Golf
Woods meets his match in Lucas Bjerregaard at Match Play
Published
7 years agoon
By
FNN SPORTSAUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Tiger Woods finally met his match Saturday, and it wasn’t Rory McIlroy.
Lucas Bjerregaard delivered the clutch shots so often seen from Woods to tie the match on the 16th hole and beat him on the 18th hole in a shocking conclusion when Woods missed a 4-foot putt. The victory sends the 27-year-old Dane into the semifinals of the Dell Technologies Match Play.
“It’s a shame it had to end the way it did,” Bjerregaard said. “Our match didn’t deserve that. But I’m happy to be on the winning side.”
Equally surprising was how Woods won earlier Saturday against McIlroy, a big match between the two biggest stars left at Austin Country Club. McIlroy was on the verge of squaring the match on the 16th hole when he had a short iron for his second shot into the par-5 16th. He made 7 and Woods closed him out on the next hole.
McIlroy was so angry he walked briskly away into a cart, and wouldn’t make eye contact on his way to the car.
Woods knows the feeling.
They were in the same spot below the hill on the 18th, just under 50 yards from the hole. Woods went first and his lob wedge came out soft and into a bunker. He blasted out nicely to 4 feet, but then his putt to send the match to extra holes spun off the left lip.
“This is going to sting for a few days,” Woods said in his last event before the Masters.
Bjerregaard, who won his first European Tour title last fall at St. Andrews in the Dunhill Links, next faces Matt Kuchar on Sunday morning in the semifinals.
Kuchar had to cope with a contentious moment in his 2-up victory over Sergio Garcia, two players in the news this year for all the wrong reasons.
Garcia had an 8-foot par putt on No. 7 to win the hole to square the match. He left it just short, and then casually stabbed at it from the other side as it rimmed around the cup. Such putts typically are conceded. Kuchar said that was his intention. But under the rules, a putt can’t be conceded after a player hits it.
Kuchar says he didn’t want to win the hole that way. That’s when Garcia suggested if he felt that way, he could concede the next hole.
“I thought about it and said, ‘I don’t like that idea, either,’” he said.
Garcia needed to birdie the 18th hole to send the match into extra holes, missed the green and wound up conceding.
“At the end of the day, I’m the one that made the mistake,” Garcia said.
Overlooked it all this drama was British Open champion Francesco Molinari, who has steamrolled his way into the semifinals. Molinari, at No. 7 the only player from the top 20 remaining, has played only 73 holes in five matches. He is the only player to have not lost a match, and the only one left who has not played the 18th hole.
“I can play 27 holes per match, that’s not really the point,” Molinari said after his 6-and-5 victory over Kevin Na. “It’s nice obviously to close it out early, but I’m ready to go as long as it takes.”
Kevin Kisner became only the third player to lose a match in group play and advance to the semifinals. He lost to Ian Poulter on Wednesday and has been rock-solid ever since, winning three straight holes late to flip his match in a 2-and-1 victory over Louis Oosthuizen.
This is the second straight year Kisner has reached the semifinals. He lost in the championship match last year to Bubba Watson.
Woods, who had not been at Match Play since 2013, advanced to the weekend for the first time since 2008, his third title in this World Golf Championship. All the attention was on his match against McIlroy, and Woods had a 3-up lead through 10 holes until McIlroy closed the gap.
Woods holed a 7-foot birdie putt to stay 1 up, and then it all changed on the 16th.
McIlroy pounded a 395-yard drive with the wind at his back. Woods drove into a half-buried lie in the bunker, could only advance it 60 yards and had 204 yards for his third shot before McIlroy hit a short iron for his second.
Woods never had to putt.
McIlroy hit a shot so bad that it was short and right. Worse yet, it hopped out of its pitch mark on the edge of a bunker, but not back enough to fall into the sand. Facing a difficult shot to the pin over another bunker, he went long and the ball rolled through the gallery against wooden posts. His only option was to go back to the original spot and play his fifth shot.
Woods, who looked certain to lose the hole and go all square, suddenly was 2 up with two to play. He closed out McIlroy with a 12-foot par putt.
“It was a difficult day for both of us,” Woods said.
Bjerregaard looked at the bracket the night before and knew there was a chance he would get Woods. First, he had to beat Henrik Stenson, and the Dane took care of Scandinavia’s best player in 16 holes.
