Back-To-Back Bogeys Blunt Watson’s Bid
For a while Sunday, it was like old times. Everything had an oddly familiar appearance.
It was the last day of a major championship and Tom Watson was making a charge. He began the last day eight shots behind the leader, but then birdied six of the first 10 holes and got within two shots of the lead in the only major championship he never has won.
“I said ‘Game’s on,’ ” Watson said.
Soon, though, the game was over. It wasn’t the crowd’s fault. Fans strained against the gallery ropes and shouted encouragement to the 46-year-old redhead.
Watson smiled and acknowledged the good wishes, but it just didn’t save him from back-to-back bogeys on No. 12, when he three-putted, and No. 13, when he drove into the rough, then gambled and went for the green, but knocked his second shot into the water with a pitching wedge.
“That killed my chances right there,” Watson said. “I needed to have a mistake-free round, and those are two mistakes here that killed me.”
There were no more birdies, just another bogey at the 18th and a chance to think about what he had lost - one of the few remaining chances he has to win the PGA.
“Well, I made a little run there and it was fun,” Watson said. “I knew I had a chance to win and I made a good run at it for 11 holes.”
Watson is a five-time British Open champion and has won the Masters twice and the U.S. Open once, but he wanted very badly to complete his major championships with a victory at the PGA.
His closing 69 meant Watson finished at 6-under-par 282, five shots behind Mark Brooks.
“I’m more than mildly disappointed because I had that opportunity to win,” he said.
PGA to return to Valhalla
The PGA Championship will be coming back to Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Ky., in 2000.
Jim Awtrey, the PGA of America’s chief executive officer, made the announcement on the 18th green after Mark Brooks beat Kenny Perry in a one-hole playoff to win the tournament.
The PGA cited the condition of the golf course, the enthusiasm of the fans and the support of business and city leaders.
Awtrey said the PGA intends to exercise its option to increase its ownership of Valhalla. The PGA plans to purchase the course from founder Dwight Gahm, who built it and sold part of it already to the golf organization.