This article is largely inspired by some hate mail I received a few weeks ago when I discussed the recent string of PGA Tour meltdowns on The 19th Hole Radio Show. The e-mailer told me that I had no clue of the pressure that the best golfers in the world were under every single shot of their rounds. The writer also told me I was a moron, but that has nothing to do with the topic. The finishes of the events on the PGA and Champions Tours do, though.
The final rounds of the FedEx St. Jude Classic and the Senior PGA Championship could not have begun more differently. Justin Leonard opened the final round with an eight-stroke advantage over his playing partners. Jerry Pate didn't get the lead in the Senior PGA Championship until the back nine on Sunday. Both came to the final hole with a lead that should have been enough to win the tournament under the circumstances. As it turns out, only one came out a winner: Justin Leonard.
The pressure was too much for Jerry Pate. He had not won a golf tournament in twenty-three years, dating back to the 1982 Players Championship. He was looking at a two-foot, straight-in putt for his first Champions Tour major and his first win since a meltdown that marred a career certain for stardom. He missed the putt. The nerves and the many years of frustration held him back from a well-deserved win. Because of that miss, just one hole later, not only had he last the event, but he had lost to a virtual unknown in Mike Reid.
Conversely, Justin Leonard came through in the clutch. He made a difficult five-footer on the 71st hole and played the last just well enough to beat a surging David Toms. Leonard played conservative golf all day and it pigeon-holed him once Toms began making his back nine charge. Leonard could not seem to force himself to make an aggressive play or a quality shot. Birdies were not on his radar. But he had enough in the tank to make a crucial putt and win for the second time this season.
So what can account for the difference between the performances of Pate and Leonard? First, it has to be experience. Certainly, Jerry Pate has many more years on Justin Leonard, but it has been more than two decades since Pate could even think about choking. Leonard's last experience with a big choke came in last year's PGA Championship. (How interesting!)
For Pate to be in contention this week was like a whole new experience for him. He had forgotten how to win, and it is not like riding a bicycle. You need to be in the ring, battling, in order to find a way to win and Pate has not done that since the Reagan administration.
And second, the circumstance was certainly different. Justin Leonard was playing to win the FedEx St. Jude Classic. No offense to the folks in Tennessee, but that event does not compare to Justin's '97 British Open title, or his many Ryder/President's Cup appearances. His main motivation to win on Sunday was to not become the first player in PGA Tour history to blow a final round eight-shot lead.
He was certainly successful, but not in the way he would have liked. Jerry Pate was playing for his first meaningful win in 20 years. He was playing for his first Champions Tour win in his new career as a golfer, and in a major no less. The money does not mean much to either of these players, but this was a much more important moment for Pate.
So then, what can be said of pressure in light of this week's shining examples? Winning breeds winning. It's as simple as that. If you are in the situations that are as pressured packed as these with some regularity, then you are more likely to perform. Justin Leonard proved that.
Jerry Pate proved that winning, or the potential to win, is never a dull proposition. For man who was as successful in his prime as Pate, championships could have become less important. But, Pate felt the thrill and excitement on Sunday in a way he has not felt in a long time. It was a whole new experience for a man who had so much success in his career. Now that's drama at its finest.
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