AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. Sneds Siezes Title

Brandt Snedeker / Getty Images

The AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am title was gleefully seized by Sneds, there were no Hall of Famer’s snatching victory from him here at Pebble Beach Golf Links. Brandt Snedeker won by two shots, shooting a last round -7 under par, 65 to make sure this time he claimed the trophy, and also moved up to number four in the Official World Golf Rankings.

Brandt stood on the 18th tee at Pebble Beach with a three-shot lead on Sunday, taking in the view before him,  the sun and the Pacific Ocean, realizing just how far he has come in the past few months. Sneds said is was a dream, and hard to put into words;

“Just hard to put into words, to have a stretch of golf like I had the last couple of months, something you dream about. Something you think that you can do, but you don’t really know until you actually put it together, and I have. I’m really enjoying this, and hopefully can parlay this into the best year of my career. The last two weeks, playing great but running into two Hall of Famer’s, really motivated me to go out and prove that I can handle the lead. I definitely didn’t want to do anything but win today, I was out there for one purpose and one purpose only, and I was extremely focused all day. I did a great job of staying patient and I did a great job of playing the golf course the way you’re supposed to play it. I would love to be known as the best American golfer, I’ve got a long way to go to do that, but this is a great start to the year. Couldn’t have scripted much of a better one, except for maybe winning the last two weeks if the guys (Tiger and Phil) hadn’t played.”

Ian Poulter tweeted from his home in Orlando Florida;

“Sneds is officially the best golfer on the planet right now, some serious golf he is playing.”

Chris Kirk was in second place, his great round of -6 under par 66, just not good enough on the day to bring him success. Chris said he felt he had played good golf, but somebody always seems to blitz the course;

” We’ve had a lot of tournaments like that on TOUR this year where somebody has really just kind of blitzed the field. I felt like I played well enough to win a golf tournament and came up a little bit short.”

Rookie James Hahn finished in tie for third place, along with broomstick user Kevin Stadler and Jimmy Walker, all at -14 under par for the tournament.

Sneds and Toby Wilt shared the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am title with Michael Letzig and John Erickson. Jordan Spieth  and Tony Romo; Patrick Cantlay and Kelly Slater; Brad Fritsch and Huey Lewis were among six teams tied for third, two strokes back.

 

AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. Hahn & Sneds Tied at the Top

James Hahn & Brandt Snedeker / How / Getty Images

James Hahn and Brandt Snedeker are tied at the top of the leaderboard at -12 under par after the third round of the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. Brandt had a third round of -4 under par on the Pebble Beach course, while James fired in a round of -6 under par at Spyglass Hill.

Brandt Snedeker, the hottest player in golf on the US PGA TOUR this year without a win to show for it, put matters into his own hands Saturday by running off four straight birdies along the prettiest part of Pebble Beach for a -4 under par 68. After last weeks comment about being beaten by Hall of Famers, first Tiger Woods, and last week it was Phil Mickelson. Brandt will be surprised to find his closest opponent this time around is a rookie.

At this stage in this tournament Brandt is the player with the most experience, and feels confident that this week the trophy will be his;

” You never know what tomorrow holds, but I feel like I’m in great position, and I’m going to be surely more prepared, no matter who is around me in the last group. I’m probably going to have the most experience of anybody in those last couple groups of winning a golf tournament. You want to win any time you have a chance because you don’t know how many times you’re going to get that in a year. I’ve had a couple of chances the last couple of weeks, haven’t been the best chances. And this week, I have a great chance going into tomorrow, and you need to capitalize on those chances.”

Rookie James Kahn is just happy to be where he is at the moment, looking at a two-year TOUR exemption and a trip to the Masters;

“I’m not even in next week’s tournament, so to me, a top-10 finish would be great. So if you want to compare the Northern Trust Open to Augusta, we can. I would love to play another week out on tour, but just to learn from Brandt Snedeker, he’s one of the hottest golfers on the planet right now. I feel like I’m playing well just because I feel comfortable, you know, comfortable and having fun, that’s when I’m playing my best golf. I feel like my attitude on the golf course is better than it has been in recent years, and not getting so frustrated out there, just kind of enjoying the moment. I keep saying that, but it’s a blast to be inside the ropes and a member of the PGA Tour.”

Chris Kirk is in third place, one shot behind the leaders at -11 under par, following his third round of  -6 under par, 64 at the Monterey Peninsular par 70 course. Defending Champion Phil Mickelson is out of the running, after his ball took a dip into the Pacific Ocean, costing him a triple bogey 11. Phil also had the ignominy of slipping down a slope while trying to retrieve another errant shot, he landed on his rear end. Phil said of his fall;

” I got lucky, I didn’t get hurt.”

AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. Brandt Snedeker and Ted Potter Jnr tied at the top.

Brandt Snedeker / Gross / Getty Images.

Brandt Snedeker and Ted Potter Jnr are tied at the top of the leaderboard at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. Both players are at -8 under par for the tournament. Brandt shot a -4 under par 68 at Spyglass Hill, while Ted Potter Jnr had a -3 under par at the Monterey Peninsula Country Club course.

Brandt  has played so well this year that he is leading the FedEx Cup standings without having won, Brandt said of his situation;

” Keep running into guys who are or who are going to be in the Hall of Fame. That’s how you win out here, you keep putting yourself in position, and the more times you do, the more success you’re going to have. I’m doing a better job this week of making my way around the golf courses and not putting myself in bad spots and getting out of tough situations very quickly.”

