Patrick Reed hangs on at the Humana
Patrick Reed (Courtesy: Zimbio.com)
Patrick Reed didn’t end up winning by as much as he probably thought he would, but he was able to hang on to win the 2014 Humana Challenge.
What Happened
Reed entered the day with a massive seven shot lead, the kind of advantage that would be nearly impossible for a PGA Tour player to relinquish, and early on, it looked like it would be a romp as Reed started with an early birdie. However, a run of birdies and bogeys would ensure that Reed stayed pretty much even throughout the day, prompting the Golf Channel to show a stat that at one point, Reed was the only player in the top-30 on the leaderboard that wasn’t under par.
Brendan Todd was his nearest competitor for most of the day, and would have been closer if not for a couple of brutal lipouts on the back nine.
Zach Johnson was making a charge in front of Reed, as was Justin Leonard and Ryan Palmer. Johnson started the day twelve shots back, but he had a chance to chip in for eagle to get within one of Reed’s lead. It didn’t drop, but he was able to finish off the birdie to post 25-under par in the clubhouse. Just when it looked like Reed was starting to lose it, he got an incredibly fortunate bounce on the par-3 15th. After sending his tee shot way right, his ball hit something and actually kicked onto the green, giving Reed a putt of about 17 feet.
That restored his three shot lead, and he would par out the remaining three holes to win by two shots over Ryan Palmer. It’s the second win for Reed, who is only 23 years old and he becomes just the second wire-to-wire winner of the Humana.
Final Leaderboard
- 1. Patrick Reed -28
- 2. Ryan Palmer -26
- T3. Zach Johnson -25
- T3. Justin Leonard -25
- 5. Brian Stuard -24
What The Win Means For Reed
Man, at times on Sunday, it looked like Reed was really going to blow this huge lead to one of a number of contenders. I usually hate to talk about things like nerves and stress because I think that on some level, they are a little overvalued by some people, but Reed did seem like the moment was getting to him, even though he wasn’t looking for his first PGA Tour win.
The win gives him his second victory in the last year, and in addition to the just over $1 million earned, he will move up to 41st in the Official World Golf Rankings, likely guaranteeing his spot in the WGC-Accenture Match Play next month. He’s probably on the outside looking in still for the American Ryder Cup team as far as being a captains pick, but if he can keep up the solid play, don’t rule him out as a possibility for being on that squad at Gleneagles.
Videos of the Week
Keegan Bradley’s ace:
Ken Duke’s ace, followed by his chip in on 18.
And probably the luckiest bounce(s) that you’ll ever see:
Other Notes
- Other notable finishes: Bill Haas (T6), Brendon de Jonge and Keegan Bradley (T18), Webb Simpson (T23), Ryo Ishikawa and Billy Horschel (T25), Harris English and Rickie Fowler (T33).
- Notables to miss the cut: David Toms, Nicolas Colsaerts, John Daly, Geoff Ogilvy, Mike Weir, Jonas Blixt, and Retief Goosen.
- Boo Weekley withdrew halfway through Thursday’s opening round, citing a knee injury.
- Zach Johnson is ridiculous. Another great finish, and now he’ll take the next month off before reappearing at the WGC-Accenture Match Play. His 62 is the best round of golf he’s ever had on the PGA Tour.
- Really good week for Justin Leonard too, and now he’ll be cutting back on his schedule in an attempt to play better golf and spend time with his family. Expect him to appear about as often as Steve Stricker.
- I’ll leave you with this reaction from Ken Duke after the ace above.
AdamSarson.com 
That was terrific day for Patrick Reed! Congrats to him. š