Current:Home > NewsMatt Kuchar bizarrely stops playing on 72nd hole of Wyndham Championship -ProfitZone
Matt Kuchar bizarrely stops playing on 72nd hole of Wyndham Championship
View
Date:2025-04-13 12:05:17
Aaron Rai won his first PGA Tour title on Sunday, claiming a two-stroke win at the Wyndham Championship.
But the tournament didn't officially end as darkness fell on Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro, North Carolina.
That's because Matt Kuchar bizarrely stopped playing after hitting his tee shot on the 18th hole, opting to mark his ball in the pine straw 212 yards from the hole and walk the course with the other players in the last group as they completed their rounds.
"It has been a really bizarre sequence of events," said CBS Sports analyst Trevor Immelman as the network's broadcast came to a close.
Kuchar led the tournament after 36 holes, but was out of contention at 11-under when he stepped to the 18th tee to conclude a marathon, 36-hole day stemming from weather delays due to Tropical Storm Debby.
With the sun already set and visibility declining, tournament officials informed Kuchar, Chad Ramey and Max Greyserman that rather than blow the horn to suspend play, they would be allowed to finish the hole then or complete it the next day.
In an apparent attempt to finish quickly, Kuchar unknowingly hit into the group ahead of him, one that included Rai – who led Greyserman by one stroke at the time.
"Why did he tee off on 18 when the fairway wasn’t clear? To me that was the egregious error," Golf Channel’s Paige Mackenzie later said. "It was completely disrespectful."
After Kuchar's ball landed left of the fairway, he informed officials he would finish his round Monday morning – even though he had no chance of advancing to the PGA Tour's playoffs. As things turned out, Rai birdied the final hole to push his lead to two strokes and Greyserman closed with a par to finish second.
As the sun rose again on Monday, Kuchar was the only player back out on the course to make the results official.
He hit his second shot on the green and parred the hole to finish in a tie for 12th, earning him $134,695.
The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast.Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.
veryGood! (8)
Related
- Who's hosting 'Saturday Night Live' tonight? Musical guest, how to watch Dec. 14 episode
- San Francisco supervisors bar police robots from using deadly force for now
- Lucy Liu Reveals She Took Nude Portraits of Drew Barrymore During Charlie’s Angels
- Everything We Know About Yellowjackets Season 2
- Chuck Scarborough signs off: Hoda Kotb, Al Roker tribute legendary New York anchor
- 22 Rave Mom Essentials From Amazon To Pack For Festival Season
- Ashley Graham Shares the Makeup Hack That Makes Her Life Easier as a Busy Mom
- The Game Awards 2022: The full list of winners
- See you latte: Starbucks plans to cut 30% of its menu
- Ulta 24-Hour Flash Sale: Take 50% Off Origins, Live Tinted, Foreo, Jaclyn Cosmetics, and More
Ranking
- Rolling Loud 2024: Lineup, how to stream the world's largest hip hop music festival
- Why some Egyptians are fuming over Netflix's Black Cleopatra
- Emma Chamberlain Sets the Record Straight on Claim She’s Selling Personal DMs for $10,000
- Why Demi Lovato's Sister Madison De La Garza Decided to Get Sober
- Justice Department, Louisville reach deal after probe prompted by Breonna Taylor killing
- Kelly Ripa Recalls Past Marriage Challenges With “Insanely Jealous” Husband Mark Consuelos
- Transcript: Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas on Face the Nation, May 7, 2023
- How the gig economy inspired a cyberpunk video game
Recommendation
Rylee Arnold Shares a Long
Google is now distributing Truth Social, Trump's Twitter alternative
Sephora 24-Hour Flash Sale: 50% Off Foreo and More
Son of El Chapo and Sinaloa cartel members hit with U.S. sanctions over fentanyl trafficking
Most popular books of the week: See what topped USA TODAY's bestselling books list
More than 1,000 trafficking victims rescued in separate operations in Southeast Asia
Should RHOP's Robyn Dixon Be Demoted After Season 7 Backlash? Candiace Dillard Says...
How Twitter's platform helped its users, personally and professionally