American Matt Kuchar held his nerve on a tense final day to win the Players Championship at Sawgrass by two shots.
The 33-year-old, who started the round one shot behind leader Kevin Na, dropped a shot at the opening hole but hit four birdies for a 13-under total.
Scotland’s Martin Laird and American trio Zach Johnson, Ben Curtis and Rickie Fowler were joint second.
Luke Donald, needing a top-four finish to take over from Rory McIlroy as world number one, finished sixth.
Donald had started the final round back in 27th, eight shots behind Na, but battled hard with a round of 66 for a nine-under total.
He also equalled the record for golf’s richest event, with a back-nine 30 containing six birdies.
Matt Kuchar facts
Kuchar’s previous best finish this season was joint third at the Masters in Augusta
He won the US Amateur title in 1997
He made his Ryder Cup debut at Celtic Manor in 2010
Kuchar, whose last win came in the 2010 Barclays Championship where he beat Laird in a play-off, saved a shot with a gutsy par putt at the third and then came close to an eagle at the fourth, but had to be content with a birdie. He then hit a lovely approach to the ninth, leaving him with a relatively easy putt before another birdie at the 12th.
He picked up another shot at the 16th, and not even a dropped shot at the 17th could halt his charge as he claimed the biggest win of his career to move up to third in the US Ryder Cup standings.
“You think of this as one of the strongest fields in golf,” Kuchar said. “To come out as the champion is just an amazing feeling.
“I think one of the things that strikes me is walking through the champions’ tunnel every day. I can’t help but stop and gaze at all the photos going through champions’ tunnel, and to think I’m going to be a part of that with Jack Nicklaus, Lee Trevino, Raymond Floyd, Phil Mickelson, David Duval and Tiger Woods – it’s all the best of the best.
“To feel like I’m going to see my picture up there next year is pretty cool.”
Na, who had birdied the 18th to take a one-shot lead into Sunday’s final day, was battling with his swing and he also struggled on the greens, dropping four shots in the space of five holes from the fifth to see his challenge disappear and he ended up with an eight-under total.
Laird went out in 33 with birdies at the second, seventh and ninth then went into the joint lead with Kuchar thanks to a hat-trick of birdies from the 11th.
But errors at the 14th and the long 16th, as well as the bogey at the 18th, left the 29-year-old Glaswegian two shots behind Kuchar.
Laird said: “I’m obviously very happy with how I played today. That’s one of the best rounds I’ve ever played under the circumstances, and the conditions.”
Lee Westwood had also had an opportunity to finish the week as number one following McIlroy’s missed cut, but the win he needed never looked likely for long before he closed with a 77.
It left Westwood four over and down in 60th place, while another disappointing tournament for Tiger Woods ended with him scoring 73 for one under and he was outside the top 30 for the third event in a row.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/golf/18054814

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Rickie Fowler has never been afraid to put it all on the line.

The thrill-seeking passion for motocross as a teenager. The head-turning clothing he brought to the PGA Tour as a rookie, such as the bright orange ensemble from head-to-toe on Sundays. With a chance to finally break through for his first PGA Tour win, the kid showed his true colors.

Harig: Does Fowler’s win bode well?

After Rickie Fowler’s first PGA Tour victory — in a playoff against Rory McIlroy and D.A. Points on Sunday at Quail Hollow — the drama gives golf high hopes, writes Bob Harig. Story

In a three-way playoff that featured U.S. Open champion Rory McIlroy, the 23-year-old Fowler gambled with a 51-degree wedge that had to be perfect on an 18th hole at Quail Hollow that had yielded only four birdies all day.

And it was.

Fowler stuffed his shot into 4 feet for a birdie on the first extra hole to beat McIlroy and D.A. Points and win the Wells Fargo Championship on Sunday. It was his first PGA Tour win in his 67th start as a pro, bringing him a small measure of relief and a big dose of credibility.

“I didn’t want to play it safe,” Fowler said. “I had a good number (133 yards), and I was aiming right of the hole with the wind coming out of the right, and if I hit a perfect shot, it comes down right on the stick. … I hit a perfect shot at the right time, and I was going for it.”

