Coming into the 2012 WGC-Cadillac Championship at Doral in Florida, golf fans like myself were really excited because for the first time this season golf's big three players were all playing at Doral. All three, Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy and Phil Mickelson, were playing great too.
Mickelson won at Pebble Beach, while Mclroy won at the Honda Classic and claimed the #1 ranking in the world. Tiger Woods has not won on the tour in a few years, but he fired a final round 62 last Sunday, March, 4, 2012, at the Honda Classic. That was Tiger's lowest final round score ever.
Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy Eight Strokes Off the Lead at Doral After Third Round
After three rounds at Doral though, both Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy find themselves eight strokes off the lead. Woods and McIlroy are both -9 under par after 54 holes. Normally, -9 under after three rounds in a golf tournament would have any player in contention, but not at Doral in 2012.
Bubba Watson Tearing It Up at Doral
That's because Bubba Watson is tearing up Doral. After firing a -5 under 67 in yesterday's, Saturday, March 10, 2012, third round, Bubba Watson is -17 under par for the tournament. Watson fired a -10 under 62 in Friday's second round, and he shot -2 under opening round Thursday.
Going into to today's final round at Doral, Bubba Watson has a three stroke lead over Justin Rose and Keegan Bradley, both at -14 under. Peter Hanson is in fourth at -12 under, followed by Zach Johnson and Matt Kuchar, who are tied for fifth at -11 under. Johnson Wagner finds himself all alone in seventh place at -10 under.
Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy Tied for Eighth, Phil Mickelson is in 42nd Place
Then comes arguably the two most talented players in golf, Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy in eighth place. Tied with Tiger and Rory at -9 under are Martin Kaymer, Charl Schwartzel, Luke Donald and Webb Simpson.
Phil Mickelson is not playing great at Doral. Mickelson is at -2 under for the tournament, and sitting in a tie for 42nd place. After winning Pebble Beach, Phil Mickelson lost in a three-way sudden death playoff in the Northern Trust Open. That was three weeks ago, and Phil took two weeks off before Doral.
The odds of Tiger Woods or Rory McIlroy being able to make up an eight stroke deficit and end up winning at Doral are pretty remote. As a longtime golf fan though, I'll be watching today to see if either play can make a big run at the leaders, and just possibly pull off a great win. In either case, Tiger and Rory are playing well at Doral and setting the stage for the Masters in a couple of weeks.
The Masters is my favorite golf tournament, and I'm looking forward to it this year and hoping Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy and Phil Mickelson can make the 2012 Masters really memorable.
