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 On the player front, San Diego native Phil Mickelson claimed back-to-back victories at the FBR Open in Phoenix and the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am and Cypress native Tiger Woods captured the Buick Invitational. They joined Vijay Singh, Justin Leonard, Stuart Appleby and Adam Scott as winners of the first six West Coast swing events. On the weather front, thick fog was a constant nuisance at Torrey Pines for the Buick Invitational and vicious cycle of storms wreaked havoc on Riviera Country Club and the Nissan Open, ultimately reducing this venerable event to 36 holes decided by a playoff. And, though this magazine was going to press the week of the Accenture Match Play Championship, the first day of that event, held in Carlsbad, had already been postponed due to wet, muddy conditions. So, it was a memorable beginning of the year for Southern California — and Southern Californians — and here’s a summary of each event. Mercedes Championship This event, open only to winners of 2004 tournaments, ushered in the 2005 season and saw defending champion Stuart Appleby rebound admirably from a first-round 74 to defeat Jonathan Kaye by a stroke. Ernie Els, Singh and Woods were all within four strokes of Kaye, but Appleby’s steady 67, the second-lowest final-round score, gave the Australian his sixth PGA Tour victory. Woods wound up third, Els fourth and Adam Scott, who fired a closing-round 65, finished fifth. Sony Open The pros stayed tropical for another week, moving to Honolulu for a classic final-round contest between Singh and Els. Local favorite Shigeki Maruyama led by a stroke heading into the final round but shot a 71 to fall out of competition. Els, who trailed by eight strokes, made a huge charge, shooting a 62 early in the day. Singh, who trailed by four strokes heading into Sunday, knew he had to birdie the final par-5 to avoid a playoff with the rested Els. He hit a 300-yard drive, hit a utility club just short of the green and then two putted for his 25th PGA Tour victory. The Buick Invitational Moved up the calendar this year, the Buick Invitational could have been known as the Fog Bowl, as the Pacific moisture was a constant companion to the players. Rounds were delayed, sometimes overnight, and the visibility issue may have been a factor in a rather sloppy final round, which ended with a familiar name atop the leader board: Tiger Woods, who won his third Buick by shooting a closing 68. Woods had to play 31 holes on Sunday, and started the day with three straight bogeys. But he finished it with an 18-foot birdie putt on the final hole to ensure his three-stroke win over Charles Howell III and Luke Donald. It was Woods’ first stroke-play win since 2003. Bob Hope Chrysler Classic The final round comebacks kept coming in the desert, with Justin Leonard battling back from three strokes off the lead to win this popular event by three strokes over Joe Oglivie and Tim Clark. Leonard, who led after the third hole, made six birdies in the final round to give him his first victory in more than two years. Oglivie, who has never won on the tour, dominated the early rounds, shooting a 64 and 63 on the first two days. But his 73 on the final round was the break Leonard needed to claim his ninth PGA Tour victory. Defending champ Mickelson finished 12th and San Diego’s Craig Stadler finished 14th. FBR Open He may call San Diego home, but Mickelson attended Arizona State University, so he had a legion of fans rooting him on to his dominating victory at TPC of Scottsdale. Mickelson never led by less than three strokes during the final round. His second-round 60 was a course and career record and he became the first 54-hole leader of the year to hold on to the lead. His five-stroke victory was the largest of his career. But he wasn’t the only player with Southern California connections to shine in Arizona. UCLA graduate Scott McCarron and Rancho Cucamonga resident Kevin Na finished tied for second. AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am Mickelson continued his dominance on the Monterey Peninsula, becoming the first wire-to-wire finisher in the history of this venerable tournament. His cumulative score of 269 was the second lowest score in tournament history, trailing former Mission Viejo resident Mark O’Meara by a single stroke. Nissan Open Maybe Mickelson, Els, Singh, Sergio Garcia and the other superstars of the game knew what they were doing by skipping Riviera this year. The rain was unrelenting, creating delays and cancellations. Somehow, the entire field sneaked in 36 holes by Sunday, meaning the event would go into the books as actually happening (the winner would get the prize money but the victory would not count in the record books). On Monday, the rain has ceased long enough to allow Adam Scott and Chad Campbell to enter a sudden-death playoff. Scott’s clutch 20-foot putt on the 36th hole forced the playoff, which he won with a four-foot putt on the playoff’s first hole. n |
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