Bubba Pulls Out Win in China


Bubba Watson has a knack for making things interesting. The 36-year-old from Bagdad, Fla., did it again on Sunday in China, closing with a bogey, double-bogey and eagle to tie Tim Clark at 11-under 277 at the WGC-HSBC Champions, then beating the South African on the first playoff hole.

Watson's biggest shot came when he eagled the par-5 18th at Sheshan International Golf Club by holing out from a greenside bunker for a 2-under 70 and a tie with Clark (69). It looked like Clark was in great shape when he hit his third shot to four feet and playing partners Rickie Fowler found the water and Watson the sand.

But Watson sank his bunker shot and Clark's birdie set up the playoff. Clark and Watson returned to the 18th. Watson landed in the same greenside bunker with his second and Clarke hit his third to around 20 feet. Though Watson didn't duplicate his eagle heroics from regulation, he hit his sand shot close for the birdie and Clark two-putted for par.

"For me this is the big one," said Watson about his third win in 2014 and his first-ever WGC title. "It's very big because I always wanted to win outside the U.S. It's my seventh win, gets me closer to 10 wins which has always been my goal. It's a World Golf Championship, so when you add it all up it means a lot."

As for the crazy ending to his round, Watson told the European Tour's website, "It was such a tough bunker shot you are not really thinking about making it, but I told my caddie it's been a wild day, a wild couple of holes, but if we can make this it changes everything and it went in like a putt. Clark was like 'Why would you do that?!'

"In the playoff, it was funny because the bunker shot I holed was on the same line (as the putt) so we knew the line, we knew it was fast. I was trying to two-putt and it just fell in," added Watson, who's won two of the past three Masters, including this year.

Despite finishing second, Clark was pleased to be in contention on Sunday. "I never expected to be in this position at the start of the week. I fought hard. I knew I needed to birdie that playoff hole, especially with him (Watson) being able to reach," said the 38-year-old, who won the Canadian Open this summer.

"Obviously disappointed to be that close but I'm pleased overall. I just tried to play this course smart and in the end it was enough to give me a shout."

Fowler, playing in the penultimate group with Clark and Watson, finished with a 70 and a stroke out of the playoff. Also at 278 were Japan's Hiroshi Iwata (72) and Northern Ireland's Graeme McDowell.

McDowell entered the final round with a one-stroke lead; he was hoping to polish off a wire-to-wire win but closed with a 73.

"To be brutally honest, I didn't have my 'A' game all week," McDowell said. "And the golf course just got so difficult this weekend. The pins were evil at times and you really had to be on your iron play to have a chance to access them and I didn't play well enough, simple as that.

"The putter that was so hot early in the week kind of cooled off this weekend, but to finish tied third in this type of field, not playing my best, I have to count myself fairly fortunate. To finish third in the style I did, I'm disappointed. To finish third playing the way I did, I'm pretty happy."

Tied for sixth at 280 were Denmark's Thorbjorn Olesen and England's Ian Poulter, who both had 71s, and Germany's Martin Kaymer. Like Fowler, Kaymer - playing in the last group with McDowell and Iwata - had a chance on the 72nd hole. But his approach flew over the green into a hazard and the 2014 U.S. Open champion finished with a double-bogey and a 73.

"It was just unfortunate with 18," said Kaymer, who won the tournament in 2011. "Thought I had a good yardage. I thought it was a perfect yardage with a hurting wind, but it came off very, very hot. But I take a lot of positives out of that week. It was a good week. I played really well and I have another two or three big tournaments to go."

For all the scores, visit http://www.europeantour.com/europeantour/season=2014/tournamentid=2014088/leaderboard/index.html.