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Poulter Pulls Through
It's funny what pressure can do to people. At the WGC Match Play Ian Poulter was told his progression to the quarter final had secured qualification to the Masters... until ten minutes before teeing off, when he was infamously informed otherwise. Belatedly discovering he needed to beat Kevin Kisner to crack the OWGR top 50 and qualify for the Masters, Poulter crumbled to an 8&6 loss. The English veteran was understandably unhappy; casting doubt over whether he'd even compete at next week's Houston Open, where he'd need to win against all odds in order to qualify.
Many were surprised by Poulter's collapse under pressure against Kisner. After all, Ian Poulter with the Miracle at Medinah (Odyssey #7) putter in his hands is something of a symbol for overcoming pressure against American opposition on the golf course. But Poulter did compete in Houston. And Poulter won in Houston. And Poulter will play in the Masters.
How it Happened
Poulter opened with a +1 73 on Thursday and confessed to having already started packing his bags before the seemingly inevitable missed cut on Friday. But an incredible -8 not only made the cut but suddenly launched him into contention. A -7, -5 weekend followed. An incredibly professional performance from rookie Beau Hossler saw him post -19; narrowly missing a long birdie putt which would have secured victory on the final hole. However, Poulter still needed to sink a 20-yard clutch putt to force the playoff. Of course he duly delivered with his trusty Odyssey putter.
Despite, Poulter's sublime three days of golf, the playoff was ultimately decided by Hossler's errors as the inexperienced American went bunker-bunker-water to post +3 on the par-4 18th. Poulter two-putted for par.
Who's Ready for the Masters?
Whilst Poulter's miraculous qualification grabbed the headlines, Jordan Spieth went below-par every day to finish T3 with -16, which he declared 'mission accomplished for the week'. Henrik Stenson finished -14 for T6; one stroke ahead of T8 Matt Kuchar. At the other end of the scale, Rickie Fowler's opening -6, -4 had him in contention until a triple-bogey on the par-5 13th on Saturday began back-to-back 73 for a +2 weekend and T43 finish. A stroke behind Fowler was Justin Rose (T52), who went 68, 69, 72, 72 for the week, meaning he never went over par. Despite the disappointing finishes, Fowler and Rose can definitely take positives from their respective -8 and -7 scorecards.
The plot thickens.
Ian Poulter - What's in the Bag?
Driver: Titleist 917 D2
Fairway Wood: Titleist 917 F2
Hybrid: Titleist 816 H2
Irons: Titleist 716 T-MB (4-iron), Titleist 718 AP2 (5-PW)
Wedges: Titleist Vokey SM7
Putter: Odyssey White Hot #7
Golf Ball: Titleist Pro V1x
Credit: @GolfDigest - Official Twitter account of Golf Digest
Written by Joe Carabini
