Originally, I was going to publish this Sunday night, but Monday morning I made the decision to lead by example and finish the last few words.
On Sunday, Matt Kuchar emerged as the major figure in golf. Not Aaron Rai following his maiden victory on the PGA Tour at the Wyndham Championship. Not Max Greyserman, the 29-year-old rookie who, after making a quadruple bogey on hole 14 and a four-putt on hole 16, gave up a four-shot lead with five holes remaining. The 46-year-old Kuchar, who placed 12th, was the most talked-about man at the regular-season finale.
Why? Well, we were all trying to figure that out Sunday night as well.
After the Wyndham (miraculously) completed portions of three separate rounds in one day, allowing the final group to finish on schedule, Kuchar picked up his ball from the fairway rough and decided to call it a day. Kuchar made the decision to end play on Monday morning with half a hole left, outside of the top 10, and already out of the FedEx Cup playoffs.
He was the only golfer to do so.
“Sorry that you guys had to come out this morning,” Kuchar stated on Monday when traveling to Greensboro, North Carolina, to address the media representatives who had also decided to retake the course, perhaps more out of curiosity than anything else.
Alright, let us get this straight: this entire situation is more bizarre and humorous than it is problematic. Kuchar apologized to the tournament organizers and to everyone who had to return, but for reasons we will get into, it is a tough look. “Nobody wants to be that man, which I feel I turned into,” he admitted, and he is well aware of this.
Matt Kuchar returned to @WyndhamChamp Monday morning to complete his round and explain his reasoning for waiting to finish. pic.twitter.com/qVx4ZthZHc
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 12, 2024
But let’s get into the nonsense.
Kuchar was in the last group and, as far as they knew, Greyserman was one shot behind Rai when he arrived at the 18th hole. They were unaware that the 72nd hole was for a potential playoff spot. Kuchar says he had Greyserman in mind when he took certain actions. Sunday night, Kuchar remarked, “I was trying to set an example for Max,” in an interview with Todd Lewis of Golf Channel. When we ought to have finished playing, it was so much later. We witnessed Max’s actions on hole 16. There, they ought to have honked the horn. I am sorry; that poor child deserved to win this competition. My absence from the game could indicate to Max that he has a crucial shot to make.
This is why it is so peculiar: At the beginning, Kuchar was the one hurrying to make his 18-hole tee shot. Kuchar struck Rai’s group, which was still in the fairway, but luckily he missed left into the rough. Chad Ramey and Greyserman were still waiting to make their tee shots. When they finally arrived, Rai had already taken a two-shot lead with a birdie. Greyserman ended up tied for second place on his own.
“I think had I been in the fairway with a normal shot, I probably would have attempted to finish,” Kuchar said Monday morning, “but I had just seen Max four-putt the 16th hole. If there was daylight on that green, does he four-putt? I don’t know, I don’t know.”
Kuchar eventually made a comeback, saved par (after obtaining temporary reprieve from an immovable object from a scoreboard), and concluded the competition tied for 12th place. Kuchar concluded the season placed 103rd in the FedEx Cup standings, meaning he will miss the playoffs, which begin this week in Memphis, because the Wyndham is the last event of the regular season. Kuchar was the only golfer to qualify for every FedEx Cup Playoffs since the competition’s inception in 2007. It brings an end to a quietly historic run.
“So apologies to the tournament, to everybody that had to come out,” Kuchar said. “I know it stinks, I know the ramifications, I know it stinks. Certainly I apologize to force everybody to come out here.”
But he accidentally covered for Greyserman
The fact that you occasionally only get to know a golfer through their darkest moments is one of the most unpleasant aspects of watching professional golf on television. Yes, those who follow golf closely will notice that Greyserman, a 29-year-old rookie, finished T21 in his first major professional tournament at the U.S. Open. With seven straight top-40 finishes and successive runner-up positions, he is a good player.
Most admirers are still unaware of him. It is alright. It was meant to be his day on Sunday; he was the talk of the town on CBS, when he holed out for eagle on hole 13 to take a four-shot lead with five holes remaining.
Greyserman’s drive on 14 veered sharply to the right and left the field of play after bouncing off the cart path. He then proceeded to drive into the rough, struck a bunker, and ultimately needed a quadruple-bogey 8 to fall back level with Rai. Bravo to Greyserman for making a comeback with a birdie! Everything went smoothly!
False. Greyserman’s birdie putt on hole number sixteen was three feet, four inches away. It ought to have been a strong par. Rather, the par putt rolled three feet further away after wrapping around the hole, and Greyserman missed it. Then, for a double bogey, he missed that three-footer as well.
This hurts. Similar to Ben Kohles at the Byron Nelson this summer, Greyserman may be all that casual golf fans remember for the time being, but it appears that he will not be going anywhere. He appears to be destined for a good career as he placed in the top 70 for the playoffs. It is hoped that he will have additional opportunities to imbue people with new memories.
For now, though, enjoy Greyserman handling it like a professional.
"Just gonna take away that I hung in there, and I played good golf."
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 12, 2024
Max Greyserman discusses his final round @WyndhamChamp. pic.twitter.com/Dpe7VW5qIT
A worthy winner in Rai
If you have been observing, Aaron Rai has recently been ranked among the top 30 golfers in the world. The Englishman, 29, is simply excellent. He is the kind of streaky, two-gloved ball striker who can shoot 63 on any given day but can fade out to finish in the top 20. He has always been a really nice player.
But this year? He is made a bold move. After finishing in the top 40 at the PGA Championship and in the Byron Nelson with a T4 finish, he proceeded to shoot T14, T19, T2, T7, and T4 before a dismal Open Championship. Furthermore, the fact that T19 was at Pinehurst for the U.S. Open indicates how frequently he has successful weeks at quite different courses.
Rai now has a seventh career victory on the PGA Tour, most notably in the 2020 Scottish Open. Currently ranked 25th in the FedEx Cup rankings, he has a good chance of finishing in the top 30 and qualifying for the Tour Championship in Atlanta.
(Top photo of Matt Kuchar: Isaiah Vazquez / Getty Images)
