Gnarly Weather Squelches Stadler at French Open

McDowell Repeats With Brilliant Final Round 67

Chris Duthie

Wretched weather conspired against Colorado’s own Kevin Stadler, who blew a four-shot lead going into Sunday’s final round of the French Open to finish one stroke behind winner Graeme McDowell in Saint-Quentin-En-Yvelines, France.

Stadler, who carded a final-round 76 in wind-driven, pouring rain, actually had an opportunity to win the tournament had he birdied the 72^nd hole. Instead, he three-putted from long range, capped by a missed three-footer that would have secured a playoff.

“[The weather] was absolutely miserable,” said Stadler, who earlier this year won his first PGA Tour event at the perfect-weather Waste Management Phoenix Open in Scottsdale. “We don’t play in that stuff in the States.”

Conversely, McDowell felt right at home in the soggy conditions, carding five birdies and a 4-under 67—the best round of the day—that allowed the Northern Ireland player to overcome an eight-stroke deficit and repeat as French Open champion.

“That goes back to my upbringing a little bit in my teens, playing through all weathers and conditions,” said McDowell, who finished with a 5-under 279 total. “Playing golf in bad weather is an art form. Some guys are good at it, some guys are not.”

Players were using the French Open as a tune-up for next week’s British Open at Royal Liverpool Golf Club in Hoylake. Overcoming the wind and rain, a common occurrence at the Open, makes McDowell—a 2010 U.S. Open titlist—an early favorite for the season’s third major championship.

“I’ve pretty much thought of myself a decent bad weather golfer until the last five years,” said McDowell, whose best finish on this season’s PGA Tour is a third at the HSBC Championships. “I feel like I’m spending a little bit too much time in America. I’m a little bit soft, and I needed that type of a day.”

Stadler is a former standout at Kent Denver and USC, and is the 33-year-old son of Evergreen’s Craig Stadler, a 13-time winner on the PGA Tour including the 1982 Masters.

At Augusta in April the two became the first father and son to play in the same Masters.

RELATED LINKS

Kevin Stadler Shines at WM Phoenix Open

Craig and Kevin Stadler Compete in Same Field at The Masters

Of Paters and Putters

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.