McIlroy, who returned to No. 1 in the world, used Quail Hollow as a launching pad toward stardom when he won here two years ago. Perhaps this is the start of a rivalry for years between a pair of 23-year-olds who bring power, flair and exuberance to the game.

“I’m looking forward to playing with Rory for a long time,” said Fowler, who closed with a 3-under 69. “It’s awesome. It’s a long wait, but well worth it.”

McIlroy established himself on the same green two years ago, a 20-year-old who closed out a record 62 by making a 40-foot putt for his first PGA Tour win, and the biggest of his career until adding a record-breaking U.S. Open title last summer at Congressional.

This time, it was Fowler’s turn.

[+] EnlargeRickie Fowler
Streeter Lecka/Getty ImagesRickie Fowler celebrates after sinking the winning putt in a playoff to defeat Rory McIlroy and D.A. Points at the Wells Fargo Championship.

“You wouldn’t call the 18th today a birdie hole with that pin,” McIlroy said. “For Rickie to go out and play that hole the way he did, he deserved to win.”

Along for the ride was Points, a 35-year-old who had the tournament in his grasp until ending 40 straight holes without a bogey by making one at the worst time. He had a one-shot lead going to the 18th in regulation, hit his approach in a bunker and never came close to a par. He shot 71.

McIlroy had a shot at winning in regulation and missed a 15-foot birdie putt, giving him a 70.

http://espn.go.com/golf/story/_/id/7898139/rickie-fowler-wins-wells-fargo-1st-pga-tour-victory<img src="

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/curtis-gets-first-tour-win-222032507–golf.html;_ylt=AruyJgskkyMERMkPd6QaWX0ogsUF

Apr. 15, 2012
LUTZ, Fla. (AP) — Michael Allen didn’t let early struggles stop him from ending a long title drought.
Allen won the Encompass Insurance Pro-Am on Sunday for his second Champions Tour title, closing with a 3-under 68 for a three-stroke victory over Kenny Perry.
“It’s been a long time since I beat these guys,” Allen said. “I haven’t beat them very often. It’s very nice to get on 18 and finally go, ‘man, I got them all.’”
Allen also won the 2009 Senior PGA Championship. He was winless in 40 Champions Tour events since then.
“To be honest, I’ve played a lot of really good golf out here and I knew it was going to come again soon,” Allen said.
Allen finished the three-day event at 12 under. He took a five-shot advantage into the final round, tying the tournament record for the largest 36-hole margin.
“I’ve never had a five-shot lead,” Allen said. “Fuzzy (Zoeller) told me to play like I was broke, so I tried to do that. You never quite know what you really have to do until it’s over.”
Isao Aoki (1996) and Bruce Fleisher (2000) also took five-stroke leads into the final round of the tournament. Aoki wound up tying for eighth, and Fleisher won by four shots.
Allen bogeyed Nos. 3 and 4 at TPC Tampa Bay to cut his lead to one, but rebounded with birdies on two of the next three holes. He extended his advantage to four shots with birdies on 12 and 14.
“There was a little flutter of hope when he dropped a couple early, but he put that to rest pretty quick,” said Peter Senior, who finished third at 7 under. “He’s been playing really, really well. From tee to green, he’s just on a bit of a roll. He’s got his game in good shape.”
Allen has four top-three finishes in six events this year.
Perry eagled the par-4 first hole and par-5 12th during a round of 65. It was the fifth time in the event’s history that a player had a pair of eagles in a round.
“It got me in a good frame of mind,” Perry said. “It took a lot of pressure off of me. I just knew I needed to shoot 65 or lower. I’m six behind starting the day. I did it. I played a beautiful round of golf.”
The 63-year-old Fleisher, who lead after the first round, shot a 74 to finish at 4 over.
Senior shot a 67.
One of Perry’s playing competitors, Corey Pavin, also had an eagle on 12. Pavin shot 70 and ended up fourth at 5 under
Kirk Triplett had a 72 to tie for eighth at 2 under in his first start on the 50-and-over tour.
Allen took over the lead in the season-long Charles Schwab Cup points race with 620. Bernhard Langer, who finished fifth Sunday, is second with 463.

