Weekley builds on cult status with Verizon victory

BY Bruce Young | US PGA Tour | 2007 Verizon Heritage | Wrap | 17 Apr 2007

The conditions might have been slightly more player friendly on Monday morning (US time) for the delayed final round of the Verizon Heritage Classic than they had been 24 hours earlier, but they were certainly not easy.

Strong winds off the adjacent Calibogue Sound continued to buffet the Harbour Town layout and the unusual conditions produced a bizarre finish. Boo Weekley, who returned to the PGA Tour in 2007 after three years on the Nationwide Tour, won his first USPGA Tour event after holing two par saving chips from off the green at the 17th and 18th to edge out Ernie Els who, after finding the hazard at the 17th and making bogey, was left with too much to do at the last. Els needed a two to tie at the signature par four 18th and did his best with a second to two feet.

Weekley has gained more of a reputation for the rain pants he has regularly worn to ward of ringworm from which he suffers when wearing cotton but now his impressive golf game might start to make the headlines instead. “I mean, this is polyester/cotton is what I’ve got on right now. I haven’t had no problem with it, which it ain’t really got me playing in hot, hot weather yet. I was curious to see how it’s going to act. I’m hoping that I won’t have no reaction to it.”

Weekley pitched in from behind the green at the 17th after being long with his tee shot and left his first pitch short and then at the 18h, after missing the green with his approach and a chip across the green, he stood with a hanging lie and blustery winds over a 20 foot chip and run. As soon as the ball hit the green it looked a great chance to go in and took the left to right break and in it went.

“Well, I just thank the good Lord they went in,” said Weekley later referring to the holed chips. “I mean, it’s unreal, back-to-back chip-ins. I don’t know how often that’s happened out here on the Tour for a win, but it was pretty dramatic for me because I thought the first chip, you know, on 17 I was just trying to land it just barely on the fringe and let the wind push it to the hole. I just flubbed it a little bit. Then the next one, I was just like, all right, I ain’t even going to worry about it, just get up there and chip it on, two-putt it and make my bogey and go to the next hole and give myself another opportunity (Laughing) but I did it again on 18.”

Weekley had let a great opportunity slip a few weeks earlier at the Honda Classic when he missed a short putt at the last hole of regulation play to win the event but lost in a playoff to Mark Wilson. Today he tried to let his chance for his maiden PGA Tour win slip once again but this time his short game saved him. “Well, it never stopped me from thinking I was going to win,” he said when asked if he thought that missed putt at the Honda had him wondering if he would ever win.

“I knew in my heart I was going to win. It was just a matter of time of getting—I reckon my stars lined up in the sky. That putt, still to this day, that three-footer, they still give me a little bit of a jitter.”

Weekley had played only one hole when the third round was called off on Sunday and at that point was within two of the then leader Jerry Kelly. When he returned for the continuation of play however he birdied the 2nd, after almost holing a chip for eagle, eagled the 5th after a great second to 14 feet and birdied the 6th to take the lead at 15 under along with a fired up Stephen Leaney, who had jumped out of the blocks to be at six under through six holes of his round.

Behind, in the last group of the day, Jerry Kelly, Ernie Els and Kevin Na had waited more than 24 hours to start their round and the in form Kelly looked as if he might be the man to beat when he eagled the second hole to move to 15 under before he began to self destruct. Kelly would drop eight shots over the closing 15 holes including a back nine of 41 and that was the end of his chances.

Els birdied the second, but from that point on it was a case of one step forward, then one back for the South African as he matched birdies with bogeys. He still had a chance at the 17th but found the hazard and took bogey and that was his one last realistic chance to win although Weekley, who was playing in the group ahead, was doing his best to leave the door open until he chipped in at the last.

When Stephen Leaney birdied the par three 14th he still had a share of the lead but a bogey at the 15th and a double bogey at the short par four 16th after he was forced to play a provisional, put paid to the chance of his first PGA Tour victory and the third consecutive victory by an Australian in this event. For Leaney, however, it continues some improving form in recent weeks and his first USPGA Tour win is surely now just a matter of time. He finished alone in third place.

“To be honest,” said Leaney later, “I really executed everything the way that I wanted to today. The only really bad shot I hit – I just didn’t body release it enough on 16 when I tried to hook it around the tree, and just hit the tree and it goes out of bounds. But then I hit a great fourth shot and actually made a great 6. I mean, 17, I hit a great shot to 17. It’s a yard from going over. And then I played two great shots at the last.
But when a guy chips in the last two holes to win, that’s sort of what happens. But I executed today as good as I’ve done in any golf tournament. It was hard today, but I mean, to have the lead and to go and play the way I did was good. But as I said, I mean, Boo has played great, as well, and it’s just his time.”

While Weekley will be lauded as the winner, perhaps the most impressive performance of the week goes to Masters Champion Zach Johnson who, despite a whirlwind week of media commitments and back slapping, managed to finish 6th. He will now take a two week break with his family and return at the Wachovia Championship with no doubt a much clearer mind and the batteries recharged. He was likely playing on adrenaline for much of this week.

After Leaney, the best of the Australians was the defending champion Aaron Baddeley who finished 10th, Rod Pampling 16th, Nick O’Hern 23rd, Matthew Goggin and Mark Hensby 29th, Steve Elkington and Peter Lonard 36th, Nathan Green 44th and Geoff Ogilvy 50th.

The PGA Tour now heads to New Orleans for the Zurich Classic of New Orleans.