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Brandt Snedeker shot a 7-under 64 Sunday at Harbour Town.
It took extra holes, but Brandt Snedeker won Sunday at The Heritage. See how he did it by clicking here.
Donald misses opportunity to be No. 1
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Luke Donald shot a 1-under 70 Sunday at The Heritage.
By Stan Awtrey, PGATOUR.COM Correspondent
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. — Luke Donald won’t be the new No. 1 ranked golfer in the world, but he’s not overly concerned.
“No. 1 is not the final goal,” he said shortly after losing a three-hole playoff to Brandt Snedeker at The Heritage. “It’s a constant travel. You’re constantly moving forward in this game. To be No. 1 would be great, but it’s not everything. It certainly would be a tick in the box and it would be something great to talk to the grandkids in 30 years time and say that you were the best in the world, but I still have a lot of chances to do that.”
Donald shot a 70 in the final round at Harbour Town to tie Snedeker for first place at 12 under. Snedeker prevailed on the third playoff hole with a par, although Donald nearly chipped in from just off the green to even the match. The chip hit the hole and bounced away to give Snedeker the win.
“Brandt played a fantastic round today and I just came up a little short,” he said.
Donald said he wound up between clubs in both playoff holes contested at No. 18. He wound up in the sand both times, the second time with a plugged lie that made it tough to get up and down.
“Played it well, it just came out left,” Donald said. “If it came out on line it would have probably been 6-7 feet. It’s hard to control those shots. And I gave the chip a run, it was just going a little too fast and caught the right edge.”
Donald would have been No. 1 in the world with the win, but the promotion into the top spot instead goes to Lee Westwood, who won the tournament in Indonesia earlier in the day.
“It’s hard to put that out of your mind,” he said. “It was going to be some big rewards if I won today. But I’ll try and find the positives from this week and move on to next week.”
It’s the third straight year that Donald has come close at The Heritage. He was second in 2009, albeit 10 shots behind winner Brian Gay, and was third in 2010.
Snedeker beats Donald in playoff
It took a final-round 64, and three extra holes, but Brandt Snedeker finally won Sunday at The Heritage, where he rallied to beat Luke Donald in a playoff.
After both players matched each other shot-for-shot on the first two extra holes, Donald found the greenside bunker on 18 for a second time on Sunday. Only this time his ball was buried and he couldn’t stop it from rolling through to the fringe.
Snedeker, meanwhile, hit his approach pin high to 15 feet after and two-putted for par.
That meant Donald had to hole his shot from the fringe to force another extra hole. His chip lipped out, however, to give Snedeker the victory.
Snedeker, Donald in playoff
With the way some birdies were flying around Harbour Town and the way Luke Donald had played all week, it didn’t look like Brandt Snedeker’s 12-under total would hold up. But it did.
Luke Donald made just one birdie and two bogeys over his final 13 holes Sunday, shooting a 1-under 70 to finish regulation at 12 under and in tie with Snedeker, who shot 64.
The two will now head to a playoff beginning on the 18th hole, where Donald saved par from the greenside bunker to force extra holes.
PLAY-BY-PLAY OF PLAYOFF
5:55 p.m.: Snedeker and Donald just teed off on the 18th, where both players found the fairway.
6 p.m.: Donald hit from the fairway first and stuck his approach to inside 10 feet. Snedeker wasn’t to be outdone, though, and he hit it to nearly an identical distance.
6:03 p.m.: Donald didn’t disappoint. He calmly rolled in his birdie putt from just over 10 feet and Snedeker did the same. They’ll now head to No. 17.
6:08 p.m.: Snedeker led off on the par-3 17th, where he left his tee shot short and just right of the hole and near the edge of the green. Donald, meanwhile, switched clubs (to a 7-iron) and found the front bunker.
6:15 p.m.: Donald, being arguably the best bunker player in the world, hit out of the sand to just over 5 feet then sank the putt to save par. Snedeker, meanwhile, hit up to just inside Donald, and saved par as well. Both players will now go back to the 18th.
6:18 p.m.: Back on No. 18, Snedeker teed off first and found the fairway. Donald did, too, but he appeared to be distracted by a camera click and his shot came up a little short and right of where he expected it to.
6:22 p.m.: Donald’s tee shot was actually closer than the last time he played the 18th, but he left his approach in the bunker, where the ball buried a little bit. Snedeker, meanwhile, hit it hole high in the middle of the green but still 15 feet or so away.
