Watney's win a sign of his stardom, even if he won't admit it
By Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM Chief of Correspondents
DORAL, Fla. -- So what if he had made a water-logged double bogey at the 18th hole in the third round? When Nick Watney returned to the tee at TPC Blue Monster at Doral's signature hole with it all on the line Sunday as the shadows began to encroach on this sun-kissed afternoon, he wasn't nervous.
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Well, maybe just a little bit. But the chance to win a golf tournament, particularly one as prestigious as the World Golf Championships-Cadillac Championship, is why Watney plays the game.
"I really wanted to take care of business and to grasp this opportunity," he would later say, the most earnest of expressions on his All-American face. "I actually love that feeling (and) you don't get it too often."
The feeling that came after he sank that 13-foot birdie putt -- one of just three surrendered by the treacherous par 4 in the final round -- was even better, though. The two-stroke victory over Dustin Johnson was the third of Watney's career and propelled him to second in the FedExCup standings and on the PGA TOUR money list.
"It's the biggest day of my golfing career," Watney said. "With the way yesterday ended and two years ago, it means a whole lot, and I'm very, very excited."
Ahh, two years ago. That's when Watney had matched Phil Mickelson shot for shot in the final round of the Cadillac Championship but came up short when his 30-footer for the tying birdie stopped 2 inches shy of paydirt on the very same green that was so accomodating this Sunday.
"I mean, it's nice to finish second in a World Golf (Championships) event, but at the same time, it's the worst place to finish when it's a close tournament like that," Watney said. "So two years ago came into my head, and also Whistling Straits, just the letdown and disappointment of the way that I performed that day.
"So I just wanted to give myself, or allow myself, to play well and to execute, and I was able to do that."
But Watney didn't hit the shots he needed when he took the lead into the final round of the PGA Championship at Whistling Straits last year and ended up tying for 18th after a dismal 81. Johnson played with him that day and "felt his pain" after having himself squandered the third-round lead at the U.S. Open two months earlier.
On Sunday, though, Johnson was beaten by a 67 and a man who played totally within himself.
"Nick is a good friend of mine," Johnson said. "I told him walking off that if I was going to lose to somebody, I was glad it was him. And he played really well. I didn't give him the tournament. He earned it. He played well."
Butch Harmon, the man who coaches both talented young players, said Watney simply got out of his comfort Zone at the PGA. Watney normally needs no more than 30 minutes to warm up before a round but that day he walked to the range an hour and 15 minutes before he was to tee off in the final round.
"I knew we were in trouble," Harmon recalled. "I was trying to tell him jokes and everything just to try and relax him, he was so amped up and ready to go."
Watney learned from that experience, though. And when he needed to call on all his reserves at the 18th hole on Sunday -- mental as well as physical -- the fresh-faced Californian was equal to the test.
"I know how good Dustin is," Watney said. "And it wouldn't have surprised me at all if I made a par there; that if he would have made a birdie to force a playoff. The golf tournament wasn't over, and I wanted to give myself a putt. I putted the best I've ever putted under pressure today ... and it worked out."
With the victory, which was his seventh top-10 in a row dating back to last year's TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola, Watney has put himself squarely in the conversation as one of the best young players in the game. But the way he sees it, that discussion is for the media, not for him to say whether he belongs.
"I feel like all I can do is try to keep improving, hopefully keep winning tournaments," Watney said. "The world rankings are what they are. I mean, it's cliché, it's very cliché, but that's not why I play. I play for feelings like this. If one day you guys decide that, then I'll be honored, but ... I don't really think about that."
Harmon, though, is proud of the way Watney, who currently leads the TOUR's All-Around ranking, has matured. He's worked hard on his short game, particularly his wedges, to complement a putter that has him ranked third on TOUR right now. Watney also ranks 13th in driving distance and 24th in total driving.
The way Harmon sees it, the 29-year-old Watney has gone from being a pretty good player out of Fresno State to one who is moving into the upper echelon of his profession. And a win in a tournament that featured the top 50 players in the world, among others, is sure to be a boost.
"It's a springboard in confidence because you win a tournament and you win a tournament of this magnitude against this field," Harmon said. "It has nothing to do with the money or the name of the tournament but agaianst this field, when you win it does you a tremendous amount of confidence.
"It makes you realize you belong. It makes you realize you are just as good or better than any of them -- and that's huge."
Watney, for his part, called the victory a "huge honor." He said he was excited and proud, but he also is savvy enough to know that golf, like other sports, is a game of what-have-you-done-lately.
And what he did on Sunday should serve Watney well.
"Next week in Tampa, we all start tied at level par," the PGA TOUR's most recent champion said. "So I think I'll take that I was able to mentally and physically execute down the stretch under pressure.
"Take that, store it in my memory bank, and get after it again on Thursday."
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