Ted seems to think it is all about the bounce of the ball, sometimes good, sometimes bad;

“It’s just a funny game like that, some weeks you play really well and you get the right kicks and everything goes well. And then there are weeks you can still hit the ball well and get the bad kicks.”

Hunter Mahan, the first round leader lost a stroke on the spongy greens, he went to knock in a short bogey putt on the par-3 seventh hole when the ball moved on him.

“It just rolled over in like a heel print or something, I didn’t feel like I moved it. I didn’t feel like I had anything much to do with it moving. It’s just a rub of the green, so had to go back and take a penalty. That was frustrating, because I was hitting it so good.”

Phil Mickelson didn’t feel out of contention although he was back tied for 39th place, he is six shots behind, the same as last year when he went on to win;

“I love Pebble Beach. I’ve played well there and I’m only one good round away. If I can shoot something in the mid-60s, I’ll be right there for Sunday’s round, which is what I care about.”

AT&T Pebble Beach. Russell Knox and Hunter Mahan Lead.

AT&T have a mission to stage the world’s premier PGA TOUR pro-am that brings the community together with global leaders in sports, entertainment and industry to raise Charitable funds which create opportunities for success. Some of the professionals and stars who are competing this week;

Phil Mickelson, Lee Westwood, Dustin Johnson, Webb Simpson, Jim Furyk, Brandt Snedeker, Hunter Mahan, David Duval, Vijay Singh, Mike Weir and celebrities and sports stars: Wayne Gretzky, Aaron Rodgers, Matt Cain, Justin Verlander, Carson Daly, Josh Duhamel, Andy Garcia, Billy Murray, Chris O’Donnell, Ray Romano, Tony Romo, Andy Roddick.

Hunter Mahan / Getty Images

Hunter Mahan and Russell Knox lead the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am with first round scores of -6 under par. Hunter on the Pebble Beach course with a round of 64, and Russell with a 66 at the Shore Course at Monterey Peninsula.

Hunter really enjoyed his day, especially when the forecast mid-day rain did not appear;

” I had a good time with my partner, the pace was great, the weather was good.I think the most interesting thing was we had perfect weather when it was supposed to rain at noon. We were all expecting rain. The bag probably weighs 100 pounds right now.”

Russell said he is full of confidence, and playing well, but is limited in his appearances because he finished outside of the top 125 on his rookie year;

“I came in here with a lot of confidence because I feel like I’ve been playing very well. Just haven’t had the chance to play. It was nice to get off to a good start.”

Seung-Yul Noh, playing at Spy Glass Hill carded a  -5 under par round of 67, which could have been even better without the two bogey’s on the last two holes. He was still pleased with his overall score;

“Still a good score. I’m really happy with that.”

Also at 5 under were Scott Langley a 65 at Monterey Peninsula, he is the first graduate of The First Tee program to make it to the PGA TOUR.  Matt Every is also at -5 under par, he sadly had a bogey on his final hole at Pebble Beach for a 67.

This is a complicated tournament, with its three courses and mixed with Professional players and Celebrity amateurs, so anything can happen, especially when you have the caliber of Phil Mickleson and Lee Westwood in the field,

Chaos at Kapalua, Dustin Johnson Leads, going into Tough Tuesday.

Dustin Johnson / Stan Badz/ PGA Tour

Dustin Johnson leads the weather wrecked Hyundai Tournament of Champions, at the Kapalua Plantation Course, in Hawaii. It is now Monday, with 18 holes still to be played. Dustin leads Steve Stricker by three shots with his tournament total of -11 under par, with rounds of 69 and 66.

Dustin only missed three greens in regulation, but had a couple of three putts, he said;

“I hit the ball really well this afternoon. I’m pretty pleased with my equipment, I’m pretty pleased with my game right now.”

Steve Stricker, now at -8 under par for the tournament, has recently been suffering from a constant pain problem, but thinks it is going to be tough for Dustin  to win from the front;

“Nobody knows if it’s a muscle with pressure on the sciatic nerve or if there’s a problem with a disk, my back feels great. I don’t feel tight, I don’t feel stiff. Just every time I get over to my left side, I’m getting a shooting pain down my leg. I’m not hitting it full strength and I’m just trying to keep it in front of me and play the smart shots. It felt as crappy on the first hole as the last hole. You’ve just got to go out and play and play your hardest and see what happens, I’ve been in that position where he’s at now. It’s a tough spot. It’s tough to win in front. We’ve got really nothing to lose tomorrow and it makes it a little bit easier for us, but tougher on him.”

Bubba Watson is alone in third place at -7 under par for the tournament, and  will be trying to win in his sixth straight season since leaving college, the longest streak of any player since Tiger Woods, and remember he won the last two 54-hole events on the PGA TOUR, at the hurricane-shortened Barclays in 2011 and rain-delayed AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am in 2009. Bubba is pretty happy with his position in this weather wrecked tournament;

“Just happened to win those two events, I’ve still got 18 more holes of golf. It wouldn’t matter if it was 72 holes or 54. Tomorrow is still the last round and there’s 18 holes to play, so got to get the job done.” 

So its last round, Tough Tuesday at crazy Kapalua, in the Hyundai Tournament of Champions.