The post Final-hole 3-putt sends one player to FedEx Cup Playoffs — and boots former World No. 1 appeared first on Golf.

The post Final-hole 3-putt sends one player to FedEx Cup Playoffs — and boots former World No. 1 appeared first on Golf.

Justin Rose needed to make a putt of 5 feet, 4 inches to earn a trip to New Jersey and the first round of the FedEx Cup Playoffs. He missed, and he punched a ticket for Chesson Hadley instead.

The PGA Tour regular season came to an end on Sunday at the Wyndham Championship, meaning it was the final event for players to qualify for the postseason, which would also secure their PGA Tour cards for the 2021-22 season.

Hadley, age 34, was one of the pros battling to get to 125th or better in the FedEx Cup standings — or be sent to more qualifying events, where the competition continues (and intensifies) to earn a card. He started the day 132nd in the FedEx Cup but got hot early and shot an eight-under 62, which included a hole in one. Hadley, who started on the back nine, birdied three of his first four and made a hole-in-one — the first of his life — on 16.

News

He said he didn’t have number in mind to start the day. He just knew he had to go low.

“After I made that [ace] and got to five under on the day, I was like, I can do this. I made a nice birdie on the next hole and made a nice par save on 18 and I started to tighten up a little bit,” Hadley said. “I hit some good shots early on on the front nine, my back side, but didn’t get anything out of it. Nice par save on 4. You know, I finished strong with a couple birdies. You just, I don’t know, it will be close. I mean, it will be really, really close.”

When Hadley finished he had moved up to 126th, but that still meant he needed to improve by one spot or lose his PGA Tour card. Then Justin Rose came to the 18th hole, needing to clean up a five-footer on 18 to close his round. He missed, and with that three-putt Rose went from 115 to 126 in the standings. Hadley was in.

Rose is now out of the Playoffs, but he didn’t lose his card. He’s among several players who didn’t make the top 125 but still has a card for next season (or beyond) based off previous wins. But Hadley didn’t have the security.

“That’s kind of what the Playoffs is all about, right?” Rose said. “It’s a knife-edged moment. I’ve been on the winning side at East Lake where a bogey was costly and a birdie got me back into the projected No. 1 spot, so I’ve been on the right side of it and maybe on the wrong side today. Yeah, it’s not nice when it’s not in your hands, but obviously it was in my hands up 18. I didn’t do a very good job of that.”

The post Final-hole 3-putt sends one player to FedEx Cup Playoffs — and boots former World No. 1 appeared first on Golf.

The post Why Chesson Hadley had the best day (and interview) ever at the Wyndham Championship appeared first on Golf.

The post Why Chesson Hadley had the best day (and interview) ever at the Wyndham Championship appeared first on Golf.

The PGA Tour’s regular-season finale had a little bit of everything. There was an early start, dramatic twists and turns, electrifying aces, devastating three-putts and one wild six-man playoff. (That’s right, six.)

There can only be one real winner — and that was Kevin Kisner — but there were more little victories to be had on Sunday at the Wyndham Championship, since it was the last chance for golfers to sneak into the top 125 of the FedEx Cup standings, earn a spot in the playoffs and, more importantly, keep their PGA Tour card for another year.

So it was a perfect Sunday for Chesson Hadley to have himself a day.

Hadley, who needed to go low to get into the top 125 and retain his card, went off early and shot a blistering eight-under 62, which included an opening-nine 29 highlighted by the first hole-in-one of his career.

He started the day 132nd in the FedEx Cup standings and was 126th, one place out of the final spot, when he finished his round. He still needed some help. Before he knew his fate, Hadley stopped to talk with CBS Sports’ Amanda Balionis.

“It’s a … it’s been a tough year,” Hadley said, fighting tears. “It’s been a tough last few years and, gosh, I’m a terrible crier. And to just have something good happen today was special. That was my very first hole in one ever. That is not a joke. I’m 34 and played pro golf for like 11 years, and that was my first one. This was just a treat. It’s about as close to home as I get. I’m on the outside looking in right now, but I know some things can change. But it’s just good to feel something good happen.”

