2012 WGC Match Play Final Thread: Rory V. Hunter

A very attractive final, the first time the WGC has featured two twenty-somethings, reports Mark Lamport-Stokes.

Do note the very retro and cool move to let the galleries walk in the fairways during the final, something Allen Henry pointed out earlier in the week. I had to see it to believe it!

Now That Angela Stanford Has Won The HSBC Champions...

...beating South Koreans Jenny Shin and Na Yeon Choi and China's Shanshan Feng, we can delight in her cold-topped shot from Friday that set up a birdie, courtesy of a shakey YouTube video.

"If you prefer brooding, introspective writing, better see another guy."

Must read (for wannabe writers) Q&A with Dan Jenkins conducted by Jon Winokur at AdviceToWriters.com

Tiger Assures Concerned Media Industry That Putting Woes Fixable "In About A Day"

Day two of the match play is complete and your sweet sixteen is set: Snedeker, Rory, Kaymer, Kuchar, Westwood, Watney, Hanson, Jimenez, Laird, Lawrie, Stricker, Mahan, Wilson, Dustin, Senden and Moon.

Thursday's AP match notes (in an itty-bitty font size) include items on Hunter Mahan's stunning 9 birdies in 15 holes, Dustin Johnson's rout, the Lawrie-Laird Scottish showdown and Hanson's easy win over Ernie Els.

Jim McCabe with round 3 predictions and tee times. Gary Van Sickle's day three picks. Alex Myers with his day three picks.

As for day two's most prominent loss, travel agents were overwhelmed by calls from media outlets trying to get their folks out of town following Tiger's defeat at the hands of Nick Watney. From Doug Ferguson's game story:

In what is becoming a troubling trend for Woods, he missed the birdie putt so badly that it never even touched the hole, giving Watney a 1-up victory Thursday in the Match Play Championship.

It was the third straight time that Woods, a three-time champion in this event, failed to get out of the second round.

"I didn't miss a single shot coming in, which is good. And that was fun, to hit the ball that well," Woods said. "Unfortunately, I just didn't make a putt when I needed it."

Woods missed three putts inside 10 feet over the last six holes, none more important than the last one.

Jeff Rude thinks Woods was partly a victim of Nicklaus's unpopular Dove Mountain greens.

The greens here on the Jack Nicklaus design are wild and hilly. They are tricky because of all the slopes and grain and valley effect. Figuring out a putt can be like taking a science exam.

Woods did not pass.

He missed seven putts inside of 15 feet, all but one for birdies. Five of the misses were in the range of 5-10 feet. The longest of the three birdie putts he made was 6 feet, on a 335-yard driveable par 4; the two others were tap-ins on par 5s. His longest make was on a 14 1/2-foot par save at the fifth.

“They’re hard to read,” he said for the second day.

They seemed to baffle him from start to painful finish. After a terrific drive and 188-yard approach shot at the 480-yard 18th, he missed an uphill 5 1/2-foot birdie putt that would have won the hole and extended the match.

Steve Elling observes that Tiger needs his A game to win these days.

In fact, if there's anything we've learned over the past 2 1/2 years, it's that Woods can no longer win with his so-called B Game. It's been a talking point for months, though mostly in the form of locker-room whispers, and it was underscored again this week when he barely escaped his careening, opening-round match with a 1-up win.

In fact, if he putts the way he has in his two PGA Tour starts -- which included missing five times from five feet or closer in the final round at Pebble Beach -- he's going to have trouble winning matches for pocket money at his home club in South Florida.

"I should be able to fix it in about a day," Woods said tersely.

Um, with all due respect, we're going on, like, three years. At least compared to what we've grown accustomed to seeing, anyway.

Robert Lusetich couldn't help but note the artistry of Tiger's post round analysis.

"I hit the ball well all day today. Unfortunately, I just did not make enough putts to extend the match."

This is his standard fallback position when there are bigger picture questions begging for answers.

Baffle his questioners with the minutae of mechanics.

But what does it all mean, Tiger?

Maybe not much?

Maybe it's just that he doesn't like this course — and he's not alone in that — and wants to get back to the comfort of Florida, where next week he tees it up at the Honda Classic?

Maybe being back on Bermuda greens is the elixir?

Thursday's highlights:

"What occurred in this case is not typical of the USGA's level of service to the golf community."

Stina Sternberg on the USGA Women's U.S. Open exemption gaffe involving 2011 Ladies Amateur champ Lauren Taylor who will not be automatically exempt because there will be a 2012 champ before the U.S. Women's Open is next played (unless she is a repeat winner).

Sternberg wonders if the USGA should extend an extra exemption to Taylor after discovering their error...

You can call it a clerical error and an honest mistake, but it's a mistake that will undoubtedly cause Taylor some heartbreak.

The USGA released the following statement to GDW Thursday afternoon:

"The United States Golf Association extends its sincere apologies to 2011 Ladies British Open Amateur Champion Lauren Taylor. We have the deepest appreciation for how disappointed Ms. Taylor must be. The USGA proudly created an exemption category for the champion of the Ladies British Open Amateur Championship into the U.S. Women's Open as a further commitment to the presence of amateur golfers in our respective major championships. We realize that our error may have caused the Taylor family an inconvenience and we wish to extend to them our regrets and our appreciation for their understanding. What occurred in this case is not typical of the USGA's level of service to the golf community. We remain committed to working with the highest standards for the good of the game."