M-M-M Good: Matt, Michelle and Miguel

Solid final rounds pay big dividends for three fan favorites

Chris Duthie

Professional golf is finally starting to get fun again. Give well-deserved credit and kudos to the three M’s—Matt, Michelle and the Mechanic.

On Sunday, Matt Kuchar won the RBC Heritage at Harbour Town Golf Links with a stunning, final-hole bunker blast that found the cup for a birdie and a one-stroke victory over Luke Donald.

“I told my caddie before that last shot, ‘I’m about due to make one of these,’” Kuchar said. “I went up and took a good read, knew it would release and break right to left, played it just right of the hole, watched it roll. I heard the crowd go crazy when the thing disappeared. I went crazy myself.”

Kuchar, who had been pounding on victory’s door the last four weeks, started the final round four shots behind Donald but the Florida native rocketed up the leaderboard when birdied seven of the first 10 holes, carded an impressive front-nine 30 and posted a final round total of 64.

It was his seventh PGA Tour title and his first since winning the Memorial last June.

Michelle Wie also came through with a resounding, come-from-behind win this weekend after shooting 67 for a two-stroke victory over Angela Stanford at the LPGA LOTTE Championship.

Like Kuchar, Wie overcame a four shot deficit to claim her third career tour title. This one was especially sweet—it was played in front of family and friends at breezy Ko Olina Golf Club in her home state of Hawaii.

“My caddy isn’t one for pep talks,” said Wie, “but he gave a good one today. He said, ‘It’s windy out there today, but play your game,’ and that’s really what I did. I didn’t try to force anything. I had a number in my head that I thought I needed to shoot, and I got it.”

On the Champions Tour, Miguel Angel Jimenez went wire-to-wire and won the Greater Gwinnett Championship. “The Mechanic,” who placed fourth at last week’s Masters, shot 67 for a two-shot victory over Bernhard Langer.

He iced the title with 32 consecutive bogey-free holes at TPC Sugarloaf in Duluth, GA.

“When you hit the ball straight and you put the ball close to the hole it looks easy, but nothing is easy,” said the ponytailed Spaniard, who became the third player to lead from start to finish in his debut on the 50-and-over tour.

Aiming to qualify for the European Ryder Cup team, Jimenez has indicated his first appearance on the Champions Tour might be his last for a while. 

“To me it’s not about money,” he said. “It’s about some different goals to make me feel proud of myself. To me I would feel nice to play on the Ryder Cup once more.”

NEXT UP

PGA Tour: Zurich Classic of New Orleans; April 24-27; TPC Louisiana; Avondale LA

LPGA Tour: Swinging Skirts LPGA Classic; April 24-27; Lake Merced GC; San Francisco, CA

Champions Tour: Insperity Invitational; May 2-4; The Woodlands CC; Woodlands TX

RELATED LINKS

Cheers! Bubba Wins at Augusta

Who Won the LPGA’s First Major of the Season?

Stadlers Make Father/Son History at the Masters

Chris Duthie is a contributor to Colorado AvidGolfer, the state’s leading resource for golf and the lifestyle that surrounds it. It publishes eight issues annually and proudly delivers daily content via www.coloradoavidgolfer.com.