Donald creates own magic - wins CMNH Classic
World No.1 wins U.S. money title
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - Luke Donald played arguably the greatest round of his life - and with it grabbed the US PGA Tour money list title by a whisker.Only joint 14th and five behind starting the final round of the Children's Miracle Network Hospitals Classic in Florida and possibly needing to win to overhaul America Webb Simpson, England's World Number One shot a ten birdie 64.
Donald, who had six successive birdies from the tenth to move two clear, still led by two when he finished, but second-placed Nick O'Hern, Justin Leonard and Kevin Chappell had three holes to go.
But O'Hern had two bogeys, Chappell one and when Leonard failed to hole his approach to the last Donald knew he was number one on more than just the Official World Golf Ranking. He won with a 17 under par total of 271.
It was Donald's first stroke play victory on United States soil in over 5 1/2 years and it gives him a great chance to become the first player to top the money lists on both sides of the Atlantic in the same season.
In Europe he leads The Race to Dubai by over €1,300,000, but there are eight events left and he will be missing some because his wife Diane is expecting their second child in the next fortnight.
Simpson, playing with Donald for the fourth day in a row, shared top spot himself for a while, but three-putted the short 15th after Donald had made a 45 footer and with a 69 was in sixth.
Nothing worse than a two-way tie for second would have done for Donald. If that was where he finished Simpson had to be in the top 21 to deny him, but if Donald was runner-up on his own Simpson had to be eighth - and with Donald winning Simpson, last week's runner-up, had to be second again.
Donald said: "I didn't play the par fives very well this week and the eighth (a bogey six) was a case in point.
"I thought my chance might have gone, but I was saying that I hadn't got on a run and what better time than the back nine on Sunday?
"It's nice to do it under pressure when I needed to. All credit to me and the guys I work with."
He made a late decision to play and was in London last weekend for his regular caddie's wedding. With John McLaren on honeymoon Gareth Lord, Robert Karlsson's long-time bag-man, stood in, so what a week it was for him too.
Final-round notes:
Luke Donald
Donald picks up his second Tour win of the season and in the process wins the Arnold Palmer Award for being the leader in official earnings ($6,683,214). Webb Simpson was T6 this week and finished second in the official earnings at $6,347,353.
Going into the final round, Donald had to finish in at least a two-way tie for second to have a chance to take the lead in official earnings.
Donald had six straight birdies from Nos. 10-15.
Donald was 9-under on the par-3s, 4-under on the par-4s and 4-under on the par-5s this week.
Donald picks up his first win on Tour since taking over the No. 1 ranking in the Official World Golf Rankings in June.
Donald opened the season at the Northern Trust Open with a missed cut that included a second-round 79.
Donald came from five shots back in the final round to win his second event on Tour this season. Brandt Snedeker’s six shot come-from-behind on the last day to win is the largest on Tour this season. The Tournament record for best final-round comeback is six by Larry Nelson (1987) and Duffy Waldorf (2000).
The lowest final 18 by a winner in Tournament history is 62 (-10) by three players. Donald had a 64 in the final round.
In two previous starts at this event, Donald was T36 (67-68-71-68) in 2002 and missed the cut (69-71) in 2003. All 10 of his rounds at Disney are under-par.
Only one other time since 1990 has the money list lead changed hands in the final week of the season. The year was 1996 when Tom Lehman entered the week with $1,240,159 and won the Tour Championship to earn $540,000 for a season total of $1,780,159, passing Phil Mickelson who had entered the week of Tour Championship with $1,620,99 and finished 12th to earn $76,800 for a season total of $1,697,799.
Won fourth career event on Tour and second in Florida (2006 Honda Classic).
It is the first international player to win Tour money title since Vijay Singh in 2008. He is the first player from England to win the Tour money title.
Justin Leonard
The second-place finish is his best since he lost in a playoff at the 2009 Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals Classic.
Leonard made his fifth appearance in the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals Classic. Lost in a playoff to Stephen Ames (George McNeill also in the playoff) in 2009 and was T6 at this event in 2007.
He’s now had sub-par scores in 15 of his 16 career rounds at this Tournament.
Tom Pernice, Jr.
Pernice began the week as the fifth alternate into the event. He began the week No. 143 on the money list and moved to No. 121.
