VIVA LAS VEGAS! JHONATTAN ON COURSE FOR FASTEST $2million
FROM THE REUTERS.COM WEBSITE
By Mark Lamport-Stokes
Venezuela's Jhonattan Vegas has made one of the most explosive starts ever to a US PGA Tour career. He's on track to eclipse Tiger Woods as the fastest player to earn $2 million in prize money.
The 26-year-old stunned the golfing world by winning last month's Bob Hope Classic in only his fifth appearance on the US circuit and he followed that with an ice-cool display at last week's Farmers Insurance Open, where he tied for third.
Many had expected the long-hitting Venezuelan rookie to fade at Torrey Pines, where he had to contend with big names such as Woods and Phil Mickelson as well as huge crowds, but he rose to the occasion with a mature and exciting display.
Vegas doggedly remained in the title hunt during Sunday's final round before his bold bid for a second consecutive Tour title ended when he dumped his second shot into water at the par-5 last.
He finished with a bogey for a four-under-par 68, his fourth successive sub-70 round in challenging conditions at Torrey Pines.
"This has been so much fun," Vegas told Reuters after ending a memorable week at the spectacular coastal venue where he played with Woods for the first time in the third round.
"I'm really enjoying the moment, and loving everything about the PGA Tour. It's been a little crazy. It's just a dream come true for me. I'm playing pretty good golf right now."
His tie for third place at 13-under 275 earned Vegas a cheque for $336,400, lifting him to the top of the tour's money list with season's earnings of $1,248,280.
Overall, Vegas has accumulated $1,294,591 from just five tour starts, putting him well on course to break the record set by Woods, who raced past the $2 million barrier in 16 events.
For the moment, though, the ever-smiling Vegas is more concerned about becoming a better player.
"I just try to develop my game as good as it can be," said the beefy Venezuelan, who signaled his rich potential when he cruised to a six-shot victory over Andres Romero at last year's Argentine Open.
"Tiger has an incredible short game and he hits the ball great and he putts great. So just by seeing that, I keep telling myself that I have to develop my game completely and I put everything on a high level."
Vegas, who booked his place on the US PGA Tour by finishing seventh in the 2010 Nationwide Tour money list, has already made a significant impact on Woods and Farmers Insurance Open champion Bubba Watson.
"He's a really nice kid," said Woods, who was outscored by Vegas to the tune of five shots in Saturday's third round.
US PGA TOUR MONEY TABLE AT JANUARY 31, 2011
1. Jhonattan Vegas (Venezuela) $1,248,280
2. Jonathan Byrd $1,146,606
3. Bubba Watson $1,106,000
4. Mark Wilson $1,000,700
5. Bill Haas $772,800
6. Robert Garrigus $635,000
7. Phil Mickelson $626,400
8. Tim Clark (S Africa) $571,000
9. Matt Kuchar $561,125
10. Dustin Johnson $498,400
11. Steve Marino $494,350
12. Gary Woodland $452,876
13. Steve Stricker $429,500
14. Graeme McDowell (N Ireland) $412,000
15. Anthony Kim $364,086
16. Ryan Palmer $360,200
17. Matt Bettencourt $301,500
18. Jimmy Walker $297,814
19. Carl Pettersson (Sweden) $297,288
20. Brian Gay $284,286
EUROPEAN TOUR'S LEADING MONEY-WINNERStotals in Euros
1 SCHWARTZEL Charl RSA €419,927
2 KAYMER Martin GER €334,398
3 CASEY Paul ENG €307,487
4 GOOSEN Retief RSA €227,960
5 OOSTHUIZEN Louis RSA €227,700
6 MCILROY Rory NIR €222,932
7 AIKEN Thomas RSA €182,467
8 JIMÉNEZ Miguel Angel SPA €178,918
9 MARTIN Pablo SPA €170,216
10 ELS Ernie RSA €158,500
11 HANSON Peter SWE €147,590
12 McDOWELL Graeme NIR €112,960
13 WOOD Chris ENG €112,064
14 GALLACHER Stephen SCO €100,850
15 KINGSTON James RSA €98,071
16 OLESEN Thorbjorn DEN €97,467
17 MAYBIN Gareth NIR €95,917
18 QUIROS Manuel SPA €92,100
19 CABRERA-BELLO Rafael SPA €87,171
20 DINWIDDIE Robert ENG €86,018
By Mark Lamport-Stokes
Venezuela's Jhonattan Vegas has made one of the most explosive starts ever to a US PGA Tour career. He's on track to eclipse Tiger Woods as the fastest player to earn $2 million in prize money.
