Watson gets his Riviera fairytale
A TEARFUL Bubba Watson has revealed he contemplated retirement before claiming a drought-breaking victory at the US PGA Tour event at Riviera Country Club.
The two-time Masters champion captured his 10th US Tour victory yesterday when he closed with a twounder-par 69 for a 12-under total.
Fellow Americans Kevin Na and Tony Finau (both 69) tied for second, two shots back.
It is Watson’s first win since his 2016 triumph at Riviera and he joins Ben Hogan and Lloyd Mangrum as the only three-time US Tour winners at the iconic Los Angeles course.
Watson, who has suffered illness and subsequent weight loss during the past two years as he plummeted to world No.117, said he had thought about quitting tour golf, so badly was he struggling.
“I’ve mentioned it (retirement) about 10 to 12 times to my wife,” he said after his win.
“We sat down and had many talks about it because, physically, I wasn’t where I needed to be to keep continuing to play.
“I have a car dealership, a candy shop and a baseball team so we would have had something to do.
“I was close (to retirement). My wife was not close. My wife basically told me to quit whining and play golf.”
Watson began the final round with a one-shot lead but relinquished the honour when he dropped a shot on the front side.
Final group playing partner Patrick Cantlay took hold of the lead, but the turning point came at the par-3 14th hole when Watson holed a green- side bunker shot for a timely birdie as Cantlay began to unravel.
Florida native Watson reached the par-5 17th in two and two-putted for birdie to ensure an easy stroll up Riviera’s famous par-4 18th.
“I can’t believe it. There are so many emotions going through my head right now,” Watson said as he teared up on the 18th green.
“You never know if you’re going to play good again, never know if you’re going to lift a trophy again.”
The victory capped a memorable week in Hollywood for Watson, who recorded a show with US comedy icon Jay Leno, dropped in on comedian and chat show host Ellen DeGeneres, took in a taping of TV sitcom The Big Bang Theory and played in the NBA AllStar Celebrity Game.
“It loosened me up,” Watson said of the extra-curricular activities.
“I was so focused on other things I didn’t have time to focus on where I stood going into this week.”
editorial@cairnspost.com.au facebook.com/TheCairnsPost www.cairnspost.com.au twitter.com/TheCairnsPost