Northern Trust Open 2015: Daily Leaderboard Analysis, Highlights and More
James Hahn won the Northern Trust Open on Sunday at the Riviera Golf Club in Pacific Palisades, California, taking home a $1,206,000 winning share and 500 FedEx Cup points.
Of course, for folks on the East Coast getting slammed by the winter weather, doing just about anything in sunny California sounds like a great time right about now, let alone playing golf. And winning like Hahn did against many of the best players in the world.
Below, you'll find the leaderboard, highlights and analysis from each round of the Northern Trust Open.
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Leaderboard
Day 4 Anaylsis
The Northern Trust Open concluded Sunday in a three-way playoff that featured notable talents such as Dustin Johnson and Paul Casey. In the end, it was James Hahn who hung tough, drained a long birdie putt on the third extra hole and emerged with his first PGA Tour victory.
Hahn was four strokes back from the lead entering the final round, yet he carded a two-under 69 to get to six-under overall and in the clubhouse with a shot to win.
Golf Channel's Damon Hack referenced the long journey it had been for the 33-year-old Hahn to find the winner's circle:
PGATour.com's Amanda Balionis added more context behind Sunday's likable champion:
A putt for the trophy on the 72nd hole went begging for Johnson, who along with Hahn drove out of position on the second playoff hole, the short par-four 10th.
But after Hahn hit an incredible flop shot to find the green with a realistic birdie chance, Johnson hit an even better one inside of him. Casey appeared to have the edge off the tee, and then found himself furthest from the cup.
The scramblers converted while Casey's birdie attempt missed. Rookie Blayne Barber was impressed with the amazing shots Johnson and Hahn hit to knock Casey out of the action:
Johnson stuck his shot rather close on the par-three 14th to follow up, as Hahn's went wider and further right of the flag. Despite the inexperience, Hahn rolled it into the heart of the hole, while Johnson's putt missed on the high left side to end it.
As wonderful of a story as it is for Hahn to break through, it's encouraging to see superior athletes like Johnson and Casey playing well.
Johnson is returning from a self-imposed hiatus and has been near the top of the leaderboard in each of his past two starts. Injuries have plagued Casey, but there's never been any doubt about his skill level.
These are just two of the big names rounding into form at the start of the 2014-15 campaign. It's a testament to the depth of talent in golf that Hahn came out on top on Sunday at Riviera, and the immediate future of the PGA Tour is quite exciting.
Other stars such as Jordan Spieth, Hideki Matsuyama, Sergio Garcia and Keegan Bradley finished five-under. They're all in fine form ahead of the truly serious part of the schedule.
Next week's Honda Classic field will be headlined by the very best golfer on the planet in Rory McIlroy. It's the site where McIlroy gained the No. 1 ranking for the first time in his career, and it will be great to see him return to action and add even more spice to the compelling young season.
Day 3 Analysis
Despite littering four bogeys across his back nine, Retief Goosen still managed to shoot an impressive two-under 69 on Saturday. He sits at eight under for the tournament, two strokes ahead of Graham DeLaet.
"It wasn't easy out there for me," Goosen said after the round, per The Associated Press, via ESPN.com. "Mentally, I had to work hard to try and stay positive and focused. But I'm still in the lead, so that's a good place to be. Just try and play solid tomorrow and keep the putter warm and see what happens."
The general story of Goosen's third round was that he'd flirt with danger but somehow manage to escape with minimal damage. Twice he had to deliver critical putts just to avoid a double bogey. He also sank a 33-foot putt on the eighth hole for his third birdie of the round.
Goosen delivered arguably the best shot of the day on No. 16, chipping in from the rough to earn a birdie.
Golf Central made the parallel between Goosen's third round and his final-round performance at the 2004 U.S. Open, which he won by two strokes:
If Goosen can pull through, it will be his first win since the 2009 Transitions Championship. GolfChannel.com's Jason Sobel thinks a victory for the 46-year-old South African would make for a great narrative in a season otherwise dominated by young guns:
Bob Wischusen questioned the feeling of optimism with the sense of pessimism that surrounds Tiger Woods. It certainly makes for an intriguing contrast:
It will be interesting to see if Goosen can hang on until the end on Sunday. He'll likely get pushed hard by DeLaet, who shot a one-under 70 in the third round.
DeLaet got his day off to a great start with an eagle on the first hole. His momentum fizzled right after, though, as he picked up pars on the next three holes. A birdie on No. 6 put him at three under for the day, but he gave back two strokes with back-to-back bogeys on Nos. 7 and 8.
The 33-year-old Canadian was a bit up and down on the back nine, and wound up a stroke further behind Goosen than he began the day. Two strokes is far from an impossible deficit to overcome, though.