This is where Justin Rose comes in. Rose was projected at 115th through 17 holes on Sunday, but he three-putted the 18th hole for bogey and dropped down. When he missed that five-footer for par, it pushed Rose to 126 and Hadley to 125. It stayed that way for the rest of the day as Hadley locked up a card and spot at next week’s Northern Trust, the first of three playoff events.

Let’s go back to that brilliant, raw, endearing interview Hadley had with Balionis.

“It’s emotional because I care,” he said. “I’m not just out here for fun. This is my job and I love it, and I care very deeply about it, and that’s why I’m emotional. [Long pause.] I’m about of pretty of a crier as this leap that you guys are about to see. Hopefully Amanda can go ahead and bring me back to something positive so I can kind of smile a little bit, because this is going downhill quick.”

Hadley, who is 6-4 and 175 pounds, was referring to his hole-in-one celebration.

“I looked like a baby giraffe like jumping into the air,” he said, as he watched it back. “Guys, pro golfers get such a bad rap for us not being athletic, and I promise you I’m a good athlete, but it’s probably going to be hard for you guys to believe that after seeing this jump, but anyway. I was excited.”

Hadley finished T15 at the Wyndham. His next stop? Liberty National and the FedEx Cup Playoffs.

Check out his full interview with Balionis below. It’s worth your time.

The post Why Chesson Hadley had the best day (and interview) ever at the Wyndham Championship appeared first on Golf.

The post ‘It sucks, right?’ Chesson Hadley explains his late collapse at Congaree appeared first on Golf.

The post ‘It sucks, right?’ Chesson Hadley explains his late collapse at Congaree appeared first on Golf.

The quickest and easiest way to describe Chesson Hadley’s performance Sunday at the Palmetto Championship would be with a cliche: it was an absolute rollercoaster.

Hadley’s day began with him finishing his third round — due to some Saturday storms — by making just a single par on the 18th hole early Sunday morning. Finally, the third round was complete, and he’d hold a dominant, 4-shot lead through 54 holes.

After waiting a few hours for the final tee time Sunday afternoon, Hadley proceeded to bogey two of the first three holes, including the par-5 2nd, which played as the easiest hole all week long. In a span of 45 minutes, his 4-shot lead was completely erased. Back to square one.

But Hadley didn’t completely explode in the way some 54-hole leaders do. He battled back with a birdie on 4, playing the next 12 holes in one under, once again earning himself a 2-shot lead at Congaree. It was a new course as far as PGA Tour events go, and it took some getting used to for everyone in the field. Through 69 holes in the event, the best player all week was atop the leaderboard, all alone. As tends to happen at the elite level, 72 holes just seems to be two or three too many. 

Hadley drove it into a bunker on 16, made a mess around the green on 17 and hit an approach on 18 that he later would call “inexcusable.” He’d walk off each of those finishing three holes with 5-5-5 on his scorecard. It was three straight bogeys to finish with a final-round 75, crowning 22-year-old Garrick Higgo in the process. 

It was ugly, and it seemed to happen in slow-motion. If anything, it was reminiscent of Lexi Thompson’s finish at the U.S. Women’s Open last week in San Francisco. There was no blow-up hole. No shot that ended in a hazard. Just one cut after another until 72 holes were complete and it was one shot shy of a playoff. And Hadley himself was pretty upfront about it afterward.

“It sucks, right?” he said to reporters. “I can only imagine what it looked like on TV because it looked freakin’ awful from my view. I mean, I could barely keep it on the planet.”

The truth hurts there. Hadley hit just four of 18 greens Sunday, losing more than four strokes to the field with his approach game alone. He led the field in putting all week long, and took only 26 putts to get around Congaree Sunday afternoon, but when he needed to grind one out for a late par, they never dropped. 

Was it nerves that affected him down the stretch? Did he — dare we say it — choke away his chances for a second career Tour victory? He was basically ready to call it that himself, but keen about his word choice.

