Getting to Know Mark Wilson

Interesting look at Mark Wilson in these videos. The first video is back from March of last season. Prior to this year, Mark’s last win came back in 2009 at the Mayakoba Golf Classic. Thanks to that win – his poor performance last year (132nd on the money list) made him exempt for 2011 without having to go back to Q-School. But prior to that, Wilson also won the 2007 Honda Classic, which interestingly enough also had a Monday finish and a playoff. But even more interesting is the fact that Wilson credits his caddy (Chris) for the win. Not that this is unusual, but in this instance it was. It was during the 2nd round on Friday in which he and Camilo Villegas were on the 5th tee, and Wilson had just hit a hybrid. Camilo and his caddie were pondering amongst themselves precisely what type of hybrid Wilson had used, when Wilson’s caddie overheard them talking to each other and blurted out, “It’s 18 degrees.” Subsequently Wilson was penalized for his caddie having offered advice to his playing partner. Mark goes on to say that the penalty kick-started his round and he went on to win the tournament, because of what happened that day.

He also said in the interview that if he wasn’t a professional golfer, he would most likely have been an accountant. Having already won over $2 million thus far in 2011, hopefully he has secured the services of a good one.

The second video is a rare look inside of a PGA Tour player who never misses an opportunity to credit his faith for his position in life, and it’s refreshing to see someone willing to share that part of his life with others. Faith is a big part of what makes Mark Wilson tick.

 

 

Parting Shot: The Phoenix Open

It’s worth nothing that the last time I watched the conclusion of a golf tournament finishing on a Monday was back in the fall with the 2010 Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor. Before that it was the 2008 US Open with Woods and Rocco going mano a mano. Before that…. can’t remember. It’s been that long.

But today I tuned in for the final 2 hours of what will forever more be remembered as the Phoenix Frostbite Open, wanting desperately to see a warm, fuzzy, mittens-wearing character with a homemade swing do the unthinkable…. hoping that an unemotional, meticulous tactician of an opponent wouldn’t be quite as predictable. But it wouldn’t work out that way in the end. Yeah – we saw yet another great finish this season, and the tactician would prevail to continue his journey of what has already been a remarkable season for him. Mark Wilson is playing the golf of his life, and it’s refreshing to note that strategy and percentage golf can still reap huge dividends in the bomb-and-gouge era that the game has become. But it also left me wanting to reach through the television to hug the lovable action figure known as Tommy Two Gloves. Almost, Tommy. Almost.

The fact of the matter is that success breeds success. Over the last 36 holes, Mark Wilson showed the same steady patience and focus that enabled him to close the deal back at the Sony Open earlier last month. Not a long hitter of the ball, but sneaky long for a player of his size and stature. And deadly straight, as you would expect of a player that has managed to win on this tour despite giving up nearly 1/3 of a football field in distance to some of the more prodigiously long hitters. But Wilson has shown tenacity where it matters most at this level – iron play and putting. He just doesn’t make mistakes when the heat is on. As impressive as his win was back at the Sony, this one just seemed all the more. And for all the right reasons…. not that his win back at the Sony needed any sort of validation, but if it did – he took care of that on Monday as well.

Well played, Mr. Wilson. Well played.

 

 

 

Phoenix Open Meanderings

Tommy Gainey’s steady game started losing traction the last 2 hours of play on Sunday. Of course – the brutal pace-of-play did nothing to help matters. The commentators noted that 5 groups were backed up on one of the tee boxes shortly after the start of the final round, and I have to ask: How in the world did things deteriorate to that point? Was it a reshuffling of pairings issue? Had to be… But FIVE GROUPS? That’s just down right inexcusable, regardless of whatever reason. But enough about that.

So T2G is now trailing by two strokes with only 6 holes to go. Mark Wilson, who specializes in hitting the ball straight, utilizing precision wedge play and putting akin to a player by the name of Jim Furyk – leads this event by 2 shots. But here’s where it gets interesting…. there’s 2 par5’s left on the table for Monday. There’s also the short, reachable par4 17th that can swing the tournament 180 degrees. This thing is far from being over. Far from it. And while Gainey might very well have lost the momentum and his opportunity during the final 11 holes played on Sunday, it could also be argued that he now has the opportunity to go into the final 6 holes tomorrow with nothing to lose and really turn on the pressure.

But he’s not the only player that Wilson has chasing him.

Chris Couch is only 3 shots back with 5 holes to go. He has the par5 15th to make up some ground, as well as the drivable par4 17th. Martin Laird is also 3 shots back, but with only 2 holes remaining. Again – I suspect he’ll be thinking eagle first thing in the morning as he steps on the tee box of the par4 17th, and he’ll most likely need to birdie the 18th as well. Unlikely, but not out of the question. Bill Haas was very much a part of the final picture, before falling on his sword on the par3 13th with a double bogey right before play was suspended. Although he has the par5 15th and the par4 17th to work with, the reality is that he needs some help from Wilson. The only other guy who will be in the thick of things Monday morning is Jason Dufner, who finds himself 2 shots back with 4 holes to play. His first chance to knot things up begins right out of the gates, as he’ll be hoping to cut into the lead with the par5 15th.

So without ruling out any number of unforeseen circumstances – we’ve got a steady player who has already won this season looking to close things out with his two stroke lead over the final 6 holes, hoping to become the year’s first multiple winner. Then we have 3 guys with an outside chance…. Most notably Tommy Two Gloves, who is 2 shots off the pace and playing along side him. Jason Dufner has an outside shot, also 2 shots back with 4 holes to play. But he needs a worse-case birdie on his opening hole tomorrow to improve his odds. And Chris Couch is the last likely competitor who could pull this out, although he’s three shots back and will need to make serious hay over his final 4 holes.

