week because I'd been struggling a little bit with my driver," Price said.
"I missed my lines by probably 10, 12 yards on both of those holes and I paid the penalty."
After a big drive at the fifth, Price chunked a wedge and barely trickled on to the front edge of the green and three-putted from 50-feet for his third straight bogey.
But Langer allowed Price to hang around. A massive drive at the downhill 484-yard, par-4 11th left Langer just 86 yards out, but his second shot flew close to 20 feet past the hole and he three-putted for bogey. Price birdied the eighth and 11th to pull within two of the lead but couldn't get any closer to the methodical Langer.
"My hat's off to Bernhard," Price said. "He played super solid today. He's a tough, tough competitor."
Hometown favorite Fred Couples closed with a 67 to finish in third at 9 under. He struggled down the stretch on Saturday, shooting 4-over par on Nos. 15, 16 and 17 to fall out of contention. The Seattle native received a huge ovation after making birdie at No. 18 to close out his weekend.
"I don't come back to Seattle much at all, but to come back and play (here) two weeks has been truly remarkable," Couples said.
Mike Reid and Hal Sutton finished tied for fourth at 8-under par.
PGA European
Edoardo Molinari wins at Gleneagles
LENEAGLES, Scotland (AP) — Edoardo Molinari birdied the final three holes at Gleneagles on Sunday to win the Johnnie Walker Championship and secure a place on Europe's Ryder Cup team.
The 29-year-old Italian received a wild card pick from European captain Colin Montgomerie, a few hours after shooting a 1-under 71 during the final round to beat Brett Rumford by a shot.
"I was under a lot of pressure out there because I did not know if second place was going to be good enough to impress Colin Montgomerie with the wild-card situation," Molinari said. "So the win was very important to me."
Molinari finished at 10-under 278. Overnight leader Francesco Molinari — Edoardo's brother — shot 75 to share third with Wales' Jamie Donaldson and Miguel Angel Jimenez of Spain. Jimenez also secured a Ryder Cup spot, as did Sweden's Peter Hanson, who finished tied for 19th.
"My caddy told me on the 16th tee that with a couple of birdies I could still win and I feel fantastic to have been able to do that," said Molinari, who trailed Rumford by two shots at the time, only to birdie the next two holes to draw even.
Rumford did not expect to be in contention for his third European Tour victory but, a pair of closing birdies left him with a 2-under 70 and the clubhouse lead.
"It was never going to be a day of low scoring," he said. "The wind was very strong out on the course and very difficult to read."
The decision by Jimenez to seek a late entry to play at Gleneagles rather than attend his nephew's wedding in Malaga paid off.
He started the tournament in the ninth and last automatic qualifying place to play in the Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor. An even-par 72, which left him at 7 under, earned him a share of third place and his fourth match against the United States team.
"It means a lot to me," the 46-year-old Jimenez said. "It means more as you get older and now to be playing alongside the likes of Martin Kaymer and Rory McIlroy will mean I am playing with a third generation.
"My nephew and my family understood about the wedding — they told me I had to what I had to do, and that's what I did."
On a day of high winds and high scoring, Hanson also secured his Ryder Cup debut with a 73 and a 2 under finish. He had recently climbed into automatic qualifying position by winning the Czech Open.
"I was very tired coming here to Scotland and I have been battling not to think about making the team," Hanson said. "But now I am going to celebrate."
-- Graham Otway
Amateur
Uihlein beats Chung for U.S. Amateur title
UNIVERSITY PLACE, Wash. (AP) — The top ranked amateur in the world now has a title worthy of his lofty ranking.
Oklahoma State's Peter Uihlein also has quite the 21st birthday celebration awaiting.
Uihlein won the 110th U.S. Amateur on Sunday, holding off yet another back-nine charge from Stanford's David Chung for a 4 and 2 victory at Chambers Bay and the biggest in Uihlein's young career.
Ranked No. 1 in the world by the Royal & Ancient, Uihlein has been considered one of the top young players in the world for many years, but had yet to capture a major championship until now.
And on his 21st birthday.
"It's definitely the best birthday present I've ever had in my life," Uihlein said. "I'm looking forward to going back home tonight and seeing the boys and having a good time."
Uihlein was leading by two following the first 18 holes in the morning, then held on during the afternoon 18 holes as Chung once again tried to make a charge on the back nine. Seeing a four-hole lead cut to two, Uihlein made a 20-foot birdie putt to win the 14th and nearly ended the match at No. 15, leaving his putt on the lip.
Uihlein finally managed to finish off Chung on the 34th hole when Chung's tee shot on the drivable par-4 16th hole went into the deep, fescue grass. Chung tried to flop his second shot near the pin, but caught too much grass and sent the shot flying over the back of the green. Chung took off his white Stanford cap and conceded the hole, and match, when his third shot out of the deep grass came up short.
"I came basically this morning expecting Peter to play really good golf and he did. I just didn't really come with everything back at him today. I was a little flat out there and I couldn't spark any momentum."
Uihlein, the son of Wally Uihlein, CEO of golf equipment company Acushnet, was a junior star who struggled to find consistency as he moved up the amateur ranks. He went 4-0 in the Walker Cup a year ago, but his best victory as an amateur arguably came last month when he won the Sahalee Players Championship.
Now, he's taking the Havemeyer Trophy back to Karsten Creek in Stillwater as validation of his world ranking.
"It's just one of those things you've got to keep trying to get better, keep trying to work hard and hopefully it will all click," Uihlein said. "Chambers set up great for my game and I got lucky in a couple of my matches."
Along with the victory, the Oklahoma State junior earned a trip to the U.S. Open and British Open and an invitation to the Masters.
Chung dominated the back nine at Chambers Bay all week and rallied from 3 down at the turn to beat defending champion Byeong-Hun An in the semifinals.
But Uihlein finally got the best of the Stanford star after dropping his previous two stroke play matches to Chung, including at this year's NCAA championships.
Chung was 3 down after the first nine holes on Sunday morning, but cut the deficit to just one after nearly making a hole-in-one on the par 3 17th. Chung rolled through the back nine of his first 18 shooting 5 under, yet was only able to make up one hole with Uihlein matching nearly every charge.
Uihlein took any momentum Chung gained from his near ace by chipping in for eagle from just off the green on the 18th.
In the afternoon, Uihlein's lead grew to four holes after winning the eighth, even with Chung making par when he holed his fifth shot from 120 yards. Chung won the 10th and 11th to cut the lead in half and had a chance on the 12th, but saw his 12-foot eagle putt slip past.
Uihlein knew he got lucky with the miss, and Chung realized making a late charge was going to be difficult.
"If I made that putt on 12 for eagle I think I could have made a run at it," Chung said.
Chung was the hottest amateur in the United States entering this week, having already won the Western Amateur and Porter Cup. He was ranked fourth in the world entering this week, and with the difficulty of Chambers Bay, it was little surprise that two of the top amateurs in the world reached the final.
"The way Chambers was set up and how difficult it was, I think it exposed a lot of players' weaknesses," Uihlein said. "It's just one of those courses that is so difficult you really need every shot. ... It's just one of those surviving courses and it just so happens that I happened to."
-- Tim Booth