“I hate the word choked,” Hadley said. “That’s not the right word because that’s a very negative word, but I didn’t handle it the way I needed to handle it. So we’ll go get them next time.” 

The post ‘It sucks, right?’ Chesson Hadley explains his late collapse at Congaree appeared first on Golf.

The post Pro roasts himself on Twitter after making quadruple-bogey 9 at Bay Hill appeared first on Golf.

The post Pro roasts himself on Twitter after making quadruple-bogey 9 at Bay Hill appeared first on Golf.

PGA Tour pro Chesson Hadley made a certified mess of the par-5 6th hole at Bay Hill on Friday. But instead of throwing a fit, Hadley went another route: publicly roasting himself on Twitter.

Hadley was on a roll to start the second round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational on Friday. Coming off an opening-round 71, Hadley quickly made three-straight birdies on holes 2-4 to get to four under. That put him in contention with a shot at the lead by day’s end.

Then the 6th hole happened.

The 532-yard par-5 runs in a crescent shape, with a large lake running down the entire left flank of the hole. It’s an intimidating tee shot, and it looks like Hadley may have let it get to him. His first drive found the water. So he teed it up for a second time… then hit it in the drink again.

Tournaments

WATCH: Phil Mickelson’s righty shot through O.B. fence ends tragically

He finally found dry ground with his third try off the tee, but the damage was done.

That was enough to inspire Hadley to take a shot at himself on Twitter, writing, “Nobody can ever accuse me of not being entertaining… If you add up my score on the par 3s today it equals my score on the 6th.”

Nobody can ever accuse me of not being entertaining. But sometimes I wish I was a little more boring!

If you add up my score on the par 3s today it equals my score on the 6th. pic.twitter.com/6kPC6CdHpE

— Chesson Hadley (@chessonhadley) March 8, 2019

Upon further investigation, Hadley’s joke at his own expense was right on the mark.

By the time his putt hit the bottom of the cup on the 6th, Hadley’s score for the hole was a dreaded quadruple-bogey 9. His combined score on Bay Hills four par-3s in the second round(holes 2,7, 14 and 17): 9.

But the 31-year-old pro won’t have to lean on his math skills anytime soon. Despite the ugly, watery quad at the 6th, Hadley was able to finish with a 71 on Friday and reach two under for the tournament, leaving him just seven shots off of the lead with 36 holes to play.

The post Pro roasts himself on Twitter after making quadruple-bogey 9 at Bay Hill appeared first on Golf.

The post WATCH: Pro hits eagle putt off green into pond, finishes with double bogey at Phoenix Open appeared first on Golf.

The post WATCH: Pro hits eagle putt off green into pond, finishes with double bogey at Phoenix Open appeared first on Golf.

Just when you think you have it all figured out… Chesson Hadley would like a do-over, please. The PGA Tour pro quickly turned a long eagle opportunity into a double bogey by putting his ball off the green and into a pond at the Waste Management Phoenix Open.

It wasn’t all bad for Hadley on Thursday. He got off to hot start in the first round at TPC Scottsdale, firing a 31 on the front to make the turn at four under. When he made another birdie the par-5 13th, it looked like he had a shot at the lead.

Then everything went haywire.

Hadley made back-to-back bogeys at 14 and the par-5 15th, dropping him back to three under on the day. But after driving the green at the short par-4 17th, it looked like Hadley was about to get back on track in a big way.

You may also like 11 things to know about the par-3 16th hole at TPC Scottsdale

Hadley’s drive ended up on the front left corner of the green, a long way from the cup. The hole was cut on the left side of the putting surface, too, but a pond guarded that entire flank of the green.

Staring down a 105-foot breaking putt for eagle, Hadley took a mighty whack at his ball and could only watch as it ran up a swale, then broke back down it towards the water, trickling through the fringe before making a humble splash in the pond.

Watch the unfortunate putt below.