I mean, we could throw a few guys in there just for the sake of conversation…. Geoff Ogilvy, who’s 4 shots back with 4 to play. Or Rickie Fowler, who’s 6 back with 5 to play. Gary Woodland and Y.E. Yang, both who are 4 back with 3 holes to play…. but unless Wilson just steps on his wee-wee big time tomorrow morning, you can pretty much remove these guys from the picture.

Mark Wilson has a great chance to win this thing going away tomorrow, but he still has to hit the shots (and I think) he needs to pick up at least one birdie coming in to get it done.

The coverage is scheduled to resume at 11:00 a.m. Monday morning on The Golf Channel. Should be interesting to see which of these scenarios play out….

Two Gloves Better than One: Tommy Gainey Leading Phoenix Open

Courtesy of Getty Images

A golf swing that only a mother could love…. or a golf swing that looks like any number of across-the-fairway resemblances one could muster in their weekend rounds at their home course. Whatever the case may be, the funky, several-moving-parts golf swing that is employed by the eccentric player better known as Tommy “Two Gloves” Gainey is holding its own this week in the desert. Gainey has put together 2 great opening rounds of 63 and 65 to take a 1-stroke lead over Mark Wilson. Phil Mickelson and Rickie Fowler are only 4 shots back.

For PGATOUR.COM’s official 2nd round recap, click HERE.

Just a side note: a Monday finish will be in order, as the tournament officials opted against cramming three rounds in over the weekend to finish on time Sunday. CBS will air live coverage of the third round/part of the fourth round on Sunday, starting at 3:00 p.m. EST.

Mark Wilson Wins 36-Hole Sunday Marathon at Sony Open

Courtesy of PGA Tour/Stan Badz

Where do we begin… maybe we’ll start with his opening round of 5-under 65 back on Friday, consisting of 7 birdies and 2 bogeys. Solid start. The second round on Saturday would be a mixed bag, 6 birdies/3 bogeys for 3-under 67. They say that Saturday is moving day, but that wasn’t the case this week with the weather. Sunday morning was moving day, and Mark Wilson got the U-haul rolling…. a round of 5-under 65 in the morning put him in great position heading into the afternoon, giving him the opportunity to play with house-money for the remainder of the 2011 season. And Sunday afternoon he managed his missed shots flawlessly, carding nary a bogey and closing out the 3rd win of his career with a 3-under par round of 67. The win netted him $990,000, and a stress-free 2011. Congrats to Mark Wilson, who will be enjoying Hawaii for an additional week in 2012.

Notables

Tim Clark is another guy who hopped on the revolving equipment merry-go-round for 2011, leaving Srixon and signing a deal with Titleist. And it seems that he’s adjusting to the new ball and sticks just fine – posting his best finish on tour since his win at the Players Championship back in May of last season. Clark shot 4-under 66 in the morning round on Sunday, following it up with an impressive 6-under 64 in the afternoon. He finished T2.

Steve Marino made things interesting near the end on Sunday, with a little help from an unbelievable second shot on the par5 closing hole that gave him an outside shot at a playoff with Wilson. Marino’s eagle putt just narrowly missed the left side of the hole, leaving him a tap-in birdie and a share of 2nd place with Tim Clark. This was his best finish since his T2 back at the Crowne Plaza Invtl in 2009.

We’ve gotten so accustomed to seeing Matt Kuchar’s name near the top of the Sunday leaderboards that it’s almost impossible to not notice when he isn’t. But he was there again this week, 4 consecutive rounds in the 60’s and another top-10 finish. Matt finished 11-under for the tournament, T5.

Steve Stricker is starting 2011 off with a bang… he finished T4 at last week’s Hyundai Tournament of Champions, and made another strong showing again this week by finishing T9. Two tournaments – two top-10’s. Could be yet another great season on his storied comeback from 4 seasons ago.

Finally… Davis Love III, the latest Titleist turncoat who’s now gaming Bridgestone equipment doesn’t seem to be having any issues making the adjustment. Davis was well in the mix heading into the final round before running out of steam, finishing with a 1-under round of 69 and sharing 9th place with Stricker. Nice to see DL3 getting off to a good start this season.

Notable MIA’s

The following notables failing to make the first cut of 2011: Bo Van Pelt, Carl Pettersson, Justin Leonard, John Daly, Jim Furyk, Robert Allenby, Adam Scott, K.J. Choi, Camilo Villegas, David Duval, Robert Garrigus

Rating a Few Notable Rookies

Because so many players finished within 10 strokes of the leader after 36 holes, a secondary cut was implemented after 54 holes.

Chris Kirk, Nationwide Tour Grad from 2010 – T30 @ 6-under par

Daniel Summerhays, Nationwide Tour Grad – T34 @ 5-under par

Nate Smith, Q-School Grad – T42 @ 4-under par

Kevin Chappell, Nationwide Tour Grad – T42 @ 4-under par

Matt McQuillan, T54 @ 2-over par

Ben Martin, Q-School Grad – Missed Cut after 54 holes

Alex Rocha, Q-School Grad – Missed Cut after 54 holes

Fabian Gomez, Nationwide Tour Grad – Missed Cut after 54 holes

Joseph Bramlett, Q-School Grad – Missed Cut after 54 holes

Jamie Lovemark, Nationwide Tour Grad – Cut after 36 holes

 
For an official full recap of the Sony Open, click HERE.