Kentuckian J.B. Holmes likes Scottsdale. He took the FBR Open Championship, and the $1,080,000 paycheck, for the second time in three years. This time, he sank a difficult putt on the 18th hole to force a playoff with Phil Mickelson. After a 360-plus yard drive on the first playoff hole, he pitched to within 10 feet and sank his birdie putt for the win. The win vaulted him from 61st in the Fedex Rankings to 2nd, and from 62nd on the Money List to 1st.
At the FBR Open, Mickelson was the leader in scoring average, 68.16, Nick Watney led in driving distance, 319 yards, John Sendin was the leader in greens in regulation, 80.56%, and Rory Sabatini led in putts per round, 25.5.
There have been no multiple winners through five tournaments this year (Chopra, Choi, Trahan, Woods and Holmes.)
In Dubai, Tiger Woods staged a magnificent comeback to best the field by one shot. Although he anticipated a playoff with Ernie Els, it wasn't to be. Els sank one in the water on the final hole to drop himself to third place, two shots back.
Here are the early Top-25 players in the Fedex Rankings and Money List.
Top-25 Fedex Cup Point Rankings after the FBR Open
- K.J. Choi (Fedex Points 4,962)
- J.B. Holmes (4,958)
- Daniel Chopra (4,711)
- Rory Sabbatini (4,668)
- D.J. Trahan (4,546)
- Justin Leonard (4,528)
- Tiger Woods (4,500)
- Steve Stricker (3,684)
- Phil Mickelson (3,569)
- Ryuji Imada (3,109)
- Steve Elkington (2,297)
- Stephen Ames (2,236)
- Kevin Na (1,978)
- Boo Weekley (1,914)
- Kenny Perry (1,872)
- Charles Warren (1,859)
- Jerry Kelly (1,700)
- Stuart Appleby (1,668)
- Anthony Kim (1,656)
- Stewart Cink (1,643)
- Ben Crane (1,496)
- Steve Marino (1,478)
- Kevin Sutherland (1,440)
- Charles Howell III (1,433)
- Troy Matteson (1,407)
Top-25 PGA Tour Money List through the FBR Open
- J.B. Holmes, $1,176,660
- Daniel Chopra, $1,146,810
- K.J. Choi, $1,088,940
- Rory Sabbatini, $992,400
- Justin Leonard, $952,520
- Tiger Woods, $936,000
- D.J. Trahan, $927,805
- Steve Stricker, $838,688
- Phil Mickelson, $828,700
- Ryuji Imada, $645,355
- Stephen Ames, $523,571
- Steve Elkington, $504,217
- Kevin Na, $445,343
- Charles Warren, $440,428
- Boo Weekley, $440,060
- Kenny Perry, $395,680
- Stuart Appleby, $377,000
- Jerry Kelly, $360,400
- Anthony Kim, $343,780
- Stewart Cink, $340,870
- Mike Weir, $340,093
- Ben Crane, $339,355
- Kevin Sutherland, $329,440
- Charles Howell, III, $323,472
- Brandt Snedeker, $320,805
This week the Tour moves from the often raucous atmosphere of the FBR Open to one of the premier events on the schedule, the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro Am at Pebble Beach, California. Defending champion at the AT&T is Phil Mickelson. Look for Lefty to have a strong week. Although beaten by Holmes in the playoff, Mickelson played some fantastic golf. He's in better physical condition than he's been in for years. The added confidence of great conditioning, combined with great early-season play bodes well for him at Pebble.
Source: PGATOUR.com.
