Westwood forgets past at Memorial
He’s put blown lead at BMW PGA out of mind
DUBLIN, OHIO Lee Westwood has a short memory.
Though he was visibly shaken immediately after a final-round collapse in the BMW PGA Championship, it didn’t last long.
“Not long; gone now,” he said when asked whether the downfall would stay with him long. “Only lasts about three beers.”
The former No. 1-ranked golfer is among 10 of the top 15 players in the world competing in this week’s Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village, a list that includes defending champion Tiger Woods.
Westwood was still getting over jet lag Tuesday morning when he arrived at the golf course, and his flight from Surrey, England, wasn’t a joyous one. But the veteran, who has endured heartbreak many times over during his long career, already was moving on from his latest disappointment, a final-round 73 that took him from the top of the leaderboard into a tie for ninth.
“I’m playing pretty consistently,” he said of a game that has produced five consecutive top-10 finishes, including four on the PGA Tour. “I’m looking forward to this week and hopefully to just keep playing as I am and hopefully get in contention and finish it off.”
Westwood hasn’t played the Memorial since 2003. But with his move from Europe to Florida in the offseason and his desire to play the PGA and European tours, a return was in order. And just as his two kids are spending much more time outdoors in the friendlier climate of the Sunshine State, so, too, is Westwood, who has taken advantage of the warmer, drier weather to sharpen his game, especially on and around the greens.
The move also has cut down on his jet lag and allowed him to spend more time with his family. Westwood more than likely will add a side trip to Merion Golf Club next week to gather reconnaissance for the U.S. Open on June 13-16.
Westwood hasn’t been to Merion, a shortish brute of a course with plenty of rough, difficult greens, and he’s still pursuing his first major title. He’s been close — 15 top-10s, including eight finishes in the top four — but he’s looking to close one out.
“I don’t think it’s one of these things you can force,” he said. “You’ve just got to keep working on the things that are letting you down.”
Plenty let him down in the closing stages of the European Tour’s flagship event.
Through 58 holes, Westwood’s short game was stellar — Ernie Els dubbed Westwood a “short-game magician” midway through the tournament — and his long game was on point as he built a two-shot lead with three consecutive birdies. But when he headed to the sixth hole, he left his game on the fifth.
He made bogeys on four of his final 13 holes and had a double-bogey on another. He missed short putts, hit tee shots into the dense forest rimming the course, lost his wedge game and chipped poorly.
That has been the issue at the majors: A few areas letting him down.
“I’ve been in contention a lot and come close,” he said. “And there are certain things that have let me down, and then different things. So you just have to analyze that and then work on your weaknesses. Obviously one of my major weaknesses was my short game, but now that’s looking really solid. And I feel like I can contend more in major championships.
“You just keep working toward that. And if you’re good enough and you do the right things at the right time, then you win one.”