Carl Pettersson birdied three of the first five holes Sunday, built a five-shot lead by the turn and cruised to victory at the RBC Heritage. Pettersson’s fifth title ties him with Jesper Parnevik for most PGA Tour wins by a Swedish player.
By

HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. — Save the fitness trailer for the rest of the PGA Tour, Carl Petterson knows he’s fine the way he is.

Petterson used another fast start for a 2-under 69 and a five-shot victory over Zach Johnson on Sunday at the RBC Heritage. Pettersson has never fit the tapered, powerful build made popular by Tiger Woods and copied by scores of young players.

After almost losing its spot on the PGA Tour last year, the Heritage secured its future by landing RBC and Boeing as sponsors.

The one time the 34-year-old Pettersson did slim down and lost 30 pounds, he also lost his winning golf swing.

“Ultimately, just cause you don’t look like an athlete doesn’t mean you’re not an athlete,” Pettersson said. “We’re not running a marathon out here, we’re walking 18 holes.”

And no one walked them better this week at Harbour Town Golf Links than Pettersson. He finished at 14 under to win his fifth PGA Tour title and first since 2010. Pettersson also tied countryman Jesper Parnevik for most ever on tour by a Swedish player.

“It was great,” said Pettersson, now a U.S. citizen. “I didn’t want to put too much pressure on myself, so I kind of downplayed the whole thing. But getting off to a birdie on one was great.”

Pettersson, second in the Shell Houston Open two weeks ago, earned $1,026,000.

Top-ranked Luke Donald needed to finish eighth or better to retain his ranking, but tied for 37th and will fall behind Rory McIlroy.

Johnson shot a 70 to finish second at 9 under, while Colt Knost’s chances for his first PGA Tour title fell apart with a 74. He was third at 8 under.

Kevin Stadler (68) and Billy Mayfair (69) tied for fourth at 6 under. Two-time Heritage winner Boo Weekley had his worst round of the week, 73, to tie for sixth with Matt Bettencourt (69).

Masters winner Bubba Watson and most of the world’s best took the week off to recover from the year’s first major

No one, though, was catching Pettersson in this one. He rolled in a 24-footer on No. 1 to get things started with a birdie. He added another birdie, from 16 feet on the par-3 fourth hole, then two-putted from 40 feet on the par-5 fifth to go up by four shots. When Johnson took bogey at No. 10, Pettersson was five strokes in front and cruising.

Pettersson used a run of five straight birdies on the front side Saturday to gain the lead. He was 13 under on the front nine the four days.

“I like all the holes,” he said. “I don’t have one hole on the front nine where I feel awkward over the tee shot or second shot.”

He also didn’t feel too bad on the greens, needing just 104 putts over 72 holes.

Knost was on top after Thursday and Friday and felt good as part of the final pairing. But those nerves Knost acknowledged Saturday were apparently back again in the final round.

He missed an 8-foot putt for par and made bogey on No. 1 for a second straight round to drop three shots behind Pettersson. And just like Saturday, Knost fought back with a birdie on the second hole — he made eagle there in the third round — to close in on Pettersson.

However, Knost’s chances ended, though, a hole later with a horrible drive out of bounds left on No. 3 that led to a triple-bogey seven and left him five shots behind and out of contention.

When Knost flew his approach to the 12th green way left, he simply stood in the fairway and stared straight ahead, hands on hips, in disbelief.

“I hit it good this weekend, but the one swing (on No. 3) got me in trouble,” Knost said. “I made 7 and that was kind of it.”

Pettersson didn’t let Knost’s troubles affect his focus.

“He had a tough time out there,” Pettersson said. “But there were still other guys with a chance.”

Johnson, four strokes behind Pettersson at the start, tried to make a charge with birdies on the second, fourth and fifth holes. Johnson closed to three shots when he birdied No. 15 and Pettersson had his first bogey of the day moments later.

But Johnson ran out of steam on the 16th hole when he drove into a waste bunker and took bogey. Still, it was Johnson’s best showing of the year and first top-10 finish since January.

“There were a couple of bumps along the road, but a lot of positives,” Johnson said. “Certainly some things that I can learn from.”

Donald was largely resigned to surrendering No. 1 when he woke up early for his 9:46 a.m. start time, more than four hours before the final group of Pettersson and Knost teed off.

