Richard Bland beat fellow Englishman Lee Westwood by 2&1 to win his group and set up a last sixteen match with former world number one Dustin Johnson. The win also ensures that Bland will tee it up at Augusta for the first time at the ripe old age of 49.
After four seasons in one event, The Players Championship concluded on Monday with Cameron Smith becoming the fifth Australian to pick up the coveted trophy and a cheque for a whopping $3.6 million. Overnight leader Anirban Lahiri of India and England's Paul Casey chased the Australian all the way but came up just short.
The Players Championship is set to run into Monday for the first time since 2005 as storms continued to hit the TPC Sawgrass course in Florida. Tommy Fleetwood and American Tom Hoge lead the way on six-under after both managed to finish their rounds as scheduled on Thursday. The rain and storms on the opening resulted in the loss of five hours of play and an evacuation of all spectators.
Tiger Woods returned to competitive golf for the first time since he was in an almost fatal car crash at the PNC Championship in Florida. Teaming up with his twelve-year-old son Charlie in the family event for major champions Woods enjoyed his day.
Kerching! Patrick Cantlay went to wire-to-wire and saw off World number one Jon Rahm to win the Tour Championship, FedEx Cup and scoop the $15 million first prize. Cantlay closed with a one-under 69 at East Lake to finish twenty-one-under-par, a shot ahead of US Open champion Rahm, who carded a final round of 68.
It was fitting that on Anzac Day it should be an Australian pairing that won the Zurich Classic on Sunday. Cameron Smith and Marc Leishman carded a final-round two-under final round to tie with South Africa's Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel on twenty-under-par. The Aussies then grabbed the spoils at the first extra hole.
Tour veteran Stewart Cink rolled back the years to take his third RBC Heritage title on Sunday, almost 21 years to the day from his first. The 47-year-old carded a final-round one-under-par 70 to register a second victory of the season, having won the season-opening Safeway Open back in September.
Kevin Na is out after his loss against Adam Long on Thursday, but the group is wide open following Dustin Johnson and Robert MacIntyre's halved match. If both Johnson and MacIntyre win their games it is off to extra holes. It's going to a straight shoot out between Kevin Kisner and Matt Kuchar as both Justin Thomas and Louis Oosthuizen are eliminated after losing on day two.
Ryder Cup star Ian Poulter got off to a great start to the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play duffing up an out of form Rory McIlroy 6&5 before declaring he found the format “annoying”. Poults would prefer a return to the traditional format where if you lose, you go home.
On a tricky final day at the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill, Lee Westwood came agonisingly close to taking the title. In the end, it was Bryson DeChambeau with his massive hitting that nipped in to take the title by one shot.
Collin Morikawa closed with a three-under-par 69 to clinch a three-shot victory at the World Golf Championships-Workday Championship at The Concession Club in Florida. After an early slip up with a bogey at the 2nd hole, Morikawa was flawless after that as he covered the remaining sixteen holes in four-under.
It was a resurgent Brooks Koepka on Sunday at the Phoenix Open. After an eighteen-month battle with knee and hip injuries and missed cuts in his last three events the former world number one proved the doubters wrong.
