Graham DeLaet played in his first-ever Tour Championship, the final playoff event for the Professional Golf Association. After four rounds, DeLaet finished 28th place out of a 30-man field.
Graham DeLaet played in his first-ever Tour Championship, the final playoff event for the Professional Golf Association. After four rounds, DeLaet finished 28th place out of a 30-man field. He earned $131,200 for the tournament, and took bonus FedExCup earnings of $600,000, bringing his year-end total to over $2.8 million.
For the first round, DeLaet was paired with Phil Michelson. DeLaet started with his best round for the whole tournament, scoring a 68, two-under-par.
Starting on the front nine, DeLaet was on par for the first seven holes, then shot back-to-back birdies for holes eight and nine. Then during the back nine, DeLaet had a birdie on holes 10, 12 and 15. He also shot bogeys on holes 14, 16 and 18.
Then for the second round, DeLaet was paired with Kevin Streelman. He started on the front nine again, hitting a double bogey for hole six and then a birdie for hole eight. During the back nine, DeLaet shot a birdie on hole 10, bogeys on holes 11 and 14 and then a birdie on hole 17. He finished the round at 71, one-over-par.
Competitors golfed in threesomes for the third round, and DeLaet played with Hunter Mahan and Bill Haas. After another start on the front nine, DeLaet shot back-to-back bogeys on holes four and five, and then balanced it out with back-to-back birdies on holes eight and nine.
During the back nine, DeLaet shot back-to-back bogeys on holes 10 and 11, then shot birdies on holes 12 and 16. He ended the round with a double bogey on hole 17, finishing with a score of 72, two-over-par.
In the final round of the tournament, DeLaet was paired with Jim Furyk. He struggled during the front nine, shooting bogeys on holes two, five and six, and only one birdie on hole three. Then during the back nine, DeLaet hit back-to-back bogeys on holes 11 and 12, and one more birdie on hole 17. His round four score was 73, three-over-par.
The Tour Championship was the final event of the 2013 season for the PGA Tour. DeLaet had an active year, playing 26 events. He made the cut 21 times, and was in the top 10- seven times, placed third two times and earned a career-best second once.
DeLaet will have a week-and-a-half off from tournaments before he appears in the President's Cup, competing with the International Team. The U.S. Team and the International Team will compete during the four-day tournament, starting Oct. 3.
The President's Cup is a mixture of four-ball and alternate-shot tournament style. DeLaet hasn't played either since he represented Canada in the World Cup in 2008 and 2009. His last adventure with match play came in the Canadian Amateur, when the event still used that format.
The only other Canadian to ever appear in the President's Cup is Mike Weir, who inspired DeLaet during his junior golf years, and he continues to look to him for advice and guidance.
Since DeLaet qualified for the Tour Championship and the President's Cup, he will have his choice of tournaments for the 2014 season. It is likely that DeLaet will appear in all four major events next year, including several World Golf tournaments.
