Matt Kuchar isn’t done.
But every other golfer is.
In a bizarre sequence during the final round of the PGA Tour’s Wyndham Championship, Kuchar elected to stop his round after his first shot on the 18th hole as darkness fell Sunday on Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro, N.C. — despite his two playing partners in the event’s final group finishing and Kuchar not being in contention for a win, nor a spot for the start of next week’s PGA Tour playoffs. The move was legal, but upended the finish of the event, which was won by Aaron Rai.
Kuchar was to continue Monday morning, and he was to play for a higher finish and money. He’s currently in a 10-way tie for 12th, with several scenarios in play. Should he hole-out for eagle from well left of the 18th fairway — which is unlikely — he would jump into a tie for sixth, which would pay him $305,137.50, up from the $144,965 that he would be paid for the tie for 12th. Should he birdie, he would move into a six-way tie for seventh, which would pay him $240,950 — and a bogey would drop Kuchar into a seven-way tie for 21st, which would pay him $83,232. Nothing, though, will advance him into the Tour’s postseason — the Wyndham serves as the final regular-season tournament, and Kuchar cannot accumulate enough points on Monday to move into the top 70 cut-off.
As for Kuchar’s explanation, he was not formally interviewed by on-site reporters. Golf journalist Jason Sobel tweeted Sunday night that Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis talked with Kuchar, who told Lewis that he had decided to stop playing before Rai clinched the win with an 18th-hole birdie in the group ahead of him — and that he was trying to help playing partner Max Greyserman, who, before the birdie, trailed Rai by a stroke.
All of it perplexed the announcers from CBS, which was broadcasting the tournament.
“The tournament is over, but it’s not,” announcer Jim Nantz said. “It’s so strange. Actually we’ll be one player out here tomorrow morning, I suspect somewhere around 8 o’clock.”
Below is a loose sequence of events::
— From the final threesome, Kuchar teed off on the 508-yard, par-4 18th at about 8:15 p.m. — with Rai and playing partners Cameron Young and Billy Horschel ahead of them, readying to hit their second shots. It was reported that Kuchar could not see the players, but his tee shot sailed left of the trees on the left side of the hole and into the rough.
Said Kuchar: “God darn it.”
— After Kuchar’s playing partners, Greyserman and Chad Rainey, teed off three minutes later, the threesome was told by rules official Ken Tackett that they had the choice of either playing on, or returning Monday due to the darkness, though no horn for stoppage of play was sounded. On the CBS broadcast, Tour rules official Orlando Pope revealed the Tackett conversation, then the network later showed footage of Tackett talking with Kuchar.
Said Kuchar to Tackett as he walked down the 18th hole: “Horn’s been theoretically blown.”
Replied Tackett: “Correct.”
— Kuchar then marked his ball, and he walked the hole with Greyserman and Rainey, who played on.
But Pope’s explanation came as the duo putted, and the lack of a horn initially — and understandably — confused the broadcast team. It had at least appeared that Kuchar stopped playing on his own accord.
Said analyst Trevor Immelman: “So he is going to spot it? Has somebody blown a horn I’m not aware of?”
Said on-course analyst Dottie Pepper, who was walking with the threesome: “No, there’s been no horn blown.”
Said Immelman: “But is he allowed to stop if they haven’t blown a horn?”
Said Nantz: “I have not heard a horn.”
— Greyserman and Rainey then putted, as Kuchar stood behind the green.
At this point on the broadcast, Pope disclosed the Tackett discussion with the players, saying this:
“Yeah, it was past sunset. So we talked to them coming down the tee. Instead of just blowing the horn, we gave them the option to finish, and he chose not to finish. And he could finish the hole. … But he decided he didn’t want to finish, and we’ll allow it. Just come back tomorrow.”
And Kuchar seemingly will.
CBS’ coverage of the sequence ended with this exchange:
Said Nantz: “[Kuchar] said the horn has theoretically been blown and Ken Tackett told him yes and he has the power to be able to make that decision. Just he’s going to come out here tomorrow and I don’t think there’s going to be anybody here to watch it. I don’t expect we’re going to be bringing you that coverage tomorrow. But that is his prerogative. It’s just an interesting decision — he’s not going to make the playoffs.”
Said Immelman: “But let’s take it back five minutes earlier when he decided to tee off when the leader was about to walk into his second shot, in the middle of the fairway. It has been a really bizarre sequence of events.”
Said Nantz: “Yeah, that’s a fair point. It appeared that on the tee that he was in a hurry to go ahead and try and get it in. His two playing companions are going to finish.”
Said Immelman: “Yeah, if you go ahead and hit your tee shot, you got to think your intention is to get done.”
