The Limerick Summary: 2019 WM Phoenix Open

Winner: Rickie Fowler

Around the wider world of golf: Dustin Johnson won his first European Tour event (not co-sponsored) at the Saudi International; and Mark Anderson won the Country Club de Bogotá Championship on the Web.com Tour.

And in case you somehow ignored it, the New England Patriots won Super Bowl LIII, giving them six trophies in 18 seasons. Whether you want them or not, you have to agree that it's an certainly incredible accomplishment.

My selections for the Phoenix Open this week had been Xander Schauffele (T10) to win and Rickie Fowler (1) to Top10. As it became out, I had them backwards. That puts my totals for 2019 up to now at:

• Winners: 1 for 5
• Place well (Top10): 4 for 5 (2 Top5 finish, 2 more Top10s)
• Overall Top10s: 7 of 10 (3 Top5s, 4 more Top10s)

Ironically, when I originally wrote the post, I picked Rickie to win. Why did I change? Because while I thought Rickie, like Justin Rose the week before, would play better after a week of knocking off the rust, I felt that Rickie was less likely to jump from T66 to 1 than Rose had been to jump from T20.

Sometimes I think too much...

But for some time it looked as if I is probably proper. Rickie's four-stroke lead evaporated fast inside the awful climate that descended on TPC Scottsdale Sunday. A double-bogey and an unbelievably unlucky triple stripped away his whole lead and set Branden Grace alone on top of the leaderboard, as all of the closing pairings were unable to do any higher than Rickie.

It seemed as if Rickie could come up brief once more and his critics would be proved proper, that he wasn't a "nearer" after all.

And then something strange happened. Rickie found something deep inside, something that steadied his nerves and allowed him to rally. His usually poor performance on the final five holes turned into a two-under stretch, giving him a two-stroke win as Grace struggled to finish. It wasn't the dominant finish most expected... but then, nobody posted a dominant finish!

Rickie posted the gutty finish he wanted and closed the event with a win.

I recognise the analysts will debate whether or not Rickie 'proved" something Sunday or now not. But I suppose he did, and I suppose it's going to stand him in right stead as he movements ahead this 12 months. Sunday's finish was a tougher victory than a four- or five-stroke win could had been, and no critic can be able to take it far from him.

It will truly make this Limerick Summary that an awful lot sweeter.

A four-stroke lead wasn?T sufficient

?Cause TPC Scottsdale played tough

Once it began to rain.

Rickie stated, ?Not once more?

I?Ll show critics I?M no powderpuff!? The picture got here from this web page at pgatour.Com.