Tag: match play

Categories
PGA Tour

This Week on the PGA Tour – 2023 WGC Dell Technologies Match Play

By Scott Messner

This past Sunday brought an end to an era on the PGA Tour. Designated events, select PGA Tour tournaments with bigger purses to compete with LIV Golf, have replaced the World Golf Championship events on the schedule. The World Golf Championships – Dell Technologies Match Play event at the Austin Country Club in Austin, Texas, was most likely the last World Golf Championship. 

The WGC Match Play has been played at various venues since 1999, and it has been in Austin with Dell as the title sponsor since 2016. Since being in Austin, the tournament has raised over $6 million in charitable donations for the Greater Austin Area, with Dell Children’s Medical Center and The First Tee as two of the multiple beneficiaries. Volunteer at a PGA Tour Event near you and make a difference in your community!

This year’s two semi-finals consisted of 1st seed Scottie Scheffler vs 13th seed Sam Burns and 3rd seed Rory McIlroy vs 15th seed Cameron Young. I was probably not alone, but I was hoping for a final showdown between world number one Scottie Scheffler and world number three Rory McIlroy. Scottie and Rory ended up meeting, but in the consolation match. 

Both semi-final matches went to extra holes. In a see-saw match which saw Scottie Scheffler down three holes early and Sam Burns down two holes on the back nine, Sam came back and birdied the 21st hole to win the match. Cameron Young was up early in his match with Rory McIlroy but found himself down from the 6th hole through the 17th hole. He rallied to birdie the 18th hole and first extra hole to win the match.

The championship match failed to deliver an exciting finish to match the semi-finals, as Sam Burns birdied his last four holes and eight of his last ten, winning easily 6&5 over Cameron Young. It was Sam’s first appearance in the Dell Technologies Match Play, while Cameron was looking for his first PGA Tour win. Seeing Sam and Cameron in the final was an example of the beauty of match play, where anyone in the field has a legitimate shot at winning the title. Hopefully the PGA Tour finds a way to get a new match play event on the schedule.

Rory McIlroy led the whole way in the consolation match and won 2&1 over Scottie Scheffler.

In stroke play tournaments, players play their own game, playing the course, trying to shoot the lowest score possible, then seeing how their score stacks up against other competitors. A common theme heard on the network coverage was that in match play, a competitor will many times alter their game from playing against the course, to playing their opponent. There are occasions when that happens, but for the most part the PGA Tour players are playing their same game, just going out trying to shoot the lowest score possible. 

Rory McIlroy alluded to that during his on-course interview on the 6th hole of his Saturday quarterfinal match against Xander Schauffele.

Many times, the world wants us to live our lives according to its ways. In the apostle Paul’s letter to the Romans, he tells us not to conform to this world, but through the Holy Spirit discern what is pleasing to God.

Romans 12:2
2
 Don’t be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what is the good, well-pleasing, and perfect will of God.

When the world gets loud, it’s reassuring to know we have God’s living word in the Bible to rely on.

Categories
Golf Tips

Takeaways from the Match Play Championship

By Shooting 90

For an event that many argue its very existence, the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship provided a very exciting Sunday afternoon of golf. Jason Day outlasted Victor Dubuisson to win the final match in 23 holes. Day squandered a three hole lead on the back nine, including being two up with two holes to play, only to withstand probably the greatest back-to-back up and downs in the history of golf from Dubuisson on the 19th and 20th holes.

On the 19th hole, being played on hole #1, Dubuisson’s second shot bounced over the green and into the desert, prompting Nick Faldo to exclaim “He’s ruined!”. He then proceeded to hit an unbelievable chip shot from next to a jumping cactus to within 5 feet. He made the putt, sending the match to the 20th hole.

The 20th hole was played on hole #9. Earlier in the match on the 9th hole, Dubuisson hit his approach shot left into the desert and ended up conceding the hole. He again hit his second shot left on this hole into the desert and under a branch. He hit his next shot through the branch to within 7 feet. He once again made the putt to send the match to the 21st hole.

After halving the next two holes, Day won the 23rd hole with a birdie.

There are a few things a high handicap golfer can take away from this match.

First off, both Dubuisson and Day had very good short games the whole day. So good, it prompted Greg Norman to tweet the following.

It is so important to have a solid short game, yet this is an area that many high handicap and beginner golfers do not practice near enough. Dedicate weekly practice time for pitching and chipping.

Both golfers showed tremendous mental strength. Dubuisson stated he only slept one hour the night before because he was nervous about playing Ernie Els in the morning. He must have been physically drained after 41 holes of golf on Sunday but it only showed on a few shots. His mental determination was strong the whole day. Day won the 9th hole and then did not win another hole until he won the match by winning the 23rd hole. He blew leads of 3 up on the back nine and 2 up with 2 holes to go. He had Dubuisson all but dead on each of the first two extra holes only to see Dubuisson make miraculous shots to extend the match. He could have collapsed but didn’t. He instead played the best golf of the two on the extra holes.

One last takeaway from Sunday is something not to do. Don’t try to be a hero and hit a miraculous shot you can’t pull off. Dubuisson only attempted those two shots because he had no choice. It was attempt the shot or lose the match. I’m a big believer in making your own luck but even with that the golfing gods were smiling on Victor. He actually conceded the 9th hole earlier in the match when he was in the desert. Unless playing the last hole in their flight of the club championship, a high handicap golfer has no reason to attempt a shot that they have little chance of pulling off. Take the unplayable lie and move on.