Posted By: Chris Garrett ·
WGC-Bridgestone Invitational
Hunter Mahan won for the second time this year, coming from four shots back to start the day to win the World Golf Championship - Bridgestone Invitational. Mahan ran off five birdies on the front nine to take the lead, then had three clutch par saves down the stretch to finish off a 6-under 64 and a two-shot victory over fellow FJ player, Ryan Palmer (FJ ICON style #52005). While both players wore FJ ICON golf shoes, Hunter went with a custom design through the MyJoys program. Hunter also wore a StaSof glove while Palmer opted for SciFlex.
Mahan's victory locked up a spot on the United States Ryder Cup team as he is now No. 2 in points with only this week's PGA Championship remaining before the top eight Americans qualify. Hunter has played on the last three U.S. teams as a Captains Pick.
"That was my goal at the beginning of the year, to make the team on my own," Mahan said.
Hunter shot a final round 6-under 64 to finish with a 12-under 268 total. He became the third American with multiple victories on the PGA TOUR this year, and likely will move to a career-best No. 12 in the world.
Turning Stone Resort Championship
Meanwhile at the Turning Stone Resort Championship, it was a major accomplishment of a different sort for FJ player Bill Lunde (FJ ICON). Less than five years after he quit competitive golf, he earned a spot in next week's PGA Championship by winning the Turning Stone Resort Championship. Lunde shot a final round 6-under 66 to rally for a come-from-behind victory with a 17-under 271 total.
"All these guys out here, you're never far from playing good. You can sit here and say, 'I'm playing awful, I don't know how I'm going to break 80 today,' but you're never that far off."
Lunde made the weekend cut by one stroke and but trailed by only four heading into the final round following a 64 on Saturday. Lunde climbed to the top of Sunday's leaderboard with six birdies and a 30 on the front side.
None of the success seemed possible to Lunde in 2005 when he stopped playing after a tough year on the Nationwide Tour. He went to the PGA TOUR's Q-School in November and didn't qualify for the second stage so found a job in real estate in Las Vegas. He returned to the Nationwide Tour in 2008 and took advantage of his second chance. He won the Nationwide Children's Hospital Invitational that year and finished fifth on the money list, which earned him a spot on the PGA TOUR in 2009.
"I tried to make an agreement with myself when I started playing again to ... if I could just have a better attitude right off the bat, I'd become a better player than I ever was before," he said. "And that was kind of my goal. Obviously it doesn't happen every day, but it's definitely better than it was and something I'll probably battle for the rest of my life. I'm just so competitive. I can't handle not playing well or bad breaks. It gets me down."
Posted By: Chris Garrett ·
There were two compelling duels over the weekend that featured top international FJ players battling down the stretch to secure tournament victories. Further proof that FJ is the #1 shoe and glove wherever the best players in the world compete.
At the Ricoh Women's British Open, Yani Tseng (Women's DryJoys, Women's StaSof) of Taiwan made a 6-foot putt on the 18th hole Sunday to win by one stroke over Katherine Hull (Contour Series style #54158) of Australia.
It was the 21-year-old Tseng's third major title and second of the year to go along with the Kraft Nabisco. She has four LPGA victories overall, having won 2008 LPGA Championship and 2009 Corning Classic.
Hull came into the round trailing by four strokes but trailed by just one heading into the 18th. But she missed a 20-foot birdie attempt and had to settle for a 70, and Tseng made her par putt to shoot 73 and total 11-under 277 at Royal Birkdale.
"I was nervous and tired with all the pressure and attention out there today," Tseng said. "Katherine played really well and put me under a lot of pressure. It was the toughest win I've had to date. I usually come from behind to win. I've never won from the front before."
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Meanwhile, two FJ ambassadors battled it out in Ireland where Ross Fisher (FJ ICON style #52005, Pure Touch Limited glove) defeated local favorite Padraig Harrington (SYNR-G style #53918, Pure Touch Limited) to win the Irish Open by two strokes.
Fisher led by one to start the day and fired a final round 6-under 65 for an 18-under 266 total and his fourth career victory. Harrington was persistent throughout the day and tied Fisher for the lead on three occasions en route to a 7-under 64. One of those ties occurred on the par-5 15th hole where Harrington knocked in a 10-footer for eagle only to see Fisher respond with back-to-back birdies on the 15th and 16th to take the lead for the final time.
