Day beats Tiger in Japan Skins – and also with quips
Bridge Results Colsaerts ends 7-year drought by winning French Open
INZAI CITY, Japan, Oct 21, (AP): Not only did Jason Day win the inaugural “The Challenge: Japan Skins” game on Monday, beating Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy and Hideki Matsuyama, he also won the needling contest.
Turning to Woods after receiving the trophy, Day asked how many similar events Woods had played in.
“Tiger, this is what – your fifth of sixth?”
Before Woods could reply, Day supplied the rejoinder.
“He hasn’t won one yet. I found that out today when he told me.”
Woods and everyone else laughed, which captured the lighthearted day at the Narashino Country Club, where the made-for-TV skins game finished under floodlights on the 17th and 18th holes.
“First time I’ve ever finished under lights, so that was exciting,” Day said, surprised the sun goes down about 5 pm in the fall in the Tokyo area.
Day won eight skins and $210,000. Woods had five skins and $60,000 with McIlroy taking four and winning $60,000. Matsuyama won only one skin and $20,000.
“I’m disappointed I had only one,” Matsuyama said, speaking through an interpreter and also getting a laugh.
It was Woods’ first event after surgery two months ago, the fifth on his left knee. He’ll get a stiffer test at the Zozo Championship that opens Thursday – the first-ever full PGA Tour event in Japan.
Wood said it was great “just being able to compete again. I haven’t done this in a little bit now.”
By his own assessment, he started very slowly.
“I did not play well at the beginning,” he said. “I hit a lot of bad shots and did not putt well. Once I got into the flow of competing and feeling the round, it just got exciting. We were competitive, the banter was great, the back and forth.”
Woods, who had a hand in organizing the event, said he hoped “we were entertaining everyone and everyone who’s watching had a good time.” They probably did. On No. 4, Woods seemed to try to take advantage of the fact the Narashino Country Club has two greens on every hole. It’s a tradition at some courses in Japan, alternating greens to keep them both in good shape.
Woods hit a shot between two greens and Day got on him.
“I asked him (Tiger) to let me know which green he was going for,” Day said. “But he was in between so I still don’t know which one he was going for.”
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Woods agreed. “I hit in between the greens, so it looked kind of like I kind of didn’t know what I was doing,” he said.
Both greens at No. 4 will be used this week at the tournament. A hole will be cut in each and players will choose which to play to.
The Narashino club is located about 50 kilometers (30 miles) northeast of Tokyo in Chiba prefecture. The course for next year’s Tokyo Olympics will be at Kasumigaseki Country Club in neighboring Saitama prefecture.
In Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, France, Nicolas Colsaerts of Belgium ended more than seven years without a victory when he closed with a 1-over 72 and survived a wild back nine at Le Golf National to win the French Open.
It was Colsaerts first victory since the Volvo World Match Play in 2012, when he was No. 32 in the world and played a role in Europe’s record comeback to win the Ryder Cup at Medinah.
Colsaerts played 214 tournaments worldwide since that last victory.
This one wasn’t easy, even after he stretched his lead to five shots early in the final round.
He had to chip in for eagle on the par-5 14th to regain the lead. Colsaerts gave it right back with a double bogey on the next hole. Joachim Hansen then made double bogey on the 17th hole that allowed Colsaerts to take the lead again.
Colsaerts closed with three pars for a one-shot victory over Hansen, who closed with a 68. George Coetzee, who led by two shots with six holes to play, made triple bogey on the 15th hole and shot 71 to finish two shots behind.
Nicolas Colsaerts of Belgium poses for photographers with the trophy after winning the Amundi French Open at Le Golf National in Saint-Quentin-enYvelines, outside Paris, France on Oct 20. (AP)