WGT Golf News

  • Leishman Waits To Win Travelers

    25 Jun 2012

     

    By GlobalGolfPost

    Marc Leishman sat in the clubhouse for a couple of hours, wishing on the one hand, knowing on the other. He had, after all, shot 62 in the final round of the Travelers Championship and had the clubhouse lead a 14 under par. But he was certain that someone, anyone on the leaderboard would go at least one better before the day was out.

    One by one, the contenders dropped from the leaderboard, and at the end of the day Leishman’s total was good enough for his first PGA Tour victory.

    "I said to my caddie on the range this morning that we would probably have to get to 15 under to have a chance," Leishman said after the long wait. "When we finished at 14 (under), I was pretty confident it wouldn't be (enough). It's really a funny game."

    Not so funny to Charlie Hoffman, who had gotten to 16 under with five holes to play and had a two-shot lead on Leishman, three ahead of assorted others. But Hoffman, who has one PGA Tour victory, hit his tee shot in the water at the par-4 17th and made double-bogey. And he followed that with a bogey at the home hole to fall back to 13 under, one back of Leishman.

    Leishman, a 29-year-old Australian, finished 72 holes at 266 on the par-70 TPC River Highlands course just outside Hartford, Conn. Although the Travelers was Leishman's first PGA Tour victory, he is no stranger to winning. He has won four times worldwide, including three wins in Australia. And he has a victory on the Nationwide Tour.

    But to win on the big Tour, it took a big day. Leishman began Sunday's final round tied for 20th at 6 under. He went out in 5-under 30, including four birdies in a five-hole stretch, beginning at the par-4 second.

    He made back-to-back birdies at the par-5 13th and par-4 14th but didn't make birdie at the drivable par-4 15th. A birdie at the 17th capped off his 8-under round and started the long wait. 

    A number of players had chances to catch Leishman but all came up short. Former champion and Masters winner Bubba Watson finished one shot back but only made one birdie on the final nine, that at the reachable 13th.

    Tim Clark was another shot back at 12 under but failed to birdie the 13th or the 15th and missed a short par putt at the 17th. And if Brian Davis had managed to make a couple of short putts that he missed coming home, he'd have his first PGA Tour victory. Instead, he made bogey at the par-5 13th and another at the 10th to finish two back of Leishman.

     

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