Chesson Hadley with a nice eagle try on 17… turns into a double bogey! @RiggsBarstool @BarstoolTrent @FrankieBorrelli @ForePlayPod pic.twitter.com/PZapFRb4ti

— John C (@HashtagJohnC) January 31, 2019

After the water ball, Hadley took a penalty stroke and a drop on the fringe. His fourth shot ended up seven feet away, but he was unable to convert the bogey save, settling for a deflating double bogey.

The double dropped Hadley to one under, and yet another bogey at the closing hole left him right where he started 18 holes before, at even par.

Hadley, a 31-year-old Tour veteran, has captured one PGA Tour victory in his career at the 2014 Puerto Rico Open. Despite eyeing the lead as late as the 13th hole on Thursday, Hadley now finds himself a full seven shots back of first-round leaders Rickie Fowler and Justin Thomas.

The post WATCH: Pro hits eagle putt off green into pond, finishes with double bogey at Phoenix Open appeared first on Golf.

The post Pro roasts retired Tour player John Peterson: ‘Don’t knock us for living our dream’ appeared first on Golf.

The post Pro roasts retired Tour player John Peterson: ‘Don’t knock us for living our dream’ appeared first on Golf.

John Peterson’s on-again, off-again 2018 retirement tour captured the attention of many hardcore golf fans. But the outspoken former Tour player’s Tuesday Twitter missive miffed at least one of his former colleagues, Kelly Kraft. “Don’t knock us for living our dream,” Kraft wrote, later adding that he thought Peterson was “out of bounds.” The comment clearly struck a nerve. Where’d it come from?

The retiree

John Peterson’s retirement tour began in early 2018, when he needed a series of high finishes to help retain his card. He made it clear from the start: retirement or not, everything was good by him. “I just don’t enjoy the travel out here very much,” Peterson said in May. “I just like being at home and I like being around my family and friends more than I like chasing it around here.”

He stayed consistent on that message, at least in interviews. Whether he retained his PGA Tour card for the next season or not didn’t really matter to him, he insisted — until that card loss became a reality. At the Greenbrier, Peterson rallied with a Sunday 66 to finish in an eight-way tie for 13th.

“I thought that I’d done it, no problem, even gave a fist pump,” Peterson told Golf Channel. “And then they get into the tent and said, ‘It’s going to be close.’ They told me what I really needed. It just sucked.” As it turned out, a six-way tie for 13th would have given him conditional status for 2019, but the eight-way tie knocked him out. Brutal.

But that wasn’t the end of it. There was a last-second call to the Barbasol Championship just a week later, where he finished T21. That led him to the Web.com Tour Finals, where he missed three of four cuts. That has led to a more convincing long-term retirement. Which led us to Tuesday.

The current player

Chesson Hadley is cognizant of the challenges of life on Tour. The North Carolina resident had a long way to travel to get back from the CJ Cup in South Korea, and Seoul to Raleigh is not a direct flight. On his way back, he lobbed a plea in the direction of United. “Would love to see the kids in the morning,” he wrote.

@united haven’t seen family in 3 weeks. Would love to make it home to see the kids in the morning.

— Chesson Hadley (@chessonhadley) October 22, 2018

It wasn’t to be. Hadley updated his status later on to show just how long he’d been traveling — already more than 24 hours. “I am handling it okay, but I’m gonna need to get on a therapist’s couch to yell and scream for a little when I get home,” he wrote.

Well…landed in Denver and there was a plane at our gate which caused me to miss my flight to Raleigh. I am handling it okay, but I’m gonna need to get on a therapists couch to yell and scream for a little when I get home. Now taking a Frontier flight that gets me in at 6am. pic.twitter.com/sWZ19cVYcA

— Chesson Hadley (@chessonhadley) October 23, 2018

The jab

John Peterson saw what was happening and must have recognized some of his own internal struggle in the back-and-forth. He chimed in on Twitter.

Hadley referenced him to the T2 he had posted in Malaysia two weeks prior, a finish that earned him more than $500k. “I would agree for my last event. T73 wasn’t worth this. But the one before that was,” Hadley wrote.

