Mahan hunts down Bridgestone win, Tiger trounced
Hunter Mahan produced a fine final round at Firestone Country Club yesterday, closing on six-under-par 64 to win the WGC Bridgestone Invitational by two strokes, 12-under in total.
Tiger Woods, so dominant at this tournament in the past, finished some 30 strokes behind Mahan, although thanks to Phil Mickelson's inability to seize the moment Woods hangs onto his world No. 1 spot. For the time being, at least.
The 28-year-old Mahan sealed his second victory of the season with a flawless round of six birdies, coming from three strokes behind the lead to win, fending off nearest rival and countryman Ryan Palmer, who finished in second place on 10-under. South Africa's Retief Goosen was tied for third with the USA's Bo Van Pelt on nine-under, while another American, Sean O'Hair, could only finish in fifth place despite starting the final day atop the leaderboard.
The highest placed European was Sweden's Peter Hanson, eighth, while other big names finishing inside the top 10 included Open Champion Louis Oosthuizen, three-time major winner Padraig Harrington, world No. 4 Steve Stricker and Northern Ireland's brilliant young prospect Rory McIlroy.
But Sunday's final round was as notable for big names underperforming as it was for Mahan's impressive surge to victory. Though Woods has been a shadow of his usual self throughout the season as he deals with ongoing turmoil in his private life, surely nobody expected the 34-year-old to play so haplessly at a tournament he has dominated in the past.
The lack of a cut at the Akron, Ohio, tournament meant Woods' misery was extended over four days, and the 14-time major winner could have been auditioning for some golf-themed take on Hamlet, so weary, flat, stale and unprofitable was his game. Woods had played badly in each round, but he saved his worst for last on Sunday, finishing with a seven-over-par 77, following an opener of 74, Friday's 72 and Saturday's 75.
On Sunday he hit six bogeys, two double bogeys and a trio of birdies, all of which saw him finish 78th in a field of 80, and added up to Woods' worst-ever professional showing at a tournament. His previous poorest showing over four rounds had come at his very first tournament as a pro, when he finished 60th at the 1996 Greater Milwaukee Classic.
The golfer admitted that he didn't want to turn out for his country at the Ryder Cup "playing like this. I would not help the team if I was playing like this." But Woods added he believed he could "turn it around" - an analysis that seems more hopeful than realistic.
While Woods' attendance at Celtic Manor grows ever more doubtful though, Mahan would appear to be a certainty for Corey Pavin's team after leaping to No. 2 in the points standing for the qualification places. But if Mahan's impressive performance would have encouraged Pavin, the US captain must have been baffled by Phil Mickelson's dreadful closing round.
The world No. 2 had battled his way into a position where he could have challenged for victory on the final round - and such a win would have seen him supplant Woods as the world No. 1 ranked golfer, an achievement Mickelson has surely longed for.
Yet on the day, Mickelson slumped to a wretched eight-over-par 78, with seven bogeys and a double on the 9th, together with a solitary birdie on the 17th. That saw the 40-year-old finish three-over for the tournament, way back in joint 46th place.
Lee Westwood, the only other man who might have dethroned Woods, withdrew from the tournament on Friday with a ruptured plantaris muscle in his calf; Westwood will be out for six weeks, with the Ryder Cup taking place eight weeks from now.
The mathematicians among you will be way ahead of me, but that should mean the Englishman, currently leading the European Ryder Cup standings, will be fit to turn out for Colin Montgomerie in October.
Whether he finds himself facing off against Tiger Woods would seem questionable right now, however; it's surely going to take longer than six weeks for Woods to successfully address his problems. At this point, six lifetimes may not be enough.
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