Talk about a long shot: at 401 yards, Shawn Stefani had the longest drive in any 2014 PGA Tour event right off the bat at the Frys.com Open. Stefani admits that the concrete on the cart path helped on the 410-yard hole. Last season’s longest drive was 424 yards by Bubba Watson. You know what they say: “drive for show, putt for dough”.
Speaking of dough, the 2014 PGA Tour money leader is Rory Mcllroy winning just over $8 million after seventeen events. Runner-up Bubba Watson only clocks in at around $6 million - and Watson played four more events than Mcllroy. Some other fast facts: Jimmy Walker had 401 birdies and Adam Scott led the PGA players with the most cuts made at 44, followed by Steve Stricker (35) and Jim Furyk (28).
Nicknamed “Long John” for his driving distance off the tee, John Daly had the highest single-hole score this season—12— during the second round of the Valspar Championship on the par-4 sixteenth hole. He took a whopping 70 putts over two days at that tournament. Unfortunately, this title isn’t new for John - he also holds the record for the worst single-hole score at any PGA Tour event ever with an 18 on the par-5 sixth hole at the 1998 Bay Hill Invitational. This year however, Bubba Watson and Brett Rumford were right behind him, each with a highest single-hole score of eleven.
Gary Woodland, two-time PGA Tour winner, was a true tour de force this year: he never missed a single putt inside three feet. That makes him one of two perfect players in the past two seasons, going 1,641 of 1,641. Luke Donald, a golfer who was the World Number One in 2011, is 963 of 963 in the past two seasons on the Tour, too.
So how award-winning was this season? The current number-one ranked golfer, Mcllroy was named the PGA Tour Player of the Year, the PGA Player of the Year (Jack Nicklaus Trophy), and the Money Winner. He was also given two Scoring Leader awards, two major championship titles, and a World Golf Championship victory. The rookie of the year was Chesson Hadley. Having just turned professional in 2010, Hadley was ranked 49th in the FedEx Cup Playoffs, which included 9th place at the Deutsche Bank Championship.
Now it’s time to say hello to the 2015 PGA Tour—and celebrate the Tour’s 100th season. It will resume in early January with the Hyundai Tournament of Champions. In the meantime, don’t forget to check out the annual countdown of the Top 30 Players to Watch as they’re unveiled throughout December. And hey, a new year means it’s time for a new ball from Lost Golf Balls.
