Ames dominates Sawgrass with six-shot victory
IN: News | US PGA | The Players Championship (2006) | Wrap | by Bruce Young | 27 Mar 2006
The victory by Stephen Ames at the Players Championship at the TPC at Sawgrass is not the surprise it at first appears.
It is true that Ames has hardly been a prolific winner of tournaments, let alone USPGA Tour wins, but his record at Sawgrass and in Florida generally is good and there had been ample evidence in recent weeks that his game was reaching a point where he could well contend here. Contending is one thing but winning by six shots against such world class field is another.
The 41-year-old father of two, who first played the PGA Tour in 1998, had not started well in 2006 but once he arrived in Florida things made a turn for the better. He started well at Doral but the weekend was not so good to him and he finished 20th. Then the following week at the Honda Classic he again had a poor Saturday although his Sunday 68 saw him finish inside the top ten and the writing was on the wall for a likely further improvement at the TPC at Sawgrass where he has often played well. He was runner up to Craig Perks' simply stunning whirlwind finish in 2002 but on other occasions he has also shown it is a golf course that fits his eye. He missed the cut last year but in 2003 he was 17th and 2004 he finished 13th after a slow start to the event.
This week, after a session with his sports psychologist to clear the mind of confusing on course rhetoric between himself and his caddie brother, Robert, he made a solid start on Thursday with an opening 71 in the afternoon draw. On Friday with the benefit of the morning conditions Ames made a big move with a second round 66 to be just one behind the second round leader, Jim Furyk.
According to Ames in his post tournament interview he made mention of the special relationship he and his brother have developed this week after what appeared to have been confusion and disagreement between them in earlier events. If the manner in which they worked together here is any indication - along with the emphatic result – then the suggestion by Ames' mind phycologist to work with, rather than against, each other has had immediate results. There was a refreshing warmth and closeness between them and although brother Robert had significant input, Ames was the one in control. His post round comments on that relationship were very candid and open and are perhaps more about what golf fans want to hear than the often times predictable comments made in such interviews.
Ames took his one shot lead over Singh and Garcia into the final round and within six holes it appeared that he was not about to succumb to the pressure of the high class line-up which had been breathing down his neck at the start of the day. It was rock solid stuff early on and when his closest challengers at the start of the day, Garcia and Singh, dropped three and five shots respectively in the first five holes, Ames found himself ahead by four after his second birdie of the day at the 6th.
He missed a good chance at the 9th when, after laying up at the par five, he hit it to eight feet but he had maintained his four shot cushion. At the 10th he continued with his confident and positive approach when he took driver from the tee at the dangerous par four and appeared to have that hole well and truly in hand when left with just a short iron to the flag. His second was perhaps on too aggressive a line and caught the front bunker and was plugged. His only hope was to try and get it on the green somewhere but not only did he not do that he left it in the bunker and the resultant double saw him give back two of his four shot lead. At about that moment Retief Goosen had a great chance for birdie at the 13th from ten feet but missed and a great opportunity to close the gap to just one was gone.
Any suggestion that the double bogey might upset the Canadian was quickly dispelled when Ames hit a fine drive and brilliant second to the par five 11th to set up a fifteen feet eagle chance. He missed that but the resultant birdie increased the gap to three over Goosen. Ames parred the 12th but at the 13th he hit a simply stunning iron to the dangerous par three to less than three feet and was back at 11 under. Goosen had bogeyed that same hole fifteen minutes earlier but holed his second monster of the day at the 14th this time for birdie and remained within four.
Ames missed one of his few fairways of the day when he drove it in the right rough at the 14th but then laid up short of the cross bunker. He pitched from there to 14 feet and holed a fine curling right to left for par to stay at 11 under and four ahead.
To all intents and purposes Ames appeared the winner but the dangers of the final few holes at Sawgrass ensure that there is little chance to relax. He hit a beautiful second to the 15th to 11 feet and when that went in the difference was five and surely now he could begin to think of victory and its spoils.
At the 16th Ames tee shot found the first cut of rough along the right edge of the fairway but he was lying so well that he was able to get all of his five iron on it. A wind switch saw his approach from 200 yards or so just clear the front right bunker and he scrambled up onto the front edge of the green. From 27 feet however his putt never looked like missing and he had now had moved to fourteen under and had the luxury of a seven shot lead playing the last two holes at this venue.
A two putt par from long range at the 17th and another rock solid par at the last saw Ames run out a six shot winner after Goosen had birdied the last to break three shots clear of the log jam for third.
Ames suggested that his late qualification for Augusta might not necessarily guarantee his appearance there. He had arranged for a family holiday in the Orlando area over the next two weeks but surely for the man who has played in the US Masters just the once, the temptation will be too great. His win this week guarantees him a three-year exemption to the Masters.
In the end Jim Furyk, Camilo Villegas, Pat Perez and Henrik Stenson all shared that placing. Stenson further confirmed his growing status in the game while Villegas took full advantage of his late inclusion in the field when he improved to third from 12th at the start of the day.
Villegas is on track already for Rookie of the Year honours although his three putt bogey at the 11th and his missed opportunity for birdie from five feet at the 13th would prove costly in the final wash up. He missed out on his last chance to gain entry to the Masters as a third place alone would have likely got him inside the top ten on the moneylist at the end of this week, the last qualifying criteria for Augusta. He will miss that by just one place but the future looks very bright for the Colombian and for his first start in this event it was in impressive debut.
Tiger Woods can be forgiven for his less than impressive week given the personal circumstances that shadowed him all week with his father's illness. Vijay Singh struggled through the day but still finished 8th and seems on track for a good week at Augusta and Ernie Els was much better this week when he shared 8th placing with Singh.
Another who showed the right stuff with Augusta in mind was Jose Maria Olazabal who has so often played well at Augusta and showed when 7th this week that he is on track for the big test in eleven days time.
The best of the Australians was Craig Parry, who is not even in the field for Augusta but he showed that despite a shaky last day things are getting better for him. He finished 22nd.
Robert Allenby was 38th, Peter Lonard was 45th, Adam Scott 53rd, after a horror weekend that included rounds of 82 and 76, Nathan Green 66th and Mark Hensby 74th.
The USPGA Tour heads to the outskirts of Atlanta for this week's Bell South event as the final lead up to Augusta starting on April 6th.
Photo - WireImage