6:30 p.m.: Not even Luke Donald could save himself from a buried lie in the bunker on the 18th. His shot from the sand came out hot and rolled well past the hole and nearly off the green. Snedeker then rolled his putt to tap-in distance for a par, while Donald’s chip lipped out to give Snedeker the win.
Herron has season-best effort
By Stan Awtrey, PGATOUR.COM Correspondent
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. — Tim Herron ran out of holes on Sunday, but the veteran completed his best performance of the season.
Herron shot a final-round 67 to finish at 10-under 274. That put him two shots behind Brandt Snedeker, the leader in the clubhouse. His key was accuracy; Herron hit 15 of 18 greens in regulation and made five birdies. His only slip came on the 18th, where he failed to get up and down from the front of the green.
Herron had made only two cuts in eight previous starts. His best finishes have been a pair of ties for 29th, at the Farmers Insurance Open and at the Mayakoba Golf Classic at Riviera Maya-Cancun.
Herron will definitely finish in the top 10, which he hasn’t accomplished on the TOUR since 2008. It will be his best career finish at The Heritage.
Donald moves to No. 2 in FedExCup
Luke Donald not only had a chance to take over the top spot in the Official World Golf Ranking — instead, Lee Westwood moved back to No. 1 — he had a chance to move to No. 1 in the FedExCup standings with a win Sunday. Instead, Donald finished second and as a result is now No. 2 in the FedExCup standings behind Mark Wilson.
Brandt Snedeker, meanwhile, moved from 30th to seventh by winning at Harbour Town, where he closed with a 7-under 64 before beating Donald on the third hole of a playoff.
Congratulate Snedeker on his win
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Brandt Snedeker closed with a 64 Sunday at Harbour Town.
Brandt Snedeker shot a 7-under 64 then held off Luke Donald in a playoff to win Sunday at The Heritage. The win is the second of his career and first since 2007. Congratulate Snedeker on his victory here and we’ll pass your note along to him.
Snedeker clubhouse leader at 12 under
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Brandt Snedeker shot a 7-under 64 Sunday at Harbour Town.
By Stan Awtrey, PGATOUR.COM Correspondent
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. — Brandt Snedeker posted a 7-under 64 Sunday at The Heritage, where he’s currently the leader in the clubhouse at 12-under 272.
Snedeker put himself in contention by shooting a 30 on the front nine, making six birdies and no bogeys. He had a couple of stumbles on the back, making bogeys at No. 13, where he missed his par putt from just inside seven feet, and No. 16, where he couldn’t get up and down from the bunker. But the Vanderbilt graduate hit his approach shot on the 18th hole to within 12 feet and rolled in the birdie putt.
Snedeker kept the ball in play (12 of 14 fairways) and kept hitting Harbour Town’s small greens (15 of 18). He needed only 11 putts on the front nine.
Snedeker, who had off-season hip surgery, is looking for his first PGA TOUR victory since the 2007 Wyndham Championship. Snedeker has had four top-10s this year, including fourth-place finishes at the Transitions Championship and the Valero Texas Open. He tied for 15th at the Masters.
Donald finally fails to birdie No. 9
The good news for Luke Donald is that he’s still tied for the lead as he makes the turn for the back nine at Harbour Town. The bad news is that he just failed to birdie the par-4 ninth hole for the first time all week, sliding his birdie attempt from just inside 10 feet past the hole.
As a result, Donald is 1 under on his round after three birdies and two bogeys. That’s the worst he’s played the front nine at Harbour Town all week.
Meanwhile, Donald’s co-leader, Ricky Barnes is 4 under through his first 10 with all his birdies coming in the first five holes.
Watch: Early highlights
Ricky Barnes didn’t waste any time moving into contention Sunday. He stuck his approach on No. 1 to set up this early birdie. Click here to watch
OTHER HIGHLIGHTS
BARNES: The co-leader added to his score with this 22-footer for birdie. Click to watch
BRANDT SNEDKER: Snedeker capped his front-nine 30 with this birdie on No. 9. Click to watch
AARON BADDELEY: The Aussie chipped in for birdie on the par-5 second. Click to watch
Lecka/Getty Images Brandt Snedeker shot a 7-under 64 Sunday at Harbour Town. It took extra holes, but Brandt Snedeker won Sunday at The Heritage. See how he did it by clicking here.
Read more here:
Tour Report: Watch: Snedeker’s winning shot (PGATOUR.com)