Throughout his nine-year career on the PGA Tour, DeLaet has never won a tournament. He's finished runner-up on three different occasions, but he's strung together four great rounds.
He has a chance to change that on Sunday, and as Jason Logan argued, the Riviera Country Club has been a great stepping stone for plenty of golfers before:
Day 2 Analysis
On a day without a lot of low scores to be found, Canada's Graham DeLaet moved to within one shot of Retief Goosen thanks to a near-perfect four-under par 67 that put him at five-under through two rounds. He's currently tied with Ryan Moore.
One reason DeLaet had success on Friday was thanks to his putter, as evidenced by this 50-foot stroke on the fourth hole, via PGA Tour:
The 33-year-old's lone blemish came on the 15th hole, as he bogeyed No. 15. He's currently ranked 90th in the world and has just one top-10 finish in eight events this season, so being near the lead is certainly uncharted territory.
As far as the player DeLaet is chasing, Goosen played a methodical second round with a one-under par 70. He did end the day strong, hitting a birdie on the ninth hole after starting on the back nine. The 46-year-old is looking for his first PGA Tour victory since 2009.
After coming out of Thursday in a tie for the lead, Goosen told reporters (h/t Chris Dufresne of the Los Angeles Times) that being in contention actually changes your focus for an event.
"You don't really chat as much as you would when you have got something over par going and you don't really care anymore," Goosen said.
Following today's round, Goosen certainly wasn't about to get cocky about his standing because it's been so long since he's won, via Jason Sobel of the Golf Channel:
Whatever happens to Goosen over the weekend, it's good to see that he's got a good head on his shoulders. It would be nice to see him end the long winless streak, especially since he used to be one of the best players on the planet.
Nostalgia is usually wasted in sports, but every once in a while it pops up to remind us that sometimes good things do happen to once-great players.
There's also the other side of the nostalgia wheel, as Vijay Singh didn't capitalize on his first-round success. He didn't bomb in the second, but a three-over 74 did put him four shots behind Goosen.
One sad part of Singh falling off the pace, per Justin Ray of the Golf Channel, is he had a chance to make history since his birthday is on Sunday:
At least Singh will be around for the weekend, as he is comfortably over the projected cut line of plus-three.
Heading into the weekend, things are as tight as can be. Goosen's slim lead leaves a lot to be decided, as three players are one shot behind him and six others are within three strokes.
Goosen will be the sentimental favorite, though he will have to do better than Friday's 70 to hold off the coming charge to get his first win in five years.
Day 1 Analysis
Parity was the name of the game during the first round of the Northern Trust Open on Thursday, as six golfers—Retief Goosen, Vijay Singh, Nick Watney, James Hahn, Daniel Summerhays and Derek Fathauer—finished tied atop the leaderboard after shooting a five-under 66.
The story of the day was probably Singh, however, who was once one of the top players in the world but has faded from the spotlight in recent years, perhaps in part due to a lawsuit he's taken up against the PGA Tour.
Goosen, who was paired with Singh for the day and shares the lead with him, speculated that the lawsuit has taken its toll, per Jason Sobel of the Golf Channel:
"The last couple of years, since what’s happened, has probably drained him a little bit. Vijay wasn’t as chirpy as he normally would be on the golf course today, because he does have quite a sarcastic sense of humor. He seems a little bit down on himself at the moment, but it didn’t affect his game today, which is good.
I don’t know. But I think he probably feels at the moment like everybody is against him for no real reason. I think what’s still going on is really working on him. He’s doubting himself and his game and his attitude. He’s not as happy-chappy as he used to be.
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For at least one day, however, Singh can be as happy-chappy as he likes. And the rest of us get to enjoy a bit of a throwback with Singh and Goosen atop the leaderboard, as Sobel joked on Twitter:
While the six-way tie atop the leaderboard was the main storyline of the day, a few other players made their mark. Bubba Watson shot one-under for the day, a solid if unspectacular round for the star. He did provide one of the highlights of the day.
Then there was Dustin Johnson, who finished with the same score as Watson on the day and, like Watson, impressed with one heck of a birdie.
But the shot of the day probably came from Carl Pettersson, who impressed everyone with this eagle from the bunker on the 11th.
The Northern Trust Open promises to provide some excellent action heading into the weekend, with the six-way tie atop the leaderboard and 16 players all within three strokes of the lead. And with stars like Watson, Johnson, Jordan Spieth and Sergio Garcia all within striking distance, among others, things should get fascinating over the next three rounds.
And if Singh and Goosen can replicate their form from Thursday, it might provide quite the blast from the past, too.
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