Donald’s round began badly with a double bogey at No. 1. He worked his way back with birdies on the fifth and sixth hole and that’s where he stayed. Donald ended a four-week run at No. 1 that began after he won the Transitions Championship last month.

Donald said he’s proved he’s among the world’s best and is confident he’ll stay in that conversation, no matter where he’s ranked. “Now, my focus is winning tournaments,” he said.

Donald headed the list of four golfers among the 20 who followed the Masters with Harbour Town. World No. 13 Webb Simpson finished at 4 over while No. 14 Matt Kuchar, two strokes from the playoff in third at Augusta National, also was way off the pace at 3 over. No. 18 Bill Haas did not make the cut.

Pettersson’s last victory came at the RBC Canadian Open in 2010 and this win was likely just popular with first-year Heritage sponsor Royal Bank of Canada. The financial institution, along with the Boeing Co., stepped in last June to back the cash-strapped event which was in danger of disappearing without such support.

Pettersson remembers in 2009 feeling like he needed to trim down to play better. He worked out more, ate right, dropped 30 pounds — and couldn’t swing the club. He vowed to beef up and rediscover his game. The regimen?

“Well, you drink 10 beers and (eat) a tub of ice cream before bed,” Pettersson said. “That puts it on quickly.”

Comfortable in his skin again, Pettersson went to work on his game. Things perked up this season with a second place at the Sony Open in January and the showing in Houston earlier this month. “It’s fun to play again and I kept the weight on,” he said.

With a win under his belt, Pettersson doesn’t expect to change anything, even his (lack of) fitness routine.

“Maybe,” Pettersson says, “some of these guys are overdoing it.”

Divots: Sean O’Hair played by himself as Sunday’s first tee time and finished a 2-over 73 in one hour, 55 minutes. … 2010 champion Jim Furyk was a stroke off the lead Thursday with an opening 68. Furyk was only able to improve one stroke the final 54 holes, which was good enough to tie for eighth, his sixth top-10 here in the last nine appearances. … Brian Harman, a 25-year-old pro from nearby Savannah, Ga., had a horrible final eight holes during his round of 82. Harman had four bogeys, two double bogeys and a triple bogey during that stretch.

AUGUSTA, Ga. — The Masters tournament involves approximately 100 players taking a total of around 20,000 strokes. But in the end, it came down to just two: Louis Oosthuizen’s astonishing albatross on No. 2, and Bubba Watson’s ungodly pop-fly wedge shot from the woods on the second hole of a playoff. Both shots are now part of Masters lore, but only one man won a green jacket.
The Masters that began with so many players finished up with just two, Oosthuizen and Watson, in a sudden-death playoff. Both players got good looks at a birdie on 18, with Watson barely missing a Masters-winning putt. Possibly rattled by that, Watson stuck his tee shot on No. 10 into the deep woods right of the green, but then uncorked a shot not even a video-game player could imagine: a straight-up wedge that landed within 15 feet for birdie. Needing two shots to win, Watson put his first putt close then tapped in his second for his first major win.
Oosthuizen played a largely undistinguished round of golf, with one notable exception: a 3-under double eagle on the second hole that surely ranks as one of the greatest shots in Masters history. The 260-yard shot was enough to keep the field at bay for most of the round, and enough to give Oosthuizen a little room to waver through the course of the round. He steadied himself on the back nine, bringing home the same -10 that he’d staked himself to on the second hole.
Once again, Watson found himself in a playoff for a major championship. In 2010, he fell to Martin Kaymer in the PGA Championship. This year, there would be no such fade.
The conventional wisdom was that Watson would either shoot in the low 60s or the high 70s, no middle ground. And indeed, he seemed on the verge of losing control right from the start, griping at the air en route to bogeying the very first hole. But he settled down, surrendering only one stroke the rest of the way and putting on a spectacular four-birdie run from Nos. 13 to 16. That was enough to put him 10-under and into a tie for the lead, a tie that would hold up into the playoff.
Phil Mickelson, the favorite coming into the day, played 17 solid holes at a level good enough to stay in the hunt, if not own it. The problem was the fourth, where he pile-drove a shot into the side of a grandstand and then needed two right-handed shots (Mickelson is left-handed) to get it free of the dense jungle growth. He carded a triple-bogey 7, falling from 8-under to 5-under. And although he wouldn’t bogey another shot, he left too many putts too short. He finished right where he started, at -8, staring up an impassable two-stroke incline at the leaders.
Other highlights included two aces at No. 16, carded by Bo Van Pelt and Adam Scott, and Van Pelt’s astonishing 8-under run to tie a Masters record. Lee Westwood didn’t do his usual major fade, but his 4-under day to get to -8 simply wasn’t enough. Matt Kuchar and 54-hole leader Peter Hanson both took turns at the lead, but couldn’t hold. And Tiger Woods? A 2-over 74 to finish a dismal +5.
In the end, though, the final lingering image of this Masters was a tearful Bubba Watson, embracing his mother as the last of the light faded from the day. He’d finally broken into the ranks of golf’s major winners with a well-deserved, hard-earned victory, and there was little more to do at that moment than weep in gratitude.

