5 highlights from The Genesis Open

The Genesis Open has seen its fair share of exciting games over the years, and with past winners including Phil Mickelson and Dustin Johnson, this year’s tournament was never going to be boring. From golfing greats failing to qualify to an unexpected star rising to the top, there’s been plenty of surprises in last week’s battle to the final…

Bubba Watson’s first win in two years
Watson’s last PGA Tour victory at Riviera in 2016 was impressive, but not as impressive as his performance in the Genesis Open. The golfer hit an eagle with six-under 65, and the top score set the tone for the rest of the day.

On Sunday, the last day of the tournament, Watson was the man to beat: a mean feat considering his slip to 117th in the world rankings after a winless two years. In the final round, he shot a two-under and sealed his 10th PGA title, two strokes ahead of his rivals Kevin Na and Tony Finau.

Graeme McDowell misses the green
It looked promising for Graeme McDowell on Sunday morning after the golfer held the joint lead overnight. The former US Open winner joined Patrick Cantlay on the front line after a top performance on the Friday and Saturday of the tournament, which saw him catch Cantley up with a round that included two bogeys and seven birdies. But on Sunday, the champion missed the green at the par-three sixth and the mistakes mounted from there.
  

Tiger Woods loses out
Champion golfer Tiger Woods missed his chance to go through to the next round after a miserable performance on Friday saw him miss the cut. After shooting a 5-over 76, following his 1-over 72 in Round 1, Woods’ performance put him four shots off the projected cut – leaving him firmly out of the game. It’s one of Woods’ first performances since returning to golf after a back injury – but the top player has vowed to up his game with some more tournaments.

The reigning greats pick up the pace
One of the most impressive moments of the tournament was Johnson's climb 45 places up the leaderboard in the first half of the penultimate round. The world number one might not have taken home the prize, but his performance earned him a place in the top ten.

Golfing favourite Phil Mickelson also looked to be in with a shot of the final ten with an eagle and a five-under, but ultimately, both top players lost out to Watson.

Cantlay's struggle to retain the lead
Going into the back nine of the final round with a one-shot lead put Patrick Cantlay in a promising position for the second half of the game, but the star golfer soon ran into some tee trouble – pulling him back down from his prominent position at the front of the queue. Cantlay had tied with Finau for the beginning of the game, but ended in fourth place with Scott Stallings.