Fansided

The Golf God Was Smiling:Bradley Wins The WGC

By Les Bailey

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Aug. 5, 2012; Akron, OH, USA; Keegan Bradley reads the 18th green during the final round of the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone Country Club-South Course. Mandatory Credit: Debby Wong-US PRESSWIRE
Aug. 5, 2012; Akron, OH, USA; Keegan Bradley reads the 18th green during the final round of the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone Country Club-South Course. Mandatory Credit: Debby Wong-US PRESSWIRE /

The golf announcers always talk about how much of a grinder Jim Furyk is, they should also be calling Keegan Bradley a grinder. With as many pre-shot mannerisms as Mike Hargrove of the Cleveland Indians used to have at the plate, Bradley grinds out a 6 under par 64 Sunday at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational to beat 71 hole, wire-to-wire winner Jim Furyk by one stroke.

Furyk was sitting in the middle of the 18th fairway needing only to make par to win, but the golf gods were not smiling on him. His second shot came up in the tall rough around the green, and after all was said and done, he would make double bogey, and lose the tournament by one stroke. Bradley dropped a 16 foot par putt, and pocketed the $1.4 Million winners share and took home the beautiful trophy. Furyk ended up tied for second with Steve Stricker, Louis Oosthuizen finished his tournament at 11 under par, alone in fourth place.

The final round at Firestone Country Club in Akron Ohio start late due to an early rain delay. The officials decided to play the round with threesomes instead of the traditional twosomes. This put Keegan Bradley in the group with Furyk and Oostuizen. The South African had an up and down day and finished with a 69. Jim Furyk would have run away with this tournament if he could have gotten some putts to drop in the earlier rounds, and with four birdies and only one bogey on his card Sunday, until the 18th hole, looked to be invincible.

Aug. 5, 2012; Akron, OH, USA; Keegan Bradley gives an interview as the winner of the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone Country Club-South Course. Mandatory Credit: Debby Wong-US PRESSWIRE
Aug. 5, 2012; Akron, OH, USA; Keegan Bradley gives an interview as the winner of the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone Country Club-South Course. Mandatory Credit: Debby Wong-US PRESSWIRE /

"Keegan Bradley, the 2011 PGA Champion had a bogey free fourth round, and with six birdies on the day, was ready when Furyk faltered on the 18th hole. The surprise of the day was Steve Stricker who also shot a 6 under 64 on the day and seemed to out of nowhere, finish tied for second place with Furyk. Back to back bogeys on Saturday at the 16th and 17th cost Stricker a shot at a possible tie on Sunday."

Tiger Woods hit the ball very well all week, but was unable to get any putts to fall. His short iron play was putting him in position to rely on a putting game that just isn’t there yet. After starting the final round at even par, he made four birdies on the front, but could not improve on the back. He finished at 4 under par in a tie for 8th place.

The win for Bradley has pushed him up to 7th place in FedEx Cup points from 26th place, and more importantly, has  more than likely, solidified a spot on the Ryder Cup Team where he is now in fourth place, well above the 8th place bubble. The 26 year old from Woodstock Vermont, and  nephew of former LPGA champion and Hall of Famer Pat Bradley is quickly becoming a media darling and a threat to win anytime he tee’s it up.

Bradley will be the defending champion next week at the PGA Championship, and will assuredly be looking for his fourth career tour win.

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