The 26-year-old stunned the golfing world by winning last month's Bob Hope Classic in only his fifth appearance on the US circuit and he followed that with an ice-cool display at last week's Farmers Insurance Open, where he tied for third.
Many had expected the long-hitting Venezuelan rookie to fade at Torrey Pines, where he had to contend with big names such as Woods and Phil Mickelson as well as huge crowds, but he rose to the occasion with a mature and exciting display.
Vegas doggedly remained in the title hunt during Sunday's final round before his bold bid for a second consecutive Tour title ended when he dumped his second shot into water at the par-5 last.
He finished with a bogey for a four-under-par 68, his fourth successive sub-70 round in challenging conditions at Torrey Pines.
"This has been so much fun," Vegas told Reuters after ending a memorable week at the spectacular coastal venue where he played with Woods for the first time in the third round.
"I'm really enjoying the moment, and loving everything about the PGA Tour. It's been a little crazy. It's just a dream come true for me. I'm playing pretty good golf right now."
His tie for third place at 13-under 275 earned Vegas a cheque for $336,400, lifting him to the top of the tour's money list with season's earnings of $1,248,280.
Overall, Vegas has accumulated $1,294,591 from just five tour starts, putting him well on course to break the record set by Woods, who raced past the $2 million barrier in 16 events.
For the moment, though, the ever-smiling Vegas is more concerned about becoming a better player.
"I just try to develop my game as good as it can be," said the beefy Venezuelan, who signaled his rich potential when he cruised to a six-shot victory over Andres Romero at last year's Argentine Open.
"Tiger has an incredible short game and he hits the ball great and he putts great. So just by seeing that, I keep telling myself that I have to develop my game completely and I put everything on a high level."
Vegas, who booked his place on the US PGA Tour by finishing seventh in the 2010 Nationwide Tour money list, has already made a significant impact on Woods and Farmers Insurance Open champion Bubba Watson.
"He's a really nice kid," said Woods, who was outscored by Vegas to the tune of five shots in Saturday's third round.
US PGA TOUR MONEY TABLE AT JANUARY 31, 2011
1. Jhonattan Vegas (Venezuela) $1,248,280
2. Jonathan Byrd $1,146,606
3. Bubba Watson $1,106,000
4. Mark Wilson $1,000,700
5. Bill Haas $772,800
6. Robert Garrigus $635,000
7. Phil Mickelson $626,400
8. Tim Clark (S Africa) $571,000
9. Matt Kuchar $561,125
10. Dustin Johnson $498,400
11. Steve Marino $494,350
12. Gary Woodland $452,876
13. Steve Stricker $429,500
14. Graeme McDowell (N Ireland) $412,000
15. Anthony Kim $364,086
16. Ryan Palmer $360,200
17. Matt Bettencourt $301,500
18. Jimmy Walker $297,814
19. Carl Pettersson (Sweden) $297,288
20. Brian Gay $284,286
EUROPEAN TOUR'S LEADING MONEY-WINNERStotals in Euros
1 SCHWARTZEL Charl RSA €419,927
2 KAYMER Martin GER €334,398
3 CASEY Paul ENG €307,487
4 GOOSEN Retief RSA €227,960
5 OOSTHUIZEN Louis RSA €227,700
6 MCILROY Rory NIR €222,932
7 AIKEN Thomas RSA €182,467
8 JIMÉNEZ Miguel Angel SPA €178,918
9 MARTIN Pablo SPA €170,216
10 ELS Ernie RSA €158,500
11 HANSON Peter SWE €147,590
12 McDOWELL Graeme NIR €112,960
13 WOOD Chris ENG €112,064
14 GALLACHER Stephen SCO €100,850
15 KINGSTON James RSA €98,071
16 OLESEN Thorbjorn DEN €97,467
17 MAYBIN Gareth NIR €95,917
18 QUIROS Manuel SPA €92,100
19 CABRERA-BELLO Rafael SPA €87,171
20 DINWIDDIE Robert ENG €86,018
Labels: EUROPEAN TOUR, US PGA TOUR, US PRO TOUR
posted by Colin |
See story on its own page | Monday, January 31, 2011
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