Tommy Gainey came to the drivable par-4 17th at TPC Scottsdale Monday one shot out of the lead, meaning one good drive could put a first PGA TOUR win squarely in view.Moments later he putted out for a devastating triple-bogey seven after two penalty strokes. His drive came in hot but hugging the greenside lake, hitting a red stake and caroming into the water. After a drop he faced a sidehill chip, which also found the water.
“You see what I made on the hole; I made a 7. Next time it’ll be a little different story.”
Gainey was at the top of the leaderboard throughout the weather-plagued event, opening with a 63 and following with rounds of 65 and 68. But in the fourth round he sputtered with bogeys at 11 and 12, just before the end of Sunday’s play, then Monday he birdied 15 but missed other opportunities.
The 17th hole then not only derailed his chances at a win but hit him in the pocket, as it dropped him into a tie for eighth. That paid $164,700, whereas a par-par finish would have paid nearly $200,000 more.
“For three rounds I played really good, and today, I don’t know what to say, I just played awful,” Gainey said. “But I guess I’ve just got to deal with it. You’ve got to win with class and you’ve got to lose with class, so I’m trying to deal with that right now.”
Gainey has a runner-up finish to his credit, at the 2008 Children’s Miracle Network Classic. He’ll go to the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am and try to continue the good play he enjoyed for most of the week at TPC Scottsdale.
“It’s going to sting for a couple days. It’s going to sting for a couple days,” Gainey said. “Hopefully I’ll be ready come Thursday first round of Pebble. I should be ready to play. But for the next couple of days, this hurts.”
