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Tour Mash: Bubba wins at Riviera again

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Bubba Watson has his favorite layouts; there’s no way to deny it. The question now is, what do Riviera Country Club and Augusta National have in common? On the surface, the former is a bit narrower, known in the golfing canon as Hogan’s Alley. In contrast, the home of the Masters is known for a fair amount of forgiveness off the tee. Both favor long hitters, and by all means Bubba fits the bill. And both venues have allowed two Bubba wins each (Augusta 2012, 2014 and Riviera 2014, 2016).

Watson held off a late charge from Adam Scott, who seems to understand the short putter again, as well as a fine performance from Jason Kokrak, to secure PGA Tour victory No. 9 by one stroke.

When asked what the secret was to his performance this week, Bubba said:

“Being patient. Made some mistakes, but I stayed patient. I stayed committed and that’s what we’re working on. The last five years of my life on the golf course and working on the head game. The physical game is there. It’s just staying patient, focusing on one shot at a time and staying committed.”

Watch out, Augusta.

Related: See the clubs Watson used to win. 

Ko gets Nomura-ed at the Australian Open

There’s only so much a golfing prodigy can do. Lydia Ko puts herself in position to challenge on a weekly basis, but when a Haru Nomura comes out of the pack and makes eight birdies in her first 17 holes… and we’re not talking tap-ins, understand?

Nomura made some long-distance phone calls on the greens at the Women’s Australian Open to shoot a final-round 65 and win by three shots over Ko (she shot a final-round 67). The victory was the first for the 23-year-old, perhaps a sign of arriving greatness. As for Ko, she is still even money to win each and every week she tees it up.

Fraser secures third European Tour victory in Malaysia

Marcus Fraser brought home something for show-and-tell for his kids, as well as a sizable check for the adults in the house. The Australian’s experience showed with an error-free final round of 68. Pursuers Miguel Tabuena (Phillipines) and Soomin Lee (South Korea) each made mistakes over the closing stretch to fall to a second-place tie. The 22-year-old Lee made a double bogey on Nos. 16 and 18 on Sunday to fall from a healthy lead to a stroke behind, but indicated that the week offered many positives for his learning curve.

Northern Trust Open Collegiate Showcase: Future Tour prospects battle it out

CharlieDanielson

The devil may have gone down to Georgia, but Charlie Danielson was looking for a spot to steal in the Northern Trust Open, and he did. Each year the top college golfers assemble at Riviera for a winner-take-one competition. Danielson, from the University of Illinois, edged last year’s winner, Wake Forest’s Will Zalatoris, to earn a spot in the tournament proper. To certify his legitimacy, he shot 67 in round one, made the cut and finished T72.

Ronald Montesano writes for GolfWRX.com from western New York. He dabbles in coaching golf and teaching Spanish, in addition to scribbling columns on all aspects of golf, from apparel to architecture, from equipment to travel. Follow Ronald on Twitter at @buffalogolfer.

8 Comments

8 Comments

  1. MarkB A

    Feb 22, 2016 at 7:04 pm

    Nice win by Bubba against a strong field. HE is one of the best golfers in the world but haters gonna hate.

    • Ronald Montesano

      Feb 22, 2016 at 7:27 pm

      He plays four courses well, that I can count: Augusta, Riviera, Kapalua and TPC River Highlands. You can make a career off that type of record. What courses cause him difficulty? I’m think Sawgrass, any US Open venue, any British Open venue…where else?

      • Loohooser

        Feb 23, 2016 at 2:00 am

        He might yet have the capability to win a British and US Open each, depending on where they are held. Even a PGA. There’s going to be some courses in the next 10 years that will suit him well and he will win a couple more of those, for sure, in addition to a couple more Masters and he will be remembered as one of the best.

      • bunty

        Feb 24, 2016 at 2:36 am

        anything that has wind blowing. was abhorrent at the last ryder cup

        • Ronald Montesano

          Feb 24, 2016 at 5:09 am

          I agree. I think he is a calm-weather player and that certain courses fit his eye. With the greats (a level or two above where he is now) they find a way to play better in alll kinds of weather AND they figure out how to make more courses fit their eye.

  2. 4pillars

    Feb 22, 2016 at 1:20 pm

    I thought Bubba went there just to please the Sponsors.

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