Joe McConnell
Matt Kuchar has apologized to everyone affected by his decision not to complete the final hole of the Wyndham Championship on Sunday night.
Kuchar was the only player in the field to return to Sedgefield Country Club on Monday, after exercising his right to not play the 72nd hole of the tournament, which was affected by adverse weather conditions.
Needing a win to continue his run as the only player to reach the FedExCup playoffs every year since their inception in 2007, Kuchar was out of contention in a 10-way tie for 12th place when he sent his tee shot into the trees on the 18th hole.
Play was suspended when the other two players in the final group, Max Greyserman and Chad Ramey, also teed off, giving all three a chance to complete the hole as daylight was rapidly fading.
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Highlights from the second round of the Wyndham Championship as Kuchar took the lead at the halfway point
But as Ramey and Greyserman, who had surrendered a four-shot lead after 13 holes but still managed to catch Englishman Aaron Rai with an eagle, opted to wrap things up, Kuchar informed tournament officials that he would mark his ball and return to the
Monday.
The 46-year-old American did as expected and resumed play at 8am local time, receiving visual relief from the scoreboard before hitting his second shot short of the green, then hitting the flag with his pitch and tapping in for par.
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Highlights from day four of the Wyndham Championship as England’s Aaron Rai takes the win
Speaking to a small group of reporters after finishing his remarks Monday, Kuchar said: “I’m sorry you had to come here this morning.
“Nobody wants to be the kind of person I feel like I’ve turned into, the one who isn’t finished. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve finished with one round. [and] disappointed that we couldn’t do it because someone didn’t
end.
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“I think if I was in the fairway with a normal shot, I probably would have tried to finish, but I had just seen Max four-putt on the 16th hole. If it had been daylight on that green, would he have four-putted? I don’t know, I don’t know.
“I didn’t realize Aaron Rai had birdied the last one. I guess Max will never finish with a chance to win a tournament. So I said, well, Max is going to stop, I’m going to stop, I’m going to make it easier for him in a way.
“Again, it sucks… nobody wants to be that guy that shows up today, a person, a hole. So I apologize to the tournament, to everyone that had to come.
“I know the ramifications, I know it sucks. I certainly apologize for forcing everyone to come here.”
Asked if he was aware of the backlash to his decision, Kuchar said, “Luckily, I avoid that kind of thing. I got a call from my agent, who was like, ‘Hey, you’re causing a lot of commotion,’ so that’s the little I heard.
“I’m grateful that I’m not part of the social media world.”
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