The objection

Kelly Kraft didn’t take as kindly to Peterson’s contribution, snapping back with message telling the former pro to step off.

Don’t knock us on the @PGATOUR for living our dream of playing golf at the highest level. Especially when you know damn well you would be too if you didn’t lose your status. We still see our families, You can take as many off weeks as you want if you work hard and are good enough

— Kelly Kraft (@kkraft11) October 23, 2018

“Don’t knock us on the PGA Tour for living our dream of playing golf at the highest level,” Kraft wrote. “Especially when you know damn well you would be too if you didn’t lose your status.” This, too, had deeper roots. Suffice it to say Kraft has been a bit of a skeptic for the duration of Peterson’s retirement. He repeatedly gave Peterson a hard time for his musings on a post-Tour lifestyle.

First there was a jab about Peterson’s early retirement.

@JohnPetersonFW coming out of the woods to play a golf tournament? I’ll believe it when I see it

— Kelly Kraft (@kkraft11) March 24, 2018

What exactly do you farm?

— Kelly Kraft (@kkraft11) March 19, 2018

Then there was a critique of Peterson’s mindset.

You are so bitter it’s unreal.

— Kelly Kraft (@kkraft11) June 5, 2018

Playing on the PGA tour every week and competing at golfs highest level is a pretty solid accomplishment itself. That WC was so long ago. I can’t speak for you but winning on PGA tour against the best players would be more fulfilling. Maybe you should shift your focus to that.

— Kelly Kraft (@kkraft11) June 5, 2018

When Peterson mentioned getting his amateur status back, Kraft was ready for that, too.

So you still want to travel around and play golf but now you just don’t want to make any money doing it?

— Kelly Kraft (@kkraft11) September 22, 2018

All that added up to what appeared to be the last straw when Kraft felt slighted by Peterson’s commentary on Hadley’s feed. Still, if you believe Kraft’s followup, there are no hard feelings. The two are longtime friends; we’re inclined to take Kraft at his word.

Naw, I love Pete! Just think he’s out of bounds with this one.

— Kelly Kraft (@kkraft11) October 23, 2018

The resolution

In the aftermath of the exchange, one thing visibly changed: John Peterson changed his Twitter settings to match his new preferred lifestyle: he set his account to “private.”

John Peterson’s on-again, off-again 2018 retirement tour captured the attention of many hardcore golf fans. But the outspoken former Tour player’s Tuesday Twitter missive miffed at least one of his former colleagues, Kelly Kraft. “Don’t knock us for living our dream,” Kraft wrote, later adding that he thought Peterson was “out of bounds.” The comment clearly struck a nerve. Where’d it come from?

The retiree

John Peterson’s retirement tour began in early 2018, when he needed a series of high finishes to help retain his card. He made it clear from the start: retirement or not, everything was good by him. “I just don’t enjoy the travel out here very much,” Peterson said in May. “I just like being at home and I like being around my family and friends more than I like chasing it around here.”

He stayed consistent on that message, at least in interviews. Whether he retained his PGA Tour card for the next season or not didn’t really matter to him, he insisted — until that card loss became a reality. At the Greenbrier, Peterson rallied with a Sunday 66 to finish in an eight-way tie for 13th.

“I thought that I’d done it, no problem, even gave a fist pump,” Peterson told Golf Channel. “And then they get into the tent and said, ‘It’s going to be close.’ They told me what I really needed. It just sucked.” As it turned out, a six-way tie for 13th would have given him conditional status for 2019, but the eight-way tie knocked him out. Brutal.

But that wasn’t the end of it. There was a last-second call to the Barbasol Championship just a week later, where he finished T21. That led him to the Web.com Tour Finals, where he missed three of four cuts. That has led to a more convincing long-term retirement. Which led us to Tuesday.

The current player

Chesson Hadley is cognizant of the challenges of life on Tour. The North Carolina resident had a long way to travel to get back from the CJ Cup in South Korea, and Seoul to Raleigh is not a direct flight. On his way back, he lobbed a plea in the direction of United. “Would love to see the kids in the morning,” he wrote.

