PGA Tour fans slam Matt Kuchar after baffling decision to return to 18th hole on Monday
PGA Tour fans have ripped into Matt Kuchar after he elected to be the only player not to finish out his final round at the Wyndham Championship on Sunday night.
Kuchar, 46, made the decision to not play his second shot on the par-4 18th in the final group due to darkness, even though his playing partners Max Greyserman and Chad Ramey went on to play out the hole.
The call requires the nine-time PGA Tour champion to return on Monday morning to complete the final hole. This also implies that several tournament officials, volunteers, and event crew members will need to return specifically for him on Monday. Kuchar’s choice to return on Monday seemed even more confusing because he was in T12 and had no chance of advancing to the following week’s FedEx Cup Playoffs regardless of his score.
He simply needed to win the Wyndham Championship in order to advance to next week’s FedEx St Jude Championship.
A bogey on the 18th hole would potentially cost Kuchar in the region of $58,000.
Pocket change for a man who is about to slip past the $60m mark in PGA Tour earnings.
Kuchar told Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis after walking off the 18th that he made the decision because he felt play should have been called two holes ago on the 16th green.
“We were so far past when we should’ve stopped playing,” said Kuchar.
“We saw what Max did on hole 16, they should’ve blown the horn there.
“I feel bad, the poor kid should’ve won this tournament.
“By me not playing, it may show Max he has an important shot to hit.”
Kuchar was referring to Greyserman taking four putts from 40 feet on the 16th hole, which led to a double bogey and him losing the lead.
That came two holes after Greyserman made a disastrous quadruple-bogey eight to lose his four-shot advantage on Aaron Rai.
Another bizarre episode to it all was that Kuchar thrashed away at his tee shot down the par-4 18th despite the penultimate group still being ahead in the fairway.
It was a good job Kuchar was errant off the tee otherwise Rai, Cameron Young and Billy Horschel and their caddies would have been in danger of being struck by his golf ball.
Kuchar apparently thought the fairway was clear, but it was not.
He sprayed his tee shot well left into the trees.
Upon arriving at the location, he immediately identified his ball and informed a PGA Tour official that he did not wish to complete the hole. Kuchar was given the authority to make the decision because the horn had blown after they started playing on the 18th hole.
Kuchar’s fellow golfers, Greyserman and Ramey, chose to continue playing and complete the round.
Greyserman ended up making a par to secure the second spot by himself, whereas Ramey made a bogey, finishing much lower in the field at T52.
England’s Rai achieved his first PGA tour victory by defeating Greyserman by two shots. Greyserman unexpectedly lost his four-shot lead with only five holes left to play.
Kuchar surprised and puzzled many, including the commentators at CBS Sports, when he chose to return on Monday to finish his final round.
Due to Kuchar’s choice, he will be the sole competitor returning the following morning to finish his round.
Lead CBS anchor Jim Nantz couldn’t resist commenting: “I don’t think we will have that coverage for you tomorrow.”
