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Kokrak fades as Kuchar rallies
As Jason Kokrak made the turn to the back nine in Sunday’s final round of the RBC Heritage in Hilton Head Island, S.C., he had the leaders in his sights.
Just three shots back and already 3-under par for the round, the Warren JFK graduate was soaring up the leaderboard looking to cap off a weekend charge with another top 10 finish.
Instead, misfortune struck.
Kokrak missed the fairway off the tenth tee and his ball took a unfavorable bounce off the cart path down the right side. Then, his approach shot struck a tree limb that was dangling out over the green.
A two-putt bogey foiled any momentum he had going.
“I caught a couple bad breaks, but I thought the golf course was set up pretty easy,” Kokrak said. “I gave myself some good birdie opportunities, I just couldn’t get any of them to fall.”
His five on the par 4 tenth was just his second bogey over his previous 31 holes, including a string of 27 in a row thanks to a bogey-free third round on Saturday.
Kokrak shot a final round 70 to finish at 4-under par for the tournament but as it turned out, he would’ve had a tough time catching the leaders.
Matt Kuchar shot a 64 to finish at 11-under 273, one stroke ahead of Luke Donald, who had his third second place and fifth top-three finish here in the past six years.
Kuchar capped off the win in style, too.
He saw his well-struck 5-iron on the 18th hole come up way short of the target and settle in a front bunker.
“Well,” he thought as he walked toward the shot, “there are a lot worse places to be.”
For Kuchar, there was no better place — and no better shot in the tournament.
He followed with a stunning chip-in on Harbour Town Golf Link’s closing, lighthouse hole, to overcome a four-shot deficit and end nearly a month of Sundays where he came close to a title only to lose at the end.
Kuchar hit it solid, felt it was a good line and watched it rattle home.
“I heard the crowd go crazy,” Kuchar said. “Then I went crazy.”
Kuchar punched the air to celebrate, grabbed his cap and swung it around to the cheers of the crowd. It was Kuchar’s seventh career PGA Tour victory. He earned $1.044 million and his first trophy since the Memorial last June.
At No. 6 in the world, the highest-ranked golfer in the field, he could’ve taken a break like other top competitors. Instead, he hoped the momentum would carry into Harbour Town.
“It’s awfully sweet to have another chance,” Kuchar said.
Kokrak slipped out of the top 10 after another bogey down the stretch dropped him into a tie for 12th. It is, however, his sixth top 15 finish in 14 events this season.
His third-round 66 is a big reason why.
“There was less wind and the course was pretty soft from all the rain which made it play a little bit easier,” Kokrak said of the conditions on Saturday. “But I also hit the ball extremely well.”
Kokrak, who’s fifth on the PGA Tour in driving distance, said the tee boxes were moved up significantly for the final round, causing the low scores. As a longer hitter, the changes weren’t as favorable to him as they were for some of the tour’s shorter hitters like Kuchar.
“You just have to pick and choose your spots,” Kokrak said. “It’s a hitters game and you’ve got to be able to dial it in when you have to if you’re to have a good look at birdie.”
Kuchar did just that on Sunday. He made up the four shots on Donald with seven birdies in his first 10 holes. Then nearly gave away another tournament when he three-putted from less than eight feet away at the par-3 17th, a bogey that dropped him into a tie for the top spot — and set up the dramatic 72nd hole.
“I was in a little bit of shock,” Kuchar said. “But I think I did a good job of shaking things off.”
Donald had two holes to catch Kuchar after the chip but couldn’t do it. He missed a 28-foot birdie putt at the 17th hole, then saw his own try at a chip-in birdie slide past the cup.
“Finishing second isn’t what I was hoping for,” he said. “Disappointed, obviously, not to have won. Usually a solid 69 on a windy day with a two-shot lead is enough to get it done on Sundays. It’s tough to win out here and hats off to Matt for a superb round.”
Donald was at 10-under 274 after his 69. Ben Martin, who turned pro in 2010, shot 67 to finish tied for third at 9 under with John Huh, who shot 68.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.