Pernice was last exempt on Tour in 2009 (finished No. 80 on money list in 2008).
His best finish this season was T2 at the Viking Classic.
This is Pernice’s 16th overall appearance. It is his best finish since runner-up in 2005.
Kevin Chappell
Chappell had never been a leader/co-leader heading into the final round of a PGA Tour event until today.
Finished T2 at this year’s Valero Texas Open and in his first career start in a major, was T3 at the 2011 U.S. Open Championship at Congressional.
Chappell led the UCLA Bruins to the 2008 NCAA Golf Championship and earned the Fred Haskins Award that year as the nation’s top collegiate golfer.
Miscellaneous:
* Sunghoon Kang birdied No. 18 today to move into the top-125 on the Tour money list. Kang started the week No. 141 and moved to No. 120.
*No player had three-or-more wins on Tour this season. The only other time where that happened on Tour was in 1991 and 1983.
*Billy Mayfair (T6) was trying to become the first player since George McNeill (2006/2007) to win PGA Tour Qualifying School and then win on Tour the following season. Mayfair started the week No. 127 on the money list and finished No. 109 to earn his Tour card for 2012.
*Kevin Na finished No. 30 on the money list to earn an invitation to the 2012 Masters.
*Below are PGA Tour money stats dating back to 1990:
Year No. 1 Final Money List No. 30 Final Money List No. 125 Final Money List
2011 Luke Donald $6,683,214 Kevin Na $2,336,965 D.J. Trahan $668,166
2010 Matt Kuchar $4,910,477 Heath Slocum $2,387,687 Troy Merritt $786,977
2009 Tiger Woods $10,508,163 Tim Clark $2,235,105 Jimmy Walker $662,683
2008 Vijay Singh $6,601,094 Hunter Mahan $2,208,855 Martin Laird $852,752
2007 Tiger Woods $10,867,052 Heath Slocum $2,184,379 Mathias Gronberg $785,180
2006 Tiger Woods $9,941,563 Ben Curtis $2,256,326 Darren Clarke $660,898
2005 Tiger Woods $10,628,024 Lucas Glover $2,050,068 Nick Price $626,736
2004 Vijay Singh $10,905,166 Kenny Perry $1,952,043 Tag Ridings $623,262
2003 Vijay Singh $7,573,907 K.J. Choi $1,999,663 Esteban Toledo $487,495
2002 Tiger Woods $6,912,625 Steve Lowery $1,882,553 Jay Williamson $515,445
2001 Tiger Woods $5,687,777 Steve Stricker $1,676,229 Woody Austin $406,352
2000 Tiger Woods $9,188,321 Carlos Franco $1,550,592 Bob Burns $391,075
1999 Tiger Woods $6,616,585 Loren Roberts $1,258,745 Charles Raulerson $326,893
1998 David Duval $2,591,031 Andrew Magee $964,302 Blaine McCallister $228,304
1997 Tiger Woods $2,066,833 Andrew Magee $752,007 Neal Lancaster $179,273
1996 Tom Lehman $1,780,159 Duffy Waldorf $604,382 Dicky Pride $167,852
1995 Greg Norman $1,654,959 Nick Price $611,700 John Wilson $149,280
1994 Nick Price $1,499,927 Mark Calcavecchia $533,201 Dennis Paulson $142,515
1993 Nick Price $1,478,557 Billy Mayfair $513,072 Ronnie Black $120,041
1992 Fred Couples $1,344,188 Steve Pate $472,626 Roger Maltbie $109,742
1991 Corey Pavin $979,430 Ian Woosnam $485,023 John Adams $117,549
1990 Greg Norman $1,165,477 John Huston $435,690 Bob Eastwood $123,908
*Since 2004, just one 54-hole leader/co-leader has gone on to capture the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals Classic title (Stephen Ames converted the 54-hole lead in 2007).
* Billy Mayfair, Sunghoon Kang, Tom Pernice, Jr., and Justin Leonard (previously exempt) are the only players to move into the top-125 on the money list following the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals Classic. Bobby Gates, Roland Thatcher, Tiger Woods (previously exempt) and Stuart Appleby (previously exempt) dropped out of the top-125 this week.
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