HUMBLE, Texas — Hunter Mahan shot a 1-under 71 on Sunday to win the Shell Houston Open, edging out Carl Pettersson by one stroke.

Mahan, who won the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship in February, is the first two-time champion on the PGA Tour this year. The victory moved Mahan up to No. 4 in the world rankings, the first time he’s ever been the highest-ranked American.

2012 SHELL HOUSTON OPEN

Shell has been the Houston Open’s title sponsor since 1992, giving it the third-longest tenure on the PGA Tour. The oil company’s current contract runs through 2017.

Mahan began the day two shots behind Oosthuizen, who lost the lead with two double bogeys on his front nine.

The 29-year-old Mahan, who lives in the Dallas area, earned his fifth career victory. He has six top-25 finishes in seven starts this year.

Standing on the 18th tee with a one-stroke lead, Mahan confidently hit his tee shot down the middle of the fairway, then knocked his 203-yard approach to 21 feet. He gave caddie John Wood a high-five when the ball landed safely on the green.

“Absolutely awesome,” Wood said.

Defending champion Phil Mickelson (71), Keegan Bradley (71), Brian Davis (74) and Jeff Overton (68) all finished 12 under.

The tournament became the run-up event to the Masters in 2007, and Mahan will play at Augusta National for the fifth straight year.

Three-time major champion Ernie Els finished 10 under and fell short in his bid to earn an automatic invitation to this week’s Masters. Els needed a victory to avoid missing Augusta for the first time since 1993.

“It’s not going to change my life, either way,” Els said. “I’ve played many out there. It’s one of those things.”

The Masters could still offer a special invitation to Els, like tournament officials did for Greg Norman in 2002.

Els has played well this year, earning top-five finishes at the Transitions and Bay Hill. But he said Sunday he would decline an invitation if he received one at the last minute.

“To go through all of this, and then get an invite, I wouldn’t take it,” he said. “They can keep it.”

The problems for Oosthuizen began with a three-putt on No. 2. He holed a downhill 45-footer for a birdie on No. 3, but hit his tee shot on No. 5 into a divot and missed the green with his approach. He botched a chip and two-putted from 20 feet.

Oosthuizen pulled his approach to the par-5 eighth into the native area, leading to his second double bogey.

Mahan parred the first eight holes, then finally took advantage of Oosthuizen’s collapse with a 5-foot birdie putt on No. 9. Pettersson missed a 19-foot par putt on No. 10, leaving Mahan in the lead by himself at 16 under.

Mahan found a greenside bunker on No. 14 and bogeyed, then hooked his tee shot to the 204-yard, par-3 16th. He pitched onto the green, and the ball rolled down a slope to within 16 inches for an easy tap-in par.

Pettersson left an 18-foot birdie putt short on the 488-yard 18th, the hardest hole on the course, with a pond running down the length of the fairway on the left. Like Els, Pettersson needed a win to earn a trip to Augusta.

http://www.pga.com/news/pga-tour/hunter-mahan-wins-shell-houston-open-one-over-carl-pettersson-second-2012-title

Even without a full-blown tournament win in 28 months, Tiger Woods never was going to disappear from the short list of favorites to win the Masters.

Woods recalled a recent conversation with caddie Joe LaCava, in which his bagman was getting a little antsy for a breakthrough.