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 Steve Stricker was in control of his game all week at Riviera and took home his eighth PGA Tour title (PHOTO: Mark Susson). FINAL ROUND PHOTOS Who’s the best golfer in a world missing Cypress native Tiger Woods? It could very well be Steve Stricker, who won the PGA Tour’s Northern Trust Open at Riviera Country Club Sunday with a steady 1-under-par 70 and a 16-under total. The two-stroke victory vaulted Stricker to No. 2 in the Official World Golf Rankings, while San Diegan Phil Mickelson, who was seeking an unprecedented third-straight Northern Trust win, dropped from second to third in the world after a disappointing tie for 45th. It’s the first West Coast victory for the 42-year-old Stricker. He now has eight career PGA Tour wins, including four in his last 14 starts. As has become typical following his triumph, the native of Edgerton, Wis., was crying. “You pour everything into it for 72 holes, and there's a lot of emotions through the course of the round, and I typically don't show any emotion,” he explained. “So I think it's just the ending of it all and finally coming out on top that I lose it. “You look at some of the old photos of previous champions here and a great old course that has produced those champions, it means a lot to be a part of it and to have my name on there.” Teeing off Sunday morning with four holes remaining in his third round, Stricker birdied the 15th and 16th holes, and even after a bogey on the difficult par-4 18th, he began the final round with a six-stroke lead over Luke Donald, J.B. Holmes and Andres Romero. Donald made it interesting over the final 18 with his second-consecutive round of 5-under 66, but ultimately could only come within two strokes of Stricker’s lead. Donald finished second at 14-under par, while long hitters Dustin Johnson and J.B. Holmes tied for third at 13-under. For the week, Stricker’s clinical performance included an average of only 26 putts per round (first in the field), almost seven out of every 10 fairways hit and two out of every three greens in regulation. The 39-year-old Mickelson struggled to find such consistency. He seemed poised to contend for the title after standing tied for 11th through 36 holes, but faded with scores of 71-73 over the final two rounds — following an eagle on the par-5 first hole to start his third round, he made seven bogeys and only three birdies. Mickelson could not find any rhythm with his putter, ranking 70th out of 72 players in putting average. Los Angeles native Anthony Kim was tied for eighth through 54 holes but had a final round to forget — a 7-over-par 78 that saw him find only four of 14 fairways and eight of 18 greens. He fell all the way down into a tie for 52nd at even-par in his first Tour event of 2010. Long Beach’s Paul Goydos moved in the opposite direction over the final 18, firing a 6-under-par 65 that included only 22 putts. He climbed all the way up into a tie for fifth at 10-under. For a complete leaderboard, visit PGATour.com. Check back to Southland Golf throughout the year for more coverage of the PGA Tour. ALSO SEE: Stricker takes control at Northern Trust Open Johnson, Stricker tied for lead at rain-soaked Riviera Johnson shoots 64 to grab early Northern Trust Open lead |
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