The Day after- Mark Wilson wins The Honda Classic
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Bill Jempty | Monday, March 5, 2007 |
It took an extra day to determine the winner of The Honda Classic.
Mark Wilson sank a 10 1/2-foot birdie putt on the second playoff hole Monday morning at PGA National, winning the Honda Classic and its $990,000 first prize.
Wilson, 32, of Elmhurst, Ill., won when Jose Coceres’ attempt to tie from just outside 9 feet hit the right edge of the cup but wouldn’t fall.
The playoff ended on the 140-yard, par-3 17th hole of PGA National’s Champion Course. It was the second hole played Monday morning, after the first hole of a four-man playoff was played Sunday evening before darkness fell.
Coceres, Boo Weekley and Camilo Villegas each earned $410,666 for a second-place tie.
Congrats to Wilson on his first tour win. Coceres has lost playoffs two weeks in a row, Fred Funk defeated him in Mexico last week. I wonder when was the last time someone did Coceres feat? Rex Caldwell lost two playoffs in back to back weeks in early 1983 but I don’t know if it happened more recently.
Note- I took the time to call the PGA Tour HQ this morning. They verified Caldwell’s two defeats, which I remembered off the top of my head, but have yet to check if it happened more recently.
NBC golf announcer Johnny Miller wasn’t around for Monday morning’s broadcast. Maybe he was out polishing his resume.
You would think tournament organizers would have the common sense to allow more time for a playoff on Sunday. A Monday finish isn’t fair to golf fans and we could see a repeat as soon as next month. The Masters will end at approximately 7 p.m. on Sunday evening. That will leave little time if a playoff is needed.
Update- Craig Dolch at the Palm Beach Post wrote me to say the last golfer to lose consecutive PGA tour events in playoffs was David Toms. He lost the 2001 Tour Championship to Mike Weir and then the 2002 Mercedes Championship to Sergio Garcia.
That answers that but is Caldwell still the last one to do it on consecutive weekends?
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