@united haven’t seen family in 3 weeks. Would love to make it home to see the kids in the morning.

— Chesson Hadley (@chessonhadley) October 22, 2018

It wasn’t to be. Hadley updated his status later on to show just how long he’d been traveling — already more than 24 hours. “I am handling it okay, but I’m gonna need to get on a therapist’s couch to yell and scream for a little when I get home,” he wrote.

Well…landed in Denver and there was a plane at our gate which caused me to miss my flight to Raleigh. I am handling it okay, but I’m gonna need to get on a therapists couch to yell and scream for a little when I get home. Now taking a Frontier flight that gets me in at 6am. pic.twitter.com/sWZ19cVYcA

— Chesson Hadley (@chessonhadley) October 23, 2018

The jab

John Peterson saw what was happening and must have recognized some of his own internal struggle in the back-and-forth. He chimed in on Twitter.

Hadley referenced him to the T2 he had posted in Malaysia two weeks prior, a finish that earned him more than $500k. “I would agree for my last event. T73 wasn’t worth this. But the one before that was,” Hadley wrote.

The objection

Kelly Kraft didn’t take as kindly to Peterson’s contribution, snapping back with message telling the former pro to step off.

Don’t knock us on the @PGATOUR for living our dream of playing golf at the highest level. Especially when you know damn well you would be too if you didn’t lose your status. We still see our families, You can take as many off weeks as you want if you work hard and are good enough

— Kelly Kraft (@kkraft11) October 23, 2018

“Don’t knock us on the PGA Tour for living our dream of playing golf at the highest level,” Kraft wrote. “Especially when you know damn well you would be too if you didn’t lose your status.” This, too, had deeper roots. Suffice it to say Kraft has been a bit of a skeptic for the duration of Peterson’s retirement. He repeatedly gave Peterson a hard time for his musings on a post-Tour lifestyle.

First there was a jab about Peterson’s early retirement.

@JohnPetersonFW coming out of the woods to play a golf tournament? I’ll believe it when I see it

— Kelly Kraft (@kkraft11) March 24, 2018

What exactly do you farm?

— Kelly Kraft (@kkraft11) March 19, 2018

Then there was a critique of Peterson’s mindset.

You are so bitter it’s unreal.

— Kelly Kraft (@kkraft11) June 5, 2018

Playing on the PGA tour every week and competing at golfs highest level is a pretty solid accomplishment itself. That WC was so long ago. I can’t speak for you but winning on PGA tour against the best players would be more fulfilling. Maybe you should shift your focus to that.

— Kelly Kraft (@kkraft11) June 5, 2018

When Peterson mentioned getting his amateur status back, Kraft was ready for that, too.

So you still want to travel around and play golf but now you just don’t want to make any money doing it?

— Kelly Kraft (@kkraft11) September 22, 2018

All that added up to what appeared to be the last straw when Kraft felt slighted by Peterson’s commentary on Hadley’s feed. Still, if you believe Kraft’s followup, there are no hard feelings. The two are longtime friends; we’re inclined to take Kraft at his word.

Naw, I love Pete! Just think he’s out of bounds with this one.

— Kelly Kraft (@kkraft11) October 23, 2018

The resolution

In the aftermath of the exchange, one thing visibly changed: John Peterson changed his Twitter settings to match his new preferred lifestyle: he set his account to “private.”

The post Pro roasts retired Tour player John Peterson: ‘Don’t knock us for living our dream’ appeared first on Golf.

The post Expert Picks: OHL Classic at Mayakoba appeared first on Golf.

The post Expert Picks: OHL Classic at Mayakoba appeared first on Golf.

GOLF Live host Ryan Asselta and GOLF.com’s Sean Zak talk about who they like (and don’t) at the upcoming OHL Classic at Mayakoba.

GOLF Live host Ryan Asselta and GOLF.com’s Sean Zak talk about who they like (and don’t) at the upcoming OHL Classic at Mayakoba.

The post Expert Picks: OHL Classic at Mayakoba appeared first on Golf.