He said he often dreamed about a chance to play Woods in a match when he was growing up in Demark.
“I didn’t think it was ever going to come true,” he said.
Playing him or beating him?
“Both,” he said with a smile. “And definitely the latter.”
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Golf
Russell Henley Wins Red Cardigan at 2025 Arnold Palmer Invitational
Published
8 months agoon
March 9, 2025By
Mike BrodskyORLANDO, Fla. (FNN Sports) – Russell Henley wins his first red cardigan at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, today, along with $4 million of the $20 million prize pool. The red cardigan was first awarded in 2017, in memory of Arnold Palmer who passed the year before. This is Henley’s fifth win on the PGA Tour.
Russell Henley is greeted by his family on the 18th green after winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational (Photo credit: Mike Brodsky, Florida National News)
Henley finished at 11 under par for the four day tournament, carding a 70 today. Collin Morikawa finished in second place at 10 under par. API defending champion, Scottie Scheffler, finished today at 4 under par, tied for 11th place.
Scottie Scheffler tees off at the Arnold Palmer Invitational (Photo Credit: Mike Brodsky, Florida National News)
This coming week, the top golfers head to TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra, for The Players Championship. The winner will walk away with $4.5 million of the $25 million up for grabs. This is the PGA Tour’s largest regular season purse. Stay tuned to www.FloridaNationalNews.com for more.
Celebrity
LPGA Pros Shutout Celebs at the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions “Break The Glass” Challenge
Published
10 months agoon
January 28, 2025By
Mike BrodskyORLANDO, Fla. (Florida National News) – Some big names in sports, entertainment, and music can be found with golf clubs in hand at The Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions at Lake Nona Golf & Country Club, this weekend. About 50 celebrities will compete for a $500,000 purse, while LPGA Tour players try to grab their share of $2 million in prize money.
Today, LPGA pros Megan Khang, Alexa Pano, and Bailey Tardy took on celebrities Landon Donovan, Major League Soccer legend, Michael Peña, award-winning actor, and Kira Dixon, Reporter and Miss America 2015 in the annual “Break The Glass” challenge. The LPGA pros shutout the celebs 3-0. You can watch the action here: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DFYsQKbyiAi/?igsh=YzZlNG9rNXhvbnRy. (And be sure to follow Florida National News on Instagram and Facebook.)
Lydia Ko returns to defend her title, after adding an Olympic gold medal and membership in the LPGA Hall of Fame to her resume since last year’s tournament. Actors Don Cheadle and Larry The Cable Guy, NBA stars Blake Griffin and Ray Allen, and Pro Football Hall of Famers Marcus Allen and Charles Woodson are just some of the celebs hitting the links Thursday, 1/30 through Sunday, 2/2. Tickets and more information are available online at http://www.HGVLPGA.com.
Golf
The ANNIKA Golf Tournament Welcomes WNBA Rookie of the Year Caitlin Clark
Published
12 months agoon
November 12, 2024By
Mike BrodskyBELLEAIR, Fla. (FNN) – The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican Golf Club in Belleair tees off Wednesday, 11/13 with a Pro-Am featuring WNBA Rookie of the Year Caitlin Clark. The tournament runs Thursday through Sunday, as the LPGA golfers compete for their share of a $3.25 million purse, while also trying to secure their spot in the season-ending CME Group Tour Championship. It’s the fifth year of competition for this tournament, named after Annika Sorenstam, who is one of just two players to currently have a tournament named after her on the PGA Tour. Proceeds from this tournament benefit the ANNIKA Foundation, which aims to develop, empower, and advance young women around the world through golf and in life.
The field of 120 includes Nelly Korda, Lilia Vu, Lydia Ko, Brittany Lincicome, and many more top golfers. Annika Sorenstam will particpate in the Pro-Am, but the appearance of Caitlin Clark has certainly boosted ticket sales, and helped to sell out tickets for the Women’s Leadership Summit, where Clark spoke Tuesday.
Back-to-back hurricanes knocked down 40 trees and left twenty inches of rain on the fairways and greens for days. But the course is ready for this weekend’s tournament.
If you’d like to check out the tournament, visit www.theannika.com for tickets and additional information. Be sure to follow www.FloridaSportsChannel.com and www.FloridaNationalNews.com for more.
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