Musings: Singh beats Garcia in dramatic playoff

The PGA Tour’s version of a postseason playoff started, appropriately enough, with a dramatic playoff that actually felt like it meant something. This Tiger-free edition of the FedExCup couldn’t have asked for much more.

The Barclays almost took on the feel of a major, as the opening event of the final battle for the FedExCup gave us great drama on a great golf course. A solid leaderboard that included an appropriate mixture of stars and grinders mixed it up for four hours on a sun-splashed Sunday afternoon at Ridgewood Country Club that saw the cream rise in a thrilling two-hole playoff featuring Vijay Singh, Sergio Garcia and Kevin Sutherland, who was eliminated after the first playoff hole. 

After some daylong jostling for the lead among players like Ben Curtis, Mike Weir, Kevin Streelman, Matt Goggin and Paul Casey, it was fitting that the last two players standing were Singh and Garcia. Between them, they’ve won this event six times, albeit at its former home at Westchester Country Club, and with Tiger Woods’ absence, they’d both be worthy champions for Year Two of the FedExCup.

It should come as no surprise that Singh and Garcia, two of the pricklier personalities on the PGA Tour, are close friends off the course. As two of the most talented players of their era, they’re also capable of some remarkable drama, and they took the opportunity to play their own game of “Anything you can do…” with a stunning exchange of birdies on the first playoff hole and a friendly display of gamesmanship.

Garcia, putting first, drained a 25-footer and promptly blew a kiss to Ryder Cup captain Nick Faldo, ensconced in the CBS broadcast booth. Singh rose to the occasion, dropping a 24-footer that extended the playoff to a second hole and resulted in a high-five between the two. Just like that, two players known for their balky putters had made two of the season’s most important and dramatic putts. “I think he was surprised to make his, and I was surprised to see it go in,” Singh said afterward. “And he was even more surprised to see mine go in. I think we were both happy.”

Singh ended things on the second playoff hole, two-putting for birdie on the par-5 17th after a leaky drive had left Garcia without a legitimate birdie opportunity. Singh followed his winning putt with a friendly pat to Garcia’s face.

All in all, not a bad opening salvo in the battle for $10 million and a silver cup from Tiffany’s.

Losing to a buddy took some of the sting out of the loss for Garcia, who is slowly learning to handle disappointment with grace and class.

“What can you do?" Garcia said. “You can’t take it the wrong way. I think the most important thing about it is that I keep putting myself in a good position, and unfortunately, somebody just seems to be able to come up with some spectacular playing when I’m out there on top.

“I feel like I played solid all week. I got a couple bad breaks here and there that maybe would have made the difference, and a couple good ones here and there, too. At the end of the day, I had a shot. That's what you ask yourself for, and Vijay came out with the goods, and you've just got to give hats off to him.

“Vijay is a good friend of mine. If I couldn’t win, I’m happy that he did, I guess.”

“He’s a good friend of mine,” Singh said. “It’s hard to see your friend not win, especially if he’s playing against you, but somebody has to win.”

Singh, who takes a lead of almost 5,000 points over Garcia to this week’s Deutsche Bank, is more than happy to be that somebody. 

Paging Carl Spackler

Not since Caddyshack has a burrowing rodent played such a disruptively high-profile role on a golf course. On the second playoff hole, the par-5 17th, Garcia hit his tee shot behind a tree, but a passing gopher (or some other underground dweller) was causing the ground nearby to undulate. Garcia sought relief and was allowed to drop his ball a club-length away. “It was not where my ball was, but like about five or six feet left, (the ground) was actually moving,” he said. “You could see the grass going up and down.”

Singh resisted the impulse to rush over and shout, “Freeze, gopher!” He simply two-putted for birdie and the win. 

Loose Lips

Sometimes, Nick Faldo seems unaware that he has a microphone next to his mouth, which can make for some good television. The British golfer-turned-broadcaster had an interesting moment on Sunday. As fellow Brit Paul Casey addressed a birdie putt on the 18th hole, Faldo, the European Ryder Cup captain, blurted, “If he makes this, he’s on the team.” Casey responded by draining the putt, to which Faldo replied, “Oh, maybe I shouldn’t have said that.”

According to PGATour.com, when asked about the comment, Casey replied, “Oh, we've got it on tape; lawyers would have a field day with that one.”

This One’s for You

After the tournament, Sergio Garcia had his fellow countrymen in mind, specifically those affected by the recent plane crash in Madrid. “Yeah, obviously you want to win, and for this week, it was even more special with everything that happened in Spain with the plane crash and with my Godmother losing her brother on Monday; I really wanted to win and dedicate the victory to everybody in Spain,” he said. “I hope they feel good about the second place, and I definitely gave it my best shot.

Progressively Tougher

According to the good folks at Elias Sports Bureau, The Barclays became the fifth tournament of the year in which the first-round leader had a lower score relative to par than the eventual winner did for the entire tournament. Hunter Mahan shot an opening 62, 9-under par; Singh, Garcia and Sutherland finished 8-under. Mahan followed his 62 with rounds of 73, 74 and 73. The other tournaments to fall into this category in 2008 are the U.S. Open Championship, Stanford St. Jude Championship, British Open Championship and PODS Championship.

Move Over, Tiger

Danny Lee became the youngest-ever winner of the U.S. Amateur, beating Drew Kittelson 5 and 4 one month after his 18th birthday. The world’s top-ranked amateur earns the chance to play next year’s U.S. Open with Tiger Woods, the man whose record he eclipsed by seven months. Traditionally, the amateur champion is paired with the reigning Open champion. After the initial shock of that bit of news wore off, Lee laughed and told USGA official Craig Smith: “Wow … I’m going to beat him.”

If confidence is a factor, and there’s no doubt that it is, this kid might be a challenger for the throne some day soon.

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