Author: Matt Rumack
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Winners
| 2013 | Tiger Woods |
| 2014 | Matt Every |
| 2015 | Matt Every |
| 2016 | Jason Day |
| 2017 | Marc Leishman |
Tiger Woods Comes Back a Contender
When Tiger Woods declared just one week in advance that he’d be attending the Valspar Championship, the organizers of the tournament had to scramble to create extra hospitality tents as well as merchandise tents full of Tiger branded gear. He did not disappoint.
Did anyone expect such a quick return to contention for Tiger? Realistically, we all expected a guy who would play well and belong on Tour. However, Tiger was a serious contender in the Valspar in what was a very strong field of players, and he fell just one foot short of forcing a playoff hole. The next chapter of Tiger’s career looks promising, and you’d be a fool at this point to say that he won’t find his way back into the winner’s circle, barring injury.
Reed’s Choke Ends Casey’s Drought
Sorry if we’re downplaying your victory Paul Casey; us true golf fans are aware that that was a monumental win for the 40-year-old Englishman. Paul Casey has been the almost kid on the PGA Tour for years now. Casey has won 13 times on the European Tour, but his only prior win came at the Shell Houston Open in 2009. Since that lone victory, Casey has logged 40 Top 10s and finished in the Top 3 in 11 of those. At that point, it’s basically bad luck that not one of those 11 Top 3 finishes produced a win.
Starting the day five shots back, it appeared Casey would settle for another Top-10 finish when all of the sudden–BAM BAM BAM! Casey dropped birdies on 11,12, and 13, then parred his way in to set the mark at 10-under par. Corey Conners, who led the tournament for the first three rounds, had already fallen on his face, Justin Rose was unsteady down the stretch, Tiger dropped a 40-footer on 17, but couldn’t pull off the miracle on 18 to get into a playoff, and forgotten among all the Tiger chatter was Patrick Reed’s fairly epic choke.
Needing just par to get into a playoff, Reed failed to get his putt up the hill of the double-tiered green on 18. Perhaps the worst feeling in golf is when you have to watch your putt (or shot) return back to you. Reed had to miserably watch his ball dribble back down to his feet on the 18th hole of a tournament he was in contention to win. Some may say a bit of luck was involved for Casey to come away with the win. I say it’s just the golf gods getting him back for nine years of almosts.
Rest in peace to the King. It’s been 18 months since the passing of Arnold Palmer. The Tour pays its respects by staying in Florida for the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill Club and Lodge. This tournament is an invitational, so the 120 players in this event have earned their way into this tournament. With only 120 players in the field, the odds of making the cut are slightly better than usual as Top 70 and ties still apply this week.
44.23 miles.