"I have come close to winning in Ireland a couple of times in the past," Fisher said. "And to get the victory done in front of record crowds and to beat Paddy, who was obviously fighting all the way, is something I will definitely treasure for a long time."
Posted By: Chris Garrett ·
Richard Johnson (FJ ICON) of Sweden won the Scandinavian Masters on Sunday, holing a 30-foot birdie putt at the last hole to shoot a 1-under 71 for a one shot victory.
Johnson, who held the joint overnight lead with South Korea's K.J. Choi (FJ ICON), finished with a total of 11-under 277 at Stockholm's Bro Hof Slott for his second European Tour title. He is only the second home winner of the tournament in the last 12 years.
"This is a huge tournament to win for a Swede," Johnson said. "I'm speechless right now, it's epic."
British Open champion Louis Oosthuizen (FJ ICON, SciFlex) was tied for fourth place. He was bidding to become the first player to follow a British Open victory with a European Tour win a week later.
"It was a great week, I had lots of fun, the crowd was unbelievable," Oosthuizen said Sunday.
Posted By: Chris Garrett ·
Louis Oosthuizen made only two bogeys over the final 35 holes and finished at 16-under to win his first major championship Sunday on the Old Course at St. Andrews. The 27-year-old Oosthuizen, who trusted FJ ICON golf shoes, style #52005, and a SciFlex glove, closed with a final round 1-under 71 to win The Open Championship by a remarkable seven shots over fellow FJ player, Lee Westwood (FJ golf shoes, Pure Touch Limited glove).
It was revealed during the final round that Oosthuizen marks his SciFlex glove with a red dot so when he looks down before each shot, he is reminded to focus on the shot at hand and dispel all distractions, something that served him well en route to the biggest victory of his career.
“It’s a good thing to just think about the golf on the golf course,” said Oosthuizen, explaining the Red Dot during his post-match interview. He’d gotten advice about how to do that, and he wanted a reminder.
“I needed, like, a trigger just to get back in the moment… and whenever I look at it I know…just to compose myself, focus on this shot, forget about everything around you.”
Oosthuizen went 24 consecutive holes without a bogey until his streak ended on the par-3 eighth hole by missing a 6-foot par putt. That trimmed his lead to three, the closest anyone would get during the final round. His playing partner hit driver onto the par-4 ninth green and Oosthuizen answered by doing the same. When he holed his 50-foot eagle putt, his lead was back to four shots, same as when he started.
Oosthuizen spent the final hour with a big grin on his face, although he started out that way, too. He put his arm around caddie Zack Rasego after hitting off the 18th tee and walking over the Swilcan Bridge, thousands of fans packed into the grandstands, along the road and peering out the shop windows.
The biggest smile came on the 18th green, with a hug for Rasego, and an embrace with wife Nel-Mare and 7-month-old daughter Jana. It will be years before the child can appreciate the magnitude of this moment.
"I will say, 'That's the day Daddy makes us the proudest,'" his wife said. "And we'll never forget it."
In 2010, When FJ Wins, You Win. Enter here for your chance to win FJ ICON golf shoes and a SciFlex glove, just like Louis Ossthuizen wore en route to victory Sunday.
Posted By: Chris Garrett ·
Paul Goydos (FJ ICON black smooth calfskin bicycle toe, SciFlex glove) became just the fourth person to fire a 59 on the PGA Tour when he scorched TPC Deere Run yesterday during the first round of the John Deere Classic. Goydos birdied every hole on the back nine except for No. 15, where he holed a six-foot par putt to keep a sub-60 in sight. He finished off with three birdies, the last one from seven feet to join the most exclusive club in golf. You can read all about the round on pgatour.com or hear about it from Goydos himself in the video below (click here if video does not appear). One of the most amazing aspects of the day yesterday, in addition to Goydos' feat, is that it was nearly matched by the man who previously help the course record, Steve Stricker (Custom all-white DryJoys MyJoys, Pure Touch Limited glove). Needing an eagle at the last to reach 59, Stricker's approach appeared headed for the cup but curled around at the last second, leaving him a 2-footer for birdie and a first round 11-under 60. With a morning tee time on Friday, Stricker will have first crack at a repeat performance and also the opportunity to set the tone heading into the weekend. Stay tuned, this could get pretty wild!